It was another Razor Eater.
Jango Fett braced himself against the wall. He realized the droid must have been hiding behind the columnar chimney. He also realized that he’d better do something to stop the droid before it ripped him to shreds.
The Razor Eater lunged at Jango, but Jango sprang away from the wall before the droid could grab him. The droid hit the wall hard, and Jango quickly snatched up the Hutt’s antique Audiobulb. As the droid turned to train its red photoreceptors on its prey, Jango flung the Audiobulb at the droid’s head. Apparently unaware of the antique’s combustibility, the Razor Eater opened its jaws and caught the Audiobulb in its mouth.
It was the last thing the droid ever caught. Jango closed his eyes as the Razor Eater chomped down on the music player. There was a bright flash and a loud boom. Jango opened his eyes. All that remained of the droid’s head was its lower jaw. The droid’s knee joints buckled, and its body collapsed to the floor.
Senator Rodd screamed and started to run from the room. Just as Rodd’s left foot was about to come down on a long rug, Jango reached down, grabbed the rug, and gave it a sharp tug. The rug slid out from under Rodd, and there was a sickening thud as he landed on his chin. Jango went to Rodd’s body and checked the man’s vital signs. Rodd was unconscious, but breathing steadily.
While the Hutt watched nervously, Jango centered Senator Rodd’s body on the long rug, then wrapped him up in it, nice and neat. Turning to the Hutt, Jango asked, “Who are you?”
“Boonda,” said the Hutt. “Son of Groodo.”
“Where are your father and Holowan?”
“Search me,” said Groodo, then he added, “I mean, I don’t know. I haven’t seen them since we left the Fondor system, and they dropped me off here.” Boonda slapped one of his meaty hands over his lips and said, “Oops! I don’t think I was supposed to mention Fondor.”
Jango said, “I know about the droids at Fondor Spaceport.”
Boonda shook his wide head sadly. “Oh, well. I knew my pop’s crazy schemes would get him into trouble one of these days. Anyway, he and Holowan left me here, then took off. Didn’t tell me where they were headed.”
“They left before Senator Rodd showed up?”
“That’s right. I wasn’t sure if I should let the Senator stay, but he sort of insisted. Said he needed protection. From you, I guess.” Boonda looked at the remains of the fallen Razor Eater and added, “Hey, I’m sorry I had Sparky attack you.”
Jango ignored the apology and said, “How many more Razor Eaters are in the compound?”
“Three.”
Jango drew a blaster, aimed it at Boonda, and said, “Deactivate them.”
“S-sure,” Boonda stammered. He pointed to the lift tube and said, “There’s a remote-control device downstairs that’ll shut them down.”
Jango said, “You’ve got strong arms?”
“Well, I try to stay fit,” Boonda said. Although Hutts appeared flabby, they were notoriously strong.
“Pick up the Senator,” Jango said. “Carry him to my swoop.”
Boonda hoisted Senator Rodd’s rug-wrapped form over his shoulder, then went with Jango into the lift and down to the first floor. Boonda showed Jango where the remote control was, and Jango threw a switch to shut down the three remaining Razor Eaters.
Carrying Rodd, Boonda led Jango out of the fortress and across the compound. Jango carried the remote control. The three deactivated Razor Eaters were visible. They stood still as statues with their photoreceptors dimmed to a dull black. But as Jango moved past one Razor Eater, its eyes suddenly glowed red and it stepped forward with a loud clank.
Surprised at the noise, Boonda yelped and nearly dropped Senator Rodd. Both Boonda and Jango turned to face the reanimated Razor Eater. Jango snarled, “What did you do?”
“Nothing!” Boonda said. “I swear! It must have a malfunctioning transceiver!”
Jango tried the remote control. It didn’t work, and the droid kept coming.
“What about a verbal command to make it stop?” Jango asked.
“Oh, yes!” Boonda said. “It’s…it’s…oh, how does it go? I haven’t used it in so long…”
“Think fast,” Jango ordered as he drew both of his blasters, “or I’ll save my last shot for you.” He started firing at the droid. The energized bolts hammered at the droid’s body, but they did not puncture its surface.
“Go to sleep, Ironjaws!” Boonda shouted. The droid kept coming. “Darn!”
