Chapter 11

7 BBY — Sundari

Lady El-Nadan watched as the winds began to change. She stood in her office bracing herself against her desk with both arms, and her heart racing at the center of a storm. Her Resistance advisors worked feverishly around her as she kept her eyes locked on her display screen. The headlines and chatter were all about the Warrior movements to retake the mining colony of Gargon.

All Imperial orbiting docking stations for transport ships had been destroyed as the Warriors approached Gargon.

All Imperial mining stations had been breached and destroyed on Gargon except the station closest to the disputed Viszla Clan Phobium mine.

All Imperial staff had been terminated as the Warriors stormed the Imperial stations. There were visuals of the firefight and the resulting body count. And now, General Sarin Viszla was on Mandalorian Space-wide broadcast making a public statement.

El watched Din standing stoically at Sarin's left, and Ra-Velis standing at his right. Din had his hands at his sides, but he also had several new scorch marks on his chest plate and a large new scratch in his helmet paint revealing the beautiful Beskar workmanship.

Sarin stood easily in the position of commander, leader, and protector of Mandalore. He was saying words that El never thought would be spoken out loud.

While she was jealous that she could not stand publicly in that position, El was surprised how thankful she was that of all of the Warriors, that Sarin was the one that had been called in this moment to lead. El did care for her family's Warriors, but she felt that Sarin carried more calm and dignity than most.

"To all people of Mandalore, your Warriors have taken a bold step. Your Warriors were informed by intelligence gathered that the Beskar and Phobium mining in our system has been contributing to construction of weapons that will be used against Mandalore and any system that opposes the Galactic Empire.

"Mandalore will not stand for its resources to be used to subjugate any civilization of this galaxy. The Mand'alor Code respects strength, but will never bow to the Emperor's lack of honor. Your Warriors are loyal to you and Mandalore until death. The tyranny of the Galactic Empire — ends — here."

The chatter amongst the Resistance was mostly about mobilizing multiple cells through the entire planet, and monitoring the strength of the shifting winds of power. Communication from the citizens since Sarin's speech had been overwhelmingly positive despite a few predictable and appropriate dissenting opinions.

Every Imperial communication since Sarin's speech had been incredulous. The Imperial Governor could feel the shift as well. Suddenly the situation had become more complicated than the ISB was planning on.

"My Lady —" one of the Resistance leaders laid a gentle hand on her shoulder, breaking into her reverie. His eyes were excited, and hopeful. "We are ready to breakdown the entire Imperial network on the planet."

She nodded, "All of the cities? All at once?"

He grinned, "Yes. And they will not be able to tell who is doing it. Then the citizens — are ready."

El-Nadan nodded and said with quiet intensity, "Oya, Mando'ade."

The entire room cheered.

Mandalore had been waiting for one small breath to ignite a cyclone…

Gargon

The Imperial base outside the Viszla ancestral quarry was the one structure the Warriors had maintained in the attack and while it had limited power the fortified rooms were at least useful as a command center.

Din walked quickly toward the conference room just behind Sarin and Ra. He had been working hard to organize the supplies and armory after the initial attack and public statement. Every Clan had checked in including Bo-Katan and her Night Owls, so Paz was present as well, although Din had not spoken to him since the battle. Din actually started to feel a swell of hope, and Ra-Velis could see it in him.

She had come to retrieve him for the meeting of the commanders and forced him to hold still long enough for a Medscan and to check his armor.

"When Sarin asks me to confirm his children are healthy because he won't trust anyone else's opinion, you know that I must do a thorough job," she chuckled. "Your facial bones are bruised but the swelling will go down eventually. What hit you hard enough to scratch your helmet?"

Din hesitated, reluctant to respond. When Ra tilted her helmet awaiting a response Din sighed, "The Stormtrooper got lucky."

Ra nodded. "You are right, and apparently you were lucky too. You should know that Paz sustained a concussion from a blaster hit to his helmet. He is recovering well, but he will not be at the briefing."

Din nodded. Paz would have to wait, and he would understand.

Din walked into the conference room and to his utter shock, he was immediately faced with Saw Gererra and Cassian, standing placidly next to Saw with his hands clasped behind his back. He turned to look over at Din and nodded.

Din suppressed a small pang of guilt, he had not actually spoken to Cassian before the battle, he had only requested that Cassian honor Sarin's wishes and stay on Saw's U-wing. Din regained his stride behind Sarin and then stood next to Sarin at the front of the room.

