Star Wars: Rebel Dogs
Chapter VII: The Will of Three
Nuhmala was no stranger to waking way before the morning hours of the day. She had many times gone to inspect the growth of mediational herbs and retrieve a vase of water for her home. This morning was no different, though now she was more well-rested than she had been for the past several days. It had been a full night since Balto and Zeb left on their journey, and Nuhmala was now filled with some much-needed hope. Now that Balto, her fiútestvér, was here, it would be only a matter of time before her husband was in safe hands. With Villámlándzsa, Zeb, Nuhmala had no doubt that her husband and son would be brought back to her by his side.
After checking the herbs, which were growing well under the Nelvaanians care, Nuhmala took her empty vases to the river. She grabbed two for both her family and the victors who had arrived with Balto and Zeb. Such strange beings she allowed in her home and play host to, but she trusted Balto's word of these aliens as members of his tribe, so she'll treat them as such. Nuhmala had filled and plugged the first vase and went on to the second. She noticed one of her guests, Hera Syndulla, was also there washing her hands with a cloth. At first, Nuhmala pretended to not notice her and leave the Twi'lek to her business. However, Nuhmala couldn't help but stare. Never had she seen someone so beautiful, nor one with tails growing from the back of their head.
"Oh, hello Nuhmala," Hera said, now noticing the native woman beside her, "Lovely morning we have today?" Nuhmala nodded in a nervous response, "I'm sorry, did I disturb you?" Nuhmala shook her head to answer, "I'm just asking because you seem a bit nervous, and you've been staring at me for a while now."
Nuhmala averted her gaze in utter embarrassment, "Forgive me, miss Hera, I mean not to be rude!"
"No, it's fine, really," Hera tried to reassure her, "I'm guessing you don't get a lot of visitors from off-world."
"No." Nuhmala answered, "Only Balto and Jenna have ever visit us from stars."
"Oh, so you know about Jenna?" asked Hera.
Nuhmala nodded, "Balto bring her sometimes. She like sister." she said while going back to filling her vase, "She is lucky to have a strong mate like him."
"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you sound a bit envious." Hera said with much sarcasm.
Hera couldn't tell because of the livid blue color of Nuhmala's fur, but Hera thought the Nelvaanian was blushing by the way she tried to hide her face.
"Maybe, for a short time," Nuhmala clarified while still hiding her embarrassment, "But, I am happy for them as I am happy for me and Turraka, and you with sir Kanan."
"Me and Kanan?"
Seeing Hera's sudden reaction made Nuhmala pull back, believing she overstepped her boundaries, "Forgive me. I see you two always together. I assumed you both are together."
Hera took some time to calm Nuhmala with reassurance before answering, "Well, I do care about him, but... it's complicated."
"Why must love be complicated?"
"Well, it wasn't always. It's just, ever since we joined up with the rebellion against the Galactic Empire, things have been far too hectic. We kind of have no choice but to put that kind of relationships on the backburner." looking back, Hera saw that Nuhmala was completely lost by what she was being told, "A rival tribe has been going to war with ours, so we decided to wait until things are settled."
"Do not wait long, Hera," Nuhmala said, dropping all prefixes, "Love is beautiful thing to share. I only wish I cherish more time with Turraka and Farkas before they taken away."
"I'll be sure to remember that," Hera said as Nuhmala had now finished filling both vases, "Here, let me help you with that." she reached for the vase that Nuhmala had just finished.
"No! You are guest of my home. It would be rude of me to make you work." Nuhmala objected.
"Please, I insist. It's the least I can do for letting us stay with you," Hera retorted as she again took hold of the vase, "Besides, you shouldn't overexert yourself when you're carrying a baby around inside of you."
Nuhmala almost dropped her vase in surprise at Hera's statement, "How you know?"
"Balto told me before he left," Hera answered while finding a good grip to carry the vase, "He's like a big brother to me, so he tells me a lot."
"He affect people like that." Nuhmala stated.
"Tell me about it."
Once the two girls had taken hold of their respective vases, they made their way back to the camp. After this little interaction, Nuhmala had become more comfortable with Hera's presence. Though still completely alien to Nuhmala, Hera had proven to be no different from her. Hera was kind, generous, and, from what Nuhmala had seen of the Twi'lek interactions with her crew, genuinely cared for those around her. It was enough for Nuhmala to consider Hera as a friend. As a friend, there was something that Nuhmala was curious about that only Hera could answer.
"Hera, there something about Balto I need to know," she said getting the Twi'lek captain's attention, "Does he still do thing where he make sad face when you keep secret to make you... mi a szó... feel guilty?"
"All the time!" Hera exclaimed on the verge of laughter, "I swear I can't keep anything from him without having to see that."
"Yes, yes," Nuhmala joined in with the laughter, "It so mean when he does that."
The two continued to laugh and reminisce on their funniest memories involving Balto. In no time, they reached the Rokrul's campgrounds. Their friendly conversation lasting all the way back to Nuhmala's stone hut, where they settled the vases down. Despite knowing each other for such a short amount of time, Nuhmala felt a sort of kinship with the Twi'lek pilot.
"Thank you for time talking with me, friend Hera." Nuhmala said with a respectable bow, "You help put mind at ease."
"Don't mention it. That's what friends are for." Hera replied, "And don't worry. Balto and Zeb will get your husband and son back in no time."
Nuhmala agreed with those words before pulling her new friend in for a gracious hug. The soft – warm nature of this prompted Hera to also join in with it. Through Nuhmala, Hera was now really seeing what Balto saw with this world.
Within the Eye of Mother, Zeb found himself in quite the pickle. Here he was on a freezing cold planet filled with primitive natives who saw him as some sort of savior, deep in the middle of nowhere inside of an active volcano. To top it all off, he was stuck with a Jedi who had passed-out by accidentally inhaling some volcanic fumes, and someone was approaching from the only exit. However, Zeb pulled out his bo-rifle aiming it at the exit. Whatever or whoever were to pass through that threshold, Zeb was geared up for a fight. After all, an entire tribe was counting on him as well as Balto's friend who Zeb had promised to return with her family in tow. He didn't come this far to just back out now.
To Zeb's surprise, the figure who came through the exit was another Nelvaanian. This one being male who possessed a well-built physique and similar markings that Zeb and Balto had. This male also bore braids in his hair tied together with some exotic feathers that Zeb hadn't seen with any other Nelvaanian before. He also stared Zeb down with aggressive intent, holding a spear up pointing at the Lasat's head. Also wrapped over the Nelvaanian's shoulder was a bow along with a quiver full of arrows strapped to his back. On his back was what Zeb could best discern as a tribal fashioned war club. Made with old fashion hardwood, the base was wide and carved, smoothed and almost flat and narrow down to the hilt. On one side of the club was lined with a row of large sharp teeth, from a large predator of some sort, from largest up high on the edge going smaller further down, and on the other side was laced with smooth crafted iron. This Nelvaanian was a true warrior.
Zeb was willing to put his weapon down, but the slightest movement caused the Nelvaanian to jab his spear at the Lasat's head. The warrior Nelvaanian snarled as he began to speak in his language that Zeb assumed to be threats with how much venom ran off his tongue. Zeb really wished that Balto was not unconscious right now so that the Anthro could explain what they were doing here.
Speaking of which, the very second that the warrior laid eyes on Balto, his expression turned from that of intensity to worriedness. Again, he jabbed his spear at Zeb's face to force the Lasat back to make it easier to get to Balto. Zeb watched as the Nelvaanian checked over Balto, feeling lucky that they seem to know each other. That luck ran out when the Nelvaanian looked back at Zeb with fire in his eyes and stood up to once again assume the attack position. Zeb didn't want to, by any means, harm one of the locals but would be more than willing to defend himself. Thus, he set his bo-rifle to the stun setting if it were to come to that.
"Mi a te dolgod itt, kívülálló!?" the warrior said in anger, "Miért utazol az Anya szemén keresztül, és mit csinálsz itt a testvéremmel?"
"I don't know what you're saying." Zeb replied, becoming visibly distressed by the whole thing.
"Beszél! Hallom a nyelved." The warrior continued on.
"I said I don't understand you."
"Beszél! Csak beszélj!" seeing that he was getting nowhere, the warrior tried a different approach, "Balto," he pointed to Balto, "Te," he pointed at Zeb, "Miért itt?" he then pointed at the ground.
