When Din opened his eyes he found Grogu hovering over him, watching him anxiously.
Din blinked. Then he smiled under his helmet and reached up to touch the side of Grogu's little face. He felt as refreshed as if he had just woken up from a full night's sleep. He felt sure he had been dreaming, something to do with Grogu, something that left him calm, sure, and even joyful.
He wished he could remember the dream.
Reality came back to him as Grogu clutched his hand. The missing children, the battle in the hangar, and Varro. Grogu dashing away to help Taliss. "What happened?" he asked hoarsely.
Then Karga was standing there, reaching out a hand to help Din sit up. "Some new paralytic gas," said Karga. "Little gas capsules. I think your boy here managed to get it out of your system." He shook his head. "Your nice friend Varro is full of surprises."
Nearby, Taliss was also sitting up. "What just happened to me?" she kept asking. "Did something happen to me? What happened to me?"
"I told you," called Karga. "Grogu happened to you."
"Buddy," Din said to Grogu. "You're brave. You helped our friend. That's great. But you have to think before you run off. Okay?"
Grogu nodded, looking only a little abashed.
Rising to his feet, Din surveyed the scene. Imps and Merrix guards lay scattered and subdued all over the hangar. Varro herself lay on the deck with her hands and feet bound by Din's whipcord. Mayfeld stood over her with all three weapons aimed at her head.
"Where," he asked through clenched teeth, "Are you hiding the kids?"
"Oh, wouldn't you like to know," she replied with a smirk.
Mayfeld's face twisted in red-faced fury. "What is keeping me from FUCKING shooting you in your FUCKING head right FUCKING now?!" No one bothered to correct his language. Varro just smiled.
"This," she said, holding up her bound wrists to display her chunky vambrace. It was the same one she had worn at the Panopticon. "I control the floor here too. It has a…how can I phrase it for you? A dead man's switch. If my pulse stops or becomes erratic, the floor will activate to the highest level, killing all who contact it."
"What a load of SHIT," said Mayfeld. "If you had that here you would have turned it on us already."
"Aha, but it's experimental," she said, still smirking. "It's been installed in the holding cells below, not here. Including the one where the poor dear children are being detained for their own safety. Really it's your own fault they're here. Their families put them in harm's way."
"What a load of SHIT," said Mayfeld again, but he was clearly rattled. Omera had been holding a blaster on a cowering group of Merrix guards. Now she came up to Mayfeld.
"We can't risk it if she's telling the truth," she said quietly, and Din was forced to agree. Grogu's eyes blazed at Varro and he flexed his fingers as if they itched.
"Is that your wife? Finally, someone who make sense," said Varro. Omera frowned down at her.
"Be quiet," she said and her soft voice sounded much more threatening than her husband's. Din strode to the group of guards and singled one out, seizing him by the arm. Recognition flooded back—it was Janneck, one the guards Din back when he had been an "employee" of Merrix's vile company. He had been trying to torture Fazzakkaar on the transport ship. Clearly he hadn't exactly been punished for it. He seemed like a weak link, happy to be a bully but not its target.
"I remember you. Tell us where the children are held," Din said. His fingers pressed into the man's upper arm. "Now." His helmet was directly in the guard's face, dialing up the intimidation factor. The man's eyes flickered fearfully at Varro, then back to Din. "Don't worry about her," said Din. "Worry about ME. If you want to see the other side of this, speak up now."
"I…I, uh…okay!" Janneck sniveled. "Just, just…please! This wasn't my idea! I'll tell you. I'll bring you to 'em."
"Finally, someone who makes sense," said Din. "Let's go. Bring her and keep her hands visible."
Grogu settled back in his sling and Din led the way, firmly guiding the cowed Janneck. Mayfeld followed, pulling Varro as if on a leash. Omera, Taliss, and one of Karga's mercenaries, a wiry man named Grenshaw, followed. Karga remained behind with the rest of his crew to keep watch on the captured Imps and Merrix guards, and hunt for any other stray Imps. His more tech-minded people were working on a way to slice into the station's systems and bypass Varro's personal controls.
