"Huh?"
"You"re not listening, Teff!"
"Oh, sorry," said Boba.
"Daydreaming?"
"I guess."
Daydreaming? Not exactly. Boba"s mind was racing; he was thinking about the startling discovery he had just made in the rear observation blister.
Slave 1! He had seen it. The little starship he had inherited from his father, Jango Fett, was following the Candaserri - and being careful, Boba had noted, to stay in the shadow cone, where it would not be picked up by the a.s.sault ship"s approach sensors, which were probably tuned to pick up flotillas, not solitary craft.
Boba was pondering this information silently while he stood beside Garr in the crowded forward observation blister watching stormy Bespin spin below.
"There you are!"
Boba and Garr saw Ulu Ulix pushing through the crowd.
"You two are determined to get me into trouble, aren"t you! Don"t you know you"re supposed to stay near the Orphan Hall?"
"Sorry," said Garr, hiding a grin. While Ulu had been busy, they had the run of the ship, and they had taken advantage of it.
Boba didn"t like Jedi, but Ulu was an exception. He decided to ask the Padawan about what he had seen - without, of course, revealing too much. "Ulu, have you ever heard of a bounty hunter called Aurra Sing?"
"Aurra Sing? Sure. She"s - "
"Why do you wish to know?" asked a harsh, high voice. Boba turned and saw Glynn-Beti looking at him suspiciously.
Boba groaned. If he had known she was around, he would have kept his mouth shut. "Uh..."
"Speak up, orphan. Teff, isn"t it? Why do you ask about Aurra Sing?"
"I was just wondering. I, uh, heard some crew members talking about her."
"She is an enemy of civilization, of galactic order," said the Bothan Jedi. "She is wanted for numerous crimes, high and low, including murder. That"s all you need to know. Ulu Ulix - " Glynn Beti glared at her Padawan. "What are these two doing so far from the Orphan Hall? Are you forgetting your duties? Take them there immediately."
Ulu bowed. "Yes, Master Glynn-Beti."
"Gather the other orphans. And all of you, meet me in the docking bay as soon as you have packed your things. We"re being ferried down to Cloud City."
"Yes, Master," said Ulu, bowing again to the departing Bothan"s back.
"Whew!" said Garr, when Glynn-Beti had left. "What was that about?"
"Aurra Sing," said Ulu Ulix. "Don"t mention her name around Glynn-Beti. Glynn-Beti condemns her, and for good reason. Aurra Sing kills Jedi for sport."
"I thought bounty hunters only worked for money," Boba said.
"Aurra Sing is different," said Ulu Ulix. "It is said that she has some sorrow in her past that causes her to hate the Jedi. Whatever it is, she attacks us every chance she gets."
"You mean, for fun?" asked Garr, shocked. "Sick fun," said Ulu Ulix. "But come on, you two. Let"s get moving."
That explains it, thought Boba, as he followed Garr and Ulix back toward the rear of the ship. Aurra Sing is trailing the ship to get a crack at a Jedi or two. Good luck to her!
I wonder what she would think if she knew I was on board.
The ship"s corridors were filled with crew members hurrying to their stations. Planetary approach was an exciting event to all hands-except, of course, to the clone troopers. One planet or another, it was all the same to them.
Boba wouldn"t miss them. His brothers - so much alike, and yet so different. They had no interest in where they were going, or where they had been. They were interested only in their weaponry, in their a.s.signments, or in their chain of command. The clones were pure military.
So when he arrived at the docking bay, helping Ulu and Garr herd the younger orphans onto the lander, Boba was surprised to see his old friend CT-4/619 hard at work. He was painting out the emblems of war and the military numbering on the little lander that was going to take the orphans down.
"Remember me?" Boba asked.
"Not really," said CT-4/619. "Should I?"
"No, just wondering," said Boba. "What are you doing?"
"De-militarizing," said the clone.
"How come?" Garr, who was always curious, asked.
"Bespin," said CT-4/619. "They want no signs of war."
"The rulers of Bespin want to preserve their planet"s neutrality,"
said Glynn-Beti. The Bothan Jedi had approached unseen. As always, she made Boba nervous. "We are allowed to bring you orphans down, but not to carry any weapons or engage in any military activities."
"Not even your lightsaber?" Boba asked, indicating the Jedi"s weapon hidden under her robe.
"The weapons of the Jedi Masters are not subject to local ordinances," Glynn-Beti said with a haughty scowl. "Now come aboard!"
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN.
The Lander dropped free of the Candaserri and fired its retros, slowing it for atmospheric entry. The twenty-one younger orphans, strapped into their seat, shouted with glee and excitement as the lander encountered the first wisps of air.