From there, Zeb pieced together what this Nelvaanian was trying to say. He wanted to know what Balto and Zeb were doing here. Zeb thought long and hard about how to respond. It wasn't like he learned any language in the one day he spent on this planet. There had to be some word that easily conveys why they were here.
Then it just clicked with him, "Villámlándzsa!" Zeb held up his bo-rifle before converting it into the electro-staff.
The warrior looks on in awe of this what his people believed to be a sacred weapon and its bearer, "Bocsáss meg a durvaságomat, Villámlándzsa." he soon got on his knees and bowed in respect, "Nyilam, és az életem a tiéd."
"Un… thanks?" Zeb at least hoped it was a compliment, "But I prefer Zeb."
The warrior looked up in confusion. Zeb mentally slapped himself for forgetting that this guy probably doesn't understand Basic. He had to employ the same tactic this Nelvaanian used earlier.
"My name," Zeb said, pointing to himself, "Zeb."
"Zeb?" the Nelvaanian pointed to Zeb to see if he understood right. After Zeb confirmed that, the Nelvaanian pounded his chest to state, "Turraka."
Turraka? That was the name of Balto's friend, who was said to have disappeared to help the tribe Zeb was heading to. Looked like finding him was by far the easiest part of this quest. Zeb was at least proud of himself that he could communicate to Turraka enough to put them on first name bases with each other. However, as Zeb looked to the unconscious Balto, the Lasat could feel that things were to become much more difficult until the Jedi woke up.
"Any idea what to do with him?" Zeb directed Turraka's attention towards Balto, but the Nelvaanian looked at Zeb in confusion, "Balto?" he used hand gestures to convey the message.
Turraka pointed to Balto, "Fiútestvér? Te is a barátja vagy?"
"Yes, we're…" Zeb stopped to think of a word easy for the Nelvaanian to understand, but then one word did come to mind. Something he heard Balto and Turraka, just now, said, "Fiútestvér."
"Zeb és Balto, fiútestvér?" Turraka pointed between Zeb and Balto, "Zeb és Turraka, fiútestvér." He pounded his chest when he said that.
"Yes, fiútestvér. We're all fiútestvér." Zeb replied, hoping that the word meant something good.
Turraka went back and kneeled next to Balto. He pried one of the wolfdog's eyes open and saw how they were fully dilated and moving rapidly.
"Az Anya látomást adott neki," Turraka said before pulling Balto's left arm over his shoulder, "Gyere, szükségünk lesz Balto-ra, amikor felébred." he gestured for Zeb to help him.
Zeb recognized what Turraka was asking of him and was willing to oblige. He came over to pull Balto's right arm over his shoulder. The duo was soon carrying Balto's limp body out of the cave and out into the snow-filled terrain. After reaching some feet away from the cave, Zeb and Turraka sat Balto against a tree. The Anthro wolfdog was still out like a light, and there was still no sign of him recovering.
"Is there nothing else we can do for him?" Zeb asked.
"Balto soha nem ébred fel, ha nem fejezi be a látomást." Turraka answered, though Zeb still didn't understand a lick of it.
"Well, ain't that just my luck," Zeb walked off before slumping against a rock. Zeb even made sure that the rock wasn't another beast. He had become so down in the dumps that Zeb no longer cared of the cold environment around him, "I haven't told anyone this, but back on my home of Lasan, I used to the Captain of the Honor Guard. I was charged to protect the royal family from harm, or at least I used to until the Empire arrived. They wiped out my entire people; my friends, family, everyone. I was knocked out before I could even fight back, powerless to do anything about it! I thought joining the rebellion would allow me to make a difference, but I still find ways to screw up. Like when I allowed Ezra to be taken by Imperial one time. Now I can't even safeguard a full-grown Jedi Knight. Your people called me Htülye segg, and I guess I can't blame them. Even when they are counting on me, I still feel like I've failed." Zeb pounded his head in frustration, "I don't know why I'm telling you this. You probably don't even understand what I'm going on about. Guess I just need to get it off my chest."
Not long after his rambling, Zeb felt a hand on his shoulder. Looking up, he saw that it was, of course, Turraka who continued to pat his shoulder. The Nelvaanian then said some things that sounded like words of encouragement even though Zeb couldn't understand. After which, Turraka pulled a satchel secured to the belt of his pants, and from which took out a piece of bantha jerky which he presented to Zeb. Zeb accepted the offering and took a bit of the dehydrated meat. With all the stress, the Lasat didn't realize how hungry he was, and it did help lift his spirits a bit.
"Thanks." He said.
"Gyere, fiútestvér," Turraka pulled on Zeb's forearm, pointing to a hill ten yards away, "Meg kell mutatnom valamit."
So, Zeb got back up on his feet and followed Turraka's lead. All the while, they left Balto still lying against the tree, not the least bit disturbed by what was going on around him. However, within his mind, Balto was facing a different sort of challenge. A test of his own making. A test of his own soul.
Balto was stunned beyond belief. He was supposed to be on Nelvaan helping out Zeb with a crisis that had befallen its people. Instead, the Anthro wolfdog found himself surrounded by a sight he once believed would never be seen again. He was on Coruscant or, to be more precise, the Jedi Temple where he once called home. An impossibility to be sure, as the temple had been desecrated and taken over by the Emperor after the Jedi purge. For any Jedi to make it back into these walls now would mean certain death.
That also left the question of how Balto had even managed to get back here. Last he knew, the Anthro was light-years away from here. He tried to think but found that his memories of his last moments in Nelvaan were nothing more than a haze. Why could he not remember how he got here? It was as if some force was blanking it out of his mind. Was this all just a hallucination, or was he dead? Balto couldn't wrap his head around it.
"Balto?!"
The wolfdog has snapped out his thought his thoughts from the stern voice of Jedi Master Mace Windu. Yet another abnormality revolving around his situation. Master Windu was proclaimed dead mere moments before the purge began. But there was no mistaking that hardened brow of the dark skin human whose eyes felt like they were ready to judge you over the smallest mistake. Among him were other long-dead Jedi Masters that made up the Jedi Council; each sat around the room in their custom seats. As if he didn't have enough to add to this insanity.
"Nice to finally get your attention," said Mace, who hunched forward in his chair, "It's unlike you to lose focus during your briefings."
"Briefing?" Balto said in confusion.
"Of your mission on Batonn," Windu answered as he held up a holopad that showed to have been written by Balto, "Impressive feats you pulled out there. You and your battalion should feel commemorated for the lives you saved on the front lines."
"Yes, your actions out there saved my men and me," spoke the synthesized masked voice of the Kel Dor Jedi Master, Plo Koon, "Your valor throughout this war proves that we were right to make you a Knight."
"Thank you?" Balto's said but was still no less confused.
For you see, Balto remembered this day well. His battle on Batonn happened years ago, late into the Clone Wars, in fact. By then, the war had been waning on the Republic, the Jedi, and himself included. By this point, Balto had already lost so many that he deemed friends and brothers and arms. He had also begun having a romantic relationship with a female husky named Jenna, who he secretly married less he be excommunicated from the Jedi Order. Said relationship was also suffering its own sense of strain with the war forcing him away from Jenna on life and death missions for who knows how long.
Well, now Balto knew where and when he was, but that still left one question, why? Why here of all places? What was so significant about being here?
"Now, with that business taken care of, I'm sorry to say that you're already being called back on the front. You'll need to be ready to head to Dar'Or as soon after you've had time to rest," Windu said, placing the holopad away, "I understand your former master, Nava, is also there."
"Yeah... I know that."
Balto knew that what Mace Windu said was meant to comfort him. Originally, Balto had planned to take some shore leave to spend some quality time with Jenna before heading back out into battle. It broke his heart when he called to inform her of this last-minute cancelation and see her disappointed face when she claimed she understood.
"Very well," Windu didn't seem to catch the confusion within Balto's voice, "Now, if you excuse us, the Council still has much more to discuss."
The doors that Balto enter through suddenly opened to usher him out. Now, back then, Balto walked out those doors and prepared for the mission he would have the next day, but not this time. No, the reason Balto was reliving these events had to lie within this room. He could feel it.
"Discuss... what?" Balto had to compose himself if he were to not draw suspicion upon himself, "If I may ask."
"I'm afraid I cannot disclose that," Windu stated with assertiveness and a stern stare that silenced most young Jedi, "Council business after all."
