30 BBY, Wawaatt Archipielago, Kashyyyk
Becoming a bounty hunter and mercenary after leaving the New Mandalorians, Hamar quickly made a name for himself as a deadly and skilled fighter. That, plus his reputation as one of the best warriors during the Mandalorian Civil War, had even earned him the respect of Jango Fett, who tried to recruit him to train the new clone army on Kamino in secret. Hamar, however, politely refused Jango's offer, stating that his priority was raising his son as a Mandalorian. For almost two years they traveled across the galaxy. Though Mandalorian children usually didn't begin their training until the age of eight, Hamar decided to begin training his son in the traditional Mandalorian warrior ways shortly after they left Belsak. Learning the warrior history of his people and training as one, Karel adapted surprisingly well to his new life. Being a Mandalorian led to Karel understanding death better than most kids his age. This, plus the constant mood swings typical of human children his age, led to him being mostly the same kid as before. Though the nightmares of that fateful day always came back, the bittersweet memories of his family helped him deal with his losses as he trained to become like his father.
"Buir. Why are we here? I thought we would go train with the Wookiees," Karel complained, sweating as they maneuvered through the jungles of Kashyyyk.
"We are, but first we have to show them we're friends," his father answered, unaffected thanks to his armor's environmental control systems.
"And how exactly are we going to do that when we don't even speak the same language as the walking carpets?!" Karel asked, flailing his arms in the air in clear irritation at the environment. His father hadn't given him armor yet.
"I know Shyriiwook. As for how we get them to trust us, we give them a peace offering. Wookiees like to eat a species called mykal; they consider it a delicacy. All we have to do is hunt one and get it to the local chieftain." Hamar paused to turn at his son in anger. "And what did I say about calling them that?"
"Sorry. So how do we catch that mykal thing?" the boy asked, embarrassed by his outburst. Hamar turned back again and kept walking, his son close behind him.
"The mykal attacks its prey by diving from the air. I was going to let you be the one who took it down," Hamar replied. He smirked as he found the perfect punishment for his son's behavior. "But now you're going to be the bait."
"I deserved that," Karel grumbled in frustration.
Arriving at a small clearing, they set a trap for the mykal and waited in silence with Karel acting as bait. Soon enough, a mykal swooped down on the boy. Karel barely had time to get down and avoid the attack, while his father quickly fired his whipcord thrower and caught the creature by the legs. He pulled the beast down and slammed it against a nearby tree, stunning it long enough for him to kill the creature. After securing their hunt, which Hamar ordered Karel to carry, they made their way to the coastal city of Kachirho. They were stopped by a group of five Wookiees that were not very enthusiastic about outsiders desecrating their forests. After a brief and unsuccessful negotiation with the furred beings, the five Wookiees started circling the two of them.
"Uhm, Dad... Are you sure they like this thing?" Karel asked.
"This wasn't part of the plan. Stay behind me!" Hamar ordered as he drew his axe with his right hand and the blade in his left gauntlet sprung forward.
"What's that?" Karel asked, pointing at a white figure soaring through the skies.
Hamar and the Wookiees turned to look at the silhouette, which now appeared to be circling them from above. As the creature disappeared back into the clouds, the Wookiees looked at each other in confusion before kneeling to the two Mandalorians. One of the Wookiees approached Karel, barking in greeting as he extended a hairy hand to offer his help in carrying the mykal. Karel handed him the creature and the group began walking to Kachirho, but Karel was still confused.
"Where are they taking us? And why did they kneel?" Karel asked his father.
"They are taking us to their chieftain. What you saw in the clouds was a shyyyo bird. Spotting one is so rare that it was once thought to be just a legend. The Wookiees consider the shyyyo bird their protector."
A few minutes later, they arrived at Kachirho, where they were greeted with suspicion by the inhabitants, before being led into Tree Kachirho, the wroshyr tree that served as the home of the Chieftain. Inside the tree was what appeared to be a throne room, of sorts. The place was filled with adult Wookiees, all about twice as tall as Karel and half a meter taller than his father. They all surrounded a single male one at the end of the room. His hair was dark brown with patches of tan and he wore armor on the chest and shoulders. The dark-haired Wookiee walked up to the newcomers and extended a hand for Hamar to shake. The Mandalorian took off his helmet and introduced himself and his son. The Wookiee then turned his gaze to Karel and walked towards him.
