Wolven | The Mandalorian - chunkychicken (2024)

Chapter 1: 【ＳＥＡＳＯＮ　ＯＮＥ】

Chapter Text

【ＰＬＡＹＬＩＳＴ】

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1oW3AockpvLHr1u0q1lIXe?si=db656af4ba844562

Kate Beckinsale as

【ＥＬＯＤＩＥ　ＳＬＡＴＥ - ＥＤＤＹ】

Pedro Pascal as

【ＤＩＮ　ＤＪＡＲＩＮ - ＴＨＥ　ＭＡＮＤＡＬＯＲＩＡＮ】

Grogu as

【ＧＲＯＧＵ - ＴＨＥ　ＣＨＩＬＤ 】

Rhea Ripley as

【Ｃａｒａｓｙｎｔｈｉａ　Dｕｎｅ - Ｃａｒａ】

【ＤＩＳＣＬＡＩＭＥＲ】

I do not own The Mandalorian or the rights to The Mandalorian. I do, however, take ownership of my main character Elodie Slate, her story and the book cover. Please do not copy or translate my work without my consent. I also do not own any of the images, memes, songs or gifs added to the story. All Mando'a translation are made through the websites: Lingojam and Mandoa.org. MATURE CONTENT WARNING.

Chapter 2: Chapter 1: The Mandalorian

Chapter Text

She snapped her teeth at the man attempting to draw blood from the crook of her elbow. Doctor Pershing was a patient man. Cruel, manipulative, and ambitious to a fault.

"Please, it would be easier on the both of us if you just cooperate." The man tried to reason.

He got a nasty set of scars for asking that the first time. Four jagged marks he liked to try and hide by pulling down his sleeve, it gave her some satisfaction when it would pull up and reveal itself. The chain around her neck restricted her movements, but she was still able to manoeuvre within a certain radius.

Elodie scoffed at his lie, and her next swipe aimed for the arm holding the needle, which he dodged. The type of contraption he used looked like it should only be used on cadavers, thick and mechanical. Track marks of the large bore needle drew dot-to-dot patterns up her arms; some even hiding beneath the collar. He sighed heavily, signalling to the storm troopers in the room.

Steely hands planted themselves on her shoulders. They held firm, and before she could whip around to throw them off, two more sets of hands pinned her arms out to her sides.

Elodie thrashed, unable to take the weight of the man off from behind her. Doctor Pershing approached and dug the needle deep, eliciting a yelp. The storm trooper at her shoulders used one hand to pinch her chin to keep her steady.

She had a tendency to bite.

Long teeth passed down from her ancestors were to thank for that. The first premolar and canines protruded slightly into sharp points.

The Client walked in and approached his desk. "Why must you always cause such trouble, Little Wolf?" Elodie blew out deep breaths through her clenched-shut jaw, no doubt the harsh grip leaving more marks.

The room belonged to the Client himself. He did not trust her to be out of his sight for too long, due to her slippery past. Four storm troopers stood always posted in the corners of the room, aside from the few elected to guard her. Their armour looked worse for wear after having been exposed to the harsh lava flats of Nevarro. The chain on Elodie's neck attached to the wall opposite the lab. They knew better than to bring her into that room.

Ask them why they only have six guards left.

"Pershing, be quick, we are expecting guests." The Client insisted. Doctor Pershing nodded, watching the tubes ever-so-slowly fill as a result of dehydration. "I'm trying, sir."

A hiss of the door caught all their attention, pulling back to reveal the startling mulberry armour of a Mandalorian warrior geared to the nines. It was a rare sight to see all the meticulous garb and weaponry, for Mandalore had long since been decimated.

The Mandalorian mapped the room slowly, and it could be mistaken for cautiously, if he had not had an air of confidence around him that owned the room. He cast one fleeting look over at the commotion and turned to address the Client. "Greef Karga said you were coming." The Client called out to the Mandalorian.

"What else did he say?"

He continued, "He said you were the best in the parsec."

One trooper yelled suddenly, causing the guns in the room to rise. The storm troopers cast a wall of themselves between the girl and the Mandalorian, but the Mandalorian only aimed at the armed troopers.

Warm pulsing blood filled her mouth as she tore through flesh and bone quickly with her elongated canines. The trooper she'd caught off guard fell back after feeling a release; his finger no longer attached the rest of his hand. The storm troopers released their grip and backed out of her space quickly.

Dropping the digit, she smiled sweetly, feeling the dribbling essence of blood in her teeth.

Just to be petty, she spat a glob of bloodied saliva at Pershing's feet.

"Pardon, we didn't mean to alarm." Doctor Pershing sighed, putting down the instruments he used, including the contraption he was using for the blood draw.

The Client remained unamused and waved for the moaning storm trooper to be escorted out. "This is Doctor Pershing. Please excuse his lack of decorum, his enthusiasm outweighs his discretion. He was only attempting to subdue one of our long-term assets. Please, lower your weapon."

"Tell them to lower theirs' first." He demanded. One trooper spoke up, "We have you five to one." The Mandalorian didn't back down, "I like those odds."

"He also said you were expensive. Very expensive, please sit." The Client gestured for the troopers to lower their weapons and they obeyed silently. Setting the rifle on his lap, the Mandalorian perched on the edge of his seat. An unravelled cloth revealed a singular plate of pure Beskar branded with the imperial signet. The woman sat straighter, trying to catch sight of what was on display. Elodie tried to eye the table but dismissed it quickly, choosing to run her eyes over the Mandalorian before her. She did not recognise his armour, nor did she think any Mandalorian's were this far in the outer rim.

The Mandalorian inched forward in surprise, "Beskar?"

"Go ahead, it's real; it's only a down payment. I have a camtono of Beskar waiting on you for delivery of the asset."

Elodie growled, "Bastard!"

"Alive." The Doctor insisted, talking over her.

"Yes, alive, although I acknowledge bounty hunting is a complicated profession. This being the case, proof of termination is also acceptable for a lower fee." Doctor Pershing spluttered, "That is not what we agreed upon!"

"From my experience, he is better off dead." She muttered, disgusted by what they were planning. She only hoped the Mandalorian would decline. It was unlikely given the reward.

"I am simply being pragmatic." He argued, ignoring her comment.

The Mandalorian demanded to see the puck. "I'm afraid discretion dictates a less traditional agreement; we can only offer you a tracking fob."

"What's the chain code?" The Mandalorian asked.

"We can only provide the last four digits."

"Their age? That's all you can give me?" He asked shocked to which the Client added, "Yes, they're fifty years old. We can also give you last reported positional data. Between that and the fob, a man of your skill should make short work of this."

The Mandalorian stood to leave. "The Beskar belongs back into the hands of Mandalorian. It is good to restore the natural order of this after a period of such disarray, don't you agree?" The client spoke, his silver tongue resting behind a sickly smile.

"Kaysh cuyir jate'shya off kyrayc, Mando!" Elodie called out desperately, knowing none but them would understand the dead language. The Mandalorian whipped around so fast that no one saw him move. [He would be better off dead, Mandalorian!]

A storm trooper approached, holding his rifle up, the nozzle inches from her head. "You! Shut up!"

The woman continued, "De creed, vaabir te staabi kebise. Bic cuyir a adiik!" The rifle jabbed closer, so she stopped, eyeing it wearily. She'd said what she needed to anyway. [By creed, you will do the right thing. It is only a child!]

All those present watched as the Mandalorian turned, exiting wordlessly. Then she was left alone again in the hands of her captors. And when the client turned to her with a disapproving face, she knew she was going to pay for her disobedience.

Chapter 3: Chapter 2: The Child

Chapter Text

The Mandalorian stood before his restored ship on Arvala-7, and beside him was the Ugnaught he'd become acquainted with. The Child he had recovered from his recent tussle in the mercenary hideout was sleeping peacefully in the pram, blissfully unaware of the Mandalorians' true intentions. The woman had been right.

Despite being fifty years old, it was but a child.

It made him wonder more about the woman they had in chains. What else did she know?

He kept checking on the infant, unsure if it was okay since the attack by the Mudhorn. The Razor Crest was now in the best condition it could be without a qualified mechanic to reassemble it. Cables still hung from the rafters, and panels were skewed, but that didn't matter. Din just needed to return the bounty in order to receive the plentiful reward his tribe was rightfully owed. Beskar belonged to the Mandalorian's.

"I can use a crew member of your ability, and I can pay handsomely." Mando offered Kuill, but the Ugnaught politely declined.

"I am honoured, but I have worked a lifetime to finally be free of servitude." Mando could not tear his mind away from the woman who lay desolate in the arms of the empire. He wanted to know more about her, who she was, and how exactly she knew his adopted language. Mando'a was not common, nor was it easy to learn. Verbally or written.

His duty as a bounty hunter drew certain boundaries, and he wasn't sure yet if he was ready to overstep this one considering the heavy reward. He owed that to his tribe.

Din rested his hands on his belt loops, changing from one foot to the other. "I understand. Then all I can offer is my thanks. May I ask you a question before you leave?"

Kuill mounted his ride, "You may."

"What do you know about the empire testing the blood of slaves? Have you ever known any to speak Mando'a, the Mandalorian tongue?"

Kuill hummed in contemplation, "I merely worked in their labour camps and never ventured near their testing facilities. The Empire uses and manipulates what they can, and then disposes of what they do not find useful. I wager that this slave you speak of will soon outlive their usefulness and will likely be terminated." Din stayed silent, digesting the information with a torn heart. He'd hoped for a better answer and couldn't comprehend why the woman had piqued his curiosity.

Nodding, he thanked the Ugnaught.

"And thank you for bringing peace to my valley. And good luck with the child. May it survive and bring you a handsome reward." Kuill rode off on the blurrg, and Mando made his way to the co*ckpit, passing the cradle. He activated the close mechanism on his wrist for the ramp to seal shut.

It was time for the Mandalorian to bring the child in.

Elodie would start a hunger strike if only they remembered to feed her regular meals. Alas, when they do get around to supplying food, it is gone within minutes. The meagre bowl of watery soup and half a cup of water did little to sate the angry bellowing of her stomach. It was never enough to fill her, but enough to sustain her for the next day or two. It was a ploy from the Client to weaken her physically enough to not fight back at normal strength. A metal clamp was locked around her mouth as soon as the food was washed down.

The punishment.

It seemed the Client preferred the silence more than being berated while in the middle of communicating with his boss, Moff Gideon. Elodie damned her canines as they dug into her lower lip, and it was awfully painful when restricted.

She'd listened in while Greef Karga informed the Client of the upcoming arrival of the asset. The latter was giddy at the news, knowing his boss was going to be pleased. The cruel man had long awaited his arrival. Her heart shattered when the holo message glitched out, and she pinched her eyes closed at the oncoming wave of tears. All of her fighting had been for nothing. The child was captured and was going to be delivered to his potential death. Pulling at her chains, she tried screaming at the man, face blooming crimson at the strain of her silenced screams of anguish.

The Client turned to smile at the woman, approaching where she sat kneeling on the concrete.

"I hope you know that I will take great pleasure in this." He smiled, crooked teeth on show as he breathed out a sickening laugh and requested the nearest trooper to hail Doctor Pershing.

There was a loud ringing from someone at the door, and two troopers went to escort them. The doctor entered at that moment in a rush, happiness coating his features and he held a scanning device in hand.

The storm troopers re-entered with company.

A hovering pram trailed closely behind the Mandalorian, a mere seventy-two hours after he departed for the bounty. The once beautifully crafted armour now lay deeply damaged and bore large gouges; evidence of clear difficulties in obtaining the child.

What was I thinking? Apparently, even believing in another Mandalorian to do the right thing was too much to ask nowadays.

Any and all hope she had was crushed in an instant and she slumped against the wall. My fight had been for nothing. My promises were broken, she thought. A little green head covered in grey flecks of hair peered over the rim. Large hazel eyes connected with hers and widened at the sight of her. Lips gaping, the child was suddenly drawn to the older man looming closer.

"Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes, your reputation was not unwarranted."

The Mandalorian refused to look in the woman's general direction. Din feared that if he looked once, he would not stop himself from asking questions. Pathetic.

Instead, the Mandalorian decided to face the Client. "How many fobs did you give out?"

"This asset was of extreme importance to me, I had to ensure its delivery." He continued, "Such a large bounty for such a small package, but to the winner goes the spoils." The child cooed at the sight of the woman, extending grabby hands. Her shoulders sagged at the sight of him, and she shook her head. His ears dropped, and he sank back.

Doctor Pershing encouraged the pram to follow him into the lab. The child tried to catch the eye of the Mandalorian as he was confused. Din followed the pram with his eyes until it was out of his view. Unable to restrain himself, he asked, "What are your plans for it?"

The Client's composure grew darker, "How uncharacteristic of one of your reputation."

The Mandalorian persisted, leaning over the Client. He wasn't able to hold back any longer. "Who is she? The woman. She knows my language. As a Mandalorian, you can see how that would concern me."

The older man sighed, knowing he was not going to get rid of the Mandalorian, "She is of no importance. A nobody that was once an obstacle standing in the way of claiming the asset. Her life would have been simpler if she had divulged the information. But she refused. I do not take kindly to refusal, Mandalorian. And thus, our interrogations were severe." He started, "Now, you have taken both commission and payment, is it not the code of the guild that these events are now forgotten? The handsome reward should be enough to forge new armour. Unfortunately, finding a Mandalorian in these trying times is more difficult than finding the steel. Well, almost..." Elodie glared over at them both, wishing they were sent to the void.

The Mandalorian nodded to him, somewhat satisfied with the information, and turned to leave with the camtono. She tried to shout at him, call him to stop, scream profanities, and tell him what a traitor he was to his kind! To the armour!

The clamp on her jaw did not permit it. Instead, her chain tugged and rattled against the unforgiving concrete flooring. Red raw skin peeled effortlessly under the jagged, biting steel of the noose.

With stiff shoulders set, Din walked out. His hearing picked up on the commotion she was making behind him.

The Client laughed tauntingly at the commotion, "Calm yourself, little wolf. We have big plans for you."

Chapter 4: Chapter 3: The Sin

Chapter Text

Doctor Pershing approached the child, watching the medical droid work from above him. On one lab table, the child lay in a deep induced sleep. He wouldn't stop struggling since Elodie was brought in and placed on the table beside him. In fear of his abilities, he was comatose. Elodie stayed still on the slab beside him, watching the doctor work closely. Struggling only resulted in a painful shock delivered by the Doc droid above her.

After watching the brief argument Pershing had with the Client, she watched his next actions like a hawk.

The child was only alive because of him. Save for a few painful days while they drained him of his very life force.

A wire lay limp, protruding from her antecubital fossa, as they pumped the blood from her system. Thick woven straps pinned down her bare body, conveniently concealing the area of her waist and torso like a seaweed wrap. How dehumanising it was to be stripped of clothes and tested like a common scurrier.

Elodie batted her eyes rapidly in an attempt to clear the onset of blurry vision. Her right hand was struggling relentlessly under one strap to try and dislodge the needle or tear the strap.

A constant fast pace beating strummed throughout the room. Her heartbeat. She watched as her heartbeat dropped from eighty-nine beats per minute to sixty, then to forty-five. She was beginning to lose more blood than her body could tolerate. Elodie puffed for breath but felt her lungs could not inhale enough at a time. Doctor Pershing hovered over the controls of her own medical bot to ensure their programming was correct.

He grinned down at the chart in his hands, "Your genetics are truly fascinating. I don't think I have ever come across this level of human-animal gene integration before. Wolven are difficult to find in the recent climate, and even more so to be captured alive." He gushed, "You understand that it's only the Client wanting you dead, right? Me, no, no, no. If we had a little more time, there is so much I wanted to explore in your physical capabilities, not just your blood. This, however, this will have to do. Now we have the child, he no longer has use for you." Elodie flashed her luminous blue eyes briefly from their standard inky black, hoping they could communicate what she could not with the clamp restraining her jaw.

He jumped away, holding the data pad close to his chest. Her head fell back to the slab with a small thump, rolling to the side under the weight of holding it up. This was far more peaceful than she ever imagined her death to be.

Violent rumbles reverberated throughout the compound. Overhead, the light flickered, illuminating a small exhaust of dust from the vents. Shortly after, shots of blasters were heard. Someone obviously wasn't pleased with the Empire taking residence on this planet. Perhaps the guild had had enough of their residency now that they had paid their bounty out.

She hoped it would be true.

"What the...?" Doctor Pershing rushed to ensure the child remained stabilised before filing away important documents in preparation for evacuation. Elodie laughed under the mouth guard, and the doctor looked worried when screaming resonated on the other side of the door.

The blast door flew open, revealing a figure donned head-to-toe in freshly cast ashen Beskar. A thick dark flight suit encased the exposed skin between to protect them from harm. With a pulse rifle strapped to his back, Din wielded his blaster. Behind him, the hallways were dim as if the electronics had been fried. Red emergency evacuation lights sprung to life intermittently.

Doctor Pershing cowered at the advancement of the bounty hunter, albeit blocking him from approaching the child.

"Wait! Please! Don't hurt them! One's just a child!" The doctor flapped his hands wildly, hoping to deter the Mandalorian.

Elodie strained to see around the man, but she didn't have to for long as the Mandalorian threw the doctor out of view and into the opposite wall. Honestly, she was gobsmacked. The last thing she'd expected was for the Mandalorian to return for the child. Let alone take on the wrath of the Empire.

Din saw both the captives' side by side, an assortment of medical instruments between the two, and he blew the droids to hell with a single blaster bolt. Anger boiled in Din, seeing the two look so helpless, and he ripped out the intravenous line draining Elodie of her blood. He looked at the contraption around her jaw but could find no easy release mechanism. Unsure how to help, he whirled around to the doctor.

"What did you do to them?!" The Mandalorian growled, aiming his blaster at the whimpering mess of a man. "I saved them! If it were up to the Client, they would already be dead. I kept them alive."

Mando stepped around the table and used his vibro blade to sever the woman's bindings. Standing at her side, he scooped his arm under her back to aid Elodie into a sitting position. The strap slipped, almost exposing her.

Din frowned, looking around the room. He demanded that the Doctor slide across his lab coat. "Give me your jacket."

"My jack-?"

"Now!"

Catching it, Din slipped it over her bare shoulders for her to slip her hands into. Elodie grunted, sliding off the table, while Din spun to release the child. Elodie insisted on taking the bundled child from Din's hands when decently covered. The lab coat was short, like a mini skirt, but at least she was no longer bare. Prying him from the gentle hold, she cradled him to her chest in his nest of blankets.

Mando slipped a palm to the small of her back, a sign to follow him and keep close.

"You good?" Elodie nodded in response, unable to answer verbally. In all honesty, she was still shocked at his change of heart.

Barefooted, her light steps made no noise as she followed the bounty hunter blindly through the hallways, evading scouting storm troopers by slipping into dark corners. She spotted a further two troopers up ahead and used her body weight to push the Mandalorian into a nearby crevice to hide. Enveloped in his hold, such close proximity allowed her to feel the blistering difference in his radiating body heat in contrast to the cold kiss of Beskar. He kept his breathing deep and steady, a pace she tried to match to calm herself. She remained unsure if the wave of vertigo came from blood loss or the excitement of finally escaping.

With the child pinned between them, Elodie craned her neck to observe the dark depths of the 'T' of his visor, as if it would give her his reasoning. What made you come back? The slight dip of his helmet let her know the coast was clear and they could resume their escape. Walking past a doorway, one unfortunate storm trooper fell victim to the flamethrower on the Mandalorian's wrist.

Elodie quickly pawned the child off to the Mandalorian before pouncing on the back of another one.

Falling onto the floor, the trooper was unable to take the unexpected additional weight. While the Mandalorian possessed the gadgets, Elodie wielded naught but her own hands. Claws extended to target the troopers' exposed throat, easily tearing through thin cloth and into pulsating jugular.

Doused in arterial spray, she rose to retake the child. Din handed over the child without a pause, slightly astounded by her feral behaviour.

They both overstepped the burnt remains to continue.

Mando led them into a cargo hold close to the back entrance of the building.

"Freeze! Don't move!" Five storm troopers had surrounded, "Hands up! Drop the blaster!"

"Wait! What I'm holding is very valuable." The Mandalorian called, gently encouraging her to bend at the knee with him to set the sleeping child on the floor. Scooping Elodie into his arms, the Mandalorian brought her face into his chest as he ignited the whistling birds, watching as they whizzed by their intended targets. She had to admit that her respect for the man grew exponentially at the sight of the fallen troopers surrounding them.

"Let's go." He demanded, escorting them out with a hand on her back. They left the building and went into the dimly lit streets. All around, it was unsettling to see more bounty hunters popping up. Faint pings rang out, indicating their possession of tracking fobs. Din fastened his pace, encouraging her to keep up, although her feet were growing sluggish. A wave of nausea consumed her as the rapidly diminishing adrenaline began to take its toll. Din held out an arm to support her and whispered lowly. "Keep moving."

The sky darkened at the fading sunset, and smoke seemed to grow thicker. Almost choking.

Her hand swung out in front to stop Din dead in his pursuit. Bounty hunters had unknowingly surrounded them entirely. Elodie's eyes flicked from one guild member to the next, watching their greedy gazes stare down at their next bounty. Their numbers far outweighed their own. There was no hope in the void that they were both going to make it out with the child.

Din pierced his lips under his helmet, understanding the gravity of the situation. Sweat beaded at his forehead. He's likely to be killed or imprisoned for his betrayal of the bounty hunter's guild. That left the woman and the child to return to their deaths. An impossible situation. His hand flexed, itching to reach his holstered blaster.

Greef Karga stood amidst the intervention, holding out his hands. "Welcome back, Mando... and guest. Put the package down." Elodie backed up into the hold of Mando, his hands coming to settle on her waist, "Step aside. I'm going to my ship."

"You put the bounty down, and perhaps I'll let you pass. If you truly care about them, then you'll let them get on the speeder and we'll discuss terms." Greef negotiated. She held the child closer to her chest and looked at the Mandalorian.

He was already looking down at her. That's it, she thought. He's going to give us up.

Din thought no such thing.

Looking around for any possible escape, she came up empty, and she assumed that the Mandalorian knew that too. "How do I know I can trust you?"

She voiced her protest behind the mask, hoping he was not foolish enough to think he could trust the magistrate.

"'Cause I'm your only hope."

Pressure on her waist increased as the Mandalorian had the nerve to toss her into the speeder. She flew briefly and landed roughly in the bed of the speeder. Elodie managed to make sure the child was cradled to her chest to avoid being landed on. Din followed swiftly, his hands catching himself either side of her head to stop his Beskar from crushing her entirely.

Spotting the droid at the head of the vehicle, he yelled, "Drive! Drive!" Blaster bolts shot overhead, their red beams whizzing by at lightning speeds. It looked like a fireworks display. The droid whirred, speeding into motion at the threat of the blaster the Mandalorian held to him.

Bounty hunters ducked for cover as the pulse rifle was used, disintegrating those who didn't duck for cover in time. Elodie remained pinned to the floor of the speeder, evading incoming shots. And for a few seconds, it seemed like they were honestly going to escape to safety.

"That's one impressive weapon!" Greef called, shooting the driving droid. It sparked, and the speeder crashed into discarded barrels on the side of the road. Din cursed under his breath.

"Here's what I'm going to do. We're going to walk to my ship with the kid, and you're going to let it happen!" The Mandalorian retorted; it was an effortless argument. They were outgunned, outnumbered, and had no escape.

The magistrate grew angry then, shouting, "How about this? We take both the assets, and if you try to stop us, we'll kill you, sell them, and strip your body for parts!"

Blaster bolts were growing closer to their targets, and some were beginning to graze Elodie. The Mandalorian threw himself over her with arms braced beside her head, allowing the Beskar to take the hits. He looked down at the woman, forlorn, knowing he had failed. "I'm sorry I couldn't get you out... I tried. I tried..." The child blinked wearily, unable to muster any further strength upon waking.

Elodie raised her palm to where the Mandalorian's cheek would be— in the divots of the Beskar helmet.

As far as she was aware, he had redeemed himself. He was a good man, after all. That was hard to come by nowadays.

He flinched, not used to the intimate touch. Elodie hoped he could see that she was grateful through her tender touch and soft, teary gaze. She realised then that she would sooner end herself than return as their prisoner.

Her vod was probably cursing her from the void, demanding her life end while fighting. But she's had enough fighting. Elodie was tired now. She deserved rest. [Brother]

She reached down along his side, unlatching his smaller compact blaster from the holster. Din dropped his gaze to her hand, and she felt his thigh tense in a bulk of muscle at the unfamiliar touch. He was unsure if she was going to jump out, guns blazing, or make her final call. But by the look that had fallen over her face, he already knew what it was she intended to do.

He felt the burn of tears himself and gritted his teeth.

More blasters released crimson bolts, only this time it was at the bounty hunters. And it did not come from their position.

Mandalorians. Dozens of them.

A wistful feeling of disbelief settled in Elodie's veins. They were converging from the sky, descending via jet packs into the ambush. Such a rare sight to behold since they went into hiding following the events of the Great Purge.

A heavy artillery Mandalorian settled beside them, holding a mini gun. "Get out of here! We'll hold 'em off!" The chrome Mandalorian straightened, and the woman sat up to deliver some shots with his blaster as cover fire. Bounty hunters fell under her deadly aim. "You're going to have to relocate the covert." He countered.

"This is the way."

"This is the way." Hopping out the speeder, they used the cover of the covert to manoeuvre past other gunships and into a Razor Crest. Elodie returned the gun to the Mandalorian, watching him use it in place of the rifle he strapped back into place. The ramp lowered with commands from the Mandalorian's wrist, and she raced up, wrapping the child in both free arms. The sooner they were off planet, the better.

"Hold it, Mando!"

Greef stood on the ramp, holding them both to gunpoint. Din angled himself in front of the assets, to shield both from the line of fire. "I didn't want it to come to this. Then you went and broke the code."

With snake-like reflexes, the Mandalorian struck a pipe that fueled the carbonite system above Greef. The rupture caused a quick exhaust of thick gas, shielding them from the direct line of fire of Karga. The Mandalorian released another shot, ducking down, this time making home in the Magistrates chest and sending him out of the ship. Elodie made her way to the co*ckpit with the child, waiting for the Mandalorian to close the doors and start the ship.

As soon as he made contact with the pilot seat, they were already making way for the stars, with Nevarro growing more distant as the seconds flew by.

Elodie inched forward in the seat to see a Mandalorian from the covert fly by the windscreen, sending a salute before diverting to the firefight.

Din hummed in envy and returned to the controls. "I've got to get one of those."

Chapter 5: Chapter 4: The Sanctuary

Chapter Text

Elodie wandered the hull alone. It was claustrophobic and cold. The hull was smaller than the room where she was kept, but the freedom to wonder made it feel larger than it was. Bittersweet freedom. The fresher was located beside a single bunk, and it was obvious that the Mandalorian hadn't planned far enough ahead to occupy two others. The rest of the hull was uninteresting, save for a few cargo boxes and the hidden compartments containing weapons.

Elodie spotted that first.

Using the fresher sink, she cleared away the dried blood crusting up her arms; taking away a thick layer of grime with it. She hoped the Mandalorian wouldn't mind her ruining one of his spare washcloths. Her hands were hurting and sore after extensively scrubbing the nail beds clean.

She stopped abruptly, turning to see her armoured companion at the door, watching the struggle. She wondered what had changed his mind enough to come and save them both. Or was he just after the little one? She eyed his stance wearily.

"I thought you might want to change into something else." He said, handing over a wad of clothing she hadn't seen he'd been holding. He turned in courtesy to allow her a chance to change. Din tilted his head towards his shoulder to ensure his following words met her ears.

"It's not much. You're a little smaller than I am, so I don't have much to spare that would fit you. We can sort something out at the next stop, if that would make you more comfortable." Elodie slipped the lab coat off and donned the clothes he provided.

The clothes were soft, albeit a little big for size. The broad shoulders of the shirt kept slipping off her shoulder, and she had to roll the pants legs so they wouldn't drag.

She reached out to touch his vambrace, and he turned to meet her gaze. Elodie nodded in thanks.

Mando cupped the mask on her jaw, moving her head around to thoroughly inspect it. Releasing a thoughtful hum, he took out a tool from his belt, "Hold still."

Elodie did as he instructed, opting to appreciate the detail in his new armour while trying not to flinch as the contraption sparked. Grasping her sore jaw as it released, she moaned a little and withdrew her sharp canines from her lower lip.

"Thank you." She rasped, her voice cracking for not having had refreshments in days.

Din looked down at the sight of her, fully taking in the details of her unmasked face without feeling the pressure of the Client to avoid contact. His eyes raked over the hollowness of her cheekbones to the rounded arches of her eyebrows. The tiny indentations in her lower lip made by her elongated upper canines. The skin was mostly clear of blemishes, aside from the odd bruising and scrapes from the previous firefight. Wide, dark eyes stared back at him, making him feel exposed under the scrutinising gaze.

"What is your name?"

"Elodie Slate. And what do I call you?" He contemplated for a moment, and she understood his hesitation, "Mando can do for now, if that would make you more comfortable?" She copied.

Beneath the helmet, he smiled. "Are you hurt? I have some bacta spray if you need it."

Elodie shook her head, "No. I heal a little faster than the average human." Sensing his confusion, she licked her dry lips and elaborated, "I'm a Wolven."

"Oh."

The corner of her lip pulled up. "You have no idea what that is, do you?"

"Do you, uh, need to eat raw meat? I only stock protein bars, but I could—I mean, figure something out at the next port." A fully fledged smile blossomed on her face—a soft one. The kind she had not felt for a long time while captive. The tips of her canines peek out. "No, thank you. I can eat everything you can. I've just got a neat set of teeth and claws." She extended her claws for reference, palm facing up.

"Noted."

It was awkward. Elodie felt like she had grown unused to social cues. What else was she supposed to do in this situation? This was not something she assumed many people had gone through before. Do I offer him a drink? Wait, no. This was his ship.

Din sensed her discomfort and shifty posture. "You can help yourself to the cot or food. The kitchenette is there-" He pointed to the storage cabinets on one side of the hull with one electric hob, and then to the bed space behind him, "-the cot is here."

Elodie finally spoke up: "Thank you for coming back for us. For him."

The Mandalorian nodded, opting not to elaborate on the subject. "I'm going to find a planet safe enough for you and the child. Until then, we keep to the ship."

In the silence that ensued, the Mandalorian saw her fleeting glances at the weapons vault, and he went over to open it. The interior was lined with an assortment of artillery. From grenades to vintage blasters. Din found that he liked the way the woman's eyes lit up like a child at a festival.

"Pick one. You are going to need to protect yourself."

The ship rocked suddenly, and the lights blinked in struggle. Both looking up, Elodie sighed and then looked back at the Mandalorian. "You left an infant alone in the co*ckpit of a ship travelling at hyperspeed."

Din rushed up the ladder not two seconds later, taking two rungs at a time to tend to the unsupervised child.

Man has a lot to learn about children.

With the ship stable again, Elodie observed the contents of the open vault. Twin knives caught her eye. Their sleek edge curved like an arch down to the tips, and the hilt of the blade was ribbed for better grip. Testing their bluntness, she teased her finger on the tip and smirked at the beading speck of blood. As all Mandalorians should, he kept his weapons in perfect condition.

Snatching their holsters, she made her way back up to the co*ckpit.

"Now listen, I'm going to go out there and have a look around. Don't touch anything. I'll find us some lodging, and I'll come back for you. You stay. Don't move, you understand? Great." The ship was off and had settled on the lush green planet of Sorgon. It was pleasant to see how far the green expanded over the horizon while descending into the atmosphere.

Elodie scoffed from her seat, watching the situation with crossed arms, "Trying to reason with the child? Really?"

"No. I was talking to you."

He dropped down the ladder. What-!

Elodie and the child shared a look before following him to the lowering ramp. Catching sight of the two of them, Din sighed deeply. He had a feeling this would be a reoccurring theme.

"Oh, what the hell? Come on."

Coming across a nearby town, they both silently agreed to investigate. It was essentially some large huts dotted around. Homes were situated among their markets, which were bustling with trading locals. Elodie cast her eye over some of their goods, eyeing their woven fabrics and exotic foods.

"You need to keep your head down. I don't need anyone running back to the Imps if they recognise either of you."

"I thought you said this was a backwater scughole?"

She noticed he kept the latch to his holster unlooped to allow easy access to his blaster. "It is. That doesn't mean I trust anyone here."

They proceeded to enter the cantina.

A loth cat hissed at the child as they pressed deeper into the establishment. Standing behind the child protectively, she hissed back at the creature, flashing florescent eyes as it retreated beneath the tables, terrified. It was by far one of the nicest cantinas, in terms of individuals, that she had been to. There was no sign of unruly bar fights, dodgy dealings, or scumbags lurking.

She smirked at the cowering loth cat, walking past the disapproving Mandalorian to the nearest available table.

"You're incorrigible." He began but was cut off by an incoming barkeep. "Welcome travellers! Can I interest you in anything?"

"Bone broth for my, uh, partner and the little one." Elodie co*cked a brow, settling the child onto the seat beside her. The child zoned in on the bowls of food on the tables surrounding them and began babbling animatedly.

"Oh well, you're in luck. I just took down a grinjer so there's plenty. Can I interest you in a porringer of broth as well?" She asked. "Just the two." Din said.

"Very well," The barmaid accepted, meanwhile Elodie tried to quiet down the child's hungry exclamations.

"That one over there, when did she arrive?" Mando asked, spotting a woman in the corner alone. Her physique spoke of fighting experience, and she was blatantly trying to avoid looking in their general direction, leading Din to believe she knew more than she was letting on. The barmaid waved her hand dismissively, "I've seen her here for the last week or so..?"

"What is her business here?" He pressed. He needed to know if they were after Elodie or the child.

"Business? There's not much business in Sorgan so I can't say. She doesn't strike me as a log runner." Elodie watched him drop two credits on the table. "Thank you so much, sir! I will get that bone broth to you as soon as possible, and I've thrown in a flagon of spotchka just for good measure. I'll be right back with that."

The Wolven smacked his arm. "You just wasted those credits; she obviously didn't know anything." She caught his stare, following it back over to the now-empty table. Din grunted, standing abruptly. He cast a "Keep an eye on the kid." over his shoulder as he walked out.

The Mandalorian was damned if anyone got their filthy hands on the pair of them now, given how hard it was to escape.

The child looked up with a coo. She shrugged, receiving the broth from the barmaid with a smile. "I don't know why, but it's like he's looking for trouble. Am I right?"

"Patu."

Huffing, she picked up the child and his bowl of broth so he could drink on the way. "Fine, let's go check on your new best friend."

Wondering outside, it didn't take long to find the two. Caught in a stalemate with their blasters aimed at each other's heads.

Elodie cleared her throat loudly. The two were breathing deeply from exertion and realised that neither actually wanted to hurt the other. The child sat content in her arms, slurping the hot broth. They looked over and then back at each other, unsure of what to do next.

Elodie scoffed, "Children." And headed back inside.

It wasn't long before they joined her back at the table. She sat sipping some spotchka, listening to the ex-dropper tell tales about her hardships. Spotchka was a peculiar drink consisting of mild alcohol and fruit juice. And it did wonders for her parched throat.

Mando pressed further on the shock trooper, "So how'd you end up here?"

"Let's just call it an early retirement." Said the woman who she'd come to know as Cara Dune, "Look, I knew you were guild, I figured you had a fob on me. That's why I came at you so hard. But I wasn't so sure about how you and your kid were involved."

"At least you got a free bowl of broth." Elodie added, downing another shot.

Cara winked, chugging the remnants of her bowl. "Well, this has been a real treat, but unless you want to go another round, one of us is going to have to move on. And I was here first."

Shrugging, Elodie stood too, "No hard feelings."

"Well, it looks like this planet's taken." Din spoke to the child. Elodie headed to the counter, "I'll go get you a bowl of broth to-go."

Back at the ship, night had fallen faster than she did over a fallen branch, on the way back.

The child was slowly drifting to sleep on her chest, but trying to fight the urge. She'd hoped he'd be lulled by the rhythm of her breathing. And she didn't have the heart to move him. Running a delicate finger over the grooves in his head like she used to, he sat content. Before, Elodie never slept apart as an extra cot cost credits that she never had. It was a big adjustment for her after she was taken, no longer having the soothing pressure of him on her chest like a weighted blanket.

It was comforting. Familiar.

Nearby, the lab coat was burning in a dimly lit fire. To destroy any remnants of the last five years.

She briefly wondered just how much the child had suffered being alone or passed between mercenaries. What he had seen and felt. She didn't like to think about it for too long. They were free now, and she'd spent more than enough time thinking of him in her long imprisonment. They currently sat under the crest wing in case it rained, unsure of how quickly the weather could change in this ecosystem.

Elodie spent the passing time watching the Mandalorian work on repairs for the ship when two men approached from their hover ferry. "Excuse me, excuse me, sir!" One called, the taller of the two.

Sensing that they were harmless, the Mandalorian replied with a simple, "Is there something I can help you with?"

"Raiders. We have money." Elodie sat up from her reclined position, keeping the child supported, and watched them follow the armoured individual. "So you think I'm some kind of mercenary?" He ruled out.

"You are a Mandalorian, right?"

"Or at least wearing Mandalorian armour. That is Mandalorian armour, right?" The shorter one asked.

Din confirmed, "It is." Elodie jumped up, startling the men. They didn't see where she was hiding out of sight. "Mando, maybe we should-"

"We have money."

"How much?" The Mandalorian interrupted. Priorities.

They looked between them, "Its everything we have, sir and miss." Our whole harvest was stolen." Then the other added, "Krill. We're krill farmers; we brew spotchka; our whole village chipped in."

Without looking at the measly pouch in their palm, the Mandalorian replied, "It's not enough."

"This is everything we have. We'll give you more after the next harvest!"

The ramp came down, making the men backtrack, defeated, "Come on, let's head back." The other complained, "Took us the whole day to get here. Now we have to ride back with no protection, to the middle of nowhere."

Elodie caught her companion by the arm, stopping his retreat into the ship. "Would you just listen to them? They are obviously desperate for help." She reasoned.

Din shrugged, "That is not my problem." At his response, she jumped in front of him on the ramp, causing him to stop abruptly before he ran into her. Unpleased and appalled at his heartlessness, she gritted, "You are a Mandalorian. A man of honour!"

Din remained silent for a minute.

Then another.

"You have lodging?" He asked the travellers, defeated. The two lads looked like deer caught in headlights at the little spat.

"Yeah, absolutely!"

Elodie lobbed a nearby bag at one of the men, which he caught happily. "Good. Come up and help pack." Together, they loaded the hover ferry with as many supplies as it could handle. Food, clothes, and munitions.

"I'm going to need one more thing. Give me those credits." Din said, pocketing them and turning to the woman.

"Are you recruiting the help of that attractive dropper?" She asked, happy to have won the spat.

The Mandalorian nodded, discreetly handing over a blaster from one of the boxes. He couldn't trust the men as far as he could throw them, but he was also coming to know that the woman was a force to be reckoned with when it came to protecting the child. "Here, take this. I'll be back soon." Elodie slotted the gun in the back of her trousers. The child remained asleep in one of her arms. Din brushed his finger over the sleeping child's ear before leaving.

On the hover ferry sometime later, Cara sat opposite Elodie and the Mandalorian. The two men were saddled up front, chatting gleefully amongst themselves. A lamp was strung up by a pole, it being the only source of light in the dense foliage of the forest they trekked through. Elodie didn't know what the Mandalorian had told Cara, but she didn't look convinced of the cause.

"So, we're essentially running off a band of raiders for lunch money." Cara stated, unpleased.

"They're taking us to the middle of nowhere. Last I checked, that's a pretty square deal for somebody in your position. Worse-case scenario you tune up your blaster, best-case we are a deterrent. Can't imagine anything living in these trees that an ex-shock trooper can't handle." The Mandalorian stated as a matter of fact. Elodie sat back, ignoring the pair conversing, choosing to focus on the child who was growing bored.

Elodie giggled, watching the child squeal while trying to bat away her tickling fingers. Her gaze lifted, noticing they had stopped talking and were now watching her play. "What?"

Cara piped up with a fond look, "You two seem close."

"We knew each other from before we were captured." She admitted for the first time. Din tilted his head, not knowing this information. He thought she just felt protective over the little one. Cara had noticed the array of marks on the woman but chose not to impose on what was possibly a sensitive subject.

"What happened?"

Elodie straightened out the child's crumpled robes, "It was either him or me. I thought I'd found somewhere safe for us to lay low together, but the people I was with turned us in for credits. I chose to send him away while I tried to take out as many as I could." She tapped his nose, watching as his large eyes went cross-eyed. "And it worked, didn't it, Ad'ika? Got you safe, huh? At least for a little while." He cooed. [Little one/son.]

This time, Cara spoke, "How long did you run for?"

"Years." They saw the faraway look in her eyes and chose not to press.

At Elodie's response, they grew quiet. She sunk down, bringing a cloth to cover the child in order for him to rest. "We probably ought to get some sleep, we don't know how long this journey is going to take." Din voiced his agreement, stretching his arms wide along the lip of the ferry and settled down. Elodie leaned back and, with only a limited amount of room in the craft, set her head against his arm, figuring he'd move if he was uncomfortable.

The Mandalorian stayed.

Relaxing, the Wolven curled towards him to bring her legs further up and keep the child to her chest. Beneath Elodie, Din was frozen. Not realising he had unintentionally left her no space to sleep alone, it was now too late to retract his extended arm, as the woman had claimed it for her own. He found he didn't so much mind the weight of her head resting on the unarmoured bicep. Casting a look down at her face, she had her eyes closed, and the gentle breeze had shifted a tress of hair over her blushed cheek.

Din fought the urge to move it.

Tearing his eyes away, he caught Cara smirking at him across from him. He glared, shaking his head. Daring her to say a word. Instead, she sunk down and closed her eyes.

Elodie drifted off to sleep, feeling the warm, unfiltered breath of the Mandalorian drift over her head from under the helmet.

The Mandalorian had pulled her closer in his sleep. Elodie's legs draped over his lap completely. The arm she'd fallen asleep on lay curled around her. His head hung back, limp with sleep, and his chest rose and fell rhythmically, too shallow for full consciousness. Afraid to move, she sat stock still, waiting for the moment he woke to then pretend to be asleep. His arm was heavy, and the weight of his additional armour pressed down on her shoulders. Much like sleeping with the child, the pressure was felt divine. There was nothing like being made to feel solid in a time of fear and uncertainty.

Sleeping in the armour. Oh, that's not going to be pleasant on his joints when he wakes.

The distant cheering of children grew closer as the trees started to dissipate, clearing through the bushes. Small huts dotted around a small clearing, shrubbery and ponds stretched between them like a maze. Cara jolted awake and accidentally knocked her legs into her companions'. He sucked in a sharp breath, sitting quickly and removing his arm.

When was the last time he slept through the night?

"Well, it looks like they're happy to see us." The Mandalorian observed. The children crowded one side of the ferry, clearly swarming to see the strange child. He seemed to like the attention, however, and gave a little wave.

"Looks like." Cara agreed.

The Mandalorian and Cara hopped out of the ferry, briefly talking to the villagers who led them there. Elodie stayed behind, picking up some of the belongings in preparation to move.

The villagers ended up leading Cara to one of the huts and offering Elodie the second.

Taking a step forward, her path was almost instantly blocked by the hulking form of the Mandalorian. She frowned in confusion mirroring that of the villagers', not understanding why he wasn't allowing her to go to the hut. "Thank you, but we'll be sharing a hut."

"Oh, all our available lodgings can only accommodate one individual."

"Mando," Din allowed her to turn him. The 'T' of his visor stared down at her. "Me and the child will be fine on our own."

Unmoving, he emphasised. "We will be sharing a hut."

The villager nodded, instead directing the trio to a barn. A woman, Omera, stood inside, opening the blinds to let in some sunlight. The barn was spacious—more spacious than the Crest—and allowed for so much natural light through the weaves of the walls.

"Please come in. I hope this is comfortable for you. The barn is the only building unoccupied big enough to hold three." She spoke. Elodie rolled her eyes, thinking of the Mandalorian's stubbornness.

"It's pretty." The Wolven gushed, spinning in the cottage-core dwelling, appreciating the small details. The olive-skinned woman smiled, pointing to the table. "I stacked some blankets over here."

"Thank you. That's very kind." The Mandalorian said, setting his equipment down in the corner. A pitter-patter of feet at the door caused him to raise his gun in warning. Elodie stiffened but didn't take out her weapons. The sound she picked up wasn't heavy enough for an adult.

A child ran in.

"Woah! Hey, we're safe here." Elodie eased, resting a hand on the tip of Din's blaster to lower it.

Omera smiled apologetically, "This is my daughter, Winta. We don't get a lot of visitors around here. She's not used to strangers." Omera looked at her daughter, stoking her cheek. "These nice strangers are going to help protect us from the bad ones."

"Thank you." Winta whispered. The Mandalorian nods wordlessly, and the Wolven smiles apologetically at the woman.

They made their way to the door, "Come on, Winta. Let's give our guests some room."

"Oh look! They gave us a crib for Ik'aad." Elodie said, referring to the child. A small handmade cot sat beside the bed, prepared for their arrival. "At least I won't have to worry about crushing him in my sleep." The Mandalorian paused and looked at her incredulously. She shrugged offhandedly, "Intrusive thoughts." [The Child]

"You can have the cot; I'll take the bale."

Shaking her head, she placed her hands on his chest to push him away from the hay bale he was looking to set up shop. "It's fine, honestly; you are no doubt going to sleep in your armour or at least your helmet. You may as well be somewhat comfortable."

Elodie laid a blanket over the hay to subdue the stray needles from pricking her in her sleep.

"How much do you know about Mandalorian culture?" He began, finally asking the question that had been nagging at him since he'd met her.

"In some cultures, Mandalorian's cannot reveal their faces to anyone unless they want to forgo the creed. I get it. So me and the kid, we'll try to give you as much space as possible. I just hope you're going to be able to sleep. Helmets cause huge neck strain. But that's on you, seeing as you won't even allow us out of your sight."

He stood closer, leering, "How do you know this?"

"Because Mando, I am dar'manda."

Chapter 6: Chapter 5: The Gunslinger

Chapter Text

"You were a Mandalorian?"

Elodie sighed, taking a seat on the hay bale. Emotion boiled to the brim as she fought to tell him clearly without stuttering. "I was. When the Imps captured me, they tried many methods of persuasion to get me to reveal the location of the child. They moved their compound from planet to planet in hopes of following any leads. The Client was fed up, then one day he just—" She clicked her fingers, watching him flinch back and look at the floor. "Snapped. He stripped me of my armour. All of it."

It took him a moment to muster up a question, "What happened to your clan?" A burning sadness spread through her chest, and a wave of tears made her clear her throat. The ache of grief weighed heavily on her shoulders.

"I was a foundling." Elodie was overtaken with memories of rummaging through scrap yards barefoot. Fighting off other creatures while also trying to survive. The sight of a smoking blaster belonging to a Mandalorian bearing viridian armour. Images of a pack of scurriers nipping at her. They may seem small and harmless, but to a six-year-old, they were predators. A nearby Mandalorian had been drawn curiously to the hissing of the rodents and the young cries of a girl as she swiped her claws out. His heart had gone out to her as he watched as she stood against the wall in fear.

"Be calm, little one." He had said, watching her eyes flick around wildly. He extended an open palm towards her. It was the first memory she had of him.

"I was found scavenging on Tatooine by a Mandalorian. He took me in as his own and taught me everything I know, as well as the many ways of Mandalore." She looked up, "He was also a bounty hunter. The one who gifted me my armour."

The Mandalorian took a seat beside her, knees touching. "What happened to him?"

"Knock knock."

Omera stood at the doorstep with Winta, bearing a tray of food. They took a hesitant step forward into the abode. "I hope I'm not interrupting?" Din felt the urge to excuse them. He wanted to know more about the elusive woman he was travelling with. The news of her being a Mandalorian, stripped of her armour, angered him deeply. He had to clench his fists to relieve some of the tension. If he had only known at the time of rescue. Oh, the things he would have done to the client. Even he had no idea what he was capable of.

"Not at all. Please come in, Omera." Elodie said, brushing her hand discreetly across her face to wipe away a stray tear.

Floating in like there wasn't a bitter taste in the air, Winta bounced in enthusiastically. She gravitated straight to the child in his cot.

"Can I feed him?" The two of them shared a look and shrugged at the girl as the Mandalorian jumped up from his seat to let him out of the cot. "Are you hungry?" She asked him. The child took a meat strip from the girl's hand, and she giggled. "Can I play with him?"

"Sure." The Mandalorian said, standing in the middle of the room. Elodie also hopped off her perch, clarifying, "Only within the reaches of the field, please."

"Come on!" Winta bolted out of the hut. "I don't think-" The Mandalorian started, but the Wolven shushed him, watching the child try to follow close behind. Din stiffened, wanting to follow the child and watch over him. Din was afraid to let him out of his sight. Elodie silently admired his protective nature.

Omera reassured him of the child's safety, setting the tray of food on the window ledge. "They'll be fine. I brought you some food, Elodie mentioned you would want to eat alone, so I'll leave it here for when I go." The Mandalorian looked at the tray, surprised, not knowing when his companion had had the chance to inform the woman of such boundaries.

"That's very thoughtful of you."

Elodie approached the window, watching the children begin to congregate outside. After assessing the shade of the thatched roof and ensuring it provided decent cover for the Mandalorian to bare his face in private, she deemed it suitable enough.

"Do you mind if I ask you something?" Omera asked, "How long has it been since you've taken that off?" She gestured to his helmet, which gave no indication of emotion.

"Yesterday." So innocently sarcastic.

"I mean in front of someone else. Have you seen his face before? Are you two married?" The woman asked, looking between the two of them.

Elodie threw her head back, letting out a sharp laugh.

From behind, the Mandalorian shook his head vehemently. He barely knew the woman.

Looking out the window, he pointed to the playing children and said, "I wasn't much older than they are." Omera looked shocked at the revelation, frowning. "You haven't shown your face to anyone since you were a kid?" Among the children, the child sat in the centre, watching as they were all trying to get his attention.

He shook his head, "No. I was happy that they took me in. My parents were killed, and the Mandalorian's took care of me." That was new information.

Omera frowned, "I'm sorry."

"This is the way," the Mandalorian stated.

"Let us know if there's anything you need." She summed up, leaving the hut. "Thank you." He called to her retreating figure.

"I'll also take that as my cue to leave." He caught Elodie's bare hand in his gloved one, "And thank you. For being honest with me. I am sorry that you had to go through something like that." She pinched her lips and nodded.

"Enjoy your lunch, Mando." She said.

"-Din."

Elodie stopped, turning to stare at him. "My name is Din Djarin."

She smiled tearfully, skimming his cuirass with her fingertips. The familiar texture triggered many memories. Both good and bad. Din looked down, watching her glossy eyes float over his chest piece. "Well, Din. I know I've said it already, but thank you again for coming back to save us."

He found himself saying, "And I'd do it again."

In the surrounding woods, Elodie, Din, and Cara tracked the raiders from their most recent plunder. It didn't take long to find the scent trailing away from the village. The Klatooinians were messy and didn't bother hiding their tracks. Din—Maker, it felt weird saying his name—activated the infrared tracker to trace their footsteps.

"About fifteen or twenty of them came through here on foot, and something big sheared off those branches."

"No sh*t. We didn't need infrared for that." Elodie stated, looking at the freshly made valley from the destructive path it took. A whole ass Mythosaur could have walked through here with how high some of the branches were torn. Large prints were left by the culprit. Her companions stepped closer and shared a look of understanding.

"AT-ST." They said in unison.

"What is that?" Elodie questioned. The Mandalorian was the one to respond, "Imperial Walker. Big machine with big guns. It means we are way out of our depth on this one. What's it doing here?"

"I don't know, but this is more than I signed up for." Cara sighed.

"How are we going to break the news?"

The Mandalorian spoke up when he stepped back in the direction of the village, "By telling the truth."

Sunset was approaching when they arrived back in the village, and the children were hauled to one of the huts away from the mass of people in the village centre.

The villagers were gathered in front of them from their perch on a hut veranda, looking eager for news. It just wasn't going to be the type they were hoping for. "Bad news. You can't live here anymore." Mando stated plainly. The villagers grew disgruntled at the lack of good news.

"Nice bedside manner." Cara snorted, crossing her arms.

He turned to her and asked, "You think you can do better?"

"Someone has to say something." Elodie brought her hand to her face, running it down slowly.

"Can't do much worse." Cara smiled sympathetically. "I know this is not the news you wanted to hear, but there are no other options." The crowd grew rowdy in their uproar. "You took our money for the job!" One shouted belligerently. "That was before we knew about the AT-ST." She countered.

"What's that?"

She raised an accusing eyebrow, "The enormous walker with two giant guns, which you knew about but didn't tell us." They argued, "You were supposed to help us! We have nowhere to go!"

"You have an entire planet!" The Wolven pointed out, "Plenty of land to settle down."

"My grandparents seeded these ponds." "It took generations!" They all called out at once. The ex-dropper stood forward to answer their questions directly, attempting to calm the situation, "I understand. I do. But there are only three of us."

"No, there's not! There's at least twenty here!" An idea formed in the Mandalorians head. A very stupid one.

They did have the numbers.

"Are you trained in handling weaponry and hand-to-hand combat?" Elodie asked rhetorically, "Because they are!"

A villager called out desperately, "We can learn. Give us a chance."

"I've seen that thing take down an entire company of soldiers in minutes." Cara refused, thinking back to her entire company being slaughtered.

"We're not leaving!" This time, it was Omera who called out, holding her daughter tightly. "You cannot fight that thing!" Cara yelled back, but it was of no use. The villagers were too stubborn.

"Unless we show them how..." Din pointed out. Elodie and Cara looked at each other, knowing his righteousness was showing. And it meant that they were in for a lot of work.

"You've got two problems here. You got the bandits, and then you got the mech. We'll handle the AT-ST; you've got to protect us when they come out of the woods, and I don't have to tell you how dangerous they are. Cara Dune here is a veteran. She was a drop soldier here for the rebellion, and she's going to lay out a plan for you, so listen carefully." The Mandalorian said. There was going to be a lot of training in the next week for the villagers to become more skilled in combat and hopefully survive what they were wishing upon themselves. Elodie didn't quite agree to the decision, foreseeing many avoidable deaths.

Cara continued from his speech, "Now there's nothing on this planet that can damage the legs of this thing. So, we're going to lay out a trap. We're going to need to dig really deep right here so that when it steps in, it drops. The two of us will hit their camp. Provoke them. That'll bring the fight here to us."

"And what is she going to do?" One asked, pointing to the Wolven.

"I'm going to manage the fortifications." The plan had already been pre-agreed by the three of them after two days of discussions. The Klatooinians hadn't stirred in that time, but the villagers were restless. It was three nights filled with tossing and turning as she struggled to sleep, dreading the upcoming fight.

She could tell it also bothered the Mandalorian, who, without wearing his armour, tossed and turned restlessly throughout the night. Elodie was pleasantly surprised when he'd initially shed the armour; it felt like a physical barrier had been demolished between them. Luckily, the child was clueless to their woes and thrived amongst the life within the village. With everyone once again gathered outside, it was time to divulge the carefully articulated plan.

Din began throwing around directions and delegating jobs immediately.

"I'm going to need you to cut down trees and build barricades along these edges. I need it high enough so they can't get over it and strong enough so that it can't break through. Okay, who knows how to shoot?"

Omera was the only one to raise her hand. Elodie smugly smirked at the Mandalorian, knowing he had his work cut out for him. While the Mandalorian took charge of the weapons handling and Cara instructed the villagers how to use spears, Elodie took to helping the villagers fortify their land. Large trees were brought down to construct a border large enough to deter the AT-ST in one general direction for the deepened pond, which was being dug out as they spoke.

With the night of the battle drawing near, Elodie and Din had retired to their barn hours before in order to rest. Neither slept. The Wolven wore clothes provided to her by the village.

Din sat on his cot, polishing his blaster, while Elodie gave the child his last meal of the day. Whenever they returned to the Razor Crest, they were going to need to increase our food stock because of how spoiled he was becoming.

"Ad'ika, watch it! You almost took off my finger." She scolded, snatching her hand back from his little gnashers. He grinned, flashing his pointed teeth.

"He takes after you." Din said, referring to when she'd removed a man's digit at their first meeting.

Elodie smiled at the child proudly, flashing him her own. His ears twitched, taking in the size of hers, "I know, tidbit, it's been a long time since we spent some quality time together, hasn't it?" She pouted, feeling his hand touch her chin, "But now I can do this!" She pressed a loud kiss on his cheek, hearing him giggle once again.

The Mandalorian found himself stopping his actions to watch the scene.

"Now you are going to hear a lot of commotion tonight, but I promise we'll see you in the morning. Ni kar'tayl gar darasuum, ner Ad." Kissing his brow, she settled him down for when the children came to collect him to hide. Elodie raised her eyebrow at the Mandalorian and his lack of armour, sans helmet. The natural light in the room was growing dimmer. "Need any help with the armour? We don't have long." [I know you forever/ I love you, my child.]

Din sighed, not answering and looked at the setting sun over the horizon. Blues and pinks were bleeding into a beautiful canvas, a contrast in comparison to what was about to occur.

"Are we doing the right thing?" He asked, slipping on his utility belt. Elodie tossed him his shirt to put over the long sleeve he was wearing to provide padding for armour chaffing. "You're just getting cold feet. If anything, the training should help improve our odds."

"...and if I asked you to stay back?" Please say you will.

Elodie slowly met the gaze of his visor and said, "Bold of you to assume I would listen." He breathed out a laugh as she watched him attach his vambraces.

Bending down, she heard his breath hitch. She secured the strap around one thigh, looking up at him through her lashes. "Look, you're going to need as much help out there as you can get. My social skills may have dwindled over time, but not my fighting skills." She secured the other side and abruptly stood.

Din stood frozen, just watching. Elodie stood inches from him, head angled to meet his gaze. The air under the helmet suddenly felt too thick and hot. Was he panting? No one had dared to touch his armour before. Let alone live to tell the tale. And here he was, allowing her hands to run over him and touch him so innocently as if she had no idea the effect it was having on him. In truth, she didn't know what she was doing—or why—but she liked to see the stoic man of steel so flustered. He found himself mustering up some semblance of words.

"Please. Just be careful. When Cara and I return, we'll be coming in hot."

The sky darkened, and the stars shone brightly above them like spotlights on a stage. It was time.

Cara and Din came sprinting from the treeline to the safety of the barricades beyond the ponds, where fencing was set up. The children were secured in one of the outer huts, far away from the line of fire. A few villagers, mostly teenagers, stood guard out front to ensure their safety if any of the opposition got past their fortifications.

Loud steps of the AT-ST echoed through the tree's, and Elodie watched the bark split under the pressure of it bustling past. Her eyes widened at the sheer size of it. "That's an AT-ST? What the hell!" She turned to the closest villager, who held onto a spear. A pointy f*cking stick.

"You thought you were going to win against that? With what? Your enthusiasm? Bloody hell!"

She heard Din call out disapprovingly from down the barricade, "Not the time, Elodie!"

"The f*ck it's not!"

The AT-ST took steps closer. "This is it! Once that thing steps into the pond, it's going down. Weapons ready!" Cara announced. It hesitated, noticing it was nearing the water's edge.

"It stopped!" The villager next to her cried. It ignited a beam of light along the length of the barricade. "Get down!" The Mandalorian shouted, noticing this. Elodie pulled down the men on either side of her, when they were caught under the glare of the spotlight. Blaster shots flew overhead into the closest huts.

Klatooinians ran from between the feet of the mech, yelling as they advanced to the barricades. Not all were armed with guns. That was good, her division could handle that. Cara shot the closest few, "Open fire!"

Elodie looked back at her ragtag team wielding spears, "That's our cue! Go!"

Leading the march, she sprinted forward. She threw her spear into the first Klatooinian she saw and watched as he flew back with the force of the throw.

Sprinting past the corpse, she tore the spear out and carried on. Din and Cara were in charge of taking down the AT-ST while everyone else provided cover fire behind the barricade. Elodie oversaw the front lines and took on the foot soldiers who got through their defences. While fighting with her own opponents, she cast the occasional eye over the rest of her team to ensure they were holding up.

One of the villagers was brought to their knees, and Elodie roared, baring claws and canines. Twisting, she tripped her opponent with a long swipe of the spear underfoot and jabbed it into its sternum when they were down.

Then she flung herself onto the back of the Klatooinian like a spider monkey.

Elodie sunk her teeth into his neck from behind, using her grip to keep his head to the side, thrashing at the jugular. Chomping down on a lump of flesh, she ripped her head away, taking stringy tendons with her. Blood spewed from the wound, and he collapsed to the ground. Dead. Spitting the clump of flesh out, she felt blood drip down her front. The borrowed shirt now ruined. I must look like a rabid massiff.

A blaster bolt grazed her unprotected back, sending Elodie to her knees with a cry of pain.

"Elodie!" Hearing the Mandalorian call her name from his place behind the front line reminded her that she could not stay to curl up in pain.

She had a child to get back to.

Looking over her shoulder, she saw her opponent get shot once, twice, and three times in the chest before he fell. She followed the line of fire to Omera, who nodded and carried on fighting. Elodie spotted Cara in a pond, firing into the eye of the mech.

Growling, Elodie stood slightly hunched and lunged at the next Klatooinian, who was battling an elderly villager. She swiped his back with her claws. He turned, pained, and she had to duck at the oncoming punch he threw. She used both feet to kick him back, tackling him to the ground, where she brought her foot down on his head. That was until he stopped twitching.

The AT-ST collapsed into the pond, and she caught the Mandalorian sprinting to plant a detonator in the co*ckpit. Within seconds, the mech exploded in a fiery blaze, and the Klatooinians were evacuating. Elodie helped the elderly villager stand up and went over to meet her two companions.

"You're taking a swim while the rest of us are pulling our weight? Slackers." Cara and she both grabbed a hand each, helping the Mandalorian out of the pond, the both of them sopping wet.

And with the best comeback of the century, Cara snorted a simple, "Shut up."

Din set a hand on Elodie's shoulder, trying to turn and look at her lower back. She set an exhausted hand on his chest to stop his advances, "It'll heal, Din. I'm fine."

Under the helmet, he frowned.

"I would feel better if I had a proper look at it." He insisted. She patted him and let her hand drop. "And I would feel better with a full night's rest, come on." Unfortunately, they had to sort out the village before they even thought about resting.

On the walk back, he found himself strolling behind her to discreetly observe the blaster burn. It had skimmed the small of her back, singing the shirt, but it seemed to have already stopped bleeding.

He could live with that.

The weeks flew by. The village was restored, with the barricades still standing if any opposition decided they wanted to instigate anything. Omera appeared from the doorway, supporting two cups of spotchka. One for the Wolven, and the other for the ex-dropper. The three of them sat at the entrance to their delegated hut. Cara flung her legs over Elodie's lap while she leaned back on her hands to support herself.

"Can I set you something in the house?" Omera asked Din, to which he politely declined.

Elodie pouted, "What? No straw?" He shook his head.

"He's very happy here... Fits right in." The olive-skinned woman mentioned before catching up to the children, laughing, and playing.

"So what happens if you take that thing off? They come after you and kill you." Cara asked, nodding to his helmet, which he never removed. Elodie smiled wistfully, looking down at her cup.

"No. You just can't ever put it back on again." The Mandalorian replied, not taking his eyes off the child. "That's it? So you can slip off that helmet, and the two of you settle down together and raise your kid sitting here sipping spotchka."

Elodie blanked, "Um, what?"

"You know we raised some hell here a few weeks back. Too much action for a backwater town like this. Words travel fast. We might want to think of moving on." The Mandalorian had a valid point, but did she want to make the child leave? Did she really want to take the child away from this life where he could have a secure home? A life? She wouldn't leave him behind. That was out of the question. So the question remained, could she leave Din if he really wanted to go? She gave the child a long look.

Would the Mandalorian miss the child? Miss her?

Cara tutted, taking a decent sip of her beverage, "Wouldn't want to be the ones who's got to tell him."

"I'm leaving him here. Travelling with me? That's no life for a kid. I did my job, and he's safe. Better chance at life here." The Mandalorian finalized. Elodie paused, mid-sip, standing. Cara's feet dropped from her lap.

So he planned on leaving her behind. "If the child is staying, then so am I."

Din changed his weight between feet, "If that would make you happy." She opted not to answer, instead, choosing to join the children in their games.

"You're going to break their hearts." Cara said, watching her walk away. She had caught the glances they both threw at each other while the other wasn't looking.

"They'll get over it. We all do."

She tutted using her tongue, taking a long sip of the alcoholic drink before answering. "Can you see out that helmet? She obviously doesn't want to leave."

Elodie found herself in a nearby field later on in the day with a handful of children from the village.

The kids had opted to play IT with Elodie as the tagger. She ran especially slowly for some of the smaller ones, crouching down low with a funny face to make them squeal with laughter when she caught them. With the older ones, she ran faster, choosing to swing them around when she eventually caught them. They held no fear over her features but approached her with a childlike curiosity that she treasured. At one point, they must have gotten fed up with her chasing them all because they all turned and started to charge her.

Unable to bear the weight of over ten children, Elodie fell back, careful not to land on them. The combined weight caused her to feel winded.

But her chest never felt lighter.

She wrestled them all, trying to playfully throw them off and tickling those that she could reach, but to no avail. They all laughed jovially. The little monsters had overrun her in a bundle pile. She distinctly heard her little one giggling at her right side, holding down her right hand. He wanted to be involved but was too small for the bundle.

Elodie dramatically gasped, falling back limp to play dead.

The kids giggled louder, jumping off in victory. One cheeky kid poked her cheek, and she snapped her eyes open to spook them.

They screamed, jumping away to initiate the game of tag again—

When a gunshot rang out.

Loud and reverberating through the small valley. Birds fled from the tree to the west. Elodie dropped low, observing the forest's edge. She yelled for the children to all drop to the floor under the cover of the long grass. Some screamed in panic, and she tried to hush them so she could listen for any sudden movements.

Elodie scooped up her green child, continuing to spin around to see anything. Her eyes burned, glowing their luminous blue, for better vision to search the dense greenery. She crouched at the rustling of the bushes, preparing to protect the kids at any cost. Like a panther eluding sight.

Din and Cara came sprinting from them, the former looking panicked and stiff.

"Is everyone okay?" Elodie asked when they drew within touching distance. The Mandalorian scanned her body, making sure she was unharmed. Relief washed over him when he saw that both she and the child were unharmed. "The kids are fine. We just heard the gunshot. What happened?"

Heavy pants fell from the Mandalorian, "They've found us."

"They?"

It was Cara who answered this time, "Bounty hunters. They had a fob. It was tracking the kid."

"We have to leave."

They ran back to the village to collect their belongings. The Mandalorian generously left some of his less desired blasters with the village as a parting gift—a way to ensure they were defended if they were to be attacked again. Elodie stared on at the exchange with a fond look in her eyes. For a man shrouded in armour and danger, he had a soft heart for the vulnerable.

Perhaps that's why she and the child were rescued.

"Are you sure you don't want an escort?" Cara asked, hiking the bag higher on her shoulder. The villagers had congregated around the hover ferry, helping them all load the equipment in order to leave sooner. They were sad to see their saviours go, but knew it was for the best. They had fought hard for their peace and deserved to keep it. "You just want a lift to the village." Elodie joked, pulling her in for a hug. Cara laughed, reciprocating the hug.

"Caught me."

The Mandalorian declined the offer of protection, while ensuring the child was secure on the hover ferry, "I appreciate the offer, but we are going to bypass the town and head straight for the razor crest."

"Well then, until our paths cross." Cara said, releasing Elodie from the hug and backing away.

"'Til our paths cross." Din recited. She looked at the Wolven, "Take care of them, will you?"

"With my life." Elodie replied as Cara turned her back to walk away.

The child whimpered, looking around to commit the scene to memory. Bringing a hand to set on his head, she felt sorry for the baby. All his life, he had been trying to find a place to settle and have a childhood, no matter how hard they fought or who they fought. It wasn't going to happen. Not with the Empire still lurking around every corner.

Hopping up beside Din, all three of them waved goodbye to the village. Elodie laid her head on his pauldron and said, "I'm going to miss it here."

"I'm not."

She scoffed, nudging his pauldron. "Don't be such an ass. You'll see. This is probably the last bit of peace we're going to get for a long time."

He sighed, watching the world go by. "You're right,"

"Always am." Laughing, she was shoved off him.

Chapter 7: Chapter 6: The Prisoner

Chapter Text

The ship jolted when another shot landed on the hull. Elodie's grip tightened on the seat belt across her torso. Across from her, the child was squealing in delight at the situation. He liked how the ship would dive sporadically from side to side to evade oncoming fire. He made little effort to hold on, instead raising his hands in the air. Reaching over, she tightened the seat belt over his lap to secure him. The voice of the assailant crackled over the transponder, causing the Mandalorian to tighten his grip on the controls.

"Hand over the child, Mando, and I might let you live."

The crest dove to the left in a flip to avoid another shot, and Elodie held her breath to suppress the urge to vomit. It had been a long time since she was last in space, in the throes of a fight.

"Hang on!" Din called over his shoulder, wincing when he heard her heave.

"I can bring you in warm or I can bring you in cold."

Din hauled the ship to an abrupt stop with the reverse thrusters. The halt while travelling sub-light speed caused all three of them to be thrown into their belts with a collective grunt. Elodie threw her hand in front of the child on instinct to prevent serious injury to his small form. The offending ship scraped over the top of the crest and into the Mandalorian's line of sight. In an instant, the other ship was detonated, and the bounty hunters dying screams echoed throughout the co*ckpit.

He glared at the ship, "That's my line!"

"Losing fuel." The automated voice of the ship sounded among alerts of failing systems.

Luckily, they were over the atmosphere of Tatooine, the golden sandy tundra overtaking the expanse as far as the eye could see. The co*ckpit suddenly grew dark as the backup generators failed to kick in. The child cooed, scared. Din desperately flicked random switches in hopes of reviving the systems. "Here." She said, reaching across to transfer one wire into the socket of another, and the ship spluttered to life. Din sent her a nod and returned to piloting.

The descent into the lower atmosphere caused another call over the radio, "This is Mos Eisley Tower. We are tracking you. Head for bay three-five, over."

"Copy that. Locked in for three-five." The Mandalorian acknowledged.

Din landed the ship in the hanger and lowered the ramp. The two collectively decided to keep the child in the sleeping compartment on the ship while they scoped out the area. It had been a while since she had visited Tatooine; who knows how much has changed since then? Elodie knew for a fact that the rule of the Hutt's was over, and now the Daimyo was Bib Fortuna after the invasion of the Jedi.

Droids came rushing towards the ship from one of the doors, followed by an erratic older lady. Her hair stood in a wild tussle of auburn curls, and she wore work overalls covered in oil. She was rightly dissatisfied when she saw Din whip out his blaster to fire in front of the droids to stop their approach. "Hey! You damage one of my droids, you'll pay for it."

Ignoring her, he stated, "Just keep them away from my ship."

"Yeah? You think that's a good idea, do ya? Let's look at your ship." She got closer to the wing of the crest, observing the carbon scoring and damage from the fight. When she looked away, Elodie slapped Din's arm as a warning not to provoke her. "Oof! Look at that. Ugh, you got a lot of carbon scorin' building up top. If I didn't know better, I'd think you were in a shootout." She went all around to assess the damages. "Special tool for that one. I am gonna have to rotate that. You got a fuel leak. Look at that, this is a mess. How did you even land? That's gonna set you back."

The Wolven sighed, closing her eyes. The mechanic probably would have been nicer if her companion was not so obtuse. The Mandalorian whipped a bag of credits out of his pocket, the last of what they had. "I've got five-hundred Imperial Credits."

"That's all you got? Well, what do you guys think? That should at least cover the hangar." The woman claimed, hands settling on her hips. The two of them were going to have to find jobs if they wanted to fix the ship and be off this planet ASAP. Who knows how many bounty hunters were far behind the other guy?

"I'll get you your money."

"Hmm. I've heard that before." She grumbled. Elodie walked up to the woman, sticking a hand out in hopes of warming her up. "Thank you...?"

"Peli."

"Well, Peli. I'm Elodie, and this is Mando. My companion here may have a stick up his ass, but I do not. So, thank you for helping to fix the ship. Would we be able to negotiate a lower fee if I were to help with the repairs in the co*ckpit? This looks like it is going to be more than a one-person job." She hummed in contemplation, but ultimately decided that she liked her. "I suppose that could work. But I don't tolerate any slacking. If you are here to work, then work you will do."

Elodie nodded. "Yes ma'am."

Din pulled his companion to the side for a quiet word while Peli assessed the rest of the damage. "Will you be okay here while I scout out the local cantina for work?" He didn't like the idea of leaving her for an unknown period of time. "If I need anything, I can call you over the comm, but that goes both ways. If things go south, give me the word, and I'll come, okay?" He silently agreed with a squeeze, releasing his hold on her arm, and backed out towards the hanger exit.

"Just remember..." Din called over his shoulder, only to be cut off by an irritated Peli. "Yeah, no droids. I heard ya. You don't have to say it twice."

Elodie spun to face the woman, clapping, "Right! Let's get to work. You got a radio lying around?" The older woman grinned and hailed one of her droids. It came racing in at her command, blaring tunes most commonly heard in the local cantinas.

Peli laughed, flicking down a pair of welding goggles and lighting her blowtorch. "I think we might just have a little fun with this, Eddy."

Deciding to tackle the front of the ship, Elodie opened a few external wires powering the co*ckpit, rewired some that had come loose in the tussle, and welded those that didn't want to stay put. It took some time to complete, but she was satisfied with the end result. Peli had forgone the blowtorch by the sounds of the flame diminishing, for some other tools.

The Wolven also checked the landing equipment, making sure it hadn't been damaged, which was reassuring as it wouldn't be a cheap replacement. With a rag, she scrubbed away at some of the carbon scoring and general dirty marks when she heard Peli release a loud exclamation at the rear of the gunship.

Racing around, Elodie saw the child within her grasp. Peli held it at some distance to look it over before cradling it to her chest. The child looked up at the woman in awe, not expecting the stranger in the place of his guardians.

"Let Peli take a look at you. All right, there you go. Did that bounty hunter leave you all alone in that big, nasty ship?" One of the droids whirred, "How do I know what it is? Give me a second. All right."

"Hey!" Elodie felt dread as she ran to snatch up the child from her arms, face pulling up into a snarl.

"Woah! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to overstep; I just didn't realise you had a kid. I thought it was some stowaway or somethin'."

Elodie took a deep breath, realising she truly didn't mean any harm to the child. "Sorry. Just a little protective. We were just letting him have a little nap. Long flight and all." Smiling sheepishly at the woman.

Peli seemed to like the child, and she felt her heart warm at the sight of his overly large eyes. "No worries. Now, would you like some food bright eyes? Are you hungry? Okay. Fetch us something to eat. Quick! I don't know... Something with bones in it." The droids once again rush to the mechanics' beck and call while Peli ushers them to her office with a window overlooking the hanger. "Sit down. Sit down."

By the time the suns were at their apex, Din had arrived from the cantina. He didn't know whether to call it luck he had managed to score a job or misfortune for adopting a fledgling hunter under his wing to take down a highly dangerous bounty. Upon arriving, he saw the hanger abandoned. No droids were whizzing around, and neither his companion nor Peli were to be seen. Investigating further into the ship, assuming she was working on some interior parts, Din felt his breath increase when he found no sign of her or the child.

He practically flew down the ramp in a tower of Beskar rage. With red clouding his vision, he called out to the hanger, "Hey! Hey!"

The Mandalorian prayed that Elodie would call back out to him and reassure him that she and the child were fine. That bounty hunters hadn't taken them from under his nose.

"Hey! I'm awake! I'm awake!" Peli screamed from the office, making the child startle awake with a cry. He watched as the mechanic made her way over to him, holding the unsettled child in his arms. "Where are they?"

"Oh. It's okay. You woke it up. Do you have any idea how long it took me to get it to sleep?" Peli said, while she tried to calm the child.

He made a move to snatch the child out of her hand, much like how Elodie did, but Peli withdrew. "Give him to me."

"Not so fast! You can't just wake them up like that! You know, you have an awful lot to learn about raisin' a young one. Anyway, I started the repair on the fuel leak, and your friend made good with the short circuits and rewiring. There you go. I had a couple setbacks I want to talk to you about. You know, I didn't use any droids, as requested, so it took me a lot longer than I expected, but I managed with that bit of help from Eddy. But I figured you were good for the money since you have an extra mouth to feed."

Din breathed deeply to settle his racing heart, but he could still not see Elodie, even when he had called. "Thank you. Where is she? I need to leave soon."

"Oh, I guess I was right. You got a job, didn't you? You know, it's costing me a lot of money to keep these droids even powered up." The woman slipped in, then added, "She said she went to see an old friend. Didn't say much more than that, and I didn't ask."

Before he could press further, the sound of a vehicle had them both turning. Toro had arrived, bearing two speeders. Looks like they've seen better days.

"Hey, Mando, what do you think? Not too shabby, huh?" He must have sensed the deadpan look the Mandalorian was sending his way. "What'd you expect? This ain't Corellia."

Din cursed internally at the thought of leaving for the bounty without seeing his companion. He trusted Mos Pelgo as much as he trusted Toro Calican.

Not. One. bit.

He was going to have to try to call her later on when he had the chance, but for now, his hackles were to remain raised until he was back on the ship with just Elodie and the child. Safe. The Mandalorian turned to Peli, who held the child, "Can you watch him? I shouldn't take too long, and Elodie should be back soon. Tell her I should be a day tops." Peli nodded, happy to babysit the critter. The child also looked to be happy under her care. Din believed he could trust the manic mechanic.

Especially if Elodie had trusted her enough to leave the child in her care.

With that, he swung his leg over the speeder and set off into the dunes.

It was a decent walk from the hanger. Elodie took slow steps through the city, retracing her memory. The town had changed. The streets were livelier, and more markets were bustling.

And storm trooper helmets were strung up on pikes.

It was clear they had been there for some time as age had started to take effect. They were worn and damaged, sinking lower on the pikes as time passed. The townspeople walked past them without a spare glance, a clear sign they were now part of the town's infrastructure.

On the outskirts, the population grew less dense and the buildings sparse. She took note of the large pile of rocks stacked by the base of a solid sand dune, which the houses were forged out of. The rocks were stacked according to size, with the largest at the bottom and the smallest at the top. It came to around the height of her waist, and she knelt down in front of it. It had been left untouched; no doubt, none of the townspeople even ventured this far out in fear of the sand beasts or krayt dragons. Pinned under the rocks was a single leather cord with a Beskar Mythosaur pendant.

Belonging to her vod.

His memorial.

After being unable to retrieve his body, she found herself in a state of grief so deep that she didn't know what to do with herself. Bib Fortuna at the time had offered his 'condolences' very sincerely; trying to recruit her in her brother's place. When she refused, he sent her fleeing from the place she once called home and evidently into the arms of the child.

Snatching the pendant, she placed it over her neck, feeling like she had grieved long enough. Although her heart still ached for him, she knew they would meet again in the void when her time came too.

The comm interrupted her train of thoughts with a bleep of an incoming transmission. The suns were sinking lower under the horizon, and the temperature was dropping at an alarming rate. By the time she would head back to the hanger, it would be freezing, and Din would be worried.

Din.

Elodie regretted not telling him of her intentions when she elected to stay behind. But she didn't want him to feel awkward or obligated to tag along.

"Elodie?" He called over the comm. Din sat down, thinking of her, leaning against his speeder bike half way into the dune sea. It was the first chance he got alone to call. He hoped he was far enough away from Toro to avoid being overheard. "Are you there?"

She pressed the button to answer back. "I'm here."

He released a breath. "Where are you? I went back to the hanger earlier, and Peli had said you had gone to see a friend. Are you okay? Are you back at the hanger?"

Elodie smiled at his concern. "Sorry about that." She fiddled with the pendant. "Remember when I told you I was from Tatooine? Well, I just wanted to visit the memorial of my vod." He didn't reply, so she took that as an indication to continue. "I just haven't been able to visit it for years, you know, with the whole 'being taken' thing."

Din winced, not realising his insensitivity. "I'm sorry."

She shook her head, then realised he couldn't see. "Don't apologise, Mando; it's fine, honestly. Are you on a job right now?"

He rolled his eyes at Toro, who was looking straight down his blaster barrel. "Yeah. Had to partner up on this one, though, and gained a rookie. Ever heard of Fennec Shand?"

Frowning, she replied instantly, "Fennec Shand? Your bounty is Fennec Shand. Why did you go for such a high-profile bounty? She's notorious for targeting the Hutt's." Elodie stood, starting to make her way back to the hanger.

"It wasn't by choice; the guild no longer operates in Tatooine."

Her eyebrows rose in surprise. "Be careful, okay? It might make me a little sad if you died."

"Only 'a little' sad?" Din fought the urge to smile. There was something about the woman that kept making his heart feel lighter. She had a way of breaking down walls he had spent years building to protect himself as a hunter. He couldn't put his finger on it. She hummed, "Mh-hm. All the while flying off in your ship."

"You would take the Crest too!" He exclaimed incredulously.

"That pilot chair would finally be mine!"

"Gar cuyir an ori'dush dala." He said in Mando'a, hoping to hear her reply. She didn't disappoint. [You are a cruel woman.]

"Shi at gar, ner cye'ruus." [Only to you, my precious cinnamon roll.]

Din found that he liked conversing in the native tongue, as he had only ever relayed it before with his tribe. "When will you be back?" She asked, seeing the hanger in the distance. He looked up at the sky, estimating it to be late evening.

"Hopefully midday tomorrow if all goes to plan. We've got her pinned, but I need to go if we're going to make it in time." The Mandalorian concluded, deeming it late enough for them to travel with the elusive darkness. "Seeing as nothing ever goes according to plan, I will see you tomorrow evening, then. I've just got to the hanger, myself."

"Keep safe." He ended, hearing one final reply of, "Ditto."

Entering the hanger, Peli offered her and the child to sleep outside of the ship, which she accepted. The cot on the crest was all well and fine, but after spending weeks travelling in space, she wanted to seize any opportunity for a change of scenery. The mechanic only had one cot, which was her own, but she had kindly provided spare cushions and blankets for Elodie to nap by the homemade fire to keep themselves warm. The gun the Mandalorian had left her with was tucked under her pillow, and the child was tucked into her chest as per usual. The droids had settled themselves around the spit, too, and powered down.

Elodie found herself dozing off, staring at the flickering flames, and hearing the soft snores of the child.

Night fell, and everyone in the hanger retired to bed. Distant shrieks of the reptavians rang out in the distance.

There was a soft breath of air next to her face in the dead of night. And a voice whispered to her, "Don't move."

Eyes flashing open, they met a pair of dark ones, seeming almost black in the moonlight. A face was a hairbreadth away from her own, with wavy brunette locks on his head falling into his face. The man smiled when he stood, but the facade of co*ckiness was overruled by the trembling in the hand that held the gun to her head.

Somehow, she managed to stay silent in her fright. Bringing her hands down to sit up slowly, she discreetly worked a hand towards the pillow over her blaster.

"Ah, ah, ah! Not so fast!" he said, watching the fingers creep up. He booted his leg, sending the pillow and gun into the nearest crate with a bang. The sudden loud noise made her flinch, and the child woke with a cry. Elodie grabbed him, holding him close so that the hunter would have to peel him off her to get to him. Weapon-less or not, she was still capable of taking him on.

"The Mandalorian was so stupid for leaving you and the asset defenceless. Fennec was right. This is easy." This must have been the rookie Din was talking about. But she knew Din better; he would never divulge that he was travelling with her or the child.

Where was Din?

Elodie swallowed the lump in her throat at the thought. Not knowing if he was injured or dead made her feel physically sick. Worse than when he was taking the ship for a spin. "What did you do to Mando?" She ground out, hoping Peli would come outside so she could put this di'kut in the ground. [Idiot/waste of space]

"Dead." Toro smirked in reply.

As if luck were on her side, Peli then stormed out unhappily.

"Dead." The word repeated itself in her mind.

"Is that you making all that ruckus? I'm trying to get my beauty-" Stopping short, she eyed the man holding the Wolven and the child to gunpoint in shock. Peli recognised him as the man travelling with the Mandalorian.

"Dead." It rang again.

"Don't move!" He called out to the mechanic, changing from Elodie to Peli with the gun, unsure who posed more of a threat. In the end, he decided the one holding the child was less likely to attack than the one at the hanger door.

Wrong move.

Thrusting the child towards the cot, bundled in blankets, Elodie dove for Toro in a fit of rage. Peli barely managed to catch the child after diving for him. The Wolven landed on him with hands on both shoulders. At the force of the impact, he flew back, taking the two into a discarded crate and landing out of site.

There were a range of growls, yells, and thumps.

When a gunshot rang out and a body thudded to the ground, Peli took cautious steps closer to see who had prevailed.

Toro jumped to his feet, wiping the blood from under his nose with his sleeve. Peli stumbled back in fear for the younger woman. The child wailed and snuggled closer. Four fresh parallel wounds extended from his right temple, across his face and nose, and down to the other side of his jaw. Elodie had landed a decent hit in an attempt to claw at his eyes.

Unknowing of Elodie's fate, Peli obeyed the orders of Toro to hand over the child and step into the gunship to wait for the arrival of the Mandalorian. They didn't notice the faint beeping of the comm on Elodie's makeshift cot with an incoming call.

Din arrived at the hanger, trying to listen out for any signs of where Toro could be. He'd tried again and again to contact Elodie on the comms to warn them of his partner. Din wanted to throw the damn thing in frustration when she didn't answer for the umpteenth time. Seeing the hanger in the distance from where he sat on the Bantha was a relief.

It was silent when he entered the hanger, as expected. After all, it was the middle of the night. His hackles rose when he saw the strewn bedding and forgotten blaster. Peli came out of the darkness of the crest, stalked by Toro holding the child at gunpoint.

No sign of Elodie.

From the look of the wounds on the rookies' face, the Wolven had met him, however. "Took you long enough, Mando! Looks like I'm calling the shots now, huh, partner? You can go ahead and drop the blaster and raise 'em."

Toro wanted to smile, but his face was set in a grimace of pain. Holding the child tighter, he nudged a gun into Peli's back to urge her further out. "Cuff him."

"You're a guild traitor, Mando, and I'm willing to bet that this here is the target you helped escape." Toro continued, prodding the child firmly with the blaster.

Peli stood behind the Mandalorian, pretending to cuff him. Din showed her the flash bolt in his grasp, a warning to close her eyes when the moment came. "You're smarter than you look." Din let his eyes scan around the hanger in hopes of catching sight of his companion.

Two feet lay limp on the ground by the office, sight obscured from the knees upward.

"Fennec was right. Bringing you in won't just make me a member of the guild; it will make me legendary."

Din triggered the flash bolt.

A blinding white light eclipsed the hanger for a split second. A split second was enough for Din and Peli to disperse. Toro laid down blaster bolts in shock at the spot where the bounty hunter once stood.

When his vision returned, he saw that his shots had found their home in an empty spot. Din, standing at his side, fired. The shot sent Toro flying off the ramp with the child.

The Mandalorian wasted no time in approaching the body, knowing he had hit his mark. Toro was dead. Peli stood close behind, so he warned, "Stay back."

"I gotta get it, where is it? She trusted me with it." The older woman mumbled, frantically searching for the infant. Din switched his infrared on, observing the tracks of the child's feet. He followed the trail, which led to some crates.

Elodie was sprawled out on the ground, unconscious. The child sat by her head, stroking it with his three-finger claws. A blaster bolt had scorched the sand beside her head.

Rushing to her side, Din turned her head to see a small scratch on her eyebrow, blood teasing the open air but no longer trickling.

"There you are! Look at you!" Peli cried out, picking up the child. "I bet that blast hurt your big old ears, didn't it."

"Patu." The child kept trying to reach out for Elodie's head, but she kept him back to allow The Mandalorian to tend to her. Peli saw the way he delicately placed his hands under the woman's neck to lift her body into him.

Pulling off a glove, he held it under her nose to feel breath, sighing in relief when a soft, warm exhale drifted over his fingers. His rough hand looked so tanned beside the bleached skin tone. Din let his hand dust the sand from her face.

Definitely not using it as an excuse to caress her smooth skin.

"Is she gonna be okay?"

Breaking out of his thoughts, he nodded up to Peli and said, "She's fine. Just been knocked unconscious." Tucking his free arm under her knees, he raised to cradle her to his chest.

Peli chased after his shadow into the ship with the child in her arms. After setting her down in his cot, he turned to take the child from the mechanic. "You be careful with him. And look after Eddy, you hear me?" She reminded him, "I take it you didn't get paid?"

Din dropped the credits into her hands, the bag he had swiped from Toro's body. He smiled, watching her eyes light up happily.

"Yeah, that'll do it."

Turning on her heel without another word, she left the Razor Crest. He had a feeling he would visit again.

Chapter 8: Chapter 7: The Reckoning (Part 1)

Chapter Text

"How's your head?"

"Hurts." She mumbled into the pillow, nuzzling deeper.

Din applied a cold cloth to Elodie's forehead to relieve some of the pain. The cut had healed across the brow bone, leaving a thin, pale scar. Having woken mere minutes ago, she refused to open her eyes to the light illuminating the bunk. It felt as if a marching band were playing in her head.

The child rested in the hammock over the cot, and Din had crawled meticulously into the small space left in the bunk to hear her whispered responses. It was a tight fit, and he had to slide in to lay on his side.

"I hope the towel helps a little." She moaned instead of replying, the cool cloth relieving some of the ache in her temples.

Elodie grabbed his hand to apply firmer pressure, only to feel flesh.

Pulling her face out of its nest, she squinted at the tanned skin in her palm. Din had neglected to don his gloves when returning to the ship.

"Din, your gloves? I can see your skin."

He sighed, aligning his palm against hers and admired the contrast of size. Din admired how the tips of her fingers barely brushed his distal phalanges. Dark and light. Dainty and hardened. Course and smooth.

Warm and cold.

Elodie found herself sliding her fingers between his in the silence, catching the sight of dark hair covering his arm that disappeared into his sleeve.

He's a human.

And a brunette. It wasn't necessarily odd for a Mandalorian to show skin, but it was odd for Din. He seemed prudish with any form of exposure, which justified her confusion.

"I couldn't tell if you were dead," He started off by saying, giving her hand a squeeze. "When Peli and the child were threatened, I couldn't help that nagging feeling of worry for you at the back of my mind. Wondering where you were; if you were even alive. Only to find you concussed on the floor."

"It's a mild headache at best." She tried to reason. The deadpan in his silence told her everything she needed to know. "What are you trying to say? That you want me and the child to join you on bounty hunts? Our situation isn't ideal, and I don't see many solutions."

He shrugged, propping his head up on one hand where he sat on his side. "At least that way, I won't worry about you when we're apart." He was considering it?

"What about when we're neck deep in an ambush or something." She countered, "No matter what, you can't always keep us safe, Din. At one point or another, we are going to get hurt. And so are you. It goes hand-in-hand with being bounties; you should know that as a hunter." Elodie brought their connected hands closer, pressing her lips solidly against the back of his.

Testing the waters.

Din felt his breath hitch, and she heard it over the modulator. His skin was tingling from an overstimulation of touch. Goosebumps arose, disappearing under the sleeves. She found it endearing- the way his body reacted to her.

Din pinched his lips, pulling their hands closer to him this time, to his chest. Without the armour, she felt his heart beating rapidly under the cotton shirt. "But at least I can keep my eye on you both." She opened her mouth in protest, but he continued. "It's not that you can't protect yourself, because I know you can. You've proved it. But I can't focus on my fight if I'm worrying if you're losing yours."

"Okay."

"Okay?"

Nodding, she scooted closer to him. His back was pinned against the bunk wall. Elodie turned her ear to press against his chest, releasing his hands to bring them up in front of herself. "Do you feel scandalous with your gloves off?"

Her head bobbed on his chest at the vibration of his laughter. His arms circled around Elodie in a loose hold to coax her back to sleep. "Extremely," They enjoyed a moment of content silence.

"I've got the next job lined up." The Mandalorian mentioned, looking at the bunk wall above her head. "Hm?"

"With an old partner of mine. Ran."

Her eyes fluttered. "Mhm."

"Just promise me, you won't think of me any differently. Most of what we did together was a long time ago. I was another person back then." Deep down, Din was worried Ran might mention some of their past exploits. Most of which, were not honourable. Din played a neutral position most of his life, but as part of that team, he stepped over the line more times than he cared to admit. He regrets his time with the Ragtag team deeply, and if he could go back to rectify his mistakes, he would.

"I was new to bounty hunting when I went out on my own for a little while, before truly understanding the value of my covert. I-" He breathes deeply, "I hurt a lot of innocent people."

Elodie tightened her hands on the front of his shirt and looked up to the 'T' of his visor, lifting a hand to the side of it to encourage him to look down at her. "Nothing will change my view of you, Din. We all have a past, and you've grown from yours. It's just us now, yeah?" When he didn't answer right away, she repeated it.

"You are different now, Din."

"Yeah, I am."

"Mando. Is that you under that bucket? With a friend, I see."

"Ran. Elodie. Elodie. Ran" Din landed the ship on the substation. From the looks alone, it was easy to tell it dabbled in backwater dealings. The black-market kind of stuff. Half of the crew that passed gave dirty looks, eyeing them up greedily.

Elodie's lip curled in disgust, teeth on display to warn away strangers. For the safety of the child, he was locked in one of the compartments after a hearty meal. Hopefully, it would make him dozy enough to nap until the task was completed.

Then again, he was a bottomless pit. She thought.

"I didn't really know if I'd ever see you in these parts again. Good to see you." Ran said. "You know, to be honest, I was a little surprised when you reached out to me. You know, 'cause I... I hear things. Like, maybe things between you and the Guild aren't workin' out."

"I'll be fine." Din replied, wanting to keep the conversation to a minimum. He didn't want a repeat of Tatooine. Ran eyed the man suspiciously but carried on never the less. This piqued the Wolven's interest, which meant he obviously needed Din for something specific. "Okay. Well, you know the policy. No questions. And you, you're welcome back here anytime. The last thing I expected was for you to have female company."

"Partner." He corrected, "So, what's the job?"

"Didn't think you were one for that sort of thing. But yeah, one of our associates ran afoul of some competitors and got himself caught. So, I'm puttin' together a crew to spring him. It's a five-person job. I got four. All I need is the ride, and you brought it."

"Now you've got six. And the ship wasn't part of the deal." Concern for the child overwhelmed him. Allowing four degenerates into his private space? Around his, uh, companions? No word could pinpoint exactly what they were.

And the child would only stay quiet for so long.

"Well, the Crest is the only reason I let you back in here. What's the look? Is that gratitude? Uh-huh. I think it is. Hey, Mayfeld." The older man sneered, liking that the Mandalorian was uncomfortable with the situation. Elodie did not like how the man eyed the Mandalorian.

Ran had finished directing the two of them to a rec room. A bald man with a red scruff looked up from polishing his blaster. Mayfeld wore entirely black attire, and he had a gun mechanically wired to his backpack like an extra appendage. Leather holsters strapped around his chest for easier access than a dual-belt holster.

"Yeah?" The man said, digesting the company himself. Or more particularly, the stoic Mandalorian in flashy Beskar. Ran introduced them, "This is Mando, the guy I was tellin' you about. We used to do jobs way back when."

"This is the guy?"

"Yeah, we were all young, tryin' to make a name for ourselves. Yeah, but runnin' with a Mandalorian, that was... That brought us some reputation." Ran reminisced, this is exactly what the Mandalorian had dreaded. The bald man crossed his arms, curious. "Oh, yeah? What did he get out of it?"

"I asked him that one time. You remember what you said, Mando? Target practice." The Mandalorian hoped the woman beside him ignored the next words pouring from his mouth. Please don't say it, he internally prayed.

"Target practice. We did some crazy stuff, didn't we?"

"That was a long time ago." There was an edge to his tone he only ever used when he felt threatened, which Elodie recognized. Vulnerability. She stood closer, pressing her shoulder into the back of his arm, hoping he'd find some relief knowing he wasn't entirely alone.

He forced himself to take a deep breath, untensing as he did so.

"Well, I don't go out anymore. You understand? So, uh, Mayfeld, he's gonna run point on this job. If he says it, it's like it's comin' from me. You good with that?"

"You tell me." At least the reminiscing about the so-called good old days would stop.

"You haven't changed one bit. Yeah, well, things have changed around here. Yeah, well, Mayfeld, he's... He's one of the best triggermen I've ever seen. Former Imperial sharpshooter."

"That's not saying much."

"Best triggerman, didn't you say you worked with the Mandalorian?" Elodie jabbed, thinking back to the notoriously atrocious aim of storm troopers. Then, compared that to the aim of her Mandalorian. No competition.

Mayfeld whipped around, pointing. "I wasn't a storm trooper, honey. What is this, bring your girlfriend to work day? What's your name, sweetheart?"

"You will call me Elodie. Not sweetheart. Not honey. Elodie. I'm the Mandalorian's partner." Squaring up, she mirrored his position by widening her stance with unwavering eye contact. She dearly missed how her armour used to give off an air of intimidation. No one seems to be intimidated by a five-foot-four half-starved woman. She hoped her visible scars would help deter unwanted attention. Despite this, Mayfeld held his hands up in surrender and backed off. He and Ran walked together to the bridge overlooking the compound.

Mayfeld whistled at the sorry sight of the crest. "Razor Crest? I can't believe that thing can fly. Looks like a Canto Bight slot machine." Elodie wanted to agree, but didn't want to speak to the man more than necessary. Approaching the ground crew, he introduced them both to a red Devaronian lugging crates. "The good-lookin' fellow there with the horns, that's Burg. This may surprise you, but he's our muscle."

"So, this is a Mandalorian. I thought they'd be bigger." Burg, the Devaronian, stood to face the Mandalorian, running his eyes up and down his form. Deep keloid scars marred his face. Din refused to back down at the intimidation, but his fingers twitched, wanting to grasp his blaster.

Catching a look in his peripheral vision, his heart sank. A bug-like droid waltzed forward, its optics overly large, resembling a fly. "Droid's name is Zero."

"I thought you said you had four."

"He does." Someone spoke from behind. A pale blue Twi'lek was gliding out of the shadows, twirling a knife in her fingers. "Hello, Mando." Din and Elodie both winced for entirely different reasons. The Mandalorian for wanting to rid himself of the clingy woman, who had once made multiple attempts to bed him unsuccessfully. The Wolven winced, wanting to rid herself of the gritting noise of the woman's voice. Like nails on a chalkboard.

I'm surprised no one performed a laryngectomy on this woman out of mercy.

"Xi'an." Din sighed.

In a blink of an eye, she had one of her daggers pressed between the Beskar of his helmet and cuirass. "Tell me why I shouldn't cut you down where you stand."

"Nice to see you, too." She released a shrill laugh and dropped the blade. Elodie looked between the two uncomfortably. Had Din really had a relationship with this woman? One minute into meeting her, Elodie already wanted to bring a blaster to her own head. Xi'an tapped the tip of the blade to his chest, "I missed you. This is shiny. You wear it well."

Mayfeld interrupted, thankfully. "Do we need to leave the room or something?" The Mandalorian stepped away to put distance between himself and the Twi'lek. "Well, Xi'an's been a little heartbroken since Mando left our group." Ran said. "Aw. You gonna be okay, sweetheart?" Mayfeld pouted.

Xi'an smiled cynically and said, "Oh, I'm all business now. Learned from the best."

"All right, lovebirds. Break it up till you get on the ship. Right now, we don't have much time."

Burg bumped Din's shoulder when he passed, spitting down at the man. "Tiny."

A holopad illuminated a 3D blueprint of the ship they planned to board. It looked vaguely familiar, something Elodie couldn't quite put her finger on. "Just listen up. We got a limited window to board; find our friend, get him out of there before they make their jump."

Din knew the ship.

"That's a New Republic prison ship. Your man wasn't taken by a rival syndicate. He was arrested." He called out, glancing around the room at the knowing faces.

"So what? A job is a job." Mayfeld smirked, expecting this type of reaction. "That's a max security transport, and we're not looking for that kinda heat." The Wolven exchanged weight from one foot to another, uncomfortably.

"We'll get arrested on sight." She mentioned forcefully, wishing Din would withdraw. Mayfeld shrugged. "Well, neither are we. So just don't mess up."

"Oh, so that simple? I wish I had thought of that before." Elodie sassed.

Xi'an spoke up this time, knowing the Mandalorian's aversion to droids. "The good news for you is the ship is manned by droids. Still hate the machines, Mando?"

Zero made his way down the ladder from the co*ckpit after his inspections. "Despite recent modifications, the ship is still quite a mess. The power lines are leaking, the navigation is intermittent, and the hyperdrive is only operating at 67.3% efficiency. We have much better ships. Why are we using this one?" Ran countered, "'Cause the Razor Crest is off the old Imperial and the New Republic grids. It's a ghost."

"Yeah, and we need a ship that can get close enough to jam the New Republic code." Mayfeld agreed, sitting back in his seat.

"So, when we drop out of hyperspace here, if we immediately bank into this kinda attitude, we should be right in their blind spot, which will give us just enough time for your ship to scramble our signal." The hologram showed an impossible flight path. Elodie struggled to trace the path on the monitor. Even an experienced pilot would find that difficult to manoeuvre.

Din seemed to agree with her thoughts. "It's not possible. Even for the Crest."

"That's why he's flyin'. Mando, I know you're a pretty good pilot, but we need you on the trigger. Not on the wheel." Ran admitted, clapping a hand on his pauldron. Din wanted to slap his hand away but resisted the urge. He mentally reminded himself that they needed the credits.

Elodie shot him a reassuring look, hoping it would translate along the lines of: "We can leave now. Just say the words."

"Don't worry, Mandalorian. My response time is quicker than organics. And I'm smarter, too." The Wolven held no animosity towards droids in general, but this droid managed to strike a particular nerve. She could only imagine what Din was feeling at this point.

Loathing most likely. Both for the droid and the unavoidable situation.

"All right. I... Yeah. That's good. Forgive the programming. He's a little rough around the edges. But he is the best." Ran said, slowly backing out of the ship.

"How can you trust it?" Din called.

Ran laughed, his full-bloated belly jiggling. "You know me, Mando. I don't trust anybody. Just like the good old days, Mando. Huh?"

The 'team' embarked on the Crest, and Elodie found herself eager to get it over with. These people were not trustworthy in the slightest. She would have to watch herself.

Mayfeld retraced his steps again, pacing back and forth in the hull. The constant tramples of his heavy-footed steps were beginning to bring back Elodie's headache.

"Will you sit down?" Xi'an snapped, balancing the top of her blade on her index finger.

The echoing voice of Zero called down from the co*ckpit in his conversation with Din. The Mandalorian must have been breathing down his neck during the pre-flight checklist. His stress levels were higher than those of an addict withdrawing from spice. "Calculations complete. Jumping to hyperspace now. Feel free to join the others. I will handle it from here." Din dropped down the ladder and took a short moment to look at the individuals occupying his space.

Elodie found herself leaning uncomfortably against the coding panel to the bunk hatch. No one was going to get past her to see the child, and she wished he somehow sensed her nerves through the force and remained quiet.

Din found himself using Mando'a to converse with her when he approached, knowing his new partners were not fluent and it could be done so without eavesdropping. "Cuyir gar pirusti?" [Are you well/okay]

"Pehea gar vurel borarir ti thes adate?" Elodie asked incredulously, ignoring him. Burg was inspecting the hull, looking for anything to occupy his short attention span. Mayfeld just sat there, deep in his thoughts, and Xi'an was amusing herself with her blades. The Wolven rolled her eyes at the bunch of misfits occupying their space. [How did you work with these people]

The Mandalorian leaned against the wall next to her, keeping his voice low. "Guuror ni sad, ni o'r a dha kis'wa be ner oyay. Ni fell lo wro at mar'eyir ni." [Like I said, I was in a dark part of my life. I fell into the wrong crowd when trying to find myself]

Observing the Twi'lek, she felt the frown deepen. "Meg kaysh? Rucuyir te t'ad be gar tome?" [What of her? Were the two of you together]

"Nayc. Draar" [No. Never] He denied firmly.

"Jate." [Good]

"Jate?" [Good]

"Elek. Gar cuyir a jate jag. Gar be'sol or'atu han ibac." [Yes. You are a good man, you are priority/deserve more than that] His heart fluttered, disbelieving that someone with a heart like Elodie would think so highly of him, a lowly beroya [bounty hunter].

"Hey, you want to speak some Basic? Care to share with the team?" Mayfeld snapped, looking between the two of them and their endless whispering. Elodie snapped back, "It's not my fault you are uncultured."

The argument was halted when Burg fiddled with the buttons on the weaponry panel, causing the doors to pop open. The Mandalorian's entire artillery lay bare for the Devaronian, who reached his grubby hands out to pinch a weapon. Before he could lay a finger down, Din jumped in front of him, almost slamming the doors shut on his fingers.

The two males squared up against one another, and the tension grew palpable. Finally taking some initiative as 'leader' Mayfeld piped up from his seat, urging Burg to back down. "Hey! Hey! Hey! Okay. Okay. Okay, I get it. I'm a little particular about my personal space, too. So, let's just do this job. We get in, we get out, and you don't have to see our faces anymore."

Elodie pinched the bridge of her nose, knowing the entire mission was going to run similarly. Din returned to his spot when the red-being retired to the other end of the hull. He saw her expression and asked, "What are you thinking of?"

"The headache I'm going to get."

"It's the only job available in the parsec. We needed the credits." He reasoned. He didn't like it either, but it was this or nothing. And they needed food, ammunition, and clothing. Instantly, she felt bad for the pressure she was mounting on him.

"I know. I appreciate what you've done, and I'm not blaming you," She licked her lips, mumbling, "It's just—they're a bunch of assholes."

"This job won't take long." Din leaned down to her level and said, "Don't go risking your life for these people. They're not worth it, and they certainly won't be doing the same for you."

"I've got your back, if you got mine?"

"Deal." Din confirmed, bumping his curled fist into hers.

"Someone tell me why we even need a Mandalorian." Burg loudly proclaimed, obviously still stewing over their little spat. The two companions both back away a little, watching everything unfold.

Mayfeld scoffed and replied back sarcastically. "Well, apparently they're the greatest warriors in the galaxy. So they say."

"Then why are they all dead?" That sent them into bouts of laughter at the Mandalorian's expense. The two of them stood in silence, not finding humour in the brutal murder of almost an entire civilization. Mayfeld turned his attention to the other woman on the ship. "Well, you flew with him, Xi'an. Is he as good as they say?"

"Ask him about the job on Alzoc III." Xi'an smiled, catching her knife when it tipped.

Din's reply was curt, "I did what I had to."

She bared her teeth when smiling. "Oh, but you liked it. See, I know who you really are."

"He never takes off the helmet?"

"This is the way." Xi'an mocked, her voice deepening to imitate.

"Condescending bitch." The Wolven spat, "First you joke about mass genocide, and then you tease about his creed? Ni'duraa!" She spat. Din held onto her upper arms from behind when she went to take a step closer. [You disgust me]

"What did you call me?!"

"You know, maybe he's a gungun. Is that why yousa don't wanna show your face? You ever seen his face?" Mayfeld suggested voice-overlapping the Twi'leks. "Aw. Come on, Mando. We all gotta trust each other here. You gotta show us somethin'. Come on. Just lift the helmet up. Let's all see your eyes."

Burg surged forward, "I'll do it."

Din seized his hand, stopping the pursuit to his helmet, and struck the Devaronian. It had little effect, if only pushing the beast back a step and into the Wolven. The weight of the Devaronian sent her backwards into the control panel for the bunk.

The door slid open and revealed the curious infant, staring up at the scene in confusion. Mayfeld beat everyone by moving first to pick him up and holding him at arm's length to get a good look.

"Whoa! What is that?"

Elodie and Din stood stock still, both wanting to snatch the child from his grip, but they both knew it wouldn't be that easy. The child could get hurt, or worse. "You get lonely up here, buddy? Huh? Wait a minute. Did you two make that? Huh? What is it, like a pet or somethin'?"

"Yeah. Something like that."

"No way this came from you. No, you are far too attractive." Mayfeld said, pointing to a standoffish woman, "Didn't take you for the type Mando. Maybe that code of yours has made you soft. Me, I was never really into pets. Yeah, I didn't have the temperament. Patience, you know? I mean, I tried, but never worked out. But I'm thinkin' maybe I'll try again with this little fella." She didn't know how Din did it. Not daring to move with the child in this man's hands. Elodie, on the other hand, was about to lose the last sh*t she had to give.

