The Gungan fell and stumbled onto a sloping dell and disappeared under the thick shrubbery.
Master Sifo-Dyas reached out in the Force in a feeble attempt to find the Gungan but the teeming life around him masked Gantu’s presence. The Jedi made his way to a ravine looking for signs of movement.
Moments later Qui-Gon Jinn arrived with his mount trailed by four other narglatchs.
“He fell somewhere down there. I can’t sense him through the Force.” Sifo-Dyas pointed on the slanted decline of shrubbery leading to the steep drop farther below their sight.
“Our friends here can handle that.” Qui-Gon nodded at his ride and the pack descended and disappeared into the bushy slope.
“I never knew you could do that trick?” Sifo-Dyas commented to his friend.
“When you can commune with the Living Force, anything is possible.” Qui-Gon winked at him.
The bushes at the rim of the crevice rustled and blaster fire sizzled out in different directions. The narglatchs growled and howled and then four fell on the steep fall and disappeared on the dark abyss.
Sifo-Dyas and Qui-Gon carefully made their way closer to the commotion when another beast shrieked and was silenced. When the two Jedi were but a few meters from where the creatures cornered the Gungan, Gantu emerged from the bushes with the pack leader clinging to him, it’s mighty jaws locked on the Gungan’s left shoulder while the struggling terrorist was trying with all of his strength to choke the life out of the stubborn predator.
Qui-Gon and Sifo-Dyas hurriedly made their way but Gantu and the narglatch lost their balance and fell.
The pair of Jedi crouched and strained to see the falling two through the dark recesses of the abyssal creek.
“There’s water down there.” Sifo-Dyas said.
“It could be a creek or part of the extensive underwater rivers in this region.” Qui-Gon nodded.
“We’d better go back and report to the Council.” Sifo-Dyas started his way back up. Qui-Gon stared intently, trying to pierce the darkness below, for a fleeting moment there he thought he heard a faint howl of the pack leader followed by a barely perceptible splash of water.
“Qui-Gon, let’s go. We still have a long walk to go.” Sifo-Dyas called out.
* * *
Alle and Sheeana were pushing the landspeeder to its speed limit and they could feel the engine groaning at the stress. The boy was curled at the corner of the back seat, sobbing and staring at their backs.
The two were forced to take the long way because a straight path would have led them through the small garrison of Naboo security guards at the border of Theed.
“Alle, you’d better drive fast!” Sheeana shouted over the noise of the wind.
“What are you talking about?” Alle could now see the Pamka hills, beyond the curving hills was a straight grass plains leading to the edge of the Negotta.
“We got company! It’s that Wookie Jedi undercover Thambanucc!” Sheeana said as she raises her macrobinoculars to her eyes, she could see the Jedi Wookie on a speederbike.
“What? Of all the things in the galaxy that could be sent against us, why should it have to be Jedi? Get rid of him!” Alle groaned and made the sharp turn and began maneuvering their landspeeder through the uneven terrain of Pamka.
Sheeana began assembling her long range laser rifle. When she was sure the power pack was fully charged she positioned herself and aim, waiting for a good shot.
“Almost there…” Sheeana muttered.
When the Wookie entered her sights she pulled the trigger but her rifle shot upward as the kid stood up and pushed her.
“Why you overgrown…” Sheeana growled and slapped the kid in a face. Rinn fell on the backseat dazed. Sheeana once again took aim and fired.
The Wookie reflexively ignited his lightsaber and effortlessly deflected the bolt.
“Minions of Xendor, he’s good!” Sheeana exclaimed.
“What? Oh man…” Alle Vomm groaned. “Well what are you waiting for? Keep firing at him!” he shouted at her.
“I’m doing it!” Sheeana gritted her teeth and dropped the rifle, she rummaged on the sack she was carrying and selected a powerful repeater blaster.
“Hang on there’s a herd of fambaas ahead!” Alle warned her. The fambaas, in all their splendor and massiveness gently prodded the plains with their trunk like legs, their long heavy tails swinging slowly as if swayed by the soft winds. Their gleaming reptilian scales appears like hulls from a fleet of long forgotten species.
