Reflection Saga:
Part 8
*****
Yaro sat in the pilot's chair of the Playtoy. In the two seats behind him sat the bounty hunters he had hired in Mos Espa he had hired yesterday. If he remembered right, the Twi'lek was Rentha, and the Human was Fulageo. If he had ever heard of them, he had forgotten it.
From up above, Arthree whistled, his worried message of, 'Can we trust them?' appearing on the message screen. Yaro stole a glance backwards. "I think so, Arthree. They seem to be pretty confident of themselves. But then-"
His words were cut off by a sudden blast of hurt, fear, and despair. It seared into his mind like a white-hot metal bar. He cried out in pain, unable to stand it. Behind him, he heard Fulageo and Rentha fall off their seats in surprise. Yaro let go of the controls and for a minute the ship flew off on its own account. A scream, not his own but someone else's, blasted its way into Yaro's brain and he instantly recognized it. "Yaddle!" he screamed out, but the pain faded.
"What's wrong, Jedi!?" Fulageo shook Yaro hard and he had to struggle not to cry out again.
"Yaddle...she...she was in such pain! It about killed me..." Yaro's voice began to break. No! He had to stay strong, especially in front of these bounty hunters. Exhausted and sweaty, he drew in a long, ragged breath as he raked his hair back with a hand, closing his eyes and trying to calm himself. I am Jedi. I am at peace, he told himself. I am at peace.
Rentha's voice cut through Yaro's concentration. "Hey, look! There's something on the ship's sensors. Check it out."
Yaro looked at his ship's sensors. Rentha was right; the sensors had caught something in its range. He extended them, along with his abilities.
He found a ship; a small, old-model ship that had just come out of hyperspace. And there was at least one, Force-talented being inside. "Yaddle!" Yaro cried out happily. He fought back the urge to rush to it.
Apparently, Rentha felt the same. "Go slowly; could be a trap. Get your droid to get the ship's signature and its record."
Yaro nodded. "Arthree! Get me a-" But the droid had already started, tracing the ship with the Playtoy's sensors. The results showed up on Arthree's message board:
Yaddle wasn't on that ship.
"No!" Yaro beat his fists on the armrests. He was used to failure, but was furious every time anyhow. Yoda would have rapped his knuckles with his cane for losing his temper, and Yaro knew it. But he couldn't help it.
"Hello? Who is this?" A young, boyish voice crackled over Yaro's intercom. Pressing the button (now replaced from the old one), Yaro said, "This is Yaro's Playtoy. Who are you?"
"Did you say 'Yaro'?" The other person said heatedly.
"Yes. Why?"
"Please, let us hook up to you! I need to talk to you immediately!" The other ship began to drift swiftly towards Yaro's ship. A bit confused, Yaro allowed the two ships to hook onto each other. He, Rentha, and Fulageo walked over to where the other person was supposed to meet them. When the hatch opened, they had quite a shock.
A young boy with dark brown skin and a hairless head. He had no shirt, but his pants were so filthy one couldn't guess the original color, and he had no shoes on. In his arms, he held a small bundle of cloth in his arms. "Are you really the Jedi Knight, Yaro?" The boy breathed, obviously excited.
"Yes. Why?"
"I...I have something of yours. And a message, from Yaddle."
"YADDLE!?" Yaro raced forward and gripped the boy's shoulders, shaking him. "Where is she!? How is she!? Who kidnapped her!? Who are you?!"
"Damn, Yaro!" Rentha walked forward and pulled Yaro back. "Let the boy talk, would ya?"
Yaro got his wits back. "I'm so sorry. I overreacted." Looking at the boy with a gleam in his eyes like a person offered food and water after weeks of starvation. "Please, please, please tell me: Where is Yaddle?"
*****
"So, Yaddle is on your Master's planet, Polvin Kut was actually a Sith Lord and his clone is to, am I right, Boy?" Yaro was overwhelmed. The two bounty hunters were also perplexed, from the expressions on their faces.
Boy nodded. "Yes...and Yaro?"
"Yeah?"
"There's something else you need to know."
"What?"
"When Sidious kidnapped Yaddle, she...she was...with child. Your child."
