The next morning, Diana woke at dawn. She woke with the smell of fresh dew in the chilly air and after dressing, she left her hut and walked around the grounds. Water vapor hung over the pond waters as she passed different pools. She stopped and crouch at one that was larger than the others. Its waters were clear, and the underwater life was easy to spot. Various species of fish she had never seen before swam back and forth and little tadpole-like creatures popped up at the surface. She tucked pieces of her loose hair behind her ear as she hugged her knees and watched the fish.
"Ready to scope out the forest?" Din's instantly recognizable voice made Diana jump and clutch her chest.
"Jesus." She sighed with exasperation. She stared up at him and shook her head as if to calm her pounding heart.
"Yeah." Diana stood and paused before walking past him. Din remained motionless as he inconspicuously looked her over. Her dark hair was wild as it cascaded down her back. Thick, wavy curls encompassed her head, and its dark brown color was as lustrous as onyx stone.
"Good morning to you too." She muttered to him as she moved past.
The two explored the outskirts of the village. Diana was not sure what to look for as she scanned the grounds and the trees. Din used technology in his armor to get a more accurate scan of the area. They were mostly quiet as they searched. It was still early, and the sound of nature was more soothing than human interaction.
"About 15 or 20 of them came through here on foot." Din announced as he picked up Klatooinian footprints. Diana glanced at his position but kept on her own path some yards from him. With every foot they took farther from the village, the denser and more crowded the forest became. She reached a cluster of tall trees and noticed heavy damage on the upper layers.
"Din!" She called as she pushed back other leaves and branches to get closer to the trees but instead, she revealed a giant, inhuman footprint. Din quickly came to Diana's side and stopped beside her.
"What is it?" She asked, completely unsure if this was an animal print or a machine's. Din sighed beside her and she looked to him in search of understanding.
"It's an Imperial Walker. Not good. Wonder what it's doing here." He scanned the treetops for other further damage as he spoke.
"A machine? The raiders have this?"
"Seems like it. It's very powerful machine. I don't know how we'd stop it." He informed. Diana searched the black T-shape of his helmet before looking back at the large print.
"So what does that mean for the village?"
Din stepped back in thought. This was out of his league. He could not stop an Imperial Walker on his own with just Diana - who had no idea what the machine even is.
"We can't help them. They have to move." He said quickly and without any emotion. He turned back on his heel and began to move to village again, content with their findings. Diana opened her mouth to call out to him but stopped. She glanced back at the print and took in its size. It was big. She could not fathom what kind of machine it belonged to.
Back at the village, the people crowded around Diana and Din once they returned. She stayed silent and waited for Din to explain what they found.
"Bad news. Y'cant live here anymore." He began. His words shocked Diana and she watched with unease as the village people's faces fell.
"What? Why?" A man called out. Diana turned to Din ready to hear his explanation. His head moved slightly towards her and she knew he took a glance her way. He could tell she wasn't happy with what he said, but there was not chance.
"The raiders have an AT-ST." He began to explain but was cut off by another villager asking what that was. "The armored walker with two machine guns you failed to mention."
Diana sighed at his choice of words and shook her head as the people began to shout and beg for their help. She crossed her arms as more questions arose.
"We hired you, why can't you help us?!"
"There's only two of us." Din gestured to Diana and started again in a softer tone. "And she doesn't know much about these machines."
"There's at least twenty here!" A man called out; he opened his arms to emphasize the population of his village.
"I meant fighters." Din said. He sounded tiresome of the conversation, but the villagers carried on.
"Teach us!"
"We can learn!"
"Give us a chance!"
Din stayed silent as they pleaded for help and Diana could tell he was stuck in a difficult position. She took a step forward and the villagers grew quiet. She scanned their faces and the Child's before giving a longer look to Din.
"We'll show you how." She told the crowd. "There's strength in numbers and I believe this Mandalorian can show us all a few things. The last thing we want to do is uproot you from your land."
The crowd seemed pleased by her reasoning. They murmured appreciative words. Diana glanced to Din who stayed still and emotionless. She hoped she did not cross the line by negating everything he just said.