“Sithspawn!” Sheeana adjusted her position before opening fire on their pursuer.
Alle expertly drove the landspeeder under the forest of massive limbs of the fambaas herd. Sheeana was careful not to hit the beasts for it would cause a stampede and kill them.
The Wookie had the advantage of maneuverability and easily dodged her sporadic laser barrage.
“He’s gaining on us!” Sheeana shouted. Then one of her shot hit the knee of one of the creatures and the wounded fambaas howled in pain and dropped on the ground. The others reacted at once and panicked. Scores of trunk like legs shifted and turn making driving under it fatally arduous.
The herd veered to where the Wookie was because ahead of Alle and Sheeana was the killing fields of saw-toothed granks, although they normally prey on shiros, a pack of them could put down an alpha prime fambaa.
Thambanucc saw the change in the herd and knew a stampede would follow. He instantly swung left and chose the less arduous and dangerous hill tops completely avoiding the huge stampeding beasts. That placed him out of sight of the fleeing terrorists but he knew where their general direction would be.
When the Jedi broke out of the Pamka hills he was shocked at what he saw and forced to an abrupt halt.
Before him in the vast waist-high grassland of Epee Dui are hundreds of saw-toothed granks gathering in the open for their mating season. Their large head sporting a wide gaping mouth were a stark contrast to their short tail. Long torso balanced only by four powerful legs sustained the weight of their head and their useless tail. The Wookie knew that these beasts are most dangerous during the mating season, in this time of the year they kill anything that’s not of their kind, not for food, not for sport but for the sheer bloodlust of a fertile predator.
To his far right Master Thambanucc spotted the small shape of the landspeeder punching through the grasslands. Already those closest saw-toothed granks were beginning to converge on the speeding vehicle.
The Wookie scanned the horizon from left to right and saw a river cutting through the multitudes of predators. On the other side of that river was a receding grassland paving way to a rocky region that the Jedi assumed was the edge of the Tavkaa mountain ranges.
The Wookie started his speederbike and headed off to the other side of the river planning to intercept the terrorists once the cross and reach the Negotta, he was almost at the crossing when he remembered about the kid held hostage and cursed himself for forgetting the boy.
He couldn’t care less if the two terrorists perish among the predators of Naboo, but the child’s safety is his primary concern, abandoning his own caution he swung the speederbike and braved the throng of saw-toothed granks.
Sheeana fired around her and did not bother to aim at all, the throng of deadly saw-toothed granks converging offered a rich target and she cheered every time she saw a beast fell. But as Alle drives through the grasslands deeper and deeper the numbers of their predators grew alarmingly.
Alle grabbed his own blaster and started firing as well, at that he lost better control and their landspeeder began to slow down, the engines are at its limits and their way is now being blocked. All around them the saw-toothed granks menacingly draws closer, their fangs bared ominously.
A monstrous roar echoed across the open plains and the predators were momentarily startled and turn their gazes on the origin of the sound.
The roar was repeated over and over and the beasts began move away from the landspeeder.
&
nbsp; “What on the Six Arms of the Galaxy is that?” Alle frowned while trying to restart the engines.
“I think it was the Jedi Wookie, he’s protecting the kid. Let’s go Alle, hurry!” Sheeana said.
Some of the predators stopped and return their attention to them. Sheeana screamed at Alle to keep moving but the engines protested.
The beasts are beginning to sprint towards them and Sheeana felt her entire body shake with sheer terror. The closest beast leaped and was about to slam on her when the landspeeder finally roared to life and sped out.
Ten of the predators were now chasing them while the rest were oblivious. Sheeana recovered from her momentary state of immobility and began carefully picking her targets and killing the beasts.
She just shot the last one when they finally entered the thick forest of Negotta.
Master Thambanucc knew he wouldn’t get to the kid in time so he halted his speeder and let loose a mighty roar. It startled the nearest group of beasts but the rest merely glance and resume converging on the landspeeder a good kilometer away from him. He repeated his roars and ignited his lightsaber to attract their attention and when he saw it worked he started his speederbike and slowly drove to the river, roaring continuously and projecting images of flesh to feast with across the river.
