“Corvus, this is the place. I’ve detected a beacon.” Din says softly, shaking his head at the nav computer. I’m gonna start the landing cycle. You better get back in your seat.” he looked at the kid who was babbling around on the nav. I laughed and sat him back down, buckling him up.
We all landed in a small clearing, and stepped out of the Razor Crest, a large creature began to low “What did I say about that? This needs to stay in the ship.” He took the small ball from the controls and stuffed it into his pocket.
“Din...nevermind. Look at this place.” I sigh, glancing around.
“Not much to see out here. Never had dealings with a Jedi before.” He looked at me.
“I haven’t either.”
“Let’s head into town. See if we can pick up a lead.”
We walked together, before coming up to a gate of a town, where a guard stood. “State your business.”
“ Been tracking for a few days. Looking for a layover.” Mando crossed his arms.
“Nice armor. You a hunter, then?”
“That’s right.”
“Guild?”
“Last I checked.”
The guard named Lang nodded to a companion, “Open the gate.”
We walked for a few minutes, everyone in the town looked scared and afraid of something. Din walked up to a man. “Pardon me, vendor, have you heard of anyone…”
The man only ran away as fast as he could.
“Hmm.” I hum, looking around towards an alley.
“You there. I need some information. I’m looking for someone.” He said to a small group in the alley, a man and two kids.
“Okay, bye. Please, do not speak to them, or to any of us.” the man said, as the two kids scattered off.
“Look, I just need to know…”
A guard walks up to us, looking straight at Din, “The Magistrate wants to see you.”
Din nodded and moved to the guard, “Alright.”
I started walking with him, but the guard held out a hand, “The Magistrate doesn’t want to see you. Not yet at least.”
It felt like forever while he talked, and I sighed, tapping my foot lightly on the ground while I paced. A child walked up to me, looking sick and hunger stricken. Very secretly, I took a few credits from my pocket and slipped it into the child’s hands. “This is the Way.” I whisper, winking at the kid.
Din walked out and guided me to the gate, his hand on my lower back as we walked. Lang breathed deeply as he opened the gate for us.
The child began to coo, and Lang looked at it. “What is that thing?”
“We keep it around for luck.”
“You’re gonna need it where you’re headed.”
“Well, these are the coordinates. Keep your eyes open. We must be close. You hear that? Don’t worry. Sit right here. Let me see what’s out there. Justine, come on.” he started walking after setting the kid down.
Before either of us could process it, a Torgrutan woman hopped down from the trees and started attacking us with her dual bladed white lightsabers. I remembered the weapons from back during the purge and the Clone Wars.
“Ahsoka Tano!” I shout, just as soon as her blade almost went through me.
Din panted, taking a few deep breaths, “Bo-Katan sent me. We need to talk.” he held his hand out, looking at me for a second.
The woman, Ahsoka, looked to the Child. “I hope it’s about him.”
Ahsoka and the Child were awfully silent, except for his occasional babbles and coos, and her nodding. “Is he speaking? Do you understand him?” Din kneeled down beside them. It was night now.
“ In a way. Grogu and I can feel each other’s thoughts.” Ahsoka shrugged slowly.
“Grogu?” I raised an eyebrow, sitting beside them.
“Yes. That’s his name. But I do not know yours. I can sense an old past, and damaged one. Pain… loss...an-”
“That’s enough. My past is in the past, and it doesn’t need to be mentioned.” I say, glaring a bit, “My name is Justine. Ex Mandalorian.”
“Grogu.” Din whispered, still shocked that the Child had a name.
The Child, Grogu, looked up at him and made an odd little snort.
Ahsoka began to explain to us what Grogu had somewhat told her. “He was raised at the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. Many Masters trained him over the years. At the end of the Clone Wars when the Empire rose to power, he was hidden. Someone took him from the Temple. Then his memory becomes… dark. He seemed lost. Alone. I’ve only known one other being like this. A wise Jedi Master named Yoda. Can he still wield the Force?”
“You mean his powers?” Din said confidently.
“The Force is what gives him his powers. It is an energy field created by all living things. To wield it takes a great deal of training and discipline.”
“I’ve seen him do things I can’t explain. My task was to bring him to a Jedi.”
“The Jedi Order fell a long time ago.”
“So did the Empire, yet it still hunts him. He needs your help.”
