Anakin's Quest Page 6

  moving the algae with his mind, with the Force. He wondered who Anakin

  could be talking to-didn't he know Uldir couldn't use the Force like that?

  The melon head bent toward the surface of the water and slurped up a

  huge mouthful of algae. The algae floated farther away from Uldir, and the

  beast followed, munching contentedly. While Anakin guided the slimy

  creature away, Tahiri returned with a length of tough vine. She threw one

  end to Uldir, but it fell short and began to drift out of reach. The girl

  shut her bright green eyes and concentrated. Uldir was amazed to see the

  vine begin to drift back toward him. Soon he was able to reach out and

  catch the end of it.

  Uldir pulled, trying to free his feet from the mud. Tahiri leaned

  backward to pull, but he could see her face crumple in pain as she pushed

  down hard with both heels to keep from sliding into the water. Anakin and

  his furry pet quickly came to her aid, but even together they were unable

  to pull Uldir free. Uldir strained with his arms, pulling on the vine as

  hard as he could.

  He kicked and wriggled in the warm, putrid water. Just as he was about

  to give up hope, the little R2 droid appeared again, followed by the

  longhaired pilot.

  Old Peckhum looked just as surprised as Anakin and Tahiri had been to

  see Uldir. Without stopping to ask questions, though, the pilot wrapped his

  huge hands around the vine and tugged. Once Peckhum put his legs and back

  into it, adding his strength to the group's efforts, Uldir's feet pulled

  free. When his feet came out of the mud, Uldir's entire body skidded across

  the surface of the filthy water like a turbo-ski.

  By the time Anakin, Tahiri, and old Peckhum hauled him up out of the

  pool, every square centimeter of Uldir's body was covered with swamp scum.

  Algae dangled from his hair and grayish-green water dripped from his ears

  and nose.

  `Thank you," Uldir managed to splutter. He coughed up a whole mouthful

  of swamp water.

  "What are you doing here, Uldir?" Tahiri asked. "How did you get to

  Dagobah, and why did you come? What were you doing in the swamp? What was

  that thing that was looking at you? Does Master Skywalker know you're here?

  How did-"

  "Well, this day's just been full of surprises," Peckhum finally cut

  in. "But there'll be time enough for questions later. I think we'd better

  get a certain young man cleaned up."

  The idea of being clean and dry suddenly sounded very good to Uldir.

  "And"-the old spacer looked at Tahiri-"then I think we'd better take

  care of a certain stubborn young lady's foot."

  Artoo-Detoo gave a loud beep of agreement. Uldir looked down at Tahiri

  and saw that her right foot was bleeding. The blond girl blushed a bright

  red.

  "Well, maybe I did learn a bit of a lesson about going barefoot on

  strange planets," she said. Her comment interested Uldir. Apparently these

  Jedi trainees weren't so powerful. If Tahiri knew so much about the Force,

  why hadn't she been able to protect her feet? Uldir was sure that with a

  little bit of training even he could do better than that. Sure, he had had

  a close call himself just now, but that had been with a monster, not with a

  little thorn or a pebble.

  "Thank you all for rescuing me," he said with real gratitude. "If you

  hadn't come along, that monster would have eaten me for sure."

  "Mmmm. You were never in any true danger."

  There was that strange wheezy voice he had heard earlier, Uldir

  thought. He looked around to see who had spoken. All he saw was Anakin's

  pet, Ikrit.

  "Your danger came from the swamp itself, not from the creature," Ikrit

  said.

  Uldir's eyes went wide. "It-it talked!"

  In the hold of the Lightning Rod, Anakin sipped from a cup of warm

  broth that old Peckhum had made in the food prep unit. Beside him Uldir sat

  wrapped in blankets, drinking soup and shivering occasionally, even though

  it wasn't cold inside. ArtooDetoo puttered and fussed over the wound on

  Tahiri's foot, making scolding noises while the longhaired old pilot

  bandaged it.

  "I'm sorry I didn't hear you calling for help sooner," Peckhum said.

  "I had the antistatic generator running while I checked the circuit paths.

  I couldn't hear a thing."

  "You came right when we needed you," Anakin said.

  "Well you can thank your furry little Jedi friend here for that," old

  Peckhum said, winking at Ikrit, who was once again perched on Artoo's domed

  head.

  "Jedi?" Uldir exploded into laughter.

  "Okay. I'il admit it's pretty amazing that your pet can talk. But

  don't try to tell me that that overgrown furball is a Jedi!" He pointed at

  Ikrit, whooping and chuckling until tears filled his amber eyes.

  Anakin wasn't sure exactly how he had expected Uldir to react to

  learning about Ikrit. Surprise? Awe? Maybe even discomfort or distrust...

  but not this. Anakin found himself becoming annoyed. If Uldir truly wanted

  to become a Jedi, this was no way to talk about Ikrit. He looked straight

  into the older boy's eyes.

