"What are you waiting for, Loy?" yelled Merrix. "I'll give ya 'til the count of three! One…"
Loy stared at Din, their eyes meeting despite the beskar. The old man was afraid, yes. But his face was set, his dark gray eyes intense.
"Two…"
Din fractionally gestured with his head. Go! Loy began to jog off toward a broken building, the terror on his face now changed into something set, determined.
"Three!"
Merrix hoisted his rifle and let off a poorly aimed shot. But Loy had already vanished.
"Little rusty," he said. "I like a challenge. The hunt is on!" He flipped off the electrified floor and strode out into the holding area, then down the gangplank. Din followed, hand on blaster, warily surveying the surroundings. He was acutely aware of eyes watching them from the buildings ringing the square. Most of them were no taller than two stories, in various states of decay. Dusty, dry air, but at least not too hot.
They had crossed the square and almost reached the building where Loy disappeared when the ship abruptly pulled up its gangplank. Its engines started.
"Wait," said Din. "Where are they going?" Dismayed, he watched the ship begin to rise.
"They'll be back in an hour or so," said Merrix carelessly.
"Are you crazy?" asked Din. There was another crackle as the ship hit the energy barrier, then lifted up into the atmosphere. With a sinking heart he realized he wouldn't be able to get out of here with the jet pack. The barrier was so low it would be difficult even to use the jet pack to explore the ruins without being fried.
"I told you. I want a real challenge. It's not a challenge if I can just run back. Besides, you're here to protect me. That's the whole point, right? Let's go."
"Were you actually in the Guild?" asked Din dubiously. In his experience bounty hunters (including himself) put self-preservation over 'challenge.'
"Well, yeah! I guess I had partners and employees who always did the hands-on work, though. Always regretted not seeing more action. I was always more of a fixer. The man with the plan."
"Some plan. Stranded behind a wall with armed convicts."
"Look, if you're that worried, I do have a safe room here as a last resort. Mando, I'm the one hired you, remember? It'll be fine."
"I'm a Mandalorian, not a miracle worker."
Merrix looked up at the broken structure. "Maybe you go in first?"
Unbelievable, Din thought. He went to the door, peered around cautiously, and then stepped through, sweeping the room. Merrix followed. They passed through several other bare rooms and passages in this way. "Stop crowding me," he snapped at Merrix.
"Okay, okay. Sorry." He was starting to seem a little nervous, finally. Loy's warm footprints headed upstairs, so Din took them in the opposite direction. There were no other recent footprints, but Din could not shake the feeling of being watched.
"This way," he said. They passed from a door into a narrow alley. Was that the soft sound of feet on sand? A rustle, or just the wind? "I'm going up to look around, just to that rooftop. Stay put."
"Hey, should you…?" But Din had already jetted up to the roof of the two-story building opposite. He scanned the surrounding rooftops—nothing. He was going to have to stall for time to keep Loy alive while avoiding the understandably hostile locals. Grogu this whole time had stayed very still and watchful.
"Sorry, buddy," muttered Din. "Another great situation I've landed us in."
"Mmmpth ptu."
"You got that right." He looked down at Merrix, standing next to a window with an odd, frozen look on his face. Din jetted back down to the alley. A slim green hand was aiming a blaster out of a window directly at Merrix's head.
"Got the jump on you, Mandalorian," hissed the Rodian.
"Yep, sure did," said Din.
"You get me passage out of here now or your little boss here gets his head blown off."
"Fine with me," said Din.
"'Hey, what?" said Merrix. Din ignored him.
"I don't care. Go ahead," said Din. "Blow it off."
This confused the Rodian.
"Of course, if you kill him, they won't get you out. They'll probably just vaporize this place. And you. So you need to rethink how you phrase your threat."
"How about I blow off one limb at a time until you get me out of here," the Rodian told Merrix.
"That's better. Now you're getting it," said Din.
"HEY!" yelled Merrix.
"You know what would be even better?" asked Din. The Rodian looked at him, still aiming at Merrix. Din drew quickly and put the unfortunate Rodian down with one shot. Grogu squirmed.
Merrix collapsed, panting. "You…you son of a…"
Din said nothing.
"You almost—"
"I saved your life," said Din. Despite my inclinations otherwise. "Get up. We have to keep moving." He picked up the blaster dropped by the Rodian and tucked it away. It was a decent model, but much abused. You had to keep them clean, the fine grit underfoot here would play havok with the mechanism. Not liking this alley, Din led them back into the same building. No sign of Loy, which was good.
