The fog was gone and the sun warmed the meadow as the group reached the
Splitrock lake. "Let's water the animals and see what happens," Tarpals
told them, and the Gungans rode their kaadu into the lake, letting the animals
drink and forage among the plants. Tarpals himself rode his mount at a walk
along the bank, until he reached the hilly side of the lake. Beyond and to his
right, the hills sloped upward; another day's ride would take them to Tendesay.
Hidden beneath this hill was the Splitrock waystation. The water beside him was
choked with broad-leaved plants, punctuated by broken stalks. They grew mostly
in waist-deep still water, which Tarpals's ancestors had discovered made the
plants perfect camouflage for an amphibious race whose haillu closely
resembled the leaves. A pair of the plant stalks seemed to blink, and a
rust-colored Gungan face rose out of the water. Grinning, Herns extended an arm,
the rest of his body remaining under water, and held out a carrying sack full of
buumas.
"Mission accomplished," Herns stated. "We've chosen mostly small arms,
personal shields, some food, and clothing. We've packed up what we think we
can use, and we'll start bringing it out."
"Make sure all of you remain completely submerged. I'll alert the others,"
Tarpals replied. Herns nodded and slid back under the water, vanishing among the
wide-leaved water plants. Tarpals returned to his party. Now and then, ripples
in the lake heralded the passing of one of the advance scouts, who silently
glided along the lake bottom and left behind carrying slings of buumas
floating near the shore. Pretending to forage for food, the Gungans anchored the
slings to the stalks of floating plants, and waited.
"Company," called a Patrol member; heads turned toward the open fields in
the direction of Tendesay. Four tiny shapes were zooming toward them over the
grass. Gliding swiftly behind them were two of the maccaneek tahnks.
"This is it. Everyone stay calm, and don't make any threatening moves unless
they fire first," Tarpals warned.
The first pair of droids reached them minutes later and hovered before Tarpals,
who was the only member of the party still mounted. "You are prisoners of the
Trade Federation," the droid informed him. "Put down your weapons and
surrender."
The Gungan leaned forward to rest his arms on the saddle horn. "Wesa gott'n
no weapons," he told the droid. "Renn out'n them couple days ago."
"Dismount," the droid ordered. By now its companions had joined it. "All
of you gather and sit down in the grass, hands on your heads." The droid did
something to the console on its vehicle, and a few moments later, a blue,
shadowy outline of a being in robes appeared. "Viceroy," the droid intoned,
"we have captured a group of primitives at the mountain lake where the patrol
discovered others two days ago." Several of the Gungans either bristled or
snorted at the word "primitive". "What are your orders?"
"Bring them in for questioning," the figure answered in a low voice. "We
need to know where the rest of their race is. Call a transport to carry them."
The droid signed off. By now the Gungans had settled themselves in the grass,
hands clasped about the backs of their heads. The sun continued to rise, and
breezes rippled the meadow grass. The droids said nothing to their prisoners.
Those driving the tanks opened the top and front of their vehicles and pointed
their hand-held weapons at the prisoners.
Eventually, a long, low vehicle appeared over the crest of the furthest hill.
The lead droid motioned to the Gungans. "Stand up. You will enter the
transport in an orderly fashion."
"What 'about oursan riding animals?" Tarpals asked. "Wesa can't chust
leave them he-ah."
"They are no concern of mine," the droid replied. "We have no use for
them. They will be left behind."
"Wesa needs to tekk off'n dere tack," Peskis insisted. "Dat way,
least'n deysa bein' able to tekk care'n demse'fs wit'out gettin'
tangled h'up."
"The animals are no concern of mine," the droid repeated. "All of you get
into the transport."
"Wrong answer," Tarpals remarked, and, arching his neck, whistled. The rest
of the patrol riders did the same.
With a bellowing "mmmrrraaaaaawwwww!", Tarpals's kaadu surged
forward, jostling two of the droids. Close on her heels thundered the rest of
the herd. The Gungans scattered; several dove for the carrying slings hidden in
the lake. Others sprang forward to snatch weapons from maccaneek hands.
The remaining droid weaponry lowered and aimed. The hatches on the two tanks
began to slide closed.
Herns and Orrin reared up out of the lake just steps from shore; both clutched
the edges of a carrying net containing an irduul-buuma, the largest
energy spheres that could be thrown by hand. Both riders flung the net forward
into the rear of the nearest tank. The back of the vehicle exploded, the door
shattered. Orrin plunged up the bank and into the vehicle; Herns dove to his
left back into the water. Two of the other scouts emerged a few moments later, a
second irduul-buuma between them.