"Now, Master Windu," Ki-Adi-Mundi spoke up from his seat. But, from what Balto remembered, it was supposed to be a holo-image of himself because he was off-world. Not like here where he was in the flesh, "It is no secret that Master Nava plans to step down from the Council and give his seat to Balto. Why not make an exception, and let the young lad stay? It could offer a great learning experience."
Though reluctant, Mace Windu allowed Balto to stay for the rest of the duration of this meeting. The Jedi Master offered Nava's seat for Balto to sit in as they continued. For a while, nothing of any real note happened. The Council would deliberate on war strategies, training regiments for the youngling, and the names of young Jedi who were to be knighted. Balto was particularly proud when he heard that one of his oldest friends, Shodehle, had passed her trials and was waiting for her ceremony. If only he knew about it, Balto thought, seeing as he would never see the temple again after he left for Dar'Or. For a moment, Balto thought that perhaps he made a mistake. There didn't seem to be any significance in this meeting.
Meanwhile, Mace Windu shifted through his datapad as they wrapped up another point in their meeting, "For our next item of business, the next batch of clones is ready for deployment. As such, the Kaminoans are looking to our approval for the creation of the next." again, sounded like another routine discussion for all Balto knew, "I also have to remind you all that Senator Amidala is urging us to do a deeper investigation into bio-chips implanted within each clone."
"The Senator's heart is in the right place," Master Mundi stated, "But, in these times of crisis, we can't honestly waste time with fruitless investigations."
"Agreed." said the Nautolan Jedi Master, Kit Fisto, "With the front becoming more perilous, we need all the clones we can get. These inspections would only delay the war efforts."
"But why?" the Council ceased their deliberation to face Balto, who just realized he had spoken out of term. The silent stares from all the master forced Balto to speak his piece, "We already have more than enough troops to hold up the frontlines. Why delay a crucial investigation? If we could avoid another incident, like with Master Tiplar, certainly it'll be worth it."
"The death of Master Tiplar at the hands of clone trooper CT-5385 was a tragic loss," Master Windu said with a heavy heart, "But the Kaminoans have assured us that it was the rare result of a degrading bio-chip. Something that, until now, has never happened, and the odds of happing again are next to none. I would also like to remind you, Balto, that even though we are allowing you to observe in this meeting, you are currently in no position to speak on matters concerning the Council."
"Yes, but..."
"Balto," Master Luminara spoke up to stop him from continuing, "This isn't the first time we've been asked to investigate the clones' bio-chips, and we already came to a mutual agreement shortly after the incident that this was what's best for the Clone Wars."
Balto was dumbfounded as he sat back into his seat. His mind racing over what Luminara told him. They've had this discussion before? Worse, they've already made up their minds whenever the subject was brought up in advance. A part of Balto didn't want to believe when his master told him, in his dying breath, that the Council's hubris prevented them from acting on the issue regarding the chips. But to actually witness the Council's negligence involving the clones first hand was a real eye-opener. It was of little wonder how easily their order fell so quickly.
"Now, after that outburst, does anyone wishes to speak out on this matter?" Windu asked, but the silence around the Council chamber was enough of an answer for him, "Very well. On the matter of denying the investigation on the clone bio-chip, how do we plea?"
"Aye!" said Mundi.
"Aye!" said Luminara.
"Aye!" said Plo Koon.
"Aye!" said Kit Fisto.
"Aye!"
"Aye!"
"NO!"
The room fell silent yet again. Mace Windu's expression turned into that of utter disappointment in a manner that one never thought possible for the stern-faced Jedi. All because a certain Anthro wolfdog decided to speak up.
"Balto, I thought I've warned you about speaking out of term." said Mace in a threatening tone.
"But you can't just blindly make decisions like this. Not when so many lives are at stake!" Balto shot back, "The fact that one of these bio-chips drove a clone to murder a Jedi should be cause for concern."
"What would you have us do? Remove the chips?" Windu asks rhetorically, "The last clone to try that went crazy, attempted to murder the Supreme Chancellor, and held Anakin Skywalker and his clone captain hostage."
"For all we know, there could be another side to all of this than we realize," Balto answered, "Since Count Dooku was involved with the clone's creation proves that the Dark Side has been manipulating us. For all we know, the Kaminoans could be in on it."
There the silence lasted no longer. The room was suddenly filled with murmurs and hush whispers. With Balto's acute hearing, he could easily make out what they were saying. They were all questioning how he could know about Count Dooku's involvement? Such information was not meant to leave this chamber. Even Mace Windu, Balto could see, had a face of shock and bemusement. A rarity for Jedi Master as far as Balto was aware.
"I don't know how you came across that information," Windu's voice turned cold and threatening, "But it would be best if you just forget you learned it."
"So it is true, and you all knew about this." Balto felt himself heating up inside.
Windu, again, attempted to explain the situation, "Balto, you must understand that every decision we make here is for the better of…"
"You KNEW!" Balto blew up, "You all knew, and yet did nothing! Did you not think that there was a reason he had the clones created? Could you not see how the Dark Side has been manipulating us before this war even began? Or were you too scared and desperate that you just didn't want to see what was happening under your damn nose?!"
Mace Windu was surprised to see Balto, of all people, take such an aggressive stance on this matter. However, the wolfdog was again speaking out of term, and worse was insulting the Council's faculties so openly. Though Mace knew not where Balto's newfound rebelliousness came from, this was neither the time nor place for it. He needed Balto to know that any more of this would lead to consequences through discipline.
"If I were you, Balto, I'd be silent before you say something you'd regret." He said so cold and sternly that it would make any lesser Jedi back down.
"I've been living half of my life in regret! Why would you be any different?!" Balto yelled back at the Jedi Master. The other Masters were left in shock and awe of how he was more than willing to stand up against someone as Mace Windu, "One of them being how I never spoke out about all the mistakes you've made since this war began. Such as your leniency with the Rites of Knighthood."
"This war has been claiming many Jedi lives. We needed a new means to mitigate that." Mace Windu answered, "If it wasn't for such, your Knighthood would've happened years later."
"And I'm grateful for what you've done for me," Balto clarified, "But that doesn't change the fact of how detrimental the decision was. Do you have any idea the percentage of the death of those newly knighted Jedi? I do. I looked into it. Hell, I experienced it firsthand with Nahdar! You say it was to mitigate Jedi losses but, if anything, it's only speeding up the process. And now, here you are, expecting me to sit back as you all shrug off responsibility. I wanted to speak out for so long. I had so many opportunities to do so, but I was afraid. Not only of the backlash of my accusations but that I would be right about the state of the Council."
"The decisions we make here are for the best of Jedi Order and the Republic."
"And that's how you do it!" Balto retorted against Mace Windu, "But no matter how much you try to rationalize it, that won't erase the truth."
"SIT DOWN!"
"I will not sit by as you all lead us to our doom!" Balto exclaimed, "All this time, I've been afraid to speak, but I see now that you were all afraid as well. Afraid to admit the truth. That despite that this path would lead us to the grave, you just couldn't admit that… that you were wrong." The room fell silent by those words. The tension grew thick, but Balto felt as if a weight had been lifted from him. With more confidence than he ever had amongst the people in this room, he repeated, "ALL OF YOU WERE WRONG!"
Silence once again fell upon the chamber. However, it was an eerie kind of silence. Within a blink of Balto's eyes, the Jedi Council were no longer with him in the chamber. In fact, the chamber itself had also long since faded from existence, leaving our wolfdog stranded in a black vacant void. Balto let out a huff of confusion about how he was going to get out of this one.
"Hmm, what pain." A voice said through the void, "So much pain I sense within you, my old apprentice."
Balto's ears shot up as he recognized the voice, "Master Yoda!? I thought you were dead."
A soft snicker could be heard around the void. There was no mistaking it. Balto had heard that laugh through a good chunk of his young life growing up at the temple. This was indeed, Yoda.
"No, not dead, my friend." Yoda's disembodied voice corrected, "Very much alive, I am. It is good to see you again, Balto. Much have you grown."
"It's good to hear your voice again, Master." said Balto, "But how am I able to communicate with you? What is this place?"
"You do not know?" Yoda asked with another one of his signature laughs, which made Balto think he missed out on a joke, "From within your mind is where you are. Your mind left open for the Force to show a vision to test your resolve. A test of your spirit you have been granted."
"My final test?"
"Yes," Yoda answered. "It takes a strong will to stand up for others and stand up for yourself, even against those you respect to be superior to you. You were right about what happened. Blinded, we were by the Dark Side to see the mistakes being made. Much sorrow would not occur if we just stopped and looked at the signs. Forgive me, old friend, for causing you so much pain."
