AN: Boom. I promised the next one would be longer.
Chapter 4 – The Ruins
The Razor Crest descended on Siskeen and soared over the emerald jungle, scanners working to find a place they might be able to land in the sea of green.
Sinead felt it in her body when they entered Hutt space. Old and new fears mingled and turned into a hard knot in the pit of her stomach, making her body slump and turn in on itself. She had it on good authority that the Hutts thought she died with Slezza, but one could never be too sure when it came to remaining free.
Somewhere in the knot of fear was a small flicker of hope. She doubted Kyen was there because when had she ever been that lucky, but if she found just a tiny trace of him, it'd all be worth it.
She took a deep breath and tried to relax. The last time she'd tried going near Siskeen she'd almost been discovered by a passing ship bearing Hutt colors and sent back to the palace. This was the closest she'd been to Kyen in over five years.
The child cooed, and Sinead looked at him in his improvised seat. He reached out after her, and Sinead leaned across the gap to let him grab on to her finger. As she watched him examine a button on her sleeve, a little tension seeped out of her body. There was a glimpse of pink as he stuck his tiny tongue out in concentration, managing to wedge a stubby finger under the button.
Sinead pulled her arm back before he could tear it off. "You are a force of destruction," She told the kid solemnly, who giggled and reached for the button. Sinead dodged his hand and pulled on the brown robe he was wearing, a couple of sizes too big by the look of it. "How'd you feel if I started pulling off all the buttons on your clothes, hm?"
The child babbled.
"That's right, you're not wearing any buttons. Foiled again."
Mando cleared his throat, and Sinead straightened up. She'd almost forgotten him, quiet as he was.
"The scanners picked up a structure to the north." He turned the ship slightly, and soon it flew over a great lake, which was the only body of water they'd seen since descending on the planet; everything else was an impenetrable wall of green.
On the monitor, there was indeed a little blip in the middle of the jungle.
"Is it a settlement?" She leaned forward to get a better look.
Mando flicked a row of switches. "Mhm. Five klicks due west."
"You think it's the Hutts?"
"I don't know. Let's see."
The ship touched down in a clearing a good hour from the settlement, far enough away that they wouldn't be spotted coming. Metal groaned as shock absorbers struggled with keeping the ship in one piece.
It was clear the clearing had been made by sentients; it was a perfect circle carved out of the trees, and it didn't look like there had been anyone for some time.
As the ramp opened, a blast of hot and humid air hit Sinead, making sweat break out under her clothes. The air tasted thick and earthy, and an unknown animal screeched in the distance.
Sinead stretched as she reached the ground and looked up at the blue sky. A formation of birds made their way across, small dots in the distance. The forest teemed with life.
She already missed the coolness of space, the smell of metal and stardust. Here everything smelled old and rotten as if the ghosts of long-gone fruits still hung in the air.
As she came to terms with being back in a murky hell, the Mandalorian was busy trying to get the kid to stay in the ship, but every time the little green child would waddle after him, grunting in a decidedly offended way and trying to keep up his long strides.
"No," Mando said, grabbing the kid and placing him back in the ship. "It's too dangerous."
Sinead turned her head to hide her smile.
The kid wailed as the ramp started to rise and it halted for a second before becoming stuck with a grinding sound. His ears were flat against his head, face scrunched in a pout. Mando sighed and turned his helmeted face towards the sky.
"Why don't you just bring him along?" Sinead said after getting her facial muscles under control. "We're just checking out the place, right?"
The Mandalorian glanced at her before looking back at the kid, whose ears started to perk up again. He sighed deeply before pressing a button on his wrist, making the ramp go back down. The kid babbled excitedly as the Mando grabbed him and went back into the ship, coming out a few minutes later with the child in a sling strapped to his chest.
Sinead scratched her nose to once again hide the smile that threatened to break out on her face, but Mando wasn't fooled. He rolled his shoulders and grunted a "c'mon."
The ground outside the careful circle was covered in dense undergrowth that slowed them down as they made their way to the settlement. Vines hung from the trees in suffocating loops, and thick roots broke through the ground and formed treacherous holes that just waited for someone careless enough to step in it. Strange animal calls filled the air, and high above them, the green canopy rustled as small monkey-looking creatures watched the three of them struggle their way over a fallen tree, so old that it was completely covered in moss and ferns.