Yaro gasped. "W-What?"
Boy carried on like he hadn't heard Yaro. "Yaddle was pregnant for a year; she just gave birth today." He then pulled at the cloth, carefully stripping away the top part. Inside was a tiny, baby girl of Yaro's kind, only half the size of a human infant. At first, Yaro was confused, and then he realized...
"Is that...is that my child?"
Boy held her out to Yaro. "Yeah. Yaddle called her Yiara."
Yaro took her, cradling her carefully in his arms. He was overcome with shock, happiness, and pride. A tear rolled from his eye and dropped onto the sleeping child's forehead. "My...my daughter? I didn't even know..."
Yiara, awakened by the teardrop, awakened. She stared up at Yaro, her yellow eyes so full of innocence. Yaro stroked his daughter's hair with a fingernail, half of it brown like his and the other half red like Yaddle's. "I had a child, and didn't even know it." He looked up at Boy. "How can I ever thank you, Boy?"
"I just want to get Yaddle out of there."
"No, there must be something I can do for you. Just name it, and I'll do it."
Boy paused, in deep thought. Then he sighed, and suddenly seemed very, very old to Yaro. At least for a Human. "Sidious wiped my memory as a child. I can't remember my name at all. I want a name, to prove I am somebody."
"A name? Okay..." Yaro scratched his chin. "Well, to last so long, you must be very strong. And your abilities in the Force are pretty powerful as well. Strong...maybe sword? No...something that represents power-"
Fulageo snapped his fingers. "I know! My father used to carry around a club that belonged to our ancestors. I think that'd represent power!"
Rentha rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Yeah, but 'club' doesn't sound right. What's another word for club?"
Yaro ticked off his fingers. "Lessee, bat, stick, mace-"
"That's it!" Boy yelled out. "Mace! That sounds good to me!"
"Alright then. We can't just leave you with 'Mace', so you need a last name too."
Rentha's lekku twitched with curiosity. "I think I know what would work with it; it's a Twi'lek word for 'boy': Windu."
"Mace Windu..." Boy whispered. "I like it, no! I love it!" He cried softly and wiped his tears away with his arm. "I have a name now..."
Yaro walked forward and placed his free hand on Mace's shoulder. "And when we return to Coruscant with Yaddle, you will become my Padawan, I promise."
"Really?"
"Really really."
Mace looked like he wanted to cry, but he sniffed and forced himself to hold it back. "Well, then what are we waiting for!?" He yelled, throwing his skinny arms into the air. "Let's go save Yaddle!"
Rentha laughed, gracefully leaping into the pilot's chair. "Then let's get this lousy bucket up and running!"
Fulageo, Yaro, and the newly christened Mace Windu all let out a yell, while Yiara simply looked on curiously.
*****
"So...where are we?"
Mace chuckled nervously as he pushed the helmet he had been using to practice with a small remote as Yaro looked on. Fulageo's lightsaber's purple blade hummed quietly in the ship. "Actually, to be honest...I've never been off of Sidious' planet. Ever."
Rentha turned in the pilot's seat. "Are you serious? Then how in hell's name did you find us!?"
Mace shrugged meekly. "Luck, I guess."
"No," Yaro scolded as he fed Yiara a milk/watered provisions porridge while steering Yaro's Playtoy. He waved the small spoon at the young boy, flinging a few globs onto the floor. "Here is your first lesson: there is no luck; only the Force. Nothing, and I mean nothing, happens by chance."
Understanding, Mace nodded. It made full sense to him. "Yes...Master Yaro."
Yaro smiled, and then returned the spoon to a very hungry Yiara. Mace smiled, and wondered if his father had acted that way when he was a baby like Yiara. Shaking his head, he said to himself, No. The past is the past. I must keep my eyes on the future.
"So, Mace," Fulageo said loudly. He was in the medical room, rewiring the controls. "You don't know how to get back to Sidious' planet?"
"No, sir."
"Don't call me sir." The bounty hunter scowled, then suddenly smiled brightly for the first time that Mace had seen. "I know..." He attached a final wire and yelled out, "Hey! Jedi! I need your help!
