by John Whitman
Suddenly, an energy blast tore through the darkness and slammed into the
ground, turning the ring of shadows into a bright circle of light. Tiny bolts
of lightning leaped up from the spot where the energy bolt had struck,
wrapping themselves around the shadow creatures. Frightened screams filled the
air, and then all the shadows fled.
Blinking from the bright light, Zak watched them go. The dark bubble
burst, and the shadows slipped away into cracks in the rocks, shrinking until
they vanished.
Deevee appeared at Zak's side. "Thank the Maker I managed to drive them
off!" the droid said. "Are you all right?"
"What.." Zak tried to speak. "How...?"
"The ion cannon." Deevee pointed to the big laser tower. The cannon was
now pointing directly at them. "It was the only large weapon within reach. I
managed to override its automatic program and point it toward you, hoping it
would frighten those creatures away."
Zak had to admire Deevee's cleverness. An ion weapon, since it only
attacked electronic circuitry, would not do much damage to people. But it sure
made a lot of light and noise!
"It did more than scare them," Zak said, remembering how they had
screamed. "I think it hurt them."
By the time he had finished speaking, both Hoole and Tash were on their
feet. Tash looked really upset. "I could feel them through the Force," she
said. "Whatever they are, they're full of hate."
"No kidding," Zak replied, tugging at his torn shirt. "I could tell that
without the Force. What were they?" he asked, looking at Hoole.
Hoole's face was very pale, and his eyes were still wide. It was the
first time Zak or Tash could remember him looking at all afraid. Their uncle
was obviously trying to hide his feeling, but he couldn't. In a hoarse voice,
Hoole said, "I do not know. But I'm sure that... it is not important to us."
"They kept saying the name 'Mammon,' " Zak remembered. "That's that
scientist who destroyed this place, isn't it?"
"It is," Deevee replied, tilting his silver head. "That is most curious.
I wonder"-he looked at Hoole-"could these beings, these wraiths, possibly be
related to the original inhabitants of this planet?"
"Perhaps. It does not concern us," Hoole said. "Come. We should leave
before they return. Our destination is very close."
Hoole turned away and started toward the far end of the little valley.
The others followed slowly behind.
"Did you see him?" Zak whispered to his sister. "I've never seen Hoole
act like that."
Tash nodded. "I don't know what's going on, but it has something to do
with those... those 'wraiths.' Isn't that what Deevee called them?" She
shuddered. "I'm telling you, Zak, they were furious. And their fury was
directed right at us!"
"Why us?" Zak replied. "We've never done anything to them. We've never
even been here before-"
"I have a theory," Deevee interrupted him. "Perhaps these creatures
somehow survived the accident that destroyed their species. Maybe they call
all offworlders `Mammon.' "
"You could be right," Zak agreed, looking back at the valley. "But I hope
I never see them again to find out."
They followed Hoole for another kilometer over the rocky terrain. As
before, Uncle Hoole seemed to know exactly where he was going. He led them
along winding paths in the hills, and through fields of tall, narrow rocks
that rose from the ground like stone trees. Finally, they came to a narrow
passage that led into a cliff. As they entered, they could see that they were
in a dead-end canyon. At the far end of the canyon, Zak and Tash saw a large
building that seemed to grow out of the stone itself.
The entrance to the fortress was a large durasteel door. It looked
impossible to open. But to their surprise, Hoole walked up to the control
panel, punched in a security code, and watched as the door slid back with a
soft whoosh.
"Just how much information did you find back on Nespis 8?" Tash asked
him.
"Enough," the Shi'ido answered, stepping into the dark hallway beyond.
There were several chambers, and corridors leading off in many
directions, but again, Hoole knew exactly where he was going. He led the
others down a long corridor that led to the heart of the fortress, a large
chamber in the center. In this chamber was an enormous command chair. Beside
it was a control console, and above that was a row of view-screens.
"Is this-Is this really Gog's headquarters?" Tash whispered. "Is this
where Project Starscream was created?"
"Yes," Hoole said. He walked to the far end of the room, where there was
another door, but this time, when he punched a combination into the security
panel, the door failed to open.
"Deevee," the Shi'ido called. "The power to this room is shut down."
"I'll take care of it, Master Hoole," the droid replied. Approaching the
control console, Deevee studied it for a moment and then ran his metal hands
over a series of controls. Moments later, there was a loud hum as the room's
power systems started. The viewscreens lit up. But the monitors showed nothing
but static.
"That's going to tell us a lot," Zak said.
