The Phantom Menace

by Terry Brooks

  A small, disheveled boy raced in from the salvage yard, coming to an uncertain stop in front of them. His clothes were ragged and thick with grime, and he had the look of someone about to be given a beating. He flinched as the Toydarian wheeled back and lifted a hand in admonishment.

  "What took you so long?"

  "Mel tass cho-pas kee," the boy responded quickly, blue eyes taking in the newcomers with a quick glance. "I was cleaning out the bin like you-"

  "Chut-chut!" The Toydarian threw up his hands angrily. "Never mind the bin! Watch the store! I've got some selling to do!"

  He flitted back around to face his customers. "So, let me take you out back. You'll soon find what you need."

  He darted toward the salvage yard, beckoning Qui-Gon eagerly. The Jedi followed, with R2 - D2 trundling after. Jar Jar moved to a shelf and picked up an odd - looking bit of metal, intrigued by its shape, wondering what it was.

  "Don't touch anything," Qui-Gon called over his shoulder, his tone of voice sharp.

  Jar Jar put the item down and made a face at Qui-Gon's departing back, sticking out his long tongue in defiance. When the Jedi was out of sight, he picked up the part again.

  Anakin Skywalker could not take his eyes off the girl. He noticed her the moment he entered Watto's shop, even before Watto said anything, and he hadn't been able to stop looking at her since. He barely heard what Watto said to him about watching the shop. He barely noticed the strange-looking creature that had come in with her and was poking around in the shelves and bins. Even after she noticed he was staring at her, he could not help himself.

  He moved now to an open space on the counter, hoisted himself up, and sat watching her while pretending to clean a transmitter cell. She was looking back at him now, embarrassment turning to curiosity. She was small and slender with long, braided brown hair, brown eyes, and a face he found so beauti^fu1 that he had nothing to which he could compare it. She was dressed in rough peasant's clothing, but she seemed very self-possessed.

  She gave him an amused smile, and he felt himself melting in confusion and wonder. He took a deep breath. "Are you an angel?" he asked quietly.

  The girl stared. "What?"

  "An angel." Anakin straightened a bit. "They live on the moons of Iego, I think. They are the most beautiful creatures in the universe. They are good and kind, and so pretty they make even the most hardened space pirates cry like small children."

  She gave him a confused look. "I've never heard of angels," she said.

  "You must be one of them," Anakin insisted. "Maybe you just don't know it."

  "You're a funny little boy." The amused smile returned. "How do you know so much?"

  Anakin smiled back and shrugged. "I listen to all the traders and pilots who come through here." He glanced toward the salvage yard. "I'm a pilot, you know. Someday, I'm going to fly away from this place."

  The girl wandered to one end of the counter, looked away, then back again. "Have you been here long?"

  "Since I was very little-three, I think. My mom and I were sold to Gardulla the Hutt, but she lost us to Watto, betting on the pod races. Watto's a lot better master, I think."

  She stared at him in shock. "You're a slave?"

  The way she said it made Anakin feel ashamed and angry. He glared at her defiantly. "I am a person!"

  "I'm sorry," she said quickly, looking upset and embarrassed. "I don't fully understand, I guess. This is a strange world to me."

  He studied her intently for a moment, thinking of other things, wanting to tell her of them. "You are a strange girl to me," he said instead. He swung his legs out from the counter.

  "My name is Anakin Skywalker."

  She brushed at her hair. "Padme Naberrie."

  The strange creature she had come in with wandered back to the front of the shop and bent over a stout little droid body with a bulbous nose. Reaching up curiously, it pushed at the nose with one finger. Instantly armatures popped out from every direction, metal limbs swinging into place. The droid's motors whizzed and whirred, and it jerked to life and began moving forward. Padme's odd companion went after it with a moan of dismay, grabbing on in an effort to slow it down, but the droid continued marching through the shop, knocking over everything it came in contact with.

  "Hit the nose!" Anakin called out, unable to keep himself from laughing.

  The creature did as it was told, pounding the droid's nose wildly. The droid stopped at once, the arms and legs retracted, the motors shut down, and the droid went still. Both Anakin and Padme were laughing now, and their laughter increased as they saw the look on the unfortunate creature's long- billed face.

  Anakin looked at Padme and the girl at him. Their laughter died away. The girl reached up to touch her hair self-consciously, but she did not divert her gaze.