"Alright! No need to yell." Yaro fed the last of the makeshift porridge to his little daughter, who took it greedily. "You eat like a starving massif! Must be the Yaddle in you." Giving her to Mace, he said, "What is it you need?"
"We need you to use your navigator to do a search of all the nearby planets or stars; I don't know how to use these high-tech, fancy, doo-dad ships."
"Watch what you're calling a doo-dad, pirate!" Yaro growled playfully. "This 'high-tech, fancy, doo-dad ship' is gonna save Yaddle, and probably your hide too!"
"Ha! That'll be the day, Jedi."
Yaro only laughed as he punched a few instructions into the computer. The screen lit up with all the local planets. Thirteen showed up, all with at least six moons or more. They circled not one sun, but two; as the planets revolved around them, the suns in turn were pulled to each other, like a slow, galactic dance.
Seven of the planets were gas giants and, as the screen said, unable to support life above single-celled organisms. Two more were simply hunks of rocks, enormous asteroids pulled into the suns' pull. A trio of planets was like triplets; they had the exact same sizes, number of moons, and all were covered in glaciers, floating over planet-wide seas. A few life-forms, though primitive and no where near sentience yet, lived on the barren ice, but no intelligent race that Mace knew of could live there.
But the last, the fifth planet from the suns, simply exploded with life: it was covered in a rain forest with no seas at all; the only water available was in the lakes, rivers, and heavy rain.
Mace recognized the planet immediately. "That's it. That's the planet where Yaddle is being kept." He shivered, remembering how he himself had felt Yaddle's agony escaping. "Master Yaro?"
"Yes?"
"I'm afraid to go back. Is that bad?"
"You have good reason to fear Sidious." Yaro placed a hand on Mace's shoulder, smiling warmly. It made Mace feel much warmer than any star could. "But remember this: Fear is of the Dark Side; Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, anger leads to suffering, of both the innocent and guilty."
Mace smiled back. "Yes, Master." He continued to watch Yaro as the Jedi did a few more scans of the planet and its life forms. He couldn't believe it; a Jedi would train him. Now, he would become a Jedi like his father could have been, had Mace not been born.
Yaro turned in his chair. "Your thoughts betray you, my young Padawan."
"What?"
"I mean, don't get to confident." Yaro turned back to the controls. "We still have a very long road to walk before the Jedi Council gives me permission to train you."
Mace's heart dropped like a rock. "Oh."
"But don't let that get you down, Mace."
"Yes sir!"
Fulageo nudged Yaro in the side. "Sorry to break up this party of yours, but get a good look at the screen." Mace walked up and looked over Yaro's shoulder. From what the screens said, there were most definitely a number of sentient beings on the planet. But there was no record of the race, whatever they were.
"Makes since; this star system doesn't even exist in the Republic's records." Rentha looked at Mace. "Have you ever seen these people? Are they friendly?"
Mace shrugged. "I never saw them, but Sidious always told me to never, ever, go out of the underground caves, 'cause the tribes would get me. But sometimes, I would wander to just out of the edge of the hangars, and I heard this eerie chatter mixed with different howls and whistles. Gave me nightmares, it did."
"Hm. Did this chattering have a distinct pattern? Like a bird's song?"
"Sometimes, but it sounded more like..."
"More like a primitive language?" Fulageo ventured.
"Yeah...kind of. I'm not sure if whoever-they-are is friendly or not; once, a prisoner escaped into the forest. Sidious sent me after him, but I heard the man scream and I came right back. We never found that man again."
Rentha scoffed. She pulled her blasters out of their holsters, twirling them on her fingers. "Doesn't matter. If they attack us, we just kill 'em. No big deal."
Yaro scowled at the Twi'lek. "There's more than one way to deal with primitives than blasting their heads off, you know." He turned to Mace. "You're going to have to help us, Mace. Is there a path of any sort in this jungle?"
Mace nodded. "I think so. Once, I climbed on top of the hills that the base is under, and saw a very big road. About the width of a Bantha, I'd say."
"Good; we can't afford to get lost here." He pushed a few buttons, and the Playtoy's landing gear came out. "Let's land. Everyone have a weapon?"