"Dropping out of hyperspace now."

Zero voiced down the open hatch to the co*ckpit, leaving everyone in the hull scrambling for something to hold onto as the ship rocked violently. The child flew out of Mayfeld's hands, and Elodie dove to catch him before he hit the floor. Grunting on impact, her back took the brunt of the fall. "Commencing final approach, now. Cloaking signal, now. Engaging coupling now. Coupling confirmed. We are down. And relax. Commence extraction now."

Xi'an groaned, standing from the floor. "Useless Droid didn't even give us a proper countdown." While they were finishing the plans, Elodie placed the child back into the bunk, patting his head and then sealing him in. Poor thing.

"Z, are you sure they can't see us?" Mayfeld said into his comm, but appeared happy with the answer. Elodie decided not to take a comm, instead following Mando's lead, as she would not be able to guarantee that she would not tear her own ears off if she heard them any longer than necessary. Din opened up the airtight hatch at the base of the hull that sealed to the New Republic Prison transport ship. Once opened, he gestured for the leader to take the lead.

"It's me?"

Burg agreed, "Always you." Mayfeld hung down to spy on the hallways, then flipped down. Quietly followed by Xi'an, Elodie, The Mandalorian, and Burg. Zero was to remain on the ship as the man behind the computer.

"Zero. Get us to the control room. All right, we're on the clock. Second, we engage those droids; they're gonna be all over us."

"I know the drill."

"All right, let's go."

"I don't like this." The Mandalorian said, taking out his blaster.

"You always were paranoid." Xi'an said as they all ducked behind the nearest column, just in time as two droids walked past, oblivious.

"Is that true, Mando? Were you always paranoid?" It was a wonder this man was leading with how much he was gaslighting his team. The two companions prayed they found the captive soon so they could get out of here. The Mandalorian found himself biting the inside of his cheek to avoid retaliating.

Ahead, a MSE-6 droid whizzed up the corridor towards their hideout. Burg stepped out, beckoning the droid closer like some kind of small animal. Hushed whispers of protest sounded from the team in an effort to dissuade him, but he persisted.

"What? It's just a little mousey. Come here, little mousey. Mousey, come here. Come here." The mouse machine backed away slowly at first, then spun to speed away. Noticing the hesitation, Burg curled his upper lip and opened fire.

MSE-6 crashed into the wall, scorch marks from the blaster littering its side. Mayfeld called out, stepping forward to stop him. "No! Burg, what are you doin'?"

"What?"

A piercing alarm rang throughout the halls, "Intruder alert."

"We have to get out of here now!" Elodie demanded, backing up into the wall. The team was in the middle of a hallway, out in the open. Before anyone could move, a battalion of guards came marching down one end of the corridor, armed.

"Open fire."

"We're too exposed here!"

"If they get a signal out, it's not gonna matter."

"Mando, let's go! You're supposed to be somethin' special."

"Mando?!"

"I knew it. I knew it!"

Elodie looked back in disbelief, not quite believing the man would just leave her behind. The sound of blasters up ahead focused her attention back on the droids. Din charged from behind them, lying to waste the first few droids without notifying the others. When there were only four left, they took notice of their dwindling numbers.

Din shot forward, blasting one droid to his right while holding the droid up against the wall with his other hand. Twisting, he used the droid as a shield against oncoming blaster bolts from the remaining two. The droid in his hold fell lifeless to the floor, and by that time, he was already in front of the others. Stray bolts rebounded off his armour with high pitched twangs.

Clearly impressed, Mayfeld tried not to let it show. "Make sure you clean up your mess." Mayfeld grunted, "Z, open the door!"

Elodie couldn't hear Zero on the receiving end, with only Mayfeld having the direct comm. "Yeah, okay. Organic signature, alright. Just open the door!"

Organic signature. As in-?

The doors to the control room opened with a whoosh. The six stood dumbfounded at the human New Republican stationed at the desk. He stood a little away from his chair, his back to the cameras, and a gun held in his grasp. "Stop! Just stop right there. You put down the blasters right now."

"Nice shoes." Ever co*cky, Mayfeld waltzed past unfazed by being held at gunpoint. He knew that he had the man outnumbered, and by the trembling of his hand, he didn't want to fire. Feeling sorry for the man, Elodie dropped her blaster to her side, showing she wasn't going to shoot.

"Put down your blasters." The man spoke, his gaze flicking between them, not knowing where to aim.

Mayfeld continued, "Matches his belt." scouring the database, he looked for the captive.

"There were only supposed to be droids on this ship." The Mandalorian bit out. Now, the two of them were in an impossible situation, and if this ended badly, the two of them were not only going to have the Empire hunting them, but the New Republic too.

Mayfeld found what he needed and smiled up at the gang. "Hang on, hang on. Let's see here. Uh... Cell two-two-one. All right, now for our well-dressed friend." The guard replaced his blaster with a tracking beacon from his pocket, his thumb hovering over the button. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Hey, hey. Easy. Easy, egghead. Put that down! Put that down. Come on, easy. Put it down now!"

The Mandalorian butted in, hoping to ease the tension, "Easy. Nobody has to get hurt here. Just calm down."

"What is that thing?" Burg asked, looking at the control in confusion.

Din answered in through the tense silence. "It's a tracking beacon."

"He presses that thing, we're all done. A New Republic attack team will hone in on that signal and blow us all to hell."

"Please put it down, we don't want to hurt you." Elodie reasoned, sliding her blaster in its holster and holding her hands up in surrender. Xi'an stood, unaware of the minor detail Mayfeld decided to leave out of the plan, "Are you serious? You didn't think we needed to know that tiny little detail?"

His lips thinned at the line of questioning. "I didn't think we'd get to this point. Are you questioning my managerial style, Xi'an?"

"No, sir." She mocked, plopping down in the chair.

"Hey. Listen to me. Hey, hey, hey. Listen to me, okay? Look. Hey. Put it down." Mayfeld watched as the Mandalorian also holstered his blaster and held his bare palms facing the guard, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Are you crazy?"

"What's your name?"

"It's Davan."

"Davan. We're not here for you. We're here for a prisoner. If you let us go about our job, you can walk away with your life."

"No, he won't." Mayfeld butted in helpfully.

"Hey! You realise what you're gonna bring down on us?" The Mandalorian reminded the team, he wished they would be silent while he sorted out the situation and prevented it from getting any worse.

"You think I care about that?"

Elodie stormed up to the balding man, fury alighting in her eyes. Mayfeld changed the aim of his gun to her looming figure, stopping the approach. "You damn well should! We can either get caught or killed. You are not making this situation any easier with all your unhelpful comments. I for one would like to get off this ship as fast as possible, so would you do everyone a favour and zip it!"

Din faced his blaster on Mayfeld. "We're not killing anybody. You understand?" This seemed to really tick the leader off. The gun on his pack projected to face him while he kept the one in his hand honed in on Elodie.

"Get that blaster out of my face, Mando."

Unmoving, Din replied. He maintained a steady aim on the man's head, watching for any flexing of his fingers on the trigger. "I can't do that."

"Get that blaster out of my face, Mando!" Mayfeld shouted, his face growing redder than his patchy beard.

Davan dropped to the ground soundlessly.

A knife protruded from his sternum, buried to the hilt. Following the line of trajectory, they found a smiling Twi'lek. "Would you both just shut up?"

"Crazy Twi. I had it under control." Mayfeld rolled his eyes and bagged his guns while she sauntered over to collect her knife from the body.

"Yeah. Looked like it."

Upon rolling Davan over, the beacon was found beneath the weight of his torso. The small red light was steadily flashing, alerting us that the distress signal had been sent. "Was that thing blinking before? Was it?"

Mayfeld's hand flew to his ear pierce when Zero contacted him.

"We only need five." Was all Elodie heard of the conversation, she assumed they were discussing the countdown before the New Republic reinforcements arrived. "Come on! Come on! Let's go, go, go!"

"Come on, come on. Open it up!" They all reached the cell and watched it peel open. Another Twi'lek stepped forward, smirking at the group.

The Mandalorian tilted his helmet. "Qin."

The Wolven looked between the two in confusion, not knowing whether it was a good or bad reunion. "Funny, the man who left me behind is now my saviour."

Bad. It was definitely a bad reunion.

The weight of Burg crashed into the side of the Mandalorian. Din, now airborne, flew into the opposing wall of the cell with a loud clatter of metal-on-metal. Simultaneously, Qin grabbed a fistful of her hair. Pulling her close, he used the momentum to thrust her forward onto the cell floor, face first. Din, having hit the wall above her, landed on the woman when he fell. A stray blaster shot ricocheted off the inner walls.

Eventually, it landed on Din's pauldron, where his arm had come up to block the hit.

The two lay in a heap, groaning. She could hear them celebrating from outside and spitting vile goodbyes as they sprinted back to the ship. Din stood, allowing her to breathe, and held a hand out for her to stand.

Footsteps grew further until they couldn't hear them anymore.

"Dank Farrik." She heard him mutter, pacing like a caged animal. "We'll wait for a guard and then disarm them."

"Or," She parried, pulling the slicer mechanism from her pocket, "I could unlock it now."

Din looked shocked between her and the key. "How did you get that?"

Elodie shrugged, wedging it in the lock. "Stole it off Davan when everyone was fussing over the beacon. Rest in peace, dude."

Stepping out of the cell, she looked either way to ensure the coast was clear. Fortunately, it was. "We should go back to the control room. Use the cameras to find them and stop them before they reach the ship." Din nodded, too angry to form words, and followed her retraced steps.

Reaching the control room, she stepped over the body of Davan to the panel. They flicked a few switches. The emergency lights beamed, flashing a deep crimson. She watched their panic on the screens, and they ran, evading the closing doors. Din was purposely drawing closer to their location. Slamming the final door in between them, it split the group in two, and she gave a gleeful clap. "Now, let's do what you do best."

"And what's that?" He asked.

The Wolven sent him a wicked grin, "Catch the bounties."

As expected, Burg came running into the control room without assuming it would be a trap. Elodie and the Mandalorian stood in the rafters, watching the Devaronian scour the empty room.

"Where are you, little mousey?"

Using his zip cord, Din hooked it around the Brute's neck. It did no good by strangling the beast. Burg yanked the cord, and subsequently, Din, out of the rafters. With Burg focused on looking down on Din, Elodie slipped through the grate and landed on his shoulders. Tightened her thighs to cut off oxygen supply, she brought her elbow down multiple times on the crown of his head.

Din tried to stand and attack Burg's midriff, but was easily shoved back with a swipe of his forearm. When the Devaronian's hands were free, he gripped her thighs and threw himself backwards onto the floor.

Elodie landed under his weight, easily feeling bruises form along the length of her spine. The sounds of the whistling birds echoed in the room, but she fought hard to get breath into her desperate lungs. When able to stand, she caught sight of Burg smiling toothily when the licks of fire died off his skin.

So Devaronian's were fireproof.

It seemed Din also shook off that realisation a little too late when he was tossed aside. Elodie hopped in to stop his advance on the recovering Mandalorian. "I'll add some more pretty scars if you step any closer." She growled, flexing her nails.

His lips pulled down, and he charged. Elodie jumped out of the way last second and used his momentum to slam his face down on the controls. He quickly righted himself, but caught himself on her nails when spinning to face the woman. A deeper shade of red dribbled down his cheek.

Burg sent a fist back, clocking her across the face. The blow was strong this time, sending her scrambling back against the other control panel. With her temporarily disabled, he had time to catch the incoming blows of the Mandalorian. Burg ended up with Din pinned against the wall and a hand placed in the cleft of his helmet.

From where Burg's back was facing her, Elodie could practically hear the smirk in his voice when he said, "Let's see your face, Mandalorian."

Using both feet, he kicked the Devaronian away and into the doorway. Elodie slammed the controls under her hand to send the doors down, pinning him to the floor. Burg laughed, heaving up the door on his shoulder like a deadlift. She brought her hand down on the controls again, this time the reinforcements door slamming into place.

Crushing the Devaronian.

Not really. But it was hard enough to knock him out cold; their kind were notoriously hard to kill. Din looked at her, chest plate heaving with the force of gulping lungfuls of air. "We don't have much time left." She nodded, racing after him down the hallways.

She held her hand out to slow down the pace of their running and pressed a hushed index finger to her lips. Head tilting, her heightened hearing picked up on panting and light padded footsteps. Understanding, Din nodded and followed her lead down one hallway. Halfway through, she spotted Xi'an, back facing them, a seemingly easy target.

Xi'an slowed, noticing their presence. With a flick of the wrist, a dagger breezed past Elodie's ear. More knives were sent their way, with Din deflecting and Elodie dodging each one. She didn't know whether to be shocked at how many Xi'an managed to store on her person.

Elodie caught her last knife, twisting her hand, and Din arrived on the Twi'leks other side. He ducked under her arm and held one to her neck. Xi'an hissed through gritted teeth, not being able to say anything before she was knocked unconscious on the floor.

"I'll get her to a cell; you catch the bald bastard." Elodie grunted, heaving her by the ankle to the cell, where they were dumping all the unconscious bodies.

The Mandalorian used the flashing of the lights to stalk the Balding man. Mayfeld felt the presence of someone approaching and whipped around, gun raised. He was sweating heavily, panicking at the notion of being caught like a mouse in a trap. The looming existence of the Mandalorian bared down over his shoulder. Din caught his arm, making quick work of disarming the sharp shooter.

"No! No! No! No!" He screamed in protest. The Wolven came down the hallway at the right time, watching Din incapacitate the man with blunt impact. Din went to haul him up, but a hand on his own stopped him.

She grabbed one leg, and he saw that she was offering to help drag him, to save his shoulder from excess strain. Elodie wasn't going to pretend she didn't see the one successful throw Xi'an delivered between the Beskar plates.

Din closed the cell door, not casting a look back at the three bodies they left behind.

Now to hunt the last one.

Running down the corridor towards the Crest, they slowed to stroll down the final one. At the end, the male Twi'lek turned around apprehensively at being caught. He wouldn't win against them in a fight.

Pathetic.

Elodie cuffed the Twi'leks outstretched wrists, waiting for the Mandalorian to board first, opting to watch the cuffed man struggle up the ladder. He grunted, finally heaving himself over the seal and into the hull. Climbing up the ladder, she hurried to secure him to one of the benches while Din manned the flight controls.

The smoking remains of Zero lay discarded in front of the open bunk. From the cooing in the co*ckpit, Din had saved the child and brought him away from the wandering eyes of Qin. Elodie sat on the bench opposite him in the hull, sighing. The constant thumping of her head resonated as she rested it back against the walls, blaster in lap.

"You can put that away. I'm not going to do anything." She opened her eyes to look at the man. He squirmed under her unwavering gaze.

"I know." She just liked to make him uncomfortable. Gripping the sides of the bench, she winced, as there were no seat belts in the hull when the ship lurched into hyperdrive.

Arriving at the space station, Ran's smile dropped when the ramp lowered entirely. Din pushed Qin down the damp, only when he was at Ran's side did the Mandalorian release the cuffs. Elodie remained at the top of the ramp, watching her partners' back in case Ran decided to pull a fast one while Din's back was turned upon returning to the ship.

"Where are the others?" Ran asked, at the lack of his crew.

Din felt the urge to smile, "No questions asked. That's the policy, right?" Reluctantly, the man nodded. "Yeah. That is the policy."

"I did the job."

Picking the credits from his belt, Ran dropped them in gloved hands. The Mandalorian pocketed the credits with relief. "Yeah, you did."

"Mando, don't forget that little extra Qin promised you." The Wolven called down, watching Ran's face fall into a scowl. Beside him, Qin looked sheepish. Another smaller pouch reluctantly fell into the Mandalorian's awaiting palm.

Departing the space station, they all sat in the co*ckpit. The child sat in the right-handed passenger seat, with Elodie to the left. She stole sideways glances at the Mandalorian, whereas Din kept looking at the clock on the dashboard.

"What's got you so smug?"

He shrugged, but she could tell he was chuffed from his relaxed posture. He had been tense since this morning, when they were in the bunk together. "You'll see."

Two New Republic ships disbanded their hyperdrive, flying by the crest and to the station. Elodie leaned out of her seat, watching the space station fire up their weapons. Within seconds of perceiving the threat, the New Republic opened fire.

The space station blew into bits.

Mouth open wide, she looked back at the giddy form of her Mandalorian. He glanced at her and then back in front of him, activating the light speed. "I planted the tracker on Qin when we dropped him off. You're not the only one with slippery fingers."

She slumped back into the seat, laughing in disbelief. "Where to next, then?"

He flicked some switches and then spun in the chair to face you. "I think it's best if we maintain a low profile."

Elodie agreed. Din reached his right hand up to massage the skin under his pauldron. Noticing his discomfort, she leaned closer to ask if he was okay.

"'M fine. Just a scratch."

Pulling his hand away, she picked up on the blood coating his gloves. "'Fine' my ass. Go sit in the hull, and I'll get the first aid kit."

He tried refusing, "I can do it myself." She held up her hand to stop his arguing, "By butchering yourself with a heated piece of scrap metal? Be civilised, you barbarian."

"Bu-"

"I said move!"

Putting the child to sleep was easy. It has been a long day, so the moment his head hit the soft fabric of his hammock, he was out. Elodie closed the door to the cot, ensuring he wouldn't wake from hearing her stitch Din's wound.

Din was slumped on a crate. Elbows rested on his thighs while he waited, not knowing what to do. Elodie stood in front of him, hands on hips. "I'm not a miracle worker."

"What?"

"I can't help your cut if you have a shirt covering it." He looked down at himself, registering that he was still fully geared. He quickly unclipped his upper body armour but struggled to remove his shirt. Walking over, Elodie slid her hands over his, in replacement, to slip the shirt over his head without hurting himself further.

Din flinched at the touch of her bare skin to his. "Are you always so hot?"

"Are you always so forward?" Elodie laughed, looking up at him with bright eyes. Din flushed at his mistake, albeit refusing to look away from her. She corrected, "I run a little warmer than humans do."

She prepped the equipment on the crate beside him and looked at the wound itself. It was just shy of his collarbone and stretched down on his left pectoral. It was deep and bled steadily, but she determined it was not serious. She was unused to seeing the Mandalorian so exposed.

Din hummed, "Ah, us lowly humans." She laughed with him.

"It is actually nice to know you're human. It takes away some of the mystery." Clearing away the blood with gauze and alcohol, she was impressed that he didn't sink away from the sharp sting that accompanied it.

"You think I'm mysterious?" Elodie scoffed, not taking her eyes off her needlework. "I hope you are not serious. Trying to get any information from you is like trying to tame a Rankor."

"Impossible?"

"...More like exhausting."

Feeling the bite of the needle yet again, he resisted the urge to flinch at the pain it brought. Din was determined not to show how much the stitches hurt after he'd adamantly declined the local anaesthetic. It would take a fool to believe it wasn't painful, but there are two things she was taught she could never argue with: stupidity and stubbornness.

"What did you want to know?"

"I don't know. Where you grew up? What's your favourite colour? At what age did you become Mandalorian? Do you like roast dinners? Little things."

Din licked his lips nervously. "I was raised on Aq Vetina, a desert planet nearby Mandalore, by my parents. I didn't have any siblings, and it was just us. And I was nine years old when separatist droids attacked and I was saved by the Mandalorians, then eleven when I took the creed. I trained on the Moon Concordia, by Mandalore. I don't have a favourite colour. But I like blue. And I like pretty much anything except coconut."

"Oh." Stunned at his openness, Elodie blanked, momentarily forgetting the needle in her hand. She flinched back into action and said, "I'm almost finished."

"What about you? How did you and the child meet?" She resumed the stitches, biting into the flesh with the tip again.

"We met on Tatooine shortly after my vod died. Rescued him while two gangs were fighting against each other over who got him. I didn't know what he was capable of or who was after him, but I wasn't just going to leave a child to be bartered like some cheap cargo."

It was easy to see that under all the thick armour and layers upon layers of clothing, he was still only a man. Slight perspiration dusting the surface of his skin was the only indicator of his pain. Beneath the impenetrable layers of Beskar and his thick flight suit, ragged scars decorate tanned flesh. Of all of his fights, he's accumulated more than his fair share and three times as many bruises. Patches of deep indigo and royal blue faded in patches to a sickly yellow, and right now, he felt like one big bruise. Elodie tied off the last stitch and set a bandage over the wound.

"You know, It's sad." She understood his silence as question. His physical acts being the unspoken language she was able to translate.

"That you recoiled from my touch but not the pain."

Din did not know how to respond, so he stayed silent for a moment, closing his eyes to feel her trailing fingertips up his arm when she stood. Drawing a line with her finger until she settled on his shoulders from behind.

Resting her hands on his shoulders at the base of his neck, she was careful to avoid the wound. Din dropped his shoulders when he realised she was finished torturing him. Elodie sunk her thumbs into the trapezius muscle, rubbing soothing circles. "Sometimes touch can feel really good."

Breathlessly, he moaned.

The very second it escaped his lips, he felt instant regret, straightening up in his seat. Elodie was not having any of it, working her hands deeper and firmer. Hitting a particularly tight knot, he relinquished another, only this time a little louder.

No one had ever touched him this way before.

Leaning forward, she breathed into the audio receptors of his helmet, "Careful, you'll wake the baby." Her hands slipped away as she climbed up into the co*ckpit, leaving Din feeling very uncomfortable and exposed.

Maybe even a little flustered.

Chapter 9: Chapter 8: The Reckoning (Part 2)

Chapter Text

The Mandalorian stepped down from the ladder and into the hull, where Elodie and the child were.

Stood by the burner at the cabinets, she spoke to the child about how to make a certain recipe. The child watched her talk animatedly and sometimes participated in adding ingredients.

"No, Ad. You won't like the taste of that." She laughed, trying to ease his hands away from his face while he attempted to scoff a mouthful of salt. "Add it to the gravy." He did as instructed, emptying the fistful into the pot over the flames. Din leaned against the wall silently, watching. He enjoyed seeing them peaceful and domesticated. [Child]

Interacting with the child as if he were her own.

"Have you ever wanted children of your own?" Din asked, breaking his thoughts. Elodie smiled up at him and continued to stir the pot. "Never really thought about it, to be honest. But, I guess it would be nice. To settle down. Have a family." She replied. The images of young children weaving in between her legs ran through her mind, and the sounds of their laughter would be loud and infectious. A doting husband by her side.

Scooping up a teaspoon, the child lapped at it greedily, his eyes lighting up. "What about you, family man? Any thoughts about creating your own little clan?"

He bit his lip to stop himself from smiling back at them, something he found difficult to express. "Family man? Never thought it was the life for me." Shooting him a serious look, she set the child on the floor to allow the meal to simmer without him eating it. "Well, he's essentially a foundling. He may be half a century old, but he's still a child. He needs people like us not only to protect him but also to teach him."

The next words that left Din's mouth left her feeling conflicted, "You are like a mother to him." She looked between him and the child and said, "I'd do anything for him."

There was a pregnant pause before Din spoke up.

"I have to show you something."

The three of them gathered in the co*ckpit, with the child in her lap fiddling with the metal ball. Greef Karga appeared on the holocall, appearing alive and well.

"My friend, if you are receiving this transmission, that means you are alive. You might be surprised to hear this, but I am alive too."

"How is he still alive?" She asked, but received silence in return. It was a subject Din had been mulling over the past few hours since receiving the call. He honestly didn't know what to think of it and loathed the idea of broaching the subject. The past few days have felt normal. He didn't want to break the peace the three felt. As if the empire wasn't searching for them relentlessly.

"I guess we can call it even. A lot has happened since we last saw each other. The man who hired you is still here, and his ranks of ex-Imperial guards have grown. They have imposed despotic rule over my city, which has impeded the livelihood of the guild. We consider him an enemy, but we cannot get close enough to take him out. If you would consider one last commission, I will very much make it worth your while. You have been successful so far in staving off their hunters, but they will not stop until they have their prize. So, here is my proposition."

Elodie scoffed, continuing to listen to the call regardless, choosing to bite her nails.

"Return to Nevarro. Bring the child as bait. I will arrange an exchange and provide loyal Guild members as protection. Once we get near the client, you kill him, and we both get what we want. If you succeed, you keep the child and the girl, and I will have your name cleared with the Guild, for a man of honour should not be forced to live in exile. I await your arrival with optimism."

"Optimism? Does he honestly think-" She began.

"We should do it." He interrupted.

Whipping her head around to his seat, she glared at the side of his helmet, where he refused to look at them.

She stood, throwing her hands up in disbelief. Din closed his eyes, half expecting the reaction. The idea was mad. "Is that helmet cutting off the blood flow to your head? That's ludicrous! If the Empire isn't already in on the idea, Greef will kill us on site! If not him, the bounty hunters. And if not them,"

Din stood abruptly, in a blur of movement, to stand in front of her. His stiff shoulders held the tension and frustration of the difficult situation.

"I know!" He exploded, taking in a deep breath to calm down. "I know."

"But if it is either this or keep running. We are constantly looking over our shoulders, not knowing who is eventually going to get the lucky shot! I can't always be there to protect you! Sooner or later, they'll get their hands on you and the child, and then that's it. Over!"

Elodie stood there, not speaking a word. Traitorous tears burned behind her fluttering eyelids. Din took a step closer, hands cupping her cheeks to look at him directly. She hoped he was lining up their eyes as she searched the tinted visor endlessly.

The last thing they wanted was to go willingly into the hands of the Imperials, but she understood where he was coming from. They'd been running from the Empire for months and were both exhausted.

"Do you have any idea how I would feel if you were both taken from me?" Feeling a thumb brush over a single trailing tear, she nodded. His own lips were downturned. Elodie reached up to hold his wrists, not allowing him to pull away. The sharp tips of her nails dug into the thick padding of the gloves.

Taking a deep breath, Elodie did something she probably shouldn't have. Something dangerous. Possibly stupid. She inched onto her tiptoes-

And pressed her forehead against his.

"I just want to keep you safe, An'ee." He said. His face was hot. His breath was hot. The way she made him feel was indescribable. [Rough/tough fighter.]

Din closed his eyes, relishing the feeling of having her body pressed against his. Having the woman hold him to her in a Keldabe kiss.

He could feel the apprehension for the upcoming confrontation and nudged forward to gently bop the tip of her nose too. Sniffing, she released a huff of laughter, leading him to smile, gazing hopelessly down at her eyes.

"I trust you, Din."

Cara yelled boisterously.

The belt that connected them in their brawl didn't allow her opponent to escape very far. She rushed towards him, throwing out her arm to deliver a swift uppercut. The other man didn't get a chance to cry out as he flew back into the bar. Gripping the front of his shirt, she then gave him a few more punches until he collapsed to the floor.

Defeated.

Elodie threw her hands into the air, the cheer lost in the cries of the crowd. "Pay up, Mudscuffers! Come on." Members of the crowd tossed her coin pouches in passing. "That's mine, thank you. All right, thank you."

"Looking for some work?"

Din walked out of the gathered villagers after the fight, the crowd dissipating. Elodie spotted a free table, allowing the others to follow in tow.

Cara sipped her spotchka, taking in the mountain of information provided about their predicament. And the fact that they were seeking to recruit her again for support. Din sat on the edge of his seat, awaiting the response, resting his weight on his elbows.

"It seems like a straightforward operation." She shrugged.

Din added, "They're providing the plan and firepower. I'm the snare."

"And me and the child are the bait." Elodie finished.

"With the kid? That's why I'm coming to you." Cara summed up, looking torn at the proposition. Debating the risk of getting caught or defending her friends. "I don't know. I've been advised to lay low. If anybody runs my chain code, I'll rot in a cell for the rest of my life."

"A shock trooper?"

"I thought you were a veteran." Elodie simultaneously asked.

Her opponent tossed his own coin purse on the table, stomping past wordlessly. "Come back soon!"

A devious grin was plastered on the ex-dropper's face as she called after him. "I've been a lot of things since. Most of them carry a life sentence. If I so much as book passage on a ship registered to the New Republic, I'm..."

"Cara, we have a ship. We just needed the muscle. They'll practically sh*t themselves if they see you coming. As soon as the job is done, we can bring you back without your chain code even being run. You won't have to worry about when or who's going to be around the corner."

"I'm already free of worry, and I'm not in the mood to play soldier anymore. Especially fighting some local warlord." Elodie looked to Din, knowing they were going to have to break the news of the Empire still running rampant, despite her years of service to eradicate the extremists. He sighed.

"He's not a local warlord. He's Imperial."

Cara looked at her, "They're the ones that took you captive? The ones hunting you?" Elodie nodded. "I was once Mandalorian. They took that away from me." Her face set, and she looked at Din.

"I'm in."

The Wolven reached across the table, taking her hand, grateful for the friendship. "Thank you. You have no idea what this means to me. To us." Cara turned over her hand, squeezing hers in return, and shot a brief smile before it fell. Unpleasant memories of the war, bloodshed, and her dying comrades made her hatred for the Empire grow tenfold. She didn't think that was possible. "To be honest, I think I'm doing this a little for myself as well."

Back on the Crest, the next stop was programmed into the navigation system. "Does your contact need to vet me?" Din shrugged. "Doesn't know you're coming."

"Really? That could be a problem."

Sitting on the seats by the makeshift table, Elodie cleaned a dismantled blaster. "We're going to need all the help we can get," she said, "and thanks to Mando's sunny disposition, we don't have a lot of friends."

"He all right up there alone?"

"Yeah." He sure wasn't last time.

"Pick one." Cara looked like a child in a sweet shop, looking around for the best ones before digging in. She ended up not taking one, not two, but three parts of his collection. Greedily, she tucked them into her belt. Din huffed out a laugh, only leaning back to watch her rummage. It was the least he could do for her help.

"You trust the contact?" She asked absentmindedly.

"Not particularly. He and I had a run-in last time I was there on some Guild business."

Elodie grumbled, wiping at the parts with more vigour, "Run-in? Bastard nearly killed you and wanted to hand us back to the Imps." A gloved hand settled on top of her head. It slid to the back of it, smoothing back her hair to calm her mood. Cara, deeming her utility belt full enough, looked between the two of them.

"So then, why are we going?"

Din ran his thumb back and forth soothingly when the Wolven replied. "It is the only chance we have to be free of the hunters. We can't run forever." This time, Cara looked at Din to question, "And you're okay with bringing them back there?"

"I don't have a choice. Not really. That's why I'm bringing you. You can keep them safe if I can't."

The ship engines stuttered, and the hull shook.

Seems familiar.

Tossing down the oily rag, Elodie left it by her dismantled gun. She flew up the ladder to see the child wide-eyed on the console. He sat innocently with his hands set on his lap.

She shook her head and flicked the switches he was often drawn to. "You are being a really bad boy." Scolding him, his ears dropped, and she almost felt compelled to apologize, "Carry on, and I'll put you to bed early, Ad'ika." [Little one]

"We need someone to watch that thing." Elodie scowled at Cara, who just managed to climb the ladder after Din.

"Him. Not it." She clarified, picking him up when he extended his hands. The child settled on her hip and clutched at the baggy shirt with his three digits. He cooed in her hold and nuzzled closer.

Cara nodded, acknowledging the correction but not bothering to discuss it further. "You got anyone you can trust?" Shaking her head, Elodie looked to the Mandalorian, who was thinking, "Not that I know of."

They were almost at Arvala-7. It took a little longer than planned, but they had to stock munitions at a passing planet, as Din said there was no trading centre on Arvala-7. The four were on foot, heading towards the hut belonging to an Ugnaught.

Din said he had made contact with an Ugnaught while on his mission to apprehend the child. The Ugnaught had helped him when he was in a tight spot. And by tight spot, he meant the entire time.

He also reluctantly went on to admit his unfortunate acquaintance with a Mudhorn.

Elodie laughed at him after that, now understanding why he had returned to dishevelled. Din had sulked for a little while, then admitted he was in fact completely battered, which was why he chose to use the camtono of Beskar for a complete makeover rather than donate the lot to his tribe.

"I don't think I ever told you," Elodie drew a hand down the grooves of his helmet, enjoying the closeness. It was new to the both of them, having kept attachments at a distance over the years. "Your armour is beautifully crafted. It suits you."

"You think I'm beautiful?" He asked.

"I said your armour was beautiful." She smiled, "But yes, I think you're very attractive."

"You've never seen my face."

That was something that conflicted her.

She never concealed her face as a Mandalorian, having just been stripped of her armour and had it discarded. Never to be seen again. The thought of broaching the subject with Din didn't sit right. Elodie didn't want to tell someone what to believe or what was right or wrong. She also didn't know anything about his covert, but she believed them to rule under the 'Children of the Watch'. The children of the watch were Mandalorians who split and reverted to their age-old sect by reinstating the ancient Way.

Finding an answer, she replied, "And I don't have to. Your personality and mannerisms. Hell, your voice. I find it all extremely captivating."

Din cleared his throat after a moment of stunned silence. No one had ever called him attractive before, not unless it was used to try and lure him as he was passing by the pleasure houses of Canto Bight.

-

"It hasn't grown much." The Ugnaught in front of them said.

"I think it might be Strand-Cast."

"I don't think it was engineered. I've worked in the gene farms. This one looks evolved. Too ugly. This one, on the other hand, looks like she was farmed in the Cytocaves of Nora."

"This is Cara Dune. She was a shock trooper."

"You were a Dropper?"

He asked, "Did you serve?"

"On the other side, I'm afraid. But I'm proud to say that I paid out my clan's debt, and now I serve no one but myself."

"And this, this is the woman you spoke of. Slave to the empire." The Ugnaught stated. Din straightened and looped his thumbs on his belt loops. "Yes, this is Elodie. She was also a Mandalorian."

The Ugnaught turned to look up at her and nodded in greeting. She returned the favour, offering a hand to shake. "I am Kuill. I too understand what it was like to be under the thumb of the Empire."

"It's nice to meet you, Kuill. Thank you for letting us stay the night at your home." It was a tight fit with all of them, and they all had to bend down to access a lot of the home. But overall, it was well furnished and quaint. The flap to the kitchen parted, and Mando automatically bared his blaster in the direction, sensing a possible threat. Cara backed him up.

Elodie, on the other hand, simply narrowed her eyes at the IG-11 unit, swooping in with a tray of drinks. "Would anyone care for some tea?" It said simply. Kuill raised his arm to try and get the two warriors to disregard their weapons. "Please lower your blasters. He will not harm you."

"That thing is programmed to kill the baby."

"Not anymore. It was left behind in the wake of your destruction. I found it lying where it fell. Devoid of all life. I recovered the flotsam and staked it as my own in accordance with the Charter of the New Republic. Little remained of its neural harness. Reconstruction was quite difficult, but not impossible. It had to learn everything from scratch. This is something that cannot be taught with the twist of a spanner. It requires patience and repetition. I spent day after day reinforcing its development with patience and affirmation. It developed a personality as its experiences grew."

Elodie pondered the story, "Is it still a hunter? Will it attempt to harm the baby?"

"No. But it will protect."

"Can you swear it?"

"I give you my word." That was good enough. The Wolven relaxed back in the seat, allowing the droid to place the tray down on the coffee table. "Tea?"

Din glanced at her, "That's it? You trust it." Thanking the droid for the drink, she took a small sip before responding to him. "You said Kuill was trustworthy, so I'm giving it a chance. That, and he was able to use his skills to work off servitude. One wrong move, and we kill him and the droid. Problem solved."

The Mandalorian sighed, pushing himself out of the seat to talk to the Ugnaught outside privately. If all went as planned, Kuill would be joining them during the mission to look after the child while they all dealt with the Guild and the Imps.

A loud slurping caught her attention, and she saw Cara eyeing her, over the cup in her hands. Elodie shot her a smile, "Drink any louder and you'll wake the Blurrg's."

Cara raised a challenging eyebrow, setting down her cup. "Faun over Mando anymore, and he might just jump you." The Wolven spluttered on the mouthful of tea. In the mad rush to set down her cup, more tea splattered down the front of her shirt.

Cara laughed, throwing her head back.

"Asshole." She joined it, bringing a hand up to cover her smile. A rosy blush made home on her cheeks at her bold comment, and she used the cuff of her sleeve to brush off the damp.

Holding her hands up in mock surrender, Cara settled down. "I'm just saying that the looks the two of you are giving each other... kind of makes me want to cover the kids' eyes."

"Can we please not talk about this right now."

After the Ugnaught was recruited, he and the IG unit escorted them to the Razor Crest for travel. The route was set, and autopilot was engaged.

"I got you, Mando." Cara smirked, and Din was doing the same under the helmet. The two were engaged in a hand wrestling battle. The score was even, with both visibly straining against each other. Din didn't want to say, but he could feel his grip slipping.

"Care to double the bet?"

"Ooo! Whipping out the trash talk. My money's on Cara." Elodie quipped.

Din gritted out a short, "Really?" She leaned closer to jokingly whisper to him. "She is freakishly strong."

Cara laughed, teeth gritting, and he used the moment of distraction to push harder. The dropper was cut off, standing abruptly and forgoing the challenge. Elodie went to boo but stopped short at the panic on the droppers' face. Her hands clawed at her throat as she struggled to take in any breath. Standing, Elodie rushed over to her.

Behind the Wolven, Din rushed over to the child, yelling. "No! No, no! Stop! We're friends. We're friends. Cara is my friend!" The child dropped his arm, looking at his guardian in confusion. Din held the child to his chest from his crib.

"That is not okay!" She spat, catching her breath. Across the room, the Ugnaught had watched the entire scene. "Hmm. Very curious."

"Curious? It almost killed me!"

"The story you told me of the Mudhorn now makes more sense."

"What is it? What it is, I don't know. But what it does, this... This I've heard rumours of."

"What? When you worked for the Empire?" The woman spat. Kuill was quick to correct, "When I was sold to the Empire, in indentured servitude."

"Yet somehow, you walk free." She said. She ignored the fact that Elodie called her out her name as a warning.

"I bought my freedom through the skill of my hands and the labour of three of your human lifetimes. Do not cast doubt upon that of what I am nor whom I shall serve."

The Mandalorian interjected, "Tell you what. I could really use your craft work right now. Can you pad this container so the child can sleep better?"

"I shall fabricate a better one! Then perhaps this Dropper can see how one can win their freedom with the skill of one's hands." Kuill stated, turning to busy himself and walking away from the dropper. Elodie parted from the two also, choosing to follow the smaller man to the back of the hull, where the Blurrg's were cornered off.

Initially, they both sat in silence. Elodie watched the Ugnaught arrange all his materials and what remained of the current pram.

"I'm really sorry about Cara." She said, licking chapped lips. "She's had a hard past."

He hummed and carried on, "Indeed." He looked around for a certain piece, and she handed him what he was looking for. "I suppose all is forgiven. After all, she does not know the Empire as we do."

Leaning against the wall Elodie couldn't help but disagree.

"No, Cara was a shock trooper. She has witnessed the capacity of the Empire's hatred firsthand." Kuill set the tool in his hand down and paused his work. "She has fought the evil, yes. But she has not faced it alone either. You and I know that it is vastly different. I see it haunts you still. And your Mandalorian sees it too."

"I haven't told Mando half of the things they did to me. I can't even comprehend most of what happened." No tears welled in her eyes like she expected, but she felt the tremble of brewing emotions begin to manifest with the subtle tremble of her hands. Brief, blurred flashes of being flogged in the town where she was captured crossed her mind.

Or the time they used clamps to rip her nails from their beds one by one. They'd wait for them to grow out before tearing them out again. She didn't know whether to be grateful for her regenerative abilities or feel disdain.

"Working in the labour camps, not only was my body owned, but my very thoughts too. I saw the full capacity of what they were capable of. Friends, family, and strangers murdered wrongly at their hands in front of my very eyes. I witnessed, and was forced to do many unpleasant things." Kuill said.

"You worked off your debt some time ago. Does the fear go away?" Elodie asked, words clinging to her lips as they were spoken so quietly; she almost thought she hadn't said them at all.

Falling into her nervous habit, she began digging her nails into the palms of her hands. The pain distracted her from the hollow feeling she couldn't shake. A reminder that the nails were there, so that must mean she wasn't in their clutches. It grounded her. "Sometimes I can't sleep, or I have trouble staying asleep. I get flashbacks, like- like- it's triggered by some tiny little things, and I end up making a big deal over nothing. Then feel terrible for it and then for feeling the way I do."

Instead of reassuring her with words or touch, Kuill peeled her bloody, fisted hands open. They were shaking.

His were too.

Red half-moon shapes were carved into her palms, but a welder quickly took her focus when the sting of the cold metal in her palm drew her attention. Kuill handed Elodie two metal panes next, "Keep your hands occupied, girl. Fuse the metals."

Distractions. He was trying to focus his pain into projects.

Kuill carried on his work, and she followed by example. "Time alone does not erase trauma. It is what you choose to do at that time that is the answer. I have spoken."

IG-11 climbed down from the ladder; the tray full of drinks remained untouched. Elodie could have rolled her eyes at how stubborn Din was being. The bot lowered the tray to where the two of them sat on the floor, surrounded by parts. "Would you care for some refreshments? I shall have a meal prepared soon."

Elodie stood to leave the two, politely accepting the drink after feeling bad that no one had taken one yet. Passing the fused parts off, Kuill accepted them wordlessly, but at least the air felt a little lighter.

When she was at the top of the ladder, she could hear Cara and Din whispering to each other. "-if anything were to happen." Elodie caught the ending of what Din had been saying.

Deciding to be nosy, the Wolven stayed behind the cover of the wall, her cup held closely to her chest. Cara scoffed, "It is going to be fine. We'll take care of the Imps first, then kill your ex-boss before he kills us. Nothing's going to happen."

"But if it does,"

She cut him off. "Then I promise. You know how stubborn she can be."

Taking the opportunity, Elodie slunk in, slurping her cup loudly. "Promise what? What are the two of you whispering about?"

The two jumped; it was slight, but she saw the hitch of their shoulders. Definitely scheming. Elodie pointed at Din before he had a chance to brush her off. "Don't you say-"

"Nothing."

"-nothing." Elodie slumped.

She squinted at the two, waiting for their response. Cara rolled her eyes. "He was making sure I was going to take care of you if he were to get killed." Din looked at the woman in what she could only assume was betrayal.

"I wouldn't mind the child going with Kuill if we were to die. I know you don't do the whole kid thing, so I wouldn't ask that of you." The ex-shock dropper smiled in relief, nodding, "Please and thank you."

Elodie directed the next statement at Din. "I, however, don't need anyone to take care of me." She set the empty cup on the console.

"'cause it turned out so well the last time." He retorted, referring to when she was taken.

Staring up at him blankly, he knew he had hit a nerve. Regret sat at the tip of his tongue, just about to be released in the form of words, when she beat him to the punch.

"I can't believe you would throw something like that in my face."

"I didn't mean-" He sighed deeper. Cara slapped her thighs, slowly standing, only to exit quickly. This was between the two of them anyway.

Din started first, being the only one willing enough to break the silence, "You know, I didn't mean it like that. We've had this discussion already. It's not that I don't think you are capable."

Elodie cut him off. "Yeah, I know, I know. You worry and just want me safe. But this is a conversation we should be having together, not involving others in. The child, yes absolutely. He is still needing to have a guardian. But me, Din? I am a grown woman, so please stop treating me like I am a child."

"I'm sorry."

Running hands down her face, she mimicked his deep sigh and then set them on his shoulders. "It's okay." He sat back in his pilot seat. "Tensions are high. Let's just move past it."

Looking over his seat, a familiar planet drew closer. One she dreaded seeing. When she was last here, they were fleeing for their lives. Now they were willingly returning.

"We're here."

Din spun around to see. The two of them sat in silence as it grew larger on the windscreen. From where Elodie stood behind him, her hands nervously fiddled with his cowl. She could feel his rapid pulse when her skin brushed his neck. Din was also dreading this. She gave an affectionate caress across the base of his neck and shoulders. "We can do this."

"I'll go and get the others ready for landing."

Chapter 10: Chapter 9: The Redemption (Part 1)

Chapter Text

"Sorry for the remote rendezvous, Mando, but things have gotten complicated since you were last here." Greef said as Din, Elodie, Kuill, the child, and Cara grew closer. The four of them rode the three Blurrg's, with Elodie having to share with Din. The new cot drifted close behind as it was linked to Din's wrist pad.

The magistrate looked among their group, dissatisfied that they had brought reinforcements. From where she sat behind Din, Elodie could see his upper lip curl in displeasure.

She particularly noticed the way his eyes lingered on the mountainous form that was Cara. "It appears that introductions are in order. It seems we've both provided a security detail. I recommend the shock trooper guards the ship. These lava fields are lousy with Jawas."

"She's coming with me."

No member of the group moved, remaining statuesque under his challenging gaze. His eyes spoke of his mistrust between the ways of his glances.

Greef weighed the power dynamics of the groups, trying to estimate the value of his hired guild members. He probably assumed someone like the Mandalorian would have no friends and no one to rely on for backup.

Thoughts of the Mandalorian ambush crossed Elodie's mind, but she couldn't ponder their whereabouts before the magistrate spoke again. "But the town is now run by ex-Empire. If a Rebel Dropper is with us, they'll all get their hackles up."

"She's coming." He stated more firmly, and Din felt hands tighten around his waist.

"Fine. At least cover your tattoo. No need to flaunt it. Now, I see the Wolven. Where is the little one?" Slipping down next to the pram, it followed beside her as she stepped closer to the man. Standing in front of Greef, Elodie took time to see that his dark hair and neatly trimmed beard were dashed with salt and pepper hair. Fine lines littered his face with age. His robes were made of fine materials, expensive materials, and jewel encrusted accessories.

Greef nodded to the floating pram and signalled for Din to open it. The first thing to note was the oversized ears and eyes when the child's form came into view. "So, this little bogwing is what all the fuss was about. What a precious little creature. I can see why you didn't want to harm a hair on its wrinkled little head."

Reaching down, Greef lifted the child to get a closer look. His face softened at the creature, but it still had her whispering, "Think of hurting him, and I will gladly dismember you." He looked up at Elodie in bewilderment, holding the child further away from his body and setting him down gently in the pram again.

"You are Elodie, is that correct?" She nodded, lips pierced. This man was not trustworthy in the slightest, and his actions so far have been suspicious. "Well, I know we got off on the wrong foot, but I'm hoping we can put that all behind us." He held his hand out to shake.

Elodie simply stared at it. "We'll see."

Sealing the pram lid again, she turned to see Din's Blurrg had made its way beside her, and the man was offering a hand up. Taking it, she was hoisted back into her position behind him. He set a reassuring hand on her unholstered thigh.

"Well, I'm glad this matter will be put to rest once and for all. The sun drops fast on Nevarro. We can walk for a spell, camp out at the riverbank, then make our way into town at first light."

Both of their groups gathered around the spit. Dangling over was some creature that had been caught and dressed. Scraps of the meat were shared among the group. The remaining meat on it was crispy and charred. Everyone had gotten their fair share, and Elodie sat with Kuill, feeding the child little amounts. No doubt he could easily eat the rest of it effortlessly.

"I guess the little bugger's a carnivore. Never seen anything like it. They were ready to pay a king's ransom for that thing. Must be for some kind of highfalutin menagerie." Greef stared at the child once again, this time in amusem*nt and intrigue.

"Let's go over the plan again." Din said, leaning his arm over his propped-up knee. He had gone without food since he was unable to lift his helmet. The last thing he wanted to do was leave the group to have some.

So he would not be eating tonight.

Greef leaned forward on the rock he was perched on. He was quite a visual talker, preferring to use his hands to emphasise his points. "We both enter the common house. We show the client the bait. We join him at the table. And you kill him."

"Tell me about his reinforcements."

"They're all ex-Empire. As soon as they lose their pay check, poof, they'll all scatter."

Elodie pitched, "It all sounds so easy in theory." Din challenged, "And what if they don't?"

"They will."

"The client is not stupid. He would have brought in more troops because he already knows we're slippery." She added, wiping greasy fingers on her pant legs.

"If, for argument's sake, a few of them don't realise that I'm their best path to alternative employment and they elect to react impulsively, then these three fine Guild Hunters, along with that battle-hardened shock trooper, and a Wolven, will cut down anyone who bucks."

"How many will there be?"

"No more than four."

"Bullsh*t." She rolled her eyes.

"He travels with, at most, a Fire Team. Trust me. Nothing can go wrong." Elodie was about to comment on the fact that he just jinxed the entire situation when a Reptavian swooped down, slicing down the man's arm.

The first scream sounded, almost like a signal. More seemed to appear out of nowhere to wreak havoc.

Blasters shot in all directions.

Elodie stood fast, being quick to shut the child's pram. Kuill stood by it to ensure the child's safety, but none of them appeared interested in the two. Small meals perhaps?

Swiping a knife at an outstretched talon, Elodie felt Cara's back press against hers as they both faced off into the darkness. One hand wielded a gun, and the other one was holding one of her twin knives.

Din's helmet aided him in no way, the Reptavian's body temperature was too low for the infrared to pick up amongst the eerie expanse. Elodie's enhanced sight allowed her to see through the shade of nightfall, but she could not warn everyone of all oncoming attacks.

The Reptavian's were sporadic, desperate for their next meal, and had no real coordination in their assault.

While she fired at one, diving to the guild member beside her, to the right, the next man was airlifted with a shrill scream. Sharp talons ripped him from the ashy floor and beyond sight. Around her, shots were fired out into the dark in hopes of shooting some down. Cara stayed low, twisting on the spot to keep all angles covered. Elodie's eyes scanned everywhere, to anyone watching, it must've looked like she was having a seizure.

Unknowingly, she had strayed from Cara's side to the Mandalorian's.

Very few shots seemed to make their marks, with most beasts fleeing back into the cover of darkness.

"No! Let go of her! Drop her now! Drop her!"

Kuill aimlessly fired at the beast, which held onto a distressed Blurrg. It yelped and wriggled in its grasp. The other Blurrg was also airborne, but luckily, with a few well-aimed shots from the Mandalorian, it was quickly released close to the ground.

Kuill raced over, petting it gently as it gasped in pain from the deep lacerations marring its side.

Behind her, the heat from Din suddenly disappeared. Aiming her shots behind now, she saw one of the beasts clawing at Din and trying to sink its talons into his armour.

The Reptavian screeched as her blaster shots burned through the sensitive webbing of its wings. It ceased its torrent in dragging the Mandalorian across the floor and flew up. Elodie ran over and held her hand out. He took it, dusting himself off when he got to his feet. Din nodded at her in thanks while she looked around to take inventory.

The screaming died down, their group seemingly uninjured sans Greef.

Leaning against a boulder on the floor, the man let out a deep groan. His right arm bled profusely from the flesh deeply gouged. Cara ran over first, medic training kicking in. Digging through her small med pack, she administered a bacta shot into his bicep. It did little to reduce the effects of the wound, with the blood still raining down and the pain prevalent.

"He's hurt badly." Elodie dug through her backpack.

Handing her a wad of gauze from the pack, Cara pressed it down firmly. "I'm fine. I'm fine. I'm fine. I'm fine. Ow!" She winced, as the blood was already seeping through the dressing. "Hold still. They got you good."

"How bad?"

"Bad. The poison's spreading fast." She informed. Greef sighed, "So this... This is how it happens."

"Don't be so dramatic. I need another medpac! Got any other medpacs? Anyone? I'm guessing that's a 'no'." She waved her hand to deter the baby. "It's still spreading. This isn't working. Get this thing outta here."

Elodie slapped her hand away. He walked closer to the magistrate with an extended hand. "Hold on, I think he's trying to help."

"He's trying to eat me." The child closed his eyes in concentration.

"Just let him do his work." The Wolven said reassuringly, hovering close to the child when he closed his eyes. Before their very eyes, the wound slowly knitted itself together, the blood trailing back up his arm and into the wound. Colour returned to the man's face, but it was still frozen in bewilderment.

Elodie caught the child when he fell back into her hands, asleep.

Din looked between the two of them in confusion as she set him gently back into his pram. She saw Kuill sitting beside the dead Blurrg, the beast having succumbed to its injuries.

No one got any sleep for the rest of the night.

When they set off in the early hours of the next day, it didn't take long for the bounty hunters to rabble. They were sharing hushed whispers and fleeting glances as they strolled leisurely five feet ahead.

Elodie walked with Kuill and the drifting pram.

"I guess this is it." Greef said, coming to a stop when the town came into view.

Without much thought, he shot down his two flanking men. The Wolven stood on guard, hand on blaster, in case he became a threat to her or the group.

He carried on, "There's something you should know. The plan was to kill you and take the kid. But after what happened last night, I couldn't go through with it. Go on. You can gun me down here and now, and it wouldn't violate the code. But if you do, this child will never be safe. We'll take our chances. The Imperial client is obsessed with obtaining this asset. You tried to run, but where did it get you?"

"This is ridiculous."

"Perhaps you should let him speak." Were Kuill's first words since the sun had risen.

"Listen, we both need the client to be eliminated. Let me take the child to him and then you three..." Cara cut him off abruptly, "No. Let's just kill him and get outta here."

"He's right." The Mandalorian admitted with a sigh. The dropper looked at him in disbelief. Surely he would not agree to such a ridiculous plan?

"As long as the Imp lives, he'll send hunters after them."

"It's a trap." She stated as if it were obvious. Elodie nodded in agreement. "It's a bad idea, but it's all we've got."

Din sighed, "Bring me."

"Bring you?" Greef looked at the Mandalorian to whom he was directing his statement. He nodded. "Tell him you captured me. Get me close to him, and I'll kill him."

A look of understanding washed over his face, and he quickly agreed. The story would be more believable if he were also present and in cuffs. "That's a good idea. Give me your blaster." Cara threw her hands up as she watched the Mandalorian surrender his weapons. "This is insane."

"It's the only way."

"Well, I'm coming with you." She shrugged reluctantly. "No, no, no. That would make them suspicious." Greef declined, not understanding how the woman would fit in.

Elodie glared at the man in distrust, "You just saying that sounds suspicious. I still have no reason to trust you." Greef cuffed her wrists first. Din added, "Tell them she caught me."

"And as much as I hate it, you're going to have to gag me too." Elodie sighed, licking her lips before they were inaccessible again.

Greef looked disgusted at the proposal. "What?"

Din understood, already leaning in to tie a loose cloth around the Wolven's neck, not yet raising it to her lips. He smiled at the fond memory of the woman with blood streaked across her face.

Many, many times. "She likes to bite."

She winked, looking at where she assumed were his eyes. "And I can't guarantee I'll behave."

Din dropped his voice an octave, "I'm counting on it." His hands lingered for a moment once they tied the knot, his thumbs inching up to caress her jaw. Lucky for the both of them, the black curtain of her hair covered the touch.

He stepped back, offering his hands to be tied next. "The kid will go back to the ship."

"But without the child, none of this works!"

"I have a plan. Kuill, ride back to the Razor Crest with the child, and seal yourself in. When you're inside, engage ground security protocols. Nothing on this planet will breach those doors. Here's a commlink."

"I will keep the child safe. Don't forget to cover your stripes."

Bending down to his level, Elodie set a hand on the Ugnaught's shoulder. "Please keep the child safe, Kuill." He patted her hand, then slipped it off to retrieve the child from the pram. The empty pram was closed by the controls on Mando's wrist.

"With my life."

She then leaned in to press a kiss on the child's wrinkly little head. He whined, trying to reach out to be in her hold. "Be brave, my little bean."

Using the remaining Blurrg, they were off.

The trip into town was a blur from there. Elodie ignored the small talk between Greef and the troopers standing guard at the entrance of the town. Her eyes were too preoccupied with scanning the area. White coats of armour patrolled the entirety of the town. Like she thought, a lot more than what was mentioned.

Cara tightened her hold on her gun. "You said four. There are more than four troopers."

"I warn'd yooo." Elodie muffled through the cloth now secured over her mouth.

She huffed. By now, it was a competition to see who could do it more, her or Din. She could tell he was also not pleased. The thin cloth covering her mouth could easily be spat out, and it was very tempting as it itched the corners of her mouth intensely.

"Four guarding the client. Many more here in town. Things got really heated once Mando crashed the safe house." He said it sheepishly.

"Gimme ma' blastw, Gweef." The Wolven whispered, eyeing the troopers ahead of them, leading them directly to the Client.

"Not yet. Quit talkin'"

Walking through, he eyed the four troopers posted on the corners of the room. "Here we are. You see? Four."

"Look what I brought you. As promised."

"My, my, little wolf. Look at you. I hope you've had a good stretch of your legs while you could, because your leash is going to be a lot shorter from now on. You know how I loathe disobedience." He looked from the woman to her Mandalorian companion, his eyes keenly washing over the pristine Beskar.

"What exquisite craftsmanship. It is amazing how beautiful Beskar can be when forged by its ancestral artisans. We had no such luck with hers, you see." Curling her upper lip, hands hastily grabbed her arms when she threw herself at the man. Instead, she spluttered insults from behind the cloth, now wishing she'd never asked for it. Elodie wanted to tear his throat from his body.

"Yoo Affhol."

The client turned to Greef, "Exquisite work. Can I offer you a libation to celebrate the closing of our shared narrative?"

"I would be obliged." We gathered to sit in the central booth of the cantina. The storm troopers stood as still as statues around them, with one stationed at the door. There were no exits. Not if they wanted to face an entire battalion of troopers in the town with only the four of them.

"Please sit. It is a shame that your people suffered so. Just as in this situation, it was all avoidable. Why did Mandalore resist our expansion? The Empire improves every system it touches. Judge by any metric. Safety, prosperity, trade, opportunity, peace. Compare Imperial rule to what is happening now. Look outside. Is the world more peaceful since the revolution? I see nothing but death and chaos. I would like to see the baby."

"Uh...It is asleep." Greef said, setting a gentle hand on the top of the Pram. Still, that did not dissuade the man. "We all be quiet. Open the pram."

One of the troopers turned to whisper into the Client's ear. Elodie watched as his face dropped, and he nodded to the trooper. "Don't think me to be rude. I must take this call."

He walked over to the holocall at the bar, talking to the receiver. Unable to make out what he was saying as the cloth covered her ears partially, she leaned in to try and see who he was talking to instead.

"Give me the blaster."

His cuff links clattered to the floor, and Elodie's nails were doing the work on hers too. The blaster was slipped to him under the cover of the table. "You get one shot."

"This is bad. You said four." Cara said, wiping her sweaty brow. He grunted in response, realising how much he f*cked up. "Well, there are more. What can I tell you?" Elodie spat the damp cloth from her lips and let it fall to her clavicle.

"Goddamn it, I told you it was a bad idea!" She hissed. Any moment now...

Blaster bolts rained through the wall behind the bar.

Elodie dove for cover. Blaster bolts made their way into the bodies of the storm troopers and the Client. Their mutilated bodies collapsed in heaps on the ground. Swallowing deeply, she laid down, looking at the face of the man who had tortured her for years. Degraded and humiliated her.

Elodie thought it would have felt better. But now she stared down at his corpse, indifferent. Maybe he did what he had intended and started chipping away at her humanity after all.

Din had found cover at the pillar beside the table she had found her back pressed against. The thick concrete a good barrier between them and the Imps on the outside. Din pulled the commlink from his utility belt, "Kuill? Are you back on the ship yet? Are you there? Do you copy?"

The deep breathing suggested he was still riding, "Yes!"

"Are you back on the ship yet?"

"Not yet."

"Get back to the ship and bail. Get the kid out of here. We're pinned down!"

A TIE fighter descended into the atmosphere, and the storm troopers gathered in an organised circle to allow it to land. Once the ramp lowered, a dark figure strolled down, walking to the front lines of the troops. The storm troopers reorganised their front lines to flank their leader. All four of them poked their heads out of their hiding spots to try and see who the figure belonged to.

"You have something I want."

Elodie gave a short, "Oh, maker."

Greef looked confused. "Who's this guy?" It was hard to see through the broken wall of the cantina, but his present was stark black amongst the white army. The Moff slicked his hair back in its usual style, his face clean shaven, and his cape billowing in the wind behind him.

"You may think you have some idea of what you are in possession of, but you do not." Falling back against the table, she stared blankly, repeating, "Oh, maker."

"Kuill, are you back on the ship yet? They're onto us! Kuill, come in!" Everything felt so slow, but the reality was that everything was happening at such a fast pace that she was struggling to comprehend that the Moff was here and that she wasn't listening.

"-In a few moments, they will be mine." Moff Gideon announced.

"Kuill! Do you copy? Kuill!" At this point, Din was shouting over the comm, desperate for him to answer.

"They mean more to me than you will ever know. They belong to me."

"Kuill! Are you there? Come in, Kuill. Kuill, come in. Kuill? Are you there? Do you copy? Kuill? Kuill!" There was only silence over the other end, and neither of them realised that their companion and his Blurrg were dead, laying in the desolate Nervarro flats.

Chapter 11: Chapter 10: The Redemption (Part 2)

Chapter Text

"Is there another way out?"

"No, that's it." Greef said, dejected. The cantina was in the centre of the town anyway. They were surrounded.

"So we're trapped."

The Mandalorian stepped forward, "What about the sewers? The Mandalorians have a covert down in the sewers. If we can get down there, they can help us escape." Using the scanner on his helmet, he ran the schematics of the sewers to detect any possible entry points that ran past the cantina

"What the hell are they waiting for?" Cara and Elodie both eye the mass of troopers as they part allow for heavy machinery to pass. "Hold up... They have an E-Webb."

We're going to die trapped in a bar of all places. Hold on. A bar. Alcohol. Alcohol is Flammable.

"It's over." Greef said. Elodie curled her lips, "No, it's not." She ran behind the bar to gather intact bottles of alcohol. The older man looked at her in confusion.

"Save some for the rest of our sorry asses!" He hissed and went to snatch it away. Elodie, who saw it coming, bit his outstretched hand. Not enough to draw blood, but enough to make his hand snap back.

"It's for a Molotov, Di'kut." [Idiot]

The jacket on her shoulders was torn into rough strips and dunked into the bottlenecks to douse the fabric. She began lining them up below the counter so they wouldn't ignite if they were to get shot at through the hole in the side of the cantina wall.

Din's helmet illuminated at the sewer vent beneath a toppled table. "I found the sewer vent." He started forward and threw it to the side, assessing the grate for a point of entry. Greef reluctantly stood beside the Wolven to help her douse the few Molotov co*cktails they had.

"Let's get the hell out of here." Only, the grate refused to move, even with Cara's fingers interlocked in the holes and pulling. "It won't budge!"

Greef, who was keeping an eye on the crowd outside, called out in warning. "It's assembled! How long until that thing's cleared?"

"Can we use a mocktail to blow it?" He asked Elodie. She resisted the urge to pinch the bridge of her nose in frustration. "The Molotov co*cktail is an incendiary. It won't destroy anything."

"Blow it." Cara suggested, only to be shot down when informed the Mandalorian was out of charges. She strode forward, opening fire on the grate. The metal lit red with the heat of the blaster, but never broke under pressure.

She yelled again and stomped on it, to no avail.

One voice broke out from the ominous silence outside in the courtyard.

"Your astute panic suggests that you understand your situation. I would prefer to avoid any further violence, and encourage a moment of consideration. Members of my escort have completed assembly of an E-Web heavy repeating blaster. If you are unfamiliar with this weapon, I am sure that Republican Shock Trooper Carasynthia Dune of Alderaan will advise you that she has witnessed many of her ranks vaporise mid-descent facing the predecessor of this particular model."

With a chilling wave of horror, Elodie whispered, "He's been watching us."

"Or perhaps the decommissioned Mandalorian hunter, Din Djarin, has heard the songs of the Siege of Mandalore, when guns outfitted with similar ordnance laid waste to fields of Mandalorian recruits in The Night of a Thousand Tears." Din paused too, one by one, all of the team stopped their pursuit and looked at the Imperial leader.

"I'm sure ex-Mandalorian Elodie Slate would love to tell you about our creative ways of persuasion. How the E-Web would do the job far too quickly for us to savour the fear that I can smell dripping off you at this very moment. How is that armour working out for you Din Djarin? The remodelled armour of our very own little wolf herself. Did she ever tell you what the payment was? Oh, the disgust must burn so deep in you Elodie, looking at another Mandalorian in what once yours. The price of your stubbornness."

Din snapped his head over to the Wolven, mortified.

Feelings of betrayal and humiliation simmer at the surface. Why had she never told him? His Beskar armour was rightfully hers.

Maker, Elodie must hate him. He thought back to the many times she had caressed it; had he mistaken her feelings for longing for the armour?

"Eddy?" It was the first time he used the nickname given to her by Peli.

Elodie refused to look at him.

The tears freely ran down her face while her chin quivered. She dared not look at him in case he saw her upset. Both at the Moff and the news that he was wearing her livelihood.

Like an endless record, Moff Gideon ranted on, "I advise disgraced Magistrate Greef Karga to search the wisdom of his years and urge you to lay down your arms and come outside. The structure you are trapped in will be razed in short order, and your storied lives will come to an unceremonious end."

"What do you propose?" Greef countered, pistol at the ready.

"Reasonable negotiation." A collective sound of disbelief resounded throughout the cantina.

"What assurance do you offer?"

"If you're asking if you can trust me, you cannot. Just as you betrayed our business arrangement, I would gladly break any promise and watch you die at my hand. I will act in my own self-interest, which at this time involves your cooperation and benefit. I will give you until nightfall, and then I will have the E-Web cannon open fire."

"I say we hear him out." Greef suggested. Immediately, he was assaulted with disapproval.

The shock trooper kissed her teeth, "The minute we open that door, we're dead." He argued, "We're dead if we don't. At least out there, we've got a shot."

"That's easy for you to say. I'm a Rebel Shock Trooper. They'll upload me to a Mind Flayer."

Greef shook his head. "Those aren't real. That was just wartime propaganda."

"I don't care to find out. I'm shooting my way out of here." Training her eye back on the hole in the wall, she glared among their numbers. Alas, no amount of planning was going to get them out alive and/or unharmed at best. The man turned his attention to the silent woman, staring blankly at the wall. "What about you, Elodie?"

"f*ck that, and f*ck you."

"I don't know what that is, but I'm assuming that is an insult. Mando?" He pleaded, Earthen insult lost to him. He found the Mandalorian to be more reasonable than the two prickly women.

"I know who he is. It's Moff Gideon." Din said offhandedly

Cara squinted at the distant figure, trying to remember his image from the databases. "No. Moff Gideon was executed for war crimes." Elodie shook her head in disagreement, "It's him. The Client would sometimes conduct calls in front of me."

"I can prove it. He knew my name." Din concluded.

Cara looked over at him in disbelief, "So? What does that prove?"

"I haven't heard that name spoken freely since I was a child." A warm feeling settled in the Wolven's gut, knowing he had trusted her with one of his biggest secrets. The only part of his identity he was able to gift.

And she'd lied to him.

"On Mandalore?" Greef asked. He shook his head. "I was not born on Mandalore."

"But you're a Mandalorian." He looked between Elodie and the Beskar-clad man.

"Mandalorian isn't a race. It's a Creed. I was a foundling. They raised me in the Fighting Corps. I was treated as one of their own. When I came of age, I was sworn to the Creed. The only record of my family name was in the registers of Mandalore. Moff Gideon was an ISB Officer during the purge. That's how I know it's him."

Realisation dawned on Cara. "That's how he knows who we all are."

The Mandalorian nodded, adding the dots. Moff Gideon was a smart ma

which is how he managed to evade the New Republic for so long. There was something more. Something was missing from his plans. "He says he needs us, which means the child got away safely. I was worried when the Ugnaught didn't respond, but if they'd captured the kid, we'd already be dead."

"Hail them again."

"Come in, Kuill. Kuill? Nothing." Radio silence. "They might have jammed the link."

Elodie disagreed, "If it were jammed, they would have wanted us to know. Gloated on their victory." The modulated voice of IG-11 rang over the comm, "Kuill has been terminated." Only a brief silence followed to accept the news, and Din instantly raised his hackles at the response. "What did you do?"

"I am fulfilling my base function."

"Which is?"

"To nurse and protect." Elodie exhaled in relief. At least the child would have someone protecting him if they were to die today in this cantina. There was no time to grieve for the loss of Kuill.

Distant gunshots echoed beyond the wall of storm troopers. Even they seemed disturbed by the sudden startle. The group looked out the wall of the cantina, hoping to catch sight of the source of the noise. "What was that?" Blaster shots grew closer, accompanied by the sound of a speeder bike.

Taking that as a signal, Greef and Elodie both rushed to flank him, the Wolven breaching the door immediately after the Mandalorian. With Greef following shortly after. Cara stayed to lay down cover fire through the wall made behind the cantina backdrop. Din was quick to floor the first storm trooper, diverting his blaster shot while kicking away another, and then turning back to the trooper to deliver his own shot.

Elodie tossed a Molotov while exiting and left the rest to Cara.

Elodie's blasters aimed true, and most shots landed on their targets. One storm trooper ran at her, only to be brought down by three shots to the torso and face. Overkill is better than nothing, and she had to make sure they survived this.

Like a hydra, where one storm trooper fell, two took its place. The space in front of the cantina was a battlefield of dirt, blaster bolts, and dead bodies. The Moff weaved masterfully between his forces, evading oncoming shots while trying to land his own. Elodie unknowingly found herself wondering further from Din's side in an attempt to get a clearer shot at Gideon.

Cries of the child grew louder the closer she came to the IG unit, but the closer she drew, the denser the fight.

It was becoming harder to fight back with the oncoming waves of troopers obeying the directive to obtain the child. Elodie sprinted forward, using the force built to pounce on the back of a trooper. Looping her arms around his neck and holding him like an anchor, she swung out to kick the one beside him. The change of balance caused all three of them to collapse to the ground.

Feeling a crack in his neck due to the brunt of the force, she released him and turned her attention to the other. Whipping out the knife attached to her belt, she dug it in to the hilt.

IG-11 backed up to stand beside Elodie as she rose, the two ducking and returning fire. From the bag, the child squealed at the sight of the woman. His eyes widened, and at a moment of hesitation, when her gaze met his, she yelled in pain.

A stray blaster bolt scorched her left thigh. She grasped the wound, gasping at the searing burn radiating from the wound. The droid whizzed his upper body around in a blur, trying to deflect further shots. From behind him, Elodie knew it was only a matter of time before the troopers overwhelmed them both. His chest plates were illuminating a vibrant orange from repetitive shots.

Across the courtyard, Din eyes the pair, desperately trying to find a way to get them back into the cantina. From behind the IG-11, Elodie was reaching around with one arm to shoot. From the way she stayed on one knee, clutching her thigh, he could tell she was injured.

"Elodie!" He found himself calling, the Wolven unable to hear him over the ruckus. The Mandalorian felt a ding on his helmet from a shot and was abruptly brought back to the fight at hand. Spotting the E-Web, he dismantled it from the podium, and after gunning down the shooter, he began firing at the swarms of troopers.

Turning slowly with the extra weight lumbering him, Din stood at checkmate to Gideon. The Moff saw the hunkering mass of Beskar, and then he was drawn to the power source of the E-Web beside the warrior, a smirk tugging at his lips.

Din didn't see it coming. The slight adjustment to the aim of his blaster, or the bolt being fired. But he did feel a blistering wave of heat and a sudden weightlessness that seemed to carry away his consciousness.

The explosion caught the attention of all of those who were previously hidden in the cantina. Clara yelled, standing to barrel past anyone to get to the limp form of the Mandalorian. Once she had reached his side, Cara heaved him up by the lip of his chest plate. Din's limbs remained floppy at his sides, showing his unconscious state. Soot from the blast had coloured his iridescent armour a steely grey. Once her grip was secured, Cara hauled him into the cantina, Greef providing cover fire closely behind.

The IG unit followed shortly after, supporting Elodie to shuffle inside as she heavily relied on his stiff posture to remain upright. Her eyes locked onto the slumped form of her partner against a fallen table. She stumbled over and fell to his free side while the IG went to stand beside Greef who was keeping his eyes on the troopers.

"Din!"

It was hard to believe he was even alive with the mounds of armour donned on his broad body. Cara felt his carotid pulse, and it was silent for a moment as they held their breaths in anticipation. "Cara, is he even breathing? Can you feel anything?" Teary eyes pleaded with Cara's as she searched for any form of reaction on the shock dropper's face. The silence was becoming unbearable.

"CARA!" she cried.

"He's breathing." They all exhaled in relief. "But it's faint."

Elodie reached to detach his chest plate and tried to apply a firm sternal rub to rouse him. There were no visible signs of bleeding through his flight suite that she could see.

A low rumble emitted from Din's chest, and his head bobbed as he slowly came to. "Stay with me, buddy. We're gonna get you out of here."

Behind them, Greef turned to their droid as he set the child down.

"This is our only path out. Can you clear it?"

"Stay with me." Cara said, Din was becoming more lucid with the minutes passing by. Unfortunately, they didn't have long before the forces outside breached their temporary sanctuary.

"If you go near this child, I will have no choice but to kill you." IG-11 relayed to the former magistrate. Greef nodded, finding no problem in the arrangement. "I understand. Can you do anything to move the grate? Good. Oh, I love IG units." The bot started towards the grate.

Din looked above him at two of the women he could rely on most, then down at the child who sat behind Elodie. The child he had saved. Cared for. Fathered. Then, back up to the Wolven he had also saved. Grew to care for. Trusted. "I'm not gonna make it. Go."

He didn't want to be the cause of their demise either.

"Shut up. You just got your bell rung. You'll be fine." Cara scoffed, removing her hand from his neck. Their faces dropped at the sight of the thick layer of blood coating her palm. Warm, tacky, and fresh.

"Leave me."

"I'm gonna need to take this thing off." The woman tried to remove it, but his hands moved faster, catching them before she could even touch the Beskar.

"Din, please let us help you. Are you really willing to die for your creed?" Elodie asked. At his silence, a few tears ran down her cheeks.

Yes, he was.

She shook her head. "We can help you, you just have to let us."

The door blasted off its hinges. Just standing outside, a storm trooper held a flamethrower in his hands and was readying the trigger. Elodie and Cara threw themselves over Din's incapacitated form and prepared for the worst when the child toddled in view. He brought his hand up, focusing on redirecting the flames back into the storm trooper. He flew back as his pack exploded and the child fell on his butt, exhausted.

He ripped a chain off his neck with a pendant identical to hers. A Mythosaur. "No. You leave me. You make sure the child is safe. Here. When you get to the Mandalorian covert, you show them that. You tell them it's from Din Djarin. You tell them the foundling was under our protection, and they'll help you."

"Gideon is not going to stop hunting us. Hunting him." He reached out his hand blindly, hoping to find hers. Elodie saw the search and brought their intertwined fingers. Din placed them over his beating heart. The pedant clutched between them. He panted, "Eddy..."

The grate fell into the sewer with an echoing thud, signalling that it was time for them to leave. "Come on! Let's go!" Cara looked between the Mandalorians' and the open grate, calling for her to escape. Noticing the contemplation, Din spoke up.

"I'm not gonna make it, and you know it. You protect the child. I can hold them back long enough for you to escape. Let me have a warrior's death."

"I won't leave you." Cara tried.

"This is the way." Din swore. Greef shouted over his shoulder in urgency, "Come on! It's open, let's go!"

"Go. Go." Din urged, unable to move. Greef shouted again, growing impatient.

"Go."

Cara looked up at Elodie, noting she had not made a move to part with the man. Finally, she looked up with wetness in her eyes. "Go, Cara. It's okay."

She frowned. "Elodie?"

The Wolven gestured down to her thigh and peeled away the sopping temporary rag, the wound still actively bleeding at a worrying rate. Cara was only just realising the flush draining from her cheeks. "You can't afford to slow down. Take the baby, don't let anybody hurt him."

IG-11 held out the child to Cara, who took the sleeping child in her hands. "Escape and protect this child. I will stay with the Mandalorians." The droid directed. She hesitated, knowing the Imps were growing nearer and their time was growing short, "Promise me you'll bring them."

"You have my word."

The trio left wordlessly, and Elodie felt a deep relief in her bones knowing the child would be cared for. In his delirium, Din had just noticed the Wolven remaining by his side. He tried to release their hands and push her away. The effort was weak, and she only clutched their hands together, tighter. Elodie leaned down and pressed her forehead to his. "Partners, remember?"

The Mandalorian looks up at the woman through the slim slits of his visor, wishing he could see her beautiful face without the filter. To appreciate the true frostiness of her eyes as they uncontrollably flickered from their original black to icy blue in pain, the black inky tresses of her hair, and the pink flush of her plump lips.

IG-11 hovered over his vision, causing her to lean away. The dank stainless steel of his form was not a welcomed sight he wished to have in his final moments. The droid whipped out some contraption, and Din thought that it seemed fitting to be ended by the same beings that had killed his parents. "Do it. Just get it over with. I'd rather you kill me than some Imp."

Elodie looked over the interaction with a roll of her eyes. Ever the drama queen, even when at death's door. With her free hand, she applied firm pressure to her own wound in the hopes that her healing abilities would kick in sooner rather than later.

"I told you. I am no longer a hunter. I am a nurse droid." IG answered as a matter of fact.

"IGs are all hunters." Din denied. Elodie intervened, "I wouldn't allow him to hurt you."

"I need to remove your helmet if I am to save you."

"Try it, and I'll kill you." A gun was aimed at the droid's chassis. "It is forbidden. No living thing has seen me without my helmet since I swore the Creed." The man swore, he did not like the idea of his life being in that of a droid. "I swear to you, I won't look." Elodie promised him, but seeing the hesitation he had, urged her to plead with him more. "Please, just let him heal you. I don't want to lose you." She said, echoing the very same words he said on the Crest.

When he slowly nodded, Elodie turned to face the exposed doorway, gun in hand.

IG-11 lifted the helmet off Din's head.

The first thing he felt was the blistering heat of the flames burning in the cantina. Blood dribbled from his broken nose, the edge of his hairline, and the back of his head. Din felt like death had already taken him, and he was bathing in the pits of hell.

"I am not a living thing, Mandalorian."

Bacta spray blasted from the droid's wrist and onto the most severe wound, which belonged to the back of his head. Conducting a rough scan, the droid summarised, "This is bacta spray. It will heal you in a matter of hours. You have suffered damage to your central processing unit."

"You mean my brain?"

"That was a joke. It is meant to put you at ease." The corner of his lip crooked up. He guessed the droid wasn't half bad. Using the time in which the bacta had to dry, Din found himself staring at Elodie's back, "Why did you never tell me? About your armour?"

She licked her dry lips. "I didn't want you to feel bad about it. They had already melted the Beskar and impressed their crest into it. It no longer belonged to me."

"You should have told me."

"It was better that it went to another Mandalorian than some low-life chakaar." She said. "Besides, I am no longer a Mandalorian. I have nothing left." He had nothing to say back. IG-11 brought his helmet closer for him to don. [Criminal/petty thief]

Before the helmet was placed back on, Din took the opportunity to lift their joined hands and press a delicate kiss to the back of them. It was quick. Shy, almost, but firm like a peck. A different kind of warmth shot through her at the touch of his lips. The feeling lingered, far beyond the amount of time he had pressed them against her.

"Why have you started calling me Eddy?" Elodie took the opportunity to ask, as no storm troopers were daring to invade again. Din retorted, "Why'd you let Peli?"

Elodie laughed, shaking her head. "I think she heard my name wrong, and I was too nervous to correct her. She's a little aloof." Glad we could find humour in tense moments.

"We should go." His modulated voice returned, and she then understood she could then turn to face them and secure his chest plate back.

Seeing him sit up was a relief. Some strength had returned, albeit not all. Din still needed the support of IG to stand and hobble over to the grate over her. Elodie encouraged the IG unit to drop down first so he could catch Din in case he fell on his descent.

The Wolven turned to observe the doorway for storm troopers while he took his time to drop down. The blaster shook in her hand, the adrenaline of the fight beginning to wear off, but she knew they had a long day still ahead.

At the signal, Elodie jumped down the sewer to land in a crouch beside her companions.

Only to collapse on her face.

Her leg was unable to cope with her full weight. Elodie whined, clutching her roughly wrapped thigh. Din fell forward at her side, with IG-11 beside him. "You should have informed me of your incapacitation. I shall use bacta spray on the wound. Bacta spray will help you heal faster."

The rag was slowly pulled back, but the skin from the blaster shot peeled away with it like a soggy paper towel. Elodie's bones felt like jelly, looking at the flesh. A cool spritz of the bacta spray instantly sanitised and managed to stave away any pain almost immediately. The blue hue in her eyes died away with the discomfort, which relieved the Mandalorian.

Din slid the bandage back over the injury, "We're going to have to use each other as clutches." She shook her head.

"Speak for yourself, sniper's nightmare."

Rising, she bit back a wince as she led to way to the rest of the group by following their scents. She suppressed her limp to look unaffected. Din was in no shape to act as hero. No doubt he was too exhausted to track their path using infrared.

Din saw through her facade, but continued to follow. The woman was more pertinacious than an Ugnaught.

It was only a short while later when the three of them heard muffled voices from up ahead. Elodie already knew it belonged to the other half of the crew. Cara turned first at the approaching footsteps, notably one stumbling. She rushed forward to take Din's weight off the IG unit and hand him the child back. "I got you. Do you know which way to go?"

Elodie stood her ground, keeping her gun in hand at all times in the event of Imperials popping around the corners. Din shook his head, careful not to vigorously shake it. "No. I don't know these tunnels. I've only entered from the bazaar."

"Well, if we get the smell of sulphur and we follow it, it'll lead us up to the plains where the river flows."

Elodie sniffed, "It all smells like sulphur down here. We're beneath a Lava flat. I can't pin point that."

"And the Imps will catch us before we make it to the ship. We need the Mandalorians to escort us to safety." Elodie interrupted them, "Now, I can find them."

Greef looked at her as though he didn't believe she could navigate the maze of tunnels. Rolling her eyes, she clarified, "I can find a scent to follow. Wolven, remember?" At the information, he was quick to prompt the woman to carry on.

Din limped forward. "You can smell me. They are my covert." Elodie stepped into his space and sniffed the area between his shoulder and neck. The smell of his sweat and soot was strong, but she could detect hints of underlying earthy tones. The Mandalorian tensed, then quickly relaxed before she pulled away to start tracking.

Halfway through the journey, Elodie paused. Taking a moment to sniff the air at an intersection. The child was beginning to wake up in the satchel IG was lugging around.

Din stood taller without the support of the droid, testing his own weight. "Stop. I can stand."

"The bacta infusion is working." Cara reluctantly let him prop himself up, hovering close in case he suddenly toppled over.

"Just around the corner." Elodie called, striding down one path without casting a look back. They would follow regardless. Once again, she stopped, her heart plummeting to her stomach like she'd just jumped from an extreme height.

Ahead lay a pile of Mandalorian helmets, strewn carelessly on the concrete. Din came to a stop beside her. No thoughts came to mind; they were just blank. Empty.

"Din..." She trailed off, not knowing what to say. What could anyone even say in this situation? So many Mandalorians gave up their livelihood, their way of life, for their rescue.

How could this happen? His tribe.

Feeling uneasy with remaining in one place for too long, Cara spoke up. "We should go."

"You go. Take the ship. I can't leave it this way." Din eventually uttered. He spun to challenge the magistrate, "Did you know about this? Is this the work of your bounty hunters?" All of the helmets. She and the child were responsible for all of those helmets.

Another shackle to weigh down her guilty heart.

Greef shook his head vehemently, denying the accusation. "No. When you left the system and took the prize, the fighting ended, and the hunters just melted away. You know how it is. They're mercenaries. They're not zealots." Din persisted, stopping by Elodie's hand on his vambrace, holding him back. Din's vision flooded with red rage.

"Did you do this? Did you!"

An armourer stood from the darkness, a trough trailing close behind. She cast a look over the group and returned to stacking the discarded Beskar in the carrier. "No! It was not his fault. We revealed ourselves. We knew what could happen if we left the covert. The Imperials arrived shortly thereafter. This is what resulted."

"Did any survive?" He asked helplessly. Din, too, felt the guilt. If they hadn't helped him, the covert would still exist. Yes, he's not dead, but he's alive at what cost?

The armourer shrugged, "I hope so. Some may have escaped off-world."

"Come with us." Elodie suggested. Storm troopers were soon going to fill these tunnels, and she would have nowhere to go.

"No. I will not abandon this place until I have salvaged what remains. Show me those whose safety deemed such destruction."

"This is them." He gestured to her and the child. The latter was staring at her with his wide eyes. "This is the one that you hunted, then saved?" The armourer asked, looking closely at the child, unable to determine his race.

"Yes. The one that saved me as well."

She cast her gaze down on the child. He was still weak from having used his powers back in the cantina. "From the Mudhorn? Yes. It looks helpless."

"It's injured, but it is not helpless. Its species can move objects with its mind."

The armourer continued her gathering, stocking the carrier with abandoned helmets. She nodded, "I know of such things. The songs of eons past tell of battles between Mandalore The Great and an order of sorcerers called Jedi that fought with such powers."

"It is an enemy?" Din asked, worried for the child.

"No. Its kind were enemies, but this individual is not."

He continued, "What is it?"

Pausing, the armourer looked to her fellow Mandalorian. He was clutching the child in his hands. "It is a foundling. By Creed, it is in your care."

"You wish me to train this thing?"

"It is too weak. It would die. You have no choice. You must reunite it with its own kind."

The group followed the armourer as she towed the cart into her armoury and set it beside her furnace. The blue flames were sharp and fierce enough to burn like a blowtorch on full power. Din wasn't finished with his interrogation. "Where?"

"This, you must determine."

"You expect me to search the galaxy for the home of this creature and deliver it to a race of enemy sorcerers?" The Galaxy was an infinite space, he could never come across another species of the child. The armourer understood that. "You and your new companion, yes. This is the way."

Elodie perked up when the distant rumbles of marching feet met her sensitive ears. She turned to Din in panic and said, "Din, they're in the tunnels. We need to think about leaving." He looked over his shoulder to acknowledge her.

The armourer stalked closer to the Wolven. "Interesting. You know the name of Din Djarin." She looked back and forth between the two, "Tell me. Do you know of the way of the Mandalore?"

"My brother and I were both Mandalorians. I understand the way of the Mandalore."

"You are Dar'Manda. A Mandalorian no more." She stated with disappointment.

Elodie nodded, head ducked low. "I am. The Empire saw to that when they destroyed my armour."

"Hey. These tunnels will be lousy with Imps in a matter of minutes. We should at least discuss an escape plan." Cara interrupted, hands already on her blaster and aimed at the doorway.

"I see. If you follow the descending tunnel, it will lead you to the underground river. It flows downstream towards the lava flats." Greef grew twitchy behind the shock dropper. "I think we should go."

"I'm staying. I need to help her, and I need to heal." Din denied, mind already set on rebuilding his clan. The armourer held her hand up to her fellow Mandalorian to refuse his help. "You must go. A foundling is in your care. By Creed, until it is of age or reunited with its own kind, you are as its father. This is the way. You have earned your Signet. You are a clan of two."

"Thank you. I will wear this with honour." Din responded.

"We should go."

The armourer Alor turned to the droid, "IG, please guard the outer hallway. A scouting party draws near." How she knew, nobody knows. IG-11 complied, handing the child to Cara on the way past, ignoring her obvious discomfort. "Hang on. I don't do the baby thing."

"I have one more gift for your journey. Have you trained in the Rising Phoenix?" The armourer added, turning to retrieve a jet pack. Something Din had been wishing for since they left Nevarro.

"When I was a boy, yes."

"Then this will make you complete. When you have healed, you will begin your drills. Until you know it, it will not listen to your commands."

"I understand."

"Let's go Din." Elodie placed a hand on his vambrace and pulled him along faster. On the way out, her hand slid lower, and the armourer watched as their hands linked. "And Din Djarin." She called out from behind them. "I would not seek to keep the company of the Apostate. It would be frowned upon by the others."

No words were exchanged as they cast a single look back at the woman.

Blaster bolts whirled past their ears to eliminate the two troopers at the end of the corridor. Soon there will be others. "You are protected." IG announced, holstering his smoking blasters.

"More will come. You must go."

"Come with us." Din pleaded again, but alas, it was futile. The armourer would not allow any more Beskar to fall into the hands of the Empire. They would have to get past her gravity hammer and magnetised tongs first. "My place is here. Restock your munitions. IG, carry this for Din Djarin until he is well enough to wear it. Now, go. Down to the river and across the plains. Be safe on your journey."

"Thank you," Din said, departing last.

No more enemies were encountered on their journey to the Lava River. Which could either mean they got lost in the maze of tunnels or the armourer had gotten to them first. Either way, it was a win-win.

They could not see the exit from where they were, and the footpath thinned out to an end where they stood. A dilapidated boat and a malfunctioning droid were now their only means of escape. "This is the lava river. The ferry droid is fried."

"Yeah, but if we push the boat out, we can get it to float downstream." The magistrate contemplated, wondering if their manpower could cause the boat to dislodge from its beached state. "Come on."

"Looks old. Will it take the heat?" Din thought out loud. Greef huffed, both hauling their weight into the side. "You got a better idea?"

"Guess not. Push! Come on!" He grunted.

Elodie pulled the two men back as Cara strode forward. "You guys mind getting out of the way?" A stream of bolts emptied into the thick magma crust, encasing the exterior of the hull to the embankment. Once free, it drifted to the side a little, ready for use.

"Oh! Good job." Greef clapped, hopping aboard, seeming to have no qualms with the fact that they were above molten lava.

"Watch your feet. It's molten lava." IG-11 unhelpfully quipped, watching as Cara rolled her eyes as she jumped on. "No kidding." She scoffed.

The run-down droid at the bow all of a sudden activated and released a flurry of cyberspeech. Mando looked between it and his crew, vocalising, "I don't suppose anybody here speaks Droid?"

Elodie leaned against the back of the boat, the child in her arms. She slipped Din's pendant around his neck. "Oh, I don't know. How about the other droid on our boat?"

"I believe he is asking where we would like to go." IG translated.

"Down river. To the lava flat."

Further into their travels, a light as small as a coin gradually expanded and before they knew it, an exit was in sight. Greef, always the first to celebrate too soon, clapped his hands in glee. "That's it. We're free!"

Din walked closer, using two fingers to initiate the infrared program in his helmet. Numerous fingers were highlighted behind the cover at the mouth of the cave. He turned to the others, "No. No, we're not. Storm troopers. They're flanking the mouth of the tunnel. It looks like an entire platoon. They must know we're coming."

"Stop the boat. Hey, Droid, I said stop the boat. Hey! I'm talking to you. I said, stop!" Despite the constant warnings, the droid made no move to stop the boat. Cara grew angrier by the second and ended it with a shot of her gun. Unfortunately, the boat did not cease its advance.

"We're still moving." The group looked at the surrounding lava as it slowly carried them to their doom. Their heartbeats rang loud in their ears to fill the ominous silence, the reverberating lub-dub imitating the seconds passing by as they grew closer to their demise.

"Looks like we fight." Cara licked her lips and rechecked her guns. Mando shook his head discouragingly, "There are too many."

"Then what do you suggest? 'Cause I can't surrender." She growled back. Elodie stood beside her, child in one arm and gun in the other, "I don't see how we can get out of an outnumbered ambush alive, but it's the only option we have."

"They will not be satisfied with anything less than the child. This is unacceptable. I will eliminate the enemy, and you will escape."

The rest of the group turned to look at the droid, as he'd accepted his death without much thought. "You don't have that kind of firepower, pal. You wouldn't even get to daylight."

"That is not my objective."

"We're getting close. Saddle up." Cara warned, stepping in front of the other woman holding the child. Normally, Elodie would not back down behind another, but she could not afford for the child to get hurt, and there was no way in hell Cara would take him. Elodie was convinced she was still holding a grudge against him for what happened on the ship.

"I still have the security protocols from my manufacturer. If my designs are compromised, I must self-destruct." IG-11 cited. Kuill really had done a good job with modifying the droid; now he and his work are being eliminated.

"What're you talking about?"

"I am not permitted to be captured. I must be destroyed." Din remembered the familiar words from when the droid was still a bounty hunter.

Greef was growing agitated. "Are we gonna keep talking, or we get out of here?" The IG unit handed Mando the jet pack and took a step back. "I can no longer carry this for you. Nor can I watch over the child."

Din stood forward in time with the droid. "Wait. You can't self-destruct. Your base command is to watch the child. That supersedes your manufacturer's protocol, right? Right?"

"This is correct." IG-11 accepted.

"Good. Now, grab a blaster and help us shoot our way out."

"Victory through combat is impossible. We will be captured. The child will be lost. Sadly, there is no scenario where the child is saved, in which I survive." The Mandalorian did not want to accept that they would face a loss in order to win.

"Listen, you're not going anywhere. We need you. Let's just come up with a..." Din grasped desperately, trying to come up with some form of plan, but nothing came to mind.

"Please tell me the child will be safe in your care. If you do so, I can default to my secondary command." IG requested.

"But you'll be destroyed."

"And you will live, and I will have served my purpose." IG countered. Din shook his head. "No. We need you."

"There is nothing to be sad about. I have never been alive." IG stated.

"I'm not sad." Din denied. Refusing to admit it, he actually came around to liking a droid. IG-11 hummed, "Yes, you are. I'm a nurse droid. I've analysed your voice."

The droid turned, hoisting itself over the edge of the boat. The river was not as deep as it looked, only averaging to the droid's knees. "IG? What're you doing?" IG stalked closer to the mouth of the opening before the boat came too close, to ensure that it would not be affected in the blast radius of his self-destruction. The lava ate away at the fragile metal, and the droid struggled to stand by the time it reached its destination.

"The manufacturer's protocol dictates I cannot be captured. I must be destroyed."

There was an explosion.

A wave of blistering heat and luminous flames flickered around the entrance of the cave. It cleared in time for the boat to arise from the smoke. The group inside covered their faces with their arms to protect them from the blast wave.

Looking around, the storm troopers were dead. Like IG-11. Dying flames flickered along the rocks and debris.

Greef was the first to dismount, followed by Cara, Din, and Elodie. Elodie used the hand held out to her by Din to jump to shore and leave the boat drifting aimlessly. She pressed the child's head into her chest to face away from the debris that was their friend. The Mandalorian pressed his hand to the top of the child's head comfortingly, noting the whine noise of sadness.

The moment was over in, well, moments.

A shriek of a Tie fighter penetrated their surroundings. The machine itself was spotted seconds later, zooming in on the open air. The TIE fighter of Moff Gideon. A bolt was sent their way when it zipped past at an alarming speed. Dirt flew skyward as the blast found home metres from where they stood on the shore. With no shelter nearby, they were an open target for the contraption.

"Moff Gideon! He missed!" Greef laughed.

Din sighed, "He won't next time." Not with how close that last shot was to getting them. Cara muttered, "Our blasters are useless against him."

"Let's make the baby do the magic hand thing. Come on, baby! Do the magic hand thing. I'm out of ideas." Suggested the magistrate, cooing at the child, who peeked out from his hiding spot. Eyes lighting up at the attention, he waves back to the man.

"I have an idea." Mando said, backtracking to line himself up. "It would be good to tell us before you go putting yourself in danger." Elodie growled at him, stepping back with him as the Tie Fighter approached, the shriek of the machine growing unbearable. as it drew nearer.

"Here he comes!" Cara called out, gun at the ready, despite being useless. Din waited for the opportune moment before Gideon fired to release his fibercord.

"No time-" to explain, He was going to say. Din grunted as he was airlifted, and the weight of his body relied on a wire as thick as his finger. He gripped the bicep of his right arm as it trembled under the strain.

Mando brought himself up to the hull after managing to hold on following a series of evasive manoeuvres made to throw him off. Charging three of his detonators and hooking them to the wings, he released all hold on the ship, allowing himself to free fall to the ground below.

Elodie watched the Mandalorian detonate the charges while mid-fall. And only after the explosion, did the man activate his newly acquired jet pack.

Din landed with difficulty finding his footing, stumbling on his ungraceful impact. He fell into the awaiting arms of his partner, who caught him with a smile. He looked dumbly into her eyes, "Ah! That hurt. Now I feel bad about finding it a little funny when you fell earlier."

Her face fell in faux distaste, dropping her arms from his waist.

Greef came up from the side and clamped a hand down on the man's shoulder. "That was impressive, Mando. Very impressive. It looks like your guild rates have just gone up."

"Any more storm troopers?" Mando asked. They all looked around, relieved.

Cara smiled back at him. "I think we cleaned up the town. I'm thinking of staying around just to be sure." Elodie looked between the two, wondering what conversation they had while she was busy waiting for Moff Gideon to die in a fiery death.

"You're staying here?" She asked, surprised.

"Well, why not? Nevarro is a very fine planet. And now that the scum and villainy have been washed away, it's very respectable again."

"As a bounty hunter hive?"

"Some of my favourite people are bounty hunters. And perhaps, this specimen of soldier might consider joining our ranks."

"Yeah. I've got some clerical concerns regarding my chain code." Cara admitted. Greef removed his hand from Din's shoulder and instead placed it on Cara's. "And if you would agree to become my enforcer, clerical concerns would be the least of your worries." He then directed his next words to the Mandalorians, "But you, my friends, you will be welcome back into the guild with open arms. So, go off, enjoy yourself. And when you're ready to return, you will have the pick of all quarries."

"I'm afraid I have more pressing matters at hand." Din said, scratching the head of the child.

"Take care of this little one. Or maybe, it'll take care of you." Greef replied. "And Elodie, I am truly sorry for what I've put you through. I hope you can accept my apology one day."

"You're already making good progress on forgiveness, Magistrate. Keep it up." She replied. No goodbyes were said, as they knew they would all come to see each other again soon. Din and Elodie waited a moment to watch the other two walk away before the Wolven turned to face him.

"Are we going to have a long walk back, or are you going to make up your previous comment to me and give us a lift back to the ship?"

Din laughed, reaching to hoist her into his arms, seeing as the child was already nestled in hers. "For someone who almost died, you're awfully spry."

"And for someone without a method of transport home, you're awfully mouthy." She gasped, quickly shutting her eyes and opening her mouth to avoid insects, as they shot up in the sky.

They landed not too far from the Razor Crest.

Where Kuill had fallen for the last time.

His body lay sprawled beside that of his beloved beast. The Ugnaught had a strange love for all things that were deemed unwanted or outcast. It was one of the things Elodie found herself liking about the man. She helped settle the child for his well-deserved sleep before aiding the Mandalorian in burying the beings beside each other. It took hours, but neither of them complained.

Or said anything really.

When the last rock was set, Mando placed Kuill's hat on his grave as a marker.

Elodie whispered her thanks to the Ugnaught for his selfless acts of sacrifice and stood by the kneeling Mandalorian to give his shoulder a firm squeeze. Deciding to give him a minute alone, she made her way back into the ship.

The child was still awake and had found his way into the co-pilot seat. His large eyes examined the vast array of buttons. Luckily, the ship was off; otherwise, he would have sent himself into the next dimension with his hand spamming.

Elodie cleared her throat, the child startling and whirling around to sit in his seat innocently, as if butter couldn't melt. She sighed, choosing to sit in the seat flanking the pilot's left. "You ready for the next journey, Ad'ika? I imagine things are going to get interesting from here on out." [Little one]

He cooed.

Din climbed the ladder and made his way to his seat, hearing the sound of the landing pad closing after his arrival. Passing the child, Din saw that he was working something into his mouth. Thinking it was another unfortunate creature, he tutted, easing it from his slobbering mouth.

Din ran his thumb over the pendant, adorning the necklace, tucking it back into the child's cloak. "What have you got there? I didn't think I'd see this again. Why don't you hang onto that?" He cast a look at Elodie, seeing that she too was fiddling with the talisman in her shirt and staring out the window.

"So that you both may carry a piece of the Mandalorian heritage."

Chapter 12: 【ＳＥＡＳＯＮ　ＴＷＯ】

Chapter Text

【ＰＬＡＹＬＩＳＴ】

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1oW3AockpvLHr1u0q1lIXe?si=db656af4ba844562

Kate Beckinsale as

【ＥＬＯＤＩＥ　ＳＬＡＴＥ - ＥＤＤＹ】

Pedro Pascal as

【ＤＩＮ　ＤＪＡＲＩＮ - ＴＨＥ　ＭＡＮＤＡＬＯＲＩＡＮ】

Grogu as

【ＧＲＯＧＵ - ＴＨＥ　ＣＨＩＬＤ 】

Temuera Morrison as

【ＢＯＢＡ　ＦＥＴＴ】

【ＤＩＳＣＬＡＩＭＥＲ】

I do not own The Mandalorian or the rights to The Mandalorian. I do, however, take ownership of my main character Elodie Slate, her story and the book cover. Please do not copy or translate my work without my consent. I also do not own any of the images, memes, songs or gifs added to the story. All Mando'a translation are made through the websites: Lingojam and Mandoa.org. MATURE CONTENT WARNING.

Chapter 13: Chapter 11: The Marshal

Chapter Text

"I'm going to wait out here with Ad'ika." [Little one]

Gladiatorial arenas were popular in the lawless cesspits of the outer rim. Elodie had no idea what planet they were currently on, but paid it no mind as they were only here for one reason. A slimy Abysin and ganglord who had information regarding the whereabouts of other Mandalorians. It had been months since they managed to get any leads, and this was the last they had after many dead ends.

Din nodded to Elodie, scanning the crimson eyes of creatures cloaked in the ominous shadows of the alleyways. The two walked in sync under the glow of the street lights, the cradle floating idle behind them. Din could feel the heat of her hand as it brushed against his glove, but he snatched it back before she could grasp it. "I was going to suggest the same thing."

She struggled not to feel the hurt from his actions.

Elodie hummed, "Good thing I said it first then, or I would have gone in to spite you." She promptly redirected her course to stand beside the club, standing at the edge of a ring of flickering light beneath the lamppost.

The Mandalorian walked towards the entrance of the club with a deep sigh. The tension between the two was so palpable that even the child was beginning to notice it. The Twi'lek bouncer ran his gaze up the length of the Mandalorian, a sneer casting over his face. His body blocked entry into the club.

"I'm here to see Gor Koresh."

Nodding, the bouncer stood to the side to allow him access. "Enjoy the fights."

It wasn't long before floods of people fled the scene, clearly distressed by the sounds of the ruckus sounding from inside. Chaos always seemed to follow them. The bouncer left his station and ran inside to check on his boss.

Elodie's eyes swept the faces in the crowd, looking for the Abysin or the Mandalorian. It wasn't until the masses had disappeared that a one-eyed man in a crisp white suit came tumbling out the doorway to the fight club.

Leaving the child behind in his pram, she walked to stand in the centre of the street.

"Gor Koresh?"

The man turned, his awful comb-over flailing at the movement.

She smirked, "Gotcha."

His eye widened, and he turned to flee. Elodie was quicker, already at his heels and yanking him back by his blazer. Grunting, he landed flat on his back beneath the woman. Gor tried crawling backwards using his elbows, but she stalked consistently over his form like a shadow.

Elodie placed her boot on his chest, forcing his arms to give out. He collapsed back and wheezed as she applied more pressure to his sternum. "Who are you? W-what do you want?"

"Tell me what you know about the Mandalorian's."

His lips down turned and he tried pushing her foot off. "You're with that silver Mandalorian!"

Bending, she used her knees to pin his arms to either side of his body and straddled his upper chest. His legs were too short to kick her off in this position. "Well, we're not together, together. But it's complicated." Elodie admitted, knowing it was not what he meant. Pulling her knife from her boot, she brought it dangerously close to his face, the glint making him sweat profusely.

"Now you're going to tell me what I want to know, or you can say goodbye to your eye."

The man shook his head rapidly, "All right, stop, stop! I'll tell you where he is. Don't kill me, please. Maker don't kill me!"

"You're only alive this long because I am allowing it. Now, where are the Mandalorian's you know of?"

"Tatooine." She blanched, disbelieving. "What?"

Gor surged forward, flinging his weight up to toss her off. She fell to her side and grabbed his ankle as he ran past. He kicked her off and managed three steps before he was caught again.

Fibrecord clasped around his ankle again, yanking him down and reeling him back. Elodie didn't have to follow the length of the cord to know her Mandalorian was at the other end, reeling Gor Koresh in like a hooked fish.

By the time the Wolven had stood, Gor hung from one of the desolate street lamps, and the child was reeled closer by a few simple clicks on Din's wrist pad. Gor was visibly shaking, and it was causing him to rock side-to-side. Both she and the Mandalorian were exhausted now. Of the long months of bounty hunting and trying to find their own leads.

"Promise not to kill me, and I'll tell you what you want to know."

"I promise that you will not die by our hands." Din accepted.

"Now talk." Elodie gritted, unhappy with being caught off guard in the first place. "Tatooine! The Mando I know of is on Tatooine."

Din leaned on his other foot, his hands grasping his belt as he stood. "I've spent much time on Tatooine. I never saw a Mandalorian there."

"This was a bad idea. His information is old." The Wolven muttered, crossing her arms. "My information is good, I tell you. The city of Mos Pelgo. I swear it by the Gotra."

The Mandalorian nodded, turning. "Tatooine it is, then."

The beady-eyed creatures came down on the Abysin swiftly. "Wait, Mando! You can't leave me like this. Cut me down!"

"That wasn't part of the deal. Mando! I can pay! Mando! Man-" Gor Koresh screamed, and the sounds of ripping were heard.

Clothes or flesh?

Elodie stood back with the child to watch the Mandalorian handle the matter. Din walked unfazed, shoulders set and confidence radiating from each step closer to the crest. The Wolven felt warm, flustered almost. It was hard to keep her eyes from wondering back to the man ahead of her. Was it the confidence that was doing it for me? The gruff-dominating attitude?

"What?" He asked, double-taking her predatory eyes. She blinked and shook her head, letting out a quick, "Nothing."

Din caught up in no time, his long legs closing the distance from her shorter glide. "You're blushing. Did you—did you like that?"

The Mandalorian felt the burning heat rising to his own cheeks.

Elodie felt mortified, wanting the ground to swallow her whole then and there. "Please stop talking." Returning to the ship in no time, thanks to speed walking, Din set course for the hanger on Tatooine.

The familiar heat from the suns beamed down from its position in the sky. The distant light of its brother shone from over its shoulder. Tatooine was hardly ever basked in the shadow of nightfall. Evening hues cast pretty pastel palettes over the dune planes. Stubborn greenery peeked through sandy grains, the ever-reaching call of nature. Cool breezes accompanied the dimming skyline, creating a stark contrast between blistering days and cold, crisp nights.

Walking down the ramp, a flurry of droids whirred to greet them. Peli appearing from her office shortly after. "All right. Hey, hey, hey! Sorry, gang. Come on. You know he doesn't like droids."

"May as well let them have at it. The Crest needs a good once-over. " Din surrendered.

"Oh! So he likes droids now. Well, you heard him. Give it a once-over. I guess a lot has changed since you were last in Mos... Oh! Thank the Force! This little thing has had me worried sick."

The child cooed from within the confines of the shoulder bag Din wore. Peli, immediately drawn to the baby, swooped him up in her arms for a cuddle. "Come here, you little womp rat. Looks like it remembers me. How much do you want for it? Just kidding. But not really. You know, if this thing ever divides or buds, I will gladly pay for the offspring. Hey!"

By the ship, the droids had dropped a part of the outer panelling and cringed as it clattered against the landing pad noisily. Surprisingly, Din barely cast them an eye and continued conversing with the mechanic.

"Oh, jeez! Watch what you're doing up there. He barely trusts your kind. You want to give all droids a bad name? Thank you!"

"I'm here on business. I need your help." The Mandalorian said, trying to redirect her attention back to him. They had important matters to discuss, and he didn't want the possibility of the so-called Mandalorian leaving before he could reach them. If there was even another Mandalorian.

Peli nodded appreciatively, "Oh, then, business, you shall have. Care for me to watch this wrinkled critter while you seek out adventure?"

"We've been quested to bring this one back to its kind." The mechanic looked at the child, stroking his face. "Oh, wow. I can't help you there. I've never seen anything like it. And trust me, I've seen all shapes and sizes in this town."

"A Mandalorian armourer has set me on my path. If I can locate another of my kind, I can chart a path through the network of coverts."

"You've been the only Mando here for years, from what I can tell." Peli said.

"Where is Mos Pelgo? I'm told there's one there."

She held a hand to her hip. "Oh. Boy, I haven't heard that name in a while."

"I don't remember ever hearing of Mos Pelgo." Elodie added.

"Because it was wiped out by bandits. Once the Empire fell, it was a free-for-all. I didn't dare leave the city walls. Still don't." Peli admitted, absentmindedly rocking the child.

"Can you tell me where it used to be?"

She clicked her fingers. "Depends who's asking. You want to see it? R-five! Bring the map of Tatooine."

A distant beeping was heard. Followed by some metal clattering. Peli rolled her eyes and sighed loudly. "No, take your time. Seriously. You just can't get good help anymore. I don't even know who to complain to. Let's go, let's go. Waiting. Okay. This is a map of Tatooine before the war. You got Mos Eisley, Mos Espa, and up around this region, Mos Pelgo." A hologram beamed up from the droid's head, showing Tatooine and then zooming in to the two main civilizations. Peli pointed to an empty area above the two.