“ Let him sleep. I’ll test him in the morning.”
Ahsoka smiled at the little green bean, “Let’s see what knowledge is lurking inside that little mind. The woman began to levitate a stone to Grogu, watching him take it into his tiny hands. “Now, return the stone to me, Grogu.”
Din looked between them, “He doesn’t understand.”
“He does.”
“ It’s okay. The stone, Grogu.”
The stone fell to the dirt, and Ahsoka sighed, shaking her head.
“I sense much fear in you. He’s hidden his abilities to survive over the years. Let’s try something else. Come over here.”
“He’s stubborn.”
“ Not him. You. I want to see if he’ll listen to you.”
“That would be a first.”
“ I like firsts. Good or bad, they’re always memorable. Now, hold the stone out in the palm of your hand. Tell him to lift it up.”
“All right, kid. Lift the stone.”
I smile and lean in towards him “Grogu.”
“Grogu…”
“Come on, take the stone.”
“You see? I told you, he’s stubborn.”
“Try to connect with him.”
After a second, Din pulled out the metal ball he took from the kid, and I smiled softly, “There we go…”
“Grogu…” The tall man, Din, wiggled the ball in his hand. Do you want this? Well, go ahead. That’s right, take it. Come on. You can have it. Come on. Good job! Good job, kid. You see that? That’s right.” The kid held his hands out and the ball went to his tiny hands.I knew you could do it. Very good!”
“Good job Grogu!” I smiled, clapping my hands softly. Grogu babbled in pride.
“He’s formed a strong attachment to you. I cannot train him.”
“What? Why not? You’ve seen what he can do.”
“His attachment to you makes him vulnerable to his fears. His anger.”
“All the more reason to train him.” My hand went to his back, frowning.
“No. I’ve seen what such feelings can do to a fully trained Jedi Knight. To the best of us. I will not start this child down that path. Better to let his abilities fade. I’ve delayed too long. I must get back to the village.”
“The Magistrate sent me to kill you. I didn’t agree to anything. And I’ll help you with your problem, if you see to it that Grogu is properly trained.”
“She has a small army of guards armed with A350 blaster rifles, two HK-87 assassin droids, and a hired gunfighter. He reads ex-military to me. Combined, not even your laser swords would be able to protect you from all that firepower.” Din started explaining.
“Yeah...she also has some kind of center confinement. That’s where she is. Big wall, not much leverage to get it.” I scanned the perimeter.
“True. But don’t underestimate the Magistrate either.”
“Who is she? She offered me a staff of pure beskar to kill you.”
“Morgan Elsbeth. During the Clone Wars, her people were massacred. She survived and let her anger fuel an industry which helped build the Imperial Starfleet. She plundered worlds, destroying them in the process.”
“Yeah, it looks like she’s still in business.”
“When you were in the city did you see any prisoners?”
“I saw three villagers strung up just outside the inner gate.”
“We must find a way to free them.”
“Two Mandalorians and a Jedi? They’ll never see it coming.”
“It’s her! Sound the alarm!” A guard yelled.
There was a fight, a fire fight, and we all fought down the droid guards. Soon, there was a dramatic stand down between Lang and Din, resulting in Lang dead on the stone.
The town exploded into cheer, and Ahsoka walked over, “I believe this was your payment.”
Din shook his head. “No. I can’t accept. I didn’t finish the job.”
“No. But this belongs with a Mandalorian. Where is your little friend?”
“Back at the ship. Wait here, I’ll go get him.”
Din was emotional, and I could tell. “Wake up, buddy. It’s time to say goodbye.” The two took a short snuggle together, while I rubbed Din’s calf in an attempt to bring comfort.
By the time Ahsoka came, Din was somewhat ready to hand her Grogu.
Ahsoka smiled and shook her head, “You’re like a father to him. I cannot train him.”
“You made me a promise, and I held up my end.”
“There is one possibility. Go to the planet Tython. There you will find the ancient ruins of a temple that has a strong connection to the Force. Place Grogu on the seeing stone at the top of the mountain.”
“Then what?”
“Then Grogu may choose his path. If he reaches out through the Force, there’s a chance a Jedi may sense his presence and come searching for him. Then again, there aren’t many Jedi left.”
“ Thank you.”
“May the Force be with You."