"I shall see if I can make repairs," Deevee said. He punched a few
commands into the computer program, then paused as lines of text appeared on
the computer screen before him. "This is most unusual. Why, Master Hoole, I
seem to have stumbled upon-"
"Wait, Deevee," Hoole interrupted. He was studying a computer terminal
that had hummed to life. "I believe I've found the security codes that open
this door."
Hoole entered a series of numbers into the computer, and the inner door
slid open with a loud rumble. Tash and Zak looked up as the door retracted to
reveal a wide chamber with high ceilings. The walls were lined with electronic
equipment. Hundreds of pipes and cables led to the center of the room, where
they all connected to a single object. It was taller than Hoole, and made of
gleaming black metal.
"It looks like an egg," said Tash.
"An electronic egg," added Zak.
"It's a birth chamber," Hoole said.
"A birth chamber," Zak repeated. "A birth chamber for what?"
Hoole studied the large egg-shaped chamber. The polished black metal
hummed with power. "I do not know," he said quietly. He touched a control
panel on the egg.
Nothing happened.
Hoole frowned. "He has changed the codes," the Shi'ido muttered. "I
cannot open it."
Zak grinned. "I bet I can crack that egg."
He reached into his pack and pulled out the datadisks he had salvaged
from the Shroud.
"What are you doing?" Tash asked.
"This is all the information that was in the Shroud's computers. I've
been studying it every chance I get. I haven't exactly broken its code, but
I'm close. Well, maybe not close, but I know enough to know a list of computer
codes when I see one. I'll bet the entry code is here somewhere. If I can just
find the right disk..."
Sorting through the disks, Zak jabbed one into
a slot in the egg's
control panel. Nothing happened.
Zak grunted and tried another.
Deevee shook his head. "Zak, the odds of finding a single bit of
information in dozens of datadisks and selecting it as an entry code are well
over six hundred fifty thousand to-''
"Got it," Zak said.
There was a bleep as the egg's computer accepted the disk Zak had
inserted. A screech of metal followed... and then the egg cracked. Tash and
Zak stepped back as the top half of the egg titled backward and light poured
from the chamber with an electronic hiss.
Something inside the egg moved.
Shielding their eyes from the bright light, Zak, Tash, and Hoole stepped
forward and squinted into the birth chamber.
Inside the egg was a baby.
CHAPTER 5
Zak asked the question they were all thinking. "Hey, there. What are you
doing in there, little guy?"
The baby, who looked almost a year old, gazed up from a round padded bed
in the center of the egg and squealed in delight. He had on a tiny pair of
coveralls, the kind that infant boys often wore. His eyes twinkled, and his
toothless grin reached from ear to ear.
"He's beautiful," Tash said, leaning into the chamber.
"Don't touch it!" Hoole commanded.
Tash raised her eyebrow. "Why? He's just a little baby."
"You do not know what he is," the Shi'ido replied. "Not when he comes
from Gog's laboratory."
"You're just a sweet little baby, aren't you?" Tash cooed at the little
boy. "And silly old Uncle Hoole is a worry wampa, isn't he?"
"Eppon!" the baby yipped.
"What's that?" Zak asked.
"Eppon!" the baby gurgled.
"Is that your name?" Tash chuckled.
"Eppon!"
"Works for me," Zak laughed. "Nice to meet you, Eppon."
Tash ignored Hoole's protests and pulled the little boy out of the
chamber. The baby crawled into her arms and clung to her with a happy smile on
his face. "Eppon!"
Hoole glowered. "Tash, I suggest you put the child down immediately. We
have no idea what that creature is."
Tash returned her uncle's glare. "Uncle Hoole, how can you be so cruel?
We can't just leave this little boy sitting in the middle of nowhere. He's a
helpless baby."
But before Hoole could respond, the doors behind them exploded open.
CHAPTER 6
Zak and Hoole threw their arms up to protect their faces. Tash hugged
Eppon close to her.
Smoke billowed up from the blasted door. Seconds later, a squad of
soldiers leaped through the open door, blasters burning the air with energy
bolts. The Empire had found them!
Then Zak spotted one soldier much taller than the rest. The figure roared
as it shook its shaggy head. It was a Wookiee.
"Chewbacca!" Zak called out.
The Wookiee roared again.
"Cease fire!" a woman's voice commanded. The firing stopped immediately.
Following the Wookiee, three other figures stepped out of the smoke.
There was a blond man, a darker man who moved with a confident swagger, and a
beautiful young woman who had the clear eyes and proud bearing of a natural
leader.
