Private A False Sense of Peace

[Vilaz Munin]

Vilaz got what he wanted.

The Mandalorians Empire that he helped create and saw it tainted was now defunct, and Cadera’s rule over Mandalore and its colonies came to an end. He imagined things much different when Mandalore would be free from nonsensical philosophies that plagued his culture. The Mandalorians dreamed of another golden age for his people; one where they were stabilized and could conquer the stars like their forefathers that cemented a culture, an idea that survived for thousands of years. He knew his people had suffered many cataclysms and tragedies in their history. He only hoped he didn’t have to see one in his life.

But here he was.

He got what he wanted, but lost something he had to achieve that vision. The cost? The Sith occupying Mandalore and treating it like an experiment. A lab creature probably had more dignity than the home of the Mandalorians. His family and clan were exempt from any Sith-Imperial prejudices, they were seen as trustworthy allies of the Empire that earned their keep and given privileges other Mandalorians couldn’t have.

They called it resettling the Mandalorian population...on paper, sure. In reality? Harsh discrimination that treated Mandalorians like lesser dogs.

The former Akaan could give his family and clan peace and not worry about living off of scraps. Though was it really peace?

Vilaz saw it nothing more, but an illusion.

He carried a heavy conscience since helping the Sith takeover Mandalore.

It was another day at home, alone with just him and his wife. He had plans in making a patrol today with Briika.

Another day, another fake smile. At least his wife made the minutes much more relaxing for him to enjoy.

 

[Briika Munin]

Concord Dawn.

It was home yet it wasn't. The planet wasn't the same as they had left it before their exile after the events of the Red Coronation, and now its occupation by the Sith Empire. The newest landlords of the Mandalorian world were not the most generous nor did they have any genuine cares for it or its people either. Quite the opposite actually. And they had sold their soul to the devil to find this piece of peace. Yeah, right?!

The Munin Clan had returned to their homeworld, recouped their lands in the northwest territory, but it wasn't the way Briika had wished or dreamed of. She was not proud of how it came to be. There were strings attached, ones that came with a heavy price that Vilaz was willing to pay in order to keep the clan safe and prosperous; the working allegiance with Darth Carnifex that is. The Baar'ur had never trusted the Emperor. She always had felt that her husband was just being used as a pawn in the Dark Lord's game of space chess if you will. One day they would be expendable... Hopefully, the Munin's would be well ahead of that move in the high stakes gamble they were participating in.

The petite blonde, wearing her signature silver-plated beskar'gam, sighed and grabbed her buy'ce off the long table, then exited the homestead, booted feet lithely skipping down the steps to where the Concordian was patiently waiting for her to join him in the courtyard. Briika mounted her speederbike that that was next to his with ease, then flashed Vilaz a smirk before pulling on the helmet atop her golden plaits.

Less than a second went by and she had already gunned the heavily modified engine leaving the Munin in the dust as the last one to the outer perimeter was a rotten egg and would have dinner dishes to do for a week.

 

[Vilaz Munin]

He slightly chuckled when Bree mounted her speeder, custom built by courtesy of Vilaz, and took off before saying anything. Only a smirk that Vilaz knew too well. “Damn woman,” the Mandalorian said to himself in a playful tone before starting the engines of his own vehicle and making a run for it, zooming out from the courtyard of their homestead and trying to catch up to his wife.

Maybe she was a ‘damn woman’, but she was his and he was hers.

After some time the couple stopped, a couple miles outside the boundaries of their clan’s borders and being greeted by a jungle. The Sith did occupy Mandalore, but it dared not touch Concord Dawn. At least something that meant to the Mandalorians was still intact. No Sith statues, no military installations, nothing of that sort.

“Looks like you won, cyar’ika,” he said as he dismounted from his speeder and approached his wife, his left hand reaching out behind her back and sliding it down to her curves.. “But maybe next time say something before taking off, ‘lek? Ain’t exactly fair to get a head start,” of course he meant it all as playful banter that Bree would be all too familiar. It wouldn’t be exactly a happy marriage without some quips and jokes between them.

“I heard reports about something crashing down in this area,” he explained to his wife, debriefing the details to her. “Pretty simple; just go in and find out what’s in our backyard.” And if it was something hostile, they’d take it out. A wayward soul? Maybe help them out without making them a dependent.

“This should be quick.”

Hopefully so.

