Hello again all my lovelies.
So...HOLY COW! Who among us loved the season final of the Mandalorian. Not what I was expecting at all. Lots of heartbreak and tears, but I was happy none the less. Defiantly made the wait worthwhile. I hope everyone liked it as much as I did. Still mad and sad that the Razor Crest got blown up.
While I loved Season 2, my story began before that cannon came out, so I will continue to write it between Season 1 and 2. I may take some ideas from the new lore, but overall, I'm pretty happy with just doing my own thing. So I hope everyone continues to support me as much as they have. I have to say I'm just floored by the number of positive reviews I've gotten. You guys are just the best.
Ice worlds were the pits. The only reason any of them had any kind of terrestrial presence was because they were one of the most commonly formed planets in most galaxies. There was only so much room available in the great vacuum of space that was in the golden zone of orbiting suns, allowing for the growth and prospering of plants and waterbodies. Which, with the great population of the universes many, many species, lead to inhospitable and dangerous worlds with breathable atmospheres needing to be colonized.
That logic did not make Din any happier about the current situation. Moving through the dark, high corridors of the frozen cliffs as swiftly and silently as he could, Din soundly cursed the existence of every ice world in the galaxy. He would joyfully take the blistering dunes of Tatooine any day over the soul-chilling, hyperborean rawness of Carlac.
His muscles ached from the biting cold and his Beskar was quickly gaining a layer of frost over it, making his movements even harder. Not something he needed to deal with right before heading into a battle. Pausing, Din took a moment to rotate his shoulders, bending his knees in an attempt to pump more blood to his limbs and loosen his joints. It was likely he was going to need to move quickly and he didn't want to solely relied on a rush of adrenaline to propel him.
Exhaling, he scanned the area in front of him again. There was still no sign of any heat signatures or movement, but Din had little doubt that would not be the case for much longer. Glancing back over his shoulder, he hoped to all the Gods he could name that Paz was awake and Val was moving them all to safety. Or as safe as they could be in this place. Either way, his path was clear. He needed to buy them time.
How much time was entirely dependent on what he was dealing with. His knowledge of the men hunting his brother and the foundlings was woefully small. But they'd been vicious and skilled enough to severely wound Paz Vizsla, someone Din knew to be a highly trained Mandalorian warrior, with the added benefit of Beskar armor. It was unlikely this was going to be an easy fight.
Taking cover behind a jutting outcrop of ice, Din forced back his anxiety, refocusing his mind and waited with patience born from years of training. He was far enough away from the escape pod that any stray blaster fire wouldn't threaten those he protected. Surprise was one of the best weapons to have at ones disposal and he didn't intend to squander it. With luck, he'd cut enough of the mercs numbers to permanently dissuade them from continuing their mission.
Din hated relying on luck.
It felt like a lifetime passed before the barest shifting of movement darted across his helms feed. A brief, warm red glow that flickered out of existence a heartbeat later. But it was enough to jar his senses and tense his body in preparation. He'd never doubted Val's instincts for a single moment, but he'd be lying if he said part of him had hoped she'd been wrong. As he waited, edgy and prepped for combat, confusion started to rise. He'd seen something move, he was sure of it. So where were these bastards? What was taking them so long?
His last thought had barely finished flitting through his head when a hail of blaster fire suddenly erupted from the darkness. Jerking back behind the outcrop, which was rapidly disintegrating from the heat of the laser rounds, Din struggled to understand how they'd found out where he was. However, there was little time to contemplate that issues, as his cover became decorated with more and more holes.
Sucking in a breath and bracing for the bruises he knew were going to form, Din lunged out into the storm of deadly bolts. The clear ringing pings of successful hits on his Beskar echoed in his ears, along with the fierce ache of the impacts. He didn't let himself feel the pain, using it to fuel his fury, charging forward and trusting the sacred armor to protect him. Which it did, guarding him from falling and allowing Din to burst into the area the mercenaries were dug into.
It only took a quick scan to realize he'd jumped straight into a Krayt Dragon's nest headfirst.
There were more of them then Din had first thought. When the group had passed by Val and him hours earlier, he'd estimated their numbers to be about half a dozen. Now the body count had risen to at least twelve. They'd also had a portable photon cannon, held by a large human, who turned it towards him, barrels spinning as energy filled the chambers. Sprinting wildly, Din skidded across the icy ground, barely finding cover behind a rock before the cannon reached full power and started to unload. The dark air was suddenly burning as bright as a White Dwarf star, the change in lighting making him squint for a second. Bolts as thick as his arm flew through the air, cutting chucks from the cliffs and tearing gashes through the ground.
Hunkered down behind the flimsy cover that was only going to last for another few heartbeats, Din locked his jaw tightly, flexed his left wrist and heard the whine of the launcher as it powered up. Kicking off from his crouched position, he rolled his shoulder over the ground and scanned the battlefield with his helm. Leaping to his feet, he loosed the Whistling Birds from his vambrace.
The small munitions sang their death song as they flew through the air, twisting and looping in a graceful dance no living creature could hope to mimic. Two found their target almost instantly, striking the human holding the cannon and exploding on impact, sending him careening to the ground with a pained cry. That took care of that problem at least. Others darted agility around. Some hit and took down an enemy, a few hit peices of cover and fizzled out. But they'd done their job. The ranks of the hunters were thinned out and the ones that remained were scrambling, struggling to understand what had just happened. The element of surprise was his once again.
Whipping his blaster from the holster, Din spun in place and started firing at anything that moved. His shots were reflected of jutting ice edges and stalagmites of rocks that the mercs hid behind, or avoided as his targets raced around the battlefield. These men weren't brainwashed Stormtroppers made to believe their white armor was impenetrable. They were veteran combatants, seasoned hunters and well accustom to staying focused under attack. The bolts didn't hit anything living, but did clear the air enough for him to get a good picture of what he was dealing with now. His Birds had successfully killed four enemies. A good start, but he was still outnumbered.
