“Amnesia?” Although he was calm, fear clouded Luke’s eyes. “Are you sure it’s not just his injury?” They were almost at the top of the cliff—the fog had cleared up—but now it was chilly.
Without looking back at Luke, Esther explained, “I’m sure, Luke. The amnesia stage is usually the last one before the person is fully brainwashed.” She shuddered. “My family was also conned into getting the new technology. Next thing I knew, they forgot who I was, who they were, and then I never saw them again.”
“Mando can’t forget Grogu, though, right?” Luke almost begged.
“I thought that, too, Luke,” Esther answered. “What we can do now is to keep reminding Mando who he is and who you are. We should have a better course once we see the technicians.”
Gritting his teeth again, Luke argued, “But Mando is a good man.”
“They all are,” Esther said. “That doesn’t mean they can’t be vulnerable. You know this. You’re a Jedi.”
Luke tilted his chin and then looked past Esther at Mando, who no longer argued or tried to get close to Grogu. “He can’t forget Grogu,” he muttered.
Eventually, the group reached the top of the cliff. Before them, the New Republic base looked like a mix of ancient and futuristic technology: rock huts of all sizes with solar panels on the roofs, few trees (but quite a few grew out of the sides of the cliffs), and the spaceport in the center of the circle, where X-Wings and other ships patiently waited.
Esther cut before Mando, walking with the new Viking toward what looked like the main base against the cliff in the background.
A salty breeze swept through the area, leaving Luke shivering in the chill.
Esther and the new Viking soon stopped before the large hut, and Esther said to Mando and his allies, “Wait out here for a second. We’re going to get the technicians.”
Luke and Rotta nodded, but Mando remained stoic, staring at his feet.
Once Esther and the Viking disappeared inside the building, Luke turned to Mando and asked, “Mando, do you know who we are?” His lips dipped when Mando didn’t answer; therefore, he pointed at himself, Rotta, and Grogu. “Luke Skywalker, Rotta the Hutt, and Grogu.” He set his hand on Grogu’s back. “Grogu’s your son. You adopted him a few years ago.”
Finally, Mando hit the side of his helmet, saying, “I’m sorry, Luke.”
Good, so he did still know who they were.
“We’re almost there,” Luke encouraged. “You just need to hold on a little longer.”
“I don’t know who I am anymore, though, Luke,” Mando said, and Luke’s eyes widened for a second.
“You’re a bounty hunter,” he reminded him, “a father, and a good man.” Gah, of all the times the helmet had to separate Mando from Grogu… That was the worst time yet.
About five minutes later, Esther returned with the other Viking and two technicians, who were shorter but slightly larger than she was. Each wore long pants and a long-sleeved shirt with a vest, tools in their pockets. One technician, a younger one about Luke’s age, also had goggles tucked into his hair.
He beamed at Luke. “Jedi Master Luke Skywalker!” Instantly, he rushed over and shook his hand, nearly flinging him off the cliff. “It’s a pleasure to meet you! I’m Herin!”
Luke pulled away and shook out his hand. The entire galaxy knew his name now.
“Oh!” Still excited, Herin looked at Mando. “He must be the brainwashed bounty hunter.”
“He’s not fully brainwashed yet,” Esther corrected, “but he has reached the amnesia stage of the process. Could we be quick about this and see if his helmet came from one of the planets in this sector?”
“Of course.” Herin was too cheerful for Luke, but he guessed that hope was crucial now. He also needed to prepare a call to Zeb about getting a little more backup if the base was in the nebula. That meant that, aside from pilots, they also needed transport cruisers to get brainwashed victims off it.
Herin led everyone into the base, escorting them to a room at the back, where a large computer monitor and a few black chairs were lined up.
Luke studied the high-tech room, wondering what all the buttons on the wall were. A piece of him wanted to find out, but then he remembered that he was a Jedi.
Herin and the second technician sat Mando down in a chair beside the monitor.
