Private Fall & Reform

[Kragr Krayt]

Fall & Reform

Atmospheric theme​

Location: Batuu | Black Spire Outpost
Time: 13:30

Around half a year after the slaughter of Clan Loc and destruction its village.​

One day, out of the blue, Shai received a recorded holo message, locked behind a password with the only sentence spoken, Intended for Shai Maji. Once Shai cracked the password, giving the message the word Twig, a recorded hologram appeared in form of a Mandalorian in front of her. The Mandalorian at first were hard to see who it was, because of the blue effect of the hologram, but once the warrior removed his helmet, Shai would be able to recognize him. The small hologram showed one of the sentries, back when Clan Loc's village wasn't razed to rumble. "Hey Twig, when you receive this message, come to Black Spire Outpost on Batuu. It concerns Kragr" relayed the recording, ending without any more information.

As Shai entered the atmosphere, she was greeted by the outpost and after a bit of clearance, she would find herself on a temperate planet. Upon landed outside of the outpost, she would see jungles as far as her eyes could see, not to mention, blue clear oceans in the distance. Upon entering the outpost, she heard a male Twi'lek in very relaxed and simply clothing and a single blaster holstered, call out for her.

"Oi, you. Yes you, Shistavanen! An armoured looking fella paid me to replay you information" explained the Twi'lek, who sat under the shadow of the sun. "He told me to tell you, to find him at the nearest bar" explained the Twi'lek, before leaning back in his seat. If she followed the Twi'lek's directions, she would find herself going through a busy relaxed trading hub, locals trying to sell or trade, while many visiting was browsing the wares on display.

Shai would soon find the described bar, which was a medium-sized watery hole for locals and everyone else who came to Batuu. it didn't take long for Shai to hear the name Twig, being called by the same Mandalorian in the holo recording message.

Shai Maji

 

[Shai Maji]

It had been months since the massacre. Shai managed to work herself through the grief and found peace in her heart for those she lost, managing to find her old self to a degree again. But she never forgot and never forgave those responsible for what happened. Every day she kept an eye or ear peeled for any information on the Sith Dar'manda while also looking for Kragr and the last of their clan. They had completely disappeared off the map which was horrible for the Shistavanen who wanted to help them dearly. She finally seemed to get her chance.

She was busy cleaning her pistol and tinkering with a new design for her armour, when Baby came to notify her of an encrypted transmission. With a curious blink the Shistavanen booted up her terminal and started to decrypt the message. What she got completely took her by surprise. She knew the man who spoke well and the mention of Kragr was enough for her to drop everything she was doing and rush for the cockpit. Slipping into the cockpit's seat, she fired up the ship and blasted off into hyperspace. Every now and then she glanced at the pictures sitting next to the one with her and her parents. A picture of her and Nira, a picture of her and the kiddies of her class... and finally one she snapped of her and Kragr on his porch. This was her chance to finally be able to help them.

After a while she arrived at Batuu and disembarked, checking her pistol and adjusting her pants. She still opted to operate without her armour, simply to avoid any misunderstandings or conflicts that could brew if the people had a thing against Mandos. She barely managed to reach the market when a Twi'lek called out to her, pointing her in the direction of her contact. With a light smile she handed him a few credits and continued on to find this bar he mentioned. Once there, it didn't take long for her to find the armoured figure. She rushed to him with a broad smile, wrapping her hand around his head to press their foreheads together. "I came as quick as I could. I haven't heard from you guys in ages." she explained as she shifted to stay away from any prying ears. "What's going on with Krag? Where is he?" she asked with concern, glancing around then back to her old friend.

Kragr Krayt

 

[Kragr Krayt]

Standing away from where the locals sat, the Mandalorian, named Lax, grew quiet and shook his head while placing his hands on his hips. "Kragr is not well" started Lax off, but stopped, trying to find the best way to describe the situation. "He barely sleeps, have bad nightmares and he drinks, a lot" explained Lax as he guided Shai out of the bar and down the street, opposite of where she came from.

"The worse part about it is that he doesn't want to talk to anybody, he has closed himself off completely" explained Lax further, leading Shai off the main trading street and towards some residential area, however, it was more built-in shape of containers placed upon containers. Shai would then find the remaining people of Clan Loc, or what used to be Clan Loc and looked more like mercenaries and bounty hunters, than a proud clan of Mandalorians. With only six or so left after the destruction of Clan Loc, they just small enough to sit around a table.

