Suggested Listening:
Activated - Ludwig Goransson (from The Mandalorian) | passageways and bridges
Open the Door - Ludwig Goransson (from The Mandalorian) | open the door
Sorry, guys, I simply couldn't improve on the songs from this episode, they are pitch perfect. Listen to all of them top to tail if you can!
The ship was eerily quiet as we stole through the passageways and over the bridges, Din leading the way on the quest to find where Grogu was stashed away. It was almost too easy — that is, until we came upon a security droid, beeping along through the hallway. Din froze and threw an arm out to stop me. We pressed ourselves against the wall of the adjoining corridor, concealed in the shadows as we watched the droid bumble past us.
"See?" Din whispered to me when it was out of earshot. I cracked an amused smile. "Droids. Useless."
"Not the time, Mando."
We continued on, winding through the maze of passages. Some were empty, others were littered with the lifeless bodies of troopers.
"It should be here," murmured Din as we turned into a wide hallway, but something made my blood turn to ice.
"What is that?" He looked back at me, and we both listened. There was a sickly hissing coming from up ahead… followed by the eerie whum of something powering up.
"No," said Din turning back and running ahead. "No, no, no…"
I followed him past a computing station to where a wide, ominous door had begun to sweep open — the Dark Troopers' quarters were revealing themselves.
"Close it!" I shouted, and Din slammed the code cylinder into the door's panel as the full army of them was revealed. They were as frightening and invincible-looking as I remembered them to be. I shot a few blasts to try and deter them but to no avail.
The doors swept closed, but not quickly enough — the dark metallic hands of a Trooper braced them open at the last minute.
"Dank Farrik," I breathed. The doors were thrown open and a Trooper smashed it's fist into Din's unprotected chest, sending him flying back against the wall with a painful-sounding grunt.
"Din!" I cried, running back to him to try and help him up.
"Kyra," he said seriously. "Run. Now."
I looked back at the door — it had closed behind the lone Trooper, but the army following it was relentlessly pursuing freedom. Before I could do anything, the Trooper had picked up Din by his neck and held him up against the wall, his feet kicking under him. It raised a fist and began pounding into his helmet — thankfully, despite still having that dent from the acid attack weeks prior, it did not cave. I shot jets of light at the thing, each one bouncing off with a pathetic sounding *tink* — but it did seem to anger it.
The Trooper turned to assess me, and threw Din into me at full force. His body hit mine, a painful collision, and we both skidded back across the floor, crying out in pain. The Trooper marched toward us, ready to finish the job. Din struggled to raise his forearm and pressed a button, sending little rockets toward our assailant. Just like the blasts, they ricocheted away from it, barely causing it to stumble. It lunged toward me, ready to slam my head into the ground, but at the last moment, Din's beskar spear plunged into it's head. I looked over to see Din on one knee, ramming the spear further and further into the Trooper's machinery. He stood, lifting the thing up with him until with a final jerk, he ripped it's head right off. It fell to the ground, defeated.
Din turned and pulled me up off of the ground. Unable to stop myself, I gently touched his chest.
"Are you hurt?"
He wrapped my hand up in his.
"I'm fine," he said, looking over at the door — the Troopers were moments away from breaking the glass. "Come on."
He pulled me with him and jabbed a few buttons on the panel. I watched through the windows of the door as the rear wall of the container opened and every remaining Dark Trooper was sucked out into space in a matter of seconds. I looked at Din, impressed. He shrugged, a little proud of himself.
"Let's go," I said, and ran ahead.
We came up to a corner and skidded to a stop. I peered around it to see another doorway with two storm troopers stationed outside. I looked back at Din and nodded. He lifted his beskar spear and tossed it up slightly, catching it with a firm grasp. He snaked around me, silently, and I rounded the corner just in time to see him raising one of the troopers up in the air, pressing the spear against his throat. The other trooper was already on the ground. With a sickly snap, he jerked the trooper's neck and let his body drop heavily to the floor. I jumped at the sound, my eyes wide. He looked over at me, solemnly.