One insane and/or supremely confidence hunter took a run towards him, firing widely with the intent clearly being to tackle him to the ground. He was big enough for it too, muscled and board shouldered. Depressing the trigger on his flamethrower as the charging bull got closer, he loosed a stream of searing hot embers which greedily latched onto the man, dodging to the side as the human torch ran by in a panic. His screams and frantic flailing as he fought to put out the inferno shook the moral of his comrades, who shouted in alarm at the sight of the burning, dying human.
A sudden pain flared down his left side, the crystal clear ringing of his armor deflecting the blaster fire filling his ears. Spinning around, Din zeroed in on the figure crouching down, almost not visible behind the cover he was curled around. In the almost blackness of the cavern, it would have been impossible to see him. But Din's helm could split through the gloom with ease. Squeezing the trigger on his blaster, the bolt loosed from the barrel and hit the assailant's forehead dead center. Sprinting forward, Din grabbed the edge of the ice chuck and threw himself behind it, streaks of fire from other enemies skimming around his body and bouncing off the Beskar.
The battlefield was filled with flying lasers and shouts, an cacophony of organized chaos. He took a few breaths to assess his person before jumping back into the fray. There were bruised and aching muscles under every piece of armor he wore, proof of the blessed steels reliance and strength. His underlayer durasuit was still intact, with a few areas that had been blackened by the heated rounds, but none had penetrated through the cloth yet.
Turning up his gun, he checked the number of round he had left, making a mental note and prepared to lunge out into the open once more. As he rotate on his feet, scanning around the rock for another target to take down, something new came out of the darkness. A tall imposing form that made Din freeze up in confusion for a few heartbeats.
The figure looked familar for a moment or two. An armored male with a curved helmet and a dark tinted T-visor. The currais was Beskar, with chipped red paint scheme. It was Mandalorian design through and through, there was no forgery in the plating. As the shielded fighter stepped into the open, the guns of the others quieted, stillness filling the air. A harsh modulated voice called out to him.
"You people just love to multiple, don't you? Worst than Gizka's, popping up in all kinds of places you just don't belong."
White hot righteous rage filled Din's veins and he rose slowly to his feet, turning towards the man that wore his brethren's sacred armor like a trophy. By sheer instincts, his blaster twisted and held the imposter in its sights. No bolts were fired at him, the rest of the pack seemed content to wait and see how this would play out. The male speaking didn't flinch back at the threat, seeming to know his pilfered trove of Beskar would guard him for the time.
"That doesn't belong to you." Din's voice growled out darkly, his free hand fisting so tightly he was sure there'd be indents of his blunt nails through the leather gloves. The urge to open fire on this imposter was nearly overwhelming, but that would lead to the others shooting him. For now, he would let this arrogant bastard strut. A nasty, mocking laugh left the high-pass filter of the helmet.
"It's mine now, I peeled it off the weakling that wore it last. Wasn't an easy thing, you Mando's put up quite the scuffle. But I wear it better than him anyway."
The statement was punctuated by the man flicking his fingers over the pauldron, as though brushing away something unpleasant. Din's vision turned red, all pains forgotten and he was a hairs breath away from going completely ballistic. Only the thought of Val and his Ad'ika kept him grounded. This conversation was giving them more time, so he allowed it to continue despite his overwhelming desire to explode into violence again. Shifting to a sideways stance, he tilted his helm to this new enemy.
"Give me the armor, take with what you have remaining, and I'll let you leave Carlac alive."
Another guffaw came from the man, "You're not in any position to be making demands, friend. We've got you outnumber and outgunned. By my count, it six to one."
"I like those odds." Din responded automatically and with extreme confidence. It was sensed by the peons and one pipped up, speaking to the leader in a strained voice.
"H-hey Carduel. Maybe we should listen to this guy, I mean...we've lost a lot of manpower and he..."
Before any more words could leave the underlings mouth, the one he'd called Carduel turned his blaster and pulled the trigger. Din jerked a little at the sudden sound, momentarily stunned at the cold-bloody ruthless display of murder. Not that it was something he'd never seen before, but it was still a little shocking. A round of silence followed the execution.
"Guess its only five to one now. Care to reconsider?"
Din couldn't quite keep the bite from his voice and burned the name he'd heard into his brain. Regardless of what happened, even if this man accepted the terms and left, Din intended to hunt down and reclaim the armor he so disrespectfully displayed. But of course, he knew this man wouldn't back down. He was too cocky, too greedy. Which suited Din just fine. Carduel turned his attention back towards him and shifted to a firmer stand.
"Reconsider this."
Carduel raise up his arm suddenly and Din reacted without thought, firing off a bolt. The round hit the imposter in the shoulder, knocking him to the ground and the rest of the pack sprang into action. Bracing against the shots that hit his armor, he bit back a cry as one finally got lucky and graze his unprotected knee, sending agony shooting up his leg and nearly driving him down. Gritting his teeth, he pushed back the pain and made to sprint towards the prone form of Carduel.
Except the man had partially pushed himself up and was pointing his arm at Din. The vambrace on his forearm shifted, hydraulics moving and he saw a small, missile-like dart lift from the metal.
A thousand different curses flew through his mind, but he had no time to utter any of them. Without thought, Din turned tail and ran like hell. The burn in his leg increased, but he pushed through, diving back into the crevice and beelining around a bend just as he heard the mini rocket ignite.
