┏━━━━━━˙*¨༺ ༻¨*˙━━━━━━┓
𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐘-𝐒𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍
┗━━━━━━˙*¨༺ ༻¨*˙━━━━━━┛
THINGS DID NOT GO WELL back at the group's unexpected stop at the icy planet of Maldo Kreis. Not only were they chased (yet luckily helped) by some New Republic Starfighter Corps but they were also attacked by cave-dwelling ice spiders.
Well, it was a difficult situation and yet, they were still able to fly with a semi-functioning ship.
"Looks like we made it. Get ready for landing." Din instructed as he ran through some of the Razor Crest's control buttons.
"Barely made it." Aeryn muttered from her seat, her head slightly spinning with all the fatigue.
The wound on her forehead was still fresh and have not healed yet. She figured that it will take time for it to completely heal and would probably leave a mark; considering how deep it was. She would just have to learn on how to endure the stinging and slight pain.
"Dank farrik! The landing array isn't responding. Without the guidance system, it'll be a manual re-entry. It might get choppy." Din cursed, hitting one of the controlers.
"Choppy?"
"Once we're through the atmosphere, there should be enough fuel to slow down. If we don't burn to a crisp." Din let our a short, sharp sigh before all things went downhill.
Literally.
As if on cue, the Razor Crest began free-falling through the sky; the rapid speed making Aeryn a little bit more dizzy. Warning signals and alarms from the ship started going off like a chaotic orchestra only this time, it was the music of danger.
"What the--"
"Aeryn, can you help me here?" Din's voice was loud and clear despite the loud noise.
The violet-eyed girl, though slightly dizzy, quickly made her way beside Din.
"This lever needs to stay back. Can you do that?" Din asked, turning his head at the girl. Aeryn nodded and began pulling the lever just like how she was instructed. "Keep it steady. Here we go."
The Razor Crest, however, did not slow down no matter how hard Aeryn pulled the lever. Din had his fair share of trying to keep things under control but it was obvious to not be paying off.
Fire started emerging from the bottom of the ship as their falling speed accelerated with no signs of slowing down.
"Uh, Din--"
"Razor Crest, this is Trask flight control. Please reduce your speed to port protocol."
"I'm trying my best here. Engage reverse thrusters. Brace!" Din exclaimed for a brief moment and turned to look at the girl standing beside him. "Hold on."
Fear was evident on Aeryn's eyes and the Mandalorian could see that. He deeply wished that he could kiss her but right now, he knew he had to do everything to keep their family alive. Even if it meant not being able to steal a kiss from his beloved girl.
"Din, you do know that I love you, right?" Aeryn asked, fear taking over her body.
The Mandalorian's eyes did not leave his beloved girl's face. Heck, he didn't want to but the circumstances required the opposite, otherwise.
"And I love you too, Aeryn." Din whispered underneath his breath. "So much."
"Razor Crest, do you copy? You have to reduce speed."
"Almost there, almost there."
"Razor Crest, do you copy? Razor Crest, you're coming in too fast. You have to re--"
Din turned the comm off and in a blink of an eye, the whole ship was finally floating at a decent speed. Aeryn let out a sigh of relief; relieving her heart that was almost beating out of her chest.
"Here we go. Nice and easy."
However, the landing was not nice and easy.
One of the ship's engine started sputtering and explosions clouded the group's ears from different parts of the ship. Some pieces of its structure fell off but the worse part is, the whole Razor Crest fell onto the cold, ocean water.
˙*¨༺ ༻¨*˙
WATER FELL FROM ALL OVER the Razor Crest. The clan of three, along with the Frog Lady and her eggs, all walked through the port of Trask.
Aeryn Mavek guarded the child resting in its pod while Din Djarin walked right beside her. The Mandalorian held her hand tightly, squeezing it every now and then.
The experience of falling onto the water trapped iniside a ship was not something pleasant for Aeryn. She was anxious the whole time as they waited inside for someone to help them. Luckily, Din was there to still comfort her the best he can.
"That was not a steady landing." Aeryn commented, facing Din.
"Yeah." Din acknowledge as his hands gently squeezed Aeryn's.
The Mandalorian's eyes fell onto his beloved girl's face. He couldn't help but notice the bandage still wrapped around Aeryn's forehead. It hadn't been long ever since they were attacked by bandits.