Karga crouched down and gave Varro's lieutenant a friendly look. A piece of fabric had been wedged into his mouth to prevent him from biting down on a suicide pill. "Now if you know what's good for you, you'll hand over control of this station to us. Is there a passcode or a biolock?" Karga asked. He looked up at Din. "We'll let you know when we're in."
"Bring us to the children," said Din, maintaining a bruising grip on Janneck arm. "And NO TRICKS."
"Okay, okay," said the guard. "Ow!"
"No tricks. That's rich, coming from you lot," said Varro. They ignored her.
In his brief stint as a Merrix "employee" Din hadn't seen much of this station. It had not been built for long-house housing of prisoners, but a secure place to transfer them, and divert prisoners to the Riello's prison factory and Arena. So Din wasn't sure what to expect—a walk through corridors leading to a series of short-term holding cells. But Janneck went to a control panel and gave Din a fearful look.
"I have to use this to access the holding cells," he said. "No tricks. I promise. Please don't hurt me."
Grogu glared at Janneck. "Hurry up," said Din.
The man pressed several controls. Hidden machinery whined and rumbled. In the floor of the hangar, several hidden panels slid open to reveal hidden lifts. Karga, his mercenaries, and their assorted Imp and Merrix prisoners stepped quickly to avoid them.
"Hey! What the hell!" yelled Karga.
"This is how we transfer the really unruly, crazy prisoners to the holding area," said Janneck. "We put those kids down there."
"Hold on," said Mayfeld. "You're saying that you put CHILDREN in the same pen as a bunch of fucking violent lunatics?!"
"I hope that's not what you're saying," said Din to the guard. His grip tightened more.
"Ow! Stop it! No, we keep 'em apart! The kids are in a separate area! I promise!"
"How many prisoners are down there? Who aren't children?" asked Din.
"Couple dozen!' said Janneck, writhing unhappily.
"He's telling the truth, you armor-plated brute," said Varro. "Some prisoners are simply too unstable and violent. Psychotics. They can't work nicely as prisoners and they wouldn't survive in the Arena. The New Republic wants them out of the way. No one misses them. So, we simply warehouse them. They were going to be transported to Riello shortly, after our next expansion, to be used as target practice. Some of our prospective clients don't really want a challenge."
"I don't want to go into the middle of a holding cell," said Din, seething with disgust. "Which one is safe to use?"
Janneck led them to a lift about eight meters away. "This is the one guards use," he said. "So we can throw them food and hose 'em off."
"Good. You can go down first. In case it's a trap." Din shoved Janneck onto the lift platform. "Where's the control?" The guard pointed at a small, hidden panel in the floor and Din pulled it off, revealing blinking buttons. Seemed simple enough. He hit the right switch and the lift went down into a cavernous dark space. It shuddered to a halt. A foul smell hit their noses. They heard several hoots and growls. Janneck peered up at them, blinking.
"See? It's safe. It's the guard access point. The only way out is through the lift. The prisoners are in cages." He seemed eager to get on Din's good side now that his boss was tied up.
Din looked at Mayfeld and Omera. "Let's go," Omera said. Din raised the platform. Omera jumped on immediately, followed by Taliss and Grenshaw.
"Take her with us," said Din to Mayfeld.
"Come on," said Mayfeld, pulling the tether and yanking Varro.
The lift rumbled back down into darkness. The stench was overpowering. More growling, shuffling noises. Din's heat vision detected multiple life forms around them. He felt Grogu curl up against his back and neck.
"Stay close, babe," Mayfeld muttered to Omera.
"I'll risk a light," said Din quietly. His headlamp illuminated a vast, cavernous space. Rows of metal fencing separated them from rows of people—miserable, miserable people wearing nothing but rags and filth. Mostly human, but several others scattered throughout the crowd. Some of them gaped at them with round, vacant eyes, or sat rocking and muttering. A few were enraged by the light and hurled themselves against the fence, howling and gibbering, trying to get their hands through.
Definitely more than a "couple dozen."
"Oh gods on high," said Omera.
Sickened, Din turned on Varro. "How long have you been doing this?"
