Chapter 4 The Chyrax
"I should come with you, Master." Zak said.
"I don't think so, Padawan." Obi-Wan replied.
"Well I do; I know where to go." Zak argued.
Obi-Wan looked at him; his desire to protect his apprentice conflicted with his need to train him. He sighed, "Right you are, Zak; but we must be very careful and very quick." He answered.
"Understood, Master." Zak assured him.
"Then I should go too; I know that place better than anyone." Boba protested.
Obi-Wan rolled his eyes and sighed again, "Why is that I am suddenly being dictated to by two young boys?" He asked.
"You must admit, he does have a point, Master Kenobi." Bail interjected.
Obi-Wan shook his head, "Very well, but I am doing this against my better judgment." He conceded with yet another sigh.
Half an hour later, they had reached the spot where they had first heard the shots. Obi-Wan reached out through the Force to determine if anyone was within shooting range. Whoever the shooter had been, he was long gone; Obi-Wan could detect no presence nearby, "Well, it appears that whoever was shooting at you is gone now. Why don't we fan out and see if we can find any more of those slugs." He suggested.
"Master Kenobi, is it possible that this person wasn't really shooting at anyone?" Boba wondered.
"Yes, it is entirely possible; but it does not make him…or her any less dangerous." Obi-Wan answered.
They searched for a few minutes, finding nothing until Zak came across the remains of a mid-sized furry animal with a short mane along its neck, a long furry muzzle and cloven hooves.
"Master; I have something over here." He announced.
Obi-Wan and Boba both quickly joined him; Obi-Wan knelt down next to the creature, "It's a chyrax." Boba informed them, "But its rack is missing."
"A chyrax?" Zak questioned.
"Yeah, they're native to the mountains here; but they are protected by law." Boba explained.
"Well, someone must have forgotten that." Obi-Wan said as he examined the animal, "Here, this was the reason for the shooting." He pulled back a section of the mane near the head to reveal a small hole.
"But why would someone want to do that?" Zak asked.
"Just for sport; they take the racks as trophies." Boba answered.
"But why use a slug thrower instead of a blaster?" Zak asked.
"If that's like the others, it couldn't have been one of those slug thrower things." Boba countered.
"Why not?" Zak asked.
"Wouldn't they have found those slug things in them?" Boba asked.
"They should have; but this wound is and the cracking noises you heard are consistent with a slug thrower. Maybe this one is different than the others." Obi-Wan speculated.
"I don't think so; it looks the same to me." Boba disagreed.
"Boba, how do you know all this?" Obi-Wan asked.
"The Chancellor told me, he loves these animals; this is not going to make him happy. This is the fourth one this month." Boba explained.
"Well, I'll carry it back down so that the Chancellor can see it. Then he can decide what to do about it; and tomorrow, we'll go up higher and see if there are any signs of whoever is responsible for this." Obi-Wan said, putting his hands under the beast, lifting it up and placing it on his shoulders.
"Just don't let Gemma see it." Boba warned.
"No, I do not think that would be a very good idea." Obi-Wan replied.
They hiked back down; Obi-Wan took the animal from his shoulders and wrapped his cloak around it. When they reached the house, Obi-Wan and Zak waited outside and sent Boba in to tell the Chancellor.
"Damn, not another one." Bail said as he looked down at the chyrax lying on Obi-Wan cloak. "Boba said it had the same…yes, I see; it is exactly the same as the others."
"I believe it was the slug thrower." Obi-Wan replied.
"No, not if it is like the others; we found no little pieces of metal." Bail answered, "I have had each animal necropsied and none of them had those slugs in them."
"Maybe someone removed them." Zak surmised.
"Yes, that would make sense." Obi-Wan concurred.
"Why; why would they….oh, they didn't want anyone to know what they were using." Boba realized.
"Exactly." Obi-Wan confirmed.
Bail shook his head sadly, "I suppose using a primitive weapon was more of a challenge. I can never understand the mindset of someone who would want to destroy one of these beautiful animals." He said.
"Well, as long as we are here; Zak and I will get to the bottom of this." Obi-Wan assured him.
