Han Solo back to the Millennium Falcon. Beside him the Solo twins
chattered gaily, apparently oblivious to the thick jungle heat. He
could sense an underlying tension, though: Jacen and Jaina would miss
their father every bit as much as he would miss his uncle Chewbacca, his
mother, and the rest of his family back on Kashyyyk.
Lowbacca's golden eyes flicked uneasily about the clearing in front of
the Great Temple. He was still uncomfortable with wide-open spaces so
close to the ground. On the Wookiee homeworld all cities were built
high in the tops of the massive intertwining trees, supported by sturdy
branches. Even the most courageous of Wookiees seldom ventured to the
inhospitable lower levels of the forest-much less all the way to the
ground, where dangers abounded.
TO Lowbacca, height meant civilization, comfort, safety, home. And
although the enormous Massassi trees towered u to p twenty times as high
as any other plant on Yavin 4, compared with the trees of Kashyyyk they
were midgets. Lowbacca wondered if he would ever find a place high
enough on this small moon to make him feel at ease.
Lowie was so lost in thought that he was startled to see that they had
arrived at the Falcon.
"Never have the chance to do a preflight when we're under fire," Han
Solo said, "but it's a good idea when we do have the time."
Standing at the foot of the entry ramp he smiled disarmingly at them.
"If you kids aren't too busy, Chewie and I could use some help doing the
preflight checks."
"Great," Jaina said before anyone else could respond. "I'll take the
hyperdrive." She rushed up the ramp, pausing for only a millisecond to
brush a kiss on her father's cheek. "Thanks, Dad. You're the best."
Han Solo looked immensely pleased for a long moment before bringing
himself back to business with a shake of his head. "So, kid, you got
any preferences?" He looked at Lowie, who thought briefly, then rumbled
his reply.
Although Han Solo had doubtless understood him very well, the pesky
translator droid piped up. "Master Lowbacca wishes to inspect your
ship's computer systems in order that he might tell it where to go."
Han Solo gave Chewbacca a sidelong glance. "Thought you said you fixed
that thing," he said, indicating Em Teedee. "It needs an attitude
adjustment."
Chewbacca shrugged eloquently, gave a menacing growl, and administered
emergency repair procedure number one: he held the silvery oval with one
huge hand while he shook the little droid until the circuits rattled.
"Oh, dear me! Perhaps I could have been a bit more precise, P) the
droid squeaked hastily.
"Er . . . Master Lowbacca expresses his desire to perform the preflight
checks on your navigational computer."
"Good idea, kid," Han Solo agreed, briskly rubbing his palms together.
"Jacen, you take the exterior hull; see if anything's nested in the
exterior vents in the last couple of hours.
I'll start on the life-support systems. Chewie, you check the cargo
bay."
This last was said with a lift of the chin and a twinkle in Han Solo's
eye that Lowbacca.
knew must have meant something to the older Wookiee-but Lowie hadn't a
clue. He wondered dispiritedly if he would ever understand humans as
well as his uncle did.
The navicomputer was an enjoyable challenge. Lowie ran through all the
preflight requirements twice-not because he thought he might have missed
something the first time, but because the two places he felt most at
home were in the treetops and in front of a computer.
By the time Lowie completed his second run-through, Han Solo had already
finished with the life-support systems and was now checking out the
ship's emergency power generator. When he saw Lowbacca, Han wiped his
hands on a greasy rag, tossed it aside, and held up one finger as if an
idea had just come to him. "Why don't you give your uncle a hand in the
cargo hold while I finish up here." His roguish grin was even more
lopsided than usual.
Lowbacca wondered what the smile meant and why his uncle should still
need his help with the cargo. Sometimes humans were very difficult to
understand. With a shrug, he headed toward the cargo bay.
"Excuse me, Master Lowbacca," Em Teedee piped up, "but will you be
needing my translating services at this time?"
Lowbacca growled a negative.
"Very well, sir," Em Teedee said. "In that case, would you mind if I
put myself into a brief shutdown cycle? If you should require my
assistance for any reason, please do not hesitate to interrupt my rest
cycle."
Lowie assured Em Teedee that the miniature droid would be the first to
know if he needed anything from him.
He found his uncle clambering across a mountain of crates and bundles,
checking the securing straps. Apparently Lando Calrissian needed a good
many supplies for his new mining operation.
Even in the crowded cargo hold, he breathed deeply, enjoying the mix of
familiar smells: speeder fuel, machined metal, lubricants, space
rations, and Wookiee sweatenough to make him homesick for the treetop
cities of Kashyyyk. He would have little access to speeders or
computers while he studied at the Jedi academy-with the exception, of
course, of Em Teedee. But perhaps he could console himself occasionally
by climbing the jungle trees and thinking of home.