Jango kept shooting. Between shots, Jango said, “I mean it, Boonda. You’ll die before me.”
The Razor Eater was almost on top of Jango when Boonda exclaimed, “I’ve got it! Night-night, Metal-mouth!”
Incredibly, the droid came to a stop. Jango looked at Boonda and said, “I guess it’s your lucky day. Now let’s get moving!”
Exiting through the compound’s main entrance, Boonda—still carrying Rodd’s bundled form—slithered along beside Jango, all the way to the stolen swoop, which remained parked near the entrance of the mine. As Jango secured Rodd over the back of the swoop, Boonda asked, “Are you going to kill my father?”
Jango contemplated whether he should answer, then said, “For what it’s worth…no.”
“Oh,” Boonda said. “Think there’s any chance he’ll be coming back to Esseles?”
“Can’t say,” Jango said.
The Hutt sighed, then shrugged and said, “Oh, well. I guess this means I might be coming into my inheritance a bit earlier than expected.”
“Could be,” Jango said. He climbed onto the swoop and zoomed off with the unconscious Rodd in tow, leaving Boonda behind in a cloud of dust. Following his own trail, Jango returned to Calamar and the docking bay that contained Slave I.
Inside the docking bay, Jango brought the swoop to a stop, climbed off, then pulled Rodd’s body off the back and heaved him over his shoulder. Carrying Rodd, Jango was walking toward Slave I’s loading ramp when a voice behind him said, “Don’t move.”
Jango ignored the command and responded by releasing his grip on the rug that contained Rodd. As the rug fell, he spun fast and dropped to his knee while quick-drawing his blaster pistols to aim at the being who had addressed him. The rug hit the ground and Rodd—still concealed within—produced a muffled groan.
Jango’s blasters were aimed at Bossk, who was aiming his own blaster rifle at Jango. Bossk’s head was wrapped in a wide bandage and his eyes registered surprise at just how fast the armored hunter had drawn his weapons. Regaining his composure, Bossk said, “When someone tells you ‘Don’t move,’ you’re not supposed to move.”
“So I’ve heard,” Jango said.
“I’m Bossk, son of Cradossk, head of the Bounty Hunters Guild.”
“Tell me something I don’t know.”
“My father sent me here because he wants to meet with you.”
“He should’ve come himself,” Jango said.
“That’s what I said,” Bossk snapped, gnashing his teeth. He lowered his blaster rifle, and Jango relaxed his arms slightly, but both hunters kept their fingers on the triggers of their respective weapons. Bossk said, “I’m looking for a guy who shot me a few hours ago. Same guy who disabled my father’s ship. Happened on a revolving space station in the Fondor system. My father says you might know who this guy is.” Bossk looked at the rolled-up carpet that concealed Senator Rodd’s body and said, “I hope that’s not the guy, because I want to get him myself.”
Jango wondered if Bossk was toying with him, but his gut told him that Bossk was telling the truth. There could be only one reason why Bossk didn’t know that Jango had shot him on the Lunavolver and was involved with disabling Cradossk’s ship: Bossk didn’t know because Cradossk hadn’t told him.
Jango tilted his helmet slightly, a nod to the rug-wrapped figure, and said, “This isn’t the guy you’re looking for.”
“Good,” said Bossk, baring his teeth in an ugly smile.
Jango asked, “Where’s Cradossk?”
“Docking Bay 32,” Bossk said. “I’m supposed to bring you there.”
“You’ll have to wait,” Jango said. He kicked at the rolled-up rug and said, “I’ve got to get this into my ship first.”
“Can I give you a hand?”
“No.”
“Suit yourself,” Bossk said. “But make it quick.” The Trandoshan walked over to one of the docking bay’s doors and watched the traffic go by.
Boba was relieved to see his father enter Slave I. As he helped Jango unwrap Senator Rodd’s unconscious body from the rug and place him inside a prisoner cage, Boba said, “I saw you talking with the Trandoshan through the viewport. Was that Cradossk?”
“No,” Jango said as he secured the cage. “It’s Bossk. He came because Cradossk wants to meet with me. He’s waiting for me now.”
“You’re going?”
“Yes. Cradossk didn’t tell Bossk that I was the one who stunned him. I want to know why.”
