Gorwooken had been right. The descent into the Shadowlands was long, and Vincent had already lost track of time. It was eerily silent on the way down, the quiet broken only by the occasional rustling of leaves and an odd noise from a creature every now and then. The deeper they dropped into the Shadowlands, the darker it became, until Vincent was quite convinced that he was never going to see true daylight again. Having nothing better to do, he studied all of his companions.
Gorwooken looked decidedly bored, obviously used to the trip between the forest floor and the upper boughs. Juhani had a look of amazement on her face, utterly fascinated by the enormous trunks and incredible height of the great wroshyr trees of Kashyyyk. Bastila, on the other hand, appeared to be bothered by something. She had a vacant stare, and her eyebrows were furrowed in thought. Gently brushing his hand against hers, Vincent gave a questioning stare.
"What's wrong?" he asked through their bond.
"I...I feel uneasy about this. I don't like having to go deep into the Shadowlands where we have no idea what await us. I also don't trust that Wookie," she stated with obvious dislike toward their transporter.
"I don't like Gorwooken either, but he's all we've got right now. I know what you mean about going down here; I have a bad feeling about it too. If killing this other Wookie was so important to Chuundar, why couldn't he have sent some of his own people down here already? I think he just wants me dead so he can keep Zaalbar."
"Yes, I get that feeling as well. And there's something about this place...it's dark. It..." she trailed. Bastila looked into his eyes, unsure if she should continue.
"It what?" he asked, slipping his hand into hers and giving a gentle squeeze. She glanced down at their intertwined hands, then back at him.
"It's upsetting," she said feeling ashamed that she was admitting a weakness to him. Bastila figured he probably thought she was a coward and a fool for being so timid, but all she saw in his face was compassion.
"Hey, don't be embarrassed that you're afraid. I'll be honest with you, there have been more times on this mission that I've thought I was going to wet myself than I can count."
She struggled to suppress the laughter that was threatening to break through at his confession. "I'm glad you didn't. That would have been awkward."
He smiled, and she heard him laughing through their bond. "Yeah, I can see it now. Us, facing five Dark Jedi; I say "Bring it on, you schuttas!", they laugh, draw their lightsabers, I scream like a little girl, wet myself, and then pass out."
This time, she couldn't help the giggle that escaped her mouth. Both Juhani and Gorwooken turned to face her, the latter giving a look of distaste.
"Sorry," she mumbled looking down. "Don't do that again!"
"My bad. But seriously, I don't think you're a coward or a fool for being scared."
"You knew I thought that?"
"Well yeah. You didn't shield it from me, so it was almost like hearing you talk to yourself. Except in my head."
"Have I been doing that this whole time?" she asked, slightly panicked.
"No. Very rarely do I hear what you're thinking. It usually only happens when I'm talking to you like this, through our bond, or if it's a particularly strong thought or emotion. But that's only happened a couple of times." His brows now furrowed in thought. "Wait, isn't the Star Map going to be down here? I mean, we did see it sitting on what looked like a forest floor."
"Hmm, I think you're right. I guess we'll find out soon enough, we're about to land."
Looking around, Vincent realized Bastila was right. Quickly, he stepped out of the basket, his eyes roving in all directions for any possible predators. Unfortunately, he spotted a very nasty, very efficient predator barely more than twenty feet away.
"You've given me quite the chase, my friend."
"Calo," Vincent stated coldly, addressing the infamous bounty hunter who was standing before him. Vincent had met Calo Nord on Taris, where he was working for a man named Davik Kang. Davik was connected with the Exchange, an intergalactic crime syndicate, and he was presumably hiring Calo for some dirty work. Calo was possibly the best bounty hunter there was, and Vincent had already seen his skill on two occasions. He did not wish to see it again.
"Hang on, Calo. Maybe we can work out a deal..."
"Sorry, but I'm not in it for the credits," the bounty hunter explained. "See, you're the only ones who've ever gotten away from me. I've got a rep to protect, you know." Calo pulled out his blasters slowly, a malicious grin forming on his face. "Kill them."