"It's alright, Master. I could never be angry with you."
"And yet, I can still feel conflict within you." Yoda hummed, "Something happened those many years ago, I wonder. Hmm? You were married during the Clone Wars, am I right?"
Surprisingly, Balto was not at all shock that Yoda had guess such a thing. After all, his own master, Nava, was able to figure out as well despite the wolfdog being so careful to keep it under wraps, "Yes, I had a secret marriage while the war was still raging."
"Very open you are of this truth," Yoda hummed, "There is no shame in your decision."
"I would never be ashamed of what I did," Balto clarified, "I only kept it a secret from the Council because I knew I would be kicked out of the Order if any of you knew. I know that we're taught against such thing, that we are to detach ourselves from forming attachments lest they were to eventually lead us astray, and our inability to let go we lead us to the Dark Side. But I can't help it, I love Jenna, and I have no regrets. I've treasured every moment I spent with her, and not once have I felt the urge to act on any negative emotions. Every time I'm in a battle, I always lead by example in a way that would make her of the Anthro she married. Being with Jenna makes me a better Jedi."
"Very passionate you are for your love," Yoda said in a manner that was neither admiration nor disappointment, "But I feel that darkness has formed over you both."
Balto's ears drooped down as he knew what Yoda was talking about, "Twelve years ago we... we lost something," merely attempting to recollect the event that day brought shame across his face, "Something important. It's the reason I'm out here, so far away from home, helping the rebellion. I need their help so that maybe I can get her back."
Yoda's hum could be heard throughout the void, "Careful you must be Balto. The Dark Side clouds this path. Stray from your goal even a little, and it will claim you."
"I will never be overcome, Mater. No matter how bleak this path may be, I still trust in the Force."
"And I trust in your resolve," Yoda exclaimed, "You are, however, needed elsewhere. Goodbye, my old apprentice, and may the Force be with you."
In an instant, Balto awoke from his vision to see that he was no longer inside the caves but outside in the snowy forest. Naturally, the confusion wrapped itself around the Jedi's head. Though, he just rationalizes that Zeb must have dragged him out. Speaking of which, where did that Lasat get to? Would have expected him to be watching over Balto as he slept. Perhaps something had happened, and Zeb was in trouble. If that were the case, then Balto had to go and help. Or, Balto would if his head weren't still spinning from the volcanic fumes he had inhaled.
"Look who's finally joined us in the land of the living."
Balto turned to see Zeb coming out of the forest towards him. The Anthro wolfdog was going to get up to greet him. But Balto's head became dizzy the second he stood up.
"Whoa!" Zeb rushed over to catch Balto before he fell, "Careful there, Balto." Zeb eased the Jedi to lay back against the log, "I know you're a Jedi, but I'm not sure even you can recover that fast. You were out for a while."
"How long?"
Zeb's face became stern and serious, "Three days."
"What!"
Zeb then had himself a huge belly laugh, "No. I'm just messing with you. It's only been a few hours."
"You're really funny, Zeb." Balto said sarcastically, "I know a cantina on Takodana who would love to have a comedian like you."
"Oh, come on. It was just a bit of fun." Zeb tried to reassure his gloomy friend, "By the way, there's someone I'm sure you'd like to meet."
Balto was curious about what he meant. That was until a familiar Nelvaanian warrior stepped out of the forest following Zeb.
"Turraka!" shouted Balto.
"Fiútestvér!"
Despite his light-headedness, Balto jumped up and met his Nelvaanian friend with a good old fashion bear hug. Turraka was also eager to give Balto one right back. The two in this time shared hugs and laughter with one another. Balto was so relieved to see that his friend was okay after hearing that he went missing. He only imagined the look on Nuhmala's face when she sees Turraka again.
"Balto, felébredtél. Most pazarolnunk kell a betolakodókat, amelyek fenyegetik népünket!" Turraka said with must enthusiasm.
"Időben, Turraka. Időben." Balto answered with a pat on Turraka's shoulder.
"Yeah, a happy reunion for everyone." Zeb said as he was feeling a bit left out, "But, there's actually something else we need to show you. That is if you're good enough to walk."
Balto nodded and as he told them to lead the way. In truth, Balto could've needed more time to clear his head, but in his mind, that would waste time. Whatever was happening on here was severe, and there was no telling how far it would go. For all any of them knew, this would also spread over to the Rokrul tribe, to Nuhmala and her children. There was no way that Balto would allow her to be in harm's way. He had sworn long ago that the Nelvaanian people will forever be safe just to protect this one person he called his sister.
After walking several minutes, and with the help of Turraka to lean on, they had reached their destination. From over a cliff, the three were able to overlook the valley below them. They could view the village they came to help and see what was threatening them. The three travelers ducked behind the ledge as to not be spotted by those below.
"Your friend showed me this a while ago," Zeb explained while handing over a pair of electrobinoculars, "Thought you should know what we're dealing with."
Balto took the binoculars and scopes the area. What he saw unsettled him greatly. The village they had come to save was no more. It was demolished into nothing, and in its place was a labor camp. Mile high walls encompassed the burnt remains of where the village once was. The land, which should be filled with the laughter of small children, now was dug up with smoke barreling from underneath. He soon spotted a bulky Aurore-class freighter that was landed just outside the camp. A recognizable piece on the freighter, aside from its golden markings, was a yellow emblem with a black four-pointed crest in the middle.
"The Mining Guild." Balto said with much dread in his voice, "What are they doing here? They shouldn't have been able to find this planet."
"That's not even the worse part." Zeb pointed to where he wants Balto's attention to be.
True to his word, what Balto saw next almost made his blood boiling. Down below, he could see the Nelvaanian villagers had been completely enslaved by the guild. Throughout, they were all moving around the camp, towing around heavy mining equipment or ores and minerals that were processed by said equipment. These people were being worked to death. Their bodies were horribly malnourished that their muscles had all but faded from their form, and they struggled with moving the mining equipment. Any Nelvaanian unlucky enough to fall over from exhaustion, were met with the lashing of whips from their laborers to get back up. Any foolish to try and help, or fought back from the punishment, were quickly dragged away to the freighter for reprocessing. It was clear that the villagers had learned they must work through the suffering less they suffer the consequences from their new masters. It broke Balto's heart to see these people broken in both body and spirit.
"The only thing I wasn't able to find was the children," Zeb said with a heavy heart, "Hate to know what they're going through."
"They're probably in the ship," Balto guessed, "Once the guild is done excavating, they'll leave and sell the children off-world."
Turraka slam his fist in the snow, "A fiammal mentünk, hogy kiszabadítsuk a törzset, de a fém szörnyeik megleptek minket, és elvitték Farkas!" he roared, "Nem engedem, hogy a fiamat kisállatként kezeljék!"
"What's wrong with him?" asked Zeb.
"Vedd lazán. Megmentjük a fiát." Balto gave Turraka a reassuring pat on the shoulder, "Turraka attempted to free the tribe before we arrived. He got away, but his son, Farkas, was taken their security droids."
Zeb observed that numerous, over two dozen, IG-RM droids surveying the perimeter. Getting in and out of the labor camp with all of those Nelvaanians was going to prove tricky but not impossible. Zeb had been through stickier situations than this both before and after joining the Ghost. The Lasat knew how to set his plan in motion as he stood up about to walk off.
"Zeb, where are you going?" Balto asked.
"I'm going to go ask one of those guild members for help."
And so he walked off to where Balto and Turraka didn't know. They just hoped that Zeb wouldn't get himself into too much trouble.
"Te barátod, Zeb, imád bolondozni." Turraka told Balto who seemed to agree, "De mégis, úgy látom, megvan a nagy harcos jegyei."
"Yes, he does," Balto answered. "He's a good man."
"El kellene mondania neki annyit," that was when Turraka's words caught Balto's attention, "Elmondta, miért hívja őt a törzs, Htülye segg. és újabb nehézségek a múltjából. Nagyon sajnálja, és szüksége van valakire mellette. Nagy harcos, mivel emlékeztetni kell erejére és arra, hogy ez milyen fontos a törzse számára."
Balto took in what Turraka and couldn't help but agree, "Don't worry, I'll let him know."
