A/N: Just a heads up that elements of this chapter veer into dark territory, so be advised. There's a bit more explanation in the endnotes, if you're interested.

Chapter 47: The Widowmaker

By the time Isabet returned to the alley, Carth had risen to stand on unsteady legs. Even in the scant light of Onderon's moons, she noticed his face was no longer pale as it had been for the past half-hour. Now, it was red. The Mandalorian cocked a quizzical brow. "Goin' somewhere, hot shot?" she inquired, intentionally keeping her tone light as she mentally prepared to plunge their conversation into darkness.

Aflame with righteous indignation and a desire to protect Isabet, Carth straightened to make himself seem taller and more broad than usual, ignoring the extreme nausea brought about by the movement. "Did Canderous do that to you?" he questioned, pointing to the region of his own face that matched her scarred flesh. "If he hurt you, I'll -"

"You'll sit back down," Isabet gently interrupted, pressing upon his shoulders as she, too, lowered herself to the clay. "You're not going anywhere until we get you rehydrated. Down you go." She retrieved the water canteen from her satchel and placed it upon his lap, then unscrewed the cap of the blue milk jug and forced it into his hand.

With Carth now situated with his beverages, Isabet focused on her needs; she uncorked the bottle of gin with her teeth, blew the top across the alley, and downed a swig. "Ok," she let out a shaky breath, wiping her lips with the back of her hand, "before we start, I wanna lay down some ground rules for the conversation. Rule number one: no matter what happens between us in the future, this story stays between us. You breathe a word of it to anyone and I'll make you regret the day you laid eyes on me. Got it?"

Growing increasingly uneasy, Carth acknowledged her request with a simple nod.

"Second," Isabet continued, two fingers lifted in the air, "none of this is easy for me to think about, let alone talk about, so I need you to keep your comments and facial expressions to a minimum, no matter how you're feeling about what I'm saying. And third: there's quite a bit about this story you're not gonna like — including some parts about Canderous — but I don't want you getting up in a huff to defend my honor or anything like that every time something upsetting comes up, ok?"

"So he did do that to you," Carth decided, jaw and fists clenched tight. "I -"

"I repeat: comments and facial expressions to a minimum," Isabet curtly reiterated before softening her tone as she knew Carth only had her best interests at heart. "And no, he did not, so don't get your chest hair in knots. I appreciate that you're looking out for me, but unless you've figured out a way to travel through time, there's nothing you can do about what's already happened. Now, just let me get through this whole thing. This is the first and last time I'm gonna talk about it, so pay attention. I'll give you three questions at the end, then we drop it forever unless I initiate the discussion, which I can guarantee I will not. Ok?"

When Carth remained quiet and motionless, Isabet realized she had intimidated him into silence. "You can still talk, Republic," she teased, playfully chucking his chin in an effort to lighten the mood. "I want this to be a conversation, not a lecture. I'm sorry if I seem tense. I've never told anyone about what actually happened and… I'm nervous."

"There's no reason to be nervous, beautiful," Carth assured her, though his earnest response earned a dismissive snort of laughter from Isabet.

"We'll see about that," she muttered before commencing her dark, twisted tale. "It probably makes sense to start this story way back. My dad was a legendary warrior until he fucked up his back in an air raid before the War even started. He didn't have the strength to hold a blaster rifle or walk across rugged terrain anymore, but he still wanted to support the troops when it seemed like war with the Republic was on the horizon. And so, Mandalore himself tasked my dad with running the weapons depot and training grounds on Dxun. Life on Dxun was pretty decent. Boring as hell and humid as all get-out, but not the worst place to be in the galaxy, all things considered."

Slowly swirling her gin, Isabet paused before shifting course. "I'm sure at some point or another, you've heard Canderous drone on-and-on about his old Basilisks?" she prodded, earning a silent acknowledgement from Carth. "Not surprising," she scoffed. "He never shuts his goddamned mouth about those stupid war droids. When a couple verd'ika -"

Hoping to understand every last detail of the story that would only be told once, Carth interrupted. "Verd'ika?" he repeated, praying this clarification would not count toward his allotment of three questions.

"It's… ah…" Isabet squinted and twirled her free hand, searching for a proper descriptor in a language Carth understood. "It basically means 'child soldier' in Basic, but I know that idea probably carries a negative connotation. 'Recruit' is probably a better word, though it's still not quite right. Sorry, Republic, I forget you don't speak Mando'a sometimes. I'll have to teach you one of these days, but I'm getting off track. Where was I…? Oh.

"Well, early in the War, a handful of verd'ika were on a training circuit through the jungles and came across a few downed Basilisks. Only one of the warriors manning the droids managed to survive the crash, so they dragged him back to the camp so we could nurse him to health. He was unconscious, but my dad knew the survivor was a member of Clan Ordo because of his tattoos," Isabet explained, gesturing to her broad shoulders and upper chest. "Since I was the only woman around and Clan Ordo is considered an 'elite clan,' my father ordered me to stay by his bedside day-and-night to make sure he was alright and given the white glove treatment.

