Solivagant-The Mandalorian

4

"You took the job." Stoke yells from behind Lana.

Cara, seemingly annoyed by his statement responded, "That was before we knew about the AT-ST."

A hush fell among the villagers.

That doesn't sound good.

"What is that?" Stoke said back to her.

The ex-shock trooper responded with "The armored walker with two enormous guns that you knew about and didn't tell us."

Lana turned to Stoke and Caben to see if it was true. There was so much smoke and chaos during the raiding's, she didn't remember seeing one.

The crowd of villagers grew annoyed and angry with Cara. Lana kept herself quiet, everyone was upset, she didn't want to get into it to. She sensed distress in the child as the arguing grew louder.

"We have nowhere to go."

Cara tried to make the situation cool off. "Sure, you do. This is a big planet. I mean I've seen a lot smaller." It only angered the villagers more.

Mando was as silent as Lana. She could feel his eyes on her, and her alone. She kept her eyes forward on Cara, not daring to glance back at him. She was irritated at the situation and partially at him.

"My grandparents seeded these pods." Caben yelled from in the crowd.

"It took generations." Stoke chimed in.

"I understand. I do. But there are only two of us." Cara spoke calmer now.

"No, there's not. There's at least 20 here." Stoke tried to convince her.

Cara shot back "I mean fighters be realistic."

Lana couldn't help but become angry, she tried her best to push it down, but she couldn't handle it anymore.

"Teach us!"

"We can learn!" Among other things were yelled from the crowd.

"I've seen that thing take out entire companies." Lana could hear the pain in her voice, like she got it firsthand.

Omera put a hand on Lana's shoulder.

"We're not leaving." It was the first words Lana had said in the entire conversation.

"You cannot fight that thing."

Mando finally speaks up from behind Cara. "Unless we show them how."

"Fine then. Tomorrow, be prepared we start your training." At the sound of Cara's final words, the villages break up the gathering.

Cara hops off the porch and follows some of the other villagers away them. Once everyone has left, Lana brings the child to Mando.

Silently, she hands the child to him, she smiles to him, turning to go find Omera. Mando wish he had something to say to make her stay just for a little while.

•·················•·················•

The next morning, the half of the village stopped their work to begin training and prepare to fight off the raiders.

Mando and Cara laid out the plan for the villagers. They started with building barricades along the borders and digging out one of the pods for the walker to plunge into.

Cara began training a group of villagers combat skills, Mando began teaching how to shoot a blaster.

Omera was the only one out of the village who knew how to shoot, Lana never knew her life story very much, the village never had guns, so it confused her how she knew to shoot.

They stood in line having Mando hand them each a blaster. When Lana got to Mando he gave her a simple pistol, he could see she was nervous to shoot it. Her quivering hands accepted it slowly, without looking up to him.

When they all lined up in front of the makeshift target range, Mando kept his eyes on Lana. He knew none of the villagers had held a gun before, but none of them were shaking as much as she was.

When Mando said the order, everyone put their barrels toward the pans.

"Fire." Mando says. He watches everyone miss, besides Omera who was center target with every shot she took.

Lana didn't miss though, she didn't even shoot.

With every practice they did that day with every failed attempt at hitting the target, Lana never shot.

Mando found the rest of the villagers to be successful in the training what seemed like forever later and ordered them to return home to get ready for the oncoming night.

•·················•·················•

Lana was the last to return her weapon to him.

"Lana, you didn't shoot. Once." Mando's voice had a slight annoyance when speaking to her.

Lana dipped her head down, not wanting to make eye contact with him.

"I was afraid."

"What are you afraid of?" Mando asks, he was so close to her, Lana could feel the light being bounced off his heavy armor.

She felt the tears well in her eyes. She blinked them away and let them sink down her face leaving a hot trial behind them.

"About a week ago, during the raids... my father was shot and killed." She held in breath not letting herself get overwhelmed, she had to accept her father was gone. "A blaster took my fathers life away. To weld that power it's terrifying."

"I wanted to learn but, I couldn't draw myself to do it."

Mando nodded to himself.

"I'm sorry."

Lana looked up to him.

"Will you teach me not to be afraid?"

Mando felt like his heart grew heavy hearing her plead to him. He saw such strength in her eyes, such will. He knew she could be so skillful and powerful, but there was something that stopped her. He knew her pain could be such a guiding light, it could only boost her, but she let it hold her back.

"Yes. We have time before nightfall."

Mando grabbed another blaster from his box, this time it was a riffle like Omeras.

He walked toward the range with her following close behind him.

They reached the targets and he was determined to get her to shoot.

He hands the gun to her, she peeked up to his helmet before taking the blaster from him. She took a deep breath, she was shaking slightly still. She had her finger off the trigger, trying to steady her hands to aim the heavy blaster.

Mando took note of her stance, she was so conformed and squished together. He guided her feet out to get her more distance between her stance. He hooked his fingertips on the dips of her waist and moved it, so she wasn't straight on with the target.

She felt heat shoot through her. She choked on her breath when she felt his touch on her. She tried so hard to keep herself at bay from his touch.

"You have anger, you have pain. Use it." He was so blunt but spoke softly and meaningfully to her.

Mando kept his hands on her hips putting his helmet next to her ear. "Fire."

Immediately she did as Mando said and shot.

A hit

Mando's hands left her and she dropped the blaster to her side with a huff.

"I did it." she breathes out.

"Now do it again."