  "I'm going to marry you," the boy said suddenly.

  There was a moment of silence, and she began laughing again, a sweet musical sound he didn't mind at all. The creature who accompanied her rolled his eyes.

  "I mean it," he insisted.

  "You are an odd one," she said, her laughter dying away. "Why do you say that?"

  He hesitated. "I guess because it's what I believe..."

  Her smile was dazzling. "Well, I'm afraid I can't marry you..." She paused, searching her memory for his name.

  "Anakin," he said.

  "Anakin." She cocked her head. "You're just a little boy."

  His gaze was intense as he faced her. "I won't always be," he said quietly.

  In the salvage yard, Watto was studying the creen of a portable memory bank he held in one hand, tracing through his inventory record. Qui-Gon, arms folded into his farmer's poncho, stood waiting patiently, the R2 unit at his side.

  "Ah, here it is. A T-14 hyperdrive generator!" The Toydarian's wings beat wildly as he hovered before the Jedi, his gnarled finger jabbing at the viewscreen. "You're in luck. I'm the only one hereabouts who has one. But you might as well buy a new ship. It would be cheaper. Speaking of which, how're you going to pay for all this, farmer?"

  Qui-Gon considered. "I have twenty thousand Republic dataries to put toward-"

  "Republic credits?" Watto exploded in disgust. "Republic credits are no good out here! I need something better than that, something of value..."

  The Jedi Master shook his head. "I don't have anything else." One hand came up, passing casually in front of the Toydarian's face. "But credits will do fine."

  "No, they won't!" Watto snapped, buzzing angrily.

  Qui-Gon frowned, then passed his hand in front of the pudgy blue alien again, bringing the full force of his Jedi sugges^tive power to bear. "Credits will do fine," he repeated.

  Watto sneered. "No, they won't!" he repeated. "What do you think you're doing, waving your hand around like that? You think you're some kinda Jedi? Hah! I'm a Toydarian! Mind tricks don't work on me-only money! No money, no parts, no deal! And no one else has a T-14 hyperdrive generator, I can promise you that!"

  Chagrined, Qui-Gon wheeled back for the shop, the R2 unit following at his heels. The Toydarian shouted after them to come back when they had something worthwhile to trade, still scolding the Jedi Master for trYing to foist Republic credits on him. Qui-Gon reentered the shop just as Jar Jar pulled a part from a large stack and sent the entire arrangement tumbling to the floor. His efforts at correcting the problem brought a second display crashing down as well.

  The boy and the Queen's handmaiden were deep in discussion, paying no attention to the Gungan.

  "We're leaving," Qui-Gon announced to the girl, moving toward the shop's entry, the R2 unit trundling along behind.

  Jar Jar was quick to follow, anxious to escape his latest mess. Padme gave the boy a warm smile. "I'm glad I met you, Anakin," she said, turning after them.

  "I'm glad I met you, too," he called after, a reluctance evi^dent in his voice.

  Watto flew in from the salvage yard, shaking his head in disgust. "Oudanders! They think because we live so far from everyth
ing, we know nothing!"

  Anakin was still staring longingly after Padme, his gaze fixed on the empty doorway. "They seemed nice enough to me."

  Watto snorted and flew into his face. "Clean up this mess, then you can go home!"

  Anakin brightened, gave a small cheer, and went quickly to work.

  Qui-Gon led his companions back through the lime plaza of salvage shops toward the main avenue. At a place where two buildings divided to form a shadowed niche, the Jedi Master moved everyone from view and brought out his comlink from beneath his poncho. Padme and the R2 unit stood waiting pa^tiendy, but Jar Jar prowled the space as if trapped, eyes fixed ner-. vously on the busy street.

  When Obi-Wan responded to the comlink's pulse, Qui-Gon quickly filled him in on the situation. "Are you sure there isn't anything of value left on board?" he concluded.

  There was a pause at the other end. "A few containers of supplies, the Queen's wardrobe, some jewelry maybe. Not enough for you to barter with. Not in the amounts you're talking about."

  "All right," Qui-Gon responded with a frown. "Another solution will present itself. I'll check back."

  He tucked the comlink beneath his poncho and signaled to the others. He was moving toward the street again when Jar Jar grabbed his arm.