"I don't, Master," Mace said. It was true; he didn't have a single way to defend himself should they be attacked.
"Take the lightsaber, kid," Fulageo said. "If you're Jedi, you'll make better use of it than this old spacer."
Mace held it carefully in his free hand while the other held Yiara. "But what about you, Fulageo? And what do we do with Yiara?"
"I'll put her in one of the beds in the medical room; they're too big for her to fall off, and Fulageo here reprogrammed the circuits to take care of her. As for Fulageo, he can borrow one of my blasters." Yaro opened a small compartment on his armrests, pulling out a hand-size shooter and tossed it the bounty hunter. "It's small, but packs a punch." He then took Yiara and placed the sleeping baby in one of the beds, tucking her carefully under the blankets.
Fulageo took the blaster, sticking it in his pocket. "Thanks, Jedi."
The Playtoy hit solid ground in the middle of a clearing. According to the ship, it was evening, but the sky was as dark as coal. That's going to make it harder to find our way, thought Mace. A few local animals fled in terror of the ship, taking refuge in the dark trees as the foursome walked out of the ship.
Once they were all out and the ship had closed, Yaro said quietly, "Mace, do you know how to use a lightsaber now?" Mace nodded. "Yes, Master. I feel very confident that I can."
Yaro nodded back and activated his own lightsaber with a snap-hiss. When Mace triggered his own, the combination of the purple and the yellow blades shining made the small meadow glow with an eerie light. Fulageo and Rentha held their blasters carefully; their fingers poised just a few millimeters in front of the triggers.
Pulling a pair of binoculars made just for the dark, Fulageo put them on and glanced around the clearing. He swept his arm to a small path none of them had noticed before. "This way," he whispered.
The group walked carefully down the path, the shine of Mace and Yaro's lightsabers lighting the way. The occasional bird or beast cried out, making Mace jump.
"Settle down, kid," Fulageo whispered.
"Yes, sir," Mace murmured back. Suddenly, he heard Rentha, who had been bringing up the back, cry out. As soon as the he turned around, something like a needle's prick struck him in the base of his neck. Before he could even think of it, he was on the ground, unconscious.
*****
*****
Yaro sat in the pilot's chair of the Playtoy. In the two seats behind him sat the bounty hunters he had hired in Mos Espa he had hired yesterday. If he remembered right, the Twi'lek was Rentha, and the Human was Fulageo. If he had ever heard of them, he had forgotten it.
From up above, Arthree whistled, his worried message of, 'Can we trust them?' appearing on the message screen. Yaro stole a glance backwards. "I think so, Arthree. They seem to be pretty confident of themselves. But then-"
His words were cut off by a sudden blast of hurt, fear, and despair. It seared into his mind like a white-hot metal bar. He cried out in pain, unable to stand it. Behind him, he heard Fulageo and Rentha fall off their seats in surprise. Yaro let go of the controls and for a minute the ship flew off on its own account. A scream, not his own but someone else's, blasted its way into Yaro's brain and he instantly recognized it. "Yaddle!" he screamed out, but the pain faded.
"What's wrong, Jedi!?" Fulageo shook Yaro hard and he had to struggle not to cry out again.
"Yaddle...she...she was in such pain! It about killed me..." Yaro's voice began to break. No! He had to stay strong, especially in front of these bounty hunters. Exhausted and sweaty, he drew in a long, ragged breath as he raked his hair back with a hand, closing his eyes and trying to calm himself. I am Jedi. I am at peace, he told himself. I am at peace.
Rentha's voice cut through Yaro's concentration. "Hey, look! There's something on the ship's sensors. Check it out."
Yaro looked at his ship's sensors. Rentha was right; the sensors had caught something in its range. He extended them, along with his abilities.
He found a ship; a small, old-model ship that had just come out of hyperspace. And there was at least one, Force-talented being inside. "Yaddle!" Yaro cried out happily. He fought back the urge to rush to it.
Apparently, Rentha felt the same. "Go slowly; could be a trap. Get your droid to get the ship's signature and its record."
Yaro nodded. "Arthree! Get me a-" But the droid had already started, tracing the ship with the Playtoy's sensors. The results showed up on Arthree's message board:
Yaddle wasn't on that ship.
