Mandalorian Lost

Chapter 21

One thing's for sure: I'm not a fan of Greef's bounty hunters.

One of them, a green-headed man with horns protruding from his cheeks, hasn't taken his eyes off me since we made camp. And not in the creepy way that I usually find myself on the receiving end of in seedy cantinas. He's watching me for a purpose beyond a trivial bit of fun. I can't place what he's thinking.

Mando, of course, has been miserable ever since we made camp. Greef can't stop looking at the child like he's nothing more than a pile of credits in a cradle and attempting to lure one of us into conversation. So far he's had no success with talking to Mando or Cara, though Kuiil gave him a few words in passing when we stopped. As his eyes fall on me, glittering through the darkness from the light of our campfire, I inwardly groan. Guess it's my turn.

"I'm afraid I don't know much about you, Miss Tara," he says, regarding me with the look an old friend of the family might give. I raise an eyebrow and he chuckles. "After all, we've only ever had one proper conversation."

"I'm not one for conversation," I reply, leaning back on my elbows. Mando is beside him, mostly because he probably wants to keep an eye on him. Greef glances at him and chuckles.

"She's the perfect partner for you then, huh Mando?" No one joins in his joke, so he looks back at me with a faded smile. "What's your claim on the kid?"

I tense, my jaw clenching as I try to think of a way to avoid the question. I'm not particularly into the idea of telling these strangers about my ability to use the force. For all we know, this whole thing could be a trap, and I'm better off staying unknown if that's the case.

"Let's go over the plan again," Mando says, saving me from having to answer. Greef clearly catches on to what he's doing, but decides to indulge him.

"We both enter the common house," he sighs. "We show the client the bait. We join him at the table, and you kill him."

"Tell me about his reinforcements," Mando says, keeping the conversation squarely on the plan and not me.

"They're all ex-Empire," Greef scoffs. "As soon as they lose their paycheck, poof, they'll all scatter."

"And what if they don't?" I ask, frowning at him.

"They will," Greef insists.

I shake my head at him. "That's not good enough. The Empire values loyalty."

He sighs, shooting me a pointed look as he waves his hands around. "If, for argument's sake, a few of them don't realize that I'm their best path to alternative employment and they elect to react impulsively, then these three fine Guild Hunters, along with that battle-hardened shock trooper and yourself, will cut anyone down who bucks."

I don't love his plan, but I don't exactly have a better one, so I simply sigh and nod my approval. Mando turns to our tentative ally and tilts his helmet at him. "How many will there be?"

"No more than four," Greef says, a sigh trailing his words. "He travels with, at most, a Fire Team. Trust me, nothing can go wrong."

That's literally the worst thing he could've said, so I'm almost not surprised when we're immediately attacked by giant flying creatures from above.

Greef screams and the darkness around us instantly lights up with streaks of red as everyone shoots at the creatures. They screech, the piercing sound almost destroying my eardrums altogether. I duck just in time to avoid the talons of one of them as it sails over me toward the blurrgs.

"No, let go of her!" Kuiil cries, shooting angrily as the creature lifts one of the blurrgs high into the air. I aim both my blasters at it and shoot, but with all the chaos and the darkness, I can't get a clear hit.