The Gift
AN – Thank you everyone for the feedback on the last chapter. Some people asked me some very detailed questions – which I'd love to answer but I don't want to give away too many spoilers! As to pairings, there will be a pairing or two but incredibly slow burn (i.e. over the course of the whole trilogy I have planned out) so I'm not going to tag it here as very little will happen in this part of the story! Just be warned – I don't tend to tag pairings until I've written the sections that contain them just in case I change my mind, and also to not give the game away :)
Disclaimer – I don't own Buffy or Star Wars.
Chapter Seven – The Mine
Buffy and Dawn waited by the piles of supplies they had bought at the docks. There was some murmuring around them, a river ferry was late and a large group of fashionable looking men and women were milling around aimlessly as they waited for its arrival. Buffy was listening to their inane conversation and trying not to roll her eyes too obviously.
"I can't believe we have to wait on the docks like this, it's so uncivilised."
"Maybe we should file a complaint with the ferry company. We've been waiting for half an hour now, surrounded by all these tradespeople with their goods."
The man who had made this statement looked sideways at Buffy, who tried not to bristle at the implication she was any less important that he was. Luckily, Dawn was distracted by watching the movements of the boats around the docks and along the river and so hadn't heard him.
The woman next to the rude man sniffed loudly. "What some people wear nowadays, I don't know. Must be off-worlders."
Buffy looked down at the pale green dress she had put back on for returning to the city, thinking that there was nothing wrong with it. She looked back up again at the woman's startled shriek.
"Oh! Oh! It's one of those gungan things!"
Buffy brightened as she looked out into the river to see the heyblibber surfacing. It glided towards the docks, looking predatorial and elegant compared to the more conventional barges the Naboo favoured.
"Isn't it great," Buffy said conversationally, smiling at the pair. "Hey Dawn, our ride's here!"
As the heyblibber docked and Captain Tarpals leapt fluidly out of it he was accosted with an armful of teenager as Dawn engulfed him in a hug.
"Hi Roos," Buffy added with a smile. "Want to lend a hand?" She gestured behind her to the crates of supplies. Captain Tarpals shook his head with a smile.
"Yousa got it all? Big Boss be well pleased."
"Yep!" Dawn told him happily. "Plus we managed to get a wardrobe sorted out. Those are in the paper bags, if we damage those Buffy won't be happy." She said the last words conspiratorially, caused Captain Tarpals to chuckle.
"Mesa be very careful." He promised her solemnly, before picking up one of the large crates. Buffy shouldered another by herself while Dawn hovered around. Even the seasoned workers on the quayside stopped what they were doing and stared at the petite blonde lifting a heavy crate with ease and slinging it into the submersible. Between the muscular frame of the gungan and the strength of the slayer it did not take long to get all the supplies loaded into the heyblibber.
As Buffy slipped into the seat beside Captain Tarpals she turned to him. "Do we have time for a side trip on the way home?"
The captain looked confused. "Where yousa want to go?"
"We met a seer," Buffy started, holding up her hand when Captain Tarpals was about to argue. "She knew I was the Slayer without me saying anything, she was genuine. But she said that there was something for us at this location." Dawn passed the chart forwards to Buffy who handed it on to Tarpals. "I think we should go and check it out."
Captain Tarpals scrutinised the map. "Is in the mountains." He said finally. "Mesa thinks... perhaps a cave? Is in da Gungan lands but tis a dangerous part of the mountains, der have been rumours dat gungans have been going missing der and now wesa not been going."
Buffy frowned. "Sounds like it's somewhere I should be checking out anyway."
Captain Tarpals considered, tilting his head from one side to the other. "Okie doke den. But Dawnee stays in da heyblibber."
Down pouted but didn't argue as it wasn't Buffy dictating it. Buffy nodded emphatically, feeling an odd sense of relief that he'd agreed with her plan. "Ok then, let's go!"
It took about half as long as the journey to Theed to get to the area that Thaila had pointed them to. Buffy used that time to change out of her green dress and into her gungan clothes, strapping an electropole securely on her back. The heyblibber was often used to carry troops and contained spare weaponry just in case.
When they surfaced, it was into a small pool at the base of a waterfall. Or at least, that was what Captain Tarpals said it would be as he guided them in. The pool was there but the waterfall was not, just a towering stack of worn rocks that showed where it used to be.
"It's odd." The captain said, frowning as he looked around the small valley. "It's not da dry season, dere should be water here." The whole area looked desolate and barren, with the exception of the edges of the pool the heyblibber was currently floating in.
"Let's add it to the list of mysteries." Buffy said as she jumped onto the shore. "Now Dawn, we've got communicators. Stay here and try not to break anything while we're gone!"
Dawn rolled her eyes. "Seriously, I'm like fourteen now. I can look after myself."
Buffy continued as though she hadn't heard her. "There are snacks and water in the rear compartment and if we are too long you can raid the supplies we bought from the Naboo."
"How long will you be?" Dawn asked a little nervously.
"We'll be back by nightfall." Buffy told her reassuringly. "I just want a quick look around, that's all. Are you gonna be ok?"