It was then that Vincent noticed the two Wookies come slinking out of the shadows. Reaching for his lightsaber, Vincent cursed his luck and the planet he was on. Mentally, he sighed. "Ah, damn. Bastila, please stay close to me. I doubt the Council would be happy with me if I let you get killed."
"Well, thanks a lot. It's good to know you care."
"Oh shove it, you know what I mean. Under no circumstances will you die, got it?"
"Yes, I understand."
"Good," he finished, turning his full attention to Calo and his Wookie companions. And just in time, as all three of them threw grenades at Vincent and his party. Rolling out of the way and barely missing the blasts, Vincent stayed low in a crouched position. Bastila and Juhani were close together, their lightsabers drawn and ready for combat. Two seconds into the battle, and already she gets separated from me. That woman is impossible! The two Wookies had put away their bowcasters and replaced them with vibroswords, twirling them expertly. Calo began to fire away with his blasters, and Vincent focused on trying to deflect the fire back at the bounty hunter, but to no avail. Even when he did manage to land a hit, Calo's armor simply deflected the blast right back. The bounty hunter was ridiculously protected inside his armor shell.
Bastila and Juhani were busy fighting the Wookies, and seemed to be faring well. Bastila's double-bladed lightsaber was dealing major damage, and Juhani's skill was severely outclassing her opponent's. Vincent was slowly making his way closer to Calo, still deflecting every blaster bolt that the smaller man sent his way. Step by step, he closed in, his eyes never leaving the bounty hunter's face. Vincent dimly realized that one of the Wookies with Calo was dead, and the other was fading fast, but all that mattered to him was Calo. Vincent was close enough to strike, and he did so with speed and power. Still, he nearly missed his opponent as the bounty hunter deftly rolled out of the way. His speed and dexterity surprised Vincent, and for a moment, he paused. A very bad idea, as a well aimed shot from Calo's blaster burned into his side. He grunted in pain, drawing the attention of his two friends.
"You're hurt?" Bastila asked, concern tingeing her voice.
"I'm fine. It's nothing, he just got lucky."
"Oh really? Well he's about to get unlucky."
He soon figured out what Bastila meant when a yellow blade protruded through Calo's neck.
"So, the infamous bounty hunter Calo Nord meets his demise at the hands of an angry, overprotective woman. I like it," he said.
"Angry? Yes. Overprotective? No. If I remember correctly, that's your job. I was simply robbed of the opportunity to be the first one to give you a major injury."
"That hurts." He suddenly winced in real pain. "Ah, now that hurts."
Shaking her head, Bastila treated his injury easily. "You really must be more careful. I can't go around healing you all of the time."
"Well, I think I can have a little more reckless abandon now that I've got Calo's armor. This suit is ridiculous. I mean, his own blaster fire didn't even singe it. I've got to get this on."
"Please tell me you aren't going to change right here," Bastila said quickly. The thought of him changing in front of her was not something she needed to distract her.
"Do you want me to die?" She shook her head. "Then no, I'm not changing right here. Hey," he called to Gorwooken. "You aren't going to leave, are you?"
(I will stay here and await your return. If you ever do,) the Wookie added maliciously.
Vincent had an odd feeling that Gorwooken was trying to pull something shifty, and he didn't like it. Ignoring his conspiracy theories for the moment, Vincent walked over to a broken droid he had spotted a few moments earlier before the battle with Calo. Inspecting it, he found that it had recorded something. Playing back the recording, he watched intently as a ship's crew came into view. They were talking, and Vincent heard one of the crew members ask where Matton was. He immediately remembered that a certain Matton Dasol had been held in service to a merchant named Eli because Matton's crew had run off. Returning his attention back to the recording, he was only mildly surprised to see Eli, armed with a blaster, come out of nowhere and kill all of the crew. Vincent sighed and began to remove the droid's head. Sometimes the greed and seemingly inborn evil of people troubled him. He had little time to ponder this, however, as an energy discharge flowed throughout the rest of the droid causing it to explode. Singed and now on his butt, Vincent distinctly heard the laughter of his two female companions. Hopping deftly to his feet, he simply placed the droid head in his pack and walked on, ignoring the two giggling women. He had thought the creatures on the upper levels of Kashyyyk were vicious, but they were nothing compared to the animals that dwelled below.
