The base was awash in a jovial spirit. Despite the loss of one of their larger ships the Resistance had again struck a blow against the First Order. They had no doubt that with their massive industrial capacity the First Order would recover but the morale victory that came was only beaten by that of the Starkiller Base destruction.
Around the base soldiers and pilots were drinking their cares away. A few could be seen pairing up and slipping off into dark shadows, hidden corners, and the bolder ones straight to the barracks. The main shop on base, ran by Tieb, was even shut down for the night to join in. Ky'ram had no doubt that missions would be suspended for a few days and that the liquor stores would be all but depleted.
Despite this though he couldn't bring himself to join in the festivities, instead sitting in the hanger where the Kom'rk class fighter was stored drinking by himself. His flask was almost empty and he was turning to focus on one of the many bottles he had grabbed just for himself. As his eyes fell upon the collection he spotted a pair of green combat boots behind him. Looking up he found them attached to his wing-woman, Skye.
"What the hell was that?" Skye asked the man as she sat down next to him.
Ky'ram stared at her for a moment before picking up a bottle of Corellian Ale. Passing it to her he then grabbed another for himself. The cork fell to the ground with a light thud and the sound of him swallowing rang out for a few seconds.
"You ever been to Nubia?" Ky'ram asked when he finished.
"Don't deflect this." Skye scowled.
"He always wanted to visit it." Ky'ram continued ignoring her. "Said that he wasn't built there and it was where his series was drawn up and developed. Wanted to see the planet that inspired his design."
"Ky'ram there is a serious problem with what you did." Skye began intending fully to call him out.
"He ended up on Dxun only because his original masters ship crashed there." Ky'ram interrupted her. "He was the survivor. His master's body was devoured by the beasts of the moon."
"I know he was a great droid but there is still the issue-" Skye tried to get him back on track.
"You know this isn't the first time I went against orders." Ky'ram confessed. "Probably won't be the last. Part of me really hopes I can lose the rank I never wanted and then I can just be on my way…. Again."
"What happened?" Skye asked genuinely concerned for the man.
"You asked about what happened on Dxun a while ago." Ky'ram cleared his throat. "My team was sent to find the ship that had penetrated our defenses and destroy it, kill any crew that survived their crash and secure all the data we could. When we got to the site Rino was the only thing there. I told my team to go about the data retrieval on ship and I would handle the droid. He didn't cower as I approached him and even helped me in connecting my datapad. He trusted me without question. When It came time I couldn't bring myself to destroy him."
Ky'ram paused for a few seconds. His face contorted as he locked his eyes on the T-Visor helmet he had thrown near the fighter as he came in.
"When my second in command walked up to do it for me I reacted without thinking." Ky'ram began his voice heavy. "I reached out and threw him against the wall harder than I ever had thrown anyone before. His neck snapped instantly. The rest of my team leveled their weapons and I reached out again bringing the cave entrance that had brought us to the ship down on top of them. With no more threats immediately facing us I began to find a way back to the base with Rino in tow. When I arrived I learned one of my men had escaped the collapse. He had beaten me back and had called for the Mandalore. We shared our story and with Rino still being there I had no way to even try and refute what had occurred."
Again he stopped. His head was hung low and the bottle was brought to his lips again. As he finished off another fourth of the bottle he breathed deeply and then turned to face Skye.
"It was decreed that I could choose banishment or execution." Ky'ram stated flatly. "We both know what I chose. I was stripped of my rank in the Mandalorian society, stripped of my clan by all technicalities, and stripped of my honor. I left, Rino in tow, on the next ship off the moon. We went to Raxus Prime for a while, which is where I built my old ship. That was ten years ago. The Mandalore that exiled me was replaced four years ago, and while I could go back and ask for forgiveness I know I don't deserve it."
"You killed your own men to protect a single unknown droid?" Skye asked, anger seeping into her voice. "You betrayed their trust for a droid! And not to say that I didn't like Rino but you also sacrificed that droid, making their deaths in vain!"
By the time she reached the end of her sentence her anger was easily felt throughout the hangar. Any bystander though would see Ky'ram just as angry and meeting it just as well, his helmet floating behind the two of them as well the bottles of ale.
"I Did Not Sacrifice Him!" the man yelled at her, his full fury in his voice. "I had told him that he was to stay behind and go back and that you were his new master. I told him that I never deserved him and that you would need him more than you would need me. He refused. He said that no matter what the Resistance would need me more than him. That droids are easy to come by. but people like me, people like you, we're rare. He didn't realize how much I truly needed him. The last true connection to my people."
As Ky'ram got closer to the end of his rebuttal his voice became choked and his anger dissipated. He began to break down, despite the present company he had. Skye was taken aback at seeing the man she considered not only a mentor but a friend and one of the strongest Resistance veterans begin to weep in front of her.
Not knowing what to do or how to handle the situation, nor how to keep it from getting worse, she left the hangar bay; breaking into a brisk jog as she reached the door. Ky'ram barely noticed that his helmet and subsequent bottles of ale crashed to the floor only after Skye exited the room…