"He was out cold for a couple days, but once he came to, he introduced himself as Canderous Ordo. What an insufferable bastard he was once we ran out of painkillers," she recalled with an airy laugh and wistful smile. "He'd basically shattered his legs in the crash and couldn't get out of bed, let alone back to the frontlines, so my assignment to care for him went on for months. Since I had to stick with him all the damn time, we got to talking. Eventually, we moved past surface level conversations — y'know, complaining about Dxun, talking about his injuries and the War, that sort of thing — and moved onto more… personal topics. Personal topics turned into inside jokes. Inside jokes turned into innocent flirtation. Innocent flirtation turned into not-so-innocent flirtation. And, once he was mostly healed, we… got a little more friendly."

Despite his most valiant effort to keep his facial expressions to a minimum, Carth's eyes widened and darted back-and-forth as the unexpected truth of her background with Canderous came to light. "When you say 'friendly'… How friendly, exactly?"

"Friendly," she gruffly repeated, defensive. "We both know what that means, Republic." Although she was absolutely sure she wouldn't be pleased with his expression, Isabet glimpsed at Carth through her eye's corner; his mouth was conspicuously agape and his face had become unnaturally pale for the second time that evening, a fact which made her self-conscious. "You look like you have something to say."

Still dumbfounded by the revelation, Carth stammered, trying to make heads-or-tails of the situation. "I… no, I-I-I… I just… well…"

"Gods, I knew talking about this wasn't a good idea," Isabet groaned, leaning her head back against the wall in a display of exasperation and embarrassment. "You're judging me for sleeping with Canderous and I haven't even gotten close to the worst parts of this whole damn story and -"

"No. Izz," Carth interjected, adopting the most soothing voice he could muster in an effort to be supportive, "I'm not judging you. It's just," he sucked in a breath, searching for the proper words, "it's just a lot to take in, is all."

Isabet let out a hoarse laugh. "And you haven't even heard the half of it," she mumbled, lifting the gin to her lips and taking yet another gulp. The Mandalorian fell silent, staring at the bottle's tapered neck with vacant eyes before glancing at a visibly shaken Carth. "Do you have any questions before we move on? I won't count this toward your limit since you reacted relatively well to finding out your worst enemy was my first."

The subtle addition of yet another sordid detail about Isabet and Canderous' past relationship caught Carth by surprise, though he tried to play off his shock. "I wouldn't classify Canderous as 'my enemy' — let alone 'my worst enemy' — just because we don't see eye-to-eye on most topics," he recovered, quickly sorting through the dozens of questions rattling in his brain before settling on one of the more tame inquiries, "but uh… isn't… isn't he a little old for you?"

In spite of her mounting anxieties, Isabet felt one of her trademark smirks making its way across her face. "Exactly how old do you think Canderous is?" she volleyed his question. "And just for good measure, do you know how old I am?"

Recognizing he had unwittingly stepped into a minefield, Carth swallowed hard. Since throwing himself headlong into work, major portions of his identity had been all-but lost; he no longer remembered his favorite food, what he liked to do for relaxation, and, more often than not, forgot his own birthday. And, as a result of this erasure, Carth never thought to ask anyone their age, his partner included. He had no doubt Morgana would chastise him for failing to learn such a small yet critical detail about his new partner.

Determining ages had never been his strong suit — and he always thought this question to be a trap when the ages of women were involved — so he guessed conservatively. "He's… 65? Sixty-eight? And you're in your… late 20s? Maybe… Twentyyyy," he held the word as long as possible, buying himself time as Isabet's brows arched higher and higher, "eight?" Carth finally finished, sounding rather unsure of himself before attempting to alleviate the heat. "Do you know how old I am?"

"You're 38," she confidently — and accurately — replied. "Born on the fourth month, third day. You showed me your identification when we were on the run, remember?" she said, seemingly reading his mind's question as to how she could know such a fact. "And I hate to break this to you, Republic, but you're not dating a spry 20-something. According to your Republic calendar, I'm 36 and Canderous is 51, though with his grey hair and wrinkles around the eyes, I could see why you'd think he's on death's doorstep." Isabet couldn't suppress her wry smile as she watched the gears churning in Carth's mind.

"But he said he's been fighting forty years."

"And he has," Isabet acknowledged with a nod. "Gods know modesty is far from his strength, but Canderous might be rounding down a bit." Knowing the majority of his knowledge — or perceived knowledge — about Mandalorian culture stemmed from wartime propaganda, Isabet capitalized on the opportunity to educate Carth about her people's way of life. "Most Mandalorian boys start training to be warriors and participate in small hunts and skirmishes by their 10th birthday. Some of the more competitive, elite clans — like Clans Ordo, Vizsla, and Fett — start them even younger than that. My guess is that Canderous started training around his 6th birthday. Eighth at the absolute latest."