Sinead discarded her outer jacket, tying it around her waist and drawing a hand across her sweaty forehead. The humidity made it feel like she was breathing in soup, and her shirt clung to her back. She wondered if the Mandalorian was struggling in the heat, but if he did, he didn't show it. The kid seemed fine, his head swirling around to take everything in.
After a few paces, the ship disappeared, and everything was in a shade of green or brown. Sinead followed Mando, trusting that he knew the way through the overgrown hell. Once she found Kyen, settling down on a jungle planet was out of the question.
As Mando squeezed between two trees, a wet leaf swung back and smacked Sinead in the face. She broke it off with a snarl. "I hate this," She said through gritted teeth, squeezing past the trees that were slick with moisture. "Why did someone bother making a clearing if they didn't make a path as well?"
"Just walk."
Sinead scowled at the Mandalorian's back and bit back a retort that sounded whiny even to her. Her feet sank into the soft ground with every step, making the trudge even slower. She felt like she was back on Nal-Hutta, an experience she'd rather not think about.
She scoured her mind for anything to distract from the fact that they were slogging through a murky hellhole.
"You ship, it's Old Republic?" She asked after they edged around a black pool, the still water perfectly reflecting the tree crowns above them. She wondered what kind of monsters lurked beneath the surface. They had to be pretty terrible to live in a place like this.
"Save your energy for walking."
Sinead made a face. "It's either this or I start flinging curses left and right, and since there's a child present ..."
The Mandalorian glanced back at her, and Sinead could feel the heat of his gaze.
"It's too old to be New Republic and not enough of an eyesore to be Empire," Sinead said and ducked under a low-hanging vine.
They stopped as Mando made sure they were heading in the right direction. Sinead had all but given up getting an answer when he said so quietly that it was nearly swallowed by the jungle, "it's Mandalorian."
"Makes sense I didn't recognize it, I've never been. How is it?"
"I don't know."
Oh.
Sinead chewed on the inside of her cheek. "I met a Mandalorian once. She was extra security back when the Meram sector was overrun with pirates. I heard they're mostly gone now, but you couldn't swing a dead tooka without hitting one back then. It didn't take long before word spread, and we were mostly left alone. She did not fuck around."
The Mandalorian made a sound that might have been an agreement.
"Expensive, though I guess not as expensive as you."
Mando cleared a rocky outcropping, and Sinead was surprised when he turned and offered his hand to help her over. The kid swung around and cooed happily when he saw her.
"How do you even know about the Nau'orar?" he asked once they were back on the spongy ground. The forest opened a bit, making it possible to walk side by side.
"I only know what I overheard, that it's an old Mandalorian weapon. Why, do you know more about it?"
The silence that met her could cut glass.
Sinead scratched a mosquito bite on the back of her neck. "You know, under any other circumstance, I would've returned it to Mandalore."
He glanced at her. "How generous of you."
"Don't give me that," She said, shooting him a look. "You'd do the same thing."
"I wouldn't wait five years."
Sinead's hand shot out and grabbed him by the arm, making them both stop in their tracks. He tensed up, staring at her until she let him go.
"You have no idea what I've been through the last five years," Sinead said hotly, her voice shaking despite her best efforts to keep it even. "Or before that. You have no right to judge me, bounty hunter." She stalked past him in the general direction of where they were headed. Her anger surprised even herself; heat flushed through her body that had nothing to do with the temperature.
The Mandalorian followed behind her, keeping some distance between them. The child cooed now and again, but a tense silence had fallen between the two adults.
Slowly, the terrain rose up in a gentle slope, the ground becoming drier and lose with each step, the trees thinned out, sunlight filtering through the leaves.
