Heirs of the Force Page 5

  things together, then, Lowie." Chewbacca chuffed in agreement.

  But Jaina's forehead furrowed with sudden concern. "Uh, Dad?" she said.

  "It's obvious that Lowie has studied our language and understands us as

  well as Chewie does. But we can't understand him. After all, it took

  you years to learn the Wookiee language. How is he going to get by here

  at the Jedi academy where nobody can understand him?"

  Jacen nodded agreement, looking at the young Wookiee. "Who'll translate

  for us?"

  They were interrupted at this point by a triumphant bark from Chewbacca.

  "We have just the answer for you," Han said, clapping his hands and

  rubbing them together.

  "A little something that See-Threepio and Chewie cooked up."

  Chewbacca turned and held out a shiny metallic device for everyone to

  see. The sidewise-ovoid apparatus was silvery, slightly longer than

  Lowie's hand and about four fingers thick, flat on the back and rounded

  on the front. It looked like a face, with two like that."

  "And for the rest yellow optical sensors unevenly spaced near the top, a

  more or less triangular protrusion toward the center, and a perforated

  oblong on the lower portion that Jacen took to be a speaker Chewbacca

  fiddled with something at the back of the device, and the yellow eyes

  flickered to life. A thin metallic voice, careful and correct, issued

  from the tiny speaker.

  "Greetings. I am a Miniaturized Translator Droid-Em Teedee-specializing

  in humanWookiee relations. I am fluent in over six forms of

  communication. My primary programmed function is to translate Wookiee

  speech into other humanoid languages." It paused expectantly and then

  added, "Might I be of assistance?"

  Jacen laughed. "It can't be!"

  Jaina gasped. "Sounds just like Threepio!"

  "Almost," their father replied, his mouth twisted in wry amusement. He

  scratched under his collar with one lazy finger. "A little too much

  like Threepio, for my money. But since he did most of the programming

  on Em Teedee, I couldn't talk him out of it." He shrugged

  apologetically.

  "Why don't you kids try it out during the midday meal? Chewbacca and I

  still have some business to discuss with Luke, then we'll take off in

  the Falcon later this after noon. We've got to see Lando at his mining

  station."

  The common room the Jedi trainees used as a mess hall was filled with

  wooden tables of various heights. The seats-chairs, benches, nests,

  ledges, cushions, and stools-came in a broad variety of shapes and sizes

  to accommodate the differing customs and anatomies of human and alien

  students.

  The plantlike members of the Jedi academy had gone outside to the bright

  sunwashed steps of the Great Temple, where they could soak up light from

  Yavin's white sun and photosynthesize for nutrients, adding small

  packets of minerals into their digestive orifices. Inside the mess

  hall, though, dozens of unusual species sat together eating exotic foods

  particular to their own kind.

  Jacen followed a step behind, still chattering about the old Massassi

  temples, as Jaina found a table at one end of the large hall that had a

  chair appropriate for Lowbacca. SO far Jacen had been unable to elicit

  more than a few nods and gestures from the Wookiee, who seemed deep in

  thought, intent on absorbing the smells, sights, and sounds around him.

  Determined to start a real conversation with the new trainee, Jacen cast

  about in his mind for a good question. So, Lowie, how much stuff do you

  need to move in? Naw, that was a stupid question.

  How about, How old are you? No, that would get him only a short

  answer. And anyway, their father had told them that earlier this

  morning. Lowie was nineteen, barely an adolescent by Wookiec standards.

  Maybe something like, How did you know you wanted to become a Jedi? Yes,

  that was good.

  But before he could pose the question, the solid, muscular form of Tenel

  Ka swung into the seat next to him, across from Lowbacca.

  "New student," she said, acknowledging Lowbacca in the brief, direct way

  that was so characteristic of her.

  "Lowie," Jacen said, "this is our friend Tenel Ka, from the planet of

  Dathomir."

  "And this," Jaina responded, making the introductions for her side of

  the table, "is Lowbacca, nephew of Chewbacca, from the Wookice homeworld

  of Kashyyyk."

  Tenel Ka rose formally and inclined her head, tossing her red-gold hair.

  "Lowbacca of Kashyyyk, I greet you," she said, and resumed her seat.

  Lowbacca nodded in return and uttered three short growls.

  Jacen waited for a moment, looking at the little translator droid

  clipped to Lowie's belt, but nothing happened.

  "Well?" Jaina said expectantly "You going to translate for us, Em

  Teedee?"

  "Goodness me, Mistress Jaina, I am sorry," the tiny droid replied in a

  flustered, mechanical voice. "Oh, how dreadful! My initial

  opportunity to perform my primary function for Master Lowbacca, and I've

  failed him. I assure you, masters and mistresses all, that from now on

  I will endeavor to make each translation as speedily and as eloquently

  as possible-" Lowbacca interrupted the translator droid's self-reproach

  with a sharp growl.