"No!" Yaro beat his fists on the armrests. He was used to failure, but was furious every time anyhow. Yoda would have rapped his knuckles with his cane for losing his temper, and Yaro knew it. But he couldn't help it.
"Hello? Who is this?" A young, boyish voice crackled over Yaro's intercom. Pressing the button (now replaced from the old one), Yaro said, "This is Yaro's Playtoy. Who are you?"
"Did you say 'Yaro'?" The other person said heatedly.
"Yes. Why?"
"Please, let us hook up to you! I need to talk to you immediately!" The other ship began to drift swiftly towards Yaro's ship. A bit confused, Yaro allowed the two ships to hook onto each other. He, Rentha, and Fulageo walked over to where the other person was supposed to meet them. When the hatch opened, they had quite a shock.
A young boy with dark brown skin and a hairless head. He had no shirt, but his pants were so filthy one couldn't guess the original color, and he had no shoes on. In his arms, he held a small bundle of cloth in his arms. "Are you really the Jedi Knight, Yaro?" The boy breathed, obviously excited.
"Yes. Why?"
"I...I have something of yours. And a message, from Yaddle."
"YADDLE!?" Yaro raced forward and gripped the boy's shoulders, shaking him. "Where is she!? How is she!? Who kidnapped her!? Who are you?!"
"Damn, Yaro!" Rentha walked forward and pulled Yaro back. "Let the boy talk, would ya?"
Yaro got his wits back. "I'm so sorry. I overreacted." Looking at the boy with a gleam in his eyes like a person offered food and water after weeks of starvation. "Please, please, please tell me: Where is Yaddle?"
*****
"So, Yaddle is on your Master's planet, Polvin Kut was actually a Sith Lord and his clone is to, am I right, Boy?" Yaro was overwhelmed. The two bounty hunters were also perplexed, from the expressions on their faces.
Boy nodded. "Yes...and Yaro?"
"Yeah?"
"There's something else you need to know."
"What?"
"When Sidious kidnapped Yaddle, she...she was...with child. Your child."
Yaro gasped. "W-What?"
Boy carried on like he hadn't heard Yaro. "Yaddle was pregnant for a year; she just gave birth today." He then pulled at the cloth, carefully stripping away the top part. Inside was a tiny, baby girl of Yaro's kind, only half the size of a human infant. At first, Yaro was confused, and then he realized...
"Is that...is that my child?"
Boy held her out to Yaro. "Yeah. Yaddle called her Yiara."
Yaro took her, cradling her carefully in his arms. He was overcome with shock, happiness, and pride. A tear rolled from his eye and dropped onto the sleeping child's forehead. "My...my daughter? I didn't even know..."
Yiara, awakened by the teardrop, awakened. She stared up at Yaro, her yellow eyes so full of innocence. Yaro stroked his daughter's hair with a fingernail, half of it brown like his and the other half red like Yaddle's. "I had a child, and didn't even know it." He looked up at Boy. "How can I ever thank you, Boy?"
"I just want to get Yaddle out of there."
"No, there must be something I can do for you. Just name it, and I'll do it."
Boy paused, in deep thought. Then he sighed, and suddenly seemed very, very old to Yaro. At least for a Human. "Sidious wiped my memory as a child. I can't remember my name at all. I want a name, to prove I am somebody."
"A name? Okay..." Yaro scratched his chin. "Well, to last so long, you must be very strong. And your abilities in the Force are pretty powerful as well. Strong...maybe sword? No...something that represents power-"
Fulageo snapped his fingers. "I know! My father used to carry around a club that belonged to our ancestors. I think that'd represent power!"
Rentha rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Yeah, but 'club' doesn't sound right. What's another word for club?"
Yaro ticked off his fingers. "Lessee, bat, stick, mace-"
"That's it!" Boy yelled out. "Mace! That sounds good to me!"
"Alright then. We can't just leave you with 'Mace', so you need a last name too."
Rentha's lekku twitched with curiosity. "I think I know what would work with it; it's a Twi'lek word for 'boy': Windu."
"Mace Windu..." Boy whispered. "I like it, no! I love it!" He cried softly and wiped his tears away with his arm. "I have a name now..."