"I don't see anything."

"Just looks like Dune Sea to me." Her and Din said at the same time.

"Well, it's there. Or at least, it used to be. Not much to speak of. It's an old mining settlement. They're going to see that big hunk o' metal long before you land.

Din asked, "You still have that speeder bike?"

"Sure do. It's a little rusty, but I got it." She jerked her bed to the back of the inside hanger, and Din walked past both women to uncover it. Elodie looked at the bike and back to Peli. "Don't suppose you have two speeders by chance?"

Peli laughed. "What's got you so wound up? Last I saw ya' he was all over you." Elodie winced.

"Is it that obvious?" The mechanic nodded, handing back the child. They took a slow walk to the gate where Din had started up the engine.

"It's not me that's wound up." Elodie muttered while eyeing the Mandalorian.

The journey to Mos Pelgo took three days. They took turns riding hard during the long days and rested when the temperature plummeted overnight. Din steered clear of the Tusken settlements along the rocky foundations of the gorges. He'd said it would only slow down the journey as they only had limited supplies to make it to the town. The Tuskens took little notice as the three passed, veering well away to show that they were no threat to their settlement.

When the pair did eventually spot the town, it was Din who was driving. He stopped the speeder just on the edge of town in order to scope out the area. The people of the town didn't seem very welcoming to newcomers. Or maybe just them. The people turned their backs or glared as they walked past; some even outright ran into their homes.

The cantina was easy to spot, the biggest building in the town, with doors wide open for customers. A Weequay stood behind the bar, cleaning mugs with a dirty rag. He spotted their approach, "Can I help you?"

Din leaned on the counter with one arm, prepared to barter with the man for information. "I'm looking for a Mandalorian."

"Well, we don't get many visitors in these parts. Can you describe him?"

"Someone who looks like me." While the two talked, Elodie examined the bar, taking note of how empty the place seemed to be. Probably don't get many visitors because it ain't on the map.

The Weequay looked confused, looking Din up and down. "You mean the Marshal?" That caught their attention. Din nodded eagerly at the thread of new hope.

"The Marshal is a Mandalorian?" Elodie asks, leaning closer. He nodded, pointing his rag to the doorway. "See for yourself."

A lean man broke the rays of sunlight casting through the doorway. Faded Mandalorian armour protected his head and chest. The forest green was severely chipped and worn. A filthy red cowl hung around his neck, the colour bleeding into his shirt beneath the armour. He bore no flight suit. The two belts looked to be the only thing holding the pants on this man's tiny waist.

Elodie froze.

I thought I'd never see it again.

He strolled right up to the bar beside them. "What brings you here, stranger?" Din, relieved, said. "I've been searching for you for many parsecs."

The Marshal tapped the bar top, "Well, now, you found me. Weequay, three snorts of spotchka." Grabbing the shot glasses and jar of alcohol, he sat on a nearby empty table. Neither of them dared move closer, confused as to why he was asking to join him. "Why don't you join me for a drink?"

To add insult to injury. He proceeded to remove his helmet.

Elodie followed to where he set it on the table beside him. Her eyes were drawn to the distinct dent on the upper left quadrant, and now the sunlight was no longer blocking the details of the amour. The signature detail of her brothers Beskar. "That armour..." She trailed off, unable to form words. The men seemed ignorant of her distraught face or the ire building behind her eyes.

He smiled, and it made her eye twitch.

"I've never met a real Mandalorian. Heard stories. I know you're good at killing. And probably none too happy to see me wearing this hardware. So... I figure only one of us is walking out of here. But then I see the little guy...and I think, maybe I pegged you wrong." The man was handsome, she'd give him that. Silver hair framing his defined jaw and head. Bright eyes and a boyish grin that could make the girls melt into a puddle. Even his teeth were brighter, and straighter, than she thought herself to be sometimes.

"Who are you?" Din demanded, hand toying with the gun in his holster.

The man held up his shot glass and said, "I'm Cobb Vanth, Marshal of Mos Pelgo."

Elodie broke from her delirium and surged forward. Din held an arm out in front of Elodie to stop her advance on the man. It was the most he had touched her in weeks. "A thief is what you are! That armour belonged to my brother!"

He shrugged nonchalantly, "Bought it off some Jawas."

"That armour." She spat, "Belonged. To my. Brother."

"Hand it over." Din backed her up, keeping himself between her and the imposter. He didn't want the woman getting hurt in her blind rage.

"Look, pal, I'm sure you call the shots where you come from, but 'round here, I'm the one who tells folks what to do." The audacity of the man. Asking one last time, he repeated. "Take it off. Or I will."

"Beskar belongs to the Mandalorians. That armour specifically." Elodie spoke, eyeing the helmet on the table longingly.

Cobb stood from the table finally, slamming down his empty glass with a bang. "Look, lady, I didn't go pinching it off no corpse. This armour was hard-won, fair, and square." Seeing their unwavering stance on the matter, the Marshal kicked his chair back and unhooked the clip of his holster. "We gonna do this in front o' the kid?"

"He's seen worse."

The child cooed, looking between the adults. He shuffled to hide behind the pot he was peering into. Hands lingered over blasters, none wanting to draw first but prepared to do so.

"Right here, then?" He settled.

Tension in the cantina was quickly cut like a knife through butter. Screams roared from outside as the ground simultaneously began to rumble. Cobb held up a hand to pause and made his way to the door to see what started the chaos.

Sand flew up in all directions. The strong foundations of the town remained intact but shook violently with the brutal force the ground was emitting. Wading through sand like water, a large creature soured through the town. The reptilian scales of its hind peaked through the flurries of uplifted sand in the storm. At the edge of town, the wailing of a Bantha sounded. The concealed creature dove for it, and in the silence following the frenzy, both the creature and the Bantha were gone.

The Marshal turned to face you and the Mandalorian, missing Elodie's look of pure horror. "Maybe we can work something out."

They stared out at the Dune Sea, waiting for Cobb Vanth to set terms for his so-called deal. Elodie had half a mind to kill the man and strip the armour from his cold corpse.

"That creature's been terrorising these parts since long before Mos Pelgo was established. Thanks to this armour, I've been able to protect this town from bandits and Sand People. They look to me to protect 'em. But a Krayt dragon is too much for me to take on alone. Help me kill it; I'll give you the armour."

"Deal. I'll ride back to the ship, blow it out of the sand from the sky, use the Bantha as bait."

"We'll just need to know where its' den is. We can't do it near the town without risking causalities." Elodie mentioned the plan forming between the two of them. Din nodded, agreeing with her point. That was before Cobb shot it down. "Not so simple. The ship passes above, it senses the vibrations, stays underground. But I know where it lives."

"How far?"

"Not far."

The Wolven snorted, "According to who? The Krayt dragon?" Din walked to the speeder, grabbing her arm as he walked past to drag her along, "Quit complaining."

She snatched her arm from his hold. "The speeder is making my ass sore."

Beside the two, Cobb rode what looked to be a jet engine adapted into a speeder. He revved, setting his speed to sit slightly ahead. He pulled down his bandana, covering his face, and spoke to them over his shoulder.

"You don't understand what it was like. The town was on its last legs. It started after we got news of the Death Star blowing up. The second one, that is. The Empire was pullin' outta Tatooine. There was blaster fire over Mos Eisley. The occupation was over. We didn't even have time to celebrate. That very night, the Mining Collective moved in. Power hates a vacuum and Mos Pelgo became a slave camp overnight. I lit out. Took what I could from the invaders. Grabbed a camtono. I had no idea it was full of silicax crystals. I guess every once in a while, both suns shine on a womp rat's tail. I wandered for days. No food, no water. And then... I was saved. The Jawas wanted the crystals. They offered their finest in exchange. And my treasure bought me more than a full water skin. It bought my freedom."

While it was mildly interesting to listen to his story, Elodie still could not help but feel a little resentment towards the man prancing around in her dead brother's armour. She was desperate to know how the Jawas came across his armour in the first place, seeing as he was eaten alive by a Sarlacc. Silence filled the rest of the journey, and as they travelled through some gorges, a distant growling could be heard.

The speeders were slowed to a stop, and the trio disembarked, looking around to locate the source of the noise.

The growling grew louder ahead of their position, and Cobb yelled to the pair. "Get down!" Three fully fledged Massifs advanced on their position, ears back and flanks raised in warning. Din drew his Amban rifle and rested the tip on the speeder; his finger lightly rested over the trigger. The child sat in the burlap sack, none the wiser, and peaked out above the rim. By now, he knew his place when it came to his carers fighting. On the other speeder, Cobb was already wielding his twin pistols, trigger fingers poised to fire in a split second.

Elodie stepped out from behind the bikes, a low hum tickling her throat as she called out to the Massifs. Her glowing eyes allowed the Massif to recognise that she was no threat.

Beast to beast.

"What the hell are you doin'?"

One darted forward, collapsing at her feet. She ran her hands behind its ears, hearing the pleasurable growling emitting from deep within its chest. Its thick skin felt course under her smoother palms.

Cobb called out, more antagonized. "What the hell are you doin'?"

Gloved hands joined hers in rubbing the beast's belly. Din saw Elodie look up at him, eyes bright and luminous. Then, she smiled softly. Time briefly paused, as if his helmet were off and they were inches apart, staring face-to-face. How the warmth he felt in his body was not from the twin suns but from the radiating glow of the woman before him.

A low whistle caused the Massif to stand and wander over to its owner. Tusken raiders crept out from behind the rocks, their hand-crafted batons in hand.

The pair stood to meet them. This was the group we'd spotted in our travels, she realized. Unable to answer the grunts of the Tusken in front of her, she turned to her trusted companion, knowing he would be the designated translator.

Hoarse grunts and calls escaped Din's mouth. The feeling made him want to cough and clear his throat as the syllables tickled his airways. The modulator vocalised the sounds a lot gruffer than intended, but that was something he couldn't help. By the looks of the understanding washing over Tusken's, she assumed the conversation was going well. And hopefully they weren't going to maim and kill them.

"Hey, partner, you want to tell me what's going on?" Cobb asked, looking between the two parties in confusion. He had no idea his new friend could speak to the invaders.

"They want to kill the Krayt dragon, too." Din revealed.

The Tusken's led them further into their camp. Bantha-skin tents littered the settlement, and a fire pit lay beneath a rocky outcrop to shield from the wrath of the suns. It was a surprise that they trusted the three enough to allow them to go so deep within their tribe. Usually, Tusken's were quite private colonies', choosing to disallow outsiders among their ranks.

It seemed that they were quite desperate to get rid of the Krayt dragon, after all. A small rodent was speared over the spit, searing above the hot flames. They gathered from Din's translations, the Tusken's have had a long running history with the Krayt dragon. "For years, they have managed to keep their casualties low by baiting it with Bantha sacrifices in order to keep it asleep for long periods of time." Din translated for both her and Cobb.

Black melons were passed around the group, the first going to the guests. The Wolven looked at what seemed to be a rotten fruit encased in a hard shell and dreaded thinking of what she knew was inside. The leader gestured with Cobb's melon, cracking the centre to open it up. Black mist wafted into the atmosphere.

"What am I supposed to do with this?" Cobb looked at the melon in his hands with disgust. The smell was rancid, and the contents were thick. "You drink it." Din said, well aware of the smell as it passed through his filter. Cobb leaned closer, as if they couldn't understand him, "It stinks."

"Do you want their help?" The Mandalorian retorted.

"Not if I have to drink this." The Tusken in front of them let out displeased grunts, his hands flying to motion his words.

Din relayed, "He says your people steal their water, and now you insult them by not drinking it." He continued, "They know about Mos Pelgo. They know how many Sand People you kill."

"They raided our village. I defended the town." Cobb defended. Din hissed, "Lower your voice."

"I knew this was a bad idea." He glared at the peace offering. Finally deciding, he tossed it into the flames. The Tusken's stood, offended. "You're agitating them!" Elodie said.

The Tuskens started roaring in anger.

"These monsters can't be reasoned with. Sit back down before I put a hole through ya! I'm not going to say it..." Cobb stood to match their stance. Tensions were rising in the camp, and Din struggled to keep things neutral between two hostile parties.

Cobb saw Din trying to communicate with them and waved his hands through the air. "What are you telling them?"

"Everything is fine, see?" Elodie shouted, cracking the melon and chugging the fermented water within seconds. She tossed the empty husk into the fire. The trio stopped to stare at her when the flames burned a little higher. "No more fighting. We all have a common enemy, and we need each other if we are going to kill it. Now can you all just sit your asses down!"

As the tension simmered, each of them sat back down to surround the fire to discuss tactics. Elodie held a hand to cover her mouth as a burp slid past her lips. Din chuckled at her wince, the flavour haunting her taste buds. He stopped, however, when he caught the glare she sent his way. In her mind, she planned ways to get back at the man.

A raider escorted them to a tent to reside in for the night, and they were to travel to the den at first light. Entering the tent, Elodie found it to be snug; all three of them would be pressed together for sure. She assumed it allowed the Tuskens to stay warm during the freezing nights.

Cobb had been granted his own tent after they noticed that he was not part of Din's company.

Both Elodie and Din sat on the floor of the tent, where a Bantha pelt lay to shield them from the pesky sand. Elodie sighed, laying on her back, and brought the child to her left side where he curled up to promptly slip into an easy sleep.

Still sitting up, Din stripped some of his armour and set it at the foot of the tent to allow them more room. It would also be more comfortable for him to sleep. He laid back so he was staring up at the tent and crossed his arms to avoid accidentally brushing against the Wolven.

Elodie looked over and rolled her eyes. "I'm not contagious. I don't have cooties." His helmet faced her in confusion. "What?" She scoffed and stared into his visor. "Pa-lease. You haven't been able to look at me in days."

"That's ridiculous."

Elodie pinched her lips and waved her hand out to stop his denial. "Don't act coy. This is not okay, and neither is whatever this is." She flapped her hands again and paused. "Have I done something wrong?"

"No." He said.

She pressed. "So?"

"So what?" He replied dumbly. Shaking her head, she turned to face away from him. "Fine. If that's how you want it to be."

"What're you doing?" He asked, frowning, "Are you giving me the silent treatment?"

She didn't answer.

Din sighed and rolled to face her. His glove-less hands played with the loose strands of her hair. "There have been things that I've been thinking about. About us." Despite her silence, she leaned back a little to show she was still listening, so he continued. "I care for you. Deeply. And I just wonder if this is the life that is best for you and the child. I cannot give you what others could. A home, steady income, and... intimacy."

Elodie rolled over to bring their faces closer together. "That's stupid."

"No, it's not." Din said it lowly; his insecurity was showing. "You deserve more than what I have." She swallowed the lump in her throat, trying to form the right words to say.

"I don't care where we are as long as we are with you. Don't you see that?" She licked her lips, trying to convey her sincerity. "We have a home on the Crest, which is more than we've ever dreamed of. And intimacy?" The Wolven pressed her hand against the groove of his helmet and brought it closer to press their foreheads together. "This is enough. I'll take whatever you give me and thank the Maker for the moment."

He shook his head. "But my creed will not... allow it to go further."

"So this is where we'll stay." She said it as if it were the simplest solution, and then laughed. "Besides, I am kind of glad you can't kiss me right now. I have rotten coconut breath."

The Mandalorian shuffled closer and held her tightly in his arms as they fell asleep without any more animosity. No more late nights thinking over the rules and 'what if's'. His insecurities were put to bay for now, and he could rest easy knowing the woman in front of him was accepting of his beliefs.

They stayed at the settlement overnight and made their way to the Krayt Dragon's lair before sunrise. Now, they all perched on the apex of a sand dune, watching a solitary Tusken lead a sacrificial Bantha to the mouth of its den.

The Tusken beside Din grunted, and the Mandalorian whispered. "They say it lives in there. They say it sleeps. It lives in an abandoned Sarlacc pit." The Wolven stared at the pit in despair. "I'm familiar."

"Lived on Tatooine my whole life. There's no such thing as an abandoned Sarlacc pit."

"There is, if you eat the Sarlacc." We're f*cked.

The lone Tusken leading the Bantha looked back warily and then crept closer, the darkness of the Sarlacc pit almost eclipsing his form. "They're laying out a Bantha to protect the settlement. They've studied its digestion cycle for generations. They feed the dragon to make it sleep longer. Watch, the dragon will appear." The Tusken attempted to flee after waking the dragon. Subtle rumblings grew into full blown tremors of the sand as it woke and was instantly drawn to the moving prey rather than the stationary one. The blissfully unaware Bantha was spared, and the Tusken was swallowed whole. Sated, the Krayt Dragon returned to its den to slumber.

Horror filled all those remaining on the dune as they watched the scene return to silence, as if a giant sand monster hadn't just eaten someone alive. The Tusken to their side whimpered, and Din winced. "They might be open to some fresh ideas."

Turning, they all congregated to form a better plan. In the centre of their huddle, one of the Tuskens had helpfully drawn up a scale image to help them collectively think.

The bones of a sea snake were used to replicate the Krayt Dragon, and the small pebbles surrounding it referenced their forces. The imposter Mandalorian looked at the diagram in confusion. "What are the bones?"

"That's the Krayt dragon." Said Din, kneeling beside it.

"And those little rocks?"

"Us." Shrugged Elodie, who sat across from them. Crossing his arms, he mused. "It's not to scale."

"I think it is."

"Can't be. That's too big." At his denial, a Tusken signed from beside them. "It's to scale."

Another look of horror washed over him, "I've only seen its head and neck. It's bigger'n I guessed. Might be time to rethink our arrangement."

There were more grunts and signing amongst their group, and a decision was made unbeknownst to them when a few more pebbles evened out their odds against the behemoth. The Marshal seemed to like this equation better. "That's more like it. Where are they getting the reinforcements?"

"I volunteered your village."

The Wolven clapped his arm, "Mando, we have no idea if they're even in a position to fight."

Cobb kissed his teeth, growing agitated with the Mandalorian. He doubted if the Tuskens would even get along with the people of the village, let alone get the people to work harmoniously alongside them. "They attacked us less than a year ago. killed half a dozen of us by the mining camp. I'd say I took down about twice as many Tuskens."

"The town respects you. My guess is, they'll listen to reason." The Mandalorian reasoned, knowing that they would have a better chance of success if they all cooperated.

"I wouldn't be so sure."

-

The crowds of people back at the village mumbled amongst themselves, the steady hum making it hard to shout over them. The Tuskens had gone back to camp to gather their reinforcements, while the trio rode back to attempt to convince the village people to fight.

Before them, their Marshal stood on the planks at the entrance of the cantina. Their protector and leader. He started talking, and his smooth twang instantly settled the buzz of noise so that they could listen to what their leader wanted to inform them of. "This here is a Mandalorian. You know what that means? We've heard the stories. Then you know how good they are at killing. Now, this one's got a problem. I got a suit o' salvaged armour, and the Mandalorian creed says it's his to take."

Cobb set his hands on his hips.

"But I've got a problem, too. A Krayt dragon has been peeling off our pack animals, and sometimes, taking our mining haul with it. It's just a matter of time before it grows tired of Bantha's and goes after a couple of you townsfolk, or even, so help us, the school." He was good at manipulating the situation, the Mandalorian realised, interested in where Cobb was going with the speech.

"As much as I've grown fond of the armour, I'm even more fond of this town. The Mandalorian and his companion are willing to help us slay the leviathan in exchange for returning the armour to its ancestral owners."

Weequay agreed to the plan, tipping his cup up towards the trio. "Well, that settles it."

"There's more." Cobb kissed his teeth, "We can't take on the Krayt alone... and the Sand People are willing to help."

The village people began making a fuss. Some are shouting, and some are throwing up their hands in disgust.

"They raid our mines! They're monsters!"

Din took the moment to pipe in, hoping to settle the rowdy town members. "I've seen the size of that thing; it will swallow your entire town when the fancy hits it. You're lucky Mos Pelgo isn't a sand field already. I know these people. They are brutal. But so is the Dune Sea. They've survived for thousands of years in these sands, and they know the Krayt dragon better than anyone here. They are raiders, it's true. But they also keep their word." He said, pausing for a moment to allow the people to contemplate their options. "We have struck a deal. If we are willing to leave them the carcass and its ichor, they will stand by our side in battle and vow never to raise a blaster against this town until one of you breaks the peace."

A low rumble of chatter continued through the crowd, with some not entirely convinced and others unsure. Facing away from the crowd to face the pair, Cobb asked nervously, "Think it'll work?"

"It better. Joining forces is their only hope."

It had been an entertaining morning by the time both groups had merged and were now settled at the mouth of the abandoned Sarlacc pit. Din, Cobb, and Elodie were settled a little further back in order to have a helicopter view of the events. The child watched the situation play out from his seat in the bag hanging at a safe distance away on the speeder bike. Ahead of them, both Tuskens and townspeople were working together to set up equipment for their ambush.

The Tusken beside them grunted, informing them that they were safe to proceed with setting up their equipment as the Krayt was in a deep sleep from the meal yesterday. Deep, steady snores echoed off the cavernous walls of the Sarlacc pit.

Din helpfully translated the series of short noises omitted from the Tusken. "He says it's sleeping. If we listen carefully, we can hear it breathing." The two men took to overseeing the progress as Elodie travelled the distance from them to the battle ground. Before leaving earshot, the Wolven turned to Cobb, "If you get eaten by the Krayt, I will personally pull you from its steaming hot innards to peel that armour off of you. Before killing you again."

Cobb choked on the mouthful of sour coconut. The Mandalorian clapped him on the back. "Let's get to work. The Tuskens say the belly is the only weak spot, so we have to hit it from below. First, we bury the charges at the opening of the cave. Then, we wake it up. We have to get it angry enough to charge."

It took a few more hours for the teams to work at a steady pace under the blistering suns.

Shallow trenches were dug to bury the explosives they planned to set off underneath the dragon. Everyone was careful to lay the canisters down carefully after the incident in town earlier, which almost led to the treaty being broken.

Elodie wiped the sweat from her brow and set her shovel to the side, wishing desperately for a cold shower on the Razor Crest. Looking up, around the trench, the Tuskens had pretty much finished preparing the crossbows in their pre-planned positions. She doubted their ropes would be able to pin the dragon down if the diagrams they had drawn up were anything true to their scale. As a backup plan, a Bantha was packed with spare explosives for the dragon to ingest.

Din turned to Cobb from their position, who attached the detonator to his utility belt. "Once it's far enough out and the belly is above the explosives, you hit the detonator."

It was the Tuskens who volunteered to wake the Krayt dragon. Their call to rouse it was the only sound to be heard for miles.

Then there was a growing rumble.

The rumbles grew deafening, and the sand shifted violently like rippling water. Sand parted, revealing the eclipsing leviathan as it advanced and projected out further. The Tuskens were running desperately as the sand quaked under their unsteady footing. The Krayt dragon growled, almost managing to engulf one of the three Tuskens as he had fallen behind. Elodie pitched forward, being faster than most, and hauled him by his arm to safety.

The Krayt dragon was large and, therefore, slow to react. It was smart enough to detect the ambush based on the bombardment of gunfire and grenades being launched at the thick hide of its upper body.

The thick, impenetrable skin remained intact against the assault of the Tuskens and townspeople. The bolts of the crossbows found their marks, landing a shallow grasp on the large scales. The ropes pulled taut, and the beast still wailed underneath.

As Elodie had predicted, the ropes were not thick enough to detain the Krayt dragon.

Tuskens rallied to anchor the ropes themselves, while the townspeople used their ammunition in an attempt to weaken it. Elodie grabbed onto one loose length of rope, and three others flocked around her to grasp onto it too. The Krayt reared its head left, sending some Tuskens flying through the air.

The last of their crossbows fired, and they achieved their aims. Individuals closer to the head of the Krayt were quickly falling victim to either the weight of its thrashing head or being engulfed entirely.

There were even some on both sides who fled the scene.

"Stop shooting! Get the ropes! Get the ropes!" Seeing that its head was no longer advancing, Elodie shouted out in hopes others would grab the spare set of loose ropes holding the dragon.

Atop the valley, Cobb itched to do something. He changed weight from one leg to another, irritably. "It's retreating. I'm going to hit it." Din held out a hand, using the other to peer through his binoculars. "No, wait. We only have one shot. We've gotta get it out."

They could see the people struggling to fight for any control against the Krayt. Screams of people and the roars of the dragon reached their ears. The child whimpered from his seat and sank deeper into his hiding spot.

Slowly, the Krayt dragon slid from the sanctuary of its den, unknowingly angling itself more and more over the buried explosive devices.

"Now?"

Less than half the abdomen was over the devices. "Not yet. It's gotta come out further."

"Almost... almost...-Now!"

The detonators exploded at the Krayt Dragon's delicate underbelly. It roared fiercely, but the disturbed sand obstructed the view of the damage, and it disappeared back into the depths of the dune sea.

Everyone at the entrance of the Sarlacc pit took that moment of peace to gather themselves. Tuskens and townspeople alike were helping each other up off the ground.

"I don't think it's dead." Cobb whispered, looking around nervously.

"Me either."

Crackling bedrock sounded throughout the valley, and the Krayt erupted at the apex of the mountain, spewing mounds of acid from its mouth.

It happened so suddenly that people were unable to move out of the direct line of fire. People were vaporised instantly. It landed on a few Tusken raiders, and then the Krayt threw itself at the people of the village. It continued to release an ear-shattering roar of anger as it bristled with rage.

If it was not the bile or beast killing them off, it was the rocks raining down from the Krayt Dragons' position.

Elodie ran with a group of townspeople, knowing that nowhere in the open valley was their shelter from a beast that travelled in the earth. Her hair whipped in the violent winds as she skillfully dodged oncoming onslaughts of acidic bile.

A woman beside her screamed, only to be cut off as the acid permeated her upper torso. Bone chilling shock rattled through Elodie's bones as she fought to continue running in circles. The explosives were useless on its impenetrable hide, and she was unable to get a clear enough shot to incapacitate its eyes.

The few who ran were splattered with luminescent bile, instantly incinerating them on the spot. A mixture of villager and Tusken screams were heard all the way from the sand bank in which the rest of the group stood, including Din and Cob. Din kept his binoculars focused on the running Wolven, trying not to lose sight of her amongst the chaos.

The two armoured men had had enough.

"It's picking us off like womp rats. Let's get after it!"

Igniting their jet packs, they set course for the mountainside, landing swiftly in the prone position. They aimed their guns at the side of its head, distracting it from attacking the people on the ground. The rounds from the Amban rifle did nothing to damage the skin of its face, and Cobb quickly came to the conclusion that it was useless to continue trying.

"This ain't doing a thing." The Marshal sighed, resting his hands on his hips to help gulp down some air. There was an impasse. "Just keep shooting."

The Krayt Dragon flung its body down at where the men were sitting. Seeing that they were now the targets, they both used their jet packs to land at the base of the mountain and away from the dragon. It crashed into where they were in a blaze of debris and dust.

It snarled, baring its overly large teeth as it missed. The Krayt Dragon dove into the mountain again.

The men landed either side of Elodie, the woman desperately trying to take in gasps of breath from the running. Never the less, she pulled out her gun as the Krayt Dragon returned.

Elodie fired her blaster close to its eyes, noting that no damage was being done. "This isn't doing anything to its hide! The only way we are going to kill it is from the inside; we need it to eat the Bantha!" She shouted above the carnage.

It disappeared again, only to erupt from the sand again, closer to the people. Din shouted over the screaming. "There he is! I've got an idea. Get its attention."

Flicking down the monitor, Cobb directed a missile into the Krayt Dragon's head. It did nothing but enrage the beast further. "I got its attention! Now what?"

"You still have that detonator?" The Marshal practically threw it at the man. "Take it! What's the plan?"

Din gulped, sweat building up on his forehead. "Take care of my family."

"What are you gonna do?"

"I don't know, but wish me luck." Cobb caught Elodie as she fell into his arms from a rough shove. Din rammed the butt of his rifle into Cobb's jet pack, igniting the flames. Cobb tightened his hold around the Wolven, praying that he would not drop her as they ascended high into the air.

The jet pack spluttered to a halt as they descended again. The two landed roughly, tumbling into the sand. Cobb was the first to stand and offer her a helping hand, which she accepted. She brushed off and turned to look at what the Mandalorian had planned on doing.

Din stood with the Bantha as bait, hailing the Krayt Dragon.

And as Din stood with the rope clutched in his trembling hands, he hoped Elodie and the child were at a safe point and would forgive him.

Was it panic she felt? Dread? Pain? Nothing had ever made her feel like this before. Watching as the love of her life was swallowed whole with bated breath. The pounding of her heartbeat in her own ears was the only sound she could decipher apart from the high-pitched ringing.

Din had just sacrificed himself.

Din was dead.

Din was dead.

Just when everyone thought it was over, The rumbling returned. Ripples in the sand were like waves on a shore. The Krayt Dragon broke the surface of the ground, wailing at the sky. A series of electrical impulses erupted from inside the behemoth, and it screeched in pain. An earthquake-like ripple blew across the valley.

As its jaw grew lax with the bellow, Din, boosted by his jet pack, appeared with the detonator in hand. Once he was free and staring down at the beast, he ignited the explosives that still resided deep in its stomach.

The force of the explosion disrupted the balance of his jet pack, and he was made to land harder than he had intended, tumbling an extra few feet in order to remain upright. Din thought he would be met by cheers and gratitude from the villagers as he could hear them celebrating in the background.

He was mistaken.

"Take care of my family? Take care of my family?" Elodie surged forward, shoving his grimy cuirass, "What the f*ck, Din!" He stumbled back, having a hard time with his balance after landing, and being pushed didn't exactly help.

But he was not going to say anything to the angry little woman, whom hell hath no fury.

"You ignore me for weeks, and then you go prancing around like suddenly I mean something? Maker, sometimes I can't even understand you. It's like you want to sacrifice yourself for every worthy cause! Do you like the adrenaline? Do you like the rush?" Elodie ranted incredulously.

She stood back, breathing deeply, her palms digging into her eyes; fearful that she might cry if she looked at him again.

"I had a chance, and I took it."

She scoffed, and he walked closer to peel her hands away. He saw tear trails through the dust marring her skin and felt guilt gnawing at his heart that he had just put her through something like almost losing him. He wished he had time to explain, but he could afford no luxury at the time. "Eddy, there was no time to explain. I'm sorry. I mean it. Just like I told you on the way to Nevarro—you and the kid. You're my life now. And I wouldn't do anything to purposefully jeopardise that."

The biliary fluid had already dried, plastered to his armour in the emanating heat, and Din leaned forward to tap the top of his helmet to the crown of her head. His hands still holding hers. "I can't keep living like this. Hot and cold. You suddenly decided to be so distant and then not let me go. It hurts. It's hurting me." Din shook his head lightly, maintaining their embrace.

"Ni ori naat cyir, nayc or'atu." Din paused. "Ni kar'tayli gar darasuum." [I vow not to be, not anymore. I will know you forever/I love you]

His grip loosened enough for Elodie to slide her hands down to grasp his gloves, not looking away from the captivating stare of the man in front of her. "Cuyir gar vamina?" [Are you serious/real]

"Sorry to interrupt, but your kid's lookin' pretty sad." The couple saw the child wriggling relentlessly in the man's arms, and Cobb looked far from comfortable.

Reluctantly, they peeled themselves off one another.

As in, literally peeled themselves. That suit is going to smell for days.

Following the victory, both parties were in much lighter spirits, despite their losses. As agreed, the Tuskens were stripping the Krayt Dragon for meat and even offered the village people some as a sign of good faith.

Din stumbled over to the bikes. "Sorry, I didn't have time to explain." Cobb waved a hand, handing over the packed armour for Din to strap on the bike and the child for Elodie to slip the bag on. Cobb Vanth looked even slimmer without the bulk and was half as intimidating. "No need. This was well-earned. It was my pleasure. I hope our paths cross again."

"As do I." Din slung his leg over the speeder, ready to drive but waiting for Elodie to saddle up behind him. Cobb hooked his thumb in his belt loops.

"Hey Hon, I know we have our differences, but I just want you to know that I am sorry for what I said about your brother. I imagine it was hard not putting your boot in my face with the way I've acted." Elodie gulped, taking the helmet from him and clutching it to her chest tightly. "I imagine he was a good man."

She looked up and gave him a tight smile, "No, he was actually kind of an asshole."

Cobb mirrored it. "Guess that just comes with the armour." He said, stepping back slowly and pointing at the damaged jet pack, "Oh, and tell your people I wasn't the one who broke that."

"See you around, Space Cowboy."

Chapter 14: Chapter 12: The Passenger

Chapter Text

It was a long journey back, and they were tired from all the events that had unfolded. The two swapped positions regularly when they made pit stops to eat and rest. Din was the one driving the speeder currently, with Elodie slumped against his back and the child sleeping on the back.

She woke abruptly when she felt herself lift from the speeder at an accelerated rate. She screamed in surprise and landed in a heap after rolling to a stop. It took a moment for her to gather her bearings after having been awoken so suddenly.

A tripwire lay hooked between two cracks on either side of the gorge. Just barely visible to the naked eye. Din had caught himself more gracefully than his companions with the support of his jet pack and landed on his two feet.

The child rolled along the ground like tumbleweed.

"Get the Child!" Was shouted by the men.

Elodie threw her fist at the man who attacked her first. He fell back with a stumble but recovered quickly and came back for more.

Looking up at the sound of blaster fire, Din had shot at one of the men running to take the child, who cowered against the rocky wall of the gorge. The Mandalorian then proceeded to retract his fibercord around the gun aimed his way and bash it against the heads of the men that were attacking him.

Standing to collect the child, the two came across one of the smaller men holding the child at knifepoint. "Wait! Don't hurt him!"

The child whimpered, quivering his bottom lip at the predicament. Reluctantly, both Din and Elodie threw their blasters to the ground and held their hands up in surrender. "Don't hurt the child. If you put one mark on him, there's no place you will be able to hide from us. We can strike a bargain. There's a lot of value in this wreckage. Take your pick. But leave the child."

The creature shared similarities with the Jawas in its small stature, mysterious features, and unknown dialect. It spat out a few words and gestured to the jet pack after having eyed the wreckage. Din set his jaw, but relented. He unclipped the pack from his back and allowed his cape to fall. Setting the pack down slowly, he backed away, hands still raised in surrender. "Okay. Here. It's yours. Take it."

It goes to step forward, the child still in his grasp when Elodie growls. "Release the child."

As soon as he is on the ground again, he runs towards the Wolven and the creature runs off with the jet pack in his grasp. Elodie swooped up the child and cradled him to her chest. He whimpered and nuzzled his face in, while she kissed the crown of his fuzzy head. "You're okay, Ad, we won't let anything happen to you." [Child]

The Mandalorian walked up to her side, one hand around the waist of the woman and the other resting on the child's head. Both the child and her look up to him, and he wishes he had a camera to capture this very moment of them both safe in his arms.

"It's okay. You okay?" The child mumbles intelligibly and rests his head against Elodie's chest. "What are we going to do about him?" She asks, and he turns to see that the creature had not made it very far with the additional weight. "I've got it."

Din pressed a few buttons on his wrist pad. It ignited the jet pack, sending the creature with it soaring into the air. He waited a few moments before pressing the button again to allow the jet pack to land safely on the sand. The same could not be said for the creature. It slammed hard onto the ground, killing it instantly.

The kid looked up to his buir with wide eyes, and Din simply shrugged.

The two adults had to decide what was important and what to leave behind in the wreckage. Din used his Amban rifle as a bindle, hanging as much as he could carry, including the Krayt meat and weaponry.

Elodie slung the child's bag over her shoulder and slipped him inside with the flap over to keep him from the heat beaming down from the twin suns. She chose to carry the bundle of armour that belonged to her late brother, attaching the helmet to her belt and carrying the rest like a rucksack. They both prepared themselves for the long journey ahead, knowing that they were going to have to trek through the long daylight hours, way into the night, before they reached the city of Mos Eisley.

Midway through the walk, Din asked. "You thirsty?" His voice sounded raspy, even through the vocoder. Beside him, the woman panted, wiping the sweat dribbling down her temples for the umpteenth time. "Crispy."

"Why don't you have the rest of my canteen?"

Elodie paused, "I'm good. You need it."

"I insist."

"I respectfully decline." She winced as they trudged up a particularly steep dune. He wanted to laugh but was too exhausted. "Is it because you swapped out the water for the rotten coconut milk?"

Elodie gasped. "What? No!"

"You're a terrible liar."

"How dare you." She smiled. He caught it from the corner of his eye as she kept her eyes down so not to trip over.

"And even worse at sneaking around." He mirrored the smile beneath the helmet. "You know, at this point, I think I'd take the coconut."

"But you hate coconut."

Din turned his helmet towards her in surprise. "You remembered."

He heard her scoff, and his heart fluttered in his chest at her reply. "Of course I did. Why wouldn't I?"

Elodie was right. It took them well into the night before they made it to the cantina. They strolled past the Jawas fighting outside, barely casting them a glance as they slipped inside. The duo was hoping just to get some refreshments when they saw their mechanic sitting in a corner booth and approached her.

"Nothing much. Just killed a Krayt dragon."

"Oh. Is that all?" She blinked. Elodie slumped in the chair beside her. "Is it that surprising that he would volunteer for that? No. Not really."

"He was my last lead on finding other Mandalorians." How Din was still standing composed, Elodie had no idea. She felt like she was dying inside, and she wasn't the one in armour. She could barely remember the time she was outside on Tatooine for a prolonged period of time in her armour.

The anthropoid opposite Peli clicked, setting down a card. Peli nodded over at the creature and turned to Mando. "Okay. Well, you might be in luck. Doctor Mandible says he can connect you with someone who can help you, if you cover his call this round." At their disbelieving silence, she held up her hands in defence, "It's what he said."

Din sighed, unhooking the pouch of credits from his utility belt. "What's the bet?"

"Five hundred." He paused. "That's a high-stakes game."

"Hey, he's on a hot streak." Seeing the money set on the table, Peli slammed down her full set of cards. "Ha! Idiot's Array! Pay up, thorax!"

Elodie laughed, leaning back. "Should have seen that coming." Din grunted as Peli bagged the credits for herself.

"Oh. Stop your cryin'. You'll rust." The anthropod began clicking again, apparently divulging the information to the mechanic. Peli nodded as he spoke and translated. "All right. He says the contact will rendezvous at the hangar. They'll tell you where to find some Mandalorians. That's what you wanted, right?

"Yes."

She threw her cards back into the deck, motioning for Elodie to budge out of the booth. The Wolven groaned, sliding out to let the other woman out. "All right, well, stop your mopin'. More importantly, did you bring back any of that dragon meat? Better not have any maggots on it. I don't like maggots."

"Just a ton of sand." Peli shrugged at her response.

"This is Tatooine; everything is sand."

Back at the hanger, Peli roasts the slab of Krayt Dragon meat with the Crests' engine. Her droids slowly rotated it like a spit for thorough cooking. The child sat beside it, staring hungrily.

Din and Elodie quickly ran inside the Crest to freshen up before settling down for the rest of the night. Peli was delighted to babysit for a little longer.

He chuckled, "You have no idea how disgusting I feel."

"I can smell you from here. Get yourself in there." She jested. He walked past, but she caught his sleeve. "Leave your armour outside the door." Din looked down, hesitating a moment before nodding and disappearing into the fresher.

Din was the first one in the fresher while Elodie lingered outside. It was clear that he needed it way more than she did. Din all but threw himself in the shower, glad to have water rather than the sonic showers most commonly found on Tatooine as a result of their water shortage. He was careful not to use all of the water for Elodie to shower right after.

By the time Elodie gathered some clothes and cleaning bits, the armour was left outside as requested. Helmet included. She perched against the wall of the hull and began scrubbing the layer of grime left behind on it. The saliva was hard to remove now that it was dry.

The Mandalorian was taking a long time in the fresher and behind the door he was staring at his wet face in the mirror and playing with freshly clipped hair. Tatooinian heat really put into perspective how long his hair had gotten.

He heard a wrap on the door and slid it open an inch to retrieve his helmet from the pile of armour, the Beskar now polished. Din went to slip it on and noted that Elodie must have sprayed deodorant in it to smell like something better than sweat.

It was an intimate gesture. The cleaning of Mandalorian armour.

Courting was different in every culture, and Mandalorians were no different. The cleaning, gifting, and dressing of Beskar were very personal. Elodie knew what she was doing by wooing him, and he accepted it greedily. He had no experience in relationships, only passing flings. And to be honest, he was more surprised that he allowed things to develop to such a level in the first place. Elodie was to blame. She was interesting- exciting. She managed to take down the walls he spent years building in a matter of months.

Din exited the fresher dressed in his fresh clothes and helmet, seeing Elodie sat in the centre of the hull. "You're up." He said, leaving the door open. "Should still be some water left."

She hopped up and glided past him. "There better be, Mandalorian."

The shower was quick but satisfying. She didn't care who's soap she used, just as long as it rid her of the smell of Krayt Dragon bile. Upon exiting the shower, she found a neat pile of clean clothes set just inside the fresher doors.

Funny. She didn't even hear him enter.

She chucked them on, noting they were actually his clothes. Elodie remembered telling him at the beginning of their time together that she preferred to sleep in his clothes, even after he brought her some of her own. It was the same one she first changed into when coming onto the ship.

Stepping into the hull, she found Din putting the last of his blasters in the weapons vault. Din was once again fully dressed in his armour. He looked over at the sound of the door sliding open and shut the cabinet doors. "We should go and find out what Peli knows. I think the meat should be ready now."

"Hey, don't overcook it, Treadwell. I like it medium-rare! I'm not some Rodian for crying out loud." She turned her attention to the Mandalorian and his partner, who were walking down the ramp. "All right, here's the deal. A Mandalorian covert is close. It's in this sector, one system trailing."

"Are they the ones that left Nevarro?" Elodie and him sat down with her, the former retrieving a plate of cooked meat from a nearby droid. The child ate noisily beside her, wolfing down an adult portion. Elodie found herself asking, "Are they real Mandalorians?"

Peli shook her head. "Don't know. All I know is that the contact will lead you to them."

"How much will it cost me?" Din knew it was not going to be out of the goodness of the woman's heart. The mechanic was forever draining his pockets. To his surprise, it wasn't as steep as he was expecting. "Well, that's the great news. It's free. Aside from a finder's fee, of course."

"Of course." Elodie smiled fondly, shovelling some food into her mouth.

"What's the not-great news?"

"Nothing. It's all great."

Elodie muttered between mouthfuls, "I don't believe that for a second." Din looked between the child and Elodie, noting their particular savagery with food. They may not look related, but their mannerisms were identical.

"Well, there is one small skan* in the scud pie." Peli admitted, Din sighed. "Which is?"

"The contact wants passage to the system."

"Do you vouch for them?" He was sceptical of the information. He understood that they were in need of it, but this way, would be a risk to both his partner and child. Din would need to know more before he could accept the offer. After all, the passenger would be in their personal living quarters.

"On my life. And... no hyperdrive." And get caught by bounty hunters? No. Too risky.

He scoffed, his hands resting heavily on his hips. The Razor Crest was a slow ship as it was; sublight travel would be like ringing the dinner bell. "You want me to travel sublight? Deal's off."

"It's one sector over." Peli argued, not seeing the bigger picture. Elodie had to agree with Peli, they were otherwise screwed. "This is the only other lead we have, Mando. We need this."

"Moving fast is the only thing keeping us safe. Keeping you safe." He waved his hand, trying to get across his concerns.

"These are mitigating circ*mstances."

"What do you mean 'mitigating'?"

A croak sounded from the hanger door. A heather-hued Povanarian bounced nervously from one foot to another. Elodie had never seen one of her species before, the lady had wide reptilian eyes and a stretched mouth housing no teeth. Her clubbed fingers clutched the handles of the cannister carried on her back.

She looked harmless, but apparently that was not enough to stave off the doubts of the mistrusting Mandalorian. "I'm not a taxi service."

"I know, I know, I hear you. But I can vouch for her." Peli walked up to the Frog lady and slung a hand over her shoulder. The amphibian stared wordlessly between them. "Does she even speak basic?" Elodie queried.

"Not a word."

"This will be an interesting flight." She summed up, setting down her finished plate. "What's the cargo?"

The Frog croaked again, seemingly trying to tell them what, but not realising that they were unable to understand her. Peli translated for them. "It's her spawn. She needs her eggs fertilised by the equinox, or her line will end. If you jump into hyperspace, they'll die. She said her husband has settled on the estuary moon of Trask in the system of the gas giant Kol Iben."

"She said all that?" Din asked dubiously.

She shrugged in response. "I paraphrased."

"Is she sure there are Mandalorians there?" Peli made some noises at the Frog lady, and Elodie winced as it sounded like they would hurt her throat. She seemed pleased with the information she heard from the Frog and eagerly relayed what was spoken. "She said her husband has seen them."

"Do you know the husband?"

"No. I met her ten minutes before you walked in." Din rolled his eyes. The wellbeing of his clan rested heavily on his decisions. "I thought you said you vouched for her on your life."

"What can I say? I'm an excellent judge of character." Well, that was the best he was probably going to get out of her.

"Out of curiosity, how many languages do you know?" Peli threw her head back, laughing at the Wolven. "I know more languages than the years you've been alive, Eddy."

They left Tatooine with the Frog lady in tow, and Din led her into the co*ckpit, where he made sure to keep an eye on her. Perhaps it was the bounty hunter in him that made him so on edge, or maybe it was the fact that he was overprotective of his family in general.

"Now, I'm gonna ask you to stay strapped in whenever you're seated. Travelling sublight is a bit dicey these days. Whether it's pirates or warlords, someone either ends up with a nice chunk of change or your ship."

The woman replied in her native language. Din and Elodie cast each other a quick look.

"I don't speak whatever language that is. You speak Huttese?" Din spoke a few sentences in the language but received a blank stare back.

"She can't speak it, but I think she can understand us. Do you understand what we're saying?" She nodded. "That's a start. We'll let you know when we get closer. I'm sure your excited to see your husband again." The Frog lady nodded and wiggled in excitement.

"So, I'm gonna hit the sack. I've set the nav for our course. It's gonna take a while. I recommend you get some rest."

Elodie followed Din down the rungs of the ladder and into the hull. As her feet touched the floor, she could hear Din whisper-shouting at the child. She turned, curious as to why he would be so mad when she saw Din sealing the Egg cannister shut and the child staring at them longingly.

"Don't tell me."

"Yep." He swept the child up and set him down in the hammock above the cot. "Time for you to get some rest, kiddo."

The pair were awoken by consistent beeping emanating from the co*ckpit. Elodie woke first, shoving Din in a panic at the noise. He startled and jumped up quickly. The first thought that ran through his head was that the Frog Lady had touched the controls and was manipulating their journey. But as he reached the top of the ladder, he found her to be in a deep slumber, slumped in the passenger seat.

The alarm came from passing New Republic ships, hailing him to communicate. "Razor Crest, M-One-Eleven. Come in, Razor Crest. Do you copy?" A voice called over the controls. Two New Republican X-Wings flanked the Crest on either side. Sensing this could spell trouble, Elodie remained silent in her seat.

Din answered the comm, "This is Razor Crest. Is there a problem?"

"We noticed your transponder is not emitting."

"Yes, I'm pre-Empire surplus. I'm not required to run a beacon." He said, ensuring the autopilot remained on the planned route.

"That was before. This sector is under New Republic jurisdiction. All crafts are required to run a beacon." The pilot stated. "Thank you for letting me know. I'll get right on it."

"Not a problem. Safe travels."

"May the Force be with you." Din winced. He was nervous, and it was obvious.

"And also with you. Just one more thing." The pilot requested.

"Yes?"

"I'm gonna need you to send us a ping. We're out here sweeping for Imperial holdouts."

"I'll let you know if I see any."

"I'm still gonna need you to send us that ping." The voice grew impatient. "Well, I'm not sure I have that hardware online."

"We can wait."

"Yeah, I... Doesn't seem to be working." Elodie rolled her eyes, and he calls me the bad liar.

"That's too bad. If we can't confirm you're not Imperial, you're gonna have to follow us to the outpost at Adelphi. They'll run your tabs." The taunt was enough for Din to flick the switch with a deep sigh. "Oh, wait. There it is. Transmitting now."

The chime it made startled the passenger on board. The Frog lady made a noise of surprise upon waking. Elodie reached over to hush her with a finger over her lips. Understanding, she made no more fuss.

"What's that?" They asked over the radio.

"Uh, nothing. The hypervac is drawing off the exhaust manifold."

"Carson, can you switch over to channel two?" Carson responded. "Copy."

"That doesn't sound good." Elodie nervously bit her lip, looking between the ships on either side of them. Her nerves magnified when the X-Wings adjusted their wing configuration. "Not good. So not good."

"Was your craft in the proximity of New Republic Correctional Transport, Bothan-Five?"

Din cursed.

Disengaging the autopilot, the ship dove to the nearest planet. Frog lady screamed, clutching her seat belt for dear life. Din may have been unable to use hyperspeed, but he could use the terrain to lose the New Republic ships long enough for them to get away.

He shouted for the women in the co*ckpit to hold on as he weaved between the mountains and icebergs of the frozen planet. Elodie dug her claws into the leather fabric of the arm rests.

"Razor Crest, stand down. We will fire. I repeat, we will fire."

Blaster bolts rocked the Crest as it made impact. It wasn't enough to destroy the Crest, but enough to scare the individuals inside. Din gritted his teeth and readjusted his grip on the flight controls. They swerved a tight corner in a canyon, but the X-Wings remained tailing them. "Come on, Razor Crest, don't make us do it." Carson pleaded.

"Hold on." Passing another corner, Din shot the ground and dove into the cave he made in order to hide from the New Republic ships. He landed it quickly on the ice and switched off the engines so that the sound would not echo and give away their location.

Then waited.

Just as Din started up the engines, the thin layer of ice beneath the ship cracked, and they all paused in fear. For a moment, it seemed like they were okay.

Then the ice gave away.

Elodie screamed for Din, feeling her stomach fly up as they dropped suddenly. Din felt his body fly forward against the control panel.

The ship whipped forward so fast that Elodie's belt snapped on impact. The tightness increased tenfold before the fabric gave under the force, and she flew from her seat.

Din woke to the desperate croaks of the Frog lady. She was rousing from her deep state of unconsciousness, trying to shake the Mandalorian beside her. Peeling open his heavy eyes, he realised the impact must have forced his helmet into the dash, rendering him unconscious.

The Mandalorian groaned, using one hand to ensure his helmet was in place and the other to move his body up and off the dash. He heaved in deep breaths, the air light and harder to breathe. The atmosphere on the planet was very thin and unaccommodating. His lungs burned with the freezing gusts he inhaled, and he could only imagine how cold it would be without all of his layers of clothing for protection. Elodie and the child must be so cold in this weather.

"Eddy?" He called, his voice rough from being unconscious. He looked at the seat beside him to see it barren, the black belt was deeply frayed and torn at the buckle. A feeling worse than the frozen blast sent chills to his very core. The windscreen was intact, so she couldn't have been ejected from the co*ckpit, which was a relief.

"Elodie!" He fumbled with the belt, practically ripping it off and throwing himself to his feet. Din stumbled, his vision blurring with the head rush, and he used his pilot seat to support his stagger forward.

Elodie was not in the co*ckpit.

The co*ckpit door was ajar. Vision hyper-focused on the doorway, he shot forward, to look at the ladder descending to the hull. At the bottom, she was lying unconscious. He held onto the rungs as he lowered himself down, careful not to step on her form. "Elodie!"

He rolled her over to see that her eyes were beginning to open on their own accord. "'M okay." Din sighed in relief, falling back on his calves from where he knelt beside her. "You scared me, Mesh'la."

Elodie grabbed onto his arms to support sitting up. Her eyes ran over his form, looking for any disfigurements or wounds, "Are you okay?"

He nodded, bumping his helmet into her forehead. The touch was quick but bitterly cold. "I haven't seen the kid yet."

Croaked reverberated from the co*ckpit, and Din shouted up, "I'll find your eggs, don't worry. Gotta get you some blankets, keep you warm." The Wolven scanned the damage and gathered her bearings while Din searched the hull. "Is the Frog lady hurt?"

"She's fine. Just worried about her eggs." Din tossed scraps of metal out his way, the damage to the hull extensive and serious. Half the hull wash breached, allowing the blizzard from outside to settle on the inner walls. "Damn it. Where are you?"

The amphibian screeched again, and Elodie found herself beginning to get worked up at her impatience. "Give us a damn minute, lady!"

She found a long tarp in one of the crates and began stringing it up along the breach, if only to keep the mounds of snow blasting in.

"Kid!" Din cried, hastening his walk over to the child. He slurped another of her brood before he could grab it. Din slammed the lid closed. "No! I told you not to do that." He told the child, "Found them!"

The child whines, looking at the eggs in hunger. His ears dropped in disappointment as he looked up to the Mandalorian. "How many did you eat?" He shook his head, lifting the two and handing the child off to Elodie once she'd finished tying the last knot. "Take him. I can't deal with this right now."

Taking the child as Din breezed past without explanation, she looked at the child innocently cooing in her arms. She tossed a nearby blanket around her shoulders and curled herself around the child. They would have to secure the Crest enough for the night and start working on powering up the ship in the morning if they had any hopes of getting off the Frost-bitten planet. It reminded her of the snowy tundra of Hoth. Din escorted the Frog Lady down the ladder and to her brood of eggs, which lay safely in their tank.

Well, most of them.

She cradled them to her chest and took her first good look at the breach. A shocked gasp escaped her as she realised the severity of the situation, and she settled down to sit with the eggs on the floor. Elodie went over with a spare blanket from the cot and draped it over her shoulders. The Frog Lady looked up at the woman and croaked in what Elodie assumed was appreciation.

"If you hadn't guessed, we're in a tight spot. The main power drive is not responding, and the hull has lost its integrity. I suspect the temperature will drop significantly when night falls. I'll have a better idea of our prospects at that time." The Mandalorian flopped down beside some supply crates with a grunt. Next to him, Elodie settled beside him, pressing the child in between them in order to keep him warm throughout the night.

The Frog croaked again, gesturing to them and the eggs. Elodie and Din shared a look before Din spoke up. "I'm sorry, lady. I don't understand Frog. Whatever it is, it can wait until morning. I recommend you get some sleep."

The Wolven shed the blanket from her shoulders and passed it over to the Beskar-clad man. "Here." He shook his head, pushing it back towards her.

"No. You need it."

"Feel," She insisted. "It's okay." Din slipped off a glove and took her outstretched hand. Her hand was entirely encased in his, and her warmth quickly spread through his icy fingertips. Leather gloves did little to stave off the bitter cold of the arctic frost. The Beskar was even worse, with the metal absorbing the cold temperature like a sponge. "You're so warm." He blanched.

Elodie smiled, peering up through her hair that had fallen into her face. "It's my genes. I can keep the both of you warm." Using his bare hand, Din reached up and brushed a lock behind her ear, delicately tracing the pads of his fingertips against her cheekbones as he did so.

The child started snoring between them, his face mushed against her belly. "Get some sleep. We're going to have a long day tomorrow trying to get off this frozen rock in one piece."

Din slipped the blanket across the three of them, and Elodie felt bad when she saw the Frog lady peel her blanket off to keep her brood from the freezing cold. Little could be done, though, as they did not stock for climates as severe as this.

Thinking to themselves, they all managed to slip off to sleep.

"Wake up, Mandalorian. This cannot wait until morning. Do not be alarmed. I bypassed the droid's security protocols and accessed its vocabulator."

"What the sh*t!"

Zero, the headless droid from the prison ship, was alert and speaking. Behind her actions, the Frog Lady stood proudly admiring her handy work. The wires hanging from its decapitated head were rewired and hooked into an exposed panel of the ship. Din, obviously agitated from being woken up, snapped at the woman. "What the hell are you doing? That droid is a killer."

Why he had even kept the head, he had no idea. He had been meaning to toss it.

"These eggs are the last brood of my life cycle. My husband has risked his life to carve out an existence for us on the only planet that is hospitable to our species. We fought too hard and suffered too much to resign ourselves to the extinction of our family line. I must demand that you hold true to the deal that you agreed to."

Elodie motioned to the huge-ass hole covered in tarp. "Does it look like we're not? We're all stranded here. If you want to get caught in the minus fifty-degree blizzard outside after nightfall, please be our guest." The child whined at the noise and nuzzled deeper. Elodie patted his back to try and soothe him back to sleep.

Din crossed his arms from where he was sitting, slumped against the hull wall. "Look, lady, the deal is off. We're lucky if we get off this frozen tomb with our lives." At the response, the Frog Lady made a noise of disapproval. "I thought honouring one's word was a part of the Mandalorian code. I guess those are just stories for children."

"This was not a part of the deal."

By the time a glimpse of light was seen, Din was already up and working on fixing the ship. He left the sleeping bodies of Elodie and the child, ensuring to cover them over in the blanket. On his way out, he saw the Frog lady awake and stroking the glass of her egg cannister. She caught sight of his standing figure and nodded at him as he strode out of the tarp.

It was a little while later when the child woke Elodie up by tugging some strands of her hair. Wincing, she flinched awake to stare into the bored eyes of her child. He cooed and tapped her with his three fingered hand.

Elodie grunted and stretched when she stood to stave away the chill that threatened her warmth. Perching the child on her hip, she retrieved a protein bar for him and the Frog Lady for breakfast.

The first thing she did was carry out diagnostic checks in the co*ckpit to see what systems were still able to function and if she was able to get the central heating on. The Wolven blindly palpated the floor beside her for the tool she needed and frowned when she couldn't reach it.

The Frog Lady croaked, and Elodie saw the tool in her hands. Thanking her, she rested back and began fusing the new wires. "Could you hold this for a moment?" Eddy asked the woman, giving her a wind-up torch. It lit up and illuminated the dark crevice Elodie was squinting to see.

The child played with some of the metal debris in his hands. The loud pitter patter of tapping metal started ringing throughout the ship. And then reverberating through Elodie's mind. Constant tapping. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap- "-Ad, why don't you try and get some more sleep? You didn't have much last night." She reasoned. [child]

Puttering, the co*ckpit spluttered to life.

"Yes!" She hissed.

It was the backup system. But she had it working, none the less.

Seeming to understand the request, the child set down his metal playthings and curled up in the blanket Elodie had bunched beside her as she lay underneath the co*ckpit control console. He curled up, facing her in the nest of fabric. Absent-mindedly, the child started fiddling with the zip on her jacket. She could feel the constant tugging and prodding, and then - ziiiiip.

Zip.

Zip.

Zip-

"-Right! That's it. I'm done. Let's go see Mando."

Growing fed up with the child's restlessness, Elodie and the child set out to meet the Mandalorian, whom they'd not laid eyes on since going to sleep the night prior.

"You should be resting." Din said at the sight of the Wolven walking towards him. The sun was beginning to set on the horizon. Elodie had no idea what the sunlight hours were on this planet, but it must not have been more than a couple since sunrise.

The Mandalorian was crouched in the snow, trying to fuse some of the external panels to secure the breach. He stood, welder in hand. "I told you I was fine. I've managed to sort some of the wiring inside, but without the hull being properly fortified, I can't do much more."

Din hung his head, catching sight of the approaching child at her feet. "How 'bout you come over here, give me a hand? Make yourself useful." The child turned and started walking into the frozen tundra. "Hey, Kid."

Nervously, the pair made a move to follow him. "I said, Hey! Where are you going? Come back here!" They both quickly caught up to the child. He stood at the base of webbed foot tracks in the snow leading from the hull and into the caves of the cliffs surrounding them.

Kneeling down beside the child, Din switched on the tracker on his visor.

"When did she go?" He asked Elodie, thinking that was why she came out to see him in the first place. The woman shrugged.

"Couldn't have been too long. She's been passing me my tools."

"Okay, that's good. It means she can't have gone far. You stay here and keep working on the ship. I'm going to go and bring her back." There were only so many times in one day that the man could sigh to himself. The trip was going from bad to worse.

"Will you do me a favour and take the kid? He's been driving me insane." The green child looked up at Elodie as if to plead innocence. She raised a challenging eyebrow.

The child grinned.

"Come on, Hellion. Let's give your buir a little piece and quiet." Amused, Din swooped the child into his arms and started trudging through the thick snow to follow the trail. [Mother/Parent]

Elodie finished the work being done by Din on the exterior of the Crest. She stood and dusted her trousers of the snow. She would have to change as it had seeped into the material, and she could start to feel the cold set in her bones for the first time since being on the planet.

From the cave beside her, blasters started firing. Elodie stepped closer, pulling the blaster from its thigh holster. Frowning, she could hear multiple footsteps approaching. The Frog lady hopped out of the dark depths on all fours quickly, followed by the child and Din. The latter was firing red beams into the abyss, and it didn't take long to see why.

Spiders.

Hundreds of them.

"You had one job!" Elodie cried, shooting at the enormous hoard.

Elodie whipped back the tarp and ushered them inside the hull. Where one spider fell, two more took its place like a hydra. Din shouted for the group to move into the protected area of the co*ckpit. At least the doors could be sealed to separate them from the onslaught of attacks. Din and Elodie covered the breach while the Frog Lady climbed the ladder. Elodie passed the child up and then the eggs.

"Go! Go!" Elodie threw herself up the rungs and began shooting to cover the Mandalorian.

The doors struggled to close under the weight of the spiders, and Din used his flame thrower to push them back further. Elodie and Din shot what they could, but some still managed to get into the co*ckpit, and there were too many targets to count.

Frog Lady whipped out her own blaster and killed any that approached her or the child. "The door!" Elodie and Din pushed either side of the doors closed while the Frog Lady shot any protruding legs through the gap as it grew smaller and then closed.

Ignoring her, Din commanded, "Strap yourselves in! This better work. I've got limited visibility. It's gonna be a bumpy ride." Elodie threw herself and the child in one chair while the Frog Lady sat in the other. One hand gripped her belt and the other gripped the cannister. Scratching could be heard as they tried to claw their way into the ship.

As the seat belt had broken on re-entry, Elodie braced her foot against the console and, with one hand clutching the child close and the other digging her nails into the armrest.

The ship jolted and lifted from the ground, but just as it did, it was instantly slammed back down. Everyone in the co*ckpit was violently thrust back into their seats from the impact.

Above them, the mother spider pinned the Razor Crest down, its mouth careening across the windscreen. The three adults stared at the beast in horror.

Just as they thought it would be the end, the sound of blaster bolts shot through the spider. It screeched and fell from the Crest, dead. Two New Republic X-Wings soared through the sky and landed beside the ship.

Taking a quick moment to settle his rapid heart, Din exited the Crest to meet up with the two Republican pilots. "Wait here." He requested his partner. Elodie nodded, whipping out her blaster in precaution, and proceeded to watch the encounter from the co*ckpit window. The pilots stood proud in their orange flight suits and stared condescendingly at the Mandalorian.

"We ran the tabs on the Razor Crest. You have an arrest warrant for the abduction of prisoner X-Six-Nine-Eleven. However, onboard security records show that you apprehended three priority culprits from the Wanted Register. Security records also show that you and your partner put your own lives in harm's way to try to protect that of Lieutenant Davan from the New Republic Correctional Corps. Is this true?"

"Am I under arrest?" Din asked.

Teva sighed. "Technically, you should be. But these are trying times."

"What say I forego the bounties on these three criminals, and you two help me fuse my hull so I can get off this frozen rock?" Din suggested.

Carson snorted, both the pilots backing up to their X-Wings. "What say you fix that transponder, and we don't vaporise that antique the next time we patrol the Rim?"

Now back in the co*ckpit, Din adjusted some of the controls. The autopilot was still functional with the backup drives on. Their fuel levels would also be just enough to get them past the gas giant, Kol Iben. Elodie tied some fabric around her waist in order to keep her attached to the chair, in case the Razor Crest met some rough atmospheric turbulence at their destination.

"All right. I'm gonna repair the co*ckpit enough for us to limp to Trask. There's nothing I can do about the main hull's integrity, so we're gonna have to get cosy in the co*ckpit. It's the only thing I can pressurize. If you need to use the privy, do it now. It's gonna be a long ride."

Elodie looked at the controls in front of her, "The arrival to Trask is going to be within the next three hours."

"Okay, repair's all done. Let's see if we can get this thing going once and for all. Wake me up if someone shoots at us. Or that door gets sucked off its rails."

Frog Lady croaked, distressed. Eddy slapped Din's shoulder armour. "I'm kidding. If that happened, we'd all be dead. Sweet dreams."

Man was a menace.

Chapter 15: Chapter 13: The Heiress

Chapter Text

Din's head bobbed up from where it hung forward. Out the window, Trask grew larger as the Crest flew nearer. He sat up in his seat. "Looks like we made it. Get ready for landing."

Elodie yawned, preparing herself for the rough entry into the atmosphere. None of them knew if the ship was going to maintain its integrity. For all they knew, as soon as they began descent, the heat from re-entry would consume the ship, and the G-force could tear them apart.

"Dank farrik!" Din cursed, flicking a switch that was not responding to the commands. "The landing array isn't responding. Without the guidance system, it'll be a manual re-entry. It might get choppy. Once we're through the atmosphere, there should be enough fuel to slow down. If we don't burn to a crisp."

"What can I do?" Elodie asked, passing the child to the Frog Lady. Din pressed some more controls. "Come up here. I need your hands! This lever needs to stay back. Can you do that? Keep it steady. Here we go."

The Wolven untied the fabric keeping her to the cchair, and kept a firm hold on the lever. It wanted to resist under her hand but she kept it stable.

"Razor Crest, this is Trask flight control. Please reduce your speed to port protocol." The comm voiced.

"I'm trying my best here." Din spat through clenched teeth. "Engage reverse thrusters. Brace! Hold on."

"Razor Crest, do you copy? You have to reduce speed."

"Almost there, almost there." He muttered to himself.

"Razor Crest, do you copy? Razor Crest, you're coming in too fast. You have to re-" He turned the comms off.

"Here we go. Nice and easy." On touchdown, the Crest tipped.

Elodie gasped and felt her grip slipping. Din reached out, clutching her to him as the ship inverted and landed in the vast ocean of the moon.

It took one of their cranes to fish them from the sea in order for the Crest to be set back on land, and they were able to exit into the busy dockyard. Must be a common occurrence for them not to blink an eye, Elodie thought, thankful for the solid earth beneath her feet. She'd been thrown around a lot in the past few days and considered asking Din to return a massage later. The sky was filled with heavy grey clouds, like a storm was brewing, and the wind whipped through the air wildly from the waves of the sea.

The Frog Lady released an excited noise as she spotted her husband. The Povanarians embraced. Elodie smiled at the couple, hoping to have something like that one day.

Beside her, Din and the port mechanic discussed ship repairs. "So, how can I help you?"

"Can you fix it?" The Mon Calamari looked the ship up and down. "Fix it? Nah. But I can make it fly."

"Do what you can." Din ordered, handing him a pouch full of credits to cover the cost. The Mon Calamari accepted the coins, "I'll fuel it up... if it still holds fuel."

Elodie tugged on his sleeve and dragged him over to the Frog Lady and her husband. They nuzzled their noses together lovingly. On the way, the child pouted at the brood of eggs one final time. "I know you're hungry. We'll get you something to eat." Elodie scoffed, "He's already had a second breakfast."

"He's a growing boy." Din argued.

Elodie cast the child a look of admiration, "He knows his buir has gone soft." [Father/Parent]

The husband shook their hands as they grew closer, in gratitude for delivering his family. He then went on to continue croaking, and it was evident that he, too, was unable to speak basic. Din nodded politely. "You're welcome. I was told you could lead me to others of my kind."

The Frog gentleman pointed to the Seaport Tavern. "The inn? Over there?" He nodded, hiking the egg cannister strap over his shoulder. "Thank you."

They bid the Frog family farewell and started towards the tavern. It was busy, as there was not much land on the moon. This particular area was most widely known for its inter-planet trading.

It was busy inside, and as they entered; they were approached by another Mon Calamari.

"Have a seat over there. What can I get you?" The two sat at a free table, and Elodie removed the child from his pram and put him in a chair. Din looked at Elodie and then back up to the bartender and said, "Nothing for me. A bowl of chowder for my friend and partner."

Unhappy with the lack of credits spent, the Mon Calamari refused service. "These seats are scarce, buddy. Everyone seated needs to eat."

Din slid across a few credits to persuade him. "I can buy something else. Information. Have you seen others who look like me?"

"Others with Beskar have been through here." He revealed cryptically.

"Who can take me to them?"

"I know someone who might help."

The bowl was a little too large for the child to lift, so Elodie brought the child into her lap and tilted it for him to lap up. He moaned appreciatively and gazed lovingly up at her between gulps. She smiled and continued to help feed him as the Mon Calamari approached again. With her hands full and her own chowder growing cold, Din brought a full spoon up to her lips.

She looked at it in surprise and then took it with an appreciative look. The warm meal helped to sate her unsettled stomach, and she made a mental note to take some for the Mandalorian before they departed again.

"You seek others of your kind?" A man said, approaching the table after being sought by the Mandalorian.

"Have you seen them?" Din spooned another mouthful at her, and the child neared the end of his broth. The Quarren nodded. "Aye. I can bring you to them."

"Where?" Din asked. "How far?" Elodie asked at the same time.

"Only a few hours' sail. It'll cost you, though."

Water was a vastly different mode of travel than Starships. The ship was rocking with waves from the sea, which made it difficult to walk steadily. Elodie found that she much preferred space travel.

"We should consider restocking our supplies while here. The markets here are cheap." Din said absentmindedly, staring out at the ocean. There was only the sea as far as the horizon. The men aboard the ship were working tirelessly and breezed past the trio as if they weren't there. "I did promise to get you more clothes."

"You need them too," He scowled at her. She rolled her eyes, leaning down to rest on the edge of the boat with her forearms. "Don't give me that look. I see more thread in that flight suit than fabric."

Din crossed his arms defensively. "It's comfortable."

"It's tattered. You can't splash out on the Beskar and then have tatty clothes. It ruins the vibe." He stepped closer, and she stood straight to lean back against the railing as he loomed over her. "And what vibe is that?"

"Badass. Accomplished. Not to be f*cked around with."

"Maybe-" Din was interrupted by the same Quarren that volunteered to direct them to the other Mandalorians. "You ever see a Mamacore eat? Quite a sight. Child might take an interest. You should take a look."

The two walked with him as the man pointed to the open grate on the base of the ship. The child peered over the edge of his pram as the waves whipped back violently. Something was writhing deep within the depths.

"Come on over here. Get a good view. Let the kid see." He encouraged.

Din held out a hand. "All right, close enough."

The grate pulled back, exposing the wild waters. Elodie could not see anything from where she stood and cast a confused look at the man. Fish were released into the bubbling waters. Edges of water lapped at the lip of the deck hatch. "There we go. She must be hungry. Often times we'll feed her in the early morning, but we missed that 'cause we were goin' out of port-!"

"No!"

The child pressed his pram to seal it as he was thrust forward over the water. The Mamacore arose from the depths and engulfed the pram in one gulp. Din dove in to chase after him. Elodie, who was standing just to his side, felt a rod rammed into her gut, which sent her away from the deck hatch as it was slammed closed.

"Lock it up! Go, go! Now! Go! The Beskar is ours!" The Quarren laughed.

Recovering from the blow, Elodie caught the next swipe aimed at her but missed the one that stuck behind her knees. She fell to her knee in pain and brought her arm up over her face to deflect the next blow, realising she wouldn't have time to dodge it.

The Mandalorian spluttered as he broke the surface. Elodie caught it at the corner of her eye and felt a modicum of relief, but she had yet to see the child. Beskar was impenetrable and rare, but it was also heavy. It weighed Din down so much that he struggled to stay above the surface. A couple of times he bobbed below, gasping for breath when he was able to keep his head up.

"Mando!" Elodie called out to him, but he was too busy trying to avoid the spears ramming in between the grate. "Mando!"

"Drown him!"

"Get him! Get him! There we go! Drown him." They laughed jovially, "We're rich, brothers!"

"He didn't sink! Finish him! Keep him down!"

Elodie could feel her multiple attackers hitting harder, and she curled in on herself. Bracing herself for the next blow, she peeled open her eyes when it didn't land. A Mandalorian man used is jet pack to kick the assailant away.

Despite her shock, Elodie ducked from the spear sent her way by another Quarran, and ripped it from his hands. Snapping the metal pole over her knee, she twisted and used one end to hit the Quarran across the face and deflect a blow from her right.

She breathed heavily through her teeth and noticed a female Mandalorian fighting alongside the other man. Elodie brought the broken metal end of the spear into the gut of the first Quarran and turned to throw the other piece at the head of another to render him unconscious.

Din reached for the bars, his gloves slipping on the slick metal. Just as he managed to grip the bars, a rod probed at him and released his grip again. He kicked harder, his muscles trembling at the effort to remain above the water. The helmet made it almost impossible to breathe, as the lip of it had to remain above the water, and he struggled to crane his neck back.

More prods beat his hands away from the rails when he grabbed them each time. Din sank below the surface and began sinking with the weight of the armour. And as his energy faded, the grate was lifted, and a hand reached in to pull him from his demise.

A second female Mandalorian had hauled Din from the chilly waters and back onto the ship. Elodie wanted to run and collapse at his side, but worried when the child was still submerged in the waters.

Elodie sprinted past the four Mandalorians on deck and dove into the water. The water was freezing, more so than what she experienced on the icy planet where they crashed. She swam as fast as she could into the water, and the deeper she dove, the darker it was.

Ahead, the pram was being constricted by the Mamacore. Kuill did a f*cking fantastic job at reinforcing the steel as it protected the child. Elodie pulled the blaster from its holster, firing at the tentacles surrounding the pram. At the fiery bolts, the beast released it and left it to float aimlessly. It lashes its tentacles out in an attempt to bat her away, but she fires at any that neared her.

On the deck, Din coughed and spluttered, trying to bring the water up. He wanted to scream and beg, but the most he could do was rasp, "There's a creature. It has the child. Elodie's gone to get him."

"On it!"

"The child! Help them!" He pleaded. Koska Reeves threw herself into the water. Axe rested a hand on his shoulder, "Don't worry, brother. We've got this."

Koska used the jet pack to fasten her descent. She saw the pram floating and the Mamacore trying to get the woman, and she fired her own blaster into the mouth of the beast.

It screeched as the blaster reached its target, killing it. As Elodie reached the pram, she found her air running low and wondered how they were going to resurface in time. The female Mandalorian swam to her side and held under her arms, using the jet pack to rise.

They emerged from the water and dropped to the deck. Elodie coughed water from her mouth while Koska removed the child from the broken pram and handed him to the worried Din. "Here you go, little one."

"We are so getting you a new flight suit! I told you it was about the look. They f*cked around, man."

Din cupped his hand against her wet cheek, finding peace in her furious eyes, relieved that they were both safe. He tapped his forehead against hers and sighed before withdrawing and turning to face the three Mandalorians who had rescued his family.

Elodie helped him stand, the child still in his arms. Din nodded at them with respect. "Thank you. I've been searching for more of our kind."

The one in the middle responded. She looked to be the leader, and the other two flanked her on either side. They bore similar markings on their armour, not one the Wolven was familiar with. "Well, lucky we found you first."

"I've been quested to deliver this child. I was hoping that..." Din trailed off. The Mandalorians removed their helmets and held them against their hips. Disappointment and resentment built up in Din. Immediately, his guard was up, and he became hostile. "Where did you get that armour?"

"This armour has been in my family for three generations." She replied, offended, not understanding his line of questioning. Elodie winced, not wanting Din to go down this rabbit hole. "Din..." She said softly.

"You do not cover your face. You are not Mandalorian."

The man to her left whispered to her, "He's one of them."

"Dank Farrik." The Mandalorian woman muttered. "One of what?" Din demanded.

She stepped forward. "I am Bo-Katan of Clan Kryze. I was born on Mandalore and fought in the Purge. I am the last of my line. And you are a Child of the Watch."

"The Watch?" He said, confused. "Din." Elodie stated more firmly, casting the woman a hard stare.

"What!" He snapped. Bo-katan continued, "Children of the Watch are a cult of religious zealots that broke away from Mandalorian society. Their goal was to re-establish the ancient way."

"There is only one way. The Way of the Mandalore."

Din placed the child in the Wolven's arms and swept her up bridle style. The jet pack ignited, and they left the boat, along with any leads to finding the child's people.

The ride was spent in silence as Din refused to acknowledge her, and when they landed, he set her down roughly on the ground. "Din!" Without casting her a look, he started walking towards the tavern where they were before.

"Din, please listen to me." Elodie begged.

"What Elodie!" He whipped around, pointing an accusing finger at her. "What more could you possibly want to tell me."

She licked her lips, "I wanted to tell you. I did. But you were so set in your beliefs that I didn't want to be the one to tell you that there were other Mandalorians out there who don't share the same values as you do."

"So you believe I am a religious zealot? That I belong to a cult? Or that I set myself up for failure in the start." Din shouted, angry at the woman who had lied to him since they met. Or was he hurt? Elodie shook her head, "No, I don't think that at all. Who am I to tell you what to believe, Din?"

"You knew all this time!"

The Wolven threw her hands up. It would be hard to reason with the man when he was so frustrated. "I know you're angry, but please-"

"Angry? I am beyond that." He laughed humourlessly. "Are you even a real Mandalorian?"

Elodie was silent, pressing her claws into her palms. She blinked rapidly to bat away the welling fluid in her eyes. She wanted to believe that he was only lashing out because he was hurt.

Din felt the well of tears in his own eyes as he shook his head and backed away. The heavy feeling in his chest and head made it feel like he was walking in slow motion.

She wiped a tear of her own as she went to follow after him. The child cried out in her arms, but she could not find it in herself to do anything else other than pat his head. She wanted to cry and call out to him, but watched his slumped figure walk ahead.

A Quarren stepped out in front of her, separating her from the Mandalorian. "Hey! You!" He called out to the Mandalorian and watched as he turned at being called. His heart dropped. Ordinarily he would be able to take them on, but now Elodie and the child were in the direct line of fire since he was separated from them. "You killed my brother."

Seeing others walk out from behind the crates in the dockyard, Elodie scanned her surroundings. Din was on the other side while she found herself surrounded by the enclosing workers- Quarren's. She held the child to her chest, slowly turning to keep an eye on which one would be the first to try and attack.

Din eyed the men and stepped closer to try and reach Elodie and the child. As mad as he was, he still deeply cared for them. He could see her shift nervously and curl herself around the child.

"Let me pass." He warned. The Quarren laughed at him, knowing that he had the advantage. He mocked the Mandalorian. "I don't think you understand. You killed my brother, and now I'm gonna kill your girl and her pet."

The Mandalorians from the ship set foot on the ground and turned off their jet packs. Bo-Katan stepped forward to face the Quarren, "He didn't kill your brother. I did."

Without pressing the matter further, the Mandalorian pulled out their blasters and laid the offending group to rest. Din took one step closer to the Wolven and the child but stopped. He was happy that they eluded harm once again by being saved by the mysterious Mandalorian trio.

"Can we at least buy you a drink?" Bo-Katan asked, nodding to the tavern they were initially heading to.

The two groups sat in the booth awkwardly, and the Mandalorian trio had once again removed their helmets to enjoy the refreshments at the seaport. The child was engrossed in the swimming lump in its broth. Luckily, this time he received a smaller bowl on request. Koska slurped her chowder, chewing the squid clutching to her jaw as she sucked it up.

Bo-Katan sipped her drink. "Trask is a black-market port. They're staging weapons that have been bought and sold with the plunders of our planet. We're seizing those weapons and using them to retake our home world. Once we've done that, we'll seat a new Mandalore on the throne."

"That planet is cursed. Anyone who goes there dies. Once the Empire knew they couldn't control it, they made sure no one else could either." Din said, he was sitting rigidly in his seat at the end of the bench, his hands resting in front of him on the table. Elodie sat in the middle, with Din to one side and the child on the other.

"Don't believe everything you hear. Our enemies wanna separate us. But Mandalorians are stronger together." Din nodded to the child. "That's not part of my plan. I've been quested with returning this child to the Jedi."

"What do you know of the Jedi?" Bo-Katan asked, intrigued. "Nothing. I was hoping you would help me by Creed."

"I can lead you to one of their kind. But first, we need your help on our mission."

"Mission?" Everything was transactional, and Din expected nothing less. "You see that Imperial Gozanti freighter?" They looked out the window to where she pointed, "It's being loaded with weapons as we speak. According to the port's manifest, it's scheduled to depart at first light."

"So we stow away?" Din guessed.

"We've been hitting 'em pretty hard. They scan for life forms as a precaution before pushing back." Koska added, dropping her bowl on the table. Elodie stabbed the creature moving in the child's bowl so that he would be able to eat it, and he immediately began chowing down.

"If you wanna do this with four, you're gonna need the element of surprise." He wagered.

Elodie piped up. "Five."

"Four." Din gritted, more forcefully. The Wolven sniffed, "You may be mad at me but those are Imperials Mando. You can't fight me on this."

"The freighter will maintain trawling speed while inside the shipping lanes and then ascend in orbit. We'll jet up when they're cruising in the atmosphere. The tower won't allow them to climb until they've left the port's airspace."

"Troopers?" Din asked. Bo smiled, knowing she had him, "A squad at most."

"And they couldn't hit the side of a Bantha." Axe inserted, and the three laughed to themselves.

Bo-Katan turned to the woman, wiping the food off the child's face. "We don't usually work with outsiders." Elodie looked up and scowled. "If you want Mando, you're going to have to take me too. We're a package deal."

The Mandalorian woman nodded. "Very well. I hope you know how to hold your own." Elodie almost rolled her eyes. She may have been saved by the woman and respected her, but she doesn't have to like her. "You let me worry about that."

They decided to regroup in an hour at the dockyard. But for now, Din and Elodie needed to find trustworthy carers for the child while they were away.

That's how they found themselves knocking at the door belonging to the Frog family. The Frog Lady answered, both happy and surprised to see them standing at her door. "Hi," Elodie said, accepting the abrupt hug offered. Din held out the child with no sense of decorum.

"Something's come up. Can I leave him with you for a bit?" She nodded, walking back into her home and allowing the pair to say a brief farewell. "You are gonna stay here, so I want you to be respectful. And mind your manners. You know what I'm talking about." He was referring to when the child ate the eggs.

The child looked between the pair. Elodie kissed his head and handed him over to the Frog Lady and her husband. The croaked, mostly likely trying to reassure them that he would be well looked after. Din nodded to the couple.

"Thanks. I'll be back for him."

At the dockyard, the five watched the engine of the Imperial Gozanti freighter light up and the landing equipment retract as it began cruising.

"Which one of you is going to give me a lift?" Half expecting her Mandalorian to not even acknowledge her, she looked to the three others.

Axe Woves stepped forward to offer his assistance when she was hauled into someone's arms. Din pinned the other Mandalorian with a glare. "I've got it." Elodie flung her arms around the neck of the Mandalorian in shock. This was the last thing she was expecting him to do; he didn't even want her to come on this mission. Axe looked between the two, his head nodding in defeat.

They flew up to meet the ship and landed on top of the external gangways. Din dropped her roughly to her feet and fired at the storm troopers they were facing while Axe worked on disabling the lock on the door.

Alarms blared out as their siege was reported.

Walking in first, Bo-Katan quickly disposed of the three troopers sent to investigate the breach. Din and Elodie walked to the rear and kept an ear out for any further assaults. Elodie lowly called for them to pause before they turned another corner. Din looked to see her head tilted and a look of concentration cast over her face.

"There's about twenty troopers in the next corridor. They're waiting to ambush us." Elodie informed. Bo-Katan straightened up, asking, "And how do you know this?" Elodie smiled, showing her teeth and flashed her beastly blue eyes. "I'm a Wolven."

The Nite Owl nodded, unhooking chargers from her belt and tossing them around the corner. The storm troopers panicked as it exploded, and the group used the distraction to turn the corner and shoot at the discombobulated soldiers.

En route to the cargo bay, the ship beneath them rumbled as it started its ascent into space. Elodie looked, and Din was concerned—it was too early! They were still within the port's airspace. The Mandalorians, sensing the urgency, ran down the next corridor and hid behind the door frames as Din tossed a smoke grenade.

They fired through the thick smoke, and Elodie had to pull up the baggy shirt over her noise to avoid choking. The Mandalorians had the advantage of having heat sensors built into their helmets to locate their targets, but she used a mix of her heightened senses to fire at the storm troopers until they were all dead.

Continuing into the lift, they stood awkwardly silent, waiting for it to reach the floor to the cargo bay. Bo was expecting them to lay down fire as soon as the doors opened. So as the door peeled back, they immediately began firing at any moving object to prevent themselves from being overwhelmed in such a short space. There were many compartments separating them from the end of the cargo bay. In a panic, the commander instructed one storm trooper to close the doors to stop their pursuit.

"Which one?" He called. The commander crouched behind a crate and out of sight, "All of them! Close all the doors!" The group stopped firing as the doors closed. Elodie scanned the room and saw it lined with control consoles.

Amateurs, she smirked.

Koska mirrored her glee, going over to the controls and flicking one. "Whoops." Through the cameras, the storm troopers in the bay were sucked out through the cargo bay door. It was quickly sealed to prevent the heavier crates from flying out after them.

Opening the doors again, Koska and Axe admired the contents of the crates while Bo picked up a fallen comm of the floor. A voice was calling over it, trying to get some form of response from the crew. Elodie and Din stood idle to the side of the room, waiting for their next objective.

"Come in. Do you copy?" A broken voice spoke over the comm.

"I copy." Bo-Katan said down the receiver. "Thanks for packing up all this gear so nicely. Imagine what a division of us can do when we get our hands on what's inside these shiny little boxes."

The captain replied, "If you think you're going to escape with those weapons, you are sadly mistaken. Even if you've managed to jettison a few of those crates, we will comb the entire area until you are hunted down and killed."

"Oh, we're not jettisoning anything. We're taking the entire ship." She revealed. Din looked over at her, "What?" The other two didn't bat an eye, which led him to believe that this was their plan all along.

"Put some tea on. We'll be up in a minute." She hung up the comm and armed herself with a new, fully automatic rifle from one of the crates. Elodie argued, "We can't. We have a child." Din loomed over Bo-katan, but she didn't back down. "This is more than I signed up for."

"There is something I need if I am to rule Mandalore. Something that was once mine. They know where it is, and soon, so will I. Regardless, we are taking the ship for the battles ahead."

"I got you your weapon. I have to return to my ship with the foundling." He lowered his voice. Bo-Katan stared challengingly. "If you want my help finding the Jedi, you will help me take this ship."

"You're changing the terms of the deal." Bo-Katan smiled up at him sweetly, knowing she had the upper hand. He would be forced to help her any way she wants because, in the end, she's the only one with the information they need.

"This is the way." The Mandalorians donned their helmets and followed Bo out of the cargo bay.

Walking down the corridor, the team fell sideways into the wall as the ship dove dramatically. Bo-Katan grunted as the ship rocked. Realisation dawned on her. "They're taking the ship down. Let's move!"

"There's the bridge. Come on!"

As the words left her mouth, a dozen storm troopers filtered in at the end of the corridor, making it impossible to reach the control room. Bo-Katan, Koska, and Elodie ran behind one side, and Din and Axe hid on the other side.

"How many troopers?" Bo asked, watching the red blaster shots whiz past their heads. Axe bobbed his head around the corner to peak, estimating, "Six to ten. Two with heavy repeating blasters."

"We're losing altitude fast. We need to move now." Koska worried. "There are too many of them!" Elodie replied, out of ideas.

"Still dropping. Ten thousand."

"You are not helping!" Elodie shouted, trying to wait for a break in the shooting to return fire, but the heavy repeaters were ferocious. "We won't make it to the bridge!"

Din looked at Elodie and thought back to the child. If they couldn't make it to the bridge, then the child would have no one. He would stay in the care of the Frog family, not knowing that his Buirs had died at the hands of the empire. He saw Elodie flinch back, a blaster bolt coming too close for comfort. [Parents]

"Nine thousand. Eight thousand. Seven thousand." An idea formed in his mind.

"Cover me." Din called finally, setting the timers on his last two remaining charges. Elodie called out to him, but he breezed past, tucking his exposed hands inward to avoid them getting shot.

He hoped that the Beskar would hold up and that no bolts would make their way through the gaps in his armour. Shots bounced off him, but they lessened as his team returned fire.

A thud off his helmet sent him to the ground, and he was unable to make it any further. Din flicked his hands out and sent the charges at the feet of the troopers, killing them instantly. The rest of the team approached and helped Din to his feet as they worked on making it into the bridge.

This time, Elodie was mad at Din for risking his life once again.

The door slid open, and they rushed in. Both pilots were dead with blaster residue on their heads, and the captain was forcing the controls down into a nose dive. With the ocean fast approaching through the windscreen, Bo-Katan surged forward to haul him from the chair and into the wall. Din and the Wolven took the pilot's seat and tried to pull the levers up.

"Where is it?" Bo called from behind them, holding a knife to the captain's throat.

"Where's what?"

She snarled in his face. "The Dark Saber. Does he have it?"

"If you're asking, you already know." The man looked at her smugly but couldn't wipe the fear from his eyes.

"Easy. Easy." Din called out to his partner as they eased the ship back to level and skimmed the top of the ocean beneath them. Eddy sighed, now that they weren't facing the possibility of going back into the icy waters.

Bo tried to control her anger to reason with the man. "I'll let you live. But you will take me to him."

"You might let me live, but he won't." He bit down on a false tooth, sending deadly bolts of electricity through his body. His eyes rolled back, and he slumped dead to the floor.

"No!"

Koska peered over Elodie's shoulder at the last communication made. "We have to go. He sent a distress signal."

"Clear the atmosphere and prepare to jump. Are you sure you won't join us?" Bo-Katan answered, voice rough with disappointment. Din stood from his chair, and Elodie swapped with Koska, who nodded in thanks.

"There's something I need to do."

She removed her helmet again to look into his visor. "The offer stands if you change your mind. To both of you: You fought bravely."

"Where can I find the Jedi?" He requested firmly, warning her with his tone not to refuse him again. There was a reason why he was one of the best bounty hunters, and she would not be wise to test his leniency.

"Take the foundling to the city of Calodan on the forest planet of Corvus. There, you will find Ahsoka Tano. Tell her you were sent by Bo-Katan. And thank you. Your bravery will not be forgotten. This is the way." She said it sincerely this time. He looked at her and nodded.

"This is the way."

Din and Elodie left the bridge to go back to where they docked.

The exit doors opened, and Elodie leapt straight off without looking at her partner.

She knew that he would catch her. It was an example of the trust she had in him. She spread her limbs out, feeling the wind whip her hair as she free fell.

Din jumped directly after her and angled his body into a downward dive to catch up. Approaching fast, he caught her around the waist and ignited the jet pack. They spun in the air, and she swung her legs around his waist and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Hold on!" Din grunted. Elodie used the excuse to cling closer to the man, she could feel his hand around her waist hold her closer and the hand on her thigh squeeze in anticipation. The descent remained fast as a result of the altitude, and they landed with a stumble.

As soon as they hit the ground, the jet pack stopped.

The Mandalorian's feet gave away on impact, and he fell forward, landing on Elodie. He brought his hand up that was around her thigh to protect her head from hitting the ground.

"OOF-" Panting, they stilled.

Elodie snorted and then started laughing underneath him, and he could feel her vibrate. Din joined in, and they both stayed like that until they both calmed down. "Ow." She whispered pathetically.

Din sat up and stared down at the woman. "You okay?" She nodded and asked him the same. "Yeah, 'm fine."

She accepted the offer of his hand to stand, and he noticed the crescent moon cuts lacing her palms. He held her hands, palms up, and stroked a thumb over them.

Elodie slipped her hands out of his, not meeting his gaze. None of them spoke of the bad habit. "Let's go get the kid."

The Frog husband is the one to open the door and welcome them into their home when the pair arrive to pick up their child. The Frog lady was sitting at the table with the child, and there was a bowl between them.

"Thank you for watching him." Elodie said and watched as Din picked the child up from playing with the tadpole. Din shook the hand of the Frog Lady, "Thanks again. Okay, kid. Come on. It's time to go. Let go. Come on, kid. Congratulations."

The child whines in his arms.

"No, I have enough pets." He said exiting the residence.

Back at the dockyard, Din stood with the Mon Calamari, displeased with the work done to repair the ship. He was pretty sure the kid could have done a better job.

Elodie gaped, walking back into the hull. The panels of the hull where it was breached were crudely fused back on, and fish netting lay throughout the ship to keep it together.

"I gave you a thousand credits, this was the best you could do? Mon Calamari. Unbelievable." Din kicked a buoy out his way on his warpath to the co*ckpit. Elodie strapped the child in while he started the engines. At least the ship was no longer running on the backup system. She sat herself down in her seat to find that her seat belt had been replaced.

Small mercies.

"I finally know where I'm taking you. But it's gonna be a bumpy ride." He said to the child, bouncing with the jolts of the engine. "Maker! Feels like the bull ride on Canto Bight."

Din set the course for Nevarro, and Elodie had retired to the hull after some more awkward silence. Since helping the other Mandalorians, they were back on speaking terms, and he found his anger towards her had simmered slightly from the initial wave of shock.

Seeing that the child was sleeping in his seat, Din programmed the nav to autopilot and went to talk to the Wolven. He descended the ladder to find her facing away from him, clutching her Mythosaur pendant. It took a while for the engine to stop spluttering, but it eased as the cold metal warmed from use. Now they could move about the ship without their knees giving out.

"Are you still mad at me?" She asked, her back still turned. Her enhanced hearing could sense his movements, no matter how stealthy his line of work allowed him to be.

He stated simply, "Yes."

"I'm sorry," She said, and he took one step forward. "I should have told you sooner."

"You should have." He took another.

"I meant it when I said my brother told me everything about Mandalorians. He told me about those like you under the Death Watch, but he also told me of the ones who wanted to live normal lives." Like the Nite Owls.

"He was like the others?"

She laughed, her lips quivering as she thought about him. Her brother was threatening and deadly in his line of work, but he was also fiercely loyal and devoted to those he loved. "He made the creed his own and didn't let anybody tell him otherwise. Yes, he removed his helmet, but the armour was rightfully his, as his father was a Mandalorian."

Din pressed his helmet against the back of her head. Unknowingly, both of their eyes closed to savour the moment. "And you removed your helmet too. You did not... take the creed."

"Not your creed. My Vod called me a foundling too, and he had the armour forged for me." [Brother]

He tried to make sense of it. How could one be a Mandalorian and not take the creed? He was raised under strict rules, and to break them was sacrilege. "So when you say you are dar'manda, it's not because they took your helmet off, but because they took your armour entirely." Din figured. His arms had her encased from behind. She brought her own hands up to clutch at his forearms as they maintained a firm hold. [No longer Mandalorian]

"I'm sorry I hurt you." She whispered, resting her weight against him, her head sliding onto his shoulder.

"I can't give you what you want." He finished.

"And what do I want?" Din felt nervous, and she could tell from his prolonged silences that he was thinking carefully about every word he said. His hands slid down her body slowly.

"All of me. Parts that my creed will not allow."

It was true. She did want all of him. But like they discussed in the Tusken territory; she was willing to wait if it meant staying with him. "Of course I do, but I want to wait until you are ready. I already said that I don't care about the creed you take." She told him, feeling his hands slide further down and then dip underneath her shirt. She lightly gasped as his gloved hands skimmed the underside of her clothed breasts. "I'll take whatever you're willing to give."

His hands were fully fondled at both breasts, massaging, and moulding them. His gloves made the act feel more scandalous than it should have. Elodie slid her hands up his arms, placing hers over his to encourage rougher gropes. Din felt her hips press back against his, and he stifled back a moan at the friction.

"Can I?" Elodie asked, referring to removing his gloves. He held them in front of her, giving her wordless permission to proceed. She knew she was not overstepping boundaries, as he had removed them for her before. She placed them on the crate beside her, and he kept his hand held out, waiting for her to lead them where she wanted.

Taking one, she led it back to her breast, where he followed her lead. The other, she pressed against her abdomen. Goosebumps raised along the length of her arms.

Din closed his eyes to imprint the feel of her into his memory. Elodie gently moved his hand lower, allowing him time to protest. He didn't. Din's hand slipped under the trousers and into her underwear, tracing his fingers up and down her slit.

Elodie bit her lip, trying to stop any noise from escaping, and moved her hips more vigorously into his. Din took over and drew slow circles into her bud, feeling it throb under his fingertips. She exhaled a breathy moan, throwing her head back onto his shoulder. "That's it, pretty girl."

The Wolven shook her head in irony, "I want more."

She felt his chuckle vibrate through her from behind, and he dipped a finger into her wet heat. Gripping his arm, she was careful not to puncture her claws through his flight suit. He gradually built up the pace and added another finger. Elodie mewled, opening her mouth to pant as the feeling of pressure grew in her lower abdomen.

It was only when Din curled his fingers and buried them up to the knuckle that she reached her peak. She drew in sharp breaths as he continued to pump and prolong her ecstasy. Din paused his ministrations for her to calm down.

Din pressed his palms flat against her upper thighs and brought his hips roughly into hers; she could feel the prominent bulge. "I want to touch you." She begged, but Din refused. "Not today. I need you now."

Elodie slid her trousers down her legs while Din hurriedly unclasped his belt buckle to do the same. He dropped his utility belt onto the crate beside them and took himself in his hand. He rubbed his own hand up and down his length and pushed her into the wall in front. She hissed at the cold contact of the hull and felt him press his weight into her, pinning her tightly between him and the wall.

He prodded at her entrance, and he glided once, twice, against her to gather some slick. When he entered slowly, she keened at the stretch of his girth. Din pinned her hands above her head and continued gliding forward slowly until their hips were pressed flush against each other. He gasped underneath his helmet, the air becoming thick and heavy to breathe.

Din stilled, allowing Elodie to adjust. He could feel her clench around him, and he had to bite down on his lip to stop the moan building in his throat. Eddy pushed her hips back to encourage further movements, and he started to set a long, slow pace, withdrawing almost to the tip and then slipping back.

"Gedet'ye nari." She preened. [Please move].

Eyes rolling back, Elodie couldn't keep the moans from pouring from her mouth. Her hands clenched at his tight grip on her wrists, and she was beginning to lose feeling from keeping her arms raised. Din released his grip, gliding his hands down her arms and onto her waist. Din grunted, using her as leverage to pump faster, shortening his thrusts. His fingertips carved bruises into the flesh of her hips.

She enjoyed the rough slap of his trousers against the back of her thighs with every thrust.

Clapping of skin echoed through the hull, along with steady pants and gasps. He couldn't believe this was really happening. Elodie was in with him, falling apart in his arms. Din kicked her legs further apart and drilled into her harder. She could help but curse as he pushed impossibly deeper, hitting her sweet spot. If his eyes were not rolling back, they were glued firmly to her small waist under his hands and her jiggling rear as he clapped into her.

"That's it! Right there!" She cried.

There was something about f*cking him in full armour that tickled Elodie the right way. She could feel the cold press of Beskar as it rested against her spine and thighs, the rough grating of his buckles, or the bush of hair above his throbbing co*ck. He groped a handful of her ass and ground against her.

"f*ck!" He grunted, feeling her thighs tremble against his tassets. Din threw his head back, and Elodie gasped, releasing a high-pitched whine as she felt warmth envelope her and slip down her thighs. She clamped down around his length, climaxing from the wave of his release as he pulsated inside her. He wrapped an arm around her waist, continuing to guide his hips until they both came down from their highs.

They panted. Elodie pressed her head against the cold metal in front of her to cool down. She felt Din slip out and sheath himself back in his trousers. Din disappeared to receive a rag from the fresher to wipe at her quivering thighs.

Looking back over her shoulder, she saw him dispose of the rag and walk back behind her. Elodie briefly wondered what he was doing when she felt her trousers move gently back up her legs. Din took one final, lasting look at her round ass before he covered it and ensured the waistline was fixed around her lips, his thumbs hooking in the edge as he did so. She turned to face him.

Elodie was nervous. She didn't know what to say or what to expect. Did he now realise what had occurred, feeling regret for his actions? Was he going to make her leave now? Take the child, or drop them both on the nearest planet. Possibilities swirled through her mind.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Din saw her shift uneasily, and she kept her eyes trained on his cuirass. "Are you regretting it?"

She furrowed her brows and met his eyes, quickly turning to set her hands on him. "No! No. I just, " She licked her lips, "Don't want to leave." His gaze softened.

"I'm not going to make you leave, Eddy. We had a disagreement, and we managed it like adults. All I ask for is for you to tell me the truth from now on." He said, "Is there anything else I should know?"

Elodie shook her head and sank into him, enjoying the way his broader build towered over her. For some strange reason, it made her feel comfortable. Protected. "Nothing. I swear."

"Good. I think we should get some rest before we reach Nevarro. No doubt Greef is going to want something in exchange for ship repairs." She smiled shyly up at him, despite what had just occurred against the side of the Crest not ten minutes ago. "And we'll finally be able to get you some more clothes."

Chapter 16: Chapter 14: The Siege

Chapter Text

When the Razor Crest slowed down in mid-space, Din and Elodie panicked reasonably. Din sat in the pilot seat and rebooted the system, but it still didn't restart, and the ship was stuck coasting slowly. At this rate, they would reach Nervarro in a week's time.

"Where's the panel for hyperdrive?" Elodie asked, looking around the mess left behind that was the co*ckpit. Mon Calamari were sh*t engineers. Din spoke over his shoulder, still trying to manually override the systems. "The back panel beside the door."

Elodie looked at the small hatch and raised a brow. "You mean the small hatch that I can't even fit my head into?"

"That's the one." Din sighed, slumping back in his seat unsuccessfully. "Only Anzellans are small enough to fit in that!" She cried.

Din turned slowly to face her. "Not just Anzellans."

She gave him a deadpan look, as if to ask if he was serious.

It wasn't long before the child was deep within the crevice, and Din was calling out instructions to him. The poor thing looked so confused as he looked at the wires in front of him.

"Okay, did you... do you have the wire?" Din asked, flicking a switch. A beep rang out, indicating that he did not, in fact, have the wire. The Mandalorian stood and went over to the little hole in the wall. "Okay. Did you get the wire out? The red wire?"

"Patu." The child held up a green wire.

"No, no, no. No, the red one. Show me the red wire. The red one." The child picked it up.

"Yes, good. Now, you're going to plug that red wire where the blue wire goes in the board." Din had the patience of a saint as he slowly repeated his instructions for the child. Elodie scoffed in her seat, choosing not to intervene in what Din was trying to get the child to do, and sipped on her tea.

Her years spent with the child taught her that, although he was fifty years old, he had the mental capacity of a toddler. She innocently batted her eyelashes at the Mandalorian and allowed him to carry on. He needed to learn that asking the child to perform adult tasks was not going to work out.

Din glared at her through his visor and returned his attention to the child. "Put the red wire where the blue wire goes in the board, okay? But don't let them touch. You see where you took the blue one off? Yes, now put the red one..."

The child looked between the wires and brought them closer together. Eyes growing to the size of saucers, Din urged the child to stop. "No, don't put the blue one back. Put the red one where the blue one was. And put the blue one where the red one was. But be careful. They're oppositely charged, so keep them away from each other. Make sure you hold them apart from... No, hold them apart. Oh! Uh-uh... "

Elodie sat up at the sound of his astute panic. Electricity whirred from the compartment, and smoke flooded out. Din sighed deeply. "Oh, are you okay?"

The child coughed and made his way back out. Elodie huffed and stood, walking over to rip the panel off the wall entirely in one pull.

She reached her arm in, grunting as she just about caught the wires at the tips of her fingers while her face pressed against the cold durasteel of the ship wall, and slotted them into place following a brief moment of blind struggle and shocks from the exposed electrical wires. The Crest shook, then stabilised at the activation of hyperdrive.

Standing up, Elodie dusted off her hands and sat back in her seat without casting a look at the broken wall.

The Mandalorian cast his eyes between his broken panel and the uncaring Wolven, who sipped on her steaming cup of tea.

That was that, then.

Sitting down in his seat, he handed the child his dinner and cupped his own bowl of soup. The child slurped it loudly, leaning forward to try and catch a peak at Din's face as he raised the cleft of the helmet to eat.

Dropping it back down, he looked at the child. "We're going to need some repairs before we go seek the Jedi. You excited to see Greef again?" The child gurgled and finished his soup.

The Razor Crest struggled to land on Nevarro, but it was still a million times smoother than the landing on Trask. The hull door lowered, but stopped halfway. Din continued over and lowered himself off of it, and set the child on the floor. He turned back and offered a hand to the Wolven.

Elodie accepted his help, resting her hands on his shoulders. His hands held her waist as she hopped down onto the floor. "Thank you, kind sir." She brushed herself off and picked up the child. He was staring at the approaching figures of Cara and Greef.

"Looks like someone could use some repairs." Humoured Greef, staring at the disarray of the Star ship.

Din looked back at the ship and silently agreed, turning to the man. "How's my credit around here?"

The magistrate smiled, as did the Mandalorian. "I think something could be arranged. Isn't that right, Marshal?" Greef looked to his right, where Cara was smirking at the pair. "I'm sure we can work somethin' out."

"I'll get my best people on it. Hey, fellas! Let's fix this man's ship! I want it as good as new. And you, come here little one!" Clapping his hands, Greef took the child from Elodie's hands and held him to his chest, turning to walk back to the old town. "Has Mando been taking good care of you, huh? Have you been takin' good care o' him?

The child babbled at him, and Greef nodded animatedly. "Yeah? Yeah! He said 'yeah!' Come on. Yeah. Yeah, look at you."

"Looks like you two have been busy." Cara said, hanging back to walk with the pair, Greef spoke to them over his shoulder. "I myself have been steeped in clerical work. Marshal Dune here is to be thanked for cleaning up the town."

The ground that was once ashen now had cobblestone rocks lining the streets and seemed livelier. They walked under the main gate to the town, and the pair were surprised to see all the improvements and construction that had been carried out in their months away.

"We have been busy trying to chase leads for Mandalorians and Jedi's. It's led us on a wild goose chase throughout the galaxy, from Tatooine to Azuria." Elodie told them.

Cara winced. "Your ship's not lookin' too good." She stated obviously.

"We had a run-in with the New Republic." Din admitted sheepishly. Greed shook his head, "They should leave the Outer Rim alone. If the Empire couldn't settle it, what makes them think they can? Here we are."

"I'm surprised to see this place is still standing." Elodie said, looking at the newly formed buildings and food stalls. The only evidence that there was ever a firefight was the residue of ash and bullet holes on the sides of buildings.

The town was more populated than before, and it looked to be more of a town than a bounty hunter port. They both recognised the building they were standing in front of.

It was the one where they were forced to barricade in, as they were surrounded by imperial soldiers of the Empire.

"Wait till you see inside."

Inside, there were rows of small desks lined up, and in them sat children of all ages and species. At the front of the class, a tutor Droid gestured to the projector. Din was shocked at the revelation, "A school?"

Greef set the child at an empty desk. He looked around in awe, not knowing what to do. The class carried on as if they were not interrupting. "Things have changed a lot around here. We'll leave the little one here so we can talk business."

Din paused. "Wait. Wherever I go, he goes."

"Mando, please." Greef pleaded, wanting to speak business. "Where we're going, you don't wanna take a child. Trust me."

"He'll be fine here. You have my word." Cara backed him up, knowing the people in the town were trustworthy.

As they left the school, they could hear the mumbling of children as they looked at the child curiously. Elodie smiled, wondering if this is what his life would have been like without the Empire chasing them. Her and Din could own a little house on the outskirts of the town. The child would attend school, have friends, and have a normal childhood. Elodie would be at home, making the baked goods she had seen throughout the galaxy, while Din would watch over the town. She felt an arm wrap around her waist and snapped out of her daydream. Din stared at her wistful face, regretfully tugging her away from the school.

Greef led the group to another building. On the way, their hands brushed, and instead of pulling away like the last time, Din took the initiative to grab her hand in his.

She looked up at him shyly, but he didn't make any acknowledgements of the act; he just kept walking. She gave his hand a squeeze and walked closer to him as they entered the building.

"There's no registration on the ship, but I'm pretty sure it belongs..." Mythrol trailed off, looking up at the same Mandalorian that apprehended him some time ago. Greef smirked smugly down at his employee. "I believe you two have met."

"I'm surprised to see you here." Din said as Mythrol expelled some form of gas from his gills. Elodie looked at the others, disturbed, unsure if she should cover her nose.

He twitched, "Right back at ya."

"Mythrol here's taken care of my books since he was a pollywog. But then he disappeared one day after a bit of creative accounting." The magistrate said with a sneer on his face. Mythrol laughed nervously, "Magistrate Karga was generous enough to let me work off my debt. Thank you, by the way."

