The Way of the Maiden

[TheCourtofTalons]

Many years ago, the four Kingdoms of Remnant were engaged in a global conflict. A conflict that was born from ignorance, greed, and oppression. The Great War.

Many historians don't know who fired the first shot. All they knew was that the Kingdoms of Mantle and Mistral had formed an alliance that sought to make the Kingdoms of Vale and Vacuo submit to their rule and way of life.

The war involved each Kingdom. Even control of small islands was fought over by the feuding nations. Their main goal was domination over the enemy forces. However, there was one particular continent that both sides knew would make an essential ally or a powerful foe: Mandalore.

The continent of Mandalore was home to two things: groups of nomadic, strong-willed warriors and the strongest metal known to Humans and Faunus: Beskar.

At the time, the Mandalorians were neutral in the war, unaffected by the events that sparked the war in the first place. They instead sought to govern themselves, just as they did when the continent was founded. Their involvement, however, began after a brazen attack from the Kingdom of Mantle. The ruler of Mandalore, Tarre Vizla, led his people to victory against the forces of Mantle and formed an alliance with the King of Vale.

The alliance, however, could not save the continent.

Mistral and Mantle's constant fighting and invasions turned two-thirds of the continent into a desolate wasteland and killed the great Mand'alor. Forced to abandon the once great land, the Mandalorian clans continued to fight their common enemy. With the help of the King of Vale, the Mandalorians were victorious.


Victorious, but also homeless.

Some Mandalorians look for ways to bring glory back to their people and home; others chose to abandon any attempt to reclaim their once glorious land. They instead chose to live among each Kingdom as a sign they were everywhere, and always watching.
Mandalore later became known as Menagerie and became a home to hundreds of Faunus.

The Mandalorian tribes continue to live among the people of Vale, Mistral, Vacuo, and the renamed Kingdom of Atlas, inadvertently dividing the Mandalorians in custom and religion.

This is the story of one particular Mandalorian and his adventures across Remnant.

---

Chapter 1: The Mandalorian
​

"Please, we're only trying to pass through!"

"You animals passed through the wrong town!"

"There's no need for-!"

*BANG*​

A bullet to the head prevented a young deer Faunus from attempting to reason with the attackers.

A group of Faunus refugees had been traveling across the Kingdom of Vale for three days, trying to get to a town by the ocean. Their goal was to make a new home for themselves in Menagerie. Their plans had just been changed by a human supremacist group hunting any Faunus that set foot near their home. With their leader gone, the rest of the refugees would need a new plan. Fortunately, that plan was put in motion the moment the deer Faunus hit the ground.

"Move up!" the lead human called to his allies. Moving towards the large truck, the humans prepared to exterminate the rest of the intruders. As two humans prepared to fire, a small metal sphere fell at their feet and exploded before they had any time to process what had happened.

A cloud of dirt and smoke resulted from the explosion, and the lead human could make out a figure standing in the middle of the cloud. His instincts kicked in as he fired his pistol, with his comrades following his lead. However, he stopped as he heard the sound of metal hitting metal. The cloud disappeared to reveal a man in scratched dark brown armor with a white pauldron on his right shoulder. The one detail that caught everyone's attention was the silver helmet with a black "T" visor.

"Is that a-?"

*BANG*​

The woman was cut off as a red bolt exited the armored one's pistol and made contact with her face. Regaining his attention, the leader fired at the warrior but made contact with thin air. His new target had disappeared right before his eyes. "Where'd he go?" he asked the others.

A man opened his mouth to answer but was cut off by a wire wrapping around his throat. He felt a force pull him backward, his back making contact with a pointed object. His fellow humans fired again, each shot hitting their friend, while the armored one disappeared again.

The group's leader knew this man would be a problem. So, he decided to fix it quickly. "Forget the Faunus! Find the Mandalorian!"

Their search was cut short as the Mandalorian reappeared in the middle of the humans. He immediately swung a knife at a short man, which made contact with his throat. Two more men sent fists at the Mandalorian, which he quickly blocked. The leader took cover behind a tree, watching the Mandalorian beat his friends with ease.

He began to panic, overwhelmed by the sudden turn in events. He and his group were used to killing defenseless Faunus, even Faunus with Auras. The Mandalorian was something completely different. Even if he didn't have an Aura, the Mandalorian could block any attack with his Beskar armor. The human didn't want to admit it, but it was true: this could be his last day on Remnant.

His attention shifted to a young girl with rabbit ears, who was too focused on the fight to notice the danger lurking behind the tree. Seeing a chance to fight for something he believed in, the leader charged towards the girl and yelled.

"Mando!" a Faunus yelled.

Turning around, the Mandalorian could see the Faunus tossing him a rifle and pointing to the girl and her attacker. Understanding the situation, the Mandalorian quickly aimed and fired the gun.

His target let out a scream as a burst of energy hit his chest and turned his body into dust.

The Faunus behind the truck leaned out of hiding to see the Mandalorian standing over the defeated humans. They began to cheer and thank the Mandalorian for his services.

"Impressive work, Mando," a girl with cat ears complimented the group's savior. "I don't know what we would have done without you."

"It wouldn't have turned out well," he bluntly replied.
"Best not to dwell on it." His attention turned to the dead Faunus on the ground. "I'm sorry about your friend."

"He'll be missed," she replied while her ears flattened.

"Gabriella, look!"

The Faunus known as "Gabriella" turned to see a town with a port in the distance. "We made it," she said with a smile.

"Then this is where we part ways," the Mandalorian said with an extended hand. "Good luck in Menagerie."

Gabriella shook his hand and smiled. "Thanks. And sorry again about your weapon."