"Princess Leia!" Tash said excitedly. "Luke, Han! What are you doing
here?"
Han Solo jammed his blaster back into its holster. "We could ask you the
same question, kid. We haven't seen you since we all escaped from D'vouran."
Leia studied each of them, even Deevee, with a wry look on her face. "You
four have a habit of showing up in the strangest places. I can only assume
that this is no coincidence."
"As Han Solo said," Hoole replied, "we could say the same of you."
There were ten soldiers with the Rebel leaders, and Zak noticed the
emblems on their uniforms. He recognized the Rebel symbol from smuggled news
reports he'd seen on the HoloNet. "I knew it!" he said. "You guys are Rebels.
I said so the minute we met you."
Hoole's dark eyes returned Leia's steady stare. "May I assume that you
came here to learn more about Project Starscream?"
Leia was surprised, but only for a moment. "Actually, we came here to
destroy Project Starscream. After D'vouran, we started investigating the
Imperial Science Department and learned that the Empire was up to something-as
they usually are. We finally learned the name Project Starscream and traced it
to this planet."
"Only to find that you'd gotten here first," Luke Skywalker said. He
winked at Tash, and she felt the Force flow between them, just as she had
during their first meeting. It was a warm, electric tingle, as though she were
on one end of a wire with Luke at the other. Together, they made a connection.
"I knew there was more to you than meets the eye," he said, looking at Tash.
Zak's eyes lit up. "Hey, it's a good thing you guys are here. You can
give us a lift off planet. Our ship was blasted by an ion cannon and we crash-
landed."
Han jerked his thumb over his shoulder. "Yeah, we got fried by the same
weapons. Our ships hit the surface pretty hard about fifty kilometers back,
but the Millennium Falcon isn't too badly damaged. Thanks to my flying."
Chewbacca barked something sarcastic. "Yeah, and Chewie's, too," Han
translated. "Anyway, we left some technicians working on the problem. The
ship'll be ready to fly by the time we get back there."
"We can start just as soon as we make sure Project Star-scream is
destroyed," Leia said. "And, if possible, we'd like to question the being
behind the project. Our sources tell us he's-"
"A Shi'ido named Borborygmus Gog," Hoole interrupted. "We know."
Leia's eyes widened. She was obviously impressed. Hoole continued. "But
I'm afraid you won't be able to question him. He died several days ago. I'm
sure that any vital information died with him."
"Sounds like you've got quite a story to tell," Han said, shaking his
head.
"Later," Leia said. "Right now, we should check to make sure Gog is gone.
Threepio! Artoo!"
A golden, humanlike droid, very similar to Deevee in shape, shuffled
forward, trailed by a squat, barrel-shaped companion. Tash and Zak recognized
C-3PO and R2-D2.
"Here, Your Highness!" the golden droid, Threepio, called out. "We were
just, er, guarding the rear."
Artoo emitted a series of whistles and squeaks.
"Be quiet, Artoo!" Threepio said. "You couldn't guard your servos from
rust!"
Leia ignored them. "Artoo, plug into the main computer. I want to know
everything there is to know about Project Starscream."
With a cheerful bleep, Artoo rolled over to the computer console and
jammed his interface plug into an open socket.
Hoole explained. "I had been conducting my own investigation from a
different angle. We encountered Gog before I knew that his headquarters were
here on Kiva. When we got here, this facility was abandoned and there was
nothing left of the project."
"Except him!" Tash laughed, lifting the little boy onto her shoulder. He
had grabbed hold of her single neat braid of blond hair and was tugging at it.
"We fou
nd him in that egg chamber."
"And just who are you, little one?" Leia said, holding the baby's chubby
face in her hands.
"Eppon!" the boy squealed.
"We think that's his name," Tash explained. "It's the only word he knows.
"
Leia ran her finger through a thick layer of dust gathered on top of the
computer console. "This place looks as though it's been deserted for some
time. How could the baby have survived?"
Hoole pointed at the egg-shaped chamber. "I believe that's the purpose of
this chamber. It was meant to keep the child alive during Gog's absence."
"This Gog, he must have been planning to experiment on the baby," Han
said, sneering. "These Imperials are slimier than Jabba the Hutt."
"Well, he seems to have met his fate before he could do anything to this
little one," Luke said, tickling the baby under the chin. Eppon giggled.
Artoo let out an excited bleep.
"Your Highness," Threepio explained. "Artoo says that he has downloaded