by John Whitman
jabbed the stick into Zak's ribs again. "Not important who I am. The
question you should be asking is, Who are you?"
"I know who I am," Zak replied.
"Do you?" asked the creature.
Zak wanted to laugh. The creature sounded silly and looked even
sillier. But something about the way he asked the question made Zak pause.
If there was one thing he'd learned after all his adventures with Uncle
Hoole, it was that appearances could be deceiving.
"A good lesson!" the creature cackled, as though reading his thoughts.
Not knowing what else to do, Zak said, "My name is Zak Arranda. What's
yours?"
The creature cackled again gleefully. "I am Yoda." Zak shook his head.
"For a planet that's supposed to be uninhabited, Dagobah sure is getting
crowded."
Yoda made a gurgling sound in his throat. "Uninhabited, do you say?"
The little creature spread his small arms wide. "Have you no eyes? No ears?
Life is all around."
"Oh, right," Zak said, surprised by the little creature's suddenly
serious tone. "I just meant, you know, intelligent life."
"Intelligent, huh!" Yoda said with a grunt of disgust. "What is this
intelligence?"
Zak opened his mouth to speak, then stopped. He thought of the most
intelligent people he knew-Tash and Uncle Hoole.
"Intelligence means learning. Being able to figure things out. Knowing
how the universe works," Zak finally said.
"Ahhh," the little creature said, nodding meaningfully. "Come here," he
said, shuffling toward a nearby tree. When Zak hesitated, Yoda waved his
stick. "Come, come, come!"
Not knowing whether to be amused or frightened, Zak followed. Yoda
stood next to a rotting log. With his stick he poked the log, and a chunk of
dead wood fell away. Inside, hundreds of worms as thick as Zak's finger
wriggled and squirmed.
"Yuck," Zak said.
"Rotworms," Yoda said. "Are they intelligent?"
"No," Zak answered, trying to explain. "You see-"
Yoda spoke again as the exposed rotworms burrowed into the soft,
decaying wood and disappeared. "Rotworms learn that dead logs make the best
homes. They figure out how to burrow into the wood. Burrowing, they help the
log to rot, and the bits of dead wood enrich the soil, making good ground
for new trees to grow." The little creature stared at Zak. "That is how the
universe works."
Zak blinked. A moment ago this strange creature had seemed like a
clown. Now he wasn't so sure. "Who are you?" he asked again.
Yoda nodded mysteriously. "Someone you will meet again. Now go. Others
await you."
Zak started to ask another question, but Yoda chattered, "Go, go, go.
Away with your questions!"
The little creature turned to leave. His movements were awkward, more
like a waddle than a walk, but he was gone so quickly that Zak was
half-convinced that Yoda had simply vanished into the misty air.
"That was prime," Zak said aloud. "Weird. But prime."
He turned to go. He felt confident about his directions now. In fact,
the way back was so obvious, he wondered why he'd been worried. He started
to jog. But his feet slowed down as he caught the dull glint of metal in the
gloomy swamp.
Curious, Zak approached the metal object. As he did, he realized that
it was very large. Creeping nearer, he saw that it was a ship. And when he
was only a few dozen meters from it, he realized that it was a ship he
recognized.
He'd seen it on the Shroud's scanners.
The ship belonged to Boba Fett.
CHAPTER 10
"Boba Fett!" Platt spat the name out like a curse. "This is getting
worse all the time!"
Zak had brought the news back to the village as fast as he could run.
First, he had told Tash and Uncle Hoole, adding everything that had happened
with the strange character called Yoda.
"Yoda," Tash had replied. "There's something about that name . . ."
"Intriguing," Hoole had agreed. "There seems to be yet another being on
this supposedly empty planet. But our first concern is the bounty hunter."
So Hoole had gone immediately to tell the others. The smugglers had
gathered in the center of the village to discuss Zak's news, but the
Children were nowhere in sight.
Apparently, they had managed to catch something in the swamps, and were
eagerly preparing a rare feast. They had even converted Galt's hut into a
kitchen to cook the food they had found.
"How could Fett have followed us here?" Tash said in disbelief.
"I don't know," Platt growled angrily. "But if I'd known that killer
was after you, I'd have dropped you off on the nearest asteroid and let you
deal with him yourselves."
Hoole stiffened slightly. "We thought Boba Fett had been eliminated. We
had no intention of placing you in his line of fire."
"Yeah, well, we're there anyway, aren't we?" Platt said. "And he's
already killed one of my men."
Zak was surprised. "How do you know it was him?"