"Does it matter?" she said.
Din surveyed the horrible scene, disgust mixing with pity. He hated that Grogu and the other children had been exposed to this. Clearly, these wretched people were not sane, and being crammed into this place had not exactly done wonders for their mental health. He thought about Leia and her idealistic plan to convert Riello into a colony. What about these people? Would she have a plan for them as well, or would they be shuffled somewhere else out of sight? Not that he had any ideas. In the past, he might have dismissed this with a shrug and ignored his discomfort. Not now.
Well, there would be time to worry about that later, once they got the children to safety. First things first.
"Lead us to the kids," Din said.
"Sure," said Janneck readily. He really wanted to join the winning team. He turned and led them through a corridor that led between the cages. Hands tried to grope for them. There were rips here and there in the fencing.
"Just when I think you can't get any worse," Mayfeld spat at Varro.
"Spare me your performative moral outrage," she said. "Marshal. I look forward to seeing your approach to law enforcement. That's why the Empire will prevail in the end, you know. The people of the galaxy prefer to order to the alternative. Would you rather these lunatics were loose on the streets of Corsucant or Corellia?"
The shrieking around them grew louder as the most disturbed inmates flung themselves against the fence. Omera flinched as she brushed against an inmate's fingers. "Lady, please," sobbed a short Twi'lek curled on the floor against the fence. "I don't belong here! Help me!"
They rounded another corner and saw an actual door in front of them set in the middle of a wall. Light came from one small, greasy window. "They're in there," said the guard. "It's a guard break room, actually, but now the kids are in there. I mean we're not monsters."
"Open up NOW," said Din.
"Uh, so, she's the only one with the controls," said Janneck, looking hesitantly at Varro.
Din activated the comms link to Karga. "We found the kids, but we're locked out. Any luck getting access?"
"Not yet," said Karga.
Omera stood on tiptoes to try to see through the window. "There they are! Winta! Baby, it's me!" She hammered desperately on the door.
Mayfeld yanked viciously on the tether holding the tied-up Varro. "OPEN THIS FUCKING DOOR."
"Of course," she said with a smirk. "Just release my wrists."
"And have her roast us all alive?" asked Grenshaw. "No thanks."
"I think she's lying about the floor," said Mayfeld.
"Will you take that chance?" Varro asked.
Din studied the door—a grav charge could bring it down, but what about the children behind it? Too risky. Then a grinding, groaning sound came from the wall, metal against metal. They all looked around, startled, until Din realized Grogu had his hand held out and his eyes shut in concentration.
"Stand back," Din warned Omera.
With an explosive shriek, the metal door came unwrenched from the surrounding frame and fell, leaving nothing but a few jagged shards of glass and metal.
"Mommy?" said Winta.
Omera and Mayfeld raced in, followed by a leaping Grogu. Din followed. Taliss and Grenshaw stayed just outside with Janneck and Varro. It was indeed a break room with a small 'fresher, tables and chairs, and the remains of several meals. Two dozen children of all ages were huddled under the table and in the corners. A few older ones held onto babies. Some seemed numb, some had been crying. They all looked grubby but at first sight unharmed. A few stood, roused by the sight of Omera, Mayfeld, and Grogu.
"It's Winta's mom!" Winta ran into her mother's arms.
"Hi Winta's mom!" shouted one tiny boy.
"Hey, hey, we're here," said Omera, smiling and crying at the same time. Mayfeld knelt beside them, anxiously checking Winta out.
"Are you okay? Did they hurt you?" He looked around at the other children. "Guys! Is anyone hurt?"
"Hi Winta's dad!"
"I think everyone's scared but okay," said an older boy closer to Winta's age, holding a sleeping baby in his arms.
"Grogu!" shouted a little curly-haired girl. Grogu allowed himself to be hugged and mauled and petted. His presence seemed to soothe the children.
"Dad," said Winta, and she turned to hug Mayfeld. His eyes were bright with tears.
"Oh, honey. It's gonna be all right. So good to see you."