"Recruit that fighter chick from the cantina." Diana said only to Din. "I think she can help."
A few hours later, Diana, Din, and Cara stood before the adults of the village. Din looked at each of the villagers before describing their plan. He and Diana spoke one on one after her claim to teach the villagers how to fight. Surprisingly, Din did not put up much of a fight against her reasoning.
"You got two problems here. You got the bandits, and you got the mech. We'll handle the AT-ST, but you got to protect us when they come out of the woods." Din paused and pointed to the forest line. "And I don't have to tell you how dangerous they are. Cara Dune here was a veteran. She was a drop soldier for the Rebellion, and she's going to lay out a plan for you. So listen carefully."
Cara gave a tight smile as she was introduced. She walked over towards the edge of one of the outermost krill pools.
"There is nothing on this planet that can damage the legs on this thing. So, we're going to build a trap. We got to dig real deep." She pointed to the pool at her feet. "Right here, so when it steps in, it falls. Later, Mando and I will hit their camp, provoke them, and that'll bring the fight out of the woods and to us."
The villagers nodded in understanding and were eager to get to action. They took a break to gather supplies to dig the trench and build barricades. Din and Cara stood at the banks of the pond as some of the villagers dug. They discussed strategics when Diana approached them.
"You're going to give the villagers some training?" She asked as their conversation began to lull.
"Yes." Cara quickly answered with a curious look at her.
"I'd like you to teach me too." Diana said with a confident and fierce gaze to Cara and Din. The tall woman looked Diana up and down and smiled. She gave a reassuring nod.
"Okay." Din confirmed. Diana looked to him and a small thankful smile crept on her face.
"Thank you." She said before leaving the two alone again. Cara glanced between Diana and the Mandalorian as he watched her leave them.
"So, is that like your partner or something?" She asked with a tinge of humor.
"No." Din instinctively said. He turned back towards the pond and paid no further attention to Cara's question.
"So, she's from Earth, huh?" Cara asked again, recalling the short conversations she shared with Diana.
"Yes." Cara pursed her lips at Din's confirmation. She had never met an Earthling before, let alone ever really hear of them.
A couple hours before sunset, Din and Cara instructed the adults on how to fight and how to shoot. In two separate groups, the villagers worked on how to use their weapons and melee training. The success of each group varied as some excelled and some did not. Diana and a few other adults showed the most success in the short training. She had previous experience fighting before as she grew up practicing tae kwon do. She had gone to the shooting range a handful of times with friends back on Earth so wielding a blaster was nothing new to her. Her aim was on target majority of the time and this was something Din noticed. Diana was quick and agile, and she could easily read her opponent. He realized that she might make a decent fighter.
As the sun began to set, Din tucked the Child with the other children at the farthest hut. He ordered the Child to stay there, knowing full well he would otherwise try to come out. Omera's daughter, Winta, ensured she would keep an eye on him.
"We're leaving now. When we return, we're coming in hot." Din said to Diana. He assigned her to keep charge of the villagers. Most were already waiting at their predetermined posts.
"We'll be ready." She tied her hair up in a tight bun and nodded before stepping away from Din and joining a small crew of villagers at the very front of the forest. She watched with a keen eye as Din and Cara began to enter the darkening forest.
Less than thirty minutes later, Diana and her comrades were on high alert as they manned their post. The village was silent as they all anticipated the sound of blasters or the walker. Her eyes traced back and forth over the growing mist outlining the forest. Suddenly, Din and Cara cut through the forest edge and ran out of the mist. They hop behind a barricade at another pond just a few feet from her.
"This is it!" Cara shouted. "Weapons ready!"
On cue, the Imperial Walker broke the tree line and stomped towards the village. It continued forward towards the trap but stopped just short of the pond.
"Shit, it stopped." Diana heard Cara whisper. She waited along her barricade and kept one eye on the machine. Her jaw slightly fell at the thing. A two legged-battle machine with a heavy head stared back at her. Her heart raced as she tried to bare her senses. Suddenly, a blinding light switched on from the AT-ST.