The young Faunus was referring to how the refugees had met the Mandalorian. One of the children had stolen one of his weapons while he was staying at an inn: a modified rifle with experimental Dust from Atlas. He had hoped to sell it once the group had reached Menagerie. It didn't take long for the Mandalorian to find the group and demand his weapon back. Gabriella offered to return it in exchange for an escort to the ocean town, which he agreed to.

As the Mandalorian watched the Faunus depart, a soft beep came from his gauntlet. Pressing a button, the Mandalorian could see a new message sent to him.

"I have a job for you, one that can be useful for the both of us. You know where to find me."​

The Mandalorian disappeared once again.

---

"Alright, take your pick."

Two men were sitting in a bar, with the one on the left showing the other three pictures on his Scroll. The one on the right was looking at each one.

"Are these seriously all you have?" the first man asked. "These rewards are cheap."

"Take them or leave them," the second man said, taking a sip of his drink. "Or... you could try that special job I told you about."

"Yeah... no," he said. "I don't wanna give you any 'grief,' but I'm not interested."

The first man rolled his eyes and sighed, annoyed not only about how his hunter had turned down his special assignment but also the pun in his sentence. "Think about the reward!" he exclaimed, forgetting about the joke. "It'll make you a legend among these people!"
Everyone in the bar turned around at the man, upset by what he said. "What are you lookin' at?" he asked. The patrons all went back to their business. He was about to continue his efforts to persuade the hunter, but he was cut short.

"Look, I know about the reward," the bounty hunter said. "But you don't go around offering that unless this is big. And I just joined the Guild, so I'll take my chances with... him." The hunter pointed to a man with a reward of a hundred Lien.

"Alright, fine," the man said with a sigh. The young hunter left the table but had one last thing to say.

"Come on, no need for 'grief,' man!" he remarked with a laugh.

"Good God, don't you ever get tired of those puns?" the man asked as he buried his face in his hands. After the bounty hunter had left, the man looked at his Scroll, realizing that he had made a point. The bounties he was offering weren't that good. Not just for the hunters but himself. Greef Karga knew he had to step up his game to earn a good finders fee, which is how he heard about his "special job." The man who just left was the third person who turned him down, so it wasn't going great. Fortunately, Karga knew someone who might be interested. He took out his Scroll and sent a quick message to another bounty hunter.

"I have a job for you, one that can be useful for the both of us. You know where to find me."
​

Karga sent the message and took another sip of his drink.

"You called?"

Karga spat out his drink and coughed, completely caught off guard by the armored warrior who literally came out of nowhere. "Son of a-!" he choked out. Catching his breath, he looked at his associate. "Jeez, Mando! I thought I told you not to sneak up on me like that!"

"And I thought I told you that's how I work," the Mandalorian replied as he took a seat. "What do you have?"

Karga cleared his throat as he pulled out his Scroll. "Unfortunately, nothing much," he replied as he showed pictures of the bounties he had. The Mandalorian didn't like what he saw.

"These will barely afford new Dust," he pointed out.

"I know, Mando," Karga agreed. "Which is why I have a special job for you."

"Let's see it," the Mandalorian demanded.

"Uh, actually, I don't have any details on the target. The client wants to meet with you in person. He'll have all the details on your target, desired status, and reward."

"...Where am I meeting him?"

Karga pulled up a picture of a large building. The Glass Unicorn, a hotel located in Atlas.

"You'll also need this." Karga slid a card with a bar code to the Mandalorian. Taking it, the bounty hunter took a moment to consider going. He didn't want to go to Atlas of all places, but Karga seemed interested in this job. Especially with the reward. And it seemed to be the best option out of the other jobs.

"I'll go," the Mandalorian said.

"Good luck," Karga said as he looked at his Scroll. "How soon can you-?" He looked up to see the Mandalorian was gone. "Alright then."

---

The Mandalorian was standing outside the Glass Unicorn. He heard the gasps of people shocked by his sudden appearance and saw all of them look in awe at his armor. He paid no attention to them as he pressed a button on his left gauntlet. A blue screen with a picture of him popped up. Next to the picture was a white bar, with part of it showing orange. The Mandalorian's Aura levels were low.

"Have to use it sparingly," he thought to himself. The bounty hunter's Semblance was a powerful one; the ability to teleport to any place he laid his eyes on, which was no easy feat. However, it exhausted a lot of Aura. Fortunately, his armor would give him plenty of protection for the time being. Deactivating the picture, he went inside the hotel.

As he walked to the front desk, the Mandalorian could see that this place was like any other in Atlas. People getting drunk, expensive furniture and dishes. The only things that stood out to him were the glass statues of Grimm and a brown-haired woman with circles under her green eyes at the front desk. Her face had a stoic look on it, as if she didn't seem to care about anything going on around her. Not about the patrons, the Huntsman talking to a few people, and certainly not the Mandalorian who had captured everyone's attention.

"Can I help you?" she asked the bounty hunter. His only response was showing her the card that Karga gave to him. Using her Scroll to scan the bar code, the Scroll gave off a soft beep. "Room 467," she said. "He's waiting for-"

*BOOM*
​

A soft explosion caught both of them off guard, and the pair quickly turned their eyes to a cloud of steam on one of the walkways. The Mandalorian drew his pistol and activated a thermal sensor in his helmet. He could make out two people shielding their eyes from the steam and another standing across from them. It seemed that person had created the cloud and caused the other two to become disoriented.

"Put it down," the woman said to the Mandalorian. "I'll take care of it."

Lowering his pistol, the Mandalorian saw the steam cloud disappear. In its place was a black-haired girl in white clothes standing across from two other girls. She was panting and had a look of anger on her face. This look suddenly changed to fear as the woman grabbed her arm and dragged her downstairs, behind the front desk, and into a separate room.

Normally, the bounty hunter would pay attention to the task at hand, forgetting about the outburst. However, a scream of pain from the child made him stay in place. His helmet not only had visual enhancements but audio ones as well. He could see and hear everything going on in the separate room. And what he observed wasn't very pleasant.