Greef stared at the man blankly. "Three hundred and fifty years, but who's counting?"

"Well, if he runs off on you again, let me know."

Mythrol held up his hands in defence. "Let me assure you, I do not wanna spend any more time in carbonite. Still can't see outta my left eye."

Cara changed the subject. "Can we talk business?"

"I'm only here for repairs." Din tried to say. Greef wasn't having it. He needed their help in securing the safety of the town. The Mandalorian was one of his best bounty hunters in the guild, with impenetrable armour and knack for fighting. With a Wolven at his side, they would be a force to be reckoned with. "Which'll take a while. Which means you'll have free time on your hands, right?"

The Wolven bumped his shoulder with hers. "He's right. We also owe him for the repairs."

Greef urged. "And we could really use your help." Din grew concerned at his friends' tone, "Help how?"

Cara turned on the projector on the coffee table. "This is Nevarro. We're here. This entire area's a green zone. Completely safe. But over on this side is the problem." Nevarro illuminated the room in green. Cara pointed to one green area, indicating that that was where the town was situated, and then pointed to the red zone. Zoomed in, the red zone was identified as an old Empire base.

Like Cara, Elodie felt inclined to meddle in any of the Empire's business for the pain it caused.

"It's an old Imperial base."

"It's where all those troops came from when we defeated Moff Gideon. This base has been here since the Imperial expansion. It's got a skeleton crew, but for some reason, it hasn't been abandoned. There's a lot o' heavy weapons in that place that the black market would love to dismantle and get their hands on."

"And the rest of the planet?" Elodie queried, going to lean against Mythrol's desk. He went to nudge her off but stopped short when he was given a sharp look from the intimidating Mandalorian. Cara shrugged, "Clear."

"You wanna mop up the last of the Imperial Force before they do."

"Mando, I just want them off my planet. If we could take out that one last base, Nevarro would be completely safe. We could be a trade anchor for the entire sector. And the planet would finally be free." Greef sighed.

Din looked at Elodie, and she nodded. He then accepted the mission.

Mythrol drove his speeder with Cara up front and Elodie in the back between the two men. Din asked what they were looking for, and Greef leaned forward to point out the base as it appeared in the distance, placed at the edge of the cliffs.

The speeder had to navigate in between the two large cliffs in order to get to the elevator at the bottom. From there, they would travel up, trigger an explosion, and hurriedly exit before they got blown up. Greef shouted over the whistling of the wind. "The whole base is powered by a reactor. We sneak in, overload the reactor, and get the hell outta there."

Din found himself placing a hand on Elodie's bounding leg to stop her jittering.

"Let's be fast. And keep the speeder running." Cara said, knowing that they would need a quick getaway once the alarm started to ring. "How close do you want me to drop you off?" Mythrol asked.

Greef gave him a stern look, "How 'bout the front door?" Mythrol smiled nervously. "It's a little close for a civilian, isn't it?"

"I got two choices for ya. You take us in, and I knock a hundred years off your debt." The magistrate gave him the ultimatum.

"Or?" He tried.

"Or I leave ya out here in the lava flats to walk home with whatever is left in your humidity vest."

"It's not much of a choice, is it?" Mythrol muttered as he pulled up. "All right. We can't go any further than this." They exited the speeder and approached the unmanned door. Din punched numbers in the keypad, but it sizzled. "Controls are useless. They're melted."

"Imperial trash." Cara spat. Elodie had her blaster to hand. "Couldn't have said it better myself." Mythrol backed away from the door, heading back to his speeder. "All right, I'm headed back. Hit me up on the comm, we could set up a rendezvous time." Greef shouted at the man to stay, irked from his complaints. "I'm startin' to dehydrate, boss."

"Okay, how does more years off your debt sound?" Greef breathed, trying to will some more patience. The Wolven gripped her blaster tighter. The urge to shoot the man crossed her mind.

"Can you at least be quick about it?"

"You wanna be quick? Grab the flange cutter and help us out." The humanoid walked to the speeder and retrieved the tool. "Okay, fine. I don't like leaving my speeder like this, just so you know."

One trooper came running up, and using his momentum, she grabbed the edges of his armour and flipped him over the edge of the cliff. His screams echoed in the valley, and she was sure the others below would jump from the impact of his body when it met the ground.

Din looked to the lift as the doors opened and the rest of the group exited. "Empty base, huh?" Greef met with the Mandalorian while the others stayed alert for any more soldiers. "The reactor should be set in the heat shaft. If we drain the cooling lines, this whole base will go up in a matter of minutes."

Mythrol walked up to a speeder that was partially covered in thick tarp. "Look. It's a mint Trexler Marauder. You know, how much we can get for this on the black market?" The team walked into the base, "And it's gonna get vaporised like the rest of this base. Now, let's go."

The amphibian-humanoid hybrid stared at the vehicle, tutting. "Such a waste."

Walking further into the base, the team came across a security room. The control crew was speaking over the comms, trying to contact the team Elodie and Din disposed of. Creeping behind the man, Cara caught the man in a chokehold and held it until the man's eyes rolled back. Elodie helped her ease the man to the ground to avoid suspicious noises.

Din headed straight for the control panel and looked at the inside base schematics.

"This will come in handy." Greef said, pulling a key from his belt. With the key, they would be able to disable any safety protocols and open the reactor to the lava flow. The Mandalorian stood and headed out the door with the rest of them in tow. "I found the heat shaft. Let's go."

"The access corridor should be right past this junction." Din said, quickly backing up to stop the others in their tracks. Storm troopers walked past the corridor, unaware of the trespassers.

Once they passed, they carried on and found the door that would lead to the lava chambers. "There, Mythrol, slice that door." Din directed. "Use the code cylinder." Greef suggested. The door whirred open, and they stepped closer to look over the edge of the grated bridge.

"Whoa!" Mythrol exclaimed, staring into the pulsating magma merely a hundred feet away.

"Yeah, 'whoa' is right." Greef gestured to the control panel above the lava; it was along a little walkway. "That's it. Get on the reactor controls, drain the coolant lines. We'll watch the doors."

"Me?" Mythrol gasped.

"Yes, you!" Greef gritted, having had enough. "I'm afraid o' heights. And heat. And lava."

Elodie stepped into the man's personal space as he backed away. "If you don't walk over there, I am going to throw you over there. Now Move!"

The man rushed away, throwing a look over his shoulder. Mythrol tried to keep one hand on the control console to maintain his balance. "There's no guard rail on this."

"I hardly think they care about safety. Quit whining and hurry up!" The woman growled, baring her teeth in agitation. Din did nothing to calm the seething woman as he saw that it made Mythrol work faster with less complaining, which in itself was a blessing to everyone here.

Disabling the cooling system, an alarm started blaring and echoing in the caves. Troopers would now know that there were trespassers and be actively hunting them. If they didn't leave now, they could be caught in the explosion. They waited for Mythrol to leap off the platform before running. "All right, she's gonna blow. Let's go! Let's get outta here!"

"How long do we have?" Cara yelled, sprinting down the corridor.

"Ten minutes at the most."

They stopped running just as a squad of storm troopers passed in the corridor ahead. Din nodded to the other corridor beside them that would lead them away. Entering a room, two imperial scientists were caught attempting to destroy files. Looking up in surprise at the group, one pulled out a blaster and began firing. The other smashed his blaster butt into the console screen.

The two were shot, and Mythrol went to look at their work. Din, Elodie, Greef, and Cara all paused in their pursuit, catching sight of the incubation pods along the entire left wall. Inside lay some deformed beings attached to tubing and wires.

"What the..."

"I thought you said this was a forward operating base." Cara uttered, looking at them in horror. Elodie swallowed the lump in her throat. She knew she wasn't the only one the empire experimented on, but this was demented on an entirely different level. "I thought it was." Greef replied.

"No, this isn't a military operation..." Cara started and Elodie finished, "This is a lab."

"We need to get into the system and figure out what's going on."

"What about the reactor?" Mythrol proclaimed, looking at the door worriedly. "Do it! Do it." Cara shouted, noticing her friend walking up to the tank and pressing her hand against it.

"I don't like this." Din vocalized. Through Mythrol's manipulation, a hologram flickered to life, revealing the body of Doctor Pershing as he directed his message.

"Replicated the results of the subsequent trials, which also resulted in catastrophic failure. There were promising effects for an entire fortnight, but then, sadly, the body rejected the blood. I highly doubt we'll find a donor with a higher M-count, though. I recommend that we suspend all experimentation. I fear that the volunteer will meet the same regrettable fate if we proceed with the transfusion. Unfortunately, we have exhausted our initial supply of blood. The child is small, and I was only able to harvest a limited amount without killing him. If these experiments are to continue as requested, we would again require access to the donor. I will not disappoint you again, Moff Gideon." Din whipped his head to Greef, at the name of the former imperial officer.

"This must be an old transmission. Moff Gideon is dead." He denied. The humanoid shook his head and read the data logs. "No. This recording's three days old."

His heart fell to his stomach. "If Gideon's alive, then..."

Elodie fired her blaster at the creature in the tank. The glass shattered at the blast, and water poured at her feet. She stood there unwavering as she stared at the being hanging in the capsule, no longer in pain.

Din went to comfort her but stopped when storm troopers rounded the corner at the noise.

"Over there!"

The group threw themselves behind any cover they could find. Elodie changed the direction of her blaster to aid in shooting the troopers until they were all dead. Din stood out from behind the wall. "I need to get the kid."

Cara nodded at him. "Jet back, you're faster that way. We'll head to the speeder and meet you in town."

Din faced Elodie but saw her face set in stone. "You're staying." He summed up from her behaviour, and she looked down in confirmation. She needed to see the end of this. To have some form of one-up against Moff Gideon. The Mandalorian sped towards her and cupped her cheek to press their foreheads together. "You come back to me, you hear?" He stated.

"And you make sure our son is safe." She finished. He passed her the amban rifle from his back. Releasing her, he ran out the door. Elodie understood that he was going to be alright; he was a Mandalorian after all. But she couldn't clear the fog of concern clouding her mind for the wellbeing of both her partner and child. She slung the rifle over her shoulder and held her blaster for now.

"Come on, let's go!" Greef shouted to the rest of them, and they ran down a different corridor to the Mandalorian.

"When did you say this place is gonna blow again?" Mythrol panted. Shots fired behind them as more storm troopers gathered, and they diverted down another hallway.

Making their way to the open expanse of the outcrop, the three look around to make sure the coast is clear. "There they are. Blast 'em!" Troopers shouted from the right.

Elodie pushed Mythrol down as bolts rained down above them, and they dove behind the nearest crate. She joined Cara and Greef in returning cover fire. "We're trapped!" Mythrol cried, cowering behind cover.

"Is that so? Cover me!" Elodie stood from behind the crate, firing repeatedly in the direction of the troopers in order for Cara to safely sprint to the Marauder. Seeing that she was in, Elodie fell back down, narrowly missing a bolt to the shoulder.

"What does she think she's doing?" Mythrol asked, not daring to peek from the crates. An engine revved, and the speeder pulled up beside them.

"What are you guys waiting for—an invitation? Let's move!" Greef pushed the other two in first before pulling himself inside. Cara swerved the speeder and backed up. Mythrol followed her line of sight to the troopers standing on the edge of the cliff face and saw the determination in her eyes.

"You're not considering going over..."

"Hang on!" Cara smiled, hitting the pedal to the floor. Elodie used her nails to grip onto the back of the Marshal's seat as they rammed into the troopers and dove headfirst off of the cliff. They screamed. The ground was fast approaching. The vehicle landed with a bounce, surprisingly not damaged from the fall. Hearing the sound of metal crunching under the Marauder, Mythrol turned to Cara, "Wait. Was that my speeder?"

The comm on Elodie's hip crackled to life with an incoming call. "Eddy?" Din called.

"Din? Have you got the child?" She asked, clutching the comm. Beads of sweat ran down her face. There was a pause, and she swore she didn't breathe as those dreaded seconds passed.

"Yeah, I got the kid. He's safe. We're coming back for you."

She exhaled, pressing the comm to her forehead in relief. "Thank the Maker." Elodie pulled the comm back to report, "We're in the Marauder but have got some loose ends fast approaching."

"See you soon, Mesh'la." The call ended, and she slipped it back onto her belt. [Beautiful]

"Man the gun." Cara instructed Greef, seeing speeders getting closer.

"Copy that."

Elodie took the chance to sit beside him, wielding the Amban rifle. She fired at the speeder bikes tailing them, a trooper vaporising on impact. Greef was firing wildly beside her, hoping one of his stray bolts would hit the men.

"One down. I've lost him!" The troopers were slippery and able to use the terrain to their advantage as they weaved in and out of the rocks of the canyon. Elodie opted for her handheld blaster and moved back up front with Cara and Mythrol to shoot the speeder bikes on either side of them.

Cara swerved the vehicle, ramming one into the rock face while the Wolven took care of the other. Greef aimed his heavy repeater blaster skyward and shot the last one on the roof. The explosion rattled the vehicle, but it continued towards the town. A secondary explosion was heard in the distance as their plan had worked and the base was overridden with the lava flow.

Mythrol cheered, and Cara called back at the magistrate, "Headed home, boss."

Elodie wanted to feel happy, but it was as if there were weights attached to her feet. Every action was slow, and even thinking took a heroic effort. They may have destroyed a base, but Moff Gideon was still out there, performing horrific acts on innocent lives.

There was an alert from the vehicle, and Cara's face fell. The shrill screech of TIE fighters grew louder as they soared past.

"That may have been premature." Mythrol blanched, staring out the window. Thick bolts flew down at them from above, shaking the ground beneath them. Greef shouted from the back, "Take evasive! I got this!"

"What is going on back there?" Cara yelled forcefully as the speeder was jerked violently. "You wanna come back here and try this? Be my guest! Can't you get this thing to go any faster?!"

There was an explosion at the back of the vehicle, and Greef came crawling forward. Elodie helped the man up, checking to see if he was alright. Now that their turret was gone, they had no way of defending themselves against the warships.

Elodie pulled the comm back off her belt and said, "Din, where are you? We've got TIE fighters on our ass!"

There was no response.

Then the cliffs disappeared. Ahead of them lay an expanse of open road, and Cara was pressed for time as she evaded as many blaster bolts as the vehicle would allow. Everyone in the speeder grunted at the sharp turns made, and they fell back and forth.

"We're almost there!" Mythrol announced, seeing the town in the distance.

"We're not going to make it." Elodie stated. The town was still far away, and even then, why are they leading the imperials back to the innocent people? The TIE fighters spun above them and lined up to take the final shots.

The TIE fighter blew up in front of them, and the Razor Crest flew from above. The group took a collective breath, and Elodie sagged against Greef's side. The Razor Crest evaded shots from the remaining TIE fighters, the ship now zooming through the air with a new sense of vigour.

"Yes! Yes!" Greef cheered, clapping his hands.

"Told you I'd come to get you." Din called, and Elodie managed to smile up at the starship.

The vehicle pulls to a stop just short of the town gate, and they leave the speeder to watch the battle between the TIE's and Razor Crest. The Crest was an old ship, but she was reliable. The nimble manoeuvres of the experienced pilot aided its ability to deliver rounds of fire into the last remaining empire ships.

When the ship landed, the ramp lowered to the ground this time, and Din stood at the top with his hands resting on his hips. If she had to guess, co*cky would be his current expression.

"That was some pretty impressive flying, Mando. What do I owe ya?" Greef said, looking up at the Mandalorian.

"With the repairs, let's call it even." He retorted. Elodie patted Cara farewell on the shoulder and made her way up to her partner. As Din was going to retreat into the ship, Greef called out one last time.

"Can I at least buy you a drink?"

Din slung his arm around the small of Elodie's back as she made it to his side. "Sorry. I have some onboard maintenance I gotta take care of. Then we gotta hit the road before Gideon catches wise." The magistrate pierced his lips, nodding. "Well, good luck flying, my friend."

"Thank you, Greef."

"No, thank you. Because of your help, my people are now able to live in peace, knowing the empire is no longer on their doorstep."

Bidding farewell, they closed the ramp and made their way back up to the co*ckpit. "Y'know, for a second there, I thought you were going to be too late."

Din slumped in his chair and commenced the autopilot for Corvus. He reached back with one hand and rested it on her knee while the other controlled the ship. "I told you I was going to be there, and I was. Besides," He nodded to the child in the other passenger seat, "He liked the new modifications."

The child had a wild look in his eyes from adrenaline, and looking closer, Elodie saw a green puke stain on his brown tunic. Groaning, she spat on her sleeve and tried to rub it off. "Din, you made him sick!" The child gurgles. "I know, baby, was Daddy being a bit mean?"

Picking the child up and walking down to the hull, it left no room for him to refute the accusation. Not that he could. She was right, of course. He had made the child sick, but not necessarily on purpose.

But Daddy? Never in his life did he think he would ever have children of his own—become a father. Buir. Din was well aware of the Resol'nare. The need to help raise warriors through either reproduction or adopting foundlings. It was the tenet he struggled most to accomplish. [Six tenets of the Mandalorian culture. Parent/Father]

They returned shortly with the child fresh out of the shower and in a new tunic. Din found himself smiling at the pair and sat forward to watch the stars as they blurred by. They were his family.

Chapter 17: Chapter 15: The Jedi

Chapter Text

"Corvus, this is the place."

The planet was dull and dreary, like it had undergone a vast forest fire. Trees were dying and bare boned. The soil beneath their feet crunched like crispy leaves, looking dark and infertile. Above them, the sky remained in a constant state of twilight. "This planet looks like the embodiment of depression."

"I've detected a beacon."

Beside him, the child strode up, enthralled by the joystick ball. "What did I say about that? This needs to stay in the ship." Din confiscated the ball and tucked it into a pouch on his utility belt. Whining, the child dropped his ears but perked up again as he was hoisted into the bag around Elodie's shoulders. "Let's head into town. See if we can pick up a lead."

The gated community had high fortified walls and heavily armed guards stationed at each post. One came down to 'welcome' them as they approached the gates. "State your business."

"Been tracking for a few days. Looking for a layover." Din said. These people were reserved- defensive. Elodie understood what Din was doing. Lying by omission. There was no reason for them to disclose their mission of finding the Jedi. The man gave Din a once-over and said, "Nice armour. You hunters, then?"

"That's right."

"Guild?" He asked.

"Last I checked." The soldier beside him spoke to him discretely, in a language neither of them recognized. He took a moment, then yelled to the guards over his shoulder. "Open the gate."

The inside of the gated community was no better than the outside. The people were obviously poor and kept to themselves. Little market stalls were set up outside their homes to earn an income. People ducked away from Elodie and the Mandalorian while they strolled through the town, and no one would bother making eye contact either.

"Pardon me, vendor, have you heard of anyone..." The woman walked straight into her dwelling. Like opposing magnets, when they advanced towards someone, they would shy away.

The two cast a suspicious look at one another and saw a man helping children in an alley. He shooed them away as the pair came closer. The Mandalorian spoke out to the man, "You there. I need some information. I'm looking for someone."

Finally, one man stepped forward, his eyes darting around. "Please do not speak to them or to any of us." He was scared.

"We just need help." The man went to say something but backed away when a guard came up from behind them. The two looked at the guard as he sent a stern look at the cowering man.

"The magistrate wants to see you."

The guards led them to another segregated part of the community. Outside the gates were contraptions imprisoning people— electric cuffs around their necks. Pain was written over their faces, and they could do nothing but watch. Elodie slowed her pace, titling her head to look up at the people in sympathy. It reminded her of the collar during her imprisonment.

"Help us." A woman pleaded.

"She'll kill us all."

The Mandalorian places a hand on the small of the Wolven's back to encourage her to keep walking. The two did not make any acknowledgements of the pleas of the prisoners. Past the gates, a woman stood admiring a lavish garden with blooming plants and the running water of a pond. It took no genius to figure out that this was where the money was being filtered in order to keep the people of the community in obedience.

It seemed she was expecting their arrival. "Come forward. You are a Mandalorian?"

"Yes." Din resorted back to his Mandalorian bounty hunter persona, the kind that said little and asked even less. He was the one who struck fear in bounties and ensured all his jobs were completed. In his experience, the less he said, the more others would expose. He maintained his stature, and coldness seeped into his words.

The woman turned to Elodie, taking in the sight of her pointed ears and elongated canines. "And you are a Wolven." Elodie nodded, remaining silent.

"I have a proposition that may interest the both of you."

"My price is high." The Mandalorian established. The magistrate was forward: "This target is priceless. A Jedi plagues me. I want you to kill her."

A Jedi? That was precisely who they were looking for. This lady could lead them right to her. Playing along, Din replied, "That's a difficult task."

"One that you are well-suited for. The Jedi are the ancient enemy of Mandalore."

"As I said, my price is high." She held her arm out for the droid behind her to come closer. It placed a steel rod in her palm and backed away. The magistrate held it out for him to take, and Din proceeded to examine it. "What do you make of this?" He tapped it against his vambrace, and a high-pitched twang rang out on impact.

"Beskar."

She smirked, "Pure Beskar, like your armour. Kill the Jedi, and it's yours." The Mandalorian placed the spear back into her hands, and she held it to her side.

"Where do I find this Jedi?"

"If you carry on North from the settlement, you will find her. Bring me back her head in return for the beskar. Do we have a deal?" Elodie nodded to the woman, and they were escorted out by the same guard that had permitted them entry into the community.

"Patu."

Elodie hushed the child, setting her hand against the bag to settle him. Lately, he has been more vocal. He still babbled like a human baby, but he was trying to form more words. Elodie had spent some nights trying to get him to say Mandalorian phrases like Buir or Ad before bedtime, but it had yet to be successful. [Parent. Child]

The man stared at the child. "What is that thing?" The child hissed at the guard, sensing his bad aura. "We keep it around for luck." Din said, standing in front of the woman.

They started walking into the mass of dead trees. The man leered at them as they passed. "You're gonna need it where you're headed." The door was sealed behind them.

Elodie ducked under a tree, trailing behind the Mandalorian, who had the coordinates logged into the pad of his wrist. They found it easier to trek through the barren river bed rather than trampling over mounds of fallen trees and debris.

"Well, these are the coordinates. Keep your eyes open. We must be close." Elodie turned her nose into the air, "I can smell something."

A rustling noise bustled nearby, and the two scanned their surroundings. "You hear that?"

Din set the child down on a rock, motioning for the two to stay put as he went to investigate further. "Don't worry. Sit right here. Let me see what's out there."

With the infrared vision, Din relaxed, seeing an owl perched in a tree. "False alarm."

As the words left his mouth, he was attacked by two brightly shining swords. He blocked the hit with his Beskar vambraces and continued blocking when the hits kept coming. Elodie left the child on the rock to assist the Mandalorian.

Sensing someone approaching quickly, the Jedi threw her hand out, and the Wolven was ejected into the air. Elodie cried out, her body flying through a broken tree and it splintered underneath her weight. Din grunted, using his flamethrower to push the Jedi back. Ahsoka flipped, forgoing her cape, but was apprehended by fibercord. The Jedi jumped over an overhanging tree, forcing Din to become suspended before he cut the cord with a knife from his utility belt.

The Jedi drew the Sabers again, and Din aimed his baster. Checkmate. "Ahsoka Tano!" He panted. The woman paused, her eyes narrowing on the unfamiliar man. "Bo-Katan sent me. We need to talk."

Behind him, Elodie rolled over and coughed to try and draw breath. Din gritted his teeth, resisting the urge to turn around, and kept his eyes in front of him instead. The Wolven felt the gentle brush of the child's fingers on her cheek. He looked down at her worriedly and whined.

Ahsoka looked over the Mandalorians shoulder, and her shoulders dropped.

"I hope it's about him."

When the weapons were holstered, Din rushed over to his partner and helped her stand. "Hey, you okay?" He brushed the dirt from her cheek and placed his hand on her waist. Elodie hissed, pulling away from his hands. "My ribs..."

He frowned, lifting her shirt and dusting his fingers over the blossoming dark mark. "Doesn't feel broken." He hummed, "Maybe cracked or badly bruised." She kept her breaths short to reduce overexpanding her rib cage.

The Mandalorian dropped her shirt and looked down at his feet, where the child once stood. Nowhere to be found, he looked up to see him interacting with the Jedi. They had wondered off while the two were talking.

The sky was growing ever darker as night set in, and the moon hung high amongst the stars. Elodie found herself leaning against a rock on the ground while Din paced in front of her. He seemed apprehensive of the Jedi and watched as she and the child simply stared at one another with a lamp between them. Every now and then, the child would babble and coo, and Ahsoka would smile in return. "What's taking them so long?"

Elodie picked her head up from where it was resting and peered her eyes open to look at the man softly, "Relax. I'm sure this Jedi thing is just a way of them getting to know each other."

Ahsoka walked to their camp, and Din stopped his pacing.

She placed the child on a rock beside Elodie, and he curled into the warmth of her lap. Elodie smiled at the child and brought her hand to cup his back. "Patoo." Ahsoka chuckled at him, and it caused Din to look over at her curiously, "Is he speaking? Do you understand him?" Ahsoka shrugged. "In a way. Grogu and I can feel each other's thoughts."

All these years, I went without knowing your name.

"Grogu?" Din asked, shocked. The child stared up at the sound of his name, cooing. "Yes. That's his name." The Jedi nodded.

"Grogu."

His reaction to being called by his name was hilarious. Ahsoka explained to the pair what she and Grogu had been discussing through the force. "He was raised at the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. Many masters trained him over the years. At the end of the Clone Wars, when the Empire rose to power, he was hidden. Someone took him from the temple. Then his memory becomes... dark. He seemed lost. Alone. I've only known one other being like this. A wise Jedi master named Yoda. Can he still wield the Force?"

Din felt confused, "You mean his powers?"

Elodie rolled her eyes. "It's called the Force Din. Where you raised in a shed?"

"How was I supposed to know?"

She threw her hands up, "She literally just said it!"

Ahsoka smiled, amused by the bickering. "The Force is what gives him his powers. It is an energy field created by all living things. To wield it takes a great deal of training and discipline."

"And is the Force responsible for his ability to heal wounds?" Elodie mentioned that he was able to drain the poison from Greef and heal his deep cuts. She was trying to differentiate his force abilities from what his species may have been able to do.

"Yes, but at a great cost. Healing and using vast amounts of force is physically and mentally taxing."

The Mandalorian thinks back to the Mudhorn and how it hovered effortlessly above the ground. Then, to the invisible shield that deflected the flamethrower on Nevarro. "I've seen him do things I can't explain. My task was to bring him to a Jedi. The Jedi Order fell a long time ago."

"So did the Empire, yet it still hunts him. He needs your help." The woman contemplated the decision. If he did wield such potential, then she could help him hone his abilities. She looked at the child and saw him asleep in the Wolven's lap. "Let him sleep. I'll test him in the morning."

Elodie winced as she adjusted her position. Ahsoka caught the pinching expression, and her eyes showed regret. "I apologise for earlier." The Wolven sent her a tight-lipped smile. "Don't worry 'bout it. I would have done the same in your shoes."

"He has shown me many things tonight." She said and looked up between them both. "He loves you."

Din laid his hand on Elodie's shoulder and gave it a squeeze. She touched his hand and tilted her head up, only to find his gaze already on her. She could feel the weight of his smile through the helmet and return it. "We're as good as family."

The two fell asleep beside one another, and Ahsoka stayed awake for a little while longer to stare at the three curiously as they slept. She didn't disclose to them her concerns over the potential bond they had, or that he would have to cut off all ties to his family if she were to train him. Leaning back, the woman closed her eyes and brought herself into a meditative state for the night.

In the morning, they walked into an open, mossy area of land. The child stood on one end, and the trio stood on the other. Ahsoka knelt to collect a small rock and held it out for the child to see.

"Let's see what knowledge is lurking inside that little mind."

His ears perked up, and he watched as it lifted and began floating slowly towards him. Reaching out, he caught the stone in his little hands in excitement. "Now, return the stone to me, Grogu."

The child looked at the rock in his grasp and played with it nervously. Din moved from one foot to the other. "He doesn't understand."

"He does. It's okay. The stone, Grogu."

The stone clattered to the ground and Ahsoka went to crouch down in front of him, taking his hand. He looked up at her through his lashes, and she gave him a reassuring look. "I sense much fear in you. He's hidden his abilities to survive over the years. Let's try something else." She stood and walked back. "Come over here."

Din nodded for the child to follow her. "He's stubborn."

"Not him. Either of you. I want to see if he'll listen." Elodie ambled over, and Din muttered to himself.

"That would be a first."

Ahsoka handed her the stone, and she did as instructed. "I like firsts. Good or bad, they're always memorable. Now, hold the stone in the palm of your hand. Tell him to lift it up."

"All right, Adi'ka. Lift the stone." [Little one]

Din grunts beside her after the failed attempt. "You see? I told you, he's stubborn."

"Try to connect with him." Elodie sighs and turns as Din rests his hand against her arm. In the other hand, Din retrieved the ball from his pocket and dangled it in front of the child. Elodie dropped the rock, hoping he would go for the new bait.

"Grogu... Do you want this? Well, go ahead. That's right, take it. Come on. You can have it. Come on." Din bent down, and a look of glee flashed across his face. He held out a hand and pinched his eyes in concentration. One moment, the ball was sat between Din's gloves fingers and the next, engulfed in Grogu's hands.

"Good job! Good job, kid. You see that? That's right. I knew you could do it. Very good." Din shot up, fist pumping and pranced merrily over to the child. He patted his head and took the ball back. Elodie looked back at the Jedi, wondering why she was so quiet.

Ahsoka looked torn. "He's formed a strong attachment to you. I cannot train him." Their faces fell along with their mood. The Mandalorian took a step towards her, "What? Why not? You've seen what he can do."

"His attachment to you makes him vulnerable to his fears. His anger." Ahsoka accused, crossing her arms.

"Which means he needs to know how to control it." Elodie argued, not seeing reason.

The Jedi still refused. "No. I've seen what such feelings can do to a fully trained Jedi Knight. To the best of us. I will not start this child down that path. Better to let his abilities fade. I've delayed too long. I must get back to the village."

The woman walks away, but stops at the words of the Mandalorian. "The magistrate sent me to kill you. I didn't agree to anything. And I'll help you with your problem if you see to it that Grogu is properly trained." She turns to face him again.

Ahsoka nodded her head, making a motion for them to continue walking with her and carry on talking. "She has a small army of guards armed with blaster rifles, two HK assassin droids, and a hired gun. He reads ex-military to me. Combined, not even your laser swords would be able to protect you from all that firepower." Laser swords? Ahsoka felt the urge to smile despite the Mandalorian's lack of understanding. "True. But don't underestimate the magistrate either."

"Who is she? She offered me a staff of pure Beskar to kill you." Din hooked his hands on his belt loops.

"Morgan Elsbeth. During the Clone Wars, her people were massacred. She survived and let her anger fuel an industry, which helped build the Imperial Starfleet. She plundered worlds, destroying them in the process."

Elodie looked at the scorched earth around her. "That's terrible." The Jedi turned to the pair. "When you were in the city, did you see any prisoners?"

"I saw three villagers strung up just outside the inner gate."

"We must find a way to free them."

"A Mandalorian and a Jedi? They'll never see it coming." Din shed his pauldron baring his Mudhorn signet, and passed it to her. She took it and tucked it into her belt. "I will see you on the other side, Mandalorian. The chime of the bell will be your cue."

He nodded, and she set off to start the coup. The Mandalorian turned his attention to his partner and child. Din wanted to ask her something but was afraid she would bite his head off.

Elodie placed her hand on his cuirass and leaned in to rest her forehead against his. "I'm going back to the ship, don't worry."

"I wasn't going to-" He sighed, hanging his head. "Okay. I was going to ask."

"I know. I just want to spend a moment with the child alone before he goes off to train with the Jedi. Who knows when we'll be able to see him next." The Wolven said, keeping Grogu close to her chest. Din nodded, "That's fine. We should be able to make short work of this with just the two of us anyway."

Din brushes his thumb over her cheek in farewell and pats the child's head. "I'll meet you back at the ship."

"I'll have dinner ready." Elodie smiled, walking off.

Making it back to the ship, she entered the code for the ramp to drop and when walking in, she heard the ringing of bells and knew that they were both now involved in the fight to save the community.

Elodie did not worry for her Mandalorian. He was strong and smart.

She set the child on the counter and began preparing dinner. Elodie didn't know how to feel or interact with the child. Would he understand that he was going away to be trained? How much me and Din care for him? She decided on braised Bantha for food and switched on the burner. Elodie showed the child how to season the meat. Instead of rubbing the spices in, he slammed his hands down to slap the slab of meat. "Ba! Ba!"

Elodie started laughing at his actions. So hard, in fact, tears blurred her vision. The next thing she knew, she was sobbing and using the counter to brace herself. Tucking her head down towards her chest, she tried to conceal her pain from the child.

Grogu babbled, growing quiet. He feared he angered her and let his ears drop down. Elodie looked up and rushed to console him, tears still trailing down her cheeks. "Oh baby, don't worry, it's not your fault!"

He lifted his hand and wiped a tear, staring at her with those gorgeous, wide brown eyes. "I am just going to miss you so so much. The nice Jedi lady is going to train you and take care of you." His ears perked up and dropped again while he was trying to understand. Elodie felt her lower lip tremble.

"Patu." The corner of her lip rose.

"Yeah? Is that so? I love you too, Grogu." He cooed, baring a toothy smile. Elodie bopped her nose against his. "It feels strange to know your name now, and even more so to say it." She sniffed, bouncing the child in her arms. "You're always going to have a home with us, you hear? So, when you are all big and powerful, you can come back to see us again. And you might not need us protecting you this time."

His eyes were dropping, so she set him back on the counter to finish off his last meal with her before he had to depart. The meat seared in the pan, which snapped him back into reality, and he salivated.

"All right, you carnivorous hellion." Elodie said, chopping the rare Bantha stake and passing it over. He fell forward, inhaling it in a few bites. The Wolven set hers and Din's plates in the cooling oven for later.

The child was getting sleepy again, and she turned on some soft tunes from the radio. Holding him close, she resumed softly bouncing and swaying to the music.

Even though he had fallen asleep in her arms, snoring softly, she couldn't find it in her to put him in his hammock. She laid her head against his, eyes closed, and savoured the moment.

She didn't know how long she swayed, but she snapped back into reality when she felt leather-bound gloves hold her waist and a thick Beskar plate against her back. Her mind briefly bounced back to their intimate encounter a few days ago, and she relaxed in his hold.

Elodie was the first to speak, "I don't think I can let him go."

Din wound his arms around her waist entirely and rested his head on her shoulder to gaze down at the sleeping child. "We have to." His voice cracked. "He needs this."

She sniffled, her heart feeling like it was breaking. Elodie was going to start crying all over again. "I'll let the two of you have a moment." Din took the child from her arms, and she went into the fresher to splash cold water on her face.

"Wake up, buddy. It's time to say goodbye." He perched on the side of his bunk as the child blinked his eyes open slowly. Grogu stared up at the Mandalorian that had taken the place of Elodie. Grogu chattered, and Din nodded along, straightening the neck of his tunic in, to look more presentable for the Jedi.

Elodie came out of the fresher, wiping her wet hands on her pants. Din stood with the child, and together, they descended the ramp. To Din's surprise, the Jedi stood outside with a solemn look on her face. "Like you said, you're like family to him. I cannot train him."

"You made me a promise, and I held up my end." Din spat, angry at her change of tone now that he had helped her win back the freedom of the settlement nearby.

"He needs training!" Elodie said to her.

Ahsoka held Grogu's outstretched hand. "There is one possibility. Go to the planet Tython. You will find the ancient ruins of a temple that has a strong connection to the Force. Place Grogu on the seeing stone at the top of the mountain."

"Then what?" Grogu looked up at them. "Then Grogu may choose his path. If he reaches out through the Force, there's a chance a Jedi may sense his presence and come searching for him. Then again, there aren't many Jedi left."

Elodie didn't know whether or not to be thankful that they had been graced with more time together or curse the Jedi for going back on their deal. Never the less, she expressed her thanks for at least helping them understand Grogu more than they ever had.

"May the Force be with you."

Chapter 18: Chapter 16: The Tragedy

Chapter Text

"Grogu."

He startled, cooing.

"Grogu?" Din called again. He looked up to the Mandalorian. "Give me the ball."

Frowning, he held it tighter. "Grogu, give me the ball. Come on."

Din held out his hand and the child reluctantly passed it over. He rolled it in his hand and held it up to the child, between his thumb and pointer finger. Eager, Grogu's eyes remained trained on the shiny sphere. "Okay, here we go. You can have it, just like before. Grogu, come on. You can have it. Come on."

Narrowing his eyes in concentration, the ball flew into his awaiting hands. Excitedly, Din clapped his hands together.

"Dank Farrik!"

Fearing he had upset the Mandalorian, the child dropped his ears and released the ball. Guiltily, Din apologised for making the child feel as though he had done something wrong. "Hey, no. I'm not mad at you. You did good. I just... When the nice lady said you had training, I just... You're very special, kid. We're gonna find that place you belong, and they're gonna take real good care of you." Towards the end of his speech, he sighed.

They were going to have to give Grogu over to the Jedi's eventually, and some part of him dreaded that moment. Him and Elodie had been one of the best decisions he had ever made, and parting with either one of them felt like a thousand needles pricking at his skin. It was almost physically painful.

"Is that it?" Elodie asked, appearing in the doorway of the co*ckpit and leaning against the door frame. Facing the windscreen, he saw the upcoming planet.

They flew closer in search of the exact coordinates Ahsoka bestowed on them. The terrain was rocky and possessed high alpines. It would be difficult to find a suitable place to land. Din directed his words to Grogu as the child tried to sit forward and peer out of the window curiously.

"This is Tython. That's where we're gonna try and find you a Jedi. But you have to agree to go with them if they want you to. Understand? Plus, we can't train you. You're too powerful. Don't you wanna learn more of that Jedi stuff? I agreed to take you back to your own kind, so that's what I need to do. You understand, right?" In closer view, there were large rock formations set on a particularly high hill; it stood out amongst the rest of the rugged terrain. Din continued, "Looks like that's the magic rock. I'm supposed to take you to down there. Sorry, I can't land on the top. Too small. We're gonna have to travel the last stretch with the windows down."

The Mandalorian managed to find a decent place to land the Crest and they walked down the ramp. It was estimated midday on Tython if they were basing the time on the midpoint of the sun; and it was beating down on them.

Din approached Elodie, intending to hand over the child in preparation for a quicker route of travel. Elodie looked at him and sighed. "The jet pack again?" His brow raised under the helmet, and a smile played at his lips. "Maybe I just want an excuse to hold you close." He swooped her up, and she smiled with a roll of her eyes.

They landed smoothly at the top of the mountain, and Din set her on the ground softly. The Wolven slipped her hands from around him, and together they inspected the structure of the rock formations.

Elodie ran her hands over the rune carvings, "It all looks very old and official."

"Well, I guess this is it. Does this look Jedi to you?" Grogu wriggled in her arms, and she set him on the spherical rock in the centre of the rock formations. Elodie resisted the urge to laugh at her partner's words, but he looked genuinely confused at the whole situation. He caught her look of amusem*nt and tilted his helmet in question.

Wordlessly, she pinched her lips together and continued searching for signs.

"This is the seeing stone, are you seeing anything? Or are they supposed to see you? Maybe there's some kind of control or something."

This time, she did laugh. "It's a rock, Din."

The Mandalorian saw that the child was distracted by a passing butterfly. "Oh, come on, kid. Ahsoka told me all I had to do was get you here, and you'd do the rest." As the words left his mouth, the amusem*nt dropped off the Wolven's face. There was a ship entering the atmosphere and approaching fast. They followed it with their eyes.

Elodie vaguely recognised the ship as a Slave I.

"Someone's tracked us." The Mandalorian had his hackles raised and his breathing picked up. "Time's up, kid. We gotta get out of here. We don't have time for this. We got to get..." They were too exposed and far from the Crest and he was beginning to panic. Turning, the child was now encased in a tubular force field of blue flecks.

Walking up to it, Elodie placed her hand against the barrier, feeling the soft comforting hum radiating through her bones at the touch, but the force of it kept her from invading the space.

Throwing caution to the wind, Din ran to the boundary line.

"Din wait-!" Elodie shouted. It was too late. He flew back with brutal force but walked back to start trying to push against it. The woman pushed him back and put herself between him and the barrier. He would do no good by hurting himself more. "Stop it!"

He tried moving her aside. "We can't just give up, we're going to be walking targets out here, Ed!" She pushed back more forcefully this time and glared at the man. "Would you listen to me?! We cannot get through! The force is impenetrable!"

"Hey! Snap out of it, kid! We got to get out of here!" Din called over her shoulder, but the child was in a deep state of meditation. Using his visor, he noticed an individual leaving the ship and heading in their direction. Unable to stand there any longer, he growled, backing away. "We'll see if we can buy you some time. Can you please hurry up?"

Elodie kept pace beside him, but a gloved hand stopped her from proceeding. She looked down at it and back up into the visor. "You need to stay here and protect the child."

"What part of impenetrable do you not understand?" She looked at him dumbly. He quickly cast a glance down the hill, nervous about the third party. "Listen we don't have time to argue, but that barrier is not going to last forever. You need to be here to protect him when it drops while I keep them distracted. Do you understand me?"

"I-"

"Do you understand!" He gritted. There was no time to argue, and Elodie nodded. He cupped her face and stared deep into her eyes, "I love you."

The Mandalorian parted and sprinted down the hill at top speed with his pistol drawn. The ghost of his fingers lingered on her cheek, and she felt breathless. A series of shots hit the ground at his feet. The Mandalorian jumped back behind the boulder beside him, his gun held up at the ready. Peaking around, Din saw a figure cloaked in black stroll over the hill.

"I've been tracking you, Mandalorian." Din came out of his place of hiding, noting that he had better odds against the person dressed in his beskar. He kept his blaster raised and trained on the man. "Are you Jedi? Or are you after the child?"

The man dropped his hood, showing his hairless head and his entire face. It was littered with deep, ragged scars. The man clarified. "I'm here for the armour."

"If you want my armour, you'll have to peel it off my dead body." Din snapped, his finger inching towards the trigger. Boba's upper lip curled in distaste, the Mandalorian misunderstood his intentions. "I don't want your armour. I want my armour that you got from Cobb Vanth back on Tatooine. It belongs to me."

"Are you Mandalorian?" Din asked.

"I'm a simple man making his way through the galaxy. Like my father before me." The man made no move to pull out his weapons or the Tusken Raider baton strapped to his back. "Did you take the Creed?" Din pressed, he forced himself to take a deep breath to calm his rapid heartbeat.

"I give my allegiance to no one."

"The Beskar belongs to the Mandalorians. It was looted from us during the Purge." Boba did not like that answer. "The armour was my father's. Now it's mine."

"What's to stop me from dropping you right where you stand?" Din mused, waving his blaster. Boba gave him a close-lipped smirk. "Because I have a sharpshooter up on that ridge with a locked scope that will unload by the time my body hits the ground."

Din dropped his tone, "I'm the one wearing Beskar. As soon as I see that muzzle flash, you're both dead."

"I didn't mean she was going to shoot you. My friend's locked onto that woman of yours up on the henge." A bolt of fear shot through his entire body. Instantly, his co*cky attitude fell, and up came the walls he had built in his time as a bounty hunter. The persona of the feared bounty hunter that Elodie and the child were never going to meet. Cold, calculating, and ruthless. Din glared at the man so fiercely that he was sure the man could feel it burning.

"And if you remember, I don't miss." A voice shouted from the rocky overhang.

Din looked up in mild disbelief, "Fennec?" She kept her eyes trained on the two individuals at the ruins. One child surrounded by radiant blue beams, and the other pacing with her blaster in hand. "You have a keen ear, Mando."

"You point that gun away from Elodie, or I'll drop you both where you stand." Din flicked his left wrist, igniting the whistling birds. He would only permit one chance.

"Elodie?" Boba asked, eyebrows shooting up. "The Wolven?"

Tilting his helmet, the Mandalorian eyed the man up and down. Boba held his hands, palms out, in surrender. "Let's all put down our weapons, have a chat. There's no need for bloodshed."

"Tell her to drop the gun." Din demanded. Boba countered, "After you put down the jet pack. I swear to you, she will not be harmed."

"Same time." True to their words, both laid their weapons to the ground, and Boba Fett found himself calling for Fennec to stand down. She hopped down from her perch and removed her helmet to smile at the Mandalorian.

"You look like you've just seen a ghost."

Din shook his helmet. "You were dead."

"She was left for dead on the sands of Tatooine, as was I. But fate sometimes steps in to rescue the wretched." Boba corrected. Fennec opened up the robes covering her lower abdomen to reveal that her insides were converted to mechanical structuring. "In my case, Boba Fett was that fate. And I am now in his service."

Boba turned his attention away from Fennec to Din. "It appears you have two things in your possession that belong to me. I want them back."

"It goes against the Mandalorian Creed to give you the armour." Din said, unwavering in his stance. Tense, Boba grunted. "The armour was given to my father, Jango, by your forebears. In exchange, I guarantee the safety of the child as well as your own."

"The bounty on your little friend has risen significantly." Fennec quipped. "You can buy ten suits of armour for the price on its head. I'd say we're offering a fair deal under the circ*mstances."

"You said two things." Din stated.

"It appears you are in league with my sister." Boba revealed, "I want her back."

There was no time for reaction.

An imperial transport ship dropped from the clouds and descended rapidly to the ground. Din panicked and ran straight back up the hill towards Elodie and the child, forgetting his deserted jet pack. Elodie was pacing around the child like a caged animal, waiting for the barrier to fall. Hearing the sounds of footsteps, she crouched in order to pounce on the intruder when they approached.

At the sight of Din, she exhaled and rose from her position. She had seen the transport ship land at the base of the mountain beside them and was half expecting a fight with the other ship before them. "What's going on?" Elodie asked, walking up to him. Din placed his shaking hands on her upper arms and looked past her, heading to the child who was still in deep meditation. "We gotta go. We gotta get the kid!"

With little to no explanation, he charged at the barrier. "Time to go, kid!" He groaned, being thrown back, but ran past Elodie to charge again.

Only to be knocked out this time.

Elodie raced to his side and sat back on her shins when she saw that he was still breathing. "Din?" She asked, shaking him. "Din!" Looking up, she saw the troopers start to filter out.

Remarkably enough, there were not one but two individuals fighting against the troopers in the distance. Elodie frowned, unable to make out their identities at this distance despite her enhanced vision.

She cursed, looking down at her lover and then back up at the overwhelming swarm of storm troopers. He was not conscious and probably wouldn't be for some time. The two individuals were not going to hold out against the forces of the Empire for too long on their own. Making a split-second decision, she rose from her position and pressed a kiss to the side of her Mandalorian's helmet.

Then she ran down the hill.

At the base of the hill, Fennec and Boba were dancing in between the large boulders and taking out troopers on their way up. They hoped that having the upper ground, quite literally, would benefit against their numbers.

Boba disappeared in the midst of the fight, and Fennec understood that he was more than likely donning his armour from the abandoned Razor Crest. Hopefully, it would improve their odds.

Elodie blasted marks into the useless armour of the upcoming storm troopers. With her momentum from running down the hill, she slipped her blaster in its holster and launched herself over a rock to pounce on another trooper sneaking up on the assassin.

The weight of the fall caused the trooper's helmet to explode on impact against a rock. Elodie looked up, whipping her hair in the process, and tackled one who started to raise his gun at her. They landed in a grunt, but she twisted his neck until a satisfying crack sounded. Picking up a fistful of dirt, she threw it into a storm trooper's visor to cloud his vision and removed his gun from his grip. She held it above her and brought it down on his head. Over and over.

Panting, she threw the gun beside her but stopped advancing when she saw the look the other woman was giving her.

"I can see the resemblance." Fennec quipped. One of her eyebrows was raised and she saw the slight lift of the corner of her lip. "You must be Elodie."

"Who the hell are you?" She growled back, baring her teeth. Fennec shrugged and returned to shooting troopers out of her scope. "Someone helping to keep you out of trouble." Elodie dove behind a boulder beside her to dodge oncoming shots. "The name's Fennec." The name was familiar.

"Fennec Shand. Didn't you get killed on Tatooine?" Elodie pieced together, remembering what Din had told her when they were lying on the bunk after nearly being killed by Toro. She pulled out her pistol and started firing at any storm trooper who crossed her sight.

The woman corrected. "Shot. Not killed. Your brother saved my skin, and I owe him a life debt."

"What did you just say?" Elodie paused her shooting to look at the woman. "My brother?" Who did this woman think she was? The nerve. Elodie had half a mind to turn her gun against her instead of the onslaught of storm troopers climbing the hill.

"Boba Fett is alive." Fennec shot a brief, genuine smile at her. Elodie didn't know what to think. "You f*cking liar!"

"You can see for yourself."

The pair were forced from their positions when troopers started swarming them from the sides. The two dove away, fleeing to Elodie's side.

The two found themselves in an open field. It was not the ideal spot, but now they were fully surrounded and unable to move. Elodie fired and turned to shoot on Fennec's side. The assassin did the same, albeit a bit slower due to the weight of the rifle. Shots of the storm troopers were getting closer, and they had to actively dive to flee their trajectory. "Give yourself up!" One called, "We want the assets!"

The Mandalorian jumped on a rock behind them and ignited his whistling birds. In his other hand, he shot his blaster. Relief filled him at the sight of Elodie and the usual bloodthirsty glare on her face. Din hopped down in front of the two, and together they moved in sync.

"I take it the child is still meditating."

"Yeah! We'll have to hold them off." He shouted. Elodie scoffed, "What do you think we've been doing while you've been asleep!"

Shots repelled off the Beskar, and the shots were sending Din back a step each time. He used himself to deflect any shots fired at the women, and they ducked behind him. Fennec grumbled, "This isn't looking good."

Din shrugged. "I've seen worse." The two women fired out from behind him in all directions. "You can get out of here. I owe you from last time."

"We have a deal. He's not going to want to leave her." Fennec refused, and Elodie snapped back. "I am standing right here, very pissed off right now." She rolled on the floor, and Fennec jumped over her as they swapped sides.

An armoured figure stood proudly ahead of them as he began firing on the waves of troopers. The dilapidated armour brought back floods of memories, back to when it was freshly painted and vibrant. The one who sent people running in fear at the sight of him. The one that would train her endlessly until she learned how to shoot and hold her when she would cry.

Boba Fett was alive.

He aimed his knee at one trooper to fire shots while using his blaster to shoot one quickly coming at his side. The storm troopers soon began to flee back to their transport ships, realising that while they had the numbers, they were far too outskilled for two bounty hunters, an assassin and a Wolven.

The ships took off, and the group stopped their firing. Boba dropped his antennae and locked onto the ships, sending the missile on his jet pack launching at the upper ship. It exploded, falling into the one below it and taking them both down in a fiery mess.

Din walked up to his side, patting his shoulder. "Nice shot." Boba smirked, "I was aiming for the other one."

"Boba..." He looked back at the sound of his name. His jaw slackened at the glassy eyes staring back at him.

"Vod'ika." [Little sister]

Elodie ran to him, and Din had to step out of the way. He went to stand by Fennec to allow the siblings to reunite. Boba caught the Wolven in his arms and they both held on tightly. The Wolven squeezed her eyes shut to stop tears from running down her cheeks. "I don't understand, how are you alive?"

He stroked her head, "I escaped the Sarlacc and wondered the galaxy in hopes of finding you again." She pulled back, keeping him within arms-length. "I thought you were dead. I grieved for you, Vod." [sibling/brother]

Boba shushed her. "I now, little one. Breathe." He eyed the Mythosaur pendant around her neck and smiled. "It is a relief to see you well and grown after all these years."

A red beam shot down from above the clouds like a bolt of lightning. It caused the siblings to part in shock, hands on their blasters. It hit the Razor Crest, exploding it into a thousand pieces of fiery debris. Din fell forward, watching his ship be destroyed. The ship he was given from the Mandalorian who'd rescued him from his home planet. Elodie gasped, her hands flying over her mouth. Their home was gone.

Destroyed.

He stared at the destruction in disbelief, only able to break out of his stupor at the sound of Fennec's sombre voice. "Better get to your ship."

"The kid!" They ran. While Fennec ran with them, Boba fled to his own.

Without the jet pack, there was no way anyone else was making it to the top before her. Elodie's Wolven abilities allowed her to ascend quicker. Where she was struggling to run on some loose stones, she launched herself from one boulder to another to reach the top instead. She did not peek behind to see where the others were.

Elodie pants wildly, her chest burning with the need for air. Her hair sticks to her face in the trails of sweat and tears. Climbing to the peak, she found herself making it to the child before the dark troopers could land.

The child was lying down on the rock, but still awake. "Grogu!"

She ran to him, hearing the thuds of four heavy metal droids landing around them. Elodie grabbed Grogu's tunic, feeling a metal hand clamp around her forearm while doing so. Its bruising grip clamped down more, and she cried out in pain.

It reached over to take the child, and she turned her body just out of reach. The droid was not going to release its hold so Elodie brought her foot up and kick it away. The death grip was released, and she stumbled back into the chest of another.

Claustrophobia struck as she realised she was surrounded.

Elodie dropped to the ground and swung her leg out in a semi-circle, dropping the mech. Upon standing, one grabbed a chunk of her hair and forced her head back. She yelled out, feeling the strands pull. Her hand automatically covered the droid's hands to prevent it from ripping hair from her head, but she could not remove the grip.

"Argh! Mando!" She pleaded for help, "DIN!" The echo carried over the valley.

From below, Din pushed harder. His muscles quake with the temptation to give out, and his heart pounded in his ears. She was calling for help and they had her, he knew they did. But he was still so far.

There was limited fighting she could do with a child in her arms, she hoped it would be enough for Din to arrive soon. A droid grabbed the child and tried to pry him from her arms. He cried out, being torn both ways, and Elodie clenched her jaw in pain.

Seeing that she was not relenting, a metal fist smacked her face. Elodie released the child, falling onto the floor with blood dripping from the split lip. With the child in hand, the droid stepped back to set off.

Elodie grabbed onto the arms of the droid, yanked, and reached into the exposed cords of its neck. Some were severed and sparked, but the droid seemed to be more irritated than anything. She blocked the hit it sent and probably gained more damage to her forearm from doing so, as she felt her bone vibrate from the force.

A droid to her left pulled at one arm, and another from her right grabbed the other. Elodie thrashed in their hold, however, it did not relent. The droid holding the exhausted child jetted into the air, and she deflated, knowing that she was unable to save them from their fate. What they were about to endure. Torture. Death. Elodie flailed her legs to kick them away, but the fourth droid came and took hold of her ankles.

She would never see Din again. Or her brother. After all this time of believing him dead.

The droids ignited their boosters in their feet, and she was suddenly airborne, her limbs tightly held by the droids. Din and Fennac ran up the side of the hill just in time for their feet to leave the ground.

"Elodie!"

The Mandalorian screamed for them, watching their figures grow smaller the higher they ascended. Elodie looked down at him. If she were to fall, perhaps it would be a kinder fate?

Then Grogu would have no one with him.

Din would not be able to reach them. He had no ship now. No plan and no knowledge of where they were going or if they were going to survive. They were royally f*cked.

Fennec whipped out her comm. "They've got Elodie and the baby. Don't let them get away!" On the other end, Boba cursed, confirming his lock on the droids carrying the pair. Din panicked, thinking that they would then have to face the uncertain fall and possibly be harmed in the crossfire. He relented, "Stop him. I don't want them hurt."

"Abort pursuit. Disengage. Do not harm them." She relayed.

"Copy. I'll do a loose follow, see where they're headed." Boba said, forgoing the lock and accelerating into the cloud. A dark mass formed as he grew closer, and it formed into the shape of an Imperial cruiser hovering above the planet. The dark troopers entered through the port, and the ship set off in hyperdrive.

"They're back." Boba mumbled, not knowing that he had done so down the receiver. Fennec questioned who.

"The Empire. They're back."

"That can't be. The Outer Rim is under the jurisdiction of the New Republic." Fennec frowned, not seeing anything beyond the heavy cover of clouds. "This isn't a spice dream. I can see the Imperial cruiser with my own eyes. Heading down."

By the time it took Boba Fett to land and regroup, Din and Fennec had made their way to the remains of the Razor Crest.

The Mandalorian sighed, trudging through the ruins of the Razor Crest. All that was left of the Starfighter was a crater of ash and smoke. He officially had nothing left. He looked down when his food met with something solid, and bending down, he uncovered the Beskar spear from Corvus. Beside it, Grogu's favourite joystick ball.

Fennec and Boba Fett stood outside the crater to allow the man to grieve. The latter did not know how to feel about the chrome Mandalorian. It was clear to see that the man and his sister were close, and they had a child together. The assassin at his side said nothing in that moment.

The Mandalorian rose from the ashes and brandished the unaffected spear. "This is all that survived."

"Beskar," Boba nodded appreciatively, pulling up the armour chain code. "I want you to take a look at something. My chain code has been encoded in this armour for years. You see, this is me. Boba Fett. This is my father, Jango Fett."

Din analysed the Mandalorian scrawl. "Your father was a foundling."

"Yes. He even fought in the Mandalorian Civil Wars." He revealed. Din relented, knowing the armour truly was back to its rightful owner despite not taking the Creed. "Then that armour belongs to you."

"I appreciate its return."

"Then our deal is complete." Din summed up. He wondered how he was going to get off this god-forsaken planet and find his way back to his family. Fennac admitted. "Not quite."

"How so?"

"We agreed that in exchange for the return of my armour, we would ensure the safety of the child and Elodie." Boba said. Din clipped the spear on the side of his jet pack, which he had also retrieved. "They're gone."

"Until he is returned to you safely, we are in your debt. There is also the matter of my sister. I once feared that the empire would try and manipulate her abilities." The Mandalorian looked at the man in confusion and tilted his helmet. At the silence, Boba continued. "Tell me, Mandalorian. How many Wolven have you come across in your lifetime?"

He didn't answer.

"Exactly."

That made Din curious, what did the Empire want from Elodie?

"Cara Dune, Marshal of the New Republic. I heard rumours you might have gone legit." Din said, stepping into the Marshal's office located on Nevarro. Sitting behind the desk, Cara smiled at the sight of Beskar stalking in the room. She was surprised that she wasn't informed of his arrival.

"I wouldn't go that far." She humoured.

"I need your help."

At the sentence, she dropped her feet from the desk and leaned forward on her crossed arms. The situation went from teasing to serious in under a second. "Name it."

Din sighed. "I need you to locate someone in the prison registry."

"Let's see what I can do." She turned to the computer and began typing as the Mandalorian spelled out who he was looking for. "Ex-Imperial sharpshooter, last name Mayfeld."

Her mouth dropped at the bald man on the screen, sporting a ginger beard and a haggard look on his face. "Apprehended near the Dilestri system on a derelict prison ship. Migs Mayfeld. Serving years in the Karthon Chop Fields for springing a prisoner himself. Accessory to the death of a New Republic officer. Huh. Sounds like a real piece of work. What do you want with him?"

"I need to spring him to help me locate Moff Gideon's light cruiser." He admitted. It was a big ask, seeing as she had only recently acquired her title, but he would do anything to get his family back. Cara tutted, leaning back. "You know how I feel about the Empire. But these stripes mean there are rules I need to follow."

"They have Elodie and the kid."

Cara's face dropped. "Let's go."

Chapter 19: Chapter 17: The Believer

Chapter Text

Elodie stared up at the sealed door ahead of her. Her chest rose and fell in quick succession, and her nostrils flared. Whatever they had just tried pumping into her lay discarded on the floor, the acidic material sizzling on the metal decking of their laboratory. Beside it, three storm troopers who tried subduing her lay unconscious. Potentially dead.

She looked around the room wildly, searching for vents and other doors. It was useless; the place was airtight.

"It's good to finally have you back within our reach, Little Wolf." A voice called over the intercom. She looked up at the corners of the room, stopping when she found the camera directly pointing at her, following her movements.

The voice was smug and familiar. Belonging to Moff Gideon.

"I don't understand! What do you even want from me? I'm not like the child." The Wolven shouted out loud. Walking forward, she flipped the table she had been strapped to. It clattered against the opposite wall with a loud bang, and the gown she wore flapped open but she didn't care. As soon as they arrived on the cruiser, she and the child had been separated into different cells, and she had been forced to change from her leather bounty hunter get-up. They proceeded to stun her and fill her with multiple burning mixtures to try to sedate her.

"No, you're not. You are something else." He replied, staring down at the screen from the control room next door. "Wolven are very hard to come across, and you're the only one we've been able to keep alive for so long."

She held out her hands, "Do you want a medal?"

The door opened, and Moff Gideon stood there, hands tucked behind his back and a horde of storm troopers behind him. Elodie growled, her eyes changing to icy blue. "If you think they will stop me from getting to you, you are very badly mistaken." A powerful blast from one of the storm troopers' blasters sent her flying back into a medical cabinet. The metal folded under her weight, and the contents fell on top of her as she landed in a heap on the floor. Some form of sonic weapon? She thought to herself.

"The bridge has been informed that in the case of my absence or untimely death, the child should be terminated. I understand you are fond of him. You should weigh your options." Elodie cast her eyes up, claws scraping on the floor.

"When conducting the first round of blood work while you were with the Commander on Nevarro, we were surprised to find that your genes were capable of mutating when exposed to a series of stressors." He revealed, stroking a hand against his chin. His first officer stood to his side, watching the interaction. "I've been kidnapped for torture on an Imperial cruiser. Go and tell me more about stressors, please." She said sarcastically, glaring up through her hair.

"Oh no," He laughed, but it was vindictive and malicious, not jovial. "Not torture. Testing. We only want to unlock your full potential and see how we can isolate some of those genetic factors to benefit the future of the Empire." Moff Gideon came to kneel in front of her. "You see, there is no possibility where you or the child will survive this. We'll test you until you are no longer of value or until we have what we sought after. Then, we'll kill you. Preferably in that order, I don't find particularly useful results in postmortems as I do when my assets are alive."

"You're sick."

He flashed his teeth in a beaming smile. "I'm ambitious. I get what I want sooner or later." Moff Gideon rose to his full height, holding his hand to gesture for more guards to enter, flanking the doctor. "I'm sure you are well acquainted with our very own Doctor Pershing. He'll be taking very good care of you from here on out."

Elodie looked up at the doctor, and he stared nervously back. "You look better. Healthier. That will make for much better results."

The storm troopers righted the table while doctor Pershing prepared more syringes to the side. He looked over his shoulder at her and then the storm troopers, giving them a nod. In an instant, they were walking towards her. She knew what they wanted. To strap her down and fill her with more poison until she begged for death.

Elodie kicked the ankle of one, feeling it snap under her bare foot, and he fell with a shout. The one to his left grabbed her wrist and hoicked her up. "No!" She cried. "You don't have to do this, doctor!"

Doctor Pershing ignored her plea as she was forced to bed. A trooper smashed her head against the side to discombobulate her. It worked, the world blurred momentarily as they tossed her up on the bed and began tightening the straps. Like Nevarro, they covered her wrists, ankles, head, and seaweed wrapped her pelvis and torso. One trooper stood beside her with scissors in his grasp, lowering them to remove her gown now that she was immobile. Tears fell down the side of her face, and she openly sobbed in humiliation, crying out for them to stop. Doctor Pershing now stood above her, syringe in hand, the vile green fluid bubbling like a carbonated drink. "Please," Elodie hiccupped. "D-don't do this."

There was a flicker of remorse in his eyes as he pierced the needle into her neck, "I'm sorry." Flashes of heat and cold flooded her body almost instantly. Like she could tell if she was freezing or boiling under the fluorescent lighting. Then, starting at her chest and blossoming out, a sharp stabbing pain lingered.

A heart attack?

She couldn't breathe. Panting, she tried to take a deep lungful of air, but it was as if she was constantly being dipped underwater with no reprieve. The doctor looked over to the monitor readings that he was scanning. He switched for the viral signs to be displayed. "Elevated heart rate of 130. Blood pressure is dropping. Currently one hundred and two over fifty-eight." The data pad reads out.

"Heart rate is one hundred and fifty-nine. Blood pressure is ninety-four over fifty-two." Her hearing was fading, and the walls were beginning to whirl around in her vision.

"Heart rate is one hundred and eighty-eight. Blood pressure is eighty-six over forty-four."

"She's not tolerating the formula. Possible internal bleeding. The vessels are rupturing." He mumbled, documenting the information. "Let's try the second vial." It was the last thing she heard before going unconscious.

Then there was pain.

Everywhere.

Toe-curling. Throbbing. Aching.

Elodie woke sometime later to an eerie shrieking and pain dripping from every part of her body. Elodie swore she could feel her nails and hair radiate with excruciating pain. Like each nerve ending was being electrocuted. She had to take a deep breath, and then she noticed that the shrieking stopped—it was coming from her own voice.

Relaxing her spine back onto the bed from where it had arched, she panted and took in her surroundings. No one was in the room with her, and there was a medical droid beeping from above. Unable to move her hands from her restraints, she looked down to see multiple track marks, old and new, on her skin. There were also patches of gauze on her arms and legs, and it felt as though she had a severe carpet burn. Skin testing? Marking? Branding? She didn't want to know.

How long have I been here?

In deep, prolonged states of unconsciousness, she was hardly allowed moments of lucidity in fear she would rebel. The metal table under her hands bore large gouges from her strength and claws, and they'd been filed down smaller. She was thankful they removed the eye speculums so she could squeeze her eyes shut and pretend she was anywhere else but here.

The restraint on her forehead only permitted her vision to wonder so far. Elodie could feel the pumping intervals of the intravenous fluid they were poisoning her with as it entered her blood stream, which tainted her veins black along the length of her arm. Another wave of pulsating pain shot through her, deep in her bones.

Her femur snapped. Spontaneously.

She screamed.

Elodie tried to writhe, but the belts restricted the movement. Instead, she shook with violent tremors. The deep-seated pain travelled, and she could feel her ribs constrict and crack.

The screaming died down to wheezing.

Every single rib broke.

The process of breaking bones carried on until they were each fragmented and the muscles torn from their ligaments. Something strange happened after. As if she could no longer react to the extreme pain, she gasped. Her ears popped as if exiting the atmosphere.

The deep inhalation reset her ribs, making them wider and expanding outward. With her spine curving up, the band securing her snapped effortlessly. Her spine dropped back down, her shoulders and head freeing from the force wrenching her into curling inward. Her right hand broke loose, and she gripped around her waist, trying to catch her breath. Or hold herself together. She didn't know. She couldn't think straight.

The fingers of her left hand crunched and elongated, her nails growing at an exceptionally accelerated rate. The metal buckled under her strength. Bringing her knees up, she didn't even feel the final restraint snap when she toppled off the table onto her side. Her legs stretched and bent as she was unable to wriggle away from the pain of reforming bones.

Throwing her head back to release another guttural scream, the structure of her face elongated, her jaw unlatching and protruding. Her face was tearing itself apart. To anyone else, it looked like she was possessed and fitting on the floor. The surface of her skin prickled with a new heat, like a thousand tiny needles poking simultaneously as hairs projected from pores. Her teeth jutted out of her mouth, bigger than her jaw could handle.

And the scream morphed into a howl.

Din stormed up the gangway to the Slave I, striding past Fennac and heading straight into the other room with a singular cot. Cara strode in after him, the both having just released Mayfeld on Morak after he helped to retrieve the coordinates for Moff Gideon's ship. The Marshal did not understand the Mandalorian's sudden personality shift. As soon as the sharpshooter had disappeared in the thick foliage of the forest, Din was overwhelmed with a feeling of disappointment and disgust.

He let someone walk away after having seen his face.

"It's okay. We're going to get them back." Cara tried to calm him down, thinking that must be why he was so worked up. He couldn't tell her otherwise. "You don't know that!" He exploded, "You didn't see them before. When the Empire had them. It has taken them so long for them to heal, and now they're... they're gone again. And it is all my fault."

He took a slow breath. "Even if we do get them back, It won't be okay. They won't be okay."

Cara stood there in silence. She didn't know what to say or how to comfort the hurting man. Since the child and the Wolven were taken, Din has changed. He became somehow different—darker. If they thought he was quiet before, then the man was the embodiment of silence now. Not unless it involved making rescue plans.

The Mandalorian rammed his fist into the wall. It elicited a thunderous bang. It felt good. His nostrils flared with a sharp exhale, and he slammed his other fist into the wall. Pain. Good. Distraction. Then back to the other. The pain spreading in his right fist was a keen outlet for the anger and disappointment. He yelled, pounding harder.

The punches stopped rolling, and his helmet fell forward to rest against the wall. His imagination brought him to picture Elodie in front of him with her head against his, and not against the wall. Clarity came to him like being doused in cold water. He would have to make a point to apologise to Cara later. He didn't mean what he said, but there was just so much frustration that he didn't know what to do with it.

The Mandalorian sighed, turning to press his back against the wall and sink down. Din extended his stiff fingers, they were going to be bruised regardless of the leather padding of the gloves.

To the side, Boba Fett stood at the doorway, helmet off, and staring at the Mandalorian understandingly. "I'll take it from here."

Cara ducked her head and walked out the door without saying a word.

"You have faithful companions." Boba started, pushing himself off the door frame. "Don't let your fear push them away when you are needing them the most." He cited wisely.

"You're right. I'm just struggling to maintain composure." Din felt the burning of unshed tears well in his eyes. He would not let them fall. Not now. "I removed my helmet."

Din didn't know why he could feel like he could share that information with a total stranger when he couldn't with one of his only friends. Perhaps he was seeking comfort from another Mandalorian who would not judge him for his transgressions.

"Elodie is a strong woman. You must be a man of good character if she chose to remain with you. They must be worth the price if you were willing to barter your beliefs." Boba consoled, and sat himself on the cot directly in front of him. Din looked up at the man, feeling like a child under his knowing gaze. Boba watched him clench and unclench his hands. The helmet did not feel right sat on his head. Maybe it would never feel right again. After all, had he not just discarded his entire religion? In front of Imperials, no less.

Din let out a humourless laugh, "If I were, she would still be here. She called out for me, and I didn't get to them in time." If the woman saw him here now, on the floor, she would tell him to stop the pity-fest and do something about it. But that was just it—he didn't know what to do. Boba set his helmet to the side carefully and placed his hands on his knees.

"You don't understand. No one understands." Din swallowed, emotion thick in his voice. "How much the Empire affected Elodie. When I came back for her and the child, she was chained up like some kind of animal. Track marks, mouth guards— you name it. Sometimes when she slept, she would get these awful nightmares or memories—I don't know. But she screams and cries. Every. Time. I used to stay up and hold her hands so she wouldn't end up clawing at herself while asleep. She never knew that I knew."

Din met Boba Fett's eyes. "And it's going to get worse."

"You're wrong. I do understand. I spent days awaiting my own death in the belly of the Sarlacc. With other bodies around me and the acidic bile scoring my armour and peeling away my flesh." Boba stroked the chipping paint of his armour. "But I survived. Yes, there are moments when I think I'm still trapped and delirious in the belly of the beast. Time will help her heal. We just have to get to her first."

The two men sat there, both contemplating each other's words. Boba felt deep sorrow for what his sister had experienced in his time away, and vowed to make the Empire pay. On the other side, Din thought about how much pain and suffering the other Mandalorian had to undergo while in recovery. The man had built himself up from nothing and was stronger for it.

Maybe he and Elodie were more alike than he thought.

Din pondered, "You taught Elodie a great deal about Mandalorians."

"I taught Elodie everything she knows, Mandalorian. You will have to be more specific." He smirked. The tense atmosphere in the small cabin of the ship eased with the conversation change. "I meant that you know a lot about... The Death Watch." The name left a bitter taste in his mouth.

Boba made a face of 'ah', eyebrows piqued up in curiosity. "I am old and have travelled to the far corners of the galaxy. There is not much I don't know. Were you born or raised?"

"I was a foundling. My home was attacked by battle droids, and I was among the few to be rescued by the Mandalorians."

The older man hummed thoughtfully. "I saved Elodie as a child. Did she ever tell you the story?" Din shook his head. He recalled Elodie saying that Boba had saved her and taken her under his wing as a foundling, but with no details. "She was a child fighting scurriers in the scrap yards when I found her. Even then, she was a fighter. Claws and teeth on full display. I told her to calm down, and do you know what she did?" He laughed, "Kicked one of them in my direction and told me where to put my good intentions."

The imagery brought a smile to Din's face. Slowly, he began to relax against the wall. Boba noticed this and carried on. "It took her years to bring her guard down. It seems like you have gained her trust far quicker than we had."

"We've been through a lot. I think the child helped; he gave us a common goal."

"The child... is it yours?" Boba questioned. The Mandalorian felt his shoulders shake with small laughter. He held up his five fingers compared to the child's three, which also flashed the tanned skin of his wrist. "No. I'm Human. She told me she took him in not long after you left."

"Elodie always had an affinity for all creatures, lost or lonely." Boba remembered Elodie sneaking turkey legs through the grate to feed the Rankor during Jabba's rule. He never told her that it was fed enough by anyone who displeased the Daimyo.

Din stared down at his dirty boots at the comment. "That sounds about right." Boba felt bad about upsetting the man further. "What I see is a man fighting in order to protect those he loves. You do love her, do you not? Is it not why you risked your livelihood?" Din Djarin knew his feelings for the woman were strong before and now came to realise that he wouldn't be able to resume his life as it was if she and the child were ever to permanently depart. The idea both enthralled and scared him all at once. "With my entire being. Her and the child are my life."

"Then use that power to fuel vengeance, not revenge. Or you'll end up losing yourself and them."

Chapter 20: Chapter 18: The Rescue

Chapter Text

"I need your help." Din announced, reaching the table where Bo-Katan and Koska Reeves sat eating their dinner. Koska looked over her shoulder, unimpressed at the interruption. Bo smirked, looking over at the two male Mandalorians who stood mere feet away. "Not all Mandalorians are bounty hunters. Some of us serve a higher purpose."

The chrome Mandalorian closed his eyes, "They took Elodie and the child." Bo-Katan turned in her seat, now facing the men. "Who?"

"Moff Gideon."

"You'll never find them." Sorrow fell over her face, and the two went back to their meals in front of them. Boba Fett turned to the Mandalorian, "We don't need these two. Let's get outta here." Eyes snapping to the other man, she recognised the voice. "You are not a Mandalorian."

"Never said I was." He replied. At her side, Koska Reeves scoffed. "I didn't know sidekicks were allowed to talk."

Boba laughed. "Well, if that isn't the Quacta calling the Stifling slimy." She stood from her seat in front of Boba and looked up challengingly. Boba smirked under his helmet. "Easy there, little one."

Her lip curled, "You'll be talking through the window of a bacta tank."

"All right, easy." Bo said, sighing at the two facing off while there was a serious situation at hand. "Save it for the Imps." Koska returned to her seat.

The Mandalorian interjected. "We have his coordinates."

Bo-Katan looked at the Mandalorian in surprise, standing from her seat to face him directly. "You can bring me to Moff Gideon?" Din nodded and explained, "The Moff has a light cruiser. It could be helpful in your effort to regain Mandalore."

"You gotta be kidding me. Mandalore? The Empire turned that planet into glass." Boba snipped. Serve a higher purpose, pfft.

"You are a disgrace to your armour." Bo-Katan accused him, looking over him in disgust. A clone would not be considered a Mandalorian in her mind. Boba took a step towards her threateningly; how dare she say a word against him? His family? They are every bit as Mandalorian as her. "This armour belonged to my father."

Bo-Katan smirked, "Don't you mean your donor?"

"Careful, princess." He growled, but she continued. "You are a clone. I've heard your voice thousands of times."

"Mine might be the last one you hear." He finished, "You will not be the one to stop me from getting to Elodie."

"Elodie? Hm, I thought she belonged to Din Djarin." The woman frowned, looking between the two. Maybe she was mistaken on Trask, and they were not together. That, or a lot could have happened during the time they were apart.

"She is family." Boba corrected, trying to express how he wanted her safe without sounding desperate to the Mandalorians. Bo nodded and turned to Din. "We will help you. In exchange, we will keep that ship to retake Mandalore. If you should manage to finish your quest, I would have you reconsider joining our efforts. Mandalorians have been in exile from our home world for far too long."

"Fair enough." Din replied, not exactly answering her question. All he planned to do was save Elodie and Grogu from the empire. From there, they could decide together what they wanted to do. I would follow them anywhere.

"One more thing." The woman stated as they picked up their helmets to leave the cantina. "Gideon has a weapon that once belonged to me. It is an ancient weapon that can cut through anything."

Koska interrupted. "Almost anything."

"It cannot cut through pure Beskar. I will kill the Moff and retake what is rightfully mine. With the Dark Saber restored to me, Mandalore will finally be within reach." They donned their helmets and stood to await the response of the men. The Mandalorian men looked at each other and nodded in agreement.

"Help me rescue my clan, and you can have whatever you want. They are my only priority." With an understanding in place, they gathered on the Slave I to try and formulate their next plan.

-

With Doctor Pershing in their clutches, all the team had to do now was get onto the Imperial cruiser, rescue Elodie and Grogu, and overthrow Moff Gideon and his army. Din found himself in the hull of the Slave I as they looked over the maps on the imperial cruiser, rolling Grogu's favourite ball in between his fingers.

It reassured him to know that he would have them back in his arms soon enough. Din was also pleased with the message he had sent to Moff Gideon over comm. He hoped the recording struck a cord of fear in the man—the same fear he felt when his family was quite literally being torn away from him.

Now, as the team stood together, Bo-Katan formulated a plan. "This is Moff Gideon's Imperial light cruiser. In the old days, it would carry a crew of several hundred. Now it operates with a tiny fraction of that." Doctor Pershing, who sat in a chair in cuffs, butted in. "Your assessment is misleading." Cara Dune rolled her eyes at the imperial doctor. "Oh, great. An objective opinion."

"This isn't subterfuge. I assure you."

Bo-Katan decided to give him a chance to see what he had to say. "Let him speak."

"There's a garrison of dark troopers on board. They abducted them." He stood, walking to the projection, and pointing out the areas he was referring to.

"How many troopers do they have armed in those suits?" Din asked.

"These are third-generation designs. They are no longer suits. The human inside was the final weakness to be solved. They're droids." Pershing answered. Fennec asked, "Where are they bivouacked?" He pointed to the middle of the ship. "They're held in cold storage in this cargo bay. They draw too much power to be kept at ready."

"How long to power up?"

"A few minutes, perhaps." He shrugged. Din crossed his arms, curling the ball in his palm. "Where are they holding my family?" Pershing licked his lips nervously. "This is the brig. The child's being held under an armed guard."

At the silence that followed, Din asked again. "And Elodie?"

"Deck three." The Mandalorian found himself taking a step towards the doctor, his grip on the ball unrelenting. "What were you planning on doing with her?"

"That depends, will you kill me when I tell you?" The doctor asked nervously, avoiding any and all eye contact with the 'T' of his visor.

Din's chest rumbled, "I'll kill you if you don't."

Pershing cleared his throat, taking a discreet step back in case the Mandalorian lost his temper. "The samples I harvested—I found a way to mutate the Wolven gene. They'll be testing the changes on her. The last results I performed did not show promise, but she was not stable enough to be held in the lab."

At the news, Din glared daggers at the man. He wanted to kill him. Bring him to the brink of death and revive him to repeat the process. See how he liked the feeling of numbness and pain all at the same time.

"We split into two parties." Bo intervened, knowing the silence radiating from the Mandalorian was not a good one.

"I go alone." Din quipped.

"Fine." She said.

Bo-Katan went on to explain her plan. "Phase one: Lambda Shuttle issues a distress call. Two, we emergency land at the mouth of the fighter launch tube, cutting off any potential interceptors. Koska, Fennec, Dune, and myself disembark with maximum initiative. Once we've neutralised the launch bay, we make our way through these tandem decks in a penetration manoeuvre."

Din wondered where he would be. "And me?" She looked over her shoulder at him. "We'll be misdirection. Once we draw a crowd, you slip through the shadows, get the kid and the Wolven."

"Those dark troopers are gonna be a real skan* in the scud pie." Cara added from her place, leaning against the wall.

"Their bay is on the way to the brig. Can he make it there before they deploy?" Bo directed the question to the doctor. He wanted to seem like he was agreeable to their plans, so he answered. "It's possible." Fennec passed the key over to Din, who tucked it into his utility belt. "Here. Take his code cylinder and seal off their holding bay. Anyone else, we can handle."

"We'll meet at the bridge." Din summed up.

It was time to get his family back.

Din crept around the corner and quickly dispatched the two storm troopers standing guard over the child's cell. The others had probably made their way to the bridge by now. He was delayed by a fight with one of the dark troopers that managed to escape holding before he ejected the rest from the ship. The headache he got from being pummelled was the least of his problems right now.

He slipped through the door with the cylinder code but stopped short at the sight of Moff Gideon standing over the child. The Dark Saber pressed close. "Drop the blaster. Slowly."

The Mandalorian did as requested, holding his hands up in surrender. The Moff nodded. "Now kick it over to me." He kicked it over to his feet. "Very nice."

"Give me the kid." Din demanded, his hands slowly coming down to his sides. He had no more tricks up his sleeves.

Moff Gideon glared. Keeping the Dark Saber drawn. "The kid is just fine where he is. Mesmerizing, isn't it? Used to belong to Bo-Katan. Yes. I know you've been travelling with Bo-Katan. A friendly piece of advice, assume that I know everything. Like the fact that your wrist launcher has fired its one and only salvo." He waved the light Saber around almost carelessly, causing Din's muscles to tense under the mounds of Beskar.

"Where is this going?" He sighed.

"This is where it's going. I'm guessing that Bo-Katan and her boarding party have arrived at the bridge, seeking me, or, more accurately, this. But I'm not there. And I imagine that they've killed everyone on the bridge, being the murder savages that they are. And now, they're beginning to panic. You see, she wants this. Do you know why? Because it brings power. Whoever wields this sword... has the right to lay claim to the Mandalorian throne." Gideon gloated.

"You keep it. I just want the kid." The Moff looked to be considering the proposition, and Din secretly hoped that he would accept the offer. In the end, he nodded, sheathing the Dark Saber. "Very well. I've already got what I want from him. His blood. All I wanted was to study his blood. This child is extremely gifted and has been blessed with rare properties that have the potential to bring order back to the galaxy. I see your bond with him. Take him, but you will leave my ship immediately, and we will go our separate ways."

The offer sounded genuine, but Din was still on edge. The man had no redeeming qualities. Approaching the child slowly, he kept his guard up. Grogu whimpered, reaching up at him with his hands still in cuffs.

The Dark Saber whirred to life.

It crashed down on the Mandalorians Beskar jet pack. Obviously, Moff Gideon was not aware that the light Saber was unable to penetrate pure Beskar alloy. Din fell to his knees but stood quickly to deflect the next blow. He used his vambraces and pauldrons to repel the hits from Moff Gideon. They found themselves backing away from the cell and into the hallway.

Din unsheathed his Beskar spear, retaliating. He grunted under the force of the hits and swung the spear out. The Moff ducked and swung. The spear caught the swing and deflected it into the wall beside them.

The Mandalorian backed up, and the Dark Saber dug a long gouge into the wall.

Din brought his leg up and kicked Gideon in the shin. He shouted, stepping back, and Din flung his leg back into the base of the spear, twisting it up and around to send the Moff stumbling back.

Gideon cut the fibercord that shot from the Mandalorians wrist to subdue him. Din advanced before he had time to recover and threw the Dark Saber from his grip.

It receded into the hilt and clattered to the floor beside Din while he held Gideon to the floor with the tip of his spear. "You're sparing my life? Well, this should be interesting." Din pressed the spear closer to the man's neck, drawing blood.

"Now if you value your life, you'll take me to her."

There was a long walk ahead of them, and Din heard the growling first.

The metal walls of the imperial ship seemed to keep the sound resonating. Ahead of him, Gideon led the way, a manipulative smirk hanging on his bloody face. Moff Gideon complied with the orders given to him and bypassed all access points with his fingerprints without much ado. The urge to clock him didn't fade even after the ten-minute stroll. On their journey, Din released the cuffs on the child's wrists and held him in a tight embrace.

Due to the Mandalorian's rough idea of where she was being held, he knew that the Moff was not leading him into a trap. Deck three looked like a brig, with electrical beams in place of barred cell doors—like cages.

The lights were dimmed. The Moff stopped in front of one particular cell that appeared to be vacant. Retracting the beam of the light Saber, Din holstered it to his belt. The child was set down on the floor and given strict instructions to keep an eye on the Moff.

Grogu glared at Gideon, his hand raised in threat if he dared to move. The Moff continued smirking and leaned against the opposing wall, eager to see the events play out for themselves.

Shooting at the locks, the electric beams dissipated, and Din took a hesitant step into the cell. In the dark depths of the cell, two electric blue eyes train on Din's figure. He recognised her eyes. The ones he would see when she tapped into her Wolven ways.

"Elodie?"

A snarl met his ears, and stepping out of the shadows, Elodie stalked closer.

As a wolf.

Tall, lean, and menacing. The wolf stood with its hackles raised, its black fur almost blending in with its surroundings. Behind him, Gideon started laughing. Din gritted his teeth. He would make the man pay for what they had made his family endure. Him and all those under his employ. Confusion and rage ripped through his heart. What have they done to you?

Choosing to focus on Elodie, Din crouched closer to the floor to try and show that he was not a threat to the beast that had corrupted the woman he loved. She snarled again, flicking her tongue over her exposed teeth.

"It's me. Din Djarin. You know me."

"She cannot understand you, Mandalorian." Gideon called from behind him.

"Elodie... Ner runi." She pounced, taking them both to the floor. Behind them, Din heard Grogu whimper in concern for them both. [My soul]

"The woman you knew is now the beast she was designed to be." Gideon taunted. Din clenched his jaw, staring at those blank blue eyes. "What did you do to her!"

"Unlocked her full potential."

The beast had the Mandalorian pinned beneath her, paws set heavily on his chest. He held his hands up in surrender on either side of him, still trying to prove he had no intentions to harm her. Inches from his face, the wolf snapped, the loud clap of her jaw causing him to flinch. It was clear that she was doing it because she felt threatened rather than out of mindless bloodlust; otherwise, she would have killed him almost instantly.

Din slowly raised one hand, and it eyed the hand in warning. Luckily, it allowed him to bring his hand to the cleft of his helmet.

And raised it.

The helmet exposed just above his brow. Their position on the floor and the shadows of the cell allowed for his face to be concealed from anyone who wasn't standing directly over him. The wolf stared down at his patchy hair and muddy eyes. Only they looked more sunken in, and his hair was scruffier than normal.

"Eddy, olaror norac at cuyir." [Come back to me]

Blue eyes melted into black. The wolf blinked, looking at the Beskar-clad form in confusion. Where was she? Elodie looked around, noting that she was in a cell. Still on the imperial cruiser. In front of her cell stood Grogu and a bloody Moff Gideon. And below her, Din? An unfamiliar face.

Helmetless.

Upon looking down, she saw paws in place of hands, and sharp claws threatening to pierce his Beskar cuirass. She whimpered, her ears pinned to her head, and she backed off of her partner. She wanted to apologise. She wanted to cry, and most of all she wanted to run into his arms and let the warmth of his embrace help her forget all the pain she felt.

The wolf whimpered again.

Sitting, the Mandalorian pulled his helmet back down and brought the wolf forward by the scruff of her neck. They embraced, with Elodie resting her head on Din's broad shoulder. "It's okay, baby. I've got you now. The both of you are safe."

Din felt the trembles through her thick pelt. Whether she was in pain, shocked, or scared, he didn't know. Maybe all three? He found himself holding her tighter and squeezing his eyes shut to commit this moment to memory.

The press of her body to his after all these weeks of searching, they were both back in his arms again.

And he would destroy anyone who threatened that again.

He stood abruptly, hands slipping from around Elodie to face the Moff once again. Din took pleasure in the way the smirk fell from the man's face as he stalked over and stood over him. Even though the Moff refused to show fear, beads of sweat perspired along his forehead as he watched every movement. "How do you reverse it?"

Din was too far gone to feel pleasure in Gideon's obvious nervousness. "You can't." One right hook, and the Moff was on the floor, his chained hands too slow to catch his fall. "I'll ask again. How do you reverse it?"

"You can't! We tried." A swift kick to the ribs, and he was grunting from the cracks that formed.

And another, just because he could. The Moff dribbled blood.

Din panted above the man, wanting to do so much more but refraining from doing so in order to get his family to safety. He licked his lips and turned to see Grogu trying to run over to Elodie.

The wolf lowered closer to the ground so the child could embrace her head; which was larger than his entire body. Grogu babbled aimlessly into her fur, and she let out a snort in what he guessed to be laughter.

Din released the Dark Saber from its place on his belt and ignited it again, "Get up." He ordered. Gideon struggled to his feet, using the wall as leverage, and glared at him. "Take us to the bridge."

Elodie stalked up beside him, the child on her back. She was far taller now that they were both standing beside one another, and she came up to his mid-torso. The child let out a coo of delight, hands tightly wrung in the fur of her scruff.

"We'll fix this." Din promised her as they walked.

It was a slow walk, but they eventually made it to the bridge without coming across any members of the empire. Din had kept Moff Gideon at gunpoint with the Dark Saber to ensure he didn't pull any of his tricks en route to the bridge. At the consoles, the Night Owls were standing with Cara Dune and Fennec Shand after they had successfully commandeered the vessel. The group looked as the Moff was led by Din and a Wolf carrying Grogu.

Fennec stared in confusion, "What happened?"

"He brought him in alive, that's what happened. And now the New Republic's gonna have to double the payment." Cara smirked, happy that the Mandalorian had done as she'd asked.

"That's not what she meant." Gideon stated, spitting out a glob of bloody spit.

Din realised that Elodie wasn't exactly in her normal form and rested a hand on top of her head. "They've done something to Elodie, and she's stuck in this form. I don't know how to reverse it, but first we need to find somewhere safe that isn't an imperial cruiser."

The wolf huffed, sitting down to allow the child to dismount.

Bo-Katan didn't listen to what he was saying. She was concerned with the weapon he now had in his hands. The weapon that was promised to her so that she could rally Mandalorian's to retake Mandalore. The Moff had the courage to bring the smirk back to his beaten face. "Why don't you kill him now and take the Dark Saber?" Gideon leaned in, "It's yours now."

"What is?" Din asked. Gideon replied, "The Dark Saber. It belongs to you."

Din disengaged the sword, bearing the handle for Bo-Katan to take. She stared down at it, forlorn, wanting to take it but her pride not allowing so. "Now... it belongs to her."

"She can't take it." Gideon snorted. "It must be won in battle. In order for her to wield the Dark Saber again, she would need to defeat you in combat."

"That's ridiculous," Din held it out further, "I yield. It's yours."

"Oh, no. It doesn't work that way. The Dark Saber doesn't have power. The story does. Without that blade, she's a pretender to the throne."

"He's right." Bo admitted. Growing impatient, Din said more forcefully, "Come on, just take it."

Alarms on the console began blaring, catching the attention of all the people on the bridge. Cara was the first one there. "Well, perhaps she'll get another crack at it."

"The ray shields have been breached. We're being boarded." Fennac added, hovering over her shoulder. Elodie snagged the child up by his cloak, using her teeth, and set him down at the base of the console. She sat herself beside him so that he would be able to lean into her.

"How many life forms?"

"None." Dread set in. They all knew what it meant and the possibility of it happening. Dark troopers were on their way. There were plenty in number, and they were notoriously hard to kill. Stood at the steps to the console, Gideon smiled smugly. "You're about to face off with the dark troopers. You had your hands full with one. Let's see how you do against a platoon."

"They're headed this way." Bo-Katan said. Cara walked up to the console, throwing Gideon onto the steps on her way. Din patted the head of the child as he walked past, the wolf also nuzzling into the side of his helmet. "Don't worry. I'm gonna get you out of here."

Fennec shouted, "Seal the blast doors!" As the dark troopers were seen getting closer. "They're here."

There was pounding on the doors. They wouldn't last long under the weight being pummelled into them. Everyone in the co*ckpit drew their weapons out.

"You have an impressive fire team protecting you. But I think we all know, after a valiant stand, everyone in this room will be dead... but me... and the child." The doors were starting to cave in and peel open.

An aircraft swung by the window of the imperial cruiser, and an alarm sounded from the proximity. "An X-wing." The Marshal rolled her eyes, focusing on her scope again. "One X-wing? Great. We're saved."

"Incoming craft, identify yourself." Bo-Katan requested over the comms. There was no answer. On the camera, it entered the shuttle bay, and a lone figure exited. At the boarding, the dark troopers stopped their pursuit. "Why did they stop?" Moff Gideon was not impressed.

The figure glided up the corridors, wielding a light Saber. "A Jedi?" The Nite Owl whispered in shock. The Wolf staring at the screen beside her whimpered.

Moff Gideon stood, firing the hidden blaster at Bo-Katan and the Wolf. Both fell to the ground, crying out in pain. Upon their fall, it exposed the child to him. He aligned his blaster and Din dove in front of the shots to protect Grogu. The shots recoiled off his cuirass and he grunted at the impact. No doubt, it would leave marks later.

"Drop it!" Fennec shouted, the three other women in the co*ckpit holding him at gunpoint. Noting his limited options, he held the blaster under his chin and prepared to end his own life. Cara swooped in, knocking it away and hitting the butt of her rifle against his head. "Din!" Bo-Katan exclaimed, sat beside the black wolf.

Din ran to Elodie, falling to her side. Her side was rising and falling rapidly with her breaths. He ran his hand through the fur and came across a thick substance clumping her fur. Pulling his hand back, his glove was covered in blood.

"No." He whispered, "No, no, no, no!"

Elodie whimpered, barely lifting her head. He leaned down and pressed his helmet close to her head. "Oh baby. I am so sorry. I'm sorry."

She wanted to be human again. To hug him and Grogu while she slipped away.

The wolf licked his vambrace, the only part she was able to reach, as he leaned back to stroke her head. Feeling a light pressure above her wound, the child concentrated on drawing the force forward.

He fell back and frowned, unable to heal her with his exhaustion. Din held the child close, consoling him. Grogu looked up at Din and pointed towards the door. On the cameras, the Jedi had dispatched the dark troopers and was waiting patiently outside for them to grant him access.

"Open the doors." Din demanded, his voice thick with emotion. There was a hesitation among the girls in the co*ckpit. "I said, open the doors."

"Are you crazy?"

As a result of the indents made by the droids, the doors did not open all the way. Amongst the smoke, a man walked in, wielding a green light Saber.

"Are you a Jedi?" The Mandalorian asked. If Elodie had the energy, she would have rolled her eyes. The Jedi ahead of him slid down his hood to reveal his face. The face of Luke Skywalker, the infamous Jedi who ended the first wave of the Empire. "I am."

The Jedi looked beyond Din and to the fleeting breaths of the wolf by his side. Luke tilted his head and approached her. "What're you doing?" Din asked, seeing him kneel at her other side.

Luke hovered a hand over her side, and it trembled under the force. "Healing her."

Elodie yelped, feeling the skin weave itself together under his hand. The burnt flesh perfused with new vessels as it knitted itself back together. She sat up slightly, keeping her bottom on the ground as she rose her upper half. There was blood still on her fur, but the wound itself was healed in minutes. She nodded her head in gratitude at the man.

Beside her, Din sighed in relief. He wanted to touch her but feared he would interfere with the Jedi's workings.

Luke stood.

"Come, little one." He held his hand out to the child.

Grogu didn't move and instead looked up at the Mandalorian. Din cast his eyes towards the Jedi. "He doesn't want to go with you."

Luke stared at him, the two exchanging thoughts. "He wants your permission. He is strong with the Force, but talent without training is nothing. I will give my life to protect the child, but he will not be safe until he masters his abilities."

"Hey, go on. That's who you belong with. He's one of your kind. I'll see you again. I promise." Din swore, picking up the child. This could possibly be the last time seeing Grogu. Din slid a hand up to remove the helmet. He dropped it to the floor beside him and stared into the eyes of the foundling he and Elodie adopted as their own. The one they spent the last few years caring for and protecting. Loving.

Din had already removed his helmet once to save his family. Why should they be the ones not to see him? It should have been them. He wanted it to have been them first.

Grogu cooed at the sight of his face, finally being able to put a face to the Buir he loved. He reached up, stroking his patchy beard, and Din gave him a tight-lipped smile, trying not to let traitorous tears run down his face. He needed to be strong. [Parent]

"All right, pal. It's time to go. Don't be afraid."

Din set the child on the floor, and he started walking towards the Jedi after receiving a lick to the face from Elodie. No amount of gestures in this form could convey her love for him. Beside the man, the astromech bleeped in welcome. Luke picked up the child, noting that he was asking to be carried, and nodded to the Mandalorian.

"May the Force be with you." And they left.

No one moved until the X-Wing crossed over the window again. Out of respect, the others in the co*ckpit avoided looking at the Mandalorian. He squeezed his eyes shut, allowing a few tears to run down, and brought a gloved hand up to wipe them away. Din knelt down to pick up his helmet and found himself looking into the T of the visor.

He'd lost his creed and his foundling. He'd almost lost Elodie.

Sighing, he tucked it back on his head and felt the brush of Elodie coming to his side. She yapped, tucking his head under his arm to help him stand again on shaky legs. "Thank you."

His eyes fell over the bloody patch of fur, "You okay?" She nodded her head, unable to answer.

"Boba. Come in, Boba." Fennec called, hand to the comm on her shoulder lapel. It took a second before he replied, "I hear you. Are they safe?"

"Affirmative. Ready for pickup."

"On it." His ship flew by, and the Imperial cruiser once again was alarmed by an approaching ship. Fennec reached over to silence it. Elodie's ears flicked at hearing her brother's voice once again, excited to see him. She thought about what he might think when he saw her. It felt strange. Walking on four limbs instead of two and being unable to form her mouth into words.

"He's docking. We should head down." The assassin informed them. The Nite Owls remained at the console, and Bo stepped forward, "We are going to take command of the ship. We can use it in our fight to retake Mandalore." Bo-Katan went up to Din and placed a hand on his shoulder, "I know that you need time to grieve. You know where to find us if you ever reconsider joining. We could use someone like you on our side."

Din nodded at her and said, "Thank you all for your help." Elodie barked, "It means more to us than you'll ever know. I am in your debt."

Cara heaved the dead weight of Moff Gideon over her shoulder and followed them out of the bridge and towards the shuttle bay, where Boba Fett was waiting in the Slave I. They stepped over the discarded bodies and limbs of fallen Dark troopers and Storm troopers alike.

In the shuttle bay, Boba Fett waited on the ramp in mild apprehension. He kept an eye out in case there were any loose ends needing to be taken care of, but it was as if the entire ship had been emptied of enemy forces.

The lift opened to reveal Din Djarin, Fennac Shand, Cara Dune carrying Moff Gideon, and... a wolf.

He tilted his helmet.

Cara and Fennec strode past him into the ship, and the other two stood to meet him at the base of the ship. "Where is my sister?"

The Wolf sat down, running her eyes over the painted Beskar. She hadn't seen it as fresh as this since she had met the man. "Boba, " Din nodded in greeting, "The child has been returned to the Jedi. But they've done something to her. Experimented. The wolf is Elodie."

He looked down wordlessly and bent a knee to her level. Her ears were pinned to her head, and she whimpered. "I am glad you are safe, Vod'ika." Boba ran a hand over her head. [Little sister]

Boba returned to his full height and faced the Mandalorian. "Now they are safe, the debt is paid. I shall return you to Nevarro."

There was so much Elodie wanted to say to her brother. How much she loved him and how glad she was that he had found her. She stood by Din's side and looked at her brother, hoping he understood what she was trying to portray.

"You will be staying with the Mandalorian." Boba summarised, not questioning the idea. Din stroked her ear, and she pressed closer to his side. Din was pleased he had her brother's approval.

"I understand, Vod'ika. You have your own life now, and I wish you well." [Little sister]

Chapter 21: 【ＴＨＥ ＢＯＯＫ　ＯＦ　ＢＯＢＡ　ＦＥＴＴ】

Chapter Text

【ＰＬＡＹＬＩＳＴ】

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1oW3AockpvLHr1u0q1lIXe?si=db656af4ba844562

Kate Beckinsale as

【ＥＬＯＤＩＥ　ＳＬＡＴＥ - ＥＤＤＹ】

Pedro Pascal as

【ＤＩＮ　ＤＪＡＲＩＮ - ＴＨＥ　ＭＡＮＤＡＬＯＲＩＡＮ】

Grogu as

【ＧＲＯＧＵ - ＴＨＥ　ＣＨＩＬＤ 】

Ming-Na Wen as

【ＦＥＮＮＡＣ　ＳＨＡＮＤ】

Temuera Morrison as

【ＢＯＢＡ　ＦＥＴＴ】

【ＤＩＳＣＬＡＩＭＥＲ】

I do not own The Mandalorian or the rights to The Mandalorian. I do, however, take ownership of my main character Elodie Slate, her story and the book cover. Please do not copy or translate my work without my consent. I also do not own any of the images, memes, songs or gifs added to the story. All Mando'a translation are made through the websites: Lingojam and Mandoa.org. MATURE CONTENT WARNING.

Chapter 22: Chapter 19: The Mandalorian

Chapter Text

Entering the slaughterhouse, the Mandalorian gazed around the room to survey his surroundings, as any good bounty hunter would. Slabs of meat were being chopped by staff, and hung up all around were the macerated carcasses of various beasts. Walking through the plastic sheeting, the Mandalorian approached the singular table at the back. Sat there, three men counted their coins, but at the intrusion, they looked towards the door.

"You look lost." The one in the middle called out. Behind Din, a guard next to the door took a step forward.

"I'm here for Kaba Baiz." Din said, brandishing a beeping FOB. The man chuckled. "What makes you think he's here? What do you want of him?"

"He owes someone important money." Din responded, looking at his bounty. "Who?"

The Mandalorian shrugged. "That's not my business. I'm here to bring him in." The man threw some coins at the table. "Well, if I see him, I'll let him know."

"I see him right now." Din popped the puck on the table, and it illuminated with a projection of the man's face. He looked nervously between the image and his companions at the table, adding to the large pile. "That's not me. That doesn't even look like me."

The Mandalorian moved his helmet over the other men in the room, not wanting this to be harder than he imagined it was going to play out. "I'm gonna give the rest of you the opportunity to walk out that door. I have no quarrel with you." None of the men moved, instead, they brought their arms to either cross their chests or hover over their blasters.

"They're not going anywhere. Looks to me like you're surrounded. ... But you look like the practical type. Let's discuss our options." The man said smugly, knowing his men were well paid for their loyalty. Din sighed, bringing his own hand to hover over his blaster and unbuckled the latch. He dropped his voice an octave. "I can bring you in warm, or I can bring you in cold."

The guard beside him lunged at Din's hand as it whipped his pistol from its holster. The shot fired missed the bounty by inches, and Din grunted in discomfort. A few teeth managed to pierce the thick leather of his gloves and scraped the skin of the back of his hand.

He pushed the man back and fired at another sneaking up behind him.

"You like to bite?" Din grunted, "I know someone else who also likes to bite."

Outside, yells of surprise were heard, and the plastic parted to reveal a stalking black wolf. It growled, baring its teeth.

She took a quick scope of the room to see some men running to attack the Mandalorian.

Elodie smelled a small amount of Din's blood on the mouth of one of the men. Eyes trained on him, she pounced and landed on his chest on the floor. He didn't get a chance to make a noise before she was gnawing at his face. He tried batting her away, but soon his arms dropped limp when the skin of his face peeled away like a sheet.

Din buckled to his knees as someone fired shots at his back. They repelled off the Beskar, and while he was down, he was able to retrieve the Dark Saber from his holster, igniting the void light.

The Mandalorian dragged the heavy blade against the concrete floor, using the momentum to swing it up and around to the man behind him. He ran it through another man, and as it withdrew from his chest, the molten blade grazed against the supple flesh of his thigh, beyond the Beskar.

While he was indisposed, Elodie ensured the bounty would not escape. She jumped in front of the exit, her hackles raised in warning. One attempted to pass but lost his arms in doing so. Elodie dropped the limb from her mouth, blood dripping from her muzzle.

"What in the kriff is that!" The bounty cried, eyes wide and horrified.

His face looks like a vagin*, and he has the nerve to criticize? She thought, shaking her head. A knife was sliced against her face, and the man attempted to catch her off guard. She whimpered automatically as the wound caught the corner of her mouth to the corner of her eye.

The Mandalorian recovered from the blow to his thigh and stood with a newfound rage burning deep within his gut. The pent-up frustration of the past couple of months since losing the child and his ship bubbling to the surface and simmering over.

He yelled and dug his own vibro blade into the bounty's chest up to the hilt. Using the momentum, he forced him back onto the table, swinging his other arm with the Dark Saber and splitting the man in half. The man and the table collapsed on the floor in two separate sections.

Din brought the Dark Saber down again to decapitate the man, to provide his client with proof of completion, and bagged it in the sack used for their coins. The Wolven rarely saw this unhinged side of the Mandalorian. He scarcely spoke of his bounty-hunting years before meeting her and Grogu.

Elodie wandered over to her partner and dove under his arm, unsure of how to help otherwise. There would be no words of comfort or reassurance from her. He used her to lean on while they limped out of the room. Outside, the bounty's men were gathered in curiosity about the fuss. If it came to a fight, the Mandalorian could show no weakness. Din straightened to hide the weight of his limp and called out to the men.

"Your boss is dead. I'm here to collect on his bounty. I have no trouble with any of you. There's a pile of New Republic credits in there that I have no right to. If you do me the honour of letting me pass, you all can help yourselves to whatever you think you deserve from your former employer."

The men clamoured around them to get first dibs on the credits left behind. Thankfully. He sighed softly and resumed leaning on Elodie as they walked back to the casino on the Glavis Ringworld.

It was a very slow pace they took. Din was unable to take longer or faster strides as his thigh muscles trembled horribly and the burning-

Oh god, the burning.

He felt sweat build up on his forehead beneath the helmet and occasionally he was unable to hold back the grunt of pain when the decapitated head in the bag brushed against it. Elodie had had enough and pinched the bag between her teeth to stop him from causing further harm.

Passersby were none-the-wiser in what they were carrying in the bag. They took the lift up to the penthouse and stood in awkward silence. It felt like the pair were new acquaintances again, sitting in prolonged silence and Din sighing enough for the both of them. Despite the months that passed, Elodie was still unable to take back her human form, and the Mandalorian had sunk into a depressive state as he felt alone and isolated. She could do nothing but watch the man she loved recede into a hollow shell of himself.

The bustle of partygoers and loud music blasted through speakers made it difficult to hear as they made their way through the casino penthouse. Din spotted the client on a table to the side of the party and began walking towards it.

"That was fast. You're a good hunter." The client conversed in Huttese, a language both of them were able to understand. "I'd like my reward and the information you promised." Din replied in basic.

"Why are you rushing business, Mando?" The creature asked, pausing their meal as the Wolven dropped the head of the bounty on the table. Elodie snagged a turkey leg while she was there.

"My business is my own. Where is it?"

The client insisted, "Sit and enjoy a meal with us. Your companion looks famished." It's true, Elodie was always hungry in this new form. Din ignored the man as well as the wolf polishing off the bone. "Where is the closest access shaft to the substrata?" A bag of credits was dropped beside the decapitated head, but the Mandalorian made no move to collect it.

"Sit and feast with us, or I will tell you nothing."

Din snatched up the head and turned to walk away. "You can keep your reward. There's a bounty on this Klatooinian. If you won't give me the information, someone else will."

"It's down Kolzoc Alley by the heat vent towers." The client rushed. "Please sit. I have another job for you." Din made the decision to leave for good this time, now that he had the information he needed.

"I'd put that on ice if I were you." He called carelessly over his shoulder to the dinner guests.

Din gripped onto the rail in the elevator with unbridled strength. His eyes squeezed shut, and he breathed heavily, allowing a small moment of weakness in his stupor. The wound was red hot, and blistered, but luckily not bleeding. The molten laser of the Dark Saber instantly cauterised the wound as it was created. Elodie whined at his side, and he used his other hand to stroke the back of her neck. "It's okay. I'm okay. I just need a second."

A second was all he had before the doors swung open and they had to walk again. The ring of the halo allowed them to see the entire civilization above them. The other side was cast in daylight by the star they were near.

Din's strides were slowing, and the more they walked, the heavier his weight grew against her. He clicked a few buttons on his vambrace, allowing his visor to show any Mando'a markings invisible to the human eye. It directed them to the covert, a secret passageway through an uneventful alleyway that led to the sublevels of the halo.

They walked through the door and looked down into the vast pits of space. Ladders were the only access to the covert.

f*ck.

