What did they used to do? Mercenaries, transport escorts... the commissions they took were top-tier difficult, like assassinating planetary leaders or kidnapping senators. Now, under Imperial pressure, they'd been reduced to taking bounties to get by.
The clan also had many adopted orphans who relied on the money they earned to survive. Mando had once been one of them. He was extremely loyal to the clan, and when he had extra money, he'd use it to improve the children's lives.
"When have I ever let you lose out?" Amir said.
Mando: I've earned a lot, sure. Risking my life...
"Don't tell me you're going after the Empire again."
"Wow, smart. You guessed it."
Mando: ...
"What's the job." Mando knew Amir was loaded. He couldn't resist the temptation and asked.
"Assaulting an experimental base. We've already figured out the base's layout. The mission is to assist a military assault and rescue the children inside. Of course, you'll come with me. With your skills, it'll be no problem," Amir coaxed.
"What's the pay?" Mando asked the question he cared about most.
Amir remembered he had some valuable things in his bag. When Hondo "gifted" him that pile, not everything fit, so he'd stuffed some in his bag.
He dug around and pulled out several metal ingots, some he recognized, some he didn't. They were all hard currency.
Watching Amir slap the ingots on the table, the Mandalorian's helmet froze. He stared intently at several of the pieces.
He couldn't help but reach out, pick up a silver-white ingot, and hold it in front of his visor, looking closely. Then he tapped it against his helmet and pressed it to his ear, listening carefully to the ringing hum of the metal.
Amir realized something was up. "Is that...?"
"Beskar," the Mandalorian said, his voice filled with unconcealed excitement. By now, he had stacked all three similar ingots, unable to take his eyes off them.
"Oh~" Amir was about to say this was the down payment, but seeing this, he changed his tune. "How about these ingots as payment?"
Although Beskar was more valuable than other metals and had better strength, it wasn't of great use to him. He might as well use it as payment to hire Mando, let him forge some new armor, and get a bit tougher.
The Mandalorian fell silent, but anyone could see he was tempted.
Beskar was extremely precious to them now. After all, Mandalore was occupied by the Empire. Without special channels, it was impossible to get. Right now, only Mando's helmet was made of Beskar; the rest was ordinary alloy.
New armor components were very rare for him. No Mandalorian disliked new armor.
"Deal." The Mandalorian finally agreed. Although the mission was dangerous, it was worth the risk.
Amir secretly glanced into his bag. Hehe, there are still a few more pieces of Beskar. My ship should have some too. I'll make myself something good another day. Secretly, of course. Can't let Mando see.
Just as the two struck the deal, Kayin walked in.
"How'd it go?" Amir asked.
"Haha, someone in Mos Eisley offered a high price for Hondo, alive. I've already sold him." Kayin put a small bag of credits on the table.
"About that... thing?" Kayin continued.
Hondo, after being locked on the Traveler for several hours, finally spilled the beans about his purpose in the Hoth asteroid belt.
He had infiltrated the pirate gang for months, even becoming the second-in-command, all for a piece of data the pirates held. The moment he discovered the pirate captain was dead, he decided to act early, using Amir's help to steal it and escape.
Now, the data he stole and the pirates' fortune were all on Amir's ship.
Amir originally thought it was some valuable treasure, or a shocking secret. But when Hondo proudly told him, Amir was disappointed.
Then, an exasperated Amir had Kayin look for Hondo's enemies and sell him off.
"What are we going to do with the locations of spice stashes? I don't want to become a spice runner," Amir said helplessly.
This pirate gang, in the course of their spice dealing, had gradually mapped out the spice storage bases of the galaxy's largest smuggling syndicate—the Pykes. They had been planning a big score. And, as it happened, Hondo had set his sights on it.
Steal the data, raid the spice bases, make a fortune... everything was planned. Hondo was just about to make his move when the unexpected happened.
The leak of any Pyke spice base location would make the entire underworld go crazy. Just stealing a little was an unimaginable sum for ordinary people. If they robbed it all, they'd be rich. But Amir had no interest.
"I thought so, too. But we can leak this info. Let those big organizations fight it out," Kayin said after a thought.
"That could work. We'll sell the data at a high price. Crimson Dawn, the Hutts, the bounty hunter guilds, the pirate gangs... let them fight like dogs over the spice." Amir's eyes lit up, and he and Kayin shared a knowing smile.
"Leave this to me. I've been bored lately anyway." Kayin volunteered. He already despised these criminal organizations. He was naturally excited by an opportunity to make them kill each other.
The roast meat quickly arrived at the table. The group began to eat heartily. Only 32 and the Mandalorian sat there, looking at each other in silence.
"I'm leaving." Mando couldn't sit there any longer. If he kept watching, he'd starve.
"Don't go. It's fine to lift your helmet a little," Amir called out.
Feeling his own hungry stomach, looking at the golden, crispy, greasy roast meat, Mando finally compromised. He lifted his helmet just enough to expose his mouth and began to eat in small bites.
Milisen had already shoveled several pieces into her mouth. Her face was covered in grease. As she chewed, her eyes squinted in happiness. ￣▽￣
Finally, the meal ended. The Mandalorian left happily with his Beskar, waiting for Amir to contact him.
The group returned to Obi-Wan's dwelling and rested on the Traveler.
The next day, Kayin left early in the morning, carrying the databox.
Obi-Wan reminded him not to forget his mission of watching over Luke.
And so, another day of training Milisen began. It was a fruitful day. Milisen had high talent and could already use the Force to lift small stones.
Milisen was also very motivated by this. Feeling her own progress was undoubtedly the best motivation for learning. In the subsequent meditation, Milisen could even sit quietly for... well, ten minutes.
They didn't have to wait long. Just two days later, Ahsoka sent Amir a call.
It was finally time to begin.
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