Suggested Listening:
A Journey in the Dark - Howard Shore (from The Fellowship of the Ring) | ...down we go
Not So Fireproof - John Powell (from How to Train Your Dragon) | ...even more cave
At First Sight - Alan Silvestri (from Back to the Future III) ...under the stars
Anna and Albert - Joel McNeely (from A Million Ways to Die in the West) |...confessions

"You good?" I asked, lying on my back in the sand, finger on my earpiece, staring up at the electric blue sky.

"Yep," came Mando's voice in my ear, sounding labored — like he was climbing. "As good as I was 30 seconds ago, thanks."

I rolled my eyes. The kid burbled gleefully. I rolled my head over and watched him chomp into the ration bar I had given him.

Mando had been gone for ten minutes and I was already frustrated with this job. There's something very disorienting about watching someone disappear into the ground and then listening to them grunt and breathe heavily for ten minutes straight, not knowing what they were doing or what they might encounter at any moment.

I heard Mando exclaim, then groan, then mutter "Dank Farrik!"

"What?" I asked, urgently. "What is it?"

"I just slipped off a rock and now my boot's wet," he said dully. "Look, I'm fine, okay? You gotta just let me do this."

I looked over at the kid again. He cocked his head, inquisitively.

"Your dad doesn't play well with others," I muttered with raised eyebrows.

"You know I can hear you, right?" Rumbled Mando's voice. I chuckled and lay back again, closing my eyes against the baking sunlight.

Suddenly, I heard a shrieking roar in my ear, and the sound of a blaster shooting off two rounds. I sat up and touched the earpiece vigilantly.

"I'm allowed to ask what that was, right?" I pressed.

"Acid lizard," panted Mando. "I told you they were down here. This one just came up out of the water, caught me off-guard, but I got him."

"Okay, well, be careful," I said, trying to stay calm. "I'm good on a speeder bike but it'll take me all afternoon to learn to fly the Razor Crest, so it's really better if you come back up here alive."

He let out a mirthless little laugh.

"Hey," I continued, lowering my voice and glancing at the kid. "Can I ask you something?"

"Well, this does seem like the perfect time for a chat…"

"I've just been wondering — back at Peli's you said you'd been busy figuring things out for the kid…"

There was silence on the line. I continued.

"What does that entail, exactly? I mean, what's his story?"

"I came across him on a job," he said, his voice reflecting some careful movement — I pictured him balancing across a rocky ridge. "He uh… he had a bounty on him."

My eyes widened as I looked down at the child, his sweet face tilted up toward the warm sun, not a care in the world.

"Who would take a bounty out on a baby?"

"Believe it or not, he's fifty years old," Mando continued with a little chuckle of disbelief.

"… You're pulling my pauldron."

"It's true. His species ages differently than ours."

I silently appreciated the confirmation that we were, in fact, the same species. I mean, I knew he was a Mandalorian, but I'd only ever seen one or two others, years and years ago, who had crossed paths indirectly with my family — and I'd never seen any of them take off their helmet, so who knew what was going on under there.

"So…" I squinted, trying to catch up. "So how did he end up in your care?"

"I rescinded my delivery," he said, carefully. "He's safe with me."

"So, are people looking for him?"

"They want to do experiments on him," he grunted, sounding like he was climbing again. "That's why it's best we keep moving."

I gazed down at the kid, my chest swelling. All this time I'd been worried about saving my own skin, when there were two of us on the run on that ship. I reached out and stroked the fuzzy top of his head with my thumb, tenderly. He babbled and waved his arms, happily.

"So you don't know where he came from?"

I heard him sigh on the other end of the line.

"I'm figuring it out," he said — and I got the sense he was talking to himself as much as me.

"Aren't we all," I said wryly.

A strange noise clamored in my ear. Three blasts rang out and I heard Mando groaning, straining against something. A shrill roar pierced my ear, and suddenly everything was silent.

"Mando?" I pressed my finger in my ear, listening intently. "Mando, can you hear me?"

Nothing. Silence.

"Shit," I hissed, scrabbling to my feet. I looked around, frantically.