"Generals, Commanders, Captains, welcome. You honor your planet with your lives pledged to this battle. And I must acknowledge, you honor The Way by keeping your faces covered for this campaign. Thank you, all. I have also invited our guests from the Rebellion, Saw Gererra and Cassian Andor, so that you can see the men who will be supplying your space support. Saw Gerrera has pledged to our cause a repurposed Separatist Era Providence-class Dreadnaught, called the Berch Teller. It will be able to match the firepower of any Star Destroyer and protect our fighters, which will be responsible for bringing down the space attack. On the planet we need only to hold our ground. Once Gererra takes their Star Destroyer, their space support will fail, and they will either abandon or evacuate their troopers."

Suddenly, Din received a private text communication on his helmet view screen.

Need to talk — about Erso.

Din looked over at Cassian, who was already looking directly at Din. Din used his visual pointer to text back.

Outside, after.

Sarin looked around the room. "We will be outnumbered. They will believe they can overwhelm us. But these troopers have never faced fully trained Warriors in a battle on our terrain." There were approving nods and shouts as the adrenaline levels began to rise in the room. Then Sarin looked directly at Cassian, "We will make every ten Warriors feel like one hundred."

All fifty commanders in the meeting all raised their fists and cheered.

Din waited outside the conference room where old friends were talking and laughing. Cassian led Saw over to Din.

"So you're the Warrior who shot our boy, eh? And your dad is the one who organized all of this?" Saw nodded with a frown of approval. "The Rebellion owes you a debt of gratitude to you and your family, son."

Din nodded, "Thank you, sir. You wanted to discuss the intelligence—?"

Saw put up a hand and lowered his voice, "Not here. We need a secure location."

Din nodded and turned to lead them down the thick, stark concrete hallway to a smaller meeting room just around the corner which Din had been using for his coordination of supplies. Din closed the door behind them, turned to face them and folded his arms, waiting for Cassian to begin the dialogue.

Cassian took the cue. "The Rebellion has authorized me to bring you up to speed, Saw. The Imperial Commander that I was embedded with gave us Geonosis as the location of the project that all of the Phobium and Beskar was going to. The Mandalorian team investigated but were ambushed by Geonosians. They were able to confirm that the project was the size of a large space station and that it had been moved, likely due to our supply ship missing our checkpoint."

Saw released a sharp bark of a laugh and slapped the conference table with his hand, "Geonosis! That damn planet! That makes sense with all of the stations we found that surround that system! What else?"

Cassian nodded, "So we've lost the target but the Commander also mentioned the architect of the project was a man called Erso."

Saw suddenly stopped smiling, "What did you say?"

Cassian nodded, "Someone called Erso. Draven said you told him that Erso is an Imperial engineer, but I thought you told me of a female Erso who was part of your crew —"

"DON'T speak of that name again outside of this room! DO YOU UNDERSTAND?" Saw suddenly yelled, pointing at Cassian.

Cassian and Din exchanged glances.

Saw began to pace, then he took out his own personal scanner and checked the area for recording and listening devices. Cassian watched him and his brows came together. Saw was beginning to become unhinged. He was changed even compared to the last time Cassian had seen Saw before he left for his undercover mission.

Saw finished his scan then came up to Cassian and put a finger in his face.

"Promise me, Cassian! What we discuss here you will not reveal to anyone! Not Draven, not Mothma. NO ONE!"

Cassian slowly put a hand on Saw's shoulder, "Saw, you know you can trust me. You know me. You know me."

Saw's face fell and he lowered his finger slowly, and then he nodded.

"Galen Erso," Saw whispered, "That is the name of the engineer. I was asked by an arms smuggler to help Erso and his family to escape Coruscant. He was working in weapons development and his administrator was positioning himself to be the one to deliver a weapon to the Emperor to enable — total domination of the Galaxy."

Saw turned away from Cassian and began to pace. "Erso would not reveal any details, he only said that as long as he and his family were to go missing, the work would stop, and the galaxy would be safe. So about ten years ago I moved them to a remote farming planet."

Saw turned so they could see him in profile. "Then about six years ago, the administrator — Krennic is his name — he found Erso. He killed Erso's wife, Lyra... and took Erso. I saved their daughter, who hid until I arrived. I was too late to save Galen and Lyra," Saw looked back at Cassian and Din, and he had tears in his eyes.

"I had promised Erso that if he was taken that I would keep his wife and daughter safe. Jyn was my last hope — and also, my only hope to reconnect to Erso, if I was ever to find him."

Saw could not stop a smile from breaking his lips. "She is brilliant, Jyn, like her mother. And she is calculating, like her father. But she is my protégée. She could take the Partisans into the future!"

Cassian regarded Saw carefully. He could still see the old Saw, the one who had given a small frightened boy a torchlight to sleep with. But he could also see something else — something that he knew was there, because Mon had warned him. But this was the first time he could see that Saw was beginning to care more about the mission, than the people. And now Jyn was caught between these two sides of Saw. Cassian decided then and there to keep tabs on Jyn Erso.