Fire and noise filled his senses. Chucks of ice and snow flew through the air, along with a super-compressed wave of pressure that sent Din flying. He was airborne, disorientated and tumbling. Massive peices of debris slammed into him, piling down on his body. His head spun, blackness creeping into his vision. There was a heavy weight on him, something was holding him down, he couldn't move. Struggling to remain consious, he fought to center himself, regain his bearings. Blood was flowing down his forehead and into his eyes, every breath felt like torture with how much it burned. Blearily, Din heard fuzzy voices nearby.
Even though every single atom in his body was screaming in anguish, he planted his hand and fought to push himself up. By some miracle, Din had kept hold of his blaster pistol. Something fell off his back as he struggled. There was a huge hole behind him, large chucks of ice and rock scattered around, partially blocking the opening. Movement from his peripheral vision had him collapsing back to the ground and weakly lifting his weapon.
The figure he saw was blurred, making it look like there were multiple of them. He squeezed the trigger of his blaster, feeling it kick against his palm. His luck held out and the humanoid image dropped to the ground. Survival instincts screamed to life, giving him the strength to drunkenly stagger to his feet. Din could hear the hunters scrambling, ordered harshly by Carduel to finish him off, working to get around the obstacles of collapsed earth caused by the explosion. It had done serious damage to him, he wouldn't be able to fight them off in his state. He needed time.
Fumbling almost blindly as he fled, he somehow managed to fish out one of his handheld charges. Depressing the button, he jammed the small device onto the wall, continuing to run. The following blast jolted him forward, making him stumble and fall to his knees. Still dizzy, Din forced himself back upright and kept going, hoping his exit was more firmly blocked now.
He didn't know how long he raced on, the haze in his mind was too thick. But finally Din let himself slow down, panting with exertion and leaned heavily on the wall of the cavern. The pause helped, his vision cleared a little and he could think further ahead than simply running aimlessly. Looking back, he shifted his helms settings. There was no sign of the hunters tailing him, but that probably wouldn't last long. With Carduel having Mandalorian armor, he could track heat signature just as easily as Din could. That must have been how the mercs had known about his ambush, Carduel had detected his residue first.
Shaking the cobwebs out of his brain as best he could, Din struggled to figure out where he'd ended up. The walls of the cavern all seemed to look the same, blending together in an endless maze. His training and judgment started to return. He hadn't taken out all the enemies after the foundlings, they were all still in mortal peril. Staggering away, he raised up his vambrace.
"V-val! Valriya! Do you copy!? Val!"
The wrist comm sparked in response to his attempts to use it, burn marks littering the top. He cursed soundly, the heat from the blast and wild tumble had fritzed it out. He couldn't contact his partner with it. She wouldn't know that Carduel and his thugs were heading her way. He needed to find them first!
The damage he'd taken was severe, he knew that. It didn't feel as bad as the what he'd endured on Nevarro from the thermal grenade, but Din didn't believe for a moment that meant his body wasn't trying to die on him. But he wouldn't give in yet, not till he was sure Val and the young ones were safe. Staggering along, he frantically thought loudly, trying to aim his mental message to Val, hoping to the ancestors that somehow she would hear his warning with her unique abilities.
"Move Val, move! They're coming, you need to move now!"
She sighed deeply, leaning her head back against the rock wall that supported her. Sitting in the alcove with the small group, Val turned her face towards the more open cave, listening for any different or unusual noises. The area was silent, save for the soft breaths of the resting children. Looking back to the group, Val flicked her eyes over them.
Tavor and Kalei had fallen asleep, leaning against each other and wrapped in the blanket as tightly as they could be. Jar-Tan was sitting opposite of her, helm occasionally turning to look around. The adult Mandalorian hadn't moved since she'd ordered him to rest. She'd picked up on a few wheezing, modulated rasps from time to time. Proof he was still alive, but it was hard to say how much strength he'd recovered. On her thighs was the child. He'd finally gotten bored with his exploration and had crawled into her lap. Val wrapped her arms around the small green being, trying to insulate him with her bodies warmth. She didn't know if it was working, but he was quite content, eyes closed and cuddling into her stomach.
Puffing out a white cloud of air, Val shifted in place. The child gave an unhappy coo, grabby clawed hands tightening on her wrist. She curled her hand more firmly around his middle in response and he quieted down. Glancing at the chronometer built into the comm-panel on her wrist, she sighed again. She'd been separated from Mando for about an hour now. Somehow, it felt infinitely longer. Part of her was highly tempted to ring him. However, if he was setting up an ambush, or already fighting, contact could put him at greater risk. So she resisted the urge, settling back against the wall again.
Maker, she hated this! She hated being forced to stay still, hated the helpless feeling that was blooming in her chest, hated that her danger sense was still humming, though not strongly enough to warrant her moving yet. More than anything, she absolutely hated that she was sitting here in this dim lit cave doing kreiffing nothing while Mando was risking his damn life to keep her and the others safe. Even if he did order her to do just that.
Unable to handle sitting still anymore, she rose up and stepped closer to the Heavy. His chest moved in a steady rhythm and while she was tempted to touch his skin to gauge his temperature, she resisted. Last thing she needed right now was to accidently get punched by an armored fist for trying to help. Nervously, she started pacing quietly, cradling the kid in the crook of her elbow.
Her wrist comm suddenly let out a second long burst of static from the speaker. Val turned it again, frowning at the device and waited for more noise to come. Nothing did and she passed off the incident as cold damage. It took specialized electronics to handle the extreme temperature of ices worlds, Val doubted Mando's bounty hunting budget would cover those kind of expenses.
Turning again to walk the length of the alcove, the alien in her arms suddenly went stiff, ears snapping up and eyes flying open. An instant later, her danger sense flew into hyperdrive, energy zinging through her blood and for a brief, insane moment, she swore she heard a deep, familar baritone voice echoing in the far reaches of her head.