Sinead reached the edge first, out of breath and now wholly drenched in sweat. Below, the ground dropped away abruptly into a caldera that stretched almost a kilometer across, which was dotted with ancient ruins, grey pillars rising from the earth like jagged bones. The jungle grew between the pillars, trees and great big fronds rustled in the wind. A large structure stood in the middle, taller than the caldera's edge, a pyramid made of the same stone as the pillars. The top had caved in, and big cracks stretched across the surface. Sinead's breath caught in her throat. Looking at it hurt her eyes like trying to stare directly into the sun.
Mando came up beside her, his shoulders heaving, and Sinead was glad to see that she wasn't the only one winded from the trek. The kid chirped when he saw the caldera in all its glory.
Mando scanned the area below with a compact scope. "Doesn't look like anyone's home. I see scorch marks on the walls. Signs of fighting."
"Any bodies?"
"No, this looks old. There're some crates by the main building, doesn't look like it's been touched in a long time."
They were too far away to see anything with the naked eye, so Sinead just had to take his word for it.
"We should check it out."
Mando lowered the scope and seemed to weigh the options. He looked up at the sun, which had reached its apex and was slowly descending towards the horizon. "We stay out of sight. If anyone's there, do not engage, got it?"
"Got it."
Stairs cut into the stone led into the caldera, the steps worn smooth and slippery by centuries of feet, and Sinead had to grip hold of the slimy rope attached to the cliffside so she wouldn't careen over the edge.
As they descended into the caldera, the sounds of the jungle faded; ever since they stepped out of the ship, there had been the sounds of hundreds of critters moving through the undergrowth, of monkeys calling to each other, and birds swooping across the sky, but now they were replaced by a low and insistent hum that reverberated between the rocky walls.
"Do you-"
"I hear it. Stay alert."
They reached the bottom of the caldera, and the sound got louder, caught somewhere between the buzz of an angry swarm of bees and a distant bird screech. The high cliff walls acted as a funnel, trapping the wind and sending it into a wild spin with the giant pyramid at the center.
Sinead looked around, her brows furrowed. Save for the wind that bounced between the walls, there was no movement at all. No birds, no bugs, no ants crossing the ground in a straight line. As they descended into the caldera, they were cut off from the rest of the galaxy.
"What is that? I've never heard wind make a sound like that," Sinead said, her voice sounding weak.
"Just stay close." Mando pulled his blaster and held it at his side, his head going side to side as he scanned the ground.
The kid whimpered and sank further into the sling until only the tip of his ears were visible.
Sinead reached out and patted the kid gently on the head, his sparse hair tickling her hand. "I don't like it either."
The child cooed in response but stayed in the relative safety of the sling.
As they went further into the caldera, the buzzing died down, but the silence that emerged in its place was almost worse. They moved slowly, staying on a faint path that wove between trees but always in the direction of the pyramid. As they came closer, it became clear that it was a temple of sorts, abandoned a long time ago.
The pillars that looked so much like bones from the caldera's edge were much larger as they came closer. Strange shapes had been carved into the stone, most of it had been worn away by wind and the passing of time.
"You ever seen anything like this before?" Sinead said, moving closer to the Mandalorian. The blaster was heavy in her hand and she felt eyes on her from every direction.
"No."
The trees fell away abruptly, and they reached the foot of the temple, where charred debris and broken droids littered the ground.
"It must've happened some time ago," Sinead said, bending down to examine a security droid with a hole straight through its main circuits. "I wonder who attacked them."
Mando rooted through a small pile of debris, standing up holding a piece of blackened armor.
"New Republic," he said, showing Sinead the sigil imprinted on the plasteel before throwing it aside.
"Of course. I guess they raided this place after the Empire fell. I wonder when exactly."
Something caught Sinead's eyes and she weaved through the battlefield. Half hidden behind a fallen pillar, a cluster of cages stacked haphazardly was in the process of being reclaimed by the jungle; vines snaked through the bars like tentacles.
Sinead grabbed a ropy vine, but no matter how much she pulled, it wouldn't budge. Still, there was no mistaking it.
"I know these types of cages," she said, turning to the Mandalorian. "The Hutts use them to transport their captives."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah." She glanced at the cages. "I'm sure."
This day was just lousy with rotten reminders of things best left in the past.
Mando looked up at the ruin towering above them, the sunlight reflecting on his helmet. "They're long gone by now."