Tarpals sprang onto the wide base of the disable tank, and, from one side,
reached into the hatch and yanked the droid driver out by the arm. He tore the
droid's gun away, then slammed the maccaneek into the side of the tank
until pieces of arms and legs flew. A second droid's head come sailing out of
the open top hatch, followed by various other pieces; a moment later, Orrin
appeared in the opening and began firing at the remaining droids.
At the lake's edge, half a dozen Patrol riders had activated the oval frames
that provided a shield against the droid weaponry. Behind them, four more
Gungans were pelting the maccaneeks with buumas, rocks, and cestas.
"The second tahnk, Captain!" Peskis shouted suddenly. The tank's
guns were swiveling toward the knot of Gungans in the lake. The front hatch had
closed completely; the top hatch was nearly closed.
Herns and his companion hurled the second irduul-buuma against the front
of the tank. The vehicle shuddered; one of the side guns fell silent. Tarpals
clamped his confiscated weapon in his teeth, scrambled up the handholds and
leaped for the second tank. He landed on the top rim and spat the droid gun into
the rapidly closing opening under the top hatch. The gun crunched, but held.
"Now!" Tarpals shouted. He caught a glimpse of Drind, who had climbed onto
the long transport machine, as she duplicated Kimma Nril's leap onto a droid-driven
STAP. The flying platform lurched; Drind savagely yanked the droid's head in a
circle, then grabbed for the controls.
"Captain!" Rell Iss was running along the wide bottom of the tank, a pair of
energy balls in his hands. He tossed one gingerly to Tarpals. The top hatch
suddenly popped open and a droid emerged, weapon aimed at Tarpals's face.
There was a flash. The droid spasmed and keeled to one side, gun falling from a
limp hand. Tarpals grabbed for it. Rell Iss's head appeared on the other side
of the hatch, grinning. "Got him!"
"Nice shot," Tarpals remarked as the tank lurched into a slow sideways spin.
"Do you remember how the Naaboo Ed-vhic worked the flying thing?"
"I think so," Rell Iss replied, and slid head first into the hatchway. The
tank shuddered several times, but finally stalled and thudded into the grass.
The sudden halt threw Tarpals forward onto the barrel of the cannon. "Ouch,"
Rell Iss's voice issued from inside. "Sorry, Captain."
"I'm not hurt," Tarpals assured him. "You?"
"No, sir." Rell Iss poked his head of the hatch and looked around.
Tarpals surveyed the battle scene. None of the droids was in any condition to
threaten the Gungans, although several of the machines were still moving (most
of them lacking heads or arms). "Finish those off," Tarpals ordered,
repelled by the things. "Company, assemble."
Several Gungans were injured, burned by blaster fire that actually had been near
misses. Two more, one Patrol rider and the other a militiagung, lay
unmoving in the grass; a third was pulled from the water by her companions. She
lay gasping, eyes closed. Peskis crouched beside her for a moment, then glanced
up at Tarpals and shook his head. "Keep watch for more maccaneeks,"
Tarpals ordered Orrin and Rell Iss. Then he dropped to both knees beside the
dying female.
"Did – did we get them?" she whispered.
"All of them," Tarpals assured her. "They'll never harm anyone again."
"Make sure we do that to the rest of them."
"If all our people show even a little of your courage, the maccaneeks
won't stand a chance. Tell me your clan and family, so we may properly honor
you."
"Wern, of the Ikopi Clan," she replied. "My family is from the Hinsta
settlement."
"Don't forget them," Tarpals said formally. "They will look for your
help and guidance from this time forward." Members of Wern's family would
expect her spirit to bring them luck after her death. "It has been my honor to
serve with you."
Wern smiled, then stiffened. A moment later she was gone.
Tarpals remained kneeling beside her body for a few moments, head bowed. Then he
rose. "The other two?"
"Dead as well, Captain," Peskis answered. "Irdin Gane, of the Terazod
Clan, and Kale Dinn Mei, of the Uuray Clan." Tarpals nodded. Gane had been a
Patrol member for nearly five seasons. Mei had been one of the militiagungs.
"Sound the Lament," Tarpals told Rell Iss. The young Gungan put his message
horn to his lips and blew a long note, which was picked up by the Patrol
members. Tarpals and a few of the militiagungs remained silent as those
singing trilled up and down the scale, marking the passing of their comrades
with song.
At last the trilling died away. Tarpals sighed wearily. "Peskis, you and Orrin
go back to where we left the rest of our people and bring them here. Rell Iss
will steer the large vehicle so everyone can ride." The three Gungans saluted,
Rell Iss looking a bit apprehensive. Peskis and Orrin mounted their kaadu;
after a couple of false starts, Rell Iss managed to get the transport moving,
and the three headed back to the forest. Tarpals turned to the remainder of the
command. "We have a great deal to do before they return. Let's get to it."