 

[Briika Munin]

"Seems I did indeed win," Bree replied matter of fact as she slid from the bike seat. "All's fair in love and war, ner cyare. Just keeping you on your toes. You can thank me later," she quipped with a knowing chuckle.

The ride and competition with her husband was always exhilarating. It never got old. Reminded the Baar'ur of when the two met on their first crusade together after he'd been appointed Ra's Akaan. It seemed like yesterday and like a lifetime ago. So much had happened, both good and bad; more good actually though the bad was really bad. They had been in a rough patch for a while now, but hopefully, things would be to the upside again here shortly, the gods willing.

Briika looked out over the area before them, scanning the terrain with her HUD. "I don't see anything... Wait. I'm picking up a thermal reading about two klicks east of here near the rock outcroppings. How about I let you go first this time... just to be fair "

Vilaz Munin

 

[Vilaz Munin]

“I guess I can’t argue with that logic, huh. Just don’t be moaning whenever I pull something similar on you,” continuing the intimate banter between them, sharing a small laugh with Bree. If it wasn’t for the helmet he had on, Briika would see a mischievous smirk aimed for her. That would probably lead up to more intimate talk between them.

Unfortunately his helm covered his face, all that could be seen as a head was the infamous T-visor shape that carried a proud symbol throughout thousands of years. A symbol most did not respect because of newer generations of Mandalorians; however, Vilaz and his kin made sure that visor carried its true meaning with weight whenever encountering doubters that mocked his culture.

A bit tiring to have to clean up the subpar performance the other Mandalorians did, but at least he got to maim something. Relives the stress.

“You know I always take point, cyar’ika. Ever since day one, remember?” the Warrior spoke through the private comms with his wife as he lead the way with her following behind. Whenever the two went on missions together alone they would devise tactics and agree on compromises. It felt great to Bree by his side in missions as she was more than just his wife. A soulmate; a battle companion; and most importantly: someone who could patch him up from injuries.

The two hiked through the terrain, weapons ready to counter any fauna that dared approach them. Coming out of the thick of the woods they came exactly to where their HUDs detected the thermal readings. Smoke ascended from the ground and there was a disturbance in the rocks as something heavy touched them. Something heavy and hard.

He could see some debris and shrapnel, maybe belonging to a vessel.

“Let’s take a look. Split up or stick together? And no, I don’t mean our marriage,” another quip for his wife, probably the best joke he had for today.

Briika Munin​

 

[Briika Munin]

"You. can. try.... " Bree retorted with a chortle. It wasn't an if but when, and the Tor-Munin would be ready to counter her beloved's attempt.

It was good to be actively taking part again and being side by side with Vilaz Munin . The Baar'ur had gotten burnt out especially after living the exile life for so long, but now there was hope again that Clan Munin was on the right track.

"Elek, I do, Vil'ika... That mission was the start of something special, approved by the gods no doubt," the petite blonde answered sweetly, then she fell in behind her husband bringing up the rear of their twosome. "I don't mind you leading too much as the view is still very nice from back here."

It was hard to believe they'd been together all these years; about the time of Ra's rise is when they first met. It had been mostly bliss for the soul mates as the two appeared to be, though there had been a couple of rough patches. But what marriage didn't, right? The Red Coronation had truly been the lowest point from her POV, but when rock bottom is hit there is only one way to go... UP! And here they were.

As the Munin's grew closer to their inquiry, the debris field left by a direct impact of something was intriguing. "Ha ha... We should probably stick together, hmm... I remember the last time we took different paths, that rancor on Ord Mantell took advantage of our split. Together we are stronger than one I say."

 

[Vilaz Munin]

"Then we'll do that," the warrior confirmed his wife's advice of the two sticking together rather than being yards away in this investigation. With her by his side he was stronger than doing things himself. The Mandalorian, before meeting Bree, was somewhat of a loner. A man that spent time in hunting bounties and accepting mercenary work for various organizations while also helping the unity of his culture in battles. He took pride in being capable of handling things himself, and it was still a habit of his even when courting Bree in their early days of their relationship. A habit that annoyed her, but her patience in teaching him the values of working with her as a team and a couple paid off when Vilaz relinquished in not being the only one taking responsibility of missions and other assignments. Vilaz knew his wife was a capable warrior, trained in various aspects of combat and noncombat. Other foreign cultures would limit women in what they could; the ways of the Mandalorian, however, the women took pride in being capable of taking masculine roles.

Interesting that a warrior culture that people thought as a savage one knew the values of equality better than others.

Ironic.

