The Chieftain (Star Wars)

Chapter 10: The Caves of Light and Shadow

Once they reached Spintir, the Razor Crest landed on the luscious jade green grass. The Mandalorian climbed down the ladder with the child in his arms. Rasanna didn't look at the Mandalorian, instead her gaze fell on the door. 

"We can split up to cover more ground to find the temple. Obviously you don't trust me around the child anymore, so you can take him with you." Rasanna stated. 

Rasanna sounded harsher than she intended, but she didn't care. She was hurting. Before the Mandalorian could respond, Rasanna grabbed a bag and was out the door. Once Rasanna was outside, she stormed off through the endless plains of the jade green grass. The Mandalorian let out a sigh as he looked down at the child. 

"I messed up, didn't I?" He asked. 

The child cooed, giving him a small nod. The Mandalorian didn't mean to say those harsh words to Rasanna. His anger had gotten the better go him. Looks like I need to apologize, he thought to himself. With that, the Mandalorian walked out of the ship and after Rasanna. Once they reached a forest, the Mandalorian caught up to her. The forest was filled with willow trees that contained white and blue flowers. There were several types of bushes and shrubs filled with fruits like marble-berries. Pink birds were chirping as they flew around the trees. That night, they rested at the foot of a willow tree.  

The three of them sat around a campfire. The only noises that were heard was the crackling of the fire and the crickets chirping. Rasanna stared into the fire, while the Mandalorian gave the child a few berries from their rations. He would glance over at Rasanna every now and then. His heart clenched upon seeing Rasanna being so distant with him. He knew he had to fix this, but he wasn't sure how to bring it up. 

The child cooed as he raised his hands, wanting more berries. The Mandalorian couldn't help but smile at him. Rasanna chuckled upon seeing the child. This caught the attention of the Mandalorian, who immediately turned towards Rasanna. Once he turned, Rasanna looked away. He let out a sigh before mustering the courage to speak. "I'm sorry...for what I said. I didn't mean it. I know the things that the Empire was pretty messed up. They went after so many innocents."

Rasanna was glad that he was apologizing, but she knew that she had to do the same. After all, it  was her fault that he got angry at her. 

"I'm sorry as well. I shouldn't have invaded your privacy." Rasanna mentioned. 

She thought back to their conversation of her Master. She wondered whether it would be a good idea to open up to him. It's now or never, Rasanna. She wanted to show the Mandalorian that he could trust her. 

"You know...I'm not as perfect as you may think me to be, Mando. I'm not an innocent person that the Empire went after." Rasanna revealed. 

"I doubt you could be bad as Moff Gideon." The Mandalorian replied, trying to cheer her up.

She hesitated. "I may not be as bad as him, but I went against the Code. I went against my teachings."

Rasanna then took a deep breath before continuing. "I was on the planet Ragoon VI, a beautiful planet untouched by pollution. I found a Sith Holocron there that one of Dooku's apprentices was trying to find. I was planning on destroying it, but I kept it." 

"I wanted to end the war so badly that I thought I could use the Holocron against the infamous Count Dooku and against the Separatists so the Republic could win. I thought I was helping, but the more I used the knowledge of the Sith Holocron, I grew in the dark side." Rasanna explained. "It wasn't long until I was discovered. My Master, Master Antriela destroyed the Holocron. She was very disappointed in me, but she told no one. Had she spoken on this to the Jedi Council, I would have been thrown out of the Jedi Order for good...So despite disappointing her, she still saw me as her daughter."