"Get down! Get down!" Din forcefully whispered as the light swept across the defenses before opening fire on the huts. Diana watched as red lasers beamed down and blasted the wooden establishments. The sound pierced the otherwise still air. A chorus of shouting erupted from under the walker as the Klatooinian raiders broke out of the forest and flooded through the walker's legs towards the village.
"Open fire!" Cara shouted.
The villagers armored up and began blasting away at the approaching enemies. Diana joined them and accurately shot down incoming raiders. As she continued to hold her barrier, Diana analyzed the walker as Din and Cara did the same. She knew the machine must come down for them to win. Diana ducked behind the barrier and observed the mechanics of the machine. The only weak spot was the thin windows of the cockpit. She had a plan. With a sharp glance to Din and Cara, Diana jumped over her barricade and shouted to Din and Cara.
"Cover me!"
She storms toward the walker and jumped into the pond just before it. Din watched with shock as she fluidly reached cover.
"I hope she knows what she's doing." Cara murmured as she covered Diana.
Diana rested her back against the muddy bank of the pond and aimed her blaster at the cockpit window. Behind her, Din tried to see what her plan of action was as he continued to cover her position. Diana fired a single shot and successfully hit the cockpit window. The walker stepped forward, but it still stayed just short of reaching the pond. The walker turned side to side in search of its shooter. It opened fire on another pond next to Diana.
With a frustrated grunt, she shot again in the now open cockpit window. The blasting from the walker paused and a few seconds later, it came reeling forward into the water. Diana quickly jumped out just as it crashed hard. Din promptly ran toward the machine and attached an active charge. He grabbed Diana by her arm and pulled her in as he slid into cover just as the machine exploded.
Once the debris and smoke cleared, the villagers peeked their heads out and observed the area. The remaining Klatooinian raiders fled and celebratory shouts erupted. Behind a wet bank, Diana and Din lay on their sides pressed together. Their breathing hard and fast as they tried to get a grip of what just happened.
"We did it?" She asked, looking straight into the T-shape window of Din's helmet just a mere few inches from hers. Her eyes wide with adrenaline.
"Yeah." He sighed. Her lips spread into a wide, toothy smile as her face lit up. Din became fully aware of their position as he realized his arms held Diana tightly to him to keep her safe. She came to the same realization just after as he removed his heavily plated arms from hers. She stumbled to stand as her feet sank in the mud. Din followed her motions and helped her out of the pond.
"You did it." Cara said to Diana as she joined the two. She clapped Diana on the back in respect. "For a second there, I thought you were on a death mission. But good job. You're a brave little Earthling." Diana laughed at her and thanked her for the approval. She glanced to Din, anticipating him to give his own approval to her but remained silent.
That evening, the village celebrated with a decorative feast. Omera expressed her thanks to Diana and Cara, and even more extensively to Din. The celebration was the most at-ease Diana felt in a long time. The village seemed homey and now she nearly felt like one of the locals. Diana joined Cara at a lonely fire. They each had their own heavy mug of spotchka.
"So, how do you like it here so far?" Cara asked as she leaned against a wooden stump and sipped her drink.
"It's very nice. I think I could live here." Diana answered as she looked up at the night sky. A plethora of bright stars scattered the sky, even more than Earth ever had even on black night. Cara scoffed at her reply.
"I meant here, in this galaxy. Mando told me a little of how you got here."
"Oh," Diana took a long inhale as she thought over Cara's question. "I like it. I have to. It's… different to say the least." Cara watched Diana's face as she spoke. Her elbows rested over her knees as she bent over. She tried to understand Diana's position and she believed it to be very hard.
"You going to try to go back?" Diana looked down at Cara. She rolled her eyes and shook her head.
"I gave up on that a long time ago." She stated with a smug tone before raising her drink to her lips. Her face hardened as she thought it over. It was true – she didn't admit it to herself, but she gave up on that idea within her first year on Tatooine.
