Burg walked slowly down the stairs, a broad smile on his ugly face. The big Devaronian was dressed in rags and carried no weapon, but he didn't need any. Din fell back to the bottom of the stairs. Behind him, the crowd of convicts drew away.

"Look, Burg," he said. "I came here to shut this down and get you all out of here. I know Merrix is crooked. We can stop this. But you have to work with me and put any grudge aside."

"Any grudge? Any grudge?" Burg's laughter was long, ugly, and loud. "He locks me in a cell and talks to me about a grudge."

"You tried to put me in a cell too," Din reminded him. "And steal my ship. Not sure what you expected me to do about that."

"I've been here because of you for a long time, Mando. I've been thinking about what I'd do if I saw you again." He folded his arms. "And now here you are."

"Merrix wants to turn this place into an arena. He wants to hunt you for sport while rich people place bets and watch."

"Sounds good to me," said Burg. "I'll put on a good show. I'll start with you. Maybe I oughtta thank you. This place ain't a bad gig if you're strong. If you're at the top of the heap. Plenty of food, no work, good weather."

"Just tell me where the kid is and I'll leave you alone," said Din. Did his brave words sound a little thin? The effects of the electrostaff were wearing off, but he felt drained. "I have no quarrel with you." He looked behind him at the assembled hostile faces. "With any of you."

"But I have a quarrel with you," said Burg. "I remember that little pipsqueak. It'll make a nice little mouthful. I'll debone it while you watch. And then it'll be your turn."

Well, Din thought, I tried.

Burg began to jog towards him, if a mountain could jog. Din drew the stolen blaster, tried to fire. No good. As he feared, the inner workings were too damaged. So, with a boost from his jetpack, Din hurled himself straight into Burg, trying to drive him back and flatten him out. But it was like hitting a wall. Burg released an "oof" and stepped back, but only slightly. Din aimed a punch that would flatten a non-Devaronian but Burg just laughed and swiped his fist aside. Din felt an unpleasant pop somewhere in his left wrist. They grappled and Burg tossed Din against a wall with enough force to leave a deep dent.

Din opened his eyes blearily. His ears buzzed. The inmates around them hooted and laughed, but did not want to step in. Burg approached and Din opened the flamethrower on him, knowing it would probably not help. More deep laughter, but it seemed to slow him down a little.

A heavy thud came from somewhere above them.

For a moment, they both looked upwards. Then Din used the momentary distraction to his advantage and shot the whipcord around Burg's neck. He pulled with all of his strength, trying to topple him, but Burg pulled harder. Din found himself yanked to his feet and into Burg's grasp. Then the huge arms squeezed.

Fresh pain radiated from Din's ribs as Burg tried to flatten him between his beskar plates. His breaths were shallow and effortful as the relentless pressure crushed his torso. In desperation he turned on the jetpack. This worked better than the flamethrower. Burg yelled and released his grip enough for Din to wriggle loose. Then Din was on Burg's back, pulling on the cord still wrapped around the colossal neck.

Burg roared and tried to shake him off much as the Trandoshan had done earlier. He threw himself backwards against walls, crushing Din over and over again with his vast weight. Din's ribs screamed with every blow and his head rang. He pulled out the vibroblade, ready to plunge it into Burg's neck, but Burg shook him free and threw him to the floor. A savage kick landed in his side. Din rolled away, groaning.

Then from the corner of his eye, he saw Grogu.

That must have been the thud upstairs. The Altraxian who grabbed him must have had the surprise of his life. Now the little boy simply stood on the stairway, watching the struggle quizzically. Din shook his head. No. Please. Get out of here.

"Oh, it's my snack," said Burg with an ugly leer. Then he turned his attention back to kicking Din.

In answer, Grogu raised his hand and closed his eyes.

Burg's kicks slowed and he blinked. He shook his head as if trying to clear it. "Get you…get you good…" he muttered. He delivered one more half-hearted kick, then stopped. Din, coughing, got to his hands and knees. Burg was staggering, weaving. Suddenly he collapsed to his knees. He looked up at Din with narrowed eyes. "You. You're doing something. But. But I guess you're right." He seemed to be having a conversation now with someone else, not Din. "Just need to rest. Don't remember when…when I last slept. Really slept."

The crowd watched, stunned, but didn't seem to understand what they were seeing—or who was really causing it.

Then Burg toppled onto his side and started to snore.

Grogu lowered his hand and sat heavily, his eyes sleepy. Din stood, working hard not to show any signs of pain or weakness. He looked around at the crowd, then walked to where Grogu sat on the stairs. Carefully he picked him up and tucked him in the sling—it was ripped, but still functional.

The crowd rumbled, and a few raised their weapons.

"Let me pass," Din said.

The inmates looked at each other uncertainly but didn't move.

"LET ME PASS," said Din again.

A new roar came from the door. The pale Wookie, Fazzakkaar, stood there next to another that could have been his twin. He growled, teeth bared. Both carried blasters.

Stand back! All of you!

Mandalorian, go now.

Din nodded and made for the door. But Fazzakkaar put one mighty hand on his shoulder before he left.

I have found my brother. But you must keep your promise. Help us to leave this place.

Din nodded. Then he left and emerged onto the empty street and moved as quickly as he could towards the direction of the safe room. Pain seemed to be everywhere. He gritted his teeth. He was starting to lose track of all of the promises he made. Finding Loy and the safe room was next, and then wherever this factory was—and Mayfeld. He needed to find a way to contact Teva, but even if there was a communications setup in the safe room, it could take a long time for his message to come across.

He needed a lot more information from Loy about the prison factory—how it worked, how it was set up. A plan was beginning to form in Din's mind.

And he didn't like it at all.

