MEMORIES VII

Bo Katan Kryze

"Stay focused. Mandalore will soon be ours…and Maul and his brother will be dead alongside the Duchess."

Bo Katan felt her cheeks twitch once Pre Vizsla continued to pace angrily towards the group of gamorrean guards and contingent of Mandalorian warriors. Instinctually, she felt like she should join them, but something froze her boots in the Tatooine sand. She'd spent years plotting for her sister's demise and to seat Vizsla on the throne, but through those years, they'd hardly made any progress. Most recently they'd been relegated to running from foxhole to foxhole just trying to stay alive, especially with what had happened on Carlac.

Admittedly…that had been messy, really messy…but in the end, she figured it was necessary. The troops needed sport to keep up morale, and while villagers were hardly viable targets for any kind of challenge…the effect had been achieved. Even so, the looks in the eyes of those people…they still kept Bo Katan awake at night, watching their bodies burn alive, their screams enveloped in an embrace of flame and a smell of charred flesh. It…it was the first time she'd questioned Vizsla's sanity. They were out to change Mandalore for the better…but had he given in to bloodlust and wanton destruction?

No…who was she to question him? Bo Katan owed him everything, and with his new alliance with the pair of zabrak Sith Lords, Maul and Savage, his brilliant machinations would finally come to fruition. Now was not the time to question him…in fact she should never question him…never again.

Boots approached beside her, and she wiped the stupid, confused look off her face. It was just Rondir, anyway…a man she'd been able to trust almost as much as Ursa.

"You're looking mopey," he quipped, pulling his helmet from his head to reveal his clean-cut beard and ruffled hair. "Lots of good fights in such a short time. I expected you to look a little more cheery, kid."

Kid…right. So, he had seen her expression before she could wipe it away…or maybe he could just read her better than anyone else.

"This is my happy face," Bo Katan said, shrugging. "What, you can't tell?"

Rondir snorted. "Nah…something's bothering you, and you think you can't share it with anyone else…so, like always, I'm here to tell you I leave everything in confidence."

Bo Katan crossed her arms. "Just like how when you told everyone it was you who saved me from that burning ledge when I was a girl?"

"Everyone already knew that kid," he waved off. "And now you're just being stubborn."

She chuckled lightly, letting her gaze wander. "Yeah…maybe a little."

Rondir wasn't going to budge anyway…and maybe it was best to get it off her chest instead of letting it roil inside, driving her insane.

Against her better judgment, she sighed, and approached Rondir to lower her voice. "I don't trust our new Sith friends. Count Dooku didn't hesitate to betray us when he had the chance, and I get the feeling these two won't be any more considerate."

Rondir nodded, also keeping his voice low. "I wish you could say that to Gar. That scraggly bastard is taking a liking to the horned maniacs."

Bo Katan frowned. "Why?"

"Something about their initiative…or power and whatnot. He's always been wary of buying into actions where the odds aren't in his favor…and he seems to think Maul is the one pulling the strings, not Vizsla."

Bo Katan clenched her fist. Damn Sith, always trying to control everything and everyone. How dare they try to manipulate a man of such honor, a man who had sacrificed everything just to be in this position.

She let her eyes wander to the red-skinned man speaking with Rook and Saxon, their helmets removed, their cowardly expressions laid bare for all to see. They were in awe of this…subversive, this monster that threatened to undo everything they had worked so hard to achieve. For now, they had a common enemy…her sister…but what would happen when she was out of the way?

Could Vizsla truly trust all of his warriors?

Maul's amber eyes flinched towards her for a moment, and Bo Katan didn't dare look away. She held her gaze as they met…and she saw a hint of a smile work its way across the man's lips.

He was plotting something, and he wanted her to know it. He was daring her to stop him.

She looked away. Not now…not when they still needed him…but when they didn't…she would be there to pull the trigger.

"Remain steadfast, kid," Rondir implored, letting his forearm press against her shoulder plate. "Know that you can rely on me, no matter the circumstance," he promised, pulling his arm away as another set of boots approached.

"I've secured the palace," Ursa reported, pulling her helmet from her head and adjusting her black hair. "I also made sure to bow to our dear leader on my way out. Aruetii scum. If that horned-headed bastard thinks he can run roughshod over my people, I'll kill him myself."

"Stay your wings there, Wren," Rondir eased. "One enemy at a time. In due time, we'll be walking the streets of Sundari, and I'm finally going to learn to seed those crops I've told you about."

Ursa chuckled slightly. "Perhaps we could be neighbors, and you could watch my daughter for me."

Rondir let out a hearty laugh. "Maybe. I'm sure my son could use a little practice with caretaking."

Bo Katan winced, and wasn't prepared for the elbow Ursa sent her way. "What about you? Got any plans for victory? Maybe take your palace back?"

"You could be the Warrior Duchess…new head of Clan Kryze," Rondir figured, and then laughed again. "Oh, all the young men would be raving at your feet."

"I…uh," she stammered, realizing she had nothing to say. "I…haven't thought about that yet."