Diana, Din, the Child, and Cara stayed at the village over the next few days. They all deemed it to be a safe sanctuary for the time being and, in a way, it was paradise. One morning, Cara sat outside of Din's hut in one of the few rocking chairs that lined his outside. He eventually came to join her and stood at his doorway. They were mostly silent as they watched the daily activities of the village. Omera soon came into view with two mugs of steaming liquid. She approached the two with a smile and handed Cara one mug.
"No, thank you." Din said to her after she quietly offered him the other. Omera stood next to him and turned to look at the village and the group of children that passed the hut.
"He's happy here." She said, eyeing the Child in the middle of the other children. With amusement, they watched him chase a small frog around.
"He is." Din agreed, watching the same interaction.
"Fits right in." Omera added before leaving Din and Cara alone. Cara watched her leave with a smirk on her face. She looked up at Din with one brow raised.
"So, what happens if you take that thing off? They come after you and kill you?"
"No." Din paused; his eyes never leaving the Child. "You just can't ever put it back on again."
Cara's face twisted with confusion as she took in his words.
"That's it? So you can slip off the helmet, settle down with that beautiful young widow and raise your kid sitting here sipping spotchka?" She asked incredulously. Din shifted in his stance and crossed his arms.
"Or…" Cara started again with her eyes searching around the village for Diana. "Settle down with your Earthling partner sipping spotchka?"
Din ignored her but that did not stop his mind from considering it. He knew Omera wanted him and the Child to stay, but that was not an option.
"We raised some hell here a few days ago. It's too much action for a backwater town like this. Word travels fast. You might want to cycle the charts and move on." He said, completely avoiding Cara's previous suggestion.
"Wouldn't want to be the one to tell him." Cara nodded to the Child in front of him. He successfully caught the frog and popped it into his mouth. The children gasped and turned away in amused disgust.
"I'm leaving him here. Traveling with me is no place for him. He'll have a better chance at a good life here." Cara tsked at his words.
"Going to break his little heart."
"He'll get over it." Din pushed himself off the door post as he finished speaking. He had to share some words with Omera.
"Excuse me. Can I have a word?" He asked. Omera turned away from her morning chores and graciously nodded. She followed him away from the others for privacy.
"It's very nice here." He started. She smiled at him and nodded.
"It is."
"I think it's clear… he's happy here."
"What about you?" Omera asked. Curiosity and hope was clear in her question.
"Me?"
"Are you happy here? We want you to stay. The community is grateful. You can pack all this away in case there's ever trouble. You and your boy could have a good life. He could be a child for a while. Wouldn't that be nice?" Din sighed at her words. She was right. It would be a nice life, for him and the Child. She was a nice woman, beautiful and kind – but not for him.
Before Din could speak, Omera raised her hands to his helmet. She placed them there for a few seconds, but across some ponds and on the other side of the village, Diana stepped out of her hut. She glanced around the picturesque village and nearly kept moving but stopped to take a doubletake. In front of her, stood Din and Omera with her heads on his helmet in an otherwise intimate interaction. Diana felt her stomach sink as she looked on. To her knowledge, it was not that she wanted to be with Din, but he was her safety net. He was her lifeline and the interaction before her was a sad reminder of her position in this world. The chances of her finding someone and settling down… were slim.
Din felt Omera slowly begin to lift his helmet up, but he gently stopped her. He removed her hands from his helmet and took a step back.
"I don't belong here, but he does."
Omera looked down at her hands and nodded.
"I understand. I will look after him as one of my own."
As Omera finished speaking, a sudden blast disrupted the peaceful morning. The blast echoed throughout the trees and Din startled into action. After instructing Omera to get the children, Din runs towards the sound and switches his helmet sensors on. Not too far from the village, he finds Cara and a lifeless bounty hunter in the forest. He approached the body and flipped the man over. In his hand, a beeping tracking fob flashed.
"Who is he tracking?" Cara asked as he picked it up. Din understood the first bounty, but the second confused him. How did she have a chain code?
"The kid… and Diana."
"Diana? Why Diana?" Cara asked. But before she could get an answer, Din turned and ran back to the village with his head up searching for Diana.
