I woke to a beeping going off, so did everyone else. I rubbed my eyes and looked down at the Child in my lap. He looked up at me and gurgled. I smiled and looked back up at the window to spot a blue planet in front of us.
"Looks like we made it. Get ready for landing." Mando told us.
Mando hit one of the consuls."Dank farrik! The landing array isn't responding."
"And what does that mean?" I asked, worriedly.
"Without the guidance system, it'll be a manual re-entry. It might get choppy. Once we're through the atmosphere, there should be enough fuel to slow down."
"If we don't burn to a crisp." He mumbled.
I sighed. "Great."
As Mando started entering the atmosphere the outside of the ship caught fire. My eyes widened as I watched the terrifying yet beautiful sight outside.
"Come up here. I need your hands! Mara keep ahold of the Child!"
The Frog Lady set her eggs down and came over to Mando.
"This lever needs to stay back. Can you do that?"
She grunts in agreement and grabs ahold of the lever. She glances back at her eggs as the ship shakes.
"I got them." I tell her.
"Keep it steady. Here we go."
"Razor Crest, this is Trask flight control." Someone said over the coms. "Please reduce your speed to port protocol."
"I'm trying my best here. Engage reverse thrusters. Brace!"
I hold onto the child and eggs with my good arm.
"Hold on."
"What do you think I'm doing!" I yelled at him as the ground got closer.
"Razor Crest, do you copy? You have to reduce speed."
"Almost there, almost there." I couldn't tell if he was reassuring us or himself.
"Razor Crest, do you copy? Razor Crest, you're coming in too fast. You have to re-" Mando shut off the com.
He started to land the ship as we got closer. "Here we go. Nice and easy."
Then suddenly one of the engines explodes sending us falling into the sea. We sink lower and lower.
"Mando!" I yell, freaking out.
"Calm down, verd'ika." He says just as a crane attaches to the outside of the ship, lifting us out of the water.
It sets us down on the landing port and I sigh in relief and sink into my chair.
"Can we have one day where we don't almost die?" I say exasperated.
~🌗~
A dock worker walks up to us as we exited the Crest. "So, how can I help you?"
"Can you fix it?" Mando asks.
"Fix it? Nah. But I can make it fly." The worker answered.
"Do what you can." Mando handed him some credits.
"I'll fuel it up. If it still holds fuel."
I stick close to Mando as we walk through the streets. The frog lady looks around urgently through the crowds. She calls out multiple times for someone, her husband I think.
Then someone answers her. We all look over to see another frog person running over to us. The two frogs run embrace each other.
"Aww." I smile.
The Child whines as he watches the eggs.
"I know you're hungry." Mando says. "We'll get you something to eat."
The husband steps over to Mando and shakes his hand.
"You're welcome. I was told you could lead me to others of my kind."
The husband nods and points to an inn across the way.
"The inn? Over there?"
The frog Lady stands the starts walking off with her husband, leading us to the inn.
We walk inside and the husband waves to someone before directing us to him. The Frog Lady hugs me as a thank you.
"Thank you." Mando tells them.
"Have a seat over there." The man tells us.
Mando places a hand on the small of my back and guides me over to the table. I sit down next to the Child, his pram in between me and Mando.
"What can I get you?" The man asks.
"Nothing for me. Two bowls of chowder for my friends." Mando says.
"These seats are scarce, buddy. Everyone seated needs to eat."
"I can buy something else. Information." Mando slides over some credits. "Have you seen others that look like me?"
The man looks around before filling up two bowls and pushing them to me and the Child.
"Others with beskar have been through here."
"Who can take me to them?"
"I know someone who might help." He walks off to a different table.
I see something move in the Childs bowl and I watch intently. Suddenly a squid like creature leaps out and attaches to his face.
I gasp as Mando looks over.
"Don't play with your food." He says, stabbing the creature with his blade.
I push my bowl away from me. "I'm not hungry anymore."
A Quarren comes and sits down at the table. "You seek others of your kind?"
"Have you seen them?"
"Aye. I can bring you to them."
"Where?"
"Only a few hours' sail. It'll cost you, though."
I have a bad feeling about this.
~🌒~
I look out at the sea as I try not to throw up. Mando's flying doesn't make me sick but sailing dose. Just my luck.
"You ever see a mamacore eat?" The Quarren asks. "Quite a sight. The Children might take an interest."
"Im sixteen." I mutter.
"You should take a look. Come on over here." We walk over to the large pit in the middle of the ship. "Get a good view. Let the kids see."
"All right, close enough." Mando sets his arm in front of me and pram.
"There we go." The Quarren pushes a net of fish over the pit as it opens. "She must be hungry. Oftentimes we'll feed her in the early morning, but we missed that 'cause we were goin' out of port!"
Suddenly the Quarren pushes me and the Pram into the water. The Child just had enough time to close the Pram before the creature came up and swallowed it. I was lucky it missed me but with only one working arm and not being a very strong swimmer I sunk.
"No!" Mando yelled.
"D-" My head fell beneath the water.
I watched the light above me grow dimmer and dimmer as I sunk. My lungs burned for air. I struggled in the water trying to get back to the surface, but I only sunk deeper. I felt my body go weak as I started to fall unconscious. My vision went blurry.
'Please let Mando and the Child be ok.'
Then I felt someone grab me and pull me up. As soon as my face broke surface I gasped for air.
I collapsed onto the ground and coughed out the water in my lungs. I felt two gloved hands wrap around me and pull me close. I recognized the cold and shiny armor and wrapped my arms tightly around him. The Child snuggled into my chest as Mando held us close.
