Metanoia | The Mandalorian ON HOLD

Chapter 22

They walked for a while, Juno holding Cara's hand and Din's pendant in her other hand. She looked down at her feet, trying not to let more tears fall as the child fussed in Cara's arms, when, suddenly, they heard a distant explosion with footsteps following. They turned around and noticed a light from around the corner before IG-11 and Din appeared.

"Din."  Sighed Juno before she ran to him and wrapped her arms around him. He hissed slightly, his body still hurting, and she quickly loosened her grip. "Sorry. Are you okay?" She asked him.

"I will be." He said and squeezed her shoulders. Cara then approached him next and handed the child to the droid before she wrapped Din's arm around her shoulders, letting him lean on her.

"I got you." She said as they started moving again, Juno still holding onto him. They walked for a couple more minutes when Karga spoke next.

"Do you know which way to go?"

"No. I don't know these tunnels. I've only entered from the bazaar." Replied Din as he grunted in pain.

"Well, if we get the smell of sulfur and we follow it, it'll lead us up to the plains where the river flows." He said.

"And the Imps will catch us before we make it to the ship. We need the Mandalorians to escort us to safety." Replied Din.

A few minutes later, it was Cara who spoke. "Ugh, this place is a maze."

"Stop. I can stand." Said Din as he took his arm from Cara's shoulders. Juno looked up at him and she, too, let go,glad that he was gaining his strength back.

"The bacta infusion is working." Said the robotic voice of IG-11.

"I'll try to find tracks." Said Din and looked around." We're close." He started moving as he put his hand on Juno's shoulder and gently pushed her forward. "Turn here."

They continued walking before they stopped when they saw a pile of Mandalorian armor. Din turned off his light, walked closer and got to his knees as he pulled up a helmet from the pile. Juno walked behind him and put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed, trying to comfort him like he did for her before.

"We should go." Said Cara after a moment.

"You go. Take the ship. I can't leave it this way." Said Din. "Did you know about this? Is this the work of your bounty hunters?" He asked Karga.

"No. When you left the system and took the prize, the fighting ended and the hunters just melted away. You know how it is. They're mercenaries. They're not zealots." Explained Karga and Din stood up.

"Did you do this? Did you?" He asked accusingly.

"No!" He denied.

"It was not his fault." Said a woman's voice. A Mandalorian stepped from the corner of the tunnel as the group turned. "We revealed ourselves. We knew what could happen if we left the covert." She picked up a piece of armor and put it in the cart behind her. "The Imperials arrived shortly thereafter. This is what resulted."

"Did any survive?" Asked Din.

"I hope so. Some may have escaped off-world." She answered.

"Come with us." Proposed Din.

"No. I will not abandon this place until I have salvaged what remains." She denied and pushed the cart forward the way she came. Din went to follow her, the rest of the group doing the same after a moment. They entered the forge where the woman started melting the armor. "Show me those whose safety deemed such destruction."

Din turned to look behind him and held out his hand to Juno before he lead her forward who IG-11 brought the child. "These are the ones." He said.

"These are the ones that you hunted, then saved?" She asked.

"Yes. The ones that saved me as well." He replied.

"From the mudhorn?"

"Yes."  He replied.

"They look helpless." She stated. The child cooed while Juno frowned at her.

"They're injured, but they're not helpless. They can move objects with their mind and she can also see glimpses of the future." He explained.

"I know of such things. The songs of eons past tell of battles between Mandalore The Great, and an order of sorcerers called Jedi that fought with such powers." She explained before she glanced at Juno. "You, however, are not quite like the Jedi, are you, girl? A Seer more likely." Juno nodded.

"Are they enemies?" He asked and Juno quickly looked at him and frowned, not liking that he would ask such question.

"No. Their kind were enemies, but these individuals are not." She said.

"What are they?" He asked.

"They are foundlings. By Creed, they are in your care." The Armorer told him.

"You wish me to train them?" He asked.

"They are too weak. They would die. You have no choice. You must reunite them with their own kinds." She told him. Juno glanced at the child and walked closer to him and smiled at him while he cooed at her.

"Where?" Din asked.

"This, you must determine."  She answered.

"You expect me to search the galaxy for their homes and deliver them to a race of enemy sorcerers?" He questioned.

"This is the Way." She replied and went back to her work.

"Hey. These tunnels will be lousy with Imps in a matter of minutes.we should at least discuss an escape plan." Said Cara.

"If you follow the descending tunnel, it will lead you to the underground river. It flows downstream toward the lava flats." Said the Armorer.

"I think we should go." Said Karga.

"I'm staying. I need to help her and I need to heal." Din told them.

"You must go. Two foundlings are in your care. By Creed, until they are of age or reunited with their own kinds, you are as their father." Said the Armorer firmly. Both kids looked up at Din, the child cooed while Juno smiled softly and Din looked back at them. "This is the Way." She turned to him and moved closer to him. "You have earned your Signet." Juno looked away to shield her eyes as the woman added the Signet to Din's pauldron on his shoulder. "You are a clan of three." She said when she finished.

"Thank you. I will wear this with honor." He told her and she nodded before they heard distant explosions in the tunnels.

"We should go." Said Karga.

"IG, please guard the outer hallway. A scouting party draws near." The Armorer told the droid. He gave the child to Cara who tried to protest but failed as he walked away. "I have one more gift for your journey. Have you trained in the Rising Phoenix?" She asked him.

"When I was a boy. Yes." He answered.

"Then this will make you complete." She turned around, holding a jetpack.

"Thank you." He said.

"When you have healed, you will begin your drills. Until you know it, it will not listen to your commands." She told him.

"I understand." He replied. They heard blaster being shot in the hallway when IG moved to the doors.

"You are protected." He informed them.

"More will come. You must go." Said the Armorer.

"Come with us." Said Din.

"My place is here. Restock your munitions." She told him and then moved to the droid. "IG, carry this for Din Djarin until he is well enough to wear it." She handed the jetpack to him. "Now go. Down to the river and across the plains."

"Thank you." Din told her as the others started moving. He turned around and moved too, placing a hand on Juno's shoulder to keep her close, knowing that the child was safe with Cara.