He had told me to get help if there was a cave-in — but this didn't sound like a cave-in. I don't have time to get help, I thought, pacing. The kid, picking up on my energy, let out a concerned coo.

"I'm so sorry, kid," I wavered, scooping him up. "But we're going in."

A moment later I found myself squeezing down into the cavern, the kid strapped to my back, humming nervously.

"It'sh okeh," I whispered, a flashlight from the speeder's utility compartment clenched between my teeth.

I climbed down a slanted, craggy stone wall and dropped down, landing with a splash on a slate floor covered in an inch of thick, grey water. It smelled like sulfur.

I remembered what Mando had said about parasites in these caves, and looked down at the water with a wrinkled nose.

"Mando?" I called, shining the light around and examining the cave. My voice echoed, but no response.

"Hmmmm!" The kid whined, fearfully.

"Don't worry, kid," I murmured, taking a few tentative steps forward. "We're gonna find him."

One end of the cave trailed off into a narrow tunnel. I pursued it, balancing as nimbly as I could on the higher ground. The low tunnel turned into a steep passageway down into a deeper cavern. I climbed down, carefully, feeling my feet around for crags below me. My right foot came down on a slick rock and I slipped, grabbing at the wall, unable to catch myself. I was sure we were done for, but instead I landed shin-deep in water just a few feet further down.

"This must be where he slipped before," I muttered, remembering the shriek of the acid lizard. I drew my blaster and lined it up with the beam of my flashlight, scanning the lower level cave.

"Mando?"

I took a huge breath of relief as I heard his voice echoing from somewhere.

"I'm here!"

I began sloshing through the water towards the sound.

"Where's here?"

"Get out of the water, it's acidic!"

Sure enough, my feet and shins had started to burn uncomfortably. I grasped the front of the carrier and held it tightly, suddenly terrified that the baby could fall. I waded over to the edge of the cave and quickly climbed up on a jagged rock.

"Keep talking," I called. "I'm following your voice."

"I'm further into the cave," he answered. I moved forward, chasing his sound. "I think I found a nest or something, there were five or six of them. I got them with the blaster but something got knocked — I'm pinned."

I crawled down another crevasse and the beam of my light caught the shine of Mando's beskar — sure enough, he was on his back, pinned under a pile of jagged rocks that were covering his left leg. His helmet was heavily dented and covered in a slick slime.

The kid squealed in recognition as I ran over to him, reaching down instinctively to touch him.

"Don't touch the helmet," he barked. "It's covered in acid."

I began lifting rocks, lightening the weight on Mando's leg.

"Did they bite your head?"

"One got it's jaws around me," he said, propping himself up on his elbows uncomfortably. "Took out the comms, that's why I couldn't connect with you."

Somewhere in the tunnels of the cave, a distant roar echoed. We looked around us, nervously.

"I told you to go get help," Mando growled. "You shouldn't be down here."

"Yeah, well, by the time I got back to civilization you would've been lizard lunch, so this is what you get."

I put my hands on the sides of the jagged rock pinning him down.

"You push," I instructed. "I'll pull."

On the count of three, we heaved the massive rock, lifting it up as much as we could until we could clear it off of Mando's leg. He grunted in pain as it shifted across his unprotected upper thigh and hip, letting out a breath of relief when he was free.

"Are you okay?" I panted, clambering over to examine his leg.

"I'm fine," He said, stiffly trying to get up. "This armor's strong."

"You've got to take that off," I said, pointing at his dented helmet. "We have to make sure your head's okay."

"It's fine," he insisted.

"Seriously, you could have a head injury—"

"I'm not taking my helmet off," he grunted firmly. "Drop it."

"I'm sorry," I said a little defensively, offering my hand to help him up. He took it, then held onto my hand as he leaned in, intently.

"I'm a Mandalorian," he said in a low voice. "I can't take off my helmet in front of another living thing … This is the way."

I swallowed and nodded, slowly. So the rumors are true, I thought to myself. They're forbidden to show their faces.

As he let go of my hand, I felt a pang of disappointment in my stomach — I guess I'll never know what he looks like, after all.

"I'm sorry," I said again, this time my defenses down. "I'm just trying to help."

