CHAPTER ONE: THE HUNTER
Ino looked from the bent iron fire poker up to the man cloaked in beskar. In one fluid motion she dropped the stick, hiked up her skirts, and fled on foot. Ino had no sense of where she was going, only that it was going to be as far away from The Mandalorian as possible. Once she entered the treeline, she dared a glance behind her at the small cottage from which she fled. The scene left her bewildered to say the very least; the cottage and the clearing were as unassuming as ever. She continued to charge on, further into the foliage - her path lit only by slivers of moonlight and bioluminescent flowers
Ino slowed to a stop after running for another twenty minutes. She held her breath and waited for a moment, still nothing. It couldn't have been that easy, she thought. Maybe the stories of her childhood were fabricated after all. An animal called from a tree high above her head. The realization washed over her. Ino now faced a new challenge, getting out. The sun would not rise again for another three wake cycles however, she would need to come up with a plan. Would he be waiting for her to return to her cottage? Should she even attempt to return, or should she press on deeper in a desperate hope to reach another settlement?
These thoughts were cut short at the snap of a twig somewhere in the distance. She whipped her head around to place the source….she couldn't. She felt as though she was being watched from every angle and any sudden movement would spur an attack.
Another snapping sound came from behind her. From the darkness emerged a creature like none she had ever seen before. Large scales formed thick jagged plates over the creature's body. Three pointed horns jutted out from atop its head, elongating its already horrifying size. The creature craned its neck and opened its mouth - Ino realized that the snapping sound she had heard was not coming from their environment but being engineered by the creature. It moved its head while it emitted a series of clicks and croaks from its throat - it was blind; she realized. It was using the noises to map out its surroundings. If she could say quiet until it passes, she might survive -
A large bang rang out behind her - the creature roared and charged. Ino dropped to her knees and covered her head, bracing herself for the inevitable when- it never came. She glanced up and saw the creature face down in the brush. What in the world - A blunt object was pressed to her back while a leather boot stepped into her peripheral.
"Stand" the voice behind her said. Even though he was right behind her, the microphone in his helmet filtered his voice in such a way that made it seem far away.
"And if I don't" Ino shot back. The Mandalorian stayed silent. "I know you can't touch me - I know that was the order that they gave. And if you don't bring me in alive, then it's you who will have a bounty on your head."
The Mandalorian issued the same command a little more forcefully this time "stand."
Ino did not waver "and if I don-" suddenly a sharp pain radiated through her back. She felt the air get snatched from her lungs as a flash of heat seemed to cut through her. The feeling was stopped as quickly as it began. She gasped and fell forward onto the soil, clutching her stomach.
"Stand" he said again.
She stayed on the ground until she felt the object dig a little harder into her back, then finally gave in. Defeated, she pulled herself from the forest floor and groaned at the throbbing pain radiating from her back.
As soon as she was on her feet, he spoke again "walk."
She did as she was told, all the while trying to come up with a plan of escape. "Did Balthar send you?" She was met with silence. "How much did he pay you- because I am certain that I can match it, exceed it even," more silence. She was growing more and more frustrated with each step forward. "I thought Mandalorians are supposed to be people of honour. How you can serve such a vile man is beyond comprehension….I am certain that your kind must be embarrassed by you." Still nothing, she would need to find some other means of getting information.
The Mandalorian marched her past her cottage and around her settlement. She could see candlelights flickering in windows behind curtains. She could scream, but she was worried what fate would become any resident who tried to help her. For three months she had lived in blissful anonymity. The escape had been orchestrated perfectly, so how was it he tracked her down? She racked her brain for any missteps she could have taken, but came up with nothing. Ino had been so careful. Now the residents would emerge from their sleep cycles to find her home abandoned. What would they would happened to her?