The moment Shai arrived, the rest lit up, looking much for like their old self, before the shattering. The first the raise from his chair, one of the sentries, a great bearded man, grin from ear to ear when seeing Shai. "Twig!" He called excited with both arms spread out, as he went to meet her halfway, pulling her into a big bear hug. The rest, while didn't get up, still cheered over her return, but that was mostly because they were playing pazaak and money were involved. The one that hugged her, pulled Shai back, "great to see you again!" he smiled, placing both hands on her cheeks, before returning to the game.

Lax placed a hand on Shai's shoulder and ushered her up a set of stair, that led up to other rows of containers. "We rented two rows of these" explained Lax as he led her passed containers after containers until they stopped by the last one. Lax turned to Shai, "be prepared to dodge, if he tries to shoot us" warned Lax, before turning back to the door. Upon opening the metal wing, turned into a swing door, the first thing that hit the Shistavanen was an insanely powerful smell of distilled alcohol spirit, filling the air. When the light lit up the pitch-black interior, she would see empty Tihaar bottles upon empty Tihaar bottles, just filling up the floor, table and sink. All in all, it looked like an alcoholic mess inside, not one who had been a proud Alor.

And in all of that mess, on the floor, laid a passed out Kragr with a half an empty Tihaar bottle in his hand and rather baggy clothes. "Damnit, he drunk himself to oblivion again" sighed Lax as he entered the foul container, to help Kragr back into his bed.

Shai Maji

 

[Shai Maji]

Her face darkened when Lax explained the situation to her. Wordlessly she followed after him as she thought the situation over. "Shit..." she whispered to herself as she scratched the back of her head. She knew it hit him hard but never would she expect him to drop this low. She wasn't even sure if she wanted to see him like this but she knew she had to. She needed to do everything in her power to help him.

It didn't take long for them to meet with what was left of the clan. The sight broke her heart but she didn't let that stop her from returning the hug as best she could. "I haven't seen you guys in ages!" she called out happily as she smiled up at the old warrior. She glanced over the game they were playing and dropped a hundred for each side. "I want a cut of that winner's pot." she joked as she followed after Lax. Once they walked up the stairs, her smile faltered and her gaze dropped to the ground. "I still can't believe that's all we have left. Only six people..." she commented softly with a shake of her head. As they reached Kragr's container, her eyes widened at the warning. Without a word she waited for him to open the door... a rather big shock to the Shistavanen. She recoiled and coughed as the powerful odour hit her sensitive nose like a freighter. She wished the odour was the worst part. Inside she was taken back by how the place looked... and how he looked. With wide eyes and agape jaw she stared at the scene before her. Carefully she entered and pushed aside the empty bottles on the floor, watching as Lax dropped Kragr onto his bed.

"Leave me to deal with this. You can go." she spoke gently as she rested a hand on his shoulder. "I'll join you guys down there when I'm done here. But before you go, just remember. You can contact me anytime. You need anything or you're in trouble, please... call me." she insisted with concern in her eyes.

Once Lax left the container, she started to clean up the place. The empty bottles were stacked in a corner and the remaining tihaar was hidden from view. She managed to find some caf, brewing a mug for herself and a jug for him. She needed to get him fixed up. With everything set, she pulled a chair closer and sat beside his bed with saddened eyes. To see her Alor... her father... this broken crushed her. She patiently waited for him to wake up, giving him a light shake every now and then to stir him. "Hey, Krag? It's me. It's Shai. Come on, wake up." she spoke gently with a forced smile once her started to wake up. His weapons were thankfully hidden along with the tihaar so she was pretty safe. "Come on Krag, wake up. You gonna sleep when I've come all this way to see you?" she teased, hoping to get some sort of positive reaction.

Kragr Krayt

 

[Kragr Krayt]

Looking to Shai, Lax sighed, as he was just as crushed to see his Alor like this. "We weren't the ones, who didn't wanted to contact you, Kragr forbade us. He didn't want you to see him like this" explained Lax, giving his Alor one last look, before leaving the container for Shai to get some time with Kragr.

He would stay just around the corner for a bit, just to make sure Kragr didn't attack Shai, but since nothing happened, he went back down to the rest. Shai, on the other hand, would find no response from Kragr at the first attempt at stirring him away, however, when she tried again, some drunken grumble could be heard from the man.

He looked like shit, bags under his eyes for lack of sleeping and his hoarse voice was the sound of a man who has been yelling or screaming. <"Tihaar... where's the bloody tihaar?"> Asked Kragr in mando'a, sounding confused as he slapped searchingly on a table, which had a half-drunk bottle of Tihaar before Shai cleaned it.

