C H A P T E R T W E N T Y-F O U R

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THIRD PERSON POV

Mando and Greef Karga sat around the bonfire with their respected crews, chewing silently away on a meat supper. The only sounds audible were the child's babbles when Kuiil fed the baby by hand. "Guess the little bugger's a carnivore." Karga noted. "Never seen anything like it. They were ready to pay a king's ransom for that thing. Must be for some highfalutin menagerie." He chuckled at the end.

"Let's go over the plan again." Mando changed the subject, and Karga obliged, giving details to all of the Mandalorian's questions. Afterwards, Karga sighed heavily. "The plan would go smoother if Beckett was here."

Mando didn't respond.

"Out of curiousity, how did she die?" Karga asked, propping himself on his elbow.

"One of your Guild members shot her down while pursuing the kid." Mando lied, at which Cara Dune subtly raised a brow at the convincing fib. "She died on the planet Sorgan where we attempted to lay low for a few months. Your hunters caught on fast, and tracked the kid down to kill it, and Reina Beckett intercepted."

"It's a shame we lost her." Karga grumbled, glancing over at Cara. "Did you ever meet her?"

"Yeah, I did." Cara replied, casually. "She was strong."

"She was one of the best in the Guild." Karga laughed. "She was up to par with this one." He pointed to Mando with another chuckle. "She could handle anything despite being unable to see. There was no such thing as a handicap to Beckett. That's what she hated most: when people held her back against her will because of some 'disability'. Oh, man, when I remember when she first joined the Guild ten years ago and I denied her request for her first job. BIG MISTAKE. She showed me in a dual, but chose to let me live. One of a kind, that woman was." Karga released one more hearty laugh.

Mando's head lowered as Karga talked about Reina. That's what she hated most: when people held her back... That's all Mando ever did to Reina, was hold her back from her true potential, even when she had her sight. It was all to protect her, but at what cost? Right now, he forced her to stay behind, even if it was her idea to fib about her 'death'. Mando felt incredibly guilty...

"Well, nothing we can do about her untimely death." Karga shrugged. "With both our crews, trust me, we have nothing to worry about." And in response, three monstrous flying beasts attacked the camp.

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REINA'S POV

"MANDO!" I screamed, awaking from my sleep. I had merely closed my eyes for a few minutes before a continuous flash of scenes erupted in my mind. It was pitch dark, just like it was now, and Mando was sitting by a fire with Cara, Kuiil, Greef Karga, and others. Suddenly, terrifying, flying creatures swooped down and attacked the crew, screeching verociously. Blasters fired simultaneously, and then the scene went dark.

What was that? I thought to myself. That didn't feel like a nightmare. In fact, it felt very real. So, could it have been...a vision?

"Ms. Beckett?" IG-11 exclaimed to my right. "Are you alright?"

I nodded instinctivly. "Yes, yes. Nothing to worry about." I rubbed the sleep out of  my eyes...It had happened only a few hours ago, but the blurred world I lived in for the past day had finally darkened completely. I was officially blind once again, and there was no magic child to heal me this time...

Suddenly, a strange sensation surged through my veins, and I could detect every pulse in my body. Every cell radiated with power I've never experienced before. What was the most bizarre was in the darkness that I had succumbed to began etching itself out with silver lining, the Razor Crest's interior cracked into scale through the silver tone. When I lowered my head to look at my palm, I could see the tracing of my moving fingers. There was no color except for the pitch black and the silver etches...but I could see? In a way, it was similar how I used my sixth sense, but in order to see any outline, I had to physically touch the surface or feel the vibrations. I could make out the entire ship while sitting in one place.

What is this? I pondered. Why is this happening?

"Ms. Beckett?" IG-11 asked again. I spanned my new makeshift vision at the droid, and I could see its shape and movement through the silver, while the space in between was still black. "Are you alright?"

"Yes," I repeated. "In fact, I'm better than alright." There was no pain unlike the first time I regained my vision. When I closed my eyes, everything was dark, as normal sight worked. Blinking was also the same. How strange...is this somesort of trick?

"No trick, it is."

"Who was that?" I exclaimed out loud at the random raspy voice. But there was no reply.

"I suggest you should get some rest." IG-11 nodded, putting a metal hand on my shoulder. "Or shall I make you some broth to calm you down?"

"Broth would be great, actually." I admitted, my mind swarming with this new abiltiy of mine. Then, I focused on the droid for awhile. I was well aware of what an assassin droid was capable of, especially an IG unit, but since Kuiil reprogrammed this one, I saw no reason to keep watchful eye over it. Mando claims no matter how much rewiring it's had, it will fall back on its natural instincts. If that is true, then of course I had to pay attention to its behavior: one moment it's serving me tea, the next, blasting me down in my back. So far, IG-11 has given me nothing but the finest hospitality, like any nurse droid would.

As I softly sipped at my broth, I grew accustomed to my new form of vision. Eventually, I grew tired and at some point, I fell into a deep sleep. I remember reminising about the 'dream' I had of Mando and the others...and deep down in my person, I knew it wasn't a dream, and it was a vision...

And who was that voice earlier?...

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I woke up at the sound of blasters shooting and the main ramp creaking as it lowered. My head jerked around my black and silver surroundings, frantically gaining my bearings from the sudden commotion. When I scrambled to my feet to check outside of the Crest, I immediately grabbed my blaster and katana.

Out in the vast dark air, I saw two silver speeders racing toward the ship, riding them were two bucketheads I would never forget. When I reached the ground, I realized what they shot down...

"Kuiil! No!" I choked, and sprinted out into the flat field, but I didn't run to Kuiil—I aimed my blaster at the first Scout-trooper, nailing him in the brain and knocking his body off its speeder. The second one managed to get closer faster than I expected, and he wasn't gunning for me, but for a small object wrapped in a silvery blanket lying out a little farther from Kuiil's body...

The baby...

I javilined my blade at the Scout-trooper and pierced through his speeder, causing it to malfunction and crash some distance away from the child. In the process, I destroyed my trusty weapon. (Good thing, I have a second one.) I scrurried to the baby and picked him up in my arms, and pulling down the blanket from his face, I was greeted with a soft coo. I sighed in relief, holding him against my chest. He was completely unharmed.

IG-11 approached me from behind. "Kuiil has been terminated, Ms. Beckett." I nodded and hung my head in remorse. That's when my ears caught a distant cry. Turning my head towards the sound, I noticed a small commlink sitting in the dirt.

"Kuiil! Do you copy?!" It was Mando on the commlink. "We're pinned down! Have you reached the ship yet?! Kuiil!" I've never heard Mando sound so desperate. Picking up the comm, I raised it to my lips to answer the call, but stopped. It's possible the Scout-troopers had caught up to Kuiil because they locked on Kuiil's signal with Mando...If I answer this, it'll only send out another link and they'll know the first scouts failed and send more.

"Mando and the others are in trouble." I crushed the commlink under my boot. "We have to go help them." I stared directly at the IG unit. "Let's go. We can use the undamaged speeder."

"Yes. I will drive." IG-11 agreed. Snatching the knapsack that was left on the speeder, I gently planted the baby in it and handed him over to the IG-11. "You'll have to hold him if you're driving. I'll ride behind you."

And so, IG-11, carrying the child on its chest-piece, zoomed across the Nevarro deserted plain with me clinging onto its metal arms, on our way to save Mando and the others.

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