"So you have lost all contact with Galen Erso?" Din said firmly.

Saw nodded. "Yes. As you have seen, Krennic, the administrator, is as brilliant as he is arrogant. He knows how to hide his work, even from the Empire itself. Erso knew Krennic wants to be the first to offer the Emperor a final solution. And he wants all of the credit. He does not care about the men who die in order to make his vision a reality."

"But why Erso? What does he have that Krennic needs?" Cassian said with his brows creased.

Saw sighed. "I honestly don't know. Erso's background was not originally weapons. He was a mathematician, a physicist and a crystals expert. As a student, he and his wife visited the Temples and studied the Kyber crystals that the Jedi used in their lightsabers. They wanted to understand the 'magic of the Force' with math," Saw chuckled.

"Erso knew Krennic from a young age, way back when he was winning science conference awards. But — I can tell you this," Saw leaned forward onto the conference table, "Why do you think I am here today? It is because Mandalore had a resource that the Empire needed. So they destabilized your world, and you have watched helplessly since then as your resources are stripped."

Then he stood up again and crossed his arms, "Since Erso went missing, I have seen destabilization on at least four worlds that have Kyber crystal mines."

Cassian chuckled, "What are they doing? Are they going to issue a lightsaber to every stormtrooper? They will cut their own legs off before they can hurt anyone else!"

Din suddenly tapped his vambrace, "I'm out of time gentlemen. So we are clear, the next target is to hunt down Galen Erso. We need to develop a defense for whatever weapon he is working on, and it may involve — laser swords?"

Cassian chuckled again, but Saw slammed his hand on the table and pointed a shaking finger at them.

"Mark my words: you have seen the Phobium shipments — you can expect that the Kyber shipments to be just as big. And there will be more worlds with Kyber crystal that will suffer the fate of Mandalore."

10 BBY— Concordia

Din walked into Ra-Velis's office, stood at attention in front of her work station and waited for her to finish the task she was completing on her display. He was familiar enough with her postures to know she was dictating a communication inside her helmet, which he could not hear. Ra was actively involved with most of the Warrior's operations and she had kept him on the compound for almost a year after Alenna's death. He knew that after Paz had let go control of Din's career that Ra was having difficulty letting him go too. The entire family was far too protective of him.

Din could not fault them or be truly angry, because he knew he felt the same way about all of them. Sarin would not go against his commander's wishes, especially because she was his wife.

Ra finally finished her task and turned toward Din, "How are you, son?"

Din nodded, "I am — alive," he said honestly.

Ra nodded, then pushed aside a holographic display, and sat down on a stool behind her workstation with a sigh.

"The General would like to reassign you. I have informed him that I do not feel you are ready to go. He has disagreed. I would like your self-assessment."

Din stared at her for a moment, then cleared his throat. "The doctors have cleared me at every post-incident check for the past year. My training times have continued to improve —"

Ra stood up again and he stopped, "Son — I need to know if you are ready for this."

Din stared at her again, "Ready for what?" Ra hesitated again, and Din felt his brows come down. "Buir? Tell me."

Ra walked over to Din, and reached out to take both of his hands. "Can you tell me — truthfully — that you have accepted Alenna's death, and that you can think of her without shame and anger?"

Din started to back away from her, but Ra's grip was firm. "You cannot hide from pain, my son. You have struggled with loss ever since you were a boy."

Din's heart rate began to climb, and he looked away from Ra's gaze. He had no words for his feelings. Just as he could not verbally explain his childhood trauma, other tragedies also became mixed in with his jumbled emotions and memories.

Ra put a hand on the cheek ridge of Din's helmet, jarring him back to the present, "Hey — it's okay. I did not expect an answer, son."

Din looked down, and nodded, "I can't — "

Ra shook her head, and lifted his helmet by the chin with her finger, "All I want you to do is try to refocus on the love. Don't ignore the pain, just don't let it block out the love."

Din was working to hold back tears, so he only managed a jerky nod when he tried to respond.

Ra could see he was at his limit, so she released her hold on him and stood up straight, "I need you to be ready, son, because we are about to face some significant losses." Din silently stared at her as she turned to pace inside her work station. "The General needs your eyes alone on a developing situation. It will seem an unglamorous assignment, but you must know this has nothing to do with what happened to Alenna. Only you can be given this task, not me, not Sarin, not Paz. And it may affect all of our futures. Perhaps even the future of Mandalore."

Din felt his pulse quicken, "I will always serve, but — can you give me any more detail?"

Ra shook her head, "I'm afraid not, but trust your instincts, you are the only one who can figure out this mystery. And I want you to report only to your commander, you do not report directly to us. This process is not covert or internal. Your investigation must evolve as you see fit, and it must be fully open to the correct command structure."

