THE ARC OF SKYWALKER | a star wars story✔️

7 | the target

—I WAS BROUGHT OUT OF MY MEDITATION WHEN I FELT SOMEONE TAP MY SHOULDER.

Looking up, I saw the Mandalorian standing before me, his helmeted gaze staring back. I stayed seated on the large boulder, my cuffed wrists resting on my crossed legs.

"What is it?" I asked him as I sighed deeply.

His hands were balled into fists while the rest of his body was tense. I could sense his anger toward me and I frowned in confusion. Why was he angry with me? I didn't do anything to provoke him.

"Are you manipulating me at all? Are you trying to manipulate me into being tolerant with you by hurting me every time I inconvenience you?"

Every muscle in my body froze as I gawked at him in disbelief. I couldn't believe what I was hearing! Manipulate him?! The guy who holds my life in his hands? I mean, I can use the mind trick technique, but that's only to get out of sticky situations. As for hurting him with my Force abilities, that...that was a force of habit. I used the Force anytime I was angered by a stupid officer or stormtrooper. It's hard to break and Mando wasn't helping me. But whatever his paranoia convinced him of to make him think I'm hurting him to be manipulative, it's complete bogus.

"Mando, I swear on my mother's tomb I'm not manipulating you."

"The Ugnaught told me people with powers like you can manipulate and betray. Are you manipulating me?"

"No!"

I stood up and grabbed his throat, darkness coursing through my body as I squeezed, the hunter choking and gasping for air. He held onto my cuffed wrist and tried to get out of my grip as I lifted him off the ground without difficulty.

"A-Asa!" He choked out.

"You want me to manipulate you? I can, you know. I can make your brain meld together into mush and I can control you with the wave of my hand. I can make you beg for me to show mercy."

I squeezed harder, making him choke loudly and his legs kicked underneath him.

"You don't know manipulation and betrayal like I do. You don't know what it's like to be manipulated into thinking you're doing the galaxy a favor and destroying planets and peoples."

"Hey! Put him down!" The Ugnaught shouted and rushed toward us.

I felt not one bit of guilt or regret in me. When the Ugnaught neared me, he shocked my arm with a tool of his, making me drop Mando and numbing my arm. The Mandalorian fell to his knees, coughing and rasping as he breathed in oxygen as the Ugnaught made sure he was okay.

"Are you all right?" The Ugnaught inquired as Mando stood up, coughing a little. He wasn't tense nor did I feel any anger radiating from him. Instead, all I sensed was fear.

"Think about what I said, Mando. And maybe...just maybe, you'll realize we're not so different from one another if you remember what I said earlier."

Without another word, I backed away from him and ran, anger, fear, and hate eating away at my very being. I couldn't look at the Mandalorian as he called after me to stay in sight.

I just continued to walk until I found a very secluded tent to stay in.

~*~

—WAITING FOR MANDO THE ENTIRE DAY WAS BORING.

I sat on the boulder outside of the Ugnaught's farm, my legs crossed and meditating in the Force. There wasn't much to do while Mando was off getting his second bounty. Help was not needed nor was tending to the blurrgs, making me bored out of my mind. I also think the Ugnaught despises me.

I stood up and made my way to the small tent Mando stayed in. I didn't care that I was overstepping my boundaries but I wanted my lightsaber. It would take my mind off of being bored and thinking about what happened yesterday.

I avoided him all day today. He tried getting my attention while taming a blurrg and tried to talk to me before he left, but I completely blew him off. I was still angry with him for thinking I was somehow being manipulative.

Finding my lightsaber, I walked out of Mando's tent and went to my boulder. If I've already ruined whatever tolerance Mando had in me, then I might as well remove my handcuffs. Using the Force, I heard the click of the metallic contraption unlock and they fell at my feet. My wrists were raw and starting to bleed from how much they rubbed on my skin. The dust didn't help with my situation.

Igniting my saber, I gazed at the sparking red energy which crackled and fizzed as I swung it around. I ignited the other side, grinning a little as I twisted the hilt and separated it into two separate sabers. Inquisitors were always jealous of my weapon since it was better than theirs. Of course, many of them couldn't disrespect me since I helped in their training.

As I swung my two sabers and threw one ahead of me, I heard the rapid approach of footsteps behind me. I used the Force the summon the other one back to me before sheathing clipping both of them to my belt. I turned around but my face hardened into a glare when I saw the Mandalorian standing there.

"Before you yell at me, I just want to say I was bored but I also don't care what you say."

Before he could speak, the babbling of a child caught my attention and I glanced around to find the source. That was when I looked down at his feet and I couldn't believe what I was seeing as I stared at the small, green creature which looked incredibly similar to Grand Master Yoda. I felt anger flood through my veins as I stared at it, my hands balling up into tight fists. The Mandalorian followed my gaze and, almost sheepishly, shifted his weight on his feet. He seemed unnerved by the situation but the uneasy aura which radiated off him told me he saw the dark, angry glare on my face. Of course, I was angry. In fact, I was livid with what he was delivering to the Empire.

"The target was a child?"

~*~

*EDITED AND SLIGHTLY REWRITTEN*