I awoke sometime later, and found myself stun cuffed. I was laying on my side on the desert floor. Black sand stuck to my face as I came to. My head felt throbbing, from that damn Asilyr rifle. Shooting pain emanated from my chest and shoulder, where my armor had taken some bolts. My face felt hot, probably sunburnt. I groaned, taking a look around me.

The Asilyr had surrounded me. Cassus stood above me, arms across his chest as he looked down at me. Nearby, another group of Asilyr were standing around over the bodies of Irkchik, Suuvarsh, Gorman and Palscho. I couldn't tell if Palscho eventually died from his wound, or if they finally killed him. Hopefully the latter. Opposite them were Terran and Munshaan, who were somehow still alive. They were bound and gagged, on their knees with their hands behind their heads. Asilyr warriors were standing above them, blasters pointed at their heads. Fools should have stayed with us….or maybe they were right. Maybe we shouldn't have come all this way. Damn, damn, damn.

"Well well well, look who's finally awake. Bit off more than you could chew, Vod?" Cassus said, mockingly. He walked around me, as I rolled onto my back. I saw my helmet was a few feet away.

I said nothing as Cassus walked over to Terran and Munshaan. He ripped off their gags to let them talk. "Anything you want to say to your pal there, gentlemen?" Cassus asked.

"This is all your fault, Fett!" Terran yelled.

"Everything was good till you showed up!" Munshaan shouted.

"Thank you gentlemen. Good night and good luck to you two." Cassus replied. He nodded to the Asilyr guarding them, who immediately pumped blaster bolts into their skulls. Terran and Munshaan died immediately. With them dead, I was the last one alive. Typical.

I watched them die, then closed my eyes and sighed. My number was coming soon enough. As I lay there waiting to die, I felt myself grabbed me and pulled up. I opened my eyes and saw Cassus had picked me up to stand. Was he walking me to my death?

"Well, here you are Doug. My kin. My family. Fellow Mandalorian. Here on this pit of a world, hunting me. Why is that Doug? Why?"

Standing, I looked around at the Asilyr surrounding us. They watched as Cassus questioned me. I looked back at him. "Does it matter?"

"Of course it does. I haven't seen you in years, now the first time I see you you're hunting me with these mercenaries. You owe me an explanation."

Damnit. Damnit dammit dammit. This was bad. Even if I talk, he would kill me. He was toying with me. Thinking back on the past few years, and all my experiences since, I looked back at Cassus and replied, "It's just business, Vod."

He nodded and grinned. Mockingly, maybe? "I can respect that. It's been tough since Malachor. So why bounty hunting?" Cassus asked.

I paused for a moment. He was still toying with me. Guess I'd play along. "To get back at the aruetiise who had hunted me."

"So you decided to hunt me?" Cassus said quickly. I didn't want to involve my clients. Dammit.

"I linked up with them. They needed help and I needed a job."

Cassus could tell I was lying as he leveled his eyes at me. He shrugged after a few moments. "Fair enough."

He kept pacing. After a minute, he turned to the Asilyr. He said something in their language, and they walked away. He looked back at me. "Doug, I won't kill you. I don't kill fellow Mandalorians. But I'll tell you this. If you ever interfere with my operations again, if you ever hunt me again, then you are dead."

"Underst-"

"We've all been going through rough times since the end of the war. I get it, Doug. But you have to think about what you're doing, di'kut."

I shook my head. "You're right. I just-"

"Here. You can show this to your employer." Cassus said. He removed his armor, and pistol, and dropped them at my feet. I was taken aback. What was he doing?

"Cassus, you don't-"

"It has its uses. It'll show your client you finished the job." Cassus replied. Smart thinking on Cassus' part – but not the best way that I wanted to begin my bounty hunting career. My fellow hunters were dead, and the target wasn't even captured. I had no other option though.

"Cousin, I-"

"Don't worry about it. I have resources. Listen, if you ever quit this bounty hunting phase, you should think about coming back to the fold. The Mandalorians will rise again. I promise."

Cassus undid my bounds, then turned to leave. Standing alone, I was at a loss of what to do at the moment. My fellows were dead, and our Druyza mounts had fled. Damn, damn, damn. As I looked around to gather my gear, Cassus turned back to me. "Oh, Doug, you might need this." He tossed me a canteen, and then continued back with the Asilyr.