"Now, that wasn't very ladylike, was it?" the woman sarcastically asked the girl, who was screaming in pain. The Mandalorian could see the woman pressing a button in her hand while the girl was screaming. "I suggest you remember your place," she said, taking her hand off the button. However, she quickly pressed it again with another cold remark. "Say it!"

This time, the girl spoke. "...Without you... I am nothing."

The Mandalorian slowly walked to the door and prepared to open it. But he stopped himself, remembering the mission at hand. So he instead walked to an elevator as his thoughts drifted to a similar situation.

---

Years ago​

"Mom!"

A dark-haired woman looked up from a set of dishes to a young boy wearing a red hood on the stairs.

"Yes, dear?"

"Is Ikki home yet?"

"Not yet, but she should be here any-"

The sound of a door opening caught the attention of the woman and her son. On the other side was a teenage girl with dark black hair and amber eyes. One of which had a large black circle around it, along with a bloody nose.

"Oh, not again!" the woman yelled as she rushed over to the teenager. "Honey, sit down. Din, get some Ice Dust from the counter."

The boy quickly did as he was told, rushing to the counter and grabbing the Dust just as the teenager sat down. She placed the crystal over her eye and smiled at the little boy.

"Thanks, buddy." Ikki patted her little helper on the head. The woman got a paper towel and rubbed her daughter's face over and over again. "Mom, it's not as bad as it looks," she said.

"A black eye says otherwise," she replied. "What happened this time?"

"Let's just say the old prick finally got smart."

"Language," her mother said as she pointed to Ikki's younger brother.

"Sorry," Ikki said. "Could I have some more ice?"

"Of course, sweetheart." The woman ran upstairs to find more Dust for her daughter. While she was gone, the boy started to cry.

"Hey, it's okay," she said as she hugged her brother.

"I'm sorry, Ikki. I was just trying to help."

Young Din Djarin was referring to a problem his sister had with a certain piece of "jewelry" around her neck. Ikki worked as a maid under a wealthy family who believed in strict discipline for any mistake she made. So, Ikki was forced to wear a shock collar disguised as jewelry. Last week, Din suggested she turn it off. Ikki laughed at her brother's blissful ignorance at first, but she took a closer look at the collar. There was indeed a way to make it look like the collar worked but not shock the wearer. And thanks to her aptitude and curiosity in mechanics, she was able to do so in only a few hours. But now, her superiors learned the truth.

"It's not your fault, buddy. And you did help me," she said with a smile. "Now listen. Tomorrow, when I go back to Atlas, the Marigolds are going to give me something similar to my collar. And then, we can outsmart them together. And sooner or later, it'll be 'Goodbye, Mantle' and 'Hello, Vale.' Just a little more time and money," she promised with a big smile. Her brother had dried his tears and smiled back at his older sister. Despite the hand she was given in life, Ikki never lost her optimism.

And Din Djarin loved her for that.

---

Present-day
​

The Mandalorian quickly regained his focus as the elevator came to the fourth floor. Walking down the hall, he stopped at room 467 and knocked on the door.

"Enter," a male voice ordered.

The bounty hunter opened the door and was greeted by four Atlesian Knight-130s, whose robotic visors were glued on their new guest.

"Ah, there you are," the voice said. The Mandalorian turned to see a man with black hair and a mustache sitting at a table. He was wearing a yellow sweater under a lab coat. It seems this was the client. "Greef Karga told me you were coming. And in impressive time, I have to admit." The man was looking at a pocket-watch.

"...What else did he say?" the Mandalorian asked.

"That you were one of the best in the business. That you always get your man, and so on. He also said-"

A loud screech cut the client off as a computer next to him activated. The Mandalorian quickly pulled out his pistol and rifle and pointed one at the client and the other at the robots. Who, in turn, activated turrets on their arms.

"FREEZE!"

"DROP YOUR WEAPONS!"

The Mandalorian didn't comply. The client was unfazed by the weapon in his face.

"I apologize," the client said. "My partner has to make an... unorthodox appearance. He can see and hear us, but don't worry. Nobody else is listening. Please, lower your weapons."

"Tell your droids to stand down," the bounty hunter ordered.

"YOU ARE OUTNUMBERED," one robot said.

The Mandalorian looked at the number of droids, then back at the weapons he had. "I like these odds."

The client chuckled hearing this and leaned forward. "Karga also told me you were expensive. Very expensive," he said as he turned to the robots and waved his hand. A ring on his finger gave off a faint blue light, and the knights deactivated their weapons. "Have a seat."

The Mandalorian slowly lowered his weapons and sat down. As he did, the client took out a briefcase and opened it, with the top blocking the Mandalorian's view of the contents. The client moved his hand towards the Mandalorian and lifted it, revealing an ingot of metal. A very particular metal.

"Beskar?" the Mandalorian assumed, its presence catching him by surprise.

"Pure Beskar," the client responded. "It's real, I assure you."

The Mandalorian picked up the metal. Taking off one of his gloves, he felt every detail of it. He once had the honor to hold a piece of Beskar, and he knew the metal in his hand was the real deal. The one thing that stood out was the Atlas symbol, branded into the side.

"Atlas said they used it all for weapons and ships," the Mandalorian pointed out, remembering a story of how Beskar could only be found in certain Huntsman and Huntress weapons like a spear or arrow.

"That's what the public believes right now," the client claimed. "Atlas has been saving Beskar like this for... special projects. And as you can see..." He moved the briefcase to reveal more ingots like the one the bounty hunter was holding. "I have quite the amount of Beskar waiting upon delivery of the asset."

"Alive," a modulated voice from the computer said.

"Yes, alive," the client confirmed. "Understand that bringing her in dead will result in no reward."

"Her?"

The computer suddenly produced an image of a woman in her early thirties with two lines of text at the bottom.