...move...now...
Sucking in a sharp breath, she jumped out of the alcove, moving around the upward jutting stone pillars and paused before the floor crack. She still heard nothing, but her instincts were howling. Spinning back, she spoke loudly to the helmed teen while jogging back to the group.
"Jar-Tan! Get up. We're leaving, right now." The adolescent was already on his feet, having risen quickly when she sprinted away. He was tense, gripping his blade tightly.
"The Kyr'tsad contacted you? I did not hear a comm-link."
"I don't have time to explain, you're just going to have to trust me. Get the kids up. Quickly!" He wasn't happy with that answer, it was clear, but he didn't argue any further, moving to rouse the two young siblings. Val grabbed the adults shoulder and shook hard,
"Hulk...hey Big Guy. Wake up." The Mandalorian male jerked slightly under her hand, helm snapping up and hand fisting. Val took a step back, just in case, but he cleared his head quickly.
"Aruetii?"
"Welcome back, Sunshine. We need to go. Right now." Her skin started to buzz stronger, hairs on her neck standing up. The large male grunted in response, shifting as though to stand up. He gave a sudden, pained gasp, one hand clutching at his side. A pause followed before he shook his head.
"I cannot, I've not recovered well enough to travel swiftly, I will slow you down too much. Take them and go."
Tavor and Kalei were awake, standing close to Jar-Tan and looked scared. Val grit her teeth, hating the situation even more now. Because he was right, she couldn't help him and run with the kids at the same time. Her decision was taken away from her as the Heavy planted a hand on her hip and shoved, making her stagger back.
"Go, Aruetii. I will join you when I can." He turned towards Jar-Tan and drew his blaster pistol, turning the weapon handle first to the teen. The boy hesitated for a moment before taking the gun, "Protect them. This is the Way."
"This is the Way..." came the quiet response from the kid. Hulk turned and nodded sharply to her and Val hissed out a curse under her breath, starting to walk backwards,
"Good luck," She said. He inclined his head and she turned away, hustling the group of kids to the exit. Shifting she handed the child over to Tavor, who took the baby without a word, and drew her own small blaster, "I'll go first, the rest of you come after."
Nods followed her order and Val dropped to her knees, starting the crawl back out into the elements. The cold bit deep into her bones and she pushed down a shiver. Tavor still had her coat on and she had no intention of taking it back. Rising up, she strained her eyes in the darken corridors, struggling to detect any motion. It was still and quiet, unnaturally so. Her instincts were screaming, the urge to run nearly overwhelming her.
A minute later and the others had crawled through. Val looked around and turned to the teenage Mandalorian, "You have night vision on that bucket, right?"
"I do."
"Good," she replied crisply as she bent down and scoop Kalei into her arms, shifting the kid to her hip. The youngster clung her neck with a fierce grip, "Take the lead, I'll cover our backs. Let's move."
Jar-Tan spun and took off at a brisk jog. Tavor quickly followed and Val adjusted Kalei's weight, catching up easily. Together, they moved as quickly as they could while still staying close to one another. Time passed as Val ushered the kids along, constantly checking over her shoulder. At first they managed to get a fair distance, but there was something that bogged them down. Tavor, for all his show of strength and resilience, was simply too young to have the stamina to keep running for long stretches. Val heard the wheezing gasps of the younger boy in front of her, though he tried hard to hide it and hissed up towards the teen in the lead.
"Hold up, Jar-Tan. Let's take a breather."
The teen paused, blaster scanning the area, his own breathing sounding labored. Tavor panted heavily, bending over and gasping out, "I...can...still..."
"I know, kid. But save if for when we need it."
Val shifted Kalei to the ground and the girl moved closer to her brother. Her danger sense was still roaring, but there was nothing in sight yet. Jar-Tan stood guard with her, speaking with a clipped tone,
"I've seen no enemies, how can you be sure they're nearby? Leaving Kyr'tsad behind-"
"I know, I know, I don't like it either," She interrupted the teens protests, turning to look at him, "Listen, I know it's not easy to blindly trust anyone, but please believe me when I say I've just got a nose for these things. We needed to move and once we catch our breaths, we need to keep going."
He was unsatisfied with her answer, she could see it in the tense muscles of his shoulders and the soft growl he let out. Now that Val wasn't moving, the cold wind cut deeper and she hunched up. Energy buzzed through her, heightening her senses, making her aware of every noise and whisper that filtered into the area.
Danger...
The wordless warning flitted across her mind. Val snapped her head up, swearing she heard the crunch of snow under a boot and screamed a warning without thinking,
"Down!"
She shoved on Jar-Tan and ducked just as a blaster bolt hit the wall where her chest had been. The teen yelped, Kalei screamed and Tavor cried out in shock.
"Go-Go-Go-Go!" Val yelled while spinning back around and shooting her blaster in the direction the shot had come from.
Three bolts whizzed towards them, horribly off course but enough to send adrenaline course so strongly through her body she tasted it on the back of her tongue. She couldn't see well, the darkness obscured everything. The two young kids were gone, racing further into the gloom. Jar-Tan squeezed off two rounds over his shoulder into the same general area she'd fired at. She pushed against his back and the two careened forward, hearing male voices and pounding feet behind them.
Diving around a corner, she twisted low, skidding onto one knee and raised the gun just as a humanoid form appeared on her heels. Feeling dread coil in her gut, Val squeezed the trigger point blank at the body. The blaster bucked in her hand, the laser bolt slicing into the being's center mass. A scream of pain came from him before she felt the man's energy waver and fade away, his lifeforce leeching out. She closed her eyes briefly and pushed back up, running after the kids. That was part of the reason she really tried not to kill people. She hated sensing the essences of someone bleed out and disappear, vanishing like particles of stardust. It always left a horribly sick feeling behind. But it was unavoidable here. Right now, it was kill or be killed.