Although Carth doubted he would ever fully forgive the Mandalorians for the destruction they unleashed upon the galaxy, he suddenly felt a hint of compassion for Canderous and men like him. All they had ever known was battle and the pursuit of dominance no matter the cost. Since the War's end, that pursuit had been forcibly stripped of them — and with good reason — but he suddenly understood why so many Mandalorians were now wayward souls, falling into trouble and resorting to dangerous mercenary work. He was not interested in exploring these budding feelings of empathy toward Mandalorian warriors, however. Right now, he was interested in hearing the rest of Isabet's story. "That's still a substantial age gap," Carth noted.

"Maybe for Republic-lovers like you, but for us, it's perfectly normal. We weed out the weak while they're young by testing them in battle, so men only get to take on a wife once they've proven themselves capable of protecting her and worthy of carrying their clan name into the next generation. It's not uncommon to see men pairing off with women who are 10, 15, maybe even 20 years younger."

"Oh…" The Carth of years past — or even a few months ago, if he was completely honest with himself — would have turned his nose up at such a prospect. His journey to help find the Star Maps and the time he spent with Isabet, however, had made him a more open and curious individual. Instead of passing judgment on customs and practices he could not fathom, he tried to understand. "I suppose I've never given much thought to the cultural differences between Mandalorians and everyone else."

"Why would you?" Isabet questioned with a nonchalant shrug. "When you're in the majority, you don't think all that much about how the minority lives, especially when you only view them as people to fear or hate. I know the age gap seems odd to you, but it's par for the course for us. Or, it was, at least. Nowadays, most of us just marry whoever the hell we want regardless of worth on the battlefield; the War nearly wiped us out and we need to repopulate so our way of life doesn't go extinct.

"Not many of us actually married for love back in the day, though. My twin did, though it was an absolute scandal when he ran off and got married at 17. And, once Canderous and I -"

Despite his best efforts, Carth couldn't help but interrupt. "W-were you… I-I-I know you said you had an ex-husb- were you married to Canderous?"

Isabet tilted her head and squinted. "Would it be the absolute worst thing if I said I had?" she probed, her tone simultaneously curious yet challenging. When the pilot stuttered out a string of unintelligible denials and apologies, Isabet gingerly hooked a finger beneath his chin, quieting him at once. "Slow your roll, turbo," she calmed him in a manner only she could. "You've definitely heard of my husband, but Canderous ain't him. Although, if things would've gone as we wanted them to, we would have been married…

"Believe it or not, Canderous was extremely traditional back in the day and wanted to prove himself to my dad before asking for my hand. Officially, that is. My brothers knew Canderous and I had an arrangement, but we all kept it quiet. Canderous helped train recruits — myself included, even though it was completely under the table — which took a massive burden off my dad. He got to know my family: my dad; my brothers; he even met my mom once over the holo before she died on Cathar. He was basically part of the clan… And he was mine," she fondly reminisced in a tone so delicate and loving, Carth felt as if he were intruding upon a private moment. "A year had passed since Canderous' crash and our outpost was cranking out high-caliber warriors left-and-right. So much so that we caught the attention of the Field Marshal; he came to Dxun to see what we were doing so he could give directions to all of the other training grounds. I'm sure you've heard of Field Marshal Cassus Fett?"

Now it was Carth's turn to snort back a laugh. "You'd be hard pressed to find anyone in the galaxy who hasn't. Every soldier and damn-near every bounty hunter the Republic could recruit was searching for him. Hell, I'd argue he was even more valuable than Mandalore himself."

"Yeah…" she mumbled with a deep exhale.

The atmosphere shifted, growing considerably heavy; Isabet stayed quiet for a full minute, staring at the bottle now secured between her knees before speaking. "I guess this is as good a time as any to tell you something else about myself. I haven't been completely honest about my name. It is Isabet Cadera and I've gone by my middle name for ages, but it's not my full name."

Curious as to how this factored into her story, Carth's brows knit. "What is it?"

Wishing to occupy her fidgety hands, Isabet unraveled her braid before smoothing her fingertips across her sternum, her alabaster skin suddenly blotchy and red. "Derelith," she rasped.

Although her lips were parted as if she had more to say, Carth tried to encourage Isabet. "Derelith is a nice name," he said with a weak but genuine smile, though she hardly seemed to notice his words of comfort. "It's beautiful."

Her entire frame trembling, Isabet rallied every ounce of bravery in her being before breathlessly revealing her full name, "Derelith Isabet Cadera… Fett."

The instant the surname 'Fett' crossed her lips, Carth's whole body went rigid; his stomach twisted as it sank. Finally piecing all of the clues she had shared about her previous marriage together, Carth stared at Isabet in disbelief, hesitant to acknowledge the path she was paving.

She reluctantly returned his gaze and whispered the dreaded confirmation. "Cassus Fett was my husband."