Elodie looked to Din, and he looked down at her. She sat down, silently insisting that she wait behind for the Mandalorian while he journeyed to reunite with his covert. "What're you doing?" He asked, getting ready to descend the first flight.

She shook her head.

"I'll have to carry you. Come 'ere." He held a hand out at the top of the ladder.

Elodie shook her head again, stamping her paw down. "I'm not leaving you behind." He sighed, "Even without talking, you give me attitude."

He stalked over to her and heaved the body of the wolf over his shoulders. Elodie let out a noise of shock and tried manoeuvring out of his grip. This would do no good for his leg. Din rose to stand and walked over the ladder. "Keep moving, and I'll drop us both to our deaths."

Elodie's pet peeve of the Mandalorian's was that whenever he was moody, he always became more morbid. Nevertheless, she stilled, yelping again sharply when his leg gave out under his weight on one of the rungs.

"Sorry! Sorry!" Din called to her, panting. "Come on." He spoke to himself and lowered himself once again. At the soonest opportunity, she leapt from his hold nad onto the bridge.

The walk down to the covert was miles long.

Seeing the standing figure of the armour come into view, they hurried their pace. Din hurried down the stairs and underestimated the strength of his injured leg. It gave out, and he fell into a heap at the bottom. Elodie rushed to his side while Din's lips pulled apart to let out a deep groan, his curls damp against his forehead.

"Tend to him." The armourer called out, without turning to face them. Another Mandalorian came around the corner, bacta spray in hand. It was Paz Vizsla. The over-cumbered Mandalorian that had helped them off of Nevarro.

"I didn't know if I would ever see you again." The larger Mandalorian said, bending down to Din's side and peeled back the clothing sticking to the light Saber wound.

Din faced the man, clutching his upper thigh in pain. He resisted the urge to bat the other man and his rough hands away. He thought back to when Elodie used to tend to him—the gentleness in her touches and her concern for causing him further harm. "Thank you for saving me on Nevarro." He shuddered in pain as the bacta was applied. "I am sorry for your sacrifice."

"There are three of us now. We'll put you to work soon enough." Paz sighed, standing back to his full height.

"What weapon caused such a wound?"

"This." Unable to bear his own weight just yet, he pulled out the Dark Saber for Paz to show the armourer.

"Paz Vizsla, bring it to me." He did as requested, looking at the weapon in awe. "All this talk of the Empire, and they lasted less than thirty years. Mandalorians have existed for ten thousand years. What do you know of this blade?" She said, turning to face the pair. The Dark Saber ignited, the void glare of the blade illuminating against her golden helmet.

"I am told it is the Dark Saber."

She nodded, moving the sword to inspect it closely. "Indeed. Do you understand its significance?"

"Whoever wields it can lead all of Mandalore." It was something Din had been actively trying not to think about, as it ranked low on his list of current priorities.

"If it is won by Creed in battle. It is said that one warrior will defeat twenty, and the multitudes will fall before it. If, however, it is not won in combat and falls into the hands of the undeserving, it will be a curse unto the nation. Mandalore will be laid to waste and its people scattered to the four winds." She informed them. The blade retracted to its hilt and Din stood to latch it onto his belt once again. "The hilt is of a quality of Beskar I have never seen before."

"It was forged over a thousand years ago by the Mandalore Tarre Vizsla. He was both Mandalorian and Jedi."

"I have met Jedi." Din concluded.

"Then you have completed your quest." The armourer looked at the beast standing beside the Mandalorian. "What of your companion?" He looked down at her as she stared into the visor of the female Mandalorian. There was an intelligence behind the eyes she could not quite place. "She has been frozen in the form of a wolf since rescuing her from the hands of the Empire."

She mulled over the situation. "And she is to stay at your side?"

"She is." He nodded. The armourer held her hands behind her back and directed the next words to Elodie. "There were stories once of the Wolven kind being able to call on their primitive Totums. Whatever this is, it has not been seen for many centuries. You may join our covert as we rebuild, as a guest of Din Djarin."

"This is the way," Din said, followed by Paz and the armourer.

The Mandalorian and Paz were assembling the great forge in their settlement. Together, they hauled the heavy machinery and chains required for the flames to burn hot and high. "Where did you come upon the Dark Saber?" Paz asked. Din grunted, slotting a piece into place. "I defeated Moff Gideon."

"Did you kill him?"

"No. But he was sent off to the New Republic for interrogation, and he will face justice for his crimes." Din replied, happy with the outcome. The other Mandalorian grumbled. "Death would have been justice for his atrocities."

The armourer also spoke up, coming to stand on the platform. "This is true. The blood of millions of our kind is in his hands." Elodie would also have liked to have seen the man die personally.

"Then he will be executed for his crimes by the New Republic Tribunal." The Mandalorian conceded. "We shall see. The songs of eons past foretold of the Mythosaur rising up to herald a new age of Mandalore." The forge ignited in blue flames after the press of a few buttons. "Sadly, it only exists in legends. Where did you come upon the Beskar spear?" A cupboard opened, revealing the armourer's tools.

"It was the gift of a Jedi. It can block a light Saber. I used it to defeat Moff Gideon."

The armourer almost scolded him, "It can also pierce Beskar armour. Its mere existence puts Mandalorians at risk. Mandalorian steel is meant for armour, not weapons."

"Then forge it into armour." Din passed her the spear. "The Dark Saber is a more noble weapon for you to wield." She said, placing the head of the spear into the flames. Only the heat erupting from the forge would be strong enough to manipulate the Beskar into a reforming shape.

"Have you ever heard of Bo-Katan Kryze?" He asked.

"Bo-Katan is a cautionary tale. She once laid claim to rule Mandalore based purely on blood and the sword you now possess. But it was gifted to her and not won by Creed. Bo-Katan Kryze was born of a mighty house, but they lost sight of the way. Her rule ended in tragedy. They lost their way, and we lost our world. Had our sect not been cloistered on the moon of Concordia, we would not have survived the Great Purge. Those born of Mandalore strayed away from the path. Eventually, the Imperial interlopers destroyed all that we knew and loved in the Night of a Thousand Tears. Only those that walked the way escaped the curse prophesied in the Creed. Though our numbers were scattered to the winds, our adherence to the way has preserved our legacy for the generations until we may someday return to our home world."

She pulled the spear away to assess the glowing tip, then set it back in to heat up further. "What shall I forge?"

"Something for a foundling." Din said from his position on the floor.

"This is the way."

He corrected himself. "For a specific foundling. Grogu."

"He's no longer in your care. He is with his own kind now." The armourer reminded him. A wave of sorrow washed over Elodie and the Mandalorian. Every day was a constant reminder of his loss. Like the grief of a family death. "I want to see him, make sure he's safe."

"In order to master the ways of the Force, Jedi must forgo all attachment." Elodie did not agree with the reasoning. Surely a family would be something to fight for and protect. It was the opposite of Mandalorian culture as a whole, Death watch or not.

"That is the opposite of our Creed. Loyalty and solidarity are the way." Din relayed as if reading her thoughts. "What shall I forge for the foundling Grogu?" The armour beat the spear when it was pliable enough, manipulating the Beskar to take the form of a breastplate. One small enough to fit the child, and thin enough to be light but still able to provide protection. They watched the process of the Beskar being heated, beaten, and quenching the metal in cool water.

Later in the day, Din requested to spar with the Dark Saber, seeing as using it while untrained had rendered him injured. The armourer counted, "Solus. T'ad." Weapons clanged, and the voice of the armourer rang out in the cavernous metal underworld of the city. [One. Two.]

"Ehn. Solus. T'ad. Ehn. Solus. T'ad. Ehn. Cuir. Solus." The armourer paused, waiting for Din to return the attacks, and blocking them. "T'ad. Ehn. Cuir." [One. Two. Three. One. Two. Three. Four. Two. Three. Four.]

With a grunt, she forced his strike away and tossed him from the platform. The armourer gritted out. "You are fighting against the blade."

Din flew back up to the platform, his arms weighted from overuse. "It gets heavier with each move."

"That is because you are fighting against the blade. You should be fighting against your opponent. Stand up." The sword dragged against the metal decking of the bridge as he struggled to raise it to level.

"Solus. T'ad. Ehn." She shouted to him and blocked his lazy attempts to swipe at her. The armourer bonked the gravity hammer against the crown of his helmet, and he recoiled. [Two. Three. One.]

Attacking again, this time unannounced, she hoped to find the Mandalorian using the blade on instinct. She brought both the hammer and wrench down, and he forced the blade up to meet them. "There. Feel it. You are too weak to fight the Dark Saber. It will win if you fight against it. You cannot control it with your strength."

She wrenched her tools away as Din collapsed to his knees and the blade retracted. "You cannot control it with your strength."

"I want to try again." He panted, standing. "Persistence without insight will lead to the same outcome. Your body is strong, but your mind is distracted." She informed him.

"I am focused." She stood there, unimpressed by his words. "The blade says otherwise."

Paz walked onto the edge of the platform after coming down from his perch beside the Wolven, having watched the majority of the sparring. "Maybe the Dark Saber belongs in someone else's hands."

"Maybe." Din sighed. Elodie looked between the two, knowing that it was eventually going to lead to a brawl. It always did when Din disagreed with someone. "It was forged by my ancestor, founder of House Vizsla." The bigger Mandalorian boasted, his pride swelling his chest like an alpha gorilla. Din stared at him challengingly, "And now it belongs to me."

"Because you won it in combat." The armourer stepped to the side.

"That's right."

"And now I will win it from you." Paz stated, taking slow steps to approach the man. The golden helmet of the armourer looked from the blue Mandalorian to the chrome one. "Do you agree to this duel, Din Djarin?"

"I do," He confirmed.

Paz moved to the side to allow the armourer to pass him and take her stand beside the Wolven on the bridge parallel. He nodded to her in respect as she passed, and the two males set their jet packs down.

Din ignited the Dark Saber and held it in both hands in front of him. On the opposing side, Paz whipped out his vibro blade, and his vambrace lit up with his combat shield, an impenetrable barrier much like the force.

They started off by walking to each other and lunged at the last second. Din and Paz took it in turns to deliver blows and block them. Paz's vibro blade struck Din's pauldron, and Din shook him off. The Dark Saber repelled off of the combat shield.

Paz was quick to recover and sent an upper cut, which caused Din to take a step back. Din brought the hilt of the Dark Saber into Paz's helmet to momentarily stun the man, but he grabbed the hilt, and they were both left fumbling for a hold. Din threw his helmet into Paz's and swiped the blade at him, but he ducked away to avoid the blow.

Turning the tables, Paz headbutted Din back and threw him onto the lower-level bridge. The armourer and Elodie moved closer to keep an eye on the fight.

Paz jumped down and landed heavily on his feet. He chucked Din into the pillar behind him and did not watch to see him crumble. Instead, he picked up the Dark Saber and ignited it. "Fate has brought this blade back to my clan, and now fate will end yours."

The blade weighed heavier in his hold compared to Din's; it was easy to see, and it took great effort to swing it at the fallen Mandalorian. With the slow oncoming swipe, Din was easily able to roll out of the way and embed his own vibro blade into the thigh of the bigger Mandalorian.

With a series of slow swipes and Din dodging, he managed to land multiple swipes of his short blade on Paz. The bigger Mandalorian fell to his knees, dropping the Dark Saber and brought his vibro blade to the gap of his amour, to his neck. "It is done!" The armourer called out.

"Paz Vizsla, have you ever removed your helmet?" She asked. He replied without hesitation. "No."

"Has it ever been removed by others?" She questioned further.

"Never." He panted. The armourer nodded. "This is the way."

"This is the way." Paz repeated, still in the clutches of Din. "Din Djarin, have you ever removed your helmet? Have you ever removed your helmet? By Creed, you must vow." She insisted after a prolonged pause. Paz tilted his head as well.

Elodie looked nervously between her Mandalorian and the armourer.

The Mandalorian in question pondered his answer. He knew he had to be honest, but it would most definitely result in him being cast from his clan as dar'manda. Something he never thought would happen to him. He always thought he would rather have died than betray his own covert. Especially now that their numbers are so few. The shame he felt—now he knew how Elodie felt. [No longer Mandalorian]

"I have." He admitted, dropping the blade from Paz's neck.

She inhaled deeply, reluctantly. It gave her no joy in exiling the man from their covert. A friend, brother, and fellow clansman. "Then you are a Mandalorian no more."

His hands started to shake, and his voice came out even shakier. Elodie's heart broke for Din and the self-loathing he was most certainly harbouring. "I beg you for your forgiveness. How can I atone?"

"Leave, apostate." Paz mumbled from the floor. Elodie snarled in response. One of his clan members was being forced into exile, and he had the gall to snark at him? After all they had been through? Just because Paz had his ass handed to him on a silver platter.

"According to Creed, one may only be redeemed in the living waters beneath the mines of Mandalore."

"But the mines have all been destroyed." Din was confused, this meant his fate was sealed as an apostate. He was never permitted to join his covert again.

"This is the way." the armourer swore. Din bent to pick up the Dark Saber and clipped it back to its original place on his utility belt. He walked up to the higher platform and set his jet pack on his back.

He breezed past the armourer without saying a word. What else could be said? Nothing. Elodie went to follow, but the woman stopped her by placing her hand out.

"The child was able to unleash his abilities with great mental training and patience. His love for you and his vision of a better life were what enabled him to put his desires into perspective. You may want to review some of these attributes yourself if you wish to walk both paths."

Elodie continued walking when the armourer's hand dropped, and she thought about the words that were spoken to her.

Now began their journey in getting the hell out of this place.

It was luck, really.

A message pinged on the Mandalorian's vambrace as they were leaving the alleyway and heading towards the intergalactic shuttle bay. He hummed, reading the message, and turned to Elodie. "A message from Peli. Looks like she's got us a ship."

The wolf huffed. Finally.

An announcement overhead alerted them of the flight they booked. "Attention, please. Flight 1020, nonstop service to Tatooine, is now ready for boarding at gate number one. All passengers, please proceed to the boarding area immediately."

They entered the loading docks and had to go through screening by security in order to board. Elodie walked through first and sat on the other side, waiting for the Mandalorian.

"All pets must be put on a leash while on the aircraft." The security droid informed Din automatically upon seeing the animal. Din scoffed in amusem*nt, "She's not an animal, droid. She's Wolven."

"I do not see how that improves the circ*mstances." It stated.

He stepped up to the droid. "It means that she would not be requiring any form of restraint. From anyone. But by all means, you can try." Elodie lowly growled at them both in warning, and it made a small smile grace his face.

Din then walked through the X-ray machine. The alarms rang out, and the security droid continued to pester him. "Excuse me, sir. You're going to have to remove your weapons." He did not like the sound of being without his weapons. His livelihood was dependent on these weapons. Or used to be. "I'm a Mandalorian. Weapons are part of my religion."

"I'm sorry, sir, you can't board a commercial flight with your weapons." The Mandalorian sighed. "If you wish to discuss this with my supervisor, I will gladly book you on tomorrow's flight."

"Fine." He snapped, unclipping his weapons and placing them in a case in front of him. Din dropped in the whistling birds, his rifle cartridges on his bandoleer and calf, fibercord, blaster, explosive charges, vibro blade, and Dark Saber into the case while watching all the other passengers board. Elodie snorted beside him. Some of the most dangerous and rare weapons were stored away on a commercial flight. He received a ticket with the case number for when they would collect it on Tatooine. "I know everything that's in there." Din said hautily.

"Proceed." The droid replied, appeased.

Indistinct chatter was buzzing around them, and he instantly missed the quiet of his ship. He sat himself down in a seat at the back of the ship and watched the space fly past as they travelled sublight speed. Something he swore never to do again after the Trask incident.

Elodie settled across his lap to try and sleep, and he absentmindedly stroked her fur to soothe her. She struggled to get even a couple of hours since the ordeal with the Empire. Looking away from the dark, endless pit of space, he met eyes with a Rodian child in front of him, who turned in their seat to stare.

She waves.

Din continued to stare at the child, not responding but his mind flashed back to his own foundling. The mother of the child looked back and made the child return into their usual position after seeing the bounty hunter. He thought back to the bundle of cloth in his packet, and inside the tiny cuirass made specifically for Grogu.

The ship eventually landed on Tatooine, and Din shook Elodie to inform them that the ship was landing soon.

Leaving the ship, they were met with the blasting heat from the suns and people rushing to greet their loved ones. Elodie basked in the heat of the suns while Din took his sweet time in donning his weapons once again. The droid delivering the cases looked to have seen better days. It was stuttering worse than a millennial with social anxiety. "W-welcome to Mos Eisley. On behalf of all our c-c-crew, thank you for traveling Star Liner Travel. We wish you a pleasant s-stay and hope to see you again very soon."

The Mandalorian nudged her when he was suited and booted, and they made their way to the dock, a few paces away.

They heard the screams of Peli from outside. It was not her usual rambling, and the pair rushed in to see what was happening. "It's got me! It's chewing!" The mechanic was on the floor, and a scurrier was gnawing at her ankle.

Din went to reach for his gun, but Elodie got there first and he ended up shooting the ground just shy of the mechanic's foot. The Wolven caught it between her jaws, biting down until it released. She sat behind Peli eating.

It screeched, but it stopped when she felt bones crunching and continued to tear apart the creature. At least she wouldn't have to worry about lunch.

"Oh good Oh boy!" Peli breathed, standing up. She called out to her mechs in the hanger. "Hey, look, everyone. It's Mando. What do we owe the pleasure? You here to slay another dragon? Chasing down some elusive bounty?"

"I got your message."

She looked confused. "Message? What message?"

"You said you found me a replacement for the Razor Crest." He repeated slowly. She nodded, not entirely remembering. "Yeah, that's right. That's what I said. That's what I do. I've been working my butt off, yeah. Did you bring the cash?"

"Here. It's all there."

"Mind if I count it? Not that I don't trust you. I just wanna make sure you don't give me too much." She smiled, nodding in the general direction of the ship. "Right this way. Wait till you get your eyes on this baby. So, where is your tiny companion?" She was looking around but couldn't see him.

"I returned him to his own kind." The woman was downright distraught. "Why the hell would you do that? I could've made good money off that thing. Open a petting zoo." She laughed.

The mechanic looked around, only seeing the Mandalorian. "Where's Eddy? You two are like the Tatooinian suns. There ain't one without the other." She continued walking and shouted at the droids over her shoulder without waiting for Din to respond, "Hey, droids, make yourself useful. Count this up, and then fire up the grill before that thing gets gamey-"

Looking back, she saw the remains of the scurrier dangling from the mouth of a large wolf. Din sighed, preparing to inform her of the situation, when Peli took a step forward. "Eddy? Is that you?"

Both Elodie and Din snapped their heads up at the mechanic.

No one in their right mind would have known—well, that explains it. Peli was a few sandwiches short of a picnic. "We don't know how to reverse it."

The wolf whined, dropping the carcass and approaching Peli with a wagging tail. The mechanic lowered and rubbed her head. "Oh, what have they done to you, huh? Maker, you poor thing." Elodie whines more, cozying up to the woman. Din shook his head and rolled his eyes. The Wolven was lapping up the attention.

"Where's the ship?" He cut in, hoping to get things back on track. Peli stood, dusting off her hands. "Right this way. Ready to have your mind blown?"

She looked excited when she showed him the framework of a slimline star fighter beneath the tarp—definitely not a Razor Crest. Parts of the ship were obviously missing. The Mandalorian deflated, looking around it but finding nothing. "Where's the Razor Crest?"

"I never said I had a Razor Crest. I said I had a replacement for a Razor Crest." She swindled him for credits, he thought. He threw up his hands. "I don't have time for this."

"Hang on a second. Do you have any idea what this is? This is an N-1 star fighter, handmade for the royal guard and commissioned personally by the Queen of Naboo."

"This is a pile of junk." He stated it loudly and clearly, pointing to the framework.

"Do you want your credits back?" She offered. He answered instantly. "Yes."

"No skin off my dip-swap. Droids, bring this lovely man his money. Here you go. It's that easy. Sorry to waste your time. Okay?" They stood there in silence for a moment while the droids took their time. Peli took the opportunity to persuade him. "While we're waiting, can I tell you a little something about this honey? I know she doesn't look like much, but you got here a lot earlier than I expected, and I didn't get a chance to finish. I mean, clearly, you can see I've got all the parts right here. Hmm? It all has a home. Okay? Oh, look, a family of scurriers! Let's not disrupt the nest. You know how hard it is to find all the original parts from way back in the Galactic Republic? I mean, these are all handmade. No droids. And not only that, what I'm gonna do, just because I like you, is I'm gonna add on some custom modifications that'll make her faster than a fathier, and because this baby's pre-Empire, she's off the grid. And did I mention, she can jump into hyperspace with no docking ring? I mean, come on! You gotta see the potential. Whoo! I'm telling you, Mando, you gotta believe me." Din touched a pipe on the ship, and it snapped off easily. He dropped it to the ground. When he wasn't looking, Elodie saw Peli shooed away the droid carrying the pouch of credits. If she could have smiled, she would have. "This is a classic. Look, at least let me put her together before you decide. Can you give me that? There you go. Hmm? Get this baby up and goin'."

Din looked down in contemplation, and he felt a wet nose press against the exposed skin between his sleeve and glove. Elodie stared into his visor, unwavering, and he sighed. The mechanic was making some good points. "You know, it'd be a lot faster if you helped."

A wrench was placed in front of him.

While Din accepted the proposition made to him, Elodie found herself sitting on some crates to the side of the hanger and basking in the sunlight.

She thought back to the words the armourer had said to her as they left the covert. "The child was able to unleash his abilities with great mental training and patience. Acceptance. His love for you and his vision of a better life were what enabled him to put his desires into perspective. You may want to review some of these attributes yourself if you wish to walk both paths."

Elodie closed her eyes and thought about what she felt in that moment. The suns warmth penetrating her thick coat, the subtle breeze causing her fur to flutter, and the cool winds balancing out the heat.

The sand on every surface, in between her paws, the grains gently rubbing against her skin. The air was clean, unpolluted, like most planets. Refreshing to breathe. She inhaled deeply until her lungs could expand no more and slowly blew out, releasing her inner worries with it.

Patience. She'd come to terms with the fact that this could become her permanent form some time ago. Elodie spent the past few months with Din adapting to this new way of living after seeing that there was going to be no imminent change.

Acceptance. She would love Din regardless, and they still found ways to show that they cared for each other deeply without intimacy. She learned a long time ago that Din was not one to communicate his passion through words but through actions.

He would throw himself in front of her or the child whenever there were threats or jump into risky situations without considering his own safety. When he would offer her the cot or to use the fresher first when they were running short on hot water in the Crest. Slipping her extra rations and keeping her within his eye line during fights. Ensuring she was armed to protect herself. No amount of words could express the amount she cared for the Mandalorian.

Love. Her mind wondered back to the way he would hold onto her when they would sleep in their bunk in the dark. He would forgo his helmet to allow a moment of just them without the outside world. With her eyes closed, she could feel the tickle of his breath softly blowing against the crown of her head and the thumping of his heart rattling against her ears and pumping faster when she would stroke a hand down his bare torso.

Vision. An electric feeling shot through her body. It was like a thunderclap migraine, and it shot down to each finger and toe. A high-pitched yelp echoed in the hanger, and she spasmed, falling behind the crates as her bones cracked involuntarily.

Din was under the starship at the time. "Higher. Yeah, just a little-" At the sound of yelping, his head flew into the ship as he rose suddenly. "Dank F-!" He ignored the rattling bang caused by his helmet off the underbelly of the ship.

He slid out and sprinted into the main hanger from the garage. "Elodie!" He called, looking around but not seeing anything. BD quivered in fear beside him, his bolts rattling. Din unhooked the clip to his blaster, readying himself for a fight.

Something moved by the crate to his right, and he whirled around, aiming his pistol.

Elodie stood from behind the crate and used it to support herself.

As a human.

Her head twitched, and her neck cracked. She stared down at her hands, disbelieving of the dexterity of her fingers. She fisted her hand and extended her fingers, having grown used to not having the feeling.

She looked up, her legs trembling at the shell-shocked Mandalorian. "D-din?"

He dropped his blaster and paced towards her. Din caught her in his long-awaited arms in time for her legs to give out. He could feel her trembling in his hold. He tightened his grip around her waist, noting that her legs were weak in bipedal form, and brushed her outgrown hair out of her face. He could feel the course skin of her scarred back under his gloves.

"Ner runi, gar cuyir norac, ner sur'haai has draar haa'taylir sha sem mesh'la." Her throat felt parched, and she felt extremely tired. Elodie was relieved that he was not there to witness the transition. She wondered if it looked half as painful as it felt, like lava being directly poured onto her head and dripping down her body. [My soul, you're back. My eyes have never seen such beauty]

Her body. She looked down to find she was once again as naked as the day she was born.

The horrors she faced on the Imperial cruiser had healed into scars. Lesions and track marks, all dark and angrily red against her snowy white pallor. Now on her face, a scar stretched from the corner of her lip to her outer eye.

Din couldn't bring himself to look away from her face.

He was trying to catch his own breath, but his lungs could not breathe normal air, only her. The Mandalorian buried his head in her neck, inhaling her natural scent deeply. Elodie brought her arms up and around his waist, feeling him shake like her. Only his was out of relief. She locked her hands together behind his back to stop them from dropping.

Despite her parched throat, she croaked, "Ni kar'tayl gar darasuum, Din." [I love you/ I know you forever]

The Mandalorian felt tears brim; finally, he had the woman he loved back in his arms again. Complete. He knew they had a long journey of learning ahead of them. But they could do that. Together. Din brought his head out of her shoulder and pressed his helmet against her head. He met her eyes through the slits of his visor. He cherished how her eyes resembled deep depths of space, or coal, before meeting flame. "I love you too, sweetheart."

"Great news! Sweet mother of moons!"

Din's head flew in the direction of the door Peli entered. Where she now stood frozen, mouth to the floor and brows to the ceiling. The Mandalorian ensured Elodie had the entire front of her body pressed against his and angled her body out of view of the mechanic.

"Eddy! Your back!" Peli announced, shocked to see her naked and human. The Wolven poked her head around the broad shoulders of her Mandalorian to smile at the woman, unable to shift any further from Din's unabating hold. Peli clapped, "This is fantastic. Now you can help with the repairs too!"

Din sighed, stating the obvious to the mechanic. "If you have any spare clothes, I'm sure she'd appreciate it." Peli nodded, disappearing into her office before returning with a white, dirty tank top and worn orange work overalls. "Ain't got no shoes, but this is all I got that'll fit. You can either change in there or out here. I've seen all shapes, sizes, and scales." Peli grinned jokingly.

The Mandalorian took the clothes in one hand with a nod and turned to the Wolven. She had a far off look in her eyes, staring down at her wiggling toes in the sand.

"You ready, Ner runi?" He asked gently, not wanting to startle her. [My soul]

She made a noise of surprise anyway, staring up with those wide, dark eyes he loved losing himself in. "I asked if you were ready to change now." A look of understanding washed over her face.

Of course, she would need to wear clothes. Humiliation made her cheeks bleed with warmth, and she looked down. "Oh, yeah."

He licked his lips, unable to stand the look on her face. The downward tug on her lips. Her uncontrolled expressions. It felt like he was staring into a mirror, helmetless. "Come on." He supported her into Peli's office.

Elodie slumped against the desk made of welded metal and mentally made a note to give it a wipe afterwards. She doubted Peli would appreciate her bare butt having been on her desk.

Or maybe she would; no one could make sense of the erratic mechanic.

While Din was preparing the clothes to don, Elodie spied the cup of water on Peli's desk and chugged it. Taking deep, unwavering gulps of the cool, refreshing liquid. She sighed when the cup was empty and wiped the back of her hand against her mouth, taking a breath.

The Mandalorian looked at her in amusem*nt but nonetheless bent down to help her legs slot into the overalls. He secured the sleeves around her waist like a belt instead of over her arms, knowing the woman ran hotter than a turbulent engine.

Elodie liked the idea of Din on his knees, clad in his full Beskar armour.

He ran his eyes up the form of Elodie, drinking in the sight of her topless, toned body and pert breasts. This was his first time seeing her fully naked. Between them sat a Mythosaur pendant. Boba Fett's. He gulped, standing, and dipping his hand into the pocket on his belt, one that usually held Grogu's ball.

Din pulled out a small, shapely piece of Beskar and held it out to her. She took it and ran her thumb over the Mudhorn engraving.

His clan signet.

"When did-? The spear." The helmet lowered to acknowledge.

Elodie's mouth opened. In Mandalorian culture, if one gifts another with something baring a signet, it means they intend on offering a place in their clan, or at least offering the protection of the clan. She uttered a small, "Thank you." and reached back to untie the chain around her neck and slip on the additional pendant. Now she had one to signify her Mandalorian culture and another to signify which clan she belonged to.

The Wolven let the pendant fall between her breasts, welcoming the cool touch of Beskar steel.

"I saw your face." Elodie remembered, testing her voice further since quenching her thirst. Her hands wrung the hair at the nape of his neck beneath the helmet. The Mandalorian sighed, his head falling forward. "Din, you are still a Mandalorian. You have your armour, and you know that there are other Mandalorians who remove their helmets and continue walk The Way, like Bo-Katan."

He shook his head and stared down at her, holding her forearms to keep them in his hair. "That is not the Creed I took, the one I swore to live by. I am an apostate, but I will redeem myself. I swear it."

Elodie sent the man a small smile, her canines protruding from her upper lip. "I missed being able to speak with you." She tugged his hair a little harder and said, "To feel you."

He groaned, "You can do whatever you want with me."

Laughing, she brought her hands down to rest on his chest plate. "Don't tempt me, or we'll never finish the repairs on the starfighter." Din slipped off his helmet too quickly for her to stop and found himself mumbling against her lips, "I could live with that."

Elodie breathed heavily, her breath tickling his lips when they brushed together. "I haven't done this before." He admitted, his brown eyes gazing endlessly into hers. She admired the way his eyes resembled thick coffee and burnt sienna in the light of the room. Trailing her gaze across his face, she smiled again when her hands found the patchy beard and thicker moustache hanging on his thinner upper lip. Running her fingers up, she brushed against his hooked nose, which seemed to have been broken at least once in his lifetime.

She would have to ask about the story behind that.

His hair was dishevelled and roughly trimmed, and thick brunette curls flopped onto his forehead. Her hand traced back down the tip of his nose and onto his plump lower lip. "I like firsts." She quoted Ahsoka, "Good or bad, they're always memorable." He cupped her cheek and pulled her closer. She remained pinned between him and the desk.

Din was the one to act first, pecking her lips with a touch so delicate it was almost like she dreamed it. Elodie leaned in more, slotting his lower lip between her own and ensuring her lips remained gentle against his, not desperate and rough like how she wanted to take him. Her needs would have to wait.

"I wish it had been you." He mumbled, thinking back to revealing his face on Morak. "I chose you. It should've been you."

Elodie allowed Din to get used to the feeling of just their lips brushing before gingerly running her tongue out. He opened his mouth, his body edging in more automatically to her advances.

The Wolven moaned lowly into his open mouth when her tongue raked along his. Din inhaled sharply. In surprise or pleasure, he couldn't decide at present. He sent his tongue after hers, desperate to relive the feeling. Elodie nipped at his lower lip, and his knees felt weak.

He could see why so many people indulge in the act in cantinas.

The Mandalorian dropped his hands from her cheeks, wrapped one arm around her waist to lift her onto the desk, and ran the other up her thigh. Elodie moved one of hers back into his hair, tugging gently. He grunted, peeling his lips away for a quick breath, "How is it possible to want something this much?" He questioned before returning. His hand raised from her thigh and skimmed the outline of her exposed breast.

Din changed the pace of the kiss, which was once soft and timid but is now eager and more firm. Elodie hoicked her thigh against his side, and he rutted forward. If she had known kissing him would get him this riled up, she would have pressured him into it a long time ago.

"f*ck," She breathed, letting Din press kisses down the length of her neck, below her pendants, and back up again. When his face returned to hers, she pressed a few kisses against his lips and set her forehead back against his. He opened his eyes, not realising he had closed them. "Does it always feel this good?"

Elodie darted out her tongue to wetten her lower lip, 'accidentally' skimming his. She did not miss the predatory gaze dropping to her lips again. She smirked, "Not always."

When the pair walked back outside to meet with Peli, she was talking to some of her droids about the parts for the starfighter. She looked up at the two and threw up her hands to say 'finally'. Din wore his helmet again, and Elodie had slipped on the white tank top, although it did nothing to hide anything underneath. It was like wearing a mesh shirt. Her pendants hung over the shirt in full display, not hidden by mountains of fur like before.

Elodie was miraculously feeling a lot better than before. She dubbed it the kiss of life, which made Din giggle a little. Something she never thought she'd hear.

"As I was saying before, great news! I found you a turbonic venturi power assimilator. You're gonna be the fastest ship on the Outer Rim." She explained, clapping the thruster of the ship, causing a plate to drop off. She winced but otherwise paid no heed to the err.

Din looked down at the part offered to him, somewhat astonished at the part collected. "Where did you get this?"

"It's brand-new. Well, Jawa new." Peli grinned. "The Jawas had a turbonic venturi assimilator from a Galactic Republic-era starfighter?"

"Well, they didn't have it. They got it."

"From where?" He probed, assessing the good condition. Peli held her hands out, "Tatooine is a garden of many bounties."

"I don't understand."

"It means she asked them for a list." Elodie translated for her, "I love you, but sometimes the things that come out of your mouth make you seem dimmer than a lightbulb." Perhaps it was because they were both from Tatooine that they knew all the ins and outs. "Of parts?"

"Yeah." Peli said slowly.

"And they find them for you?" He carried on. Elodie brought her hand to her head, "Oh, for f*cks sake."

She walked away from the man, deciding to take a good look at the ship now that she was able to help with the repairs, whereas before she wasn't really interested as she couldn't help. "I don't ask. They don't tell. They give me what I ask for. In exchange, I let 'em pick through my dumpster." Peli spoke from behind her. Elodie looked at the droid port, wondering if that would be her seat on the ship.

Din asked, "Can I meet them?"

"Yeah, sure." She agreed, "R5! See if the Jawas are still out back. Dated a Jawa for a while. They're quite furry. Very furry. Lot of issues. Oh, here they are." Elodie pulled a face, trying to erase the image that was popping into her mind. That was not something she needed to see. Or know.

Two Jawas entered the hanger, and they began conversing with Peli in Jawese. It was similar to Tusken but involved a lot of grunting. "If I give them a list of parts, could they get them for me?" Din insisted. Peli translated it over, and they nodded. "They said make a wish list and they'll see what's available."

The Wolven nudged his arm, "What, there is finally a language you don't know how to speak?" He lowered his gaze. "I know it but I can't speak it well."

Elodie was impressed. "That's surprising." Din turned to the Jawas and pointed at the assimilator. "Okay, I'm looking for mostly bolt-on aftermarket speed mods. This is all hand-built, custom. I'm guessing we need vintage hyperware if it's gonna fit this antique."

"Listen to you. Don't worry about the shape and size. Just get the parts you want with the specs you need, and I'm gonna make it work, all right? I dated a Jawa. I know what I'm doing, right?" The Jawa looked her up and down and said something that made Peli shake her head. "Oh, that's okay. I'm working on me right now. Just go find the parts."

It waved its hand in dismissal and walked away.

"What should we do first?" The Wolven asked. There was a truckload of modifications required in order for it to even start, and a lot more was needed for it to look presentable.

Din and Peli started with the wires and connections to the exhaust manifold, while Elodie chucked on a welding mask while she buffed away the colour on the exterior. They transferred the nest of scurriers into one of the corners of the hanger and away from their work.

When that was done, they scoured through the mountains of metal to see what could be used as parts for the starfighter. Peli was off on another one of her rants. Din and Elodie learned to work and drone out her constant droning. "No, bigger. Uh-uh. Smaller. No. It's the one with the hole on the end that curves this way. I think I saw it once before over there in that pile near the circulators. There you go. I always knew you were the smart one. Ah! Don't be jealous. I don't know why you're always in such a hurry. 'Build me a ship. Fix my blaster holes.'"

"Isn't that your job?" Elodie quipped, earning a snippy, "I wasn't talkin' to you, missy." She found herself laughing at the woman, enjoying the feeling of being able to smile again and laugh.

And hands.

She loved using her hands. Building the ship helped her to relearn their dexterity, and her body was slowly becoming her own again.

"You know, I never went anywhere, and look how good I got it. You know, I've never even been off-world."

Elodie was puzzled. "Never?" Peli was an excellent mechanic in the prime age of intergalactic space travel. "That's all right. I'm a local gal. Oh. Let me see that doohickie. Oh, yeah. Oh, that's good. Good find. What else you got in there?"

"The entire vapour manifold is missing."

"Trust me, the last thing you want strangling your thrust capacitor is a vapour manifold. I fabricated you this induction intake charger that's gonna double your output coefficient." Peli stated from inside the co*ckpit. Din ran his finger up the length of the side. "It'll also blow the shaft out of my motivator block."

"Peli knows what she's doing. I think we should leave her to do her own thing." Elodie said, the sound coming out muffled from inside the astromech port. She tapped on the glass to test the thickness.

The mechanic pointed a wrench at her, "I knew I liked you for a reason." She faced the Mandalorian, who sighed at being ganged up against the two Tatooinian women. Both of them were mental. He supposed that's why he kept coming back to them. "That's why I'm reinforcing your compression housing, and you can access it by using this Kineso-switch right here. You hit this button, you're gonna evacuate your exhaust manifold, if you know what I mean. All right, come on, now. All right, that's enough."

"All right. Power up. You got it." Peli tapped the gonk droid to start powering the N-1.

"Where does this panel go? Thanks, little guy." The BD droid projected the piece, slotting it figuratively into place. Din looked down at the droid, thanking the little bot. BD padded the floor joyfully at the praise.

Elodie licked her lips again, eyes running down the Mandalorian hungrily. There was something about a fatherly, protective man that was irresistible to her. Do I have daddy issues? Possibly. Din caught her wondering gaze and shook his head, internally laughing. Peli continued speaking, not noticing the tension between the pair. "Do you know how lucky you are that I got my hands on this baby? You want to thank me now, or you want to thank me later?"

"You get me a Razor Crest, you can have it right back."

"Oh, Bantha diddle, these are a lot harder to come by than some plain old Razor Crest." Peli ridiculed. "Razor Crest."

She was cut off by the Jawas returning from their manhunt to find the parts the Mandalorian had requested. They came in carrying a tubular part thrice their size, and Din rushed over to take it from them and inspected the part, impressed. "That was fast."

"These critters could find a skud in a krill pond. Will that do?"

The Mandalorian stared in awe. "Where did they get a cryogenic density combustion booster?"

"Do you really wanna know?" She asked. Din shrugged, "Sure."

The Jawas explained it to Peli and she helpfully translated it to Elodie and Din. "I got it. They said they crawled under a Pyke spice runner and crimped it off while they were refuelling."

"Gutsy little fellas." Din nodded.

"Let me tell you something, Pykes do not mess around. Ever since they've been moving spice through the system, everything's gone to hell. Everyone's afraid of 'em and law enforcement won't even go near 'em."

Elodie thought back to her brother. "Sounds like Boba is going to have his hands full."

"Boba? The new Daimyo? You know, 'im?" Peli asked. Elodie explained that he was her brother. "Not by blood."

"Well, thanks." Din said, tossing them a small pouch of credits for their troubles. They caught the bag and babbled excitedly before leaving. Peli looked at the Mandalorian with pinched lips and a tight expression. "Thanks? What? Are you kidding me? What'd you do that for? You're gonna spoil 'em. Are you trying to make me look bad?"

Peli's droid wheeled the starfighter out of the garage and into the open section of the hanger. The light shone of the freshly waxed surface and yellow painted streaks, courtesy of the Wolven.

The trio went around the ship to inspect their final product, and Elodie had to admit that she was excited to see how fast the ship went. Peli leaned on the front, "Oh! Not a gram of fat on her. You know, no one's catching you in this thing."

"What happened to the droid port?" The Mandalorian asked, eyeing the empty capsule. After insisting, Peli made more space in the main compartment to fit two adults rather than just Din, so she would not have to sit in the tiny droid port.

"I hogged it out. You know, I figured, with your disposition, you'd wanna forgo the astromech." Behind her, R5 bleeped, and Peli was shocked. "Hey! Watch your language around the customers."

"Think she's ready?" Din bent down to view the streamline of the ship. He had to admit that he was coming around to the N-1 starfighter. Not as much as he would have loved a Razor Crest, but it was a good substitution. He couldn't wait for the test drive to check out their modifications.

Peli watched him eye up the ship, knowingly. "Ready as she'll ever be. Start her up."

"Really?" She waved her hand, "Yeah, start her up."

Without another word, Din jumped up to stand in the co*ckpit and lent a hand out to Elodie. She grabbed it and hauled herself into the slot behind him. The glass panelling above them was sealed over. The engine spluttered. "It's not turning over."

"Give it a little bit more juice." He did as he was told and the ship purred beneath them and the engine fired to life. The assimilator at the front of the ship vibrated with unparalleled ferocity. "That's a lot of engine for a little ship."

"Yeah, well, see what she can do!" Peli shouted.

He called back. "Shouldn't we run a diagnostic first?" Elodie clapped her hands on the back of his seat in anticipation, "Just go, Din!"

The ship rose shakily under the Mandalorians control, and he flipped some controls. "Engaging forward drive." It accelerated forward but was still very shaky. "She handles a little bumpy." Din called over the comms.

Peli voiced back. "You're used to a gunship, but she's a starfighter. So fly her like one."

"Okay. I'll open her up." He released the breath he was holding and floored it. The force of the acceleration sent both of them back into their seats. Elodie laughed, holding the belt across her chest as the scenery blurred around them.

No one would be able to catch them in this! "Dank Farrik, she's fast." He weaved through the entrance to Beggar's Canyon fluidly. The controls were easy to manipulate and gave way under the slightest tension.

"Smooth?"

He laughed, "As a gonk's scomp jack."

"There you go. Some teamwork." Peli explained.

"Controls are real snappy. How's the manoeuvrability?" He pressed some buttons. "You tell me. Point your navigational disposition between the two suns. You'll come up to Beggar's Canyon. How's the handling?"

"Tight. She tracks like a railspeeder." The claustrophobic walls of the canyon were close together, and Elodie exclaimed loudly when they flipped and twisted. In her mind, the ship was already theirs.

"What did I tell you? Razor Crest." Despite their love for the old ship, this one was a lot snappier in tight spaces.

"Let's see what she's got." He pulled the gear sticks all the way, and the ship elevated skyward. The N-1 engine growled underneath them, liking the change of handling.

It passed through the atmosphere of Tatooine, and they left the planet to explore the space surrounding it. On their trek, they passed a familiar shuttle bus floating slowly. The N-1 breezed past to return to Tatooine.

At the sound of quiet giggling behind him, he dove the ship into small spirals, causing her to laugh louder. "I'm gonna be sick! Din!" He smiled under the helmet, but it dropped quickly when a small beep echoed in the co*ckpit.

"Dank Farrik!" Elodie leaned forward in her seat to look over his shoulder, "What is it?" Din called back. "New Republic."

The Mandalorian brought the ship stationary between the two patrolling X-wings and a pilot connected to them over the comms, "Run your beacon for me, N-1."

"Was I doing something wrong, officer?" He asked innocently.

"You're not allowed to fly that fast next to a commercial ship. You're also operating without a beacon. I'm gonna need you to run one for us." Din flicked the switch. "Sorry, officer, I got a little carried away there. Transmitting now."

"Hmm. Your engine model doesn't match your power drive."

"We just built her. I was taking her up for a test flight. Haven't been able to update the registration just yet."

"We're gonna need to see your title tabs. Send us a ping."

"Yeah, sorry, officer, but my transmitter isn't hooked up yet. I'll head right back to Mos Eisley and get it sorted out." The officer sighed as if it was another day in the office. "Relinquish your flight controls for remote-control access."

The second pilot interjected. "Hold on a second there, Lieutenant. I think we can let him off with a warning this time."

"Thank you, officer. I'll have that taken care of." Just as Din reached for the controls again, he was stopped.

"One thing before you go."

"Yes?" He asked hesitantly.

"Your voice is mighty familiar. Did you used to fly a Razor Crest?" Elodie's eyes widened, and she tried to discreetly see the pilot from her seat, but the view was obstructed. The man must have a really good memory.

"I think you have the wrong guy, officer." He's such a bad liar. He silently cursed.

"That ship showed up on a transponder log back in Nevarro in an incident involving Imperial remnants. I'm just connecting some dots here. You mind answering a few questions?"

f*ck it, Din thought, and he accelerated back down to the planet using the sublight thrusters. The X-Wings didn't even get a chance to react before they were out of sight. The Wolven heard the Mandalorian take a sigh of relief.

Lowering back down into the hanger, Peli was already waiting for their arrival. The ship door slipped open, and the two jumped out. "Whoo! Well? How was it?" The mechanic asked.

With a reluctant smile on his face, Din replied, "Wizard."

"Those J-type pulse engines really tighten the old evacuation port, don't they? ... Oh, by the way, an old friend of yours dropped by, said she was looking for you." Din and Elodie cast each other a confused look.

"A friend of mine?" He clarified the same time as Elodie said, "We don't have a lot of those."

Peli calmed their nerves. "Don't worry. I told her I didn't know where you were. Then I locked her out and engaged the hangar security system."

"She tell you her name?"

"Fennec Shand."

The voice didn't come from Peli. She shrieked in surprise, and Din brought his hand to his blaster, only to spot the named woman resting on one of the exposed beams of the hanger wall. Elodie smiled at the assassin, knowing that if she was here, then Boba would not be too far away. Peli whirled around to her droids in fury. "I thought you said that the hangar security system was on. Don't get away from me. You come right back here. This is the third mistake this week. Someone's getting deprogrammed."

Fennec jumped down from the beam and walked over and Din relaxed his tense shoulders. The assassin winked over at the Wolven, "Lookin' good." Elodie nodded back. It felt good to be back to normal again.

"By any chance, are you looking for work?" Fennec asked, looking between them both.

"I could be."

"The pay is good." She sang, tossing him a bag of credits. He kept hold of the pouch. "What's the bounty?"

"No bounty. We need muscle." So, a fight.

"Boba Fett." Elodie stated, knowing her intentions. Fennec grew serious and held her hands in front of her. "He sure would appreciate it."

Din threw the bag of credits back, adding, "Tell him it's on the house. But first, I got to pay a visit to a little friend." He went back to the ship, happy to leave the credits he paid with Peli.

Elodie faced Fennec, while the Mandalorian left them to talk. "How is he?"

Fennec shrugged. "He is struggling to keep the peace and win over the people. The Pike syndicate is vast and strong which is why we were hoping to get your help. Like you said, we don't have many friends or allies. We trust you, both of you. And we need all support we can get."

Elodie held onto her pendants and briefly looked at the N-1 as the engines started again. "Tell him to whip up some Pog soup, we shouldn't be too long."

On that note, they both departed. Fennec called out to her retreating figure, "Boba will be glad to know you are yourself again."

Chapter 23: Chapter 20: From the Desert Comes the Stranger

Chapter Text

Din helped Elodie dismount the starfighter. Lush greenery surrounded them on Ossus, at ground level and up on the mountainous peaks. It was a space of many islands encased in vast watery planes. It was a good environment for Grogu to learn in, Elodie summarized. The weather was not too warm or too cold, and the trickling of water in the background was calming. No settlements were nearby, not as far as they saw on their ride down anyway.

The astromech R2-D2 beeped, his antennae sinking back into his head after allowing them to follow his beacon. The two walked up to the droid and greeted him warmly, eager to see their foundling.

"Hello, friend. I'm looking for Skywalker." Din said, and the droid beeped back. The Mandalorian seemed to be more amenable towards droids after mourning for IG-11, the one droid that Din trusted and ended up sacrificing himself. Elodie gushed, "We came to see Grogu."

The astromech turned and took off into the dense woods, humming to itself. It wasn't as gloomy as she was expecting, the light still penetrated through the leaves of the canopy. They passed some ant droids carrying large rocks, and they followed them to where they were delivering them through a break in the woods.

On the hill ahead, they were working in what looked to be a factory line, stacking the rocks to build a hut. "Where is he?" She asked. No one was around to greet them, and they looked around in confusion. R2-D2 backed away from where they stood and switched himself off.

"Is this where they are?" He tapped the droid on the head. "Hey. Droid. Don't shut off. Wake up." It was of no use; it wasn't coming back online anytime soon. "Hey, I'm looking for Skywalker. He had a kid with him. Is that a bench?" He paused, watching the ant form a bench from some of the gathered materials. "How long will I be waiting? Is anyone here? Anyone alive?" All around them were droids, with no signs of humans or intelligent species.

Some ant droids had been pulled away from their main mission to assemble a bench to their right, cushioned with palm leaves. Elodie leaned in close. "We should just take a seat, Mando."

Din faced her, offended. "Did I do something wrong?"

"What? Mando." She looked back at him in confusion. He took her pinkie finger with his own. "No. Call me by my name." The Wolven's heart softened at the man. "I thought you would prefer it if I called you Mando in public, so hide your identity."

"I could care less about people we meet in passing. You are forever." Din defended, stepping closer so his cuirass pressed against her chest. She stared up at him and looked deeply into his visor. "Okay, Din. As I was saying, I think we should take a seat."

The Mandalorian was twitchy, whether it was from anticipation to meet his son or nerves in an unknown surroundings she did not know. "Do you want to sniff him out? Might get us there quicker." Elodie shook her head and sat down on one side of the bench. "If we're here, that means they might be busy. I don't want to interrupt his training."

Hours passed, and the Mandalorian had taken to resting his head on Elodie's lap as she ran her thumb under his chin to stroke his beard. She could practically hear him purr as he rested under her touch. When R2-D2 powered back to life, Elodie opened her eyes, and Din raised in alarm, blaster in hand. Leaning against a tree, the familiar face of Ahsoka stood with her arms crossed, staring at the two. Elodie was not as alarmed as she heard her quiet approach.

"You. I didn't expect to see you here." Din gaped as they stood from the bench. Elodie took a moment to stretch, having been in the same position for a long time. She didn't want to move in fear the Mandalorian, who had fallen asleep in her lap, woke. The man deserved a power nap.

Ahsoka smiled wistfully. "I'm an old friend of the family."

"I thought you weren't going to help train Grogu." Din confronted her, not understanding why he was talking to her and not the other Jedi. "I'm not. Master Luke is." She corrected.

"Then what are you doing here?"

Ahsoka walked closer to meet them half way. "That's my question for you." Din thought their reason for being there would have been obvious. "We're here to see the kid."

"That's why R2 brought you to me instead." The Jedi rubbed the head of the droid affectionately and laughed. It preened under her attention and then drove off without a care in the world. Elodie glared after the bot in betrayal; she should have tracked down the kid when she was told to.

"What is this place?" The Mandalorian asked, looking over the structure forming under the colony of ant droids. "There's nothing now, but will someday be a great school. Grogu will be its first student."

"I'd like to know how he's doing." He pressed further.

"He is doing fine." That was not going to be good enough for them. She knew it.

The Wolven sighed loudly, preparing to elaborate. "Din is too polite to be rude, but I'm not. We want to see the kid. Now. You've kept us waiting long enough." Elodie spoke up, crossing her arms in a way that translated, 'I'm not going until you do'. Ahsoka sighed. "I know you do. Let us take a walk."

They took a stroll back through the woods, but they were led in a different direction than before. Among the thick trees were skinny bamboo shoots. Ahsoka hung off some of them as she passed them. "I warned you when we met that your attachment to Grogu would be difficult to let go of."

The Wolven rolled her eyes. "That attachment is called love. I'm sure you know of it." Din cleared his throat, wanting to word it kinder than his partner. He wasn't sure if it were just a lack of caring, having lost human communication from her time as a wolf, or the need to see the child that was making her feel hostile. "He was a Mandalorian foundling in our care. We just wanna make sure he's safe."

Ahsoka threw her hands up in a 'look around' motion. "There is no place in the galaxy more safe than here with Luke."

"I don't understand why you're all right with Skywalker's decision to train the kid when you wouldn't."

They stopped walking, and the Jedi's face fell. "Because it was his choice. I don't control the wants of others."

He turned her words back on her. "Then, it's my choice to go and see him." Elodie wanted to fist bump him for standing his ground. He had a bad habit of people pleasing whereas she didn't care. It may be selfish, but at the end of the day, it was about survival in a galaxy like theirs.

"Of course. If that is what you wish," On the hill in the distance, Grogu was sitting underneath a tree facing the infamous Luke Skywalker. They looked to be in the midst of a training session. Din's shoulders dropped in relief at seeing the child safe, and he grasped Elodie's hand as they shot each other an excited look. "He's going to love his gift."

The two started walking. Ahsoka crossed her arms. "Are you doing this for Grogu, or are you doing this for yourselves?"

Elodie was stopped by a tug on her hand. Following their entwined hands up, she saw him pause mid-step.

"We just... I wanna give him this." With his other hand, he untucked the small package from his belt. It was tied in a red cloth with two loose strands resembling the child's protruding ears. Elodie found Din stroking the loose ends more times than he would ever admit—it was something he used to do to soothe the child or whenever he was lost in thought.

Her head tilted, "Why? So he will remember you?"

"He's our son!" Elodie frowned at her.

Din elaborated, "As a Mandalorian foundling, he should have this. It's his right." From their words with the Mandalorian armourer a few days ago, they were well aware of the Jedi's aversion to attachment and their fears that it could manifest into something hateful.

"Foundling? Perhaps he is a Padawan now." Ahsoka planted in their minds. Din shrugged, uncaring. Grogu was first and foremost a foundling. He had sacrificed not only his covert but also his own integrity for this child. "Well, either way, this armour will protect him."

She held out her hand, and Elodie felt the burning desire to snap at it like a rabid dog with a piece of meat dangling in front of its face. "If you are set on it, then allow me to deliver it."

"I came all this way. He's right there." Din felt a wave of sadness wash over him, and he stared longingly up at the child, who was blissfully unaware of his arrival.

"Grogu misses you a great deal." Ahsoka said lowly, "If he sees you, it will only make things more difficult for him." Storming back, he slapped the package down in her hand. Ahsoka cradled the gift between both palms.

Elodie snatched her hand from Din's. "You might not go to see him, Din Djarin, but I sure as hell will." She began storming past the foliage and to the foot of the hill when Din took her hand to stop her pursuit.

"Elodie. It's for the best."

She whipped around with fury on her face and tears brimming in her eyes. "FOR WHO? We were together for years, Din. Years! I can't just let him-" She paused to wipe her tears, "I can't let him go."

The Mandalorian took both her hands in his and placed them on his chest while she sagged into him. He took some deep breaths himself as her emotion personified his own. Grogu was so close to them. He was within reach, and if they called out, he would be in their arms again. Din's tongue darted out to wet his dry lips. "If you held him now, could you find it in yourself to let him go again?" Elodie sniffed and pulled her forehead off his cuirass to stare at him, lost.

He knew the answer. She knew the answer.

"My baby.." He held the back of her head at her single cry and pressed her face back into him. "I know, Mesh'la. I know." [beautiful]

Her sniffling subsided, and she pulled away from Din. They nodded to one another, silently agreeing to leave without contact, and the Mandalorian walked right by Ahsoka, only acknowledging her to grumble. "Make sure he is protected."

Elodie's anger and frustration are now redirected into something she could attack. She walked to the Jedi with a new purpose. Her hands shook at her side. Standing in front of Ahsoka, the woman looked a little uneasy about the sudden confrontation.

"We know of Jedi's aversion to attachments, your fear of it manifesting into something hateful and destructive. But let me ask you this: Is that fear not the same thing holding you back from your full potential? A life worth living? If hate can amount to destruction, think of what love could do." Elodie paused, taking a deep breath, to stop herself from completely exploding at the woman. "Our love for that child is what saved him. Made him strong and resilient! Maybe that is why you Jedi are all gone. Because you are the ones fixated on a way of life that is destined for ruin."

Ahsoka did not reply, swallowing the lump in her throat as Elodie stepped back to take the hand of the Mandalorian and walk back to their ship.

The pair did not speak as it set off back in the direction of Tatooine in order to help Boba Fett with his battle to remain Daimyo and bring peace under his syndicate. On the ship where Elodie was stationed behind Din, her legs settled on either side of his chair. As Ossus left their view, Din brought his hand to rest on her shin and rubbed soothing circles to calm her. He was just as disappointed as the Wolven with not being able to see their Foundling, something they had been looking forward to since they departed.

Not a word was exchanged.

The N-1 landed smoothly in the tunnels under the palace. There was a surprising lack of people walking around, like one would expect in a palace. A single Gamorrean walked up to them and called out in Huttese, asking their purpose for being there.

"I'm here at the request of Fennec Shand." It nodded and gestured for them to follow him down the hallways.

Entering the throne room, a table in the middle was set up with a projection of Mos Espa. All of Boba Fett's loyalists were gathered around the table. Everyone else looked to have been ready and awaiting their arrival. All eyes turned to them as they entered the room.

Boba Fett and Fennec stood at the head of the table. Din nodded to the man and received one back in welcome. Boba's eyes fell to the smaller figure accompanying him, relieved to see his sister enter the room as he once remembered her. He took note of her shoddy clothing, which looked to have seen better days, and the hardened look in her eyes.

His face softened, and he held up an arm to ask for her to stand beside him. She led Din with their connected hands and offered her brother a side embrace. "I'm glad you could make it." He muttered to her, giving her a small smile. Elodie gave him a pressed one in return and surveyed the room. Brief introductions were made around the table when everyone was present.

Fennec began walking around the table as she debriefed everyone on the recent events of the enemy syndicate. "The Pyke Syndicate has been gathering soldiers the last few weeks. Mayor Mok Shaiz is on their payroll and has flown off world, which leads us to believe the storm is about to break."

There was a Twi'lek who butted in. The Majordomo. "It was a scheduled vacation, actually." A Gamorrean squealed at him to shut his mouth, flinching away.

"Here's a map of where they are gathering, based on whispers. The three crime families of Mos Espa seem willing to lay low and let the Pykes move on our territory. This is the Mandalorian, Din Djarin, and his partner and sister to the Daimyo, Elodie. Thanks to them and Krrsantan, we now have enough experienced muscle to act as enforcers. The Mods have done a thorough job of surveying the streets, but we lack the numbers to cover our territory if an all-out war comes. We need foot soldiers." The assassin walked around the table to stop on the other side of the Daimyo.

Din tilted his helmet down to the Wolven who nodded, agreeing to the same idea that came to mind. And conveniently on the planet. The Mandalorian spoke up to gather their attention. "We might be able to help with that."

Boba looked at them, perplexed by their suggestion. "You know someone?"

It was Elodie who answered, "We have more than one. A town and someone you're familiar with, Cobb Vanth. We helped him slay a Krayt dragon some months ago in exchange for your armour."

"And you think he would help us?" Fennec pondered, leaning her hands on the table. Din nodded, "I think I could get him to agree to send a garrison of his men down here to help with the fight."

Fennec pinched her lips, impressed with the offer. "Let us know what price you can negotiate. That's everything concluded for now. Keep your comms on and contact us if you hear or see anything."

Elodie and Din passed over a Sand Crawler in the Dune Sea carrying a particularly precious cargo. She found a smile slip on her face out of amusem*nt at the sight of the skull of the Krayt Dragon on its roof.

The Mandalorian parked the ship in the town and departed. A man from the town strutted over to them. Similarly to Cobb, he wore a red cowl around his neck and a scowl on his face at the newcomers. Instantly, Elodie did not like the man. Call it sixth sense.

"You want to park your starship, you got to do it out there in the flats." He called out to them, hands firmly planted on his hips. The man didn't look familiar to the pair, and they didn't understand where his attitude came from.

"I'm looking for Marshal Vanth." Din proclaimed, ignoring his previous comment completely. He was in no mood for further confrontation after today's events. The man planted his hands on his hips. "I don't think you heard what I said."

The Mandalorian saw his hand discreetly moving to his blaster in its holster on his hip, but made no move.

"We heard you." Din said, and Elodie continued on from him, "Look buddy, we want to speak to the boss, so why don't you run along and grab him? We need to have a big-boy conversation. Deputies don't qualify." Before it could go any further, the marshal stepped out from behind the man and patted him on the shoulder.

"ll take it from here, Deputy."

The man walked away, sending hateful looks at the two strangers. Cobb winced and looked at the pair, then behind them. "He's new. Still a bit jumpy. Somethings got you twisted up real tight, sweetheart, so just bring it down a notch." He pinched his thumb and finger together to indicate a 'notch'. "Is that a Naboo starfighter?"

Cobb went around them to admire the starship. It was a beauty. Elodie chose to ignore the man and gave a roll of her eyes. They needed his help, and if she were to open her mouth, only venom would spit out. The Mandalorian chose to carry on the conversation instead. "That's what it started off as. Haven't seen you since you gave up your armour. How have you been?"

"More careful. Where's the little guy?" The Marshal questioned, not seeing the child with the two. "Back with his own folk."

Cobb was somewhat amused. "That's too bad. I guess we both lost something we were fond of."

"Can I buy you a drink?" They left the starfighter parked where it was and joined the Marshal as he led them inside the cantina. While it had been a long time since they were there, it remained as desolate as it once was. Only this time, the rib cage of the Krayt dragon lined the inside of the cantina.

On the way in, they gave the man a rundown of events.

"I still don't see what all that's got to do with me." Cobb shrugged from the bar, grabbing the drinks and coming to sit with the pair on the closest table. He slid a glass to the woman, and she nodded in thanks. "On the house, sweetheart."

"Your people are fighters, and Boba is willing to offer payment for your services." The Wolven replied, taking a small sip of the drink. She recoiled at the burn in her throat and set the drink down, pushing it away. She did not like how it reminded her of the burning in her veins during her time on the Imperial cruiser. I guess no more alcohol, she mused.

"I need you to lead a garrison. Your people are good fighters, and there's plenty of credits in it for them too."

Cobb took a swig of his own drink. "The peace is intact, Mando. We took out that dragon. My people don't want to fight no more." This is what Din was afraid of. "Your town might be good for now, but it's all part of the same planet. We need good people to step up, or the spice is bound to come through these parts."

"As long as I'm here, that's not a problem, so why should they risk their lives for this Boba Fett?"

Elodie leaned forward, "Because he's trying to save lives. There are more innocent people out there than just your town. No offence, but your town is small compared to the vast empire of the Pyke Syndicate. You've met them before, and they'll keep coming. You can help stop them."

Din added on to what she was saying after seeing the consideration on the Marshal's face. "Mos Pelgo might be good right now..." He tapped the table to emphasise his point.

"Freetown." Behind the bar, Weequay corrected them. Cobb went on to explain. "It's called Freetown now. We changed the name. Suits us better."

Correcting himself, Din persisted, "Well, I fought side-by-side with the citizens of Freetown, and they're brave people, and the Pyke Syndicate has us outnumbered, and we need your help."

"The town wants no part of it. That's a city folk fight." Weequay told him, leaning on the bar counter. The Mandalorian turned his attention to the Marshal, knowing he could potentially persuade him if he used the right words. "Is that what you say too, Marshal?"

"We're square, you and me." Cobb clarified. Din agreed. "Yes, we are. But I didn't think you were one to back down from bullies."

At his unwavering stare, Cobb felt his composure crumble at the valid arguments being made. He was annoyed a the Mandalorian's tenacity. "See, that's what I like about you, Mando. That big smile of yours lets you get away with anything."

"There's no easy way to ask for a favour."

Cobb inhales deeply and chuckles. "I'll tell you what. Things are tough around here, but I'll see what I can do."

Elodie thanked the Marshal, hoping that he would be able to persuade the people of Freetown to help in the fight. "That is all we ask."

Chapter 24: Chapter 21: In the Name of Honour

Chapter Text

The Mandalorian and the Wolven entered the ruins of the Sanctuary, one of the most popular cantinas in Mos Espa. Or was. The entire place was ashen from the recent bombing, and the smell of smoke was still present. The Pyke syndicate did not care for sparing innocent lives.

The Daimyo and the master assassin looked shocked to see them so soon after leaving to recruit men to fight from Mos Pelgo, now known as Freetown. "That was fast. Were you able to hire any foot soldiers?" Fennec questioned, eager for good news.

Din nodded, walking down the steps at the entrance. "I think so. Cobb Vanth is raising a garrison for us."

"What price did you negotiate?" She questioned further, wanting to know how much funding they had left. Ruling a crime syndicate at war was timely and expensive.

"Free." Elodie said. She sat on the stairs, not caring about getting the overalls filthy. She hoped to get them drenched in blood soon enough. There was something burning inside of her. A deep, unsettled rage. The feeling had left her simmering and on edge since transforming back into a human. It was as if the longer she remained as a human, there was turmoil in her mind. She clutched her hands at the edges of the steps.

"Free?"

"He's been holding off the spice trade single-handedly. I told him we could shut it down." Fennec was displeased with what was promised. "That's not free. That's most of Jabba the Hutt's business."

He held his hands up in defence. "That's what the town wants." Elodie shared her two cents, "I don't think you are in a position to make demands. Accept the help."

"I agree to their terms." Boba agreed, nodding at the two. The Wolven was right, they were in no position to refuse help. "There's a lot of credits to be made from that orange powder." The assassin argued.

He tried to reason with her to make her understand. "In the long run, it is better for us as well. Mos Espa can become a prosperous city under our protection. Spice is killing our people. Let Marshal Vanth and the people of Mos Pelgo."

Din cut in. "Freetown is its name now."

"Let the people of Freetown know they have my word." Boba finalized. "You can tell Cobb Vanth himself when he arrives here with the reinforcements." The Mandalorian reassured, he knew that Cobb Vanth was a good man and would do well to stick to his word.

The Daimyo was nervous. He was relying on the extra foot soldiers to add to their numbers. "You are confident he will come?"

"I am." Din said, and Elodie nodded simultaneously. "Well, if he does not, we are doomed. Our skill is no match for the syndicate numbers. We must buy time until they arrive. We'll lock down at the palace."

"It's a bad idea." Skad interrupted, stepping from his silent position to the side. To be honest, Elodie didn't even realise that the man was even here; she was too busy lost in her thoughts. Looking around the old cantina, she saw that the rest of the team was gathered there too. Boba looked over at the Mod, "Is that so?"

"It is." He admitted. His partner came to stand by his side to back him up. Boba held out his hands. "And where do you propose we wait for reinforcements?"

Drash spoke up. "Here."

He scoffed. "Here? In these ruins? Nonsense. The palace offers greater protection." The cantina was exposed in the middle of the city. The palace held better fortifications made by the Hutts themselves. And if anyone did breach those walls, they would find themselves face-to-face with his new pet. Drash refused, growing irate at his dismissive attitude. "If you want to abandon Mos Espa and hide in your fortress, go ahead. We're staying. The people who live here need our protection."

"We'll stay." He decided after some moments of contemplation.

Then their forces dispersed across Mos Espa to keep an eye out for anything suspicious and to protect the people.

"The truce you negotiated with the other families of Mos Espa will ensure that they will remain neutral and allow us to gain the upper hand by surprising the arriving soldiers." Fennec told the Mandalorian and his partner. Din stood at the top of the stairs, beside Elodie. She rested her head against his propped knee and had her arm loosely wrapped around his calf, thumb looped in the small bandoleer that held spare Amban rifle cartridges.

"The Gamorrean guards are posted in the Klatooinian territory at the starport and will alert us if any of the Pyke Syndicate forces arrive. Krrsantan is in Trandoshan territory, keeping tabs on the streets of the municipality in front of City Hall. Drash and Skad are with the other Mods keeping an eye on the worker's district and the Aqualish quarter." She mulled over out loud, trying to think of any areas they left out. The others nodded silently, agreeing that their territory was protected.

"As you can see, all our flanks are covered. Nobody is sneaking up on us. When the people of Freetown arrive, we will have the forces required to pivot our strength to whatever region the Pykes choose to attack from." Elodie admitted, "Sounds like a good idea."

"For now?" Boba asked. Was he prepared to be responsible for the lives of an entire city? The man was starting to act more like the mayor than the mayor himself. "We wait."

Din looked down at the Wolven who was staring off into the distance. "You feelin' okay, Mesh'la?" She hummed, resting her chin on his knee when looking up. She was tired, he could see the bags bruising her undereyes. But there was something else that he couldn't put his finger on. [Beautiful]

From deeper inside the cantina, Boba looked over at the pair conversing. He knew from the moment he reunited with Elodie that she was closely bonded with the Mandalorian. And since liberating her from the Empire, he understood that their fates were deeply intertwined. He admired the way the Mandalorian genuinely cared for his sister and the way they complimented one another. Like cheese and wine. Their affections had been tested, but they were resilient, like a reed bending in the wind but not folding. It was all he ever wished for his sister to have.

"Lord Fett? There is someone here to see you." A droid said from the doorway, interrupting his train of thought.

Well, apparently, they didn't have to wait too long. He threw Fennec an amused look. "I thought you said nobody could sneak up on us."

Boba left to meet with Cad Bane in the streets outside, and the rest of them in the cantina spied out the windows eagerly. Elodie knew of Cad Bane; one of the most fearsome bounty hunters, notorious for his ruthlessness and success in job completion. His blue skin was bright, even underneath the Stetson, and his red eyes were large and haunting.

The Daimyo was slow to walk up to him. "I thought I smelled something. If you're looking for a job, you're late." Cad Bane smiled maliciously, the sharp tips of his teeth putting Elodie's to shame. "I've already got a job. I'm here to negotiate on behalf of the Pyke Syndicate."

"I don't negotiate with gutless murderers."

He slurred, "If that's not the Quacta calling the Stifling slimy." Boba knew better than to put his gun away and kept it pressed tightly against his cuirass.

"Clear out. And tell your bosses, we know they're outnumbered."

"I wouldn't be counting on the people of Freetown to be coming anytime soon." Din and Elodie withdrew from the window and made their way out the cantina doors to flank Boba from behind pillars. They were ready to fight if it came down to it. Cad eyes the Mandalorian and the Wolven as they swiftly exit the cantina behind the Daimyo. "I paid Marshal Vanth a visit. You should've never left him without his armour. Before you get any ideas, I've got back shooters too. Let the spice move through Mos Espa, and all this can be avoided." Fear blossomed in their minds for the Marshal and his people. Their hope was diminishing with each word dripping from his lips.

Boba gritted out a sharp "No."

"What do you propose, then?" Cad requested.

"I will only negotiate with the head of the Pyke Syndicate."

"You mean the one that massacred your Tusken family and blamed it on a speed bike gang? You know it's true." Boba tightened his grip on his blaster, his finger ready to fall to the trigger. Cad was toying with him, edging him on to make the first move. An angry Boba would make mistakes, and that would give Cad the upper hand.

Fennec rushed out from behind the pillar, hoping to talk some sense into the Diamyo before he made any more mistakes. "Boba."

"Let's do this right here, right now." Cad pushed. Fennec interjected. "Not now. You pick when."

"He killed Vanth. The reinforcements aren't coming." Boba sighed in realisation that they were not going to be able to face off against the Pyke syndicate and win.

"We fight on our terms, not theirs." She reminded him. Elodie and Din kept their blasters aimed at the men along the roofs behind Cad Bane.

Boba grunted. "I can take him." Fennec maintained a soft voice. "You're emotional."

"I can take him." He repeated. "We need to adjust. You'll have your moment." At the tone of her voice and her reassurance, Boba moved his hand from the trigger to rest on top of the blaster. "Tell your client negotiations are terminated."

"You're going soft in your old age." The bounty hunter taunted.

"We all do."

Boba walked away from him and back towards the cantina. Only when Cad Bane and his men were out of sight did Din and Elodie retreat from their positions in case of a surprise attack. They congregated outside and tried to formulate a new plan.

The Majordomo decided to speak up in his overly pleasant voice. Elodie never bothered to learn his name. "That was an impressive display of restraint. Exemplary stratagem. If I may be so bold as to offer additional counsel..."

"I wonder how much he would pay for the Twi'lek."

The Twi'lek laughed at his own expense. "Understood. Many pardons. I should never have interjected." The comms on Fennec's belt started alarming; she lifted it and pressed answer to the incoming call.

"Come in, boss. Come in. Something feels strange over here." Drash said.

"Have the Pykes arrived?" They waited in anticipation for the reply. "Not yet, but something feels off—the locals are attacking!"

"I thought we had a treaty." Din said, reading Elodie's shocked face.

Fennec clenched her jaw, looking at the Daimyo. "So did I."

"They laid a trap!" It was as if the day couldn't get worse. The Gamorreans were squealing over their comm, but were quickly silenced by what everyone assumed was death. Boba's face crumbled, and he called out for his last remaining member stationed outside the city hall. "Santo! Santo, come in!"

There was radio silence.

"I can go to Krrsantan. We can regroup here, where we'll be stronger together." Boba sent her a look of appreciation. Din held out his hand to stop Elodie from departing, but she squeezed his hand reassuringly, "He can't fight all those people on his own. I'll be back soon, Verd." [Soldier/warrior]

"Meh gar vaabir nayc yaimpar, ni kelir oya'karir gar daab." [If you don't return, I will hunt you down]

She winked, backing away, "Ni kelir soletar bat bic." [I'm counting on it]

Elodie sprinted down the streets to the Trandoshan territory she roughly remembered on the map. By some sheer dumb luck, none of the Pyke syndicate members stopped her in her travels.

The sounds of gunfire and screaming resonated in the air as Elodie ran down alleys and streets, passing fleeing families on her way. She was glad to see that not everyone was paid off to fight against them.

Exiting the alley, the Wolven faced a Trandoshan, aiming his gun at the raging Wookie. He made a double-take but was on the floor with a smoking blaster hole in his chest before he had a chance to react. Elodie shot at any gun-wielding Trandoshan's she saw, and soon, some began turning away from the mountainous Wookie to fire at their new opponent.

Krrsantan howled in anger, swiping his arm out at the group of three men trying to manhandle him to the floor. A shot flew by his arm and into the Trandoshan behind him that was waiting to hit him with the butt of his gun. The Trandoshan fell, and he followed the line of fire to find the Wolven of their team firing rapidly at the members of the Pyke syndicate.

With Trandoshan's drawing closer, Krrsantan began using his electrified knuckle dusters to disarm the men.

Across the courtyard, Elodie released a yell, ramming her elbow into the gut of the man behind her and twisting to slam her blaster against his head. The Trandoshan released her hair from his hold and fell to the floor, unconscious.

"Always the hair." She grumbled to herself, ducking behind some of the leftover crates from the market traders. Krrsantan remained out in the open, his thick skin able to withhold the brutality of physical attacks and blaster bolts.

Trandoshan's were flooding the courtyard from alleyways and the buildings surrounding them. This wasn't just a random turning of the tide; this was an ambush. The two of them were outnumbered, for sure. Elodie reached for her comm to call back to the rest of the group, "Din, Boba. Do you copy?"

"I copy." Boba replied, "Have you made it to Krrsantan yet?"

Elodie continued to fire her blaster with one hand while holding the receiver to her mouth with the other. "He's still alive."

"Tough son of a bitch."

"The City Hall is overflowing. They're coming from everywhere!" She shouted, bending quickly behind cover to avoid the oncoming wave of blaster fire. She winced, feeling the crate rattling.

"Don't worry about taking them all out, just get your asses back here!"

The wood splintered at the edge, fragments burying themselves into the exposed skin of her arms. Elodie cried out, curling in on herself. She hung up the comm and wiggled it back into her pocket.

Blaster fire ceased, and someone flew overhead. Elodie peered over the side of the crate to see Krrsantan tear into the firing squad. Elodie jumped out from behind the scraps of wood and threw her gun at the head of a man running at her. He fell, and she skidded along the floor to pick it up as she passed him and swung her arm out to clothesline the next man.

It hurt her injured arm, and she felt the splinters wedge themselves in deeper. There was an explosion behind them, and she turned to see the Wookie and some of Trandoshan's fallback. At the distraction, Elodie was brought back to the fight ahead of her by a Trandoshan kicking her knee from under her.

She yelped as her kneecap slipped and she fell down. He lifted his hand and punched her in the temple. The blow was disorienting, and Elodie fought to keep her eyes focused. The man above glared and kicked her chest, causing her to fall flat on her back.

Using her good leg, she kicked him away, but another man descended on her. And then another. She was pinned underneath their mammoth combined weight as they struggled to contain her thrashing. On the steps of the city hall, Krrsantan was also pinned under the weight of a group of Trandoshans. They were hurting him, almost besting him too.

Elodie was panicking.

She screamed, feeling claustrophobic and unable to move. The air was not reaching her lungs, and her skin felt too hot. The men were rough, and their scaly skin grated against hers felt like a cheese grater. Her vision blurred more, and she could no longer tell if she was screaming. The high-pitched tone faded into a ringing noise. The man above her was smirking, his hands weaving around her neck and applying intense pressure. No matter how deep her claws dug, his grip was unwavering. Elodie felt the warm, pulsing blood sliding down her neck from his wounds, and the metallic taste filled her sinuses. Her pupils expanded, and her nostrils flared. A thunderclap headache arose from nowhere.

And then there was a definite scream.

But it didn't belong to her.

Her body was morphing on its own accord. The bloodlust had tipped her over, and her actions were no longer her own. The nails of her hands extended and sliced through the Trandoshan's hands like butter, severing them from his wrists, and her hands released them as the once dexterous fingers receded into paws.

It was like an out-of-body experience. Her body was being possessed, and she had no way of stopping it. Her jaw dropped and cracked out of place with a tumultuous roar, a snout forming with thick, dark hair seeping from her pores. Her body heaved upwards at the release of the man's hands from her throat (and from his body), and her jaws locked around his head to detach it from his body with a sharp twist.

The twist turned her body to its side, and her limbs extended into her quadrupedal form. She found her body moving without her conscious thought, like she was sitting in the backseat while someone else piloted the ship; she was now back in wolf form. Red bled into the sides of her vision, and the wolf was panting. In exertion or adrenaline, she didn't know.

Eyes narrowing on the overwhelmed Wookie, the wolf bolted over and bit the back of one of the men. She tossed her head side-to-side vigorously to dismember him. This freed Krrsantan's arm, and he managed to throw another man off him. Krrsantan looked up at his saviour, realising now why she was called a Wolven.

The wolf looked half crazed, with blood running down her muzzle and a deep glare hanging heavily over her luminous, icy eyes. The Trandoshan looked up from their position on the Wookie, and their faces dropped. One screeched a warrior's cry and ran at the wolf. She swiped out at him before he even had a chance to lay a hand on her, and the others divided themselves between the Wolf and the Wookie.

Krrsantan kicked out, tossing the men off so he could stand to his full height beside the Wolven, the both of them roaring out at the group of Trandoshan's that had been reduced to five.

They came charging simultaneously.

The wolf quickly disposed of the first assailant by tearing through his midsection with her impressive incisors. Blaster bolts fired into her shoulder, but Krrsantan threw himself in front of her, now aware her hide was not as thick as his from the yelps she made. He used his knuckle dusters to disarm the Trandoshan and end him. The wolf pounced on one man who tried to attack, while the Wookie was distracted and bit into his outstretched arm.

The man yelled out in pain, hitting her snout to dislodge her teeth. She shook, tearing the muscle from the bone, and released him to cradle his deformed arm. The wolf then howled; a knife buried in the side of her waist. It was a small knife—maybe a shiv—that much she could feel. But it was f*cking painful.

Krrsantan yelled shortly after. He was pushed off balance with two men on top of him once again, and his ankle lay twisted in an awkward angle. Throwing her whole weight into the man who stabbed her, he flew into the pillar of the city hall and didn't get back up.

A Trandoshan was pulled from Krrsantan by his leg. His wide, terrified eyes met the Wookie's as he was dragged away. Krrsantan snapped the neck of the man above him and heard a scream cut off to his side. He rocked back up, careful not to bear weight on his left leg.

Elodie felt control fall back into her hands, her heart no longer hammering against her chest, threatening to break free. The crimson haze of her vision slipped away like an ebbing tide. There were no more men left alive in the courtyard, from what they could see. Everyone else had either fled the scene or retreated into their houses.

She sighed, the sound coming out like a huff, and Krrsantan looked over to her and nodded, their silent communication symbolising their shared agreement to make their way back to the cantina. The wolf walked up to his side, allowing him to lean his weight on her to avoid using his injured ankle; like what she had done for Din when he injured his thigh with the Dark Saber.

"They're here." Din said, looking out the cantina window at the men from the Pyke syndicate walking down the street to their place in the cantina.

Boba clenched his jaw. "It was just a matter of time. Is Cad Bane with them?" The Mandalorian looked out the window again but only saw henchmen, both in the streets and gathering on the rooftops. They were preparing to fight. "Don't see him. Any news on the others?"

Din was beginning to worry. Elodie had called them earlier to inform them that she had reached Krrsantan before he could become overwhelmed, but he hadn't heard anything since she cried out over the comms. He tried calling back, but the line was silent, like the call wasn't even connecting. Every fibre of his being was telling him to seek her out, but his gut said to hold out and trust that she would fight to get back to him. Elodie was a strong, capable woman, and that was one of the reasons he loved her.

"Would be a miracle if any survived. All three gotras of Mos Espa turned on us." Boba said, mostly to himself. Perhaps his pride is what got them into this mess in the first place. Maker knows he was never meant to be Daimyo in the first place. It was all a spice dream.

Din nodded. "It was the smart move."

"It was. I suppose you'll be heading out." The viridian Mandalorian said, eyeing the troops gathering outside.

"I'm not."

"You should."

The chrome Mandalorian looked over at the Daimyo, he admired that he was trying to fight for what was right, even as a crime lord. A true value of a Mandalorian, and Din respected that. He respected the man who had helped him rescue Elodie and Grogu. And there was no way Elodie would ever abandon the man who raised her. "It's against the Creed. I gave you my word. I'm with you until we both fall."

"You really buy into that Bantha fodder?" Boba smiled; he did like the man Elodie had chosen to follow. Which reminded him, if they lived, he would have to have a private word with him. Din tilted his helmet in acknowledgement. "I do."

"Good. You have my blessing."

Din tilted his helmet, not understanding. Boba smiled, his teeth showing, "To be with her."

Be with her? Where was this coming from? Boba Fett was alluding to more than just a simple partnership.

Din looked away from the other Mandalorian and at the ground. The thought had crossed his mind, and he did plan on reinstating his position as Mandalorian instead of apostate. That would mean that he would no longer be able to bare his face to Elodie again. The thought made him clench his fists. Now that it had been done, he would find it hard to resist again. The temptation of the Wolven was great and he was not sure if he was resilient enough to hold back again. They had been together for a while. They had been through a lot together. They had shared their most intimate thoughts and pleasures with one another. He had never experienced what they had with anyone else before, never opened up to anyone like he had to her, and he wasn't sure he wanted all of that to ever stop. He was a needy man when it came to Elodie Slate. Boba Fett was right.

Seeing the resolution in his form, Boba set a hand on the Mandalorian's shoulder. Like brothers.

They both looked outside. They would need to deal with this situation first. Din cleared his throat, "The way I see it, we have two choices. We wait until they get into position and launch a siege on their terms."

"Or?" It was just the two of them against a militia of highly trained soldiers. But they were first and foremost Mandalorians. And Mandalorians never ran from a fight.

"We rush out there, catch them unaware. Then we can escape to your ship at the palace. I can't abandon Mos Espa. These people are counting on me."

"Okay, then. We'll both die in the name of honour." Boba clicked the safety of his gun. "You sure you wanna stay?"

"This is the way." Din vowed.

The Majordomo laughed nervously, slipping closer and wringing his hands. "If I may offer an alternative? Shall I continue? I'll continue. You may not know this about me, in fact, how could you, except perhaps what vestiges remain of my accent, but... I was educated on Coruscant. Not that that makes me better in any way."

"Get to it." Boba growled, he had no patience for this. His family, friends, and syndicate were slipping from his fingers as more time passed. "Yeah, uh... I attended finishing academy. My parents were not wealthy by any means. I specialised in civic council negotiations. Now, if you would feel confident empowering me to negotiate on your behalf, I'm fairly certain we would be granted passage off world with, at worst, some theatrical, symbolic, grovelling gestures and an exchange of funds."

The Mandalorian hummed thoughtfully. Donning his helmet, he held out a hand to the Twi'lek, "Very well." The Majordomo stared openly at the man, not believing his words for a moment. "Give me your tablet. I will write out my statement and what I am willing to pay."

Boba took a moment to jot down his settlement, his pen stabbing at the screen forcefully as if to convey an emotion he could not put into words. The Twi'lek bowed to the Daimyo, smiling. "I shall go as your emissary. I have no compunction whatsoever, genuflecting or even grovelling if need be, which would save you from any potential bruising of ego, so to speak." The Mandalorian almost chucked the pad back at the man as if it would get him out of his sight faster. "Now go before I change my mind."

"Yes. Excellent."

The Majordomo half-ran outside before the Mandalorian Daimyo could, in fact, change his mind and bowed gracefully at the Pyke syndicate, who stared at the man, unfazed by his pleasantries. "Salutations! Salutations! I am unarmed, but for this tablet bearing the terms of surrender. I wish to present to whomever spokesperson is empowered to deliberate an acceptable outcome in the eyes of the Oba Diah high council."

"Read it to me, tail-head." The Twi'lek laughs at his own expense. "Oh, because of the enchanting sobriquet, and one of which I never tire. Yes. Someday I hope to see the fabled Obsidian Cliffs of Oba Diah with my own eyes."

"Read it."

"Agreed. Let us dispense with the pleasantries. 'I, Boba Fett, speaking as Daimyo
of the Tatooine territories formerly held by Jabba the Hutt, do present the following offer.'" His face falls upon reading the next sentence. If it were to leave his lip, it would sign his death warrant. He cast his eyes up at the Pyke's and dismissed the rest of the message. "Perhaps we should discuss what you'd be willing to..."

The man walked closer. Threateningly. "Read it."

Majordomo cleared his throat and licked his suddenly dry lips, "... 'Following offer. Nothing. Uh... You will leave this planet and your spice trade. If you refuse these terms, the arid sands of Tatooine will once again flourish with flowered fields fertilised with the bodies of your dead.' His words." Guns of the Pyke syndicate co*cked, and the Twi'lek whimpered, taking a small step backwards.

The syndicate did not get a chance to shoot before two Mandalorians descended from the sky in their jet packs. Din and Boba opened fire on the members of the Pyke syndicate. The Majordomo took this opportunity to flee back into the safe space of the cantina, and the Mandalorians landed in front of the entrance.

Any of the Pyke's that were standing in the open street were dead thanks to the deadly accurate aims of the Mandalorians, and they spun around to keep firing at the rooftops and behind the buildings.

While they were exposed in an open area, they kept light on their feet to make it difficult for shots to land. And the ones that did just repelled off the Beskar armour.

A shot to the thigh sent Din to his knee, and Boba was quick to respond, standing over his back to return fire while he recovered. Din took a deep breath, looking up and igniting his whistling birds. They whirred as they soared through the air to meet their targets.

Din stood again, and the Mandalorians were dancing around each other. Boba used the missile on his back to destroy a particularly hidden balcony where his shots could not reach, and then lifted his knee to fire in one direction while his blaster focused on another.

"They just keep coming!" The Pykes seemed to have a never-ending militia, like Elodie had warned them of.

A shot hit Bob in the head, and Din went to defend but the shots were coming too fast and too frequently. The Beskar armour rattled their bones as it vibrated painfully when recoiling from blaster bolts. The two men found themselves unable to stand on the sand when an explosion rang out from the street to their right.

A speeder whipped around the corner, and Weequay was in the turret, shooting to defend them. Two dozen people from Freetown stood in the craft behind him, firing at the Pyke's. The speeder stopped in front of the Mandalorians to give them a chance to recover. "The people of Freetown." Boba Fett gaped.

"Help! While you got cover!" Weequay shouted to his men, rushing them to disembark the speeder while he manned the turret. Shots began returning from the Pyke's and Weequay had to abandon his post when the Turret exploded. Boba crouched beside him while the Pyke's fired at them. "I'm sorry about the Marshal." Weequay gave them a distraught look, uttering out, "They gunned him down in cold blood."

"You didn't have to come here." Din said, but he was equally grateful that they did; otherwise, they would have been outgunned and outnumbered.

"Yes, we did. This planet deserves better." The man said with fierce passion. They popped out from behind the speeder and returned fire just as the mods were making their way down the side street to their left. Skad was knocked off when a stray bolt nicked the front of his ride, but he rolled to catch himself as the others parked and gathered with the rest of the people of Freetown.

Boba eyed their company, checking for serious injuries from missing individuals. "You alright?" Drash panted, "Got pretty hairy back there. Where'd all these sand scurriers come from?"

A woman from Freetown eyed her in disgust. "We're here to save the tails of some city rats." Drash's face fell into a solid glare, and she went to step up to her when the viridian Mandalorian called out to them in warning. "Save it for the Pykes."

A Trandoshan screamed, and he flew out of the street in front of them.

Krrsantan and a wolf limped out from behind the cover of the building and into the main street. It was easy to spot that they were both injured from their limping and slick matted fur in places. The Wookie was using the Wolf as support as they tried to hurry behind cover. In their shock, the people of Freetown stopped firing their weapons.

But that gave the Pyke Syndicate the opportunity to retaliate.

Blaster bolts whizzed past the pair, most barely missing them. Din stood straight, recognising the wolf to be Elodie, and called out for the people of Freetown and the Mods to return fire. They were walking targets out in the open!

"Fire back! Fire back!" He screamed at them, aiming for any that dared fire towards the wolf. The people of Freetown broke from their daze and did as ordered, but it was too late.

Elodie released a high-pitched yelp, blasters blistering the skin of her exposed right side, and she collapsed. Krrsantan fell too, as she was supporting his weight, and he tried to stay on top to shield her, but with the number of blasters firing on them, his skin would soon become vulnerable too.

Wookies were tough, not invincible. Krrsantan threw his arm out to push back one man who dared approach them. He owed the beast his life. She risked her life to ensure his safety, and he was going to do the same.

The Mandalorian's stood, watching the pair fall in a heap under heavy fire. They would die if left there. That was certain. Din cast a look at Boba to find him already staring, and he gave him a nod.

"Cover us!" Boba called over his shoulder, using the lull in the blaster fire to advance into the street. Shots fired from behind them as Freetown and the Mods backed them up, and the shots by the Pyke's reduced when they had to duck for cover. Boba brought Krrsantan's arm over his shoulder to hoist him back over to the speeder.

Din kneeled next to the wolf, giving her a brief once over before hoisting her over his shoulder like he had done in the covert. He pushed past the burning of his thigh muscles and sprinted to the front of the cantina, where he set her back down. Elodie was a bulk of muscle in her wolf form, which tripled her weight compared to her human form.

The wolf growled half-heartedly.

"They're falling back!" One of the Freetown men shouted, and the group cheered. At the suspicious surrender, Din raised his hand to his visor and switched on his infrared vision. Behind the far building, a heavy machine was slowly heading their way.

He swallowed the lump in his throat, warning everyone, "I wouldn't celebrate yet. We got problems. We got real problems."

Two Scorpenek's rounded the corner, surrounded by a blue shield. They were both towering droids with heavy repeat blasters on either arm and a singular crimson optic. Blaster shots did nothing to penetrate the layer surrounding them, and they continued to advance. Boba fired his last remaining missile, but it exploded on the outer blue shield.

A force field.

The smoke cleared, and both the shield and the Scorpenek's were unharmed.

Din turned to Elodie, who was lying on the floor against the pillar. "Can you still fight?" She huffed, as if offended, and stood. Elodie felt the unsteadiness of her legs as she stood and leaned heavily on the pillar. She went to move away, but he pressed her back against it with a gentle gloved hand on her head, "Stay here for a minute. Get your breath back."

The Scorpenek's fired, causing the speeder they had been using as cover to go up in flames.

"Run! We'll distract them." Boba called out to everyone. They ran in a collective group, as if being together would give them a better chance at survival.

Din and Boba Fett jet packed around the Scorpenek's, trying to determine a point of weakness. Neither blaster nor fire deteriorated their protective shields. Din took out the Dark Saber and swung with all his might.

The blade rebounded with a twang, and it made him stumble back.

He tried again while Boba was busy distracting them. It was of no use. "I can't get through."

"These two will destroy the whole city!" The other Mandalorian deflated. The two dove behind a scorpenek to avoid shots from the other. "Our energy weapons can't get through, and our kinetic weapons have too much velocity."

"Can you protect the others?"

"I can distract them for a spell. Why?" Boba had a plan. It was risky, but there were no other solutions. He grabbed the arm of his fellow companion, wrenching him around to look him in the visor. "We need reinforcements."

"From where? You've run out of friends." Din stated bluntly. Boba thought back to the one asset he had tucked away at the palace. "Protect the others." He said, igniting his jet pack to fly back, careful to avoid any shots blurring by. There was no room left for question, and Din had to have blind trust that the man had a good plan.

"Mando! Eddy! Ha! We found you! I got a surprise for you." She called out, excited about the bundle of green hidden beside her in blankets. He looked back at the woman, stupefied at her appearance.

"TURN AROUND!"

Elodie hadn't heard him shout like that before. His voice was gritty with exhaustion and desperation. Peli frowned, "What?"

"TURN AROUND!" The Mandalorian yelled again, waving his arms in exasperation.

"I can't hear you!" The mechanic rolled her eyes at his dramatics, bringing a hand up to her ear over the noise slowly getting louder as the Scorpenek droid rounded the corner, red optic narrowing on them.

The mechanic felt herself freeze.

"Turn around!" Peli yelled at the droid ferrying her. Its wheels spun as it made a U-turn, sand making it difficult for the rolling wheels to gain traction. Elodie hopped across Peli's lap, and the Mandalorian jumped onto the back of the cart to cover them from behind. The woman let out a wheeze, which was muffled by the panicked voice of the Mandalorian.

Noticing the Scorpenek gaining on them, he shot a look at Peli. "Can this thing go any faster?"

"Go faster, you bucket of bolts!" She yelled in turn, lobbing a spare wrench at the droid's head. The passengers flew back at the revving of his gears, and the cart moved faster. Elodie smelled something familiar and watched the blankets in front of her shuffle. Her head tilted, and she used her nose to move it away.

"Hey, Mando! Look who's here."

Grogu shook his head, his ears unfolding from the cramped space. Din took a double take at the child, not believing his eyes, and swiftly pocketed his blaster to reach down and touch the child. Elodie buried her nose into his robes, and Grogu fisted the fur of her snout. She whines, wishing she could embrace him.

"What? Hey, what are you doing here?" The child released her fur and jumped into Din's awaiting arms. The Mandalorian couldn't believe his eyes. Grogu was here, on Tatooine. After all this time. He laughed, clutching him to his chest. "Oh! Okay, little guy. I'm happy to see you too. I didn't know when I'd see you again. It's okay. Yeah. I missed you too, buddy. But, uh, we're in a bit of a bind here right now." Din set the child back into his seat beside the wolf and caught sight of the silver peeking out from under his beige robes. He pulled it down more to show Elodie that he was wearing their gift. Her eyes lit up at the sight. "You be careful. You keep your head down. You stay hidden until the fight's over. Hey, that's the shirt. You got the shirt."

Peli pulled out her own weapon, a black blaster with a wide barrel end like a tuba. "Save your tender moment. We've got a Scorpenek droid chasing us."

"What is he doing here?" The Mandalorian asked, knowing that Elodie was thinking the exact same thing. "The Force works in mysterious ways."

A blaster bolt went past his head and into the neck of the droid driving the cart. It glitched, then crumbled into parts.

Then the cart was airborne.

Din boosted his jet pack, intending on grabbing the child, and manoeuvred his landing so that the child would remain unharmed. The same could not be said for Peli. She lifted her head and spat out one of her front teeth.

Elodie rolled to a stop beside her, taking a second to catch her breath from the heavy impact. If they lived to see the end of the day, she was going to look like a bruised peach. She imagined the same could be said for her partner.

They stood, looking at the Scorpenek drawing closer, knowing that their blasters would do nothing but irritate the droid.

There was a loud roar in the air, and claws dug into the building's roof beside them.

A Rancor heaved itself up off the floor and dove onto the droid when it slowly began turning to face the new threat. Elodie bet that if droids could feel fear, they would be trembling under the hateful leer of the beast.

It clawed at the force field relentlessly, and red was bleeding into the blue-ish hue as the shield gradually weakened. Boba tightened his grip on the chains and helped direct the Rancor's hits. A vulnerability. The shield was struggling to maintain its integrity under the assault of the Rancor and it was drawing more power to where the Rancor was attacking from.

An idea formed in the Mandalorian's mind.

He placed the child between Elodie's two front legs, under her chest and encouraged the child not to move, "Let me handle this." He said, taking out his Dark Saber as he walked behind the droid.

With the weakened defence, the Dark Saber penetrated the sphere, and it dissipated. Noticing the vulnerability, the Scorpenek shot the Rancor and kicked out to toss him away. Din used the advantage to jet pack on top of the Scorpenek and bring his Saber down into its central processing unit.

The droid bucked the Mandalorian off, and he fell to the sand with a solid thump. But before the droid could recover, the Rancor was already upon him. He waited for his master's approval.

"Do it." Boba instructed, and the Rancor tore the droid to shreds. Scrap metal dispersed at the explosion, and Elodie brought herself to hover over the child to protect him from debris.

Now that one Scorpenek was defeated, they knew how to destroy the other. Din ran after the Rancor as it scaled the building again and headed towards all the screaming. It made sense to follow the trail of wails.

Elodie bit the back of the child's tunic, running to keep up with the Mandalorian, and Peli followed her.

It didn't take long for the Rancor to disable the other Scorpenek, and Elodie felt smug knowing that the Pyke's were unaware that Boba had a Rancor in his mitts. Hell, he didn't even tell her.

When Cad Bane arrived and Boba was thrown from the back of the Rancor, Elodie knew that this was something he had to do himself. His own personal vendetta for helping the syndicate that killed the people he cared for—the ones who saved him from the wrath of the Tatooinian sands. He gave her a reassuring nod and gestured to the Rancor.

Understanding his concerns, both Elodie and Din chased after the creature as it roamed free in the city of Mos Espa.

"The Rancor's on the loose!" Someone cried.

Running to the street where the Rancor was wondering, they saw it had chucked the speeder it was gnawing on at the group of people firing at it. He growled unhappily and began climbing one of the bell towers in a fit of rage. Din held his arms out to the Mods and Krrsantan, who were firing at it, and they stopped shooting.

Din picked the child off the floor and handed him over to the mechanic, "Keep him safe. Here," He passed Grogu the metal ball, while Peli panicked. "Well, who's gonna keep me safe?"

The wolf barked.

When the Mandalorian ran off, the Wolven took the opportunity to change forms again. She assumed that it would be a similar experience to how she conjured the beast initially. Elodie shifted away from the main streets and down a narrow alleyway, not too far from the scene. She would probably be of more use if she was able to communicate with the rest of her team; only Krrsantan seemed to be able to understand her wolfish grunts and returned in like.

Elodie blinked her eyes open. She sat on her shins, her torso bent so her front pressed against the tops of her thighs. Sitting up, she held her arms against her exposed breasts. The overalls she wore before the change were long gone, probably in shreds outside the city hall. Her pinkie brushed against her pendants dangling on her neck, and a shiver ran down her spine. Not from cold, but exposure. She looked down at herself and stuck her bottom lip out. Smears of red crusted blood coated her skin. "I hate this so much."

"Oh, for the love of..." Peli paced around the corner, stopping short when she saw the Wolven once again looking disoriented in the middle of an alleyway. Peli peeled the Majordomo off her shoulder and thrust her blaster in his hands, removing the teal vestment from him. "Hey, gimme that. Hold this."

He fumbled with the gun and struggled to keep the robe on. The mechanic successfully snatched the material, leaving him in his tunic.

Peli walked slowly over to Elodie so as not to startle her. Like a wild animal. She supposed she was. Elodie jumped when the robe was gently placed on her shoulders and looked to meet the sympathetic eyes of Peli whom gave her a small smile. Elodie reached up to grab the hem of the material and pull it over her, careful to avoid the healing wound on her shoulder.

Pain radiated all over her body. The splinters from earlier were expelled during the shifting, but left small wounds on her body. The blood on her body—it was impossible to tell if it belonged to her or the enemies she killed.

The Majordomo dropped the blaster back in the mechanic's hands, "You should have the blaster. You know how to use it."

Elodie raised to one knee, wobbling slightly at the change to her bipedal form. It was safe to assume that the wolf was not just a one-time appearance. She could feel it now. Something ominous and cumbersome sat in the very corner of her mind. Watching. Waiting.

She was not alone.

It was the cause of her acute blood lust. The rage that she had felt and the surge of power she was given when overcoming the Trandoshan's.

She rose to her feet and Peli stood to her side, ready to catch her if she tumbled over. Her eyes raked over her in concern and Elodie had not seen the mechanic so genial and troubled. "Why don't we get you to your Mandalorian?"

Her Mandalorian, Din.

He was on the floor after his unsuccessful attempt to tame the Rancor. And it looked pissed at the Mandalorian. Peli cowered back with the Majordomo at the sound of the roaring from the Rancor.

Elodie bent down to the child's level, seeing him look at the Mandalorian with worry. Elodie had no such feelings. Grogu was strong with the force, and the force is heavily intwined with nature. He would be able to reason with the Rancor, if not subdue it. She'd heard of the stories of him battling off a Mudhorn to save Din when they met; he would have no problem after having had some training to hone his powers. He wanted to approach his father, but faltered.

"You're going to use your new abilities, Ad'ika?" Elodie smiled encouragingly at him, "It's okay. I know you can do it." [Little one]

He waddled away, and Peli looked around frantically.

"Where'd you go, kid?" Elodie shushed her, "Don't distract him."

The child raised his hand, slowly walking out to stand between the Rancor and the Mandalorian. His eyes squinted in concentration, and he tapped into the force. The Rancor roared at the child, not understanding the onset of calm washing over it. It lowered to the floor, eyes falling shut. Grogu walked closer to the beast, resting beside it to recover.

With the child asleep beside the Rancor, Elodie ran up to the Mandalorian. Din lay flat on his back, contemplating life, when a white vision with a dark halo hovered above him.

Elodie was speaking to him, but he wasn't listening. A pendant dangled above his visor, swinging with her movements. His eyes trailed over the features of her face. Her high cheek bones, always flushed. Her lips naturally pouted, and he had never once seen them dry; they were always plump and enticing. It made him think back to the way her lips felt against his in Peli's office, the draw of her tongue.

His ears rang when she smacked the side of his helmet, and he grunted.

"Good. Wake up." She said, frowning down at him. If he wasn't so occupied with staring at her lips like a cobra in a trance, he would have noticed her concerned eyes staring down into his visor.

"I was awake."

That earned him another smack, "Then don't make me worry!"

Elodie gripped his vambrace and helped him to his feet. He stood, rocking a little to steady his balance, and her hands found his waist to support him. What a mess they both were. The robe on her shoulder slipped down to her elbow, almost exposing her, but he was quick to slip it back into place. Din gripped the fabric, wondering where he recognised it, when Peli spoke up next to him.

"I'm guessing there's not gonna be a barbecue."

Din looked at her and the Twi'lek cowering behind her, sans vestment. His lips pinched, and he whispered to the Wolven in his arms, "I don't like this."

"I can always take it off..." Elodie teased lightly, slipping the clothing to her lower back. Din shot forward, illegible words spewing from his mouth as he used his body to shield her from prying eyes and hoicked the clothing up to her neck while she laughed. "I meant that I prefer you in mine."

"Careful, your little green monster is showing. And I'm not talking about the baby."

They took in the scene around them. Buildings were destroyed, and the street was littered with bodies—of their own people and members of the Pyke syndicate. 'I am become death' were the words that rang in her mind. Death and destruction seemed to cast over the pair like a storm cloud on a rainy day.

While some reparations were being made to the city, the group decided to rest, having done their part in fighting. The townspeople of Mos Espa had no qualms with that, just happy to thee that the fighting as finished and they were no longer under the rule of the Pyke syndicate.

At the palace, Boba was ensuring the injured members of his group were introduced to the Bacta tank before he used it himself. He wanted to walk the streets while the people cleared it. A show of strength, Fennac had said.

He allowed Din and Elodie to stay in one of the palace rooms to rest before they resumed their journey. Peli took the child for the night, and he was resting a few rooms down. The mechanic claimed to be half traumatised by the events, and seeing as she wasn't going to get monetary compensation from the Daimyo, she accepted his offer of a room for the night while she repaired the ferry droid on her cart to take them back to Mos Eisley tomorrow.

"You should try and get some rest. You've been up for almost forty-eight hours." Elodie voiced behind the Mandalorian, crawling closer. He was sitting at the foot of the bed, perched on the very edge. The first thing Elodie did was shower before fully collapsing on the large foam mattress, a luxury they weren't usually privy to. She watched the wounds on her body pinch shut when the water from the jets cleared away the crusted blood.

He cracked his sore neck. "I don't know if I can sleep."

"Not even if I can persuade you?" The Wolven set her hands on his shoulders from behind him on the bed, rubbing soothing circles into tight muscles. "Maker, I love it when you do that."

"Is it the only thing you love?" She mused, setting a loud smooch onto the back of his helmet. She let her hands run up his arms and hung them around his neck, her head coming to sit on his shoulder. Elodie pressed into him from behind, and he leaned into her. Din hummed, a laugh rumbling his chest. "No. Not the only thing."

He reached his hands up, prying her interlaced fingers apart, and slid her around to his front. Once turned, Din pulled her down to straddle his thighs on the edge of the bed. His armour remained, but they managed to settle into a comfortable position where his hands caressed her thighs and her arms fell over his shoulders in a close embrace.

Elodie leaned in to his audio receptors, "Ni kar'tayl gar darasuum, Din Djarin." [I know you forever/I love you]

Din tightened his hand on her thigh and thought back to Boba Fett's blessing.

Her thighs clenched at the squeeze she received, and she exhaled slowly, peeling away to tap the tip of her nose to his helmet in contentment. They sat like that for some time, but at his prolonged silence, she grew weary. "Have you fallen asleep?"

Din looked up from his hands and stared at her gentle eyes. He knew he had never felt like this before.

Content. In love.

It was something he didn't think he would ever experience or deserve. And here he was, holding his life in his very hands. And he found that he didn't want it to go away. He'd die for it. Kill for it.

"Marry me."

It wasn't a question, but a gentle request. If anything, it is rhetorical.

Elodie sat back, arms drawing back to fall into her lap. She stared at the Mandalorian with a shocked expression. He would've smiled if he wasn't so serious. Before she could go on to question him, he continued, "I promised never to let anyone hurt you again. That I would care for you and keep you and the child safe. You know I love you, and that I have loved you for a long time now." He brought his hand up to cup her face, sweeping back a strand of damp hair to tuck behind her ear. His eyes were torn from her agape lips to the depths of her dark eyes. "I want to be with you for as long as I live. And I want you to want that too."

She licked her dry lips to moisten them before speaking, "I can't imagine my life without you in it. I think back to before I met you, and it feels empty. I do want this, and I want you more than anything, too." Elodie kissed his palms, reaching to undo the leather straps, withholding his skin from her. She tossed the material aside and peppered his knuckles with pecks. As much as Din enjoyed the feeling of her skin against his, he found himself impatient and craving for more.

Yes, he could have chosen a better place and time for this. Yes, he could have put a bit more of a romantic gesture into it. But he found home wherever she was. "Mhi solus tome," He stated, feeling tears build in his eyes. [We are one when together]

"Mhi solus tome." She repeated, flushing from the heat of his gaze. He led on, "Mhi solus dar'tome," [We are one when parted]

It was real. They were really going through with it. "Mhi solus dar'tome."

"Mhi me'dinui an," [We will share all]

"Mhi me'dinui an."

"Mhi ba'juri verde," [We will raise warriors]

"Mhi ba'juri verde."

They were husband and wife. Now inseparable and legally bound in the eyes of the Mand'alor. Elodie laughed, pressing her head to his once again and resting her hands back where they were before.

"Take it off." Din whispered.

Her eyes opened, and the smile slipped from her face. "You don't have to. We can stay like this for as long as you're comfortable." He contemplated it, in all honesty. His nerves felt shot. Din placed his hands over hers, feeling them tremble a little, and knew he was making the right decision. "It's okay, I want to."

It would be the first time she removed the helmet herself.

Elodie lifted it slowly, eagerly waiting to see the face she had only recently been permitted to see. Before, it had been fleeting. Passionate. New. All she wanted to do now was commit him to memory and worship him entirely.

She saw the cowl meet the tanned skin of his neck as it raised just enough for her to make out a patchy, dark beard covering his jaw. It was sharp and defined, just about hidden behind the scruff.