The kid cried out, reaching over my shoulder for Mando.

"I told you not to bring the kid down here," he said, his voice becoming frustrated again. "If we're gonna do this, you have to listen to me."

Just then, a shriek rang out and the yawning, glowing open jaws of two acid lizard appeared behind Mando's shoulder, crawling down the wall of the cave and lunging for him. Before he could even turn around, my blaster was drawn and I took them out, plunging the cave once again into silence. We stood there panting for a moment, the kid clinging to my braid over my shoulder with his little hands.

"… And you," I said breathlessly, "are gonna need to figure out a way to trust me."

He looked at me for a moment, catching his breath. Then, after a beat, he nodded. I nodded back, and turned to continue through the tunnel.

"There," Mando murmured as we edged along the side of a pool of deeper water. Sure enough, the middle of the grey, opaque well had a strange, dull glow to it. "It's at the bottom of the pool."

"How are we gonna get it?" I asked, peering into the acidic liquid.

"Quickly," he answered. "Stay here. And I mean it this time."

He was going to get no arguments from me on this one. I clung to a crag in the slate wall and stayed as far up away from the water as I could, keeping the kid stable on my back. Mando stepped into the water and immediately sunk up to his neck. He then sucked in a deep breath and disappeared under the surface.

I held my breath as I watched the water where he had been moments ago, silently praying for him to reappear. The seconds stretched on, and the kid burbled softly in my ear, peering into the water with me.

Finally, he burst out of the water, gasping for air and swimming over to the ledge. I stooped down to help him up.

"Don't," he panted. "It's acidic, it's burning — keep it off your hands."

I watched him hoist himself up out of the water, lean against the wall of the cave and catch his breath. Wordlessly, he opened his fist to reveal a handful of crystalline pebbles, radiating an electric blue light.

"Wow," I breathed.

"I know," he deadpanned. "So not worth it."

We snickered.

Another shrill roar pierced the silence — this one closer than the last.

"We gotta get out of here," I mumbled, looking around with concern. "Can you move?"

"Yeah," he said, standing. "I'm fine. Lets go."

We went back the way we came, moving as quickly and as quietly as we could, taking turns to gently shush the kid's occasional burbles.

"There's the opening," I said, pointing up at the light slicing through the rock above us.

"After you," He gestured, and we began climbing. Suddenly, Mando's voice caused me to jump.

"Kyra!"

A hulking lizard appeared at my side, snapping its dripping, glowing teeth at me. I swung away from it, getting the kid as far away from it as possible. Mando drew his blaster and shot it twice. We watched it drop lifelessly to the ground below us — where a whole pack of them had gathered, snarling up at us menacingly.

"Go, go, go now," Mando insisted, shooting down as they began to charge us. I scrabbled up the wall as fast as I could, the kid's terrified squeals ringing in my ear. I made it up to the opening and heaved myself over the ledge and out of the crag, my eyes squinting against the bright light from the suns. Behind me, I heard blasts and animalistic shrieks, but Mando didn't appear. I hurriedly ripped off the straps of the carrier and placed the squirming, anxious kid down in the sand before crawling back over to the crevasse. Mando was climbing up, fending off the swarm of acid lizards. I reached down as far as I could.

"Take my hand," I called, and he obliged, wrapping his gloved fingers and thumb around mine in a tight hold. I pulled him up as hard as I could, but my arm muscles strained as he was yanked back downward — an acid lizard had latched it's jaw onto his leg, the same one that had been pinned. He exclaimed in frustration. I reached back and pulled my blaster out of it's holster, shooting it with precision and dragging him up over the crag. We both shot at the couple of lizards who appeared at the threshold, mainly to scare them. It worked and they scurried away, intent on avoiding the burning sunlight.

We flopped down in the sand, panting. The kid stumbled over to touch Mando, but I caught him before he had a chance to put his hands on any part of his armor that might still be wet with acid water.

"Hey, buddy," said Mando affectionately, catching his breath. Then he rolled his head over to look at me. "Thanks."

"Back at you," I panted with a wan smile.