"Thank you." He breathed. "I've been searching for more of our kind."
I glanced over to see three Mandalorians standing before us. Adorn in blue armor.
"Well, lucky we found you first." One of the Lady Mandalorians said.
"I've been quested to deliver these Children. I was hoping that-" Mando's voice died when all three of them removed there helmets.
Mando tightened his grip and stood up. I could feel how tense he was.
"Where did you get that armor?" He growled.
"This armor has been in my family for three generations." The redhead said.
"You do not cover your face. You are not Mandalorian."
"He's one of them." The man said.
"Dank farrik." The other girl cursed.
"One of what?"
"I am Bo-Katan of Clan Kryze. I was born on Mandalore and fought in the Purge. I am the last of my line." She paused. "And you are a Child of the Watch."
"The Watch?"
"Children of the Watch are a cult of religious zealots that broke away from Mandalorian society. Their goal was to re-establish the ancient way." She glanced down at me and the Child. I felt Mando tighten his grip even more.
"There is only one way. The Way of the Mandalore." Mando growled.
He walked over to the edge of the boat and activated his jetpack. Flying us back to town.
~🌑~
I shivered as I walked behind Mando. My clothes were soaked and the cold night air froze me to the bone. My shoulder hurt even more now. Mando had given me his cape to use as a new sling. I could tell Mando was still tense. I walked a little closer to him, hoping to provide some sort of comfort.
"Hey! You..." Quarren surrounded us. "You killed my brother."
I grabbed my Crystal and Pendant shuffling closer to Mando's side.
"Let me pass." He growled.
The Quarren chuckled. "I don't you think you understand. You killed my brother and now I'm gonna kill your pets."
I gripped my necklace tighter. Mando moved his hand to his blaster.
Then three Mandalorians descended from the sky out of no where. I couldn't have been more happy to see them.
"He didn't kill your brother. I did." Bo-Katan said.
I ducked behind Mando as they all opened fire. Only peeking out once it stopped, seconds later.
"Can we at least buy you a drink?"
~🌑~
We now all sat back in the inn. I actually ate the warm chowder. I could feel it slowly warming my body back to its normal temperature. Thankfully mine had no squid creature in it.
"Trask is a black market port. They're staging weapons that have been bought and sold with the plunders of our planet. We're seizing those weapons and using them to retake our home world." Bo told Mando.
"Mandalor?" I ask.
Bo nodded before she continued. "Once we've done that, we'll seat a new Mandalore on the throne."
"That planet is cursed." Mando argued. "Anyone who goes there dies. Once the Empire knew they couldn't control it, they made sure no one else could either."
"Don't believe everything you hear. Our enemies wanna separate us. But Mandalorians are stronger together."
"That's not part of my plan." Mando gestured to me and the Child. "I've been quested with returning these children to the Jedi."
"What do you know of the Jedi?"
"Nothing. I was hoping you would help me by Creed."
She looked at the other Mandalorians before answering. "I can lead you to one of their kind. But first, we need your help on our mission."
"Mission?" Mando tilted his head.
Great another side quest....
~🌘~
Mando knocked on the Frog Lady's Door.
"Something's come up. Can I leave them with you for a bit?"
She welcomed us inside and Mando handed the Child to her.
"You are gonna stay here, so I want you to be respectful. And mind your manners." He looked down at the Child. "You know what I'm talking about."
"I'll keep an eye on him but, why can't I come?"
"Because it's dangerous and you're still recovering." He pointed at my arm in the sling.
He looked back at the Frog Lady. "I'll be back for them."
The Frog Lady guided me over to the table where the Eggs sat. I sat next to her and watched in awe as one hatched.
~🌗~
I giggled as I watched the Child play with the new baby frog. The more I watched the more I noticed how similar they looked.
My heart broke a little. We were so close to finding the Jedi, but what would happen to us? Would me and the Child be separated.
Then it hit me.
We would be leaving Mando. The man I have come to see as a Father figure in my life. And it broke my heart.
Again my family would be ripped away from me, and for what?
The door sliding open brought me out of my thoughts as Mando walked in.
"Thank you for watching them."
"Okay, kid. Come on. It's time to go." He picked up the Child, who didn't want to leave. "Let go. Come on, kid." He glanced at me. "Let's go verd'ika."
"Congratulations." I smiled at the two Frogs before following Mando.
The Child whined and made grabby hands at the new born frogs. "No, I have enough pets."
"You did not just call me a pet, Tin Head." I glared at him.
Mando chuckled as we walked back to the ship.
~🌕~
I stood next to Mando as we stared at the Crest. It was literally just held together with seaweed. "I gave you a thousand credits, this was the best you could do?"
We walked into the crest and I plugged my nose. "It smells like rotten fish."
Mando sat in his chair and sighed. "Mon Calamari. Unbelievable."
I sat down in my seat with the Child in my lap as the ship started. I felt my body get jolted around from the amount of shaking the ship did.
While trying to keep my food down I didn't notice the creature inching toward the Child until Mando grabbed it.
"I finally know where I'm taking you. But it's gonna be a bumpy ride." Mando turned back to us as the Child just finished eating the creature.
"I can't believe you let him eat that." I gagged.
But then Mando's words hit me. The time to leave him just became even closer and I didn't know if I would be able to.
——————————————•—————————————
AN: I hope you enjoyed this chapter! We are over half way through season 2!
Wc: 2259
Thank you for reading!
K out!