"This is the cost."
I swallowed and nodded. Although fundamentally I would never be comfortable with it, I understood.
He turned and twisted a knob on the entry panel. The door lifted open and there he was — little Grogu, sitting on a dark grey bench, his tiny hands illuminated by the glowing blue clasp of cuffs.
How did they even make cuffs that small, I thought to myself with a rush of protective fury — the same fury that must have been coursing through Din's veins too.
Standing over him was a man whose very presence gave him away as a powerful contender. A man in all black, with an intricate chest panel and a long, dense cape, wielding a weapon the likes of which I had never seen before, even in my childhood.
Moff Gideon. This must be him.
At the sight of us, Grogu lifted his little hands as much as he could.
"Release him," I ordered, training my blaster on the man in black. "Or this goes very badly for you."
Moff Gideon chuckled, darkly. He looked from my weapon to Din's and lowered the glowing black blade in his hand, bringing it closer to the top of Grogu's head. Something about it gave me an intense sense of foreboding.
That must be the weapon Bo-Katan spoke of, I thought. The Darksaber.
"Drop the blasters," he said drily. "Slowly."
Din and I exchanged a look, and with a shared nod, we slowly placed our guns on the ground.
"Now kick them over to me," he continued. We obliged. "Very nice."
"Give me the kid," commanded Din.
"The kid is just fine where he is," said Moff Gideon, casually waving the blade of the saber over Grogu, who let out a worried coo.
"Mesmerizing, isn't it?" Moff Gideon's gaze locked in on Din, and he lifted the blade tantalizingly. "Used to belong to Bo-Katan."
My head snapped to look at Din, curiously.
"Yes," continued Moff Gideon. "I know you've been traveling with Bo-Katan. A friendly piece of advice — assume that I know everything. Like the fact that your wrist launcher has fired it's one and only salvo."
A part of me bristled, nervously, as I wondered what knowing 'everything' entailed.
"Where is this going?" Asked Din, impatiently.
"This is where it's going." Moff Gideon raised his head, jutting his chin out smugly. "I'm guessing that Bo-Katan and her boarding party have arrived at the bridge seeking me — or, more accurately, this."
He waved the saber again.
"And I imagine," he continued. "That they've killed everyone on the bridge, being the murderous savages that they are… and now, they're beginning to panic. You see, she wants this."
He looked at the weapon in his hand, mysteriously.
"Whoever wields this sword has the right to lay claim to the Mandalorian throne."
"You keep it," spat Din. "I just want the kid."
Grogu looked up at him lovingly and burbled. Moff Gideon pondered for a moment, then withdrew the glowing blade.
"Very well," he said. "I've already got what I want from him… his blood."
I raised my blaster again as a jolt of anger gripped me.
"You hurt him?"
"Not at all," said Gideon in a soft voice. "All I wanted was to study his blood. This Child is extremely gifted, and has been blessed with rare properties that have the potential to help bring order back to the Galaxy."
The word order hung in my ear like a rancid piece of meat. I knew what "order" meant coming from a man like that.
Moff Gideon looked down at Grogu, then back at Din.
"I see your bond with him," he said. "Take him."
I holstered my blaster and we both moved toward Grogu immediately, but Gideon's words stopped us.
"— But you will leave my ship immediately, and we will go our separate ways."
I looked over at Din, and we silently agreed to meet the terms. Warily, Din and Gideon circled one another as Din stepped closer to Grogu. I felt a smile creep into my expression as Din leaned down, Grogu's little hands reaching up eagerly for his father figure.
Suddenly, in a matter of milliseconds, Gideon had unsheathed his mysterious dark blade once more and brought it down on Din's back, clanging against his armor.
"Din!" I cried. Gideon attacked Din with shocking ferocity and speed, pushing him out of the room before I even had a chance to draw my blaster. I got off a few shots, but they missed my target, and the door slammed down behind them, leaving me in the room with Grogu.