Name: Lila Birch

Last Known Location: Vale
​

"I understand bounty hunters usually work with just the face, name, and location," the client continued. "However, the asset has proven rather elusive, which is why you'll need this." He handed the Mandalorian a small device with an antenna. Djarin recognized it immediately: a tracking fob. "One last thing." The client slid a card to the Mandalorian. The black card had a gold "W" with a phone number. "Contact me once you have the asset."

Djarin stood up and held out the metal to the client. "Keep it," he said. "The rest will be here when you return."

The Mandalorian left the room, looking over the piece of metal in his hand, amazed at how there was still Beskar like this on Remnant. Activating his gauntlet again, Djarin saw that his Aura had recharged long enough to reach the yellow zone.

"I can make a trip back to-"

He abandoned his thoughts as he could make out a figure on the other side of the holographic screen. Deactivating it caused the Mandalorian to see the young girl from before, the servant who was punished for the explosion. She was scrubbing the floor, oblivious to the bounty hunter's presence.

Djarin walked closer to the elevator but didn't keep his eyes off the girl. The fact that the young girl looked so much like his sister unnerved the Mandalorian, but he continued to walk. He finally stopped moving when he saw a tear fall to the ground.

The child continued to scrub until her brush hit his foot. "You're in the way," she said, the feet not moving. She looked up to tell him again, but her jaw dropped seeing the Mandalorian. He was having a good look at her jewelry.

Djarin knelt to her level and looked at the yellow stone. Turning it around, he began to examine the circuitry. After about a minute, he let it go. "It won't hurt you anymore," he said. "Fake a reaction when she turns it on again." With that, he went into the elevator and left the girl to look at her jewel.

---

The Mandalorian was walking on a dirt path holding his ingot. He stopped in front of a wall with two other Mandalorians standing guard, a red armored male, and one blue armored female. Nodding at their fellow Mandalorian, the guards let him pass. The bounty hunter made his way into the small village, watching masked children run and play while older Mandalorians were standing and talking to each other. He made his way into a certain house with a skull on it. The skull was the signet of this Mandalorian tribe, the Children of the Watch. When they created their village, the Mandalorian settlers faced a legendary Grimm with distorted arms fused to a horse. Many Huntsman and Huntresses had tried to slay the beast and failed. However, a team of Mandalorians managed to kill it and took the horse and humanoid skulls as a trophy. The people of Mistral called the Grimm the "Nucklelavee." The Mandalorians identified it as the "Mythosaur."

The bounty hunter entered the house to see a female Mandalorian hammering a piece of metal at a furnace. She left her work when she saw a Mandalorian kneeling in front of her.

Djarin placed the ingot on the table. She removed her glove and examined the metal. "This was gathered in the Great War," the Armorer observed. "It is good it is back with the tribe."

"Yes," the Mandalorian replied.

"A pauldron would be in order. Has your signet been revealed?"

"Not yet."

"...Soon."

The Children of the Watch were a unique tribe among other Mandalorian clans. They chose to wear a symbol of notable Grimm kills on their armor rather than a shared symbol. This was the ancient Way of the Mandalore, one that the Children of the Watch followed to their last dying breath.

The Armorer forged the pauldron for Djarin. His Aura had recharged significantly. Once he left the village, he was ready. His hunt had officially begun.

---

Author's notes: hello there. This is an idea I came up with a while ago. It's a retelling of both RWBY and The Mandalorian. The first few chapters will be very similar to the first few episodes of The Mandalorian, but the rest of the story will be different. Hope you all enjoy, let me know what you think.

 

[Absque Zer0]

Looks interesting. Needs to be threadmarked though.

 

[TheCourtofTalons]

Looks interesting. Needs to be threadmarked though.

Click to shrink...

Thanks, glad you enjoyed it. Sorry about the thread marks, I'm still getting used to this site.

 

[TheCourtofTalons]

Chapter 2: The Hunt​

Before going to Vale, Djarin used his Semblance to travel to Atlas to make a vital pickup. He appeared in front of a large hanger door and was greeted by one of the mechanics, a woman with brown curly hair wearing a jumpsuit covered in grease and oil. "Is it ready?" he asked calmly.

"I just put on the finishing touches," the mechanic replied as she led her customer to a large gray ship. They were both staring at the Razor Crest, a former Atlesian airship that the Mandalorian had purchased from that same mechanic. He usually traveled Remnant via his Semblance, but Djarin would need his ship to carry his target. The Mandalorian's Semblance, which he called "Gone Without a Trace," could teleport one other person, but this woman would be difficult to capture. Fighting her may take a lot of his Aura.

Djarin's first stop in his examination of the ship was the cockpit. He noticed the targeting system had been upgraded, the ship's missiles and bullets had been reloaded, and the steering had been replaced from one handlebar to a kind of steering wheel that could move the airship in any direction. Djarin pressed a button on the wall to reveal a storage area and a wall of about seven guns, a collection of pistols and rifles.

"Well?" the mechanic called out. "What do you say?"

"You went all out this time," Djarin complimented while handing her a few Lien. "You certainly earned your fee."

"More than my fee," she replied, still holding out her hand. "You know how long it took me to install the new ventilation system?"

"I didn't ask for a new one."

"Well, it's there now."

"..."

In defeat, the mechanic put her hand down as the Mandalorian walked back inside the ship to his seat. "So, where are you going now?" she asked as she joined him.

"Vale," Djarin replied.

"Well, the new fuel tank will get you there with half a tank left. But if you destroy this thing in the next two days, you might as well take it to another mechanic."

"Peli, you're a wonderful human being," Djarin replied with sarcasm.

"Yeah, yeah," Peli said as she left the ship. As soon as she opened the hanger door, the Razor Crest took off the ground and made its way to Vale.

