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CHAPTER FOURTEEN
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"I have a bad feeling about this," Artemis said, as she watched the space station come into view. After getting back to the Razor Crest and retrieving the kid from Peli, the three of them had taken off into space. Not much later, Din told her he had somehow gotten a job. "I have a really bad feeling about this."
"We'll be fine," Din assured her.
"One day you'll have to listen to me," Artemis sighed, shaking her head.
"You know I'm not really a follower," Din pointed out. "And we always manage to get through it, don't we?" he added, more amused.
"Yeah, but someday it will get us killed."
"That someday won't be today, I promise."
"I'll hold you onto that."
Artemis pulled her hood over her head as Din landed the ship into a hangar. Then, they hid the kid into his compartment before opening the hatch and walking out of the ship.
"Mando!" a man called, making both Din and Artemis turn around. An older man with grey hair and a not that good looking beard came walking towards them. "Is that you under that bucket?"
"Ran," Din greeted him, shaking his hand.
"And you've brought a friend," Ran said, glancing at Artemis.
"This is Rogue," Din said, gesturing at her.
"Nice to meet you," Ran said, as he and Artemis shook hands.
Artemis merely nodded.
"I didn't really know of I'd ever see you in these parts again," Ran told Din. "Good to see you." He clasped his shoulder, leading him further in the space station. "You know, to be honest, I was a little surprised when you reached out to me. You know, 'cause I . . . I hear things. Like, maybe things between you and the Guild aren't working out." He then looked at Artemis, who had been following them. "And that you are accompanied by none other than a Jedi General."
"We'll be fine," Din said firmly.
"Okay. Well, you know the policy. No questions. And you, you're welcome back here anytime."
Artemis narrowed her eyes, feeling that there was a catch somewhere.
"So, what's the job?" Din asked, as the three of them watched the Razor Crest.
"Yeah, one of our associates ran afoul of some competitors and got himself caught," Ran said. "So, I'm putting together a crew to spring him. It's a five person job — six if you take it. I got four. All I need is the ride, and you brought it." He nodded at the Razor Crest.
"The ship wasn't part of the deal," Din said defensively.
"Well, the Crest is the only reason I let you back in here."
Din glared at him and Artemis shuffled nervously onto her feet. She had known this was a bad idea.
"What's the look?" Ran questioned amused. "Is that gratitude?" He laughed. "Uh-huh. I think it is." He walked away, still laughing.
"I told you this was a bad idea," Artemis hissed. "But you never listen to me."
"Well, next time I will," Din snapped.
"Stop acting like a married couple and follow me," Ran called over to them.
Artemis and Din exchanged a glance before following Ran.
"Mayfeld!" Ran exclaimed and a man around Artemis age turned around
"Yeah?"
"This is Mando, the guy I was telling you about," Ran said, gesturing at Din. "We used to do jobs way back when."
"This is the guy?" Mayfeld said, rather unimpressive.
"Yeah, we were all young, trying to make a name for ourselves," Ran said while looking at Din before laughing. "Yeah, but running with a Mandalorian, that was . . . That brought us some reputation."
"Oh, yeah?" Mayfeld said. "What did he get out of it?"
Ran laughed. "I asked him that one time. You remember what you said, Mando?"
Din didn't reply.
"Target practice," Ran continued, looking back at Mayfeld.
The two of them laughed.
"We did some crazy stuff, didn't we?" Ran asked Din.
"That was a long time ago," was all Din said and Artemis could tell he didn't particulary like the topic.
"And who's the mysterious lady over here?" Mayfeld asked, his eyes averting to Artemis.
Artemis smiled, not that he could see it, and extended her hand.
"Rogue," she introduced herself. "But I've been called Lady Rogue before."
Mayfeld grinned and shook her hand. "Pleasure to meet you, Lady Rogue."
"Well, I don't go out anymore," Ran told Din. "You understand? So, uh, Mayfeld, he's gonna run point on this job. If he says it, it's like it's coming from me. You good with that?"
Din and Mayfeld looked at each other.
"You tell me," Din said.
Ran laughed. "You haven't changed one bit."
"Yeah, well, things have changed around here," Mayfeld snapped.
"Yeah, well, Mayfeld, he's . . . He's one of the best trigger man I've ever seen," Ran told Din and Artemis. "Former Imperial sharpshooter."
"That's not saying much," Din said dryly, making Artemis suppress a smile.
"I wasn't a stormtrooper, wiseass," Mayfeld snapped.
Ran glanced at him before looking back at Din. "Don't take long, does it?" He chuckled.
⋆⋆⋆
"RAZOR Crest?" Mayfeld said, walking next to Artemis as they approached the ship. "I can't believe that thing can fly. Looks like a Canto Bight slot machine."
Artemis could feel Din glare at him.
"The good-looking felling there with the horns, that's Burg," Mayfeld continued, ignoring Din.
Artemis followed his gaze and her eyes found a Devaronian Burg. He was by far three foot taller than her.