Din nodded warily. "Yes, Buir."

Ra walked back to stand next to Din, and stopped again. "It's time. Come with me, there is someone I want you to formally meet."

Ra then started to move past Din and he followed. They walked all the way out of the compound and through the square. Then Din realized that Ra was headed straight for the Armory.

The Armory was a solid utilitarian building of concrete, stone and metal. The entrance was the corner joining of the two outer walls that faced the square. The doors were finely crafted durasteel with minimalist but angular patterns of Beskar accents. The patterns were a highly stylized Mythosaur and the Eternal Flame of the Foundry.

Din paused for a moment, but Ra did not stop so he continued to follow her lead. He followed behind her into the entry hall where the guard took their names, reported their presence, and then was instructed to lead them toward the Foundry.

Din had never seen the Foundry before. Inside, the stone walls glowed orange from the fires which oddly were so well ventilated by the ancient airflow system the room was not swelteringly hot. There were more than a dozen workbenches, and every two shared a smelter. The aroma of the fires and the sound of metal on metal strikes overwhelmed Din's senses as he took in every detail of the room.

Ra followed the guard up to a Master Armorer with a fur stole over her shoulders.

The Armorer turned upon hearing their approach, "Ra-Velis, this is a long-anticipated honor."

Ra nodded, "My son will be leaving soon, and before he does I wanted him to meet you. This is Din, Foundling of Clan Viszla."

Din looked toward his mother, when she used his name. Was this Armorer considered family? Then he looked back at the Armorer and nodded.

"I recall this one and his friends attending one of our morning exercises a number of years ago," said the Armorer with a slightly amused tone in her authoritative voice.

Din froze, unsure if he was to be chastised for his trespassing.

But Ra just laughed, "And you already have the ring leader. Where is she?"

The Armorer turned back to her bench and reached for a tool, "She is working on her first major piece. She will be here soon."

The Armorer turned back around and holding her long tongs she walked over to a nearby oven and pressed several buttons on the side.

"As I recall, Din, your friends brought you here as a going away present before you left for the Training. How appropriate that your family brought you here again before the next important journey."

Din began to get the feeling that everyone knew where he was going except for him.

Suddenly, Sarin walked up beside him to his left and Din almost jumped. Sarin did not speak, but he did turn slightly to look at Din. Ra stood next to the Armorer waiting as she continued to press buttons.

"This is so exciting!" Jirlia walked up on Din's right.

Jirlia reached out with a long slim hand and took Din's hand in hers, and suddenly Din realized what was about to happen.

Din looked up at her as she towered over him. "Did you make it?"

Jirlia giggled, "No way. The Master did. But I watched, very closely."

Sarin cleared his throat so his grown children would stop whispering like pre-teens.

The Armorer pressed one more button and opened the kiln that had been treating the paint applied to the metal. She reached in with her thongs and produced a Beskar helmet painted with Viszla blue.

Within seconds the iron was cool enough to touch and with her thick hide gloves she inspected every angle and then tapped the mechanical sensors to test function. Then she walked over to Din.

"Your Clan has determined it is time for your first piece of Beskar armor. The Beskar is your armor, but it is not your only protection. The Beskar is your strength, but it is not stronger than the heart of a Warrior. The Beskar is Mandalore, but it is not a Mandalorian. The Mandalorian is the only one with honor, and only the Warrior can sacrifice their life for Mandalore. The Beskar is a shield — and love — from your Mandalorian brothers, sisters — and family."

Just in time, Paz walked in behind Din. Din turned to look at him, and felt his emotions uncomfortably close to the surface. Din turned back to the Armorer and tried to hold back tears by taking slow deep breaths.

The Armorer reached out and handed Din the new helmet, and he took it into his hands. The weight was not significantly different, but he felt almost a charge through his hands as he ran his fingers over the surface.

Din looked up at the Armorer, "Vor Entye."

The Armorer nodded back.

Sarin put a hand on Din's shoulder, "Verd ori'shya Beskar'gam." A Warrior is more than his armor.

Jirlia put her hand on Din, "Vod."

Paz put a hand on Din's back, "Vod."

And finally, Ra put her hands over both of Din's hands that held his helmet, "Mando'ad."

Later that evening, Din sat on his bed and held the new helmet in his hands and looked over the craftsmanship. It was seamless, and perfectly symmetrical. He could not stop running his bare hands over the painted metal.

Suddenly he heard the quiet beep of a signal inside his helmet so he slipped it on again.

It was a message from Sarin.

Remember the Armorer. She will guide you when your mother and I are gone.

7 BBY — Gargon

Din looked out over the mining fields as the rain battered the landscape and had an overwhelming feeling of coming full circle. Sarin and Ra had known three years before, when they first sent him to Gargon that he would discover the mystery of the Empire's interest in Phobium.