---

About an hour and a half later, Djarin heard a soft beeping noise. Looking at the ship's computers, he couldn't see anything out of the ordinary. But he could still hear the beeping.

"Don't tell me Peli broke the computers," he prayed. However, Djarin realized the sound was coming from his armor. Looking at his belt, he could see a red light flashing. He pulled out the tracking fob the client had given him, which was flashing and beeping. The target was close.

Djarin landed in a clearing in a forest, deciding to travel by foot the rest of the way. The tracking fob began to beep louder as he left the woods and came into a clearing. He took out his rifle and looked into the scope. All he could see was a valley that led to a large mountain.

A low growl from behind made Djarin lower his rifle and stand still. His instincts kicked in as he heard a snarl, stabbing the end of his rifle as a Beowolf was inches from his face. Pressing a button on the side, Djarin watched as the Grimm spasmed from a jolt of electricity that ran through its body. The evaporated dust revealed three other Beowolves circling him.

Djarin hit the ground as one on his left pounced, the Grimm hitting another and tackling it to the ground. Djarin quickly aimed his rifle at the third but was too late to fire as the Beowolf sunk it's jaw into his leg. A jet of flame from Djarin's arm caused it to let go and howl in pain. Djarin took the opportunity to shoot it in the face and watch it turn to dust.

His attention focused on the other two as they began to fight each other, the first angered at the others' previous tackle. Djarin quickly reloaded his rifle with a cartridge on his sash and prepared to fire.

Only to be beaten by two darts that sunk into their necks.

Djarin saw an older man with a gray beard and a cap slowly walk out of the woods as the Grimm fell. "Thank you," Djarin called out.

"You're quite welcome," the old man replied with a smile. "Care to lend a hand?"

---

The man led Djarin to a small cabin in the woods. He sat down on the stairs to rest as the Mandalorian dragged one unconscious Grimm by a rope to a large cage. "You sure you need this?" Djarin called out as he approached the cage.

"Absolutely," the old man replied. "Just press that button once you're done." After Djarin left the cage, he pressed a button that activated a wall of Hard-Light Dust, trapping the Grimm inside the pen. Turning around to see the older man walk into his cabin, the Mandalorian followed him. He could see a workbench with tools and multiple blueprints on the floor. Djarin picked up one that showed some kind of bike without any wheels. The blueprint had the Atlesian symbol on the top left corner.

"You're Atlesian?" Djarin asked.

"Yep," the old man replied as he sat down next to the Mandalorian with an extended hand. "You can call me Pietro."

"Call me 'Mando,'" he said as he shook hands. He looked out the window to see a fenced area. Not quite the place for an engineering project. "Are you... working out here?"

"Not on that," Pietro replied, tapping the blueprint. "This is more of a pet project."

"Does it involve that Grimm?"

"It does. You might think I'm crazy, but I'm studying different types of Grimm."

"Doesn't sound crazy."

"Well, I'm also... trying to tame them."

"..."

"That was one of the reactions I expected," Pietro replied as he took a folder out from his desk. "But listen for a minute. Huntsmen and Huntresses have been around for years, doing a great job at keeping our world safe. But the Grimm don't seem to go away, no matter how many we kill. I've been working on a theory that the only way to stop them permanently is to control them, make them leave us alone."

Djarin had to admit that he was slightly interested in Pietro's theory. But this kind of work was dangerous. "And how do we exactly... control them?" he asked.

"Well... that's why I'm out here," Pietro replied. "I need first-hand experience with this. It's a trial by fire, so that's why I'm out here alone. Bringing in more people could risk someone getting hurt, God forbid dying."

"You're being cautious, that's true. But this could be all for nothing."

"Well, I'm not the only one who had a similar idea." Pietro held out the folder to Djarin. He opened it to see pictures and notes of Grimm, a research project led by one Doctor Merlot of Vale. "Now, mind you, I don't share Merlot's exact methods. The man wasn't mentally well, and his methods were... extreme. You know he was responsible for what happened to Mountain Glenn?"

Djarin had heard about Mountain Glenn. It was an attempt to expand the city of Vale that had disastrous results. The city was flooded with Grimm, with hardly any survivors. "He led Grimm to the city," Djarin realized.

"That's right," Pietro confirmed with a saddened look on his face. "He had a false belief that we could use Grimm as weapons for ourselves. I want to force them as far away from civilization as possible."

"A decent idea... considering. But one city fell because of this, and it could happen again."

"Which is why I have the one Grimm." Pietro pointed to the Beowolf in the cage. "At first sight of trouble, I'm throwing all this away and going back to what I do best. Now, what about you? You a bounty hunter?"

"I am," Djarin replied as he took out the tracking fob and showed it to Pietro. "My target should be somewhere near a mountain."

"Is your target a criminal?"

"Possibly."

"You know... I saw a group of people heading towards that mountain." Pietro pointed to the mountain outside his window. "That was a few days ago, and they haven't come back since. If that fob is working, that could mean they're camping up there."

"Then that's where I'm going," said Djarin. Before he could open the door, Pietro grabbed his arm.

"Now, hold on. That mountain isn't the best place to hike. I've seen people die trying to climb up it."

"You said those people were camping up there."

"They said they were Huntsmen and Huntresses. They came to me for help when one of them hurt her leg. After I fixed her up, they still went back there. It's almost as if they didn't want to be found."

"Then I'll take my ship up there."

"And let them see you?"

Djarin knew Pietro had a point. Hiking and flying seemed like a bad idea, and his Semblance wouldn't take him to their camp. It probably couldn't get him far up the mountain. "You have any other ideas?" he asked.

"I may have one," Pietro said as he looked out his window. Djarin followed his gaze to the Beowolf in the cage.

"You can't be serious."

