The Captive

Chapter 1: The Job

"Luna! Luna, wake up!"

I felt hurried shakes upon my shoulders as the panicked voice said my name once more. Instinctively, I shot up with a start, my bloodshot eyes straining to adjust to the dim light of the stark, stone room. I threw the thin blanket off my body with purpose, ridding myself of the little warmth the piece of fabric had afforded me to begin with. I hissed frantically, "T'iana, my friend, what's the matter?"

"They've found you."

The blood drained from my face as my entire body stiffened. Without another thought, I took hold of the blaster hidden underneath my pillow. I placed my other hand on T'iana's arm and motioned with a nod to a stack of empty barrels to my left. "Hide!"

"But what about -"

"Now."

The thin strip of light underneath the doorway danced as light footsteps approached the room. Each stride was calm and languid, yet set on its intent. My heart throbbed violently against my chest as I tiptoed to the side of the door and cemented my back to the wall. At the corner of my eye, I could see T'iana securing the barrel cover above her head. Though still worried about her safety, I focused on the incoming threat. I breathed quietly through my mouth as the final footstep landed inches from where I stood.

The door suddenly burst open, shattering the frame.

I squeezed the trigger.

The shots bounced off heavy, silver armour, the ricochets burrowing through the walls and ceilings of the room. My eyes flitted towards the barrels momentarily, then took a step back to keep firing. Seeing that the intruder was unphased and wanting to draw him away from T'iana's location, I desperately made a beeline for the end of the hallway, arm stretching for the front door of T'iana's home.

As my fingers touched the doorknob, I felt something coil around my ankles, tightening them together like a vicegrip. Before I could take another breath, I was jerked to the ground, the harsh impact making me lose my grip on the blaster. I cried out in pain. The contraption then whirred, dragging me towards the very opposite of where I needed to go. My fingers scraped on the floor in a futile attempt to escape. Within seconds, I was at the feet of the intruder. I let out a defiant cry, punching at his knees. Pain flooded my senses as the armour cracked my knuckles.

"Stay still."

The modulated voice of the intruder pierced the air around us.

"Let me go!" I whipped my dark, tousled hair back and looked up at his helmet-covered face. I was met only with the reflection of my own face. His imposing stature was now ever more apparent as he took a step towards me. I slithered backwards. "I have done nothing to you!"

His upper body visibly stiffened as he looked down and appraised me for a moment. The moment was, however, fleeting, and he widened his stance once more as he commented, "I don't think that blaster shot me by itself."

My mouth became agape at the unexpected retort. As I attempted to frantically loosen the wires around my ankles and escape once more, the intruder grabbed the front of my tunic to set me on my feet. He pressed my back against the wall to steady me. With my face mere inches from his helmet, he expertly bound my wrists, placed a gag around my mouth, planted a hood upon my head, and lifted me across his right shoulder with minimal effort. I kicked and squirmed to no avail, feeling only his armoured arms behind the small of my back, growing ever tighter, and his cape brushing against my covered face. As he strode out of the dwelling, a strange, toxic smell wafted in the air, forcefully invading my nostrils.

Then darkness.

(V)(V)(V)

I awoke to the faint sound of whirring machines. I then felt a slight bump, followed by the rough shaking of the ground beneath me. With my head still enveloped in a hood and with my vision blurred, I could only see dim speckles of light. As the recollection of what had just occurred flooded my thoughts, panic seeped through my veins once more. I let out a yelp and attempted to stand, but found myself tightly tied to a cold seat, my hands behind my back and my legs tucked firmly beneath me. "Help! Someone help me!" I attempted.

Only the machines beeped and grumbled in return.

After a few moments of my desperate calls, the clanking on metal steps came from my right. It was the same calm, languid footsteps that I had heard previously.

"You bastard!" I cried, giving no heed that all the intruder heard were mumbles, "Let me go!"

The footsteps abruptly stopped.

The hood then lifted, and I was once more face to face with my captor. Though he still adorned his helmet, his gaze burrowed through me, his stance firm. My eyes darted around the tiny, metal compartment, looking for any sign of an escape route. It was then that I finally realized that I was in a ship, careening through space. My heart constricted, threatening to burst. My stampeding thoughts fell upon T'iana. My former refuge. My current situation. The compartment seemed even smaller now, appearing to shrink inch by inch until it engulfed me whole. What if they never find me? The multicoloured lights on the metal panels surrounding me blinked haphazardly, as though mocking my current predicament. A chill moved at lightning speed down my spine as my captor reached a hand towards me. I flinched, moving as far away from him as I could.

He removed my gag.

"Are you thirsty?"

I trembled as his gloved fingertips left the side of my face.

I didn't respond.

"I...I'm not going to hurt you."

My eyes travelled from his outstretched hand, to his plated chest, then finally landed on his face. He barely moved, unphased by the momentary silence between us. Instead, he patiently awaited my response, keeping is gaze on me.

With anger rising within me once more, I spat, "What do you want with me?"

He didn't reply. He broke his stare only to slightly turn and pick up a cup from the shelf behind him. He presented the cup to the side of my face. "Drink."

I defiantly snapped my head to the left, stiffening my jaw. My chest visibly rose and fell as the weight of my predicament increased. If he's not going to kill me, then...

Before my thoughts could spiral even more out of control, a slight movement caught my eye. As I fixated my gaze to a stack of crates in front of me, something green slowly peered from behind. I furrowed my brows as I quickly realized it was the size of a small child. Its large, wide ears twitched and flapped as its curious, almond-shaped eyes remained on my form. He tilted his head to the side in appraisal. With one small step, and then another, the creature slowly moved towards me, the fabric of its almost-too-big garment dragging on the cold floor. It held a cup in its hands - albeit smaller than the one my captor was offering me - with the liquid almost spilling with his every movement. It stopped about two meters away from me. Then, in a leisurely manner, it looked at the cup, looked at me, and extended its tiny arms in offering.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" my captor said exasperatedly. With a sigh, he picked up the creature, tucked it securely upon his right arm, and made a move towards a metal ladder. As they passed me, the creature gazed at me once more, cooed, and reached his tri-fingered hand towards me. My captor's quizzical look first landed on the creature, then rested on me. "Huh?"

Though I was just as confused about what I was seeing before me, I managed, "Let. Me. Go."

The creature looked up at my captor, as though awaiting his response as well. The helmeted man turned his head slightly from me.

"I can't do that."

I tugged at my binds in sheer rage, still unable to pull an inch of slack. Through gritted teeth, I hissed, "Why? Why are you doing this?"

With his back now fully towards me, he replied:

"It's the job."

(V)(V)(V)

A/N: Welcome to my second Mandalorian fanfic on this site! If you haven't checked it out yet, my other fic is called "The Memories of a Father".

I'm brand new to Wattpad, but I'm very excited to be here. Hope you all enjoy this story. There is a lot more to come. I'll endeavour to post new chapters on a weekly basis, so stay tuned! I'm a huge Mandalorian fan (can you tell?!) and love interacting with other fans. Please give this one a vote, and I would love to hear some wonderful, positive comments from you. Cheers, my lovely readers! Happy reading!

xx mando_commando