  "Translate?" the little droid replied. "Translate what? Oh! Oh, I

  see. Yes. Immediately."

  Em Teedee made a noise that sounded for all the world as if it was

  clearing its throat, and then began. "Master Lowbacca says, 'May no sun

  rise upon a day, nor any moon rise upon a night, in which he is not as

  honored to see you, and to be in your presence, as he is at this very

  moment."' Jaina rolled her eyes. Jacen shook his head in disbelief. But

  Tenel Ka's face remained expressionless.

  From the corner of his eye, Jacen caught sight of the troublesome young

  student Raynar in his colorful robes, snickering at them from a nearby

  table. Automated servers carried generous bowls of food from the

  kitchen and placed them in front of each trainee.

  But jACEN'S attention was brought back to his own table when Lowie

  growled down into the optical sensors of the translator droid.

  "Well, so what if I did embellish a bit?" the droid asked defensively,

  as a plate of steaming, blood-red meat was placed in front of the

  Wookiee. "I was only attempting to make you sound more civilized."

  Lowbacca's threatening growl left no doubt as to whether he was grateful

  to the droid.

  "Very well," Em Teedee buffed. "Perhaps a better translation of Master

  Lowbacca's words would have been,"The sun has never shined so brightly

  for this humble Wookiee as on this day we meet."' jacen accepted a hot

  cup of soup that his sister passed across the table to him. He shot a

  questioning look at Lowie, who growled again at Em Teedee.

  "Well, have it your way then," the droid said haughtily, but in a more

  subdued voice.

  "But I assure you that my translations were much more refined. Ahem.

  What Master Lowbacca actually said was, 'I am pleased to meet you."'

  When the Wookiee finally grunted in satisfaction, Te
nel Ka replied

  gravely, as if she had not heard any of the other translations, "It is a

  pleasure shared, Lowbacca."

  As an automated tray trundled past toward Raynar's nearby table, Tenel

  Ka reached out and snagged the last jug of fresh juice. She poured the

  rich ruby liquid into each of their cups and then set the jug with a

  gentle thump on the table before them.

  She blinked her cool gray eyes and solemnly held out her cup.

  "Jacen and Jaina are already my friends. I offer you friendship,

  Lowbacca of Kashyyyk."

  The Wookiee hesitated, unsure of what to do. Jaina pressed a cup into

  his hand. Jacen raised his and said, "Friendship."

  "Friendship," Jaina echoed.

  Nodding, Lowie lifted his glass high in the air, threw his head back,

  and let out a roar that rang through the hall.

  The small voice of Em Teedee broke the silence that followed. "Master

  Lowbacca most emphatically accepts your offer of friendship and extends

  his own." To everyone's surprise, the Wookiee did not correct the

  translator.

  "Accepted," Tenel Ka said, taking a drink.

  When everyone had followed suit, she said, "And now we are friends."

  "That means you can call him Lowie now," Jaina said.

  Tenel Ka considered this for a moment. "I choose to honor him by using

  his complete name."

  At another table, three short reptilian Cha'a sat around a trayful of

  warm, rocking eggs, staring fixedly at them like the predators they

  were. When the eggs cracked and opened, the Cha'a lunged for the bright

  pink furry hatchlings as they emerged fresh from the shells.

  Two whistling avian creatures shared a plateful of thin, writhing

  threads covered with fluffy blue hair-tantalizing ropy caterpillars

  which they slurped one at a time through their narrow, horny beaks.

  As Jacen sat at the table spooning his soup, trying to think of

  something amusing to say to Tenel Ka, or at least to continue the

  conversation with Lowie, he caught a glimpse of movement out of the

  corner of his eye-something slithering toward the table beside them. A

  glassy glitter. A serpentine flash.

  Jacen's heart leaped into his throat. He suddenly wondered if he had

  fastened the cage of the crystal snake when his father and the Wookiecs

  had finished their tour of his chambers.

  "Hey," Raynar said, leaning over the table beside them, his flashy robes

  so brilliant that they made Jacen's eyes ache. "Would you mind giving

  our juice jug back?" Raynar used his own Jedi powers to snatch the jug

  from their table and carry it through the air back toward himself. "Next

  time please ask before you just take it." He leaned back and crossed

  his arms over his chest with a self-satisfied expression.

  Just then, light fell on the crystal snake, and Jacen saw it with

  perfect clarity. It reared up on Raynar's lap and hissed at him, its

  flat triangular head staring the boy right in the face.

  Raynar saw it and shrieked, losing his Force concentration. The jug

  wobbled, then fell, spilling deep red juice all over his bright robes.

  Jacen leaped to his feet and jumped for the snake. He had to catch it

  before it wreaked more havoc. He tackled Raynar, trying to grab the

  serpent from the other boy's lap.