---

The Mandalorian fell off the Beowolf for the second time. As it slowly backed away, Djarin looked to Pietro, who was pointing a rifle at the Grimm. At the moment, Djarin was trying to ride the Beowolf. The idea was just as crazy as it sounded. However, if Djarin was to have the element of surprise, the Grimm was the only way to get there. Beowolves were known to climb any kind of surface, and Pietro took this opportunity as a test run. So far, it wasn't going well.

"This isn't going to work," said Djarin as he left the enclosed area.

"This is science, Mando," Pietro replied, not taking his eyes off the Grimm. "The main point of science is to try and try again."

"I'm not a scientist."

"So you're giving up that easily?"

"This is impossible. I'll just take my chances using my ship to-"

"I thought you were supposed to be a Mandalorian," Pietro quickly cut him off. "I read about your ancestors, how they fought and died to their last dying breath for whatever they set their minds to. Whether it's bounty hunting or protecting their family and home, they wouldn't give up without a fight. What about you?"

"..."

Pietro was a bold one, talking to him like this. But Djarin had surprisingly found a new determination. Pietro was right; the Mandalorians weren't quitters, not even when the odds were stacked against them. This is the Way. "Besides... third times the charm," Pietro said with a chuckle.

Getting back inside the fence, the Mandalorian slowly approached the Beowolf, which had gotten into an attack position.

Djarin fired a wire from his gauntlet, and it wrapped around the Grimm's throat. It tried to run away, but Djarin pulled it closer to him and jumped on its back. It was a surprisingly even surface, easy to sit down. The fur was as coarse as hair, not very easy to grip. But Djarin kept his grip firm as the Grimm tried to knock him off. Djarin suddenly remembered learning that Beowolves had a sensitive spot on their back legs. So he kicked its back leg as it let out a howl in pain. The Grimm calmed down as it moved slowly around the fence, with the Mandalorian on top of it.

Pietro lowered his rifle and clapped. Djarin had done it. Against all odds, he had managed to control a Grimm and make it a means of transportation to the mountain. Maybe Pietro wasn't as crazy as he initially thought. And perhaps Djarin had made his ancestors proud.

---

The next day, Djarin and Pietro dragged a cart with the Grimm in it to the foot of the mountain. It was time to find Lila Birch. Djarin opened the cage and pulled the Beowolf out.

"Mando."

Djarin turned to see Pietro holding a card with a phone number on it. "We made great progress with this one," he continued. "But if it gives you any trouble, tries to hurt you in any way, call me. I'll put the whole thing to a stop."

"Of course," Djarin replied.

"And feel free to come back to my cabin when you're done. If you're injured, I can help."

"Thank you." Djarin held out his hand. Pietro shook it, wished him good luck, and watched as the Grimm climbed the stone with ease.

Djarin found a path after five minutes of climbing. After pulling on the hair to make the Grimm stop, Djarin climbed off. Using the visual enhancement in his helmet, Djarin could see human footprints leading up the path. A growl caused him to turn around and see the Grimm pounce towards him.

The Mandalorian quickly dodged and took out a large knife. Stabbing it in the back, Djarin watched as the Grimm turned to dust. It seemed the Grimm was waiting for Djarin to be off guard. It couldn't kill him while he was on his back or looking at him. Instead, it watched and waited for the right time, which had ironically led to its death. Impressed by the display of intelligence, Djarin activated his gauntlet and sent a message to Pietro.

He responded in less than a minute.

"Understood. Good luck."​

---

The footprints had led the Mandalorian to a campsite, and the tracking fob was beeping and flashing faster than before. This was the right place. Lila Birch was here.

After climbing a small hill to stay out of sight, Djarin removed the scope from his rifle and examined the camp. There were three tents and the entrance to a cave behind the tents. Djarin could see five people talking to each other. Three were holding rifles and swords, while the other two had different, unique weapons. One was a Faunus with horns, and the others were all human.

Djarin began to strategize his attack. He could see that Lila Birch wasn't among the group. It was possible that she was inside the cave. "The rocks," Djarin thought to himself as he looked above the cave at a few large rocks. "They'll be caught off guard if I knock them down. They might take care of some of those people, and then-"

The sound of metal snapped the Mandalorian out of his thoughts. Looking back to the path, his eyes were glued to some kind of... droid. It looked like the Atlesian Knight-130s the client brought with him, but it was different. It had arms and legs as thin as pipes, connected to a central chest piece. And its head was unlike the knights. It was a long, cylinder-like shape. Not very human-like. And its eyes were tiny tubes on its head.

"What the hell?"

The droid had caught the attention of the five people. They all looked at it while readying their weapons. The Faunus walked in front of the group. "What do you want?" the Faunus demanded.

"NOT WHAT," a robotic voice rang out from the droid. "WHO."

"...Who do you want to see?"

"LILA BIRCH."

"We... We don't know anyone with that name," one girl said.

"YOU ARE LYING," said the droid. "I KNOW SHE IS HERE."

The girl took out her rifle and pointed it at the droid. "Your wires must be crossed, Rusty! Get out of here."

The droid's right arm extended and took a gun off from its side. "DROP YOUR WEAPON."

The girl responded by firing a bullet at the droid. The bullet exploded on impact, but its target was unfazed. It fired at the girl, causing an explosion and knocking her backward. Her friends returned fire, multiple Dust rounds hitting their target, but the droid continued to return fire. Djarin watched closely at the battle. It seemed he had some competition for Lila Birch. But he couldn't allow this.

The people ran away from the droid to their tents. Djarin ran up behind the droid. "Droid, stand dow-!"

*BANG*​

He didn't get to finish his command as a Fire Dust bullet knocked him to the ground. Sneaking up on it wasn't a good idea.

The droid's attention returned to the others as they pulled out automatic weapons from their tents. One ran inside the cave while the others fired at the droid. Unable to withstand the rapid bullets, the droid took cover behind the rocks. Djarin recovered and fired his rifle at the Faunus, disintegrating him. He ran to the rocks as more bullets came his way. "YOU ARE NOT ALLIED WITH THEM," the droid observed.

