Chapter Eleven: 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖇𝖆𝖙𝖙𝖑𝖊.
word count; 2.4k
note: a shorter chapter than usual this time, seeing as the previous one was ten-thousand years long.
Each rotation passed by flying and were filled with training and training, until finally came the day you decided was going to be the attack on the raiders. You wouldn't admit it but your nerves were getting the best of you, each night you found yourself restless and unable to sleep. But Din was always there for you, and whenever he found you weren't sleeping he'd crawl in next to you with your permission. At least it offered some consolation, feeling someone beside you who cared for you and let you know everything was going to be alright.
You hoped the villagers didn't notice your growing anxiety — if they saw that you, a highly-experienced bounty hunter and trained in battle for cycles, was nervous, they would feel even more uneasy than they already did. So you knew you had to stay calm, for yourself and for the villagers. It was becoming increasingly difficult to hide your uneasiness, and all you could do was hope to get it all over with already so you could finally relax.
The sun now set under the horizon while the moon appeared, and it was time for Din and Cara to head out into the woods and towards the raiders' base. At first, you suggested to come along with them but Din wanted you to stay with the villagers and get them ready for battle. Whether there was some truth in that or if he just wanted to keep you in the safety of the village, you weren't entirely certain. And as much as you wanted to go with Din, you knew he had reason. It was best for you to stay behind with the villagers, keep them steady and prepared for the inevitable fight that was to come.
Gazing over at the villagers in the distance, you watched as they settled themselves up behind the handmade barriers. Everything seemed to be going well, you noted. Hopefully it would continue like that, but you were in doubt. Though the villagers were trained for quite some time, they still weren't fully-trained and the three of you only managed to teach them the basics to shooting, hand-to-hand combat, and spear-fighting. It was going to be a grueling attack for sure.
Footsteps from behind you filled your ears, and it wasn't long before you spotted Din in your peripheral vision beside you. His visor trailed among the many villagers who scurried around, carrying weapons, placing them down, getting into their assigned spots. "Cara and I are leaving now," Din stated, his gaze moving to you instead.
Your eyes flickered to meet with the black T-visorn of his helm, and Din could easily note the nervousness in your expression. Sometimes you wished you wore a helmet, like he did. That way you could hide any emotions you were feeling. You managed a small smile, "Be careful."
He tilted his helmet at you, "Are you worried about me?"
You could practically hear the smirk on his lips.
He was imitating you. Playfully shoving him, you let out a chuckle. "Maybe I am."
The way your smile slowly dropped when you remembered what was about to occur didn't go unnoticed by him. You hadn't realized how close you stood to each other. Each time you found yourselves standing this near, your heart accelerated and stomach fluttered uncontrollably. This time was no different.
When he brought his hand and placed it on the back of your neck, you found yourself frozen in place without any idea of what he was doing. But then he pulled you in closer to him, until your foreheads gently touched and you realized what this was. While you didn't know much about Mandalorian culture, you heard about these forehead touches, you had forgotten the name of them. This was his way of comforting you.
And it worked wonderfully.
The cold of his beskar helmet felt amazing against your skin; cool and soothing, letting you know everything was gonna be alright. You closed your eyes for a moment, allowing yourself this moment of serenity as you placed a hand on the cuirass on his chest. You found yourself lost for this short amount of time, like everything around your froze and it was only you and Din. The way his thumb swiped back and forth in comforting circles on your neck calmed you, and you let a soft smile escape your lips.
When you opened your eyes, you pulled away. "Go," you kept your smile, assuring him you were going to be alright. He nodded, turning to Cara and beckoning her to follow him. For a split second, you caught her eye and she smirked at you before heading off into the woods alongside Din.
You observed them from afar for as long as you could, until they were no longer in your sight. With a reluctant sigh, you turned to face the villagers, examining each and every one of them to make sure everything was perfect. The villagers seemed ready to fire and fight; those who were shooting were located at the very front of the barricades with their guns locked and loaded. You couldn't help but notice the look of fear and concern on their faces as they waited restlessly behind the barricades.
"Come on, guys, lighten up!" you commented, attempting to brighten the mood along with a chuckle. "We've prepared you the best we can for this. I'm sure everything will turn out fine."
An explosion in the distance filled your ears, causing your head to whip back and catch sight of the smoke rising up into the night sky. A pit in your stomach developed at realizing Din and Cara were likely fighting the raiders right about now; pretty soon they should return along with the AT-ST trailing behind them.
Instantly, you take action and make your way towards the villagers, crouching down behind one of the barricades. You remained alert, watching intently for any signs of Din and Cara returning. Once shooting was in hearing range, you knew they succeeded in waking the walker. Though unfortunately, as much as you attempted to look for them, the fog blocked your view and you were unable to spot anything that was too distant. All you could do was hope that neither of them had gotten hurt during the shootout.
Once the firing began getting closer, you readied your own blaster in your hand, aiming out towards the foggy trees. Just as you did, Din and Cara emerged from the fog, the sounds of machinery and stomping following closely. You sigh a great breath of relief at realizing they were alright, and once Din placed himself beside you as he knelt down behind the barricades, you placed a hand on his pauldron. "You alright?"
His visor met with your gaze for a moment, and he nodded in response.
"This is it! Cara shouted from where she crouched next to some villagers, "Once that thing steps into the pond, it's going down. Weapons ready!"
Din prepared his pulse rifle next to you, while the thudding grew louder and closer with each passing second. After a moment of anticipation, you caught sight of a pair of red eyes appear from the trees enveloped in fog. As it trampled over the many plants in its way, you were glad to perceive how close it was getting to the hole meant for it to collapse into.
