I have not traveled to many places in this life so far. Only four planets to date, a statement that would have been double the number of celestial bodies anyone in my last life had achieved, yet is nothing worth bragging about in my current one. Of them, Ryloth is the ugliest one from space. Large swaths a garish orange brown color with only thin streaks of green near the equator and what I assumed were oceans could be identified from the inky blackness that covered the rest of the planet.

In contrast, Ilum, while horribly cold in the surface, was a lovely swirl of light blues and white and even some minty greens. Zeltros was garish and loud with pinks and yellows and reminded me a lot of American tourists in a way that I found oddly enjoyable. Even Coruscant with its surface covered entirely in buildings was more aesthetically pleasing with its lights and lines even when entirely shades of gray.

Thankfully, the planned casino and resort were not going to be orbiting the planet, so it was only the local area that needed to be nice to look at. The proposed site bordering the forests that made up the green streaks would work nicely.

Being close to the planet capital or a major city would be more convenient to use pre-existing infrastructure, but the structure of the planet's surface made that a difficult proposition. Most of the land was cragged with cliffs, rock islands surround by canyons, and generally difficult surfaces to build on and into. All the cities were already as built out as they could be and buying the land rights in those cities would be more expensive then just buying a strip of land elsewhere on the planet and building a new city.

As the old saying goes, build it and they will come.

The influx of construction jobs should help the economy of Ryloth as well by injecting cash into the hands of irresponsible young men that will likely spend their earnings nearly as fast as they earn it. Hopefully a few will actually be responsible enough to save and invest their funds, but their financial responsibility is not my concern. My concern is giving them the opportunity to be financially responsible.

Despite the space view not being pleasant, the descent to the surface developed into a much better view. The crags and broken surface gave the planet a nice textured look as we got close to the surface.

Landing at the site, we saw that a few other parties had arrived already. Wishing them well, Anakin and Knight Kenobi left the planet to do their mission. Already here was the Viceroy of the Trade Federation and a mid level representative of the Techno Union. Both had a number of droids setting up the meeting area as we waited for the local guides and leaders to discuss the site and give a tour of the area.

—-

Anakin stared at Tatooine as he flew the ship towards the northern pole where Mos Eisley sat. Anakin thought the planet disgusting to look at. Empty, brown, and full of memories he would rather not think of. The only thing on Tatooine Anakin cared about was his mother, everything else could fall into a black hole for all he was concerned.

Leaving the ship in the desert, Anakin and Obi-Wan took the speeder with the spare parts in the storage compartment into the city. The winding, crowded streets made the travel slow to the junk shop Watto owned. The pair of Jedi easily ignoring the looks they were getting for driving a very clean, very shiny, obviously new speeder through the town.

Watto was sitting outside his shop, an old life support catalytic converter in hand as he worked on getting it back to operational condition. Anakin's hands tightened on the steering controls at seeing his old master before taking a deep breath, the comforting weight of his current master's hand on his shoulder helping ease the tension.

Walking over to Watto, Anakin gave a greeting in Huttese.

"What can I help you with?" The old blue bug asked, not looking up from his work.

"We were looking to discuss a slave of yours. A Shmi Skywalker," Anakin said, keeping his voice as neutral as he could.

"You're too late sold her a couple of months ago to a moisture farmer." Watto dismissed the issue with a wave of his hand.

"You sold my mother?"

Watto's head jerked up and looked at the person he had been talking to. "Ani? Little Ani? It is you!" Watto jumped into the air, his wings buzzing as a fond smile crossed his patchily bearded face.

"My mother?"

Watto nodded, the smile not leaving his face as he began directing Anakin inside, allowing Kenobi to follow. "Of course. Let's go take a look at my records and we can direct you to the farm she is at. How have you been?"

—-

The gathering of investors, contractors, local officials, and the local guide took a few hours with only the guide arriving to the meeting site on foot. The guide was a well muscled green skinned Twi'lek with scars visible and a large blaster rifle slung over his shoulder.

Staring everyone down, he climbed up onto a large rock. "Alright, is this everyone? Good. Listen up you pansy lot of soft skinned moneybags, I am Ral'zihi and I am in charge of your safety so if I tell you to do something I don't want any arguments. There are a lot of nasty creatures and more than a few poisonous plants in the area. If you all follow my instructions then we will all be able to get back here in one piece. Any questions?"

"Yes. If it is so dangerous here, why are we looking at this site? Why not somewhere safer?" Nute Gunray asked, his head held high.

"I can answer that," one of the local officials said. A bored looking male Twi'lek with blue skin. "This site was chosen for several reasons, chief of which is that no one owns this land. There are no locals to kick off, no legal hoops to jump through, just a large purchase of land straight from the planetary government. Also, these dangerous creatures and poisonous plants are, for the most part, invasive species. There were several crashed ships long ago that left the initial specimens here who proceeded to breed, evolve, and take over the local ecosystems. Removal of such will actually provide a service to the local environment, allowing the local fauna to return to prominence. In other words, there are no limitations on construction or environmental concerns. This site is a blank slate with minimal regulations to get in the way of the project."