  "Ikrit isn't a trained pet. He is a Jedi." Tahiri piped up at this

  point. "Not only that, but he's a Jedi Master, and he's hundreds of years

  old."

  Uldir looked from one to the other. His jaw clenched and his eyes grew

  hard.

  "Is this your way of getting back at me for stowing away again? First

  Master Skywalker tells me I don't have the talent to become a Jedi. Now you

  two lie to me. Do you really expect me to believe that some flop-eared

  talking pet is more worthy to be a Jedi than I am? That he's a Jedi Master?

  "

  Before Anakin or Tahiri could make an angry reply, Ikrit spoke in a

  low, quiet voice.

  "Perhaps we can believe the truth," the furry Jedi Master said, fixing

  his blue-green eyes on Uldir, "only if truth is what we seek."

  Morning mist hung in the air like shreds of white gauze, though how

  one could tell the difference between morning and evening mist-or even

  afternoon or night mist-was beyond Anakin. It seemed to him that fog hung

  in Dagobah's air no matter what time of day it was. All of the companions

  had gotten a good night's sleep in the hold of the Lightning Rod. Now,

  though, they left old Peckhum behind to tinker with the ship and ventured

  into the swamp for what Ikrit said was a very important lesson. Ikrit rode

  ahead on Artoo-Detoo. Behind them walked Anakin and Tahiri. Uldir brought

  up the rear of their little group. In spite of the clouds of buzzing

  insects, the small odd-looking animals that scuttled across their path, and

  the strange burbling of the marshy water, all of them seemed to be enjoying

  themselves-all except Anakin.

  Anakin looked around at the swampy landscape with barely concealed

  impatience. Why had Ikrit taken it into his head to conduct a lesson now,

  of all times? He guessed that it had something to do with Uldir's showing

  up, but that didn't make him feel any better. After all, wasn't it Anakin's

  quest that had brought them to Dagobah in the first place? Shouldn't they

  b
e concentrating on that instead? The small Jedi Master rapped on Artoo-

  Detoo's domed head to signal a halt.

  "This will do," Ikrit said.

  He motioned to his three "trainees," then pointed to the trunk of a

  fallen tree.

  "There. Sit."

  Anakin, Tahiri, and Uldir obediently perched themselves on the log.

  "Close your eyes," Ikrit said. "Reach out with all of your senses.

  Feel the energy around you. Feel the life."

  It was easy for Anakin to feel the energy and the life. In fact, he

  wasn't sure he had ever been on a planet with so much life. In its own way,

  the primitiveseeming planet of Dagobah was every bit as bustling as his

  home world of Coruscant, just with different life-forms.

  "The energy flows around you and through you," Ikrit said. "It is a

  part of you and a part of all things, and you are a part of it. Even the

  killing of one insect can change an entire planet, and a small alteration

  in yourself can change the whole universe. We are all related in an

  intricate web, all joined through the Force. Everything you do causes a

  reaction and affects something else. Through the Force we can sense actions

  and reactions, and that can help us choose the right thing to do. Now you

  may open your eyes."

  Anakin blinked. That was all? That was the entire entire lesson?

  "We will return to the ship now for supplies, and this afternoon we

  will go to the cave," Ikrit said. "On our way back I will give each of you

  a chance to lead. I will not interfere. I will only follow."

  Tahiri took the first turn at leading. She had to stop a few times to

  sense the right direction with the Force, but she didn't make any wrong

  turns or lead them into any boggy patches. When Anakin's turn came, he

  could tell that Ikrit was pleased with how well Tahiri had done.

  Anakin was tempted to hurry back to the ship so they could get on with

  his quest to find the mysterious cave where Yoda had tested Luke Skywalker.

  But he knew that the swamp was far too dangerous a place to hurry. He used

  a Jedi relaxation exercise to calm himself, as Tionne and Uncle Luke had

  taught him.

  Patience, he told himself. A true Jedi must learn patience.

  He led them at a slow, steady pace, sensing the way with the Force. At

  one point he felt a large, hungry creature in the undergrowth and was able

  to guide the group safely around it. Ikrit said nothing at the end of

  Anakin's turn, but the warm glow of his blue-green eyes was praise enough

  for Anakin.

  "Okay, I guess it's about time I got you swamp - slugs moving a bit

  faster," Uldir said, shaking back his shaggy chestnut hair and stepping

  into the lead.

  His sense of direction was good, Anakin had to admit, and the

  companions picked up their pace as they followed him. The sturdy teen

  seemed full of confidence and never hesitated for a moment. Still following

  Uldir, the group had almost reached the clearing where the Lightning Rod

  waited.

  But something was wrong. Anakin didn't understand it, but something

  happened inside him. A shiver ran up his spine and a strange, queasy chill

  grew in the pit of his stomach. Tahiri grabbed his arm and he could tell by

  the look in her wide green eyes that she had the same uneasy feeling.