So close...
"Just a few more steps," Din whispered.
It stopped.
There was a prolonged moment of silence as anticipation took over, wondering what would come next. It seemed like somehow it knew it was a trap, and stopped walking right in the nick of time. You and Din glanced over at each other — the way his shoulders tensed and you held a look of suspicion plastered all over your face, you both knew something was wrong. It wasn't going to be as simple as it had been planned.
Lights suddenly switched on, blinding everyone in its path and leaving everyone vulnerable to the machine's attacks. Din's gloved hand pulled yo down along with him, making sure you were safe beside him. "Get down!" he whisper-shouted at the villagers, "Get down."
It surveyed its surroundings, the illuminating light shifting slowly among the village, looking for any sign of people. You hoped it didn't spot any of you, though you weren't sure how well-concealed everybody was. You gave the hand that was gently placed on your arm a squeeze with your own fingers, assuring him it would be fine, if that were any comfort to him.
Without any warning whatsoever, it fired.
Not at you, not at Din, not at the villagers, but at one of the huts behind them. All they could do was watch in dismay as it ignited in flames, some even contemplating on whether they should run off — you hoped they wouldn't, they needed all the help they could get. In this moment you were glad you made the decision to keep the Child and the rest of the kids safe in one of the huts far from the battle.
"Hold your positions!" Cara shouted.
Finally, that seemed to bring out the klatooinians, and your stomach sank at watching them yelling and charging towards the village. Unfortunately, the AT-ST kept its place just behind the hole, and you knew there something had to be done to lure it in there or else this fight would end up horribly.
"Open fire!"
Everyone who obtained a blaster fired at the raiders who continued storming towards the village. Alongside you, Din used his pulse rifle, instantly disintegrating multiple raiders while you aimed perfectly at anyone who got too close. It seemed like everything was beginning to get better, until the walker started its firing again, shooting numerous times and aiming to kill innocent villagers.
"We gotta get that thing to step forward," Din said, and you nodded in agreement as you struggled to think of a decent plan while simultaneously shooting down any raider in your path.
"New plan," you heard Cara say as she made her way next to you and Din.
"What do you have in mind?" Din asked curiously, the both of you open for any suggestion to finally end this fight.
"Give me the pulse rifle," she replied, and Din immediately handed it over to her.
"We'll cover you," you affirmed.
As Cara dashed off towards the AT-ST, Din grabbed the blaster in his holster and continued firing besides you. You watched intently as Cara dove into the pond, dodging a shot from the machine and hiding behind a ledge of grass which kept her from view of it. She fired at it, though the pulse rifle had no effect on it.
While you continued shooting, Cara attempted blasting it yet another time. But when the AT-ST caught sight of her, she instantly ducked down as it searched around for her, firing aimlessly at the water in hopes of taking her down. For a moment, you couldn't catch a glimpse of her through all the smoke and water splashing everywhere and blocking her from view.
The raiders were getting much too close to the village now, causing Omera to send the signal for the villagers who were trained in combat and spear-fighting to make their move. You kept yourself beside Din, in case you could provide some help for Cara. Between all the chaos that ensued, you managed to catch a brief glance at her in the same spot as she hid from the machine searching to kill her.
Just take the bait already...
Finally, Cara successfully aimed a blast at the machine straight in the eye, causing it to power down and collapse into the hole.
"Stay here," Din told you and before you had any time to react to him, he stood and sprinted towards the fallen machinery. Remaining in place, you fired at anyone who attempted to get too close to Din as he made his way to Cara. When he reached the walker on the ground, Din placed a grav charge, activating it before watching as it blew up into a million pieces and igniting the night sky.
Din had taken cover besides Cara in the water just in the nick of time before the grav charges activated. Upon seeing the raiders retreat, you felt a wave of relief wash over you. It was all over. You had done it, Din, Cara, the villagers, they had all succeeded in defeating the bothersome raiders who robbed their food source, and now they could live in complete peace.
The villagers cheered between each other, and you made your way over to Din while grinning from ear-to-ear. He had just climbed out of the pit filled with water — you imagined it must feel strange to be soaking wet while wearing full attire along with an extra layer of beskar armor. Out of pure excitement and joy, you threw your arms around his shoulders and pulled him into an embrace without thinking.
He chuckled nervously, and you could tell he slightly tensed up with your touch. "What are you doing, Cyar'ika?"
"It's called a hug," you stated between short laughs. "You're supposed to put your arms around me, you know."
He obliged in an instant, wrapping his arms around your middle and pulling you towards him. Though he was drenched in water and his beskar stained with carbon scoring, you didn't care and instead embraced him until you no longer felt that tension in his shoulders.
After everyone cleaned themselves up from the previous grueling battle, there was a celebration. Villagers gathered around a large fire, chattering, eating, dancing. Children giggled and hopped as they chased each other around, along with the Child who attempted to catch up with them. You and Din stood by right next to each other as you sipped on some spotchka, watching their little interactions intently.
"He'll fit in just fine here," Din said. "I'm sure of it."
You looked up at him and nodded, "Yeah. I'm gonna miss him, though."
He placed a hand on your back as you both turned your attention over to the green child who waddled around. If it weren't for him... you wouldn't be here. You wouldn't have grown so close to what used to be a quarry, a baby you were supposed to hand over to a client and leave without ever turning back. Or get so attached go someone who had recently been your sworn enemy, a Mandalorian who you would've killed at any sign of vulnerability. You hadn't realized how wrong you were before until now.
"Me too."