Yaro walked forward and placed his free hand on Mace's shoulder. "And when we return to Coruscant with Yaddle, you will become my Padawan, I promise."
"Really?"
"Really really."
Mace looked like he wanted to cry, but he sniffed and forced himself to hold it back. "Well, then what are we waiting for!?" He yelled, throwing his skinny arms into the air. "Let's go save Yaddle!"
Rentha laughed, gracefully leaping into the pilot's chair. "Then let's get this lousy bucket up and running!"
Fulageo, Yaro, and the newly christened Mace Windu all let out a yell, while Yiara simply looked on curiously.
*****
"So...where are we?"
Mace chuckled nervously as he pushed the helmet he had been using to practice with a small remote as Yaro looked on. Fulageo's lightsaber's purple blade hummed quietly in the ship. "Actually, to be honest...I've never been off of Sidious' planet. Ever."
Rentha turned in the pilot's seat. "Are you serious? Then how in hell's name did you find us!?"
Mace shrugged meekly. "Luck, I guess."
"No," Yaro scolded as he fed Yiara a milk/watered provisions porridge while steering Yaro's Playtoy. He waved the small spoon at the young boy, flinging a few globs onto the floor. "Here is your first lesson: there is no luck; only the Force. Nothing, and I mean nothing, happens by chance."
Understanding, Mace nodded. It made full sense to him. "Yes...Master Yaro."
Yaro smiled, and then returned the spoon to a very hungry Yiara. Mace smiled, and wondered if his father had acted that way when he was a baby like Yiara. Shaking his head, he said to himself, No. The past is the past. I must keep my eyes on the future.
"So, Mace," Fulageo said loudly. He was in the medical room, rewiring the controls. "You don't know how to get back to Sidious' planet?"
"No, sir."
"Don't call me sir." The bounty hunter scowled, then suddenly smiled brightly for the first time that Mace had seen. "I know..." He attached a final wire and yelled out, "Hey! Jedi! I need your help!
"Alright! No need to yell." Yaro fed the last of the makeshift porridge to his little daughter, who took it greedily. "You eat like a starving massif! Must be the Yaddle in you." Giving her to Mace, he said, "What is it you need?"
"We need you to use your navigator to do a search of all the nearby planets or stars; I don't know how to use these high-tech, fancy, doo-dad ships."
"Watch what you're calling a doo-dad, pirate!" Yaro growled playfully. "This 'high-tech, fancy, doo-dad ship' is gonna save Yaddle, and probably your hide too!"
"Ha! That'll be the day, Jedi."
Yaro only laughed as he punched a few instructions into the computer. The screen lit up with all the local planets. Thirteen showed up, all with at least six moons or more. They circled not one sun, but two; as the planets revolved around them, the suns in turn were pulled to each other, like a slow, galactic dance.
Seven of the planets were gas giants and, as the screen said, unable to support life above single-celled organisms. Two more were simply hunks of rocks, enormous asteroids pulled into the suns' pull. A trio of planets was like triplets; they had the exact same sizes, number of moons, and all were covered in glaciers, floating over planet-wide seas. A few life-forms, though primitive and no where near sentience yet, lived on the barren ice, but no intelligent race that Mace knew of could live there.
But the last, the fifth planet from the suns, simply exploded with life: it was covered in a rain forest with no seas at all; the only water available was in the lakes, rivers, and heavy rain.
Mace recognized the planet immediately. "That's it. That's the planet where Yaddle is being kept." He shivered, remembering how he himself had felt Yaddle's agony escaping. "Master Yaro?"
"Yes?"
"I'm afraid to go back. Is that bad?"
"You have good reason to fear Sidious." Yaro placed a hand on Mace's shoulder, smiling warmly. It made Mace feel much warmer than any star could. "But remember this: Fear is of the Dark Side; Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, anger leads to suffering, of both the innocent and guilty."
Mace smiled back. "Yes, Master." He continued to watch Yaro as the Jedi did a few more scans of the planet and its life forms. He couldn't believe it; a Jedi would train him. Now, he would become a Jedi like his father could have been, had Mace not been born.