Jolting up, half-sitting on the bed, <"where's that kriffing tihaar? Lax... LAX! Where did you kriffing hide it this time?!"> Roared madly, though the roughness of his hoarse voice, made that difficult for him. Some heavy coughing followed suit, which even more so, a bit of blood was coughed up, due to such a strait being put on his vocal cords.

Kragr's beskar'gram was nowhere to be seen in the container, despite him nearly always wearing it when she lived in his village. Instead, he had some very smuggler-looking and yet plane non-descript clothing.

Shai Maji

 

[Shai Maji]

Shai sat back a bit as Kragr stirred awake, watching him carefully as he searched for his Tihaar. She bit her lower lip when he sat up and shouted at Lax. She could hear how raw his voice was, she could see how broken he was. She needed to make this right. "Tihaar's off the menu while I'm here. You're gonna be drinking this." she stated, pointing at the jug of black caf next to her. "And don't shout so much. You that upset after I came all this way to see you?" she quipped gently as she tried to smile at him. She hated faking smiles. To make matters worse, she never once saw his armour. She started to worry if he sold his armour to buy alcohol. That grim thought alone opened another can of worms as she started to worry about how his drinking impacted his health.

Her gaze lingered on his ruined face as she let out a sigh. "Look at you, Krag. This was the worst way I hoped to see you." she admitted as she took a sip of her caf. She scooted the jug closer to him and sat forward a little, giving a reassuring smile. "Come on, drink up. You'll feel better, trust me. I made it the way you like it." she explained, hoping she could get him to drink the caf. She looked around then back to him with a curious gaze. "Where's your Beskar'gam? I hope you didn't get rid of it." she asked him softly as she took another sip of her drink.

Kragr Krayt

 

[Kragr Krayt]

Kragr didn't notice Shai at first as he attempted to get up. "Tihaar!" the roared Kragr, for it was the only thing that could soothe the pain from reliving the death of his clan. "TIHAAR!" Roared Kragr again, followed by a few coughing of blood, putting yet again strain on his vocal cord. After he coughed, the man seemed to finally regornize Shai, "what are you doing here, I told them not to call you, leave!" scolded Kragr aggressively and actually swinging his hand at her. However, he had no real sense of distance at the moment and missed his foundling's face and hit the jug of caf off the table instead.

With caf sprayed up against the wall, table as well as a bit of it on Kragr's own hand, the Mandalorian, tried to get out of bed so he could go and buy some more Tihaar from a bar. At least his dazed mind thought that, while his body hadn't gotten the memo and unless Shai caught him, he would stumble to the floor in his drunken and hazed state.

If Shai managed to catch the large and older Mandalorian, he would sit on the floor with his back up against the bed frame. Placing both hands to the side of his head, he just sat there surrounded in his grief and depression. He wanted to drink himself to death, at least that way he wouldn't have to relive the nightmares of his dying clan members over and over, each night.

<"Kriff off Shai, let me drink in peace"> said Kragr finally in mando'a, showing a man that has given up on his life in the galaxy. He felt empty as if his very soul had disappeared up in flames along with his home. He just sat there, open eyes, because every time he closed them, he would see the death of the children in his hands, melting like wax.

Shai Maji

 

[Shai Maji]

Shai's smile faded into a sad gaze as she watched Kragr flail about, slamming his hand against the jug of caf and spilling it all over. He finally managed to recognize her but the reaction was not at all what she expected. She leaned back to evade his fist but quickly grabbed hold of him to set him down on the ground when he fell over.

With him on the ground she squatted down in front of him and reached out to wipe some blood off his lips. "I'm not going anywhere, Krag. I'm not leaving here until you listen to me." she stated softly as she sat down in front of him. She studied him for a second or two, trying to find the right words. "I've missed you, Krag. But I hoped like hell to not see you like this." she admitted. "Drink this." she instructed as she reached over to hand him her mug of Caf. "It'll help with your throat. I'm sure it's parched by now." she quipped with a small smile, hoping to cheer him up a bit. But the smile didn't last. She couldn't smile when she saw him like this. "I'm here to help you, Krag. You and the clan. The few of us that are still left need to stick together. And... I need my dad back. I need you back." she admitted as she stared into his eyes.

"I know how you're feeling. I might not have known them as long, but that day has left a hole in my heart I don't think will ever be filled again." she started to tear up but cleared her throat with a light shake of her head. "I miss my kiddies. Being able to hold them, telling them stories, hearing them laugh... every time I go to sleep I can still hear them. I can still see them. But I can't keep thinking about them and then just let you guys rot away in this heap of a planet. And I can't let you drink yourself into an early grave and then lose another dad." the tears rolled down her cheeks as she spoke, but she wiped them away and took hold of his hand with a gentle squeeze. "Please... I want to help you. I want to help what's left of the clan."