If the weaker creatures were fierce, then the only word to describe the inhabitants of the Shadowlands was lethal. Or maybe murderous. They seemed to be...almost possessed.
Vincent instinctively reached for his lightsaber when he heard the sound of combat up ahead. Walking cautiously, he was incredibly surprised to see a man fighting off a pack of four katarns. What was unique about this man was the fact that he was wielding a green lightsaber. Apparently, the man had noticed them because he approached Vincent after disposing of the predators.
"Ah, the damnable racket of battle! Follow me to my home, and we'll talk there."
"Who are you?" Vincent asked, slightly taken aback by the man's forwardness.
"I'm Jolee Bindo. And you are?" the man asked gruffly.
"Vincent. And this is Bastila and Juhani," he answered, indicating his friends.
"Humph. This isn't the place to be having a civil chat. Come on, follow me. You can't miss my home, it's under a log. Yeah, I live like some burrowing rodent."
Still mystified by Jolee's odd manner, Vincent followed, albeit slowly. The old man hadn't been lying when he said his house was under a log. Though Jolee's home lacked the usual comforts of modern day living, it still looked cozy and inviting.
"Well, here's my home, such as it is. Pull up a stump and be comfortable. We've got a lot to talk about."
"Yes, I have a feeling I can actually learn something from you."
"Huh, youngsters these days! No manners..."
"I didn't mean to be rude; I just meant you look like you know what you're doing."
"Do I now? But I'm sure you're full of questions."
"Uh, yes actually. Do you know anything about a Star Map? I have reason to believe it's down here."
"Looking for ancient Star Map, are you? Yes, I know what you're talking about. But before I help you, you must help me with something. I need you to do me a favor. Two actually. First, I want you to get rid of those infernal poachers! They're hunting the little primates, the Tachs. The Tachs are defenseless, you see, and I don't take kindly to people messing in my garden either!"
"Ok. Where are these poachers?"
"To the northwest of here. Oh, and I would prefer if this didn't end in bloodshed."
"Why would I kill them?" Vincent asked genuinely surprised Jolee would bring that up.
"I don't know, why would you? Anyway, after you remove the poachers, I want to travel with you. Twenty years down here, and an old man's seen enough."
"Fine. I'll be back when the poachers are gone," he said while walking away. "So, which one of you wants to wait it out while Jolee goes adventuring with us? Or do we want to expand our little group to four people?"
"I will stay," Juhani offered.
"You sure?"
"Yes, I am sure. And no Bastila, nothing you say will change my mind," the Cathar stated before Bastila could protest. "I do not wish to separate you from your bond-mate. I imagine that would not be pleasant."
Vincent was rather amazed that Juhani had been able to pick out the fact that he and Bastila shared a Force bond. They hadn't made it a public thing, and Juhani was not overly social. Apparently just ridiculously perceptive. Shaking his head at the constant surprises that his friends never failed to conjure up, Vincent nearly slowed to a stop. He could see the poachers from here, not to mention the mines they had set up around the perimeter.
"Watch out for the mines," he muttered, stepping gingerly around them. Approaching a man who looked to be the commander, he attempted to initiate a conversation. "D'you run this place?"
"Yes, I'm Commander Dern. What do you want?"
"Are you the men who've been poaching the Tachs?"
"Now now, there's no need to be so harsh. I prefer to think of it as 'utilizing' the Tachs. You see, they have a special gland that is the main ingredient in Tarisian ale, and since the destruction of Taris, Tarisian ale has been rather scarce. I figure I've got two or three years to kill the lot of these monkeys and make a fortune selling their glands. You want in before I make them extinct?"
