booby-trapped mines on Anobis." She shuddered at the thought of the
decades-long civil war between the miners of her mountain village and
the farmers in the valleys. "Go ahead without me, if you want. I'm
heading back to my room. I'll see you all at evening meal."
"Okay," Jacen said doubtfully. "I'm sure we won't be long. We'll see
you later."
With that, he, Tenel Ka, Lowie, and Em Teedee hurried up the corridor
to the trapdoor the Ugnaught had used. In less than a minute they had
disappeared into the floor, following him.
Anja breathed a sigh of relief when they were gone. Why was it that
being among these young Jedi brought up such conflicting emotions
within her? She walked down another hallway in the direction of her
room as fast as her legs would go.
She felt an overwhelming urge to take some andris. She needed it.
She had assured her friends that she wasn't addicted to the spice, but
she knew without a doubt that her need for it right now could not be
ignored.
he stepped into a turbolift and slumped against its rounded wall.
The door slid shut behind her and she noticed that her hands were
shaking. Was she addicted? she wondered. As the turbolift shot
upward, she shrugged off the idea.
No, it was only natural, given the circumstances, the tension, her near
fall from the tree, that she might need a small extra boost. A light
sweat broke out on her forehead and her vision blurred for a moment,
then cleared. The instant the turbolift door opened, she dashed down
the hallway toward her quarters, burst through the door, and scrambled
over to the satchel that held her belongings.
Not wanting to waste time searching, she dumped the contents
unceremoniously onto the sleeping pad and grabbed for the little black
box that held her precious andris. Her trembling fingers fumbled with
the catch and she withdrew one of the insulation-wrapped packets. She
ripped away the covering that kept the vial chilled and in the process
dropped the container into her pile of clothes.
She was panting now and close to tears. She recited half a dozen
choice curses that she had never spoken in front of the young Jedi
Knights as she rummaged again for the small vial among her
belongings.
There. There it was.
Anja had no memory of the intervening few minutes in which she opened
the vial and took the spice. The next thing she knew, she felt energy
coursing through her body. Her vision was clear and acute, her mind
alert, her doubts gone.
Yes, now she could think clearly. She didn't have to have andris.
She could give it up anytime she wanted, of course.
But she didn't want to. It made her feel so much better.
"Wow. I had no idea all these tunnels were even down here," Jacen
said, gazing at the maze of passages that stretched in all directions
beneath the entertainment complex. He kept his voice low in case the
Ugnaught they were following was somehow still within hearing range.
The warrens were dimly lit, and just barely tall enough for Jacen to
stand up in. Lowie, however, had to stoop to move around.
"Em Teedee, would you please give us a little extra light?" Jacen
murmured. "But not too much-we don't want to be seen."
"Certainly, Master Jacen," Em Teedee said in a loud whisper. "I should
be delighted to be of service." He bobbed up to the top of the tunnel
and directed the light from his optical sensors down toward the floor
of the passage. "But however are you going to locate that Ugnaught
now?"
"We must use the Force," Tenel Ka said. "He cannot have gone far."
As if to prove her point, Lowie suddenly woofed and pointed to a side
corridor about ten meters away.
"Right. I sense it too," Jacen said, thinking of the seedier areas
deep within Cloud City. "He must be heading to lower levels, probably
Port Town. Let's go."
Em Teedee stopped. "Just a moment, Master Jacen. Dear me! Although I
realize I'm not endowed with the Force, I was attempting to reach out
with all my sensors, and I believe I've just intercepted a comm
transmission originating from somewhere extremely close by. The words
were in Ugnaught dialogue-with which I am of course quite familiar,
being fluent in over sixteen forms of communication-" Lowie growled and
tapped the floating droid with one finger, as if to remind him that
they were in a hurry.
"Ah. Aha. What did the communication say?" Tenel Ka asked.
"Yes, of course, I was coming to that. It was something to this
effect: Retrieved the spice. Deal is back on. Meet outside tunnel 83,
section 11. Bring hard credits only."
Jacen, Tenel Ka, and Lowie exchanged concerned glances. Jacen gave a
low whistle. "A drug deal, then. For hard cash?"
Tenel Ka quirked an eyebrow at him. "So it would appear."
Lowie gave a thoughtful growl.
"Right," Jacen said. "If that's not suspicious, I don't know what
is."
"I sense him moving away," Tenel Ka warned.
"Let's stay with the Ugnaught then," Jacen said, moving up the tunnel
and toward the side passageway. "I've got a stronger feeling than ever
that this guy knows something about Cojahn's death."
