The Mandalorian's Bounties | Din Djarin

Chapter 6 | The Prisoner (Part 1)

Din lands the ship and turns to Cordelia. She sits up and her eyes meet his visor.

"Are you sure you're up for this?" He asks her, glancing at her side. She rolls her eyes and stands.

"Yes, Din. I'm not made of glass." She replies, walking towards the ladder. She climbs down and opens the bunk door. She smiles when she sees the Child still sleeping. She tucks the blanket tighter around him before closing the door.

"Ready?" Din asks, standing near the ramp. She nods and stands next to him. He hovers his hand over the button. "Stay close. I don't trust these people." He says. She nods.

"Okay, Din." She says. He presses the button and they walk down the ramp. She sticks close to his side as he leads her through the hangar.

"Mando." A voice says. Din turns to him as he approaches. "Is that you under that bucket?" He holds his hand out.

"Ran." He replies, shaking the man's hand.

"I didn't really know if I'd ever see you in these parts again. Good to see you." Ran says. He glances at Cordelia before turning to Din. "Who's your new friend?" He asks.

"Cory." Cordelia says, knowing it probably wasn't a good idea to use her real name. She winks at Din when Ran looks away. Ran nods at the introduction, wrapping an arm around Din's shoulders, turning him around.

"You know, to be honest, I was a little surprised when you reached out to me. You know, 'cause I...I hear things." He says, glancing at Cordelia again. "Like, maybe things between you and the Guild aren't workin' out."

"I'll be fine." Din says.

"Okay. Well, you know the policy. No questions. And you, you're welcome back here anytime." He says. He turns and leads them through the hangar.

"So, what's the job?" He asks after a while.

"Yeah, one of our associates ran afoul of some competitors and got himself caught. So, I'm puttin' together a crew to spring him. It's a five person job. I got four, so now it's a six person job I guess. All I need is the ride, and you brought it." He says, looking at the Crest.

"The ship wasn't part of the deal." Din says.

"Well, the Crest is the only reason I let you back in here and didn't shoot her on the spot." He says. Din shifts Cordelia so she's behind him as he looks at Ran. "What's the look?" He asks. He steps closer. "Is that gratitude?" He says and laughs. "Uh-huh. I think it is." He walks past them, still laughing. Cordelia sees Din clench his fists tightly. She gently pries his hands open, holding them in her own.

"It's okay, Mando. We'll be in and out of here quickly. We got this." She says. She squeezes his hands and he squeezes back.

"Okay." He says quietly. She smiles and nods.

"Come on." She tugs him after Ran. She starts to let go, but he tightens his grip on her hand. He keeps her close to his side as they follow after the man.

"Hey, Mayfeld." Ran says as they turn a corner.

"Yeah?" The man replies, turning to face them.

"This is Mando, the guy I was tellin' you about. We used to do jobs way back when. He brought a friend, Cory." He introduces. Mayfeld approaches them.

"This is the guy?" He asks.

"Yeah, we were all young, tryin' to make a name for ourselves." He explains. He laughs. "Yeah, but runnin' with a Mandalorian, that was...That brought us some reputation."

"Oh, yeah? What did he get out of it?" Mayfeld asks. Ran chuckles.

"I asked him that one time. You remember what you said, Mando?" He says. Din stays silent. "Target practice." He finishes, laughing. Cordelia squeezes Din's hand. "We did some crazy stuff, didn't we?"

"That was a long time ago." Din says.

"Well...Well, I don't go out anymore. You understand? So, uh, Mayfeld, he's gonna run point on this job. If he says it, it's like it's comin' from me. You good with that?" Ran explains.

"You tell me." He replies. Ran laughs again.

"You haven't changed one bit." He says.

"Yeah, well, things have changed around here." Mayfeld says.

"Yeah, well, Mayfeld, he's...He's one of the best triggermen I've ever seen. Former Imperial sharpshooter." He says.

"That's not saying much." Din says. Cordelia manages not to laugh, but she can't help the smile on her face. She turns and buries her face in the gap between the armor on his arm, trying to hide her smile.

"I wasn't a stormtrooper, wiseass." Mayfeld responds, glaring. The two men look at him before he walks away. Cordelia wipes the smile from her face and straightens.

"Don't take long, does it?" Ran says and laughs. He leads the way after Mayfeld.

"Razor Crest? I can't believe that thing can fly. Looks like a Canto Bight slot machine." Mayfeld says as they approach the ship.

"Bet she gets more action than you do." Cordelia quips before she can stop herself. Both men look at her. Mayfeld's eyes narrow for a moment before he turns and keeps walking. Din nudges her with his elbow, and she knows he's grinning at her.

"The good-lookin' fellow there with the horns, that's Burg." He says. Burg drops the large container he was carrying and it clangs loudly. "This may surprise you, but he's our muscle."

Burg moves towards them and gets into Din's face. Cordelia hovers her hand over her blaster, ready to step in if he does anything. Din squeezes her hand, letting her know that it's all right. She relaxes her hand and keeps an eye on Burg as he circles them.

"So, this is a Mandalorian. I thought they'd be bigger." Burg says. Mayfeld chuckles and Burg goes back to finish what he was doing.

"Droid's name is Zero." Mayfeld says. The droid turns around and approaches the group. Cordelia moves closer to Din, hoping to comfort him.

"I thought you said you had four." Din says.

"He does." A voice says from behind them. The two turn and see a purple Twi'lek approaching. "Hello, Mando." She says.

"Xi'an." He acknowledges her.

"Tell me why I shouldn't cut you down where you stand?" She says. She darts forward, holding her knife near his neck. 

Cordelia sees red, quickly moving to grab the woman's wrist and twist. The Twi'lek gasps in surprise, dropping the knife. Cordelia catches it with her other hand and holds it to the woman's throat, glaring at her. Din quickly pulls her back by her waist, pressing her against his chest.

"Return the knife." He tells her. She continues to glare at the woman until he squeezes her hips. She glances at him and he nods. She sighs and pulls her hand away, holding the knife out as the rest of the group laughs. Din keeps his hands on her waist but tilts their bodies so he's between the two women.

"She's feisty!" Mayfeld says.

"I missed you." Xi'an says, taking her knife back and ignoring Cordelia. She taps Din's pauldron. "This is shiny." She clicks her tongue. "You wear it well." She says, moving her face closer to his visor.

"Do we need to leave the room or something?" Mayfeld asks. Din turns to face the group, pulling Cordelia with him.

"Poor Xi'an's been a little heartbroken since Mando left our group." Ran says.

"Aw. You gonna be okay, sweetheart?" He says, stepping closer to her.

"Oh, I'm all business now." Xi'an says. She points her knife at Din. "Learned from the best."

"All right, lovebirds. Break it up till you get on the ship. Right now we don't have much time." Ran says, herding the others towards the Crest. Xi'an turns and winks at Din as she walks with the others. Burg approaches and gets in Din's face again.

"Tiny." He says and laughs.