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Din sighed as he felt the shuddering of the Razor Crest lower down into Bay Three-Five, blowing around the dry sand of Tatooine.
That skirmish in space was not something he enjoyed.
That’s not to say he didn’t enjoy the challenge of starship battles. In fact, he found them exhilarating and it really tested his knowledge on how well he knew the Razor Crest. He needed quick reflexes and a light hand to maneuver his way around damaging shots, piloting the Crest as if it were an extension of his own body.
The only problem was that he just got the kid to go to sleep.
It ticked him off that the bounty hunter might have ruined the foundling’s sleep.
That was not something he was going to tolerate.
Not that he could do anything about it anyway. That bounty hunter was blasted to smithereens in the vacuum of space.
He definitely deserved that.
Checking on the child, he was beyond surprised to find him still sleeping. The only sign of disarray was the blankets scattered around on the cot.
Din carefully rewrapped the green creature in a small blue blanket that was given to him on Sorgan. Making sure he was swaddled tightly, he reluctantly put the bundle back down, packing a few other blankets around him.
He didn’t want to leave the child in the ship by himself and he was tempted to bring the sleeping child out with him, but Din didn’t want to disturb his rest.
He’ll be quick.
Talking to the mechanic shouldn’t take very long.
Convincing himself that the child would be okay if he stepped out for a bit, Din closed the door to the small sleeping area.
He lowered the ramp of the Razor Crest.
Little helper droids were rushing out of wherever they came from and were moving towards the Crest.
Nope.
Not on his watch.
Din drew his blaster and fired a few shots near their feet.
The droids screeched and scattered, dropping whatever tools they were holding in their hands.
“Hey!” A voice yelled. A woman with brown curly hair came out of her control room. “Hey! You damage one of my droids, you’ll pay for it!”
She marched towards him angrily, waving a few of the droids out of her way.
Beta. He could tell by her scent covering every part of the landing bay.
She wasn’t a threat.
Not yet anyway.
These mechanical beings on the other hand were a different story.
They couldn’t be trusted.
Once he was satisfied that the droids got the message, he put his blaster away. “Just keep them away from my ship.” He muttered.
And the child.
He doesn’t need those things anywhere near him.
“Yeah? You think that’s a good idea, do ya?” She asked snappily. “Kriffing alphas always thinking that they can just rough handle my droids,” She muttered viciously before saying, “Let’s look at your ship.”
Din followed her around the Crest as she tapped it and spouted all sorts of mechanic jargon.
Yes he knows about all the carbon scoring.
Yes he was just in a shootout.
Yes he knew that the hydraulics in the landing gear needed to be rotated. He’s been meaning to do that for a while.
Yes, he knew about the fuel leak. That’s the main reason why he’s here.
He’d fix the Razor Crest himself if he had the tools.
500 imperial credits. What a joke.
That got him next to nothing.
Looks like he’ll have to pick up a job here.
This mechanic, Peli Motto, as she introduced herself as before he left, didn’t seem to notice that he wasn’t an alpha.
Either she was assuming based on his armor, she didn’t care, or she just couldn’t tell.
Not that it mattered much to Din anyway.
It was easier to just let her think what she wanted than try and correct her anyway.
Plus, the less people who knew who he was, the safer the child was.
But now, he needed to visit the cantina and hope they had some kind of work that he could do.
Preferably something that involved fighting.
He’d have to make the trip quick. He wasn’t sure how much longer the child would keep sleeping.
Din slipped out the door and made his way to the cantina.
Apparently asking the droid for work got him nowhere.
The absence of the Bounty Guild here makes this planet much more enticing to stay on. No Guild means no bounty hunters and no bounty hunters means that it's a fairly safe place to be.
Hopefully no one would recognize him or the child.
Unfortunately, that means that there's a lack of jobs that have high bounties. He’s not sure about this Peli Motto and how much she would charge him to fix the Razor Crest, but it would be best to obtain as many credits as possible.
He’s running a little low due to the bottomless pit of a foundling that he’s ferrying everywhere.
The child isn’t a bad travel companion per say, it’s just that he requires a consistent supply of food and, as an extra precaution, Din tries to make sure he gets a wide variety of nutrients. He thinks he’s a growing child anyway.