"We're getting you all home," said Din. "Get ready to follow us. Bigger kids need to help carry the little kids." But he felt a poke on his right thigh, just below the cuisse. He looked down to see the tiny boy.
"Grogu's dad?" he said, pointing. "Who is she?" Din turned. Varro was holding up her unbound hands with a look of triumph. She had sliced off the cord binding her wrists with the sharp metal edge of the broken door, moving quickly and taking advantage of the twin distractions from the children in the room and the screaming prisoners in the cages beyond.
"Dammit!" said Taliss, pointing her rifle at Varro's head.
"I lied about the floor," said Varro.
"Big surprise," said Mayfeld, standing up and raising his weapons. Omera held tightly onto Winta.
"But there are a few other things I can still control," she said. A harsh alarm blared, and several children covered their ears.
The gates on the fencing surrounding the prisoners swung open.
"Oh hell," said Mayfeld.
Desperate, ragged prisoners were beginning to realize what was going on and streamed out of the gates. One huge man raced right toward Taliss, howling in demented rage, and she fired at him right before he could swing at her with massive fists. That slowed them down, made them back off with fear. But there were so many of them. How long would they hang back?
Din's heart sank utterly. They had found Winta and the rest of the kids but now they were trapped. Din, Mayfeld, Taliss, and Grenshaw were well-armed and could probably shoot their way out. But the children couldn't move that fast. Plus, it would mean wholesale slaughter of these wretched, unarmed, sick prisoners. Revolting and dishonorable.
Din looked at the metal-walled break room where the kids had been held. Sadly the door was destroyed. "Everyone into the room and get behind me," Din said. "I can hold them off."
With a sly grin Varro pressed another control and a small hatch slid open on the floor. Surprisingly agile, she jumped down out of sight.
Then Grogu was there beside Din and he made a very odd sound, like a growl. "Bad," he said. He leapt after Varro, pursuing her down the hatch.
"NO!" yelled Din.
The hatch slid shut.
Grogu was gone, somewhere in the depths of this nightmarish station chasing a dangerous, deranged Imperial fanatic.
By himself.
I told him not to do that!
He'll be all right. He's strong. He can take care of himself.
Din told himself that over and over again. It didn't help.
"Get back into the room! Behind me," he ordered the others. There was nothing else to do. He turned and seized Janneck before he could go into the room. "Is there another way out of there?"
"There might be a fire escape hatch, but…" He was interrupted as a wild-eyed prisoner ran up and stabbed him from behind with a crude shiv. Janneck fell, blood bubbling from his mouth. Din blasted out with the flamethrower and the prisoner fell back, howling. Din blocked the door to the room with his body, shielding Taliss, Grenshaw, Mayfeld, Omera, and the children like a beskar wall. The prisoners formed a half-circle around him but did not come closer, intimidated by fire. Din could hear the children in the room behind him screaming and crying in fright.
It'll be all right. He's strong. He can take care of himself.
Din called Karga over the comms link, laying out the situation. "You've got to close those gates, or find out how to open the escape hatch. NOW." He heard Karga utter an unspeakable threat to Varro's lieutenant if he didn't cough up access codes.
"Dirty Mandalorian!" screamed a prisoner. He ran at Din holding a makeshift club made from a broken piece of fencing. Din grappled with him and seized the club—he was demented but really strong—but three more prisoners ran up. "Get him!" The whistling birds shot out and brought them down. What else was he supposed to do? The rest fell back, but how long would they stay that way?
"Karga…" he said.
"Got it!"
At the back of the room, next to the 'fresher, a panel slid open.
"I'll cover you!" shouted Din. "Go, go!"
Mayfeld entered first, making sure the way was safe. "Everyone in!" he yelled. The adults ushered the children in though the escape hatch, but Omera paused.
"What about Grogu?"
He'll be all right. He's strong. He can take care of himself.
"I'll find him," said Din. "But now you have to go. Get the kids to safety. Shut the hatch behind you!"
"We can't just leave you here!"
"Yes, you can! GO!"
Omera paused, and their eyes met for a fraction of a second. Then she nodded and left through the hatch. The hatch door slammed shut behind her. Din was alone with the prisoners.