"Hang on. I need a drink." Merrix pulled out a small canteen and drank, the water spilling wastefully down his chin. Din and Grogu just watched. They had consumed several hydration packets back at the ship, and Din had more stashed on his belt. Grogu really needed nagging about hydration.
"You must not think much of me," said Merrix at last.
Din said nothing.
"I guess I've always wanted to do something like this, but never had a chance. And I know I need help. I admit it. That's why I asked Gallia to keep an eye out for you folks."
Oh good, thought Din. Another Mando-fan. He had encountered them often enough over his career. "Why are we hunting your steward, anyway? What happened to 'humans first?'"
"He was getting nosy. He accessed prisoner files using stolen credentials. I know he was a prisoner during Empire days. I'm all for rehabilitation, but I think he has a grudge against the correctional industry. Can't let him spoil my plans. Besides, humans are crafty. They make good sport."
"Good sport? I saw his feet."
"He's fine. I spent good money on upgrades for those feet and this is how he pays me back. If I didn't know better, I'd say you were sorry for him."
"Come on," Din said, teeth clenched.
They passed through several buildings this way. Again, no sign of Loy or anyone else. But Din found the silent watchfulness disturbing. Too many open windows, too many places to hide. It was best to stay behind walls, but there were plenty of hiding spots there too. At last they emerged into a broad street.
"Where is he?" whispered Merrix impatiently.
"Thought you wanted a challenge. Where's your safe room?"
"Why?"
"Maybe he knows where it is and he's heading there too."
"He snooped around a lot. Maybe you're right. It's about two kilometers north."
Din didn't think Loy was anywhere near it, based on the heat signature of the footprints he had seen some time ago. But he liked the idea of getting to the safe haven.
They had only gone a few meters before they heard shouts and running feet.
"They know we're here," said Din. "Can we go a little faster?" They ducked into another door, listening.
A small mob ran past—Wookies, Gamorreans, Trandoshans, Klatooinians, even a Mon Calamari, and more that Din didn't recognize. He saw several blasters in the group, along with crude clubs and shivs. They were ragged, hungry, and dangerous. Even worse, they were working together.
If Din thought this was dangerous, poor Loy didn't stand a chance.
"That way!" someone yelled, and the crowd sped around a corner. "Let's find another way to your safe room," Din said, or tried to. But a Trandoshan leapt from the shadows, claws extended.
"Kid, HIDE!"
Grogu didn't need to be told twice. He leapt from the bag just before Din was knocked heavily on his back, and darted under some rubble in a corner. Din rolled to avoid the knife-like claws aiming for the vulnerable place above his breastplate. The Trandoshan was not only big and fast, but its scaly hide was tough. Din managed to stab him in the arm before kicking him off. Merrix tried to shoot but his pricy rifle seemed to jam. The Trandoshan, snarled, grabbed the rifle, and swung it like a club, catching Merrix hard on one shoulder. He yelled.
Then Din was on the Trandoshan's back, looping his whipcord around the thick neck. He wanted this struggle to stay quiet. The Trandoshan dropped the rifle and tried to pull him off, but Din clung harder. Then he slammed Din backwards against the wall, making his helmet ring. Merrix staggered up with the rifle.
"No, don't shoot, that'll just—"
The blast was deafening. The Trandoshan fell, one arm now a bleeding stump.
"—attract attention." Din, panting, came up to Merrix and snatched the rifle away. "You could have killed me." He looked down at the writhing Trandoshan—his arm would probably regenerate, if he lived that long.
"Well, turnabout is fair play, I always say—" But that was as far as he got as howls came from the street outside.
"Dank ferrik. Up to the roof. Now."
Merrix raced up the crude stairs, Grogu bounding behind. Before Din followed, he blasted the door into rubble, blocking it off. No point being quiet any more. They found themselves on a roof three stories above the street. Taunts came from below, plus a few warning shots.
"Come on down! Don't you want to play?"
"Merrix! Get us out of here and we'll let you live!"
An Altraxian, purple-skinned and bulging with muscles and back tentacles, came to the front. "I remember you, Mando, from Dantooine," he roared. "I'm here because of you, and you'll pay!"
Din remembered him vividly, remembered pursuing him from system to system, tracking him for weeks through the plains of Datooine. What was his name? Kalax? They had struggled for control of the Razor Crest until Din finally forced him into the carbonite freezer.