Her execution of the man seemed to give the other pursuers a bit of pause as they slowed slightly, recognizing danger and focusing more on trying to gun her down. She sprinted onward, seeing the distance form of Jar-Tan ahead of her. Her intuition triggered again and Valriya zigged sharply to the left, dodging a bolt that ricocheted off the ground, sending shards of sharp debris flying. Digging the ball of her foot into the snowy earth, she jumped up, planting her soul on a rock and kicked off. Airborne for a few seconds, Val spun in mid-flight, lifting the blaster and fired off a flurry of rounds behind her.
The shadowed forms dove for cover. Well, most of them did. One of them strode forward without an iota of fear. Dread filled her chest as the few blaster bolts that managed to hit were reflected off and left a clear, familar ringing in the air. Landing on the ground while skidding backwards, Val stared at the new man. Tall, intimidating and wearing armor that looked achingly similar to her partners, save that it appeared to be painted. His arm lifted and a nasty looking gun was held at the end. Diving to the side, she felt the heat from the blast skimmed her arm, burning the skin and sent a jolt of pain up her limb. Scrambling on the slick surface, Val surged forward.
"Get her!" Came an enraged electronic howl from behind.
Pounding feet thundered behind her. She'd lost sight of the kids and in the darkened cervices, she couldn't tell which way they'd gone. More gunfire flew close to her and Val weaved more violently, ducking lower as she ran, putting on a burst of speed as she forced more energy into her legs.
Her senses growled, making her scan the walls. A small break in the icy surface was just ahead of her. An obstacle, something to slow down her pursuers. She needed that. Twisting sideways, she wriggled into the cramped space. Just as she cleared the jagged icy edges, a sudden force yanked her back harshly. A cry left her mouth against her will before the fabric around her neck tightened and started to cut off her airway.
She clawed at the woolen cape that Mando had so thoughtfully given her to help with the cold. Val hadn't even remembered she was wearing it and now it acted like a noose as the thugs hauled on it, pulling her back and making black spots dance in front of her eyes. Hands grabbed at her body, struggling to get a good grip as she flailed in a terrified frenzy. As oxygen depravation started to set in, she felt the digits finally get a firmer hold on her before unwillingly twisting her and roughly ripping her back through the gap.
Val was thrown to the harshly to the ground, the wind knocked from her lungs. Through jagged gasp, fighting to regain her bearings, she kicked wildly at the legs around her, trying to gain space to get back to her feet. Someone slammed a heavy boot onto her arm and she screamed in pain, forced to release the blaster she held.
Still struggling to clear her head, vision blurry and jolts of agony shooting up her limb, Valriya managed to lift her head just as the man wearing Mandalorian armor loomed above her and leveled his gun straight between her eyes.
He wasn't injured as badly as he had been in the past, but the wounds from the explosion were still debilitating. Jogging as quickly as he could, Din pressed a hand to his side. He probably had a few cracked ribs, judging from the pain each intake of breath caused.
Shaking off another wave of double vision, he looked around again. Shifting the settings on his helm, he saw a glowing heat signature on the ground ahead of him. Increasing his pace, Din felt both joy and dread fill him as he came upon the downed escape pod. The capsule was empty now, which gave him great relief. Paz had recovered enough to move elsewhere, that was good. But his gut clenched with trepidation at the sight of multiple footprints that now decorated the snowy terrain. Too many to have been made by Val and his brethren.
"Dank ferrick..." The curse left his lips involuntarily and sent a new surge of energy through his system. His pains and fatigue were pushed aside, forgotten as his mind instantly ran through a dozen scenarios, each one worst than the last. Din had been around the galaxy a few times over, he'd seen what mercenaries as cold and ruthless as these ones were capable of.
With the mental image of Val sprawled out in snow stained crimson with her blood fueling his rage, he broke into a full out sprint. The red lit path of footprints started to become more spaced out. Signs of flight, those who left them were running. Din's head snapped up, audio receivers tuning in on the faint sound of gunfire.
The walls felt too tight, almost seemed to close in, slowly his frantic, panicked run. Shadows pulled at him, clawed and held him tight. Faster...he had to move faster. Every step counted, he needed to reach them. His clan was in danger. There was no time to properly process the full meaning of that thought, for as he flew forward and witnessed the sight before him, all logic and discipline left his person in a storm of white-hot madness.
Val was surrounded, partially propped up on her elbow and staring down the barrel of a blaster held by the imposter.
He did not think, did not take time to survey the danger or make a quick plan, something that should have been second nature to him. He was a trained hunter, someone who constantly dealt with the threat of death and people that would happily kill him without hesitation. But there was no pause in his action, no heartbeat to consider the folly of his action. Din acted on sheer, undiluted, uncontrollable, overwhelming fury.
Instantly his blaster whipped up and he loosed a powerful bolt straight at Carduel. The laser round slammed into the side of the Beskar currais, knocking him to the ground. As he fell, Carduel's finger pulled on the trigger of his gun, sending a wild shot flying off. Din heard Val cry out, though he didn't know if it was in shock or pain. There was no time to check on the Runner, but she was scrambling over the icy earth as the group around her broke apart in mass confusion. Adjusting his aim, Din fired off two more rounds, dropping the unarmored mercs without hesitation.
His gun clicked empty as he readjusted to the leader, who'd just managed to jump back to his feet. There was no time to reload, things were moving too fast. Val had finally gotten her footing and her sudden movement drew Carduel's attention, his gun pivoting to lock her back in his sights.
