STILL
"MORALS"
THE GROUP walked single file down the hallways of the ship with Mayfield in front and Burg in back. Natalia held her blaster tightly in her right hand, her left resting on the satchel the child sat in. The group had moved quickly passed the number of cells, earning looks and growls from the prisoners on the inside each and every one of them.
"I don't like this." The Mandalorian finally broke the silence surrounding them.
"You always were paranoid." Xi'an commented.
"Is that true Mando?" Mayfield asked. "Were you always paranoid?"
One of the prisoners beside Natalia let out a screech as it banged on it's cell door, causing her and everyone else to jump. Mayfield aimed his blaster at the cell, slowly lowering it once seeing there was no real danger as X'ian hissed at the prisoner. A small whimper caught Natalia's ears and she placed her finger inside of the small opening in the satchel, allowing the child to grab onto it.
"Approaching control room. Make a left at the next juncture." Thr droid, Zero, said through the coms.
Mayfield peeked around the corner before giving the all clear for them to follow. Burg was the first to step into the hallway followed by everyone else. The group made their way down the hallway with Burg and Mayfield now switching places. Natalia was growing impatient. She couldn't initiate her plan to destroy their plan until the security droids showed up as her distraction.
A small beeping caught Natalia's attention and she looked ahead of them to see a tiny little mouse droid rolling their way. Everyone in the group instantly went on alert, all of them raising their blasters at the tiny droid before realizing it couldn't do anything to harm them.
"What?" Burg laughed. "It's just a little mousey." Natalia rolled her eyes as she watched Burg pull out his blaster and hide it behind his back as he reached towards the droid with his free hand. "Come here, little mousey."
"Burg." Mayfield said as the droid backed away.
"Come here. Come here."
"Burg." Mayfield repeated, his voice now taking a stern turn.
The droid rolled back the way it had come at a fast speed as Burg stood up. Natalia felt the child's fingers tighten around her own as Burg shot the droid down. "What was the point of that?" Natalia asked with a small glare.
"No! Burg, what are you doing?" Mayfield asked.
"What?" Burg asked as he put his blaster away.
A smile began to form on Natalia's face as the familar clank of the security droids boomed throughout the hallway. "Intruder alert." The droids declared as Natalia began to walk their way. The droids wouldn't shoot at her, she's in their records. "Open fire."
"What are you doing?!" The Mandalorian yelled as Natalia approached the droids that were now firing upon the group.
"The blind things don't even see her!" Mayfield laughed. "Shoot em down, lady!"
Natalia folded her arms over her chest as she watched the group scramble for cover. "No, I don't think I will." Natalia declared.
"What?!" Mayfield asked.
"I knew she couldn't be trusted!" X'ian yelled.
"Have fun in prison." Natalia said before walking towards the ship's control room.
Once she rounded the corner Natalia opened the satchel and pulled the child out, holding it in her arms. The child let out a small coo as they reached the control room door. "Don't worry, kid." Natalia said as she opened the door and walked through. "We're safe."
"Stop!" Natalia looked up from the child to see a man standing there with his blaster drawn to her. "Stop right there." He ordered.
Confusion began to envelop Natalia as she stared at him. "I thought there were no life forms on this ship?"
"Put down the blaster right now."
"Relax." Natalia said as she placed her blaster back in it's holster before her hand up in surrender. "I'm not going to hurt you."
"You...What?" The man asked, confusion forming on his face.
"There's people on this ship trying to break one of the criminals free." Natalia warned. "Did you send out a distress signal?"
"W-who are you?" The man asked.
"My name is Natalia Kryze and I'm not your enemy."
"Natalia...Wait a second, y-you're that General." The man said as he lowered his blaster and placed it in his holster.
"I am." Natalia said with a nod.
"What are you doing out here?" He asked.
"It's a long story and one we don't have time for." Natalia said as she walked over to the control panel. "We need to get this door as well as the cells sealed."
"I can do that." The man said with a nod.
"We're going to suck the intruders into space."
"What about the ship?" The man asked.
"Leave that to me."
"You won't be doing anything, little lady."
Natalia spun around to see the four now standing behind her and the man with their blasters drawn. Natalia hugged the child closer to her chest, pulling her blaster out in her other hand. The man jumped up from the chair he had sat back down into and pulled out his own blaster.
"You brought the child?" The Mandalorian questioned, obviously angry with Natalia's decision.
"Put down the blasters." Natalia ordered. "Now."
Mayfield snickered, walking further into the room. "Nice shoes." He said as he pointed to the man's shoes. "Matches his belt."
"Put down your blasters." The man ordered as the group began to circle them.
Natalia sent a warning look at the Mandalorian as he stood in front of her, his blaster aimed directly at her face. The others all snickered as the man switched his aim between them, he was scared it was showing. But Natalia was calm, her hand was steady and her aim remained on one target, the Mandalorian.