For years, the Mandalorian has subsisted on rations and subpar meals, but now, he has the most diverse food types that he could gather on their quick resupply stops. He doesn’t even know what half of those foods are, but if the kid reached for it and it was affordable, then why not?
The kid seems to have a good grasp of what should and shouldn’t go into his mouth.
Most of the time anyway.
“Hey, Mandalorian!” Someone called from a booth behind him. “If you’re looking for work, have a seat with me, my friend.”
Din turned his head to find a fairly young face looking at him, smiling widely. With a flourish of movement, he gestured to the seat across from him much too excitedly.
The omega repressed the urge to sigh and joined the man, sitting at the edge of his seat.
If he has a job, then he might as well hear him out.
“Name’s Toro, Toro Calican.” He introduced himself, holding out a hand.
Din looked at the offered hand and very pointedly did not shake it.
He’s not trying to make friends.
“Aw, come on, it’s not everyday that you meet a Mandalorian, not to mention one of your dynamic. ” Toro withdrew his hand, still grinning.
If Din had a credit for everytime someone said something along those lines, then he wouldn’t need a job.
It gets repetitive after a while.
Din remained silent and allowed his helmet to urge the conversation onward. His T-visor tends to have that effect on people.
Toro Calican, an alpha, his mind supplied helpfully, shifted slightly in his seat. “Anyway, check this out.” He pulled a bounty puck out of his pocket and slid it onto the table, displaying the face of a woman. A very recognizable woman. “I picked up this Bounty Puck before I left the Mid Rim.” He leaned forward, placing his arms on the table. “Fennec Shand, an assassin. Heard she’s been on the run ever since the New Republic put all her employers in lockdown.”
“I know the name.” Din replied. He wants to go after Fennec Shand by himself? What is he, stupid?
“Followed this tracking fob here. Now the positional data suggests she’s heading out beyond the Dune Sea.” Sitting back and crossing his arms, Toro smirked. “Should be an easy job.”
So he’s arrogant too.
Those characteristics should never mix.
That’s Din cue.
“Well, good luck with that.” He says, standing up. And good riddance too. All Toro’s posturing is definitely clogging up the air.
“Wait, wait, wait, hey! I thought you needed work?” The man stood from his seat as well and scrambled after the omega.
Din sighed in annoyance.
Apparently, he’s also an amateur.
“How long have you been with the Guild?”
“Long enough.” Toro said defensively.
“Clearly not.” Din turned back around to look at the naive alpha. “Fennec Shand is an elite mercenary.” Did he seriously have to spell it out for him? “She made her name killing for all the top crime syndicates, including the Hutts. If you go after her, you won’t make it past sunrise.” If he even manages to find her, of course.
“But this is my first job.” Din gathered as much. “You can keep the money, all of it. I just need this job to get into the Guild. I can’t do it alone.” Toro pleaded with him. He even had the nerve to throw in a pouty face.
His arrogance is gone, replaced by the scent of desperation.
Great.
Well, capturing Fennec Shand should get him quite a bit of credits. The bounty for her is pretty high, so if Toro Calican is willing to give Din the whole reward, then he must really want to prove himself.
Not that that’s any of Din’s business.
Only that those credits sound very appealing right about now.
“Meet me at Hangar Three-Five in half an hour.” That should give him enough time to prepare. “Bring two speeder bikes and give me the tracking fob.” Din held out his hand. He’s not gonna let this amateur hold onto one of the most important items for this-
Smack!
The fob shattered on the wall with a spark.
“Don’t worry, got it all memorized.” Toro tapped the side of his head, grin returning.
Are you kriffing–
“Half an hour.” Din grumbles. He turned and marched out the door.
“Looks like you’re stuck with me now, partner!” Toro called from the doorway. “Maybe I can treat you to a drink after this!”
Hell no.
At least he has a job to pay for the poor Razor Crest now.
The ship has definitely seen better days due to its pre-Empire status, but it’s still reliable.
He wouldn’t trade it for anything. It’s practically his home.
Well, it is his home.
Din walked back into the hangar, feeling like he could totally go for a nap right now, but he needed to prepare for the hunt.
He crossed the clearing towards the Crest when he realized that he should probably check on the kid.