Sinead looked up at the temple with unease. This close, it looked dark and malicious, a void in the greenery where sunlight didn't reach.
"There might be clues in there, leads to follow. We can't just go flying blindly through the galaxy, hoping to trip over Kyen on the way." She could feel his indecision as he looked down at the kid. "Look," she said, pressing a hand to her damp forehead, "you can stay out here while I search the place, okay? Won't take long."
She was halfway up the stairs when the Mandalorian came up beside her, the set of his shoulders betraying just how on edge he was. Wordlessly, they continued to the top.
... ... ... ... ...
Din didn't like this place. The further they went towards the temple, the surer he was that this was a bad idea. An underlying menace grew with each footstep, and the child seemingly felt the same way, as Din saw two dark eyes staring up at him, the little face etched in a frown.
"Is he okay?"
Din looked at Sinead, her hair plastered to her face and neck.
"The kid, I mean." She nodded towards the sling.
"I think so. He doesn't like this place."
"That makes two of us."
They reached the top of the stairs, and Din turned to look across the caldera. Up here, it almost seemed peaceful.
As Din and Sinead passed under the great stone arch, the temperature dropped in an instant, making Sinead's breath crystallize in front of her. She shuddered and pulled on her jacket.
"It shouldn't be this cold in here."
"No."
Din scanned the area, but his sensors didn't pick up any movement. They found themselves in an antechamber that led into a large atrium where the same strange symbols on the pillars were carved into the wall.
The smell of mildew and rot was overwhelming and thick moss grew on old and broken furniture. Their footsteps echoed between the stone walls.
Inside, the signs of battle were even more apparent. Plasteel cases and wooden tables had been used as improvised cover, their surfaces covered with scorch marks. The ceiling had caved in, littering the ground with debris. A lone droid slumped against an overturned table, its armor plate torn apart by blaster bolts.
The entrance was the only light source, only reaching a few meters into the ruin. Din attached a torch to the side of his helmet. The moving light made the shadows twist and turn.
A set of stairs led down into the bowls of the ruins. Din threw out an arm to stop Sinead in her tracks.
"We don't know what might be down there," he said, keeping his voice low. "Be careful."
Sinead pressed her lips together in a thin line and nodded once. Din lowered his arm and let her pass, following her deeper into the temple.
The air went even staler the further they went, the stairs winding down until they were deep in the ground. Din's breathing was loud in his ears.
At the bottom, another antechamber opened into a bigger hall, exactly like the one above. The difference here was it was clear that a great deal of people had lived there for quite some time; two long tables stood in the middle surrounded by chairs in various states of disarray. Half-empty bottles piled up on the tables or lay dusty and forgotten on the floor. At least one of them was broken, and the contents had long since evaporated. Containers filled with scrap metal lined the walls.
"Looks like they had to leave in a hurry," Sinead said, grabbing a bottle from a table and peering at the label. "They'd never leave Kowakian rum behind unless it was absolutely life or death." A small cloud of dust rose when she placed the bottle back on the table.
"C'mon," Din said and turned down one of the two solitary corridors that led away from the chamber. He walked slowly, watching for any movement in the gloom while keeping an eye on the kid, who silently watched him from his little cocoon.
They hadn't gone more than a few paces before Sinead drew in a sharp breath. Rows of cells stretched into the darkness, no bigger than the cockpit in the Razor Crest. It would take a thermal grenade to get through the thick walls, and if they did, the occupants would suffocate under a mountain of dirt and rubble.
"These are new," Din said, examining the bars that made up one side of the cells. Made of durasteel and outfitted with electronic locks, they looked wholly out of place in the damp dungeon.
"So the Hutts found an abandoned ruin and made it their own. Nobody ever said they weren't crafty." Sinead grabbed hold of the bars and tugged on it. "Impressive."
Din watched Sinead from the corner of his eyes, keeping some distance. Her jaw was set and her dark eyes seemed bright in the low light.
"Look for a convor carved into one of the walls," Sinead said before sensing his confusion and adding, "we agreed that if we ever got separated, we'd leave a sign for the other to find."
"And that sign is a convor?"