It hadn't been that long since someone tried to take the child and Aeryn.
"How's your head?" Din asked, his eyes still on the bandage.
A small, reassuring smile etched upon Aeryn's face as she was the one who squeezed Din's hand this time.
"I'm okay, Din. You don't need to worry about me." the smile lingered on Aeryn's face and the Mandalorian, for a little, felt at ease.
The moment did not last long, though.
"So, how can I help you?" a worker at the port asked, shifting his eyes from the ship to the pair.
Din swiftly turned his gaze from Aeryn to the speaking foreign creature.
"Can you fix it?"
"Fix it? Nah. But I can make it fly."
"Do what you can." Din ordered and threw some credits to the worker.
"I'll fuel it up. If it still holds fuel."
The clan of three, then, walked past the worker and followed the Frog Lady. Din's hand were still holding Aeryn's as they both stood behind the Frog Lady.
"Look," Aeryn pointed at the Frog Lady who ran to who seemed to be her husband.
The two engulfed in a warm embrace, obviously cherishing each other's touch.
"They found each other." a small smile plastered across Aeryn's face as she turned to look at Din. Surprisingly, Din was already staring at her. "They're finally together."
"Yeah," Din whispered.
After a moment of appreciating each other's presence, the pair headed to where the Frog Lady and her husband was. The two was busy rekindling and cherishing their children together.
The child resting inside Aeryn's bag cooed as it watched the eggs floating inside its container.
"I know you're hungry. We'll get you something to eat." Din told the child and gently let go of Aeryn's hand.
The Frog Lady's husband approached Din. He took the Mandalorian's hands in his, shaking it as he thanked him
"You're welcome." Din acknowledged. "I was told you could lead me to others of my kind."
The Frog Lady's husband, then, began pointing toward a certain direction.
"The inn? Over there?"
Not far from where they were, Din Djarin was able to notice a cloaked figure watching them from the cargo. When be turned to look at it again, cloaked person was gone; vanishing into thin air.
The Mandalorian brushed the thought off but he was not planning to let his guard down. Not when he knew something was going on with Aeryn.
˙*¨༺ ༻¨*˙
THE INN WAS CROWDED. Nothing but the smell of freshly-served chowder filled the air. Though the inn was filled with customers and a variety of creatures, it was still decently quiet and peaceful.
"Thank you." Aeryn gave the Frog Lady a genuine smile the moment they had arrived inside.
Din patted the Frog Lady's husband back while the pair both bowed to them, paying their respect. A Mon Calamari, then, approached the clan of three.
"Have a seat over there." he pointed toward a vacant seat and the three followed. "What can I get you?"
"Nothing for me. Two bowls of chowder for them."
"These seats are scarce, buddy. Everyone seated needs to eat."
Aeryn couldn't help but slightly feel the tension rising from the two. She slowly scooted over to where the child sat, her hand lingering near one of her blasters.
"I can buy something else. Information." Din pushed some credits to the server and the server gladly took it. "Have you seen others that look like me?"
"Others with beskar have been through here." the server replied, pouring chowder into two bowls.
"Who can take me to them?"
"I know someone who might help."
With that, the server left the table.
Aeryn stared at the bowl of chowder for a moment; contemplating whether or not to eat her food. Oh well, she was too tired to keep on thinking and decided to just shove spoonfuls into her mouth.
The child beside her cooed, catching her attention. Aeryn immediately placed her spoon down at the sight of a living squid stickin on the child's face. She carefully removed it, placed it back onto the bowl, and wiped the child's face with the sleeves of her maroon top.
"Don't play with your food." Din scolded, turning to look at the child.
"He wasn't playing with it. The squid played him." Aeryn corrected and continued wiping the child's face.
"Aeryn, he needs to be independent."
"He's our child. He's still young." Aeryn argued and her eyes fell onto Din. The Mandalorian only tilted his head and a certain thought hit Aeryn. "Well, maybe he's fifty but he's still tiny so...that counts."
A soft chuckle left the Mandalorian's lips. He gently shook her head and underneath the beskar helmet, a small, genuine smile lingered on his face.
Din did not know how or why but Aeryn Mavem was always the one to bring a smile on his face.
Always.