~*~*~*~*~
"I think we should follow them," Edvic insisted for what Yané thought was
the seventh or eighth time.
"No, we shouldn't," Saché replied. "If anything goes wrong out there,
we might end up being the last line of defense here. There's a time to act,
and a time to wait. This is your time to wait. Now, get down off that thing and
let it rest."
The boy had been practicing steering the STAP around trees, careful to remain
inside the protection of the forest. For a while he had been content to show the
militiagungs and Vlenka how to work the controls, then had amused himself
by flitting around trees on the vehicle.
Vlenka, taking advantage of the time to repair some of the damaged tack, looked
up at Edvic. "Yousa rilly need'n to learn the fust rule of the Third
Pah-trol," he said mildly.
"What's that?"
"When da captain givesss an order, yousa follow it."
"Is there a second rule?" asked Arlan, who had been playing hide and seek
with Edvic among the trees, and had stopped for a rest.
"Yiss. Secont rule—"
The militiagung posted at the edge of the treeline hissed a warning. For
a moment everyone froze; then the human and Gungan children scattered among the
trees, seeking hiding places. The adults snatched up their weapons, Sen Tal and
Yané taking up a position near Kimma Nril, who was stretched out on the ground,
resting. Kimma reached for a blaster, but made no other movement.
Edvic accelerated forward. "Edvic!" Brandes called after him in a hoarse
whisper, but if the teen heard, he ignored her. Saché muttered something
unintelligible and sprinted after him, keeping as close to the ground as
possible.
Brandes clutched the grip of the blaster, her eyes fixed on the direction of the
meadow. For several minutes all she heard was the soft hum of the STAP's
engines. Then the noise increased in volume, and Edvic came gliding through the
trees. "It's all right!" he announced, grinning. "C'mon! You've got
to see this!"
Brandes glanced toward Vlenka, who finally signed the "all clear", and the
children emerged from their hiding places. "Least'n most'a dem follows
instructions," the Patrol rider grumbled. But Brandes noticed he patted Arlan
good-naturedly on the head before gesturing the others forward.
At the edge of the meadow, Saché and the militiagung Pell had risen to
their feet and were peering out into the open space before them. Brandes
followed their gaze, and almost laughed. A long, low transport vehicle was
gliding along the grass. Every so often it would jerk to a halt, then start up
again. Instead of flying head first, it was moving almost kitty-corner; then the
driver would overcorrect, and the transport would swing slowly in the other
direction. Escorting the transport were a pair of Gungans on kaadu, both
of whom were giving the vehicle a wide berth. The rider trailing well behind the
transport was leading a third kaadu.
One of the riders shouted something and rode forward to bang a fist against the
transport's driver's side door. The transport jerked, shuddered, and slid to
a halt. The rider turned in the saddle and grinned at the party lurking inside
the woods. It was Orrin.
Vlenka snorted. "Deysan oursan folk onna kaadu, but hoos steerin' dat
t'ing?"
The transport's hatch swung upward to reveal a third Gungan – Rell Iss.
"Tell me he's not driving the rest of the way," Yané drawled.
"Actually, for a first-time driver, he didn't do too badly," Brandes
remarked.
"Well, it's not as though he had much to run into out there," Saché
murmured to Yané. Vlenka made a hissing sound that seemed to be laughter.
Arlan scurried out into the meadow, closely followed by Temmis, Plirri, and the
human children. A rather unsteady Rell Iss stumbled down the transport's ramp.
Peskis rode up, leading the last kaadu, which promptly began to squawk
and honk at Rell Iss. The young Gungan reached up and patted it on the neck, but
the animal continued to make complaining noises. Peskis, Orrin, and Vlenka
laughed.
"He obviously feels deserted," Peskis remarked in High Gungan, swinging down
from the saddle as his kaadu sank into a crouch.
"He's just being a critic!" Rell Iss snapped. He gave the reins a shake.
"Stop it! That was tough enough without you complaining about it all the way
back!" The kaadu's ranting finally trailed off.
"Are we going to ride in this?" Arlan asked.
"Yiss," Rell Iss answered. "Iss'n all yours."
Brandes entered the transport and examine the controls. "I should be able to
drive this. That would leave Yané and Saché free to fire weapons if they need
to, and Edvic to ride the STAP."
"I wanna help steer!" Arlan exclaimed.
"I think that might be a bit difficult for you," Brandes told him. "But
you can help navigate."