"Come on, come on—" I muttered, jabbing the buttons on the door panel, but it didn't move. I watched through the little windows as Din and Gideon engaged in an intense battle, Dark Saber against beskar spear. I remembered what Bo-Katan had said — that the saber couldn't cut through pure beskar. I clung to that fact like a life raft as I watched Moff Gideon violently slam it into Din's vambrace. I kicked the door in frustration, desperate to get out and help him.
Finally, with a clang, Din knocked the saber out of Gideon's hand with his spear. It clattered across the floor and out of reach. Gideon fell to his knees and Din held the spear over him, his shoulders moving with his heavy breaths. They exchanged words that I couldn't make out, and eventually, Din reached behind him and pulled out a pair of cuffs.
"You let him live," I observed as Din opened the door. I stepped out into the hallway holding Grogu in my arms, his hands free from the tiny cuffs that had restrained him.
"What happens to him now is between him and Bo-Katan," replied Din, and I saw his attention focus in on Grogu.
"You wanna trade?" I asked, smiling warmly. I drew my blaster with my free hand and pointed it at Gideon, who was looking at me, unimpressed. Din left his side and came to me, gingerly lifting Grogu out of my grasp and holding him tenderly.
"Hey, kid," he said with a breaking voice. "Long time no see."
Grogu cooed happily, and my heart melted. I moved to stand beside Moff Gideon and put a firm hand on his arm.
"You lead the way," I said to Din, and we made for the bridge.
"You have a firm grip, Kyrani Moss," muttered Moff Gideon under his breath.
"Oh, that's right," I replied, jabbing the barrel of my blaster into his arm. "You know everything. Why don't you tell me what you know about me?"
"I don't even know why you're here," he sneered. "There's nothing to know. You're a blank. You're a nobody."
"Actually," I said, wrenching his arm back in a painful twist, and he winced. "I'm a bartender."
In the bridge, all was silent as Bo-Katan, Koska, Fennec, and Cara Dune waited for our arrival. When we entered through the sweeping door, they all snapped to attention. Bo-Katan's eyes took in the sight of cuffed Moff Gideon with wild eagerness.
"What happened?" She breathed.
"They brought him in alive," observed Cara with a wry smile, walking over to Din and greeting Grogu with a tender pat. "That's what happened. And now, the New Republic's gonna have to double the payment.
"That's not what she's talking about," Gideon murmured, smugly.
"Be quiet," I said in a low voice, but he didn't listen.
"Why don't you kill him now, and take it?"
He was looking at Bo-Katan, a tantalizing lilt in his voice. She was staring intently at the glowing weapon in Din's hand in a way that made my blood run cold.
"What's he talking about?" I demanded of Bo-Katan, narrowing my eyes.
"Forget it," muttered Cara Dune, clapping a hand on Gideon's shoulder and shoving him to the ground. "He's just saying nonsense to sew more discord."
"It's yours now," sneered Gideon, lifting himself to sit weakly on the step up to the pilot's chair.
"What is?" said Din in a low, dangerous voice.
"The Darksaber," said Gideon. "It belongs to you."
Bo-Katan shifted her eyes, uncomfortably. Immediately, Din withdrew the weapon and walked over to her.
"Now," he said, stretching out an arm to offer it to Bo-Katan, "it belongs to her."
"She can't take it," crowed Gideon, and sure enough, Bo-Katan didn't move — instead she clasped her hands behind her back and looked down at the thing like she was an addict being offered Spice. "It must be won in battle. In order for her to wield the Darksaber again, she would need to defeat you in combat."
"I yield," said Din instantly, shrugging. "It's yours."
"Oh no…" Moff Gideon chuckled ominously. "It doesn't work that way."
He struggled to his feet. I shot a look at Cara, who looked back at me, worried.
"The Darksaber doesn't have power," he continued, approaching Din cautiously. I took a step forward, my hand on my blaster. "The story does. Without that blade, she's a pretender to the throne."
