Against the Odds

Chapter 23: The Goodbye

The two sat in silence, both deep in thought over all they'd said. Din tried his best to understand all she'd told him, about the Jedi, about the war, about her. But it was so much, the Jedi's ways were so different to how he'd been raised and there was still so much he couldn't wrap his head around. Din wanted to believe her, to believe he could stay with the Child. But if he did, he'd be going against the Creed and against The Way. He'd be jeopardizing his place as a Mandalorian in the Creed. The thought made him sick to his stomach.

He looked up to see her staring thoughtfully at the lights above the medbay bunk. Her eyes danced around as she bit her lip. Din swallowed but found his mouth dry. "And... your husband..?" He asked.

Vella's eyes closed and a frown creased her forehead. She'd dreaded talking about him most. The Jedi were gone for a long time, but the wound left from losing Daxon still hurt like it was fresh.

"He was a Mandalorian, born of Mandalore. Daxon Eldar, of clan Eldar."

So, her Mandalorian really was a Mandalorian. At least now he knew. But that also meant he'd taken off his helmet and lived differently than The Way. Though Din really didn't know a lot about those kinds of Mandalorians or how they lived. Daxon's life had ended sadly and brutally, but he'd lived a good one. He had loved a woman and her child which was more than Din could say about himself. Well, mostly.

Din didn't know too much about all the different Houses about the customs of... "actual" Mandalorians. He wondered how long Daxon's family line was, how many generations did his clan go back? Din was the first of his line, and maybe the last. Perhaps in that way, he found himself envying her husband. He could trace back his heritage and had the opportunity to get married. Din's life would never allow that. And he was mostly sure that wasn't something he wanted.

A sigh scraped through his vocoder and he forced himself to think of something else. He'd never been to Mandalore, he'd wanted to go, but since it was controlled by the Empire for so long, he never had. And after the Empire left, he was too afraid to see the damage the dead regime had incurred on his adopted culture. Maybe he'd get there one day, maybe not while he had a Jedi with him, but one day.

Vella continued. "Daxon fought with us in the Rebellion instead of alongside the other Mandalorians. I always wondered why but... I wasn't one to ask questions about the past when I didn't want to speak about mine either. He had family issues he didn't like talking about, I always assumed that was the reason."

She smiled at the memory of his face. Tanned skin, curly black hair, bright blue eyes, chiseled features. It felt like just yesterday he had been running up to her after a battle, sliding off his helmet and grabbing hold of her in a hug she wanted to last forever. Every time he returned, her heart swelled with relief. Every time she left, she felt like she might never see him again. Every time he just barely made it back, she wanted to leave together and find somewhere to just live. But he was always quite the idealist. He wanted to keep fighting, because that's what he always did, that's how he helped people. He fought for them when they couldn't fight for themselves.

Vella had lost her master that way, and she'd lost her daughter that way. They might have only shared a name but they'd both had the will to fight back, to look out for others. She let out a long breath and opened her eyes, a bleak darkness overtook her bright eyes. "Malik was right, I am the reason he died. I'm the reason they all died."

Din stayed silent as he waited for her to continue.

Vella swallowed as tears began to sting in her eyes. "After we won, after Lara left, me and the crew wanted to keep helping people. Everyone was struggling after years of oppression, people were still starving and the 'New Republic' didn't seem bothered by the poverty on most of the Outer Rim." Vella tried to get the bad taste off her tongue.