Sinead's smile didn't reach her eyes. "Yeah, well, neither one of us knows how to draw a Sarlacc."
Continuing down the corridor, they strained their eyes in the dim light to look for any sign of a convor.
Farther ahead, there was a steady drip of water and a new kind of dampness snuck in under his armor. This was a dismal place, even by prison standards. Being frozen in carbonite was preferable to this.
"What do you think this used to be? Before the Hutts took over."
"Probably a prison."
Sinead huffed. "I can see that. Who do you think it was meant to imprison?"
Din sighed. He just wanted to get this over with. "I don't know."
"You're quite the talker, you know that?"
They walked on in silence.
Suddenly, Sinead rushed forward, and Din raised his blaster, turning slightly to shield the child.
"Look!" She put her hand through the bars of the nearest cell, pointing to the far wall where an oval had been scratched into the wall. If he put his head to the side and squinted, it could charitably resemble a bird. "He's been here," she breathed, her eyes fixed on the convor. She pulled on the door, but it didn't budge.
Din realized with mounting horror that her eyes were filling with tears, and he looked away, unsure of what to say.
He left her alone, wandering farther down the corridor, wanting to give her some semblance of privacy. Besides, he had no idea how to comfort a crying woman; comforting the kid was hard enough.
Now and again, the cells were broken up by archways that led into small rooms, most of them caved in and the rest empty. Din looked in every room, but when the Hutts cleared out, they did so without leaving anything useful behind.
Up ahead, a noise cut through the darkness.
Din froze and turned to shield the child, his free hand going up to turn off the flashlight, leaving them in the pitch black.
Carefully, Din snuck along the wall, pressing a protective hand to the child, who hadn't made a sound since they entered the ruin. As he got closer, the noise turned into a low whirr.
Soft light shone through an archway, painting the opposite wall golden. Din leaned against the stone wall out of sight, and he heard whatever making the sound moving around in the alcove.
Blaster at the ready, he stepped into the light and pulled the trigger.
A droid collapsed in a cloud of dust, a smoking hole in its head.
Further down the corridor, Sinead swore, and Din heard her splash through shallow puddles as she ran toward him.
"What the fuck happened?" She looked at the droid. "Did you shoot that? We could've used it!"
Din's jaw tightened, but he remained silent. He didn't want to spend a moment more than he had to trapped in here.
Sinead blew out a long breath as she looked around the room. "They must've forgotten this one." Her eyes were red, but otherwise, she looked composed. "A shame we can't take it with us." She glared at him.
"I don't want any droids on the ship."
"Right. And I'm sure if I ask why you're just gonna ignore me."
Din did just that, shifting some rubble with his foot but found nothing but rotted wood and ancient cloth that looked like it would crumble if exposed to direct sunlight.
There was a sound of groaning metal, and Din turned to see Sinead trying to pry the droid's chest plate apart with nothing but a small knife and determination.
"What are you doing?"
Sinead glanced at him. "I'm trying to find the memory bank since you would rather shoot first and ask questions later." She stuck out the tip of her tongue as she worked.
"Do you even know what you're doing?"
"At least I'm doing something."
She managed to get the knife under the plate and wrench it up, making the metal shoot away with a clank.
Din kept his distance as she shifted through the droid's innards, looking for the memory bank.
The child moved for the first time in what felt like hours, and a small green hand appeared from the sling. He reached out, and Din let him grab one of his fingers. The contact, even through his glove, comforted him. The kid's dark eyes looked at him, unblinking, in a way that made Din feel like he could see right through his helmet.
Sinead let out a sound of triumph, and the kid let go of Din's hand.
She held up a small black box, fraying wires trailing after it. "I got it," she said, getting up. "Now we just gotta find someone who knows how to extract the data. That shouldn't be too hard."
"Let's go." Din gave the child a small pat on the head before moving towards the door, stepping over the droid with its wires spread across the floor like black entrails.
When they emerged out in the world, the sun hovered a few inches above the horizon, bathing the jungle in a golden light.
He took a deep breath, trying to dispel the stale, dusty air from his lungs. The ruins felt like a presence behind them, trailing after as they returned to the ship.