Before Balto and Turraka knew it, a hard smack to the ground was heard behind them. Behind they saw that not only Zeb had gotten back, but that he didn't come back empty-handed. On the ground was a skinny human man whose face was deformed to the point it looked like that of a pig. His face would make it appear almost sickly looking. Not helped any with the large bald spot leaving his messy black hair only on the side of his head. However, what was important about his person was the blue jumpsuit with gold lining around the chest, arms, and legs and the guild logo on his shoulder.
"Found this one taking a leak not far from the ship." Zeb said, standing over the guy.
The pig face human was ready to take up his blaster until it flew out of its holster and into Balto's paw-like hand, "That would be unwise. We have questions for you."
"I have nothing to say to some savages like you!" the man spat.
"We're not going to hurt you," Balto attempted to calm him, "We just want answers about the operation that's going on here."
"Don't waste your breath. I'm not giving up the guild." The man proceeded to spit in Balto's face.
"Miért mutat békét ennek a mocsoknak?" Turraka said with increasing anger as he brandished his war club at the man, "Add oda nekem. Gondoskodom róla, hogy beszéljen!"
Balto pulled Turraka aside before he could do something he'd regret. From there, the Anthro spoke calmly to his friend about how they couldn't risk harming this man too much or else his information would prove to be faulty. That they will save his son and their sister tribe so long Turraka trusted him. Though clearly irritated, Turraka agreed with his friend, but he needed time alone to vent his frustration. Knowing that this Nelvaanian wasn't going to do anything foolish, Balto headed back to Zeb and the guild member.
"Sorry you had to see that," Balto said to the man, "Your guild took my friend's son. If you help us, we'll be sure no harm will come to you. You can find that we can be quite civilized."
No sooner did Balto say that, Turraka could be heard ranting to himself. He would vent his anger out on the broken stump of a tree. The teeth along his war club shredded what remained of the poor stump.
"I don't know if we can hold our friend back much longer," said Zeb, "Probably should start telling us something."
"Kolm." The man said in terror, "My name is Kolm."
"Kolm?" Balto repeated, "Listen, Kolm, all we want is for this tribe to be free and for the Mining Guild to leave. Now, how do you suppose we do that?"
"You can't just go in there and start freeing those people," Kolm explained, "The captain has a master control for all the droids. If too much of a commotion were to happen, the captain will switch them to annihilate the entire village. He already demonstrated it on those who initially fought back."
"Where is the captain right now?" Zeb asked.
Kolm shakily pointed at the freighter, "He should be in there, in the cockpit, probably planning on who to sell the minerals and slaves to."
"Okay, okay..." Balto thought of a plan while pacing back and forth, "We'll have to split up and work simultaneously. Zeb, you sneak into the camp and start quietly free the Nelvaanians."
"Wait, me?!" Zeb exclaimed, "How do you expect me to walk in there, undetected?"
"I think I saw that one of the slavers was a Trandoshan about your size. Just steal his uniform, and I'm sure you'll be fine." Balto answered, "When you start freeing the camp, they probably won't trust because of the uniform. However, just say the Nelvaanian word for friend, barátom, and you'll be fine."
"You sure that'll work?"
The fact that you're trying to connect to them on a personal level should be more than enough. It'll probably be the first sign of kindness they've received since the Mining Guild arrived." Balto assured him before he laid out the rest of his plan, "While you're doing that, Turraka and I will infiltrate the freighter to save the children and get the master control." Balto turned to address the still raving Nelvaanian, "Turraka, te és én megmentjük a fiát és a gyerekeket!"
Turraka stopped what he was doing, throwing his fist in the air, "Igen! Végül!"
"Zeb, you get started with freeing the camp. Turraka, találkozzon az erdőben a hajó mellett." both companions nodded before heading off. Balto, on the other hand, wasn't done with Kolm, "I have one more question for you. How did you guys find this planet?"
"We were just looking for another planet to excavate, and our computers said this planet wasn't claimed yet, so the guild bought the mining rights."
"That's not possible."
"Why?"
"Because the first time I came here during the Clone Wars, I saved the planet from Separatist setting up a science facility. I promised the head scientist a light sentence if he would develop a computer virus that would wipe out all information of Nelvaan from the galaxy-wide database. Now, you lot came here and invaded the place I consider a second home." Balto whipped out his lightsaber, activating it while pointing it next to Kolm's legs giving the miner a terrible fright, "I'll ask you again, and this time, no more lies. How did you find this planet?"
"We were just drifting through the system mindlessly," Kolm's voice stuttered as he explained his story, "Then we stumbled onto this planet that appeared nowhere in the navicomputer. Our captain believed that since the planet wasn't in the database, we could harvest the planet's recourses and take all the profits for ourselves without the guild knowing. After we were done taking what we can, we'd sell the planet to the highest bidder to scavenge what was left."
Balto could sense no lies coming from the man, thus was satisfied with the answer, "Go on. You're free to go."
Kolm wasted no time to make a run for it into the woods without another word.
Without any more delays, Balto made his way towards the forest. He trailed along the edge until he was paralleled with the freighter. There, Balto met up with Turraka as he told the Nelvaanian what to do. Together again, the canine-like aliens looked to each other's eyes, speaking without a single word needing to be uttered, they were ready to infiltrate the ship.
Zeb was working his damnedest on getting into the camp completely undetected. Not an easy task with all the security droids surveying the perimeter. It took all the patients the Lasat processed to wait until he found an opening to slip through. With one difficult goal achieved, Zeb must now find the Trandoshan that Balto mentioned. Once spotting said Trandoshan, Zeb followed him through the shadows. Before long, they reached an isolated location where Zeb took advantage by knocking the Trandoshan out and steal his uniform.
With his disguise, Zeb made his way through the camp in disgust. Seeing this tribe of Nelvaanian conditions up close was enough to almost send Zeb into a rage. To see their deplorable health, the scars and fresh wounds from the lashes leaving their lavish blue form to blacken and red, and lastly, the dull lifelessness in their eyes. There were no shackles on the Nelvaanians' arm, for there was no need for them as they've accepted their fate under the guild. Where ever Zeb looked, the Nelvaanians would avoid meeting his gaze in fear of facing punishment by him.
Zeb was even more determined to save these broken people before the damage done to them would become irreparable. Looking for a place the was away from prying eyes, he pulled one of the Nelvaanians away into a dark corner of the camp. The Nelvaanian he pulled, a male, was in shock of being pulled away by what he perceived to be a guild member that he immediately went to his knees begging in his language to be spared from any sort of punishment.
Zeb, worried about attention going to be drawn to him, tried to calm the Nelvaanian down, "Barátom, barátom."
Hearing Zeb speaking in his language caused the Nelvaanian to stop groveling and look up in confusion. The Lasat went further by lifting his sleeves to show off the tribal bruises. Seeing these were enough to brighten the Nelvaanian's hope to see a friend of his people had snuck into the camp undetected.
"Don't worry, I'm getting you all out of here."
Outside the ship, two guild members were standing by the land bay, keeping guard. It had been such a dull time on this planet. After they broke this primitive tribe of natives into doing their dirty work for them, there has been nothing else to really do on this cold – snowy planet. The only thing keeping them compliant was that their captain promised that their crew would get exclusive profits of the goods before revealing the planet to the rest of the guild. Until then, they just stood there lazily waiting to leave. Their laziness would ultimately be their downfall. One of them was pulled away by an unseen force into the forest behind them. Being surprised by what just transpired, the remaining guard hesitated to radio what happened, which left him wide open for an arrow to be shot into his neck. The guard was dead before he hit the floor.
Balto and Turraka rushed to the downed guard from out of the forest to move him out of sight before any could stumble onto them. After which, they snuck on board the freighter. So far, the two didn't run into any other guards as they made it to the cargo hold. These guild members were probably not expecting that much resistance from such a primitive race. Once reaching the cargo hold, the sound of young cries and whimpers could be heard. Balto and Turraka knew they had found the children of the tribe. Moving further, they found those children all sealed inside of a gated container; all crouched in the farthest corner of the container crying in their arms. Those cries stopped when they saw that the one who entered were not their captures but a fellow Nelvaanian. Both Balto and Turraka worked to tell the children that they would rescue them.
However, there was one child that Turraka couldn't find, his son. He asked the other children if they've one matching his son's descriptions. They would point to a door on the opposite side of the room. Going inside, the two saw Turraka's teenage son, Farkas, strapped blindfolded onto a medical table. Balto guessed that the guild was getting ready to process Farkas to make him into an obedient slave. Thankfully, it didn't seem that the guild was in a rush to do so since there were no signs of injury on the young Nelvaanian's body. Still, Balto wanted to make sure by placing one hand on Farkas's head and using the Force to sense if anything was wrong.