Withering beneath Carth's unnerving eye contact, Isabet hid her pallid face. Ignoring its acidic burn in her throat, she chugged most of the remaining gin before handing the bottle to her partner, sensing he, too, needed a strong beverage to break the tension.

Unwilling to field any questions or hasty comments concerning her marriage, Isabet continued recounting her life's story as Carth drank. "Cassus wasn't nearly as traditional as Canderous. When he touched down on Dxun to do his inspections, he caught sight of me from the landing platform and asked my father for my hand by the end of their grounds tour. My dad knew marrying into Clan Fett would elevate Clan Cadera's status for generations and he had no idea Canderous and I were together, so he promised me to Cassus. When my dad told me what he'd agreed to, I…"

Feeling her heart's old, poorly healed wounds being ripped open and laid bare, she closed her eyes and rolled her tongue in her mouth, unsure if she could continue without becoming emotional. To her surprise, however, Carth gently rested his palm upon her upturned knee, providing her with the strength and support she needed to finish. "I knew breaking the engagement would heap shame upon my clan and limit my brothers' prospects when they tried to take on wives of their own, so I went through with it for my family's sake. Two days after my dad agreed to the union, I spoke to Cassus for the first time and, an hour after that, was officially married with a stepson a year younger than I was."

In a turn of events he never could have foreseen, Carth suddenly wished Isabet had been married to Canderous. At least then, her younger self would have been happy. "How old was Cassus?" he dared to ask, his voice abnormally soft and subdued.

Isabet stared straight ahead and narrowed her eyes as if peering into the past, searching for the answer. "When we got married…? If I had to guess, I'd say mid-to-late 50s? To be honest, I'm not completely sure. Mostly because I didn't want to know. All I knew was that his wife croaked a few months earlier and he wanted a newer, younger model to replace her and, apparently, I fit the bill."

Collecting her emotions and thoughts, she inhaled and swallowed the dry, heated lump in her throat. "As you can probably imagine, I fell out of touch with Canderous," she resumed, trying to keep as even a tone as possible. "We never actually talked about what happened. It just… ended. After the wedding, I left Dxun to live on Cassus' flagship with him. Canderous took off a few days after I did to rejoin the frontlines. By all accounts, my dad was devastated when he left. Little did he know that if he would've just talked to me before agreeing to the marriage, Canderous would've stayed with our clan forever…

"For the next few years, I traveled the galaxy with Cassus, hopping from system-to-system in his flagship. I never got around to liking him, let alone loving him — mostly because he was a cold, arrogant bastard — but it wasn't all bad. Cal was assigned to be a pilot on Cassus' flagship, so we got to spend more time together. Through him, I finally started meeting others on the ship. I even made a few friends: Nez, who you met earlier… Rahm Sherruk… Yeshi Deshra… Abel Kelborn… Carid Bralor… Essen Rook…" A fire unlike anything Carth had seen from Isabet ignited behind her eyes before she relayed the final individual, "Veela Vizsla," she finished with a snarled lip.

Although Carth recognized some of the names Isabet listed, he noted that the tone with which Isabet relayed the final name — Veela — was downright venomous. Hateful, even, though he knew better than to draw attention to that fact.

"Everything changed once Jedi Revan got involved in the War, though," she noted, seemingly calmed. "A couple months after he became Supreme Leader of your Republic forces, he promoted one of his fellow Jedi — Meetra Surik — to the rank of General and put her in charge of the Japrael Sector, which Cassus was not happy about. He thought by putting a woman in a position of power, Revan was questioning the strength of Mandalorian men. Since that sexist bastard didn't want any men to 'degrade' themselves by going toe-to-toe with her in battle and — gods forbid — diminish their clan's honor by losing to her, he decided to break tradition by searching for a woman to put in charge of that sector… and he ended up finding the ideal candidate in his own bed.

"Cassus decided to deputize me for a variety of reasons. The first was unsurprisingly self-serving: if I succeeded, my victories would reinforce Fett dominance. If I died, he could find a younger bride since I was getting old by his standards. Regardless of the outcome, he'd come out on top. Since he took most conferences in our quarters, I'd been listening in on strategic sessions for years and had become intimately familiar with the ins-and-outs of our military. I also knew the Japrael Sector like the back of my hand since it's where I grew up," she said, motioning to the space around them, "and, unbeknownst to him, I'd also been combat trained by Canderous, so there was less of a learning curve than even Cassus anticipated.

"Not long after my formal training was complete, Cassus sent me out with a shiny new title and a fleet of my own; he even let me transfer a handful of the friends I'd made to be part of my crew on my ship, the Tal'be Galar. News of my position didn't go public for obvious reasons. Cassus only allowed me to go by my initial to keep my anonymity and, I suppose, his pride intact."

A puzzle piece Carth had never considered until this moment slid into place.