Thankfully, our abandoned speeder bike had not yet been pilfered by Jawas, and we started heading to Mos Espa to deliver the Dakka Rock. When the twin suns began to set, Mando pulled over in the middle of a sprawling desert plain.

"We'll stop here for the night," he said, exhausted. "It's a longer ride to Mos Espa, we'll finish it in the morning."

I dismounted and looked around, immediately on edge. From what I could tell, the middle of the desert was one of the least-safe places to be when you were someone in hiding.

I helped Mando build a fire in silence, scavenging dusty, dead wood and brush just in time for the twilight to morph into deep blue night. We gathered around the campfire, our clothes now dry, sharing a quiet, contemplative meal of ration bars.

"You okay?" Mando asked me, finally, a glint of humor in his voice. "I think this is the longest I've seen you go without talking."

"Ha," I said drily, and rubbed my eyes in exhaustion. "...I hate the desert."

Mando stared at me.

"You hate weapons, you hate the desert…"

"I like a lot of things," I argued, laughing properly now. "I just don't like this."

"You spent an awfully long time on this planet for someone who hates the desert."

Fair point, I thought.

"It was the best fit at the time," I conceded after a moment of thought.

Mando chuckled to himself.

"You like the desert, I take it?" I asked, leaning back on my hands.

"As much as anywhere," he shrugged. "I like driving all the way out here. It feels like freedom."

I raised my eyebrows, deep in thought. Freedom. I couldn't say I'd ever felt a true sense of freedom — and certainly not here on Tatooine, hunkered down in hiding for all these years. The closest I'd experienced, now that I pondered it, had been in these past few days traveling with Mando and the kid — moving through space, in pursuit of something bigger than myself.

The stars shimmered down in a brilliant, beautiful tapestry above us. I looked up, my lips curling a little as I acknowledged that, at the very least, the desert did provide a stellar view. The physical weariness from the day was catching up to me quickly. I let my jacket slip off of my shoulders and rolled it up, creating a makeshift pillow. Then I took my hair out of it's braid and massaged my scalp with my fingers — boy, did it need a wash. I glanced over at Mando, who was looking back at me - He looked away when I met his gaze. I pointed at the kid, who was dozing on the rolled up cloak.

"Think I'm gonna join him."

"Sleep well," he murmured, poking the fire with a long piece of brushwood.

I lay back in the sand and rolled onto my side, watching the fire blaze and crackle, fluttering my eyes closed as the rhythmic snapping and popping soothed me… and within what felt like seconds, I was asleep.

"You know what happens when my men try to betray me, beloved."

His cold voice gripped me with fear as his hands gripped my shoulders - I could already feel the bruises forming.

"I wonder why you thought it would be any different for you?"

"I didn't-" I tried to choke out words but it was like my throat was thick with paralyzing smoke. "I wasn't running away, I was just-"

"Of course you weren't," he continued, squeezing my arms harder. "You just got lost. Lucky for you, the punishment for getting lost is much less final than the punishment for leaving us... this time..."

I heart a blade unsheath and felt more and more hands on me, gripping my forearms, my neck, my waist - and a sharp pain ripped across my shoulder. I cried out-

"Don't!"

I awoke yet again with a ragged gasp for air. My heart was racing and my head was spinning. I frantically felt around for something — some water, something cold, anything that would soothe the speeding of my nervous system. Instead, I planted my fingers onto a lit ember. I cried out in pain and grasped my hand. Hot tears spilled out of my eyes before I could even rationalize what had happened.

I felt a hand on my back.

"Here, let me look."

Mando was crouched beside me, hand extended, asking to look at the burn. I showed it to him. It hadn't split the skin, but it was red and beginning to bubble — and it hurt like hell.

"Sorry," I sniffed, still getting my bearings. "I didn't know where I was."

"Drink this," he said, handing me the water. I reached out my other hand — it was shaking, visibly. What's wrong with me? Why does this keep happening?

A few rattled sips of water and I felt my breathing begin to slow back down to normal. Mando's hand on my back made a few small, soothing circles.

"That's it," he said, gently. "Breathe slowly. You're okay."

I nodded and tried to match his breath, but my whole body was quaking.