"Don't worry, Turraka, he isn't hurt." Balto said happily.
Turraka was also happy to hear that while Balto undid the child's restraints. After Balto removed the straps and the medal fold over his eyes, Farkas slowly sat up on the table. It was clear he has been there for a while since Farkas was massaging his once bound wrist. His eyes needed time to adjust to the room's lighting; his vision was impaired for who knows how long.
"Fiú?"
Farkas's ears perked up at such a familiar voice, "Apa!" Farkas leaped to give his father a hug around his neck.
"I'm happy for you, my friend." Balto said.
In a surprise, Farkas faced the Anthro, " Balto bácsi!" he gave Balto the same hug he gave his father.
"It's good to see you again too, Farkas." before they could celebrate this reunion any further, Balto's comms went off. He quickly pulled it out of his pocket and answered, "Zeb, what's going on?"
"I don't know," Zed's voice came through the comm, "But someone's onto us. The droids are attacking!"
The sound of blaster fire could be heard from both the comms and outside the ship. The captain must have switched on the master control to destroy the tribe.
"Az én embereim!" Turraka shouted in distress.
"Turraka, go and back Zeb up!" Balto ordered, to which Turrake nodded and left. Balto, with Farkas following behind, went back to the other children and unlocked the container with the Force, "Farkas, take the children into the forest and hide there until this is all over."
Farkas did as he was told and took the children to safety. Balto, however, didn't follow. He had his own objective. If he were going to stop the camp's bloodshed, Balto had to take the master control. Only then could he end this madness.
Within the camp, Zeb was really in a pickle. Not only having to dodge blaster fire, but also trying to keep the Nelvaanians safe from the onslaught. Seeing the security droids focus their attack on the innocent natives, Zeb pulled out his bo-rifle and open fire on the droids. The good news was that he stole the droids' attention away from the Nelvaanians; the bad news was that they were now focused firing on him instead. He scurried behind some mining equipment for cover while still shooting at them. Any Nelvaniantoo close to the battle, Zeb would shoo them away so they wouldn't get hurt. Still, this Lasat wouldn't mind some Jedi help right now.
Then the sound of destroyed metal could be heard heading for him. Thinking his prayers have been answered, Zeb lifts his head, expecting Balto to come in with his lightsaber lashing through the droids. Instead, Zeb saw what he couldn't believe. Turraka, armed with his war club, fought off the droids while pushing his way towards Zeb. The Lasat had to admit this Nelvaanian had a lot of guts to charge through an army of droids. In time, Turraka made it behind the mining equipment next to Zeb.
"Well, I guess it's nice to have some backup," Zeb said as he continued shooting the approaching droids, "Where's Balto?" Turraka answered by pointed to the freighter, "Wish we had more men against these guys."
Turraka would agree as he scanned the area for any signs of help. All he saw were other Nelvaanians hiding from the droids' blaster fire. All of them looked lost and beaten. The women were crying in their palms, believing that this would be their end. These people were without hope, but Turraka had the remedy for that.
"Testvérek, nézzetek rám!" Turraka's call earned the attention of all the camp, "Ezek az ördögök túl sokáig bántottak és loptak el a földedről! De nem többet, erre a napra a Villámlándzsa harc mellettünk ezen a napon!" audible gasp could be heard throughout the campground. Turraka then began shaking Zeb's shoulder, "Fiútestvér, mutasd meg nekik! Mutasd meg nekik!"
Zeb watched as Turraka was making gestures with his hands. The Nelvaanian warrior placed his fist on top of each other, turned the opposite directions, and finally parted his fist. Zeb understood what he was trying to say, so the Lasat changed his bo-rifle into staff position before pumping it into the air shouting, "Villámlándzsa!" Zeb took a swing and toppled one security droid that got too close. He then stabbed into the droid's chest, sending a surge of electricity from his staff until it short-circuited. The Nelvaanians stared on in wonder after seeing a weapon told to them through legends in action.
Turraka saw their admiration forming, thus he moved out of cover and took a droid's head clean off with a swing of his war club, "Lásd itt! A remény nem hagyott el minket! Most kérlek, elesett testvéreink tiszteletére, harcolsz?! Harcolj Anyánkért, harcolj a gyerekeidért, harcolj a szabadságodért!"
Zeb and Turraka went on the offensive. Pushing through the droids, striking them down with great ferocity. The other Nelvaanians stood there and watched. Watch as these two warriors were fighting insurmountable odds. Fighting a losing battle for them.
"Let them be a lesson for any of you savages who try to be a hero," a male Aqualish with a translator strapped around his neck spoke, "What are you all looking at?" he cracked his whip near the Nelvaanians, "Get back to work!"
One Nelvaanian, the one that Zeb spoke to, took a bit of mining equipment in his hand. He looked it intensely before looking back at the battle. That mystery warrior had shown this Nelvaanian the first act of kindness since these invaders came to the village. Seeing him and a Nelvaanian from a different tribe fighting for his people to the bitter end was inspiring to witness. Inspiring that they found the spark of courage that he had once lost. Instead of following orders, the Nelvaanian threw the piece of equipment to the ground.
"That was a big mistake, you filthy little…" the Aqualish slaver pulled his whip up, ready to crack it at the defiant Nelvaanian, but something took hold of his wrist.
It was another one of Nelvaanian of the camp who grabbed the slave driver's wrist. He threw the Aqualish hand down before punching him across the face. More and more Nelvaanians became emboldened as the rest of the camp rose up to act against their slavers. Soon the camp fell into a full-on riot. Everywhere, the Nelvaanian people were attacking their former slavers, dog piling them. Some even took the rock that was mined and smash their heads with them. In the middle of it all were Zeb and Turraka leading the charge for this little rebellion.
Back on board the freighter, Balto was still racing through the ship's corridors. So far, there had been no further resistance coming from the inside of the ship, but that only meant that the Jedi couldn't waste any time finding the captain in charge of this operation. Though he did not doubt Zeb and Turraka's combat skills, even they couldn't defeat so many security droids at once. Only by getting that master control will the chaos be put to an end.
Nevertheless, Balto made it to the freighter's cockpit, and upon opening, saw but one lonely man inside. A man who had an AJ^6 cyborg construct implanted attached to the back of his head, a cyborg. However, despite the Mining Guild jumpsuit, something felt off about the situation. This man was small, thin, and was looked rather timid. He didn't seem like the kind of person to take charge of an operation like this.
"Stay back!"
The cyborg held a blaster against Balto. The blaster would not stop fidgeting in his hands. This man's implants were not designed for battle, nor has he ever been in a combat scenario. Balto, knowing this guy was no threat to him, powered down his lightsaber.
"Calm down. I just want the master control for the droids." said Balto.
"Master control?" the cyborg's voice was less shaky this time, "Only the captain has access to it."
Just as Balto suspected, this guy wasn't the captain, "Where is the captain?" he approached the cyborg, which caused him to point the blaster at the Jedi again, "All I want is to stop the bloodshed. Tell me where he is, and you have my word, you will not be harmed by the people of this planet."
The cyborg weigh his opinions, "He's not here. He wanted to use the facilities, but the planet froze the extraction port. So, he… he… he…" out of nowhere, the implant surged before overloading. With his brain fried, the cyborg fell dead on the ground.
Balto rushes to get a closer look. On close inspection, the implant didn't overload due to any malfunction. Instead, all signs showed that this was set off through detonation. Looking further, there was also an active audio device within the implant. Someone had been listening in on their conversation, and it didn't take much effort to figure out who.
"Zeb, we've been played!" he spoke into his comm, "That guy you captured, Kolm, he was the captain this whole time!"
"Karabast!"
"I know, I was a fool to let him go," Balto felt so embarrassed by such a mistake. He had only used the Force to sense if Kolm was lying about the guild's reason for being here, not if he was lying in general, "Zeb, yours and Turraka's position are closer to where we last saw him, and you were the one who found him the first time. Do you think you can do it again?"
There was a slight delay before Zeb answered, "I don't know… I mean, I didn't know he was the captain when I grabbed him. I didn't even bother asking him what his position on the ship was. It was an accident."
