Chapter Text
Years have passed since the bounty that forever changed Din Djarin's life. While he still missed Grogu, Din was able to tell himself that it was for the best that they were apart. He went back to bounty hunting, maintaining his reputation throughout the galaxy, except now he was working strictly for the New Republic due to Cara Dune and Greef Karga’s insistence. The New Republic had grown stronger with his help in capturing enemies for them. Din never thought he would ever help the New Republic, especially after their previous run in. But here he was, becoming a bounty hunter for them. He was grateful that he had Greef and Cara there to put in a good word for him.
Din was able to make a daily schedule for himself. Wake up, check for any new criminals on Cara's databases, capture them, bring them to Cara, who would call for the New Republic pilots to take them away, get paid. If there were no new criminals, Din would look over his new ship, which he named the Razor Crest II, and clean any weapons. He would also help Cara around town with any bandits.
The one thing he never did was use the darksaber. Din still carried it on his belt, but that was only because he didn't want it falling into the wrong hands. Unfortunately, it brought some unwanted attention towards him. Sometimes he would be challenged for it by other Mandalorians or someone wanting glory. Din would always beat them, which frustrated him because he wanted to get rid of it. But he had promised Bo-Katan a duel back on Moff Gideon’s cruiser, which he would have to give eventually.
Din was currently on the way to collect his next bounty. Cara gave him a fob of an Imperial officer that had worked with Moff Gideon before. Despite Gideon being imprisoned, his men were still working to bring the Empire back. That could mean they were still looking for Grogu, which Din couldn't let happen. Grogu may not be his foundling anymore, but he would still protect him with his life.
Din landed the Razor Crest II on the planet that the fob led him to. It was a jungle planet known as Takodana, where scum would hang out. Din wondered why an Imperial officer would be there of all places. He had caught many bounties in the castle that the criminals hung out in before Grogu came along. He figured that this officer was trying to lay low, making him a not so easy job.
But Din always loved a challenge.
The Mandalorian entered the castle, receiving looks as soon as he came in. He brushed them off, used to the attention that his armor would give him. The fob in his hand beeped as he got closer to his bounty. It seemed to be pointing at a woman sitting at the bar. Din tucked the fob away, making sure that no one could see it. He then went over to the bar and took a seat nearby the officer.
The women eyed him up and down, furrowing her eyebrows. Din didn't look her way, instead ordering a drink from the bartender. He didn't touch the drink, instead just staring off into space. He needed to wait for the right time to catch the officer. She kept looking at him, as if he seemed familiar to her. Din never recalled seeing her before when he received the bounty for her, despite knowing that she used to work for Gideon.
"Hey, Mando," the woman spoke up, but Din made no sign that he heard her. "Why aren't you touching that drink? You ordered it; might as well drink up."
She moved a few seats closer to him, but Din didn't react. He did smirk under the helmet, as she was falling right into his trap. He reached into his belt and pulled out the bounty puck of her. Her eyes widened when she saw her face come out of the puck. Then she glared at Din, reaching to pull out a blaster.
Din grabbed her arm, pulling his blaster out faster than she could. He held the blaster to her throat, making her not be able to move. The officer didn't make an attempt again, not daring to cross the Mandalorian.
"Commander Leen," Din said, moving his hand away from her arm and taking out a pair of cuffs. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to take you in for crimes against the New Republic."
Leen sneered at him, but didn't wrestle right out of his arm. "So you are that Mandalorian. The one working for the New Republic," she said. "Also the one in the possession of the darksaber."
What she said gained the attention of others in the room. Din rolled his eyes under the helmet, wishing that Leen never mentioned that. Luckily, no one seemed to want to challenge him. He didn't notice any other Mandalorians in the bar when he came in. Her attempt at diverting attention away from her was unsuccessful.
"I can bring you in warm..." Din told her. "Or I can bring you in cold."
...
It was quiet as Din flew the Razor Crest II back to Nevarro with his bounty. Commander Leen sat behind him, not saying a word. She didn't look scared, angry, or anything. She just had an emotionless look on her face. To Din, it was no different from wearing a helmet. He sometimes missed the noise that Grogu would fill while flying. He never admitted it, but he did.
"You know, I know exactly who you are," Leen said, breaking the silence. "You're not just the New Republic bounty hunter or the owner of the darksaber. You're the Mandalorian who had the child in his possession."
Din stiffened when she mentioned Grogu. While he knew she worked with Gideon, he didn't expect for her to mention the kid. He did not like where this was going, but he said nothing.
"You caused quite a mess on Moff Gideon's cruiser," Leen continued, a smirk growing on her face. "You messed up his plans by having your friend, Dune, arrest him. I hate to inform you of this, but I'm afraid that the Moff has escaped."
"What?!" Din exclaimed, looking over at the officer. She had to be lying to get under his skin. Gideon couldn't have escaped prison.
"The New Republic isn't as powerful as you thought it was," Leen said, still with a smirk. "But don't worry, he's no longer after your child. That one has disappeared and we already have enough of his blood. Instead... we found someone else. A young girl this time."
