What difference is there between a man and a box?
One could argue that there are very few. Do they not begin in darkness — in the shadow of the womb, or the black of soil? Are they not cultivated by careful hands — the words of a parent, or the tools of the carpenter? Is not their final shape a result of their experience — the bad and the good bundled into a single whole?
When gazed upon through that lens, the differences between the Mand'alor and the "gift" before him were minuscule. A box had been wonderfully made: hand-carved, stained, and even adorned with hinges of beskar. Yet, just as with a man, what mattered most was inside. A banner, licked by the inferno of war, laid at the bottom of the masterpiece. It was a relic: one whose mark could still be seen; despite its defeat on Wayland.
And nestled within the folds of this fabric, once flown by a storied clan, was the written form of a rhyme every Mandalorian knew by heart. The Resol'nare. Untouched were its words...save for a single alternation: "Our Leader" was underlined.
No note was needed, for the message was loud and clear. Clan Skirata fought bravely on Wayland, but in the end, their banner fell.
One could argue that there are very few. Do they not begin in darkness — in the shadow of the womb, or the black of soil? Are they not cultivated by careful hands — the words of a parent, or the tools of the carpenter? Is not their final shape a result of their experience — the bad and the good bundled into a single whole?
When gazed upon through that lens, the differences between the Mand'alor and the "gift" before him were minuscule. A box had been wonderfully made: hand-carved, stained, and even adorned with hinges of beskar. Yet, just as with a man, what mattered most was inside. A banner, licked by the inferno of war, laid at the bottom of the masterpiece. It was a relic: one whose mark could still be seen; despite its defeat on Wayland.
And nestled within the folds of this fabric, once flown by a storied clan, was the written form of a rhyme every Mandalorian knew by heart. The Resol'nare. Untouched were its words...save for a single alternation: "Our Leader" was underlined.
No note was needed, for the message was loud and clear. Clan Skirata fought bravely on Wayland, but in the end, their banner fell.
