🛡️ This is the Way.
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║ ⚔️ MANDALORIAN CONTRACT BOARD ⚔️ ║
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║ Objective: Launch the story into hyperspace ║
║ Reward: Extra chapters for the crew ║
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║ Review Bounties: ║
║ • ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ = +1 bonus chapter ║
║ • ⭐⭐⭐⭐ + ⭐⭐⭐⭐ = +1 bonus chapter ║
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║ 2–3 lines is enough: ║
║ • "I loved ___ because…" ║
║ • "Best scene so far was…" ║
║ • "My theory is…" ║
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║ Thank you for backing Max Vizsla and the ║
║ rise of Mandalore. ║
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Galactic Standard Calendar Year 4, November 12—midnight. Near-space above Coruscant, inside the cockpit of a Kom'rk-class Mark I starfighter.
"Mr. Almec, have you ever flown a Kom'rk before?" Max Vizsla asked.
"No." Almec shook his head. "Never. The last time I even saw a Kom'rk must've been over a decade ago."
"Saen." Max patted the pilot's shoulder. "Scoot over. Mr. Almec—give it a try. I'll teach you."
…
After the welcoming banquet, Max invited Almec up to the ultra-luxury suite where he was staying—but he didn't immediately dive into any serious discussion.
"Mr. Almec, this is a specialty from the Aakaash system (star chart coordinate: M-5)—a traditional, meticulously brewed focus tea. Best thing there is for staying sharp and sobering up. Have a cup."
"Oh, thank you—then I absolutely have to try it."
After the tea was served, Max tapped his ear.
(There are ears on the other side of the wall.) Almec understood immediately. After that, the two of them chatted about nothing in particular, sipping tea and wandering from topic to topic.
About half an hour later, after Almec came back from a bathroom break, he said, "Lord Vizsla, this tea's wake-up effect is a little too good—I'm not sleepy at all now."
"You're not sleepy? Neither am I." Max gestured toward the window. "How about we use that energy—take a ride in a ship from home, go for a little spin?"
"This is the Way!"
"This is the Way—please!"
…
"Young man, you keep flying." Almec pressed a hand to the shoulder on the pilot's other side and spoke to Max. "No drinking and flying, no flying after drinking—that's a principle, Lord Vizsla."
"Right, right—this is the Way!" Max nodded rapidly. "Saen, listen to Mr. Almec. You keep flying. Mr. Almec, let's go to the troop compartment up front and talk. Please."
"Please."
They entered the forward troop compartment of the Kom'rk. After the hatch sealed, Almec spoke first.
"Lord Vizsla—if you and your people can follow the New Mandalorian government's rules in the future, and stop using force to break the law, then on this trip back to Mandalore, I will personally petition Duchess Satine to rescind your exile order, so you and your people can return home."
"Uh—sit, sit, please sit." Max motioned him down. "No matter what, on behalf of my brothers and sisters of the Bespin Mandalorian Armed Forces—thank you for your goodwill."
"I'll help with Bespin." Almec sat as he spoke. "I may have stepped down, but after all these years, I still have some connections and a bit of influence."
"Also, I can help introduce some new, legal sales channels. Tibanna gas isn't only for charging blaster weapons—it can also be used as a coolant. Hyperdrive cooling systems on ships need it; carbon-freezing equipment in schools and hospitals needs it too."
At this point, Almec looked at Max Vizsla and continued earnestly:
"Just like Mandalorians—we're not only about fighting and killing. We can build things too. And we can build well."
"Lord Vizsla—if outstanding young Mandalorians like you can cast off those backward traditions of using force to break the law, and join the New Mandalorians on the correct path of peaceful development… given time, I truly believe we can build Mandalore into something as advanced as Coruscant—maybe even more advanced!"
Max didn't respond directly.
"Mr. Almec, earlier this year I went back to Sundari once. It's true—the New Mandalorians have done impressive work in economic development. It opened my eyes."
"And if you also join us New Mandalorians," Almec extended an inviting hand, "then I believe tomorrow—Sundari's, Mandalore's, even the entire Mandalore sector's—will be brighter!"
Max nodded with a polite smile, acknowledging Almec's compliment—then he shifted gears.
"On that trip to Sundari, I happened to run into Death Watch smashing, looting, and burning right there in the capital. A few squads—at most a single company—rampaging openly through Mandalore's capital, without anyone stopping them. In the end, Sundari's police could only rely on overwhelming numbers to drive them off—or, you could say, 'politely escort' them out."
"Doesn't that prove exactly how those old Mandalorian 'might makes right' traditions damage society?" Almec asked.
Max countered, "And then what? If Death Watch comes again to break the law by force, what are the New Mandalorians going to do?"
Almec fell silent. After a long silence, he answered—clearly lacking confidence—"Naturally… we must educate them, guide these lost compatriots back to the right path…"
"Mr. Almec—the critique of weapons can't replace the weapon of critique. Material force can only be destroyed by material force." Max cut him off. "Back then, in the Mandalorian civil war, the New Mandalorians didn't win by 'education' and 'guidance.' The New Mandalorians won by defeating the warrior factions—then driving them off-world into exile."
Almec went silent again.
Max continued, "Let me be blunt. In less than ten years, a second Mandalorian civil war is going to start. The New—"
"Sir!" Almec suddenly sprang to his feet, blurting out in alarm.
"Not me—don't get worked up." Max used the Force to steady Almec—who stood too fast, went dizzy, and nearly toppled—then gently guided him back down. "Death Watch. They've already unified Concordia. I believe they'll move on Mandalore soon. So tell me—are the New Mandalorians prepared?"
"Lord Vizsla… why are you telling me this?" Almec asked cautiously, once he'd regained himself.
"Because," Max paused, then looked straight into Almec's eyes, speaking with quiet seriousness, "I'm Mandalorian too. I don't want our people to suffer again."
"Mr. Almec—having no sword and having a sword but refusing to draw it are two different things. The New Mandalorians used to understand that. Have you completely forgotten it now? Pick up the sword. Protect Mandalore. Protect the people of Mandalore!"
"Lord Vizsla…" Almec said with difficulty. "We New Mandalorians are pacifists. We oppose violence."
"Then," Max asked, raising a brow, "who started the Mandalorian civil war eleven years ago?"
"This…" Almec had no answer.
Max Vizsla stood and looked in the direction of Mandalore.
"If the old Mandalorian tradition of extreme militarism harmed the people—and the New Mandalorians insisted on correcting it by overcorrecting—then now, you've drifted far too far off course. You've walked onto a different extreme."
"It's time, Mr. Almec—set things right. Bring Mandalore back to the Way."
…
"Saen—don't head back to the Republic Five Hundred Building. Take the Kom'rk out of the atmosphere—up to geosynchronous orbit."
That was Max's order after he delivered Almec back to his residence.
…
PS: Worth mentioning—The Silver Covenant is not a fanfiction novel; it is an officially authorized canon novel, part of the new canon.
PPS: In the new canon, the planet Daiyu was designed with a "neon harbor-metropolis" inspiration. If any Jedi Masters/Sith Lords are interested in the Aakaash system and Daiyu, later plotlines can have Max visit more often. If it feels jarring, then we'll go rarely—or not at all.
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