"I cannot ask you to do that, Master Kenobi; it is much too dangerous." Bail replied.
"You are not asking us and we are willing to take the risk to find this person. The threat is not only to the chyrax, but to anyone who happens to be near him while he is hunting; he could have shot Boba." Obi-Wan countered, "Taking risks is part of being a Jedi."
"You are right of course; I have sent to Coruscant for a special task force of Clones, they should be here tomorrow." Bail admitted with a sigh and nod of his head.
"Alright; and until they get here, Zak and I will climb up to the higher reaches to see if we can find out anything else." Obi-Wan replied.
"Then take me; I know the Heights better than anyone. I can guide you." Boba offered.
Obi-Wan shook his head; before he could answer, however, the Chancellor interrupted, "Boba is right, Master Kenobi. He has spent many hours climbing around up there."
"Alright; we do need a guide, and I am sure that Boba is capable of taking care of himself. We will leave at first light." Obi-Wan decided.
"I will have one of my men take care of this; I do not want Breha or Gemma to see it. I will see that your cloak is cleaned as well." Bail said.
"Thank you; I will not need it tomorrow if we are going higher, I have other clothing for that." Obi-Wan replied.
Bail bent down and touched the mane of the chyrax, "Please find out who is doing this." He said and then straightened up.
When they entered the house, Breha was waiting in the entrance hall, "They found another one." She stated.
"Yes, Breha; just like the others." Bail told her.
She shook her head, "I will never understand why anyone would want to kill one of them; you will find out who is doing this, won't you, Master Kenobi?" Breha asked.
Obi-Wan nodded, "Zak and I are going up to the Heights tomorrow; maybe we can find some clue up there to lead us to this poacher." He answered.
"Somebody kilt another pretty 'rax." Gemma said as she came from the back of the house.
"Who told you that, sweetheart?" Bail asked.
"I seen it." Gemma replied. "Master Kenobi wuz carryin' it."
"I'm sorry, Gemma; I did not want you to see it." Obi-Wan told her.
"Yeah, I know; it's why you had it all wrapped up, but I seen it anyway." Gemma replied. "You catch the bad man that kilt it; won'tcha Master Kenobi?"
"Yes, I promise, we will, Gemma." Obi-Wan vowed. "I am beginning to think there may be more than one person involved here."
"Why do you say that?" Bail asked.
"Well, Boba said he thought maybe the chyrax were killed for sport and their racks taken for trophies; I would think that once you have gotten that trophy, there would be no need to collect another one." Obi-Wan speculated.
"But the killings are all the same; that would mean they all have these slug throwers." Bail objected.
"Not necessarily; what if someone is providing a hunting service?" Obi-Wan replied.
"A hunting service? You mean providing the weapon and leading a client to the kill? That is obscene." Bail exclaimed.
"Yes, I agree; but it would explain why so many chyrax have been killed in the same manner. I believe that some fellow is making himself a tidy living by guiding rich clients to the chyrax and then providing them with a primitive weapon to make the kill more challenging." Obi-Wan explained further.
"That would make this person very dangerous; be careful tomorrow." Bail warned and then turned to Boba, "I mean you, Boba."
"What? Me? I'm always careful." Boba proclaimed.
"I mean it, son; I do not want you to be killed." Bail told him.
"Oh for…I'm not going to get myself killed." Boba assured him. "I'm not stupid, you know."
"No, but you can be reckless." Bail said.
"Well, I promise, I won't get reckless tomorrow." Boba replied.
"Good, I will hold you to that promise." Bail answered.
The rest of the afternoon was spent planning for the trek up to the Heights the next day. When dinnertime came, the conversation continued and only concluded when it was time to go to bed. They all slept fitfully and rose just before dawn.
Zak dressed in his warmer trousers and boots and carried his outer garments downstairs. Obi-Wan was already dressed and was speaking quietly with Bail when he entered the dining room; he turned to Zak, "Are you all ready, Padawan?" He asked.
"Yes, Master, as ready as I'll ever be." Zak answered.
"Well, as soon as we have eaten, we will be off." Obi-Wan told him.
"I'm ready to go." Zak assured him.