During the Mandalorian Wars, Republic Intelligence intercepted multiple transmissions detailing the exploits of one 'General I. Fett.' All had assumed Cassus' only son, Ivo, to be the maligned yet mysterious general who executed one of the most ruthless atrocities of the entire War. Now, however, Carth feared the woman he cherished was responsible for the bloody event that struck fear into the hearts of Republic soldiers the galaxy over and, in his opinion, radicalized Revan, Malak, and Surik, leading to the War's devastating finale on Malachor V. "Did you order the Escalation on Dxun?" Carth inquired, though he was unsure if he truly wanted an honest answer. "Is that why you're called 'widowmaker'?"

In a matter of seconds, it appeared as if she had aged decades; her expression darkened and her skin greyed. "I've done a lot of things I'm not proud of," Isabet quietly confessed, glassy eyes downcast. "I wish every damn day I could take back what I did to those Republic soldiers… and what I did to General Surik. Cassus told me to send her a message she wouldn't forget, but she was basically a child and I… I went too far." Before she could contain the wellspring of emotions overflowing in her heart, a stray tear dared to roll down her cheek, though she quickly shielded her face and wiped it away.

Waging a futile battle to rid her mind of the gruesome images that forever haunted her slumber, Isabet roughly pressed the base of her palms against her tightly closed eyelids, drying any additional tears before they could be shed. Then, she spoke in an uncharacteristically small, defeated voice. "You hate me now, don't you?"

Carth wanted to hate Isabet for all she had done; during the War, he had unknowingly hated her for her brutality against the Republic. The disdain he once harbored for Isabet bubbled in his core and tore through his chest. He felt the walls she had managed to tear down being reconstructed. And yet, when he looked into her reddened eyes, he saw nothing but genuine regret, anguish, and shame. So much shame. In his heart, Carth knew Isabet was no longer the person who had perpetrated such unthinkable cruelties and, in that moment, he chose forgiveness. "I don't hate you," he quietly replied. "I tried… but I can't."

Eternally grateful for Carth's undeserved grace, kindness, and mercy, Isabet forced an unsure smile that swiftly faded. "Because of the disgusting, awful, heinous things I did on Dxun, Jedi Revan sent extra troops to help Surik regain control of the situation. Cassus didn't want to lose any of the progress I'd made in my first few months there, so he put additional troops under my command. It was smooth sailing until he decided to assign one of his top commanders to be my personal advisor."

Carth sensed he already knew who the advisor assigned to Isabet was, though he framed his statement as a question. "Canderous?"

"Bingo," Isabet nodded, voice soft. "We kept our distance for a while and kept things strictly professional: never being in a room alone together, only talking when absolutely necessary, that sort of thing. But as time passed, we started getting comfortable. He still hadn't taken on a wife and I did not want to be married to Cassus. Old feelings started coming back, and…" Yet again, Isabet was visibly uncomfortable; she shifted to sit on her hands before carrying on. "Outside of a handful of stolen kisses, nothing physical happened because Canderous still had some respect for Cassus. But pretty soon after we admitted we were still in love with one another, we decided to run away after the War and started planning. At the onset, we were extremely careful not to get caught, but as time went on, we got sloppy… I got sloppy.

"To this day, I'm not completely sure how he found out, but I think someone on the crew must've pieced together what we were planning and tipped Cassus off. Out-of-the-blue, Canderous was reassigned to an outpost on the far edge of the galaxy. Cassus sent Nez, Kelborn, and Cal with him, too, just for good measure. Then, Cassus paid me a visit. He was beyond furious and…" Reliving the terror inflicted upon her, Isabet fell eerily silent and hugged her own arms in a bid to self-soothe. "No one helped me," she whispered after a long while, voice cracking.

Carth's mind was transported to the solace of Isabet's tent on Kashyyyk. When she had revealed she saved him from Dral's wrath because no one saved her when she needed it most, Carth hadn't understood what she meant. Now, he did.

The thought of laying an errant hand on Morgana, or Isabet, or any woman was beyond foreign to Carth. It sickened him. His heart simultaneously ached and pooled with rage. And, though he was unsure of what the proper response to hearing about such mistreatment was, he wrapped his arm around her shoulders, wordlessly conveying his support. His thumb skimming her bare skin, he silently invited her to rest her weary head against him; an invitation she gladly accepted as she composed herself and warded off the nightmare that was Cassus.

Her normally bright eyes dim and lifeless, Isabet resumed after a few minutes of oppressive silence. "Cassus wanted to keep an eye on me, so he made my quarters his command center. Apparently, after a few days, he decided getting his revenge on me wasn't quite enough for him. In the middle of the night, I overheard him give an order for Canderous to lead a team of reject recruits on an assassination mission to take down Jedi Revan himself. Canderous is a once-in-a-generation warrior, but let's be honest: even at his peak, he was no Revan. It was a suicide mission that was bound to get him killed… and that was the whole fucking point."

