He awoke to the feeling of drowning.
His eyes shot open to reveal the darkness inside of the room the Ugnaught had brought him into hours before. He attempted to take a breath, but it was cut short and he broke into a painful fit of coughing. He tried to inhale again, but only managed a small gulp of oxygen as his breath painfully caught in his chest as he wheezed in pain.
He tried to calm himself as the sensation of panic set over him. He tried to push himself up to yell out but doubled over into another set of coughs. Each painful cough made it harder and harder to get any form of air into his body. He felt like he was trying to breathe underwater and he felt completely helpless. He knew he needed help. His vision began to gray around the edges as he struggled and fought against an unseen force preventing him from breathing. In a last ditch effort, he kicked out his foot, making contact with a small table where the bacta bowl sat, sending it tumbling to the ground with a crash. He fell back onto the pad, wheezing harshly.
The Child was startled awake by the sound of a crash. He immediately sensed the feeling of panic in the room and looked down from his pram to see the Mandalorian obviously in pain and struggling. The sound of his ragged breathing caught his ears, and the Child cried out in fear. He hopped down from his pram and quickly made his way to the downed man. He could see that his muscles were tense and he heard the constant and painful wheeze coming from the modulator in his helmet. Just as he reached him, the Ugnaught ran into the room.
He breached the distance between the doorway and the Mandalorian in seconds and crouched down next to the Child and the downed man. He could see the Mandalorian was struggling to breathe and it was rather horrific to watch. He pulled the Mandalorian so he'd be laying on his right side, hoping to take any undue pressure off of his still-functioning lung. He coughed harshly and continued to wheeze, but it appeared that slightly more air was entering his body.
"Can you hear me?" The Ugnaught asked loudly while still gripping the Mandalorian by his shoulders.
The Mandalorian gave him a slight nod in response. The action somewhat tense and uncomfortable.
"I need you to try to slow your breathing." He said authoritatively.
"C-can't." Came the exasperated reply. The modulator barely registered the pained whisper.
The Child crept closer to the man's helmet. The Mandalorian continued in his struggle to breathe, not realizing the Child was nearing him. The Ugnaught released the Mandalorian's shoulders and peeled back the layer of fabric covering his ribs.
"The bacta is healing you. But I think there are internal injuries that it cannot reach."
"Ex...plain." He whispered as a sharp pain ricocheted through his body, causing him to cry out.
"One of your ribs has punctured your lung. As the bacta began to heal your ribs, the puncture remained, possibly even made worse as the bones shifted and healed. Your chest cavity is filling with air and collapsing your right lung."
The panic actually began to set in. If bacta couldn't heal him, what could? He had no idea if the Ugnaught had any of the medical training necessary or even any tools to help him. He came to the realization that he could die here, drowning on dry ground.
"I need to radio for help." The Ugnaught stated.
"N...no." The voice replied, no longer a whisper.
"If you don't get help, you will die within the hour." The Ugnaught said back.
The Mandalorian wheezed painfully. "Calling someone...p-puts the Child...in danger." He coughed and moaned as the action jarred his healing body. "Bounty...death."
The Ugnaught understood. The bounty called for the Child to be killed. Although the Mandalorian was in the process of returning him for bounty, the Ugnaught could tell that death was the last thing the bounty hunter wanted for him. The Ugnaught was beginning to doubt that the Mandalorian wanted to go through with the deal at all, after seeing that he cared for his wellbeing.
The Mandalorian tensed as pain washed over him. This was not the way he wanted to die. There was no honor in dying after a stupid stunt, on the floor in someone's place that he barely knew. He continued his fight to bring air into his failing lungs since fighting was all he knew how to do.
The Ugnaught watched helplessly as the man lay dying next to him. He wanted to get help regardless, but could not risk the danger posed to the Child and betray the Mandalorian's final request. He was about to close his eyes and resign himself for guidance, but the Child brushed against his leg and climbed to the other side of the struggling man.
The Mandalorian saw the Child was directly in front of him. With a pained gasp, he said, "D-Don't let him...watch." That statement made him feel like he'd just sealed his fate. He was going to die. The Ugnaught reached for the Child to pick him up but stopped as the Child closed his eyes and touched the exposed skin of the Mandalorian. The Mandalorian looked down in confusion as he continued to wheeze painfully beneath his helmet.
"Wait a minute..." said the Ugnaught in wonder. The pained gasps slowly lessened as the Child continued to close his eyes and keep contact with the Mandalorian. The short wheezes turned to full breaths which became hacking coughs as his lung began to reinflate. After a few moments, the Child gently fell back onto the pad, light snores leaving his small nose.
The Mandalorian sat up and continued coughing while sucking in gulps of air. Eventually, the coughing subsided and he was able to take several deep breaths before his body collapsed due to the exhaustion from his prior struggle. He closed his eyes and allowed his breathing to even out, relishing in the fact that it no longer brought him severe pain. Never again would he take breathing for granted.
"What...what just happened?" The exhaustion was still present in his voice and it was obvious his throat was painfully raw.
"This species...I have only heard of them before. This Child possesses healing powers."
"You're saying it just healed me...with its mind?"
"I have spoken."
A wave of feelings crashed over the Mandalorian. He didn't know how he felt about a supposed enemy saving his life. The gravity of his bounty also became easily apparent. No wonder it already caused so much trouble. He looked down at the small green creature sleeping soundly next to him, his emotions raw at the fact that this thing is what stood between him and death. He now only feared more for the Child's safety and future.
"You can't tell anyone about this."