"No, I want you to leave."
"Leave?" Dern looked at him curiously. "Has that old kook Jolee recruited you to do his dirty work? Well you can just forget it! As long as the Tach are here, and the sonic emitters keep the preds at bay, we're staying here."
Seeing that the conversation with Commander Dern was getting nowhere, he excused himself politely. Not only was the camp protected by a good supply of mines set on the perimeter, but there were a number of sonic emitters as well. As Dern had stated, they served to keep the predators at bay by emitting a sonic wave that was unbearable to the ears of the animals. Casually walking over to one of the men guarding the emitter, Vincent learned that conditions here were bad, and that none of the men really wanted to be here. However, if they tried to run, Commander Dern would shoot them before they got two feet. One man had tried it already, and met an untimely demise.
"What if one of these emitters, say, 'mysteriously' stopped working?" he asked quietly.
"Well, we could leave if the emitters broke down." The guard handed him a small access card. "Here. This card has the code to disable the emitter. Good luck."
Making sure that Dern was looking the other way, Vincent quickly shut off the emitter. One other guard had seen this, and peered at Vincent curiously before a wave of realization dawned on his face. The guard quickly motioned for Vincent to come over to where his sonic emitter was.
"Hey, if you shut this one down, that should negate the sonic field around this place. We should be able to leave if a predator attacks, and I've heard scouting reports lately. There's a huge creature lurking around, but he can't get near us because of these emitters. Take this, and shut mine off."
Repeating the procedure as with the previous sonic emitter, Vincent once again shut the machine off. Sure enough, he immediately heard the thundering footsteps of an enormous predator. Grabbing both Bastila and Juhani, he pressed them into a small crevice in the rock wall they were standing near. Vincent couldn't fit, he was too big, but he pressed his back to the crack, hoping to make himself as inconspicuous as possible. Within thirty seconds, a gigantic creature came barreling through the camp sending men scattering in all directions.
The animal was a walking death trap. Practically every inch of its body was covered with spikes, and claws that were easily two feet long jutted out from each finger of the creature. Similar claws adorned its feet, and the spikes on its tail were just as large. It was a sickly green color, and Vincent could see that it had rows upon rows of razor sharp teeth. Thankfully, the creature ignored Vincent for the moment, thrashing everything in the camp and then continuing on.
"I think we should go back to Jolee now. These poachers definitely won't be coming back anytime soon," Vincent said while helping the two women extricate themselves from the crevice.
"That was quite ingenious, Vincent," Juhani complimented as they retraced the route back to Jolee's hut.
"What, hiding both of you in a crevice?" The Cathar nodded, admiration showing in her features. Vincent laughed nervously. "Uh, thanks Juhani. I just wanted to make sure neither of you got hurt."
Bastila felt a pang of jealousy course through her like fire, dieing out as quickly as it came. She was being foolish; Juhani was not trying to seduce Vincent, and she had no reason to think that the Cathar was attempting to do so. Still, Bastila had a hard time pushing the feelings of envy from her mind. An earlier statement from Vincent came back to her: "The infamous bounty hunter Calo Nord meets his demise at the hands of an angry, overprotective woman." Was she being overprotective? She hoped not. As much training as she had received, Bastila still struggled with keeping her emotions in check. She had never been very good at hiding what she was feeling, and she could only pray that Vincent was not overly perceptive. Unfortunately for her, he was very perceptive. Especially when it came to her. Bastila had noticed this early on, and was slightly unnerved by it. She had found him staring at her on occasion, studying her intently. His gaze was intense, burning and heavy, and she always had a hard time staring him in the eyes, afraid of what she might see. The eyes were the windows to the soul, and she did not want to peer into that man's core. Not after what he had done...
"I've taken care of the poachers, Jolee," she heard Vincent say.
"So you have. And you don't have an aura of death about you...that's good. I'll take you to what you seek, but if you have anything to take care of at the surface, I suggest you do so now. We could be in the lower Shadowlands for a while."