"Karel, this is Tarfful. He's the chieftain of this city," Hamar explained, noticing how his son was visibly frightened by the whole ordeal.
"H-Hi, I'm Karel," he said, grinning nervously and extending a hand. Tarfful knelt to a height more comfortable for the boy and shook his hand before placing his own on the boy's shoulders and growling close to his face.
"What did he say?" Karel asked, looking at his father.
"He says he's thankful for the mykal and that we are welcome here," Hamar translated as Tarfful growled again, this time at Hamar before looking at the boy again. "And that he wants to talk to us about the shyyyo bird you saw."
Later that night, Tarfful invited Hamar and Karel for nightmeal as his personal guests. During the meal he apologized for his warriors' hostility and explained the reason behind it. For twenty years now the Trade Federation's interest in Kashyyyk and its colonies had been increasing, and they had steadily gained more control over the planet's resources, going so far as to establish a mining operation that had severely damaged the local ecosystem. The Wookiees' pleas to the Republic had fallen on deaf ears, since the Trade Federation had such political and economical power that any attempt to openly defy them would result in terrible consequences for the natives. As such, the Wookiees had no other option but to submit to the Trade Federation outwardly, while resisting them inwardly and in secret. The situation was further complicated by the fact that the Trandoshans, longtime rivals of the Wookiees, were aiding the Trade Federation. As such any public act of violence against them by the Wookiees would be seen as an act of violence against the Trade Federation, thereby allowing the Trandoshans to oppress the Wookiees without fear of repercussions.
"And what does that have to do with us?" Karel asked, confused, before Tarrful growled again and his father translated for him.
"The shyyyo bird you saw. In Wookiee culture, sighting one is considered a symbol of peace. They believe we were destined to come here and help them restore that peace," Hamar explained, taking a long sip from his drink before turning to speak to the Chieftain. "We'll help you," he said, not a hint of hesitation in his voice. Tarfful growled again in thanks and indicated his captain, Merumeru, to take Hamar to scout the mining site later that night.
"Wait, us? I thought we were here to train me," Karel said, confused that the purpose of this trip had so suddenly changed.
"We are, but right now these people need our help," Hamar replied, silently indicating with a stern look that his son shouldn't discuss the matter anymore. After the meal was over, Hamar and Karel were given a guest room inside the tree. Finally alone, Karel asked his father about the recent change of events.
"Why do we have to help them?" he asked, as Hamar counted the power packs on his belt pouches.
"Because they need our help," Hamar stated, plainly.
"But you don't help everyone that needs your help, only the ones that pay you to help them," Karel reasoned, confused by his father's behavior. Hamar turned to face his son as he holstered his blasters. He kneeled to his height and grabbed him by the shoulders.
"This is different, ad'ika. These people need help and we are the only ones that can help them. The greatest warrior fights not for personal gain or glory, but because it is the right thing to do. Do you understand what I'm saying?"
"Not really," Karel muttered, looking at the ground.
"Someday you will," Hamar said, before hugging his son. "I have to go. I'll be back in a few hours; I promise," he said, before standing up to leave the room. "And don't give the Wookiees too much trouble," he added as he stepped out of the room to go on his scouting mission.
"I won't!" Karel said, before turning his attention to the room he was standing in. He started admiring every small detail and the expert craftsmanship that must have gone into carving the spacious room with extreme patience. After trying to sleep unsuccessfully for a few minutes, Karel went outside to try to calm himself. He found a tree branch not too far and sat on it as he observed the night sky. Karel pulled out a small holoprojector and a picture of his family came to life. Hamar and Asha stood smiling side-by-side with an arm around each other's waists and their hands on each of Karel's shoulders. He sat in front of them on a chair, while Toruk stood behind his parents, grinning as he hugged his son and daughter-in-law. A tear rolled down his cheek as he watched the family portrait.
He looked up to the see the stars and all three of Kashyyyk's moons without deactivating the holoprojector. Just then, a low purr came from behind, and Karel quickly switched the device off. He turned to see a Wookiee standing a few meters behind him. It wasn't an adult like most of the ones he had seen until now; it was a pup, not much taller than himself and probably around the same age, too. Their hair was the same dark brown color as their eyes except for a few patches of black and by what Karel could see it looked to be a male.