"This may surprise you, but he's out muscle," Mayfeld added amused.
Burg examined Din carefully and grunted. "So, this is a Mandalorian. I thought they'd be bigger," he added, chuckling.
Artemis did not like him.
"Droid's name is Zero," Mayfeld said, nodding at the droid who turned around at the sound of his name.
"I thought you said you had four," Din said flatly.
"He does," a female voice behind them said and Artemis could feel Din tense up beside her. They turned around and she saw a female Twi'lek approach them. Her eyes were on Din.
"Hello, Mando."
"Xi'an," Din said coldly.
"Tell me why I shouldn't cut you down where you stand?" Xi'an said, twirling a knife in her hand.
Artemis was not impressed.
"Because you'd be dead the second that knife leaves your hand," Artemis said, lowering her voice and glaring at the Twi'lek.
Xi'an looked at her and raised an unimpressed eyebrow.
"And who's this?" she questioned Din. "Am I that easily replaced?"
"The name's Rogue," Artemis said, straightening her back and feeling the Force around her, ready for any attack the Twi'lek might start.
It was as if Xi'an could feel the Force shift around her and she turned back to Din.
"This is shiny," she said, prodding his armor with her knife. "You wear it well."
"Do we need the room or something?"
Artemis was never so happy to hear Mayfeld.
"Well, Xi'an's been a little heartbroken since Mando left our group," Ran explained.
"Aw. You gonna be okay, sweetheart?" Mayfeld asked mockingly.
"Oh, I'm all business now," Xi'an assured him. "Learned from the best," she added, pointing at Din.
"All right, lovebirds," Ran said, making Artemis shuffle in discomfort. "Break it up till you get on the shop. Right now we don't have much time."
Xi'an followed the others but not before giving Din a wink.
"Artie —" Din began, turning to Artemis. He had clearly felt her discomfort.
"It's Rogue," Artemis said shortly before following Xi'an to the ship, ignoring Din's stares in her back.
⋆⋆⋆
"SO, the package is being moved on a fortified transport ship," Mayfeld told them before turning on a hologram.
Artemis' eyes narrowed as she noticed it was a New Republic prison ship. She glared at Din. This was not what she had signed up for.
"Now, we got a limited window to board," Mayfeld continued, "find our friend, get him out of there before they make their jump."
"That's a New Republic prison ship," Din said, having understood the look Artemis was giving him. "Your man wasn't taken by a rival syndicate. He was arrested."
"So what?" Mayfeld questioned him, leaning onto the table.
"A job is a job," Ran said while Burg only grunted.
"That's a max security transport and we're not looking for that kinda heat," Din told them firmly.
"Well, neither are we," Ran said dryly. "So just don't mess up."
"The good news for you is the ship is manned by droids," Xi'an said, grinning up at Din. "Still hate the machines, Mando?"
Artemis took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down.
This is not the Jedi way, she reminded herself.
"Despite recent modification, the ship is still quite a mess," Zero informed them, as he walked down the hatch. "The power lines are leaking, the navigation is intermittent, and the hyperdrive is only operating at 67.3 procent efficiency. We have much better ships. Why are we using this one?" he questioned Ran.
"Because the Razor Crest is off the old Imperial and the New Republic grid," Ran said. "It's a ghost."
"Yeah, and we need a ship that can get close enough to jam New Republic code," Mayfeld added. "So, when we drop out of hyperspace here, if we immediately bank into this kinda attitude, we should be right in their blind spot, which will give us just enough time for your ship to scramble our signal."
"It's not possible," Din said. "Even for the Crest."
"That's why he's flying," Ran said, nodding at the droid.
Mayfeld laughed while Artemis just frowned. She knew Din would never allow a droid to fly his ship.
"Mando, I know you're a pretty good pilot," Ran said, "but we need you on the trigger. Not on the wheel."
"Don't worry, Mandalorian," Zero said. "My repsonse time is quicker than organics. And I'm smarter, too."
"All right. I — yeah. That's good," Ran said, patting Zero on the shoulder. Zero turned around and headed back to the ship.
"Forge the programming," Ran added. "He's a little rough around the edges. But he is the best."
"How can you trust it?" Din questioned him, gesturing at the droid.
"You know me, Mando, I don't trust anybody."
Artemis walked the hatch up into the ship, Din following close behind.
"Just like the good old days, Mando. Huh?" Ran called after them.
Din turned around to look at him before closing the hatch.
⋆⋆⋆
ARTEMIS was sitting next to Mayfeld onto the ground. Out of all of them, she liked him the most — of disliked him the least.
He was humming a song and she tapped the ground with her foot on the rhythm. He started humming louder as he noticed her and she smiled.
"You know, I kind of like you, Lady Rogue," he said, giving her a friendly smile.
"I don't," Xi'an grunted
"No one asked for your opinion, sweetheart," Mayfeld said flatly before turning to look at Artemis again. "You sure you don't want to take that hood off?"
Artemis smiled. "I'm sure."
Xi'an huffed and turned her back to them. She took a knife and started to balance it on her finger.