"Yeah, I will be." Dawn nodded resolutely. "See you when you get back."
It was strange, Buffy reflected as she started to follow Captain Tarpals up the rocky slopes away from the pool, but she didn't feel at all concerned about leaving Dawn alone for the day in the heyblibber here. At home she would have insisted on finding someone to babysit. But on Naboo Buffy just wasn't as concerned – maybe it was the lack of demon activity, or maybe it was the fact that over the last couple of months she and Dawn had grown closer and she understood her younger sister better.
Captain Tarpals stopped suddenly up ahead of her, bringing Buffy's thoughts straight back to the present. He was frowning and looking around in concern.
"What's wrong?" She asked.
"Mesa doesn't know," he replied. "But it's not right."
Buffy closed her eyes and sent her senses out, something Giles had insisted she start practicing. She couldn't feel anything wrong in particular, although she thought it was too quiet. But then…
"It's this way." She said firmly, pointing to their right along a small track that looked as though it had been made by some form of animal. "I can feel it… it's calling to me."
"What is?" Tarpals asked, confused.
"The thing we're looking for. The weapon, or whatever it is. It's this way."
She strode confidently down the track, moving as silently as only the slayer could whilst covering ground quickly. Tarpals followed her, his long legs easily keeping up even though he was much noisier about it. She covered some distance, probably about a mile in Earth terms, before ducking into a crevice. The captain followed, making an almost imperceptible mark on the rock as he did so.
Buffy followed her gut, unerringly leading down the crack in the rock that she'd found. For a while they used the light that filtered in from the opening, but that didn't stretch far and Captain Tarpals had to find a strange torch thing from that he carried to light their way. They carried on for some time, before a flicker of light ahead of them caused them both to slow down.
Tarpals turned off his light and they both crept forwards, soon realising that the small tunnel they were in opened into a bigger cavern. Looking down, Buffy gasped and then pressed herself to the floor.
There were people there. Human people. The cavern, which must have once been reasonably large in its own right, had been expanded into a huge space. Wooden and metal props held up the ceiling in places. Orange lights hung on electrical cables looped their way through the space, haphazardly casting areas of lights and shade. Down at the very bottom, water tumbled into the cavern from a stream, the noise of the waterfall echoing loudly. At the far end a large machine whirred whilst bellowing out clouds of steam. Luckily the noise from the waterfall and the machine combined was so loud that Buffy and Tarpals hadn't been heard.
A wooden platform ran a couple of metres underneath the exit of their tunnel, hugging the wall of the cavern. On this walkway two humans were approaching – men, by their height and build. They were talking loudly in basic. Buffy and the Captain pressed even lower, melting into the shadows to listen without being detected.
"It's an impressive set up you've got here. But it's no good if you can't ship the goods out."
"Who says I can't?" The second man asked, humour in his voice.
"Queen Sanandrassa, for one."
"Well what she doesn't know won't hurt her. She'd never approve of this anyway, Naboo is for the Naboo and all. Nowhere for an honest outsider to make a living." He spoke in a plaintive tone, but with a hard edge underneath.
"And the less honest ones?"
"Know that Sanandrassa's policies have made her unpopular and she'll never be re-elected. The Senator wields all the power here, he'll make sure the next Queen is sympathetic to our cause."
"Rumour has it that he favours Amidala." The first man stopped underneath their hidden tunnel entrance. Buffy quietened her breath as much as she possibly could. She had to hand it to Captain Tarpals, if she couldn't feel him behind her she wouldn't know he was there.
"Young and innocent. Just like the Senator likes them." Buffy could see his face now in the orange light, the man was leering grotesquely. Buffy suppressed a shudder, the knowledge that Amidala was Dawn's age sent a surge of anger through her.
"Idealistic."
"But malleable. Easily swayed, especially if they believe it's in the good of the people."
"And if she turned out to be a Gungan sympathiser?"
The man shrugged and started to walk away. "Then we carry on as we are in secret. No one cares about those overgrown frogs anyway. The entrance to this whole complex is on the Naboo side of the border. No one knows we mine under Gungan land and we make sure it stays that way. Particularly if any gungans get too close. After all, the men need some form of entertainment to keep them settled."
"Like I said," the first man stated as they started to make their way down steps at the end of the wooden walkway. "It's an impressive setup."
Their footsteps faded away and Buffy leant back into the tunnel to calm herself. Her hands were clenched so tight that her fingernails had dug into her palms and caused them to bleed. Captain Tarpals looked furious, his whiskers quivering in suppressed anger.
"I guess we know why the stream dried up." Buffy whispered to him. "They must have diverted it here to power their mining operation."
"And why da gungans gone missing." The captain said, his words laced with venom. "Dey say 'we make sure it stay secret', 'dey need entertainment'. No gungan can come home with stories of it. Dey silencing them. Maybe worse."
