Promises and Deals | The Mandalorian

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He knows that name. He knows those titles.

The girl looks down, her hair forming a small barrier between them, almost as if she were ashamed of such a position. They all watch her closely; Mando is sure the others know the stories as well as he does.

Alora Naftiri. Mysterious origins, close ties to the Alderaanian royal family, and utterly invisible. She is the person songs are made about—folk tales of bravery and loss. Someone who is rumored to have dangerous powers that could have rivaled the Empire's leadership.

Alora Naftiri had practically led the rebellion beside the princess' side for years. She was there when the Empire fell, and she was there to clean up the mess. Perhaps the Outer Rim has yet to hear of her, but Mando has. And Cara has.

How could anyone be ashamed of that?

"I advise disgraced Magistrate Greef Karga to search the wisdom of his years and urge you to lay down your arms and come outside. The structure you are trapped in will be razed in short order and your storied lives will come to an unceremonious end."

Clenching her jaw, the former general calls out, "You need me alive, Gideon, or all of this is for nothing. So what do you propose?"

"Reasonable negotiation."

"You think I'm stupid enough to trust you?" She lets out a callous laugh—something Mando hadn't heard before. "You? You should be dead!"

"If you're asking if you can trust me, you cannot. Just as your friend Greef Karga betrayed our business arrangement, I would gladly break any promise and watch you all die at my hand. The assurance I give is this: I will act in my own self-interest, which at this time involves your cooperation and benefit. I will give you until nightfall, and then I will have the E-Web cannon open fire."

As the man walks back to his ship, Greef says, "I say we hear him out."

"Of course, you'd say that," Tiri snaps. "The minute you step out there, you're all dead."

"We're dead if we don't. At least out there, we've got a shot."

"That's easy for you to say," Cara replies as she collects fallen weapons and ammunition. "I'm a Rebel Shock Trooper. They'll upload me to a Mind Flayer."

"Those aren't real," Greef says. "That was just wartime propaganda."

"Well, I don't care to find out. I'm shooting my way out of here. Besides, you think they'll treat her any differently?" When Cara's gaze shifts to Tiri, Mando can see the conflict. "You didn't think it'd be important to know, High General?"

"Safer if you didn't." Tiri sits down, her hands resting at her sides. "I'm with Cara: I won't be caught by them again. If I go down, I'm taking as many as I can with me."

Greef shakes his head. "What about you, Mando?"

Mando can't help but think back to what Tiri had said. "It's Moff Gideon."

Tiri looks at the ground as Cara says, "No, Moff Gideon was executed for war crimes."

"It's him. He knew my name. Tiri confirmed it."

"What does that prove?" Greef asks.

"I haven't heard that name spoken since I was a child."

"On Mandalore?"

"I was not born on Mandalore."

"But you're a Mandalorian."

"Mandalorian isn't a race," Tiri says. "It's a Creed. Just like serving the royal family."

"I was a foundling. They raised me in the Fighting Corps. I was treated as one of their own. When I came of age, I was sworn to the Creed. The only record of my family name was in the registers of Mandalore. Moff Gideon was an ISB officer during the purge. That's how I know it's him."

He doesn't know why he says what he does. What he does know is that he hasn't taken his eyes off of Tiri. He wants her to know. He doesn't care about the others.

She nods. "I was at his trial. I don't know how he got away, but I left before his execution. No one in the New Republic would advertise that they let Moff Gideon slip through their fingers."

"That's how he knows who we all are," Cara realizes.

Tiri sighs, "He says he needs you. That means the Child got away. If they had the kid, you'd all be dead." She holds up the comlink. "Kuiil? Kuiil, come in."

"They might have jammed the link."

Suddenly, a familiar cry makes Mando freeze. Minding the troopers' view, he kneels next to Tiri, his hand gripping hers.

"Kuiil has been terminated."

Fear takes hold of him. "What did you do?" He asks the droid.

"I am fulfilling my base function."

"Which is?"

"To nurse and protect."

Tiri looks up at him with knitted brows. "What the fuck does that mean?"

"Guys, look!" Cara says. The two of them peek over the counter to see all of the stormtroopers now facing another direction, trying to avoid very precise blaster shots. The IG unit that had tried to kill the kid so long ago is now protecting the Child strapped to his stomach, taking out many of the invading troopers.

"Cover me," Mando says, the familiar rush of battle roaring through his veins.

Cara starts to shoot through the window as Mando walks into the fray. Despite the violence, he missed this. Tiri and Greef come out behind him while Cara stays in the building.

Mando takes out any trooper that dares approach him, but the real marvel is Tiri, though knowing who she is makes it no surprise at all. He catches her from time to time as she slashes her twin swords through stormtrooper armor like ice. She wears a wild grin on her face, especially when Mando takes the E-Web and begins shooting the troopers.

A loud bang makes both turn to the tavern—the troopers have made it inside, and Cara is alone.

What's worse is the fact that Tiri's eyes have gone wide as she looks behind Mando. She yells, but he can't hear over the sound of the shooting.

Something hits the back of his helmet. When he turns around, he swings the E-Web at Moff Gideon, a raging fire in his mind ready to burst.

"Mando!"

Moff Gideon shoots down, and the base of the E-Web explodes in his face.

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Bro, Alora's got some feelings coming her way. 

Hope you enjoyed!

-L