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NATALIA STUMBLED through the hallways of the transport ship. Her feet struggled to support her body as the Mandalorian dragged her along with the group's fast pace. Every step Natalia took sent pain rippling throughout her body and she relied heavily on the Mandalorian to even take a step. Black spots had begun to overtake her vision and every passing second it grew harder and harder for Natalia to breathe.
She had already bled through her shirt and was making quick work of the Mandalorian's cape that had been tightly tied around her abdomen. The gash left behind from the knife was deep, very deep and if it wasn't closed soon Natalia was sure she'd bleed out on this transport ship. But none of that mattered, not to the group anyway. They all wanted to leave Natalia there to die with the man and if it wasn't for the Mandalorian that's exactly what she'd be doing.
"Z, open it up." Mayfield said as the group reached the cell door to their friend.
"You have fifteen minutes remaining." The droid warned. A small smirk began to form on Natalia's face as she relished her small victory of turning on the tracking beacon but her smirk was quick to fade once her ears caught the small splank of her blood beginning to drip onto the floor.
"Come on, come on. Open it up!" Mayfield yelled, visually beginning to panic. The door to the cell suddenly opened to reveal a Twi'lek man that looked much like Xi'an sitting on the bench in the back of the cell.
"Quin." The Mandalorian stated as the man jumped up from his seat and walked over to them.
"Funny, the man who left me behind is now my savior." Quin said with a grim smile. The Mandalorian and Quin were now face to face. Well, face to helmet. "Mando." Quin said his gaze lowered to Natalia. "This your girl? She looks a little...dead."
The pain in Natalia's body doubled as the Mandalorian suddenly flew back into the cell after receiving a punch to the chest from Burg. Natalia hit the floor with a cry, the child landing next to her with a small scream, and next to it the, Mandalorian. Natalia watched as the Mandalorian shot up to shoot his blaster but by the time the shot had let off the door had nearly sealed and the bolt was sent ricocheting from the walls of the cell. Natalia forced herself up and threw herself over the child to protect it from the blast until it finally collided with the Mandalorian's helmet.
"Attacks on the way. They're already dead meat. Let's go." Mayfield yelled.
"Come on, it's better this way." Quin said.
"You deserve this!" Xi'an yelled and with that they were gone, leaving the Mandalorian and Natalia in silence.
Natalia rolled off the child, a small groan falling past her lips as she laid on her back next to the creature. "Natalia?" The Mandalorian asked as he moved towards her.
She felt her eyelids beginning to close as her vision blurred. She could hear the Mandalorian calling to her but his words failed to comprehend in Natalia's mind She didn't want to die. She'd survived too much to die because of a petty knife. But she was vulnerable to death's grasp. She couldn't move or talk no matter how hard she tried and she tried.
She could do nothing but sit there as darkness engulfed her vision. But all that changed once she felt something. A presence, a powerful presence. One that held panic but was calm, one that was all too familiar to her. For a second she saw the face of the man she had grown to call a brother in the darkness surrounding her.
"Natalia."
"Luke."
Natalia's eyes suddenly snapped open with a sharp gasp. Light flooded her sight as her vision returned to her. She felt a weight upon her and looked to see the Mandalorian straddling her, his hands placed upon her chest the way you'd do chest compressions. Natalia barely had time to comprehend what was happening before the Mandalorian pulled her tightly to his chest.
"Don't you ever do that again." His voice was stern but Natalia could hear the slight crack in it towards the end of his sentence.
The Mandalorian tightened his grip on Natalia. Tears stained his cheeks under his helmet and for once all he wished was to take the thing off and rest his head on hers. He wanted to hear her heartbeat to assure himself that she was still alive, that this wasn't some illusion and she'd woken up for real.
Natalia never missed Rex like she did right now. From what she'd pieced together she had almost just died and all she wanted to do was clutch onto her dad and cry. But he was worlds away and the force ghost of Obi-Wan Kenobi could do nothing to comfort her but stand there and speak to her.
"Wh-where's the child?" Natalia asked, suddenly aware of the lack of little noises the child usually emitted.
"It's right there." The Mandalorian reassured, pointing to the small child who was sound asleep next to Natalia, it's little hand placed over her wound.
Her wound. All of a sudden Natalia was aware of the lack of pulsing pain the knife had left her with. Confusion began to flood her senses as he pulled away the Mandalorian's cape to find no gash at all. The only evidence of anything resulting in her near death experience is the blood that still coated her skin around the area where the gash once was.
"What the...?" Natalia's voice trailed off, quickly putting two and two together once her eyes landed on the small child.
"What is it?" The Mandalorian asked his eyes snapping to where Natalia's hand held his cape. His eyes widened slightly as he stared at the healed flesh. It was impossible. "How..."
"The child." Natalia said, a small smile forming on her face as she lifted the sleeping creature into her arms. "It was the child."
"The child?" The Mandalorian questioned as Natalia wiped the blood from the child's hand. "But how?"
"I'm not the person to explain stuff like this to you." Natalia said with a small chuckle. "I don't even understand it."
Natalia pushed herself up from the ground as she cradled the child in her arms. A wave of nausea was quick to wash over her and in an instant the Mandalorian was beside her, placing his hand on her shoulder to steady her. "Take it easy." The Mandalorian was on edge. He had just watched her bleed out on the floor, he had to pump her heart for her, and screamed at her to wake up. It was hard to believe she was just fine.
"I'm fine." Natalia reassured.
The Mandalorian was on edge. He had just watched her bleed out on the floor, he had to pump her heart for her, and screamed at her to wake up. It was hard to believe she was just fine. "I just watched you bleed out on the floor." The Mandalorian stated, gesturing to the blood that littered the floor from where Natalia once lay. "You need to take it easy."
"I'll take it easy once we get out of here." Natalia said. "If we're not out of here by the time the attack team arrives and nobody answers the communications in the control room, they'll fire without a second thought."
"Fine." The Mandalorian said. "But you're not doing anything but sitting until we reach Chandrila."
"We are going to Chandrila this time, right?" Natalia asked.
"No more pit stops." The Mandalorian confirmed with a small nod.
"Good, I'm sick of playing bounty hunter." Natalia said as she rubbed the child's head. "So, how are we going to get out of here."