"Ah, battle is good for the soul, Kryze…but not always for the mind," he reminded her. "You can't always be thinking about who you're going to beat to a pulp next."

Bo Katan felt the words fleet from her mouth, and her hand reached up to adjust her metal hair band.

"Leave her be, you old man. There's a lot more at stake for her than us gutter slime," Ursa pushed at him. "She's smart. She'll get around to it when the time comes."

Bo Katan flashed her an uneasy smirk. "Thanks Ursa."

The more she thought on Ursa's words, however, the more they seemed to sink in. She was right…Bo Katan had more at stake with this invasion than perhaps anyone else in Death Watch. They could all collectively hate the Duchess without much trouble, and probably wouldn't feel much should she die in the coming battle. Bo Katan envied that freedom.

It was almost ironic. She'd joined Pre Vizsla to escape her sister's grasp, and then in turn developed a stronger desire to remove her from the throne entirely…but now, reality had come back to haunt her. Now, she couldn't feel more restrained, more at odds with her own thoughts. She'd done her best to smile and smirk at every devious moment Pre Vizsla spoke of Satine's inevitable demise, and had even tried to enjoy such a thought as much as possible.

But Bo Katan wasn't that same hotheaded teenaged kid she once was, no matter how many times Rondir referred to her as one. Watching Ursa give birth to her daughter just over a year ago had kicked at something within her mind, revealing to her just how alone she truly still stood. Pre Vizsla wanted revenge, as did Bo Katan, but most of Death Watch was a collection of fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, nephews and nieces…and all they wanted was insurance of their family's survival. Vizsla, whether Bo continued to pretend or not, wanted to destroy her family…and she hadn't dared to try and stop him. Was that dishonor? Was it cowardice to let him continue down this path?

Could she truly watch as Pre Vizsla cut her sister down right in front of her…Satine, who had raised her more than her own parents had ever tried?

Deep down, Bo Katan knew she couldn't, but she held out hope that Pre Vizsla would show mercy when the time came…and maybe, just maybe…Bo Katan could keep Mandalore and her family.

But not if Maul was allowed to pull the strings.

"We have to stay focused…and I know I can count on the two of you," she said, inclining her head. "You've both been great to me since I arrived, and I appreciate that."

"All part of the job, my Lady," Rondir inclined his head. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to make sure Saxon isn't doing anything rash."

They watched him go, leaving Ursa to pull at Bo Katan's upper arm. "Come on, Kryze. I'm starving. You can be depressed over a warm bowl of soup."

Bo Katan snorted, but followed. "You always know how to cheer me up."

She had tried to sleep on that ride back to the staging point of their final preparation before finally storming the gates of Sundari, the capital of Mandalore…but the visions of the inevitable events continued to play themselves within her mind. In most of them, glory was achieved…but at great, personal cost to herself…and others, she lost everything. Bo Katan hadn't come this far just to stumble at the precipice of everything she had strived to attain.

"You never could sleep before a battle, could you?"

It was Pre Vizsla's voice, and she turned to see him standing at the entrance to the cockpit, the hyperspace tunnel swirling in the viewport before her. She remained sitting in the pilot's seat, toying with her blaster as she turned away.

"Usually I walk, but…" she trailed off. "Not here, of course."

Vizsla cocked his head. "Having second thoughts?"

"No," she shook her head vigorously, turning in the chair to face him immediately. "Not even for a moment."

"Then what is it?" he asked, striding to take the co-pilot's chair as the door shut behind him. "When we stormed Jabba's Palace, you had no hesitation in any of your movements, but after, you looked as if you would collapse if you took another step."

Bo Katan swallowed roughly, and did her best to hide her shock.

"Mandalore's future depends on what happens in the next few days, and so far you've been my most loyal sister-in-arms. If you start hesitating, the others start hesitating, and I would sooner kill every last one of them than have this chance torn from my hands!" he growled. "Do you understand me?"

"Yes," she nodded, straightening her posture, and wincing at his true words. "You're right. It won't happen again."

He studied her for a moment, holding his stalwart gaze against her own, but eventually tipped his head. "Good. That also means you won't hesitate to gun down any member of your family that stands in our way," he made clear. "Or will that be a problem?"

"Of course not," she lied, but held her gaze. "They had their chance…and to allow them to live is to allow my sister's poisonous influence to live on."

"Exactly," Vizsla pointed, and then let a smile cross his lips. "You've come a long way from the day you came to me, Bo Katan. The last thing I want to see is you falter on the cusp of victory."

"I won't," she promised. "It's time Mandalore was set on the proper path once again…and I owe you everything for what you've done. I will deliver."

"I know you will," he rose to his feet, and then turned away. "Now, get some sleep. That's not a request."

She nodded as he disappeared from the cockpit, and once she was alone again, she settled back in, hoping perhaps that her unfounded faith in her mentor would help those nightmares go away.

They did…and this time…she dreamt of absolute victory, and the dead image of her sister didn't hurt so much anymore.