"Yeah, no shit!" the Mandalorian replied as he fired his pistol at the group. The red bolts made contact with their Auras. "I'm looking for Birch too. Help me, and we'll share the reward."

"I AGREE TO YOUR TERMS."

The droid fired two shots from his two guns at the girl. The bullet from the larger gun was Ice Dust, which froze her foot. The second was Fire Dust, which made contact with the ice as it shattered in an instant. The girl screamed in pain as she held her leg, which was now without a foot. The other two dropped their rifles and reached behind their backs. One pulled out a pair of nunchakus with spikes on one end while the other pulled out a black longsword and shield. The second stepped forward and used his shield to block each bullet, his partner not far behind.

"WE REQUIRE A NEW STRATEGY," said the droid.

The Mandalorian peaked his head out and saw the two approaching faster. "Wait until they're distracted," he ordered as he disappeared.

The Mandalorian reappeared behind the duo and stabbed the first one with the electric end of his rifle. The sound of electricity caused his partner to turn around and swing his sword at the gun, damaging the electric end. The droid fired at the distracted warrior, but his Aura blocked the shots.

"I'll handle the Mandalorian," the one with the nunchakus told his partner. "Turn that droid to scrap." He then swung the spiked ends at his opponent, which the Mandalorian blocked with his gauntlets. Djarin teleported away again and reappeared to his left.

Djarin raised his rifle just in time as one of the nunchakus wrapped around the end. Djarin quickly pulled, and his opponent lost balance. He was able to send a knee to his face, and he fell. Djarin stepped on his chest, but then his foot sank into the man's body. He also felt like he was standing in sand.

Which, as a matter of fact, he was.

The man had turned part of his body into sand, enabling him to avoid the pain of the stomp. Djarin tried to pull his foot out but failed; the man was able to send a few punches to his leg before standing back up. Dropping the nunchakus, the man turned his hands into a sand hammer and ball with spikes.

"You really wanna do this?" he asked with a grin.

"I still have a job to do," Djarin replied as he raised his fists.

"Alright then."

The man sent the ball towards the Mandalorian's head, which he blocked by raising his arm and made contact with the human part of his opponent's arm. Djarin punched the man in the face, who hit him with the hammer in retaliation. The Beskar was able to absorb most of the attack, but Djarin felt like he had been hit with a slab of granite. It didn't help when the spiked ball hit him again. Before the hammer could hit him again, the Mandalorian vanished.

The sandman looked around but couldn't find his opponent. He then saw the droid pummeling his partner into the ground. He ran over to help, hitting the droid in the back and sending it back a few feet. His partner remained motionless. Before he could check for a pulse, the sandman felt a wire wrap around his arm. He turned to see the Mandalorian send a jet of flame towards him. The sandman used his Aura to protect himself from the flame, and he ran to the Mandalorian. As the flame died down, the Mandalorian felt the spiked ball hit him again.

Only for it to shatter in an instant when he fell.

The sandman screamed in pain as he looked at his arm. Looking at the other one, he could see the sand hammer had turned to glass. The Mandalorian used his fire to heat the sand to turn both his arms into glass. He tried to use his Aura to relieve the pain, but it shattered once a fist made contact with his face, knocking him unconscious.

The Mandalorian turned to the droid walking back towards him, noticing a limp. "Your leg not working?"

"I HAVE SUFFERED MINOR DAMAGE IN MY CONFLICT," the droid replied.

Before Djarin could say anything, a fast beeping noise made him turn to his belt. He pulled out the tracking fob to see that the light was flashing faster than before. "She's nearby," the Mandalorian said as he took out his pistol.

The droid took out its weapons as the top half of its body spun around twice. "I DO NOT DETECT ANY LIFE FORMS IN OUR IMMEDIATE SURROUNDINGS."

An explosion from the cave caused the duo to turn around. Facing the cave, the Mandalorian could hear the beeping picking up its pace. He suddenly saw an orange glow begin to form in the entrance. It began to glow brighter. And brighter. And brighter.

"Out of the way!" Djarin yelled as he jumped to the side. A burst of flame erupted from the cave. Djarin then saw the fire die down to reveal a blonde-haired woman staring at the duo with amber eyes. The tracking fob had a steady beep, and the red light was solid. "It's her!"

The droid raised its weapons, and Djarin raised his pistol. Djarin then noticed the woman's eyes give off a hint of fire. It was almost as if her eyes were on fire... but they weren't burning. She raised her left hand, and another burst of fire made its way to the Mandalorian, who quickly used his Semblance to teleport next to the droid. He expected another burst of fire once she raised her other hand to the duo. A gust of wind came out instead, sending them back a few feet. The clouds above her began to thunder, and a lightning bolt struck in front of them, knocking them behind a few rocks. Birch picked up the longsword from her ally and flew towards the rocks. Her hunters were nowhere to be found.

"Show yourself, Mandalorian!" she screamed.

Djarin had used his Semblance to teleport himself and the droid onto the ledge of a hidden cliff, out of sight. But worrying about losing his cover wasn't the only thing on his mind.

"What kind of Semblance is that?" he asked, completely caught off guard by her apparent ability to control fire, wind, and even lightning at the same time.

"IT APPEARS SHE CAN SUMMON ELEMENTAL POWERS AT WILL," the droid replied. "I AM NOT DESIGNED TO WITHSTAND THAT KIND OF POWER. I HAVE NO CHOICE." A small metal sphere with red lights came out of the droid's chest.

"What are you doing?" Djarin asked.

"MANUFACTURER'S PROTOCOL DICTATES, I CANNOT BE CAPTURED. I AM PREPARED TO SELF-DESTRUCT."