Burg is pacing the main area, making Xi'an hiss.
"Will you sit down?"
"Are they always like this?" Artemis asked Mayfeld quietly so that the others wouldn't hear it.
"Most of the time," he replied. "You'll get used to it."
Artemis watched Burg open the the gun cabinet and she stood up.
"Stop touching things."
Burg grunted but ignored her. It wasn't until Din came down the ladder and closed the cabin, that he averted his attention off of it to the buttons that would open the kid's compartment. Artemis froze, her hands on her blaster.
"Hey, hey, hey," Mayfeld said, standing up, too, and placing a hand on her arm but his eyes were on Din and Burg. "Okay. Okay. Okay, I get it. I'm a little particular about my personal space, too. So, let's just do this job. We get in, we get out, and you don't have to see our faces anymore."
"Someone tell me why we even need a Mandalorian," Burg grunted.
"Well, apparently they're the greatest warriors in the galaxy," Mayfeld said. "So they say."
"Then why are they all dead?"
Artemis had never felt such an urge to strangle someone. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes and tried to not Force chocke the Devaronian Burg.
"Well, you flew with him, Xi'an," Mayfeld said, looking at the Twi'lek. "Is he as good as they say?"
"Ask him about the job on Alzoc III," was all Xi'an said.
Artemis felt Din freeze.
"I did what I had to do," he replied stiffly.
"Oh, but you liked it," Xi'an said, grinning. "See, I know who you really are. Probably even better than she does," she added, nodding at Artemis.
"He never takes off the helmet?" Mayfeld questioned Xi'an.
Xi'an chuckled and shook her head. "This is the Way," she mocked.
"Huh," Mayfeld said, turning back to look at Din. "I wonder what you look like under there. Maybe he's a Gungan. Is that why yousa don't wanna show your face?"
The others laughed and Artemis moved closer to Din, touching the back of his glove in comfort.
"You ever seen his face?" Mayfeld questioned Xi'an.
She gasped softly. "A lady never tells."
"How about you, Rogue?" Mayfeld questioned the red head. "You two seem pretty close."
"As Xi'an said; a lady never tells."
Artemis smiled upon seeing the look Xi'an gave her and she could tell Din was amused by her reply.
"Aw. Come on, Mando," Mayfeld said. "We all gotta trust each other here. You gotta show us something."
"Come on," Burg said. "Just lift the helmet up. Come on."
Artemis moved protectively in front of Din, holding out her hands, ready to use the Force whenever she needed to.
"Let's all see your eyes," Mayfeld added before nodding at Burg.
"I'll do it," he said, but before he could raise a hand, Artemis used the Force to throw him back. His hand touched the keyboard of the kid's compartment and the door slid open, revealing Grogu.
"Whoa! What's that?" Mayfeld exclaimed, eying both Artemis and Din. "You get lonely up here, buddy? Huh?"
"Wait a minute," Mayfeld said. "Did you two make that? Huh?" He gestured between Din and Xi'an. "What is it, like a pet or something?" he asked Din.
"Yeah," Din said. "Something like that."
Mayfeld extended his hand but Artemis stopped him.
"Lay one hand on him and it will be the last time you have hands," Artemis said dangerously low, making everyone in the room freeze. Artemis knew she could be terrifying if she wanted to be. Normally, that would be a bad thing, but now even the Twi'lek seemed to take her threat seriously.
The red head moved swiftly towards the compartment and closed the door again, wanting to keep the kid out of reach from the others. She didn't trust them one bit.
"Dropping out of hyperspace, now," Zero's voice came and immediately after that, the ship jerked and Artemis lost her balance, but Din was there to catch her. His arm made his way around her waist and he held her close to him as his other hand tried to steady the two of them.
"Commencing final approach, now."
Artemis' arms went around Din's waist.
"Cloaking signal, now."
Din and Artemis fell onto the ground.
"Engaging coupling now."
Artemis pushed herself up and quickly checked on the kid, who seemed to be doing okay. She closed the door once more before glancing towards the others.
"Coupling confirmed. We are down. And relax. Commence extraction now."
"Useless droid didn't even give us a proper countdown," Xi'an hissed and Artemis couldn't help but to agree.
"Z, are you sure they can't see us?" Mayfeld questioned Zero through the comlink.
"The Razor Crest is scrambling our signature and I am inside the prison system. It's impressive that this gunship has survived the Empire without being impounded."
"All right," Mayfeld began, "we've got a job to do. Mando, you're up."
Din kneeled down to open the hatch while Artemis eyed the others. She could feel something was bound to be happening.
Din bypassed the hatch and it opened. They all looked at Mayfeld.
"It's me?" he asked.
"It's always you," Burg confirmed.
Artemis looked down into the prisoner ship and wondered what things were awaiting them.
Word count: 2748
Another chapter done! We're getting closer and closer to the end of season one but don't worry! There is still a lot that has to happen! :)
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it and tell me what you think of it!
Published: 05.03.2021