He looked up at her, goading her. She pursed her lips and took in a shaky breath.
"He's right."
"Come on," Din murmured, an edge of frustration in his tone. "Just take it."
Once again I was struggling to catch up with the complex myriad of Mandalorian rules and codes… Din appeared to be the biggest stickler for the morés of his homeworld, committing to hiding his face for his entire life, while Bo-Katan and her cohorts moved freely, uncovered — and yet here he was, almost rolling his eyes at what to me seemed to be an equally oppressive and arbitrary rule. Then again, I thought to myself, swallowing hard. If I read that situation right and he's already taken off his helmet… then his creed is already broken. Maybe that makes it easier to ask someone else to break theirs.
Suddenly, the bridge filled with an incessant beeping — a warning of incoming danger. Cara and Fennec ran to the radars to identify the trouble.
"Perhaps she'll get another crack at it," teased Gideon as Bo-Katan moved to join the others at the radars. I caught her eye and she looked uncomfortable and guilty. I stared hard at her, willing her to know that I would never, ever let that happen.
I'd had enough of these rules. She wasn't going to be killing Din for any weapon in the galaxy.
"The ray shields have been breached," said Fennec. "We're being boarded."
"How many life forms?" Asked Bo-Katan.
Fennec looked up at her darkly.
"None."
Din and I exchanged a look. I dropped to one knee and pulled out a fresh power pack for my blaster.
"We both know this gun isn't worth much against those guys," I muttered drily, nodding at the Darksaber in his hand. "You better keep that thing at the ready, Prince of Mandalore."
"You're about to face off against the Dark Troopers," announced Moff Gideon, turning to Din and I. "You had your hands full with just one. Lets see how you do against a platoon."
Sure enough, the security cameras showed a marching squadron approaching the bridge.
"Here," I said, reaching out my hands. "Give me the kid."
He handed Grogu to me and took his hand between his finger and thumb.
"Don't worry," he said, to me as much as the kid. "We're gonna get out of here."
I nodded and brought the kid to a corner of the bridge furthest away from the door, kneeling with him behind a computing panel and drawing my weapon, ready to snipe.
The heavy metal footsteps grew louder and louder until suddenly, they came to an abrupt stop.
"They're here," said Koska, and my blood ran cold.
The kid wriggled in my grasp as a tiny nervous coo escaped his mouth.
"It's okay," I whispered, dropping a kiss on his hairy little head. "Your dad's not letting them take you again."
I caught Fennec's eye and exchanged a readying look as she raised her weapon towards the door. Bo-Katan and Koska donned their helmets and steeled themselves.
There was a long, agonizing silence… then, the first pound came.
"They're beating the door down," I whispered, as the loud sound came rhythmically and relentlessly.
"You have an impressive fire team protecting you," said Moff Gideon, directing his attention at Cara. "But I think we all know that after a valiant stand… everyone in this room will be dead but me… and the child."
"It's worth stating plainly," I said, unable to contain myself. "That unlike many of the people in this room, I'm a nobody, just like you said…" I caught his eye and flashed a dangerous look. "… And that means I don't have any pressing need to bring you in anywhere alive."
Din caught my eye, and I got the impression he agreed with my sentiment.
The doors began to buckle violently under the incessant pounding. This was it. I found Din's gaze again and we shared a look of unsaid appreciation and respect, knowing full well that with this platoon, Gideon's prediction could be right.
Suddenly, the beeping resumed, indicating another incoming factor. We wheeled around to the viewport in time to spy an X-wing approaching the ship.
"One X-wing," said Cara with a mirthless laugh. "Great. We're saved."
Bo-Katan slammed her hand down on the comms button.
"Incoming craft, identify yourself!"
We listened, but nothing came. Through the security cameras, we saw the X-wing enter through the port, mysteriously. In my arms, Grogu shifted, his wide green ears stretching out like he was listening for something.