"I'm sorry, I-I didn't see you there," Karel said, stuttering as the Wookiee growled what Karel assumed to be an apology. "Are you apologizing?" he asked. The Wookiee nodded before looking down in embarrassment for his intrusion.
"It's okay. I'm not angry with you or anything like that. What's your name?" he asked. The Wookiee answered with a growl and a purr, reminding Karel that he didn't understand the furry being.
"Sorry, I forgot. I don't understand you. Only my father does," he explained. The Wookiee thought for a moment before pulling a sheet of flimsi and a stylus from his bag. He wrote some characters on the flimsi in Basic and showed it to Karel.
"'Grorkhal'? Is that your name?" Karel asked. The Wookiee nodded fervently and Karel smiled at his new friend. "I'm Karel," he added as he shook the Wookie's hand. They sat together on the branch. Grorkhal wrote on the flimsi again, this time the word 'Mandalorian.'
"Yes, we're Mandalorians," Karel said with a laugh. Grorkhal looked confused and wrote the word 'Armor.'
"Are you asking about my armor?" Karel asked, and the Wookiee nodded.
"I don't have mine yet; my dad said I have to earn it first. That's why we came here. The plan was to ask you to help train me, but I guess the plan has changed," Karel explained. Grorkhal wrote another word, 'Why.'
"I don't know. My dad talked to your chieftain, Tarfful, I think, and said we would help you with something about a mine. Apparently it has something to do with me seeing some white bird."
Grorkhal stared in disbelief and quickly wrote again; 'Shyyyo.'
"Yes, sorry. It was a shyyyo bird. What's so special about it? My dad and Tarfful said it was some sort of sign and that it's your protector or something like that," the human explained, confused. The Wookiee wrote again, this time, 'Savior'.
"Savior? What is it going to save you from?" he asked, confused. Grorkhal didn't write anything, but instead pointed at him, smiling as much as was possible for a Wookiee. "From me?"
Grorkhal shook his head and wrote, 'You savior.'
"Wait. I'm your savior?" he asked, now more confused than ever. Grorkhal didn't answer and instead hugged the Mandalorian boy so tightly Karel thought he wanted to crush him. Just as he thought his ribs were about to break, Grorkhal released him and he panted for air. "Look, I'm really confused now. Let's go back inside, and then you can explain to me what's going on here. Okay?" he asked. Gorkhal nodded fervently and pulled Karel down the tree. They walked back inside and reached the guest quarters, where Karel handed him a datapad. The Wookiee started explaining the history of the shyyyo bird to him in more depth.
"Wait. Are you sure I'm your savior? I'm pretty sure my dad is more fit for that."
Grorkhal shook his head and wrote on the datapad, explaining that the savior is the one who sights the shyyyo bird, not the one accompanying him.
"Well this is great!" Karel exclaimed sarcastically. He sighed and buried his face in his hands, "Can we talk about something else please? This is too much to process in a single day." Grorkhal did not speak, instead nodding in understanding before they began playing on the datapad. Sometime later, Hamar returned from his scouting mission to find his son sitting on his bed next to a Wookiee youngling. Karel lifted his gaze from the datapad to address his father.
"Oh. Hi, Dad. This is Grorkhal. I met him today. Grorkhal, this is my father," Karel said, introducing his friend as he walked over to hug his father.
"Nice to meet you, Grorkhal," Hamar said, smiling as he did so. The Wookiee bowed to the man respectfully as he stood next to Karel. "Well, you two were having fun, weren't you?"
"Yeah..." Karel replied, nervously scratching the back of his head.
"Well I hate to ruin it, but you should be sleeping right now. I'm pretty sure Grorkhal's parents will be worried, too," Hamar said, chuckling. The two younglings waved goodbye to each other before the Wookiee left the room. Both Mandalorians kept looking at the entrance before turning to look at each other.
"I see you've been making friends. That's good," said Hamar, kneeling to hug his son.
"I am. Did you find anything?" Karel asked.
"A few things, but we'll talk about that tomorrow. Right now you have to go to sleep."
"Awww, Dad..." Karel complained.
"Now."
"Fine," the boy grumbled, tucking himself into bed as he did so. He wiggled himself under the blankets, and with a kiss on the forehead from his father went to sleep.