The helmet slipped higher to reveal just above his upper lip, where a short moustache sat. His lower lip full and naturally pouted. She could tell he had been biting them from how puffy they were.

His deeply loved his high cheekbones. Something she imagined he'd have when holding his helmeted face all the time. His helmet slipped off, releasing a dark mass of curly brunette hair, slightly askew from being flattened.

Putting his helmet to the side, she never took her eyes off him, drinking in his features like a woman seeing for the very first time. It was all still new to them both. Intimate.

Din stared back. The helmet did the woman no justice. Her eyes were darker than any colour he could name, not even light could differentiate her iris from pupil, and he bet his life that her Wolven eyes were even more tantalising.

She brought her finger down the bridge of his nose to encircle his lips, wisps of hair tickling her. "I.." She breathed, "Still can't get over how beautiful you are."

He blushed, feeling the nerves from exposure dissipate with her words.

"And I love your brown eyes." She mused. They laughed, enjoying the newfound closeness. Elodie found that she loved the raw and unfiltered noise. Before the nerves could persuade him otherwise, he leaned forward to press his lips against hers. Elodie pressed closer, securing her lips against his. Din still felt new to the whole act of kissing.

Encasing his lower lip between her own, she gently drew her tongue against it. At her mercy, he widened and allowed their tongues to meet sheepishly. Neither of them rushed and instead savoured the moment of peace. At the tease of her tongue, he moaned, and she swallowed it up greedily, the kiss inching towards becoming more desperate.

Din fought back, moving their tongues from playing in his mouth and dipping them into hers. A bold move on his part.

He wrapped his arms around her waist and pressed her into him, the rapid beating of their hearts bouncing off either side of the Beskar chest plate. It was hard and long drawn out, nothing like their brief moments together.

Din pulled away, unable to hold his breath any longer, and gasped for air. Elodie settled on pressing more kisses around his face and sliding down to his neck. He moaned again, unable to stop himself. She followed a particularly bulging vein in his neck.

He was touch starved, and her tongue licked a trail of fire down his neck.

The skin being cherished had not felt the touch of another since before he could remember. Din felt like he was going to explode, and the bulge in his trousers was evidence of that. It was a wonder the Wolven could rile him up like this. No one had ever managed such feats so fast. The Mandalorian grabbed her hips hungrily and dragged her back and forth over his pelvis.

This time, Elodie moaned. The length of him rubbing up her slit so deliciously it caused a flurry of goose bumps to spread across her skin. She aided his movements, slowly pressing down.

Leaning back, she shrugged off the towel, leaving her entirely bare. Din eyed her breasts like a beast eyeing prey, his tongue swiping across her pebbled nipples. She gasped softly at his ministrations, especially as he abruptly brought one into his mouth, sucking and nibbling ferociously. Din pawed the other, to avoid leaving it neglected. The skin was soft in his mouth, and was sweet to the taste. Her skin left him craving more. She was pleased to know that the scars did not deter him from his goals. Elodie continued grinding, one hand squeezing his on her breast and the other dug into the messy mass of curls.

As they gyrated, the cloth between them grew damper with need, and the bedroom became stuffier from wanton noises of pleasure.

Elodie hissed when he returned to kissing her. The cold press of Beskar against her heated breasts made her arch back. Wordlessly, they both began stripping Din of his armour, flight shirt, and the dungaree straps off his shoulders. She forced him to rest back as she lay kisses down his chest. Nails deftly raked the skin of torso, and his breath drew quicker. She appreciated the maintenance of the Mandalorian. His chest was bare of hair until she crept lower to the sparse trail that led from his naval into his trousers. She nuzzled them, and she could feel his lower abdominals tense in response.

Din watched on desperately from above when she cast him a taunting look. He knew he was in for trouble. Unhooking his trousers, she pulled them low enough to reach where she needed to, watching as his co*ck sprang from its confines and propped to attention on his abdomen. Long, hot, and thick.

Elodie ran her tongue up the underside, feeling the ridges of veins up from the base to the tip. Then she began circling the tip with different pressures of her tongue. Din clutched the bed sheets, clenching his jaw so hard that he thought a tooth might crack.

He panted, "Eddy."

Elodie swallowed him in his entirety, laughing as she bobbed back up for breath. She was careful with her teeth, her fangs caressing by only a hair's breadth. Din's jaw unlatched, dropping wide. His eye rolled back, and she kept repeating the motion. "Hm, Riduur? Did I do something wrong?" [Husband/Partner]

"Oh-! Mesh'la-ah ah!" [Beautiful]

Elodie brought her hand up to rub what little her mouth couldn't handle. She could feel his breaths stuttering and his whimpers deepening. Elodie was almost tempted to let him finish. They would have plenty of time to come undone in the future, but for now, she wanted him inside of her. She pulled away to straddle his thighs.

It was more intimate now that his armour was off and they were skin to skin, and she could feel the tense muscles of his thighs trembling underneath her. Din took her mouth against his again, feeling them plumper and moister following her ministrations. He ran his hands down her bare body, memorising her figure in his mind.

Din's fingers found their way to her cl*t. The circles he was drawing were small and unhurried. It made her feel like he honestly wanted to take his time for her pleasure. Her eyes closed, and she bit her lower lip. He kept his eyes on her face, watching as her eyebrows drew closer in concentration as the sensation built in her core.

He enjoyed the way she rolled along his length from his actions, coating him, as well as the little noises of satisfaction escaping her lips. Her hips jerked more rapidly, chasing her own release, and she collapsed in his arms with a soundless moan. The climax felt like a sparking wire, slow to build and quick to fade. Din smiled at the sight of her icy blue eyes at the peak of satisfaction.

Din noted that she was not very vocal. And made a point to dredge that out of her sooner or later.

He peeled her head off his shoulder to check in. Her head rolled back into view, and she wore a blissful smirk, her hair mussed from throwing her head back. Din pecked her lips. "I want you so much."

She pecked back, "Then take me."

He brought her chest-to-chest with an arm around her back and set her back into place with his co*ck slotted against her. As she sank back, it dipped deeper, stretching her more than she'd ever experienced. She paused half way, arms locked around his shoulders, and a frown marred her scarred face. Din felt her legs tremble and kissed her neck, choosing to lick up her pointed ear and nibble on her earlobe. She breathed out a whimper in his ear, subtlety bobbing to ease the stretch of him. The Mandalorian tightened his arms, supporting her weight and movements against him.

He resisted the urge to surge impossibly deeper, her tightness constricting him so much that he could have come on the spot.

The bobbing grew longer, and she could feel him reaching deeper with each stroke, to the point where their hips met. Elodie paused once again, fully sheathed. She rocked, feeling him in her stomach. The soft tufts of his hair provided good traction to her cl*tor*s, and Din found that he enjoyed the way her ass would press down hard enough to almost squeeze his balls.

Din leaned back to allow himself to pump his hips into her. Elodie bounced, a sharp, loud moan escaping her. She let her arms slip from his shoulders to his chest to support herself. The Mandalorian found himself hypnotised by the bouncing of her breasts.

She found herself staring at his face, committing his expressions to memory. His head tilted back and his eyes closed in bliss. His mouth was open, and he was mouthing words that did not fully form.

Din sat up again when he felt the deep heat building again. He leaned forward, tilting her back and thrusting back and forth more frantically than before. Elodie clung to him helplessly, legs hooking around his body, or she would have been on the floor.

He pounded relentlessly and consistently. The very tip of him was grazing the very depths of her. Elodie's eyes rolled back, and she couldn't stop the stream of noises flowing from her mouth at the new angle of penetration. The sound of their clapping bodies filled the room, along with a crescendo of moaning. She was delighted to find that he was more expressive than before. Perhaps the loss of his helmet allowed him to show what he had been hiding all this time.

With a few more thrusts, they both found themselves at the height of org*sm. Elodie purred, clutching a hand in his hair. Tucking his head into her shoulder, the other hand dug into his back to find any form of purchase. It was no use- the org*sm was all-consuming, and it fried her nerves. In response, Din bit into the skin of her shoulder, arms trembling with the force of release.

Din sat back, still sheathed, and panted from effort. The two were covered in a film of perspiration. Muscles felt like jelly.

Elodie pressed her forehead against his once again, and he stared back lovingly, a lazy smile on their faces. "I can't wait to do that for the rest of our lives."

Din brought her hand up to kiss her knuckles. He couldn't, either.

Chapter 25: 【ＳＥＡＳＯＮ　ＴＨＲＥＥ】

Chapter Text

【ＰＬＡＹＬＩＳＴ】

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1oW3AockpvLHr1u0q1lIXe?si=db656af4ba844562

Kate Beckinsale as

【ＥＬＯＤＩＥ　ＳＬＡＴＥ - ＥＤＤＹ】

Pedro Pascal as

【ＤＩＮ　ＤＪＡＲＩＮ - ＴＨＥ　ＭＡＮＤＡＬＯＲＩＡＮ】

Grogu as

【ＧＲＯＧＵ - ＴＨＥ　ＣＨＩＬＤ 】

【ＤＩＳＣＬＡＩＭＥＲ】

I do not own The Mandalorian or the rights to The Mandalorian. I do, however, take ownership of my main character Elodie Slate, her story and the book cover. Please do not copy or translate my work without my consent. I also do not own any of the images, memes, songs or gifs added to the story. All Mando'a translation are made through the websites: Lingojam and Mandoa.org. MATURE CONTENT WARNING.

Chapter 26: Chapter 22: The Apostate

Chapter Text

Pain radiated throughout her body. Her veins were alight with a poison eating its way through her system. She clawed at her leg to try and extract the foreign entity under her skin. Blood welled at the site, and skin peeled away like sheets of paper. She couldn't see it. Not passed the blood, but it was there. She could feel it.

Elodie cried more frantically, a whimper passing her lips.

Make it stop.

It writhed as she drew nearer. She had to get it out. The pain wouldn't stop until she did.

Make it stop.

The feeling was still spreading, and her chest rose and fell with rapid pants of air. A nagging feeling passed through her mind, like she was missing something. Her hand was cramping, and she couldn't close her fingers.

MAKE IT STOP.

Ringing in her ears broke suddenly, and her head shot up, eyes flying wide open.

"Elodie!" Din was turned in the pilot seat in front of hers. He was shouting at her, calling her name. She furrowed her eyebrows, her mouth slightly agape from exertion. The pain was gone in an instant. "Gar cuyir morut'yc, Ner runi. Haalur." [You are safe, My soul. Breathe]

Clasped in her trembling hand was Din's hand. His glove was gripped tightly in her own, claws almost penetrating through the thick leather. Her thigh was bloody under her hand, where she'd been pawing at it in her parasomnia.

Breathe.

Elodie let her head fall back on the headrest, closing her eyes to gather herself. "Ni ceta." [I am sorry]

"Naas at cuyir Ni ceta par." With her grip now loosened, he stroked his thumb over the back of her hand. "Gar cuyir jii mirjahaal." Looking at her leg, she saw that he was right. The bleeding had stopped, but it would take a little while longer for it to heal to gouges from her nails. [Nothing to be sorry for. You are already healing]

"Vaabir gar copad at rejorhaa'ir ni maye?" [Do you want to tell me anything/talk about it]

"Nayc ibi'tuur." She lightly shook her head. "Pehea munit akay vi ve'ganir ogir?" [Not today. How long until we get there]

"Vi cuyir olar." [We are here]

The star fighter entered the atmosphere, and Din was easily able to track down the relocated covert. He was part of the clan; he knew what they would need to fight and survive. That, and there was a sea monster beached on the shore of the otherwise desolate desert-like tundra.

Din removed his hand from where it rested lazily on Elodie's legs, extended either side of his chair, and brought both hands to the controls.

The sea beast wailed and rolled out of the fibercords. Mandalorians were either being beaten or flattened under its weight. More shockingly, there were children among their new numbers; all of whom were attempting to run back into the safety of the caves.

Din fired shots from the turret, aiming for the expanse of its exposed side. Waves of water concealed where the shots had actually landed, but when it settled, the beast was losing the strength to stay standing.

It roared, collapsing onto the shore, blood and guts spilling from mortal wounds.

Din landed the ship, and they both jumped out onto the sand. Elodie felt a pinprick of worry for the hostility they might face since Din had been cast out of the covert. Perhaps they would be too preoccupied with their recoveries.

The Mandalorians were gathering their bearings while Elodie and Din dismounted the N-1. Elodie observed the scene in front of her, placing the child down on the floor. They walked over to the cave where Din started to enter with the child. Some of the Mandalorians were injured.

The Wolven stopped him and he looked back, his helmet tilted in question. "I am going to give them a hand while you talk to the armourer."

"If you are certain?" She sent him a small smile. "Apostate or not, these are your people. Just come and get me when you're finished." Din's heart fluttered at her words. He nodded, bringing their joined hands up to press her knuckles against the crown of his helmet before releasing her. "Besides, I don't think she likes me very much."

The Mandalorian rolled his eyes, walking further into the depths of the cave with the child to discuss the matters of the Mando'a inscribed crystal he had traded for with Jawas.

Elodie faced the shoreline where the Mandalorians were rushing about. Not knowing what to do or where to start, she spotted a Mandalorian child trying to stand by the side of the beach. He was shaking his head like he had been knocked over.

The Wolven went over and bent down at his side. "Hello, let me help."

The child was around ten and wore a royal blue helmet with a larger visor. Larger visor gaps were often given to the younger foundlings as they were not used to their vision being as restricted. As they grew and their helmets were modified for their heads, their visors would reduce in size and more specifications would be included; infrared, for example.

He accepted the support to sit up, looking at the Wolven. "You are not a Mandalorian. Who are you?" She shot the child a friendly smile, steadying him when he stood. "I'm Elodie. I'm with Din Djarin to see the armourer."

"Then why are you here?"

"Is it not the creed to help other Mandalorian's?" He took a moment to think about it. "I guess."

She checked him over, making sure he was not harbouring any visible injuries, but he looked okay. "You injured under there, kid?" The child shook his head.

"Ragnar!"

Elodie whipped around at the booming voice to see Paz storming towards them. She straightened up, not knowing how he was going to react to her being here. He was amicable when she was a wolf until he decided to battle Din for the Dark Saber. If the man had been shocked at the reappearance of the woman in her human form, he made no effort to voice it.

To her surprise, he passed right by her and swooped the child up in his arms. Ragnar threw his arms around the large man, barely being able to reach around his waist entirely. "I'm okay, Dad."

Dad?

The Wolven wondered where he had been hiding while they were visiting before, but quickly dismissed it. Paz pulled away and faced the woman. "You are not welcome here, apostate." She decided not to swear at the man in front of his child, instead replying, "We did not come here for you. Din has come bearing news of Mandalore. He hopes to bathe in the living waters."

Paz scoffed, "It's useless, the mines are gone."

"We will see that for ourselves. In the meantime, you should be grateful that we were passing by before you got into some real trouble." The Mandalorian growled, stepping closer to her, but Ragnar pulled his arm. "Dad stop. She was helping me."

He gazed down at his child, his shoulders dropping in defeat. "As soon as he is finished with his business, I want you gone."

As if by magic, her chrome Mandalorian appeared from the darkness, Grogu cradled in his arms. From the swagger in his walk, the discussions with the armourer had gone well. Din made his way to Elodie, seeing that she was conversing with Paz and Ragnar. There was tension and silence when he finally reached them and nodded to Paz.

The larger Mandalorian did not reciprocate the greeting. "Your discussions have ended, now you will leave so that we can rehabilitate our people."

Din deflated, hoping to at least stay a little longer to continue helping. Seeing this, Elodie tugs at his gloved hand. "We will see you soon, Paz." She shot the child a smile, "It was nice to meet you, Ragnar."

They set off again in the N-1 starfighter, and Din had programmed the ship to autopilot while he got some rest himself. Elodie took the child from him so he would be able to get uninterrupted sleep.

"Why, are you not going to get any more sleep?" He asked, worried at the sight of her dark circles. She shot him a soft look at the time and lied, "I'll try. In a little while."

Elodie would not be sleeping any time soon.

She couldn't tell Din, and she didn't know how. It wasn't just the nightmares or memories seeping into her most vulnerable thoughts. It was the beast inside her. The way it fought under her skin to rise to the surface. Violent primal urges and a heavy weight are constantly in her head, like a building headache.

The Mandalorian in front of her softly snored, head lulling to the side. She envied that peace—being able to shut her brain off to recharge. Grogu cooed softly in her arms, and she saw that he was pressed fully against the glass hood. In the mesmerising blur of space around them, a pod of Purrgil's glided. Their entire bodies were half the size of Hoth. A rare sight to see. Elodie smiled at the child's look of awe as they flew past.

Reaching Nevarro, they disembarked at the bustling docking bay. Every time they came back to the planet, it was like a time skip ten years in the future. The town was even busier than before, and buildings were almost as high as the skyscrapers on Coruscant.

Elodie walked beside Din through the busy streets where children ran carefree and vendors were occupied selling spices and dicing womp rats to hang over spits. Walking up the main street, they made it to the city centre, where a statue of IG-11 stood overlooking the civilization. A lot of his parts were missing, having been destroyed in the explosion that saved them in the mouth of the cave. Din looked up at the statue wistfully, "A lot has changed around here."

He looked down at the child in his pram. "Do you remember your old friend?" Grogu made a noise of acknowledgement.

Greef Karga came walking down the stairs of the city hall, arms held wide in welcome. "Mando! I heard you were back, but I didn't believe it." Elodie stared curiously at the two small droids hoisting his long flowing cape from running along the pavement. His clothes were more extravagant than the pair had ever seen, and a weighty gold-bejewelled collar hung around his neck.

"Magistrate Karga." Din greeted.

Greef pointed to him, interrupting their handshake, "That's High Magistrate Karga to you."

"I thought we were friends." Elodie said, shaking his hand next. The man shot her a toothy smile. "We have to keep appearances. As High Magistrate, I can't be seen showing favouritism." Greef laughed and clapped them both on the back to encourage them inside. "Come. Let's catch up on old times. It's so good to see you. Welcome back."

"Doesn't even look like the same place."

"I know, we've done a lot with it. The citizens have been so instrumental in making this all work, and look at this." Reaching Greef's office, Gorgu found himself at home on the desk chair and used the force to twirl in circles. Elodie shook her head and followed the men out onto the balcony overlooking the city.

"We are an official trade spur of the Hydian Way." Din's eyebrows were raised. Trading of the Hydian way was a strong business to have. No wonder the city transformed so quickly.

"Congratulations." He mustered.#

Greef stared out to the ships docking and taking off in the hangers from the view, "We've got a construction boom going on in the city. The belters are mining the asteroid fields at the edge of the system. There's a lot of money to be made on Nevarro."

"I'm not surprised. The city expands every time we visit." Elodie said. Feeling benevolent, he faced the pair, "I can set you up with a prime tract right over by the hot springs. You, your partner, and the little one can settle down; you can hang up your blaster. Live off the fat of the land."

"Grogu." Din corrected.

"Come again?"

"His name is Grogu." Din cast a fleeting look at Elodie, reaching for her hand. "And we're married now."

Greef looked like someone had slapped him with a fish. He broke his stupor and threw up his arms. "Married? Congratulations!" He clapped Din on the shoulder and swung his arm around Elodie's shoulders, leading them back inside, "In that case, I wanna show you something. Now, as I was saying, there's a beautiful parcel available right down here by the flats. Perfect for a small family."

"You're offering us a house?" Elodie blanched. With the area zoomed in, it looked to be isolated from the rest of the city with small farming land. Far enough from civilization for privacy but close enough to venture to for supplies. It was perfect.

Not seeing the hearts in Elodie's eyes, Din dismissed the projector. "We appreciate the offer, but we have some matters to look after." Feeling a little dejected, the Wolven peeled her eyes away from the hologram and looked over at her husband, nodding along.

Greef saw the longing look of the woman and looked between the two. "Oh, I'm confused. I thought you had completed your mission, but you're still running around here with the same little critter." The Mandalorian stopped the chair from spinning. "It's complicated. I completed my quest. He returned to us. I removed my helmet, and now I'm an apostate." Grogu frowned, upset at his fun being stopped when he located the sweets on the desk.

"Which is all the more reason for you to stay here with us. Where you are from, you may be an apostate, but here, you'd be landed gentry."

Elodie leaned into Din's side. "It's not that simple. We have to go to-" The door to the office opens, and a droid walks in, interrupting. "Magistrate." Annoyed, Greed corrected him. "High Magistrate."

"Yes, High Magistrate. Apologies." The droid bowed. "Your timing couldn't be any worse."

"But it's just that, there's someone here to see you." It insisted. Greef shrugged, "It can wait." The droid blurted, "But it's pirates! Pirates in the courtyard."

"Greef, pirates are the worst company to keep." Elodie quipped, trying to keep the air light in the face of tension. "Don't I know it." The High Magistrate mumbled to himself, obviously forgetting that the Wolven had heightened hearing. While Din and Elodie hung back, Greef approached the six pirates, threatening the school teacher, who was obviously flustered. "Stand aside, droid, don't you know who we are?"

"Come on, Vane. That'll be enough of that." Greef called out to the nose-less man. The droid took the moment of distraction to back further into the doorway. The men turned to face the High Magistrate, thinking they had him under their payroll.

"Greef Karga, my old friend. I knew you wouldn't insult us. Come, join us for a drink." He invited. Greef politely declined, keeping his face neutral. Pirates were predictable and highly volatile. "Let's continue this conversation back at my office. This, this is a school."

"Well, that explains why she wouldn't let me inside." They laughed at the droid and Elodie slowly made her way over to the doorway, giving the teacher a silent, stern look. Elodie pressed the button for the door to seal shut and faced the pirates again. She leaned her back against the door, keeping herself between the pirates and the children inside. Looking past the group, Din was leaning against a tree behind Greef, and he too was keeping a close eye on the situation. Elodie nodded to Din, indicating the school was secure, and Din tilted his helmet back.

"I forgot, it was your cut of my boss's treasure that built this saloon." Vane sneered, stepping forward and out of the ranks of his men.

Seeing the threat, Greef also took a step closer. "Pirate King Gorian Shard's name is familiar to all in this sector. Come, join me for a drink back at my office. We'll toast to your captain."

"We drink here."

Greef gritted his teeth. "That is a school now."

"I say it's still a bar. Now, bring us a drink." Elodie snorted, crossing her arms. "The most you'll get in there is a juice box."

"Is there a problem here, Magistrate?" The Mandalorian asked, ready to step in when needed. Both he and Elodie noticed the situation was escalating quickly. Greef looked at him and then returned his focus to Vane and his men. "Is there a problem here? What do you think?"

The man smiled deviously. "Not if you serve me a drink."

"Not in my school," He said sternly.

"You hear that, boys? His school." Vane laughed. "You paid us for murder and mayhem inside these doors. Sounds like you went soft."

Greef pulled back his cape, exposing his pistol, and behind him, Din straightened. He was well attuned to non-verbal cues. Greef pulled his upper lip up in a snarl, "You think so? Try me."

To the side, Elodie uncrossed her arms and slipped her hand to the pistol on her healed thigh. Vane went to draw his blaster when it was shot out of his hand. "Tell Captain Gorian Shard that Nevarro is no longer friendly to pirates. Now get outta here." The magistrate said, keeping Vane at gunpoint.

Elodie and Din made fast work of shooting the remaining pirates.

"Get out of here, Vane. Now."

The pirate scurried away, his tail tucked between his legs. Elodie watched him walk away, ensuring he was out of sight before catching up to the two men. As stated before, the pirates were highly unpredictable and she wouldn't put it past him to turn back and start firing or return for revenge. Elodie caught the end of the conversation between the two.

"I gotta level with you, Mando. I need a marshal."

"What about Marshal Dune?" That is something Elodie would also like to know. Usually, the ex-dropper would have welcomed them as soon as they landed.

"After she brought in Moff Gideon, she was recruited by Special Forces." And no goodbye? No comm?

"And what came of Gideon?" Greef sighed, shaking his head. "Ugh. He was sent off to a New Republic war Tribunal." Elodie swallowed the lump that suddenly built up in her throat. To her, that was not a good enough punishment, and she agreed to what Paz and the armourer had said. Death would have been a fitting punishment. Maybe if he was, she would be able to sleep without reliving the torture on the Imperial Cruiser every time she closed her eyes.

"So... what do you say? You ready to put on the stripes and collect a healthy stipend? You'd make a very fine lawman." They stopped walking at the base of the statue. Din paused to contemplate. Greef made a very compelling argument. He, Elodie, and Grogu could have a place to settle down. A home. A community. "And what about you, Elodie? Don't you want to settle down now that your newlyweds? We could find you a job working with the Marshal, and your abilities would be beneficial."

She gave a suggestion, "Why not request one from the New Republic?"

"The last thing we intend is to bow down to yet another far-off bureaucracy. No. Under my watch, Nevarro will become the first truly independent trade anchor in this entire sector." So it was about independence.

Din looked at Elodie, and she shook her head. She could be selfish in wanting this life, but she knew Din would never forgive himself. The gesture solidified his response. "I can't serve as your marshal. We have something pressing to attend to." Accepting the refusal, Greef relented with a small chuckle. "Apologies. I didn't know you were here on business. What can we provide?"

The Mandalorian pointed to the statue. "I need him back."

This made Greef hold his stomach in laughter. "IG-11 was destroyed on the lava river. This is just a statue." Din has only ever trusted one droid in his life. IG-11 had saved all of their lives and proved that he was reliable. Yes, he could accept the help of other droids, but he did not trust them with the lives of his family. "These are his parts, are they not? I mean, what's left of 'em."

"We were lucky to recover any of his parts after he self-destructed."

Din pointed to the scrap metal. "I need a droid I can trust to help me explore Mandalore, and he's that droid."

"Mando, we've got plenty of droids around here, we'll find you one. I guarantee it."

"Let me give it a shot." Din pleaded. Greef hung his head in surrender and asked his assistant droid to get the IG parts delivered to his office.

Elodie slowed down to match Greef's pace when they walked up to the office to await the parts. "I was also wondering if you could help me with something."

He urged the woman to keep talking, "Anything. You've helped this city remain safe. What do you need?" She wrung her hands in embarrassment. "I can change into another form—a wolf. But the problem is that when I change back... I am always naked."

"And I needed to know this because...?" He squinted.

"Because you have gathered multiple skilled artisans and were hoping there was one with a particular talent in tailoring, crafting, or textiles. I need clothes, Greef. I don't want to be flashing my goods to every Tom, Dick, and Harry."

"Just your husband." Greef jested. She nodded and laughed, burying her head in her hands. "I'll see what I can do."

She said a muffled, "Thank you."

IG-11's remains were brought into Greef's office. The damage was extensive. Shocking. They only had the upper section of his body to work with as the rest melted in the lava flats. Dents from blaster shots littered his chest plates, and a distinct shot was evident on his head from his and Din's first encounter.

Elodie pointed to some wires for the Mandalorian to fuse together. She had her doubts about the droid. He was heavily beaten and worried he might not even turn on. "There. He's hooked up to power. Let's see if we can wake him up."

Sparks shot out his many blaster holes, and the gears in his head whirred to life. There was a long pause of bated breath.

His fingers twitched, and he sat up slowly.

Greef smiled, "There you go." Din smiled at his handy work, and Elodie stood to his side, impressed with his work. IG tried to speak, but it came across as distorted. "Subparagraph sixteen-teen-teen of the Bondsman Guild protocol waiver... Immediately produce said... The bounty is mine. Asset to be terminated."

Terminated.

Instead of white, the IG-11's optical units illuminated red. Grogu squealed and was picked up by Elodie as the droid went to swipe at him. Greef backed up to the doorway, and the IG fell off the desk and started crawling at Din and Elodie.

They backed away, and the Mandalorian wielded his blaster, the shots not affecting the droid. "Terminate asset. Terminate asset."

IG-11 gripped Elodie's ankle, and she screeched, unable to kick him off. Din kicked the droid's side, but he still didn't release his clamped hand. Elodie shouted to Greef and tossed the child to him. Luckily, he caught Grogu, and the droid let go to crawl after him. "Terminate asset."

"Mando, shoot it! shoot it!" Greef panicked, backing out.

The other droid knocked Greef's bust off the pedestal, and it crushed IG-11's head. He stopped his pursuit, and the life seeped from his circuits. Din holstered his blaster and pulled the bust off. "Now that's using your head. I think he defaulted to his old programming."

"You think?" The child and Greef shared a look of relief.

They hoisted the remains of IG-11 in a hovering cart. Greef suggested that they take him to a professional to be fixed rather than risking another resort to default. Elodie eagerly agreed, and the High Magistrate led them to the mechanics. She doubted they were as good as Kuill. He was a man of great skill and wisdom.

"That's too big a job for you to do by yourself. Fortunately, Nevarro has attracted the best droidsmiths of the Outer Rim. They'll have IG back to his old self in no time." Greef stopped, passing the child back to Elodie.

The Mandalorian looked at the droid worriedly. "Are you sure they're up for it? I don't think I can handle him with all his limbs if things go scud."

"Why don't you ask 'em for yourself?" Elodie looked around. They were in a small alleyway. Who were they meant to ask?

"Who?" Din voiced the question at the tip of her tongue. He pointed to the small door behind them, and a realisation flooded her face. "The Anzellans."

Greef knocked on the door, the loud banging caused some noises of surprise from inside. It lifted to reveal the small figures of the Anzellans, their faces grumpy and their hairy eyebrows drawn down in frowns.

Elodie knelt down and passed parts of the droid through the garage door, and they set him on their table. Greef motioned for the two to follow the creatures inside, and Elodie insisted the Mandalorian crawl in first, not wanting to get stuck behind him if his armour got caught.

It was laughable at the way he had to crouch and shuffle inside; she also thoroughly enjoyed the view. If it had been only the two of them, she would've slapped that fat ass. Elodie slid in easily after Din and sat beside him with her legs also crossed. "What do you want?" The Anzellan asked.

Elodie pointed to the droid. "We need him fixed."

Sparks flew from where he worked on the IG-11, and the child climbed up to stand beside them. He must've been curious of the creatures of similar size. The creature removed his goggles and tutted, "No. Can't fix. No. No, no. The broken."

Din nodded along, not fully understanding. "Uh... Okay."

"The broken. It broke." It reiterated for him. The Mandalorian leaned closer and said, "I don't understand. Do you speak Huttese?" Greef leaned down at the garage entrance after opting to remain outside. Either he was too proud to be caught squeezing into the cubbyhole or he was claustrophobic. "Mando, he said he can't fix it."

"That's no good, I need this one. This one is my friend." The Anzellans laughed and spat something out in their language. "It not friend anymore. Memory circuit broken."

"He says the memory circuit is shot." Greef copied, and Elodie held a hand up to him, "I think we got it."

It spat on the floor. "No more." Elodie cringed, looking around and tucked her legs up to her chest. "Well, put in a new one." Din stated as if it were obvious. The creature shook his head, "No, no, no, no. Not work. Don't make new one. Very hard to find."

"He said they don't make 'em anymore. They're very hard to find." The Mandalorian sighed, "I got it."

"Buy new droid. This one poodoo." It grunted.

"He says you should get a new one." Din moved a piece of hanging metal out of his face. "Can you fix it without the memory circuit?"

"Yes, but IG no think." He carried on speaking, but his words filtered into his native language. Something none of them spoke. "What if I find you the part?" Din opted. It put down its tools. "Okay, now. Then no problem. We fix."

"If you can get a new part, he says he can fix it." Elodie sent Greef a look, and he backed out of view of the door. Grogu picked up the Anzellan, and it cried out.

"No! No! No! No! No! No, down, down!"

Elodie lurched, "Grogu! Bad boy!" Eyes wide, Din leaned forward to pry the Anzellan from Grogu's arms. Grogu was laughing, squeezing the creature in his arms like a teddy.

"No, Grogu. He's not a pet." He dropped the Anzellan and it was not very happy with the child. "No squeezie. Not squeeze. Not squeeze. Bad baby! Oh, he's a bad baby."

Grogu whines.

"Sorry about that. He's young." Din apologised, struggling to keep the hanging metal out of his eyesight. "Yeah, bad baby. Oh!" The child went for the Anzellan again, but Elodie hoicked the child up by the nape of his tunic.

She held him to her chest as she crawled out of the garage with one hand. "You are so not getting any treats from the market, mister."

Din left the droid with the Anzellans for safekeeping until they returned with a memory chip. Now that their business on Nevarro was concluded, there was only one other place where they could think of that could potentially get the parts that they needed. A particular sandy planet with a nutty mechanic.

"We hope to see you soon." Greef waved. The Mandalorian offered his vambrace to shake in farewell. "Keep IG-11 safe until I get back with that part."

"If the Anzellans can't find it, I don't know who can." He shrugged. "Safe travels. Oh, and Elodie." Greef took a parcel from the droid beside him and gave it to her, "As you requested."

She looked at the parcel and sprung a hug on the man. He laughed, hugging her back, and she released him with a little squeal of excitement. Clutching the bag to her chest, she skipped away to the N-1, passing by a confused Mandalorian.

He shook his head, choosing not to ask on this occasion, and followed him up into the ship. They were finally going to Mandalore. Din expressed his wish to visit Bo-Katan first, as it was on their route, and Elodie agreed.

Space whirled by them, and unfortunately, there were no more pods of Purrgil's this time. The child was sitting up front with Din this time while the Mandalorian showed him the controls to keep him occupied.

An occupied child is a well-behaved child. "Being a Mandalorian's not just learning about how to fight; you also have to know how to navigate the galaxy, because you never know where you might be headed next. This here is your hyperspace map." He lectured, pointing to the circular device. "You determine your range by looking at your fuel gauge. And this is your enemy proximity warning indicator."

It bleeped, alarming them that there were other vessels in the vicinity. "Hand on, kid, we got pirates." Din slid Grogu through the slit between his chair and the wall, and Elodie took him. Din was going to need to focus on the controls. Elodie clipped her seat belt.

Three ships were tailing them.

"Avast, Mandalorian. You can't just sneak away after cuttin' down four of my brothers in cold blood. We're Pirate King Gorian Shard's men, now you'll answer to him." Elodie snorted, mocking him over the comms. "Who the f*ck even says 'avast' anymore?"

Din flipped the switches from autopilot to manual and dodged the shots fired. The N-1 was swift and swerved easily away. At the acceleration, Elodie pressed the child closer to avoid him flying about with the G-force.

"Gorian Shard should stick to hijacking and ransoming." Din jabbed. He weaved between floating meteors in the asteroid field, hiding from ships and firing on the ones that fell in front of them.

"Three more." Din counted to himself, firing at another.

The child was giggling in Elodie's arms at the loops they span. Din blasted a ship and they were down to one more. The Mandalorian chased the remaining ship out of the asteroid field, and it had been a trap all along. In front of them was a large ship, about half the size of an imperial cruiser.

The beeping from the proximity indicator alarmed again. "Dank Farrik. They have a target lock on us." Din licked his lips and eyed the console for ideas.

"Stop where you are, Mandalorian." Gorian Shard said over the comms. Vane's ship flew into the dock of the larger ship. "I have no quarrel with you, Gorian Shard."

"Ha! What a kind sentiment from a man who just destroyed four of my fighters! Surrender your ship, and I will spare your life." Elodie scoffed. Pirates were many things, but good liars were not one of them. Din smirked, his eyes falling on a red button. He tilted his head to call over his shoulder, "Kid. Never trust a pirate."

The N-1 Starfighter disappeared into the abyss of space. Too fast for the pirates to comprehend, let alone chase. The accelerator gave no indication of use, which allowed them the element of surprise.

The ship slowed to sublight when they reached the system.

"This is Kalevala." Gale-force winds blew against the windscreen, and Din had to put more pressure behind his hold on the controls to stay level. "It's another planet in the Mandalorian system. And that is a Mandalorian castle."

Specifically, the castle belonging to clan Kryze. There was no civilization for as far as the eye could see as they cruised above the castle. It was sat by the water front, atop the cliffs where waves ravaged the edges. The weather was rough, and flecks of rain drizzled across the windscreen.

Din landed smoothly on the pad just outside of the entrance, and they were escorted through the corridors by a droid. No other life forms were seen, and the walls were particularly grey and empty.

At the end of a long ceremonial room, Bo-Katan was splayed over an angular throne. Her mask lay on the floor beside her, and she looked to be staring out one of the many window-port holes. The droid bowed at the base of the stairs leading up to the throne, announcing, "Bo-Katan It is Din Djarin and Elodie Slate." Din called up to her, "We are here to join you."

She stared down at them, unblinking. "There's nothing left to join."

"What of your plans to retake Mandalore?" He asked. Elodie walked up the steps and looked out at the windows to the cliffs and shorelines behind the throne. Bo made no move to stop her and appeared overall uninterested. "When I returned without the Dark Saber, my forces melted away."

"And you're what? Sat here feeling sorry for yourself?" Bo-Katan looked at the Wolven in the corner of her eye, but ignored her probing. "Where is the stolen fleet?"

"Making their way through the galaxy as mercenaries. Do you still have the Saber?"

"I do." Of course he did, Elodie thought to herself. It wasn't something he was just going to give away. He fought Paz to keep it in his possession.

"Then you lead them. Wave that thing around, and they'll do whatever you say." She said bitterly.

He clarified, "So you gave up your designs to retake Mandalore?"

"Your cult gave up on Mandalore long before the Purge. Where were you then? The Children of the Watch and all the factions that came before fractured and shattered our people. Go home. There's nothing left."

"I am going to Mandalore so that I may bathe in the Living Waters and be forgiven for my transgressions." Bo let a twisted smile fall on her face. "You are a fool. There's nothing magic about the mines of Mandalore. They supplied Beskar ore to our ancestors, and the rest is superstition. That planet has been ravaged, plundered, and poisoned."

Growing impatient with the woman, Din pierced his lips. "You said that the curse was a lie. Make up your mind." She leaned further back in her seat, "If you want to go to the mines, be my guest. They're beneath the civic centre in the city of Sundari."

Finally, a piece of useful information they could use. He nodded to her. "Thank you. And I will find out if the planet is really poisoned."

Elodie skipped down the steps and met with Din to start walking back to their ship.

Chapter 27: Chapter 23: The Mines of Mandalore

Chapter Text

"Whoo-hoo! You hear that? She's purring like a nuzzle shrew."

Behind Peli, her droids were working on assembling a speeder. Elodie eyes the droids as they spray the metal components with a shiny silver before attaching them.

"No complaints. Still faster than I know what to do with." Elodie nudges his seat with a roll of her eyes, "And it's already got us out of trouble more than a few times."

"Well, I'll tune her up, just the same. So, uh, where's my guy?" Grogu peaks his head up from resting on Elodie's lap, and Peli expresses her relief. Seeing the mechanic, the child sprung out of Elodie's arms and into hers. She caught him with a loud chuckle, placing the child on her hip like a toddler.

"Huh? There he is! Now who taught you how to leap like a Lurmen, huh?" The child babbled at her, and the woman looked up at the pair in shock while they hopped out of the ship. "Was that his first word? I think he's talking to me. Did you hear that? He said 'Peli'." She said with a smile in her voice. Lately, the child had been beginning to be more vocal, but his annunciation left a lot to be desired.

"We're here on business." Din explained, pulling to a stop beside her. "Oh, are the Hutts back? Are you takin' out Boba Fett?" Elodie whipped around to the woman, "What? No! Peli!" The mechanic shrugged it off.

"Whatever. I am going to get changed." The Wolven said, skipping to grab a back from the co*ckpit and run into the mechanic's office.

Elodie closed the door behind her and made sure that the blinds were down. Opening her bag, she pulled out the package she was gifted by Greef and greedily ripped open the paper like a child on life day. There were a few sets of clothes with a note left on top of the pile.

"This fabric is extremely rare and hard to produce. The psychoactive membranes will meld to your skin when a change is triggered. These unstable molecules will not tear and adapt to fit all shapes and sizes. May they serve you well, Wolfling." She read. Rummaging a little, she found that there were three sets of matching colours, all of which were sports bras and tight shorts in black, grey, and beige. As well as some other casual clothes, which she put to the side for later- they would do well in combat nonetheless.

The material of the sports getup resembled spandex; it was soft and stretchy. It looked thin, but Elodie could not pierce her sharpened nail through it.

She stripped down and slipped a grey set on, pleasantly surprised that the material shrank to fit snugly. It showed more skin than she was comfortable with, but the only other option would be to show all skin- this would have to do.

Elodie jumped up and down, happy that her breasts were securely strapped down. There was nothing more uncomfortable than boobs flailing when fighting or running for your life. The Wolven slipped her vest and loose trousers on over the underwear and tucked the rest of the clothing into her rucksack.

Exiting, she walked up to Din. The Mandalorian stood with a hand rubbing the back of his neck, and the mechanic and her child were nowhere to be seen. "What've you done?" She asked slowly. Din sighed deeply and rested his hands on his hips. "Peli talked me into buying R-5, seeing as the Jawas didn't have a memory circuit."

Sparks erupted from the N-1 and Peli rose with a welding mask. "He's taking an oil bath now, he'll be up and ready to go as soon as I've finished reinstalling this droid port."

Elodie said nothing but pinched her lips with a nod. When Peli flicked the mask back down and resumed welding, the Wolven kicked the Mandalorian's Beskar-plated shin. Though it didn't hurt, he stumbled back. "Hey! what was-"

She pointed a finger at him, "You know damn well what that was for!"

They waited until the sky drew dark and fireworks ignited in the sky in a range of colours. Applause and loud celebrations could be heard past the walls of the hanger. Elodie smiled as she lay on a crate with the child, staring skyward at the display.

She briefly wondered what Fennac and Boba were doing. Were they having their own celebrations in the palace? Elodie felt a small, sharp pain in her heart from missing the platonic soulmates. If she had known that this would have taken so long, she would have taken a cheeky trip up to visit them.

Elodie's attention was drawn back to the ship where R-5 was being fitted into the droid port, and Din had situated himself back into the pilot seat. She took it as a signal that they were getting ready to depart.

She hopped from the crates and passed the child to Din, who sat him on his lap while Elodie wedged herself into the seat behind him and slotted her legs either side of him. Peli was still trying to console the trembling droid. He whirred at her, and the clattering of his bolts was heard as he shook violently. "Oh, come on now, don't be a coward. You're an astromech, act like one."

"Is he okay?" Elodie asked sceptically. Mandalore was potentially dangerous territory, and she didn't want her family in more danger if he could even perform simple tasks. "I wouldn't rely too much on this one. Its circuitry is a little fragile." Din twisted in his seat. "I thought you said it was built for adventure?"

Peli clapped on the hood, sealing them in the co*ckpit. "What? Sorry, I can't hear you! May the Force be with you!"

The Mandalorian muttered to himself, started the ship, and flew through the copious fireworks. The child pinned himself against the window to stare outside. It was a beautiful sight. "All right, kid. You ready for an adventure?"

The ship was heading directly towards Mandalore. The surface was not visible through the thick grey stormy layer that engulfed the entire planet. The gaseous layer swirled and wafted like tidal waves deep at sea.

Elodie reached one hand over the seat in front and squeezed at the space between Din's cowl and pauldron reassuringly. She could sense his trepidation for the mission, but he needed support right now to know that risking their lives was the right thing to do in order to achieve his redemption. He inhaled deeply and relaxed his shoulders, drawing from the strength she offered him, reminding himself that he had to keep a level head as his family was going to be with him throughout. Grogu cowered in Elodie's arms. They're just as scared as I am.

"It looks scary. I know. It's Mandalore, the home world of our people. Every Mandalorian can trace their roots back to this planet and the Beskar mines deep within. And you know what? I've never been there either." Din mused at the child in order to distract him from the looming planet. He pointed to a planet on the scope. "I grew up there. On that moon. Concordia."

Elodie took a look at the scope herself. "I didn't know that."

"That was where I was trained in the way of the Manda'lore and took my oath." Din grinned and then pointed to another planet further on the monitor, one that they were all familiar with. The child stared at the navigation technology in awe. "And that's Kalevala, where we visited Bo-Katan. It's in the same system. A Mandalorian has to understand maps and know their way around. That way, you'll never be lost."

The N-1 descended into the atmosphere of Mandalore, shrouds of poisonous gases encased the ship and caused the engines to rattle. Flashes of bright thunder shed light on the thick plumes around them. It was the lightening that was the most terrifying. Loud crashes echoed in the enclosed space of the co*ckpit near and far, and they were nervous that it would strike at the ship. The controls fought under the Mandalorian's hands, and his eyebrows drew closer in concentration to maintain control. The ship still jerked with the planetary entry, and specks of rain drenched the windscreen, mystifying the view with short,harp ringing like an assault of turret fire.

Din tapped the monitors in front of him as they flickered. "Looks like the fusion bomb from the Purge disrupted the magnetic field around the planet. From the surface, we won't be able to communicate with anyone outside of the atmosphere, so we have to be careful. Down here, we're completely cut off from the rest of the galaxy." The rattling lessened, and they broke from the thick barrier of the hurricane, soaring through the open air. Beneath, the ground was mostly a vibrant green from the remnants of the fusion bombs that rained down by the Empire. The surface looked like a mirror that had been damaged. Crystalline shards were enormous and shattered everywhere.

Din found a large expanse of undisturbed obsidian to land on.

"R-5, you ready? I'm gonna need you to scout ahead and analyse the atmosphere." The droid spewed a series of bleeps, but it was cut short when the Mandalorian manually ejected the astromech, and he fell to the ground with a loud thump. "That wasn't a question. Go over to that split in the rock, and take an air sample of the ruins below."

R-5 warbled nervously and began a slow pace towards the obsidian shards projecting from the surface. Grogu whimpered, looking after the mech in concern. "The droid will be fine. I just need him to take some readings to make sure it's safe."

Halfway to the rocks it looked back to see if the Mandalorian had changed his mind. "Don't be a baby. Just get the samples we need, and hurry up." Realising that he wasn't changing his mind, the droid carried on a disappeared.

"Here, look. You can watch him on the scope." A red dot flickered like sonar to track R-5 in his travels. It made it a fair distance when, all of a sudden, the dot vanished. Confused, Din leaned forward in his seat and tapped the scope, thinking that it had malfunctioned. He switched on the comms and attempted to make contact with him, "R-5, come in. Do you read me?"

Elodie eyed the area where he had walked off, not seeing anything out of the ordinary. "It's probably just interference." She dismissed, "We don't have the readings to tell." The Mandalorian sighed deeply, gesturing for her to slip the child into the droid port. "I'll go get him. Normally, this is droid work. I was hoping to avoid going out there. I'll pressurise my helmet, seal him in the pod, and you will hold your breath. I'll be right back."

The Wolven did as instructed, holding her breath while he slid the hood from the N-1 and jumped out, ensuring to quickly seal it after. Elodie released the breath when the N-1 was secured again, thankful that her face didn't start to burn or her eyes melt in their sockets if there was any potential radiation. Grogu popped up on her lap with his face pressed against the glass.

Din placed a hand on the glass facing Grogu's, and his ears dropped. "Don't worry, kid, I'll be right back."

The two watched Din follow the trail R-5 had taken out of sight. She and the kid sat in the co*ckpit. Grogu pointed out things around them, and she replied with what they were called. The game only went on so long as they were literally only surrounded by debris. Elodie waited anxiously, noting that some time had passed with no contact from Din.

Picking up the comms, she pressed the transmission and called out to him. "Din, are you there?" She awaited a response. "Din, can you hear me?"

"I copy." The Wolven deflated in her seat, "Have you found him?"

The reply was somewhat static-y, like the signal was struggling to connect. "Not yet. Anything on your end?"

"No, we're good." She looked around again and saw nothing. "How does it look out there?" She asked wondrously. The sun emitted a gentle, warm glow which contradicted the cold climate of planet's surface. It glistened iridescently of the crystalline structures like sunbeams on a rippling pond. Wind whistled through the crevices of the erected shards creating the only noise for miles. There was no vegetation seen on their decent into the atmosphere and there was enormous viridian craters left on the surface from the fusion bombs which reflected their catastrophic capabilities.

"Strangely beautiful. I'm not seeing any signs of the old city." Understandable, half of the entire planet was fusion bomb residue. "Wait. I think I see-"

"Din." The comm cut off. "Din?"

Nothing.

"f*ck this." Elodie bit her lip, pushing the child into the droid port. The apprehension of venturing out was overwhelming. The atmosphere could kill her well before she could make it to her husband. "Stay put, I'm gonna go get him."

Shaking her hands out, she sucked in a deep breath, and opened the hood before she had another chance to second guess. Elodie jumped down from the co*ckpit and landed on her feet. The hood shut automatically behind her.

She dared take a deep breath.

The air smelled a little musty at best. There was no burning or pain, like a small part of her had been anticipating. She hoped that there were going to be no lasting effects. "I mean it, Little'un. You stay." Elodie said, pointing at him when he stared down. She gave her best serious face, and he babbled.

Without further ado, Elodie took off running after her Mandalorian, using his leathery scent to trace his whereabouts. The scent led her to a cave entrance, and she dove into its depths with no care for self-preservation.

Ahead, there were sounds of a struggle. Din was prone on the floor and being bashed on the back with heavy clubs from four assailants. R-5 was toppled over on the floor to one side. There was no one attacking him, so he would have to wait.

Elodie fired her blaster at one of the beasts, and it turned to face her as the bolt grazed its shoulder. Its green skin rippled with thick muscle, and its radioactive green eyes pinned her with an unwavering leer. Lips pulling back in a growl, it bared the long teeth of its deep underbite. They resembled cavemen with their minuscule loin clothes and wooden batons. Only with tusks.

Elodie pulled the trigger multiple times, walking over while doing so and watching each shot land on the beast until it fell. The noise caught the attention of another, and he lunged at her. With no time to fire, she swung her arm and caught it in the jaw.

The pause in blows allowed Din to kick his leg out, knocking one of the beasts to the floor. He pushed himself up with a grunt, turning with the Dark Saber in his grasp. The weight forced the blade into the floor as the remaining beast closed in and cornered him by the cliff.

His gaze, however, flew past them to see Elodie fighting one of the beasts, another already dead at her feet. What? The sight of the stunning woman caught him off guard momentarily. Di'kut! Did she not realise that she could get killed? With no helmet or protection, there was no telling what kinds of dangers she exposed herself to! [Idiot]

Rage filled his veins, and he swiped the Dark Saber with a shout.

The sword skimmed the bicep of one, and drawing the blade back, he thrust it into its torso. It stuttered in breath, and Din directed the tip of the blade to the cliff face for the beast to slink over the edge.

Elodie brought her arm up to deflect a hit directed at her face and kneed its gut. It coughed and doubled over. Slipping the blaster under its chin, she pulled the trigger. Its head flew back from the close proximity, and it crumbled. The Wolven looked for her Mandalorian to see him disposing of a beast over the side, and the other was fast approaching from behind, club raised. She soared forward and stopped its pursuits by wrenching its head back. Its knees buckled, and with the unstable balance, she thrust her hand to the edge of the cliff and released her grip. It tumbled and lost footing, falling over the edge.

Elodie waved her arms out either side of her, tiptoes digging into the edge of the dirt to maintain her own balance. Din lurched forward, encircling her waist, and stumbling back with her in his arms. His other hand retracted the light Saber. Elodie gripped his arm as his fingers dug uncomfortably into the meat of her hip, panting. "That was close."

The view over the cliff showed the city of Sundari eclipsed in frozen towering waves of crystal.

The Mandalorian spun her around before she could savour the sight, gripping her upper arms and giving her a firm shake. "What the hell are you doing here?!" She shoves him off, rivalling the glare he was no doubt shooting at her behind the visor. "I was worried about you!"

"You should have waited! We don't know if it's safe." He gritted, looking deep in her eyes for signs of deterioration. "You could be dead!"

She smiled sarcastically, "Well, it's not like I dove into a Krayt dragon's mouth."

"You are so infuriating." He growled, stepping closer. Elodie matched his step and kept her chin raised. "I love you too, Cye'ruus." [Cinnamon roll]

Din clenched his fists at his side from the urge to kiss her. Force his lips against hers and take her roughly against the rock wall. To see how long her co*cky attitude lasted until she begged for release while he brought her to the edge over and over. His heart pounded in his ears, and he had to fight to remind himself that removing his helmet would defeat the purpose of being mad at her.

R-5 bleeped from the side, his legs waving in the air where he couldn't right himself. Din shook his head, walking over to pull the droid up. He clapped its head as the droid exclaimed in binary.

"Yeah, wait. Okay, you're all right. Now come on, let's get you back to the ship."

The ship remained untouched, and they didn't come across any more beasts wondering back. R-5 orbited around them anxiously, wary of potential threats. Peli sold them an anxiety-ridden mech, and Elodie was sure to use it as leverage against the woman in the future. The child perked up from the co*ckpit, eager to be in the arms of his parents again.

Din held up a hand to ease the tapping on the screen. "Hang on, kid. Not until I check the toxicity. You got an analysis of the atmosphere yet?" R-5 did as instructed and projected the results from the readings he gathered. The indicator presented low toxicity levels in the atmosphere, and the pair digested the information with relief.

The Mandalorian grabbed her hand and squeezed, his shoulders dropping in relief. "The charts were wrong. The atmosphere is breathable without consequence. Bo-Katan was right. Mandalore is not cursed." At least she wouldn't have to worry about throwing up her liquefied insides any time soon.

Thunder from the hurricanes in the atmosphere boomed above them but gave no signs of incoming storms.

The child was more than happy to be released from his quarantine. With Grogu in his pram and R-5 practically locking himself back in the starfighter, they set off back in the direction of the cave, pistols drawn and ready to fire.

They walked to the cliff edge and down to the sunken city that lay desolate from decades of abandonment and destruction.

"That's the Civic Centre. This is where Bo-Katan said to go."

Din hooks an arm around Elodie's waist, and they leap from the perch. The pram follows and drops slowly beside them until they reach the floor. The city was a lot more ominous now that they were level with it rather than staring down. Tall abandoned buildings were void of colour and life.

Din and Elodie walk down one of the many streets, ready with their pistols drawn to fire at any other unwelcome surprises. The Mandalorian stopped at an open drain, seeing many pipes leading down into the dark abyss.

"The mines should be further down. I guess we're on our own from here." Of course, they would be going down. Why wouldn't they want to explore further when they were attacked while still on the very surface? Elodie thought sarcastically, kicking a small bit of debris down first. The clatter as it hit the bottom was faint.

Elodie gripped the shoulder straps of Din's armour, and he wound his arm back around her waist, dropping down into the pipeline.

They landed in a puddle of water. The pipes all around them looked like they had been torn open by one of the blasts. Din walked onward, following the current that the water was draining to. "These waters should flow down to the mines, and the Living Waters within."

"Or to nowhere. We have no idea what these blasts have done." Creatures lurked in the empty pipes, their green, luminous eyes contrasting against the dark fog all around them. The child whimpered and sank lower in his pram, speeding up to keep pace with the Mandalorian and the Wolven. "Look, that passage heads down."

In the growing darkness of trailing further, Din switched on his torch which enabled him to see better. Elodie needed no such advancements, her eyes flickering to icy blue so that they were able to penetrate through the shrouds of darkness.

The foundations forming the city had stopped at a certain point, and now they were just traversing through caves. Light footfalls were the only sound breaking the silence.

Debris even trailed into the caves, and looking around them, Din spotted something amongst the pile of dirt. He bent down and picked it up, dusting off the Mandalorian helmet. It looked old and worn, and the visor was broken.

Elodie walked up to his side to inspect what he held. Just as she reached his side, the silence was split by a giant metal contraption clamping down around them. Din and Elodie both yelled out in shock. The metal was claw shaped and pinned their limbs to reduce movement.

The helmet was a trap, and they fell right into it.

Din was trapped against Elodie, and she felt his armour painfully digging into her. She searched for the child when her panic broke, and she saw him cowering behind the rock wall. "He's safe." She mumbled, her hair falling into her eyes. "He's okay." The fight in Din cooled with the news.

The metal clamp arose from the mud pile to reveal a crab-like droid. It trotted robotically to another cave, where more discarded Mandalorian armour lay. Din hated to think of how many other Mandalorians were killed here.

The contraption was hooked on a pit, and Din was angled to face the floor, which meant that Elodie was facing the cave ceiling with Din pressed against her right shoulder. There was a small mercy in that it didn't plan on cooking them, at least as there was no trace of ash or wood beneath them.

Out of their line of vision, the droid powered down, and a cyborg erupted from its depths. It prodded at Elodie's size, and she writhed under the shock, unable to flail with being pinned down. Din felt her muscles spasm against his side and shouted at the creature. He felt Wolven fall limp when the electrical impulses stopped.

The cyborg stalked to his side of the trap and jabbed something between the gaps of his beskar. Din grunted at the force and felt the world soon blur as the substance took effect. Satisfied with its work, it walked off and the child approached the trap.

Grogu squinted his eyes, and the contraption rattled a little. Using the opportunity, Elodie slipped out of the small crack. She tried cranking it open further for the Mandalorian to slip out behind her, but he wouldn't budge. She whispered to him and shook his shoulder, "Din." The force caused the rusted metal to creek loudly this time, and it alerted the cyborg.

It squealed angrily, shooting a ray of electricity at the pair. "Get him out." Din mumbled to Elodie, his eyes already falling shut. She heard his sentence trail off, and she knew he had fallen into unconsciousness again. "Din!" She cried, falling out of the way of another shot.

Grogu back flipped into his pram, and Elodie sprinted out of the room. Together, they ran back through the caves and the same path they used to get in.

The creatures within the pipelines disrupted their run for freedom and crowded around at the sight of them fleeing. Elodie unsheathed her blaster and shot at any that dared approach. They backed away to the same hole they dropped into.

Elodie used the pipes as ladder rungs, hoisting herself up while the child floated gracefully beside her. They reached the top in record time, with no other beasts tailing them. She stopped at the base of the cliff in the city. Panting, she swiped hair from her face.

An anvil weighed down her hopes of them escaping at the sight of the steep incline. Din was the one with a jet pack.

This was her stop.

She turned to the child, "I can't fly, Ad'ika." [Little one]

Grogu's ears dropped, and she rested a hand against the side of his face to reassure him.

The child grabbed her hand and held it to the side of his pram. To hold on. It started rising, but it was clear that it was too slow. It was a third of the way up when one of the flying reptiles from the pipeline attacked. It screeched and clawed at the pair. Elodie grabbed it by the neck and held it at an arm's length away, her hand trembled under the weight of herself, and the creature was wriggling.

Another sewer creature squawked underneath them, and two more were flying up. She would not let Grogu get caught by the cyborg or any other creature wanting them dead on Mandalore. Elodie shot a look at the child, who stared worriedly.

"I got you out this far. Now it's your turn. Go to Bo-Katan; she'll know what to do." The Wolven said, releasing her grip and falling directly into the other creatures—into the city below.

The pram flew onto the perch, and Grogu didn't get to see Elodie meet the ground, he wasn't sure if he wanted to in fear of what he could see. He would get Bo-Katan, as his buir had said, she would know what to do. [mother]

Elodie woke up on top of the flying reptiles. Her arm felt funny, like it was tingling. She dozily lifted her head to try to clear her vision. The tingling faded, and she realised that it was just a delayed response to her pain.

From the corner of her vision, she saw someone stepping closer. Relief filled her when she saw chrome armour, but as it neared, it was not armour—it was body parts. The cyborg bent and snatched her broken arm, tugging her along like a sled in winter. Elodie wailed, her head still hurting from the fall. After being dragged from her spot, she saw that the reptiles had been contorted into unnatural positions from taking the brunt of the fall.

She didn't remember going into the pipelines again or being dragged across the rough terrain through water and dirt. But when the cyborg returned to its cave, Din remained unconscious in his trap; his weapons discarded on the floor. The cyborg hauled her dead weight further to the back wall and clamped manacles around her wrists. The angle hurt, and her arm was not going to heal correctly if she didn't get it out soon.

The cuffs were attached to the wall by a thick chain, which she would ordinarily have stood a chance against if she were not incapacitated.

"Din?" Elodie called out, hoping to get some form of response.

Silence answered, and the cyborg busied himself in his workshop. She allowed her head to fall back against the rock behind her. The least she could do was rest until Grogu showed up with reinforcements to rescue them.

Her head lulled when Din grunted. In front of her, the cyborg jabbed a needle into his arm, and the pump on the floor started churning. Thick red blood pumped from the Mandalorian and down the tubes.

"Hey cyclops! Get your raggedy ass claws off of him! " Elodie rattled her chains in an attempt to get his attention, and when that didn't work, she started shouting at him. "Leave him alone, you f*cking prune!" It looked up with its lone eye and glared at her, "That's right, I'm talking to you, Popeye."

He took a step in her direction.

A shot landed on the pump draining Din of his blood, and it ceased working. The cyborg whirled around to the cave entrance, where Bo-Katan strode in, two pistols firing in her hands. It dodged the oncoming shots and fired electrical impulses at her.

Bo-katan fell to the floor, feeling the shocks run wild throughout her body. Elodie kicked its leg out from under it when it walked past her to get to the female Mandalorian. It was brought down to one knee, and Bo took the opportunity to reach for the Dark Saber on the floor.

It stood and threw a punch, but it was blocked by her shield. They parried back and forth, but seeing an opening in his defence, Bo shot forward and thrust the Dark Saber into its midsection.

The cyborg collapsed to the ground, and the female Mandalorian ran up to Elodie to undo her chains. They crumbled under a single blaster shot, and the Wolven allowed her broken arm to fall to her side. While she recovered, Bo ran to Din's side and shook him awake. Elodie limped to her side and ripped out the tubes. He grunted, rousing from his state of unconsciousness.

"Din, are you okay? Can you hear me? It's Bo-Katan. I'm gonna get you out of here, all right? Can you move at all?" The Mandalorian mumbled weakly, but even the Wolven's heightened hearing could not pick up the babbling. "Din, I can't hear you. Are you trying to say something?"

"Behind you."

Their faces drop, and they turn to see the cyborg leave his smaller body for the larger mech. It tossed out its arms, throwing them away from the Mandalorian. Elodie and Bo rolled to a stop. The former drew the Dark Saber and fought against the onslaught of limbs flying their way, while Elodie reached for Din's discarded blaster and aimed for the eye.

The glass broke, and a bolt penetrated its eye, killing the machine and the cyborg within. Now that the cyborg was dead, Grogu inched the pram out from behind the wall.

"There you are, superstar!" Elodie greeted, kissing his head.

Standing, Bo handed Elodie the Dark Saber and they released the clasps on the trap. "Grab his jet pack, it would be easier for us if we carried his weight evenly." Bo-katan suggested. Elodie removed the jet pack from Din's back and slid it on. They took an arm each and slung it around their necks. Elodie let a grunt slip through her lips when she used her bad arm to sling around his waist. Ignoring Bo's look of unease, she kept her jaw clenched and eyebrows drawn in concentration.

The female Mandalorians stumbled out of the caves and rose from the pipelines using the jet packs, back up to the perch overlooking the city. Din was set back against a protruding rock, and Bo crafted a fire to heat up some food for the Mandalorian when he woke.

Elodie watched the woman open a can of soup and hold it over the open flames. "Thank you for coming to save us. I don't know what we would have done without you."

"Died probably."

The Wolven smiled at the woman's bitterness. Their humour was on a similar wave length, and she found that she enjoyed their little spats. "Is your arm okay?" Elodie dismissed the fretting, "I'm healing as we speak." Bo looked up and gave her a small smile in return, then down at the child. His eyes were locked on the potential food. "Grogu has been taught well."

The child crawled into Elodie's lap, purring happily in her warm embrace. She ran her thumb over his cheek, whispering words of reassurance. It was a difficult thing to do, leaving your family. She had to do it once and deeply regretted letting the child feel the same. He curled his hand around her finger, "I'm so proud of you." Bo-katan felt her heart strings pull at the motherly love and the shared look of love between them.

The Mandalorian moaned beneath his helmet, eyes fluttering open. In front of him sat Bo-Katan and Elodie around a fire. The two of them looked to be sitting in comfortable silence. "What happened?"

"I saved your life." Bo-Katan stated, stirring the contents of the pot. Elodie placed the child down beside the fire and rushed to his side to help him sit up. "How did you find us?"

"Your kid. He's tougher than he looks. And he's quite the navigator." Elodie looked proudly down at the child, who was too focused on the meal to realise he was being praised. "Thank you for rescuing us. You were right. Mandalore is not cursed."

He grabbed his head, wishing he could rub the sore spit underneath. The splitting headache was fading slowly, thankfully. Bo-Katan snorted, shooting a look of disdain at the ruins of the city. "Was I? Look around. There's nothing left. A great society is now a memory. I once ruled here for a brief time. Now, it's destroyed. Nothing to cling to but ashes."

Bo handed over the tin of food, and the child followed behind closely. Din took the can and looked at its contents curiously. It smelled alright, too. "What is this?"

"You've never eaten Pog soup?" Baffled, the Mandalorian shook her head and returned to her spot by the fire.

"No."

Din lifted his helmet, chucking some of the soup down his gullet before handing the rest to the child. "Can you appreciate the irony? Any Mandalorian worth their armour was raised on this since they were his size. You should rest. I'll get you back to my ship soon enough."

Din tapped Elodie's knee, indicating that he wanted to try and stand. She supported him to straighten up, and he leaned on her when a bout of nausea washed over him. Elodie brought her hand up to rest on the divot of his helmet. He looked at her through his visor, his mouth tugging down at the corners at the sight of her bloodied temple.

He held out his hand for her, and when she placed hers in his, he tapped her knuckles against the crown of his helmet. It said everything they couldn't vocalize. I love you. It is going to be okay. I'm here.

"I'm not going with you." He said to Bo-Katan after a moment, moving slowly to retrieve his weapons. Bo looked between the pair, "What are you talking about?"

He clipped the Dark Saber into the back of his utility belt. Their relationship was complex enough for the pair to have entire conversations based on gestures and looks. Its communication was even more sophisticated, being that only one of them was able to communicate with their facial expressions. Elodie unclipped the pack from her back and moved his cape aside to slot it into place. "I must continue to the Mines of Mandalore so that I may be redeemed."

"I honestly think that it's adorable that you actually believe these children's stories. But there is nothing magic about the waters."

"You believed in them once too." Elodie reminded her, not liking the way she was disregarding his entire belief. Din grunted in obvious discomfort. "Without the Creed, what are we? What do we stand for? Our people are scattered like stars in the galaxy. The Creed is how we survived. You rescued me, and I'll always be in your debt. But I can't go with you until I fulfil my obligation."

"I will take you." Bo-Katan blurted out, moved by his words. He faced her. "To the Living Waters?" The woman nodded, and Din was thankful. He didn't know if he had it in him to take on any more beasts if another fight arose. "Yes. You'd never find them on your own. Not in all this wreckage."

"Thank you."

Bo-Katan grabbed her helmet and kicked dirt over the open flames to dwindle the fire. "Don't thank me until you see them."

Elodie put the child in his pram and stepped away from Din as he held out his arm to fly her down to the city. She swatted at his hand, "Don't you dare. You can barely carry yourself."

He tried again, and this time he was successful in trapping her flush against him. He leaned down, "Wounded or not, I won't pass an opportunity to hold you." Elodie couldn't help the rosy blush that bled into her cheeks and failed to brush him off, "C'mon, you old sap."

Once they landed, Bo-Katan led them in a completely different direction than the one they had taken. "It's hard to believe that this all was once filled with our kind. It wasn't that long ago."

"You'd never know it looking at all this destruction." Din replied, taking a look at the buildings. Half of them had crumbled or looked close to crumbling. "It looks like it's been centuries."

"Well, that's war." Elodie said.

"No. It was genocide. The Empire set out to punish us. To wipe away our memory." The Mandalorian felt sorry for the woman who had once walked these roads while they were bountiful and lively. "It must pain you to see it like this after witnessing its beauty."

Her voice grew bitter. "What pains me is seeing our own kind fight one another time and time again. Killing each other for reasons too confusing to explain. It made us weak. We had no hope to resist being smashed by the fist of the Empire."

A loud crack came from Elodie, and she moaned loudly, "Finally!"

The two looked at her in shock as she rotated her shoulders and stretched her now-healed arm above her head. The Wolven looked a little sheepish. "Sorry. Carry on."

Ahead of them was a grand archway of tall, dark obsidian.

"There. The entrance to the Mines of Mandalore."

"This area looks much older." Din noted, looking at the inscriptions on the walls. Bo-Katan hummed, reminiscing. "The mines have been here for thousands of years. The Living Waters are in the chambers below."

Din looked around, his eyes falling on Bo. "Have you been there?"

"Yes, when I was a child." She smiled wistfully.

"Really?"

"I was part of the royal family. I took the Creed and was showered with gifts. But the rituals were all just theatre for our subjects. They loved watching the princess recite the Mandalorian tenets as her father looked on proudly. Such a heartwarming spectacle." Elodie was astounded at the revelation of her ruling Mandalore while it was thriving. To have it fall under her rule must be devastating. Din shrugged, "Maybe he was proud."

"I know he was. I didn't embarrass him in front of everyone."

"Your father sounds like an interesting man. I would've liked to have known him." He told her.

"He was a great man. He died defending Mandalore." Din stopped and bowed his head to her. "This is the way." Bo-Katan stood stunned while the Mandalorian continued walking ahead. Elodie nudged her out of her stupor.

"Should we address you as royalty?" Bo shook her head and walked on while the Wolven taunted her from behind. "Seriously, like, my queen or her Majesty?" She called.

Din walked into the cavernous pit first, followed by Grogu, Bo-Katan and then Elodie. The latter gaped at the scene before her. It was hard to see from the lack of lighting, but the cave went on for as far as the eye could see, and the ceilings were mountainous. "Here you go, The Living Waters." Bo announced.

Mando'a inscriptions were embossed on the wall to the left of the entrance, and there was a semicircle of steps at the water's edge. Two pillars stood by the door to allow for a grand entrance. The water was so murky that not even her eyesight could see beyond the surface.

She wondered how deep it was.

Bo-Katan walked up to the plaque and began reading the inscription while Din pondered a little closer to the water. Something he didn't believe he would ever have achieved on his own. "Hold on. I want you to get the full tour. 'These mines date back to the age of the first Mandalore. According to ancient folklore, the mines were once a Mythosaur lair. Mandalore the Great is said to have tamed the mythical beast. It is from these legends that the skull signet was adopted and became the symbol of our planet.' This is it."

The Mandalorian froze mere metres away from the water. "Din? Are you alright?"

He removed his jet pack, set it gently on the floor, and then began disarming himself. Elodie waited beside Bo-Katan, letting Din do what he needed to do in order to be redeemed.

Din recited the words of his creed to himself, the words echoing in the Wolven's head. He took slow, calculated steps in the water. "I swear on my name. And the names of the Ancestors, that I shall walk the way of the Mand'alor... and the words of the Creed shall be forever forged in my heart-"

He dropped. As in disappeared.

Din's entire being sank beneath the surface.

Bo-Katan dove in after him while Elodie stood at the water's edge, eagerly waiting for them to surface. She cursed herself for not keeping his jet pack on. A small beam of light grew brighter from their head-torches, and she backed away to avoid the landing of their speedy approach.

They flew out of the water and collapsed on the path leading to the steps. Bo-Katan panted, rolling to sit herself up. Elodie rushed to the Mandalorian's side, shaking his shoulders to get some form of response.

He gasped, spluttering the water from his lungs, and she helped him roll over.

As it turns out, the water was very, very deep.

Chapter 28: Chapter 24: The Convert

Chapter Text

Everyone just sort of takes a moment when the two Mandalorians fly up from the depths of the Living Waters. They pant, sitting on the steps leading down, and slowly rise to sit up. Their water-logged clothes made their outfits three times as heavy, and each movement elicited a groan of exertion.

"I am redeemed." Din proclaimed, hands either side of him to support his weight. Elodie used her dry shirt to wipe the water from his visor. He tipped his helmet at her, thankfully. "It only took, what? 5 near-death experiences. If I were part cat instead of wolf, I would be down to one life."

Bo-Katan struggled to her feet and sounded bored. "I was witness. You bathed in the Living Waters. You are Mandalorian again. Can we leave now?" Elodie grabbed the Mandalorian male's hand and helped him stand. He walked to the water's edge and pulled an empty vial from his belt to collect some of the water. She looked at his belt in wonder, as it always seemed to be conveniently stocked for whatever he needed.

"Can I ask you something?" Bo-Katan pondered, fiddling with her vambrace while Elodie busied herself with placing the child back in the pram safely. He didn't need to be in harm's way while they were exiting the cave.

"What is it?" The Mandalorian asked, securing his weaponry back onto his belt from the pile where he dumped them. The female stared at the murky waters, surprisingly still following their escapades. "You see anything down there?"

He shrugged in response. "I saw the chasm passing me as I fell. I didn't realise it was so deep."

"It wasn't." Bo-Katan frowned, thinking back to her childhood. The water back then only came to her small waist. "The bombs from the Purge must have triggered seismic activities. Did you see anything alive?"

Din turned to face her and assess to see if she was ready to move. "Alive? Like what?"

"Nothing. Let's get out of here."

Elodie patted her arm as she walked by with the child, knocking Bo-Katan out of her stupor. "Wouldn't surprise me, to be honest. If things survived up here, there must be something lurking down there too." Din clicked a button on his vambrace, securing the hood of the pram shut now that the child was settled. "I think we should stick to fighting things above ground."

"Yeah, well, you have a bad habit of attracting creepy crawlies anywhere." The Wolven noted, teasingly. The only response she received was the sag of his shoulders as they departed from the city.

Bo-Katan led them towards her ship, The Gauntlet. They settled inside, and she graciously switched on the heater so that their clothes would dry up quicker. Din was so much more thankful for her in that moment. Elodie had slipped his gloves off when Bo-Katan started take off and held them in her own hands.

His cold hands greedily drained the heat pouring from her skin and she tried not to flinch initially at the contact. It always amazed him how warm her natural body temperature ran, anyone else would be in a puddle on the floor.

Exiting the atmosphere was less daunting after all they had gone through beneath the surface of Mandalore. "Bring me to my ship and I'll be on my way. You will forever have my gratitude."

"I would invite you in for a feast, but I'm guessing that helmet isn't coming off again." Bo-Katan looks back at Din, understandingly, and he nods back in confirmation.

"Can I still accept? I'm starving." Elodie chimed, leaning forward to hold her hand up between them. The Mandalorians smirked under their helmets at the woman, who looked genuinely upset.

"This is the way." Din started, and Bo-Katan finished, "This is the way." Grogu spluttered something incomprehensible from the pram, "Teh-ezz-waah." There was a pause, and everyone slowly turned to face the child, who looked pleased with himself. Elodie spoke up without looking at the other two, "You both heard that right?"

The ship rocked.

Blaster bolts pelted at the hull and caused the engines to stutter under the strain. "We took a hit." Din barked, looking at the console beside him. Bo-Katan desperately flicked switches and slammed buttons on the console. The scope detected multiple enemies quickly descending on them from behind. "How will we ever survive without your astute awareness." Elodie japed. A nerve twitched in Din's jaw when she also leaned over him to silence the blaring alarms. "I'm starting to miss when you couldn't talk."

"Please, you missed all aspects of my mouth, baby." She quipped provocatively, plopping back into her seat and securing her belt. They used the handles to control the rear turrets on the gunship. Bo-Katan fought the urge to roll her eyes. "Not the time. Something's coming up on us fast. It looks like a squadron of TIE interceptors."

"How close are we to Kalevala?"

"Not far."

Din fired a few shots from his seat, and Elodie had a little trouble locking on to their ships as they were so swift. He called out to the pilot, "Get us back there, and I'll reinforce from the ship. Can you evade them?" There was a slim chance either of them would land shots on their targets in space, there was so much room to evade, whereas Kalevala was at least familiar ground to Bo-Katan. There, they would have the upper hand.

She shook her head. "Our shields aren't gonna hold. I need you to back them off."

"We're trying!" Elodie grunted, feeling the controls rumble under her hold, releasing a string of bolts on the ships trailing them and managing to destroy one. "Do we even have time for a drop off?"

"I'll manage." The Mandalorian remarked.

"I mean, what's a few more bruises?" Elodie rambled. Kalevala was now in sight and fast approaching as a result of Bo-Katan's breakneck speed. "Where'd they come from?"

Bo-Katan didn't entirely know herself. "I've scugged off a lot of Imperial warlords."

"They tend to get mad when you hijack their ships." He acknowledged. She huffed in amusem*nt. "Now you tell me."

The ship swerved and dove towards the castle at the water's edge. "Get ready, we're comin' in hot. I won't be able to slow down for the drop." Elodie took note that the woman had not let up on the acceleration while they flew lower, and a worry was buried in her heart for her Riduur. He was definitely going to be more bruised after this emergency landing. [Husband]

"Interceptors are a lot tougher than TIE fighters. Are you still up for the transfer?" Bo-Katan confirmed. "I don't see any other choice." Din sighed, heaving himself out of his seat, and cupped Elodie's cheek to brush a thumb over her high cheekbone before departing. The soothing touch did nothing to settle the wolf inside. She wanted to go with Din, but knew she would only cause more danger.

"I'll man the gun solo." Elodie told herself. Bo-Katan opened the hatch, and the Mandalorian free-fell through the air. The sharp turns of The Gauntlet didn't allow Elodie to see the Mandalorian land safely. Her hands gripped the handles of the controls tightly, waiting for a response when the comms crackled to life, "I made it to the N-1. Heading to you." Elodie exhaled sharply, her shoulders slumping a little with relief.

Another bolt grazed the side of the ship, and the co*ckpit rocked violently. R-5 beeped frantically, raving side-to-side in his panic. Elodie tapped her scope as it flickered on and off again, highlighting four TIE fighters.

"Don't worry, I grew up flying these cliffs." Bo-Katan tried to reassure the astromech by weaving in and out of the rocky structures around the cliffs. One of her manoeuvres came up short, and the Gauntlet ended up scraping against the rock face with a shrill screech. "Of course, it's been a while."

The TIE that was racing them to the side exploded suddenly, and the N-1 shot across their view. "Thanks for the backup." Bo-Katan marvelled.

"Two more to go." The Mandalorian deduced, expertly piloting the starfighter and using its unique speed to its advantage. The rocks came up to a divergence, and the TIE fighters continued their pursuit. Din ducked down one route, and the Gauntlet carried on down the other, The TIE fighters obviously knew they had better luck with a larger ship which was slower. Elodie shot one that got a little too close for comfort, leaving two ships. "Go right. I'll meet you on the other side."

"Fire!" Bo-Katan shouted to Elodie, and the latter clamped down on the triggers, sending a flurry of bolts at the ships. It erupted in a fiery mess, sending metal debris in all directions.

Bo-Katan pulled the ship into a complete U-turn and dove again. Elodie had to release her grip on the controls to quickly seal the child's pram and grasp desperately onto her seat belt. She lifted from her seat as gravity shifted. Bo-Katan bailed out at the last second while the TIE fighter carried on and slammed into the ocean, the surface tension tearing into the ship fatally.

Bo brought the ship to level, and Din cruised alongside them. Elodie flicked a lock of hair from her face, reaching over to unlatch the hood of the pram. Grogu looked around with wide eyes and looked a little shaky. The Wolven straightened his tunic and patted his head to calm him. On his other side, there was no calming the frazzled droid quivering his bolts.

"Not bad for an antique." Bo-Katan called out to Din. "You take any damage?" He probed. Bo-Katan flicked her eyes over the controls, pleased to see that they managed to scrape by relatively unharmed. "Just shields. You?"

"Not a scratch."

Bo-Katan rerouted their course for the castle. "Let's take 'em in just to be sure. Nice shooting." Elodie could sense the pride eluding from the male Mandalorian as he looked over from his place in the co*ckpit. He thoroughly enjoyed his new ship.

As they were coming over the crest of a mountain, an alarm began ringing from the main console. It was the enemy proximity warning from earlier—maybe they were not out of the fold like they had assumed.

"Hang on. I'm seeing something on the scope." Din tried saying, but the Gauntlet reached over the mountain before his starfighter. Bo-Katan gasped, "No!" TIE fighters rained down fire on the castle, and the pristine formation of the rocks gave under the intense onslaught. Walls and the roof caved in, and the once picturesque view has now turned sour. Flames arose from within. Her voice turned to venom as she seethed, "Those mudscuffers bombed my home!"

"Bo, we've got company. Bo, listen to me. You have to get out of there. There's too many of them, we've got to get out of here."

Bo-Katan pressed harder into the controls, and the engines revved. Elodie jumped up from her seat in alarm. "Stop! We have a child, Bo!"

"My home..." Bo whimpered, voice trembling. Elodie held on to both her shoulders from behind, not releasing her grip. "I know, and I'm sorry. I am. There are too many of them. But you need to survive this to get your revenge."

"You're right. That's a lot of ships for an imperial warlord." Bo-Katan blinked away the tears in her eyes, steeling her gaze. The Gauntlet changed course and headed after the N-1 just as dozens of TIE fighters blinked onto the scope.

"I'm sending jump coordinates." Din called out, and the communicator pinged a message. "To where?" While Bo evaded oncoming shots, Elodie made herself useful by inputting the data into the Nav. They exited the atmosphere, where they were able to initiate the hyperdrive, narrowly escaping the Empire. "Someplace they won't find us."

Elodie gave Bo's shoulder one last squeeze and returned to her seat.

Bo-Katan pressed a few buttons on the dashboard, turning her seat to face Elodie. "Where are we headed?"

"Din's former covert is located not far from here. I don't know the name of the planet, but it's similar to Tatooine. They will give you refuge." The Wolven assured her, but the woman didn't seem convinced. "How can you be so certain? I am not part of the Death Watch."

Elodie crossed one leg over the other, leaning her elbow on the console. "But you bathed in the Living Waters. If they question you, use your own logic against them. It's how I win my fights against Din." She tried to make light of the situation, but it turned bittersweet at best. Bo-Katan was allowed to mourn for her home. It was another blow, another loss taken by none other than the Empire again. Hundreds of years of ancestry and heirlooms have been lost.

"The two of you are good together." Bo-Katan said offhandedly.

She smiled at Bo and somehow knew that the other woman was slipping her a small one herself. Changing subjects. This must be one of her coping mechanisms. The Wolven played along. "I mean, I would hope so, we're married."

"Married? When?" Bo-Katan gaped, brows raising a little in shock. Truth be told, Elodie was happy to have told someone other than her brother. "Shortly after I changed back to human." Elodie smiled, leaning back in the seat and laying her hand in the pram to let Grogu fiddle with her fingers to cure his boredom. She jested further, "So sorry, but I'm off the market."

Bo tried to suppress the small smile under her helmet and turned to face the window again. "Now that is a damn shame. Missed that opportunity."

"Don't go getting any ideas, it is hard enough keeping her eyes from wondering as it is."

Elodie rolled her eyes, lips peeling back in a smile to reveal her teeth. "I only have eyes for you, Verd." [Warrior/Soldier]

"What can I say? You're a stunning woman."

"You've been eavesdropping this whole time?"

Reluctantly, Din answered. "I wouldn't call it that. You're the one who didn't turn off the comms." The ships dropped out of hyperspace simultaneously. In front of the shields was a sandy desert planet, a single sun illuminating it over the horizon.

"I'm bringing you to a Mandalorian covert. This is how we have survived in exile." Din led on as they sank into the atmosphere. Wild winds whipped grains of sand at the windscreen. Soon, the engines would start spluttering from the particulate matter congesting their systems. Bo thought back to her first conversation with Din when she informed him that he was part of a separatist Mandalorian cult and bitterly uttered out, "I'm familiar."

"It's a secret location, and you are my guest." Din urged, hoping she would understand the gravity of his words. No, not words; a warning.

"They still live by the old ways." She clarified. He circled around the base from above, setting the N-1 to land. "Yes. It will go smoother if you keep your helmet on. Trust me."

"Of course." Bo-Katan

The women regroup with Din and stare ahead at the cave entrance. R-5 happily stayed behind in the Gauntlet, and the pram floated beside them on their trek. The familiar looming figure of Paz Vizsla exits the cave, followed by many reinforcements. They walked up to greet him but were met with an unwelcome encounter.

"Come no further. You are an apostate, Din Djarin. You and your companion."

He straightened proudly, "No longer. I have been to the mines of Mandalore." Elodie thought she best not invite her usual snark, or they may just have more reason to draw weapons.

"Impossible. The mines collapsed in the Purge. The planet is cursed." Paz denied, disbelieving. Din continued, "These are lies meant to keep us in exile."

"How do we know that it is not you who is lying?" He questioned, not trusting the word of the man so desperate to rejoin a covert he so freely betrayed.

"He speaks the truth. We were witnesses." Bo-Katan chimed. Paz looked between Wolven and the Nite Owl. "And who are you, Nite Owl? Word of fellow apostates does little to sway my judgement."

Bo-Katan declared, "I am Bo-Katan of Clan Kryze."

"Your House has fallen from the way." Paz drooled, hoping to irritate the woman into acting out. At least then they would be done with this charade.

"You are one to speak, Vizsla." Elodie bit, defending Bo-Katan. The woman just lost her home, he, above anyone, should know how that felt. Bo-Katan felt a little touched that the Wolven had spoken on her behalf. "You are all apostates." The larger Mandalorian gritted out.

Din repeated his statement from before. "We have been to the Living Waters. I bring proof."

Paz scoffed, "We shall see."

He led the group into the depths of the cave, where the armourer had set up her forge. Hanging on the wall above was a Beskar replica of a Mythosaur. Bo-Katan had a hard time listening to the conversation, her gaze drawn to the beast she saw on Mandalore. A beast thought long extinct.

Din walked past Paz when the armourer came into view. His back was turned, but she knew of their arrival. She was a woman of vast knowledge and wisdom. The Mandalorians that escorted them in remained around their smaller group in a circle, a prime strategic placement for ambush if the word was given.

Elodie and Bo sent each other a steely look of uncertainty.

Din stopped short of the forge, Paz standing not far behind him. "Din Djarin claims to have bathed in the Living Waters." The latter announced. The armourer turned from her position. "Is this true?"

"It is. I have proof."

He holds out a vial for the armourer to take. The one with the sample from the Living waters. The armourer took it without question, walking over her basin to pour the water out. At the contact with the water in the basin, the waters from Mandalore radiated a sparkling bioluminescence.

"I was witness. He fell into the depths, and I pulled him out." Bo-Katan spoke to the armourer and to the other Mandalorians surrounding them. The armourer seemed satisfied with the evidence Din brought and held out her arms in welcome. "He speaks the truth. These are indeed the Living Waters. Din Djarin, you are redeemed. This is the way." This appeased the Mandalorians in the room, and they visibly relaxed more. Perhaps at the news of Mandalore being habitable once again.

They echoed. "This is the way."

"And Bo-Katan Kryze, by Creed, you too are redeemed." The armourer declared, astounding the Nite Owl. She tried to deny the claim, "But I do not walk the Way."

"Did you bathe in the waters?"

"I did." Bo-Katan admitted. The armourer pressed on, "And have you removed your helmet since?"

"No, I have not."

"Then you may join our covert and live as your ancestors once did. You may leave anytime you wish. Until then, you are one of us. Welcome, Bo-Katan of Clan Kryze."

Elodie glanced around at the crowd gathered around them. Their cold, cumbrous stares were uncomfortable and made the hairs on her arm stand on edge. The armourer settled her gaze on the other guest, whom she had met many times before.

"You. You do not wear a helmet."

"Not since it was stripped from me." Elodie ratified. The armourer looked down on her curiously. "Have not bathed in the living waters?" Shaking her head, she answered. "No, I did not."

"You do not cover your face and are a Mandalorian no more. Apostates are not welcome amongst the clan."

"Elodie is welcome by proxy. We exchanged the marital vows, and I have taken her as my Riduur." Din stepped up, hooking his pinky finger around her pointer finger discreetly, "She is to be treated as such." [Wife]

The armourer paused, then nodded in acceptance. "This is the way."

"This is the way." The other Mandalorians all echoed in unison. Harsh pinning glares softened through opaque visors, and the Mandalorians broke out of their formation to greet the trio and the child. Elodie was sure she was going to get whiplash. Heavy pats clapped on the Wolven's shoulders and back as the Mandalorians came forward. It was strange to see their facade lift like a veil. Weary of outsiders that threaten their existence in one moment and then embrace them like long-lost family the next.

Unlike the others, Paz stood off to the side. Standing. Watching. The Mandalorian did not like the idea of reopening their home, but to stand against the Creed would be unthinkable. Elodie caught his unwavering leer in between the Mandalorians weaving in and out, and returned it. Another unknown Mandalorian crossed her vision and nodded in greeting.

Elodie shook the hand of one, then another. When she looked up, she saw the retreating figure of the large Mandalorian. "Jackass." She mumbled under her breath. The Mandalorian in front of her followed her lingering eyes, and a noise sounded through the modulator, much like a scoff.

That got her attention. She peeled her focus away and blinked at the Mandalorian in front of her in slight shock.

"Excuse me?" He asked. Elodie shook her head, realising her words may have been mistaken. "Oh! Not you! Paz, I mean. He doesn't like me." The Mandalorian slowly nodded, taking in the words of the awkward woman. She held out her hand to be shaken. "Elodie. Though, you probably already knew that."

"Tyr Vizsla." Cold metal slipped into her hand. "That jackass' brother."

Elodie wasn't taken back by his words, but by the spread of cold up her arm as his hand embraced her forearm. Grasping her outstretched arm was a mechanical one; the exoskeleton extending as far as the shoulder. The metal itself was forged from Beskar judging from the weight and the feel against her sleeveless forearm. He tucked his hand back down at his side and took the time to properly scan her after failing to draw out a reaction.

The Wolven saw that he was perplexed by his silence and the subtle tilt of his navy-blue helmet, something she had picked up on during her time spent with Din. The visor shape was different from that of his comrades. It was slimmer, and the descending part thinned out to a point, making a shorter 'T'. Elodie assumed he must have had some advanced modifications made to his helmet for such restricted visibility.

The words he uttered suddenly hit her, and she flinched back in a wince. "I don't mean any offence."

"None taken. He is a jackass. But don't worry, he'll get over himself. Paz' has always liked to make something out of nothing." The Mandalorian nodded to Din Djarin, who strolled over. The chrome Mandalorian threw his arm out to Tyr and the man shook it with vigour, bringing themselves in for a short embrace and clap of the shoulders before releasing. "Tyr, bic cuyir jate at haa'taylir gar ner burc'ya." [It's good to see you again, my friend]

"Bal gar." Tyr responded, keeping his human hand resting on Din's shoulder above his pauldron. "I'll show you to your part of the dwelling." [And you]

He walked forward, leading the pair away from Bo-Katan who seemed to be socialising amongst the dwindling group of Mandalorians. The Pram trailed effortlessly behind them, Din's vambrace was already pre-programmed to allow it to float after them if the distance grew too great. The child was looking around the inside of the cave in awe. The inner walls were long since eroded by water in the time past and the ages were worn away in lines on the wall. The large pool of water outside must have consumed the majority of the planet before receding so far to desert land.

"I was just introducing myself to your Riduur," Tyr spoke aimlessly to his fellow Mandalorian, "She's funny. I think she'd get along with the others quite well." Warmth blossomed in Din's chest, the weight of his Vod's words settling deep and providing a wave of reassurance. Din was no fool, he had noticed that the woman was not comfortable among his clan members, and they didn't exactly make it easy for her to feel welcome, let alone liked. Din replied quietly, "I hope so." [Wife. Brother.]

Elodie followed the two male Mandalorians, walking at pace with the child while they caught up. She wondered where he was when they visited the armourer after the retrieval of the Dark Saber.

"This is you." Tyr announced.

She would have to ask later, as they came to a stop outside of another entryway. It was wide enough to fit someone the size of Paz through it, the inside was hard to see as it was dark, and it was a fair distance from the main portion of the cave. There were no dwellings inside that were near each other—ideal for Mandalorian's who respected their privacy.

"It's more than enough. Thank you." Said Din.

Elodie added, "Please ensure Bo-Katan is shown to hers. She's just lost her home. I think she would want some time to herself."

"Din Elodie. Din Djarin." Tyr nodded in farewell, and started walking back. "There will be training in two hours for the apprentices, in case you were interested in joining."

Heading inside, Elodie was pleasantly surprised to see a small fire burning in the corner, with a carved rock formation in the middle resembling a table. It was a singular round room that led off into a bedroom, which consisted of fur pelts of an unknown creature resting across a raised rocky berth. To the left was a small space with a hole dug into the floor, the heavy flow of water running in the opposite direction of the lake outside suggested it was their sewage.

"It's nice for a cave." The Mandalorian said, placing the child out of his pram. Elodie smiled at him, "You've clearly never lived on Tatooine."

She walked up to him, bringing her hands up to rest on his cuirass. He automatically held his hands on her hips, pulling her flush against him. Even in the dim light, Din was able to make out the playful look in her eyes. "I'm glad they accepted you back into the clan."

"Me too. And I couldn't have done it without any of your help." He said earnestly, raising her hand to tap her knuckles against the crown of his helmet, like a kiss. "I would suggest ways you could show your thanks, but I think the child deserves a good meal, don't you?"

The Mandalorian hung his head, catching sight of the child staring up at them with large eyes, silently pleading. "Food." He agreed, letting his arm slip down to give her backside a firm squeeze. "Then I will show you the meaning of gratitude in all the tongues I know."

Chapter 29: Chapter 25: The Foundling

Chapter Text

The beachfront was littered with Mandalorians of all ages, races, and specialties. Elodie had half expected to see only the children being taught martial arts, but the entire Covert was teaching and learning from one another. Their only little community thrives on shared expertise.

On one side, there were Mandalorians taking their flight training in the Rising Phoenix and using jet packs for the first time. At the water's edge, others were shooting into the water with various projectiles.

No wonder some of the sea creatures were pissed.

Catching her eye was Grogu. He sat peacefully, meditating. Small crabs circled him and were drawn in by the alluring use of force. Din walked up beside her, coming to stand close to her. Any time she inhaled, the bicep of her crossed arm would brush against his unarmoured elbow. Memories of their brisk night together played through her mind and made her want to reach out to touch him. Hold him in the afternoon light. But she didn't know how he would feel about public displays of affection while in the company of the covert. "Is this how you trained?"

"Yes. It is a rite of passage for all apprentices, in order to take the vows. All techniques are passed on so that the knowledge is kept within the tribe." Some stations demonstrated the use of different weaponry or simply the use of hand-to-hand combat. There was a flash of flames where two Mandalorian adolescents fought against one another using the flamethrowers in their vambraces. She hummed, "I see."

He tilted his helmet down at her. "And you? I imagine Boba Fett was a good teacher."

"He was. But we never trained like this. He taught me how to wield a spear first, something that can be made from any ordinary objects around, and then a blaster. He believed I should be taught to defend myself first before he signed me up for sparring others. Trust issues, ami'right?"

Elodie brought one hand up unconsciously to play with the pendants around her neck. Din smiled at the thought. "Sounds like something he would do." Elodie looked at him strangely, eyeing his helmet like she could see the expression he was pulling underneath and the underlying tone of fondness. "Since when did the two of you become besties?"

"Since I spent a week not knowing if you and the child were dead," Her face fell from teasing to serious at the deadpan in his voice. The pain of abandonment and fear in their time apart. She forwent the previous reluctance of PDA and leaned into his left side. "I'll always find my way back to you, Ner Runi." [My soul]

The Mandalorian stared down at her, remembering his vow never to have her taken from him again.

Din caught sight of the child playing with the sand crabs where he was meant to be meditating and released a heavy sigh. He raised Elodie's hand to tap against the crown of his helmet and departed to stop the child from potentially gnawing on callous shells.

She watched him walk away, eyeing his purposeful strut.

The air around her shifted, and she felt a presence come up to her left.

Tyr Vizsla stood beside her. His mammoth height brought his shoulder to the top of her head. He may not be as stocky as Paz, but he makes up for it with his height. Tyr wasted no time to catch the woman alone on the beach front, away from her Mandalorian Riduur. [Husband]

"Are you participating in the events?"

"Oh no. I just came out here to see the covert." She smiled politely, "I never had any of this. It is nice to see everyone getting along so well. Like a community."

Tyr corrected, "Aliit ori'shya tal'din." [Family is more than blood]

"Sorry, yes, family." Elodie spluttered. She didn't know what was wrong with her or why she was so nervous around this Mandalorian. She was never nervous around anyone, not even Din. Din was always familiar and comfortable. She pushed, he pulled, and it was just easy. There was something about Tyr that made her question herself. Like one wrong move would mean rejection.

Elodie just wanted to get along with Din's family. She wanted to make him happy. Tyr stared down at the woman, the perks of his helmet allowing him to recognise elevated levels of her heart rate and the edgy shift in her demeanour. "You don't have to be worried about rejection from the clan. As long as you are married to Djarin, you are welcome in this covert."

"Does that mean you as well?"

"I have been civil so far." Elodie couldn't deny that. He was the first to openly introduce himself to her and have a conversation with her. "I wish to challenge you."

That astounded her. She squinted up at him and looked around. "No, thank you."

"The other Mandalorians will take to you more if you present yourself as capable of defending not only yourself but the clan. We have family here. It is the way." Mandalorians were not like traditional families or communities; they were fiercely protective, skilled fighters. The Mandalorian beside her leaned a little closer, talking lowly, "The armourer has not yet found you worthy; you have sensed it already. You need to secure your own place among the clan and not rely on Din Djarin. It will be harder as you are no longer Mandalorian."

The words barely registered through his vocoder, and he leaned back into his position. "I was like Bo-Katan without my helmet. I did not follow the way like you did."

"Being a Mandalorian is more than just a helmet. It is about having Mando'karla. Prove yourself, Elodie." [Mandalorian virtue]

"Judge!" He called, giving her an unwavering stare as if to challenge her to cower. She shadowed his even stare with one of her own. A Mandalorian paced over and looked at the pair. "She has been challenged."

"What is your weapon of choice?" Tyr awaited Elodie's answer as the challenged.

"Spears."

It was the first thing on her mind. She had no special weapons or modifications, and she knew a knife would be easily deflected off his armour. A spear was the first weapon she ever trained with.

Another Mandalorian came over holding two metal spears, one end blunt and the other sharpened to a point. Elodie wielded the spear, testing the weight of the silver pole. It was not Beskar, for obvious reasons, but it was lightweight and was as tall as her. Mandalorians were not going to waste time and resources on something not fit for battle.

Elodie and Tyr were standing a few feet apart.

She held her spear in both hands and held the pointed end skyward. Tyr on the other hand, held his to the side, his flesh hand gripping the middle. His mechanical arm hung to his side. The judge held his arm between them and cut it down sharply. "Begin!"

They started off by circling, both watching each other's careful steps, wondering who was going to strike first. Tyr was visibly relaxed and calculating.

Testing the waters, Elodie struck first. She swiped the spear at a wide, outward angle, and Tyr lazily used one hand to beat it away with his own. The strike was of little force, and the Mandalorian man tutted in disappointment. "I hope you plan on hitting harder than that."

He nodded his helmet behind him, and she narrowed her eyes beyond the sight of his shoulder to the cave entrance. The armourer and Paz were standing- watching. There was no question of whether she might win. Elodie would win. For Din. For herself. She focused back on her opponent, "You have no idea what I'm capable of."

Tyr brought the spear in a full swing close to the ground, and Elodie was quick to react by jumping over it and retaliating with a hit. He blocked, now using both hands to hold the weapon, and the pair pushed against one another as they fought for dominance.

Elodie gritted her teeth, feeling her feet start to slide back in the sand from his strength. She was stronger than the average human, but his metal arm allowed him an edge that he was using to his full advantage.

Well, if he could cheat, so could she.

A low guttural growl slipped from her throat, and her eyes illuminated. She suppressed the wolf rising from its slumber in the deepest depths of her mind and dredged up a newfound strength she didn't know she had. Tyr's biceps quaked under the pressure as her force grew stronger.

"You really are not holding back, are you?" Elodie snarled, getting a little angry. Tyr let out a snippy laugh. "Who is to say that I, too, didn't want to see if you were worthy of the covert's loyalties?"

He wanted her to prove herself, and he was not making it easy.

Tyr twirled the spear in his hands like a staff, but she did not appreciate the theatrics. The Wolven lashed out, pushing him back. She sent a series of swipes and jabs in his direction, which Boba Fett would be proud of. Her feet were light on the floor, barely in the same spot for a second apart from when she was deflecting hits, as her balance needed to be stable. Tyr parried, blocking each hit, but then made the fatal mistake of falling for her feign to the left. The blunt end of her spear connected with his unprotected right side, and he grunted, stumbling back.

Victory on her part.

Unfortunately for Elodie, Tyr righted himself, didn't allow himself to be phased by such a little hit, and ran forward faster than a man his size should have been able to. He bent down, shoving his shoulder into her abdomen with another grunt, and sent them flying to the ground, spears forgotten.

The judge took a step closer to intervene and remind them of the objective, but relaxed when it was clear they were still challenging and not getting caught up in an actual fight. The wolf in Elodie's mind disapproved of the Mandalorian gaining the upper hand, and she felt a wave of adrenaline prickle throughout her body as far as her fingertips and toes.

Even with the oxygen gone from her lungs, the adrenaline allowed her to elbow the side of his helmet. It wouldn't hurt him, but it would disorient him. It worked, and she shoved him to the side while she snagged her forgotten spear and twisted to bring it down on his fallen form.

Elodie thrust the spear down and left it probing at the cowl around his neck. Tyr was gasping for breath, his hands frozen on either side of him.

"Defeat. Winner!" The Mandalorian judge indicated this to her.

They took a moment to retrieve their breaths, and Elodie moved the spear to one hand and offered the other to help him up. He accepted the offer, and she heaved him off the sand to stand. Tyr's hand loosened on her hand and slid further up to grasp her forearm like yesterday.

"This is the way." He said, and for the first time in a long time, she repeated it back to him: "This is the way."

Looking at the cave entrance again, the armourer and Paz were still standing. Paz Vizsla looked indifferent at her success in defeating his brother in a challenge; his hands were securely fixed to holding his utility belt. The golden helmet of the armourer simply stared back at her and, in a minute movement, nodded.

A smile bloomed over her scarred face. She was accepting her.

Elodie handed the spear back to the judge as he congratulated her, and Tyr gave her a nod before departing himself. Despite how hard he had been, she liked him. Tyr was stimulating and ended up doing the challenge for her own benefit. A hand clapped her firmly on the back, causing her shoulder to ache under the hand that fastened itself to it.

"Good job. For a second there, I thought he was going to pulverise you." Bo-Katan joked, giving her an approving look under the helmet. Elodie shoved her off playfully. "Thanks, I did too." Elodie looked around at the flux of Mandalorians, specifically for her Mandalorian. Bo-Katan saw this and started walking in the direction where she last saw them.

Din picked Grogu up from his meditative state and walked over to where the children were practicing, a little further inland compared to the adults and those with more experience.

"Next challenger." He announced, placing Grogu on the floor beside the fighting children.

The children pushed against each other, and Ragnar yelled, using the weight of his challenger to toss him aside. He stood panting, victorious, as the judge called out the winner. Bo-Katan and Elodie walked over after seeing Din approach a judge with the child in hand. "Are you sure this is a good idea?"

"If he is ever to rise from foundling to apprentice, he must learn." The Wolven recognised the boy in blue- resembling his big blue father, Paz. He was the child she had met during her first visit to the covert on this planet.

"Grogu is a lot tougher than he looks." Elodie tried to convince herself. Din nodded at her, seeing a pinch of doubt in the way her forehead creased. "Like his mother."

"K'uur jii." She brushed him off, not accepting the compliment. [Stop it]

"Judge!" The judge stared down at the child and back up to Din, questioningly.

"He challenges."

No one had ever seen a child of his species but doubted that a toddler would stand a chance against a fully grown, childlike Ragnar. Grogu barely reached his knee when standing at full height. "He is too small." He denied.

"I am his ward. Proceed." Din brushed off. The judge conceded, holding his hands in front of him. "What weapon?"

Din nodded to Ragnar, gesturing for him to make the choice. It was a test within itself—if Ragnar chose something physical, he would obviously overpower Grogu. It was respectful to balance the odds. "Let the challenged decide."

"Darts," He chose. The judge waved at another Mandalorian to collect them from another station. Elodie bounced on the tips of her toes impatiently. Noticing this, Din rested a hand on the small of her back. "You don't have to worry. He is our son."

She pulled a face. "Exactly; he's our son. I can't help but feel the need to protect him."

"Why doesn't he wear a helmet?" Ragnar blurted out, checking out his opponent. "He is too young to speak the Creed, and so too young to wear a helmet." Din informed gently.

"Then he's too young to fight."

Grogu coos, looking between Ragnar and Din. The Mandalorian didn't waver on his decision. "One does not speak unless one knows. Is that not the Creed?"

"Well, I know." He grumbled.

"Perhaps this lesson is for you, then."

The judge came back and deployed an ammunition box containing the wrist bands. "The training darts. Fighters, arm yourselves." Bo-Katan bends to help Grogu with his straps. "Don't worry. My dad was the same way. He's just proud of you. You take it easy on him, kid."

"Each has three darts. You may fire the darts in any order. Each direct hit scores one point. A mark must be visible to score. One round. The highest score wins."

The armourer and Paz still stood at the cave entrance, observing the progress of the covert. The involvement of Grogu, however, had caught their attention.

Din motioned with his hand in demonstration. "Squeeze your fist to launch the darts. You'll be fine." Bo-Katan looked up from his hand to his helmet, "He doesn't know how to fire darts."

"He's faced worse." Elodie reminded her. Din agreed, knowing what the child was capable of. "He's got this. Trust me."

"Ready. Begin!"

As soon as the judge allowed for the fight to commence, a green paint spatter hit the centre of Grogu's beige tunic.

"Point!" The judge rules, directing it to Ragnar. The taller child stood there opposite Grogu, bored. He didn't think of a baby as a challenge. Upset, Grogu looked to his Buirs for comfort. Din pointed to Ragnar, "Don't look at me. Look at him." [Parents]

"Ready. Begin! Point!"

Another green splodge ended up next to the previous, and the child was even more distraught than before. "Grogu, I've seen what you can do. It's okay. Show them."

"Ready. Begin!"

A paint ball hit the spot in which Grogu was standing as he jumped into the air, catapulted over Ragnar's head, and then bounced back again to his original spot like he was on a trampoline. Upon landing, Grogu fired three consecutive shots onto Ragnar's blue tunic.

"That's my boy!" Elodie fist bumped the air at the same time the judge called for Grogu as the winner. Onlookers also clapped for the child, and Ragnar shrank under their gazes.

Din crouched to pick the child up and set him on his hip. "There you go!"

"Did either of you teach him that?" Bo asked. Din thought back to his Jedi training: "No, not us."

Paz called out to his son from his position, flanking the armorer. "One doesn't speak unless one knows."

Ragnar sighs and walks away. Feeling sorry for the child, Elodie trailed after him. She had a soft spot for children.

He stood by the water, a fair distance away from the rest of the covert. The child stared at the floor, watching himself kick up sand. She called out to him, "Hey kid!"

Ragnar looked up, "Elodie?"

She was pleased that he remembered her name and gave the boy a soft smile as she came to stand by his side. "That was a good spar." The child huffed dramatically, and his head dropped back down. The Wolven felt a little awkward, not having had any real interactions with children and only ever having one-sided conversations with a baby.

Elodie noticed that he was picking at the wet paint on his tunic and knelt on the ground beside him. "Here," She said, cupping some of the sand and rubbing it against the markings.

They faded with the grit, and he looked at her. He mumbled out a little, "Thanks." He brushed off the remaining sand on his tunic, and she leaned back to sit on her knees. "What's up? You can tell me."

"It was just embarrassing," He moaned. "I got beat by a baby in front of everyone!"

Elodie bit her lip to keep the smile from slipping out, her face remaining sympathetic. "Want to hear something really weird?" She leaned in, looking around dramatically, like she was about to tell him some big secret. Ragnar leaned in, intrigued. "Grogu's fifty years old."

He straightened immediately, shocked at the news. He shook his head and openly denied the accusation. The Wolven held up her hands in mock surrender, "It's true. Some species age differently. I bet if he were your age, you would have won."

She smiled as his shoulder rose from their stroppy sag. He was happier, at least. Ragnar told her, "He also has powers."

"Exactly!" Elodie nodded in agreement to reassure him. "I saw you win the other challenge before, and that move you pulled was so cool! A couple more years, and you'll be as strong as your buir." [Father]

"I hope so."

A piercing cry echoed over the mountain range.

Fast approaching in the distance, a Shriek-Hawk swooped over a large rock formation.

