Once we were at the Tusken Raiders' campfire, the child sat under Din's legs, while Delmira sat next to Din and me one of the logs. One of the Tusken Raiders broke a black melon before handing it to Cobb. He looked down at it rather baffled. He took a whiff of it and immediately grimaced.
"What am I suppose to do with this?" Cobb inquired.
"You drink it." Din mentioned.
"It stinks." Cobb retorted.
"Do you want their help?" Din asked.
"Not if I have to drink this." Cobb shot back.
One of the Tusken Raiders grew angry, raising his voice as he spoke. Din immediately translated for us. "He says your people steal their water and now you insult them by not drinking it. They know about Mos Pelgo. They know how many Sand People you killed."
"They raided our village. I defended the town." Cobb argued, raising his voice.
"Lower your voice." Din advised.
Cobb threw the black melon into the fire. "I knew this was a bad idea."
"Your agitating them." Din warned.
One of the Tusken Raiders shot up from his log. Cobb also stood up, glaring at him. I grimaced. This isn't good at all. Cobb shouted at them. "These monsters can't be reasoned with. Sit back down before I put a hole through ya!"
As they argued, Din shot up, using his flamethrower to silence the both of them, which worked. Din then spoke in Tusken, calming down the Tusken Raiders with his words. Cobb furrowed his brows. "What are you telling them?"
"Same thing, I'm telling you. If we fight amongst ourselves, the monster will kill us all." Din argued.
"Mando's right. Together we can take it down. So we might as well set our differences aside." I chimed in.
"Now how do we kill it?" Din asked as he moved his hands for the Tusken Raiders to understand.
•••
The next morning, the Tusken Raiders allowed Din, Kaytia, Cobb, and me to ride on their Banthas. They took us to the lair of the Krayt dragon. While Cobb, Delmira, the child, the Tusken Raiders, Din, and I remained at a safe distance from the lair, they sent out a Tusken Raider with a Bantha towards the lair. Din and I watched from the cliff with on with our macrobinoculars. One of the Tusken Raiders spoke up, explaining what was happening.
"They say it lives in there. They say it sleeps. It lives in an abandoned sarlacc pit." Din translated.
Cobb scoffed. "Lived on Tatooine my whole life. There's no such thing as an abandoned sarlacc pit."
"Well, there is if you eat the sarlacc." I pointed out.
"They're laying out a bantha to protect the settlement. They studied its digestion cycle for generations. They feed the dragon to make it sleep longer. Watch, the dragon will appear." Din mentioned.
The Tusken Raider let out a scream. In a matter of seconds, we heard growling coming from within the pit. I could feel the vibrations of the dragon as it charged towards the Tusken Raider that tried to run away. In a heartbeat, the dragon ate the Tusken Raider. Kaytia gasped, while the child whimpered, hiding behind a rock, getting terrified. The Tusken Raiders were also baffled, taken back that it ate one of their own instead of the bantha.
"They might be open to some fresh ideas." Din commented.
With this in mind, we returned to the nearest canyon, to come up with a plan. The Tusken Raiders surrounded some bones, which they used as a scale for the Krayt dragon. Next to the bones were small rocks, which no doubt represented us. While the Tusken Raiders, Cobb, Din, and I were around the bones, thinking of a plan, the child and Delmira were playing around not far from us, laughing and giggling. I couldn't help but smile. Kaytia had gone through a lot, more than most girls her age. I wished she didn't go through any of that, but unfortunately I couldn't control that. What I can do is change her future, to make it better than mine. As the Tusken Raiders spoke amongst each other, Cobb spoke up, eyeing the bones. "What are the bones?"
"That's the Krayt Dragon." I stated.
"And those little rocks?" Cobb inquired.
"That's us." Din said.
"It's not to scale." Cobb protested.
Din nodded. "I think it is."
"Can't be. That's too big." Cobb retorted.
Din then spoke to one of the Tusken Raiders, who gave him a nod. Din then turned back to face us. "It's to scale."
"I've only seen its head and neck. It's bigger than I guessed. Might be time to rethink our arrangement." Cobb suggested.
Din spoke again to the Tusken Raiders. One of them nodded before placing more small rocks around the bones. I furrowed my brows. Where were we getting more reinforcements from though?
"That's more I like it." Cobb mentioned. "Where are they getting the reinforcements?"
"I volunteered your village." Din informed us.
Cobb's eyes widened at once. I was baffled by his words as well. How in the blazes would we get the Tusken Raiders and the townspeople to work together? Cobb, Kaytia, the child, Din, and I made our way back to the town on our speeders to inform the people of what was to come. Once we returned to Mos Pelgo, we left our speeders outside the cantina.
"They attacked us less than a year ago. Killed half a dozen by the mining camp. I'd say we took down about twice as many Tuskens." Cobb mentioned.