She twisted free of Carth's loose embrace and pressed her back against the textured wall, nearing the end of her tale. "Cassus had one of the most brilliant strategic minds to ever grace this galaxy, but he was also the most vindictive… And that ended up being his undoing…

"Once he was asleep, I snuck over to his portal to save Canderous." Isabet hesitated before revising her statement. "I thought he was asleep. Right as I canceled the orders, I was shoved against the portal from behind. Then I felt this… ripping across my face and then there was blood everywhere," she recounted, touching her scarred flesh. "Through the portal's reflection, I saw Cassus had a knife and I knew it was him or me… and I chose me.

"I turned around and fought back with everything I had. Cassus got in a few more good shots," she said, pointing to a thin white scar on her palm, then at a puckered mark on her forearm, each signalling a defensive wound, "but I eventually got the upper-hand. Once I did, everything went red and when I came to… Cassus was dead," she revealed, her voice disconcertingly flat and devoid of emotion. "I knew I wouldn't be able to hide what happened for long, but I wanted time to figure out what to do next…" Unsure of how Carth might respond to the brutal actions that followed, Isabet ran her tongue across her teeth, then completed the story of Cassus' demise. "… So I chopped him up and put him in the waste compactor every couple hours until he was completely gone. In between dodging holocalls for Cassus and cleaning the mess, I tried stitching myself up, but I didn't do a great job. Clearly," she sneered bitterly, gesturing to her prominent facial scar. "I tried contacting Canderous to let him know what happened and to get help, but he was out of range.

"Within a week of not receiving word directly from Cassus, the rest of the brass figured something was up. They boarded the Tal'be Galar, saw my appearance and the bloodstains I couldn't scrub off the floorboards, and put two-and-two together. I was court-martialed and sent to the brig 'til the end of the War."

To Carth's knowledge, Republic Intelligence still believed Cassus Fett may be alive since he was unaccounted for by the War's end. But now, he knew the truth. Reeling from the revelation — and the startling recognition that he was the only Republic loyalist in the galaxy that knew the wretched yet wholly deserved fate that became Cassus — Carth asked Isabet about her incarceration. "How long were you imprisoned?"

"Ten-or-so months. I'm probably the only Mandalorian who's grateful Jedi Revan overran us as fast as he did," she scoffed. "We were already becoming disorganized, but once Cassus was gone, the bottom of an already-leaky bucket fell out. We didn't stand a chance."

Before Carth could stop himself, he uttered the inquiry at the tip of his tongue. "So you essentially ended the Mandalorian Wars… to save Canderous?"

"No," Isabet vehemently corrected with an unconscious wag of her finger. "Absolutely not. No. The only thing I did was speed up the inevitable. Revan had beaten us long before I killed Cassus. Before Canderous had even been transferred to my ship, Cassus and some of the other higher-ups were privately acknowledging the tides were turning against us. Revan had taken out too many of our officers, key outposts, and destroyed our entire kolto reserve, but Cassus and Mandalore thought we could hold out two more years. Three at the most, but I figured that'd be a longshot and incredibly reckless since it would've pushed us to the brink of extinction if we strung it out that long. After Cassus was gone, Jedi Revan handed our asses to us faster than anyone would've thought possible. He was too much for us to handle. He was too good for us. He was too good for the Republic, for that matter. That man was in a league of his own and if we had to lose, I'm honored it was to him."

It was clear the Mandalorian would have engaged in endless worship of the deceased Sith Lord if given the opportunity, so Carth artfully shifted the conversation back to the individual he cared about most: Isabet. "What happened once the War ended?"

Isabet appeared less than keen to focus on herself, though she continued trudging through her life's story. "Revan killed Mandalore about two months after I offed Cassus. The next day, he and General Surik unleashed the Mass Shadow Generator on Malachor and ended the War. Our military may've been in shambles, but since the brig was about as far away from Malachor as you could get, it was pretty much unaffected and I was stuck there for a long-ass time. The guards eventually abandoned their posts to take merc jobs and, when the last one left, he set all of us free.

"I hitchhiked my way across the galaxy to Dxun to regroup and reconnect with my brothers. Unbeknownst to me, rumors had been spreading about what happened to Cassus and the role I played in his death. It ended up working in my favor, to an extent. No one really liked Cassus, so I gained a bit of a cult following, as you saw back on Kashyyyk. I gained a lot of enemies, too, as you also saw back on Kashyyyk and in the cantina. I'm a bit of a polarizing figure."

Carth felt strange asking why his partner was not partnered with someone else, but nevertheless, he asked. "Is that why you never reconnected with Canderous?"