As they followed the Ugnaught through convoluted catacombs to the
lower, darker levels of Cloud City, Jacen wondered if the creature had
any idea where he was going.
"I think this guy's lost," he muttered quietly to Tenel Ka.
Lowie groaned softly, and Em Teedee translated as the little droid
bobbed in front of them on his microrepulsorjets. "We must be quiet.
Stealth is of utmost importance."
After passing through the cluttered, seedier levels of Port Townthe
"bad part" of Cloud City-Jacen and his friends needed to use their Jedi
skills to the fullest just to keep track of their quarry. They hurried
through dimly lit sectors, ducked around junked equipment and debris
that had been waiting for centuries to be hauled away and sorted into
one of the scrap incinerators.
Each time they thought they had lost the Ugnaught, they managed to
glimpse his patchy-furred head once again, just as they were about to
give up hope. If the former foreman knew he was being followed, he
certainly made no attempt to elude or avoid them.
After they hurried past a group of Ishi Tibs huddled in a corner
placing bets on some sort of combat insects, they saw the small apelike
creature turn sharply to the left.
"Where did he go?" Jacen asked.
Lowie grunted, extending a tuffed arm to point at a small chute
opening. Without hesitation, Tenel Ka sprinted ahead and scrambled
into the chute. Jacen and Lowbacca followed. "Oh, my!" Em Teedee
said. "Are you certain these passages are safe enough to use for
transportation?"
"The Ugnaughts use them," Tenel Ka said. "They live in these tunnel
warrens."
As they proceeded, the light around them grew red and warm. Lowie
sniffed, using his Wookiee nose to follow the scent. They ducked low
and took shortcuts through passageway
s that seemed no larger than air
shafts. Em Teedee hovered next to the big ginger-furred Wookiee, who
had considerable difficulty fitting into the cramped spaces while
remaining quiet and secretive. Somehow, they managed to stay on the
Ugnaught's trail as he led them deeper and deeper into Cloud City's
interior.
Jacen mentally reviewed what he knew about the Ugnaughts and their
culture, how they had come here as slave creatures for a rich and
eccentric developer named Ecclessis Figg. Lord Figg had promised them
their freedom if they would help him to complete his impossible dream
of building a city in the clouds.
Now, Ugnaughts were among the most respected inhabitants of the huge
metropolis in Bespin's skies. The creatures filled important positions
in all strata of society, from city politicians and bureaucrats to
salvage engineers on the hot conveyor lines.
This Ugnaught had been an engineer, the chief construction foreman on
SkyCenter Galleria, before Cojahn had fired him for "certain
irregularities." So what had he been doing back at the amusement
facility?
And where was he going now?
The Ugnaught scuttled along without a backward glance, seemingly
without noticing the young Jedi Knights following him. In the cramped
tunnels and halls they heard few other creatures moving around, just
the throbbing sounds of machinery and equipment deep in the Tibanna gas
processing levels of the giant city.
A tingle of fear skittered up and down Jacen's spine. Tenel Ka touched
his arm and he could feel the tension rippling through her as well.
"Something is not right," she said.
"I know it," he answered, frowning. He knew they had been quiet, using
their Jedi skills, but in such an uninhabited area, he found it hard to
believe that the Ugnaught ahead didn't suspect their presence.
The furry creature popped down another dropshaft, and Jacen, Tenel Ka,
and Lowie hurried so they wouldn't lose sight of him. "I wish I knew
where he was going," Jacen muttered. "This is like a scaredmynock
chase."
At the bottom of the shaft they emerged into a large storage area, and
Jacen immediately sensed the danger. The large chamber was silent,
muffled with shadows; they saw no sign of their quarry whatsoever,
though he had dropped into this room only seconds ago.
The three companions stood together, stock still in the shadows.
Jacen glanced around, his Jedi senses at the peak of alertness. He saw
no movement. A shroud of deathly quiet hung around them. It was too
quiet.
Lowie snuffled, trying to detect scents in the musty air. Each breath
echoed in the enclosed storage room. Em Teedee's golden optical
sensors glowed in the dimness as he floated above them, unconsciously
marking their position.
Tenel Ka pressed closer to Jacen, her back against his. The contact
sent a tingle through his senses, though he would have enjoyed it more
had they not been in such a tense situation.
Lowie growled deep in his throat. The Wookiee formed no actual words,
but the miniaturized translating droid relayed the meaning anyway.
"Master Lowbacca believes the Ugnaught has led us into a trap."
