•two journeys• din djarin

I

Walking in from the dreary and rainy day outside, I dropped my burlap bag on the floor just beside the entrance of my little hut. I looked over at my small cot, longing for the warm blankets to cover my aching body. I had been out since dawn, trying to find some food source to nourish my body. As I shuffled through my home, trying to put together some "meal" I caught a glimpse of myself in the shattered mirror. At one point, I could have been considered beautiful, but today my blue eyes were dull and sad; my pale skin looked bruised and malnourished; my lips were dry and cracked of dehydration. I was always told that I was a spitting image of my mother, that was one thing I was always proud of. Whenever I see myself, I'm filled with the guilt of her death.

I was only 19 when I decided that I wanted to start my own life, outside of my small hometown on the planet of Nevarro; there wasn't much there for me and I knew that if I didn't leave then, I would become one of the elderly ladies who sat in the market trying to sell goods that no one wanted. When I decided to leave, I knew that I wanted to be somewhere remote; just me and the nature surrounding. I hired a ship with the little money I had left and fled to the small planet of Tython with the clothes on my back and the air in my lungs. I had known that if something went wrong, my family would always be there to help, but I could not have been more wrong.

2 weeks after my departure, I learned of an invasion in my hometown. Empire soldiers stormed the planet of Nevarro, slaughtering my family and friends in the process. I can't imagine the pain my parents suffered in those moments, but I know that they were glad I had left when I did. The only thing I'm certain of was why the Empire soldiers were there. News of a Mandalorian kidnapping one of their assets soon traveled to my radio; from that moment I knew that if I ever met this Mandalorian, he would owe me everything.

I came back to myself staring in the mirror as tears slipped from my eyes. I quickly wiped them away with the back of my hand and returned to chopping a root I had harvested on my hike. I placed a small bowl on the fire I had started earlier in the day and filled the bowl with my vegetable. The smell of the roasting food filled my hut; I placed some left-over bone broth I had in the bowl as well and waited for it to simmer.

Once my meal had finished, I sat on my cot and ate as I looked over the family memorabilia I had brought with me. My mother's comb, my father's first helmet he wore when he learned to fly. I felt a smile come to my face as I remember how proud he was when I lifted my first ship off the ground at the age of 14. On my second night here, I found a small ship nearby, enough for me and maybe three to four others. I've worked on it for months, trying to get it into top shape, and finally, I was able to move it to my home.

After finishing my meal, I stripped myself of my clothes and rinsed myself with a rag and warm water. I placed my dirty clothes in the water and scrubbed them with my hands to remove the sweat and stains they had. I placed them on the rack above my fire to dry and fill my hut with warm moisture. As I lay in my cot dozing off, I thought about my family and what would have happened if I had been there but before I could get to the worst I fell into a deep sleep and was overcome with nightmares.

Images flashed before my eyes; a metal staff, a glowing sword, red laser beams, a cloaked woman, a man suited in pure metal, a green...pet? I shot up in my bed and clutched the blanket to my bare chest. Sweat was beading on my forehead but the room surrounding me was cold. Light peeked under my makeshift door, signaling that morning had arrived. I laid back in my cot and tried to process what exactly I had seen. Since I had learned the news of my parents, I had these vivid dreams every night, all different scenarios, but all containing the same two things, the man in the metal suit and the green alien that accompanied him.

I decided that if I hadn't been able to decipher them before, I wasn't going to be able to now. I slid out of my bed and stretched before walking to the fire pit and grabbing my freshly cleaned clothes. I walked to my makeshift mirror and struggled into my outfit: a grey shirt, brown pants, worn down boots, and my father's leather jacket from when he was a teenager. I brushed out my hair with my mother's comb and braided it to my right shoulder. I feathered my bangs out and continued to fill my burlap bag with the necessities for today's hike. Before leaving my home, I made sure to start the fire for tonight when I returned.

I exited my hut and walked into the warm sunlight of the day. The air was heavy with moisture from the rain the day prior. I began my trek to a small shrine where I find my peace, an area of standing stones in the formation of a circle. I found it directly after the news of my mother and father, it was almost as if I had been called to it. I always travel there when I think of them, the coincidence of finding it makes me feel like that's how they are communicating with me from beyond. Sometimes I'll sit there for mere minutes, sometimes for hours.

As I was coming upon the last large hill before the shrine, I watched as two Empire ships floated towards the sky. I could feel my blood begin to boil as I think of what they had done to my family. Just before flying out of the atmosphere, the top one exploded and destroyed the bottom on the way down. I crouched down and hid behind a nearby boulder. I watched as a streak of black flew down from the sky and behind me, an explosion, most likely a ship. Droids flew down from the sky directly to my shrine and within seconds they had taken off back to their ship. I sat behind the boulder heavily breathing and clutching my bag to my chest.

After a few minutes, I thought that it would have been safe to see the damage. I stood up from behind my boulder and within seconds I could hear the click of guns pointing in my direction. I dropped my bag and held my hands in the air, "Please, I live here, I don't mean you any harm." I tried to get a good look at what I was facing but the glaring sun left me blinded.

"What's your name,"

"I'm sorry?" I was thrown off guard by a filtered voice like they were speaking through a mask.

"What is your name?"

"Sindre, Sindre Hejran, I'm from Nevarro, I moved here not too long ago," I stepped forward slightly in hopes that they could see that I'm just a young girl and completely unarmed. I heard the lowering of their weapons and relief filled my body. "I can help you; I have a home nearby with food and water," I used my hand as a visor to better see who I was conversing with. When I caught a glimpse of the man I had been talking to, my breath hitched in my throat and my body tensed. It was the man from my dreams, the man in the metal suit, and who I can assume is the man who indirectly killed my parents. The Mandalorian.