"Isn't it obvious? Right now the odds are six blasters to one in our
favor. He's trying to whittle us down before he comes in for the kill."
Platt kicked at the soggy ground in frustration. "He's probably out there
right now, watching us. Waiting to make his next move."
Zak scanned the surrounding trees, but all he saw was the endless
swamp, moss-covered trees, vines hanging from gnarled branches, and the mist
that drifted formlessly across Dagobah's landscape.
"How long before the ship is ready to fly?" Tash asked. Platt scowled.
"Twenty-four hours."
"Long enough for Fett to take us all out," Zak said.
"Right," the smuggler agreed. "So we're not going to wait for him.
We're going to go out there and get him."
Tru'eb and the other smugglers were startled.
"Go after Boba Fett?" Tru'eb growled. "Have you come down with swamp
fever or something? He'll pick us off like fleas on a nerf."
"And what do you think he'll do if we stick around here?" the smuggler
snapped back.
When Tru'eb had no answer, Platt started organizing her small gang into
hunting parties.
"We could use you, Hoole," Platt said to the Shi'ido. "With your
shape-changing power, you might be able to spot the bounty hunter before he
spots you."
"Out of the question," Hoole replied. "My first responsibility is to my
niece and nephew."
Tash spoke up. "I want to find this Yoda."
Zak felt a pang of sudden jealousy and bit his lip to stop himself from
saying "No!" He didn't want Tash to meet Yoda. He wasn't sure why, but he
felt a connection with the little creature. He didn't want Tash barging in.
So he was relieved when Hoole said, "No, Tash. Remember there is a
price on your head, too. You should stay here."
"And do what?" Tash replied. "Wait for Boba Fett to knock on the door
while the smugglers are out hunting?"
"Tash, it seems-"
"Actually," Platt interrupted, "it's not such a bad idea. I'm curious
about this little creature myself. He's a wild card, and I don't like wild
cards. W
hy don't I send two of my boys along with your niece and nephew to
look for him? This creature talked to Zak once. Maybe he will again."
In the end, Hoole relented. He knew his powers were best used in the
hunt for Boba Fett. And with two armed smugglers for guards, Zak and Tash
were as safe as they were going to get.
"Be careful," Hoole said. He looked at Tash. "Listen to your instincts.
And do not do anything rash. I will see you back here shortly."
The smugglers broke into two parties. Platt and one of the smugglers
went off in one direction, while Hoole, Tru'eb, and another smuggler went
the opposite way. That left Zak, Tash, and the two remaining smugglers in
the village just as Galt and some of the bony Children appeared, carrying a
large pot pounded out of scrap metal.
"Where are you going?" Galt asked. "The feast is just about to begin!"
He held the pot under Zak's nose. It was full of a bubbling brown broth
in which floated ribbons of fat and large chunks of meat. The delicious
smell rising out of the pot made Zak's stomach rumble, and he realized that
he hadn't eaten all day.
"Come on," Tash said, tugging at his arm. "We can eat when we get
back."
"Maybe just a taste," said Zak, reaching to dip his finger into the
broth.
"Let's go!" Tash urged, pulled him away. Zak cast one longing look back
at the untasted food and then turned away.
He led Tash and the two smugglers in the same direction he'd gone
before. At least, he thought it was the same. There was no stone path to
guide them, and the ground seemed to shift and drift in the murky swamp
water. The plants-especially the giant gnarlwood trees-all looked exactly
alike. The trees had massive roots that grew above the surface. The roots
were taller than the smugglers, and looked like pillars holding up the giant
trees.
Not pillars, Zak thought as they walked right under one of the huge,
curving roots. More like lots of twisted, knobby legs. Did that mean the
trees could walk?
"So what's this little creature look like again?" one of the smugglers
asked, resting his blaster rifle on his shoulder.
Zak described Yoda's wrinkled, greenish skin, pointed ears, and tufts
of wiry gray hair.
The other smuggler laughed. "Sounds like your mother-in-law, Traut!"
The smuggler with the blaster rifle grunted. "This Yoda sounds
better-looking."
"You're married?" Zak asked. "I didn't think smugglers got married."
"Sure," Traut said. He held up his left hand. On the second to last
finger was a silver ring. It was called a promise ring, and meant he had
promised himself to someone special. He smiled at Zak. "You think smugglers
can't fall in love?"
Zak was about to respond when Traut's eyes went wide, staring in sheer
terror at something over Zak's shoulder.
Zak forced himself to turn around. Then he saw it, too.
There was a giant spider standing right behind him.