With Vilaz taking point and Bree in the back, enjoying the view that was in front of her, the Concordian was interested in the great pillarof smoke that was meters away from them. That would be the object of what caused this mess in the outcroppings. Their helmets would filter the harmful carbon of the smoke that would harm their lungs and respiratory system. The closer they got, the more debris they found.

"Look," Vilaz mentioned to his wife at a hulking object that caused more rift in the rocks. It looked like a corvette or something else of a similar size. Its design looked familiar to other vessels Vilaz knew about.

"It looks...Mandalorian," and shifted his head to look at his wife. Of course, he couldn't see her facial expression nor could Bree see his, but this was an interesting find. "I'm scanning its IFF codes, doesn't seem like it is one of own. Let's check it out." They would be extremely cautious when nearing the ship and would have to be vigilant of its surroundings. He didn't want them to be caught in an explosion of the ship. There was hole in the ship, caused by some sort of damage for them to enter and inspect what was in its interior.

Briika Munin ​

 

[Briika Munin]

Blue-green orbs from behind a darken T-visor peered over to where Vilaz Munin had alluded to. The crash site was much more spread out over the land than they thought. A large portion though was wedged into the rocks with one section of the hull still intact.

"It does, doesn't it yet not," Bree replied.

The Baar'ur wasn't the best at recognizing classes of ships like her husband, but some of the design did have a Mandalorian-like flair to it. "I did a preliminary scan for life-forms while you were checking the IFF codes and it's negative. It would be a miracle for anyone or anything to survive such a traumatic crash, though we should still proceed with caution. If they were in a deep hibernation state, I might not pick them up," she warned.

The Munin's stepped through the gaping hole on the starboard with care and weapons at the ready just in case. Briika noted that there were scoring marks on the interior hull.

"Looks like there may have been some sort of firefight."

 

[Vilaz Munin]

The couple entered through the gaping and the fractured Mandalorian corvette, both of them with a reflex that would shoot to kill unapologetically. Shoot first, ask questions later was their motto. They couldn’t trust anyone except in each other. No doubt what Vilaz had done earned them a red target painted on their backs by the other Mandalorians and would attack them without hesitation. Something that Vilaz took seriously as he was responsible for bringing an animosity relationship between his clan and other Mandalorian tribes. He did not take kindly to anyone threatening his clan, especially his family; anyone who dared would get his fury and wrath. He’d give up his own life just to keep Bree and their children safe, it was his fault for them to live a life like that.

“That could be the case, but there’s gotta be something more, cyar’ika. Good eye on the marks,” he complimented his wife, taking in full account of her own findings. Why would there be a firefight inside the corvette? If this was indeed a Mandalorian vessel, it mostly belonged to a crew belonging to that culture. Was one of them a traitor and brought them all down to their deaths?

Sparks of damaged electronics could be heard and see, the sparks cracking and disappearing after a moment when they were caused. There were more scorched marks in the interior of the hull, from the floor to the ceiling. No lifeforms as his wife announced. Some patches of fire consumes the the metal, giving off smoke from its hosts.

“Maybe they were running away from something and their ship got damaged which explains why their happy landing,” not exactly a happy landing, just a joke said in a serious tone.

Turning around the corner, his rifle aimed up when he saw a figure. A static figure. Seeing more clearly, he realized it was a corpse...a corpse wearing Mandalorian armor sprawled on the floor. It appeared to be a woman judging the design of the armor.

“Probably died on the rough impact, and she can’t be the only one here.” There were sure to be others. It wasn’t efficient to commandeer a corvette with exactly one person. One needed more than an extra pair of hands to run this thing.

“At least we know where they come from.”

Briika Munin ​

 

[Briika Munin]

"Well, it looks that way... but from whom or what, hmm?"

Briika followed Vilaz Munin further into the ship. When he turned the corner and suddenly raised his rifle, she also brought her Ripper up to ready only to find a dead body ahead. The Baar'ur reached for the medscanner that was in her medpac, then stepped up to the armored corpse and scanned the Mando.

"Elek... The vod died of massive internal injuries from blunt force trauma. I'm going to take a DNA sample from her, then run it against the databank when we get back to the homestead. Who knows, could be a descendant of someone we know," Bree said, then the doctor rummaged in her bag for a testing kit and quickly got the specimen needed.

"Vil'ika... What do you make of the etched markings on this beskad?" she asked, handing over the Mandalorian blade to her husband.