Din wove carefully through the alleys and streets of the ruined town, his eyes always on the taller building that housed the safe room. Grogu snored against his chest. His stamina had grown lately, but some efforts were still more draining than others.

They met no one else—they had all apparently gone to see the big Mando vs. Devaronian bout. But Din took a circuitous route in case someone tried to follow, doubling back several times. He had to stop and catch his breath often—there was a broken bone somewhere in his wrist and several ribs felt bruised, possibly broken.

At last Din reached the building, but as far as he could see it was a sheer four-story tower with no windows or doors. He looked up and down, absently patting his napping son, catching his breath once more. He thought about jetting to the roof, but worried about stray snipers and the energy shield roasting them both.

"You just need the code to get in."

Din spun. Loy was crouched behind a nearby wall. His face was gray and exhausted. "How did you get here?" Din asked.

"There's a tunnel for the clients. It has the same access code as Merrix's personal suite on the ship. Plus, all of the inmates seem distracted."

"By me." Din felt a fresh wave of anger at Merrix. The reckless idiot. "We could have gone safely in a tunnel and avoided everyone this whole time."

"Of course. But he wanted to play with his toys. Including you."

"You found the plans for the tunnel and the safe room?"

"Yes." Loy looked pained. "But I was too slow. Damn this wretched body of mine."

"So how do we get in?"

Loy rose and came to stand next to Din, hobbling. "There's an entrance with a hidden switch, just there." He pointed at what looked like just another section of brick wall, stucco crumbling off. At close inspection, Din saw that it was a disguised keypad, beautifully crafted to blend into the brick.

"You sure it's not a bio lock?" asked Din. Usually these things took retina scans, or checked out your genetic material.

"You don't want inmates inspired to cut off your fingers or extract your blood or eyes so they can get in."

"Makes sense. So what's the code?"

"I have no idea. There's a door to the safe room in the tunnel as well, but I couldn't get in."

Din's stomach sank. "All right. What was the code for the tunnel?"

"Nine zero two, one three eight. But it doesn't work for this door."

Din recognized the numbers immediately. They were emergency comms codes for the Guild when holos or other methods couldn't get through. 902 was the Guild's interstellar channel prefix, and 138 meant priority bounty alert…like Grogu had been.

Din shook his head at the unwelcome memory. Merrix had a lot of misplaced nostalgia for that time. Din did not. But he remembered the procedures, and went through the codes in his mind before trying them out here. Too many attempts might lock them out.

Blaster fire sounded from several blocks away.

"We're running out of time," said Loy.

Din pressed in a new code: 902 681. A narrow door, equally well-disguised, slid open without so much as a whisper. Din stepped into the dark space ahead of Loy and scanned the area carefully. Dusty stairs went both up and down from a short landing. He detected no movement or noise. An undisguised keypad blinked on the inside of the door, and Din closed the door behind them.

"What's 681?" asked Loy.

"Experienced hunters only," said Din. "For the most dangerous bounties."

"Of course," said Loy. "The poser."

Grogu stirred and made a questioning sound. "You awake, buddy? How did you get away from the Altraxian?" Grogu gave a big, innocent blink. "Yeah, that's what I thought. Good job."

"A bounty hunter with an infant in a sling," said Loy. "Now I really have seen it all."

"You won't believe it, but he just saved my life. And not for the first time."

They climbed the stairs, Din illuminating the way with a small light from his helmet. It was a slow, painful climb for both men. At the top, they came to a luxurious small suite, complete with a small food prep area and 'fresher. Plump sofas faced a well-stocked bar and view screens looking out at the town and the valley beyond the walls. Din sighed and put Grogu down.

"Let's rest and eat," said Din. "Loy, you need to give me as much information about the prison as you—"

But Loy, face shiny with sweat, collapsed onto a sofa. Grogu's ears tipped upwards in alarm and he climbed up on the sofa next to Loy. This looked like more than exhaustion.

"It's my heart," Loy murmured. "It's not just my feet that had to be replaced. Being shocked dozens of times damages your heart."

Din pushed aside his own pain and weariness and looked for water. He found a row of cocktail glasses and filled one with water from the small kitchen. "Drink," he said, kneeling next to Loy. "I'll look for the medical kit."

"Don't bother. My implant needs to be recharged. But, guess what. The charger's back on the ship."

"There must be something," said Din. He tried to stand, but Loy pulled at his hand.

"No. Please…just listen."

So, in this absurd, luxurious space, Din and Grogu could only sit and listen as Loy spoke in his low voice about Narkina 5. About the guards. About the tungsten floors that delivered pain and death to the disobedient. About the crews of men keeping the factory working at all hours until they dropped. About the day they realized no one was leaving, and no one listened to them. About the men murdered for no reason. About the way they escaped by disabling the floors and overpowering the understaffed guards.

"Please," said Loy. He gripped Din's hand. "Stop this. You must stop this."

"I will," said Din. "You have my word."

Loy's eyes traveled to Grogu, who had sat at his side with intense focus the entire time. Loy smiled.

"He is a fine little chap," he whispered. "I wish I could have seen him again. I wonder where he is now."

But they never knew who that was.

The old man's eyes closed and did not open again.

Grogu placed a hand on Loy's shoulder. His eyes closed in concentration for some time, but then they opened, brimming over with sorrow. His ears drooped. Din gestured for him to come closer and Grogu curled up next to him.

"You can't save everyone," Din said at last. "I know you wanted to. I know it hurts." He looked out the view screen. The sinking sun bathed the arena of death with gentle orange light. "We're going to stop this. That's how we honor him. That's how we honor the friends we lose." Grogu stirred and gazed up at Din's face. He nodded and his eyes narrowed with grim determination.

"Aahhdawaa."

Din nodded. "This is the way."