"Zeb, you can do this." Balto said firmly, "I know you have doubt about superstitions, but you were chosen to come here for a reason. Without you, I wouldn't have gotten out of that volcano, and Turraka and I couldn't have saved his son if it weren't for you. I know you're capable of doing this. I trust you."
"Okay, but what about all these droids?"
"I pick up that slack when you leave," Balto faced the tempered glass that lined the cockpit with his lightsaber in hand, "Don't worry, I'll take the scenic route."
Without a second wasted, Balto slashed through the glass with his saber and jumped through its shattered remains. He slid against the side of the ship until he reached the bottom, after which making a run for it to the camp. There, Balto saw that the place was turning into a warzone. The Nelvaanians had rallied against their oppressors, some even going so far as using the very mining equipment for battle. However, they were hardly a match for the IG-RM droids. Balto rushed in, hacking and slashing his way through the area, taking out droids that were getting too close to the camp's weaker members.
Reaching the middle of the battlefield, Balto was reunited with Turraka, who held his own against the droid forces. However, the Anthro Jedi could see how tiring it was for his friend to continuously wallop on them with his war club and spear, some of the droids barely showing any signs of damage. Balto rushed to his aid and fended off the ones who gave Turraka the most trouble.
"Fiútestvér, hova szaladt Zeb?" Turraka asked before taking a swing at another droid.
"Don't worry," Balto slashed at another droid, "Zeb has gone to end this."
Deep in the snow-clad forest, Kolm was running, running for his life. He had no idea how or why a Lasat and an Anthro were doing on this backwater world, but he didn't care. Those aliens were interrupting his operation. He stuck around long enough after their interrogation just so he could watch as he turned his droid on the camp. It didn't matter what happened to the natives. Once the onslaught was over, he'll go back for his freighter, find another settlement with these natives, and start his mining operation all over again.
A shame he had to terminate his cyborg navigator. Traitorous scum was going to give him up to that lonely Anthro. Of well. With the credits he'll make off this place, Kolm could easily afford another one. Just have to wait a little longer and would be home free.
That's what Kolm thought before a blaster bolt shot close by his feet. The Mining Guild captain was shocked by the sudden attack until Zeb walked out from behind the trees. Judging by the look on the Lasat's face said it all. He knew what Kolm was all about.
"I knew when I grabbed you, there was something about you I didn't like, Captain." Zeb said, aiming his bo-rifle dead center of Kolm's chest, "Just hand over the master control. No one else has to get hurt today."
In a panic, Kolm pulled out a small cylinder device in one hand and a blaster in the other. He pointed the blaster at the device, "Come any closer, and I destroy it!" Zeb's lowered his bo-rifle slightly in fear of provoking Kolm any further, "Yeah, you don't want those savages getting hurt, do ya?" looking into his eyes, Zeb could see that this guy was serious about his threat, and so lowered his bo-rifle, "What I don't get is why would you care for this lot. You know, if you join me, we can make a fortune off this planet? Not only that, but my resources can help you find your people. Think about it. We can have wealth, and you, and your people, can rebuild your culture with these natives at your beck and call."
A low growl emanated deep within the Lasat's throat. To think that this guild member would insult him in such a manner. There was no way that Zeb would ever endorse such an act. As much as Zeb would love to restore the glory that was Lasan, he would never allow that restoration to be built on the back of slaves. Clearly, this man knew nothing about the honor of the Lasats. Maybe that wasn't all he didn't know about them.
Thinking quick, Zeb kneeled down to make it look that he was going to drop his weapon. In a quick motion, Zeb twisted his bo-rifle's base before tossing it at Kolm's feet. On impact, the prongs of the bo-rifle shot forward and zapped Kolm's right foot. The sudden pain caused the man to shoot said leg up so rapidly that he dropped both his blaster and the master control.
Knowing he would only have a less than a second before Kolm would recover, Zeb leaped forward at bo-rifle, picked it up, and swung it at Kolm's head. The force of the blow sent the Kolm's head colliding with a tree he was standing next to, which resulted in him falling unconscious. With him out cold, Zeb took the master control in his hand and pressed the red button upon the top. He only hoped that he wasn't too late.
In the labor camp, Balto and Turraka were still mitts in combat. Them, along with a few other Nelvaanians, stood against the mounting waves of security droids. However, many of these Nelvaanians were still weak and exhausted from the work they've endured here. Even Turraka was showing signs of fatigue. But out of nowhere, the droids stopped dead in their tracks and powered down. The Nelvaanians were confused at what was going on.
Balto approaches one of the droids with a smile on his face, "It's alright. Zeb turned them all off, look." He gently pushed one, and everyone saw how the droid toppled to the ground with a loud thud.
Turraka did the same with another just to be sure, and was satisfied that he achieved the same results, "Győzelem! Megvan a győzelem!" Turraka pumped his war club in the air, "Villámlándzsa elnyerte a szabadságunkat!"
The camp was then drowned out with the sound of cheers. The air was filled with such excitement as the Nelvaanians celebrated their freedom. Some took part in pushing over more of the powered down droids to show they no longer feared them. Turraka would also then lead them all into chanting Zeb's name.
After using the master control, Zeb took the opportunity to immediately break the device so that it wouldn't be used against the people of this planet. With that out of the way, Zeb's attention turned the unconscious captain in the snow. Anger swelled into the Lasat as he realized he had the man's life in his hands. He changed the bo-rifle back to its blaster form and aimed at the at Kolm's head.
"I should just end you right here and now," however, Zeb ultimately laid down his weapon and holstered it on his back, "But Balto wouldn't want me to. You have a lot to answer for."
Zeb grabbed Kolm's by his front collar and made his way back to the camp. The journey was slower because he was essentially dragging the Kolm's unconscious body through the snow, but that made it all the more worth it. When reaching closer, Zeb saw smoke rising in the distance, right where the labor camp was. He quickened his pace, fearing the worse, but what Zeb saw gave him surprise and relief.
It wasn't the camp that was on fire, but the Mining Guild freighter instead. The camp itself was bustling will renew vigor. With Nelvaanians happily celebrating alongside their reunited children who they believed they'd never see again. Others were hard at work discarding all Mining Guild equipment that lay bare on the ground. One such equipment is the security droids that they lifted up and tossed into the ship's fire. Others tossed in logs to feed the flames until the freighter was engulfed. Watching over were Balto and Turraka, who both eagerly waited for Zeb to return. A return they heard through sounds of crackling snow underneath his feet.
"Knew you wouldn't let us down, Zeb." Balto patted the Lasat's should.
Zeb chuckled as he dropped Kolm, "To fair, you did give me the easier job."
Soon Kolm awoke, but he wished he didn't. He was met with an angry Turraka right in his face. The Nelvaanian grabbed the man by his collar lift him up in the air to say, "Fizetni fog azért, amit az embereimmel tett, barom!" he would then throw Kolm in the direction of the camp.
Turraka's outburst drew the attention of the other Nelvaanians, who slowly approached them. It wasn't long before they were completely surrounded, all of them looking at Kolm with vengeance and contempt. However, despite all of that, none of the Nelvaanians attacked or made any move against Kolm. They just stood there like they were waiting for something. Waiting on Zeb as their eyes were all on him
"What's going on?" Zeb asked.
"You are the one who won them the battle and their freedom," Balto exclaimed, "Because of that, they given you the right to Kolm's fate."
Zeb scoffed as if he didn't have enough on his plate from this day. Still, a part of him couldn't help feel a tinge of excitement for having this horrid excuse of a man's life in his hands. But, as much as he would like, Zeb couldn't bring himself to enact any punishment that he could think of. Couldn't bring Kolm back with them on the Ghost either; he would only add complications to the crew. Ultimately, Zeb figured everything Kolm had done was crimes strictly to the Nelvaanian people. Thus he had no right to potentially steal away their form of justice.
"Do whatever you want with him."
Balto didn't look entirely pleased but still gestured for Turraka to give the go-ahead.
"A tiéd!"
The reaction of Nelvaanians turned fierce. They were quick in swarming the Mining Guild captain like a pack of rabid dogs on a carcass, each trying to grab some part of him. For his part, Kolm did all he could to resist being grabbed by those that were his former slaves. He would pull away, shouting obscenities, even called them filthy, as if that was going to do anything. Eventually, enough of them found a grip around Kolm to lift him into the mob of Nelvaanians. They took this moment to carry Kolm away with him still screaming to be let go.
"We should get going," Balto said, "We accomplished what we set out to do. It's time we head back to the tribe."