"You're safe," he murmured, with kindness and a little curiosity. Hearing him say that felt so calming, I crumpled. A fresh bout of tears sprang to my eyes and I dropped my head in relieving sobs.

I cried for a few moments, exorcising the panic coursing through my body. When my tears slowed, I began to feel embarrassed. I hurriedly sniffed and wiped my face with my sleeve.

Mando was holding my burned hand, gently.

"Do we have enough water to spare?" I held the water skin close to my hand, motioning my intent to pour it on the burn.

"Hold on," he said. The kid had appeared at his side, his big eyes glistening with curiosity. Mando showed him my hand. Instinctively, I curled my fingers, afraid to scare the kid with the mangled skin. I winced in pain. Mando caught my fingers with his other hand and very gently rolled them open again, exposing the wound. I watched the kid extend a hand toward it, tenderly. Then his wide eyes closed, and something emanated from him — I had the strangest feeling, like wind or rain or something of the sort was coming from him and wrapping around my hand, soothingly. Before my eyes, the wound healed, leaving my skin clear and painless.

"How did he—" I began.

"I don't know," Mando said, a hint of pride for the kid in his voice.

I held my hand up and examined it in the light of the fire.

"Incredible," I breathed, and looked down at the child. "Thank you."

He beamed up at me, little noises tumbling out of his mouth. I touched his cheek with my index finger, affectionately. Mando stood up and went back to where he was sitting, further around the fire from me. The kid followed him with a yawn. Some deep, small part of me wished they had stayed close.

"What happened?" He asked me, leaning his elbows onto his knees.

"Oh, I just," I rubbed my eyes and shook my head, dismissively. "I put my hand down on an ember and—"

"No, I mean, what happened before that?" I felt Mando staring at me. "Were you dreaming?"

I hesitated. Then gave him a small smile and a shrug.

"I guess I was."

I took another sip of water and gazed into the fire, hoping he would drop the subject.

"You seemed frightened," He pressed, calmly. "You were breathing and muttering."

I looked up at him.

"I wasn't…" I began, uncomfortably. "I've been having these… I sometimes have these nightmares. And sleeping out here I had a feeling I'd have one."

"What does it have to do with sleeping out here?"

"It's so…" I gestured around, and frantically scanned the dark blue horizon. "exposed."

"What are you afraid of?"

I returned his gaze. He was looking at me, intently. I knew what he was asking — he didn't care if I had any quirky phobias, he wanted to know what I was running from.

"Look," he continued. "Everyone has a right to privacy. I know I don't plan on telling you every little thing about my life, and you don't have to either. But if you're on my crew and we're traveling together… it would be helpful to know what we're up against."

That "we" hung in the air, like a heady, comforting scent. I couldn't remember the last time I had felt like part of a team, let alone a partnership. The ache for connection vibrated in my chest. I took a deep breath.

"The night that I stowed away in the Razor Crest," I said slowly. "I saw my brother."

"You have a brother?" He shifted his weight, interested.

"Thoss." I ran a hand through my hair. "We haven't spoken in six years."

The kid had fallen asleep again, leaning against Mando's side. He picked him up and laid him back on the bundled up cloak. The little child shifted and stretched, then went limp - deeply, blissfully asleep.

"Go on."

"My family are…" I searched for the right word. "Unpleasant people."

"They want to hurt you?"

I looked at him and nodded, solemnly.

"Why?"

I had come this far, but could still get out of revealing the whole truth if I pivoted now and avoided handing an extremely profitable piece of information to one of the premiere bounty hunters in the galaxy. But something in his tone and his steady gaze — felt even through the dark T-visor — made me feel what a desperate relief it would be to finally tell someone. To have a genuine ally. Not to mention, learning about the kid's origin and Mando's loyalty to him, despite the bounty, gave me courage. I took another breath.

"Kyra isn't my real name."

He stared at me.

"I chose the name Kyrani Moss six years ago when I landed on Naboo, before I bartered passage that eventually got me to Tatooine. My real name is Thalen Brui."

"Brui?" I could hear the awe in his voice.

"My father is Thalus Fesk Brui."

"The kingpin of the Brui crime syndicate?" He asked.