Herin went to it and picked up a silver circlet with a black center. He returned to the others and pressed the center button.
At his command, the circlet lit up light blue. Tapping it, Herin explained, “We use this circlet to examine the brainwashing technology and where victims may be in the process—if they can still be saved. Very useful during a time like this.” He seemed proud of the invention—Luke saw him trying to hold back another grin—but he still spoke up.
“It won’t hurt him, right? He’s already got a concussion.”
“Oh, no.” Herin shook his head. “It’s meant to guide, not hurt.”
Now Luke found himself wondering who built that technology. It definitely was more high-tech, but he kept his mouth shut for the time being.
He, Rotta, Esther, and the Viking who led them to the base backed away.
Mando was, for sure, becoming less like himself and more robotic because he didn’t speak or move when Herin put the glowing circlet over his head. All that emotion Luke had seen in the past few days had been washed out of the Outer Rim and now floated somewhere in the galaxy. They were running out of time, but Luke tried to be hopeful.
It took a minute, but an image of Mando’s helmet appeared on the monitor, followed by blinking labels and paragraphs. A holographic image of the Oamian Sector emerged beside it.
Herin spent about five minutes examining the monitor and reading the page with his partner.
Mando kept still during the experiment, only occasionally twitching his fingers.
Eventually, the technicians removed the band from his head and turned to face Luke’s group.
“Well?” Luke asked, clenching his fists. As a Jedi, he needed patience, but the situation had become so dire.
“Good news or bad news first?” Herin soon inquired.
Uh, oh.
“Bad,” Luke answered. Just get it out of the way.
“The helmet isn’t from one of the Oamian Planets,” Herin explained. “But…!”—he held up a finger—“we think it’s guiding Mando to where it came from.”
So… the nebula.
“Can he still be saved?” Luke said aloud. He knew that Grogu wanted human Mando back, not the stoic one.
Herin nodded. “He can, as long as you guys let him lead you and keep that little guy near him.” He gestured at Grogu before switching his attention to Mando. “He’s an interesting case. Even though he’s almost fully brainwashed—and has a head injury—he’s still fighting. Most people give up once they hit the amnesia stage.”
He’s doing it for Grogu, Luke thought. Therefore, he, Esther, and Rotta had to keep reminding Mando who Grogu was. He was his only hope, just as Ben was Leia’s.
“Thank you,” Luke said, helping Mando down from the chair. He then remembered Dante. “Hold on. Do you guys know a man named Dante?”
“Dante?” Another smile from Herin. “Oh, yeah. He’s a good man. Been trying to help the Outer Rim since the Empire.”
“So… you do?” Luke raised an eyebrow and noticed Esther twiddling her fingers.
“He’s a neurologist,” Herin elucidated. “Has a droid as a partner. Never goes anywhere without it. In fact, they were just here, but I believe they left an hour or two ago.”
A few hours? Wasn’t there a ship that took off when Luke’s group landed? Mando had been drawn toward it.
Oh, yeah, that hidden base was definitely in the Oamia Nebulae. Mando’s helmet knew the way. Luke couldn’t help but feel both excited and nervous. They were so close.
“Dante’s from Varis,” Herin finished. “It was hit especially hard during the war because of its resources.” He drew a triangle in midair and pointed to the lower-right point. “Varis is one of the planets in the sector.”
Perfect! That was all the information Luke needed. But, regardless, something still didn’t add up. If Dante was a good man, then why was he in possession of the brainwashing technology, unless…?
Luke hit himself on the head. Of course! Dante wasn’t the Mastermind—he was the partner… the victim. Luke wouldn’t be surprised if the Mastermind took advantage of his grief, telling him that the brainwashing technology would help save lives.
“Emotionally vulnerable people.”
Luke turned on his heel and gripped Grogu’s arm, gently shaking him awake. “Wake up, Grogu.” He gave him a tiny smile. “We think we know how to save your dad.”
ns216.73.217.145da2
and then Add to home screen.