"What?! No, do not self-destruct!"

The ground beneath them began to rise. As it reached the top, Lila grabbed the Mandalorian by his throat and the droid by the lower part of its head.

"You murdered my friends!" she said to the Mandalorian. The duo responded with multiple blasts and Dust bullets to Lila's chest, but her Aura blocked out the attacks. She then threw the two behind her, and they landed on the ground and slid a few feet away.

Djarin fired again, but Lila flew into the air and summoned another bolt of lightning. The Mandalorian hit a rock wall and fell to the ground. Lila ran up to him and grabbed him by the throat. She began to tighten her grip, staring into his visor with her fiery eyes. She then looked down at his belt, noticing a red light and a steady noise. Grabbing it, she examined it closely, slightly loosening her grip.

"A tracking fob," she said as fire formed in her hand. The fob melted, and she turned back to the Mandalorian. "You're a bounty hunter. Who hired you?" The Mandalorian responded by punching Lila in her face and gut, her Aura blocking out the pain. "Who hired you?" she asked again, tightening her grip.

Two Dust rounds to her back caused her to turn around at the droid. Letting Djarin go, she sent two more bursts of fire at the droid. The Mandalorian used this distraction to stab her leg with his knife and teleport away.

Reappearing next to the droid, Djarin watched Lila grab her leg and start to heal herself.

"I CANNOT SUFFER ANY FURTHER DAMAGE," the droid said as it opened its chest again. "I MUST BE DESTROYED."

"No, do not-!" Djarin stopped himself as he began to think. "Wait, I have an idea. Lead her to the entrance of the cave and tell her your protocol."

"AFFIRMATIVE," the droid replied as Djarin disappeared again.

Lila stood up and charged towards the retreating droid, dodging each bullet it fired. Freezing both guns and grabbing the droid, Lila began to crush its head. "Maybe I'll learn something from you," she said.

"I DISAGREE," the droid replied as the flashing sphere reappeared. "MANUFACTURER'S PROTOCOL FORBIDS REVEALING INFORMATION OR ALLOWING CAPTURE. I MUST BE DESTROYED."

Lila realized what was happening and created two gusts of wind to propel herself away from the droid and in front of the cave entrance. As she raised her hand to attack, a few pebbles fell in front of her. Looking up, she saw three large rocks falling, about to crush her where she stood.

"No!" she yelled as she sent a jet of flame at the largest one, destroying it. Her efforts were in vain, though, as the smaller rocks fell on top of her.

Djarin jumped down from the cliff and began to dig. While his plan to trap her under the rocks worked, the Mandalorian needed Lila alive. Miraculously, Lila was still alive, but her Aura shattered. "Please..." she weakly said to the Mandalorian. "Please don't... take it."

The Mandalorian didn't know what Lila was talking about, but he didn't care. He dug out her hands and placed a pair of shackles on her. "Stand up," Djarin ordered.

"Please... don't," she begged again.

Djarin pulled her up and began to drag her towards the path. He was starting to wonder how he was going to get Lila out of here. He looked at his Aura levels; it was in the red zone. He could try to teleport to the bottom of the cliff and walk to his ship. If he played his cards right, this could-

*BANG*​

Djarin turned around to see the droid aiming a pistol at him. Djarin couldn't feel any pain in his body and didn't hear the bullet bounce off his armor. That was when he felt Lila fall to the ground. A red spot was on her chest. The droid had shot Lila, and without her Aura, she was going to die. "No!" Djarin yelled as he looked at the droid. "What did you do?!"

"MY ORDERS WERE CLEAR," the droid replied. "THE TARGET WAS TO BE DESTROYED."

"What? No, we were supposed to bring her alive."

"I WAS INSTRUCTED TO TERMINATE THE TARGET."

"...By who?"

Before the droid could reply, a burst of orange light exploded from Lila's body. After remaining still long enough for Djarin to notice, the light flew into the cave.

The duo looked at each other before walking into the cave. The walk was short, as the hunters found a small clearing with sunlight coming in from the ceiling. Djarin's eyes landed on a blanket, glowing the same color as the light he saw. Before taking another step, a man emerged from behind a rock and fired at the Mandalorian. The bullet grazed his arm, and Djarin returned fire, the red blast hitting his face. The droid approached the blanket and slightly picked it up to get a look inside.

"UNEXPECTED," it said.

"What is it?" Djarin asked.

The droid pulled the blanket and cast it aside. It revealed a young girl with black hair wearing a white shirt and gray pants. She was surrounded in orange light. The Mandalorian immediately recognized her; it was the servant girl from the Glass Unicorn, the one he helped before leaving Atlas.

"What are you doing here?" Djarin asked.

The girl backed away to the stone wall and grabbed a sword, preparing to defend herself with defiance written on her face.

"We're not going to hurt you, I just want-"

The droid raised its pistol and aimed at the girl. The defiance from the girl disappeared. It had been replaced with fear.

"Wait, we don't need to hurt her," Djarin approached closer to the droid. "I know where she lives. I'll take her back."

"PROTOCOL DICTATES, I CANNOT LEAVE ANYONE HERE ALIVE," the droid said as it grabbed the girl's sword and broke the blade off. "THE CHILD MUST BE TERMINATED."

The girl dropped the broken sword and closed her eyes, tears falling down her face.

*BANG*​

The girl heard something fall to the ground. Opening her eyes and feeling her chest, she saw that there was no bullet wound. And the droid was on the ground.

The Mandalorian put his pistol away and slowly extended his hand to the girl. Who smiled, slowly reached up, and took it.

---

Author's notes: hello again. Hope everyone's doing good. Thanks for the feedback so far, I hope you're enjoying the story. And I seem to have the Threadmark option figured out (sorry about that, kinda new to the site). Feel free to leave your thoughts below, I'm always open to feedback. Hope you enjoyed!