He was away from the Crest for longer than he expected to be. The child either had to be awake by now or was waking up.
Din quickened his steps.
Once he was inside, he immediately noticed that the door to the sleeping area was open.
“Kid?”
Fear fluttered in his chest.
No, no, he could just be somewhere else on the ship.
No need to worry.
A hurried look around the cargo hold revealed that the foundling was nowhere to be found.
Definitely not on the ship.
Dank farrik!
“Kid!” He called, keeping the panic at bay.
He couldn't have lost him already! They just got here!
Did someone take him?
Kriff!
He shouldn’t have left him on the ship by himself!
Din stomped down the ramp of the Crest, scanning the area.
Where could he be? Should he check outside of the hangar?
The child couldn’t have gotten far.
Unless he was taken, an unhelpful voice repeated.
Looking around, he spotted the beta in her control room.
“Hey!” He barks at her. She had to have seen something!
“I’m awake!” She jolts up in her seat. “I’m awake!”
Din stalks towards her, his fingers twitching to grab his blaster, she hasn’t done anything, calm down.
He clamps down on the distressed whine that was crawling up his throat.
Where’s his foundling?
Peli exits her control room groaning. “You woke him up!” She complained, holding a now-squirming bundle in her arms.
Relief floods through Din as his eyes lock onto the child. His knees felt weak.
He clears the space between them in three steps. “Give him to me.” He commands, holding out his arms.
The mechanic hands him the bundle, scrunching her nose. “Yeesh, overprotective much?”
The omega ignored her, focusing on the child within the blankets, checking him over for any signs of discomfort or pain.
“Buah?” The child cooed and smiled, reaching out a tiny hand.
Satisfied that nothing was wrong, he sighed in relief and rubbed the offered hand, earning him a high pitched squeal.
“Oh, man,” the beta griped, holding a hand over her nose. “You’re an omega?” She coughed. “You’re choking me here, big guy. Mind toning it down?”
Heat rose to his face at his overreaction. He didn’t mean to get that worked up.
He was just… worried. That’s all.
“Okay, well,” Peli continued, eyeing him attentively. “I started the repair on the fuel leak. I know you said no droids, and I didn't use any, but it took me longer than I expected.” Then she shrugged and pointed at the child. “Buuut I figured you were good for the money since you have an extra mouth to feed.”
She had no idea how true that statement was.
“Thank you.” Din said. He was surprised that she actually listened to him and kept the droids away from the Crest.
He moved back to the ship to grab some necessities for the hunt. He tucked the child back into his arm and ascended the ramp.
“Oh, I guess I was right. You got a job, didn’t you?” Peli called after him, following a short ways behind. “You know, it’s costing me a lot of money to keep these droids even powered up!”
Din rolled his eyes.
He entered the Crest and he barely heard Peli mumble, “Ugh, I’m gonna need some pheromone de-scenter up here. Customers are gonna think I beat omegas or something.”
He snorted at that.
Half an hour later, Din was ready to hunt down an assassin.
Toro Calican had to be waiting outside by now, but Din couldn’t decide if he wanted to bring the child or leave him with Peli.
He knew that he’d need to focus on the job if he was going to end up fighting a famous assassin, but another part of him refused to put the child back down. After that little panic session earlier, he felt a little high-strung.
The little green creature would probably be safer with Peli, but what if something happened?
What if more bounty hunters found the child while Din was away?
Peli seemed like a decent person, but there’s no way she would put her life on the line to protect the child.
On the other hand, Din couldn’t willingly bring the kid into danger with him, not when he has the option of keeping him safe elsewhere.
He reluctantly conceded that the kid would be better off waiting with Peli and the ship.
“Peli,” Din called to her. Her curly hair bounced as she turned to look at him.
“What?”
“Could you… watch him while I go do this job?”
She frowned slightly. “You’re asking me to watch your pup for you?”
Not understanding why she was hesitant, he hurriedly continued. “If you don’t want to that’s fine, I can pay–”
“I can watch the little womp rat.” She interrupted him. “No need for payment.”