And now, due to his investigation, and with some help from his new brother, Cassian, they were set to defend Mandalore's honor and protect the galaxy. Din had felt a strong swell of hope after the initial battle to control Gargon. But after the initial battle, Din could not shake the memory of his initial discussion with Ra in her office. It haunted his dreams and his waking thoughts — he could feel something had shifted. And he could see in Sarin's posture as he left Sarin to take his team to battle — Sarin could feel the shift too.

Suddenly Din received the signal from Cassian in his rain drenched helmet, and closed his eyes for a moment to take a breath and then turned to his Warriors.

"They've engaged the enemy! Ke nu'jurkadir sha Mando'ade!"

Men and women alike all raised their fists in a loud cheer.

Benthic watched from behind his goggles and double-tubed breathing apparatus as Cassian worked on his strategy. Benthic was Saw's faithful commander who had picked up Cassian on Mandalore, and he was in the pilot's chair of Saw's U-Wing while Cassian sat in the ops position and monitored the communications of the Warriors on the surface of Gargon.

Sarin's Warriors were covering the mine entrance which sat at the end of a valley leading to a narrow gorge which opened up into the gaping sheer cliffs of the strip mines beyond. Paz's company of Bo-Katan's Protectors were covering the rear entrance two kilometers along the valley wall, and Din's Warriors were the advance guard that were to give warning of an attack from any angle. They were spread in small squads over the entire valley, which tactically was the only possible approach to the mines. Din and Cassian had agreed that they expected a front approach so he was stationed about a thousand meters in front of Sarin.

Cassian could not shake the nausea that gnawed at his insides. Mon had finally contacted him that morning and advised him the Generals would not support an intervention.

"So in what could be the defining battle of Mandalore, the Generals would rather let an entire civilization of Warriors perish? Warriors who are not restricted by race or planet origin, who would make powerful allies against the Galactic Empire? With the death of the Jedi Order, who else can defend justice in the galaxy?"

"Cassian — we are weak. We MUST survive to find the weapon that could destroy more than one civilization. It is for the good of the galaxy that we must stand aside," she said.

Cassian looked down and nodded, "I'm staying, and there's nothing you can say to stop me."

Mon's grieving eyes betrayed her placid face, "I know. And I expected no less from Max's son."

Cassian cleared his throat and swallowed his tears, "I love you, Mon."

Mon nodded and put a hand up to the screen, Cassian did the same, her lips were steady but a tear escaped her right eye, "K'oyacyi, son."

Cassian chuckled, "Haven't you heard? I'm indestructible. See you soon."

Mon nodded, bowing her head with a smile, and closed the connection.

Cassian blinked sitting in the ops position remembering that final call and closed his eyes. He had been in many dangerous situations before. He would see Mon again. He then opened his eyes and started scanning again, until he stopped suddenly as something large exited hyperspace, followed by three more.

"Call Saw, we have company," Cassian said harshly to Benthic. They hailed the Dreadnaught.

"What did you say?" Saw's eyes were suddenly dark.

"There are four Star Destroyers," Cassian voice repeated over the com. "I guess the General's message reached a bit further than we expected."

Saw's lips curled upward, "Inform the surface that we have uninvited guests. But we are ready to dance! LAUNCH THE MANDALORIANS!"

Cassian watched from the bridge of U-wing, as the Kom'rk-class fighter squads flowed out of the hangar bays of Saw's Dreadnaught, and Saw began to unload their guns on the lead Star Destroyer.

The U-wing also joined the fight, and Benthic was focused on his tie fighter count, so he took little notice of Cassian as he kept tabs on both sides of the battle. Din's ground troops were safe and dug in around the valley with plenty of firepower and supplies. Cassian was much more concerned for the initial losses up in space. Saw's fighters and the Mandalorians began to fall as they were overwhelmed by tie fighters which swarmed like insects.

Cassian's teeth were gritted as he watched the losses climbing when he heard Saw's command, "Target their propulsion, keep them in line!"

The smaller fighters made multiple runs and prevented the larger ships from moving out of their initial tight formation. Saw's canon fire continued to focus on the lead ship and the other star destroyers were crowded behind it. As the second destroyer tried to move around the lead, the fighters focused their attention on propulsion and steering systems.

The lead destroyer's propulsion was failing and then its shields fell — and Saw had him. The entire squadron and Saw's cannons finished off the lead and the explosion also damaged the second star destroyer that was too close behind.

Benthic smacked Cassian on his back and laughed loudly, which was a truly creepy sound through the rubber tubes of his breathing apparatus. But Cassian couldn't help but turn his lips up in a half smile. Soon, however, Cassian noted the third destroyer had finally found a way to maneuver out of line and move closer to Gargon, deploying its landing ships.

