Дэйв Волвертон - Jedi Apprentice 1 - The Rising Force

Si Treemba scrambled to his feet. “We —“ he began, but Clat’Ha cut him off by turning to Qui-Gon.

“We have a problem,” she said crisply. “Someone has been tampering with our equipment. Young Si Treemba here discovered it on a routine inspection. We have three Arconan tunneling machines in stock, and all three have been sabotaged.”

“How so?” Qui-Gon asked.

Si Treemba stepped forward. “The thermocoms that monitor the tunnelers’ hull temperature have been removed, sir. And the coring couplers have been rigged so that they will not disengage.”

“What does that mean?” Obi-Wan asked.

Qui-Gon thought for a minute. “The Arconan tunnelers are vehicles that drill through rock and soil. As they do, the friction of the hull moving past all that stone makes the vehicle very hot. Without the thermocoms, the cooling system would not work. And with the coring computers sabotaged, the driver of the tunneler would not be able to shut if off. The machine would simply keep digging until it melted from the heat. Everyone in it would die.”

“Exactly,” Clat’Ha said grimly. “I think that we know who is responsible.”

A booming voice from the doorway, speaking in Huttese. “Sie batha ne beechee ta Jemba?” Are you talking about me, the Great Jemba?

The Hutt outside the door was much larger than the one that had beaten Obi-Wan. Hutts can live for hundreds of years and they never really stop growing — either in size or cunning. This one, Jemba, had a mouth so vast that he could have swallowed three men whole. Jemba’s huge face and eyes filled the doorway.

“Yes,” Qui-Gon said evenly, “we were talking about you, O Great Jemba. Come in — if you can.”

Jemba hunkered down “I has been many years since I could squeeze through such a small whole, Jedi,” Jemba boomed. “Why don’t you come out here?” He licked his lips.

Qui-Gon walked to the doorway and faced the Hutt. “You have been accused of sabotaging the Arconans’ tunnelers.”

“Aaaagh!” Jemba said, drawing back a pace. He placed a hand over his uppermost heart, a Huttese gesture meant to indicate his innocence. “Never! I swear, Jedi, I did not do it. Do I look like the kind of creature who would sneak around, sabotaging other people’s equipment?”

Obi-Wan did not believe the Hutt for a moment, but he almost had the laugh at the idea that the enormous Hutt could sneak anywhere.

“Of course I don’t believe that you did it, personally, Great One,” Qui-Gon said. “But one of your crew could have, under your direction.”

“Aaaagh! Aaaagh!” Jemba squirmed backward like a giant worm and pounded his hand on his uppermost heart again. “I am hurt by such accusations! I know nothing of this matter. Look into my hearts, Jedi, and you will see that I do not lie! Why does everyone think that I am evil, just because I am a Hutt?” Jemba demanded. “I am an honest businessman.”

“Enough of this,” Clat’Ha said in disgust. She strode forward to face Jemba, her hands on her hips, just above the blaster strapped to her left leg. “Of course it was one of your crew!”

“I swear, I know nothing of this matter!” Jemba roared.

Clat’Ha reached for her blaster.

Qui-Gon raised a hand, warning her back.

“Perhaps,” Jemba said, his eyes narrowing craftily, “your people did it to hurt me. Your unreasonable hatred for me is well-known. You have already asked the mining guild to have Offworld banned from Bandomeer. Now, by casting suspicion on me and my crew, you hope to have me lawfully removed.”

“I don’t care whether you are removed lawfully or not,” Clat’Ha said furiously. “I just want you gone!”

“Exactly! Jemba roared. The huge Hutt looked imploringly at Qui-Gon. “You see what I am faced with? How can a Hutt fight such unreasonable hatred?”

“Excuse me, Jemba,” Clat’Ha said in a mock politeness. “But it’s not unreasonable to hate a lying, scheming, cowardly murderer.”

The Hutt’s enormous body suddenly puffed in indignation. “We have not even reached Bandomeer,” Jemba said, “and this woman tries to discredit me before the mining guild. Now she tries to frame me! Listen to how she talks to me. There is no respect in her voice!”

“I may not respect you, Jemba,” Clat’Ha spat back, “But I certainly didn’t frame you. Your lies are as pathetic as your denials.”

Jemba gave a roar of anger and launched himself at Clat’Ha. He hit the door frame, which began to crack and splinter under the pressure. Si Treemba, terrified, hissed and pressed himself against the wall. Obi-Wan watched in fascination. The Hutt could bring down the entire sickbay!

Clat’Ha drew her blaster, but Qui-Gon stepped in front of her and raised his hand. He locked eyes with the Hutt. Obi-Wan felt the power of the Force fill the room.

“Enough,” Qui-Gon said quietly.

Jemba stopped pushing to get inside the room. The Hutt knew he could not get to Clat’Ha. Qui-Gon glanced at Clat’Ha. Slowly, she lowered the blaster and returned it to the holding device on her leg. Obi-Wan had to admire Qui-Gon’s skill. He felt a pang of regret. There was so much he wished he could learn from the Jedi.

“Now,” Qui-Gon said in a reasonable tone, “let us review the situation. The machines were sabotaged. Yet both of you insist you did not do it. There is nowhere to take this except open warfare.” Qui-Gon looked at each of them in turn. “And that is something that neither of you wish for, I’m sure.”

“Jedi,” Jemba said, “you think yourself to be a fair man. But when Hutts and Humans argue, even the fairest of men join sides against my kind.” The Hutt’s voice boomed in a tone of pure venom. “If it is war that she wants, then war will come. And if you take her side, I swear, I will squash you like a pta fruit! Your Jedi status does not protect you!”

Menace hung thick in the air. It was clear that the Hutt meant everything he said. He was willing to kill anyone who stood against him. Obi-Wan had never encountered a creature of such malice.

It would be so easy to solve the situation, Obi-Wan thought. The Hutt was vulnerable, trapped in the small hallway outside the sickbay. Qui-Gon could draw his lightsaber, lunge forward, and slice the Hutt in half.

But Qui-Gon merely nodded his head graciously. “Thank you for the warning,” he said simply.

Of course, Obi-Wan realized. The warning is a gift.

Jemba nodded as if satisfied, then slithered down the hall. Clat’Ha let out a long breath.

“Well, that went well,” she muttered. She hurried to the door. “I have to warn my people. If this isn’t war, it’s something close to it.” Clat’Ha raced out.

Qui-Gon shook his head sadly. “There is a strong hatred between those two. Neither of them will listen.”

“I don’t understand,” Obi-Wan said. “Why did you let the Hutt go? He may be innocent of the crime of which he has been accused. But I’m sure he’s guilty of others.”

“Yes, he’s guilty,” Qui-Gon agreed. “But Clat’Ha can defend herself. As Jedi, we are bound only to defend those who have no other means of defense.”

“Still, one of Jemba’s crew has to have sabotaged those tunnelers. Why doesn’t he try to find out who did it?” Obi-Wan asked.

Qui-Gon answered, “Because if one of Jemba’s men did do it, it will make him look bad before the miners’ guild. He might be ordered off Bandomeer permanently. He knows that, so he won’t point any fingers at his own.”

“Ah,” Si Treemba said. “And Clat’Ha must feel the same. If anyone learned that one of her workers tried to frame Jemba, the miners’ guild would be furious.”

“But it shouldn’t be to hard to find out who really sabotaged the tunnelers,” Obi-Wan pointed out excitedly.