Dropping his weapon without thought, Din charged forward, lowering his shoulder and drove into the merc at full force. His pile-drive tackle lifted Carduel off the ground and the two slammed into the vertical walls of the canyon. His attack took the man off guard, Din heard his breath whoosh through the modulator on a stunned grunt. But it was a temporary win, for his opponent recovered remarkably quickly.
The butt of a pistol slammed into the back of his neck, sending blinding jolts of agony down his spine. His grip on Carduel loosened and the man flung him off. Still disorientated from the blow to his head, Din stumbled on the slick ground, collapsing to his knees. The merc staggered backwards, fumbling a bit before raising his blaster at him, aiming for the break between his currais and helmet.
Before Carduel could pull the trigger, another bolt ricocheted his armor. He staggered from the hit and Din turned his head slightly, seeing Val armed once more and shooting from the other side of the fissure. The ruthless man spun his weapon back towards his partner and Din took advantage of the distraction. Ripping his vibroblade from his boot, he leapt back to his feet, slicing viscously at the arm the held the gun.
The razor edge cut through the durasuit with ease, biting deep into man flesh. Carduel howled in pain, his gun dropping to the ground as a stream of scarlet burst from the wound. Lunging forward, Din slammed into Carduel once more, knife aimed for the man's lower abdomen. But his opponent was no fool and knew how to fight as well as the next man. He gripped Din's wrist in a tight hold, twisting until his arm was bent at an unnatural angle.
Unwillingly and despite his best efforts, his hand opened, muscles unable to hold the handle of the blade. The imposter was bigger than him, taller and heavier. He used that fact to his advantage, pushing Din against the wall, a five inch double edged dagger springing out of one of the gauntlets he wore.
"Mando!" Val's distressed scream split the air and he saw her dart forward, trying to get to a better angle where she could risk another shot without potential hitting him.
He couldn't respond, it was taking everything he had to keep the tip of the shiv from plunging into his throat. His muscles trembled as he gripped Carduel's wrist, straining with all his strength to keep death at bay, but he was faltering, his hold slipping, bringing the blade closer and closer to his carotid artery. Grunts and hisses left each man as they both struggled to overwhelm the other. The tip of the deadly weapon pressed against the fabric of Din's flight suit, he felt the cold metal brush on his skin, causing a drip of blood to flow down his neck. Fear and guilt bombarded him. He was going to die, he couldn't hold the man back. He wasn't strong enough, his injuries were restricting him too much.
No...not like this...he couldn't die yet. Val needed him, the foundlings needed him. If he fell, she'd be at this bastards mercy. He could not, would not, fail them!
"Buir!" The high pitched sound was almost lost in the noise of the fight. But Din had grown accustom to the baby's voice in the time they'd been together, come to find the noises and babble his Ad'ika made to be a comfort, a sign that the child was nearby and safe. Right now, however, it was the last thing Din wanted to hear.
Without warning, Carduel was suddenly airborne, flung away from him like an invisible rope had yanked backwards. Such was the force that the man was thrown with that when he crashed into the opposite wall, the curved helmet popped off his head reveling a middle aged human with black hair and a nasty burn scar on his face. The sudden lack of an enemy, the unexpected release of his muscles made Din sag against the wall with a gasp, stunned at what had just happened.
"Buir!", came the yell again, and this time, he saw the tiny form of the child rushing at him through the snow.
"No!", Din cried loudly, terror gripping his heart at the thought of the kid being hurt in the crossfire. He dove between his Ad'ika and his enemy, trying to shield the baby with his legs.
Val was suddenly by his side, one hand braced on his back and used his body as a partial shield while firing her small gun around him at Carduel. Her attack jarred Din back into action and he scanned the ground quickly. Spotting the blaster he'd disarmed from the imposter, he scrambled forward, feeling his partner adjust to his movements, staying protected behind his armored form but continuing to cover him.
Fumbling, Din grasped the unfamiliar weapon, raising it towards his enemy. Carduel had recovered enough from the violent flight to realized that he was seconds away from being outnumbered and outgunned. Even though most of Val's bolts were deflected by the Mandalorian armor or missed entirely, he was sure the hits were causing pain and simply donning Beskar did not mean one was suddenly immune from death.
Outer Rim survival instincts kicked in and the merc bolted, racing down the canyon into the darkness. Din whipped up the gun and shot off a round just as Carduel disappeared from view. He moved to follow, to pursue and finish the fight. His actions were halted by fingers catching the edge of his chestplate, pulling him back and forcing him to pause.
"Leave him!" Val demanded loudly.
Din spun his helm towards her, "He has our armor, I can't just-"
She glared back, panting hard and shaking from the adrenaline rush, "That's not what we came here for, the kids still need you! What's more important right now? The Beskar or them?"
The answer was so blatantly obvious that he didn't even bother to respond. That didn't stop him from snarling in wordless rage. But Val was right, chasing after Carduel when he was retreating was reckless and selfish. He barely made it through the fight once, charging in wounded and furious was foolhardy. As though she could sense his conflict, Val parted from him, jogging over to the helm that Carduel left behind and scooped it up. Returning to him, she offered the red painted headgear to him, which he took delicately.
"We'll track it down later. Right now, we need to get those foundling off this planet. Right?"
"Yah," Din breathed out, still fighting the urge to run after the imposter fleeing with his kin's heritage. But Val's logic was correct, the foundlings were his priority. The armor could wait, he'd hunt it down another day. Din was grateful for her levelheadedness in this situation, he honestly wasn't sure if he could have made that choice without her urging. He glanced down at the child, who clung to his leg, sniffling loudly. Val bent down and scooped up the kid into her arms.
