Takes place post Season 2. The planet "Tranon" is made-up; you won't find it on Wookieepedia.
1/2/21
Cara and Din take a job together after the events of Chapter 16. When Din takes a fall, Cara must take care of him and herself until help arrives.
_
"I don't care if it was practically a Clone Wars antique; I'd much prefer your Razor Crest over this hunk of junk."
Cara's remark elicited a huff of agreement from Din, despite the fact that the mention of his old ship caused a pang of grief in his heart. He could still see the moment when his home went up in flames, leaving nothing but a black, smoldering crater. The only things that had survived apart from random pieces of scrap were his Beskar spear and the kid's--Grogu's--shiny ball. It wasn't just a knob that the kid liked to play with; it was what made him go back that day after he handed him over for a camtono of Beskar. Looking back, Din wasn't entirely sure if he would have risked everything to save the kid had that ball not been sitting on his console.
"We're getting ready to land. Strap yourself in."
Cara's order jerked him out of his thoughts and brought him back to his current situation. After the Jedi had taken Grogu with him, he'd looked Cara in the eyes before putting him helmet back on, avoided Bo-Katan's and Koska's death glares as he left with the darksaber still clipped to his belt, and said farewell to Fennec and Fett, who apparently had business on Tatooine if he ever needed them. After Fett dropped them off to the New Republic headquarters on Chandrila so Cara could hand over Moff Gideon, Din was paid a hefty sum of credits and whatever criminal records he had were wiped. (He'd been thankful for that. He didn't want to crash land on any more ice plants because he was fleeing from republic officers.) Cara had explained that they needed a ship, so the New Republic kindly gave them a very, very old freighter that shuddered and creaked in hyperspace like a dilapidated house in a windstorm. But it was something, and it was free, so they'd gratefully accepted it. They'd gone to Nevarro to fill in Greef Karga on the recent events. The magistrate was crestfallen that the child was gone, but nevertheless congratulatory towards Din on completing his mission. After about a week of simply resting on Nevarro and assisting Cara with marshaling duties, Din had picked up a lead that said there was a small imperial remnant operating on a nearby planet whose inhabitants were offering a reward for their extermination. With little else to do, Din and Cara had taken off in their lended ship, which Cara jokingly dubbed The Bolt Bucket, and headed for the tiny mountainous planet of Tranon. Which brought them to where they are now.
"The imps are up on a mountain far away from any of the towns. We'll want to go in quietly and use the charges to blow the place once we get out."
Din only nodded in acknowledgment as Cara began to set the ship down behind a hill and out of sight. Before the rickety ship touched down, however, a rather concerning sounding pop echoed somewhere in the ship, causing the freighter to ungracefully drop rather than land.
"I hope that wasn't anything important, or we're stuck here," Cara remarked, a hint of worry lanced into her tone.
Din nodded again. He hadn't said very much since he'd removed his helmet and said goodbye to Grogu. It wasn't as if he was usually a talkative person; his silence simply seemed more purposeful rather than habitual now. Cara had tried to talk to him at first, to offer sympathy, but Din always waved her off and insisted he was fine. She understood, however. She'd dealt with grief similarly a few years ago, and knew some preferred not to be pitied or comforted. So she'd left him alone, and for the past few days he seemed to be brightening up a bit more.
Cara punched the control to lower the ship's ramp as Din checked his blaster and grabbed the charges needed to blow the base. Cara grabbed her large gun that Din had given her back when they had gone to kill the client on Nevarro and stepped out into Tranon's warm air. It was a pretty planet; there were flowers and green grass across the terrain, with mountains scattered around that provided cover from the rays of the warm sun. She was almost launched into memories of Alderaan's meadows before Din came up behind her.
"The base is pretty high up. How do you suppose we get up there?" Din asked as he craned his neck to look at the imperial base, which was indeed almost at the top of one of the mountains.
Cara followed his gaze and hummed in thought. Din had a jet pack, so the solution was simple for him. As for her, she wishes she would've thought this part through more.
"You might have to go in alone with your jet pack. I can snipe troopers from down here. It'll draw attention away from you while you're inside," Cara suggested.
Din nodded, and Cara could see the gears turning in his head despite his helmet. "That'll do. Get up on one of the hills where you'll be able to get as many troopers as possible. I'll go in, plant the charges, and fly out before it blows."
Cara nodded in affirmation and scrambled up the hill they'd hidden their ship behind while she set her gun to sniper mode. She'd modified the blaster after Din had given it to her to serve multiple purposes, sniping being one of them. It'd particularly come in handy on Morak when Din and Mayfeld had gotten out of the mining facility after getting Gideon's coordinates.
"I'll be quick," Din said before taking off, his armored figure eventually becoming a tiny dot in Tranon's blue sky.