Kalax was a vicious thug, but he was right, Din thought bitterly. He was here because Din had helped put him here. What happened afterwards hadn't been Din's concern. That was the code of the Guild.
But Kalax didn't deserve to be here. None of them did, no matter what they had done. Din had broken that code because of the child, but what else had he conveniently forgotten? How many more were trapped here because of him?
What did he deserve?
"There's the safe room," said Merrix, pointing to a slightly higher building to the north.
Using the jet pack to help leap from roof to roof, Din and Grogu might make it as long as he kept low, away from the shield. But what about Merrix? Din had no desire to carry him too. It would serve Merrix right to be left to the tender mercies of the enraged inmates, but Din still needed him if he was ever going to get out of here and find Mayfeld. And Loy needed to get out of this alive as well.
Right now, though, survival took precedence. Soon the inmates would climb up on the surrounding roofs and start shooting.
"Grogu, back in." Grogu leapt up and burrowed into the sling. Din gripped Merrix's arm. "Come on."
It was awkward, but it worked for the first jump. But the jet pack was only really built for one adult (and a child-sized passenger), especially for these small, slow jumps. "Ow," said Merrix, rubbing his arm. "This isn't at all how I wanted this go."
Din knew very well how Merrix had wanted it to go—a fun afternoon spent cornering and murdering an unarmed old man, with a just a little buzz of excitement provided by the exotic prisoners. But this arena was more dangerous than Merrix realized. He had not spent enough time in the field getting his hands dirty. And now he wanted to play at being a hunter.
The remains of a much larger building, probably some old civic center, stood about 100 meters away. "We're going. Get ready." Din gripped Merrix's arm again, ignoring the yelps. The second jump was even more awkward and off balance. Din landed badly, just as blaster fire came from a nearby roof. He dove and rolled to avoid the fire, taking cover behind the remains of a chimney. Grogu was out again, crawling into a tiny hole. Merrix lay flat on his face.
Din got to his feet, but a writhing purple tentacle wrapped around his ankle and tripped him up.
It was the Altraxian, Kalax. He had sprinted here and climbed up to the roof using tentacles and arms. Another tentacle wrapped around Din's wrist as quickly as a whipcord and pulled away his blaster, throwing it to the street. He tried to wrap a third tentacle around Din's neck, but a small rock bounced against his purple forehead. Kalax stopped, confused, and Din blasted him with the flamethrower. The Altraxian loosened its grip, staggered backwards, and fell off the roof screaming.
Grogu scuttled under a ledge. "Nice throw, buddy," Din said. Annoyed at losing his good blaster, Din pulled out the piece of junk he took from the Rodian.
"Give me back my rifle," Merrix said. "Please. I think someone's coming upstairs."
Din tossed the rifle at him and they all prepared to meet the invaders climbing up to the roof. Din shot the first that emerged from the stairwell, then Merrix the second—Klatooinians both—but more kept coming. Another Klatooinian got past and ran at Din, shrieking, with a club raised, but something swept his legs out from under him. Din seized the club and struck his head. Then he glanced over at Grogu. The boy stood with hands raised, eyes narrowed. Good boy. But even with his help, how much longer could they hold out?
As if in answer, engines whined. A ship approached above the energy barrier, but this wasn't the lander. It was sleek, dark, triangular…
…Imperial.
It came through the barrier and immediately fired upon the prisoners storming the roof. Those left alive screamed and ran back down the stairs or hurled themselves over the roof in their terror. The ship landed easily on the broad roof. The gangplank lowered and Gallia Varro emerged, surrounded by troopers in dark armor. She wore a plain black cloak which swirled dramatically in her wake.
"You idiot," she said to Merrix, stepping delicately over the Klatooinian corpses.
"What are you doing here?" yelled Merrix.
"I had no idea you were going to take your ridiculous hunting obsession this far."
"We were doing just fine without you."
"Indeed."
"Kino Loy—"
"—is a spy," she finished. "I know. And instead of simply silencing him, or firing him the normal way, you made a game of it, despite the risk."
Merrix wiped the sweat from his forehead and tried for an ingratiating smile. "Look, darling—"
"I've humored this eccentric obsession of yours, Merrix, because I needed your connections. But now you've taken it too far."
Grogu came close to Din and clung to his ankle, glaring up at Varro with his ears tipped down. Merrix wiped the smile from his face.
"Hon, you work for me."
"I'm the one who put you where you are now. Don't forget it. Now stop this nonsense."