Blinking, Din found himself taken aback at her change in attitude. He nods slowly. “Okay, thank you.” He hesitantly transfers the child into the beta’s arms, lightly rubbing a green cheek. He heads for the door where he hopes Toro Calican is waiting. Pausing, he turns his head slightly. “If he gets hungry, let him pick what he wants to eat from the ship. He eats a lot.”
Peli chuckles as she follows him outside. “No worries, I’ll take very good care of him.”
“Hey, Mando!” A familiar voice greets him. At least he’s not late. Toro cocks his head in the direction of the two speeders. “What do you think? Not too shabby, huh?”
He seemed way too proud of those mediocre bikes. They were edged in rust and the paint has been stripped away by the blowing sands.
“They’ll do.” Din says, heading to the unoccupied one.
Toro puffed up. “See? I knew you’d like them.” Noticing Peli standing in the doorway with the child, he nodded to her. “Ma’am.” His eye caught onto the green creature in her arms and his eyebrows raised in confusion.
“Let’s go.” Din revved his speeder and took off, forcing the other bounty hunter to scramble and catch up to him.
The vastness of the Dune Sea never ceased to amaze Din.
It reminded him of the stories passed around the Covert when he was younger, about Manda’yaim, the planet Mandalore. The cursed planet.
The years of war and fighting reduced its surface to nothing but dust and sand. Making it inhabitable without the construction of the domed cities.
The Dune Sea is what Din imagined Manda’yaim to look like.
He’s never been there, of course, but there were enough stories to last him lifetimes.
The journey across the wide expanse of sand would’ve been much more enjoyable if Toro Calican didn’t keep trying to talk to him and invite him out for drinks.
He didn’t have time for that. And Din certainly did not want to do that with him.
They paused once to negotiate with Tusken Raiders and it was obvious that the alpha had a lot to learn about interacting with other species, especially when they needed to traverse their land.
They came upon a hill of sand and they stopped right before the crest.
Din saw movement over the ridge.
He hopped off his speeder and crouched, moving slowly towards the edge.
“What are you doing?” Calican asked, following him.
“Get down.” Din advised him.
“What? Oh.” The man crouched next to him.
Din nodded forward, directing the other’s attention. “Tell me what you see.”
“Dewback.” He answered immediately.
Good. He’s not completely useless.
“Looks like the rider is still attached.” Din noted.
“Is that her? Is that the target?”
He shrugged a silver shoulder. “I don’t know.” It could be a trap. He rose from his position. “I’ll go. You cover me.”
Before he could step forward, an arm was gripping his elbow.
“Whoa, wait a minute.” Toro blurted out.
Din stopped. “What now?”
“Well, maybe I should go.” Toro proposed. “I am the alpha here.”
Din stared at him in disbelief, his eyebrow twitching.
He did not just kriffing say that.
“So I’ll go down and you cover me, yeah?” He continued, rising up to start down the hill.
“Yeah, and if it’s a trap, you’ll get a hole blown through you.” Din muttered, crossing his arms.
The alpha froze. “What?”
“This is Fennec Shand. ” Din expressed. “This is a prime place to set up a trap. If the rider isn’t her, which I’m almost certain that it’s not, then she could be watching from any point in those ridges. I will go down there and if she shoots at us, then I will have a better chance at surviving. Got it?”
“But–”
Din glared at him, the animosity making its way through the visor.
Toro skittered backwards. “Yeah, okay, I’m cool with that!”
Alphas, they always have their head up their ass.
Huffing, the Mandalorian made his way down the hill, scattering sand into the air as he half-jogged-half-slid down to the dewback.
He pulled his blaster out of its holster and cautiously approached the prone figure.
The dewback groaned and shuffled slightly, clearly unnerved.
“Whoa, whoa,” Din placated the creature. “It’s alright.”
It looked at him and blinked before turning its head away.
Luckily, it wasn’t hostile.
He checked the body and kicked it over.
Yep, it definitely wasn’t Shand.
And he’s been dead for a while.
“Well, is it her?” Calican called impatiently from where Din left him. “Is she dead?”
“It’s another bounty hunter.” He answered.
It has to be a trap.
“Hey, I hope you don’t plan on keeping all that stuff for yourself!”
Din scanned the rocky ridges in the distance.
“Can I atleast have that blaster?”
Din groaned behind his helmet.