Its wide wingspan was easily the length of four N-1 starfighters put together. It was unlike any other bird she had seen. This was something prehistoric-looking. Instead of feathers, thick waxy skin lined the wings, and on the tip of the crook of the wind were what she assumed were its digits. Thick, scaly feet with talons hung underneath the best as it focused all its energy on beating its large wings and maintaining altitude. Its face resembled that of a dragon, with a wide mouth lined with copious, sharp teeth, prime for carnivorous beasts. Its eyes were small and monocular, sitting on either side of its head.

"Run..." Elodie jumped to her feet, and her face dropped in horror, ushering Ragnar back to the safety of the save. "Run, Ragnar!"

They were so far away.

Everyone else in the covert was close to the entrance while they trained, whereas the Wolven had followed Ragnar to where he had wondered off a little too far. The Shriek-Hawk let out another wail, and it was upon the Mandalorian group before they had any time to react. By the distress radiating from Paz and Din as they mustered their weapons and tried running to the pair, they knew it too.

She and the child were not going to make it.

It was the shadow that gave it away first. Darkness eclipsed the afternoon sun overhead, and Ragnar cried out in fear, and she pushed him to run faster, their legs pumping hard underneath them. Elodie slowed her pace a little, but it was still too fast for the child. He was panting hard from exertion, and her grip on his arm was practically dragging him along. Casting a split-second look up, she saw that a talon was directed towards Ragnar- the smallest of the two targets.

Elodie wrenched his arm, and he flew into her arms. Instead of the talon clamping down on sand like she half expected, it careened sideways as the Shriek-Hawk adjusted its aim and encased the both of them in one paw. Yelling, the pair were lifted off their feet and into the air by a cloud of sand.

Ragnar was painfully squashed against her chest as her arms embraced him before he was abducted. The sharp ends of the talons were, thankfully, too long to puncture them at this angle. "Help! Dad!" He wailed loudly, calling out for his father, and she couldn't blame him.

She heard the whir of jet packs in the distance, and the Mandalorians attempted to catch up to the beast.

It released its infamous shriek and darted between the canyons of the desert tundra at a blinding pace. Elodie's legs were free, but her arms were trapped between the child and the hawk. The wind caused her loose hair to cloud her vision, and she whipped her head to get a better view. Paz and Din were the first ones ahead of the other Mandalorians, no doubt attempting to fly after them on instinct rather than ethical code like the other Mandalorians.

Elodie worried about the altitude at which they were coasting. She had never seen any Mandalorian fly this high for so long in fear of the jet pack failing. And as if on cue, Paz's jet pack stuttered, and the flames flickered.

He crashed into the side of a rocky mountain, luckily sticking to his feet, but watched on hopelessly as the Shriek-Hawk flew away with his child. Din's jet pack followed soon after, and he landed a little further than Paz.

The Gauntlet flew in out of nowhere and kept a loose trail on the Shriek-Hawk. Elodie made a mental note to hug Bo-Katan when they were safe again. Its nest was now in sight, and it circled to slow its descent. The Gauntlet paused a little distance away and turned around for reinforcements now that the location had been tracked.

When the Shriek-Hawk did reach its nest, it released the grip of its talons, leaving Elodie and Ragnar to free fall a small distance into the twigs, branches, and other miscellaneous dried materials. It squawked at them and then dove over the side, flying off again now that its' prey was captured and incapable of escaping at such a height.

The pair stood, gathering their surroundings. Small bones and entire skeletons decorated the bed of the nest, and she pulled her hands away in disgust. Ragnar was inconsolable, with loud sobs clawing out of his throat. He ran to the edge, but Elodie had to run and pull him back by his sleeve.

Elodie brought a shaky finger over her lips, encouraging the child to be quiet. They didn't know if they were alone. Ragnar nodded and curled in on himself on the floor. His hand slipped under his helmet in an effort to smother his cries.

On the other side of the nest, buried under nesting materials, were three hatchlings. Their skin was as bare and scaly as its mother. All were fast asleep and bundled up together. It was hard to tell their gestation, but they looked really young. The Shriek-Hawk must have brought them back to her nest to feed her children.

Elodie gestured for Ragnar to stay put while she crawled up the rim of the nest to look over the edge. She heaved herself up and was careful with her hand placement so she wouldn't suddenly slip. There would be no escaping over the edge. Over the edge of the nest was a steep drop that would mean certain death. She might wager her own life, but she had Ragnar to think about. Both sides of the coin dealt were unfavourable, but at least up here, she could defend them.

Slinking back from the overhang, Elodie sat herself against the rim with her knees brought up against her chest. There was no other choice. They would have to rely on waiting for the Mandalorians to rescue them.

Night was closing in quickly, and being at a higher altitude meant that the temperatures would soon drop into the negatives. Elodie cleared her throat, and the child looked up innocently. She was holding her arms open for him. Ragnar crawled closer, burying himself into her side, remaining in a small ball. The Wolven placed her arms around him to share her warmth and rested her head on top of his small helmet. "It'll be alright." She whispered, close to his audio receptors.

"Jai'galaar has taken other children before." He whispered up at her, "Do you think they'll save us this time?" [Shriek-Hawk]

The Wolven stroked at the ends of his messy hair, splaying from the base of his helmet, "Little man, you dad won't stop until you are safe again. I bet they'll find us by morning, so try and get some sleep. I'll keep watch."

He huffed, "I'm a Mandalorian now. I want to keep watch too." Ragnar felt her chest rumble in humour beside him, "If you want to, you can, but if that thing comes back, then I need you to listen to every word I say. Do I make myself clear?"

"Okay."

The sky grew darker, and she was right in assuming it would be cold, as even she felt the cool breeze seeping through her clothes. Ragnar sighed in his sleep, nuzzling his head, and soft snores drifted from his vocoder.

It wasn't even sunrise when a shrill shriek hit her ears.

Elodie inhaled deeply, rousing from her accidental sleep. As they didn't know when the Shriek-Hawk would return, the Wolven had taken it upon herself to stay awake in case of its return. Well, tried to. At some point, she must have dozed off while her eyes were lost in the stars. The sky was beginning to fade from dark to light as the sun peaked over the horizon and laid its longing gaze on the moon adjacent.

The hatchlings were still asleep in their little huddle, but the mother landed on the opposite side of the nest. Elodie gasped aloud, all systems fully alert and pumping with adrenaline from the sudden awakening. Ragnar jostled in her arms, falling behind her when she sat up with her arms out either side to hide him behind her.

The Shriek-Hawk raised its arms and flapped once to seem threatening. She tilted her head to mumble to the child. "Hodasalar." He looked around desperately but only found a few scraps in the nest that he threw on himself. The beast did not have the best vision and moved its entire head to peer down at her. It leaned in close, and the exhale blew strands of hair over her shoulder. [camouflage/hide]

She hoped that Ragnar had concealed himself well enough to fool the Shriek-Hawk. Elodie had no weapons and no idea how she was going to fight against the behemoth. Hell, she might have had a heart attack before it even took a step closer with the way it pounded in her ears.

The Shriek-Hawk advanced, bringing its head down with its jaw wide open to bite at her.

Elodie dove to the side, rolling to bring herself to her feet again. It co*cked its head, cawing in confusion at her fast reflexes. It stamped its feet a little in tantrum and padded over to her again, careful to avoid the hatchlings.

That was a shared interest, at least. If the hatchlings woke now, they would demand a feed when the mother was not prepared and didn't want them killed, whereas in Elodie's mind, she would rather face the beast off alone without its offspring chasing after her too.

The Wolven swiped her claws out when the Shriek-Hawk got too close when it attempted another snap. They scraped against the scales but didn't penetrate its thick hide. Elodie cursed and picked up a long branch, swinging it to dissuade any further advances.

If anything, the Shriek-Hawk grew angrier.

It bit the end of the branch, and she was momentarily caught in a tug of war before it was ripped from her hands. Elodie fell back from the force, and it tossed the branch over the side.

The Shriek-Hawk brought its mouth down on the Wolven and she laid on her back to kick her arms and legs out. They batted against its jaw, stopping the jar from clamping down, but Elodie knew she couldn't keep this up forever. Her limbs were growing tired, and they were fighting with less and less fervour.

It reeled back as Elodie laid back and panted while looking up at it with her teeth bared. There would be no stopping what came next. It shrilly shrieked and lunged to bite her. The teeth were definitely sharp, piercing any part of her body that made contact. Elodie was engulfed head first, and the beast reeled its head back to swallow the Wolven whole.

She screamed, the high tones ringing throughout the valley and personified within the cavernous mouth.

Elodie felt disoriented by the change of gravity and found herself sliding down the Shriek-Hawks slippery gullet. Her feet brushed the edges of the teeth, and she was now inside the Shriek-Hawk entirely.

There was no room for movement and barely any for air. It was absolutely disgusting and was one of the top five worst experiences of her life. She was thankful that at least she was merely contained in the gullet for the hatchlings rather than as a meal for the beast, or she would have swallowed further down into the bile acids of the stomach. Elodie slid down to a soft pouch in the neck instead of the hard-ribbed bones of the throat. She was covered in thick, hot saliva and pushed down the urge to vomit. She did not need another vile smell wafting in such a small cavity.

The small cavity only allowed her to remain crunched up with her knees painfully pressed into her chest—no wonder it only ever abducted children.

The gullet shook suddenly, and she jostled under the movement. She assumed that the Shriek-Hawk had taken flight again. Ragnar was nowhere to be seen, which meant that his camouflage was effective.

Time passed differently in the gullet.

At one point, the Hawk paused at some kind of watering hole to drink, and Elodie was practically waterboarded.

Elodie tried to claw inside the throat at one point, where the flesh was more supple, but the Shriek-Hawk yelled out, which almost burst her eardrums, and the gullet constricted painfully to where her limbs were pinned awkwardly to her body.

There was a sharp thud, and the swinging movement stopped. Through the thick layers of flesh, the Wolven heard the distinct cries of the hatchlings. They were back at the nest, and she was about to be hand-fed to three ravenous baby Shriek-Hawks. She hoped that the covert had rescued Ragnar while the mother was off gallivanting.

The muscles under her body contracted again, but this movement was different. Elodie was thrust into the main throat cavity, and it clenched repeatedly to regurgitate her.

The Wolven was screwed either way, and instead of fighting to stay inside, she kicked her arms and legs to wiggle out. The Shriek-Hawk tilted its head down, and Elodie began falling directly towards the hungry mouths of the hatchlings. Her clothes were shredded in jagged lines.

Elodie went to fall out completely when the Shriek-Hawk clamped her jaw down around her wrist. It wasn't the beast's full strength,or it would have been severed completely. A steady dribble of blood drew a line down her arm. A guttural yell ripped from her mouth,and she tried to hold onto another tooth with her other hand to try and dislodge the grip. She flailed, looking at the writhing hawks beneath her.

Then, out of nowhere, she heard a deep shout, "She's alive!"

If she could turn her head, she would have. As it turned out, she didn't need to. Paz ignited his jet pack and flew at the Shriek-Hawks mouth to fight its grip on Elodie.

At the oncoming projectile mass, the Shriek-Hawk opened its mouth to clamp down on Paz. The Beskar amour was impenetrable and prevented the teeth from tearing through them both. The Mandalorian grunted at feeling compressed in the tight space. Elodie tried to pry her hand away, but now Paz's upper body was lodged in the jaw, forcing her wrist further down on the tooth, now impaling it.

Pain radiated down her arm, and she screamed.

Paz's vambrace shot out a ray of flames down the beast's throat. It screeched and shook its head violently to disorient him and Elodie. The Shriek-Hawk looked down at the nest, spotting Ragnar among the masses, and took him in its claw.

And they were airborne again.

Elodie looked down to see Ragnar in the hold of the talon, and he began screaming for his father. Behind them, a league of Mandalorians followed them.

Despite Paz's repeated attempts to get released, it was futile. The blast of flames was only causing him and Elodie to become uncomfortable from the close proximity. His armoured body above shielded the wave of flames, but she felt the radiating heat and couldn't imagine how he was feeling.

Bo-Katan flew by, trying to get to Ragnar, but was swatted downward into the mass of open water. Her jet pack spluttered but recovered before she made contact with the surface.

Jet packs rang out a lot closer than before, and the Shriek-Hawk was flying in circles after being herded by the Mandalorian group. Din and Tyr were at the front of the beast, firing their fibercords to tame it. Elodie called out to her husband desperately; her wrist felt like it was going to be torn in two any second. Her words were lost in the bustling winds of flight.

Bo-Katan's fibercord found purchase in the Shriek-Hawk's cheek, and she drew herself closer to the side of its face. It thrashed to throw her off and clenched its jaw harder. A sound of discomfort was heard from the individuals in her jaw. The female Mandalorian sank her vibro blade deep into the cheek, and its jaw became lax on instinct. Paz and Elodie fell from the Shriek-Hawks' mouth.

Paz righted himself midair and reached for Elodie, who was a little out of reach. "Elodie! Take my hand." He called out, his hand stretched out for her to take. He caught sight of her frightened face, "Paz!"

She tumbled wildly, not able to right herself like he was. He tried to ignite his jet pack to slow his descent, but it only gave him a few grunts. It spat out a flame that directed him in the opposite direction and into the round rock formations surrounding the lake.

He caught himself from sliding down the smooth edge and looked to see if any of the other Mandalorians were able to catch up.

Elodie continued to free fall, and the water neared.

"Ugh!" A force met her side-on, and she was thrust sideways. Arms wrapped around her waist with no unwavering force. Elodie looked up to see Tyr directing his jet pack to the same formation where Paz had landed while the others faced off with the Shriek-Hawk. She felt immediate relief to be in the arms of someone familiar; she wanted to slump down and finally relax but needed to maintain her tight grip to stop her from falling out of his grasp. Tyr kept his visor locked on his destination as he spared her only a small glance. "You're welcome."

"Yeah, well, thanks, I guess." She said it breathlessly, patting him with her slobbery hand.

Their angle changed as he tried to slow down and aim for their feet to make contact first. The landing was still rougher than she would have liked. Her bones rattled at the contact, as she was the one who felt her back smash against the rock while Tyr kept his body tight against hers to pin them.

Their position allowed Elodie to see over his shoulder as the Shriek-Hawks wing was cinched from masses of fibercord and tumbled some way down. Din soared through the air like a blaster bolt, catching Ragnar in his arms and changing course to meet with them. Beside her, Paz released a deep sigh of relief.

Landing in the water, the Shriek-Hawk waded frantically to try and find purchase. A sea monster, much larger than the Hawk, erupted from the depths beneath it and clamped its jaw down around it. The Shriek-Hawk wailed but was silenced when the sea monster dragged it into the depths of the murky waters.

Din landed more gently than Tyr had done, and Ragnar was pinned to the rocks in front of him. Her Mandalorian hand landed in the space between her and Paz. Paz faces the pair, "Are you okay?" He directed to the child.

"I'm okay, Dad." Ragnar reassured.

Din held Ragnar in his arms, but the child wanted nothing more than to be in the arms of his father at last. Paz held an arm out while the other supported his weight, and Ragnar quickly threw himself at his father. Paz clutched the child in his arms, and Ragnar held him just as tightly. He looked up to Din and nodded, "Thank you."

Din returned the nod. "This is the way."

"This is the way."

Looking to the other side, he saw Elodie and, like Paz, released an arm out to her. The Wolven slid from Tyr's hold and into Din's. Tyr was happy to pass the woman over, looking at his tunic in disgust. "Maker, this stuff stinks."

Elodie threw her arms around his waist, and Din had his free arm around her neck and head, pressing her face into the space between his pauldron and helmet. She released a shaky breath and closed her eyes, happy to be back in his embrace. "I'm going to have to handcuff you to me." He mumbled into her neck. If she wasn't so damn exhausted, she would have made a lewd remark.

Instead, there was a jest from Tyr, "Ew, guys, there are children here."

Elodie peeled her face from her Mandalorian and looked past him to see Ragnar and Paz embracing. "You good, little man?"

Ragnar pulled his face from where it was buried into his father, "I thought you got eaten!" He exclaimed in disbelief. Willing up some energy, she smiled at him, "I'm hard to kill, apparently."

An unknown Mandalorian came flying up beside them and offered to give Ragnar a lift while Tyr supported Paz and his broken jet pack, and Din held onto Elodie. They flew back to where the Gauntlet had been parked. Throughout the journey back to the Mandalorian covert, Bo-Katan made a pit stop at the nest to collect the hatchlings. Without their help, they would die of starvation. It was a kind gesture, which Elodie supported wholeheartedly despite having almost been their next meal.

One way or another, Din did not take his hands off of Elodie, despite the dried saliva making her skin tacky to touch. The Mandalorian had to touch her somewhere, anywhere, somehow. If he was not pressed flush against her back, he was holding her hand or had his shoulder pressed against hers while sitting in the hull.

Din had ripped some fabric off the end of his cape, using it to bandage the open wound on her wrist.

In the lower compartment of the ship, there were distant thumps and squawks from the hatchlings. While Bo-Katan piloted the ship, Tyr was in charge of trying to keep them under control. Every now and then, they would hear a distant curse word from the tall man.

Paz sat across the hull with his back against the wall, his legs sprawled in front of him. He also took watch last night, as he couldn't stop worrying about Ragnar's wellbeing. The child was asleep, sprawled across his lap.

Elodie sat in a similar position to Paz on the opposite wall, eyes threatening to fall shut to the steady rumble of the ship underneath them. "You placed yourself in harm's way for my child. Thank you, Elodie." Beside her, Din squeezed their entwined hands.

"He's a strong kid. Very brave."

Paz was smiling under the helmet and ran his hand gently down his son's arm. It was a strange sight to see Paz being so tender and open. "Tyr was right. I was wrong to be too harsh with you." Paz said quietly, trying not to wake Ragnar, "I am sorry."

Dropping her head to rest on Din's metal shoulder plate, she mumbled back as sleep slowly started to consume her. "As long as you don't start being a jackass again, we're good, Big Blue."

"No promises." He said, both he and Din chuckled lowly in the hull at the woman's tired mutterings. "I guess I should also thank you for stopping the Shriek-Hawks from eating me. You almost got eaten yourself."

Din piped up, informing Paz, "I almost got eaten by a Krayt Dragon once too." It sounded like some sort of pissing contest, but it wasn't. Just some light banter. Elodie hummed sleepily, "Hmm. Maybe we should make it a rite of passage to escape being eaten by a large monster. That would give Mandalorian's a badass reputation for sure. Could you imagine? Talking to someone and mentioning that you almost got eaten by a Sarlacc, Shriek-Hawk, or Krayt Dragon. f*cking lit. You'd get invited to all the parties for suuuure..."

Her sentence fell off as she succumbed to sleep. The Mandalorian men shared a look and shook their heads at her half-asleep ramblings.

Din gently shook her awake when they arrived back at the covert. Across from her, Ragnar was also being roused by Paz knocking on the top of his helmet. The kid flinched awake and stayed clinging to his father's side. Their arrival was met with cheering and celebration. Instead of soundless gloves clapping, they used their vambraces to make collective, sharp clanging noises. There were no Mandalorian causalities on this mission, which was all the more reason to celebrate. Elodie winced at the noise; it was all a little loud for her taste.

Ragnar walked up to his group of friends as they patted his back and gushed at how impressive he was to have fought and survived against a Shriek-Hawk.

Din kept one arm looped around Elodie as he ushered her towards their own son. Din crouched down and lifted him to sit on his hip. Grogu babbled, leaning a hand to Elodie's cheek. His fingers stroked softly, and his eyes were wide and concerned. She shushed him, bringing her own hand up to run her fingers on the back of his hand. Grogu didn't like the bandage roughly wrapped around her wrist, and his eyes squinted in concentration. Underneath the rags, Elodie could feel the peculiar sensation of her skin webbing itself back together at a faster rate than her own healing allowed.

She slipped the makeshift bandage from her wrist and inspected the wound in awe. No scar was left behind. The child had always been gifted in her eyes, but this was something else. There would be no receipt for the pain she endured, like the rest of her body. Grogu looked up at her with approval, and she smothered the top of his head in kisses, to which he giggled and tried prying her away.

Their moment was interrupted when Bo-Katan disembarked, and she was met with the presence of the armorer. "Bo-Katan Kryze, you have honoured your house and all of Mand'alor. You have done the highest honour of the Creed by saving two members of the covert. And saving a foundling."

"This is the way." Bo-Katan bowed her head, honoured.

The armourer was pleased. "This is the way."

"And we have brought you three more foundlings in need of care and training." Bo-Katan mentioned, gesturing to the hatchlings being herded off the Gauntlet by the other Mandalorians that were on the mission. They screeched in the unfamiliar surroundings and were led to a secure area to be cared for.

The armourer stared at the beasts dumbfounded but then caught sight of Bo-Katan's bare shoulder, "You're in need of a repair. Come with me."

Bo-Katan followed the armourer to the Forge. Elodie turned to Din with tired eyes, and he wordlessly understood what she needed. He excused himself and his family from the festivities, and they received countless praises on their way through the people of the covert.

Walking through the cave walls, Din dropped the child off at their residence while Elodie gathered a change of clothes and a towel. Din led them towards one of the bathing suites. There were many dotted throughout the cave systems; you just had to follow the sound of rushing water from the gentle currents filtering through.

She wanted, first and foremost, to be rid of the clothing that felt like a second skin.

Din helped her strip off the dried crusty top from the skin of her torso and toss it to the side while she kicked off her boots aimlessly to the side.

She stood there naked as the day she was born, while he remained fully clothed, and a thought crossed her mind. They were a juxtaposition. The Mandalorian was always covered as his religion dictated, and the Wolven was almost always exposed because of her abilities.

The Mandalorian removed his helmet, placing it on a boulder beside the clean clothes. The light of the headlamp hit the wall at the back of the pool, illuminating their figures. He then started removing his armour components and tacking them neatly to avoid kicking up sand and dust from the flooring.

"How deep do you think it is?" Din asked absentmindedly. Elodie doubted there were inhabitants, as the Mandalorians were very secretive about the cleanliness routines. They had to expose their faces after all.

The Wolven shot him a smirk, "I doubt it's as deep as the Living Waters. You're safe."

Elodie stood to the side of the aquifer and jumped in feet-first, so Din was not able to shoot her his signature unimpressed look. Cold water enveloped her entire frame, and she took a moment underwater before breaking the surface. The ground under the aquifer was graduated, allowing for both shallow and deep bathing. There was a soft current, which allowed the water to flow into the cracks between the rock formations. While she felt no creatures in the aquifer, there was no way of telling through the black water in the limited lighting.

She brushed her hair back from her face and turned to watch Din undress. His back was turned to her, and he pulled the shirt over his head. "Don't get shy on me now; I'm enjoying the show."

Din's head fell back in a laugh, and he turned to face her.

He stared from his position by the clothes and reached down to unbuckle his belt slowly and seductively. She could tell by the way the corner of his lip quirked and the equally starved look on his face. Her eyes followed the movements of his nimble fingers, and they flashed icy blue. Heat travelled south when he felt the intensity of her predatory stare.

His trousers dropped, exposing him fully, and he stepped out of them. Elodie graciously swam back to allow him space to enter the water in front of her. She liked seeing his muscles ripple with movement as he lowered himself. The water came up to his pectorals, and the Wolven glided towards him, seeking his heat. Her hands pawed at the flesh of his upper chest, and she looked up at him through her lashes.

The Mandalorian took her in his arms, and Elodie slung her arms around his shoulders, pressing their bodies together. He could feel the steady rise and fall of her breasts against his bare chest and the brush of her erect nipples from the cold water.

He dipped his head down to press a simple kiss on her lips. She licked hers when he pulled away, and she gave him a grin. "I love that smile." Din hummed, returning the look.

"And I love you." She said.

Elodie jumped up, wrapping her legs around his waist and planting her lips back on his. Din reciprocated eagerly, one arm coming up to her back to pin her against him and the other supporting her thigh.

The man was already as hard as a rock at the mere sight of watching the woman undress earlier. His hand skimmed up the length of her spine and pressed firmly on the back of her head to add more pressure to the bruising, open-mouthed kiss. They gasped between kisses, their tongues revolving and darting into one another's mouth.

Elodie rocked her hips, and the tip of his co*ck knocked against her cl*tor*s. Din sighed delightfully, pinching his brows; she repeated the action to pry another from his lips. "Din! Please!" While water was a notoriously bad lubricant, he found that Elodie was slick enough for him to glide inside with ease. He probed her entrance, and her ministrations coaxed him deeper. She could feel all of the ridges and individual veins as he took his time.

Elodie tightened her legs around his waist, grinding down on him. Din let out a long, throaty groan, head falling to her shoulder when she gave the hair at the base of his skull a firm tug. She clenched around him, and she could feel him reach deeper, caressing her inner walls with each rhythmic cant of his hips. "f*ck! You feel so good. You're so good to me, Eddy."

Her back pressed against the rough edge of the pool's edge, but the biting texture was drowned out by the pleasure. She whimpered in his ear as it doubled her desire, and she clamoured for a more secure hold on his slippery flesh. His hands moved to grip under her thighs and spread her fully. His jaw clenched with concentration.

Din thrust harder and harder, pressing her further into the rock. He needed to hear her, to feel her. Have her break apart in his arms so he could put her back together again. To know she was still with him.

"I-I think. Ugh! I'm gonna..." A particularly loud p*rnographic moan slipped through her lips, and Din was quick to slap a hand over her mouth. He could feel her panting under his hold and set his forehead against hers to see the need in her eyes. It was desperate. Her puss* was clamping down, but she needed a little more to send her over the edge. "You're gonna be so full of me, you'll be dripping for days." From the way she whimpered, she liked the idea.

Elodie felt something inside of her snap, and she cried out against Din's palm. "That's it, baby. Just let go. I got you, baby girl." Her legs shook with her release, but the Mandalorian kept pounding to try and chase his own. Din's grunts were coming quicker, and the climax was soon within reach. Elodie's eyes rolled back into her head, and she no longer had it in her to keep her head up, so she allowed it to fall back against the rock wall. All she could do was take what Din was giving her.

The Mandalorian stopped abruptly and slipped out, cum spilling from her abused body. He pulled them away from the wall to walk over to the shallow end and press her against the floor. Elodie fell on her back, her legs spread, and she gasped for air. Din stared down at her on his knees. His hands fell to her thighs and slid down.

She gave him a look of mild confusion as he bent down to lick at the water on her chest. Elodie closed her eyes to soak up the feeling of her husband doting on her body.

Then his lips skimmed further down.

He blew softly against her still-pulsating c*nt, and her eyes flew open. She picked her head up to look down at him to see he wedged himself under her thighs, his face inches from her core, and staring up at her somewhat apprehensively. "I've never..." He gulped, glancing from her centre to her face. "I want to have you in every way possible."

Elodie stroked a hand through his wet strands and down the side of his face to cup his cheek. "Then we'll manage it like adults." She quoted him and what he'd said after they first slept together on the Crest. He nodded, his face burying itself in her mound with fervour. She gasped as he copied the ministrations that his thumb usually makes. Strong, steady circles of his tongue on her bud.

Din used her signs of pleasure to continue and base his future actions. He found she preferred a slower pace and a gradual buildup in pressure as her pleasure amounted. Elodie felt the familiar touch of his fingers tease her entrance and slide in without resistance. Not after his girth has been inside her. At her request, he dipped in another.

He pumped his fingers and sucked a little harder, watching her back arch and her head turn into her arm. Din had to use his spare hand to press against her lower abdomen, keeping her pinned to the floor when she desperately wanted to grind into his face. Elodie moaned, a smile falling on her face. "Right there, Din. f*ck!"

The Mandalorian may never have done this, but his astute bounty hunter instincts aided him in his quick learning of body language. She was so lost in another buildup that she almost missed the words falling from his lips when he briefly pulled away, "I vowed to keep you from being taken from me, and I have broken it again."

"Din..." Elodie tailed off. "Oh Maker!" He sucked on her bud, which made her moan sharply.

The Mandalorian carried on, "I beg of your forgiveness. I am not worthy."

His fingers curled inside her, and she felt her muscles lock into place in the throes of another org*sm. Her thighs clamped around Din's head as she shook. He removed his fingers and dipped down to taste her release on his tongue. Moaning, he swallowed the slick fluid of both their spend. At this point, Elodie begged him to stop, the pleasure swiftly turning into overstimulation, and she twitched violently until he pulled away to crawl back up to her face. She allowed him to dip his tongue into her mouth, and she relished in their combined taste.

"Why don't we make a new vow?" Elodie suggested gently, cupping his cheeks in her palms. Din's doe eyes were crystalline as they looked desperately into hers. He was searching for something, for what, she didn't know. Perhaps validation. Security. Forgiveness.

She knew he didn't need forgiveness. He didn't do anything wrong, but his own self-proclaimed oaths were broken, and he didn't know how to purge himself from the pain of disappointing her over and over. Elodie stroked her thumbs over his cheekbones with feather-light delicacy. His stubble tickled her palms and the pads of her thumbs. "We can both promise that we will always come back to each other instead."

Din closed his eyes, swallowing the lump in his throat to push down the burning desire to cry in her arms. He couldn't bear the misplaced devastation in her eyes. She hated to see him in such a state. Elodie pecked once at the pouty lower lip, and Din kept his eyes closed despite the touch.

The Wolven kept her lips brushing against his and whispered, "Ni haat'mitir at olaror norac at gar." [I promise to come back to you]

"Ni kelir ratiin mar'eyir ner ara norac at gar," He started, his face twisting in emotional torment. "Naas kelir gev ni teh ve'ganir at gar." [I'll always find my way back to you. Nothing will stop me from getting to you]

Elodie sat up with the Mandalorian between her legs and stood. Naked, sated, and wet. An image he happily committed to memory. Din was now the one on his knees in front of her. If the man was a cartoon, he would have hearts for eyes. She extended a hand and offered to help stand. From the look he was giving her, she thought he was likely to pounce on her again.

The pair got dressed instead and went back to their private area in the cave.

Inside, Grogu slept soundly in the centre of the bed. Not having the heart to move him, they simply settled down on either side of him. The tunnels were warm, so they forwent the blankets. Elodie fell asleep the second her head met the pillow, tired from the events of the past two days and their little escapade.

Din moved onto his side, watching the two he rescued on Nevarro sleep peacefully. He rested his forehead against Elodie's and pressed a delicate kiss while his other hand rubbed the tunic on the child's tummy. And that's how he fell asleep.

Deep into the night, Elodie was summoned to meet the armourer by Bo-Katan. Her new pauldron bore the Mythosaur signet and was its original unpainted chrome, a stark comparison to her blue and white Beskar'gam. Din and Grogu luckily remained asleep when she shouted into the cave opening. Elodie declined the offer of having Bo-Katan escort her through the dimly lit corridors and reassured her that her nose would be able to lead her to the armourer just fine. Bo-Katan conceded and returned to her own assigned residence. [Armour]

When she stepped foot into the forge, she saw only the armourer staring into the basin containing the Living Waters from Mandalore. Elodie cleared her throat to bring attention to her arrival without disrupting the armourer.

"Tell me, did your previous armour consist of a jet pack?" Elodie frowned at the blunt question without any form of greeting or acknowledgement of her arrival. But then again, the armourer was never one to dally. "Yes." She mustered up.

"Then you may find this useful."

The golden-helmeted Mandalorian woman picked up a jet pack resting against an anvil as she walked past it. She offered it to the Wolven. Instead of taking the gift, Elodie stared at it like a demon to a crucifix. "I can't accept this."

"The life of a Mandalorian is a hard one. There may be a time when you need this tool. Take it. Hone your abilities again." She said, remaining steadfast on her decision.

Cautiously, Elodie took the jet pack from her hands and held it so delicately that it was going to shatter into pieces. The familiar cooling touch of Beskar met her palms, and she gasped. "Thank you."

"That is not all." The armourer brandished a pair of silver vambraces. Unpainted and freshly cast. They were slender enough to fit her wrists and were accentuated by a thicker rim. Elodie smiled up at the other woman, desperately wanting to take them but humble enough to refuse. "The beskar should be used for the foundlings. I am not a Mandalorian any more."

"But you were trained in the way of the Mand'alor. This covert is now your family. You will need to learn to protect it as well as yourself. Your abilities are great, but they also come at a great cost. Our weapons are sacred, and yours will constantly be lost to the changing. I hope this lessens that and you begin to accept your new place in our home. Take them. I will not ask again."

It felt as though a little piece of her was being returned. Her head felt light. She missed her armour dearly and couldn't help but reminisce when there was a quiet moment between her and Din as the reformed armour kissed her bare skin. The jet pack looked smaller than Din's—more compact. "I took the liberty of inscribing it with the Mudhorn signet, as it is now your clan. As well as a tracker in case it is misplaced during the changing."

Elodie slipped on the vambraces, noting a slit in the underside of the wrist. With a subtle flick of the wrist, a thin blade shot out, just long enough to extend beyond her nails. The blade itself was not of beskar material, as that would be sacrosanct against their creed, but forged of a similar hardened steel. "Ah yes. A hidden blade and plasma shield on your left hand, and you shall find a blaster mount on your right."

True to her word, on the flip side of her bladed vambrace, a small spherical plasma shield whirred to life. On the right, there was a protuberance for the blaster bolts to be shot from. Elodie lined up a shot to the far end of the cave and squeezed her fist, the pressure on the pads between her fingers causing the bolt to fire into the rock. It might take some time for her to adjust her aim, but she could make it work.

The beskar vambraces had a slit on either side. It allowed for expansion if she were to change forms. Such talent. The armourer really did think of everything. The armourer tilted her helmet in a nod of respect. "A token of thanks. Ragnar would most likely have perished if not for your quick thinking. And the other children who would have followed. The clan members speak highly of your bravery."

"Anyone would have done the same."

"This is the way." The armourer replied.

Elodie smiled, "This is the way."

Chapter 30: Chapter 26: The Pirate

Chapter Text

He knew she loved it when he pushed the boundaries of their comfort zones. Din wouldn't dare be more expressive in his affections in such a public domain.

At the flash of colour, Elodie sprung forward and stabbed at the sea bed. Lifting the spear, she cheered at the sight of a fish pierced at the end and held it up to Din in success. He grinned, squeezing the supple flesh under his palms. "Good girl. Such a fast learner."

"I do have a good teacher."

Grogu watched her from his spot at the water's edge, a look of interest on his small face at the creature caught for dinner. Two thin wooden sticks lay propped up beside him, wires secured from their tips leading far into the water, beyond where Elodie and the Mandalorian stood. He showed her how to build make-shift fishing rods and live-lining to increase the chances of a catch while they had a spare moment.

"Din Djarin." A man hailed, waving the Mandalorian down. Din looked over and then back to the Wolven. She gave him a small smile and shooed him away. "Go. I can't keep you all to myself. As much as I would love to."

"This is not over." He reminded her, squeezing her hips before wading his way back to shore. "It never is with you." Din bent to acknowledge Grogu sitting at the shore as he walked past.

Wading her way back to the child, she kneeled in front of him to show him her catch. It was of medium size, and she couldn't tell the species. The Mandalorians here would have told her if there was anything inedible when they settled down. She tossed it on top of the small pile accumulated from today's trials.

With Din gone, she went to check on the fishing rods. She palpated the wires, and they remained stable, so she left them be for a little while longer until they triggered. Elodie gathered bundles of firewood on her way back to the child. The sand was uncomfortable and stuck to her wet legs, but she was used to the feeling of sand creeping into places it shouldn't.

Elodie started digging a shallow, round hole for a fire pit when she sat at Grogu's side. She would have to cook the fish soon before they started smelling. Some of the play-fighting children took notice of Elodie digging in the sand and walked over to see what she was doing. The Wolven placed large rocks on the outside to stop the potential fire from spreading once it was lit.

Children filtered in to observe.

It was Ragnar who spoke up first, not afraid of the woman who showed her face in their covert. "What're you doing?" Looking up, she smiled as they stood, watching on. "Making a fire. You can come and help if you want to. I can show you how to make one."

The children sat around the hole in the ground, silent as they awaited her teachings.

"Does anybody know how to make a fire?" Hands shot up. "-Without a flamethrower?" The hands fell back down.

"No? That's okay. For a Hand Drill Fire, you need two pieces of wood: a spindle and a hearth board." Elodie picked up the flat wooden slab and a long semi-thick twig. "Make sure that they're both dry or they won't catch fire." Not a word was said. Either they were very well behaved or generally interested in what she had to show them. "What else do we need for a fire? Anyone?"

A timid hand was raised, and Elodie smiled encouragingly at her. "More firewood to burn?"

"Yes!" Elodie clapped, then held up three digits. "Fire needs three things to survive. Fuel, oxygen, and warmth. So we need lots of wood for it to burn. What else does it need?" At the validation, the children perked up and seemed a little more interested in participating.

"Air!"

"Dry area!"

"Warmth!"

At their shouted responses, Elodie attentively nodded to acknowledge each one of them. She was impressed with their knowledge after being isolated from civilization and mainstream teachings and schooling. "Amazing. You guys are so clever! How about you guys collect some pieces of firewood? Two pieces each. And we're also going to need some dry grass, too."

It was a sight to see. They run off in different directions. Some shoved others playfully out of their ways. Elodie shouted a countdown, and they ran faster. The Wolven enjoyed being with the children and being able to teach them survival skills. There was an innocence in children that she loved. Their boundless curiosity and need for mental stimulation. Grogu shuffled to collect the nearest small wad of grass but still managed to make it back before her countdown reached zero.

"Look at you guys!" She praised them, noting all the wood in their hands.

"My piece is the biggest." One boy bragged. Another boy nudged him: "Hey, you stole my piece!" Before they started to squabble, Elodie cleared her throat, and the rambunctious children quietened down to listen.

"Well, we're going to need all of them if we want to cook all this fish. Let's stack them neatly in the fire pit; they need to be in a crosshatched pattern to burn at different rates." She showed them her own pieces of wood and watched as they followed. She then stuffed dried grass in the gaps, but left room for the kindling.

"I don't see how you can make fire from just wood." A little boy pointed out.

"You see this flat piece here?" There was a collective nod, "I made a little divot for the spindle to sit on while you were collecting all that wood. To start off, I'm placing the pieces on a small flat rock so that my coal won't get blown away or set other things on fire." Elodie placed the spindle in the hearth and demonstrated rubbing her hands together to build up speed to ignite the fire.

"Can I try?" Elodie motioned for the child to take her seat and helped Ragnar with his hand placement.

"Now you want to move your hands really fast without knocking the spindle off. If your hands get too low, hold it steady and start back up from the top." Ragnar rubbed his hands together quickly, following her directions. After a few moments, he sighed and looked up at her dejectedly. "It's not working."

"Sometime it can take a little while. You'll need patience, especially if you are surviving on your own." Elodie placed her hands a little higher on the spindle and encouraged him to try again. Smoke filtered from the base, and Ragnar called out in joy.

"Keep going, Kid!" Elodie laughed with him; her hands were getting tired already.

The flame persisted beyond their actions, and they slowed down their vigorous rubbing. Placing the spindle to the side, Elodie dug her thumbs into the dried grass to make a small dent in the centre for the ash and carefully transferred the coal over to the centre. The children were excited and watched eagerly.

"So at the moment we haven't got a flame, so we need to add more fuel to make the fire burn. Dried grass works as kindling. It's thin and easy to catch alight from the heat." Blowing gently into the nest, the smoke grew larger, and the children made noises of awe in anticipation. "I know you will have your helmets on, so if you can't remove them to blow into the flame, you can gently waft it to help it grow."

The first flicker of orange appeared as it ate up the kindling.

The children were impressed with the work and tossed small twigs into the flames. "Remember to always be careful with your fires. Get too close and you get hurt, so you want a barrier like the rock around this one to stop it from spreading."

She was cut off from talking.

There was a revving that resonated throughout the valley. The Wolven's ears perked up, the pointed tips twitching. She straightened to look at the sky for any indication of where the noise came from. Based on her reaction, no one else had heard it yet. It was a loud, mechanical noise, so she doubted it was from another beast. That's the last thing she wanted right now, with all of the children surrounding her.

A distant shape grew larger, and she made it out to be a New Republic ship. An X-Wing. The sound now reached the audio receptors of the Mandalorians inside the cave. Elodie stood abruptly, gesturing for the children to do so too, while kicking sand to cover the fire. "Let's get inside. Now."

"Get to the cave!" Elodie scooped up Grogu, his little legs wouldn't allow him to cross the distance to match their pace.

Mandalorian's flooded out of the cave entrance at the noise of an incoming engine. Paz and Bo-Katan took the lead, and they shouted for the children to run inside before the ship neared. Elodie pulled up the rear of the running children to ensure they all made it inside the cave to safety. They dove inside the entryway as it rounded the nearest mountain peak to land. Another Mandalorian came to usher the children further into the depths of the cave, behind safety.

Elodie placed the child down and shooed him to go and hide with the other children.

The New Republican X-Wings settled on the arid sands of the desert planet. The Wolven watched the soldier exit the ship and steadily pace towards the entrance of the cave, where he would undoubtedly be swarmed by the Mandalorian's gathering behind her.

Elodie felt a hand settle firmly on her shoulder. Paz stood to her right, his other hand hovering over his blaster located in his utility belt. He obviously opted to leave his heavy repeat blaster inside, decidedly thinking that a single pilot of the New Republic was no threat by himself. "Maybe he landed here by accident?" There would be no other logical reason to land. No one was aware of their presence on the planet.

"Unlikely. Accident or not, he has found the covert. Put our foundlings at risk." The enforcer hissed.

He approached with caution, hands raised in surrender, when Paz brushed past her to meet the pilot outside before he stepped foot over the threshold. The others followed the enforcer, making their numbers known. The man introduced himself, "Captain Carson Teva, Adelphi Rangers. I have a time pressing matter to attend to."

So it was no unlikely accident—he was tracking their location. For what, they would need to find out. The voice of the man was familiar. He was the pilot who stopped them throughout their travels with the child. "Clear out, Blue Boy. The New Republic isn't welcome here." Paz retorted, feeling confident with the support from the other Mandalorian's gathering.

"Sorry for dropping in unannounced, but if I'd given warning, your settlement would've cleared out before I ever hit atmosphere." The man stated, making a valid point. Din breezed through the Mandalorian's to take the lead at the front, and Elodie joined his side. "How did you manage to find us? Mandalorian's pride ourselves on our secrecy."

"Fortunately, someone I served with in the Rebellion is amongst your ranks. Thanks, R-5." The crowd looked amongst each other in suspicion, and Elodie didn't miss a few glances that were spared her way.

R-5 came outside, and Carson gave the droid a salute of respect. The droid whirred in commendation. If there ever were a time to curse that darn mechanic on Tatooine, it would be now. Elodie shot a pointed look at her husband, which her Mandalorian ignored.

"The entire covert will now have to relocate."

"Or we could kill him." Paz suggested unhelpfully, "Stay right here."

She had to give the Ranger props; he didn't flinch at the threats being thrown his way by the walking mountain of Beskar. Din looked from Paz to Carson and said, "This man cut me a break once, and now I'm returning the favour. Clear out, Blue."

Elodie butted in, "Hold on. He's obviously gone through a lot of trouble to get here. I say we hear him out on what he has to say." The Mandalorians were silent at her request, so Carson took that as his cue to explain. "Greef Karga sent this holo-message." Carson reached into his belt, and the Mandalorians instantly went into defensive mode by grabbing their own weapons. He paused, only to slowly withdraw the device and toss it over to Din. "Nevarro is under siege by pirates. He's asking for help."

Din walked away from the crowd to have more of a private conversation. "Why are you really here?"

"They're about to blow Nevarro to hell." Carson admitted.

"Then call in a strike." Din began escorting the pilot back to his ship, "We don't even have ships."

The Mandalorian crowd slotted their weapons back into place and watched the two walk off, but they remained stationed firmly in front of the cave. "Coruscant doesn't care. Karga is your friend. You won't let him die."

"What's in it for you?" Din asked.

The man sighed. "The New Republic has to know that the Empire is growing again."

Elodie interrupted, walking up beside the pair. "Yeah, well, it never was destroyed to begin with. The Empire is manipulative, and people are easy to manipulate. They're idiots for thinking they won." She didn't want to be left out of any information regarding the Empire.

"I am one of those idiots." Carson admitted. Elodie gave him a look to suggest otherwise, "You came to your senses, at least."

Din intercepted the Wolven, "You think the Pirate King has something to do with it?" Their run-in with the Gorian Shard's men back on Nevarro must not have been a coincidence if it had led to such events. He must have had his eyes set on the planet for longer than they realised.

"I can't say for sure, but something doesn't smell right. Look, it's not your fight. I just came to tell you your friend is in danger, and I thought you should know." Carson hopped back into the X-Wing and prepared for departure while Bo-Katan made her way to the pair standing beside the ship.

Elodie shouted up at him by the time he buckled himself in and clipped on the helmet, "Thank you for letting us know, Carson."

He gave her a small nod in return. "I know you'll relocate anyway, but you have my word; I will not reveal your location. Sorry to intrude." The pilot ignited his engines and set off.

Bo-Katan looked to the pair for answers. "So, what are you thinking?"

"That he was pretty polite for a Blue." Elodie noted offhandedly.

"He's right. We gotta help the guy." Din corrected, actually answering the woman's question. His hand absentmindedly fiddled with the holo-message tucked in his belt.

Bo-Katan made a wistful noise. "You can't do it alone." She was right; the entire battalion of the Pirate King would be there to support him, and all they had was a few Mandalorian's to spare away from their covert, which would not be enough to fight their numbers, and without method of transportation. But they also couldn't let Greef and the people of Nervarro suffer.

They couldn't make the decision themselves. It was a question that should be decided unanimously among the covert. After all, it would risk their lives and covert once again.

Once the children were settled and their numbers had gathered, The Mandalorian's of the covert found themselves sat in their common room—almost like an amphitheatre surrounding an indoor fire pit—to avoid being sighted at night. The Mandalorian's were seated in a semi-circle, which allowed the person at the bottom to say their peace for collective decisions. A constant buzz of chatter filled the silence of the wide cave as the Mandalorian's were talking amongst themselves.

At front and centre, Din stood ready to make the announcement that Nevarro was in need of help. In one hand, he held the armourer's gravity hammer like a talking stick to convey his points.

"Now, many of you don't know Greef Karga." He started.

"And those that do fought against him when you rescued me from his ambush many cycles ago on the streets of Nevarro. Since then, he's had a change of heart and has risked his life to save mine as well as the foundling in my charge. I stand before you to petition an intervention. To help rescue Nevarro before it's too late. I am in no position to ask any more of you. However..."

The chatter in the room increased, and the Mandalorian at the front found it a little difficult to speak over the voices of the masses. It was clear that they were not in agreement about helping the planet. At least, not been persuaded enough by his speech thus far. A little sweat built up on his brow. Din cleared his throat and spoke louder, his vocoder projecting his voice to rattle through the caves' crevices.

"However, the enemy that decimated this very covert were Imperials, not Greef Karga's bounty hunters. Greef Karga is now a High Magistrate and has offered me a tract of land in his independent world. Perhaps it is time for us to live in the light once again on a planet where we are welcome. So our culture may flourish and our children can feel what it is to play in the sunlight."

Din passed the Hammer of Peace back to the armourer, and she stood at the base, looking for others to raise their opinions, while he came to sit beside Bo-Katan and Elodie on the bottom seats. The Wolven had the child sit on her left leg so he could avoid perching on the hard, cold stone. "Does anyone else wish to speak?"

"It's up to them now." He whispered to the two women. Elodie took his hand to rest on her lap, and he responded with a gentle squeeze. To their utter surprise, Paz stood from his seat and went to take the hammer from the armourer's grasp.

"I do." Our plan for reinforcements just went out the window, Elodie thought.

He walked to his position, "I was there on Nevarro that night. I fought against Greef Karga and his hunters. I saw my brothers and sisters fall at the hands of the imperial butchers that hunted us in the sewers. I saw many die to save the life of this one, tiny foundling." Paz gestured to Grogu, and the child looked starstruck at the sudden attention. Elodie bobbed her knee to keep him settled. "And now we are asked to sacrifice yet again. The question we should be asking ourselves is, Why? Why should we lay our lives down yet again?"

"Because we are Mandalorians!" Oh sh*t! Was he honestly backing them up? Paz has a lot of influence with the covert, so maybe they were going to get the reinforcements they needed! Din clutches onto Elodie's hand in shock, himself, and the two share a look of relief.

"I have had my disagreements with this pair, but they risked their lives to save my son. And Bo-Katan Kryze did not give up on my child's life, even when the rest of us did. These three are asking us to take up arms in the name of a brighter future, and I, for one, will take up arms to fight by their side. This is the way." He chanted, holding up the gravity hammer to unite the people.

It worked. They chanted back and began clanging their vambraces to cheer him on. The armourer looked at the unanimous vote and nodded to the trio sitting dumbfounded.

"This is the way." She echoed.

The Mandalorian's rested overnight and prepared to set course at sun up. Bo-Katan paced in front of the Gauntlet, with Mandalorian troops lined up in front of her. She barked out orders at the group and marched back and forth with her hands braces behind her.

The sun peaked out from behind the valley in the early morning, and if they were on a denser planet, the greenery would still be covered in a thick film of morning dew. Din stood by the N-1, and Elodie sat on the wing behind him, her arms resting over his shoulders, listening to Bo-Katan from their positions.

The late Mand'alor began by showing the newcomers her ship, "This is a Kom'rk Class fighter transport. I'll use this to drop you in, and you will operate as a tight military unit. Din Djarin and myself will reinforce from above. If everyone acts as they should, we can use the element of surprise and defeat an enemy that outnumbers us. Get your gear together; we're leaving in five." [Mandalorian ruler]

The Mandalorian's dispersed to gather their remaining gear, and Din spun to face Elodie, his hands coming to encase her legs that lay either side of his hips. The Wolven figured they would need as many foot soldiers to take down the pirates and elected to defer from her usual coupling with Din.

She stared down at him and brought her hand to caress the groove on his helmeted cheek. He reached for her vambraces and traced their intricate patterns that mirrored his own Beskar'gam. "Did I tell you how much I approve of your armour?" The woman laughed softly and retorted with an equally light tone, "Only all of last night."

The man practically zeroed in on the pieces of armour when she returned to their shared quarters. He'd made sure Grogu was fast asleep in his pram before making her remove all of her clothes when she passed the threshold—everything sans the amour. [Mandalorian armour]

"I'll have my comm on me, but only use it if you absolutely need to." Elodie diverted, showing him the cylindrical pod attached to her belt. She didn't need him distracting her and possibly letting pirates know of their location. That, and she couldn't guarantee she would be in her human form to respond.

"I understand." He said with a quirk of his lip, rubbing his thumbs on her thighs. "Call me when you are safe. Or if you're hurt. I'll be there in a heartbeat."

The thought both melted and caused dread in her heart. "You can't abandon your post. We have a plan, and if you deviate from it, then a lot of people are going to get hurt."

He frowned, "Other people can wait. My priority is and always will be you and Grogu." Elodie clenched her teeth, hopping off the N-1. The Mandalorian made no move to step back and give her space and instead looked down on her. She would have swooned if she wasn't mildly irritated. "You are a fool sometimes."

"And yet, you are still here with me."

Elodie hummed, clutching on his cuirass and connecting their foreheads. "Hm. It definitely makes me wonder who the fool really is." Din closed his eyes to take in the peaceful moment before they were thrust into another fight. It is most of what their relationship consisted of. Fighting off the world around them. "Olaror norac at ni?" He asked in Mando'a, bringing up their vows to one another. [Come back to me?]

"Ni haat'mitir." [I promise]

They separated, and Elodie swooped the child into her arms for a hug and smooched his hairy head. "I'll see you both soon," Din fussed about to ensure the jet pack was securely attached to her back, and Elodie had to fix him with a stern look to back off. "Keep safe, please." Din was to fly separately with Grogu in the N-1.

"You just gotta look to the skies." He assured.

Elodie made her way into the Gauntlet with the other Mandalorian's and found her group. She would be leading a small group of five, including herself, into the firefight. The groups would have to locate each other upon landing after clearing their allocated zones. Among her group was one red-helmeted female called Aada and three males; two in blue, who were Brax and Gunnar, and one in green- Erik. They sat in one row, and below them, a trap door lay in preparation to set them loose on the pirates.

There were three groups in total. Team three behind her was being led by Paz, and to the end of the compartment was another led by Tyr. Even the armourer was joining their conquest and was to drop in on the other side of the city. The ship rattled to life, and Bo-Katan made her debrief over the intercoms. Holograms of Nevarro's terrain and Gorian Shard's ship flickered with life in front of them.

If Elodie were to change forms, the leadership of her team would fall on Gunnar; or another team leader if they had reformed again. Aka, Paz or Tyr. As Paz was the enforcer of the Covert and was deemed automatically second in command to the armourer, so if all three teams were to regroup, all directives were to be led by him and not Tyr.

"Pirate King Gorian Shard is captaining a Cumulus Class Corsair carrying a complement of snubfighters'. It has aerial bomb capabilities. The N-1 will distract the Corsair and her snubfighters as we drop in to liberate the planet below. Nevarro is an independent planet and no longer under remnant Imperial or New Republic protection. But it's that very independence that makes it appealing for you to settle. You lived there once, hiding in the sewers. But now, you can be heroes."

"I'm inspired." Elodie smiled sarcastically, throwing her head back on the headrest behind her. Her team let out a small chuckle, and they checked their weapons before their deployment.

The journey to Nevarro was longer than she expected. Perhaps it was the anticipation, or knowing that every moment they wasted was another name added to the death toll. Heavy blaster bolts and bangs sounded from outside the ship's hull. Some shook the ship with mild vibrations of far-off detonations. Elodie's curiosity spiked in wondering what the bountiful town of Nevarro had now dwindled down to. Ash, rubble, and death. If the pirates were half as bad as the ones they ran into previously, then she had little hope for what remained.

"Approaching drop point. First team, prepare to drop." Bo-Katan informed them.

Elodie looked down the row of seats, and each of her team members gave her questioning gaze a short, firm nod in confirmation that they were ready for their placement. They simultaneously unlatched their seat belts and waited for the hatch to open.

The seats dropped and the flooring gave way beneath them, and Elodie found herself freefalling beside her team. She missed the adrenaline rush associated with flying but paid no mind to it as the scene before her became apparent.

Buildings that had been erected following the Empire's usurp were all but destroyed by the explosions from Gorian Shard's Corsair. The paving stones of paths and roads were no longer recognisable, and there were no signs of the markets ever having decorated the streets.

Heavy plumes of smoke billowed high above the city as a result of multiple fires that had yet to be extinguished. Elodie angled her feet downward and ignited her jet pack as she grew closer to the ground. The landing would be harder than she would have liked, but she was after an unnoticeable landing and swift recovery. There was no time to stumble when her feet touched the ground, and she simply ran forward with the propulsion to take down the closest member of the pirate group within their allocated zone to clear.

Once he was on the ground trying to recover, she shot the blaster on her vambrace to end his life. Gunnar came from the alley to the left, landing a blow to another pirate's face with the butt of his gun and then shooting him in the torso while Brax hovered in the air. The blue Mandalorian shot a pirate's torso and then delivered the killing blow to the head as a double tap.

Aada whipped out her fibercord to catch one that tried running off at the sight of trouble. The pirate fell to the ground and pawed at the ground for leverage as she hauled him back. Erik then landed and was quick to dispatch him before he tried to alert any others.

Gunnar, one of the Navy blue Mandalorian's, came to Elodie's right and Erik, in the green, to her left to flank her. Brax and Aada pulled up to the rear to face any opposition behind them. As a team, they advanced forward to clear the streets.

"Area clear. Team two, are you with us?" Elodie called into the comm.

Tyr was the one to respond. "Team two, moving towards the courtyard." It was their meeting point. Team three would not yet have disengaged from the Gauntlet if all was still going to plan. If too many of the Mandalorian's were deployed at the same time, it would cause suspicion amongst the pirates, who would spot their militant unit's arrival. Stealth was the game plan set by Bo.

Above them, Elodie could see the N-1 fly over the town in almost a blur as the snubfighter's made a valiant effort in trying to catch up to him. He eviscerated two of them before darting away again. He was toying with them. She didn't even have to see Din to know that he was having fun running the Naboo starfighter to its full capabilities. He loved that ship almost as much as he loved her or the child, despite his initial lack of conviction.

With the snubfighter's distraction in chasing the N-1, the Gauntlet was all cleared to engage the Corsair. Loud explosions went off from the shots fired into the Corsair, and debris rained down from above. Bo-Katan was not only a good pilot but a great marksman too. Not that Elodie would ever divulge that information to her.

With movement ahead, Elodie gestured with her hand for them to find cover. Erik and Brax hid behind the pillars of half-broken walls, and Elodie crouched behind a large concrete planter. On the other side of the street, Aada dipped inside an abandoned shop, and Gunnar silently flipped a wooden table in the middle of the street.

The pirates must have caught wind of their arrival, as they were not as relaxed as the party beforehand. Now, their weapons were raised in alarm, and their eyes darted around to spot any signs of movement.

The team waited for Elodie's approval before initiating their attack. With a small nod to the Mandalorian behind the overturned table closest to the pirates, Gunnar tossed a charge amongst their ranks. It landed on the side of the group, sending it flying into the opposing side when it detonated.

At the bang, Elodie popped her head up from behind the planter to shoot at the men. Her team stepped out from behind their cover and crept forward to continue advancing. The pirates never got to fire a single bolt.

When the shots dissipated, The Wolven could distinguish muffled crying coming from a particular building. A hand fell on her shoulder, and she saw Erik's head tilt in confusion at her sudden pause in the middle of the street.

With the lowest voice she could muster, she whispered to them. "I can hear someone in this building." She walked over the shattered door, the wood creaking loudly under her boots. The sign on the front made it hard to tell what the building was, but going deeper, she realised that it was a small townhouse.

Out of curiosity, Elodie lifted her comm to her lips. "Has anyone come across any civilians yet?"

Pictures were scattered on the floor, their frames broken. The furniture was frayed and littered with soot deposits. Half the back wall had been blasted off, no doubt in the first explosions to scorch the city.

"That's a negative." Tyr cracked through. "What about things on your end?"

Feet peered from behind the sofa.

The person was clearly prone, and judging from the bloodstain surrounding them, they were also clearly dead. The man was Mirialan, with yellow-tinted skin and vacant purple eyes. His forehead showed a trail of geometric shapes that also bled down to his cheeks.

Only Brax entered the building with her, staying close to her from behind in case of an ambush while the others defended the front. She could not distinguish any scents among the sheer amount of smoke in the air, so she followed the sound of crying coming from the closet in one of the bedrooms. The mattress had been stripped off the bed and placed strategically in front of the closet. There were a few marks from the carbon scoring on the off-white material.

Elodie whipped open the doors and held her arm up, ready to fire, but stopped and pushed the top of Brax's blaster down too.

Inside sat a little Mirialan girl. Her skin was similar to that of the man that lay dead, but her eyes were deep black like her hair. There were only two diamond markings on her face, one underneath each eye, like tears. She looked young—younger than Ragnar.

The child whimpered and curled into herself. The two adults shared a look of disbelief, but then Elodie crouched to the ground. Her heart wept for the child, who was going through such an ordeal. She may not have witnessed the events, but she was still present to probably hear the pirates kill the man in the next room. It was such a traumatising event for a little girl to live through.

"It's okay; we're Mandalorian's. We're here to help you." Elodie reassured quietly, not wanting to startle the child. "My name is Elodie. What is yours?"

The child was silent for a good few minutes, debating whether the woman sitting in the doorway was reliable. "It's okay." She assured again for good measure.

"Cordelia. Are you here to stop the bad ones?" The girl questioned. The Wolven didn't know what she would do if the child could not understand basic; Din was the bilingual one, not her. Though Elodie was fully convinced she could communicate with Purrgil's. But that was a whole other story.

"Yes Cordelia. If you come with us, we'll get you out of the city." The child stared at the outstretched hand of the woman and hesitantly slipped her hand into hers. Elodie picked the child up and sat her on her hip.

Brax stopped her departure with an arm in the entryway to the bedroom. "We are on a mission to clear the city. She is not part of our directive." Elodie reeled back, "And we should leave a defenceless child here unprotected in a war zone? Her charge has been... is no longer viable. Mandalorian's accept foundlings. If the city can no longer care for her, we could make her a foundling."

"You are not a Mandalorian. That rite does not extend to you." Brax gritted.

The Wolven smiled sardonically, "And yet I am upholding the sanctities of your creed for you." Ignoring the blue Mandalorian, she brought her comm up again to inform Tyr of the situation. "We are en route with a child. Little girl. Roughly five years of age... alone."

"Copy that. We are nearing the courtyard soon. Wait there for more reinforcements."

Hearing the agreement, Brax sighed. "I am just saying maybe we should come back for her." Elodie could understand the reasoning, but they also had to think about the Corsair and the loitering pirates. The ship alone had the power to uproot the city.

She stopped herself from snapping back like she wanted to for the sake of the child in her arms. "We can protect her as we move. I am not leaving her behind. The city may be unsalvageable for all we know." She said, muttering the last part so it was not distinguishable to the girl.

The argument was now finalized, and Elodie brushed past him and regrouped with her team outside. Elodie looked down at the Mirialan to find her already staring up at her, her eyes moist with tears. "I need you to be quiet and keep your head down. You're going to hear a lot of blaster fire, but it is really important that you do exactly what I say so I can keep you safe. You think you can do that, sweetie?"

"M'kay." The woman cupped her hand on the back of the child's head and pressed it into her shoulder, hushing her when she released another round of sniffles. Cordelia clutched at the material of her shirt when they passed through the living area by the dead body of what Elodie assumed was her father.

The rest of the team stared at the child in her arms after hearing their conversation over the comms, but Elodie simply gestured for them to carry on, and they did so without question.

Their formation changed automatically. Elodie now stood in the centre of the Mandalorians, with the two blue at the front and the red and green at the rear. Her arm around the child had engaged the plasma shield on the vambrace, covering the child from any harm if shots were to hit.

Elodie hummed a tune lowly under her breath, hoping that it helped soothe the child's nerves.

The Mandalorians prowled the streets again once there was no further evidence of pirates. Thick gas from the steam grates clouded the air, and while it made it easier to blend in, it also made it equally difficult to spot movement from the opposition.

The closer they got to the courtyard, the more they weaved their way through the chaotic mess strewn on the ground. What was once a densely populated area is now abandoned. Food, materials, and items from the local markets were discarded carelessly on the floor. Some were in perfect condition, and others trodden in what must have been a rush to escape from the townspeople.

Elodie's thoughts drifted to the whereabouts of Greef and the majority of the civilians in the town. She half expected to see more dead or dying bodies on the ground or in the buildings than what they already came across.

Unbeknownst to them, pirates were already stationed in the courtyard, expecting their attack.

Kowakian monkey-lizards in the tree started to babble, and Elodie held up a clenched fist to stop the advancement of her group and cleared her throat to gain the attention of the two men ahead. The creatures wailed and pointed to the courtyard in fear.

A trickle of fear dripped down her spine and she turned to her team. "Possible ambush. Take cover." As the words left her mouth, they all instantly dispersed.

The pirates opened fire a moment too late, as now the Mandalorian's and the Wolven were hidden behind miscellaneous objects. The pirates themselves hid in the open courtyard behind the stacked, burned remnants of storm trooper helmets. Elodie was proud to see that her own team were much better marksmen than the pirates, with most of their shots going wide or too low.

A blaster singed Elodie's hair, and she flinched back with a noise of bewilderment into the doorway she was dipping in and out of. But it was a peculiar angle, and the shot did not come from the pirates in front, nor did she believe that her own team was that bad a shot to miss so devastatingly badly.

"Behind us!" Aada shouted in alarm. They were being rounded up like cattle and unable to fall back; the barrage of pirates was filtering in from all access points. Elodie placed the child down from her hip and pressed the little girl between herself and the doorway to avoid blaster fire hitting her from either end.

"We're boxed in." Gunnar declared, firing at the pirates back-to-back with Brax.

By the overturned tables, Erik yelled out in pain, suddenly flying back with a blaster bolt shot to the shoulder. Aada called out to him and dragged him back behind the safety of cover. "Stay behind cover and keep them back. They've got us pinned. Hold out til reinforcements arrive." Elodie shouted to her team, praying to the Maker that Tyr would arrive soon, as he had promised.

Elodie called for Gunnar to dive into the doorway with her, and they took it in turns to fire over one another's shoulders. The Wolven ushered the child into the hands of the male Mandalorian, and he used his body to shield her like she had done. He nodded to her, understanding instantly what her plan was without saying anything. They would have better chances of survival if she were to change. She dropped her jet pack to rest against the door, hidden from view.

Unable to figure out a better escape, Elodie rolled her shoulders and ran at the pirates to the rear. In their shock, they didn't immediately begin firing at the women running towards the oncoming fire. She used her spherical shield to deflect the shots that came her way when they thought to lay down fire. Elodie leaped forward, almost like she was going to tuck and roll, but instead shifted midair.

The form of her wolf landed, only to bound up again to tear apart the pirates.

Her team only had to worry about the oncoming fire from the courtyard now as she covered the rear. One pirate screamed as she threw his body into a wall using his leg and it detached from his body at the force of the fling. The vambrace's adapted to the change easily. The slits along the side separated to reveal a thin mesh material that expanded to the thickness of her front legs.

A Quarren shot at her, landing a few minor grazes by the time she reached him but mostly signed hair. Her teeth punctured the thick flesh of his torso, and she wrung her head vigorously, side-to-side, to maim. Sensing that someone was creeping up behind her, she used the body of the dead pirate still in her jaws to send the other into a protruding pole. He fell into it, and the jagged metal pierced through his chest like a javelin spear.

Jet packs roared overhead.

Paz's landing cracked the very ground beneath him, his heavy artillery weighing his form down. Command now fell on him. He swung the mini-gun up to fire at the pirates occupying the courtyard. The rest of his team followed his entrance swiftly, albeit not as dramatically, and flanked Elodie's team in returning fire and equalising their numbers.

Tyr used his fibercord to draw a pirate to him, and body checked him into the pavement. The numbers to the rear now dwindled with the reinforcements, and they refocused their sights on the open expanse of land swarming with pirates.

"Jeez, Elodie, that you in there?" He took a double take at the Wolven's sheer size. Thick blood of all kinds dripped from her jowls. Elodie wanted to curse the man for taking so long. And looking at her like that. She couldn't see his expression, but she didn't like the feeling of it, and she couldn't talk to him. Instead, she settled her answer with a low huff rumbling from her chest. "Right. Sorry. Carry on...mauling."

The Mandalorian was cut off when a pirate rammed into his side, not realising the muscle Tyr packed under the Beskar. He didn't move an inch from the blow but delivered a knee into his exposed abdomen and used his electrified knuckle dusters to relieve him of his teeth and brain activity.

Mandalorian were being shot down left, right, and centre from an immensely powerful bolt shot. On top of Greef's balcony connecting to his office, a turret mounted to the half-wall shooting wildly into the courtyard.

"Team two, up top!" The enforcer demanded, and his team ascended to the roofs and ledges to gain higher ground. Many more pirates fell at the accuracy of the Mandalorian's shots in comparison to theirs. Paz stumbled back at the fire, recoiling off his beskar. He stood plainly out in the open, but the members of the combined teams gathered around to provide decent cover fire.

The turret narrowed in on him, and their shots were creeping closer to connect with the enforcer. Elodie saw this as Paz was preoccupied with the foot soldiers and darted forward to knock him out of the line of fire before he could be hit. Blaster fire from a turret would have bypassed the gaps in the armour and likely would've killed him. He looked up to see the Wolven standing protectively above him, a shallow graze tracking down her shoulder.

A Transdoshan's screams fell short when he eventually landed after falling off a balcony. On said balcony, the armourer appeared to be standing above the unoccupied turret; the wielder's now dead. To Elodie's utter amusem*nt and disbelief, the Armourer wielded naught but her gravity hammer and magnetised tongs.

"All clear. Advance!" Paz shouted to the team, righting himself and encouraging Elodie to follow. His mini-gun was ready for use again, no longer a glaring red colour from overuse.

"Man your positions!" Tyr echoed his brother, "Go, go go!" They took to the skies to fire at the pirates that tried to disappear back into the streets. Elodie and a few other Mandalorian's tailed the pirates on foot.

They herded the pirate stragglers to the gates on the outskirts of town. Elodie growled lowly at them, stopping just under their street sign. A cacophony of jet packs drew nearer above her as Tyr and Paz came to land either side of her, guns raised and ready to fire on command if they dared to move. On the other side of the pirates, Greef and the civilians of the city walked over to trap the pirates.

Shots from the corsair landed on the town behind them, and more explosions go off. The Mandalorian's and town's people stare at the destruction hopelessly. The Gauntlet and the N-1 round on one another in the air to fire repeatedly into the last remaining engine of the Corsair. It burst into flames, diverting the Corsair's original course into the town, towards the Lava Flats.

The ship collided with the ground in a fiery explosion.

They won.

"It's gonna be okay!" The Anzellans celebrated.

The townspeople began cheering, but the select few with blasters in front chose to keep their weapons trained on the pirate stranglers. Greef gave the wolf a beaming smile, and she returned it with what she hoped was one of her own. Her upper lip pulled back in what probably looked like a snarl, but she went along with it.

Elodie shifted back to her original form. The process ran a lot smoother than the first few times. Her body was most likely getting used to The Changing—the realignment of her bones and the growth and expansion of muscles.

The Wolven adjusted her position when her mind righted itself, from being on her hands and feet to resting back on her knees.

"That was a f*cking traumatic sight to see."

The words poured from Tyr's mouth like he had no filter. Elodie frowned against the glare of the sun to look up at him. "Seriously, all of your bones just..." He cracked his knuckles, "Right under your skin. Does it hurt?"

Does it f*cking hurt?!

Pinning him with a deadpan look, Elodie simply rolled her eyes and prepared to stand. A shadow formed above her, and there stood Paz, offering her a hand. She accepted it, slightly impressed with his change of heart lately, and was brought to her feet with a grunt. Her joints clicked into their new alignment, and her muscles contracted with a violent shiver. Her shoulder stung, but the wound soon close without issue. The blood had already congealed and began to flake off the scab.

"Thanks." She told him.

Thank the stars, Maker, and moon goddess all in one. Her clothes were still intact. That would have been embarrassing.

It was the sport's bra and shorts that gave no indication of wear and tear, albeit dirty from the layer of sweat and blood covering her body in a thin sheen.

"Elodie," Greef called out, lowering his blaster and allowing others to take over watching the prisoners. The woman turned to him and walked over to meet him, not batting an eye at the pirate group she crossed paths with.

The High Magistrate threw his arms around the Wolven, chuckling loudly in relief. "I have never been so glad to see you. A beautiful sight for these old eyes. You look magnificent in those clothes, Wolfling."

Elodie dared not even think of what he was referring to, but if it had anything to do with the stains she unknowingly rubbed into his expensive clothing, she didn't want to. "I wouldn't doubt the clothing taste of a man who wears a cape that needs to be ferried by droids." She brushed the back of her hand against her face, smearing the blood around her mouth, and smiled at the man sheepishly. "Sorry."

"Nonsense." He waved her off, setting a hand on her bicep. "Now, introduce me to your companions. I never get to meet any of Mando's friends."

Greef nodded for some of his men to take the pirates away while they waited for Din and Bo-Katan to land their ships nearby. Elodie hinted that the Mandalorians no longer needed their weapons drawn, and they complied. "This is Mando's covert. They heard the city was in trouble and came to help."

"And Elodie's." The armourer corrected her as she approached their position with a unit of Mandalorian's behind her, "We are your covert now, too."

Nevertheless, Greef was grateful all the same. He paid no mind to how the Wolven gave the armourer a proud look. She was coming around to the idea of the covert being her home, her family. Gunnar stepped out from the masses with Brax and a child hooked around his hip. Elodie immediately zeroed in on them. The little girl was looking around the numerous Mandalorian's surrounding her. She grasped Greef's arm and made her way over.

"Gunnar!" She called out.

He saw her approaching and said something to the child. Cordelia looked around and saw Elodie nearing with Greef in tow. Greef looked at the two in confusion. "What is this about?"

"We found a child while scouting the city. Lone survivor, it looks like her father was killed protecting her." The man cursed and no longer resisted the pull of the woman. "I wanted to tell you about her to ask if you were able to facilitate caring for her. If not, the covert doesn't mind taking in children to raise."

"That's awfully gracious of you. The city may be in ruins now, but I'm sure we'll be able to take good care of her. The townspeople have always been known for their ability to recover after loss, and we will not fail that. Now more than ever." He declared, "She should be raised in the city, like her father intended." That assurance was all Elodie needed to hear.

The little girl smiled as the Wolven came to a stop in front of them. "Hi Cordelia," Elodie gently broached. "I'm Elodie, remember?"

"Elodie." She repeated it firmly and knowingly. Gunnar set the child on the floor, but she remained pinned to his side. Elodie pointed to the Magistrate, "Have you met my other friend, Greef, before?" There was a small nod.

"I know you; your father was Demarcus." Greef crouched down low to level with her. "Why don't we find you your Auntie Kaldin, huh? Would you like that?" Cordelia peeled herself off of Gunnar and grabbed Greef's hand to be led away.

Elodie waved at the child when she cast a fleeting look back.

"You were right. I am sorry." Brax stepped up to speak to her. "She might have died if we had just left her behind." He handed her something she had left back in the city. Her jet pack. Elodie gave him a small nod, taking it from him. "This is the way."

"This is the way," He repeated.

The ships were undergoing their landing cycle, so she parted ways with the two Mandalorians.

Din landed the N-1 beside the Gauntlet. Walking by Bo-Katan to reach Din, Elodie shook her forearm in greeting and offered congratulations. "We did it. Good shooting up there." Elodie subtly mentioned. The Mandalorian woman accepted the compliment and nodded her off to avoid an awkward conversation. "Thanks. Now go to your Mandalorian before he finishes mentally preparing for a conversation with me to get to you. I have a feeling Vizsla wants a word with me."

Paz was strolling over to Bo-Katan with a message to meet the armourer.

Elodie left her side without another word, and Din's shoulders dropped in relief. He opened his arms, and she made no move to slow her pace over to him. "Arg!" He stumbled back as her arms found purchase around his torso, and she collided with his chest. A laugh reverberated through the Beskar plates, and she smiled into his cowl as his hands wound around her shoulders. "We did it." She mumbled into the material.

He sighed, "We did it."

Greef cleared his throat and stood on the bridge to the Gauntlet so all could see him. Elodie loosened her hold on the Mandalorian but did not let him go entirely. Their arms slipped around each other's backs, and their sides were firmly pressed together. Din picked up Grogu to hold him against his chest, pinning the child between himself and the Wolven. Elodie held his hand while Greef prepared to give his speech.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you. To all of you, and especially to our fine Mandalorian liberators, to whom this planet is forever indebted. Mandalorians, I know that we have been on opposite sides in the past, but that is behind us. From this day forward, I, Magistrate Greef Karga..."

His secretarial droid interrupted, "High Magistrate, sir."

Laughter spread through the crowd in their high spirits of celebration. "High Magistrate Greef Karga, hereby cede all land from the western lava flats to Bulloch Canyon to the fine people of Mandalore. You may no longer have a home planet, but you do now have a home. Welcome. Welcome! Welcome, and thank you." Members of the Mandalorian covert accepted the offering, and as they were unable to express their acceptance of the gratitude physically, they instead placed their right arms across their chest with their hands closed in fists. Greef Karga looked to Din, and the latter gave him a nod.

Elodie looked up at the man in her arms, and his helmet angled down so he could spy on her through the visor.

They now have a place to call home with their extended family. They could have a future. A stable life, something Elodie never thought possible for herself or the child in all their years together.

And it was thanks to this man in front of her. Her eyes grew glassy. "I am so glad I met you." The child between them grunted, and she let out a watery laugh. "You too squirt."

Greef Karga and the civilians were making their way back into the city to recover what they could and bury their dead. The Mandalorian's waited by the ships in the meantime with baited breath from the armourer Alor with their next plans.

"Is that...?"

Chatter in the crowd grew silent as she and Bo-Katan walked through them like a parting sea. Bo-Katan no longer wore her helmet and showed the masses her exposed face and bright red hair. She looked nervous amongst the Death Watch; now she understood what Elodie felt when she was learning to live with them. The armourer did not seem phased by the exposure of the Mandalorian, now Dar'Manda by their creed.

"Bo-Katan Kryze is going off to bring other Mandalorians in exile to us so that we may join together once again." She announced to her people. Paz walked over to her, not sure he heard correctly, "But she shows her face."

Instead of answering his question, she directed her words to the covert. "Bo-Katan walks both worlds. And she can bring all tribes together. It is time to retake Mandalore."

The time called for change.

And this was a beginning for the new age for the Mandalorian's.

Chapter 31: Chapter 27: The Guns for Hire

Chapter Text

Din, Elodie, and Bo-Katan sat in the Gauntlet, preparing to land on Plazir-15. The planet was lush with greenery as far as the eye could see. The terrain was relatively level; the only thing breaching above the treeline were the glass domes dotted around, encasing the civilization.

"There they are." Bo-Katan broke the silence from her pilot seat. Beside her, Grogu was perched in his pram, the curious child peeking outside the window to cure his boredom. Din leaned back in his seat beside Elodie to take a look himself. In a field close by the largest dome, a series of imperial and standard warships were lined up. "That's quite a fleet."

The woman looked proud for a split second before it was replaced by sadness. "It took me a long time to assemble it. Most of it was captured from the Empire."

Elodie shot the red head a small, close-lipped smile, "Impressive. I can see the one we helped hijack from here. I call dibs on flying it when we retake Mandalore."

"Could come in real handy taking back Mandalore. Axe Woves is their leader now. It's going to take some convincing to get them to join us." Bo-Katan was a little nervous about retaking control. The people had lost their faith in her- she had lost faith in herself. She didn't know how to recover from something like that.

"I wonder what they're here for?"

It was a quiet planet. There have been no records of particularly heinous crimes since falling from Imperial rule. "This planet isn't on the New Republic Registry, so I'd guess it's an independent world that hired them for protection.

"Can't imagine Woves will be happy to see you." Din slipped in, trying to get the woman to open up to him a little more regarding tactics. All he got was a far-off look on Bo's face as she scanned the area around them. "Yeah. I'll land outside the fleet's perimeter. It's probably best if we go in on foot."

A fanfare chime rang through the intercom, and a feminine voice called through.

"Welcome to Plazir-15. The Outer Rim's only remaining direct democracy. You've been assigned a docking slip. You will be guided on the assigned path. Engaging automated guidance."

R-5 whirred responsively as the ship jerked and the crew were jolted in their allocated seats.

"What happened?" The Mandalorian questioned, both him and the Wolven reading the Mando'a warning inscriptions flashing across the screen in front of them. Bo toggled some of the switches to find that the ship was unresponsive to her commands. "They've taken control of the ship. I guess we're going for a ride." She huffed, leaning back in her seat.

Gorgu babbles to her from his pram, and the ship lands on the delegated docking site, far closer to the city than they originally planned. They wanted to avoid the city completely, but the leadership of the domes had other ideas.

The trio was met with two droids upon their exit.

"This is interesting." Din grumbled to the two women as they walked over to greet them. The droid parted and allowed the small group to explore further. "Welcome to Plazir-15. Please proceed to your hyperloop pod."

Elodie stopped in front of them. "Why have we been summoned here? We were planning on bypassing the city." The astromech buzzed, but she didn't know binary. The other droid understood her silence as a question and translated, "No ships are allowed to land without expressed permission. Please proceed to your hyperloop pod."

Realising they would get no answers from the droid, they carried on.

The Mandalorian looked back at them suspiciously as they passed them. "Why do they have Imperial droids on an independent world?" Elodie grabbed his hand in her own and tugged him along. This was no time for his hatred of droids to resurface. He allowed Elodie to grab his and moved to interlace their fingers, his thumb brushing over the back of her knuckles.

"It's the Outer Rim. Your guess is as good as mine." Bo-Katan said.

The hyperloop pod was a small capsule-like carriage that, judging from the rail, extended all around the dome. Din and Bo sat at the far end while Elodie ushered the child into the free spot ahead of her, beside the female Mandalorian. There were no buttons in the pod, so Bo-Katan demanded, "Bring us to the bay closest to the Mandalorian fleet."

The Wolven crossed her legs while waiting for the pod to start moving and was instead startled when the same female voice from the ship spoke over the public address system. In response, Din splayed his hand over her thigh and gave it a secure squeeze.

"As per Article Nine of the Coruscant Accords, permission must be granted from High Senate for access to self-defence forces in the peacekeeping zone. Do you grant permission to scan your chain code?"

Bo-Katan shows a holo image that radiates from her vambrace, and the device scans. Din was next to show his, and then Elodie.

"Din Djarin, Din Elodie, and Bo-Katan Kryze. Your presence has been requested by the leadership of the planetary democracy..." At the sound of her marital name, a subtle flurry of goosebumps settled over her exposed flesh.

Bo-Katan, however, was not impressed with the news. "I'm afraid we have more pressing matters. Perhaps at a later time."

"Please do not attempt to leave the vehicle. This is not a request."

"Wha-" The pod rocketed into motion, the hand on Elodie's thigh clamping down tightly; she almost winced. She placed her hands over the Mandalorian's to ease the tension. Bo, sitting on the other side, pressed her back firmly into the seat at the speed of the carriage.

And Grogu had the time of his life.

It took mere minutes for the city to draw closer through the glass hyperpod. Elodie couldn't deny the view. The city was beautiful and looked to have flourished since their oppression. It looked like an advertisem*nt for the ideal society.

Din didn't look outside the window. Instead, the Mandalorian was staring at the wonder on the Wolven's face as she leaned closer to see past him. Her eyes were wide but thoughtful. Her lower lip had been sucked into her mouth, where her lengthy incisors were no doubt clamping down on it. She had a distant expression on her face. The same one he had seen more often since her time after being taken by the Empire.

Bo-Katan smiled discreetly at the pair; they were utterly in love and never noticed when they would sneak peaks at one another, despite already being married. The Mandalorian's helmet was tilted down to watch the woman at his side and not the magnificent view of the bustling city outside; their hands were entwined in her lap, like he had to be touching her in some manner. "I've never been here before. Have you?" Bo-Katan asked, breaking his daze from staring at his wife.

He finally broke it gaze and took a fleeting look outside. "I haven't even heard of it. Do you think we're gonna have to blast our way out of here?"

"Hope not. It looks pretty here." Elodie mumbled. He turned to face her, "You okay?"

Her expression crumbled to crestfallen, and she gave him a look he couldn't pin point. "D'you ever get tired of the fighting?" He lowered his voice to have a more private conversation in the small space, "What is this about?"

Elodie stared deeply into the visor. The Mandalorian was many things: brave, strong, and a fighter. He was taught to fight. Learned how to do it and learned to love it. Din Djarin's existence started off in a quaint village on Aq Vetina where he spent the first few years of his life in peace.

She was born fighting; that wasn't the same thing. Having been born on Tatooine and then having to fend for herself since the moment she was able to take her first steps as a babe. Never knowing when the next meal was going to be and coping in the harsh climate with its copious dangerous inhabitants. She was in no way diminishing his trauma in comparison to hers. He has suffered a lot and deserves the world, but sometimes it was as if he had never considered an alternative life.

Din no longer had to work as a bounty hunter to provide for his Covert. He was no longer their sole provider.

He may be the love of her life and her soulmate in all manners of the word. But he didn't understand. She was growing tired of the fighting. Day-to-day of endless survival. It was slowly chipping away at her. The world that was once bountiful now becoming dull as the days passed briskly. Was it not enough for him that he had people he loved around him? A family? Bounty hunting was his way of making credits and his way of life, and he was good at it. Would he ever walk away from it?

Could she even ask him to? No, she couldn't. Wouldn't. If the Mandalorian never noticed her longing to settle, she assumed it was in blissful ignorance. She was not going to be the one to plant doubts in his mind after he had provided them with so much- he gave up everything to be with them.

In the end, she muttered, "Nothing. It's nothing."

There was more he wanted to say but had no time for. The hyperloop pod pulled to a stop outside two tall doors, which opened automatically upon their arrival. Flashbacks of the copious white walls of the Imperial ships flashed across her mind, and she found herself struggling to take a breath.

The only difference was the classical music resonating in the hallway. Walking through the next set of double doors, a table sat in the centre of the room. A large group of beings sat around the table in what looked to be a tea party.

The chatter subsided at the appearance of the heavily armoured individuals strolling into the formal event. A man stood up at the end of the table to beckon them over. "Join us! Come! It's a party. Come!" He announced to his guests, "Everyone, special guests. Mandalorians. I hope you like secretions. Take a little sip-sip. Come, please."

The trio shared a look and went to take a seat by the head of the table. The man was decorated in royal regalia. A sash across his chest and medals pinned to the upper left pectoral. The coffee-skinned woman to his side was plump but radiating a regal glow. Her headdress and station at the table gave away her high status in the city. Her face lit up when she smiled, which seemed to influence the guests. The guests all around them carried on as if they did not just intrude, eating the copious fancy foods and drinking secretions from a creature in a bowl above the table.

Elodie lost her appetite just looking at it and instead brought the child to sit on her lap so he could have a little snack. She sat between the two Mandalorian warriors and felt comfortable enough to indulge the child.

The man laughed to break the awkward silence as the Mandalorians said nothing after taking their seats. No one touched their food apart from the child. "Let's address the bantha in the room. I was once a facilities planning officer during the war. And thanks to the New Republic Amnesty Programme, I was able to help rebuild Plazir-15."

"You were Imperial?" Din asked with a co*ck of his helmet.

It was the woman who answered. "He was. Plazir suffered greatly under Imperial rule. My husband came here as part of his rehabilitation. He oversaw the rebuilding of this planet on which my family served as nobility since it was originally settled, and... we fell in love." He returned her loving look with one of his own: "We fell in love. We did fall in love."

Elodie wondered if she and Din were this cringeworthy. The child in her arms cooed at the sight of the royalty doing Eskimo kisses.

The Dutchess pulled back to catch sight of the small green creature. "Could I perhaps hold the baby? Please?"

"He doesn't take kindly to strangers." Din answered for Elodie, knowing she would not be comfortable handing the child off to someone they had only just met. The Dutchess held up an anchovy and made some kissing noises.

The child catapulted into her arms.

The guests gasped and laughed at the child, while Elodie had to take in a slow breath through clenched teeth. They would have to have a chat later about stranger danger; it was like he was asking to be kidnapped. Like in the pod, Din reached under the table to rest his hand high on her thigh to settle her nerves.

"You are so fast. Yes." Grogu engulfed the fish and babbled in hopes for another. "You see, it was time for our planet to move into a new age. We held direct democratic elections for the first time in our history."

"We are both royals and elected leaders." Captain Bombardier boasted. Din found an opportunity to press about the Mandalorian mercenaries. "And the Mandalorian privateer warships docked in your fields?"

The Dutchess looked up from fussing over the child, "Oh, we hire them for protection. Our charter forbids us from having a military because of my husband's imperial past." The captain followed her sentence, "But because of this, all of our resources go to growth and the people."

"I'd like to speak to these 'privateers'." Bo-Katan requested.

"That can be arranged. There is just one condition."

Her face fell. "What?"

Captain Bombardier looked a little sheepish. "You really must see the view. Right this way." The way he said it came across as suspicious, and in the corner of her eye, Elodie saw Din's shoulders tense. The captain stood from the table with the Mandalorian's and motioned for the guests to stay enjoying libations. "We'll just be a moment. Enjoy your meal, don't get up. Let's show our guests the view."

"We have a problem."

The royal couple led them through to an adjoining game room and towards a balcony overlooking the city. The pair gave no care to the games being played and walked directly through them. "A droid problem." The Dutchess admitted.

That piques the Mandalorian's interest. "What kind of 'droid problem'?"

"Malfunction."

The captain corrected, "A coordinated malfunction."

"We think." She winced.

"What makes you think that?" Their back-and-forth finishing of each other's sentences was causing Elodie's neck strain. "The planet's Imperial droids were reprogrammed for peace."

The captain took offence and said, "I personally oversaw the program. I can assure you that they were completely rehabilitated for peaceful purposes. Exclusively."

"Traffic accidents. Heavy equipment failures leading to injury." He recounted. Then she blurted, "Assault."

"Assault?" Din repeated, surprised.

Bo-Katan appeared to have enough of the half sentences when they had no relevance to their current assignment. "Respectfully, what does this have to do with us?"

The royal couple shared a look of worry about how the events were going to pan out. "Our constables are ill-equipped to confront battle droids."

"Battle droids?" The situation was growing more interesting in Din's eyes. His home planet had been raided by separatists, and battle droids wiped out his entire village. Kuill had his hands full trying to rehabilitate one droid, IG-11, and this planet was infested with dozens of them. He doubted that their handy work was up to par with his former friends'. The captain held up a pointed finger at them and said, "Uh-uh-uh-uh. Former battle droids. They've been rehabilitated for civic duty."

"We thought." The Dutchess sighed, which triggered one from her partner, "They were."

"Obviously not." She stated it firmly. Elodie had to agree with her concerns. If they were, they wouldn't be having this problem.

"The Mandalorian garrison outside your city walls can make quick work of your battle droids." Bo pointed it out to them. "That's just it."

"What?" As if there was anything to further add to their case.

"Our charter forbids any standing army from entering our city. Our constables aren't even allowed to carry blasters." The Dutchess digresses.

Din was reminded of the weight of his weaponry. They hadn't been searched and relieved of their weapons like they had on the commercial transport bus. The droids at the dock simply allowed them to pass without so much as a security check. "But you allowed us to be armed."

"Exactly. The people have voted that we are a pluralistic society. You are Mandalorians. Weapons and armour are intrinsic to your culture, are they not?" The captain smiled, knowing he was correct. They had to give him props; the man was clever, which was probably why he was hired by the empire.

"They are." The Mandalorian conceded.

"You see where we're going here?"

Bo-Katan sighed, "You want us to eliminate your droid problem." The Dutchess and Captain smiled at one another in relief. "Exactly. I knew you would help us."

The female Mandalorian held up her arms to calm their early celebrations when no one knew that they would be accepting this side mission. "Hold on there, Your Majesty. We didn't agree to help you."

"Please, Princess Kryze. Your Grace. This is not intended to be a work of charity." The captain schmoozed.

"Unlike my brethren outside your city walls, I am not a mercenary." She refused.

"Apologies if that is the impression I gave. What I intended to convey is that I would hope that this 'excursion' would be viewed as an act of diplomacy between our two planets. In fact, Plazir-15 would formally recognise Mandalore as a sovereign system and petition the New Republic to recognise it as such." He bartered, attempting to influence the Mandalorian's decision.

The Dutchess saw the opportunity to delve deeper into the strained relationship between Bo and the 'Privateers'. "The mercenary captain, Axe Woves, indicated that he split from you because you had designs on ruling Mandalore once again."

"Those plans have been abandoned." Bo-Katan said it forlornly.

"The offer stands nonetheless."

Bo looked to Elodie first, and she gave her a half-hearted shrug, not caring if they were to get involved. Elodie could already tell from Din's inquisitiveness that he did want to get involved. Anything if it would mean potentially facing some battle droids to take out some deep-sated internal rage on the beings that destroyed his childhood.

The female Mandalorian turned her gaze to her other Mandalorian counterpart. "What do you think?"

"You had me at battle droids." He admitted.

The trio meandered to the control room with express permission from the Dutchess to investigate. They stood around an elderly man in command at his own desk at the back of the crowded room. Ahead, multiple screens of security footage presented blurred images from the city.

"These droids were all reprogrammed to serve the community from the stockpile of captured Imperial robotics scheduled to be scrapped at Karthon. The droid's reprogramming was a complete success, until one day, an isolated event..." The screen ahead showed a rubbish disposal droid. It picked up one bin to dump the contents but seemed to jerk irregularly on the next one. The rubbish littered everywhere but the bin, and then it carried on without recognising its error.

"That's not so bad." Elodie shrugged. A couple of frustrated droids finally lost their temper. She would hardly classify that as an assault. Maybe the Dutchess was being a touch dramatic.

The commissioner flicked to another clip: "Then others."

The next video showed a droid ushering a civilian woman, her boxes piled high in its hands. As they approached the apartment door, the droid suddenly snapped, chucking the contents of the boxes around haphazardly. The commissioner didn't pause and played the next clip.

"This is just a small collection of malfunctions that our security cameras caught."

A valet droid got in a vehicle, only to ram it into the closet wall, destroying both the vehicle and itself. A droid was dicing food at a hibachi with its numerous arms when it began swinging the knives around dangerously close to the bystanders at the restaurant.

"I stand corrected." Elodie grimaced, watching the knives fly dangerously near the innocent bystanders.

"Turn them off." Bo-Katan stated, as if it were obvious. But the man didn't understand. "Why not turn them all off? Who's in charge of that?"

He gestured to the giant red button under a glass shield. "I am. There's a fail-safe cutoff switch built into the system. However, the citizens voted against any interruption in Droid services. They can't live without it." Elodie's eyebrow quirked up- the man seemed rather disturbed by the information he was giving.

A shiver of uncertainty rolled down their spines. "And why's that?"

The man scoffed, as if he wanted to. "The citizens are no longer required to work and can spend their days engaging in recreation, the arts, and participating in our direct democracy. If we shut down the droids, our citizens wouldn't know how to survive. Our society would collapse." Again, he practically spat the information, disgust lacing his face.

"Then what do you want from us?" Bo demanded.

"To seek out and decommission any remaining rogue droids until we can fix the problem." The idea was far-fetched. The city was bustling with life forms, organic or not. It would be difficult to sort through each individual droid to ascertain if they were riddled with any malfunctions.

Bo-Katan sighed heavily enough for the three of them. "Well, can we get a list?"

"Well, for that, you'll have to go to the lower level and speak to the Ugnaughts." The commissioner replied.

"Ugnaughts?" Din perked up.

"Ugnaughts."

Their next adventure left them journeying to the sub-levels of the domes' society, where the Ugnaughts were working on machinery and inner workings. "I gotta say it. I don't like the commissioner."

"What do you mean?" Her partner questioned. She had a contemplative look on her face.

"You didn't notice the way he seemed to despise the idea of droids being the only functional members of society? The guy was insane."

Bo didn't let her gaze stray from the elevator doors, disregarding Elodie's concerns. "You don't have to like him. We just need to work with him to figure this out as soon as possible so we can retrieve the fleet."

Din looked between the women on either side of them, hands clasped in front of him. "See what happens when you rely on droids?"

Elodie could feel the sh*t-eating grin on his face and rolled her eyes, but she smiled nonetheless at his childish antics. Bo stared at the man in disbelief. "Are you taking this personally?"

"Just pointing it out." He shrugged.

"Let's just finish this so we can be on our way."

The elevator stopped, and the doors opened to reveal a dim, cavernous room. Flecks of sparks were coming from multiple work spaces, from the projects they were welding and drilling. Not one eye was cast their way; the Ugnaughts were steadfast in continuing their work without disruption.

The sight of the familiar creatures made Elodie feel a pit of sorrow for their lost companion, Kuill. She may not have known him as long as her Mandalorian counterpart, but his kindness and words of wisdom helped her in a dark part of her life. Their bond of shared experiences was rooted in the trauma the imperials were responsible for.

Overlooking her grief, Elodie clasped her Riduur's hand in her own to provide him with some form of support. After all, he was the one who had to bury his friend.

Noting the lack of attention to their arrival, Bo-Katan stepped forward. "I am Bo-Katan Kryze. Which one of you is in charge? We were sent on behalf of The Dutchess and Captain Bomb to help you with your droid problem." There was still no acknowledgement. She huffed, not knowing how to proceed. "Hello? This is going nowhere."

Din released Elodie's hand and took over from Bo-Katan, his voice loudly ringing out above the sounds of machinery. "I am Mandalorian Din Djarin, friend of Ugnaught Kuill. You will answer our questions and help us with our task. I have spoken.

The clanging and whirring stopped at his words. Ugnaughts looked up from their stations to observe the newcomers. One in particular came to show them to a table. It was hard to tell from their stoic persona, but they didn't seem impressed with their arrival.

"Thank you for your hospitality and for sharing your table with us. We were engaged to hunt down and eliminate the malfunctioning droids." Din started off, nodding to the Ugnaughts in gratitude.

"There are no such droids." The main Ugnaught man said, which led Elodie to believe that he was somewhat of the ringleader. Bo-Katan gave him a look, "You may not have heard the news down here, but your droids are wreaking havoc in the world above."

"There is not much of which we are aware. These halls are the central nervous system of the city. I assure you, the droids are not malfunctioning."

"Citizens have been harmed by these malfunctioning machines." The female Mandalorian stated she was hoping to get the man to realise the severity of the situation.

He waved a hand. "This is not the case. I have spoken."

"So you have personally seen the citizen's on the receiving end and not just worked on the droids? Have you even left the workshop to witness these events yourself before coming to these conclusions?" Elodie queried, striking a nerve in the man.

Din decided that it was best to step in to avoid the Wolven getting worked up. "We're not in any way suggesting that your work is to blame. The stories of Ugnaughts' skill with smithing droids are legendary. We know that Ugnaughts are considered the hardest-working species in the galaxy. We, like you, have been engaged with a task to perform. We will investigate the dangerous incidents. We would appreciate your help."

The man sighed and leaned in to whisper with his colleague. Elodie heard their conversation clearly with her enhanced hearing capabilities and was pleased to pick up that they were accepting that there might be an issue.

"Here are the locations of the droids you seek." A tablet was passed over to them, and Din once again nodded in thanks. "Thank you. We are in your debt. I have spoken."

With the datapad in hand, the trio walked to one of the hyperloop pods. This time, they were heading towards the dockyard to find one of the listed droids. It would be like trying to find a needle in a haystack with the number of droids operating in the area.

"What was that?" Bo-Katan finally spoke, referring to the change in Din's speech pattern when conversing with the Ugnaughts.

The Mandalorian smiled at the fond memories on Arvala-7. "I've spent time with Ugnaughts. There's a particular way to communicate with them. Accusing their work of malfunctioning is an insult. Now, they've indicated that there's a likelihood that the next event will be at the loading docks."

"You can say that again." Elodie jibbed. Kuill was very headstrong, it reminded her of Din. Bo-Katan settled back into her seat as they waited to arrive to their destination. "Well, it's the only lead we've got so we might as well have a look around."

Elodie heaved a heavy sigh, narrowing her eyes at her partner. "I didn't think I'd be the one saying this but could you please restrain yourself. Your hatred is messing with your judgement." The Mandalorian instantly became defensive, "My judgement is already messed. You know what these droids did."

"The same class of droids, but not the same droids, Din." She corrected softly.

Bo-Katan cut them both off before the conversation could escalate. "This bickering is getting us nowhere. Din, she's right. We need a level head if we are going to get to the bottom of this."

The Mandalorian started kicking the droids. The stumbled, but recovered quickly and returned to their designated position in the production line. "Din Djarin! This is not restraining yourself!" Elodie scolded, jaw ticking. Oh full name, she was angry. Too late. Not letting this deter his effort, he carried on.

Elodie walked up behind the Mandalorian to yank him away, although was stopped prematurely when the next droid that stumbled, fell over completely and threw his arm into Din's helmet upon standing.

The Mandalorian flew back at the force, landing in a heap on the Wolven. "Oh sh*t!" Elodie landed with a select few curses, feeling the Mandalorian groan above her. The droids eyes shone a crimson smolder. It brushed by the fallen Mandalorian and dodged the blaster bolts delivered by Bo-Katan.

Din rolled off, hand enclosing around hers to hoist her up after him. The pair did not hesitate to then follow after the rampant battle droid. "Re-certified, huh?" Bo-Katan shot the foreman a smug look. "You should have left them alone!" He shouted after them.

They zeroed in on the droid and Elodie almost caught up to it, when it suddenly threw a trash can to block her way.

Unphased, Elodie hopped over the bin. She could hear Bo-Katan catch up to Din behind her and their panting breathes not far away. The main problem for her at the moment was that the civilians roaming the streets. Her shoulders bumped into them accidentally, barging passed them to continue her advance on the battle droid.

It destroyed a speeder when jumping into the busy street.

Running from the narrow alleyway, Elodie had to rely on instinct when a metal pole hurtled towards her. She dropped and skidded along the floor, grazing her knees while doing so as it flew overhead.

She shouted a brief warning to her companions and they were also quick to react, Bo-Katan using her jet pack to jump over the obstacle while Din had ducked underneath. The delay in her calling back allowed the droid to run further ahead.

"Keep going!" Din shouted, ducking into the oncoming alleyway. The woman carried on as directed, dodging the screaming civilians. The droid still fires back behind it, and they are lucky in that none of the bolts hit them or worse, any innocent people. Neither of the women dared fire their guns so openly.

Herds of people in the busy streets try their best to dive out of the way, but the streets were so densely populated that a few stragglers were pushed aside forcefully in their pursuit. Rounding another corner, the window to the droids right shattered as the Mandalorian came soaring through to tackle it. They both crashed into the pavement, glass raining down on them like a hurricane.

The droid got to its feet and held its blaster up at the man trying to get to his feet when Elodie release a single shot from her vambrace. The droid collapsed to the floor with a steaming hole in the back of its head.

Bo-Katan helped Din to his feet and Elodie panted, walking over to the pair. Small floating constable droids surrounded them and requested that the onlookers take a step back. "This is a crime scene. Thank you for standing back." With the dour droids posted around them, a LED crime scene banner illuminate between them to cordon off the area.

Deciding that the constable droids could handle the situation from there, the Mandalorian's and the Wolven walked the streets to identify the location of The Resistor. Despite the fuss that occurred, the streets remained packed.

Upon visual inspection, the Wolven was happy that the Mandalorian was not injured from his tumble through the window. Elodie turned them down another street, this one slightly less busy as the early hours dawned.

Bo-Katan shared a look with Elodie and then cleared her throat, readying herself to speak with the Mandalorian male. "Let me do the talking in there." Elodie was not up for reasoning with droids tonight and something told her that Bo was better at negotiating than she was. Elodie, Like Din, tended to have a short fuse.

"Why is that?" He questioned, genuinely curious.

Did he not realize how irrational he was being?

The Wolven glanced down at their route and led them down another turn at the end of the street. Club music intensified as the trio neared an alley close to their destination. "You kicking droids is really not helpful." Bo-Katan reminded him.

"Nor is it nice to the droids who are unaffected."

"Your Wolf won't solve any problems here."

"I am more than just my Wolf." The Wolven argued, hurt that she would sum up her as her alternative form. Mind you, one she never asked for. "You're right. You are also a little bloodthirsty yourself." Before Elodie had the chance to be downright offended, Bo-Katan spotted the bar just inside an alleyway. "This is the address." Two droids lingered outside and watched the trio as they walked by.

The lively music and chatter cut off abruptly when organics entered the bar. Only droids occupied the residence, their refreshments paused mid-swig.

"I don't think they get many of our kind here." Din said, as they strolled further into the bar. Optics followed their movements and no one bothered resuming their prior activities.

"Three organics walk into a bar, and the bartender says..."

"There has been a string of malfunctions that all point to this oil can." Elodie finished. He barkeep was unwavering in his innocent defence. "You can check my registry. We are in full compliance with Planetary Hierarchical..."

Din snatched a sparking contraption from the countertop to the left and held it up threateningly.
"If you don't start answering questions, I'll yank your memory circuit and dissect it back at the lab." The contraption sparked as he held it close to the droids face, but he remained unphased at the proximity.

"Stay where I can see you." He clarified to the barkeep, allowing the woman to manhandle him to one side. He handed the contraption to his partner and he tossed it messily on the counter.

All the droids in the bar erupted in agreement, whether speaking binary, basic or simply whirring their circuits. The Wolven turned to the bartender, "In that case, what have you got to help us?"

They were escorted into the back office where the droid sat at his desk and the three sat on the opposite side.

"Do you have a record of what each of the suspects ordered?"

"Great. Now all we need to do if find out where that shipment came from and what made it so different from the rest of the cargo."

The team made their way back to the main building of the domed society. The Mortuary was stationed a few levels below the Ugnaughts, in an underground sublevel. They would need to have a look at the decommissioned remains of the droids and if their postmortem examinations showed any irregularities that could indicate that the Nepenthé was the source of the malfunctions.

"These are the remain of the latest malfunctioning droid."

The lab tech allowed a droids body to be wheeled out on the slabs from the wall compartment. It was the droid that they discovered in the dockyard. A rehabilitated imperial medical droid hovered beside the lab tech to withdraw a sample of the lubrication for testing. Taking the ampule once full, she walked over to her desk for assessment.

Behind them, the medical droid flared the same vibrate shade of red as the battle droid. It shot out laser beams, directing them towards the organics.

"Get down!" The lab tech gasped, falling to the floor.

Elodie felt her be shoved back into the arms of the female Mandalorian. Bo-Katan caught the Wolven, bringing her behind the computer unit, shying away from the laser beams roaming the room. Behind them, the lab tech cowered away grasping her sliced bicep. To the other side of the room, Din hid behind a pillar to avoid being targeted.

Elodie and Bo-Katan peered around the console to fire shots at the droid, but it whirled around on the women with the laser beams. Bo-Katan called out in pain beneath her and Elodie yanked her back behind cover.

The beam had narrowly caught the Mandalorian's forearm. It was a ling slice that cut through the sleeve of her shirt, however the wound luckily didn't bleed. "You'll survive."

Bo grunted, "Reassuring."

"Yeah no sh*t they're active." The Wolven gritted out, "That transition was very quick compared to some of the evidence we've seen so far."

The lab tech got back into her seat to investigate the sampled further to try and get answers. "These are the sub-particles. Curious..." She trailed off. "It looks alive." Elodie muttered, leaning closer to see the wriggling particles on the screen.

It dawned on Elodie. "Someone purposefully let it in." It was the only batch of Nepenthé that was personally permitted into the city. The individual must have high-up clearance to pull off such feats of criminality with minimal traceability. Why would someone go through such lengths to destroy their peaceful society?

"Is that unusual?" Bo-Katan asked to lab tech.

"Our head of security. Commissioner Helgait."

The two Mandalorian's looked to the Wolven who was already staring at them with an expectant look. "I f*cking told you I didn't like him." She said, heading for the door. "But no, Ignore the 'bloodthirsty Wolven' cause that's all she's good for."

Elodie raced to the elevator with the Mandalorian's in tow, but was left waiting for the lift to arrive at their level. Bo-Katan was breathless beside her. "I'm sorry. I should've listened to your concerns earlier."

The doors opened at the elevators arrival and they pressed the button for the security office, first to apprehend the Commissioner and then they would personally escort him to the Dutchess and Captain for punishment. Elodie found herself tapping her foot on the floor while they slowly drifted up the the lift, the light casting over the individual floors seemingly slower now that they were on a mission.

The trio barged out of the lift to see the elderly man standing from his desk, overseeing the CCTV on the larger screen.

The Commissioner spun around to face the Mandalorian's in hesitation. "And the nano-droids. They didn't malfunction. You programmed them to disrupt and attack."

"You set this all up. You allowed innocent people to get hurt." The Wolven spat.

Din didn't bother reaching for his blaster like he usually would. The man was weaponless and outnumbered. There was no situation where the man escaped. "You're coming with us."

Bo-Katan looked to the married couple, shrugging, "Politics."

He fell to the floor with a thud. Electricity crackled on him, the shocks rendering him immobile for a short period of time.

Elodie bit her lip, wincing. "Bo! He's an old man, he could have died!"

With commissioner Helgait restrained and now conscious, they escorted him up to the penthouse for judgment by the royalty. The trio looked to be interrupting a particularly suspicious winning streak of the Dutchess when they arrived on the balcony.

"A Quadro-blast! I've never seen such a streak!" The captain laughed, along with the audience surrounding them.

Elodie was relieved to see the child hidden amongst the Dutchess' flowing gown, happy and well. His ears perked up at the sight of his buirs and guiltily moved his force-wielding hand down to his side. [Parents]

Onlookers was astonished with the punishment, as if a death sentence had just been ruled. Helgait was escorted out by the constable droids in tow and the Mandalorian's now faced the royalty. Their mission had been completed.

The Dutchess wiped the sullen look off her face with a practiced re-composure. "And as for you, Lady Bo-Katan Kryze, Elodie the Wolven, and Din Djarin of Concordia, I grant you audience with our deployment of Mandalorian privateers. I also give to you both our highest honor, the key to Plazir."

One of the staff beside her handed her an overly large key. Seeing that the couple made no move to retrieve it, Bo-Katan was the one to accept the key offered and bowed at the Dutchess.

Elodie was eager to hold Grogu again in her arms and dipped to whisk him away while Din also bowed to the royalty. "M'Lord. M'Lady."

Grogu gave the Dutchess a sad wave over the Wolven's shoulder as they left for the hyperloop pod for the last time. This time, their destination was beyond the walls of the dome. They would have to ride the train to the end of the line and then walk the rest of the way through the expanse of forest.

"Now approaching landing field three."