"The town respects you. My guess is, they'll listen to reason." Din commented.
Cobb hesitated. "I wouldn't be so sure."
Once Cobb gathered all his people of the town in the cantina, Cobb got their attention. "This here is a Mandalorian. You know what that means?"
"We've heard the stories." The Weequay bartender spoke up.
"Then you know how good they are at killing." Cobb mentioned. "Now, this one's got a problem. I got a suit o' salvaged armor and the Mandalorian creed says it's his to take."
At his words, the people murmured and whispered amongst each other.
Cobb broke up their side conversations, returning to the matter at hand. "But I've got a problem too. A Krayt dragon has been peeling off our pack animals, and sometimes, taking our mining haul with it. It's just a matter of time before it grows tired of banthas and goes after a couple of you townsfolk or even, so help us, the school."
The people gasped, shaking their heads. Cobb then continued. "As much as I've grown fond of the armor, I'm even more fond of this town. The Mandalorian is willing to help us slay the leviathan along with his friend, a bounty hunter, in exchange for returning the armor to its ancestral owners."
"Well, that settles it." The Weequay bartender confirmed.
"There's more." Cobb warned. "We can't take on the Krayt dragon alone. And the Sand People are willing to help."
This didn't seem to happy about that. They all began to protest, shouting out as their anger rose at once. I grimaced. This was what I was afraid of.
"They raided our mines!" One of them shouted.
"They're monsters!" The Weequay bartender snapped.
Din: I've seen the size of that thing it will swallow your entire town when the fancy hits it. You're lucky Mos Pelgo isn't a sand field already. I know these people. They are brutal. But so is the Dune Sea. They've survived for thousands of years in these sands and they know the Krayt dragon before anyone here. They are raiders, it's true. But they also keep their word. We have struck a deal. If we are willing to leave them the carcass and its ichor, they will stand by our side in battle and vow never to raise a blaster against this town until one of you breaks the peace.
Reluctantly, the townspeople agreed. Once the townspeople left the cantina, I turned towards Din, wearing a smile. "You know, you're quite the leader."
He tilted his head. I could tell he was confused. I placed a hand on his shoulder as I continued. "You are a good leader. You're pretty good at speeches."
I then sensed his emotions change, turning into shyness and embarrassment. He stammered out. "...Thanks."
I raised an eyebrow, very amused. "Are you blushing?"
And Din replied very quickly. "No..."
I couldn't but chuckle. "Right, sure thing."
As we stood outside, waiting for the Tusken Raiders, as they assembled their explosives and munitions. Cobb looked nervous. "Think it'll work?"
"It better. Joining forces is their only hope." Din mentioned.
At that moment, we saw the Tusken Raiders coming riding on their banthas in a long line. Once they arrived, the Tusken Raiders helped pack the explosives. As they helped out, one of the Tusken Raiders accidentally dropped one of the explosives. Immediately, one of the townspeople grew angry, making his way towards the Tusken Raider.
"Hey! What are you doin'? That's an explosive!" He snapped. "Are you trying to blow the whole place up?"
Immediately, Cobb approached them, standing in between them. He placed a hand on the man's shoulder. "Take it easy. It was an accident, okay?"
I walked over towards them to help out Cobb. I stood right beside Cobb as I looked back and forth between the Tusken Raider and the man as they argued against one another. "Hey, the both of you listen to me! Instead of bickering against one another for something small, we should focus on the bigger matter at hand like taking down the dragon. We're all on the same side, all right?"
Fortunately, both of the men managed to calm down. Once they backed down, Cobb and I returned towards Din, Cobb released a heavy sigh. "It's gonna be great."
Once all the explosives were packed and placed on the banthas, we moved out, making our way to the Krayt dragon's lair. Once we arrived at the empty sarlacc pit, we all stayed behind at a safe distance, while one of the Tusken Raiders went on ahead to check the pit. He knelt down, placing a hand on the sand. He then turned towards us, using sign language to communicate with Din and with the other Tusken Raiders. I furrowed my brows. "What did he say?"
"He says it's sleeping. If we listen carefully, we can hear it breathing." Din translated.
One of the Tusken Raiders then handed Cobb and me black melons. I grimaced, but nevertheless, I took the melon. Cobb grabbed the other one, fighting back the urge to spit it out as he drank it. I took a deep breath before chugging the entire melon.
"Let's get to work." Din advised. "The Tuskens say the belly is the only weak spot, so we have to hit it from blow. First, we bury the charges at the opening of the cave. Then we wake it up."
"We'll have to get it angry enough to charge." I added. "Once it's far enough out and the belly is above the explosives..."
"You hit the detonator." Din said, finishing my sentence.
With that, the Tusken Raiders and the townspeople worked together, taking the explosives out and into the ground, where we buried them near the pit like Din mentioned. The Tusken Raiders then set up four ballistae near the pit. Once the task was done, a girl approached us with the detonator in her hand. "Here you go, Marshal."