Yaro turned in his chair. "Your thoughts betray you, my young Padawan."
"What?"
"I mean, don't get to confident." Yaro turned back to the controls. "We still have a very long road to walk before the Jedi Council gives me permission to train you."
Mace's heart dropped like a rock. "Oh."
"But don't let that get you down, Mace."
"Yes sir!"
Fulageo nudged Yaro in the side. "Sorry to break up this party of yours, but get a good look at the screen." Mace walked up and looked over Yaro's shoulder. From what the screens said, there were most definitely a number of sentient beings on the planet. But there was no record of the race, whatever they were.
"Makes since; this star system doesn't even exist in the Republic's records." Rentha looked at Mace. "Have you ever seen these people? Are they friendly?"
Mace shrugged. "I never saw them, but Sidious always told me to never, ever, go out of the underground caves, 'cause the tribes would get me. But sometimes, I would wander to just out of the edge of the hangars, and I heard this eerie chatter mixed with different howls and whistles. Gave me nightmares, it did."
"Hm. Did this chattering have a distinct pattern? Like a bird's song?"
"Sometimes, but it sounded more like..."
"More like a primitive language?" Fulageo ventured.
"Yeah...kind of. I'm not sure if whoever-they-are is friendly or not; once, a prisoner escaped into the forest. Sidious sent me after him, but I heard the man scream and I came right back. We never found that man again."
Rentha scoffed. She pulled her blasters out of their holsters, twirling them on her fingers. "Doesn't matter. If they attack us, we just kill 'em. No big deal."
Yaro scowled at the Twi'lek. "There's more than one way to deal with primitives than blasting their heads off, you know." He turned to Mace. "You're going to have to help us, Mace. Is there a path of any sort in this jungle?"
Mace nodded. "I think so. Once, I climbed on top of the hills that the base is under, and saw a very big road. About the width of a Bantha, I'd say."
"Good; we can't afford to get lost here." He pushed a few buttons, and the Playtoy's landing gear came out. "Let's land. Everyone have a weapon?"
"I don't, Master," Mace said. It was true; he didn't have a single way to defend himself should they be attacked.
"Take the lightsaber, kid," Fulageo said. "If you're Jedi, you'll make better use of it than this old spacer."
Mace held it carefully in his free hand while the other held Yiara. "But what about you, Fulageo? And what do we do with Yiara?"
"I'll put her in one of the beds in the medical room; they're too big for her to fall off, and Fulageo here reprogrammed the circuits to take care of her. As for Fulageo, he can borrow one of my blasters." Yaro opened a small compartment on his armrests, pulling out a hand-size shooter and tossed it the bounty hunter. "It's small, but packs a punch." He then took Yiara and placed the sleeping baby in one of the beds, tucking her carefully under the blankets.
Fulageo took the blaster, sticking it in his pocket. "Thanks, Jedi."
The Playtoy hit solid ground in the middle of a clearing. According to the ship, it was evening, but the sky was as dark as coal. That's going to make it harder to find our way, thought Mace. A few local animals fled in terror of the ship, taking refuge in the dark trees as the foursome walked out of the ship.
Once they were all out and the ship had closed, Yaro said quietly, "Mace, do you know how to use a lightsaber now?" Mace nodded. "Yes, Master. I feel very confident that I can."
Yaro nodded back and activated his own lightsaber with a snap-hiss. When Mace triggered his own, the combination of the purple and the yellow blades shining made the small meadow glow with an eerie light. Fulageo and Rentha held their blasters carefully; their fingers poised just a few millimeters in front of the triggers.
Pulling a pair of binoculars made just for the dark, Fulageo put them on and glanced around the clearing. He swept his arm to a small path none of them had noticed before. "This way," he whispered.
The group walked carefully down the path, the shine of Mace and Yaro's lightsabers lighting the way. The occasional bird or beast cried out, making Mace jump.
"Settle down, kid," Fulageo whispered.
"Yes, sir," Mace murmured back. Suddenly, he heard Rentha, who had been bringing up the back, cry out. As soon as the he turned around, something like a needle's prick struck him in the base of his neck. Before he could even think of it, he was on the ground, unconscious.
*****