CHAPTER 11
The spider was white and almost four meters tall. Its eight knobby legs
were bent into vicious hooks. It bobbed up and down on those legs, then
lunged forward to pounce on its prey.
Zak jumped back just in time and the spider's pincerlike mouth bit into
the soggy ground.
"There's more of them!" Traut yelled.
All around them, giant white spiders crawled out of the shadows beneath
the gnarltrees. Their hundreds of scurrying feet made an eerie
thudathudathudathudathuda sound on the carpet of moss that covered the
ground, and their jaws clacked hungrily.
The smugglers fired their blasters. Chunks of white flesh blew off the
nearest spider, and thick green liquid, almost like sap, splashed out of the
wound. The spider squealed, but instead of backing off, it charged forward.
"Blow off its legs!" Traut yelled.
The two smugglers poured blaster fire at the oncoming creature. The
firestorm was so loud Zak and Tash clapped their hands over their ears to
shut out the scream of energy bolts and the shrieks of the wounded spider.
Bits and pieces of spider legs flew in all directions, and with a final
squeal the spider fell to the ground.
At least a dozen more scurried forward.
"Back up!" Traut ordered. He pushed Zak and Tash behind him and moved
away from the spiders. But after only a few steps, Zak felt his back pressed
against the cold bark of a gnarltree.
"So much for our retreat," Traut groaned. He looked at the tree. There
was a hole in the bark large enough for a small human to pass through. Some
tree-dwelling creature had carved a home in the gnarltree. "You two!" He
pointed at Zak and Tash. "In there!"
The smugglers lifted Zak and Tash and slid them one at a time into the
hole. But as soon as the two armed men had turned their backs, the spiders
charged. Through the open hole, Zak saw the smugglers turn and open fire.
The nearest spider blew apart, and a knobby leg flew through the air toward
the hole. Zak ducked as spider pieces spattered against the tree.
Zak and Tash huddled together in their dank hiding place as the sound
of clacking spider jaws, blaster fire, and screams continued outside.
Then all sound stopped with terrible suddenness.
Zak and Tash looked at each other in the gloom of their hiding place.
"Are they-?" Tash started to ask.
A voice came from outside. It was Traut's voice, ragged and tired.
"Who's there? Who are you?" he shouted angrily. Then his voice calmed down.
"Oh, it's you. We were just-agghhh!"
Traut's final scream filled the air. A flying creature, startled by
this last sound, flapped away into the distance. When the sound of its wings
faded, true silence settled over the swamp.
Zak scrambled up and out of the hole. He dropped to the ground. All
around him was the aftermath of a gory battle. Spider parts were everywhere.
Green spider blood ran down the bark of the trees. Nearby, one giant spider
flopped around on its two remaining legs, then sagged down into the mud and
lay still.
Traut's body lay on the ground nearby, bleeding from an ugly wound to
the head. The other smuggler was gone.
Tash dropped down beside her brother. "Did the spiders . . . did they
take him?"
"I don't know," Zak whispered. He pointed to a wide, shallow line that
had been drawn through the mud. "It looks like something dragged him off in
that direction."
"F . . . Fe . . ."
"Traut's alive!" Zak rushed to the smuggler's side. His eyes were
closed, and half his face was covered in blood. His mouth struggled to work.
"F . . . Fe . . ."
"Fett?" Tash guessed. "Maybe that's who he saw just now."
Zak wasn't so sure. "Traut sounded like he knew the person he saw. And
if it was Fett, why wouldn't he take both bodies?"
Something rustled through a nearby bush and a sickly white form pushed
its way forward. "More spiders!" Zak hissed. He and Tash started to back
away.
The figure that stepped through the bushes was as pale as a spider, but
it walked on two legs. It was Galt,
followed by another of the Children.
Galt looked completely surprised to see Zak and Tash standing in the
middle of the battle scene. "Why are you here?" he asked.
Tash explained hurriedly, "We were hiding in that tree. The spiders
attacked. Someone, or something, dragged the other smuggler away. But
Traut's still alive. We have to get him some help."
Zak remembered how easily Galt had carried the body of his dead
companion out of the swamp before. "You two have to carry him back to camp!"
he told the skeletal man.
"We will," Galt said simply. He and his companion lifted the wounded
man by his shoulders and feet. Traut's eyes fluttered, and he reached out,
clutching Zak's arm so hard that Zak felt the man's promise ring press into
his skin. He tried to speak, but swooned again.
"Hurry!" Zak said. "Uncle Hoole or Platt may be able to help him."
The two Children started off through the swamp, moving faster than Zak