DEFENDER • THE MANDALORIAN

SEVENTEEN

I live

•••

The steady chatter of the local tavern greets Alya as she follows behind the Mandalorian. After walking through the forest the trio had approached a warm village and were soon directed towards the tavern by a kind elder who had assumed them to be weary travelers.

Alya looks down towards her feet to glance towards the Child. He walks near her as his wide eyes look upon the interesting curiosities of the tavern. Deciding that the Child would be okay, the woman trails her eyes over to the people taking residence in the building.

None of the beings appear to be threatening, most just chatter amongst themselves and talk back and forth. Dark eyes close for a second as Alya calls upon the Force to guide her mind. She had felt a disturbance, and as a Jedi, it is her resposibility to protect the innocence and restore the balance.

No sense of imbalance called out to the woman in this moment. All she could feel at the moment is the perfect serenity of the spiritual energy. The imbalance is not here.

The Mandalorian takes heavy, confident steps as he leads the Jedi and the Child towards a table near the back of the tavern. Once they reach the table, Alya walks  around it and takes a seat as the bounty hunter places the Child in the chair besides hers.

Looking across from the table, the Jedi spots a woman watching them idlely. What catches the woman's eye the most however is the small tattooed symbol upon the woman's face and the one on her arm. A symbol of the Rebellion.

Once the Mandalorian takes his seat at the table, a woman soon approaches them with a kind smile upon her face. "Welcome travelers. Can I interest you in anything?"

"Bone broth, for the little one." The Mandalorian says, looking over to the silent child. Alya also glances over at the smiling child, watching as he coos quietly.

"Oh,well, you're in luck.I just took down a grinjer, so there's plenty" The woman makes a motion with her hands, looking between both the Mandalorian and the Jedi. " Can I interest either of you in a porringer of broth as well?"

"No, thank you," Alya answers the woman, not feeling any need to eat at the moment. The server nods and looks over to the Mandalorian for his answer.

"Just the one." At the answer, the woman goes to turn but is stopped by the Mandalorian's curiosity fueled words. "That one over there. When did she arrive?"

It seems that the woman that had caught Alya's eye had also caught the Mandalorian's. Her war-hardened frame and darkened clothes more than likely raised some suspicion in the Mandalorian's mind. The Jedi says nothing to the Mandalorian, figuring that he could reveal the warrior's peacefulness on his own.

The server stumbles with her words for a moment, looking for a correct response to the inquiry, "I've seen her here for the last week or so."

"What's her business here?"

"Buisness? Well, there's not much business in Sorgan, so I can't say." The Mandalorian throws some coins onto the table, attempting to bribe information out of the unknowing woman. "She doesn't strike me as a logrunner. Well, thank you sir. I will get that broth to you as soon as possible, and I will throw in a flagon of spotchka just for good measure. I will be right back with that."

The Jedi shakes her head as the server walks away. "This is a peaceful village; they don't understand bribes."

The Mandalorian says nothing but stands up due to the disappearance of the warrior from her table. Alya can sense the great amount of unneeded suspicion he holds towards the woman as he looks towards the exit of the tavern.