Promises and Deals | The Mandalorian

.116

"Only when you do."

Chuckling to himself, Carson glances at the Mandalorians before climbing back into his ship. Bo-Katan comes up behind them as he says, "I know you'll relocate anyway, but you have my word, I will not reveal your location. Sorry to intrude."

As the X-wing takes off, Din watches Alora's shoulders fall and her head hangs. He instinctively places a hand on the small of her back, prompting her to look at him. "You ok? You know him."

"Carson Teva was trained by Lorn," she explains. "He's a nice guy. Would sneak me treats during long meetings. He really won't tell anyone."

"What are you thinking?" Bo-Katan asks as she clears her throat.

Both Din and Alora turn to her. "He's right," Din replies. "We gotta help the guy."

"You can't do it alone."

Alora arches a brow. "Then we get some help."

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Alora expected her mind to be cluttered after their trip to Dagobah. To be preoccupied with everything she learned, to be over or underwhelmed by whatever past Luke referred to on Gideon's ship. She wanted to be consumed with the knowledge she wanted for so long.

Instead, her mind is nothing but a low rumble. Every once in a while, it feels like an earthquake shaking her core, but most of the time, there is a constant alertness, as if the ground beneath her feet will shift at a moment's notice.

She learned so much on Dagobah. That vision of the little girl showed her exactly what she wanted. Leia was wrong all those years ago: Alora did have someone in her life who loved her unconditionally, someone who could have shown her what true love was if she had been allowed. But that is not how life turned out. Instead, her mother returned to the Jedi Order, leaving her young daughter defenseless because she thought it would save her.

And Luke knew all of it for years. He knew everything.

He knew about her past, and he never said a word. How long had he known? Was this a recent development? Or had he known ever since he first stepped foot in the swamp? Had Yoda known and told him? How is it fair Luke could know, for potentially years, and she remained clueless?

That is what shakes her balance these days: the knowledge that Luke—someone she trusted with not only her life but Grogu's—lied to her, kept things from her. Young, naive Luke Skywalker who could not even hold a lightsaber right when they met. Perhaps she should have been more cautious. Perhaps he truly is just like his father. Nature wins in the end.

But she knows that cannot be true. General Anakin Skywalker walked into a room and slaughtered twenty younglings before decimating his home. Luke Skywalker balked at even the slightest hint of civilian casualties. Even at war, Luke would not accept the inevitable. Anakin made sure the worst happened. They cannot be the same. Or can they?

The shadows creep in around her as she does her best to focus on their task. Luke is not her priority: Nevarro is. And without Mandalorian assistance, rescuing it from pirate hands will be nearly impossible.

The Mandalorian covert surrounds a single burning fire pit to hear each side of the argument. Alora knows better than to get involved, instead choosing to remain hunched against the wall of the cave, her arms crossed as she looks directly into the flames.

Din is the first to speak. He gets up from his seat and surveys the others sitting before the fire. "Now, many of you don't know Greef Karga. And those that do, fought against him when you rescued me from his ambush many cycles ago on the streets of Nevarro." Some Mandalorians begin to whisper to each other, and Alora takes note of the louder ones. "Since then, he's had a change of heart and has risked his life to save mine, as well as the foundling in my charge and my guest."

At her feet, Grogu coos and presses his hand against a piece of exposed skin at her ankle. She draws her gaze away from the fire and sits beside Grogu, letting him climb into her lap and into the hood over her head. He snuggles into her neck and laughs in her ear.

Alora wishes she had the energy to laugh with him, but all she manages is a tired half-smile before looking back at the fire.

Din clears his throat, turning back to the others. "I stand before you to petition an intervention. To help rescue Nevarro before it's too late. I am in no position to ask any more of you. However—" The Mandalorians erupt in louder conversation. "However, the enemy that decimated this very covert were Imperials, not Greef Karga's bounty hunters. Greef Karga is now a High Magistrate and has offered me a tract of land on his independent world. Perhaps it is time for us to live in the light once again on a planet where we are welcome. So our culture may flourish and our children can feel what it is to play in the sunlight."

Despite herself, Alora leans further into Grogu. She lets her eyes dart up to see Din handing over a ceremonial weapon back to the Armorer who says, "Does anyone else wish to speak?"

Din sits beside Bo-Katan a little closer to the fire than Alora. "It's up to them now," she hears him say quietly.

"I do." Alora watches as Paz Vizsla stands. He takes the weapon and addresses the others. "I was there on Nevarro that night. I fought against Greef Karga and his hunters. I saw my brothers and sisters fall at the hands of Imperial butchers that hunted us in the sewers. I saw many die to save the life of these two—of a tiny foundling and a formidable warrior." Alora stares at his helmet, and he is the first to turn away. "And now we are asked to sacrifice yet again. The question we should be asking ourselves is 'Why? Why should we lay our lives down yet again?'"

The question resonates deep in her gut. She had risked her life again and again for people who did not give two shits about her, for a population who did not have a voice and only wanted freedom by any means necessary. She did terrible things in the name of taking down the Empire. She is the reason millions on Alderaan are now dead. No one thanked her for the sacrifice of her soul. No one applauded her for ripping through Imperial stormtroopers like they weren't even human. Instead, she was asked to continue sacrificing her happiness for the sake of a better tomorrow.

These Mandalorians owe her nothing, and she will not ask them to help. Alora can succeed on her own as she always has. She was alone when Lorn dropped her on planets to test her navigation. She was alone when she was tasked with finding Grogu. She was alone in keeping him alive before Din came along. She can do this alone too.

"Because we are Mandalorians."

But she is not. Nor will she ever be.

Paz Vizsla looks around at the deafening silence. "I have had my disagreements with this man, but he risked his life to save my son. And Bo-Katan Kryze did not give up on my child's life even when the rest of us did. They are asking us to take up arms in the name of a brighter future, and I for one will take up arms to fight by their side. This is the Way."

Every Mandalorian in the cave repeats the phrase, including the Armorer.

Din looks back at Alora, but she is already staring at him. If the Jedi came together rather then scattering their forces across the galaxy, maybe they could have succeeded too. And maybe she wouldn't be here today.

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Shorter chapter to balance the last one. Thoughts on what happened, now that you've had some time to digest Dagobah? Alora certainly has thoughts.

Hope you enjoyed!

-L