"Hmm." a Quarren approached the table, breaking the moment. "You seek others of your kind?"
"Have you seen them?" Din asked.
"Aye. I can bring you to them."
"Where?"
"Only a few hours' sail." the Quarren answered, his eyea shifting from the child to Aeryn. "It'll cost you, though."
The violet-eyed girl, in any way, did not feel safe with the way the creature was looking at her and the child.
Not even for a single second.
˙*¨༺ ༻¨*˙
AERYN MAVEK WAS NOT FOND of boats. In fact, she was not fond of the waves crashing against the vehicle as it crossed the rough ocean. She never was. Everything about it was so chaotic and messy for her. She was not a fan of it especially when it did nothing but contribute to the uncomfortable dizziness she was already feeling.
"Aeryn," Din called for her as he stood beside her. "Everything alright?"
Worry was evident in the Mandalorian's voice and Aeryn did not want to contribute to that furthermore. She knew that he was already anxious enough about this whole trip and she did not want to make it worse.
Actually, neither was she comfortable travelling with the Quarrens. She decided that she wouldn't reust anyone but Din, the Child, and some of their friends back in Nevarro.
Oh, how she missed them.
"Yeah, just a little bit dizzy." Aeryn answerd, flashing Din a small smile. "You?"
"I'm alright as long as you both are." Din nodded his head to the child's direction.
The moment did not last long, though. Aeryn's hand immediately lingered near her blaster the moment one of the Quarrens approached them.
"You ever see a Mamacore eat?" the Quarren asked, glancing at both Din and Aeryn. "Quite a sight. Child might take an interest. You should take a look. Come on over here."
Aeryn shot Din a quick glance, waiting for his signal to whether or not follow the Quarren. The Mandalorian stared at the girl for a moment before giving her a brief, reluctant nod.
"Get a good view. Let the kid see." the Quarren instructed and led the three of them near the caged floor.
The child rested in its pod between Aeryn and Mando.
"All right, close enough." Din stated and they all halted at least a feet away from the caged floor.
Anxiety took over Aeryn as she watched the cage slowly open.
"There we go." the net full of fish cut open, releasing it to the water. "She must be hungry. Oftentimes we'll feed her in the early morning, but we missed that 'cause we were goin' out of port!"
The Quarren's movement was swift as he pushed the child with his metal stick with all his might. The child's pod immediately flew right at the center of the opened cage but lucky enough, it closed just when it was swallowed whole by the Mamacore.
"NO!" Din and Aeryn voice echoed through the air.
The Mandalorian did not hesitate to jump onto the water, leaving Aeryn behind.
"Din!"
Just as Aeryn was about to follow Din onto the water, the cage closed; preventing her from doing so.
"Din!!"
"Grab the girl! Lock it up! Go, go! Now! Go!" the Quarren who oushed the child's pod yelled orders and every other one of them quickly moved. "The beskar is ours! So is the bounty! Drown him!"
Three Quarrens approached Aeryn and was about to grab her but her reflexes were much faster. She immediately took gold of both her blasters and shot all three Quarrens; letting them face-plant on the metal ground.
"You!" one of the other yelled and before she was able to react, Aeryn's back was hit by a metal stick.
"Aeryn!" Din screamed as he, as well, struggled on trying to keep his head up from the ocean water. "Aeryn!"
"Get him! Get him! There we go!"
Aeryn slowly fell onto the ground; the world around her slowly fading. She lied on the cold, wet, metal floor as she was not able to do anything but watch as the Quarrens tried drowning Din.
"Tie the girl! The Empire wants her alive!"
"We're rich brothers! Finish him!"
Din.
The Child.
She wanted to move; stand up and rescue her family--she was desperate to--but her own body just wouldn't allow her. Her own body betrayed her. Aside from that, her already injured head throbbed with sharp pain and she could feel the blood trickle down her face once more.
Aeryn felt numb.
There was nothing she could do as the world around her slowly turned into darkness. Different voices echoed through her ears as her violet eyes slowly fell into a dark abyss.
"Aeryn!"
˙*¨༺ ༻¨*˙
happy holidays, everyone! i know, it's quite a long chapter ;-; it's almost 5 am here now... heh...
p.s. i promise you, i update every other day <33
p.p.s. something's off with my writing ;-;