"Hmm, I do have something that needs to be dealt with. Juhani, do you think you help me?"
"What is it you require of me?"
"You remember that merchant, Eli? How he was holding Mr. Dasol for some debt that Dasol's crew didn't pay?"
"Yes," the Cathar answered.
"Take this droid head to them. Show it to both men, but be careful. I don't want anyone to get hurt, so I want you to strongly encourage Matton Dasol not to get violent. Ok?"
"I will do what you've asked. If you don't mind, I will wait at the ship after that."
"That's fine. Thanks Juhani." Vincent turned back to Jolee. "So, I guess you're with us now. Oh, hey, can I use your house for a sec?"
"What do you need to go inside my house for?"
"I want to change."
"Change! Into what? A pretty tutu?"
"No," Vincent said, struggling to stay calm at Jolee's incessant teasing. "I'd like to put this armor on, if you don't mind."
"Fine kid, go ahead. Make it quick."
Vincent was back outside in two minutes flat, clad in Calo Nord's armor.
"That fits you?" Bastila asked skeptically.
"Yeah, the armor stretches. Cool, huh?"
"How can it stretch that much? I mean, Calo must've been barely over five feet tall."
"I don't know how it stretched that much! It just did. And it's comfortable too, which is a major plus, since normal armor, for me at least, is kind of small."
"Well, it's your fault you're over six feet tall."
"Yeah? Women like tall men, so back off."
"And what if I don't like tall men?"
"Ah, but you do."
"You know this how?"
"You like me."
"I do not."
"Yes you do."
"No I do not."
"Liar."
"Idiot."
"Ice Princess."
"Nerf-herder."
They both stopped at the sound of Jolee chuckling. "I do believe the pretty young lady just beat you Vincent. C'mon you two, we need to get going. I'm not getting any younger, you know! Czerka's constructed some stupid repulsor field to block off the path to the lower Shadowlands, but I can get you past it."
Jolee easily lead them to where the repulsor field stood, shimmering brightly with a purple hue in stark contrast with the forest.
"Beautifully subtle, isn't it? It had to be, or else the Wookies would have taken it apart by now, though they wouldn't have had an easy time of it."
"I trust you can get us past this?"
"I said I could, didn't I?" the old man replied crossly. "But I can only manipulate it for a moment. Now, how did those Czerka mechanics do it? Ah, yes. There you go, hurry up. It won't stay open forever."
Vincent didn't believe it was possible, but they were actually going lower into the forests of Kashyyyk. They were walking along a path that looked as if it had been worn with centuries of use. Not much further on, the group spotted a Wookie in heated combat with a Mandalorian soldier, while three other Mandalorians watched.
"What are Mandalorians doing down here?" he heard Bastila wonder aloud. He had no clue, but the Wookie had defeated his enemy, and was now being attacked by the other Mandalorians. Vincent could easily see that the Wookie wasn't going to make it. Igniting his violet lightsaber, he charged at the nearest armored opponent. Though the Mandalorian was obviously a raw recruit, he still possessed incredible skill with a blade. Vincent was hard pressed to land a clean hit on the man, and more than once was nearly hit himself. They were locked in a deadly dance, and Vincent was determined to come out the victor. He could hear the Mandalorian's heavy breathing, and he noticed the man's strikes were becoming less precise than before. Leaping on this advantage, Vincent let loose with a flurry of quick strikes than knocked the Mandalorian off of his balance and forced him careening backwards in an effort not to fall. Smashing his opponent's weapon to the ground, he planted his right foot and pivoted so he was facing away from the Mandalorian. Quickly flipping his lightsaber so the blade was pointing behind him and parallel the ground, Vincent jammed it backwards, shoving it through the other man's chest. The Mandalorian dropped soundlessly, dead before his body hit the ground. Vincent turned just in time to duck the vibroblade that was now flying at his head. Rolling away from his new adversary, Vincent wiped sweat out of his eyes.
"Bastila, I could use some help!" he called to her. She turned, sizing up the situation that had presented itself.