"Diana!" He shouted as he reached the center of the village. Looking past the few villagers outside, he did not see her nor hear anything.
"Scout the area. He wasn't working alone." Din ordered Cara as they return to the forest line.
"Did you see her this morning?" He asked as he feverishly turned his head left and right to scan the area.
"No."
Another blast echoed tough the forest, alarming both Cara and Din. They run towards the sound, deeper and deeper into the forest to find Diana standing and nearly heaving next to the body of another bounty hunter. As Din and Cara come closer, Diana raises a blaster to the sound of others.
"It's just us." Din announces as he cautiously steps closer to the bounty hunter. Diana lowered her blaster and tried to calm her heavy breathing. Din quickly took in her appearance, her clothes were dirty, twigs in her hair, and she looked shocked, scared, and completely disheveled.
"Are you okay?" He first asked, coming to her and scanning over her exposed skin. A stream of blood fell from her stomach where a large portion of her shirt was ripped off.
"Yeah." She sighed. Exhaling a large but quick breath. She winced at the pain. Din focused his attention on her wound. It was small thin but possibly deep gash over her left-side abdomen. A minor injury but still needed aide.
"What happened?" He asked. He turned towards the dead bounty hunter and removed his weapon from him. He circled the body and found a small bloody blade.
"I was walking, and he tried to grab me then I heard the other blast and… we fought." Diana explained, trying to recount the hazy events. Her adrenaline pumped hard making it difficult for her to focus. She looked to Cara and Din.
"Let's get you cleaned up." Cara approached her and wrapped her arm around Diana's waist to help her walk back to the village. Din watched them leave but he stayed behind. He stared at the fob in his hand for another moment.
He didn't understand how Diana had a chain code. It was the one thing needed for anyone to put a bounty on anyone and to have this form of identification meant that she had been in this galaxy before and during the Imperial Era. Din stared at the fob for another moment before destroying it. He returned to the village to find Diana bandaging herself up. She sat on the edge of the staircase that led to her hut. Cara kneeled beside her with a bucket of water. The locals paid them little attention.
"How are you feeling?" Din asked. He watched her wrap thin gauze around and around her torso.
"Better. I'll be fine." She said as she ripped the gauze and tucked the end. She looked up at him and her lips twisted into a small, hopeful smile.
"They were bounty hunters." He said while keeping a close on Diana's face. He had to speak to her about her own bounty, but he knew the first thing they needed to do was get off the planet.
Din lifted the Child onto a loaded cargo sled. A small group of villagers surrounded him, Diana and the Child. Diana said her final goodbyes to a group of children before saluting Cara. A few adults approach Din as Diana climbs onto the sled. They thank him and bid them all safe travels.
"So where do we go now?" Diana asked as the sled pulled them farther and farther from the village.
"Not sure." He glanced over to her. He looked over at the bandage and the new set of clothes she wore. "I have to talk to you about something."
Diana turned her head to him. She didn't like that.
"Okay, talk to me."
"Your chain code was listed on the tracking fob."
"Okay… my chain code. What is that?"
"They're a form of identification from the Old Empire. They contain biographical information on a person, their history, some certain features. I have one, the Child has one, Cara." He explained. "But you're from Earth and the Old Empire fell five years ago. For you to have a chain code… you would have had to been here before."
Diana looked back at the village at his final words, but her focus was nowhere near them. She didn't understand what he was saying. How would she have been here before?
"That's impossible." She managed to say. She shook her said and faced Din again. She looked over his armor as she tried to comprehend his words. Din watched her, deciding his own thoughts and feeling to the recent news. At first, he was suspicious that perhaps she wasn't who she said she was, but now he decided that was not the case. Diana was just as lost as he was but exponentially more.
"I think there's more to what happened on Earth. I think you're here for a reason." He honestly said. While she always wanted the truth, this was something Diana could not fathom. She swallowed her nerves as she felt her stomach begin to twist. She couldn't place her feelings or emotions. She could only nod because she ever so slightly agreed with him.
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