Kragr Krayt

 

[Kragr Krayt]

Kragr sat there, hands weakly laying in his lap as he just stared with empty eyes. A faint, very faint slimmer of the Kragr Shai knew, showed itself in him, when she stubbornly wouldn't leave him. Looking up at Shai, red-rimmed eyes from long period of crying, though not a single tear was able to form anymore.

"You were always such a stubborn mutt" commented Kragr with a very faintly short laugh, accepting the mug of Caf, though he just held the mug between his legs. "Give it up... The clan is dead... Just as you should let me die in my grief" said Kragr deflated, staring blankly back at Shai as she stared into his. With one hand holding the mug of Caf and another placed on the bed, Kragr impressively, considering his state, pulled himself up on the bed again. Taking a big swig of the Caf, he placed the mug on the bed table and without another word, Kragr just laid down, turning his back to Shai. "Leave Shai, leave me in peace" begged Kragr, and didn't respond to any more attempts from Shai if she tried to talk to him.

A shadow appeared over Shai, as Lax stod in the opening, looking from Shai to Kragr and then back at Shai again. Nodding for Shai to follow, as Lax had something to show the girl and Kragr went back to a state of refusal of help from anyone.

If Shai didn't follow Lax, he would just shake his head and leave as it was too heartbreaking to see Shai continuing to get Kragr back. However, If Shai followed Lax outside, he would sigh and start to lead the girl away from the container homes and lead her around. "We hope you can get through to him, because we're starting to doubt he's ever going to get out of that state" commented Lax a bit sad, though hopeful for Shai being here. Coming around the large container homes two ships came into sight on a huge open area, was both of Kragr's ships. The bigger VT-Gundark Class Heavy Freighter and smaller Wrangler Light Freighter beside it, just sitting there, unused.

"Come on, I have something to show you" explained Lax, leading her to the large Gundark Class Heavy Freighter.

Shai Maji

 

[Shai Maji]

Through the tears she chuckled at his comment. "Thank my mom for that... and living with you didn't exactly help with it." she quipped gently. Her smile quickly disappeared, though, when he begged her to leave him alone. "We can rebuild, Krag. Even if we need to join up with another clan, we still have members out there and they need their Alor... and I need my dad back." she pleaded as she grabbed hold of his free hand. But she knew this was simply a waste of time. She sighed and sniffed, wiping some tears away. She was going to have to figure out another approach.

Her gaze drifted from Kragr to Lax who appeared behind her, looking up at the Mandalorian. He gestured for her to follow and she gave a nod. Looking back to Kragr, she rose and turned to walk away. "It was good to see you again." she muttered over her shoulder before exiting his room. With a heavy sigh she walked beside Lax without any clue of where he was leading her. She looked up at him when he started to speak, giving a nod. "I hope so too. It's heart-breaking seeing him like this." she admitted. When they rounded a corner, she blinked in surprise at the sight of the two freighters sitting there. It was quite a bit of a relief to see that they still had them.

"I hope it's either the titan or his armour. Because if he got rid of either of them, I'm gonna be seriously pissed off with him." she commented as she followed Lax aboard the massive heavy freighter.

Kragr Krayt

 

[Kragr Krayt]

Upon a button press, the large ramp on the heavy freighter came to life as they neared it and started to ascend it. "They are here alright" said Lax and rightly so, the moment their eyes got use to the darkness, Shai would see the huge Titan standing locked in its repair station, powered off. Lax stopped, seeing if Shai needed a moment by the Titan, but would soon continue to lead the girl through the hanger and deeper into the heavy freighter.

Hadn't it been for the knowledge of it parked on a warm planet and it was day, the interior of the freighter could easily be mistaken for being in space with how dark everything was. "After we landed here, he removed his Beskar'gam and haven't worn it ever since. We think he doesn't feel worthy of wearing his father's Beskar'gam, after failing his village and people" explained Lax, however, it was only speculation, though with how he acted they were all certain that it was the case.

A few low creakings could be heard around them, but other than their footsteps, it was quiet as they went through the many hallways, until they stopped by a door. Upon opening the door, Shai found herself in a captain's quarter and there, in a corner, she could see Kragr's Beskar'gam laying in a pile, along with his weapons. Other than Kragr's armour, Shai would find the place a mess, a lot of scourge marks from blaster fire, broken glass, dried up blood at another wall and a lot of minor stuff littered on the floor.

lax sighed. "Yea, how you see Kragr now, is mildly tamer than how he was at the beginning. He became a danger to himself, we had to intervene, before he killed himself" explained Lax, clearly not fond of those memories of his Alor's state of mind. Crossing the room, Lax went for a drawer and extracted a holopad. "Maybe you can get to him with this" suggested Lax and handed Shai the holopad.