All of a sudden the multitude of saw-toothed granks began to run and charged towards him. The Wookie slapped a grenade on his speederbike and set it in timer, when he was at the river bank he leaped into the waters and swam as fast as he could to the other side, the strong current slowed him and from behind some of the beasts leaped and swam after him. He was almost at the next river bank when his speederbike exploded.
Jedi Master Thambanucc got up and shook his fur then defiantly faced the saw-toothed granks and ignited his lightsaber. He let out a roar of challenge and began slicing those who got across. After killing a dozen the beasts abandoned their attack on him and returned to their mating rituals.
The Wookie dropped on the soft grass panting. After a full minute he propped himself on a seating position and scan the distance to the Negotta. It was a good five kilometer walk.
He heaved a sigh and started heading to the forest mountain. After a few minutes of walking he looked back as he heard screeching noises and saw a number of aiwha has been drawn from the sea behind the Tavkaa Mountain.
Thambanucc watched the aiwhas dive and took chunks of flesh from the dead saw-toothed granks. Fly up gobble the meat, circle again and dive once more for another bite. They were thick cetacean creatures that could use their stubby wing-fins to soar into the sky and propel their body under the sea of Naboo. These majestic flying beasts reminded him of the thrantas of Alderaan and the Neebrays of Rugosa.
The Wookie started to walk back towards the feeding aiwhas and began to imitate their shrieks.
The largest of them flew towards him and dove as if to bite him in the head but when the Wookie held his ground and did not flinch, the large aiwha swooped high avoiding him in only a meter, the wind blew the soft fur of Master Thambanucc and he smelled the oceanic odor of the beast.
The aiwha repeated the faint attack twice more but the Wookie remain unmovable. At the last pass the Jedi leaped and landed on broad back of the flying creature. The large aiwha shrieked once but did not make any attempt to throw its rider off. Only then did Thambanucc noticed that the aiwha was a rope tethered on its neck and when he look down he noticed a faint discoloration on its body signifying that it was domesticated and were used to have a saddle strapped on it.
Taking the rope, the Wookie experimented how to steer the beast. To his amazement the aiwha was easily compliant to subtle nudges of the ropes. Once the Jedi got the feel of how to control it he directed the aiwha to take him to the Negotta.
The flight was short. Master Thambanucc was already flying over the thick canopies of the Negotta forest. He could sense through the Force the growing uneasiness of the aiwha for it is not accustomed to stray far from the ocean. The Wookie caressed the neck of the creature and tapped its head. The aiwha made an arc and glided slowly. The Jedi stood up and leaped into the trees as the flying beast flew back to its companions.
Jedi Master Thambanucc swung from vine after vine, tree after tree, his sense of direction becoming clearer as his natural instincts blended perfectly on familiar territory. His primeval hunting prowess took over and he instantly caught the spoor of his quarry.
Chapter 13: The Battle of Jafanara
The Lady Sarc Crimos was back at her hotel packing her stolen Royal Handmaiden robe along with her battle dress and Sith robe. She then changed on more comfortable Nightsister clothing and covered her almost naked body with the distinguishable cloak of the Countess Feena.
Her portable holo comlink beeped and she answered at once.
“Make your presence known on Jafanara at once. The Jedi are already on their way there. Defend the ruins as if it was the primary base of the Chommell Patriots. Make them believe that they are engaging a final battle. Leave at least one Jedi survivor, they must know that a Dark Jedi is involved and not the Sith.” the six inch figure of Darth Sidious commanded.
“I’m on my way Master.” Crimos bowed as the transmission ended.
Down on the hotel she rode the race swoop smuggled for her use by her Chommell Patriot allies. Ignoring the surprised look from the passers-by, she left Theed in full speed and took the most direct route to Negotta.
* * *
Gantu Onu Raltos allowed himself to be taken by the undercurrent of the Black River of Negotta because he knew the river will branch out at the edge of the Jafanara, the ancient ruins of the Temple of the Six Houses of the Jafan Dynasty, the second staging base of the Chommell Patriots for the upcoming Trade Federation invasion.