Buffy's anger surged as she realised just what was going on. "Well, then we definitely have no choice." She fixed Tarpals with a steely glare. "We are bringing this place down." A curt nod showed his agreement. Buffy knew it was a rash decision, she had no idea how many people were in this place but she couldn't just leave them here to capture and silence any more gungans. Speaking of…
"I'll be right back," she whispered, before disappearing back up the tunnel. When she thought she was close enough to the surface, she called Dawn to tell her to submerse the heyblibber and wait underwater. With minimal words she conveyed what they had found, receiving nothing but support from the horrified girl. Dawn quickly agreed to stay put and stay hidden, so Buffy made her way back to Captain Tarpals quickly.
"What's the plan?" She whispered when she was back. Captain Tarpals nodded towards the machine.
"Mesa think dat make da big boom."
"You mean, we sabotage it to get it to explode? Can you do that?"
He shrugged. "Probably."
Buffy nodded, thinking. "Ok, but first we need to find whatever we came for, and find out if there are any gungans here at the moment too. We may be wrong…" Tarpals's snort showed how unlikely he found that scenario and Buffy couldn't help but agree.
She moved to the edge of the tunnel and scanned to see if there was anyone there. On finding the wooden walkway deserted, she dropped down onto it gracefully. She trusted that the Captain would follow as she crept along the edge of the cavern following the walkway, keeping a close eye on the men she could see on the other side to make sure they hadn't noticed her. Luckily, the cavern was huge and they were too far away to see the human girl and the gungan slinking along close to the wall.
Eventually they reached the end of the walkway, which led into another tunnel. Buffy led the way down it, still illuminated by the strings of lights casting an orange glow. There were several twists and turns but it still kept going down. Every now and then they passed wooden gantries and signs of mining. It seemed very crude, there was little technology but just simple picks and carts for the load.
"Illegal mining." Tarpals hissed in explanation. "If dey used da machinery, it would be noticeable. Someone on da surface would detect it. Dey have to do it by hand."
Buffy nodded to show see understood. They reached an intersection, one path leading to the left that was illuminated by the lights and one that ran straight ahead. At the end of the left path there looked to be some form of gate, Buffy was about to go and investigate when she felt a pull towards the other path. It sloped down steeply into darkness. The scrapings seemed fresher here, as though it had only been carved recently.
Before she even realised she had moved, she was staring at the pathway and trying to penetrate the gloom in front of her.
"Yousa want to go down dere?" Captain Tarpals asked, confusion evident.
"Yes," Buffy breathed. "There's something down there… can't you feel it?"
The captain pulled out his torch thing. It didn't really look like a torch, it seemed to use the strange plasma she had seen occasionally in the gungan weaponry to cast a form of light around. But it worked and Buffy was thankful to see it now.
He gestured down the path and started walking down it, using his torch to light the way. The tunnel was narrow and low, Tarpals had to duck routinely although Buffy managed due to her short stature. They descended further and further under the mountains, following the crudely excavated tunnel. Several times one of them kicked some stones loose that rattled loudly as they rolled away in front of them down the tunnel, but they couldn't wait around to see if the echoing sound alerted anyone to their presence. They had to keep moving forwards.
Buffy could feel the pull getting stronger and stronger. She wouldn't have been able to explain it, but she couldn't turn back now. Not when she was so close.
Eventually the tunnel widened into an area where some wooden supports had been hastily built. It was still low but high enough that Captain Tarpals could finally stand up tall, even though it put the top of his eyes very close to the ceiling. It wasn't a large cavern, only about six metres across, and it was a complete dead end. A single orange bulb spluttered on the roof, casting a flickering glow.
All of this Buffy saw and noted, but only one thing drew her eye was glinting in the rock at the far end of the cavern. Something that shone blood red in the light of the torch.
Slowly she approached it, until she was able to reach forwards to touch it. Her hand hovered a hair's breadth above it, tracing the outline of the shape and feeling the power rolling off it. From what she could see, it was a form of axe. Its blade was buried into the rock but what was visible was a bright red. The handle was sturdy with padded grips, ending in a sharp wooden stake. If Buffy hadn't already been able to feel that this was a weapon for the Slayer, that fact alone would have been enough to confirm it. Without vampires, there was no reason for a weapon on Naboo to be adorned with a wooden stake.
She reached forwards and grasped the handle, pulling it out of the stone with a smooth draw. She gasped at the feel of it – it felt just so right. Thaila had been correct, this weapon was hers and no one else's. She'd never felt anything like it, the balance was perfect and it was sized as though made for her.
"Dis what yousa been looking for?" Captain Tarpals asked, looking closely at it.
"Yes… I don't know how to explain it, but this is mine." Buffy frowned down at it. "I guess I am meant to be here after all, otherwise why would this be here?"
"Maybe is true." The gungan nodded at the entrance. "Yousa ready to go back up?"
"Yes, this is what I needed to come down here for."
Captain Tarpals led the way back up the tunnel, both of them unable to move silently on the uneven surface. Unfortunately, they were making so much noise on the loose stones that they didn't hear someone else approach, until they rounded a corner to find a man – one of the two they had been eavesdropping on earlier – holding a torch and a gun pointing straight at them. His face lit up in a dark grin when he saw the small girl and the gungan in the tunnel ahead of him.
"Well now, what do we have here?"