"Any other questions?" Ral'ziti asked giving everyone a moment to speak up. "Alright. Leave the droids and follow me."

Several of the off world businessmen balked at the suggestion of leaving the battle drops behind with Nute Gunray being the one to voice the complaint. "Leave the droids? If it is so dangerous why would we leave our droids here?"

"Droids are loud and will attract the predators and the bigger our group, the more likely we will be ambushed. Our group is large enough to keep the mostly solitary gutkurrs away, but the lyleks are swarm hunters and would love to jump onto a large group. We need to keep to as small a party as possible."

"Again, why are we going with such a dangerous site?" Nute's voice came out as a whine, his eyes darting to the tree line, looking for the threats.

The blue skinned local official smirked and stared down the various businessmen. "Well, if you are so concerned about safety, our local forces could use a donation of weapons to take care of our pest problems."

—-

The ride out to the Lars Homestead was fairly short, the moisture farm being a mere four hour drive from the closest major city of Mos Eisley with a number of other farms passed on the way.

Arriving to the farm, a young man carrying a tool box could be seen stopping in his trek back to the house in the center of the homestead. Pulling up to the young man, Obi-Wan gave a calming smile.

"Excuse me, we were wondering if you could tell us where Cliegg Lars is."

"What do you want with my father?" The young man asked, looking the pair and their air speeder over carefully.

"We heard he recently bought a slave. A Shmi Skywalker. We just wanted to check how she is doing."

"Ok, but if you are here to buy her, you are going to be disappointed," The young man said as he lead the pair is Jedi towards his house.

"Why is that?" Anakin asked as he got out of the speeder to follow.

"She isn't for sale. Dad freed her already and the wedding is tomorrow."

"My mother is free?"

"Mother?" The young man stopped at the door and looked at Anakin. "Are you Anakin?"

"Yes."

"Shmi has said good things about you. Well, I guess after tomorrow we will be step-brothers. The name is Owen." Owen put his hand out for Anakin to shake, a natural smile on his lips.

Anakin smiles as well as the tension left his body as he realized his mother was safe. "I suppose we will be. Nice to meet you."

Owen opened the door and called out. "We got guests."

"Who are they?" A gruff voice called from further in the home.

"Shmi's son and, I'm sorry I never asked who you are?" Owen directed his attention to Obi-Wan.

"I am Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin's Master."

Owen's eyes narrowed slightly at Kenobi.

"And a Jedi Kenobi," Owen said as Shmi came around a corner, followed closely by Cliegg.

"Oh Ani," the gentle woman's lit face up as she threw her arms around the child she had not been able to see in years. The child she had to give up for him to have a chance at a good life.

"Mom." Tears flowed gently down Anakin's cheeks as he returned the hug. "I am so happy."

"What are you doing here Ani?" The mother asked, gently rocking her son as the pair enjoyed the moment, everyone else letting the moment play out.

"We came to free you. We got the Order to agree to free you and we came. Watto said he sold you and I was worried what was happening to you, but here you are. Free."

"Yes. I'm free. We are both free."

After a quiet moment, a soft cough drew everyone's attention to the weathered face of Cliegg. "So, you are Anakin. Your mother has said some good things about you. I hope you aren't too busy to stay for the wedding tomorrow."

Anakin extracted himself and looked to his master.

His master who had a serious expression as he stroked his beard. "We do need to get back to pick up Labooda and Degurechaff," pausing for a moment as the looks of disappointment began to form before a smile cracked on his face, "but they will probably need a day or two to go over the details, so we would be delighted to stay."

—-

Our guide, Ral'ziti, allowed one of the combat droid to join the group to quiet the more safety concerned individuals. Having two Jedi, even if one was only partially trained and was years away from being allowed on any missions with a high chance of combat, an armed and experienced tracker/guide, and a combat droid should be more than enough to handle most threats the group of twenty should stumble across. Even supposedly deadly wildlife.

The hike around the site started off in the wasteland area that butted up to the forest. The plan for this area seemed to center around administrative services, maintenance services, employee housing, and a local spaceport. Generally it was to be used for things outside of guest view besides the spaceport which simply requires a large amount of flat real estate. A direct connection to the resort through a more scenic area that avoided the maintenance areas would help keep the visitors in the proper relaxation mindset where they are more willing to keep their wallets open.

Proving how much I still needed to learn about being a Jedi, Master Labooda asked about the quality of housing that would be provided for the employees. A gentle reminder that Master Labooda and I were here to advocate for employer benefit and not merely maximizing profits. The thrill of seeing a project begin had distracted me from the stated mission and reason for being a part of the project. I would need to make sure I did not forget the role I was to play as a Jedi as a peacekeeping religious figure.