Saw's forces and the Mandalorian fighters re-doubled their efforts on the third destroyer and it's landing ships — but as Cassian lifted the com to warn Din of the coming ground forces, he suddenly realized that the fourth destroyer was not moving.

The fourth destroyer had a strange black stripe on it, almost reminiscent of the brown stripe on the Jedi cruisers from the Clone Wars, that was something that Cassian had never seen before. Cassian could see that Din was already taking fire from landing troops, so he took several images and then he sent them to Sarin, Draven and Mon Mothma.

Sarin responded within seconds, That is an ISB ship. Paz has cataloged it before in his surveillance. The commander is a new Moff called Gideon.

Cassian sent a second message to Draven and Mothma, I need data on Moff Gideon, he is here gathering intelligence but not engaging in the battle.

Din ran bringing up the rear pushing his Warriors ahead of him through the rain and darkness.

"GO GO GO!" He stopped and knelt with his pulse rifle, firing back at the walker that was advancing on their position, and he took out one of their forward guns.

Din's Verd'ika had the transport running between the squads to pick up the Warriors in their planned retreat to the mining base.

"RUUS'ALOR! GET OUT OF THERE!"

"GET TO THE LAST SQUAD! PICK THEM ALL UP AND THEN CIRCLE BACK!" Din commanded the transport pilot.

The Verd'ika looked at each other, and then three jumped off and ran up behind Din, then the transport left them to hold their ground.

Din didn't have time to discipline them for disobeying. He shouldered his pulse rifle, and then took the rapid repeating blaster, "Start a graded pattern retreat! I will lead! GO!"

They all ran for twenty-five meters, then Din stopped and fired again on the pursuing troopers, and the others ran another twenty-five meters. Then another Verd'ika knelt to cover the others retreating, and Din ran up to catch them. They covered each other as they kept moving back, and managed to keep each other alive until the transport returned.

When they were all safely aboard, the Warriors on the transport all cheered for their success, they had wounded, but no deaths in the advance guard. They had fully tracked the approach of the Imperials, the enemy numbers were limited by the space battle, and the mine was so well fortified they had a real chance of success.

Din worked to catch his breath and was given a warming blanket by the medic to combat the cold from the rain.

Once command had broadcast the update that the advance guard was safely in retreat to the mine, Cassian breathed a little easier, and sent Din a new update.

Saw is succeeding, the Destroyers cannot get a clear shot of the mine from space. But we have a new problem. There is an ISB destroyer. It is not attacking. Objective unknown. Din could feel the concern in Cassian's message.

Din replied, Continue to monitor. They may betray the Empire's agenda here by their action or inaction.

Cassian replied quickly, What if the ISB has the weapon? There are too many unknowns. I may have to investigate.

Din almost yelled NO out loud as he typed, but before he could send the message his transport was hit and crashed to a halt at least fifty meters from the entrance to the mines.

Din had to get his platoon of three squads back to safety before the walkers were in range of the entrance, which meant they had to double time even though they were cold, tired and had already spent their physical reserves on the mission they were given.

Din looked up to the sky the moment he was outside the transport, the rain was clearing, and the stars were visible. He asked Alenna and the universe, Help us — show us now that the galaxy needs us to succeed.

Then he took up position with his lead squad and they opened up against a battalion on their own so that the other two squads could start a multi-graded retreat to the mines. The rain of blaster fire was almost musical, the destruction was operatic, and their survival became legend.

Sarin and his brigade used the blaster fire of Din's platoon to start laying down the targets of their cannon fire to further cover the advance guard's return, and the Empire felt the wrath of Mandalore.

Cassian's scanners suddenly picked up the fourth star destroyer in retreat, and a few minutes after that, it disappeared into hyperspace and left Cassian and the entire fleet in shock.

"Did that just happen?" Benthic said through his voice modulator in disbelief.

Cassian shook his head, "I never dreamed I would see it, but now —" And then suddenly, he had a sinking feeling.

Cassian jumped up, and went to the com system, changing his codes, "El-Nadan! This is Cassian — there is an ISB destroyer, known to the Warriors, it was observing the conflict, and left as soon as they gained the advantage in battle! Monitor for any contact, and warn the Mandalorian authorities that they may come under attack!"

El-Nadan on Mandalore responded within moments to Cassian's message from Gargon.

"Cassian — I was about to contact you — the Empire are leaving!"

"WHAT?" Cassian shouted in disbelief and then screamed his joy and relief. "WHAT HAPPENED?"

"Cassian — the Resistance successfully destroyed the Imperial communications and all operations came to a halt. A hasty and unorganized retreat into the Imperial ships revealed that the Imperial presence was slightly less than expected — and that motivated the citizens to fight back. The troopers were driven back to their transports and clearly they had been ordered to leave. The last ship just jumped to hyperspace!"