"Possibly," she conceded, tipping her head to-and-fro as she retrieved the bottle from his loose grip. "The elite clans have always been concerned with their appearance, but you'd have to ask him. After Malachor, all of us Mandalorians who survived the final battle were scattered throughout the galaxy. By the time I'd gotten out of prison and regained my bearings, a few months had passed. When I finally tracked down Canderous, I found out he'd had a quickie wedding with Veela to unite Clans Ordo and Vizsla a few weeks after Malachor." Her lips formed into the tightest of lines before she mockingly lifted the bottle as if toasting their marriage. "A regular power couple," she chuckled, her laughter humorless and disconcertingly sharp. "I lost my fiancé and someone I thought was my friend on the same day… And that's when I decided to sink all of my time and energy into finding Mandalore's mask to repair Clan Cadera's legacy."

Although discussing their past love made Carth uneasy, he lowered his voice and line of sight. "Does Canderous know what you did for him? That you risked everything to save him?"

"No," she promptly replied. "And he never will." The succinct answer and matter-of-fact tone with which she spoke alerted Carth this topic was not one she was willing to expound upon. Isabet then let out a noisy exhale and slapped her own thighs. "That's all I got," she unceremoniously ended her harrowing tale. "You can ask your questions now."

The abrupt culmination of her story caught Carth off-guard; he stayed silent for a long while before deciding upon his first question. "Are you ok?"

The Mandalorian stifled a tart laugh. "You get three chances to ask whatever the hell you want and you're gonna throw one of them away on that, Republic?"

"I'm not throwing anything away," he responded without skipping a beat, allowing the once-hard heart Isabet had managed to soften speak on his behalf. "Right now, nothing matters more to me than making sure you're alright."

Overcome by his compassion and sincerity, Isabet's blue-green eyes welled for the second time that evening; she cupped his cheek before slowly nodding. "I'm ok," she whispered, nuzzling her face against the crook of his neck. "Thank you for asking." The couple stayed quiet for several minutes, breathing one another in, before Isabet spoke. "What else do you want to know?"

The pilot rubbed his chin before hesitantly asking the question that had been simmering in the back of his mind since the nature of Isabet's past relationship with Canderous was brought to light. "Do you still love him?"

The shroud of affection faded. Isabet pulled away from the safety of Carth's arms; her shoulders slumped and her cheeks' rosy hue vanished. "I've been dreading this question," she admitted with a deep inhale. "In a sense… yes." The excruciatingly frank answer elicited an expression of utter devastation from Carth, though he tried to conceal his misery. "For better or worse, Canderous will always have a place in my heart that no one else will. I'll always have love for him, but I'm not in love with him."

One of the traits Morgana always claimed to love most about Carth was his selfless nature. But now, Carth loathed that trait as he posed a question that threatened to break his newly-mended heart. "If Canderous wanted to rekindle what you had -"

"Republic," she interrupted his final question in a huff, though Carth was undeterred.

"But if he did," he insisted. "I know you two have a lot of history and the timing was never right. I don't want to be the one who stands in the way of you having the life you want, even if…" While Carth was willing to step aside in favor of her happiness, the thought of letting Isabet go was suddenly too much for him to verbalize. And so, he let his sentence trail, allowing Isabet to fill in the blanks.

She took a deep, centering breath, searching for the proper words to encapsulate her innermost thoughts. "Carth, look at me," she requested, angling his face toward hers. "I've changed quite a bit since the War. I've seen a lot. Learned a lot. Grown a lot. Canderous has, too, I'm sure. Just based on the way he treats Mission and how he dotes on the Cathar, I know he's a better person than he used to be. But I don't know him anymore, and he doesn't know me. We have a lot of history, yes, but I know what I want and who I want. And I have who I want," she stated with conviction, placing her hand atop his and leaving no doubt of her words' sincerity. Then, she lowered her voice and chin just a hair to turn the tables on Carth. "If he still wants me, that is."

Carth's stomach began to flutter, flooding his chest and core with an indescribable excitement and warmth. Finding himself incapable of words, he simply nodded as his lips molded into a boyish smile. "Is that a 'yes'?" Isabet teased with an equally silly grin. She leaned close to poke his ribs, earning a bark of laughter from the pilot as he sought to evade her devilish fingers.

"Yes," he mirthfully responded.

"Yeah? Yeah?!" Still poking and tickling him in an effort to draw them out of the shadows, Isabet moved to straddle his outstretched legs before pressing her chest against his, laughing all the while. Their playful struggle finally came to a head when Carth wrapped his arms around Isabet and held her close. And, in turn, she melted into him, closing her eyes and returning his embrace with an intensity that made Carth feel more at peace than he had in years.

She let out a contented sigh, relieved and grateful for his acceptance of her scars. "We should head back to the Hawk, ner cyare," she finally murmured, kissing his cheek before moving to stand. "The others are probably ready to get going and I'm sure you wouldn't mind getting cleaned up," she deduced, extending her hand to help him to his feet. "Ready, Republic?"

Carth hoisted himself to his feet with Isabet's assistance. As they began walking to the docking bay, hand-in-hand, the pilot grew increasingly curious. "'Nar saray'," he attempted to parrot her mother tongue, failing miserably. "You said that earlier, too. What does it mean?"