Can he just shut up–
A blinking red light caught his eye.
The bounty hunter had a fob.
And it was blinking rapidly.
He was right.
Din whipped around and shouted, “Get down!”
A shot hit him right on the shoulder.
The force from the blast knocked him to the ground.
He grunted as he hit the sand, but he was unhurt so he got back to his feet and ran.
Just before he was able to get over the crest of the hill, a blast hit him at the bottom of his back plate, forcing a sudden shock through his spine.
He hit the sand for the second time in less than 3 minutes.
He groaned slightly.
That was gonna bruise later.
“What happened?” Toro asked him, staying low to the ground.
“Sniper bolt.” Din responded, surveying the area.
“Are you all right?” The alpha asked him.
“Yeah, hit me in the beskar, and at that range, beskar held up.”
Toro paused. “Wait, I don’t wear any beskar.” He said, slightly panicked.
He’s just now realizing that?
“That’s why I told you that I was gonna check the body.” Din sighed. He’s an imbecile.
“Ohh,” the black-haired man breathed. “So then what do we do?”
“You see where that shot came from?”
The man nodded in affirmation and pointed to the ridge. “Yeah, it came from there.”
“We’ll wait until dark then.” Din plans out the scenario in his mind. He’s glad he stocked up before they left or else they’d have no way to get to Shand from here.
“What if she escapes?”
“She won’t. She’s got the high ground so she’ll wait for us to make the first move.” Din moved back towards the speeders. He could finally take that nap now. “I’m gonna rest. You take the first watch, and stay low.”
The Mandalorian settled himself against his speeder bike and shut his eyes, not waiting for a response from the other bounty hunter.
He wondered how the child was doing with Peli.
He hoped that he got enough to eat.
“All right, suns are down. Time to ride, Mando.”
Din blinked his eyes open, fully awake from his light sleep. Normally, he would never sleep around strangers, but he underestimated how tired he was.
Fortunately, he’s a light sleeper and all of the movements to grab his weapons are ingrained into his muscles, so even if Toro tried to pull something, Din would shoot him without a second thought.
He gave himself a moment to reorder himself.
Toro Calican was watching him from not far away. “Come on, wake up.” He said again, getting closer.
Din rolled his eyes.
It was tempting to go back to sleep, but Din knew they had a job to do. The faster they get this over with, the faster he could return to the Razor Crest and to the child.
“Look at you, asleep on the job. Looks like you Mandalorians sleep just like everyone else. It would be so easy to just…” The man pulled out his blaster and pointed it at him, foolishly posing with it.
Din cringed.
Seriously?
“You done?”
The man quickly put his blaster away. “Yeah, yeah,” he said, sounding embarrassed. He should be. That was awful to watch. “I was just, you know, waking you up.” He cleared his voice. “Well, come on.”
Din stood up and dusted himself off before swinging a leg over his bike. “Get on your bike.” He searched through his bag to find the flash charges. “Ride as fast as you can towards those rocks.”
“That’s your plan?” He asked skeptically. “She’ll snipe us right off the bikes!”
Well, Din’s glad that he’s finally taking this seriously.
The Mandalorian held out a few charges to him. “Take these. They’re flash charges. We alternate shots and it’ll blind any scope temporarily.”
Toro whistled. “Damn, you’re pretty smart for an omega.”
What?
Din stiffened. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
What is up with all these dynamic-based comments?
He should kill him just for that.
“Nothing! I’m just saying that you’re better than I thought you would be.” Toro explained, as if that made anything better.
The Mnadalorian shoved the flash charges at him. “Just take them and ride towards those rocks.” He growled.
He’s had enough of this guy.
The flash charges worked for the most part.
Din just got knocked off his bike and said bike is now non-functional, but whatever.
The omega tossed the cuffs to the ground in front of the assassin.
“Cuff yourself.”
She complied.
“Wow, a Mandalorian.” She says, looking over his armor. “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen one of your kind.”
Good. The less Mandalorians she sees the better.
“Hey, why don’t you have a scent?” Toro butts in, brushing sand off his blaster.
“Hm?” Shand hums. “Ah, my scent. Well, that just means that I don’t have a dynamic. I can’t smell you guys and you guys can’t smell me. Perfect for my profession of course.”