While he was being taken by the current he studied his wounds closely and knew that nothing was fatal. The rabies from the narglatch bites were already washed out by the river. His wounds would heal and his mechanical eye can be repaired.
Ahead he saw faint lights from the surface of the river. It was his indication that the underground docks are nearing. Before he was slammed and crushed by the dividing current on the granite rocks ahead he swam up and grabbed the roots of the swamp groves and pulled himself off the black river.
A human guard spotted him and recognized him. He whistled at the guard farther back and went to Gantu.
“Generals Vomm and Fley has just arrived with a boy hostage.” The guard said to him handing him a comlink.
Gantu nodded and walked to the encampment, activated the comlink and heard the voice of Alle Vomm.
“Good you’re here. Get you stinking amphibious butt up here before the Lady Crimos arrives. We have reports from our people on Theed that the entire Raid Squadron has been launched and are headed here.” Alle snapped at him.
“Messa almost there.” Gantu shut the comlink and muttered, “Always a pleasure working with humans.”
A Gungan came to greet him by the gates and together they headed first to Gantu’s part of the base. “Kerpos, are messa commandos here?” Gantu asked.
“Yessir, dessa have been restless of late, dessa kept demanding for an action.” Kerpos nodded.
“Dessa will have plenty in a few minutes, round them up, Messa will address them.” Gantu hissed.
Twenty battle hardened Gungan terrorists lined up before Gantu. They were his men, loyal and brutal.
“Youssa are to ready the STA portable cannons, dessa will be an aerial raid by the Naboo. Wessa gonna take them all down!” Gantu shouted and his men cheered.
“Kerpos, youssa lead them, messa go to the human bosses.” Gantu placed a hand on Kerpos shoulder before heading up to the upper tier of the ziggurat.
* * *
Jedi Masters Qui-Gon Jinn and Sifo-Dyas crouched behind the thick foliage and look out at the ancient ruined city of Jafanara.
Six five storey ziggurats circled a ten storey ziggurat in the center. The site would have been astounding because of its ancien
tness but the presence of modern technology has already ruined that effect. Electrical fences lined the perimeter of the entire primordial city in three layers. There was about a hundred guards around the outer compound, a mixture of humans and Gungans. There were airspeeders, small freighters and a number of Z-95 Headhunters on the top of each smaller building.
At the topmost of the central ziggurat was a huge holographic machine projector. Looking up, the two Jedi saw a projected hologram of a canopy of trees covering the entire open expanse of Jafanara.
“I see no Trade Federation tech.” Sifo-Dyas whispered.
Qui-Gon nodded. “Either the Trade Federation is not truly involved or they have become too clever now in the art of deception.” he said.
“Look! At the northern edge of the fence, farther back, by the trees.” Qui-Gon pointed.
Sifo-Dyas recognized the stealthy figure. “That’s Master Thambanucc!”
“We must disable their vehicles first.” Qui-Gon said.
“You sneak in, I’ll make the diversion.” Sifo-Dyas nodded and made his way to the clearing where a number of massive logs of fallen trees are stacked.
Qui-Gon silently matched the movements of the Jedi Wookie until the other was lost in his sight. Qui-Gon chose a spot where there was the least number of guards patrolling and waited for Sifo-Dyas’ diversion before making his move.
Some of the guards on the eastern fences began shouting as three massive logs began to float in the air and went sailing on the electrified fences, the second volley of logs smashed onto the power generators and the fences went out along with the projected holographic canopy of trees above.
Qui-Gon Jinn Force-sped and quickly climbs up on one of the small ziggurats to disable the berthed ships.
* * *
Master Thambanucc saw the floating logs began falling on the electric fences and realized that there is another Jedi out there. Searching, his keen eyesight spotted Master Qui-Gon Jinn on top of one of the small ziggurats making stops on each of the ships docked there and took a hint at what they were planning.
The Jedi Wookie braced himself and raised both furry arms and began using the Force to push the ships down from the top of the ziggurats.
Star Wars - Artoo Detoo: Droid of a Kind (Volume 1) Page 12