  Then, almost without knowing what they were doing, Anakin and Tahiri

  dashed forward.

  "Uldir, stop!" Anakin said.

  "Stay where you are!" Tahiri cried.

  Behind them, Artoo-Detoo let out a trill of alarm. Uldir turned with a

  scowl as the younger trainees reached him and each grabbed an arm.

  "What's wrong with you two? We're almost there."

  "I don't know what it is," Anakin said. "But don't go that way."

  "There's something dangerous ahead," Tahiri added.

  Uldir snorted.

  "Oh, I get it. You don't want me to get the idea that I'm a better

  leader than the two of you, so you're trying to scare me. I'll admit, you

  had me going for a minute there, but it won't work."

  He started up the trail again and tried to shake off Anakin and

  Tahiri.

  "Stop." Ikrit's scratchy voice was not loud, but it held the power to

  halt even the most stubborn teenager. "Your friends wish only to save your

  life."

  The Jedi Master jumped down from his perch on Artoo's head and

  scrambled to the front of the group. Uldir turned a sour look on the furry

  creature, but Ikrit paid no attention. Picking a long, thick stem of marsh

  reed from the edge of a murky pool, Ikrit prodded the air on the path ahead

  of Uldir.

  Without a sound, two large chunks of the reed fell to the ground, as

  if sliced by an invisible laser. Uldir took a step backward as Ikrit

  repeated the demonstration, waving the stem through a different patch of

  what appeared to be thin air. Again, the reed was mysteriously chopped to

  bits.

  "But what could possibly do-" Uldir began.

  "A butcher bug," Ikrit replied before the boy could finish. "It spins

  a web so sharp and nearly invisible that its prey never see it. They are

  sliced into pieces-and without a fight, the butcher bug has its next meal.

  If not for Anakin and Tahiri, you might have been the main course."

  Anakin felt sorry for Uldir. The older boy's face had gone as pale as

  Ikrit's fur, and he looked as if he might become sick.

  "Would you lead the rest of the way back, Master Ikrit?" Anakin asked.

  "I think we'd all like to follow for a while."

  Anakin was glad when he and Tahiri, Ikrit, ArtooDetoo, and Uldir

  finally set out to find the cave. An almost unbearable tension had been

  building inside him as they ate their midday meal and packed small

  knapsacks of provisions for the trek.

  He could hardly wait now to finish his quest and find out the things

  he had come to Dagobah to learn about himself. Anakin hardly noticed that

  clouds hung even lower, if possible, than usual over Dagobah's swampy

  surface, hiding the treetops from view. He didn't care that the clouds were

  the color of tarnished steel or that they drizzled a fine mist on all of

  the companions as they walked.

  They were on their way to the cave. That was all that mattered. Artoo-

  Detoo was the only one in their group who had actually been to the cave

  before, so he led the way.

  Ikrit once again rode atop the little droid, as if he considered

  Artoo-Detoo his personal steed. Artoo warbled and beeped occasional

  comments while he trundled down the path. Anakin noticed that Ikrit's blue-

  green eyes were closed, though, and that he didn't respond. Perhaps, Anakin

  mused, Ikrit was too deep in thought. Tahiri, on the other hand, seemed as

  cheerful and talkative as ever. She had brushed her golden hair and put on

  a fresh flightsuit. She was also wearing the soft boots that Tionne had

  made her. Now she bounced along beside Anakin, talking about the very

  footwear she had once refused to even consider.

  ".... and the soles are very tough, but flexible - and waterproof.

  They're not at all like those icky hard shoes I had to wear so often on

  Tatooine. Those were made out of stiff animal hides and rubbed blisters on
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  my feet."

  Tahiri grinned at Anakin and tucked a strand of hair that had come

  loose back behind her ear.

  "But these boots are soft enough that I can still feel what's under my

  feet. I still won't wear shoes unless I have to, but these are probably the

  best..."

  Anakin was glad to have Tahiri chattering so gaily beside him. It

  spared him the need to say anything, and Tahiri didn't seem to mind his

  silence. She talked to Ikrit occasionally, who didn't answer either, and

  Artoo-Detoo. Artoo tweeted and warbled in return, though none of them could

  tell what he was saying. Tahiri even tried to draw Uldir into conversation,

  but the teen seemed to be sulking.

  Their trail wound around through the swamps past the knotted roots of

  huge trees. The knobby roots were as thick around as Anakin's waist. They

  arched high in the air from the base of each tree trunk before sinking deep

  into the marshy ground. Sometimes the companions were forced to duck under

  gnarled roots that grew across their path. The next time Tahiri spoke to

  Uldir, he glared at her for a time, and when he finally spoke, he changed

  the subject.

  "What's so special about this cave we're looking for, anyway?"

  Anakin sighed and wished that Uldir didn't have such a sour attitude.