"It's okay," I murmured.
The pounding ceased, and a deafening silence fell.
"Why did they stop?" Cara asked, suspiciously.
I stood and took a few steps out of our hiding place, peering across the room at the security footage — a figure was moving through the ship, wielding a light saber with expert tenacity.
"A Jedi," breathed Bo-Katan.
"Ahsoka?" I asked, looking at Din with excitement.
"No," murmured Bo-Katan, unable to take her eyes away from the footage. I looked over at Moff Gideon and realized that for the first time since we had come across him, he truly looked afraid.
Grogu reached out his hand reverently, almost like he was sensing the presence of the Jedi.
Could this be someone who connected with him when he was on the seeing stone on that terrible day on Tython?
I looked at Din, who was inscrutable.
In a brisk, clunky movement, Moff Gideon staggered to his feet and revealed his hands — they were somehow holding a blaster. Before anyone had time to react, he was shooting at Bo-Katan, the bolts of light bouncing off of her armor. He then turned his clumsy aim to me and the kid, shooting frantically. I felt a bolt make contact with my chest, ramming heavily into Din's armor. It knocked me back, and I quickly dropped to the ground, putting Grogu behind me. Out of nowhere, Din slid in front of us, turning his back to Gideon to absorb the rest of the blasts.
"Drop it!" Fennec's voice silenced the frenzy as all of the others trained their weapons on Gideon. Din and I looked at each other, breathing heavily. I felt Grogu peer around me, curiously. Slowly and cautiously, Din turned back around, just in time to see Gideon raise the blaster to his own head. My body braced, but Cara knocked it from his hands just in time. I felt a now-familiar complicated turmoil within me — I was relieved he hadn't taken himself out, and at the same time, a shameful, primal part of me wished he had.
"Mmmm!" Grogu burbled, reaching his arms intently toward the screens that showed the security camera's view of the Jedi. Din and I exchanged a look, and I gingerly scooped the kid up. We brought him closer, and he placed a small green hand on the screen, gazing intently as the Jedi defeated another Dark Trooper. We watched as the mysterious guest boarded an elevator and emerged right outside of the bridge, fighting the entire platoon of Dark Troopers with an ease and grace that took my breath away. As the final standing Trooper lunged for the shrouded figure, they held up a gloved hand, and without using any weapon, the Trooper crumpled and fell to the floor, lifeless.
The Force.
Grogu looked up at us, a serene little smile on his face.
"Open the doors," commanded Din. Everyone remained frozen. "I said, open the doors."
"Are you crazy?" Asked Fennec, weapon still trained toward the doorway.
Din walked over to the panel and pressed a yellow button, causing the diamond-shaped doors to sweep open. The smoke of burning metal began pouring into the bridge, illuminated only by the strange green light of the Jedi's saber. The figure strode into the room and withdrew his weapon. He placed it in it's holster and slowly removed his hood, revealing the wise-looking face of a young man. Grogu shifted again in my arms as the man landed his regal, disciplined gaze on him.
"… Are you a Jedi?" Asked Din, with a weary cautiousness.
The man looked up at Din.
"I am." After a moment, he found Grogu again and extended a hand. "Come, little one."
I involuntarily clutched him tighter, looking to Din fearfully. He turned to us, his body language tired and broken.
Grogu cooed and looked up at Din.
"He doesn't want to go with you," he said, turning back to the Jedi.
"He wants your permission," he replied, sagely. "He is strong with the force, but talent without training is nothing.
I found my thumbs stroking Grogu as I absent mindedly rocked back and forth, a lump beginning to form in my throat. Surely this couldn't be it — we just got him back, surely he wouldn't be taken away again.
But somewhere, a grown-up part of me knew that he was right, that this had been the quest all along — to find Grogu the right person to train him and help him grow.
"I will give my life to protect the child…" continued the Jedi. "But he will not be safe until he learns to master his abilities."
