Star Wars: Jar-Jar Binks
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All plants and animals are © LucasLearning and Gungan Frontier
Gungan Dashers
Last chapter, Jar-Jar had a slight problem with bullies that were beating him up. After a nightlong argument with each other, Jar-Jar's parents believed that taking Jar-Jar to warrior training, even though he was too young, would be the best for him. Jar-Jar's mother, Ziza Horra Binks, took Jar-Jar to the surface to be trained under one of Ziza's best friends. She took him to a farm that was run by Captain Tarpals and his wife.
Jar-Jar discovered later the next day that Tarpals was training a boy named Doyce Sydewynder, a young Gungan genius. Doyce and Jar-Jar appeared that they would be friends, but that would remain uncertain until the training starts…
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"Will yousa be stayin, Mrs. Binks?" Doyce asked Ziza as she helped Tarpal's wife prepare dinner for that night. It was midday, but preparing the huge fish that Jar-Jar caught would take until dinnertime. Ziza smiled at little Doyce.
"My fraid not, Doyce." She shook her head. "Mesa musta get back to Otoh Gunga. Issa no being right to be stayin here. Jar-Jar issa too dependent on mesa, and my would only distract 'im from 'is trainin."
"My see." Doyce nodded. "Well, issa Jar-Jar ready for dis? My no tinkin…"
"Jar-Jar issa more dan ready." Ziza explained. "My taught 'im everytin my could teach a boy his age. My expectin Tarpals to do da rest."
"Oh." Doyce nodded again. "Mesa granda figured dat too. Dat's kinda da reason my here."
"DOYCE!!!" Tarpals shouted from outside the house. "GETTEN OUT HERE NOW!!!"
"Gotta go." Doyce feared, running for the door, and waving to Ziza. "G'day Mrs. Binks!"
"G'luck, Doyce." Ziza wished, waving back. When Doyce zipped out the door, Ziza returned to the fish.
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"Yousan gotta be more prepared dan dis, Doyce." Tarpals scolded. "Yousan gonna fail if yous keepin dis up."
"Forgive mesa." Doyce bowed as he reached Tarpals and Jar-Jar. "My didn't know dat wesan trainin dis minute."
"Next time, my no want excuses outta yousan, Sydewynder." Tarpals warned. Then he turned and started walking to the open plains. "Okieday. Letten da trainin begin." Jar-Jar followed by Tarpal's side while Doyce trailed behind. Tarpals looked down at Jar-Jar. "Yousan gotten any experience in da fighten arts, Binks?"
"Eh?" Jar-Jar blinked up at the old Gungan. "What bein 'experience?'"
"Do yousa know how to fight, issa what my askin." Tarpals simplified his question.
"Oh, yessa. Mesa mama taught mesa howta fist fight."
"How long ago?"
"A couple months."
"And dat'sa it?"
"Uh-huh."
"Okieday, well at least yousa gotta grasp at da fundamentals." Tarpals stopped at a rock buried halfway into the ground. "Okieday boyos, let'sa see what yousa two got." He pointed to a far off tree. "Issa exactly one hundred meters from dis boulder to dat tree." He looked at the two Gungan boys standing side by side. "How many seconds will it take yousa to run it? Not dat bein a fast runner automatically makes a good fighter, but issa never a bad ting to have strong legs. So, whosa first?"
"Let mesa go first, cap'n." Doyce volunteered. "Yousan be seein legs good enough for da Field Games, if my wanted to qualify."
"Yousan been trained before Doyce?" Tarpals asked suspiciously.
"Yessa sir." Doyce nodded. "Mesan papa enrolled mesa in da Battle Games for two years."
"Well, disan might be interestin." Tarpals smiled. The Battle Games were competitions of strength and skill tested in mock battles and mock wars. Only the best are allowed to become part of the Games. Tarpals walked to the tree and took out a timepiece as Doyce aligned in a running stance beside the boulder.
"Okieday." Tarpals called as he set his timepiece. "Ready! Set! GO!" Doyce took off like a fired laser, running so fast that his legs were a gray blur on his body. As he passed by the tree and Tarpals, the old Gungan looked up from his timepiece. "Unbelievable!" Tarpals exclaimed in surprise. "100 meters in 10.9 seconds. Whadda feat! And what feet." Doyce smiled from where he huffed in tire.
"Huh." He snorted at himself in disappointment. "10.9? Actually, mesan personal best issa 10.1…but with the circumstances, my guess issa no bad."
"C'N I GO NOW?! C'N I GO NOW?!" Jar-Jar yelled to Tarpals, jumping and waving for attention.
"Getten ready, Jar-Jar!" Tarpals warned, as he looked back at his timepiece. Jar-Jar spread his arms behind him and widened his stance, as if he was positioning himself for an oncoming attack.
Given mesan break! Doyce laughed to himself. Whatsa kind o runnin position issa dat?
"Ready!" Tarpals called out to Jar-Jar. "Set! GO!" Jar-Jar sped over to the tree in a gray flash and past Tarpals. Tarpals smiled in amazement. "Well well well. Eleven seconds flat. No bad, no bad. Not as good as Doyce here, but bery good."