  "Noah gain, sire," the Gungan pleaded. "Da beings hereabouts crazy nuts. We goen be robbed and crunched!"

  "Not likely," Qui-Gon replied with a sigh, freeing himself. "We have nothing of value. That's our problem."

  They started back down the street, Qui-Gon trying to think what to do next. Padme and R2 - D2 stayed close as they made their way through the crowds, but Jar Jar began to lag behind, listracted by all the strange sights and smells. They were passing an outdoor cafe, its tables occupied by a rough-looking bunch of aliens, among them a Dug who was holding forth on the merits of Podracing. Jar Jar hurried to catch up to his companions, but then caught sight of a string of frogs hanging from a wire in front of a nearby stall. The Gungan slowed, his mouth watering. He had not eaten in some time. He glanced around to see if anyone was looking, then unfurled his long tongue and snapped up one of the frogs. The frog disappeared into Jar Jar's mouth in the blink of an eye..

  Unfortunately, the frog was still securely tied to the wire. Jar Jar stood there, the wire hanging out of his mouth, unable to move.

  The vendor in charge of the stall rushed out. "Hey, that will be seven truguts!"

  Jar Jar glanced frantically down the street for his companions, but they were already out of sight. In desperation, he let go of the frog. The frog popped out of his mouth as if catapulted, winging away at the end of the taut wire. It ricocheted this way and that, breaking free at last to land directly in the Dug's soup, splashing gooey liquid all over him.

  The gangly Dug leapt to his feet in fury, catching sight of the hapless Jar Jar as he tried to move away from the frog vendor. Springing across the table on all fours, he was on top of the Gungan in an instant, grabbing him by the throat.

  "Chubba! You!" the Dug snarled through its corded snout. Feelers and mandibles writhed. "Is this yours?"

  The Dug shoved the frog in the Gungan's face threateningly. Jar Jar could not get any words out, gasping for breath, fighting to break free. His eyes rolled wildly as he looked for help that wasn't there. Other creatures pushed forward to surround him, Rodians among them. The Dug threw Jar Jar to the ground, shouting at him, hovering over him in a crouch. Desperately, the Gungan tried to scramble to safety.

  "No, no," he moaned plaintively as he sought an avenue of escape. "Why me always da one?"

  "Because you're afraid," a voice answered calmly.

  Anakin Skywalker pushed his way through the crowd, coming up to stand next to the Dug. The boy seemed unafraid of the creature, undeterred by the hard-eyed crowd, his bearing self^assured. He gave the Dug an appraising look. "Chess ko, Sebulba," he said. "Careful. This one's very well connected."

  Sebulba turned to face the boy, cruel face twisting with disdain as he caught sight of the newcomer. "Tooney rana dunko, shag?" he snapped, demanding to know what the boy meant.

  Anakin shrugged. "Connected-as in Hutt." The blue eyes fixed the Dug and saw a hint of fear in the other's face. "Big-time connected, this one, Sebulba. I'd hate to see you diced before we had a chance to race again."

  The Dug spit in fury. "Neek me chawa! Next time we race, wermo, it will be the end of you!" He gestured violently. "Uto notu wo shag! If you weren't a slave, I'd squash you here and now!"

  With a final glare at the cringing Jar Jar, Sebulba wheeled away, taking his companions with him, back to their tables and their food and drink. Anakin stared after the Dug. "Yeah, it'd be a pity if you had to pay for me," he said softly.

  He was helping Jar Jar back to his feet when Qui-Gon, Padme, and R2-D2, having finally missed the Gungan, reappeared hurriedly through the crowd.

  "Hi!" he greeted cheerfully, happy to see Padme again so soon. "Your buddy here was about to be turned into orange goo. He picked a fight with a Dug. An especially dangerous Dug."

  "Nossir, nossir!" the chagrined Gungan insisted, brushing off dust and sand. "Me hate crunchen. Tis da last thing me want!"

  Qui-Gon gave Jar Jar a careful once-over, glanced around at the crowd, and took the Gungan by the arm. "Nevertheless, the boy saved you from a beating. You have a penchant for finding trouble, Jar Jar." He gave Anakin a short nod. "Thank you, my young friend."

  Padme gave Anakin a warm smile as well, and the boy felt himself blush with pride.