Din hesitated a moment, then walked slowly over to us. I looked up at him, desperate to know what he was thinking, how he was feeling. He held out a finger to Grogu, who took it in his hand and cooed. A sad little laugh rumbled out of Din's vocoder, and my heart broke. He took the child gently out of my arms, cradling him and gazing down at him. Then he looked at me, and I knew it was time to say goodbye. I put my hand on his little head, mindful not to crush his ears. I echoed Din's movement, holding out a finger, and as Grogu wrapped his little fingers around it and squeezed, I was instantly thrown back to that damp evening on Coruscant when we first greeted each other this way. His wide, dark eyes shone and he burbled, inscrutably.
"Come on," said Din to Grogu, walking away from me and bringing him to the Jedi. "That's who you belong with. He's one of your kind."
Grogu reached up toward Din's face.
"I'll see you again," he continued warmly. "I promise."
With a sad coo, the child touched his tiny fingers to Din's helmet.
My heart stopped as I saw him slowly lift his hand and grasp it. Surely he isn't…
But he did. In a slow, steady motion, he pulled his helmet off and placed it on the ground next to him. My breath caught in my throat and my chest swelled.
There stood a man — a real, genuine man, more visceral and human than anything my aching imagination had conjured. He had dark hair, messy from the helmet, and warm olive skin. His face was dappled with a faint scruff of facial hair, framing his lips, which were pressed together tightly as he grappled with his emotion. His brown eyes gazed down at the little creature, his cheeks wet with tears, his forehead crumpled and lined as his brows knit together.
He was maybe the most beautiful person I'd ever seen.
I couldn't tear my eyes away as Grogu placed his tiny hand delicately on Din's cheek, the most loving of gestures done in such a tiny way. As he did so, Din almost smiled, but it was too painful.
"It's time to go," he said, trying to make his broken voice sound even.
Grogu's lip quivered and he mumbled, nervously.
"Don't be afraid," Din murmured. I wonder if he was talking to himself as much as the child.
After a long final look, he carefully placed Grogu down on the ground.
I heard a sob escape me before I even realized I was crying. I clapped my hand to my mouth, not wanting to interrupt this moment between them. As Din stood back up, he looked around at me and for a moment, we locked eyes. It felt electric — overwhelming — to actually be eye-to-eye with the man who had always had the upper hand, who had always been able to look into my eyes without me ever being able to do the same.
I pried my gaze away, against every instinct, and stared hard at the floor — it felt selfish to stare, to take in the details of his handsome face when it mattered so much to him to keep it private.
After a beat, I glanced over at Grogu, who was clinging to Din's boot. A fresh bout of tears rolled out of my eyes.
I gasped as out from behind the Jedi wheeled in an R2 unit, beeping excitedly.
Grogu released Din's boot and turned to the droid. I snuck a peek up at Din again, who was gazing down at the child looking like it was taking every single muscle in his body to get through this.
The child walked over to the droid, and the two beeped and cooed at each other, back and forth, like they were having a conversation. The R2 unit wobbled, happily, and the Jedi caught my eye with a somber smile. I laughed through my tears in spite of myself. Grogu then reached his arms up to the Jedi and let out a happy burble.
With a final meaningful look exchanged with Din, the Jedi bent down and scooped him up.
"May the Force be with you," he said to Din, nodding respectfully. Din nodded back, and I watched his chest stifle a sob while his expression stayed painstakingly still.
As the Jedi turned to go, I walked silently up beside Din. I wanted to take his face in my hands and bring it to my chest, wrapping my arms around him and stroking his hair until the grief left his body.
Instead, I reached over, keeping my eyes forward, and gently took his hand. He started in surprise, and out of the corner of my eye, I saw him look over at me, then down at our hands. As he looked back up to watch the Jedi enter the elevator with Grogu and the droid, he squeezed my hand, tightly. I squeezed back. Right before the door swept closed, Grogu looked back at us. Din nodded and I held up my hand, managing a wet smile.
The door closed, and Grogu was gone.