Exhaling heavily, he continued, "Where are they?"
"I lost them when we had to run, you'll need to-"
"Val!" came the yell of an unfamiliar voice. Din jerked in response, reflexively lifting the gun at the figures that ran at them. Instantly he lowered his arm again as his mind registered the humanoid forms as his own. They quickly moved to intercept the group and Val looked them over briefly.
"Thanks the Stars. Everyone okay?"
A series of affirmations followed before the young boy in a sliver helm started to babble at his partner, "I'm so sorry Val! I couldn't hold him, my grip slipped somehow and he ran off before I could-"
"It's fine Tavor, we're all fine." She turned and looked over him, eyes scanning his body and a frown marring her face, "Right?"
Now that the immediate danger was gone, the pains and fatigue from before came rushing back in full force. His body ached, head pounded and countless bruises and scraps screamed loudly. But he managed to nod back. Val wasn't fooled and holstered her blaster, moving to his side and gripped his bicep tightly, shifting the child away as the baby stretched one clawed hand towards him while gurgling insistently.
"Kreif, Mando, what the hell happen?" Din open his mouth to respond and she beat him to it, "Wait, don't answer that. I don't wanna know. Can you walk?"
"I'm alright Brat, let's just-"
A blaster bolt flew out of the dark and hit him in the left pauldron, sending him crashing into Val, a stunned howl leaving his mouth. She shrieked in response as they fell and Din saw one of the men he shot push himself up, clutching his side before turning his gun towards the kids.
Before any other thought or action could be taken, a giant shadow rose up behind the wounded man. Arms thick as trees lashed out, grasping the human with titanic force. A sickening crunch split the air and the body of the merc collapsed to the earth, neck twisted at an unnatural angle. Din stared at the towering form of Paz Viszla, fully armored once more, standing tall and proud over the dead enemy.
"You missed one, Vod."
Din had no idea what to say in response, too stunned and surprised. Beside him, Val groan loudly, flopping to the ground in a boneless heap.
"Can we just kreiffing leave now?"
Din supposed they should count themselves lucky that the bikes had still been intact upon exiting the canyon. He'd been half expecting them to be blow to peices, seeing as the mercs ship had left by the time they'd managed to limp out. That would have just been the topper of this legendary bad day. But they finally managed to get everyone back to the docking port. The first thing his partner did upon reaching the Razor Crest again was rush on board and re-emerge armed with a syringe of bacta, beelining towards him.
"I'm fine! You don't need to-"
"Do not start with me, Shiny! I will frakking end you!"
Paz barked out a harsh laugh while directing the foundlings towards his Lancer, "Haar'chuk, Vod! I like this Aruetii."
Her head turned to look at Paz and the kids, yelling over her shoulder as they disappeared into the other bay, "I still want to know what that means, Hulk!"
A loud guffaw filtered through the doorway before she turned back to him with a determine look and stepped closer, wielding the syringe like a sword.
"That's not needed, I'm okay. I don't want to waste expensive supplies."
"You got blown up, Mando, that is not okay! Do you want me to wake the kid up and have him do it? Cause I will."
Din bristled at her threat. The thought of his foundling exhausted himself simply because he wished to heal him made every protective instincts he had roar to life. That was not something that he would allow unless the situation was absolutely life-threatening, "Don't you kreiffing dare!"
Val did not cringe away from his dark growl. She held no fear of him, something that he didn't think anyone he'd ever been associated with could fully lay claim to.
"Then quit whining and hold still. I'll only give you half anyway, we can save the rest if you're gonna moan about it."
Din still turned his arm away when she moved to grab it, keeping it out of her reach in defiance, "A quarter. No more."
Her lips pulled back in a fiery snarl. He thought for sure she'd start arguing again, but Val finally relented, giving a sharp nod in agreement. He didn't move as she injected the healing fluid, though he did wince a little under his helm. His whole body ached, he was sure under the Beskar his skin was probably one massive frakking bruise. As she pulled out the needle, Val spoke again in a softer, more reserved tone.
"Tell me something. When you finished whatever right of passage you had to go through to earn that bucket on you head, did it include forfeiting every shred of common sense you possess?"
He almost sighed. Clearly she wasn't through berating him yet, "Val..."
"You need to take better care of yourself," she bluntly interrupted, raising her head and locking eyes with him through the visor. His gut clenched at the look, at the raw compassion and worry that lined her pretty face. It was world tilting, seeing her anguish about his wellbeing so blatantly painted on her feature, something that was unnatural for him to see. He was always alone, there was no one to rely on but himself, he stood upon a pedestal none could hope to reach.
And yet...she was reaching up, fighting to climb closer, digging in fingers and struggling to scale the steep slope. Without thought he raised up a hand, brushing a stray strand of hair that had come loose off her cheek.
"I had to protect you..." he murmured back unwillingly, "Both of you..."
She stood still, studying him with intense eyes. They reminded him of chocolate, decedent, rich and tempting beyond reason. He wanted to pull her close, to feel her heartbeat and breath, her warmth and lithe, firm frame against his. Stars help him...he wanted to taste her, feel her lips on his. It was wrong...it was forbidden. But it didn't stop him from wanting it with everything he had.
Before that sudden urge overwhelmed him, the sound of small boots slapping against metal flooring caught Din's ears and he forced himself to take a step back. He turned towards the sound, seeing Tavor jog towards them while holding Val's winter coat.
"Here," he said, handing it back, "Thank you for letting me use it. It was really warm."
"My pleasure. Is Jar-Tan on the Lancer now?" Tavor nodded back and Val pressed her lip together, "Good. Mind taking me to him. I want to give him a hit of this before you guys take off."