"That's funny," I said, nodding with a grim chuckle. "We just call ourselves 'the family'."

The atmosphere shifted as he took in this information.

"So, you've heard of us?" I asked him.

"I've been a bounty hunter a long time," he replied. "I've got a lot of contacts who are deep in the Underworld and crime networks. Your father's an infamous man."

"My father…" I let out another soft, sickly laugh. "My father is brutal. To say the least."

He looked at me, listening intently. After a beat, I continued.

"I grew up in violence. The family is a sprawling institution, but my father's the nexus of it, which meant everything gruesome usually occurred at our compound. He, um—" I broke off, clearing my throat uncomfortably. "He thought it was important to train us. So that when we grew up we would be able to keep the hierarchy intact. That's why I'm good with a gun — being able to protect yourself is important when your family has a lot of enemies. I have… I have a lot of skills I wish I didn't have, to be honest."

My voice began to break, and I cleared my throat again.

"I had to get out," I went on, muscling through the vulnerability. "for my own survival. So I did. But I know too much." I played with the handle of the waterskin and chuckled, mirthlessly. "Not to mention, I disrespected my family — specifically my father — by leaving, and he has an ego the size of an exogorth. Things don't go well when he feels disrespected."

My hand went to my shoulder, and after a second of thought, I pulled the fabric of my shirt aside at the strap, showing Mando what I knew was a keen white scar in the shape of a long, thin "T", from my shoulder, past the blade, to the middle of my ribs. I heard him hiss a sharp intake of breath through gritted teeth when he saw it, like he was feeling the pain of the cut. Glancing back at him, I noticed his hand had balled into a fist.

"It's fine," I assured, leaning back onto my knees.

"How did you escape?" He asked, after a moment.

"The Empire was beginning to fall," I shrugged. "War is a great time to disappear, especially if you're somewhere that doesn't take sides. It was like a game board had been tossed in the air and the pieces were falling all over the place. I got away when I could."

My mind flashed back once more to the dark shipping container, the sharp voice of my brother muffled behind layers of plastic and metal. Mando waited for me to say more, but I had said all I wanted to say on the matter.

"I've heard of you," he said. "The missing heiress. In thief dens and smuggler bars, I've heard people whisper about you — they say it's a pretty big reward."

I looked at him, tensely. He stared back at me, and for a moment, a world of terrible possibilities hung in the air.

"Too bad," he said, leaning forward to toss a stick casually into the fire. "They won't ever find her, because I heard she's dead."

"Did you?" I breathed, afraid to move.

"Six years ago," he nodded. "Definitely dead. No such thing as Thalen Brui anymore."

My shoulders lowered. He looked at me, and in the silence I could feel us coming to an agreement: he meant what he said before. I was safe.

"So," he said, a touch of amusement in his tone. "Where did 'Kyrani Moss' come from?"

I smiled, wanly.

"Kyrani was the name of a woman I met when I first escaped. She taught me how to work in a saloon. I had to flee that saloon after two days because someone recognized me, but I always remembered her. So I took on that name." I smiled at the memory. "She didn't go by Kyra, though."

"And Moss?"

I shrugged.

"I like moss. It's nice."

I heard what sounded like a surprised snicker rumble out of his vocoder.

"It's soft," he laughed.

I looked at him, slightly stung.

"I guess so," I muttered, and took another drink.

"No, no," he sounded embarrassed. "I didn't mean — I mean… I meant that in a good way."

I laughed and tossed a small stick at him. "Thanks, I think."

"Hey!" He tried to dodge it but it bounced off of his Beskar with a merry *tink*.

He picked the twig up and tossed it in the fire, before lowering himself down again, stretched out on the sand. I did the same, putting a hand behind my head and gazing up again at the clear, brilliant stars piercing through the velvety deep blue of the night sky. The fire spat and crackled, and I took a deep breath, taking in the smoky, woody scent. After a moment, I heard Mando's voice.

"My name's Din Djarin."

I turned my head in surprise. I could tell by the way he had held off sharing it that his name was something pretty personal to him, and that his telling me now held weight.

"Din Djarin," I said, trying it out. It prompted an involuntary little smile. "It's a nice name."