The faint whistling sound grew to a roar as the little ship dove into the sea of clouds. It was terrifying and exhilarating. The orphans oohed and aahed as the clouds whipped by, all reds and yellows, oranges and browns.
Far off, Boba saw the flash of lightning. "A storm," said Garr, who was, as usual, full of information. "The storms on Bespin are the deadliest in the galaxy."
But the storm was soon left behind as the little ship sailed down, down, down... into the middle levels of the atmosphere, where the inhabitants of. Bespin all lived.
Boba usually liked planetfall - descending to a new planet. But this time he had mixed feelings.
He was eager to begin the search for Aurra Sing, who could not be far away.
At the same time, he knew he would miss life on the Candaserri. He had been forced to live a lie, as "Teff." But in return he had been granted, for the first and only time in his life, a friend. Someone to spend time with, to explore with, to talk to and share secrets with (only up to a point, of course).
It had all been a great pleasure - but now it was time for Boba to return to his real ident.i.ty.
He was the son of Jango Fett, the toughest bounty hunter in the galaxy.
And he intended to get his ship back!
They landed at Portside, in the teeming central levels of the city.
Uniformed officials appeared at the opened ramps of the ship and asked Glynn-Beti for doc.u.ments.
Glynn-Beti handed over a holopad, pointing at the younger orphans who were lined up at the doorway - and then at Boba.
She whispered something to the officials, and they looked at Boba.
One shook his head; another nodded.
What is she telling them? Boba was alarmed. He had planned to wait and make his escape from the orphanage as soon as no one was looking; but what if he never got there? What if Glynn-Beti was telling them to check his ident.i.ty first?
Boba edged toward the open ramp. The Jedi and the officials had their backs turned. If he slipped out now he could disappear into the crowd before anyone knew what was happening. It might be several minutes before they even noticed he was gone.
There was only one problem. How could he leave without saying goodbye to his first, and still only, real friend?
The choice was between friendship and freedom.
Boba chose freedom.
CHAPTER NINETEEN.
"Teff!"
He couldn"t believe it - Garr "had betrayed him! His best friend was yelling, alerting the Jedi!
Boba ducked his head and ran, darting through the crowd.
Portside was a maze of narrow alleys, lined with shops where stolen goods and weapon"s, illicit spice, and phony doc.u.ments; all were on sale to anyone with credits.
It was a perfect place to disappear.
Boba looked back and saw an official running after him. But she was easy enough to lose - a couple of sudden reversals, a turn down a narrow alley, and Boba had faded into the milling polyglot crowd, where a hundred languages filled the air with a low buzz.
Made it! He slowed, and forced himself to breathe easily so that no one would notice that he was on the run. He was invisible, because n.o.body (or no creature) notices a ten-year-old.
Except another ten-year-old.
"Teff!" A hand caught his shoulder.
Boba turned, fists up, in a fighting stance, ready to defend himself against all the Jedi in the world, as well as their security droids, clone troopers, officials, or...
It was Garr.
"You forgot your flight bag," Garr said, handing Boba the precious legacy from his father.
Boba was amazed. Had he been that confused, that panicked? That was breaking the bounty hunters" code for sure, which was to remain calm in every situation.
Boba dropped his fists to his side. "Thanks," he said, taking the bag from Garr.
"Why are you running?" Garr asked. "They are going to send us to a nice place, I"ll bet."
Boba didn"t say anything; he didn"t know where to start.
"Glynn-Beti is going to be mad now. We"d better get back, quick, before - "
"Garr!" Boba grabbed his friend by the arm. "Come."
"Where? What for?"
"Just come. I"ll explain!"
Cloud City"s central levels were open, at the edges, to the wind and air. Dragging Garr by the hand, Boba headed toward a park lodged up against a transparisteel barrier that looked down on a sea of streaming clouds. From here it was easy to see why Cloud City was considered one of the most beautiful cities in the galaxy.
"What"s this all about?" Garr asked as Boba parked himself on a bench and pulled his friend down beside him. "Teff, talk to me!"
"In the first place," said Boba, "my name"s not Teff."
"It"s not? What is it then?"
Boba didn"t want to tell another lie, but he didn"t want to tell the truth either. "Never mind that," he said. "I have something more important to tell you."
"You"re not an orphan?" Garr guessed.
"I"m an orphan all right. Just not a needy orphan wanting to be rescued by the Jedi."
"But why not? If they want to help out..."
"I told you my father was dead, but I didn"t tell you how. He was killed by the Jedi. I saw it happen."
Garr gasped. "Was your father... bad?" "Bad? He was good," said Boba, his voice rising.