The mood hadn't lightened since last night. Kuiil and I rode on the only blurrg left; well, I rode it while Kuiil walked alongside me and the beast. Greef was ahead of all of rest of us with his cronies; Carl and Mando stayed in between them and Kuiil and I. Greef looked to be quietly conversing with his men, and Mando said something inaudible over to Carl. It took us more than half the day to reach a point where the city was in view. By then, Carl's men where behind us and Kuiil and I had re-joined our companions' sides.
Carl was the first to come to a halt. While facing forward he said: I guess this is it. My head turned to see two of his goons raise their guns and step towards the back of Mando and Carl. What happened next, however, I was both not expecting nor prepared for. Greef shot both of his men in the chest. They fell like flies and soon Greef had two blasters pointed directly at him- not that I noticed. I screamed just witnessing two people die right in front of me and my healing instincts kicked into overdrive. Kuiil watched startled and alarmed as I leapt off the blurrg's back in an attempt to race over to their bodies. He caught me just in the knick of time by grabbing my right arm.
"Saoirse! Stop!" "Let me go! They're dying!" I pleaded, not taking my eyes off the fellows. "It won't help, Saoirse; they're already dead," Kuiil tried to reason with me, holding me back- barely- by the wrist. "You killed them….." My horrified eyes suddenly rolled over to the stunned Greef; I'm pretty sure he wasn't expecting me to react that way. By now, Carl had the expression which read unbelievable anger and "I want to blow your brains out"; Mando's was most likely the same.
"I'm sorry you had to see that, Saoirse. But there's something you should know," Greef approached the corpuses, rolling one over and kicking the gun out of his unmoving hand. I spun around so to bury my face in Kuiil's chest- it had been tear-stained for the past minute or so. And Greef took the opportunity to turn around back to the enraged Mando and Carl. "The plan was to kill you and take the girl. But after what happened last night, I couldn't go through with it." "So you repay Saoirse by killing men in front of her?" Carl hissed viciously. "I had no choice; it was either you or them. Go ahead, you can gun me down here and now, and it wouldn't violate the code. But if you do, Saoirse will never be safe."
"Get Saoirse out of here, Mando. Leave this one to me," Carl's eyes narrowed onto Greef. His arms shot down at his sides in a desperate fashion. "The Imperial Client is obsessed with obtaining this asset. You tried to run, but where did it get you?" Greef's voice kept sounding more and more frantic. "This is ridiculous!" Carl's head shot over to the Mandalorian. "Perhaps you should let him speak," Kuiil called from where he was still holding me. I wiped my eyes and gazed back at the three men still alive ahead of us. Greef's and my stares met, and his lips pressed into a thin line. Then his eyes trailed back to the men still aiming their weapons his way.
"Listen, we both need the Client to be eliminated. What alternative is there? You're just going to keep running for the rest of your lives? Meanwhile he's handing out more and more tracking fobs." A pause for dramatic effect. "Look, if you ever want a life with Saoirse, then you need to take him down. The Client won't stop, and her chances of being free and alive diminish every day." Another pause for effect.
"Let me take Saoirse to him, and then you two….." "No," the Mandalorian cut Greef off. "Let's just kill and get out of here," Carl announced. But to all our surprise, Mando was the first to slowly lower his gun. "He's right," he admitted while putting his blaster back in its holder. "What are you doing?" Carl asked him incredulously. "As long as the imp lives, he'll send hunters after Saoirse." "Mando, it's a trap! We can't bring Saoirse anywhere near the Client! Not after this lowlife killed his backup," Carl spat in Greef's direction. "We're not going to bring Saoirse," Mando reassured Carl before addressing his contact.
"Bring me." "Bring you?" Greef repeated surprised. "Tell him you captured me. Get me close to him, and I'll kill him." "What?" I uttered. Wait, what's happening? I blinked in confusion and concern. Mando wasn't…. he's not leaving me again, is he? But….. no; that wasn't the plan. "That's a good idea," Greef agreed to this nonsense. "That is not a good idea. You can't go in the city without me, Mando; it's me they want," I stepped closer to them.
"There's a bounty out for me too. Plus I think the Client wouldn't mind having me hulled in," the Mandalorian eased to me. But I stood firm, staring up at him with big eyes. "Mando, this is insane; I don't like this. It's too risky." "I know you're worried, Saoirse, but he'll be fine. He's a Mandalorian," Carl placed his hand on my shoulder, grinning slightly. I merely blinked back to Mando with now frightened eyes. He stared back at me for a minute, his helmeted head tilting ever so softly to the side. "This is the only way, Saoirse. You're not going back into that city; not with only four of us." "Mando, are…. are you sure about this? I-I don't want anything to happen to you. Please….."
No one said anything for a brief moment, though I did spot Kuiil peer up to the Mandalorian with expressive eyes. Eventually Mando's head gave a small yet finalizing nod. "I will come back," he said directly. "Promise?" I pushed, vainly grasping for a little more security. Despite him not verbally responding, I could read in his body language that he was promising this to me. "Give me your blaster," I'm sure Greef also saw this silent contract between us since he proceeded to hold out his hand for Mando's gun.
Mando handed over his blaster and Carl came to stay beside me. "I'm staying with Saoirse," he proclaimed. "No, go with Mando," I contradicted him. He looked at me startled. "No, Saoirse; I'm not leaving you here miles away from the city like this." "But Mando may need your help," I countered again. Carl seemed….. a little at war with himself when I told him this. His gaze kept shifting between me, the Mandalorian, and Greef. "You probably shouldn't come. That would make them suspicious," Greef tacked on. "I don't care. I want him to go with Mando," I fired back. Carl looked at me, then back at them. Seeing as I wasn't about to let this drop, Mando decided to help my side of the argument.
"Tell them he caught me," Mando instructed Greef. "Fine, then he can bring Saoirse." "No- she goes back in the ship." Oh, that makes sense. Peli fixed the ship's lockdown mode; once onboard it seals shut with a layer of armour and locks that are almost impossible to get through. I'd be safe in there like that, which explains why Mando would even consider leaving me alone on this god-forsaken planet. Greef was still upset with this plan, unfortunately.
"But without the girl none of this works," Greef's hands flew out at his sides again. Mando was having none of it. "I have a plan. Kuiil, ride back to the Razor Crest with Saoirse and seal yourself in," he instructed before turning to me next. "Saoirse, once you're inside, engage ground security protocols. Nothing on this planet will breach those doors." I nodded and Kuiil went over to Mando to hand him something. "Here's a comlink. I will keep Saoirse safe," he vowed, then he came back to stand beside me.
While we only had moments to look at each other, it was enough time for our eyes to metaphorically lock; my lips unconsciously parted a sliver. No… No, I don't want this; I don't want to leave him like this. He's going into the enemy's territory alone… without me. I won't be with him…. My hands balled into fists. Even though he wears a helmet- a literal mask- I can read him like a book; I know him. I felt like I knew him, and also that there was no other like him. No one else like him, anywhere at all.
"Please be careful, Mando," your life is precious to me. More precious than I dare realize unless I think about it. Why was I cursed with this feeling that is so…. natural? Cursed, or blessed. Everyone was watching us, while Mando and I kept our eyes glued on each other. This happened in the span of five seconds, but it felt much, much longer to me. His head nodded in a genuine way. A small, sad grin blossomed across my lips. "Come back as soon as you can to me." "I will," he promised. This made my smile deepen.
I still don't know what the will of the Force is, but I have a feeling it knows what it's doing. It's placed the Mandalorian here, at my side. At my side…. where he belongs by the will of the Force. Maybe not forever, but definitely for now. For as long as possible, if I can help it.