Arlan looked puzzled. "What does that mean?"
"It means you get to tell Minister Brandes where to drive the transport,"
Yané explained.
Arlan's face lit up. "All right!"
While Brandes familiarized herself with the controls, the children and the
remaining Gungans began loading their few supplies into the transport. Finally
Sen Tal emerged from the woods, supporting Kimma. "Gott'n room for one'a
more?" he asked.
"Of course," Brandes replied. "There's plenty of room for all of us,
actually. Let's see if we can lower the backs of the seats so she can lie down
if she wants."
"Wesa gott'n pro'llem with Zanté," Kimma said weakly. "Shesa still
inna forest, an' won't come out. Mesa t'inks shesa scared of diss'n."
She waved her hand at the transport.
"Probably associates it with the droids," Brandes said. She, Saché and Yané
waded back into the forest undergrowth to find Zanté clinging to Hanar, sobbing
silently.
Brandes reached over the stroke the girl's hair. "Zanté, it's all right.
It's just a transport. The Gungans chased all the droids away. There's
nothing to be afraid of anymore." The girl shook her head and hugged the
Gungan tighter. "Zanté, I'm going to be driving the transport. You'll be
perfectly safe."
Hanar patted her back reassuringly and murmured something to her in High Gungan,
but when he lifted her, Zanté struggled until he nearly dropped her. Hanar
knelt again, and the girl quieted.
Brandes sighed. "This is going to be a problem," she said. "I thought we
would all ride in the transport and just lead the kaadu along behind us.
If someone rides beside us with Zanté, I'm just afraid it will look
suspicious if the Neimoidians decide to take a close look at us."
"Well, she certainly can't stay here," Saché said. "There's got to be
some way to get her on board. I know it sounds harsh, but we might have to just
carry her on, and hope she settles down on the way."
"Yané, ask Sen Tal to come back here," Brandes said. She touched Hanar on
the arm and pointed first to Zanté, then to the edge of the forest. "Let's
take her up there."
Hanar set the girl on her feet and took her hand. A few moments later, Sen Tal
and Temmis re-entered the woods. The three Gungans coaxed Zanté to the edge of
the meadow. Temmis scurried ahead and trotted up the transport's ramp, poking
his head out of one of the windows and waving at Zanté. Plirri, curious about
what was happening, appeared at the head of the ramp.
"See?" Sen Tal said. "Iss all'n ussan dere. Wesa gonna ride now. Kimma,
shesa inside waitin' for ussan. Come 'long." He waved Hanar ahead; the
Gungan picked Plirri up at the head of the ramp and tossed him into the air.
Plirri squealed happily as Hanar carried him inside.
Sen Tal tugged at Zanté's hand. The girl slowly stepped out into the meadow
and allowed the Gungan to lead her, not to the ramp, but to one of the windows.
There he lifted her so she could see inside. Stretched out on one of the
reclining seats, Kimma lifted her head and beckoned. "Dere, see?" Sen Tal
said. "Kimma iss waitin'. Less go." He set Zanté down and walked to the
foot of the ramp. Finally the human girl followed, first peering cautiously
inside the transport as if to reassure herself that no droids were hiding among
the seats. At last she walked up the ramp. Kimma called her over; Zanté
promptly climbed onto the seat next to the Gungan and curled up against her.
Brandes sighed in relief. "All right. Let's tie the kaadus' reins
to something, and get moving."
~*~*~*~
By the time the transport arrived at Splitrock's lake, several bundles of
supplies had been loaded into the tanks, and the fallen Gungans laid to rest
among the bushes and tall grass around Splitrock. The armored vehicles were
designed to carry four droids – a commander, a pilot, and two gunners. Six
more could ride on the outside by holding on to sets of handrails. Three Gungans
could ride in each tank if two sat in the seats and one stood or sat on the
floor at the rear entrance. Saché, Yané and Edvic would take turns piloting
the tanks; Brandes would drive the transport. There would be just about enough
room for everyone inside one of the vehicles, while the kaadu and falumpasets
were led along beside. The Gungans had tied bundles of food and clothing to the
outside handrails of the tanks; carrying slings of buumas were stowed
inside each vehicle, along with extra electropoles and cestas.
The large ammunition would be left behind – it had come down to a decision
between that or having people walk, and Tarpals wanted to be moving on as
quickly as possible. His people could come back for the supplies later; right
now, getting to Tendesay and back was much more important.
The last of the supplies were loaded, the Gungans and Naaboo climbed
aboard their various vehicles, and the convoy started on the last leg of its
journey. They would spend one night in the open; the following afternoon would
see them in Tendesay.