Maybe he would do that after the Falcon took off, but for now there was
work to do.
Lowie asked his uncle what still needed to be done, and began to check
the webbing on a pile of cargo that Chewbacca indicated.
The straps and webbing were loose, and so was the cloth that covered the
pile-so loose, in fact, that as Lowbacca began to work, the covering
slid away entirely. His jaw dropped, and he stepped back to admire what
he had accidentally uncovered.
The air speeder, dismantled into large components, was still
recognizable. It was an older model, a T-23 skyhopper, with controls
similar to the X-wing fighter, but with trihedral wings, and a passenger
seat and cramped cargo compartment at the rear of the cockpit. The
blue-metallic hull had been battered and stained with age, but the
engine mounted between the wings looked in serviceable condition.
He glanced up to find his uncle staring at him expectantly. Then, to
his great surprise, Chewbacca asked Lowie what he thought of the craft.
The skyhopper was compact and well constructed. It wouldn't take much
to put all the pieces together again. He complimented the vintage
speedees lines and ventured a guess as to its range and maneuverability
Of course, the onboard computer probably needed a system overhaul and
the exterior could use a bit of body work, but those were only minor
drawbacks. The dings and scars on the hull only served to add
character.
With a satisfied growl, Chewbacca spread his arms wide and shocked Lowie
by telling him the T-23 was a going-away gift. The speeder belonged to
Lowbacca, if he could assemble it.
Lowbac
ca stood next to his T-23 in the clearing with Jacen and Jaina and
waved good-bye. After a flurry of hugs, exchanged thanks, and
last-minute messages, they watched as Han and Chewbacca climbed back
aboard the ship.
Now as the Millennium Falcon cleared the treetops and angled into the
deep blue sky, the three young Jedi trainees continued waving, each lost
in thought for a long moment as they gazed after the departing ship.
At last Jaina heaved a sigh. "Well, Lowiel" she said, rubbing her hands
together with a look of gleeful anticipation as she looked at the
battered T-23. "Need any help getting this bucket of bolts up and
going?"
Realizing that even though Jaina was younger, she probably had more
experience tuning speeder engines than he did, he nodded gratefully They
spent the next few hours preparing the T-23 for its first flight on
Yavin 4. Jacen occupied himself by telling jokes that Lowie didn't
understand, or fetching tools for the two enthusiastic mechanics. Jaina
smiled as she worked, glad of the rare chance to share what she knew
about speeders and engines and T-23s.
When at last they finished and Lowbacca leaned into the cockpit to
switch on the engine, the T-23 crackled, sputtered, and roared to life.
It lifted off the ground on its lower repulsorlifts, and a bright glow
spluttered from the ion afterburners. The three friends let out two
cheers and a bellow of triumph.
"Need anyone to take her for a test flight?"
Jaina asked hopefully.
Lowie stumbled over a tentative answer.
"What Master Lowbacca is trying to say," said Em Teedee, who had long
since finished his rest cycle, "is that, as kind as your offer is, he
would vastly prefer to pilot the first flight himself."
Lowbacca grunted once.
"And?" the little droid replied. "What do 'And?" Oh, I see-the other
thing you mean, you said. But, sir, you didn't mean Lowbacca growled
emphatically.
"Well, if you insist," Em Teedee said.
"Ahem. Master Lowbacca also says that he would be honored to have you
as his passenger, Mistress Jaina. However, Y) he rushed on, "let me
assure you that last statement was made with the utmost reluctance."
Lowbacca groaned and hit his forehead with the heel of one hairy hand in
a Wookiee expression of complete embarrassment.
"Well, it , s certainly the truth," Em Teedee said defensively. "I'm
certain I didn't get the intonation wrong.
@y Jaina, who had at first looked disappointed at Lowbacca's reluctance,
now seemed amused at his chagiin. "I under-stand, Lowie," she said.
"I'd want to take her out on my own the first time, too. How about
giving us a ride tomorrow?"
Relieved that the twins were not upset, Lowbacca loudly agreed, jumped
into the cockpit, and strapped himself in. The whine of the engines
drowned out Em Teedee's attempt at translating. Lowie raised a hand in
salute, waited until Jacen and Jaina were clear, brought the engines to
full power, and took off, heading out toward the vast jungle.
The T-23 maneuvered well, and Lowbacca reveled in the feeling of height
and freedom as he streaked away. But still he found himself yearning
for one more thing, something that he had been thinking of all day.