"What's going to happen to him?" asked Zeb.
Balto thought for a second, "My guess is that they'll give him the trail of the dishonored."
"And that is?"
"Megtörjük a férfi lábát, és felkötözzük a Tüskés kéregfára, hogy Anya kegyelmében maradjon!" Turraka ranted which felt like an answer the previous question. Now, Zeb was even move curious than ever.
"You don't want to know, trust me." Balto insisted, "Now, let's get going. A worried wife is waiting for her husband and son."
And so, with a long journey ahead of them, Balto, Zeb, Turraka, and Farkas made their way back to the Rokrul tribe. They made sure to travel light, packed with only a small amount of supplies they brought along. All the while, Farkas, still technically being a kid outside the Nelvaanian definition, regaled his father with praise of the events that have transpired. While that was going on, Zeb had his own chat with Balto. Asking about if it was okay to leave the Mining Guild freighter where it was. What if the Guild comes looking for it, he asked. But Balto assured that Kolm wanted this operation to be as secretive as he could. He would make sure that hide his tracks when coming here. If the Guild were to be looking, they'd be on a wild goose chase on possibly some other system. As for the tribe, Balto let Zeb know that they would be okay. Nelvaanians were strong and resourceful people. They will endure and live on despite all they have been through.
Of course, the way to the Rokrul camp was a trip that would last for another day, so they would need to set camp for the night. When settled, Farkas was allowed to sleep as the adults shifted on watch duty. Zeb chose the second watch after Turraka, feeling that the Nelvaanian deserved some long needed rest with his son after all that has happened. It was a quiet – cold night with nothing but the fire to warm his back. It was almost boring in that case.
"Zeb?" he turned to see Balto approaching, "Your shift's over. I'll take over from here." the Lasat nodded and headed to sleep, "Zeb, I know I've said this before, but thank you for all you've done today."
"It was nothing. I simply did my part, nothing more."
"You saved a lot of lives. You've earned the right to feel proud of yourself," despite Balto's words, Zeb just shrugged and continued to his spot, "I know you're rife with guilt, guilt over your people, but what happened then does not define who you are."
"Okay, where did this come from?" Zeb asked, heading back to Balto, "I haven't talked to you about any of this."
"No, but you talked about it with Turraka," Balto saw that Zeb was even more confused, "Zeb, Turraka understands Basic. He just chose not to learn how to speak it. He said he tried telling you, but you didn't understand."
"Of course, I didn't. Score another for the Htülye segg."
"Zeb, you are no fool," Balto continued on "Today, you have proven you're willing to stand and protect those less fortunate than yourself. There is no greater honor than that. You also helped me save someone who I care for like family." he walked up to Zeb and reached a handout, "And for that, I wanted to say thank you, and no matter what anyone says, I'll always respect you."
Zeb would never admit such a thing out loud, but he was touched by Balto's words. These two have talked to one another before, but it was always discussing old war stories, nothing more. This was the first time they've ever had a real conversation. So, yes, Zeb did take Balto's hand in his own, for this was the first time Zeb felt he could call Balto his friend.
The next morning, Nuhmala was up bright and early as always for her morning chores. Once her early morning routine was finished, she returned to her stone hut where all her guests, and her two youngest children, were already awake. By now, Nuhmala has become accustomed to these alien visitors. How could she not when they have gone beyond what was expected from a Nelvaanian house guest. Kanan and Hera helped her with daily tasks such as cooking, cleaning, and gathering supplies. Even though Nuhmala told them they didn't have to do anything, Kanan and Hera insisted. Her two children had, since Balto and Zeb left, been occupied by Sabine and Ezra. Both kids had, on many occasions, made Ezra play with them with the Force. Nuhmala's daughter had also grown quite fond of Sabine in particular. The little Nelvaanian girl currently sitting on Sabine's lap, gushing over her fire painted hair; something Nuhmala also had an interest in.
After breakfast, Nuhmala figured today would be a repeat of yesterday. That Kanan would take Ezra to a secluded spot outside the village to train the boy in the way in the Force; something Nuhmala vaguely had any knowledge about thanks to Balto. Once those two would go, Nuhmala expected another afternoon bonding with Hera while Sabine would look after the kids. All and all, not the most exciting plans for the day, but it helped keep her mind busy from worrying about Turraka and her son.
"Visszajöttek! Visszajöttek!" a voice rang through the air, "Balto és Villámlándzsa visszatért!"
The Ghost crew didn't understand what was being said outside of Balto's name but knew something was up when Nuhmala dropped her stone cup of tea, clasping her hands over her mouth in a gasp. Everyone simultaneously got on their feet and rushed outside along with the rest of the tribe. Coming up the stone path, they saw Balto and Zeb walking up, but those were hardly who Nuhmala was focused on. Her heart soared when she saw none other than Turraka and Farkas walking alongside them. Unable to control herself any longer, Nuhmala ran forth and greeted her beloved husband with a loving – tearful embrace, a sentiment she also gave her son shortly afterward. After being tended by his wife, Turraka threw his fist in the air, proudly declaring that the danger has been defeated with thunderous cheers.
The rest of the day was that of celebration. A magnificent feast had been set inside the massive dining hall comprised of nothing less than the most succulent meats available. Everyone ate like kings that day as they sat watching others of their tribe performing a ritual dance around the bonfire. Turraka stood there, telling the wonderful story of how he, Balto, and Zeb battled a vast army of metal monsters and their evil master to save their sister tribe. Zeb had also seen the opinions on him sifted from that of a fool to a great hero. Some of the female Nelvaanians even did their best to catch Zeb's eye, but Balto said that was because Turraka was telling an exaggerated version of events.
With their bellies full, and the mission complete, it was officially time to leave. It was a heartfelt goodbye as the Spectres, and Turraka's family bid each other farewell. The young children didn't want anyone to leave but were told by Balto that his next visit will not be as long as the last. Turraka gave Zeb a tribal knife to show that he valued the Lasat as a great warrior. Hera and Nuhmala shared a hug before saying their goodbyes. A few members of the tribe even brought some banthas for the long journey back to their ship.
Balto couldn't leave without receiving one more hug from Nuhmala, "Thank you, Balto. I knew you not fail."
"It was great seeing you both again," he planted a soft kiss on her forehead, "Next time, I'm sure to bring Jenna. I'm sure she misses you guys too."
"How is she?" Nuhmala's question was difficult as he didn't know, "Have you two found Lánya?"
The ears on Balto's head went flat before his warm smile faded into a sad frown, "No."
With their goodbyes have been said, the Ghost crew rode their banthas home. Although just knowing these people for only a few days, Nuhmala and her family's hospitality made them feel like this place was a home. A home not unlike the ones each of them was forced to leave for one reason or another.
"You know," Zeb broke the silence, "Despite the cold, place wasn't really that bad."
"Well, in that case, I'll make sure the next time we visit, it'll be during the warm season." said Balto.
"Nuhmala and I had a wonderful time together," Hera said before staring at Balto with a sly grin, "Maybe next time we come, the two of us can have a little chat with you about you-know-what."
The Anthro wolfdog could do nothing but sigh, "Just what I need, to be double-teamed by my two sisters from another world."
Hera winked, "You're asking for it."
"You did a good thing here, Zeb." said Kanan, "I've been looking into Nelvaanian legends. This whole Villámlándzsa thing seems to imply that you might not have been the first Lasat to visit this planet. Perhaps, long ago, another Lasat landed here and helped these people out of a crisis."
"Oh, it was nothing," Zeb halfheartedly shrugged away the praise, "I just saved an entire species from being enslaved and reignited their faith in an old legend."
"And you thought they were crazy for talking to smoke." Ezra's joke earned him a growl from the Lasat.
"What he means to say," Sabine intervened before anything could happen, "We're proud of you, Zeb."
"Fiútestvér!"
Everything turn behind them to see Turraka standing upon the edge of the trail. His voice echoed off the mountain wall enough for all to hear down below.
"A győzelem kövessen téged, fiútestvér!"
Zeb quickly turned to Balto, "He's been calling us that ever since we met. What does it mean?"
"Fiútestvér?" Balto smirked, "It's something Nelvaanians call each other after they share a strong – sacred bond. It means brother."
End of Chapter VII
A/N: And there be it, another chapter done. It had no intention to take this long, nor for both parts of this storyline on a snow planet to be posted on opposite winters, but what's done is done. Hope you all enjoyed enough to leave a review. Till next time.