If she activated the holopad, she would find a single folder, named 'private'. If she clicked on the pictures, a holographic picture came to life in front of her. The first picture was of Shai and the guard, doing arm wrestling in the meat pit, while Kragr stood and everyone else cheering on with flak of mead in hand. The next was of Shai and the children, playing in the snow, showing the children overwhelming Shai into the deep soft winter snow. The third was a small video of Shai sneaking in on Kragr as he stood and barked orders to the guards and then get covered in a giant snow boulder, followed by Shai getting chased by Kragr throughout the village while all the guards laughed their asses off.

The fourth picture was of Kragr and Shai, chilling by Kragr's house, right before Kragr gifted Shai her weapons and said farewell. The last file was a video of a young boy and an older man. Both had fiery orange manes and if Shai looked closer, she would see almost a spitting image of Kragr, but with enough differences that Shai was certain it wasn't Kragr. The boy, on the other hand, looked like Kragr as a kid as the way the boy stood and held his posture, was precisely the same as how Kragr was today.

The video of young Kragr and his father was of them along with the rest of the clan at a funeral saying their goodbye to Kragr's grandfather. Kragr's father kneeled down by Kragr, who fought back tears. With a hand on young Kragr's cheek and shoulder, he spoke in mando'a. "Remember son, do not be sad for how they died but remember them for how they lived".

Shai Maji

 

[Shai Maji]

When they went up the ramp and her eyes adjusted to the lack of light, she was met with the imposing sight of the titan. She came to a halt and stared up at the monster for several moments, her face blank and emotionless. She finally swallowed hard and followed after Lax without a word. Eventually they arrived at the captain's quarters and Lax opened up. Shai took a step in then stopped to look around.

The place was a mess. Scorch marks, ruined furniture, his armour and weapons in a pile somewhere... it gave her a good scope of what Kragr was going through. Her gaze drifted to Lax as he spoke before she slowly walked further into the room. He handed her a datapad and she wasted no time in opening the folder. It wasn't at all what she expected.

She blinked in surprise at the first photo that came up. Taking a deep breath, she swiped over to the next one and let out a sharp exhale. "I remember that day." she commented with a cracked voice. Swiping to the video, she let out a soft chuckle. "I'll never forget any of these days." she admitted as she glanced up at Lax for a moment.

The next video took her by surprise. It took a moment to figure out who she was looking at, but she quickly figured it out. His father's words stuck with her. After the slideshow, she continued to stare at the datapad for a few more moments. She then dropped the datapad into her satchel and turned to Lax. "I got an idea." she muttered before she started to pick up Kragr's kit. Carrying it out of the ship, she made her way back to Kragr's room and barged in, dropping tbe armour and his weapons on the floor by his bed.

"Here's how it's gonna go down. I'm giving you a choice." she spoke with a mixture of anger and determination. She picked up his pistol and inspected it before she tossed it onto the bed. "Either you get your head back in the game... or you shoot me. 'Cause I ain't leaving this room until you make a choice, one way or the other." she continued as she stood over him.

She took the pistol and forced it into his hand, kneeling down and pressing the barrel to her forehead. "The clan might be dead, but there are still people out there that need their Alor... and I need my dad." she shouted at him with tears forming in her eyes. "I know what you're feeling. I know that grief. And I miss them as well. But it's no use being sad over how they died! I remember them for how they lived! You should too." she continued, hoping his father's words would get through to him.

She stared at him with tears rolling down her cheeks for a few moments as she held the pistol to her head. "I already lost one dad to alcohol and stupidity... I don't wanna lose another. So please... come back to us. To me. Because I'd rather you shoot me right here than see you blundering on down this road." she whimpered with a cracked voice as she stared at him with foggy eyes.

Kragr Krayt

 

[Kragr Krayt]

The Mandalorians who played cards looked on with surprise when Shai came fast in a pace, carrying Kragr's beskar'gam and a determined look on her face. Following Shai, trouble keeping up with her, was Lax, who just gave they a raised eyebrow, who immediately made them all drop their cards and follow the girl up the stairs and over to Kragr's container.