Boba gestured at the interior of Slave I and said, “Is there any way I can help?”
Jango pointed to the other prisoner cages and said, “If we’re going to capture Groodo, we’ll need a place to contain him. None of these cages are big enough. We’ll have to combine three cages and reinforce the rear wall. You know where the fusion cutter is.”
“Yes, sir,” Boba said.
Jango walked out of Slave I, and the loading ramp closed behind him.
Boba got the fusion cutter and went to work on the prisoner cages. He was proud of his father. He had no doubt that Groodo and Holowan would also soon join Rodd in their own prisoner cages, and after the job was done, he hoped that his father might then take some time off. While he used the fusion cutter to reconfigure a set of bars, he imagined how he and his father might spend their time together.
In the one occupied cage, Senator Rodd moaned. “Where am I?” he gasped.
Boba said, “No talking, prisoner!” Then he smiled. It felt so good to be in control of the situation.
At this point, readers who chose to follow the adventure in the Star Wars Adventures Game Book can return to reading the novel, Jango Fett vs. The Razor Eaters.
Docking Bay 32 had a small sales office that doubled as a meeting room. It was there that Jango Fett and Bossk found Cradossk seated at a desk. Switching off a holocomm, Cradossk looked up at Jango and said, “Sorry I didn’t greet you myself, Jango. My ship was disabled back in the Fondor system, and I’ve had to make plans to get my people to take care of it.”
Jango offered no comment.
Cradossk said, “Take a walk, Bossk. Go have a drink or something.”
Bossk stalked out of the room. After he was gone, Cradossk said, “Good to see you again, Jango.”
“I don’t like games, Cradossk.”
“How unfortunate. I’m rather fond of them, especially the wagering kind. For example, when I sent Bossk over to meet you at your docking bay, I placed a little bet with myself. I bet that you wouldn’t kill Bossk, and you didn’t.”
“Don’t push your luck,” Jango said. “I’m getting tired of not killing him.”
Cradossk laughed. “And here I was, thinking that you were starting to like us! You know, Bossk is unaware of who shot him on Lunavolver Delta.”
“I noticed,” Jango said.
“He’s also unaware that you disabled my ship and nearly blew us to smithereens with seismic mines— which was a daring move on your part.”
Jango said, “Want me to tell him?”
“That’s up to you,” Cradossk said. “But to be honest, I don’t think telling Bossk would be productive. No, he’d only get angrier than usual and want to kill you over the course of several days, and that’s something I don’t want to happen. I don’t want any animosity between us, Jango. What I want is for you to be a member of the Bounty Hunters Guild. You’re just the sort of fellow I’m looking for to join our ranks.”
“I’m not a joiner,” Jango said.
Cradossk clapped his hands together. “Ah, well. Obviously, I hope you’ll change your mind. And if you do, you know where to find me.”
Jango was about to turn to leave when Cradossk said, “Oh, one more thing, Jango. Just to show you I’m a good sport, I won’t be hunting Senator Rodd after all. He’s all yours. Generous of me, yes?”
“You can do what you want,” Jango said.
Cradossk said, “It really is a shame we can’t work together. Tell me, how much were you offered to bring in Rodd, Groodo the Hutt, and Hurlo Holowan?”
Jango did not fall for Cradossk’s trap. He’d never told Cradossk the names of his prey and he was not about to admit them now. Jango nodded once to Cradossk, then turned and left the room.
A few minutes later, Jango returned to Slave I. He knew something was wrong immediately because the loading ramp was not the way he had left it. It was open.
Jango drew his pistols and ran up the ramp. Inside Slave I, he found Senator Rodd awake but groggy, seated on the floor of his cage. There wasn’t any sign of Boba. Jango looked down at Rodd and said, “Where’s the boy?”
Rodd’s eyes were wide. “I don’t know.”
“When did you last see him?”
“I don’t know. I don’t know. I don’t know.” The man was in a state of shock.
Jango ran out of Slave I and scanned the interior of the docking bay.
Boba was gone.
NEXT ADVENTURE:
THE SHAPESHIFTER STRIKES
11.6.18.15.14.5-1
Star Wars Adventures 004 - Jango Fett vs. The Razor Eaters Page 4