We were informed that the housing, maintenance, and administrative buildings would all be built using prefab construction with standardized materials and layouts. This would enable quick setup and ensure a certain minimum quality level was achieved. The casino, resort, and spaceport would require more custom construction and architecture design to create a unique look that would stand out in the minds of guests. The surrounding town and shopping would likely be built using a combination of the two as new buildings were constructed and filled.

Moving towards the forested area, discussion began of the various sites for the actual casino, the resort, the pool areas, and other amenities. Most species across the galaxy found greenery a relaxing thing to look at and there was apparently a waterfall in the area our guide was directing us towards which began a discussion on the possibility of locating the spa complex in that area to take advantage of the natural sound of falling water among trees.

The hike was slowed down greatly as there was no trail to follow yet and a majority of the group was not in a fit state. I once again promised myself to keep up my daily stretches and exercise to stave off the aches that the more cubicle inclined members of the party were facing. Thankfully, liberal application of the Force enabled Labooda and myself to help get everyone past the fallen logs and other obstacles in the way.

A few members of the group heard the waterfall well before I could, proof of the superior hearing some species possess, but the sound of the water falling and splashing against the cliff face did arrive before the sight even for my comparatively weak hearing.

The image most would have of a waterfall would be incorrect to apply to the waterfall in front of the group. This was not a river rushing over the edge of a cliff and falling hundreds of feet to a lake below. This was more akin to a particularly large stream rolling and frothing down the side of a mostly vertical cliff face to a small river at the base. The cliff had a tree growing in the middle of the waterfall with its roots wrapped around what looked like a large crystal. The guide explained that he did a test on the crystal and it was a large quartz crystal.

While very nice to look at and impressive in size for a naturally produced crystal, there were cheaper, easier methods of producing quartz, even a crystal of that size. The greatest value it could provide was by staying in place while a spa facility was built around it. A lot of talk of using glass flooring over the river and creating a partially indoor space incorporating many of the outdoor features was tossed about.

A lot of talk that was swiftly ended with Ral'ziti drawing his rifle and telling everyone to be quiet.

I couldn't see or hear anything approaching, but Master Labooda pointed towards the trees.

"I sense it over there."

The guide nodded his head and adjusted his aim slightly.

I hadn't sensed anything in the Force. Anakin could describe what a person feels like as if he was describing someone's appearance. Master Labooda could tell what a person was feeling without needing to ask or even look at them. I couldn't even tell someone was there without hearing or seeing them. A frustrating setback that I could not figure out how to overcome. How was it they could just feel people in the Force?

I did feel a ping of danger as a large creature burst out of the brush. A rust colored bug the size of a fully grown man that barely made it half way out of the clearing before a blaster bolt struck it between the the eyes, felling the creature swiftly.

"Droid, by my side. Jedi, flanks. Rest of you lot, backs to the cliff face and call for backup," Ral'ziti ordered, his eyes scanning the dark. Knowing that he was the expert, I took position opposite of Master Labooda, lightsaber drawn, the two of us igniting them at the same time. I kept my purple blade in a low guard as I let my eyes sweep the area in front of me.

"Why are you so concerned? You got the beast," a voice behind me spoke.

"That was a gutkurr. They do not simply charge a group of potential prey from a distance. Too risky and gives their target too much time to flee." Ral'ziti's voice was steady. A calming tone that spoke of experience. "No, he was being chased."

Several shots were fired.

"Droid, fire at the target I fire at."

"Roger roger."

"Jedi, watch out for the tentacles, they got a very painful venom."

Tentacles? What is this, an ecchi cartoon full of school girls? Spotting something green come rushing at the flank I was guarding, I ran forward to engage.

The Force rang out in my mind as I moved. I knew instantly the best way to strike to take out the beast before returning to my starting spot next to the group.

Getting my first good look at the beast, I realized this was definitely no ecchi I definitely did not watch in my previous life even if doing so is perfectly normal and healthy for a man. No, this was a horror movie or a monster film.

"What are these things?" A frightened voice yelled behind me.

"Lyleks. Deadliest beasts on the planet."

I could have done without our guide letting us know we were being attacked by a swarm of the deadliest creatures the local ecosystem could support.

And what a creature it was. Long, skinny, spikes all over its exoskeleton with spindly legs ending in sharp points. The tentacles were a pair of long tendrils covered in small hooked spines. An insectoid monster appropriate to face off against Kamen Rider.

Now that I knew what to look for, I could see them. They were waiting, watching from the brush line. A lot of them. The smallest was still bigger than I was and the biggest would tower over Master Windu.

There are too many.

I can help.

If they keep coming one at a time, I might be able to last a few minutes, but fighting is a very intensive exercise that drains stamina fast.

I can provide you the endurance.

We had at least half an hour before reinforcements arrived.

With my aid you will not require reinforcement.

I could easily escape on my own, but that would condemn everyone else to death.

I can save them.

I would be labeled a coward and never be trusted with anything again.

With me you need never fear.

And all the work put into this project would be for naught.

I can bring it to fruition.

I need to do something.

All you have to do is ask.

"Help me."