  "Me doen nutten!" Jar Jar insisted, still trying to defend himself, hands gesturing for emphasis.

  "You were afraid," the boy told him, looking up at the long-billed face solemnly. "Fear attracts the fearful. Sebulba was trying to overcome his fear by squashing you." He cocked his head at the Gungan. "You can help yourself by being less afraid."

  "And that works for you?" Padme asked skeptically, giving him a wry look.

  Anakin smiled and shrugged. "Well...up to a point."

  Anxious to spend as much time as possible with the girl, he persuaded the group to follow him a short distance down the street to a fruit stand, a ramshackle affair formed by a makeshift ragged awning stretched over a framework of bent poles. Boxes of brightly colored fruit were arranged on a rack tilted toward the street for viewing. A weathered old lady, gray-haired and stooped, her simple clothing patched and worn, rose from a stool to greet them on their approach.

  "How are you feeling today, Jira?" Anakin asked her, giving her a quick hug.

  The old lady smiled. "The heat's never been kind to me, you know, Annie."

  "Guess what?" the boy replied quickly, beaming. "I've found that cooling unit I've been searching for. It's pretty beat up, but I'll have it fixed up for you in no time, I promise. That should help."

  Jira reached out to brush his pink cheek with her wrinkled hand, her smile broadening. "You're a fine boy, Annie."

  Anakin shrugged off the compliment and began scanning the fruit display. "I'll take four pallies, Jira." He glanced at Padme eagerly. "You'll like these. "

  He reached into his pocket for the truguts he had been sav^ing, but when he brought them out to pay Jira, he dropped one. The farmer, standing next to him, bent to retrieve it. As he did, his poncho opened just far enough that the boy caught sight of the lightsaber hanging from the belt about his waist.

  The boy's eyes went wide, but he masked his surprise by focusing on the coins. He only had three, he found. "Whoops, I thought I had more," he said quickly, not looking up. "Make that three pallies, Jira. I'm not that hungry anyway."

  The old woman gave Qui-Gon, Padme, and Jar Jar their pallies and took the coins from Anakin. A gust of wind whipped down the street, rattling the framework of poles and causing the awning to billow. A second gust sent dust swirling in all directions.

  Jira rubbed her arms with her gnarled hands. "Gracious, my bones are aching. There's a storm coming, Annie. You'd better get home quick."

  The wind gusted in a
series of sharp blasts that sent sand and loose debris flying. Anakin glanced at the sky, then at Qui-Gon. "Do you have shelter?" he asked.

  The Jedi Master nodded. "We'll head back to our ship. Thank you again, my young friend, for-"

  "Is your ship far?" the boy interrupted hurriedly. All around them, shopkeepers and vendors were closing and shuttering windows and doors, carrying goods and wares inside, wrapping coverings over displays and boxes.

  "It's on the city's outskirts," Padme answered, turning away from the stinging gusts of sand.

  Anakin took her hand quickly, tugging on it. "You'll never reach the outskirts in time. Sandstorms are very, very dangerous. Come with me. You can wait it out at my home. It's not far. My mom won't mind. Hurry!"

  With the wind howling all about them and the air clouded with sand, Anakin Skywalker shouted good-bye to Jira and led his newly adopted charges down the street in a rush.

  On the outskirts of Mos Espa, Obi-Wan Kenobi stood near the nose of the Nubian as the wind gathered force, whipping at his robe, tearing across the broad expanse of the Tatooine desert. His troubled eyes looked off into the distance where Mos Espa was beginning to disappear behind a curtain of sand. He turned as Captain Panaka came down the ramp of the transport to join him.

  "This storm's going to slow them down," the Jedi observed worriedly.

  Panaka nodded. "It looks pretty bad. We'd better seal up the ship before it gets any worse."

  There was a beep from the soldier's comlink. Panaka retrieved the communicator from his belt. "Yes?"

  Ric Olie's voice rose from the speaker. "We're receiving a message from home."

  Panaka and Obi-Wan exchanged glances. "We'll be right there," the captain advised.

  They went up the ramp quickly, sealing it behind them. The transmission had been received in the Queen's chambers. At Ric Olie's direction, they found Arnidala and her handmaidens Eirtae and Rabe viewing a hologram ofSio Bibble that was shimmering weakly at one end of the room, the governor's voice breaking up in transmission.