"You are the one to unite our people." Elodie told Bo-Katan, seeing her face grow wearier the closer the got to the fleet. The woman was beyond nervous, so Elodie though reciting the words of the Armorer would help her to regain her confidence.

The fleet was a stones throw away from the hyperloop pod and it was a nice, peaceful walk while it lasted. The Mandalorian's in the field were beginning to notice their presence and stopped their activities to observe.

On a crate in the centre, Axe sat with a drink in his hand, and Koska, Bo-Katan's right-hand woman, stood beside him.

Axe looked utterly pissed. His eyes hardened as he took a small sip of his beverage. "It's no longer your fleet, is it? I'm now in command and grown quite fond of it."

The trio stopped just shy of them, allowing enough room for a brawl if it came down to it. Which is exactly what the former Mandalorian leader was planning.

"Then I challenge you, one warrior to another. Do you accept my challenge?"

Axe swallowed. He hid his nerves well but Elodie could see that he was rattled. Bo-Katan was a fierce warrior and a worthy opponent. Tossing his cup down, he stood and readied his stance to fight.

"I do."

Instantly, he fired a shot from his vambrace. Bo-Katan used her jet pack to soar into the air to avoid the bolt and rammed her feet into the other Mandalorian which sent the both to the ground.

At the sight of Axe whipping his virboblade out, Bo-Katan matched with her own. They parried, both managing to strike the other with punches and block some other blows.

Axe was tossed back by a strong punch, but rolled to right himself. He ignited his jet pack and body slammed Bo into the side of a ship. Jumping back from his onslaught of punches and swipes, Bo used her hands to deflect any that were close to hitting their target. Elodie and Din watched on nervously as Axe seemed to be an equally fierce opponent. She feared that Bo was not going to allow herself to feel worthy which would hold her back.

Bo was kicked down and maneuvered herself away from another shot fired from his vambrace. Bo-Katan got close enough to strike out, momentarily stunning the Mandalorian enough to bring her blade against his exposed neck.

"Do you yield?" A fleeting spark of relief simmered.

Instead of surrender, the jet pack set them into the air and onto the wing of the ship. The fight continued with the both of them dodging each others punches but Axe brought his foot up to kick Bo-Katan over the edge.

With quick reflexes, Bo shot her fibrecord around Axe's neck and dragged him down with her to the floor below. She used her plasma shield to deflect a burst of blames and tackled Axe to the floor.

With him down, Bo-Katan pinned his limbs and held her blade back to his neck. This time, she stated more firmly, "Do you yield?" Blood beaded at where the blade made contact.

Despite losing, Axe held the same resentment for the woman. "You'll never be the true leader of our people. You won't even take the Darksaber from him. He's the one you should be challenging."

Bo-Katan growled, standing off Axe. She didn't bother offering him a hand to stand and watched as he wobbled to his feet. She looked at the Mandalorian's around her, staring with wordless doubt. "Enough Mandalorian blood has been spilled by our own hands."

"Mandalorians are stronger together!"

"But a misguided zealot possesses the blade. One, I might add, who has not one drop of Mandalorian blood in his veins." As if that mattered. Mandalorian's consisted of foundlings too. "Don't get me started on the beast at his side. She doesn't even wear the armour." Din didn't like what the man was implying. He clenched his hands to avoid fighting back and the thick leather crunched under his grip.

No one said a word against his wife.

Bo-Katan caught the rising levels of rage building in her companion. "Elodie thought that the Mandalorian culture had abandoned her and yet she still fights for it. Din Djarin took the Creed and chose to walk the Way, just as our ancestors did. This is a new age for Mandalorian's. They are every bit the Mandalorian that they were. Certainly as much as any of us."

He addressed the Mandalorian's in the field. "While exploring Mandalore, Elodie and I were captured. And this blade was taken from me. Bo-Katan rescued us and slayed our captor. She defeated the enemy that defeated me. Would this blade then not belong to her? Would it not belong to her?"

Taking the Dark Saber, Bo-Katan held it to her side and did something she had waited a lifetime to do.

She ignited it.

Chapter 32: Chapter 28: The Spies (Part 1)

Chapter Text

The Imperial cruiser eclipsed the city of Nevarro in an overbearing shadow. Starships flanking the battleship alluded to an imminent invasion of the city, but the markings of a Mythosaur tattooed onto the bottom gave away the true ownership of the Mandalorian fleet.

The Gauntlet flew ahead of the fleet to navigate the molten terrain of the volcanic lava flats. Many citizens of the city and the covert came to gaze up at the sight. Bo-Katan's fleet was both impressive and disturbing.

Inside, Grogu had elected to sit on Bo-Katan's lap as she carried on piloting as if he weren't even there observing her. The Mandalorian covert had made a settlement within their lands and had elected to stay within a close-knit range. A display of unity. Mandalorian's, after all, were stronger together.

Initiating the landing sequence, Bo finally released the breath that had been caught in her throat. It was only a matter of time before two very different Mandalorian cultures were expected to stand together to reclaim their home world. "I hope these two groups get along. They've never met, and what little they know of each other, they hate."

"They will if they wanna survive." Din said, knowing that they rung true.

From the window, Elodie could see Paz Vizsla gesture for Ragnar to go inside. The child nodded and gathered the children too. He must have told them to retreat in case of retaliation from the privateers.

Paz stood at the front of the covert, taking his role as enforcer very seriously in the face of danger. And that's what the privateers were. They threatened the very sanctity of their creed. When the two groups stood metres apart, the tension was so thick that it was almost palpable.

It intensified when the Mandalorian mercenaries removed their helmets, tucking them under their arms. Bristling, Paz brought his hands to rest on the front of his belt- close to his blaster.

The action didn't go unnoticed, and the Wolven subtly placed herself in front of the Mandalorian so she would be able to intervene if necessary. This union was essential if they were to retake Mandalore. Neither group was expected to get along without a hitch, but she hoped that the truce could last a little longer than ten minutes.

There was a stark difference between the two Mandalorian groups. The privateers were by far more polished and maintained with the money they earned, while the Coverts' were chipped and rough from survival and hard labour.

The staredown was interrupted by the clanging of the armourer's hammer and tongs.

The owlish alor strolled out of the shelter of her makeshift home and towards the groups. Her golden-horned helmet and fur shoal were unlike any other among either covert, which demanded order and respect. "Welcome, fellow Mandalorians. We invite you to make camp. Let us prepare a feast for our guests."

The armourer nodded to Bo-Katan, intending to maintain the peace for as long as she was able to. Both Bo and Elodie noticed another raging stare-down between Paz and Axe. Bo smacked the latter on the shoulder, snapping him out of his sneering gaze. Elodie knocked on Paz's helmet, which caused him to flinch back and catch her wrist.

"Copaani mirshmure'cye?" She yanked it out of his grip, not even mildly insulted. [Are you looking for a smack in the face?]

"Yeah, well, keep staring at Axe like that, and I think I'll book you guys a room together in the city." She could feel the weight of his hefty glare through the helmet. "Don't look at me like that. I'm just trying to keep the peace for as long as possible. Bo-Katan's riddled with anxiety as it is."

"He's not staring at me. He is staring at you." He stared off above her head.

Elodie glanced over to see what he was talking about. Catching her eyes, the Mandalorian in question took that as an invitation to roam his eyes up the length of her body. Her upper lip pulled back and an unpleasant shiver pickled down her spine.

The enforcer came to angle himself in front of her. It was a dishonor to pursue another individual who had undertaken the Riduurok. "I will behave when they do." [Love bond/Mandalorian marriage]

Tyr walked up to the side. "That sounds like a goddamn lie."

"No one asked you, Mir'sheb." He snapped. [Smartass]

She rolled her eyes at the both of them. "Gev!" [Pack it in!]

Tyr gave her a slight tilt of his helmet, arms crossing over his broad chest. "Yes, mother." Beside him, Paz clapped him on the shoulder, "Careful, Vod. Last time you challenged her, you lost." [Brother]

He relationship to the brothers was a strange one. Sometimes they would get along well, but most of the time they all butted heads and squabbled over little inconsequential things. The dynamic would often be Paz and Elodie ganging up against Tyr, depending on who gave the most smack.

To the side, Din waved her over.

She sighed, diving for the gap between the brothers as the continued their spat. Elodie said a short goodbye over her shoulder, and made her way over to her immediate family. Greef and his assistant were standing nearby, all apparently waiting for her to join them.

"Greef!" She laughed, hugging the man. "What're you doing here?"

The man joined her laugh, returning the hug firmly. "Good to see you too, my friend."

Pulling back, she caught sight of the bottle of alcohol Din tucked into the shoulder satchel, and her eyebrow rose at the magistrate. "Never mind that. I have something I want to show you both."

The man practically skipped with untamed excitement, leading the pair back to his office in the city. The ruins were already cleared away, and the people of Nevarro were now making reparations for the destroyed buildings and structural work.

Midway through the walk, Greef instructed his droid to notify the Anzellan's of his arrival. Elodie sat the child on the desk to allow him to burn off some energy as well as raid Greef's sweet stash. She overlooked the blueprints on his desk, sadly. "Any word from the Marshal?"

The magistrate grumbled. "I've tried. Not a single message or acknowledgement that she even received it."

Elodie was disappointed to hear that, even after the chaos of the city, Cara Dune made no effort to contact them. It was like she went off the radar completely. How little did their friendship really mean?

Her thoughts were broken when metal footfalls echoed in the doorway. IG-11 rounded the corner, stunning both Mandalorian's into silence. The droid was completely rebuilt to the same calibre as before, with the exception of the Anzellan operating in its chest cavity.

"What did you do to IG-11?" Din uttered. With the mood once again uplifted, Greed clapped his hands on the Mandalorian's shoulder, grinning madly at the droid. "No, that's IG-12 now. Do you like him?"

"Do I like him?" He looked from the droid to the magistrate, not knowing what to say. He was surprised, yes, but also did not know how to tell the man that he had no use for a droid that was not... sentient.

"Don't worry. He's safe." He reassured.

"That's not what I'm concerned about. It looks like a giant toy. We needed the IG to the eleven. Not a puppet."

"Well, the Anzellan's stripped IG down to his base motor functions. They removed his memory circuit. The pilot provides cognition." The magistrate thought it was a wonderful idea. An operational droid. He laughed at his own genius.

Stopping at the desk, the Anzellan dismounted with a struggle. Elodie frowned, watching it wiggle its small legs to find purchase. "Can I help you?" She winced, hands out to catch him if he were to fall. Anzellan's were feisty little creatures, their pride sometimes bigger than their humility. It grumbled but accepted the help. Elodie brought him to stand on the desk beside the child, who giggled at his new friend.

Greef tried to persuade the Mandalorian. "Think of it this way. It's more like a vehicle. Hmm? It's safer that way."

"Bad baby. No squeezie!" It squeaked at the child, skimming by the child to rush off without being manhandled like before. Grogu paid no mind, too preoccupied with trying to scale the arm of the droid.

A toddler in an IG unit? Elodie had to agree with Din; this seemed a little advanced for just a child. It would make him a bigger target alone. "Well, he's too little to operate this thing." He tried to shoo the child away from the droid exoskeleton, but Greef breezed by, scooping up the child to tuck him into the vacant slot. "No, no, no, no. Let's see if he fits."

Din sighed, allowing Greef to have his moment. Perhaps then he would understand why it was not a good idea. "So, what do you think?"

"They do nice work, I'll give them that. But Grogu is too young to operate heavy machinery. Maybe when he's older." Din protested.

"No."

"What do you mean, 'No?'" He asked, taken aback by the voice commands coming from the doid. The child pressed the button again.

"No."

Greef laughed again, and Elodie had to suppress her own blossoming smile at the child's defiant nature. "I think he's sayin' he's old enough to operate it."

"Yes."

Elodie giggled; she couldn't help it as it slipped from her lips. The Mandalorian was not having any of it. "Mmm-mmm. Get him out of there."

"No."

The magistrate advocated for the child. He was like a grandparent spoiling their grandchild against the parents' wishes. "No, at least let him try it out in my office."

"Yes."

"No, this is not a good idea. Come on." Growling, Din went to remove the child forcefully. The Anzellan gasped as the Mandalorian's hands were knocked away, and Grogu shakily operated the droid into walking.

Elodie's hands went out to stabilise a bust resting on a mantle. Grogu rounded the desk, and his movements became more fluid and succinct. Unimpressed, Din set his hands on his hips and glared over at the magistrate.

Ignoring the unwavering gaze of the helmet, Greef watched over the IG unit in amazement. Elodie had to silently agree with him in a change of heart; the child was more capable than they gave him credit for. Maybe his intellectual age was catching up to him despite being physically stunted. "Hey. Will you look at that?"

"Yes."

"'Yes' what?" Din snapped.

"Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes." IG spammed.

The Magistrate was chuffed with his gift and bid the family farewell as they needed to return to the Mandalorian groups. They were both eager to see how events were playing out in their absence. Elodie felt a little guilty for leaving Bo-Katan to face those challenges alone so soon into their merge.

"Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes-"

The child continued to spam the controls through the markets. Ahead of her, Din's shoulders were so tense they were hunched by his ears. As a bounty hunter, he was a master of patience. But Grogu managed to get on his nerves. Every single one.

"-Yes. Yes. Yes..."

A suspicious silence followed.

Looking back, the pair spotted the child harassing one of the vendors at a local food stall. Grogu helped himself to some of the delicacies, baring no mind to the disgruntled Tarsunt. "Grogu!" Elodie called out to the child, scolding him.

He looked up at her, but continued to scoff at the food.

Nerves rattled; Din snatched the food away. "What are you doing? Stop, Grogu. No. You have to pay for those."

While Din sorted the child out, Elodie dipped her hand into her pocket to dish out a few credits for the vendor's trouble. Grogu babbled unhappily, reaching for another fruit on the stand. Seeing this, the Mandalorian went to confiscate it. "No. Hey. Grogu."

"No."

"Give it." He held it out of reach. IG-11 was taller than the couple, and there was no way he could get it from the droids hands.

"No."

That was enough. If he could not control himself, he was therefore not responsible enough to operate a droid. "Grogu!" Elodie whirled around on the child, her tone seeping with authority. "You have to the count of three, young man. One. Two-"

IG squeezed the fruit to a pulp, and the juices doused the vendor. He flinched back as it splattered on his face. "Here." Elodie tossed a few more credits his way and pulled on the arm of the droid to keep him in tow, forcefully.

Din wiped a trickle of juice from his visor and followed the pair, silently seething. "This isn't working for me." The child had the nerve to look disappointed.

The walk back allowed their tempers to dwindle, and the couple just about managed to hold hands on the last stretch, now that there was no irritation radiating from either of them. Grogu walked behind them in silence, thankfully, moping at the turn of events. The Mandalorian tribes dissipated into their own subgroups as the sun fell to welcome the rise of the moon. But they maintained a no-mixing strategy within the ranks.

A deceased reptavian rotated above the spit, a catch from the covert, in celebration and welcome of the new Mandalorian integration. Per creed, none of the coverts removed their helmets, and they seemed to be taking it in shifts to rotate in the crudely made huts. The privateers ate openly in their groups, their gazes falling over the onlookers in the covert. For both sides, it was like watching an animal in an enclosure. Foreign.

Small chatter and the crackling of the fire were the only sounds breaking the silence. Everyone was on edge. That was, until Bo-Katan came out of a tent with the armourer close behind.

"Mandalorians." She called out. "It is time to retake our home world. Even though the planet is not cursed, there are still dangers. Dormant species have been awakened by the bomb. The remaining magnetic interference has made it impossible to scan the surface from above atmosphere. Which is why I'm proposing that we leave Nevarro and move the fleet into orbit above Mandalore. We send down a small recon party. We'll scout the surface, find out what remains of the Great Forge, and establish a safe perimeter. Only then will we bring down the others. I need volunteers from both tribes."

Some individuals looked away. Whether they did not believe in the union of tribes or their ability to restore Mandalore, it was unclear. Din Djarin looked to his partner, wanting to volunteer but also wanting to ensure that they were on the same page. The decisions were not his alone.

The Wolven was already shooting him a knowing look. The corner of her lip quirked up, and he knew the answer. Standing, he offered the help of his clan. "We will go. Grogu as well." Not understanding why his buirs were standing, the child shoved the reptavian meat in his mouth and stood on his seat. [parents]

"I will go." Koska Reeves was the first to stand on the other side, swiftly followed by Axe Woves. "I will go."

Seeing the other side volunteer, the Vizsla brothers shared a look, "We will go." Many other volunteers offered their support afterwards, a surprising mix from both tribes. The most shocking was the armourer, who stood last.

"I will go as well."

With the plans established to depart in the morning, each group stood down from their brash behaviour. Din, Elodie, and Grogu sat around beside the fire pit, where the remains of the reptavian lay thoroughly scavenged. The warmth of the fire was shared with others in their coverts. Bo-Katan was the only one of the helmetless Mandalorians to come to their side. She didn't yet feel comfortable enough with her old fleet to join them after this covert welcomed her with open arms, even after bearing her face again.

Elodie jumped up from her spot on the crate to grab a final serving of the rotisserie meat for the child. In her absence, Grogu climbed into her warm seat and plopped down, laughing to himself. "She won't be happy you took her seat." The Mandalorian smiled at the child's antics, shaking his head.

Chucking some of the meat in a portable dish and wiping the greasy residue on her pants, Elodie made her way back over to her seat. She stopped short, seeing that the child had stolen her spot, but kneeled down to hand him the tray with a pout on her lips. "On a mean streak today, aren't you, Ad'ika?" [little one]

In apology, Grogu lifted his hand to press it against her cheek. She smiled, nipping at his hand playfully. He went to snatch it back with a cry of shock, which led to a fit of giggles when she snatched his arm to kiss his hand all over. "Eat up, kiddo. We got a big day tomorrow."

She went to sit back on the floor but was hauled into someone's lap. Letting out a gasp like the child, she gave the Mandalorian wide eyes at his display of public affection. The man was full of surprises when he wanted to be. Din's hands came to rest on her hips as he settled her to rest against him. "Seating's a little short since we recruited."

Her eyes roamed the crowd of Mandalorians in the open field. Her admirer looked away to continue his conversation with Koska and another unknown Mandalorian. "I'm sure it has nothing to do with the Mandalorian that has been looking at me all night."

His hands tightened, sending an exciting tingle through her. If he were without his helmet, she would see the hard look in response to Axe's fleeting glances that he had been sending Elodie all night. "Kaysh mirsh solus." [He is an idiot/ his brain cells are lonely]

"You once told me you had a hard time believing that my eyes wouldn't stray from you. I ask you now, Who am I staring at?" Elodie shifted, so instead of her back to his chest, her legs were dangling off the side, and her arms swung over his shoulders. She placed her palm on the lip of his helmet to 'cup' his cheek and tilted his helmet to face her. "You are my life. My love. My family. I live for you, and no one can convince me otherwise. Not even that arrogant asshole."

Elodie could feel him staring deeply into her searching eyes, hoping that they connected through the dark abyss of the visor. "Dank Farrick," He mumbled, abruptly standing.

Elodie slid down his front to her feet; however, his tight hold prevented her from floating out of his orbit. He looked to Bo-Katan on the other side of Grogu, hiding behind the tankard she brought to her face to drink. Her face was smug and flushed at eavesdropping on the conversation between the lovers.

"Watch the child?"

She made a noise of acknowledgment through her full mouthful and tried to hide the smirk spreading over her face. "Mhm." Grogu whined at the disappearance of the two and looked up at the Mandalorian woman, who shook her head at him. "You are not old enough to have that conversation. And definitely not with me."

Din led Elodie away from the group with a hand latched onto the nape of her neck, purposefully through the privateers and a certain someone. The Wolven brandished a wide grin of her own at the Mandalorians' display of possessiveness. She found the jealousy thrilling and highly arousing, and it made her feel incredibly attractive.

The couple didn't make it to their tent.

Pinned against the side of a privateer starship, Elodie found herself gasping under Din's skillful hands. His hand was crudely shoved down the front of her pants, and working furiously at her cl*t. One of her hands clenched the lips of his cuirass to pull him impossibly closer. She needed more of his intoxicating touch. A heavy haze of ecstasy dazed her astute senses.

She knew that it wasn't going to be slow and intimate like before. It was going to be rough and desperate, like their first time together. They were about to leave to reclaim a war-ravaged planet and face foes they had never imagined battling. It would be a while before they had any alone time again.

The helmet had to stay on Din's head in case anyone was to stumble across their little rendezvous; Din didn't care for it. He almost wanted them too. The thought of being caught was all the more riveting and sent blood pulsating down south. He could see it now—the shock on someone's face as they passed by to see Elodie completely in bliss under his touch.

The Wolven weaved her fingers through the soft tufts of hair at the nape of his neck, just under the rim of his helmet. He'd unlocked the latches to allow her hands to explore and for the thick, stuffy air in the helmet to filter out quicker.

She smiled in her climax, her lips pulled back to reveal the sharp tips of her incisors. Din raised his spare hand to her face, encircling her lips and tugging down the bottom one while imagining them wrapped around his co*ck. Elodie sucked the gloved finger into her mouth. Groaning, he could feel the suction tug at the padded leather.

Din did not wait for her to recover from the org*sm that rattled her brain and hastily made a move to discard the clothing on her lower half. "What is this material?" It was reluctant to peel off her skin.

It was the set Greef had given her to allow her to undergo the changing without worrying about nudity. It was quite literally a second skin. "My suit. Greef gave it to me."

"He gave you underwear." He tutted. Elodie shakily managed to undo the fastenings of his trousers to free his painfully hard co*ck. It sprung free with a dribble of cum already beading at the tip. "New rule: No talking about other men while having sex."

She smirked playfully. "My eyes are only for you."

Elodie slid down the length of his body to drop down in front of him. He almost came at the sight of the Wolven on her knees, eagerly eyeing his member like her next meal. "Say it again."

"My eyes are only for you, Beroya." She looked up to him, pressing her lips to kiss the head and letting her tongue dart out to lick at the pearlescent white bead. The salty tang flooded her taste buds. [bounty hunter]

He had no time for petty kitten licks. She hollowed her cheeks and sucked around the tip. Din's hands found their home on either side of her face and tried to bob her deeper. "C'mon, Eddy. You can take me better than that."

The small spark that ached to please him exploded into a fiery blaze, igniting the depths of her soul like a wildfire. Challenge accepted.

Elodie widened her jaw, taking him down to the hilt in one sudden movement. "Ah! Maker!" Din moaned, the sound semi-unfiltered, escaping the unlatched helmet. She cursed the helmet in its entirety; she wanted to see the slackness of his jaw or the roll of his eyes while she pleasured him.

"I love your filthy f*ckin' mouth." Elodie moved back and took him again, nose burying in the small patch of hair leading up to his dark, wispy snail trail. He wasn't going to last with the steady bobs of her head and the feeling of her throat vibrating around his co*ck as she made noises of delight in response to his rambling.

"I can't- Stand. Now." He pulled himself free from the hypnotising spell she cast over him and removed her mouth. A trail of drool connected his groin to her lips, which were puffy from use. She whined, but he used her forearms, which braced themselves on his hips, to haul her back up and into the external wall of the starship.

She could feel the slick running down her exposed legs as she clenched around nothing in anticipation. Din invaded her space, and she welcomed the hard ridges of searingly cold Beskar.

He clasped a hand around her thigh to sweep it over his hip, and she hopped into his awaiting arms to hook the other. Her back slammed into the steel alloy of the starship. The tassets on his thighs sent a shiver along her skin. Din wasted no more time in teasing games and careened his hips into hers. "That's it, Mesh'la. Take it. Oh my fu- you're so tight." [Beautiful]

Din felt Elodie's breath hitch with the intrusion and only paused for a minute for her to accommodate his girth. She opened her mouth to gasp larger volumes of air when he began rocking his pelvis. His thrusts were not gentle or practiced like before. They were fast and hard; his relentless pace caused his skin to slap against her, and Elodie couldn't help but moan at the lewd sounds of her slick.

"Who the f*ck do you belong to?"

One of her hands gasped at the ridges in the wall of the ship above her while the other braced around his shoulders. She raised her hips away from the wall to meet his thrusts, her pace wild to try and match the unwavering motion of his hips.

She couldn't think. She could barely breathe. The only thing she could remotely focus on was the euphoria that was Din as he used her to chase his own release. His hand, which was not supporting her thigh, tucked around Elodie's waist to aid her in clashing down against him.

Din stopped.

Her eyes snapped open, and she looked at the man holding her, mouth open to protest. She didn't realise her eyes had fallen shut or the slew of noises ripping from her throat. "What are you doing?" She tried to move her hips to encourage him to continue, but he pinned her firmly against the ship. "Din."

"I said, Who do you f*cking belong to?" He growled.

There was no hesitation about it. "You, Din, please. f*ck! I belong to you. Please move!"

Pleased, Din brought his hips back slowly and slammed them back into her, not even withdrawing halfway before his co*ck was buried to the hilt again. "Yes! Din, please!" He grunted louder now, spurred on by her breathless plea's of encouragement. The waves of pleasure that were slowly washing over him are now beginning to drown him. "That's it. f*cking beg for it."

His hand slipped from its hold on her waist and looped around her neck in a tight grip. "Only I know what can make you squirm." Her lungs screamed for air, and the lack of oxygen made her head feel light. All she could focus on was the overwhelming tension relieved in her lower abdomen.

In the background, he could hear Elodie try to call out the pulsating clench of her puss* as he f*cked her straight through her peak. Only when the fog cleared from his mind did he release its grip on her throat.

She gulped down lungfuls of air, like she'd been underwater for an extended period of time. Her thighs quivered on his tassets, and he struggled now to bear the weight of her following his otherworldly climax, but he made no move to release her. Instead, he brushed his fingers along her collarbones.

Elodie laughed breathlessly, head falling onto his shoulder. "I don't think I can move."

He wished he could kiss her. "I don't want you to move."

Her legs slipped from his hands, and her feet met the floor. His body kept her pinned while they got used to their weight again. Din laughed, also feeling his breath stutter. "We need to get back to Grogu. It's past his bedtime."

"I'm sure he'll be fine with his auntie Bo." The Wolven stroked the back of his neck beneath the cowl, and he was almost pulled into another daze before pulling away. Din tucked himself back into his suit, making sure none of his personal effects were knocked off during their, ahem, canoodling. "But you're right. We should head back."

"I am very rarely wrong." She teased, placing her hands on his shoulders when he bent to assist in putting her legs back into her trousers. Their collective lick on her inner thighs was uncomfortable, but she would have to wait to change them when they actually reached their tent to retire for the night.

The couple made sure that the other was presentable prior to returning to the group of Mandalorian's. The number had diminished for both tribes, but still, a fair few remained. Mostly to keep an eye on the other group.

Bo-Katan shook her head when they returned, but said nothing. The child was asleep against her side, warmed by the heat radiating off the fire. Paz kept his stiff posture on the other side of the flames, occasionally stoking it and feeding it when it dwindled.

Din took back his seat from before, and rather than sitting on his lap, she sat on the floor between his legs with her arms resting over his thighs. His hand hung to splay just under her throat, the other entwined in his lap. They couldn't keep their hands off each other.

"Good f*ck?"

Her jaw dropped. What the hell?

"Tyr!" Members around the fire all turned to look at him in shock.

"We were all thinking it!" His hands were held up in surrender, but with the way his shoulders shook beneath the Beskar's pauldron, he was enjoying it. "You've had that sh*t-eating grin on your face since returning. It's pretty obvious."

Elodie's face reddened. Bo-Katan let out a small laugh and tried to defend them. "Doesn't mean it needs to be said."

"He's not wrong. Djarin practically kidnapped her." Paz pitched in.

Suddenly, it felt like everyone was ganging up on the pair. Din remained silent behind her. Coward! "Our... personal activities have nothing to do with anybody." She fiercely denied, finger pointed. Members of the group chuckled at their expense. Under the helmet, Din felt mortified. His silence was in keeping with his embarrassment. He knew this lot; they were his family. Anything he said was going to get thrown right back at him. The only choice they had was to take it.

"Honestly, sometimes I think the only one on our side is the armourer."

"I assure you, I am a neutral party." The woman said, neither confirming nor denying. "Though perhaps next time, you might consider a more subtle approach."

That was it. Din had officially died. All his life's decisions flashed through his very eyes. Her answer triggered another round of laughter from the group. It was nice to have a lighter atmosphere since the Mandalorian privateers arrived, even if it was at their expense.

"That's it! Screw the lot of you; we're going to bed." Elodie couldn't help but smile and collected the sleeping child. Din jumped to his feet, his helmet facing the floor, as he had already begun his escape.

Paz asked them as they were standing, "Do you want us to take Grogu for the night? Young ears hear everything." Their steps grew faster, and the harassment continued.

Elodie gave him a glare, but the amusem*nt in her eyes gave her away.

The pair ignored him and stepped around the crates to leave. "At least put him in the pram!" Tyr called, resulting in more laughter.

Elodie flipped him off.

Chapter 33: Chapter 29: The Spies (Part 2)

Chapter Text

Elodie understood there was more meaning behind her simple words, just by the look in her eyes and returned the smile. She sipped her own drink until there was nothing but dregs and they waited for the others to get stationed. The pair walked towards the Gauntlet where Din was waiting for them beside Grogu who was suited up, quite literally, inside the IG unit.

The rest of the recon team had already boarded the ship and sat themselves in the deployment section of the hull. Once they neared Mandalore, Elodie walked up to the child in his suit and gave his forehead a gentle kiss. Grogu babbled and looked into her eyes before she pulled away to have a moment with her husband just outside of the co*ckpit and in the small corridor that led down to the hull.

The Mandalorian pulled her into him, arm around her waist and the other holding the side of her face so that he could stare into her eyes one last time before their mission. Elodie had her hand on the back of his helmet, pressing his forehead firmly against her own and the other clutched at his bicep of the arm around her.

Their moment was silent. No words needed to be said. They both had already established their vows to one another.

Elodie closed her eyes, committing this small moment of peace to memory. The feel of his arms around her. The cold kiss of Beskar against her head. The dark visor that stared helplessly down at her. The way his fingers curled in the flesh of her hip, but the hand on her face skimmed over her cheek with feather light touch. Words were incapable of describing the importance of the man in front of her. She loved him, completely, entirely and with every fibre of her being.

The hallway lights flared red- a warning that they were approaching the atmosphere and needed to strap in for safety. Bo-Katan's way of letting them know their time was up.

Reluctantly, Din peeled away from the Wolven. His hands closing into fists to stop himself from reeling her right back in to not let go. She gave him one of her award winning smiled and he brought one of her hands to tap her knuckles against his forehead.

Elodie took the vacant seat at the end of the row beside the armourer while Din returned to be seated in the co*ckpit with Grogu and Bo-Katan. The latter spoke over the PA system, "Scouting party descending to surface."

As she secured the clasp of her belt, the ship rocked with the intensity of the raging thunderstorms shrouding Mandalore. "We'll lose comms shortly." This was the point of no return.

The steel alloy of the ship rattled like it was under heavy blaster fire from the sharp pellet of rain battering it. The outside roared with the hurricane's and some of the Mandalorian along the row gripped their belts tighter.

But not Paz. He let his body jerk with the movements and made no move to fix himself into position. It wasn't long before the ship stabilized and the rumblings of lightening stopped.

Underneath their feet, the hatch opened up to expose the destruction of the surface of the planet. Seeing the gargantuan shards of obsidian from the fusion bombs, Paz found himself muttering, "It's worse than I thought."

"I was here when it happened." Axe told him, remembering The Night of a Thousand Tears as if it happened yesterday. Din came to stand at the end of the row to ensure that they were prepared for drop. Starting from Paz and working their way up the row, they each gave each other a nod of approval like paratroopers.

When the armorer nodded to her with her brassy helmet, Elodie looked to nod and fixed him with one of her own. He dipped his helmet, going to inform Bo-Katan that they were set to go. At his disappearance, Elodie unclasped her belt which signaled the others to as well.

Tyr leaned forward to shoot a the Wolven a quick comment. "I'll race you to the bottom." Despite the seriousness of the situation, Elodie felt a small amount of amusem*nt.

"10 credits say otherwise." He chuckled and leaned back. The man was older than her, but his childish behaviour sometimes overshadowed it.

The seat gave away beneath them and Elodie once again was free falling from the Gauntlet. She directed her jet pack to a flat area of land that would be an ideal landing spot for the ship and the others followed her target.

One-by-one they landed, weapons at the ready to ward off any unwanted attention. Alamites or otherwise. The Mandalorian's grouper together for a three hundred and sixty degree scope. Tyr cleared his area and looked to Elodie.

Seeing nothing in her eye line, nor hearing anything approach, she gave Paz a look to confirm they were clear. Paz looked around too with his infrared vision and also gave an approving nod.

"Gauntlet, landing zone secure." He eventually said over the comms.

The Gauntlet landed and everyone took a second to really take in their surroundings. They hadn't seen the extent of the bombings before.

"Somewhere below is where our ancient capital once stood." Bo-Katan reminded them to see beyond the damage of the surface. The potential of the planet to be home once again. "We'll survey the surface until we find the Forge and create a safety zone. Only then will we begin to bring down the settlers. We start scouting in that direction."

Her lips upturned, donning her helmet. "Form up."

They walked. And walked.

Until the Gauntlet was no longer in sight. Nothing presented itself on the surface during their scouting mission and there was no gaps in the thick crystalline obsidian to inspect below the surface.

"There, on the horizon." Din notified, seeing something in the distance.

The Nite Owls dropped their rangefinders as the object started to get closer. Paz readied his mini-gun and stood central to the group at its main source of defense. It was large and travelling fast to cross the distance. It was not an organic entity. It was a crawler of some kind. Bo assessed the threat. "Nite Owls."

"Flanking left." Axe and Koska dove for the rocks to the left. She caught the Wolven's eyes. "Djarin clan."

"Flanking right." Elodie announced, running to find cover on the other side with the Mandalorian in tow. All guns were raised in clear view of the approaching threat.

It physically looked like a boat, but for land travel. Stabilizers on either side helped the ship to careen across the topography of the surface. It stopped at some distance away. From where Elodie hid, she could make out movement on the deck.

"Do you have food?" A voice called. Male.

At the unexpected call, Bo-Katan disengaged her range finder but kept her helmet in place. "We do."

The same masculine voice responded. "You wear the crest of the Nite Owls?"

"I should hope so." She replied, wondering how they knew of her. Where they invaders? Scavengers? These people were not the beasts they half expected to come across by now.

The armourer came to the realisation first, taking a step out forward. "They're Mandalorians."

"Is that the voice of Lady Bo-Katan Kryze?" A different man asked, stunned. Bo-Katan cast a glance at Koska. "It is."

Their own jet packs brought them over to stand in front of the reckon team. Bo-Katan held a hand up to stop an assault on the mysterious group. Three men landed, all haggard with severely worn Beskar'gam.

They removed their helmets and held their left hands over their chest in respect to their former leader. The man in the middle seemed to be the captain of the ship ahead. "We knew you would not forsake us, Lady Bo-Katan. We have failed you, but our blasters remain in your service."

Elodie and Din stepped out from behind their cover, holstering their weapons. On the other side, Koska and Axe did the same. The indigenous Mandalorians welcomed the reckon team aboard their ship so that they would be able to have a more in depth discussion.

Night was closing in already on Mandalore, though it had been barely more than an afternoon for the other Mandalorian's that came from Nevarro. Nevarro was in an entirely different system which led to vast time differences.

Elodie frowned at the sick and wounded individual's that lay in cots strew on the top deck. The captain ushered them further to the bow and requested they all sit at a vacant table. Tyr dished out food for the group and those who could remove their helmets to eat, did so.

The Indigenous Mandalorian's scoffed their food like half starved animals. Worse than Elodie and Grogu, Din mused to himself. Speaking of, the Wolven opted not to eat her share and scooped the child from the IG unit to allow him to stretch his legs and feast.

The captain was the first to speak when he finished wolfing down his meal. "They intercepted any ships they saw leaving. They took no prisoners. They bomb every surface twice over. They punished us as a warning to the whole galaxy because we refused to surrender."

"That's not true." Bo confessed, "I did surrender."

Koska looked ready to speak up and defend her, but was silenced with the shake of her head. "After our forces were annihilated in the Night of a Thousand Tears and defeat was imminent, I met with Moff Gideon. The ISB had reached out to me to negotiate a cease-fire. In exchange for submitting to the Empire and disarming, all remaining cities and Mandalorian lives were to be spared. That is how Moff Gideon came to possess the Darksaber. I didn't trust him, but it was the only chance I had to save our people. And then he betrayed me and we were helpless to resist the Purge of Mandalore."

The other man looked at the group. "How did these others survive?"

"We were hidden on the moon of Concordia." The armourer disclosed. Her answer would only lead to further questions and the other Mandalorian's may not be as open to accepting the partnership between the Mandalorian sect's.

Elodie could feel the man's eyes shift to her. "Are you Mandalorian?" She bore no Mandalorian armour excluding her vambraces and jet pack. The pendants around her neck were a clear sign that she was somehow involved with the Mandalorian culture.

Was she a Mandalorian?

The question had long been on her mind. By marriage, she was. She swore to no creed and abides by no rules set by either tribe. At least, not anymore. Elodie did not care for any further armour as it would be useless if she were to undergo the changing. Her vambraces were adaptable.

But the laws of Mandalorian culture were shifting beneath their very feet. She was helping to reclaim their planet and was taken under the wing of the Death Watch. She was raised with the armour and lived the life of one before having it stripped away. Her brother remained a Mandalorian that followed no rule but his own.

Helplessly, she looked to the armourer in hopes it would give her the answer she sought. The woman was wiser than anybody she knew.

She dipped her helmet and it was all the acceptance she needed. Having the armourer, a strict follower of the Death Watch recognise her rank as a Mandalorian meant more to her than her expression let on.

"I am."

The captain eyed their helmets and the untouched foot in front of them. His suspicions rose. "Are you Death Watch?" The owlish Mandalorian woman instantly shut him down. "Death Watch exists no longer."

"It shattered into many warring factions. Our people have suffered time and again. From division and squabbling factions. Mandalore has always been too powerful for any enemy to defeat. It is always our own division that destroys us." Bo-Katan said assertively. She did not want any more bad blood between the factions. They only had one collective enemy, and that was the empire and anyone else who tried staking their claim on this planet.

It was a little while later that Din caught Bo-Katan standing alone at the bow while the rest of the team rested.

The Mandalorian had wanted to speak to the woman about what she had said earlier. Him and his tribe had misunderstood and underestimated the woman. "I had no idea. We were taught that everyone but us had forsaken the Way. That you were selfish and uncaring. Now I understand."

"You were right. I was selfish. And this is what it wrought." The words hurt to say.

He stepped closer and she turned to face him. "We'll rebuild it. Isn't that our history? For thousands of years, we have been on the verge of extinction, and for thousands of years, we have survived."

She held up the hilt of the blade that was strapped to her hip. "I don't know if I can keep everyone together. There's too much animosity. And this blade is all I have to unify our people."

He focused his visor on her face to portray his certainty. "I only know of this weapon what you taught me. To be honest, it means nothing to me or my people. Nor does station or bloodline. What means more to me is honor. And loyalty. And character." Din held his hand across his chest like the Indigenous Mandalorian's. A sign of respect. "These are the reasons I serve you, Lady Kryze. My clan and my covert are all here in support of you. Your song is not yet written. I will serve you until it is."

With than, he left the woman to her own thoughts.

On the other side of the ship, Elodie, Tyr and the armourer were helping the sounded and sick. The armourer helped to hand out necessities to the captain as he darted over some of the people to check in.

Elodie helped to deliver the food to the people and feed those who couldn't eat unassisted. Tyr, to her utter surprise, was a gifted healer. His hands were quick to help bind wounds and assess the severity of some of the injuries. His metal arm had a gadget embedded which allowed him to cauterize wounds.

Very few of the Mandalorian's slept as they set sail for the Gauntlet. The night was spent transferring the vulnerable into the ship for departure and making sure that they were prepared for going off world to the ex-Imperial cruiser hovering above the planet with the rest of the fleet.

Setting the last cot down, Din helped to buckle the cot drop to avoid it sliding about the hull. Those who were mobile helped Tyr to tend to the weaker ones.

Paz and Tyr clapped their hands together, bringing it in to bump shoulders. "See you when we have reclaimed our planet once and for all." The former said, voice gruff form not speaking.

"Ret'urcye mhi, vod." [Goodbye, brother]

The armourer headed to the co*ckpit for take off the Mandalorian's staying behind left the Gauntlet.

The Gauntlet took off into the air. And they would see them on the other side.

"Onward, Mandalorians! To the Forge!" The captain ordered.

They travelled at the fastest pace that the ship allowed. They were all eager to reach the forger and clear the area, for the fleet to be reunited with them. The extra room on the deck allowed for the Mandalorian's to stretch and rest if they needed to.

To the stern where the cots sat, Some of the Mandalorian's tried to sleep. Bo-Katan, Elodie, and Din were stood under the fabric shelter beside the tiller overlooking the game played on the bow. It was Paz against Axe in a neck-to-neck game of chess. They took their time making their moves, pausing to ascertain a reaction from the other.

Paz moved his piece.

"You can't move an Enforcer like that." Axe looked at the game with a frown. The helmetless Mandalorian's mumble in agreement behind him.

"It's a flank jump. And you're about to submit." The enforcer explained. Axe didn't understand what the man was trying to convey. The rules of the game were simple. "But only the Wing Guard can flank jump."

"The Enforcer moves like a Wing Guard when it's flanking." He said slower, almost tauntingly. Tensions grew thicker.

Axe sighed and looked back to his comrades. "These primitives make up their own rules for everything." Koska laughed at the joke and Paz bristled with offense. He would not stand for such blatant disrespect for his people or his creed.

Axe went to reverse the move; too late. Paz stood, uplifting the board and brandishing his vibroblade.

"Seriously?" Axe scoffed, it was easy to rile up the brute.

Paz gave him an ultimatum. "Submit or fight."

"Can you believe this?"

Abruptly, Axe ignited his jet pack to knee Paz in the chin and landed with his vibroblade out. Paz took a step back and gained his composure quickly. Paz swiped the blade but Axe brought up his vambrace to deflect the hit. The roles reversed and Axe went to strike. Paz grabbed his wrist in a painfully tight hold to prevent the hit from landing.

Din looked between the pair. He understood why Bo-Katan could not intervene. "Should I step in?" He offered.

"Neither side can step in." She retorted.

Paz blocked an elbow and send Axe sprawling to the floor. Elodie couldn't help but feel a modicum of joy at the arrogant Mandalorian having his ass handed to him.

"It was bound to happen sooner or later." The leader sighed deeply.

Axe used his jet pack to sail across the floor and weep the enforcers legs out from beneath him. Paz picks up a blade on his way back up and the both try and fail to land a hit. Bored, Paz swung Axe into some crates. He pants for a moment to regain some composure before being batted away again.

Elodie could see Paz's strategy. He was simply batting him around like a doll. A little pay back from his snide remarks and leering glares to his covert. Paz could be a bully sometimes, but he always stuck up for his family.

Axe went for another attack and Paz stepped up to match him-

"No. No. No." The IG unit spammed.

Grogu stood in between the two men, one hand on each of their chests to prevent them causing further harm. The Mandalorian's looked down at the child, their anger fading.

Good. If they were to continue fighting and risk hurting the child in their feud, there would have been all hell to pay. The Wolven was eyeing their interaction very carefully. If one of them so much as twitches their pinky-

Bo-Katan nudged the Mandalorian at her side. "You taught your apprentice well."

"He didn't learn that from me." Din humoured her, looking to the Wolven at his side. The heat in her gaze settled when the two men walked away from another.

They were both proud of the child and who he was shaping out to be. Elodie held a hand up to her mouth to stifle her smile. She could admit that the Jedi's had a good influence on the child.

A whistle came from the crows nest. The Mandalorian scouting their surrounding alerted the crew of movement up ahead.

"There, on the starboard bow!"

The terrain in front of the ship shifted. Mandalorian's moved to don their helmets. What look like shards of the fusion bombs lifted from the ground to reveal a giant lizard that looked like a per-historic ankylosaurus. It roared at the sight of the ship, mistaking it for a larger threat.

Everyone was thrown to the side and the ship veered drastically to the right to evade it's buck. It whirled around, swinging its bulbous tail.

"Abandon ship!"The captain shouted, alerting all aboard. Those who reacted in time, ignited their jet packs and escaped the destruction that followed.

"Let's go!" Axe nodded for Paz to share the weight of the IG unit when Din and Elodie were on the far side of the ship. The flew off into the air. Some Mandalorian's that managed to flee the ship got caught in to raining debris.

A burst of flames erupted from the collision and the lizard was too preoccupied with destroying the ship to notice the fleeing inhabitants. Elodie landed roughly with a grunt, stumbling to help another Mandalorian to their feet.

It was hard to distinguish anyone among the masses of terror. Heavy smog coalesced to from a thick film of soot on the surface of their armour and flesh. The Mandalorian's to the front of the group led the way.

Someone fell into her side and Elodie grabbed at the body, helping them to remain upright. Koska gave her a nod of gratitude, following the group into an underground cave. Somewhere they were all hesitant to explore given past experiences.

"This way! This way!" The captain shouted ahead, "Hurry up! Faster!"

Elodie ducked inside to shelter from the large chunks of flying debris when he caught site of the Mandalorian checking on Grogu in his suit.

She ran over to them, visually observing them to check for signs of injury. "You both okay?" Din had seen her rushing over and held out an arm for her to curl into when she met up with them. He gave her a nod to confirm and they were interrupted when the ground above them rumbled from an impact of some kind.

Loose colluvium soil spoiled the air as it dislodged from the ceiling. It made her question to structural integrity of the entire cave system. Would it hold up against the barrage of attacked from the beast above?

The Wolven recognized a lot of the faces around her and thankfully, not many of them had been killed in the attack.

"We're not far. We need to go further down." The captain urged the Mandalorian's. There were many routes in these tunnels but he knew exactly which ones to follow. The rumbling of the surface diminished, the further they ventured. "Go, go."

Going through yet another tunnel, Elodie half expected them to go into another. Rather, there was a wide open cave ahead. The thin pain dropped to a cliff face and in that drop sat a large metal cylinder with large formations coming off of it. As if metal could have roots like trees.

The sight was impressive and Din said out loud in his curiosity, "Where are we?"

"This is what's left of the Great Forge. This was once the heart of our civilization. But the fires have been extinguished since the bombings." Axe answered him, removing his helmet to take in the sight. Other Mandalorian's followed his lead, including Bo-Katan. This is what they were after. And when the coast was clear, they would be able to signal for the other Mandalorian's to descend the fleet.

"You lived here?" Paz asked incredulously.

"We all did."

The captain walked past them. "We never left. Survived by migrating along the surface until the war ended. Some tried to explore below, but none survived."

The sound of jet packs echoes in the cave. "Jet packs?"

But all the Mandalorian's they were aware of were grounded. Everyone looked around for the cause to see white armoured figures flying in from the far right- the direction they were heading.

"More survivors?" Axe pondered hopefully. The blotches of monochrome became clearer as they flew closer. Storm troopers. And it looked like their armour had been updated. "Those aren't Mandalorians."

The Mandalorian's put back on their helmets and readied for another fight. "They're Imperials!" Axe called at the top of his lungs.

"Take cover." Din followed. For those with large rock formations nearby, they dove behind them and the ones standing out in the open relied on their Beskar armour for protection.

Shots fired at the troopers didn't penetrate the cheap armour like usual. Instead, the polished alloy deflected the shots. "They're wearing beskar armor!"

The Mandalorian's were pinned down between a rock and a hard place. Retreat to the giant lizard or get gunned down here with no other way out but to carry on. "We're pinned down. We need backup." Din raised his voice.

"I can make a run for the fleet and get us reinforcements." Axe offered, firing over his cover and ducking as more shots hit the rocks.

"No, it's too far." Bo-Katan refused, but the man was persistent. "I can make it. It's our only shot at taking the planet back."

Overhearing the conversation, Paz pointed out a crack in the ceiling. It was too narrow for all of the Mandalorian's to make their escape, but it would be enough for one. "There's a split in the ceiling there. I'll lay down cover."

The Mandalorian did not wait for words of confirmation and stepped out from behind his cover, mini-gun spewing shots rapidly to divert the Imperial super commando's attentions. The troopers land on the far end of the walkway in the direction they were initially heading. Any longer and their jet packs probably would have ran out of fuel.

With the opportunity of close combat fighting, some of the Mandalorian's standing nearer ran for the

Koska shot her fibrecord around ones' neck to yank him back, shooting him when he was on the floor.

Grogu stayed back, hidden well behind a large rock formation that was tall enough to shield the droids body entirely. Elodie and Din stood guard in front of it to disallow anyone that dared tried to pass.

Din rushed at an imperial trooper, tackling him with a grunt and Elodie shot him dead before he hit the ground. Elodie walked past him with her plasma shield raised. A trooper stupidly kept steadily firing on the shield rather than the rest of her body and when she was close enough, directed the blaster away.

The edge of her shield beat down into his wrist, making him release his hold on the gun and she smashed it against his helmet. He fell to the floor and she did not hesitate to ripped off his cuirass. Elodie ejected her blade to stab him.

Using the chest plate as a frisby, she flung it into the next opponent charging at her and she scooped it up as she went by it so she could bring it down into his neck repeatedly. When he was dead, she threw it aside.

Bo-Katan was outnumbered where she was standing, but she could hold her own. She kicked an imperial, rolling forward through another's legs to fire at his back. Going to shoot another, her blaster was knocked away.

Compromising, she kicked him over the edge and turned to stab someone attempting to sneak up behind her. Turning a final time, she shot at the Imperial flying back up from where she threw him over.

"They're retreating!" Someone announced.

It was true. The Imperial commando's ran down the corridor they were guarding. They had to find out why the Imperial's were on Mandalore or what they were guarding. At the very least, they had to kill them and rid the planet of the filth. Bo-Katan looked around. Only a few Mandalorian's of her team were defeated in the firefight.

"Advance!"

Feeling victorious, some of the indigenous Mandalorian's were cheering. "For Mandalore!

The Mandalorian's were right on the Imperial commando's trail. Every corner they turned was another they were followed down. "Keep up, Ad'ika." [little one]

Elodie stayed to the rear to ensure Grogu kept up and they were not ambushed, while Din and Bo-Katan led the battalion. With the support of Paz's mini-gun, they were able to clear the hallways faster than they anticipated. The commando's barely had a chance to flee.

Rounding a corner, they walked into another open space.

The Beskar clad Imperials took flight over the edge of the platform overhanging a deep crevasse. The opposing cliff side exposed a hidden network of tunnels and rooms devised from the Empire. The earth of Mandalore had been housing imperial scum. Strung up were Imperial starfighters and TIE fighters on standby for deployment. The base was illuminated and very much inhabited.

While the others were in suspended states of animation, Bo-Katan whispered. "What is this place?"

"Imperial trash." Elodie spat, face screwing up. She took a step backwards.

Behind them, the cargo door slams shut. A few Mandalorian's to the back rush at it to try and manipulate it into opening again. Alarmed, Elodie ran for Din just as the door also came down in front of her. Bo-Katan and Elodie rushed at the door while Paz fired his heavy blaster. Nothing made the door budge and there were key pads to fry. "Din! Din!"

It was a trap and they ran head first into it.

On the other side of the door, Din stood with Gunnar and two unknown Mandalorian's. Multiple Imperials came rushing onto the platform and started firing their blasters. "It's an ambush!" Din shouted.

Din heard a guttural cry to his left and saw that Gunnar had been shot down. He realised that his blaster alone was not going to dispel the number of opponents in front of him and released a torrent of flames from his vambrace. The flames lit a few on fire and sent a couple more over the edge.

A bolt to skimming his glove made Din drop his blaster from pure shock. Luckily, it didn't penetrate the demi-gaunt protecting his wrist.

As he brought his hand around in a semi-circle to ward them off, a fibrecord whipped around his beck and he was pulled back. Din unholstered his blaster to shoot but that same wrist was also apprehended and held outstretched. His flamed died out and another cord shot around that wrist.

Grunting from exertion, he yanks the cord only for the troopers to cross over and pin his arms down to the opposite sides. From there he was bundled as they struggled to rein in his rage. A kick to the back of the knee sent him to the floor where he was unable to stand.

Behind him, the doors trembled from the battery and a a staccato growl echoed.

A dark trooper landed in front of him and the pounding stopped. The dark troopers black helmet resembled the armourer in that the visor was angular with thick, stubby horns adorning the crown. The armour looked to be freshly cast and polished with signature imperial medals pinned to the upper left pectoral. The matching black cape flowed majestically as they walked over to stand over the kneeling Mandalorian, the inner lining a stark bloody red.

Moff Gideon removed the helmet. "Disarm him."

The troopers holding Din removed his jet pack and weaponry, attaching the equipment on themselves. His blaster left discarded on the platform alongside the bodies of the fallen Mandalorian's.

The Wolven's ears pricked at the grating, smug voice of the Imperial leader and she shifted back to spy him through the window. At the sight of Din ambushed and defenseless, Elodie trembled. Not with fear, but pure unadulterated rage. Her claws dug deeply into her violently shaking hands and only murder overwhelmed her thoughts.

Her ears picked up a mechanical whirring as he stepped suggesting that their was some kind of engineering in the suit which supported his movements.

Gideon cast his eyes over the Mandalorian's standing on the other side of the window. "Thank you for gathering the Mandalorians into one place. You were a talented people, but your time has passed. However, as you can see, Mandalore will live on in me. Thanks to your planet's rich resources, I have created the next generation Dark Trooper suit forged from beskar alloy. And the most impressive improvement is that it has me in it. You see, every society has something to offer. The cloners. The Jedi. And even the Mandalorians. By aggregating the best of each, I will create an army that will bring order to the galaxy. Why don't we take your fleet off the board while we still have the element of surprise. Activate the interceptors and bomb."

"No!" Bo-Katan blurted, fearing for the lives of her team above the atmosphere. Soldiers on the other side of the crevasse scurried to their ships.

"In but a few moments, the Purge of Mandalore will be complete." He carried on, then looked down the Mandalorian at his mercy. Oh what to do.... "Take him to the debriefing room."

"No!" Elodie yelled, beating at the door as they hauled Din to his feet. "Din! No, please!"

"Ni kelir mar-!" His helmet turned to face her, calling out to her. One of the troopers roughly grabbed the back of his helmet, forcing his head down as they exited through another hallway leading off the platform. "- Ni kelir mar'eyir gar!" [I will find you]

"I should have killed you when I had the chance." The woman beside her gritted out behind clenched teeth. He stopped his retreat to face the woman. "Bo-Katan. We have to stop meeting like this."

Her eye twitches. Moff Gideon held one of their own hostage, and their group was trapped. He was the one with the upper hand. "I'll make sure of it." She promised.

"My little wolf, what a surprise to see you here. Human." He didn't look as surprised as his word let on. There was a malicious gleam to to his eyes from ill intent.

"Motherf*cker." Her voice came out as a low rasp from yelling. "I am going to enjoy tearing you limb from f*cking limb."

"How original." His satisfied smirk fell, it was psychopathic the way his face became neutral and eyes became dead pits. "Let's skip the pleasantries, shall we? I believe this is the part where you return the Dark Saber to its rightful owner."

The Imperial officer held out an open hand to request the Dark Saber.

Bo-Katan held it up to the window to show that she was complying with his orders. There had to be another way to avoid history from repeating. She was not willingly giving up the Dark Saber again, she wouldn't fall for that old trick again. He was going to try and massacre her and her people like before. This time, she would fight with her best warriors standing by her side.

"Now, surrender the Darksaber, and tell these people that this planet is mine."

Bo-Katan backed away from the door, nodding to Paz to initiate cover fire. "This is the Way."

She ran to the rear door, using the blade from the Dark Saber to cut a hole large enough for their escape. "Open the blast doors. kill them."

Paz and the other Mandalorian's all fired as the front door opened up and Imperial super commandos came storming in. Moff Gideon fled along with his personal guard.

Bo-Katan kicked the scorned metal and watched it collapse. "Move out!" One by one the Mandalorian's took it in turns to duck through to the other side of the door and run back the way they came from.

"Move out!" They echoed, signalling each other when to make their move. Bo-Katan stood beside the door to guard it, and provide cover fire while Paz stood to the front, closest to the opposition with heavy infantry blaster, downing Imperials faster than they could manifest. "Fall back! I'll cover the rear!"

"Go! Go! Go!"

With the Mandalorian's decreasing numbers, the Imperial commando's were almost beginning to gain the upper hand. Observing that only the three of them remained, Bo-Katan shouted to Elodie and Paz who continued their torrent. "We're clear. Fall back."

Neither made any move to leave.

"I am not leaving Din behind!"

"There are too many of them. We can come back." She tried to persuade her, tugging at her arm. Elodie ripped it away, ducking behind the door frame.

"I don't care, I am not going to let them torture him like they tortured me!" She shouted at the woman, face falling at her actions. She then told her in a much calmer tone. "Get Paz out of here and for for the love of stars, take care of my son."

The Wolven jumped out from behind the cover before the Mandalorian had a chance to pull her back.

"Come on. We're not leaving you behind." Bo-Katan now directed at the enforcer.

Paz kept his steady aim on the Imperials, their numbers were forming again. It was the only thing he could focus on. He looked over to see the Wolven use her plasma shield to block bolts aimed at her body, batting them away as if they could repel off the safeguard and use her spare vambrace to fire at them, aiming for the weaknesses underneath their helmets and torso by their underarms. It was decided.

He crashed his fist into the control panel, sealing the door shut and segregating Bo-Katan from them. Their doomed fate.

"Go. There are too many." The Mandalorian stated.

Her dual blasters were held up at the door. "No!" She gasped.

She rushed to the door, but there was no control panel and she had no choice but to follow her team through the tunnels. Bo-Katan paused midway to look back at the Wolven and the Mandalorian left behind. She knew she was leaving them to die here at the hands of the Empire. More lives she could not have saved.

"Go." The Wolven begged.

"This is the way." Paz swore. And the leader fled.

Paz took calculated steps to stand beside the Wolven as more Imperial's regrouped to come flying down from higher platforms. He could see her eyes that piercing icy blue shade, but mostly the blown out abyss of her pupils from the untamed fury. "Just us, Big blue."

"Ogir Kelir cuyir ijaat o'r ibic kyr'am." Paz mused darkly. [There will be honour in this death]

"Ib'tuur jatne tuur ash'ad kyr'amur." The Wolven absolved, swallowing the small amount of dread pitting in her stomach. For a moment, it was her and Paz against the world. [Today is a good day for someone else to die]

A shot between the two reminded them of their situation and they started firing off the the swarm of Imperial Commandos. Paz had the larger weapon of them both and remained mainly stationary as it fired. He bent his knee's to accommodate the weight of the rebound from continuous shots.

Elodie worked around him to fire and physically attack any that dared to get too close for comfort. They were a good team with the Mandalorian allowing the Wolven to duck out from behind him in various spots as his armour provided more protection than her simple vambraces and shield.

Two troopers tried to tag team, both trying to get in hits where they could like a three way fight. Elodie leaned away from one hit, only to feel another strike her. Her wolf rumbled in her chest to break free but she reined her in- she would have more control in her human form as her Wolf would only be useful in close range.

Stepping onto one of the men's bent knee, she looped her legs around his neck and twisted them. On her way down, she reached to grab the other man and slammed him into the floor with them. The man underneath her moaned in pain so she reached down to snap his neck, relieving him of the ache.

The trooper recovering in front of her looked up to see her deadly smile. Elodie lunged forward and tore the pauldron away to sink her teeth into his shoulder. The man wailed as she pulled, tearing the muscles away from bone. Her incisor nicked his carotid and then man lay dead within minutes.

She returned to the Mandalorian's side as the tip of the mini-gun flared an alarming red, which stemmed up the barrel. Elodie stepped in front of him as a shot rebounded off his chest plate, causing him to stumble back. She laid down cover fire while he tried to salvage the mini-gun.

No luck, his mini-gun grew too hot to handle any further abuse and instead used it as a battering ram then tossed it, along with some troopers, over the side of the cliff face.

When a guard came forward, Elodie blocked his hit with her shield and buried her vibrobalde into his vulnerable lower gut. Pulling back, she kicked him away to face another, shooting at him until he stumbled over the side. Elodie ran, then skidded along the ground to take out a troopers' feet, using her claws to gouge at his throat.

Elodie felt a round of bolts splatter her back, conveniently repelling against her Beskar jet jack. One bolt fired wide and hit the blaster port on her vambrace. She twisted to fire back and was shocked to see one had come up closer than she expected. He connected his fist to her face, but she was able to block his next hit. Punching his helmet to disorient him, the pain from the hard alloy vibrated up the length of her arm. He retaliated with various fast paced punches to her abdomen, which sent her reeling.

When trying to shoot the man, her vambrace sparked and spluttered. Broken. She snarled and the man's shoulders dropped the curled upper lip.

Oh sh*t indeed.

Her foot shot out to dislocate his knee and he fell to rest on the other knee. Elodie unsheathed her blade and gave the trooper an uppercut, digging the blade under his chin. His blood dripped down her arm as she picked him up with a yell, tossing him into another trooper that was running her way.

With no blaster in his personal armoury, Paz brought his arm out to clothes line a man. A let out a guttural cry, grabbing the trooper's cuirass to skirt him off the edge. As the man had fallen unconscious from the hit, he would not get the chance to activate the jet pack before he hit the ground.

His armour was pelted with more rounds of blaster bolts, the loud 'tinks' repelled of his impenetrable armour, and he swung an arm up to protect his head from the direct shots.

An elbow struck her face and Elodie was falling to the floor, blood dripping from her nose. She rolled over to avoid the bolt that hit the spot where her head landed and kicked the blaster from his hands. She crawled back, trying to find a moment to get back onto her feet without being skewered. The Imperial Commando unsheathed his blade and lunged at her, ready to sink the blade under her chin.

His weight was shoved off as he flew ass over head over the cliff inches from them. Paz stood above her, chest rising and falling with rapid breathes.

They started towards the hallway where the troopers had disappeared with Din, when three Praetorian guards glided around the storage crates placed in front of a different hidden entrance. The pair's joking resolve dissipated and they were on guard within seconds of clocking them.

Each wielded a different weapon. The first held a double bladed polearm, the second wrung around a high tech sword and the third exercised his electro-chain whips. All three weapons were imbued with a pulsing purple electrical charge.

They twirled their weapons in a taunting manor, taking wide strides to face the pair. Without his mini-gun, all Paz had were his vibroblade and plasma shield. The same went for Elodie now that her vambrace short-circuited that disabled the use of her blaster. On the enforcers back, his jet pack kept spurting small sparks from its malfunctioning.

Paz and Elodie ran at them with a war cry. A sword sifted across the chest plate of the man so he ducked away to block a hit of another blade.

The Wolven felt the chain whip crack against her shield as it narrowly avoided adding another scar to her face. Her arm shook under the force of the hit and she made an attempt to swipe at the Praetorian's midsection. He jumped back and Elodie advanced into offensive mode, sending a series of swipes and stabs at the man. Even using her claws.

Their hits were strong and their evasions swift. Praetorian's were notoriously famed warriors that served under the Empire and were so rare to come across unless they were defending a high-ranking official. Moff Gideon must have been in talks with some of his other prestigious colleagues for this favour.

Paz grunted in pain behind her as a blade dug into the flesh just under the jet pack and Elodie made the mistake in glancing over to check on the welfare of her Mandalorian brother.

It was a moment too late.

"Paz! Watch out!"

A crack of a whip sent her mind reeling before her body reacted. She shrieked like one of those hatchlings. Her body flew to the side, convulsing violently. The blow alone tore the layers of skin from her side. Elodie landed in a heap at the cusp of the drop off.

A blade sunk into the space between Paz's cuirass and back plate. He grunted, breath instantly fleeing his lungs and replaced with a wet, bloody cough. The guard tried removing the blade but the Mandalorian pulled him closer, sinking the blade deeper into his chest until it perforated the other side.

Elodie placed her hands beside her to push up when a chain looped around her neck from behind. Her eyes widened and she gasped in a sharp breathe, before the privilege was taken from her. It constricted, cutting off her airway.

One snuck up behind him and sliced at the unprotected area behind his knee, making him collapse to his knee's. Elodie couldn't wiggle her fingers under the chain so she targeted his hands. His foot was planted on her lower back which only allowed her upper half to be elevated from the point of her neck in a painful arch.

In her panic, she forgot about her blade.

Elodie released her blade and it stabbed through his hand. He let go with a shout that allowed the Wolven to rasp for breath.

The Praetorian above Paz removed the blade from his leg and then drove it into his collarbone.

"PAZ!" Elodie made her way to crawl to the man, but a boot stomped on the space between her shoulder blades. Her face smashed against the floor, blood and snot seeping out her broken nose. She cried out to the Mandalorian; praying to any god willing to listen.

The Mandalorian sought a desperate hold onto anything to distract him from the blinding pain radiating throughout his body. The Praetorian slapped his hand off him, and Paz found that he no longer had the energy to move. To hold himself up.

To breathe.

The blades withdrew from his body like the life that seeped from him.

And he was dead before he hit the floor.

Elodie screamed for him, and kept screaming until her voice no longer worked under the strain of her cries and desperate please. No actual words formed, just the spluttering and wheezing between her open sobs of heartbreak.

Paz the Mandalorian, the enforcer. Brother to Tyr and father to Ragnar had been killed before her very eyes.

And she could do nothing about it.

The two guards left the Mandalorian's body and came to stand around the Wolven. Elodie could see them through the blur of tears in her eyes. Her head was pulled back by her hair to expose her neck. Then there was a wet tip of a blade.

Wet from Paz's blood.

It pressed in, drawing a thin trail of her own and she prepared for her own death. She wondered if the Mandalorian had his life flash before his eyes like she was having. Moments with her loved ones, alone time on the Razor Crest with her husband and child. The growing friendship with Bo-Katan. Being welcomed into the covert when they returned from the Living Waters. Her brother giving her a farewell hug on Tatooine after having taken the Riduurok.

"Wait," Moff Gideon's voice floated over the hanger intercomm. "I have plans for the Wolven. Take her to the Mind Flayer."

And it was that moment, that she wished they killed her.

Chapter 34: Chapter 30: The Return (Part 1)

Chapter Text

Imperial super Commandos dragged the limp body of the Mandalorian through the vacant hallways. His wrists and ankles were tightly bound, feet scraping unceremoniously against the concrete flooring. Din shifted, awakening from his drugged state. The troopers paid no mind to his low grumbles as he shook off the grogginess.

Using the element of surprise to his advantage, he shifted his weight, bringing his legs to bounce of a corner as they were passing. He kicked off the wall and into the one behind. Din headbutted the Imperial commando to his left and flipped, taking down the trooper on his right.

The trooper on the floor was stunned. Din stole the knife tucked away in his molle sheath to saw the straps binding his ankles. The strike Din aimed to deliver into the man's chest was thwarted by blaster bolts raining down on him from behind. The Mandalorian rolled backwards and knocked the blaster out of the other troopers' hands, standing to tackle him into the opposing wall.

Din stumbled back as the other trooper recovered and fired shots at his chest plate, then used his flamethrower. Din was lucky that his armourweave suit was flame retardant. He performed a forward roll and locked his legs into the troopers, taking his legs out from beneath him while directing the aim of the flames to the original trooper.

The Mandalorian slammed the vambrace onto the floor and punched him in the face before running at his other opponent. Din altered the blaster aim, slamming his helmet into his and kicked his knees out from beneath him. The trooper fell down and Din's arms secured around his neck- a quick motion, and his neck cracked.

Fibrecord cable hooked around the Mandalorian's neck and Din was pulled to the concrete, grasping desperately at the constricting noose. The trooper readied his pistol to fire but it was clamped and bent by a mechanical hand.

"No. No. No. No." The IG-12 droned, the child inside disgruntled.

Din curled, bringing his legs up to kick away the Imperial trooper and firing the discarded blaster at him.

Grogu smiled at the chance to help the Mandalorian. "Yes."

The cord slipped from his wrists and Din wrings them to return the circulation. "Thank you for your help. Grogu, I'm going to need you to be brave for me, okay?" The child cooed apprehensively. "We can't keep running. If we don't take out Moff Gideon, this will never end. You with me?"

The child nods and Din fiddled with the controls on his vambrace. There was no response from Elodie, the connection not even calling through. Instead, he called Bo-Katan, Alor of the Mandalorian's. [Mandalorian leader]

The Mandalorian stole a jet pack off of one of the dead troopers and slipped it on. He was ignorant to notice the pause that Bo-Katan gave when answering. "She stayed behind with Paz to keep the troopers from following us... but Din.."

Bo-Katan sighed through the comm, her voice doubtful. "They're not responding. Their odds were ten-to-one last I saw."

"That doesn't mean what you are implying." He gritted out. "I'll find them after I find Moff Gideon. Do you have a location?"

"No. But stay safe." Was all she said, praying to the maker that what she feared was wrong. Bo-Katan knew that the moment the doors to the platform had closed, Paz and Elodie's fates had been sealed.

Din shook off the feeling of anxiety and prowled the corridors to find the control room, Grogu following close behind.

Somewhere in the base, the Imperial Super Commando's dragged Elodie through the corridors, her arms and legs bound with fibercord cable. Elodie roused from her groggy state, her head heavily rolling on her shoulders. She struggled to lift her chin from her chest. Whatever they dosed her with was strong enough to combat her natural healing abilities, which burned through normal poisons in her blood like water on a heated stove.

Her feet dragged along the floor until she was brought into a stark white room. There was a control panel along the back wall and a large contraption built into the wall on the other side.

The Mind Flayer.

It resembled an outdated magnetic resonance imaging machine (MRI). Flashbacks of her previous capture came to mind. The pain she endured. The change they forced on her. She called to her Wolf, but there was no familiar fire that stoked her veins.

Her wolf lay dormant in the deepest depths of her mind.

Elodie rested her weight on the troopers carrying her, raising her sluggish feet to kick one of the troopers' legs out from under him. The troopers dropped her in surprise, "She's coming round!"

There were no signs of the Praetorian guards, which meant that she must have been handed over to the Imperial commando's after they had shot her up with the sedative. At the thought of the Praetorian guards standing over the lifeless body of Paz Vizsla, Elodie budged her shoulder into the man reaching out to hold her. He yanked her back and slammed her into the table by her neck.

Her back bent over the edge of the table uncomfortably, bound hands coming to fight against the hand pinning her down. He lifted her by her neck and slammed her head back down.

"Argh!" Vision blacking in and out, she groaned a slur of words.

The other Imperial trooper grabbed at her legs, lifting them so she twisted to fit on the table. A thick strap secured them. Elodie unsheathed her vibro blade, cutting the cord from her wrist, and lunged up to direct it into the man's chest standing over her. It penetrated through the base of his neck; under the helmet, she could hear him choke on his own blood and fall away.

Her eyes caught the gleaming sight of silver stashed in his utility belt. Din's blaster.

The bastard must have stolen it from the platform when she was taken. She reached to reclaim it, but he fell too far out of reach, and her legs were still strapped in.

A different trooper replaced him, grabbing the underside of her vambrace to pin it back down. The Imperial at her feet threw himself over her writhing body, and another pinned down her other arm. A hand on her chest prevented her from sitting up.

The Wolven released a broken scream of rage and fear, voice strained and hoarse from overuse.

Cuffs connected to the frame of the cot latched around her wrists. The straps sat mid-forearm, too high for the vibroblade to slice. A wide band fell over her torso to prevent her from arching away.

It was all too much; flashes of heat spread through her body with buckets of sweat. The tightness of the bands triggered an unknown claustrophobia. One of the Imperial Commandos hovered over her with a chunky metal band.

"Ge- -way fro-om me!" She tried yelling, but her voice broke through the syllables.

The metal contraption was tucked around the circumference of her neck like a collar and locked into place. "It's to stop you from changing when in the machine." It barely provided space for her to swallow the rich saliva pooling in her mouth. "Try, and it'll snap your neck like a twig."

Something metal clamped over her forehead, and she was restricted from facing anywhere but skyward. The headrest was set into place, and the goggles slipped over her eyes. Her struggle was becoming futile. Slowly but surely, they were preparing her for the procedure.

This is what Cara had feared.

She said her mind would be uploaded. Her thoughts and memories stripped from her very being. Treacherous tears leaked out the corner's of Elodie's eyes, underneath the goggles. Bright colours and swirls danced across the visor to distract her.

"She's ready. Starting it off at one hundred megahertz." A distant voice declared.

Loud clanging resonated above her head, and the table jerked as it started to shift into the internal ring of the disc.

Her hands were clenched, and her trembling was obvious as it rattled the metal chains. The Wolven pushes against the weight strapped over her chest, failing to arch away.

There was a tingling in her mind, like when the child used to reach out to her using the force. Lower levels of the Mind Flayer were coaxing the memories forward. The colours in front of her were becoming more soothing, muting the sound of the machine picking up intensity.

A beautiful memory came to the forefront of her mind. Cooking with the child on Corvus, singing to him when she was distressed at the thought of his departure. Dancing with him until he was lulled into a peaceful sleep. Her hands were holding onto him so tight, so afraid to let him go.

The Mandalorian swung his body back behind the wall, waiting for the Imperial Super Commandos to pass by unsuspectingly. He held an arm out to keep Grogu pinned against the wall. The mechanic whirring of the droid would likely draw attention if he were to move.

"R-5. Come in, R-5." Din called out to the astromech on the surface.

While R-5 flew down the crack in the crevasse, Din and the child filtered down the corridors of enemy territory without fault. For a base under attack, their soldiers were surprisingly carefree.

"R-5, how are those schematics coming?" He checked in. A small beep made him pull his vambrace up to his visor. A blue hologram highlighted the route they needed to take to reach the control room. That would be where Moff Gideon was hiding.

To his luck, they were not far. "Got it. Good job, buddy. That's the command center." He praised the droid. "The communications log says that's where he operates from. That's where we're goin'. Ready? Stay close. Let's go." He told Grogu, peaking down the next hallway and sprinting down.

Their spelunking led them to a fortified passage. "The command center is down there. I don't have any weapons so this might get messy." He informed the child. Holding out a palm to ensure he stayed away from the fight.

"R-5. There's some barrier shields. I'm gonna need you to deactivate them one at a time. On my command. Got it?" A single corridor segregated with four red, impenetrable shields. Each section contained two heavily armed Imperial Super Commando's. They would be hard to cross in his current state, but the divisions could potentially work in his favour.

"Deactivate the first shield."

The troopers looked at where the shield had deactivated in confusion. Din ran around the corner, hitting one on the head and kicked the knee out from the other. He stole a knife from their molle holster, slashing at the mans' abdomen and lunging forward to stab him while blocking the hit sent his way.

In the other sections, the troopers tried and failed to open the other barriers. Din made a mental not to thank R-5 for that later.

A shot hit Din's helmet and he held up the incapacitated trooper to block the other shots. The man in his arms fell down. Dead. The knife in his hand flew into the shooters throat and The Mandalorian was too slow to collect it before the trooper fell into the hole in the floor. Din snagged the knife off of the body of the other fallen Imperial Commando.

"R-5, next shield."

These two troopers wielded electronic batons. Din re-gripped the handle of the blade in his hands, adrenaline pumping in his veins. The shield opens and Din instantly deflects the trajectory of one baton to slash at the other trooper.

The Mandalorian flew back with a hit of a baton, muscles spasming involuntarily from the shock wave. He fell back into the other awaiting baton. With the momentum of the shock that reversed his fall, Din flies forward to knee the trooper to his front. Twisting, he swung out an arm to clothes line the trooper running up behind him. With the man out for the count, Din pinched the discarded baton to parry with the trooper still hell bent on taking him out.

He spun, bringing the weapon around to taser the trooper into falling off the platform. Din picked up a metal, rectangular shield that had fallen to the floor.

"R-5, next shield."

Din wasted no time in charging at them both into the barrier behind them. The shield absorbed most of the shock from the maneuver. He directed the tip of his baton to taze one of the mens' feet. As the man bent to yell in pain, the Mandalorian brought the taser up to his helmet. He upgrades his weapon to a fallen blaster, shooting the man until he slipped off the bridge.

"R-5, next shield."

It drops and Din was caught in a stand off, firing around the shield like they were trying to do against him. The Mandalorian decided he could take on the others too with the fog wafting up from the holes in the sides of the bridge. Man was on a roll.

"R-5, next shield! R-5! R-5, next shield." There was a delay for the barrier to fall and he assumed that the astromech was having a hard time on the other end of the comms if he was not responding straight away. During his shouts, the Mandalorian managed to shoot down both of the Imperial Commando's.

The barrier finally dropped but the troopers didn't know where to aim. The mist had grown so thick it almost coalesced into vapour on their visors. Din ran out of cover, skidding on his knees across the floor while firing shots at them. He killed both troopers quickly with the dual pistols he had no scrounged.

"R-5, good job, buddy."

Din looked around to the clear walkway, littered with bodies of the dead. The child meandered around the corner to join the Mandalorian as they were now about the breach another room.

Doors opened to reveal an empty room. The side of the room held occupied capsules of an organic being. Din walked down the long pathway to the control panel at the end. "Wait here." Din whispered. He manipulated the controls to that kept the tubes stable.

Grogu walks up to one of the tubes to try and peak inside. The contents were filled with a translucent viscous fluid. He leaned closer, unable to make out the shape when it drifted to the window.

It was Moff Gideon.

They were all Moff Gideon.

Seeing the look of horror on the child's face, Din felt the need to mention. "That's not Gideon. Those are his clones." It did nothing to calm the child's nerves. The clone in front of him snapped open his eyes, causing Grogu to scream and stumble back in the IG suit.

Frightened, the child ran to the Mandalorian's side.

"Let's go."

Lights flashed in the room and starting from the opposite end, the capsules imploded, destroying the machinery and the contents inside them. Din did not linger to see the result of his intervention, sealing the door behind him and rounding towards a different platform where they'd been ambushed.

The Mandalorian spotted Moff Gideon standing in the centre. Anger was written all over his exposed face while his hands squeezed firmly onto his helmet. Din slid into the space behind the door frame, waving one of his pistols at the child, gesturing him to stay hidden.

"My clones were finally going to be perfect. The best parts of me but improved by adding the one thing I never had— the Force. I was isolating the potential to wield the Force, and incorporating it into an unstoppable army. And you smothered them before they could draw their first breath." The words sunk in to him. That's what he was using the child's blood for. Not to make an army of enemy sorcerers, but to imbue his clones. With his wicked mind and immeasurable ambition he would be unstoppable.

The Mandalorian had enough of the monologue. Din shot at the Imperial officer from behind the protection of the door frame. Gideon raised his vambrace to protect his exposed face and launched a rocket from his suit that Din narrowly avoided.

Moff Gideon donned his helmet when Din dodged the missile. The Mandalorian ran out, firing his blasters and used the jet pack to knock him off balance. The hydraulics of the Imperial suit bore down into the ground and gave Gideon the upper hand. He threw Din into some nearby crates and kicked the pistols he'd dropped on the impact.

Din stood slowly and was met with a punch to the face. His helmet rattled and he crunched over when another punch was sent to his gut. The Mandalorian fell back into the crate with a final blow to the face.

Feeling hands grab at his neck, Din reached up to stop them from cutting of his airway. Infuriated, Moff Gideon tossed the Mandalorian to the floor. Din predicted the move and rolled away when a fist shattered the concrete where his head had just been.

"While you've been so preoccupied fighting me. I've ordered the little Wolf to have a some work done herself. An attitude adjustment if you will."

The coldness of terror contested the hot flash of wrathfulness. Din's mind reeled in indescribable hatred and his heart pounded with immeasurable dread. He couldn't possibly be talking about-

A laugh projected from the under the black helmet, heavily altered by the vocoder. "Oh yes. It's exactly what you think. She is in the Mind Flayer as we speak."

The Mandalorian exploded in a fit of rage. His body acted in a way his mind could not keep up with. He was lashing out furious hits, delivering them into anywhere they could make contact. No thought was given to the impenitrable beskar or the hits he felt returned. He took them in stride, barely flinching.

The coldness of terror contested the hot flash of wrathfulness. His mind reeled in indescribable hatred and his heart pounded with immeasurable dread.

Moff Gideon grasped the back of the Mandalorian's neck, forcing him face first into the corner of the crates. He crumpled to the floor, arms shakily raising his upper body.

Looking up, he saw that the Imperial Officer had backed away, staring over his shoulder. A triad of Praetorian soldiers flooded onto the platform, weapons poised for use.

Din hurried to stand as the first stroke fell. He evaded the blade and altered its aim to scrape against the floor with an awful screech. A second guard swooped the polearm over his head as he dove and knelt to block the electro-chain whip.

One of the guards recovered sooner than anticipated and dug the blade superficially into his back. The blunt end of the polearm whirled around to strike at his front. His body jerked with involuntarily spasms as the electricity rendered him defenseless.

Unable to hold himself on his knees, he fell onto his face away from the electricity. When he tried to lift himself, the electro-chain whip linked into a staff, jabbing at his spine painfully to transfer more electricity into his twitching body. Moff Gideon stayed back to relish in the sight of the famed Mandalorian being bested.

Frustrated wheezed and grunts escaped his lips. His eyes clenched to combat the pain seizing him.

"No. No. No."

Grogu came storming from the corridor. At the sight of his buir suffering and nearing unconsciousness, he continued spamming the button and screamed at them.

Din felt the impulses stop racking through his body. What?

The Praetorian guards pulled away to combat the child. Grogu backed away into the room where he came from, IG's hands raised to block the oncoming hits. Din forced himself to his feet, desperately running after the child to defend him. If they had bested him, they were definitely going to kill the child. Elodie would never forgive me-

"No!" He cried.

A blast knocked the Mandalorian off of his feet, but he scrambled back up to continue sprinting. Thick fibercord latched around his neck and before he knew it, he was soaring back through the air and landed heavily on his jet pack.

He tried to groan at the impact, but only a winded gasp slipped passed his lips. Unsheathing the stolen vibro blade, he snagged the cord constricting his neck. He grunted as a boot connected with his unprotected side.

Moff Gideon stood above the Mandalorian, the fire of his flamethrower washing over him. Despite the pain, he found the motivation to charge at the Imperial Officer, hitting anywhere his fists could land.

The flames stopped and Gideon caught the swing of Din's arm, holding it up to punch underneath and into his ribs. The Mandalorian's tensed at the impact, feeling something inside crack. The movements following were strained and his chest felt harder to expand when taking deep breathes.

Din gave a half-hearted punch to retaliate but his fist was caught. Hydraulics of the suit whirred as it assisted in crushing the Mandalorian's hand. His knees buckled under the pressure and Gideon's other hand took his neck in its grasp.

Another hard punch and Din was on the floor yet again.

He couldn't defeat Moff Gideon with the suit. All of the adaptations made to it made the Imperial Officer nearly impossible best. Each hit he gave, the Moff would return with a tenfold of power. The Mandalorian needed to gather his bearings.

How could he fight if he couldn't even get a decent breath into his lungs? He briefly acknowledged that panic had set in as he scooted backwards, away from the Moff in order to try and get a couple more moments of rest.

The Moff was pushed aside. By some miracle, the Maker had heard his plea to all the stars in the universe.

Bo-Katan righted herself from the double kick she'd given to his cuirass. She looked down at the Mandalorian and offered him a hand to stand up. He took it with a nod of gratefulness. Her eyes trained onto the recovering figure of Moff Gideon on the other side of the platform.

It was only then that he became aware of the battle raging on above him in the crevasse. Mandalorians had rallied together to fight Imperial Super Commando's mid-flight. They were retaking Mandalore.

"I've got this. Go save your kid and find your wife."

Confirmation was all he needed. Din ran to the closed door, nabbing the dual pistols on his way.

The memory was palpable. Elodie could see and taste as if she were standing right back there with the child, Grogu, in her embrace. Her vocal cords were vibrating, humming a quiet tune. Hair tickled her face as she rocked side to side. The texture of Grogu's clothes under her hands. Only the material didn't feel right at her fingertips. The child's tunic was rough like a burlap sack, not smooth or cold. The texture is odd. Solid. The Wolven squeezes again and—

—the edges of the table crumpled like tissue under Elodie's hands.

From the thunk on the floor, he must've been knocked unconscious.

The corridors were one large labyrinth, all looking the same. Hearing the magnetized whirring of electricity and metal clanging, Elodie decided to duck into the room. She usually had no problem finding trouble and it led her directly into an enclosed room with a door on the other end. Three Praetorian guards were aiming into the metal railing of the drop lights. The same guards that had overpowered her and killed her Mandalorian brother.

And they were now after her child.

Her eyes flared blue and a snarl ripped out of her.

Stunned at her entrance, they were slow to the draw. The Wolven was already upon them. The collar on her neck restricted her ability to perform The Changing but it didn't mean that she couldn't tap into that raw power.

Her shield activated mid jump and it angled down to crash the rim of it into the crook of his neck and shoulder. The guard fell back, with Elodie landing in a crouch above him. He brought his staff up to block the shield coming down to batter him again. The arm on the side of his injured shoulder was weaker form the blow. He didn't expect her to withdraw the weight of the shield and his arms fell away as she pulled back, only to punch his mask repeatedly with her other hand.

"You! Will! Not! Touch him!"

His helmet cracked and her fist came back bloody, skin broken over the bones of her knuckles.

Her focus was pulled to the praetorian guard that swiped the whip at her. She rolled sideways to evade, stealing the polearm from the fallen praetorian guard who lay on the floor unconscious.

She jumped back, arching away from the whip that took another swipe at her abdomen. The wound still remained on her side from it, unable to scab over from the toll fighting had taken on her body. It stretched from around her back to the centre of her sternum below the fabricated membrane of the bandeau. Spider web veins etched from the laceration as a result of the voltage from the electro-chain whip.

She was not wanting another one of those.

Grogu made a noise of encouragement from above, the child giggling as he trapezes over the metal railings. The third guard was using his sword to stab between the gaps, trying, and failing, to get to the child.

Her polearm jabbed at her opponent but the whip latched around the end at it was flung from her grip.

The Praetorian guard cut at the metal in front of the child, and Grogu fell to the floor. The metal bar fell on top of him, pinning him below the encroaching figure. Grogu raised his hand to use the force and lift the bar from his body. Elodie drew on the blaster that was tucked into her waistband.

Shots made the guard stumble away from the child, whirling around to face her. Elodie positioned the blaster but the chain whip linked around her wrist. She cried out in pain, hand clenching instead of dropping the blaster like he'd planned. Her aim dropped to shoot at his foot, and prevent him striking again.

Her vambrace rose to block the blade that stuck at her from the one that attacked the child. The Praetorian guard on the floor stood, now conscious again, charged at the Wolven in her moment of vulnerability.

He was displaced by the force as the child stood.

The Wolven raised her foot to kick the Praetorian away that had his blade pressing down on her cuff, and he fell back. Elodie gritted her teeth in pain, grabbing the length of the pulsating chain and swung the guard into another one that decided to charge at the child.

A solid foot to her back sent her sprawling on the floor beside the child.

The guard with the long blade ran up, sword raised. Elodie flung her arm out in front of the child to block the blow, but it never fell. The child brought his hand up, forcing the man to freeze in place.

The Wolven booted his shin, twisting to stand and fire at him until he was bleeding profusely. Another praetorian guard came up to engage her in a fight, and brought the polearm down in one fell swoop. Crossing her arms in an X formation, she pushed back and turned to round-house kick him back into the wall. He hit the wall, arms splayed to catch his fall, leaving his midsection wide open to attack.

Elodie jammed the vibro blade into his chin up to the hilt. Grogu moved the whip further out of the remaining Praetorian's grasp and he went fumbling after it. The Wolven made no move to retract her blade from her opponents chin, allowing the guard to fall to the ground and slip off when her hand moved.

"Elodie." He whispered, disbelieving.

The anvil on his chest eased off, allowing him to take a large breath. The air he breathed only gave him satisfaction when she was near. As if before, he worked only enough to sustain himself. Her presence, the knowledge of her being fine, pulled him from the edge of something truly monstrous in her loss.

In the blink of an eye, he crossed the room.

Just as she turned, arms enveloped her body. "Oh baby girl."

The musky scent of the individual smelt familiar and she didn't have to waste energy to think of who it was. Sandalwood and burning coals. The Wolven still trembled, but she sagged in his arms when she finally allowed the grief and fear rise to the surface. Din's arms were her safe space, where she belonged. Of course the Mandalorian had escaped without her or Paz getting to him first.

Paz...

The guilt came flooding back. A single sob ripped from her mouth. She leaned into him and raised her arms to clutch at the fabric of his cape. Din pressed the back of her head harder into his shoulder, eyes welling with tears of his own. "I was so scared for you. I am so glad you're okay."

"I-I'm not." She stuttered, clenching her teeth to hold back another cry. This was nor the time nor place. But there was no stopping the words, like verbal diarrhoea. Din needed to know about his death. That he was dead because she didn't fight hard enough. "Paz... I couldn't s-save him."

The news of his brothers dead shattered a piece of his heart. Paz was hard to love, but he was family. Aliit ori'shya tal'din. His heart went to his actual family; his blood brother and young son waiting his arrival. He would have to be the one to tell them. [Family is more than blood]

"We won't talk about that now, Eddy." Din finally said.

He grabbed both of her cheeks, taking note of the wounds marring her face and then falling to the metal collar bearing down on her prominent collarbones. A growl tore his throat.

Sounds of blasters were heard through the door to the platform. Din licked his lips and made her stare into his eyes for a moment longer, "Moff Gideon is still alive." He informed her, "Do you want to keep Grogu safe?"

He didn't want to ask her to step away from the fight directly, or make her feel like she had to involve herself any further. He was giving her an easy way out if she needed it.

Her hands settled themselves over his, "Since when have I ever backed out of a fight?" She stepped out of his hold and gripping onto his blaster, face cementing into a stoic expression. She needed to do this. "This is the way."

Din felt his heartstrings ping, her determined words strumming them like a guitar. He held up the both of his acquired blasters. "This is the way."

Grogu uttered unintelligible words behind them.

Then they stormed onto the platform.

"The Darksaber is gone. You've lost everything. Mandalorians are weak once they lose their trinkets." Moff Gideon gloated, facing the Mandalorian woman kneeling on the edge of the platform. His back was turned to the doorway.

Is that why he idolizes everything they've accomplished? Stolen their so called trinkets?

Elodie and Din came running out of the connecting room unsuspectingly. Grogu knew his place and stood back by the door, out of harms way. Bo-Katan caught sight of them and hid her smirk well behind the disgust on her face. Her relief at the sight of the Wolven was masked behind her need for vengeance.

"Mandalorians are stronger together."

Elodie and The Mandalorian fired their blasters at the Imperial officer which made him stumble forward. Bo-Katan rushed to their side, firing shots of her own through her vambrace and watched as Gideon dropped his spear.

Above them, Mandalorian's flee from the fight. And above that, the Wolven could see why. Looming overhead was the Imperial-cruiser-turned-Mandalorian-hub was in a state of despair and heading directly into the crevasse. Sunlight was eclipsed by the metal behemoth. Elodie's eyes widened in horror for their fate.

As the tip of the ship clashes against the entrance of the crevasse, everyone inside was thrown off their feet. Sparks rain down like a water faucet and flumes of flames erupted as the electronics of the base malfunctioned.

On the platform, Din was shot to the ground by shots from Moff Gideon. He did not let the fact that the whole cave system was going to collapse interfere with his plan to destroy the Mandalorian's. Elodie ran to defend him, bare knees scraping against the floor to ignite her plasma shield. She used her other hand to fire at him in return. The bolts deflected off his armour.

Another explosion made the ground tremble and caused them all to fall again. Bo-Katan ran at the Imperial Officer with a war cry, firing her blaster. He went to engage in an attack but was forced back by the child. Grogu saw that he reached for his discarded spear and directed the force to push it over the edge of the cliff.

Yelling angrily, Moff Gideon aimed his next shots at the child.

His vambrace was targeted by bolts before he even pulled the trigger and the Mandalorian skidded up beside the child. Elodie and Bo-Katan noticed remnants of the Imperial cruiser coming down to make contact with the platform overhead. Din covered the child with his body, readying for the flames.

They sprinted as fast as their legs could handle to collapse beside Din and Grogu, cowering away from the gush of fresh explosions. Elodie threw herself over them, holding her head down low and felt a presence press into her back. Behind her, Bo-Katan shielded Elodie and ducked her head beneath her own plasma shield.

At the edge of the platform, Moff Gideon screamed in anguish, flames consuming his body.

The blast engulfed their position. Flames were so bright around them and it was difficult for them to peak open their eyes like staring directly into the sun. The heat was almost unbearable and sweating was inevitable at such close quarters. It must have felt blistering underneath the beskar and armour weave the two Mandalorian's sported.

Realising that they weren't incinerated in the fiery inferno, they slowly peeled out of their frozen states. The child held his hands up, eyes pinched in concentration and around them, the wildfire danced around them and their invisible 'bubble'.

When the flames extinguished, the child sat back in exhaustion. An eerie silence replaced the rumbling of the cave collapsing. As if they'd reached the eye of a tornado.

Bo-Katan peeled off the Wolven's back and the child leaned down to rest his head in her lap when she plopped to sit on her backside.

Moff Gideon was official dead. The Empire had lost.

They had reclaimed Mandalore.

Chapter 35: Chapter 31: The Return (Part 2)

Chapter Text

Drums echoed in the caves. The heavy thrumming reverberated throughout her body as Elodie stood to watch the ceremony. Lights were placed strategically around the cave to illuminate the once dark and dreary pits. Mandalorian's of both tribes had gathered to witness the initiation ritual.

Not even a week had passed since the destruction of the hidden Imperial base that corrupted Mandalore. Their wounds were slow to heal, and their dead were mourned. Elodie was not present when the Vizsla clan was informed of the loss of the enforcer, but she had seen how they were weighed down by their grief since.

Such a coward. Elodie thought to herself, fingers brushing over her bruised collar bones. The iron circlet that encased her neck was broken at the closest possible convenience by the armourer.

The Wolven was not ready to face the family in private in fear that they would find blame in her. She knew that they had been told of his last stand beside her while on the platform, but neither Tyr nor Ragnar had approached her during the week.

Restorations had been made to some of the buried city to make it habitable. The Mandalorian's had become adept in their exile, and were experts in transforming abandoned places into homes. As a collective society, they'd sectioned off a livable zone and were slowly expanding out. The Indigenous Mandalorian's worked on farming from the gardens scattered in caves under the surface in order to sustain their people, while the covert established housing. Bo-Katan's fleet specialised in clearing out the zones of particularly dangerous creatures that still lingered. Their system worked.

It was a privilege to see an initiation, and only members of their covert were invited to witness this Mandalorian initiation in particular. Banners of the Mythosaur were hung to celebrate their culture. The armourer stood knee-deep in the Living Water, a bowl in her hands.

Ragnar walked out of the archway and knelt on the steps, allowing the calm waters to lap at his trousers while he recited the words. The drums stopped, signalling that the ceremony had commenced. Din stood in the archway where Ragnar had come from, with Grogu perched in his arms.

The armourer started the rites of the creed. "I swear on my name and the names of the ancestors..."

"I swear on my name and the names of the ancestors..." Ragnar copied.

"That I shall walk the Way of the Mand'alor..."

"That I shall walk the Way of the Mand'alor..." There was a bittersweet taste in the air. Paz would have been so proud to see his son officially take his vows. Now, Tyr took on the role of guardian for the child. He stood to Elodie's right side, and Bo-Katan to her left.

"And the words of the Creed shall be forever forged in my heart." She continued.

"And the words of the Creed shall be forever forged in my heart."

The armourer poured the contents of the bowl over his head in blessing. "This is the Way." She finished.

"This is the way." He solidified his oath.

All of the Mandalorians in the cave reciprocated the vow, "This is the way."

Ragnar stood from the water, mading his way over to his uncle, and stood in front of him. Tyr placed his hands on the child's shoulders from behind, squeezing them to convey his pride.

Din Djarin stalked down the path and placed Grogu where Ragnar had sat. The armourer turned to see the Mandalorian at her side in the waters. "Grogu is my apprentice. He is no longer a foundling. Add him to the song."

She contemplated the request, but ultimately refused. "He is too young to speak, so he is too young to take the Creed. He must remain a foundling."

Grogu's ears dropped, and he let out a small whine. Din took a long look at the child, knowing that the child was now part of his life. He needed the child, just as much as he needed him. He fought for Grogu, and Grogu had shown the exact same vitality. The Mandalorian looked at the Mandalorian crowd, searching for one face in particular.

Elodie smiled when the visor stopped on her, and she knew what he was considering: making the adoption official. She didn't even need to consider the option. The Wolven had taken the child in as her own long before they had met. But this was a big deal for the Mandalorian man. This would declare Grogu as his child in front of his clan, his people, and for generations to come.

He saw her nod of encouragement.

"If his parents gave permission, couldn't he then become a Mandalorian apprentice?" He finally asked.

The armourer smiled under her helmet, happy that the man had come to a decision that he had been prolonging. She just needed to coax the answer out of him. "Yes, but his parents are far from here, if they are even alive."

"Then I will adopt him as my own."

Shocked, Grogu looked up at the Mandalorian, and Din stared down at him in adoration.

"This is the Way." She said.

"This is the Way."

The armourer turned to the witnesses in the cave. "Let it be written in Song that Din Djarin is accepting this foundling as his son." She shifted her focus to the child, "You are now Din Grogu, Mandalorian apprentice. Member of clan Djarin."

"This is the way." The Mandalorian's all echoed, Elodie included. Beside her, Bo-Katan settled with a nod instead of a congratulatory smile, as her helmet was still on. Later, in private, they would have to recite the vows of adoption to the child to solidify their claims.

"You must leave Mandalore and take your apprentice on his journeys, just as your teacher did for you." The armourer informed him.

"This is the way." Din grinned. Everything was finally coming into place.

On the very same day, the decision was made to light the Great Forge in front of the masses to celebrate their achievements.

The Djarin clan stood at the back of the crowd, preparing to leave Mandalore and their rightful Alor. A beacon was handed to Bo-Katan by the armourer, and she held it up to the crowd, their silence speaking louder than words in their anticipation. [Mandalorian leader]

Facing the Great Forger, Bo-Katan lowered the lit beacon and watched as it flared with a bright orange flame. It evolved and burned a cool blue at such a high temperature.

The Great Forge signified the new age for Mandalore. That they would be able to start creating new armour and weapons. Begin their civilization anew. It represented a bigger, brighter future.

The Mandalorian's synonymous clapped their vambraces together in respect for their new leader. Even without the Dark Saber, Bo-Katan was still considered to be their leader, and no one had challenged her. It was not only her birth right, but she had won it in battle against the Empire. She had rallied the Mandalorian's to fight as one for their collective good.

"For Mandalore!" Axe shouts.

"For Mandalore!" The crowd shouted, a great sense of achievement spreading through the Mandalorians. Whether they exposed their faces or kept their helmets on, there was no discrimination any more. It seemed so petty considering all they had accomplished to get there.

The N-1 landed in the New Republican base smoothly. Their location was easy to track down thanks to R-5. It was also a small jab they wanted to return to the captain of the Adelphi Rangers, as they had come to their covert uninvited first.

The buildings were plentiful and all built with the same bomb shelter-like aesthetic. The tin alloy of the buildings attracted the blistering heat of the beach they settled on. And stepping into the bar, Elodie had to pull her shirt collar to fan herself. The Mandalorian looked unphased, but then Elodie remembered that she ran hotter than most other species.

With a roll of her eyes, she brought the bowl in front of him. Grogu gave her a smile before scoffing mouthfuls of the snack.

Teva laughed jovially, "Ha! Don't worry, it's non-alcoholic. We really appreciate what you guys did. You made our jobs a lot easier." Din leaned back to rest his elbows on the countertop. There would be no need to keep up his guard around the New Republic. "We've both been chasing Moff Gideon. You would have gotten him eventually; I just got there first."

"Your kid sure likes the trophies." The pilot said as the kid pointed at the dismembered head of the IG-11, cooing.

"It's not him, kid." Din told him softly and rounded on the pilot to strike up his proposition. "One of them reminds him of someone he knew. I have a business proposition."

"Shoot," Teva asked, taking a swig of his drink.

"This youngling is my apprentice."

"What does that have to do with me?" The man blinked. Elodie flagged down the barmaid and requested a water to sip on to combat the blaring heat in the tin building.

Din disclosed, "I'm a bounty hunter by trade. Now that he is with me, I'll be more selective in my assignments." It made sense that he no longer faced off against the bounties he used to pursue before meeting the pair. Greef no longer operated the bounty hunter guild, and this was the nearest convenient job that could benefit from his very specific skill set.

"Go on." He nodded, intrigued.

Elodie slid the barmaid a few credits with a quiet 'thank you'. She was eager to hear what Carson had to say about their proposition. It would be beneficial to both sides. "You don't have the resources to protect the Outer Rim, let alone hunt down Imperial remnants. And I need work."

Like the Mandalorian assumed, the pilot was considering it with a smirk falling on his face. "Let me get this straight. You want to work for the New Republic."

"On a case-by-case basis, an independent contractor." He clarified. He needed a verbal clause in their contract so that he would be able to refuse a job if his family needed him, or if it was too dangerous for him to risk it. He had to think about more than just his own safety and wellbeing now.

Teva hummed thoughtfully. "Hmm. You know this is against regulation. It'll never get approved."

"Which is why you won't tell them." Din gloated. Elodie smiled behind the rim of the cup and brought the empty bowl away from Grogu before he considered licking the contents clean.

"Let me think about it." He summarised.

The Mandalorian smiled underneath his helmet and picked up the child from the bar stool, wiping his mouth of crumbs. "You already did. It's a good deal, and you know it."

"Is that so?" The pilot mused.

"All I require is a small advance."

"Which is?" He inquired. Elodie stood on her tiptoes, fingers pressing into the wobbly metal bar, balancing the droid's head, and it toppled over. Thankfully, none of the others fell. Elodie caught the IG head proudly. "We need this."

He frowned, looking between the pair. "A scrap assassin droid head?"

"For parts." Din confirmed. Carson gladly allowed them to requisition the droid head, and Elodie tucked it into the burlap sack that they used to carry the child in. Grogu sat in the Mandalorian's arms as they walked back out of the bar.

Their final destination was Nevarro.

Greef met them outside the city hall, where his office sat atop. He welcomed them on top of the steps, having already received their notice of arrival. The Magistrate was both stunned and impressed when they informed him that Mandalore had been reclaimed and the Mandalorian's had now moved to inhabit the planet.

"Greef!" Elodie hollered, skipping up the steps.

He held his arms up to accept the woman bounding towards him in a big hug. The magistrate wouldn't accept anything less in their welcome. "Good to see you too, wolfling! Now let me take a look at you." He laughed and held the Wolven at arms length to take a good look at her. He was pleased that she only showed a few faded bruises and no serious injuries. There was a brightness to her smile when she looked at him. "You look well. Better than you have in a while, actually." He noted.

"I hope you haven't missed us too much while we've been gone. I see the city is doing well." They looked at the courtyard, reminiscing. There were no signs of the firefight even occurring.

He shook forearms with the Mandalorian after she backed away. Greef pulled out a roll of parchment paper for the pair. "Far more than I care to admit. The people of Nevarro appreciate all you've done. I want to give you this deed to a cabin just outside of town where you can lay low with your new family if you choose to. Between adventures, of course."

Elodie stood, stunned, at the plot of land he had just offered. Din, however, took the roll of paper offered to them and nodded to the magistrate. "Thank you."

"And that goes for you too, Din Grogu." The magistrate bent down to rub the child's head, and Grogu babbled up at him in response. The Wolven broke out of her stupor to tap the Mandalorian on the cuirass excitedly.

"And I have a gift for you as well." He chuckled, taking her hand to stop her repetitive tapping. Greef was confused for a moment as Din pointed to the Anzellan's.

Beside them, the mechanical whirring of IG-11's hydraulics sounded as he took steady steps into the courtyard. The people of Nevarro gathered around to observe the fuss. The droid was decked out with a fresh paint job of metallic grey with red striations.

"Greetings, citizens. I am IG-11, your new Marshal. Your new Marshal of Nevarro. I am here to serve and protect the citizenry." An applause rang around the crowd, and Greef stepped down from the steps to join his people in applauding.

"I am at your disposal and serve at your pleasure." IG-11 stated.

Greef was aching to meet the new IG-11 unit and breezed through the crowd for introductions and to formally welcome the droid on behalf of the people as their High Magistrate.

Din's spare hand held up the deed to Elodie, and she eyed it hungrily. "Shall we?"

She nodded, her smile not falling from her face, as she broke away from his hold to pick up Grogu. The child made a noise of surprise but giggled as Elodie skipped away from the crowd with renewed energy. The Mandalorian trailed not far behind, taking in the sight of the untamed playfulness of his riduur and his ad. [Wife. Child]

The house was in the same territory that was bestowed upon the Mandalorian covert, so it wasn't too far away from the city to be isolated. But far enough to travel to amenities on the outskirts of the town.

In Elodie's eyes, it was perfection.

It was built out of solid stone masonry and had a chimney located in the lounge. It was open-plan, leading directly into the kitchen, and had a breakfast bar separating the living areas. There were two double bedrooms with one bathroom and one en-suite.

Din brought the N-1 to dock beside the residence while Elodie scoped out the place, cleaning the furnishings and making a list of all of the things they would need to settle in. A thick layer of dust lay on most furniture as it was undisturbed for a while. Abandoned.

The house was secluded to allow the Wolven to change into her wolf and run wild without disruption. It was secluded enough for Din to remove his helmet if he wished.

In the front yard, there was no fence to distinguish the boundary. There was a small water hole that was home to a few critters, if her hearing was correct. A small tree sprouted beside the water source, its leaves blooming from the nourishment of the fertile volcanic soil.

Din sat on the porch, legs propped up on the low, hitching rail, and one hand resting on his stomach. The other hand draped around the Wolven's waist as she curled into his side with the child on his lap.

This was the moment of privacy they were waiting for.

"Grogu, on Mandalore, we accepted you into our clan as a Mandalorian apprentice." Din started, now slightly nervous. "That would mean that you become a member of our family and learn the creed. Sa cuun ad. As our son. Is that something you want? It's okay if you can say no."

The child reached his hand up to rest against the visor of Din's helmet, and his breath caught in his throat. He nodded.

"Ni kyr'tayl gai sa'as Din Grogu." Elodie said first, stroking down the length of his ear. "It translates to: I know your name as my child." The child cooed softly and looked at the Mandalorian again.

Din unclasped the clips to his helmet and removed it like he had done on the Imperial cruiser when saying farewell to the child. He placed the helmet gently on the floor by his feet and stared down at the child with his bare eyes.

"Ni kyr'tayl gai sa'as, Din Grogu." Grogu closed his eyes when a soft tap of lips pecked his forehead. [I know your name as my child, Din Grogu]

Elodie wrapped her arm around the child and pressed her face into the cowl around Din's neck. This was the vision she had been dreaming about for so long. Everything she hoped for her future was wrapped up in this quaint little house on the outskirts of Nevarro.

Chapter 36: 【ＢＯＯＫ　２】?

Chapter Text

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A massive thank you to all who have read my work and have enjoyed it. It has taken a while to finish this book and I am grateful to all of you for supporting me. This has officially my been my first released book and am so glad to share it with you all.

I will be undergoing editing in the near future for some corrections. Please feel free to add my next book PRIMAL to your TBR lists for the continuation of Elodie's story when the Mandalorian season 4 releases.

【ＢＯＯＫ　２】

Primal | The Mandalorian
Primal;
- Referring to basal needs and instinctive behaviour.

The Djarin clan helped to reclaim Mandalore and have finally settled down now that their fight is over. How long did they honestly expect their peace to continue for in a galaxy so vast?

Second Installment of The Wolven Series || PLAYLIST available: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1oW3AockpvLHr1u0q1lIXe?si=db656af4ba844562

AND, I may also publish an Alternative ending book that would play on the idea of 'What if Elodie went through the mind flayer completely?'

【ＡＬＴＥＲＮＡＴＥ　ＥＮＤＩＮＧ】

Ethos | The Mandalorian
Ethos;
- The Greek word referring to character.

The Mind Flayer was a powerful weapon. It has the capacity to both rehabilitate the patient, or strip them of their memories completely.

When captured by the Empire, Elodie was completely at their mercy as the Mind Flayer stripped her of most of her memories. In a state of Amnesia, she thinks she's alone in dealing with her broken mind and picking up the pieces of her scattered life.

Only, her found family do everything in their power to get her back.

Alternative Ending to The Wolven Series || PLAYLIST available: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1oW3AockpvLHr1u0q1lIXe?si=db656af4ba844562