Val motioned to the bacta syringe as she walked and the dark haired child gave a small smile in return, "He might not like that."
A snort answered Tavor's comment and Val separated from him upon entering the other bay, walking up the ramp of Paz's ship with the pre-adolescent on her heels after the Heavy sent a nod her way. Din had to fight harder than he wanted to admit to repress a growl when her eyes scanned the larger male as he moved around the craft, performing routine checks needed before a take off.
Heading over to his brethren, Din took a moment to look over the man as well. He was moving stiffly, more slowly than he would normally, but seemed to still be strong.
"Vod? Are you...well?"
"Better than you, Beroya. Don't fear, I will live." Paz looked over, making sure that Val was well out of earshot and that the two were alone before stepping closer.
"Din," he said quietly, lowering his voice so only he could hear, "Thank you. I don't know what brought you here, but I am grateful. I owe you my life."
"I did what had to be done."
Paz shook his helm, "You protect us, provide for us. You always have. I know you are consumed with guilt over what happened on Nevarro. Do not be. We live on. Come to the new location, see and be with our Covert, your brothers and sisters. It will be good for you."
"I..." Din stuttered, uncertainty and shame filling him. He saw the burned, discarded armor shells that his Alor had been melting down in the sewers of Nevarro, felt the despair of knowing his actions had been the reason so many had died. He shook his head weakly,
"T-the Empire still hunts the child, bringing him to a new Covert...It's too much of a risk-"
His brother shook his helm in response, "When one walks the path of the Mandalore, you become both Hunter and Prey. We all know this, we all accept this. Our losses only make us stronger, bring us closer. Do not mourn for what has been, Vod. Live for what we have, what we will become. This is the Way."
"This is the Way..."
Through the pounding in his head, he saw Paz's helm tilt slightly to look over his shoulder. The Heavy sensed Din's trepidation and reached out to grip his shoulder tightly.
"You need this, Vod. More than you know. Come with me."
"Neither of you are going anywhere," Val snipped out sharply as she moved closer. Paz went stiff and straightened, looming over the Runner's smaller form,
"Do you presume to stand in the way, Aruetii?" Though Paz's voice was level, Din could hear the threat behind it.
Fortunately, she didn't seem to take offense to his kin's words, "There's nothing in this galaxy that could stand in your way, Hulk. But you're not leaving this rock with those kids till I perform at least a basic scan of both ships for any trackers."
Din frowned behind his helm, "The Crest hasn't been docked that long, there shouldn't be any risk of that."
"Maybe, maybe not. We were running around that crag for almost a day, Shiny. Hulk's ship was docked for over half a standard week. Are either of you willing to risk sending off a location ping to another group of hostiles? Especially if you're heading to a safe zone? This planet isn't Mandalorian friendly, who's to say those hunters didn't bribe someone in the town to plant a bug somewhere on board? You boys really willing to take that chance?"
Again, he could find no fault in her logic. Val was smart, really frakking smart. She knew how to cover her tracks. Paz still felt the need to protest, though.
"It will slow us down, the hunters might come here."
Val turned to head back to the Razor Crest, likely to grab whatever scanners she needed and talked over her shoulder as she moved, "Then reload and stand guard. I'll be as quick as I can be, but you're not leaving till I know those kids are safe. I didn't come this far just to watch them get killed cause you're impatient. Deal with it."
As the petite brunette vanished into the other bay, Paz stepped beside Din, watching her leave before speaking, "Is she yours, Vod?"
"I..." he faltered, not knowing how to properly answer, "I'm not sure..."
A snicker left his brother, "Well, you'd best decide quickly. Otherwise, I might just snatch her from you."
He had to force himself not to spin around and slam his fist into Paz's helm at those words.
Ad'ika: Little one, son, daughter
Kyr'tsad: Death Watch
Aruetii: Traitor, foreigner, outsider
Dank Ferrick: Unknown curse word or exclamation. Perhaps equivenlt to Goddammit or Holy Shit
Buir: Mother, father, parent
Haar'chuk: Damn it!
Beroya: Bounty Hunter
Alor: Leader, chief, chancellor
Well that's where I'll end it. I'd like a little bit of input from my readers as I haven't yet written the next chapter and I'm not sure if I want Din and Val to visit the new Cover or go do their own thing. So please feel free to chime in, your comments and desires help to fuel this fic. Thanks again from everyone and please have a very Merry Christmas.
Onto shout outs.
jishmccombs: Thanks so much Jish. Hope this chapter was also worth the wait, I needed to see the final episode before I finished it.
Guest: Love that quote. Thanks so much for the review, it means so much.
Love. Fiction. 2020: You are my rock, Love. I am so glad to have you as a reader.
TheVulcanNara: Thanks Vulcan, I'm glad I'm managing to stick to the lore as well as I am. By no means am I a Star Wars expert, but I'm glad you approve so much.
Bill: Thank you so much.
HopiLuvsFiction: Well thank you so much for leaving a comment Hopi. I am touched beyond words at your support. I am planning to build up Val and Din's relationship slowly and I'm so glad you like it. Thank you so much.
jishmccombs: Conflict is a good thing to have in any story, in my mind. It makes things more interesting. Thanks so much for leaving such kind words.
darknesswithin6277: Ahhh, thanks Darkness. That means so much.
Little. Miss. Oblivious: Welcome to the chaos Oblivious. Hope you're in it for the long run.
Red-Rogue97: I just don't have the words to say how grateful I am. Thank you so much, it means so much that your enjoying my story.
Biberflub: Looks like you got lucky, I was almost done this chapter when you reviewed. Might be a bit more of a wait for the next chapter.
TizyLish: So glad your liking my fic. Thanks so much.