The moment Shai went inside, Lax stopped, blocking the rest from going into the container and raised a hand. Lax finally understood what the girl was trying to do, even though it could end in death. Placing a finger on his lips, keep the others from speaking, they heard Shai talk to her mentor with anger and determination.

Spoiler: Scene theme

Kragr woke from his slumber when Shai came storming into his squared death box. Everything was in a blur, from when Shai entered the container, to her taking his own blaster and placing the barrel to her forehead. Even when he looked down at the crying and scared Shistavanen, one who he saw as a daughter and a friend, he felt nothing but emptiness.

How could she possibly know how he felt? She wasn't the one person who had to look after a clan, she didn't see people getting born and die in or make the hard decisions what would mean the end or future. She was just some upstart street rat from the slum... and yet, as he rose from the bed. Still having the barrel to Shai's forehead, the fiery ginger giant of a man, saw the same thing in her red watery eyes, as he saw so long ago in the ring.

Kragr didn't speak, he didn't blink, he just stood there, pressing his blaster to Shai's forehead. The tension was eerie, with Lax and the other Mandalorians expecting Kragr to pull the trigger. For a moment Shai could physically hear Kragr's fingers clutch his blaster's handle tighter and for a fraction of a second, while she shouted at him with tears forming in her eyes, that the once proud and roaring Alor, would pull the trigger.

"But it's no use being sad over how they died! I remember them for how they lived! You should too"

The sentence hit Kragr like a truck as if his own father stood before him, placing a hand on Kragr's shoulder. It was a strong memory and a powerful one. However, on the outside, a darkness fell over Kragr's eyes for a few seconds of pure tension building to whether or not the man would shoot Shai or not. But it never came to that as Shai felt the barrel no more at her forehead, followed by the blaster hitting the floor between them.

Kneeling down in front of her, Shai was pulled in for a deep bear hug, no words were spoken, just a long heartfelt silent hug. The other Mandalorians of the dismantled, but remaining clan Loc, sighed a breath of relief. Knowing Shai wouldn't be shot, they quietly went back to their card table and let Kragr and Shai get some time together.

Kragr didn't know how much time had passed, but when he finally let go of his pseudo-daughter, he placed a hand on her cheek and finally gave her a look of familiarity. "I'm sorry..." he said with a cracked voice, still haggard from screaming and roaring as he looked down in shame of what he had turned into.

Shai Maji

 

[Shai Maji]

The tension was thick in the air as Kragr held the pistol to her head. She didn't move or budge. She stayed in that position as she glared at him with watery eyes. But the longer she waited, the more uncertain she became. Kragr was a wreck. There was a good chance that he would shoot her, but she would prefer that to seeing him suffer like this.

Finally the barrel moved away and the pistol hit the ground. Shai let out a sharp exhale as she sat back, only for Kragr to pull her into a hug. He stank like something else... but she didn't care. For the first time in ages it felt like she had her dad back. She broke down into a sobbing mess as she clung to him, too afraid of letting go again.

She lost track of time as she cried into his shoulder, finally managing to recompose herself when they broke the hug. He cupped her cheek and she held onto his shirt as she stared at him. "You don't have to be. I get it. I just want my dad back." she muttered, wrapping her arms around him once more. "I'm not leaving you again, dad. Even if I have to drag you through the showers and suit you up myself, I ain't leaving you again." she declared as she held him close.

She finally released him again with a sad smile. "I ain't jokin', though. Seriously, you smell like a nightclub bathroom." she quipped with a soft snicker as she stared up at him.

Kragr Krayt

 

[Kragr Krayt]

A low chuckle came from Kragr, hearing her quip. His humour wasn't gone, just buried deep as he looked back up at Shai and for the first time since the girl arrived, she looked at a weathered man, a tired man. Sitting back up on his bed, hands slummed in his thigh for a few seconds. The ginger-haired Mandalorian glanced over at the pile of his beskar'gram, only to quickly glance away again. His armour reminded him too much of his failure as Alor and how much shame her brought to his family name Loc.

Cubbing Shai's cheeks again, "I know what I must do Twig, but I need your help" explained the large Mandalorian, finally facing his fresh memories of his failure. Kragr rose from the bed and walked passed the Shistavanen and squatted in front of his beskar'gram, lifting up his helmet, staring into the t-visor which only returned with a cold stare of it own.

A low whisper of a chuckle came from Kragr, "I remember the day my father gave me this armour..." he paused.

"Now I only see his death in my reflection" concluded Kragr and turned around to face Shai once again. "Shai... I need you to reforge my beskar'gram. Its the only way I will be able to wear it again" stated the red-haired giant deadly serious as he locked eyes with Shai, handing her his helmet. Kragr doubted he would ever be able to wear the armour if he kept it, the way it was.