"Thanks Jo. And you stay safe, huh." Cobb urged.
She gave him a smile along with a firm nod before walking off. Three Tusken Raiders then walked forth towards the pit to wake it up. As soon as they reached the Krayt dragon's pit, they shouted out. In a matter of seconds, the Krayt dragon let out a roar, waking up as the ground shook. The Tusken Raiders quickly ran towards us as the dragon emerged from its lair. Two of them managed to get in time, while the third one tripped, getting swallowed by the creature.
When the dragon struck, the Tusken Raiders fired, piercing the dragon's hide. But the creature began to retreat back into its dwelling. I grimaced.
"Dank farrik, it's going back in." Din said, getting frustrated.
I didn't blame him, I was getting frustrated myself. We then watched as the creature crawled back in, dragging the rope of the ballistae along with some of the Tusken Raiders with it. Several of the townspeople and the Tusken Raiders fired their blasters and hurled objects at the Krayt dragon, trying to lure it out.
"It's retreating." Kaytia pointed out.
"I'm going to hit it." Cobb said, glancing down at the detonator.
"No wait, we only have one shot. We gotta get it out." Din advised.
I clenched my fists. I've got to do something about this. I took out my lightsaber, looking down at it before glancing up at the creature. And I'm gonna help them out. I turned towards Kaytia. "Stay here with your father."
Before Kaytia could say anything, Din whipped around to face me. "Where are you going?"
"To help the Tusken Raiders and the townspeople. They need my help." I mentioned.
Din shook his head. "No, Delmira, stay here."
"I'm afraid I can't do that." I replied.
I then took out my lightsaber before running towards the Krayt dragon. I could hear Din continuing to shout my name, urging me to come back. "Delmira! Come back here, cyar'ika!"
I could hear the pain in his words. But I kept going, making my way towards the creature. Ani let out a bark as it ran beside me. I cracked a smile. No matter what happened, Ani would never leave my side. I ignited my lightsaber, revealing the purple blade. I could hear the gasps of the townspeople and Tusken Raiders around me. I swung my lightsaber, hitting the creature's hide. However, its thick hide deflected the blade, baffling me. The creature swung its mouth towards me trying to swallow me. I quickly got out of the way before raising my lightsaber, piercing one of the dragon's eyes. The Krayt dragon let out a cry of pain, but it wasn't giving in.
The creature grew furious as it rushed out, trying to get to me. I continued to back up as I kept my lightsaber pointed towards it. The Krayt dragon then spat out acidic venom. I quickly dodged out of the way, but the townspeople and the Tusken Raiders that were hit by the venom, they immediately dissolved as they let out screams. At that moment, the explosives went off, blowing up around the dragon. The creature let out a growl as it submerged into the sand before it was absolutely silent. Everyone looked around, confused, unsure if it was dead or still alive.
I knew it wasn't dead, I could still sense the Krayt dragon through the Force. Its anger grew immensely. All of the sudden, the ground shook before the dragon emerged on the top of the hill. The dragon roared as it spewed out its deadly venom. I rushed back with Ani by my side. We ran back towards Din, Kaytia, and Cobb, who all stood near the speeders, where the child safely sat.
"Are you all right?" Din asked.
I nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine."
Ani let out a snarl, which caused Din to immediately add. "And how about you, Ani?"
Ani let out a bark, informing him he was all right. If we weren't so worried about the creature, I would've let out a laugh. Din gave him a small pat before turning to look at the dragon.
"It's picking us off like womp rats." Cobb stated before he grabbed his pistol rifle from his speeder. "Let's get after it."
Din turned towards me. "This time stay here. We'll be back soon."
Knowing this time, I should remain behind, I nodded. "All right, but be careful."
"I will." Din assured me.
I then watched as Cobb and Din used their jetpacks, flying above the hill towards the Krayt dragon. Once they reached the hill, they used their blasters firing at the dragon until it crawled back underground. As soon as it buried itself, Din and Cobb flew back onto the ground near the empty sarlacc pit. I looked around, searching for where the Krayt dragon would emerge from. In a matter of seconds, the dragon appeared from the other side.
The creature made its way towards the townspeople and Tusken Raiders. Cobb and Din, who stood near a bantha with explosives, were both close by the dragon. I nervously watched as Cobb fired rockets at the creature. What is Din thinking? In a matter of seconds, I saw Din hit Cobb's jetpack, causing him to fly up in the air towards me. I helped him up from the ground. He gave me a grateful look. "Thanks."
"What did Mando say?" I asked.
"He said to take care of the child, Kaytia, and you." Cobb informed me as he took off his helmet.
My stomach churned. I didn't like the sound of that one bit.
~Translations~
cyar'ika----darling, beloved, sweetheart