Cassian's ears were buzzing, and his lips began to go numb as he came close to hyperventilating. It was all too good to be true. He checked the scopes again, the ISB ship had completely disappeared. The second destroyer was completely disabled and within seconds it self-destructed. Saw boarded the third destroyer and the Saw's rebels began a chant of victory.

The Lady El and the Resistance advised caution, but by all accounts — the massive operation had worked. For the first time since the end of the Clone Wars, Mandalore was free.

Bo-Katan, speaking from Gargon, refused the title of Manda'lor, advising that the victory was not hers, and the Resistance was to choose a leader from among the citizens, in the spirit of her sister's rule.

Cassian was helping Benthic in transporting prisoners to the third star destroyer when he got the call from Din to return to Concordia.

Concordia

Cassian was escorted into the Viszla compound, and the silence was deafening. His heart was beating out of his chest until he was led by his personal Verd'ika from the hospital directly to Din.

"Vod, what happened here?" Cassian demanded.

Din put a hand out and grasped Cassian's shoulder, "Come with me, please," his voice was rough, almost gone from yelling, likely during the battle.

"Of course," Cassian replied, and Din turned to lead him into another hallway which was much narrower but that also had high ceilings and metal rafters with clear windows that reflected the evening purple light.

Din opened the heavy architectural metal double doors at the end of the hall, and there, on a table lit from above, was Sarin's helmet, as well as two dozen others.

Cassian stopped short, as if he had seen a ghost.

"What the hell is this?" Cassian cried, absolutely horrified.

Din did not reply, he walked up to the table and leaned on it, then gently placed a hand on Sarin's helmet.

"Sarin returned to Concordia after the battle. Paz, Ra and myself stayed on Gargon to set up the guard to maintain the base. When we returned, we found them. Their armor lay on the ground where they fell. But their bodies were gone, every single one," Din whispered, his voice heavy with emotion.

Cassian took a step forward, shaking his head.

"No. No. NO!" Cassian brought his fists down on the table, shaking the resting places of each of the two dozen helmets, and tears of anger filled his eyes. Then Cassian looked again at Sarin's helmet. "I'm so sorry, Din — brother, I'm so sorry."

Din nodded, and his voice wavered with emotion, "Moments after my parents were killed, he saved me from the battle droids. He put me over his shoulder, and he flew me to safety. I'll never be able to repay his actions on that day."

Cassian reached out and put a hand on Din's shoulder, Din flinched, but when Cassian's firm grip refused to be shrugged off, Din hung his head as his shoulders silently shook. Cassian felt his tears running down his face, and he could find no other words to comfort his brother.

"I don't know how many more I can lose, vod, without going insane," Din whispered.

Cassian's stomach clenched. His gut told him that they would lose many, many more before the war was over.

"Brother, I have to admit, if they come to tell me you've perished in the fight, I can't say that I will be surprised. I will be devastated, but I will be proud that you fought with honor — to the end."

Din was quiet for a moment before he whispered, "I — I don't want to be proud of your memory. I want you — here."

Cassian turned his face away so Din would not see his pained expression. He knew only too well Din's fear of being left completely alone. He squeezed Din's shoulder again, "I know, vod."

Cassian swallowed so he could converse with a normal voice. "Will you bury the armor?"

Din shook his head slowly, "No, we will reforge it to suit another in our Clan. He has donated his armor to the Foundlings."

Cassian looked back to Din, "So it will go to you?"

Din turned to look at Cassian, "No his armor can forge helmets for over a dozen others. They will continue his legacy."

"Son, as long as you maintain your honorable path you will always be a part of that legacy," Ra-Velis walked up behind them.

Cassian bowed, "Lady Ra, I'm so sorry for your loss. Do you know what happened to your husband and these Warriors?"

Ra walked over and took Din's hand and Cassian's, "No, Cassian, I'm afraid we don't. We have never encountered a disintegrating weapon of this magnitude. I have spoken with Lady El and the leaders of the Resistance, we have agreed that the Warriors will retreat from Concordia, and move to Kalevala, Clan Kryze's ancestral home. It is closer to Gargon, that way we can continue to safeguard the mines. The Mandalorian people have taken Sarin's death to heart, and they waver on who their leader should be."

Din looked at Cassian, "And I'm going with you. I'm going to join your team with the larger Rebellion. I'm going to work to bring the Empire to its knees."

Din put up his hand toward Cassian, and with a genuine smile Cassian clasped Din's hand firmly and pulled him forward to an embrace.

Ra nodded in approval, "We must redouble our efforts to find the project, and then, we — will — rise."