And who better, than his own daughter, taught in the arts of beskar forging, to forge him a new beskar'gram from the old? No one in Kragr's mind would pop up.

Shai Maji

 

[Shai Maji]

The whole time, Shai didn't move. She carefully watched him as he sat up on the bed and glanced at his armour. "I'm here for you. What do you need help with?" she muttered but he didn't answer immediately. She sat on the floor as her eyes followed his movements. He studied the armour for a few moments the set the helmet back down, facing her instead.

Then he gave his request. Shai blinked in surprise as her mouth opened slightly in shock. She reached out and took the helmet, looking it over then looking back to him. For a few seconds she was quiet as the thought it over, then gave a nod. "Yeah. I'll do it." she muttered, rising to her feet. She looked him over then gave a soft chuckle. "The work is easy enough. I got everything I need back on Mandalore. Though you're gonna have to come with me. I'll need measurements, preferences, the works." she admitted as she set the helmet aside on the bed.

She smiled again at him. "So you know what that means? You're gonna get a shower, a proper meal and get yourself back in order. I ain't letting your stinking ass on my ship like this." she quipped as she looked to the armour. "The clan's coming along too. As for where they'll be staying, I'm good friends with the Alor of clan Krayt. She can help us out." she muttered as her expression darkened. "Maybe... maybe they can also take us in. Give us a chance to fight back under a new name. But... that's a problem for later. Right now, get cleaned up. I'll pack up your things and help to get everyone moving. All I want now is for you to look like a person again." she carefully spoke with a hushed voice, struggling to look him in the eye as she made her suggestion. In her mind, she wanted to see her clan flourish again. But it might not be the same idea he shared...

Kragr Krayt

 

[Kragr Krayt]

Tag: Shai Maji

A small and low chuckle of his own escaped his lips when Shai pointed out that Kragr looked like a mess. Placing the palm against her cheek, Kragr gave Shai a tired smile, "that sounds... great. Why don't you go on ahead and tell that to the others? I'll be down in just a minute" suggested the old Mandalorian, looking over at his armour again. "I have something to do first, alone" explained the red-haired man as he lowered his hand. "Don't worry, I won't go back to drinking" reassured Kragr, just to make sure the girl wasn't about to be stubborn in order to keep him from returning to drinking.

Kragr waited for Shai to leave, not that he gave the girl much choice as the man was still stubborn as hell.

Once Shai left the container, sat Kragr sit down on his bed, which actually smelt awful, now that he had a chance to sit and think. Overall, he smelt like piss and felt like taking bath, though that wasn't why he wanted to be alone. Kneeling down beside the bed, he pulled out a small box covered in dust. Opening the box, it revealed two necklaces, each with some sort of canine animal tooth at the centre.

"Goodbye..." said Kragr and placed the small box on his bed and lit up some paper, to which he dropped it into the box. The flames quickly caught on, burning everything inside of the box, to which he grabbed his beskar'gam and left the container. He wasn't particularly worried about the flames spreading, as the box could take being burned.

As he for once in a very long time, since he arrived on this planet, felt the sun's beams on his face. Blinking a couple of times, the large Mandalorian finally walked down to the remaining of his long-dead clan.

 

[Shai Maji]

Shai was completely taken by surprise when Kragr didn't seem troubled by her suggestion. "Oh, um... okay." she stammered as she looked him over. She wasn't exactly confident in voicing it with the others before hearing what he had to say fully, though she would work that out. She smiled softly at his quip and gave a nod. "You better not. I'll waterboard your ass with whiskey if you do." she teased as she got up and turned to leave. By the door she gave him one last glance before leaving to find the rest of the clan.

While he was busy getting closure, she had them prepped to roll out, voiced the idea with a bit of hesitation and even managed to stock up on provisions for the trip to Mandalore.

"I'll mount my ship onto the Gundark for the flight. We got a lot of catching up to do." she called out to Lax as she turned to go help with the packing. However she stopped dead in her tracks when the sight of Kragr met her. In the sunlight he looked even worse than before. Quite a reassurance that this was a good thing to do. Though she was glad to see him up and about again. The rest of the clan stopped as well, watching him with a mixture of emotions. Shai finally snapped out of her trance and walked up to wrap her arms around him. "Thought you forgot how to walk." she joked with a chuckle as she let go of him. "Come on, the rest will wanna see you as well." she muttered with a tilt of her head.