"Charge him," she ordered. Trusting her completely, he did as she asked. The Mandalorian never had a chance as Vincent rushed him from the front while Bastila attacked him from behind. He grunted in pain as one lightsaber sliced off his left arm while another slashed him across the stomach, both wounds combining to become fatal. Blood dribbling out from underneath his helmet, the Mandalorian collapsed to the ground.
(Great Bacca, let this outsider be different from the others! Please, can you heal me?)
Vincent hastily found a medipac and gave it to the injured Wookie.
(Thank you, outsider. You are kinder than the others, the Czerka scum that plague this place. I must ask of you one other thing. These Mandalorians, they have slain my brethren, and I wish revenge. I would do this myself, but I am too weak to continue fighting, and the armored warriors tend to ambush you. They will only appear when you are unarmed, the cowards.)
"I will help you if I can. Are the bodies of you friends still there?"
(Yes. Unarm yourself when you see their corpses, for the invisible Mandalorians will not be far behind.)
"You know, there is another Wookie down here named Freyyr. I helped him escape some Czerka slavers a while back."
"And just how far is 'a while back'?"
"Oh, about ten years. Not too long."
"Isn't Freyyr Zaalbar's father?" Bastila asked.
"You're right. Do you know where Freyyr is now, Jolee?"
"Shh...look," the old man said, indicating the ground. Dead Wookies littered the forest floor, freshly slain.
"Put your weapons away," Vincent ordered remembering what the Wookie, whom he learned was named Grrrwahrr, had said about the Mandalorians. Sure enough, a group of three Mandalorians, clad in telltale blue armor, appeared fully armed and ready for combat. Though menacing in appearance, the Mandalorians were not as deadly as they seemed. The three Jedi had no problem defeating them and the other groups they encountered. In their explorations, the group came across three swoop bikes that showed signs of recent use. Using one of the data pads he had picked up off a Mandalorian corpse, Vincent deactivated the stealth field generator that served as the cloaking device for the Mandalorians. As soon as he did so, yet another group of invisible warriors appeared out of thin air.
"You are interrupting our hunt, interloper. The inhabitants of this planet have given us little challenge, but perhaps you will be a more worthy foe," a Mandalorian in red armor spoke.
"I'll be the last foe you ever see," Vincent growled, lighting his violet blade. The simultaneous hiss of two other lightsabers let him know his friends were behind him for the fight that lay ahead. One of the warriors threw a flash grenade, momentarily blinding Vincent. The fool Mandalorian thought he could attack him head on while he was still sightless, and this notion proved to be the recruit's death. Though Vincent couldn't see, he could still feel the Mandalorian's movements through the Force, and he easily parried the first strike from his enemy's vibroblade. Force pushing his opponent backwards, he turned to the leader of the group. Stunning him, Vincent let Bastila take care of the rest. Jolee was already hassling the other Mandalorian, and the idiot that Vincent had sent flying into a tree was just picking himself up off the ground. He threw his lightsaber at the man, killing him before he got to his feet. Calling his weapon back, Vincent turned and ran toward the Mandalorian in red armor that still wasn't dead yet, despite the fact that Bastila had been hacking him mercilessly. Jumping, he flipped in mid-air and brought his lightsaber down with all of his strength on the Mandalorian's left shoulder, slicing diagonally as he landed. He needed proof that he had killed the leader of the Mandalorians, and he planned on using the red one's helmet to show Grrrwahrr that he had indeed complied with the Wookie's request. Slumping to ground, Vincent rubbed his eyes. He was exhausted, and he knew he needed rest soon, or else he was going to make a fatal mistake. Hauled to his feet by Jolee, Vincent shook his head in an effort to chase away his fatigue.
"Don't fade on me now. You're young, and you can take more of a beating than I can, so don't be faking tiredness. Besides, I saw Freyyr on the way here. You need to find him, right?"
"Take us to him please," Bastila said earnestly. Vincent would have agreed, but he had lost the capability to speak. An odd vision was playing itself out before his eyes.
