Arani Jakal was not ready to be stranded on an unfamiliar planet, causing her whole life to change. But in the chaos, a friend or two popped up - seemingly from nowhere - wishing to help. Ari gladly accepted and quickly became part of a small town...
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"REMIND ME AGAIN why I got stuck in the middle?" Ari asked.
"Because you're small," responded Din.
Ari sat in the speeder's back row - between Greef and Din. Her legs were propped up on Din's lap to accommodate the small space, and her arms were crossed snuggly together. They had been riding for not ten minutes, and her body was already cramping.
"I'm not small," she grumbled, sinking further into the seat.
Din chuckled, finding her pouting adorable.
"Don't laugh at me. And get your hand off me." She swatted at her leg, which the Mandalorian used as a resting spot for his arm.
Din shrugged. "You're acting like a child, besides, you love it."
Arani rolled her eyes and turned to Greef, trying to hide the blush she felt rising. "Tell us about the base."
"The whole base is powered by a reactor."
As they drove into a valley of black rocks, Cara interjected. "We sneak in, overload the reactor, and get the hell outta there."
"Let's be fast. And keep the speeder running," Din told Mythrol. He knew the mission would be dangerous and he started to panic over the thought of having Ari by his side, but he made her a promise - no, a deal - that he'd include her.
Greef pointed ahead at a cliff. On the ledge stood the base's entrance - Ari did not like the look of it. "There it is, right up there."
"How close you want me to drop you off?" asked Mythrol.
"How 'bout the front door?"
"It's a little close for a civilian, isn't it?"
Ari leaned forward, resting an arm on the back of his seat. "I'm a civilian, and, yet, here I am. Get as close as you can."
"You listen to the girl and I knock off one hundred years from your debt," said Greef. "Or I leave ya out here in the lava flats to walk home with whatever's left in your humidity vest."
"It's not much of a choice, is it?" Mythrol brought them within feet of the main door, slowing down just above one of the landing docks they saw earlier. "All right. We can't go any further than this."
"Let's go," said Karga, jumping out of the speeder.
Ari patted Mythrol's shoulder, smirking. "Good man. See you later." She grabbed Mando's hand and slid out of the vehicle. He handed her one of his blasters and she took it without thought, knowing exactly how to use it.
She followed him to the door, where Din examined the control panel.
"Controls are useless. They're melted," he told the three.