Quietly she snuck off into the Gundark to get everything settled for them as well as prepare a temporary room for herself as well. Sitting on the bed, she let out a sharp breath as she took the chance to process what had happened. She had her father back. The clan was going to survive. It felt like things were right again for a moment and she let it show as a warm smile etched onto her lips.

When they were finally airborne she quickly chased Kragr off to the showers then carried his armour through the airlock into her ship. She wished she had invested in a forge onboard her ship but alas, she needed the space for other things. Reforging the armour was going to have to wait until they reached Mandalore... but that didn't stop her from drawing up the plans, shape and other critical details. All she needed was to get the measurements from him and then she could begin. Luckily her factory had its own landing pads. Hurrying back to the Gundark, she waited for him to finish cleaning up as she drank a mug of hot chocolate in the mess hall.

Kragr Krayt

 

[Kragr Krayt]

Tag: Shai Maji

The remaining men of Kragr's destroyed clan were cautiously optimistic when they saw the mess of a man Kragr was in, though they were happy that Shai managed to stop the large Mandalorian from drinking himself to death. However, they still kept a close eye on Kragr as they departed from the planet to take the journey back to Mandalore.

Kragr spent an exceedingly long time in the shower as he just sat there on the floor, letting the water wash away the filth, mistakes and sorrow. The large Mandalorian had his eyes closed, listening to the water flow and its relaxing white noise filling the bathroom. Shai would quickly realize that her waiting for Kragr, took longer than expected and that she had enough time to drink two mugs of hot chocolate.

When the red-haired, very clean man exited the bathroom fully dressed in fresh and clean wear, he spent the remaining journey to Mandalore with Shai and his men.

While Kragr had returned to a more sane state of himself, he was still rather quiet for what he usually was before the loss of his village and people. When he didn't spend time with Shai or his remaining men, he used most of his time to himself, reflecting and remembering a time before the fall of his clan.

As the week went by, Kragr spent a lot more time with his pseudo-daughter and redesigning his armour as well as truly catching up with each other as the red-haired Mandalorian was kind of out of the loop with the rest of the galaxy. Kragr also got to finally talk through with the remaining few people about what happened to their clan and get some closure to it all.

After a week or so, they finally arrived at Mandalore and after a brief waiting, they were given permission to land at the capital and finally return to Mandalorian society, or what was rebuilt.

Standing at the opened ramp, looking at the busy people working around the ship with a cart, carrying a bog that had his Beskar'gam in. Unfortunately, the hanger wasn't big enough for all three ships and had to split up. While the crew made sure the two ships were secured and packed for the next trip, Kragr left the hanger bay with his cart, to meet with Shai.

 

[Shai Maji]

When she realized that Kragr was going to take a lot longer than she anticipated, she helped herself to another mug. When he did finally emerge, she dragged him off to get his measurements and details for his armour. However she didn't get around to asking him about her offer to join clan Krayt. It didn't feel right when he was finally reunited with the remainder of his people.

So she left him to catch up and process what happened. She mingled as well, though she couldn't sit and find closure like the rest of them. For her, there was no closure. Not unless it involved wiping out every Death Watch and Sith soldier in the galaxy. It pained her to realize what she had become... but she simply couldn't find it in her heart to move on.

After a week of travel, they touched down on Mandalore. Giving Kragr a nudge with her elbow, she nodded for him to follow as she led the way to her personal forge. "I've been busy while you were away. Maji Ironworks is up and running, producing weapons, armour and vehicles for the Union and its allies. Maybe I can get into designing ahips next." she explained as she showed him around.

In her forge room, she gestured to the forge in the middle of the room, its plasma jets serving to heat up the room rather nicely. "Just leave the armour there by the forge. I'll strip the internals and get to work. If you wanna get some sleep while you wait, my office has a bed and stuff in it." she gestured to a nearby door as she spoke.

Like she said, she got to work on stripping the armour of any electronic components that could be used again. The naked plates were then melted down in the forge, allowing the Shistavanen to get to work.

It was rather emotional for Shai to be forging a suit for her new father. It showed in the strikes of her hammer, her handling of the pieces. She was going to make sure that this armour was perfect.

After several hours of non-stop forging and assembling, she finally emerged with singe marks on her fur and bloodshot eyes behind her goggles. "I just remembered that I forgot to suit up before starting." she grumbled as she stared at him. "Come on. It's ready." she invited as she turned to lead him to the new armour.

The suit was still a bright silver, needing new paint. But her extra attention would hopefully show in the quality of the armour. "I didn't do the paint. I felt that it would be more fitting for you to do that." she muttered as she stood next to him, staring at the armour.

Kragr Krayt