  Raynar, thinking he was being attacked from all sides, screamed in

  terror at the top of his lungs.

  As he and Jacen struggled, their entire table toppled over, spilling

  dark brown pudding, knocking other beverage containers right and left,

  spraying food on Raynar's companions at the table.

  Tenel Ka, not understanding the problem but always ready to defend her

  friends, jumped into the fray. She picked up Jacen's hot soup and

  hurled it toward Raynar's companions, who, seeing the attack coming from

  a new front, decided to retaliate.

  A platter of honeyed noodles sailed across the dining hall toward Jaina,

  but she ducked.

  The noodles instead splattered and clung to the bristly white fur of a

  Talz-a bearlike creature that stood up and blatted a musical note of

  dismay. When Jaina saw the noodles sticking to the alien's white fur,

  she couldn't stop herself from laughing.

  The crystal snake slithered out of Jacen's grasp as Jacen crawled across

  Raynar's squirming lap. The young Jedi screamed as if he were being

  murdered, but Jacen scuttled under the dining tables after the serpent.

  Bumping one of the tables over while grabbing for the snake, he felt

  smooth, dry scales against his fingertips-but the snake slid through

  them, and he could not hold on.

  Another table was knocked over as Lowie came to help. With a flurry of

  feathers, the avian creatures squawked and fought over their plateful of

  squirming, fuzzy blue thread-worms.

  More food flew through the air, levitated by Jedi powers, and tossed

  from one table to another. The Jedi students were laughing, seeing it

  now as a release from the tension of the grueling studies and deep

  concentration required of them during their training.

  Steamed leaves flew in the faces of the reptilian Cha'a, interrupting

  their predatory concentration. All three of them stood up and whirled

  to meet the attack, back-to-back, standing in a three-point formation,

  hissing and glaring. The milky tan eggs on their eating platter

  continued to hatch, and the pink fuzzy hatchlings chose that moment to

  escape.

  Lowie let out a stone-rumbling Wookiee roar, and Em Teedee squeaked with

  a highpitched alarm. "I can't see a thing, Master Lowbacca! Comestibles

  are obscuring my optical sensors. Do please clean them off!"

  Arloo-Detoo trundled into the dining chamber and let out an electronic

  wail, but his droid cries were drowned out by the laughter and the

  tumult of flying food. Before Artoo could wheel around and sound the

  alarm, a large tray of creamy dessert pastries splattered across his

  domed top. The astromech droid beat a hasty, whirring retreat.

  As the crystal snake slithered toward the cracked stone walls to escape,

  Jacen desperately plowed forward. He reached out with one hand and

  grabbed the pointed tail. The serpent rippled around invisibly in a

  fluid motion, flashing its fangs toward Jacen, ready to bite down on the

  hand holding it.

  But Jacen held out his other hand, pointing with his finger and the

  Force, touching the snake's tiny brain.

  "Hey! Don't you dare." he said aloud. Then, as the crystal snake

  hesitated, Jacen grabbed it around the neck and lifted it into the air.

  The lower part of its long body whipped and thrashed. Jacen coiled the

  snake around his arm and sent soothing thoughts into its mind. He stood

  up, grinning and relieved.

  "I got it!" he cried in triumph-just as three overripe fruits splashed

  against his face and chest, bursting their thin skins and spilling rich

  purple pulp all over him. Jacen sputtered and then allowed himself to

  giggle, still maintaining his hold on the crystal snake.

  "Stop!" A booming voice enhanced by the Force echoed through the dining

  hall.

  Suddenly everything froze as if time itself had paused. All t
he flying

  food hung suspended in the air; each drip of liquid dangled motionless

  above the tables. All sound ceased, save for that of the trainees'

  gasps.

  Master Luke Skywalker stood in the entrance to the dining hall wearing a

  stern expression as he surveyed the suspended food fight. Jacen looked

  at his uncle's expression and thought he saw anger, but also a concealed

  amusement.

  Luke said, "Was this the best and most challenging way you could find to

  put your powers to use?" He gestured to all the motionless food and

  seemed very sad for a moment. Then he turned to leave-but not before

  Jacen noticed a smile spreading across his face.

  As he departed, Luke called, "Instead, perhaps you can use your Jedi

  powers . . . to clean up this mess." He gestured briefly with his

  right hand, and the suspended food platters, bowls of soup, desserts,

  fruits, and messy confections were released, tumbling down like an

  avalanche. Practically everyone was splattered all over again as sticky

  gobbets sprayed into the air.

  Jacen looked at the aftermath of the food war. Still holding the

  crystal snake, he wiped a smear of frosting from his nose.

  The other Jedi students, though subdued, began to chuckle with relief,

  then set to work cleaning up. ------------------I THE WARM AFTERNOON sun

  sparkled in the heavy, moist air as Lowbacca accompanied his uncle and