Just as Jacen's hand twitched toward the lightsaber at his waist, all
the room's glowpanels flashed on, dazzling their eyes with the burst of
light. Blinking furiously in an attempt to focus, Jacen saw only
blocky shadows, stacked crates, and hunks of decommissioned machinery
wrapped in transparent sheeting.
A moment later seven burly, murderous-looking creatures stepped
forward, a mix of races: some human, some craggy-faced brutes. One
glistening alien dripped blue slime in tiny puddles onto the floor
plates.
The seven were armed with blasters, grenade launchers, and various
long-distance weapons-and each of them looked mean and scarred and
intent on mayhem.
An icicle of dread slid down Jacen's back. Even three Jedi Knights
would not be able to resist a combined attack from these hired
killers.
"Don't move," snarled the slime-dripping alien. Weapons came up and
took aim, holding them at bay.
A broad-shouldered human with a hairy face from eyebrows to chin
growled in a wet, phlegmy voice, "Are these the ones?" One side of his
face appeared to have been eaten away by acid.
The seven thugs pulled out images printed on evaporating flimiplast.
The patchy-furred Ugnaught scurried out from his hiding place behind a
rusty disconnected pumping generator. He chittered and squealed,
pointing vigorously at them.
gargled. "But this is only half the number we're supposed to kill.
Where are the rest-the Lando guy and the other kids?"
The Ugnaught squealed something. Em Teedee said, "Shall I translate
what the Ugnaught has just explained?"
"No," Tenel Ka said quickly.
The Wookiee roared, and Jacen nodded. "I agree, Lowie-if we can't
fight them, we'd better turn around and run!"
The thugs shouted in surprise and fired off scattered blaster shots as
Jacen, Lowie, and Tenel Ka bolted toward the nearest exit door. Their
feet clanging on the metal decks of the lower levels in Port Town, the
young Jedi Knights dashed out of the room, sprinting ahead as fast as
they could go. Jacen swung around metal-walled corners, his sweaty
hands squeaking on grimy durasteel plates as he grabbed them for
balance.
. Lowie banged his head on the low ceiling and yowled in pain, but kept
charging ahead. Em Teedee sputtered along, doing his best to keep
up.
"Wait for me!"
The suspicious Ugnaught had led them into a trap. They had blundered
into it in spite of sensing warnings through the Force. But what
chilled Jacen most was knowing that he and his friends had already been
marked as targets. These assassins, carrying images of Lando and the
young Jedi Knights, apparently had orders to kill all of them. He had
seen a glimpse of his own face on the printed flimiplast, a contract
for their deaths.
The surly bunch behind them bellowed, firing their blasters
recklessly.
Apparently they had no training in teamwork, though. The scaring
energy bolts bounced off the reflective walls, skittering like molten
cannonballs down the passageways.
Ahead, Jacen saw an opening in the floor that dropped into a wide air
shaft. He leapt down it and the others followed, bouncing and jolting
against the slick metal walls until they shot out into an open bay
where cold steam hissed upward. Tubes dangled like tentacles from
overhead supports. They landed on a rickety catwalk, and Jacen grabbed
the railing to reassert his balance. Amber light burned from
mini-glows hidden in pipes, conduits, and pressure-release valves.
Beside Jacen, Lowbacca reached out to grab a horizontal dangling chain
overhead. Using his powerful Wookiee muscles, he hauled himself across
it hand-overhand until he reached a lower platform
on a solid catwalk,
then swung a chain back down to his friends so that Tenel Ka and Jacen
could each swing over to him. Em Teedee flew across by himself.
The lift-shaft door opened with a hiss. A blocky, gray-skinned man and
the slime-dripping alien lunged into the industrial chamber,
immediately spotting their prey. More blaster fire rang out. One bolt
breached a lubricant-containment vessel, cracking open its outer
shell.
Slick greenish-blue liquid spilled onto the floor, turned smoky, and
slowly began to burn. The two hitmen growled and coughed, waving the
curling, noxious smoke away from their faces. More blue slime dripped
from the messy alien.
"This is no place to camp out," Jacen said. "How about we try
somewhere else?"
They ran along the catwalk and scrambled down a set of metal ladders
rung by rung until they reached an even lower level, then scurried
across a dirt-stained floor.
"Where is everybody?" Jacen said. "Is this section of Cloud City
off-limits, or what?"
"Perhaps today it is." Tenel Ka, barely even breathing hard, stopped
next to him. "I believe they moved all workers out of this area.
They wished to keep the field clear for their hunt."
"You mean they planned this that much ahead?" Jacen said.