Jedi Apprentice – Skywalker's Rescue

Chapter 6

Anakin jolted awake when the display on the back of the seat in front of him buzzed. He was out of credits. He jumped to his feet to get a better view out the windows. What he could glimpse of the cityscape, between the dark tunnels and flashing holo signs, was completely unfamiliar. It definitely did not look like the spaceport. Anakin cursed in Huttese under his breath.

"Watch it!" someone pushed past, nearly knocking Anakin off his feet. Anakin glanced around, only to spot the back of a short Togruta disappear into the crowd gathering at the exit.

Anakin sat down again and reached under his seat for his backpack, but couldn't reach it. Feeling a little foolish, Anakin got on his knees and looked under the seat. Nothing.

In an instant Anakin knew what had happened. How could he let his guard slip like that? Through the window, he caught a glimpse of orange skin and a sharp toothed smirk. Anakin took off at a run, weaving in between people. He stepped onto the platform a second before the door closed.

Anakin made it out of the transit station in time to see the Togruta with Anakin's backpack slung over his shoulder disappear around a corner. He sprinted down the walkway, dodging around people and droids.

"Stop!" Anakin yelled, "Thief!"

A few people glanced around in alarm but nobody moved to help. Without looking back, the Togruta broke into a run. Anakin ran after him, his heart pounding in his chest, and kept running block after block. He didn't notice as the crowds on the walkways thinned out and more lights were broken than working, casting longer shadows between buildings.

Anakin skidded to a stop next to a broken down speeder. The thief was nowhere in sight. This couldn't be happening. Stop. Think. Anakin took a moment to catch his breath then retraced his path and ducked down a narrow alley, keeping his steps quiet.

Sure enough, there was the Togruta hiding out of sight of the street beside a large trash bin that, from the smell, hadn't been emptied in weeks. He was bent over with his hands on his knees trying to catch his breath. Now that he saw his face up close, Anakin thought the thief looked like he was close to Anakin's age, despite being a good bit taller.

"That's mine!" Anakin said, eyes narrowed.

The boy jumped but quickly recovered his surprise. "Who are you?" he asked, with a noticeable Core accent.

"I'm a Jedi! And that belongs to me!" Anakin pointed at his backpack.

"Ha! That's a good one," the boy laughed, "There's no way you're a Jedi!"

"Yes, I am! I'm a Jedi Padawan, and you're going to regret – "

The boy cut him off. "If you're a Jedi, then where is your lightsaber?" he asked, one eyebrow raised.

Anakin's hand went to his belt, where his training saber would be if it hadn't been confiscated.

"That's what I thought." The boy sneered, standing up to show his full height. But Anakin wasn't intimidated. He was used to being smaller. He was used to being underestimated.

"I said, that's mine. Now give it back!" Anakin shifted so he was blocking the only exit to the alley.

The boy lunged forward, almost before Anakin had finished talking, and slammed his hands hard into Anakin's chest. Anakin's feet flew out from under him and he landed on his back, the impact pushing all the air out of his lungs in one big, painful rush. He saw black for a second and then he was gasping, clutching his ribs, which were already badly bruised from the day before.

When Anakin could breathe again, he turned his head to see the boy rummaging through his backpack. He pulled out Anakin's spare clothes, looked at them in disgust, and dropped them onto the ground. His brown cloak fell into a puddle.

He'd first worn that cloak on the day that Obi-Wan cut his hair short, leaving only a thin section that he'd carefully braided, tying the end with a little piece of string. Then Obi-Wan had straightened the collar of his tunic and stepped back to look at him, a proud smile on his face.

Anakin squeezed his eyes shut, forcing the memory away. When he focused again, the boy was holding the mechanical device that he'd constructed. He turned it this way and that, frowning. He noticed Anakin watching him.

"What is this anyway?" he asked. The casual attitude, like Anakin was less threatening than a womp rat, hurt almost more than his sore ribs.

"None of your business, that's what," Anakin said through gritted teeth. He managed to sit up.

The boy pulled out Anakin's datapad and the spare ration bars, which disappeared into his pockets in the blink of an eye, and then he was shaking the backpack out upside down.

"Don't you have any credits?!" he demanded. He came over and patted Anakin's pockets. He was back out of reach before Anakin could protest. "All you have is an empty Transit Pass? That's it?!"

"Sorry to disappoint you," Anakin spat out. He'd had enough of this. Gathering his strength, he pushed himself to his feet.

But the boy didn't bother to notice. He was rubbing his face in exasperation. "How is this my life? The boss is going to kill me!"

Anakin paused. "What do you mean, your boss?"

The boy shot him a glare. "Do you think I do this for fun?"

"Whatever. I don't care. I just want my stuff back," Anakin took a step towards the boy at the same time that a door on the other side of the alley opened.

Three men stepped into the shadows, surrounding them. One of them clamped a hand tight onto Anakin's shoulder, keeping him in place.

"Koa. You're late," boomed the voice of the biggest man, "You better have something good this time."

"Of course, Boss!" the boy, Koa, said with what even Anakin could tell was false bravado. He passed Anakin's things to the man.

So that's why he wasn't scared of getting away from me, Anakin realized. The alley wasn't a convenient hiding spot. It was a thief's lair.

"What's this supposed to be? A kid's science project?" Boss snorted in contempt. He dropped the device on the ground and, making sure that Anakin was watching him, brought the heel of his boot down on it, shattering the fragile pieces into a ruined mess.

"This datapad is brand new! It's the latest model too!" Koa pleaded, "That has to be worth something!"

One of the men tapped on the datapad and muttered, "Republic encryption. Useless." He tossed it into the trash heap.

"Koa. I've given you too many extensions. And you have nothing to show me," Boss was saying, and Koa was pleading while the man with the steel grip on Anakin's shoulder laughed and said, "Boss, I've been telling you for weeks to stop wasting time with that one. Better to send him to the spice mines! And this one too."

Anakin wasn't listening. He'd failed as a Jedi. Even if he'd stayed, the Council was about to confirm it and kick him out. He'd failed to save his mom. He couldn't even make it to the space port.

Anakin balled his fist and slammed his elbow back as hard as he could into the man's gut. The man grunted in surprise and his grip loosened enough that Anakin could wrench his shoulder free. He turned around and, taking a deep breath, feeling the Force rush into him, the pain in his chest burning but not slowing him down, he slammed both hands into the man.

The man flew backwards, slammed into the alley wall and fell into a crumpled heap. There were startled exclamations from the others, but Anakin didn't wait around. He spun on his heel and took off. He was a step away from the alley entrance when he heard a sharp crack and then, for one heart wrenching second, the world was frozen in a shimmery, sparking blue before a heavy blackness closed in.

…..

TBC!

Preview: Will Anakin be shipped off to the spice mines? Or will he be rescued?