"Oh, please, Cap'n Tarpals." Doyce blushed at the "praise." "Issa no fair to compare 'im to mesa. Hesa doin good in hisa own way."
"O course hesa does." Tarpals agreed. "Good legs dere, Jar-Jar."
"Cap'n Tarpals, sir." Jar-Jar stood attention in front of Tarpals. "Can my change my pants and try again?" Tarpals blinked in surprise.
"What?" Doyce laughed at Jar-Jar's request. "Yousa sayin dat ya lost cause o your pants?" Doyce pinched the knees of his pants and pulled on them to display the poor quality of the saago leather. "Looka dese. Dese looka like runnin pants to yousa?"
"But mine got holes in dem. See?" Jar-Jar pointed to the knees of his pants. There were large holed ripped open, revealing Jar-Jar's pinkish knees. Doyce went bug-eyed in surprise.
"How do yousan wear holes in leather?" Doyce squeaked in disbelief.
"Can my change 'em, Cap'n? Please?" Jar-Jar begged.
"Sure." Tarpals nodded, sharing Doyce's disbelief. Jar-Jar took off from the house. "Strange boy. My hopin hesan no get it from hisa papa…"
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"My back!" Jar-Jar announced, running back in a new pair of pants with Otoh Gunga swirls on the sides and waistline. "Okieday, dis time, my doin better."
"Let'sa hope so." Tarpals muttered to himself, looking at his timepiece. "Okieday, Jar-Jar. Ready! Set!" Jar-Jar got back in his own running stance: arms spread like bird wings to his back, feet wide apart. "GO!" Jar-Jar practically flew to the tree, he was running so fast. As he passed Tarpals, Jar-Jar found he couldn't stop running, and…
"WAAAAAAA!"
BAM! He ran smack into the tree, flattened against the trunk. As he fell over on his back, Doyce laughed at him. Tarpals wasn't laughing; he was blinking in shock at his timepiece.
"Eight…point…five…seconds?" Tarpals mumbled, then glanced at Jar-Jar out of the corner of his eye. "Disa boy…?"
"Did my beat Doyce?" Jar-Jar asked hopefully, sounding a little nasal from a flat nose.
"Yousa certainly did." Tarpals nodded, impressed. "8.5 to Doyce's 10.9." Doyce's jaw dropped upon hearing that.
"Wha-what?! Binks, whatsa kind o trainin did yousan mama give yous?" Doyce squeaked in fear.
"Huntin." Jar-Jar shrugged. He wasn't sure how to answer Doyce's nervous question. Tarpals cleared his throat so that all attention was on him.
"Well, dat wasa incredible. My will admit, yousan boys quite amazin. However, yousan both still within Gungan limits. In order to become a warrior, yousan must break da wall o yousan genetic nature. Dat issa da real challenge." He handed Doyce his timepiece. "Clock mesa time, Doyce."
"C-c-Cap'n…" Doyce blinked in fear. "Y-yousa gonna run too?" Tarpals didn't answer as he walked to the boulder. Doyce had no choice but to ready the clock.
"Whenever yousa ready!" Tarpals signaled as he reached the rock.
"Okieday…hokieday." Doyce gulped nervously. Whatsa hesa provin by doin dis? "Ready! Set!" Jar-Jar watched as the old captain simply stood as if he was just listening to Doyce talk and not about to dash for the tree. "GO!" Suddenly, Tarpals bounded foreword, running faster than either Gungan boy could see him. Before they knew it, Jar-Jar and Doyce found Tarpals standing by the tree, not looking tired from his shocking performance.
"Howsa many seconds wasa dat, Doyce?" Tarpals asked simply. Jar-Jar was staring at Tarpals with eyes were bigger than his eyestalks. Doyce's eyes were even bigger than Jar-Jar's, and were staring at the timepiece in fear.
"Fuh…fuh…" Doyce stammered as he answered. "Five…p-point…sih…sih…"
"5.6, eh?" Tarpals smiled. "No too bad for dis ol granda." He turned to his students. "Dat's what my mean by breaken da genetic wall. At yousan age, with trainin and discipline, yousan should be able to break five seconds."
"Really?" Jar-Jar squeaked in amazement. "Wow!"
"Now, all dat runnins gotten mesa tirsty. Jar-Jar, can yousan get me a lum?"
"'Lum?'" Jar-Jar blinked. "What'sa 'lum?'"
"Please, Cap'n," Doyce insisted. "Allowin mesa." He ran for the house before Tarpals could nod his head. Tarpals looked down at Jar-Jar with disappointment.
"Hmm." He began, looking a little thoughtful at Jar-Jar. "In order to master da fighter's ways, one must also possess knowledge…my tinkin dat wesa gonna work on dat area, Binks." Jar-Jar smiled and chuckled nervously. This was not going to be an easy three months; interesting, maybe, but not easy.
The End
Next: The Routine