THE MANDALORIAN: CHAPTERS 9-16

CHAPTER 15 - THE DARKSABER

"Never forget, our interpretations are often colored by our fears," Ahsoka said firmly. "I once had a vision that a close friend of my Master would be killed by a bounty hunter while at a peace conference during the Clone Wars. The bounty hunter did attempt to murder her, but working together, my friend and I made certain that future never happened."

Ahsoka looked directly into Tarre's eyes as she spoke. "What you saw might be one of multiple possible futures, and what you saw might not be the death of your Buir. So try with me to find more detail, more information, anything that might help us. Okay?"

Tarre looked very unsure, but he nodded slowly. And Din reluctantly put Tarre back down so he could sit with Ahsoka for a while longer as she continued to work with Tarre on his visions.

They worked for another hour before Ahsoka finally put a stop to the lesson. Tarre was exhausted mentally and emotionally, and Ahsoka brought him curled up into a tight ball to Din where he immediately began to snore.

Din looked up at Ahsoka, "Is he okay?"

Ahsoka frowned, "He is even stronger than you already know, Din. He carries a lot of knowledge of the past and the future. He does not understand it all, and he has a very hard time sorting what is helpful, but only experience tells us how to sort through everything the Force tells us." She looked back at Din. "Being with you has given him more experience and context than the first fifty years of his life combined. He needs your love and care to help him understand what the future will hold."

Din looked back down at Tarre, "So his vision could be wrong?"

Ahsoka shook her head, "No, his vision was clear. You will be struck by the Dark Saber. But Master Yoda used to say the future is always in motion. We must be mindful of all possible outcomes."

She put a hand on Din's shoulder and left Din to cradle Tarre in his arms on the sleeping bunk.

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To avoid detection the group decided to stay in hyperspace and remain radio silent for the duration of the trip back to Nevarro.

Din had to keep checking the tracker in order to reassure himself their rate of travel was real. It had taken almost three weeks to find Ahsoka and Sabine, but at their return rate of speed they would arrive in less than a week.

Ahsoka worked with Tarre on his focus and communication, so he could express to anyone exactly what he needed. Previously he would focus on only one thought, but communicating concepts and conducting dialogue was more difficult. His first few attempts with Din and Cara were more of an onslaught of his "stream of consciousness" which they both struggled to understand. Tarre was becoming frustrated, and Din found himself forced to keep his own aggravation in check to help deal with Tarre's emotional state.

Din and Cara had increased their workout schedule, partly to work out his stress, and also because he had decided he wanted to start wearing his armor again. He started with the pauldrons and thigh guards only, but within a few days he had the back plate on as well. The weight was familiar and reassuring, but he felt the strain.

Cara pushed Din harder than he was comfortable with, but it also forced him to aim higher, and he knew better than to push back or push her away.

Sabine developed two beskar shield prototypes on their journey, and developed a plan to test them once they returned to Nevarro where she could find a way to create an arc generator capable of demonstrating the full potential of the Duchess against her new shields.