"Ner cyare," she corrected with a grin as mischievous as it was affectionate. "'Nair shah-ray,'" she slowly demonstrated the proper pronunciation. "It's just a pet name that suits you," she deflected before turning the tables on Carth yet again. "Is there something else you'd prefer I call you?"

"How about 'the most handsome pilot in the galaxy'?" Carth suggested with a coquettish grin. The quip earned furrowed brows and perturbed side-eye from his partner, though he also noted she was barely keeping the coy smile he adored at bay. "I take it you're not planning to tell me what 'ner cyare' means?"

Isabet cocked a devious brow. "I dunno," she teased, her voice honeyed and smooth-as-silk. "Maybe I should make you work for the answer…"

Carth had grown accustomed to his partner's constant stream of flirtations and thinly-veiled allusions. He himself was a flirtatious individual. Yet still, Carth never found himself quite prepared for the force that was Isabet. He doubted he ever would, which was fine by him. Her boldness kept him on his toes; he liked being kept on his toes. Nevertheless, Carth oftentimes found himself unsure as to how to react, and this evening was no different. "Oh," he responded as he rubbed his stubbled chin, the tips of his ears pinkening. "I'm not sure I like the sound of that." When Isabet flashed a wolfish grin, a twinkle in her eye, Carth backpedaled. "Or do I?"

"You will," she decided, lazily looking him up-and-down before revising her statement. "Or at least I know I will," Isabet insinuated with a cheeky wink. She beamed when the innuendo made Carth's face and ears turn scarlet, the endlessly charming response she had been angling for. "Tell you what, Republic: if you get through ten Mando'a lessons with me, I'll tell you what 'ner cyare' means and I'll explain why I call you that. Deal?"

Before Carth could agree to the Mando'a lessons, a familiar voice called from behind. "Well this is new," Jolee proclaimed, prompting Carth and Isabet to spin and face the hermit padding toward them, "but not entirely unexpected. How long has this been going on?" he inquired, motioning to the space between the couple.

Although Bastila already knew of their involvement, neither Carth nor Isabet were prepared for other crew members — or rather, one specific crew member — to scrutinize their relationship. Isabet responded accordingly. "Long enough for me to know it's none of your damn business, you old fossil," Isabet snapped, fiercely protective of their privacy.

"Very tactful," Carth mumbled to Isabet. "Are you itching for a fight? I'll handle this."

He stepped forward to employ the mediation skills he'd picked up from his days at the Academy — and, most recently, from spending time with Bastila — but the damage had already been done. "A quick temper and sharp tongue won't get you anywhere other than an early grave, young lady," Jolee chided, arms folded across his chest. "Hmph!"

The elder continued grumbling about Isabet's surly attitude and about the hundreds of credits he now owed Penn as part of their wager on the unlikely couple's love life before resuming. "I never said I wasn't pleased. I'm old enough to know you should take love when you can find it, but for your own safety, Carth, you may want to be slightly more cautious holding her hand in public. Her fellow Mandalorian may not take kindly to you two… mingling," he grunted, scowling at the thought of their private moments. "But enough about your middle-aged love triangle; we have bigger fish to fry."

Ignoring the bothersome assertion that Canderous still harbored feelings for Isabet, Carth neared Jolee, sensing something was amiss. "What do you mean? What happened?"

The light in Jolee's eyes faded and, for the first time, he looked his age. "We need to talk about Mission," he said. "I fear that lass is in grave peril…"

A/N: Thanks for reading! Whew. Portions of this chapter were difficult to write (and read, I'm sure). While I don't insert myself into any of the established characters, I always insert a bit of myself into the OCs. For a long while, I debated changing my original plan for Isabet's backstory (aka, what you just read) as it harkened back to darker times. But, whenever I DID try to change it, nothing felt quite right so I decided to keep it as-is. I tried to keep it somewhat lighthearted while being respectful to the heavier subject matter. Rest assured, upcoming chapters will be much more light.

At long last, the question of how Isabet and Canderous are connected has been answered. We'll eventually get Canderous' perspective, but it'll be a while before that happens. We'll also learn the specifics of what "The Escalation of Dxun" was (most likely on Korriban in a series of flashbacks I'm eager to write!), so… stay tuned! Now, back to Penn, Bastila, and Mission.

And finally, over the years, many of you have mentioned you found this fic thanks to JL01's recommendation in Torn way-back-when (which is still a fantastic fic, by the way). Now that this fic has gotten a smidge of a following, I wanted to pay it forward and drop a recommendation for Knights of the Old Republic: Revenant by Le Faucon Bleu. It's their excellent take on what KOTOR III would have been; it's witty, creative, well-written, and has made my train rides much more fun! So if you're looking for something new with adventure, romance, and action, go check it out (it's one of the favs on my profile) and show them some love! Trust me, you won't regret it.

As always, thank you for any follows, favs, or reviews! Until next time.