That did seem like a pretty good deal for an assassin.
“Not perfect enough since you still got caught.” Toro boasted. “By an alpha bounty hunter and an ome –”
“Let’s keep moving.” Din interrupted him. There was no need for Toro to be spouting all of his business to Shand.
That was just unprofessionalism.
Toro grabs Fennec and drags her over to the speeder bike.
The only one that they had left.
“Uh-oh. Looks like one of us has to walk.” The assassin said with mock-worry.
“Or we could drag you.” Din deadpans.
Din ends up having to retrieve the dewback.
It wasn’t that far of a distance, but traveling on foot tends to make anything a far distance.
Once he removed the body from the stirrup of the dewback, the animal calmed down significantly.
Of course it did. No creature wants to drag around the stench of death with them.
He hopped on board the animal and started the long trek back, leaving the body to be dealt with by the sands of Tatooine.
Returning to the ridge had Din’s stomach sinking.
Fennec Shand’s body was lying on the ground.
He sighed heavily.
Din supposes that he’s not getting paid after all.
The return to Mos Eisley was slow going.
Anxiety simmered in Din’s gut as he thought about what Toro Calican was planning.
There’s no way that the alpha would suddenly change his mind about the capture of a famous assassin. Fennec must have said something to him.
But it’s not like he could ask her.
The speeder was parked outside Bay Three-Five.
Dank farrik.
Calican must be after him then.
Or the child.
Din doesn’t know how much Fennec knew about Nevarro, but word travels fast in the galaxy, especially to those in the Underworld.
He enters the Bay cautiously, keeping his blaster at the ready.
He took too long to return. Toro could’ve already taken the child and left.
The thought of that twists Din’s lips into a quiet snarl.
If he did, Din will hunt him down to the edges of the universe.
There will be no nowhere that he could hide.
And that’s a promise.
“Took you long enough, Mando.”
It was almost a relief to hear that the man hadn’t taken the kid and left.
Calican walked down the ramp of the Razor Crest with Peli held in front of him and the child tucked in his arm.
Din’s gaze focused on the alpha.
The child was in his hands.
He had the child.
Din growled, a sound that echoed in the enclosed space.
“Ooh, scary!” Toro taunted him. “You must be so worried about your pup here.” The click of a blaster could be heard. “Drop your blaster and raise ‘em.” He commanded, sounding smug. “Or the lady and your kid gets a hole shot in them.”
Din gritted his teeth and slowly put down his blaster. He had no choice but to comply.
He searched his mind for anything that he could do.
Anything.
The flash charge.
He still had one left.
Din subtly snatched it from his belt and raised his arms up to his head.
Calican nudged Peli forward. “Cuff him.”
The next part happened so quickly that Din’s not sure if he was the one moving his body.
The flash charge was activated and he dove for his blaster, raising it and shooting Calican before he even had a chance to recover from the piercing light.
His body tumbles off the ramp and hits the floor.
Din drops his blaster and races forward.
“Kid?” Panic colors his voice. “Kid!”
Din kicks over the bounty hunter’s body, treating him with the least amount of respect, checking for the child.
“Kid?”
The light sound of crying invaded Din’s senses.
He froze.
“Kid?”
The little green creature stuck his head around the side of a barrel, wet brown eyes staring at him.
“Hey,” Din whispers, stretching out a hand. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, kid. Come here.”
The little foundling rounds the cover and runs to him with outstretched hands.
Din picks him up and buries him into his chest.
The child whimpers and little claws poke into Din’s kute.
Din doesn’t mind.
He’s just glad that the little one is safe.
The omega sighs in relief, as he seems to be doing a lot these days.
He only realizes that he’s exuding comforting scents when Peli complains, “Whoa there, mind doing a little less of that? You’re making me light-headed over here!”
Din tries to reign it in, but overall he didn’t care much.
It was helping calm his child.
At the end, Din wasn’t even sure what made Calican turn on him.
He just chalked it up to an unfortunate event.
He made sure to pay Peli with all of Calican’s credits.
Both for the repairs and for her troubles.
He didn’t exactly gain credits from that, but at least he didn’t lose any.
Well, time to move on.