Obi-Wan and Yoda walked behind the towering frame of a wookie. He had introduced himself as Tarfful, and had said something else to Yoda which Obi-Wan had not been able to discern. He was still picking up the language, despite having been on Kashyyyk for nearly three years now. They had left Dantooine on a whim of Yoda's, who had said nothing more than "arise, a reason for our presence shall." Supposedly, they were going to get that reason now.
Looking out on the wroshyr forests that surrounded them, Obi-Wan surprised himself with how accustomed to the size of the trees he had become. They grew to be hundreds of meters tall, and no other plants he had seen came even close to matching their girth. And yet, after the years, he found himself no longer impressed by their mass. Now, he only remained interested in the immense amount of life he could feel coming from them.
Most of what he felt did not come from the trees themselves, however. There were countless species of creatures which lived on the planet and thrived in the dense jungles created by the wroshyr trees. He had yet to go a day when he hadn't seen at least one creature he had not seen before. At times, it almost felt as if the planet itself were alive. There was a buzzing noise overhead, and the three looked up to see a large insect circling above them—can-cells, they were called. The wookie growled something about signs, and Obi-Wan looked pleadingly at his master.
"A good omen, the can-cell is. Great irony in this one's appearance, chieftain Tarfful sees."
The three of them climbed up a great, spiraling staircase which hugged the side of a wroshyr. The wooden boards were firm beneath their feet—a good thing, considering that they were kilometers above the ground. It had taken Obi-Wan some time to grow used to having nothing but a few centimeters of dead tree between him and a long plummet to a messy death. He would have felt much more comfortable on durasteel—it was more familiar, and it didn't run the risk of rotting.
They arrived at a gate which was guarded by two wookies, each of them armed with menacing ryyk blades. They snapped to attention as Tarfful approached, watching him with an obvious respect. The chieftain gave them an absentminded greeting, walking through the gate quickly even for a being of his size. Obi-Wan was almost jogging to keep up, but Yoda somehow seemed to be moving effortlessly. That blasted cane was all for show—he was sure of it.
Beyond the gate was a surprisingly technological area. It was full of computers and various diagnostics equipment—things Obi-Wan rarely had rarely come across on this planet. There were several droids present as well, which he recognized as various policing models. He looked about the room carefully now, noting a pair of wookies standing in the corner who were reeking with concern. He reached out and touched their minds gently, gathering just enough information to understand the gravity of the situation. Tarfful turned to address them, and he looked at the wookie with rapt attention. As Tarfful spoke, Yoda translated for him.
"Kidnapped, a group of wookie children has been. Among them, the son of a visiting chieftain was. Taken by trandoshans, the children appear to be. Found a severed claw, the wookies have, although they have no way to identify its owner. Travel to Trandosha, one of us must, to find these children before they are sold into slavery. A grave matter this is, Obi-Wan. Overcome with grief, chieftain Kormak is. For the sake of his people, find his child, we must."
"Well then, let's get going. Where's this claw they found?"
A wookie who had been operating one of the computers growled for him to wait a moment, opening a security case. Inside was a perfectly preserved Trandoshan hand, its claws still wrapped around the hilt of a crude knife. Obi-Wan lifted the hand with his mind, not wanting to contaminate it with his hands. It was a grayish green color, with thick fingers and trimmed claws. He knew little of trandoshans, but he could see toned muscles and old scars. This was the hand of a fighter. He spoke as the wheels in his mind began to turn.
"The Trandoshan government should have a DNA database of its citizens. If the trandoshan who kidnapped these wookies lives on Trandosha, we should be able to find him with this."
"We will not be going, Obi-Wan." Yoda spoke slowly and deliberately. "A test of sorts, this will be. Stay here, I shall. Alone, you will go."
Kormak began yowling loudly at the little alien, shaking his shaggy fists in the air. He snarled angry accusations faster than Obi-Wan could follow, and Tarfful stepped forward to restrain him. Yoda motioned for Tarfful to stand aside however, and the wookie obliged. Stepping forward, Yoda looked Kormak in the eye.
"Stay to oversee the investigation, one of us must. And just what do you expect me to do against trandoshan bounty hunters? Over eight hundred years old, am I. Would you rather my young, strong apprentice stay here in my stead?"
Yoda's words seemed to placate the angry wookie, who lowered his arms and bowed his head in shame. Obi-Wan watched silently, unsure whether he should be more impressed by his master having calmed a wookie or having survived lying to one. Between the two of them, Yoda was by far the stronger one. He had never seen his master draw his lightsaber, but it was not for a want of danger. He had watched Yoda overpower a room full of drunken mercenaries with nothing more than the sound of his voice. For some reason, his master sincerely wanted him to take care of this task alone. He did not want to disappoint him.
"Where can I find a ship?"