After days of unconsciousness, the little green creature regained its energy and mischievously unscrewed the engine control lever, treating it as a toy. The constantly flickering control panel seemed like a dazzling playground to it. Greef Karga sent a message instructing the Mandalorian not to return to the guild but to deliver the target directly to the client, who was eager to see the bounty. The Mandalorian felt heavy-hearted, unsure of what fate awaited the little one.
After landing the Razor Crest, the Mandalorian carried the incubator back to the alley. Inside, the white-haired client kept his word, presenting a full container of beskar steel—twenty bars in total. But as Dr. Pershing pushed the incubator into the inner room, the Mandalorian felt no joy in completing the mission, especially under the trustful gaze of the large, dark eyes from within the incubator. He wanted to ask about the child's fate, but the client refused to answer. Once the reward was paid, the bounty was to be treated as if it never happened—such was the guild's rule.
Carrying the container, the Mandalorian descended into the covert. Everyone who passed him stared at the container, not with envy but with anger. Years ago, the Empire had ravaged Mandalore to plunder beskar steel, nearly wiping out their race. Now, the Mandalorian was working for Imperial remnants and blatantly bringing back beskar stamped with the Imperial emblem—a disgrace.
Paz Vizla was the first to confront him, drawing his blade. The Armorer, the leader of the forge, stopped the conflict. The Empire was gone, and the beskar had returned to Mandalorian hands. Those who chose the Mandalorian way were both hunters and prey—there was no room for complaint.
The beskar could be used to craft a full suit of armor, replacing the Mandalorian's patchwork and battered gear. Though he could have added a mudhorn signet to symbolize bravery, the Mandalorian declined. It was an unfair kill, not worthy of pride. The extra beskar would be better used for a whistling bird gadget, with the remainder going to foundlings.
As the smith's hammer rang, the Mandalorian was transported back to the war years—Imperial ships and droids invading his home, his parents killed. He would never forget. After the forging, he pushed aside his memories and donned the new Mandalorian armor. The gleaming suit caused a stir at the guild. Amid envious stares, the Mandalorian approached Greef Karga. Greef was pleased with his work and proudly flashed two bars of beskar from his breast pocket—his share of the reward.
The Mandalorian had no interest in that. He wanted to know how many trackers had been issued for the bounty. The answer was shocking: every bounty hunter in the guild had received one, but only the Mandalorian had succeeded. He asked no further questions and requested another job from Greef—the farther away, the better, to escape the guilt he might have incurred.
After receiving the bounty puck, he couldn't resist asking about the child's fate. But Greef cared only about the reward, not the client's intentions.
Back aboard the Razor Crest, the Mandalorian started the engines and saw the handleless control lever. A wave of sorrow washed over him. After a moment of contemplation, he shut down the engines and left the ship. He returned to the alley and searched around, finding the discarded incubator in a trash bin. A sense of dread grew in him. Climbing onto the roof, he activated his helmet's surveillance gear. Through the walls, he could see two figures and overheard their conversation—they were demanding that Dr. Pershing extract the necessary materials at any cost.
The "cost" likely included the child's life. The Mandalorian could not stand by any longer. He knocked on the door and ripped off the gatekeeper droid that answered. The commotion drew two stormtroopers outside. The Mandalorian circled to the back and blew open the wall. He eliminated the stormtroopers one by one as they arrived. After killing the fourth trooper guarding the inner door, he burst inside. Unexpectedly, another stormtrooper was waiting and fired a shot directly at his shoulder plate. The beskar deflected the blast harmlessly. The Mandalorian returned fire and took down the enemy.
An IT-O interrogation droid descended from the ceiling toward the operating table. Without hesitation, the Mandalorian shot it down. He pushed the doctor aside and scooped up the unconscious child from the table. There were far more stormtroopers hiding there than expected. The Mandalorian used his whistling birds to fight his way out—the small homing missiles could take out multiple targets at once, though they were precious and difficult to manufacture.
As soon as the Mandalorian emerged with the child, the tracker was reactivated. Bounty hunters from the guild immediately swarmed in, collaborating to seize the bounty. The Mandalorian's only cover was a cargo landspeeder on the street. But Greef shot down the A-LT multipurpose droid piloting it, trapping the Mandalorian between the street and the landing pad with no way to advance or retreat.
Suddenly, arcs of light streaked across the sky. Paz Vizla led a group of Mandalorians to his aid, their jetpacks leaving bright trails in the air. They believed that getting the child to safety was the right path for a Mandalorian to uphold. The Mandalorian didn't know who had given Paz the order, and there was no time to ask. He grabbed the child and ran into the Razor Crest, only to be ambushed by Greef. Thinking quickly, the Mandalorian used his wrist cable to rupture a steam pipe. While Greef was blinded, he fired a shot at his chest. Greef was thrown from the ship and fell to the ground, saved only by the beskar steel on his chest.
The Razor Crest soared into the clouds. The Mandalorian nodded in gratitude to Paz outside the ship, then increased thrust and flew into space, disappearing among the stars.