"There were only supposed to be droids on this ship." The Mandalorian said.
"Hang on, hang on. Let's see here." Natalia turned her head to see Mayfield at the screen with the criminals and their cell numbers. "Cell two-two-one." Mayfield looked away from the screen, his blaster now aimed at the man beside Natalia. "Alright, now for our well dressed friend and the lady."
The man pulled out the distress signal from his belt and held it up in the air. But Natalia learned enough from these people in the few hours she'd been with them to know that it won't faze them that much. It'll just push them to move faster.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Hey, hey. Easy, egghead." Mayfield said as he held his hand out. "Put that down. Put that down. Come on."
Natalia held her hand out to the man. "Give it to me." Natalia said. If she had it the aim would switch from him to her and she guessed it would probably calm him down a slight bit if the aim was taken away from him at least for a little while.
The man nodded his head and handed the device over to Natalia. Natalia held the device tightly in her hand, sending a smug smirk over to Mayfield. "Put it down now!" He yelled as he aimed his blasters at Natalia. The child whimpered and placed it's head in the crook of Natalia's neck.
"Easy!" The Mandalorian yelled though Natalia couldn't tell who it was aimed at. She turned to face the Mandalorian once more as she rubbed the child's back softly to ease it's nerves. "Nobody has to get hurt here. Just calm down."
"What is that thing?" Burg asked, confusion evident on his face.
"It's a tracking beacon." The Mandalorian said.
"She presses that thing, we're all done." Mayfield added. "A New Republic attack team will hone in on that signal and blow us all to hell. Put it down!"
"Are you serious?" X'ian asked as she glared at Mayfield.
"Yes, I'm serious." Mayfield confirmed.
"You didn't think we needed to know that tiny little detail?"
"I didn't think we'd get to this point!" Mayfield defended.
"Yet here we are." X'ian said.
"Are you questioning my managerial style, X'ian?" Mayfield asked, removing his aim from Natalia to face X'ian.
X'ian laughed saluting Mayfield with her knife. "No, sir."
"Just put it down, Natalia." The Mandalorian said.
"Or what?" Natalia scoffed. "Are you going to shoot me, Mando?"
"Listen to me, okay?" The Mandalorian pleaded. "Look." He said as he placed his blaster in it's holster.
"Are you crazy?" Mayfield asked as he stared at the Mandalorian.
"Put it down." The Mandalorian said. "I don't want to kill you. Either of you."
"You don't have the heart to kill me, Mando." Natalia stated.
"Just let us go about our way." The Mandalorian said as he took a step towards Natalia, causing her to aim her blaster at him once more.
"If I do that, I wouldn't be able to live with myself." Natalia said, a small glare forming on her face as she stared at the Mandalorian. "I did not fight for this just to dishonor it. I will not break my morals for you or your little friends."
"Screw this, let's just kill her already." Mayfield said as he pulled out his blaster and aimed it at Natalia.
"Hey!" The man yelled as he and the Mandalorian aimed their weapons at Mayfield.
"You realize what you're gonna bring down on us?" The Mandalorian asked as Mayfield took out his other blaster and aimed it at the Mandalorian.
"Think I care about that?" Mayfield asked.
"We're not killing anybody. You understand?" The Mandalorian spoke sternly.
"Get that blaster out of my face, Mando." Mayfield demanded.
"I can't do that." The Mandalorian stated.
"Get that blaster out of my face, Mando!" Mayfield yelled.
Natalia raised her left eyebrow before pressing the button, sending out the signal. Burg let out a growl and aimed his blaster at Natalia only for the Mandalorian to aim his wrist at Burg. An amused look formed on Natalia's face as she stared at the scene before her.
"Don't." The Mandalorian warned.
A sharp pain suddenly found home in Natalia's lower abdomen. A shaky breath fell past Natalia's lips as her face twisted in pain. She stumbled slightly, her blaster and the tracking beacon slipping from her hand and falling to the ground.
"General?"
Natalia slowly looked down to see a knife implanted in her flesh and blood beginning to seep through her clothing. When she looked up again she was met with the black of the Mandalorian's helmet. Nobody had made a move since the knife had been thrown, they all just stared at her in shock.
"Would you both just shut up?" X'ian asked as she stood up from where she was sitting.
The child whimpered in Natalia's arms, tugging on the strand of her hair that had fallen from it's braid. Natalia tried to take a step towards the Mandalorian words forming on the tip of her tongue but failing to come out as she stumbled once more, a groan slipping past her lips as she did.
"Crazy Twi." Mayfield muttered. "I had it under contol."
The Mandalorian suddenly rushed towards Natalia, finally coming to his senses. He took the child from her hands and held it in one of his own before wrapping the other tightly around as she collapsed into him. "Natalia?"