 

[Vilaz Munin]

There was surely more to find that much he knew from the little information the couple deduced. His wife was brilliant in the way she thought when she mentioned about taking a DNA sample from the deceased woman and take it back to run it through the databanks. Vilaz didn’t think of that or even considered examining the body. Having that kind of information would tell them more on the woman and give insight to her backstory.

“Good thinking, cyar’ika. I didn’t think of that, you’d be one helluva bounty hunter. Just don’t capture my bounty,” a small joke, while praising Bree on her thinking.

He received the beskad from his wife and began to observe the blade. Small scorches and small chips probably from the crash landing. Beskar was near impervious to lightsabers, but in a violent crashing like this it would be a miracle if the blade came unscathed from the wreckage. “There’s some etching on it,” and his HUD began to scan the depictions on the blade. Upon it came a motto, but more importantly it gave the emblem of a clan. Vilaz then shared his founding with Bree via datapad. “Does the emblem look familiar to you, Bree? I’m sure it’s from a clan or some secular group of Mandalorians.”

“Let’s go to the bridge, maybe we’ll find more clues.”

Briika Munin ​

 

[Briika Munin]

"The clan emblem does look familiar yet not. Perhaps when I get the DNA results back, the mystery will reveal itself as to whom we are dealing with, hmm."

Briika relieved the beskad from Vilaz Munin after he was done examining the etched beskar blade, then placed it back with care on the deceased Mando out of respect as she said a little prayer to the Gods.

The wrecked piece of the ship's fuselage wasn't too big, but it took a bit to get through the twisted durasteel to the bridge. Along the way, Briika brought up the discussion they didn't get to finish the night before as quiet pillow talk quickly turned into bedroom dances. It was amazing they ever got any sleep.

"Vil'ika... Have you given any more thought to our predicament here? I feel like we are tittering on the edge of a double edge sword again being beholden to the Sith. You may have a special understanding with the Emperor, but I have never trusted him. The credits have been good I will not contest nor that I appreciated our lands being returned for your service to the Empire, but I think it's time for our clan to break the chains that bind us before it is too late."

 

[Vilaz Munin]

There was more debris along the way as the couple continued their investigation on the Mandalorian vessel. Durasteel floors were bent and shifted, making it a tad difficult to walk on. Admittedly it was a bit foolish to continue their investigation here without knowing more of the condition of the damaged vessel. It could collapse anytime or there could be a leak which would cause a combustion reaction. Their armor was impervious to many kinds of damage, but that would lead to burns on their bodies. He had these thoughts in his mind as he was more worried for his wife's safety. Vilaz would never hesitate in giving up his life just to save Bree's and she well knew that. The Warrior knew his wife was a hardened warrior with many talents and skills, and able to handle her own fights. They were the examples of the elite. But even then the value of family, something that meant more than all the glory in the Galaxy, made him be sensitive with the safety of his wife and the family they shared.

He already failed Mandalore when he helped the Sith invade it

He would not fail his family. What kind of man would he be if he couldn't do his duty towards them?

Then Bree brought up a topic they weren't able to finish talking about the other night as their talks evolved into a more passionate, romantic night they enjoyed. It was about the Sith and their clan's dealings with them. Bree had always cautioned and advised Vilaz whenever making deals with the Dark Lord of the Sith and his Empire, and while Vilaz listened to his beloved attentively he always assured her to trust him and continue these dealings. The business they had with the Sith made them wealthy and prosperous. Clan Munin was a big and wealthy clan in comparison to other clans. They were not persecuted in the territories of the Sith Empire and were given the lands of Concord Dawn for them to govern. Eventually Bree was right about everyhing after what happened to Mandalore. Vilaz made a deal with the devil and thought he wouldn't suffer for this, but he was wrong.

"You were right about everything, cyar'ika. Everything...I thought I knew what I was doing, but I was wrong with everything I thought to be true. I only saw Carnifex as someone I could conduct business with. Our clan is prosperous and huge because of our business with him and the Sith Empire, but...I should have listened to you from the start," his voice was defeated. These were mistakes he knew of, but failed to face them.

"Sometimes I ask myself how can I still have you, our children, and our clan we've built. My sins are grave. I feel like I've failed as a Son of Mandalore. I feel like I've failed you and our family. I wish to break these chains, but how? Who is left other than us? I don't want to put our lives in peril, especially yours and our family. I can't lose you. I'm already defeated with what I've done."

Briika Munin ​