CHAPTER 30.| FALSE PREVENTION
Cold hands.
____
The team entered the ship, careful of the droids. Their weapons are drawn and ready for anything that comes in their way.
Arsyn adjusted the scarf a bit after placing it back on, keeping her hand on the hilt of the sword. She didn't know if it was the right idea to even be using them but at the moment she couldn't care less.
Zero—who remained inside the crest was their eyes throughout the job. Giving them the all clear to approach the control room.
"All right, we're on the clock.When we engage those droids, they're gonna be all over us." Mayfeld explains taking the lead.
"I know the drill." Din began walking off in the front, the place was bright; all white walls and lights. Arsyn remained in the back of the squad keeping eyes in the back in case of anything.
"I don't like this." Din commented, taking a look at the bright place, where prisoners reached out towards them.
"You always were paranoid." Xi'an recalled. Arsyn rolled her eyes getting annoyed of having to hear their memories.
"Is that true, Mando? Were you always paranoid?" Mayfeld mocks Xi'an, feeling the exact way Arsyn felt.
The further they walked the more criminals they crossed that groaned and banged on the cell doors. As much as she tried to maintain her curiosity she couldn't help but glance at a few.
She saw Din fall behind his step reaching her spot. He stopped her from getting any further. "We're here to do a mission, Din. Not talk" She was about to move but he hauled her back
"It wasn't my intention, I didn't think she would be here." Din tried to reason.
"Then why do you let her do the things she's doing? Maybe you don't see it but I do." Arsyn couldn't look at him and when she did her eyes would sparkle trying to fight everything. Her emotions were eating at her, and her powers felt like they were in override.
"I don't care about her, I care about you." Arsyn sighed "I get that you two were close and whatever, and I have no right to be acting the way I am. It's just that— I can't deal with it."
"Nothing happened. I will always choose you." Their conversation was cut short as the sound of blast came from beyond the corner.
They made their way seeing tiny bits of a monitor droid destroyed. It didn't take long for the group of droids to round out the corner making everyone take cover.
Din tugged her around the corridors taking the chance to sneak behind the droids, Arsyn watched him go first having a clear visual of the rest of the group.
She pulled out the yellow sword and raced towards the droids cutting off their heads with one movement, she blocked the blast with her sword, and pulled out her original one.
The trio watched as they dismantled the droids as if they were nothing. Arsyn fought gracefully and Din fought ruthlessly.
Din took out the last one with his grappling hook and blasted its head off. The duo stood back- to -back, the floor covered in parts showing their destruction.
Arsyn glared at the trio giving them a glimpse of what she was capable of doing without her powers. Mayfeld was the first to walk by "Make sure you clean up your mess."
Burg grunts shoving past but not without bumping into Din's shoulder. Arsyn twirled her swords angrily shoving them back into their sheath staring at the back of their heads feeling her eyes change.
As she was about to follow Din caught her wrist "You need to calm down."
"When they stop pissing me off, then I will." She pulled back following in step with the others."It seems your presence has been detected. Redirecting security alert away from your position." Zero informed the team, who approached the door only for zero to explain there was a presence beyond the door.
Mayfeld ignored the information and told him to open the door anyway. Zero follows his orders. The door hissed opened revealing a New Republic soldier manning the control room alone. The man raised from his seat pulling a blaster out aiming it at Mayfeld.
"Stop!" They all paused, seeing a warm body instead of a droid "Just stop right there." He stutters in fear seeing all of them against him, Arsyn removed her hand from her sword.It wouldn't be fair, five against one.
"You put down the blasters right now." He showed his fear towards all of them, as they walked in causally making him try his best to follow their form as they did.
"There were only supposed to be droids on this ship." Din reminded him from the briefing back at the station. Arsyn stayed being the only one who didn't tease, he was just doing his job just like she was.
Mayfeld continued, searching for the place where their friend was locked up "Cell 2-2-1." Mayfeld announced. Then turned his attention towards the soldier "All right, now for our well-dressed friend." The soldier lifted up a small remote making everyone in the room freeze.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hey, hey. Easy. Put that down." Mayfeld tried to ease, but fear made people do things that could lead to much more controversy.
"Put it down now!" Mayfeld aims his blaster as Din raises his voice trying to stop the situation.
"Easy. Nobody has to get hurt here. Just calm down."
"What is that thing?" Burg asks confused about the fuse they were making.
"It's a tracking beacon." Arsyn answers slowly moving beside Din only for the blaster to turn towards her signifying her to back off.
"He presses that thing, we're all done. A New Republic attack team will hone in on that signal and blow us all to hell." Mayfeld elaborated.
"Are you serious?" Xi'an questioned, leaning forward in her seat.
"Yes, I'm serious."
"You didn't think we needed to know that tiny little detail?"
"I didn't think we'd get to this point."
"Yet here we are."
"Are you questioning my managerial style, Xi'an?" She chuckles and salutes "No, sir."
"Hey. Listen to me, okay? Look." Din motions for the attention of the soldier letting himself place his blaster away and raised up his hands."Put it down." He ordered Mayfeld.
"Are you crazy?"
"He said to put it down." Arsyn warned. "What's your name?" She asked gently seeing him point the blaster back, shaking slightly but enough to hear the blaster rattle by his fright.
"—It's Davan."
"Davan. We're not here for you. We're here for a prisoner.If you let us go about our job, you can walk away with your life." She kept her hands up, showing him that she wasn't his enemy.
"No, he won't." At that Mayfeld raises his blaster back to Davan, Din did the same only towards Mayfeld.
Arsyn pulled her regular blaster out pointing towards Mayfeld as well, she wasn't afraid to pull the trigger, in fact maybe if she did they would get his share.
"You realize what you're gonna bring down on us?" Din referred to the alliance that would come and aid the whole station.
"You think I care about that?"
"We're not killing anybody." Arsyn states getting tired that he would risk it for one person.
"Get those blasters out of my face" He wanted the duo "I can't do that." Din answers him moving slightly covering Arsyn.
"Get that blaster out of my face, Mando!" Burg growls aiming his own weapons to the back of Dins head, Arsyn pulls her sword it's yellow flame close to burgs neck "Don't" She gave her wanting revealing her red eyes letting Burg know that she was past the friendly stage.
A knife swings in impaling Davan and killing him. Arsyn stared at his body reluctantly lowering her sword. A rapid beeping came from Davan's hand where the white remote laid flashing red.
"Was that thing blinking before? Was it?"
"I've detected a New Republic distress signal homing in on your location. You have approximately 20 minutes." Zero informs the group, they were coming, they were coming for all of them.
Everyone walks out leaving Din and Arsyn to stare down at the body. She leaned down and grasped Davan's still warm hand.
"Go. I'll catch up" She told Din hearing his hesitant steps. Arsyn stared at the remote signal and took it.