Sundari

Cassian sat in El-Nadan's office, with his arms crossed and his mind scattered. The victory was undeniable, the Empire was gone, but the sting of the loss of Sarin was felt by all. And the internal squabbling was already beginning. Cassian felt the unrest in his bones, and he could already see several steps ahead — Mandalore's weakest point was a lack of definitive leadership to keep the Clans in line. Cassian worried they were leaving Mandalore weaker than ever.

Din was concluding his affairs on Concordia and helping with the move to Kalevala. So when El contacted Cassian and emphasized the importance of this meeting he went, but Cassian could only think of where he needed to go with Saw's U-wing.

Saw had left him with the ship but there was a new tension between them. Saw left the question of the fate of Jyn Erso unanswered. Saw had never even allowed them to meet during the entire operation. Cassian was troubled by how carefully he guarded her, almost like property. Cassian knew that Saw assumed that she was the key to finding Galen Erso — and now that race was on.

Cassian proposed surveillance of Jyn Erso to Draven, who had agreed without question. Saw was now on the outside of the inner operations of Fulcrum. Cassian felt guilty about that considering what Saw had just done to help Mandalore, but the shift against Saw in the Rebellion had been coming for a long time.

Cassian's musings were interrupted by Lady El and the young girl he had run into just a few days before.

"Cassian, you remember Sabine of Clan Wren. Sabine, you can trust Cassian," El said with great weight in her tone.

Sabine scoffed, "What can 'The Rebellion' do for me? My own family won't stand with me, what can a stranger, an off-worlder do?"

Cassian gave her his best 'trust me' smile, "Tell me what happened Sabine."

She hesitated, as her face melted from sarcastic, to sadness, and finally to soul-crushing pain.

"I know what killed General Viszla. It was my invention for the weapons class at the Academy. It uses Beskar armor to incinerate the Warrior — and only Warriors wearing the Beskar. It was tested on the General and his Warriors. Because of me, all Warriors are now in retreat — including my own family," Sabine was out of tears, all she had left was a heartbreakingly mournful expression.

Cassian stared at Sabine completely stunned. He looked up at El who nodded in confirmation. He looked back at Sabine.

"Where is the weapon now?" Cassian said urgently.

"We've destroyed it, and stole the plans. Her family won't help her escape because they cannot be associated with her actions. They have left for Krownest. We need to get her off Mandalore," El said through gritted teeth.

Sabine frowned, "I've already got a ride. I have a friend with a ship."

Cassian's brows came together, "But where will you go?"

Sabine looked unsure.

Cassian crossed his arms, "I know what it is like living off the charity of others. I was six when my father died and left me alone."

Sabine's sadness returned, and Cassian felt it in his chest. He felt as if he had watched the death of Mandalore. Cassian put a hand on Sabine's shoulder.

"There are other families out there. We look out for each other. Don't forget that. And if you meet people in the Rebellion — please — trust them."

Sabine looked into his eyes deeply, she was frowning, but she nodded.

El put her hand on Sabine's other shoulder, "Are you sure you don't want to leave with Cassian?"

Sabine shook her head, "No, Ketsu is almost here. I'll go with her. I'll find a new family."

Later that afternoon El found Cassian still in her office watching the broadcast feeds reporting on the installation of Gar Saxon as the Mand'alor. Cassian's jaw was set and his hands were clenched in front of his face. He did not hear her at first because his anger was causing the rushing sound in his ears to drown out the world.

"They knew. The ISB knew. They attacked Sarin instead of Bo-Katan. Sarin became the figurehead of the expulsion of the Empire, so that Bo-Katan could not lead because it was not her victory. Then they killed Sarin using Sabine's weapon which she developed for them — so that Clan Wren would be exiled in shame. Then Clan Saxon could walk into the void of leadership as the only Clan strong enough to 'safeguard Mandalore against the Empire' — and now Saxon will owe the Empire for his rise to power," Cassian said with a low growl, and a haunted expression.

El nodded and sat next to Cassian. "The ISB knows our ways better than we know ourselves."

Cassian shook his head, "They are Masters of civilization destruction for their own gains. Saw has been tracking their activity for a decade. I'm beginning to wonder about this Moff Gideon. Something tells me he is not finished with Mandalore yet."

El sat down and laid her head down on her folded arms across the desk, "Was I wrong to hide the truth from Ra-Velis?"

Cassian sighed and paused for a long moment, but finally he shook his head.

"No. Now is not the time to cause another civil war. Or to villainize that young girl. Sabine has neutralized the threat, we must move on. We will focus on the two things we need to free Mandalore: find the weapon, and once the Empire is weakened, return the Warriors to Mandalore. Until the people are together again, and united, citizens and Warriors, Mandalore will never really be free."