Din clenched his fists together. He knew that the people who worked under Gideon would still try to fulfill his plans. He wanted Grogu's blood and he had mentioned that he took some from him. But now, he wanted someone else's. Din felt angry at the thought of Gideon going after another child.
Leen knew that this was getting to the Mandalorian. "And we'll make sure you won't get in the way this time," she said. "We have sent our own men after her, so you won't be able to reach her in time. Gideon will succeed in his plans. No ancient religion of yours will get in the way again."
Din couldn't take it anymore. He took out his blaster and shot a stun blast at Leen. She fell unconscious in her seat and Din quickly moved her below deck. He then shoved her into the carbon freezing system. It was the only way to prevent himself from killing her right there. He wanted to make sure he would still get paid, so he needed her alive.
It seemed like forever when he finally made it to Nevarro. Din landed his ship right outside the town and grabbed the carbon block of the officer. Someone was outside, ready to check it out. Din left the carbon block with him and immediately went to Cara's office. He needed to look into this new child, knowing that Cara possibly had the resources to figure them out.
"That was a quick," Cara commented when she saw her friend walk in. "Came all in one piece?"
"Yes, she's getting checked out right now," Din replied. "But I need your help with something."
"Name it," Cara said with a nod.
"Can you look into the prison systems for me?" Din asked. "This officer mentioned that Gideon escaped and I want to see if she was lying or not."
Cara bit her lip as she leaned over to her computer. She went into the prison registry and looked through it. "Hate to say it, but she was telling the truth," she told him, showing him her screen. "Says he escaped about a week ago with some help."
"Dank farrik," Din cursed. "He's going after another child, according to the officer. A young girl, and they're already going after her."
Cara's eyes widened when he said this. "Another child for more blood?" She questioned, receiving a nod in response. "What do these bastards want?"
"Beats me," Din said with a shrug. "But I have to find this girl before they do. Is there anyway for you to check any Imperial systems? They probably have her listed there."
"I can try getting in. We have a few databases that can help us look into more Imps to arrest," Cara said, tapping a few buttons. After a few minutes, she was able to get into the system. She looked through it, noticing something that caught her eye. "I've got something about a young, Force sensitive girl. Says a few things about blood, so this must be the same girl you mentioned."
"Any pictures of her?" Din asked, leaning over to see her screen.
"Nothing, but they do have a description," Cara said. "Brown hair, brown eyes, light to tan skin, around 15 years old. Says she was tracked down on Jakku. Where the war officially ended."
"Then I have to go to Jakku," Din said. "Imps are already looking for her and at any moment they could catch her. I have to get there first."
"I'll come with you," Cara said, standing up from her chair. "You'll need backup."
Din nodded and he and Cara went to the Razor Crest II. As they were about to board, they noticed Greef coming towards them. "Where are you two going?" He asked.
Din looked over at him. "The Empire still wants a child for their plans. Just... not my kid,” he told him. "We're going to help this one before the Imps can get her first."
Greef nodded at him. "Should I inform the New Republic of this?" He asked.
"Not yet," Din said. "But I might have to contact them later about it if I'm going to get this girl to safety."
"I'll keep things on the down low then," Greef said, holding out his arm. Din grasped his forearm and they shook them. "Good luck, Djarin."
"Thank you," Din said.
He then went onto his ship and took off out of the system. He made the jump to lightspeed, heading towards Jakku. Din had never been to that planet before, but he was not looking forward to it. He was never a fan of desert planets, but he heard Jakku was one of the worst ones. All he knew about it was that it was mostly a scrapyard. He wondered what this girl could be doing on that planet.
"You mentioned contacting the New Republic after we get the girl," Cara mentioned after a few minutes. "Why do you need them to help?"
"Because they might have connections with the Jedi that saved us on Gideon's cruiser," Din explained. "Unless you already know of him from your Rebellion days?"
Cara thought back for a moment. "I did recognize the stripes on his X-Wing," she said. "Red 5, the pilot who blew up the Death Star."
"I didn't know it was a Jedi that did that," Din said, curious.
"He made a one in the million shot, so it makes sense that he would use those Force powers," Cara said with a shrug. "His name is Luke Skywalker."
"Luke Skywalker?" Din questioned.
Cara's eyes widened as she tried to hold in a laugh. "You've heard of the Death Star, but not the name of the person who blew it up?" She asked him. "Do you even know that Skywalker defeated both Darth Vader and the Emperor singlehandedly on the second Death Star?"
"I knew there was an Emperor, but who's Darth Vader?" Din asked, furrowing his eyebrows under his helmet.
"Were you even living in this galaxy when the war was happening?" Cara questioned, chuckling to herself.
"I grew up in an underground covert," Din told her, a little annoyed that she was making fun of him. "Didn't have the time to look at the news."
Cara shook her head, having already stopped laughing. "I've just never heard of anyone who hasn't heard of Darth Vader," she said. "Even the Mythrol has heard of him, yet you haven't? A bounty hunter of all people has never heard of Darth Vader?"
"Can we move on from this conversation?" Din asked with a sigh. "We have a child to save."
Din pulled out of lightspeed as they arrived at Jakku. He started the landing process nervously, hoping he could make it to the girl in time.