The trees. Tall, towering, safe trees.
Scarcely half an hour later, far away from the Jedi academy and the
Great Temple, he landed the T-23 on the sturdy treetops, settling the
craft in the uppermost branches of the Massassi trees. The tree canopy
was not as high as he was used to. The air was thinner, and the jungle
smells, though not unpleasant, were different from those of Kashyyyk.
Even so, Lowbacca felt more at peace now than he had at any other moment
since landing on Yavin 4.
Jacen had said that the huge orange gas giant overhead was best viewed
from a Massassi tree-and the human boy was definitely right. Lowie
looked around in all directions-at the sky and the trees, at the
crumbling ruins of smaller temples visible through breaks in the canopy.
He stared at the languid rivers, at the strange vegetation and animals
around him. He sighed with relief. He could find a place of
contentment and solitude on this moon, a place where he could think of
family and home while he studied to be a Jedi.
As the late-afternoon sunlight slanted through the thick branches, a
distant glint caught Lowbacca's eye. He wondered what it could be. It
was not the color of any vegetation or temple ruins. The light
reflected from a shiny and evenly shaped object stuck partway up a tree.
Lowie leaned forward, as if that could help him see more clearly. He
wished he had brought a pair of macrobinoculars.
Curiosity and wonder struck a spark of excitement in him. He wanted to
get closer, but caution intervened. It was getting dark.
it long ago?
Perhaps not. He doubted it could be seen from the jungle floor, and it
was unlikely that many students came out and climbed to the top of the
canopy, this far away from the Great Temple. He was almost certain that
no one knew about this discovery.
Heart pounding, Lowie made a mental note of the shiny object's location.
He would come back the very first chance he got-he had to find out what
it was. ----------------"I WONDER WHY Lowie never made it to evening
meal," Jacen said. Jaina and Tenel Ka sat next to him in the grand
audience chamber, where Luke Skywalker had summoned them all for a
special announcement.
Dusk light shone like burning metal through the narrow windows overhead,
but the clean white glowpanels dispelled shadows in the large, echoing
room.
"Maybe he was having too much fun flying his T-23," Jaina whispered. "I
probably wouldn't have made it back either."
"Perhaps," Tenel Ka said in a low voice, as if giving the matter serious
consideration, "he was not hungry."
Jacen flashed her a look of disbelief. "Hey, a Wookiee not hungry? Hah!
And you say I make dumb jokes."
Tenel Ka shrugged. "It is a thought."
"Okay, well , Jacen said, "I'm not kidding now-what if something went
wrong with the skyhopper? What if Lowie crashed in the jungle?"
"Impossible," Jaina replied. Though she whispered, her tone was clearly
firm. "I checked all those systems myself."
Tenel Ka's eyebrows raised a fraction. "Ah.
Ah-hah. So because you checked them, the systems could not
malfunction?" She nodded, and Jacen could have sworn that he saw the
shadow of a smile lurking at the corners of her lips.
"Never mind-there's Lowie," Jacen said with relief, waving his arms to
attract their Wookiee friend's attention.
"See?" Jaina said smugly. "Told you nothing could happen."
Jacen pretended not to notice. "You're just in time," he said as the
Wookiee joined them.
"Master Skywalker should be here anytime now.
No one really knew why this special twilight meeting had been called,
but it was fairly unusual. Everyone who lived, worked, or trained at
the Jedi academy had arrived, filling the chamber with a hushed
excitement.
Jacen whispered, "Where were you, Lowic?"
Lowbacca responded in a low rumble, quieter than any Jacen had ever
heard a Wookiee use. Without warning, Em Teedee announced in a clear
metallic voice, "Master Lowbacca wishes it known that he had a most
successful expedition and-" The translator droid cut off in midsentence
as Lowbacca clamped a ginger-furred hand over the droid's mouth speaker.
"Shhh!" Jaina hissed.
"Can't you turn it down?" Jacen whispered.
Curious eyes turned to stare at them from every section of the grand
audience chamber.
Lowbacca hunched down in his seat with a chagrined look that needed no
interpreter.
He craned his neck forward to stare at the droid clipped to his webbed
belt. He issued a series of soft, sharp mutters.
"Oh! Oh, dear me," Em Teedee replied in an enthusiastic though much
quieter voice.
"I do beg your pardon. I did not fully comprehend that you didn't
intend to share your discovery with everyone present."
"Discovery?" Jacen said. "What did you-" But Master Skywalker chose
that moment to make his entrance. A hush fell over the crowd, putting
an end to all hope of Jacen satisfying his curiosity before the meeting