Merrix put his hands on his hips and surveyed the bodies on the rooftop. He chewed his lip. He stomped his foot. "But it was just getting good!"
"Merrix," Varro said. "Come."
Merrix's face screwed up in impotent rage and he looked like Grogu denied his silver ball. Except Grogu never looked so immature. "But I have a Mandalorian!" he screamed.
"And you've wasted him," said Varro coldly. He turned her head to Din. "I apologize for this. And him."
"You owe me an explanation for this," Din said.
"You've been well compensated, so I don't owe you an explanation."
"Who are they?" He pointed at her guards.
"I manage a unique side operation on this planet, a superior production facility. This is the real business here, not the contemptible freak show Merrix wants."
"But off the record."
"The New Republic record, yes."
Din looked around at the carnage. "Why did you hire me? Really?"
"For the reasons I said. You would be an asset and raise the professionalism on board, which you did. And because I knew it would please Merrix." Her face softened, just a little, looking at the absurd man sulking while the adults spoke. "He's always had such a fascination. And, to be honest, I wanted to understand more as well. I've heard a great many recent stories about Mandalore of late. I wanted to find out more, first hand. Ah well."
"Dammit." Merrix exploded. He stomped around, red-faced. "Dammit, dammit! I came here—I wanted—aaah!" His eyes landed on Grogu and he sifted the rifle in his hands. "If you hadn't been so busy with your pet. Your pet."
"Merrix," said Din.
But Merrix raised his rifle and aimed it at Grogu.
This ended the conversation.
Grogu leapt.
Din also leapt, activating his jet pack and hurling into Merrix with enough force to carry him ten meters backward and knock him on his back. Straddling him, he lifted his fist.
"ENOUGH."
Intense, searing pain coursed through every nerve of Din's body. Any thoughts of pounding Merrix's face into pulp vanished. He rolled over, convulsing. Through the agony, he remembered feeling this back on Mandalore. One of Varro's guards had an electrostaff, just like Gideon's red-cloaked guards. The staffs the guards used back on the transport ship were like toys in comparison. He tried to rise, tried to grab it, but his muscles wouldn't obey…
"What a pity," said Varro. "I really thought we could find a use for you. But I think attacking your supervisor violates the terms of your employment agreement. Perhaps we can make use of your marvelous equipment."
And then the pain stopped. The guard fell back. No, was pushed back. Grogu held both hands out, eyes blazing. Din rolled over, aching and gasping for breath. He felt waves of relief, pride, and concern. The other guards and Varro looked from Din to Grogu in perplexity.
"Did that…?" one of them began.
The guard with the electrostaff recovered from the shock of being pushed with unseen hands and turned his attention to Grogu. "No!" commanded Varro. But it was too late. The guard aimed at the boy. Again Grogu leapt. He landed on the roof's edge, but the heavy ship and cannon fire had damaged the structure. Even under his slight weight the ledge crumbled and Grogu fell with a small shriek.
"No!" Despite the weak, shaky feeling in every nerve, Din instantly followed Grogu over the ledge, jet pack coming on mid fall. He landed on his feet in the alley below and looked around, fighting back panic until he saw Grogu above him. He was balancing lightly on a window ledge one story up, near an open window. "Stay there!" he called with relief. Grogu waved back.
Then a purple tentacle reached from the window, wrapped around the little boy, and pulled him back in with a squawk.
Above them, the ship's engines roared. It lifted off the roof, making the building shake. Fresh cracks appeared in the brick walls. Once again the energy shield crackled as the ship passed through it, then lifted away.
Now they really were stranded.
Din raced into the nearest door, finding himself in a wide, sandy-floored chamber with a high roof. Once it might have been the main hall, with a sweeping staircase and elegant wall paintings, but the paintings had faded and crackled. Din made for the stairs and began to climb.
"Hello, Mandalorian."
The voice was deep, powerful, familiar. The huge, horned shape blocking his way smiled with pointed teeth in a scarred red face. A Devaronian.
Oh no, Din thought.
He looked behind him at the hall to meet the hostile gazes of a dozen other prisoners. Then Din bent over, hands on his knees, and took a few deep breaths.
It had to be Burg. Of course it had to be Burg, the last person in the galaxy he wanted to meet again.
And he was already tired.
"Good to see you again, little man," Burg said. He laughed a bone-shaking laugh. "Really good."
Notes:
Thank you, Wookiepedia, for all of the background on Star Wars tech and aliens. But the Altraxian is my invention…