Ask Tatooine Shifting Sands

[Dash Pavan]

DOCKYARD, MOS EISLEY SPACEPORT
13:17 local time​

"Family member is he?" the dockmaster ventured, scowling at the holoimage.

"You might say that" Dash replied, suppressing a smile. This Padawan Viszla did have his blue eyes and fair skin. They would even have shared the blonde hair, before Dash's encounter with the icy nexus on Kro Var turned his own white. But they were not brothers or anything. At least, no more than any two Jedi were.

"Might have come through here aye" the man said, noncommittally "then again, might not. Can't be sure".

"You will check your records then?" Dash gave a warm smile this time, not ashamed about weaving the Force into his words so early. He had learned how to charm most people in his acting days, but he had not even intended to be here in the first place. He was not going to waste time.

It was easy enough to sway the dockmaster's will. "I'll check the records" he repeated, as if the thought were nonetheless his own.

They made their down the dockside towards the CCTV control station, Dash sweeping his fringe aside from his sweat covered brow. He was not a big fan of the heat. Though he had managed to eschew the bulk of his armor and just secrete the duraplast inserts beneath simple desert clothing, he was sure he was going to keel over if he couldn't find this boy quickly.

When the call had come in about a Padawan in trouble, he had apparently been the closest Jedi, on his return trip past after a visit to Christophsis. Far from a stoic, Dash had been irked about having to change his own plans and was still not quite over the annoyance. But he had an increasing understanding for Force currents that he could not always see. Maybe this would be worth it after all.

@Darasuum

 

[Levet Vizsla]

Levet slowly drove his winning jumpspeeder through the sand covered streets of the frontier town, careful to not startle the occasional Eopie or Ronto. He passed Mos Eisley’s “community” junk yard which held little in the way of worthwhile scrap. A trio of Jawas were standing near it, picking through discarded containers and landspeeder engine housings. The padawan’s robes were tailor fit and wove to compliment the Mandalorian’s armored plates.

Most people would probably take the young man’s appearance at face value and overlook the hybrid lightsaber on his belt. The weapon was easily mistaken for a blaster or some other tool since it looked different from the more traditional saber-hilt. Most Jedi also did not sport Westar blaster pistols on one hip either but the Padawan was unorthodox in their practices.

Mos Espa Eisley was the one of the best places for Levet to meet his master and to garner other help if needed. The spaceport in the city allowed frequent travel on and off world as well as be a major hub of trade on the desert planet.

Standing out from the other new arrivals at the Dockyard was a familiar sight to Levet. Dash was wearing thin a breathable clothing which made Levet think he was ready for the beach. But the Mandalorian knew his Master preferred cooler temperatures and a more humid climate. “Master!” He said and decelerated the jumpspeeder rapidly. It gave a creek after coming to a stop and had seen better days. The outer rim planet was testing the vehicles reliability and so was Levet. “I’m glad you made it. How was the trip?” He could already tell by the man’s expression he was not in a cheerful mood.

@Alhon

 

[Dash Pavan]

The dockmaster was able to provide very little the end, so it was just as well that the Force provided instead. Dash had barely stepped out the many archway of the spaceport when he heard the cry and saw his charge screeching to a halt.

"Better not shout too loud" he said, gritting his teeth and gently motioning Levet into an alley. Dash almost admired the guy's unabashed exuberance,, but it was generally best not to shout about being Jedi in a place like Tatooine. "The trip was...fine..." he replied "though the report I got said you were in trouble. I guess they were wrong about that?".

The Rhinnalian looked Levet up and down. He had only a passing knowledge of the Padawan up to now, but his Mandalorian bent was pretty evident, even without the helmet buckled on the speeder. He was a little shorter than Dash, which was a rarity, and did indeed look quite similar save for the several years between them.

"What are you doing here, Levet?" he asked. The boy had called him Master, and as between them Dash guessed it was true, but it was still strange to hear. His interest went beyond his role as the senior Jedi here though, he was genuinely intrigued how a young Padawan ended up amidst the dangers of Tatooine without anyone at his back.

@Darasuum

 

[Levet Vizsla]

Levet gave a small grimace after realizing the wisdom of his master. But then just as quickly as it had appeared it vanished. There were a lot of slave owners around and certainly they called them "master". But then again, he knew Dash had a point and kept his comments to himself.

"Kinda." The Mandalorian teenager gave a guilty grin after tucking his helmet under his left arm. "It's a long story." He answered his question, or rather, delayed his own answer. "I can fill you in here oooor we can find a cantina, or better yet, do you have a bike or transport? Please tell me you didn't take public transportation here." His voice rose in pitch and dropped along with his shoulders as he asked questions and seemed to lower his own expectations without his new Master's input. Levet was genuinely glad to see Dash but he wanted to make sure he could keep himself out of trouble with the Jedi Order.

@Alhon

 

[Dash Pavan]

So it was a long story. Dash guessed it made sense to hear the Padawan out and it was not a bad idea to do that far from here. They could maybe get out the sun at least. “Fair enough” he nodded, leading them back out into the street.

Dash had come in his own ship, but it was well secured and would be safer stowed in the dock than drawing eyes in the skies of Tatooine.

Instead, the Rhinnalian followed the buildings around to a small speeder shop run by a grizzled man with far too few teeth. Making up a story about running supplies to a relative, he hired a similar speeder to Levet’s and drew up next to the young guy.

“So where are we headed?” he asked. There were comm units on each speeder so they could talk en route, or when they got there if it was not all that far. Either way, Dash was keen to know what he was walking into here, especially if Levet was looking to him for guidance.

@Darasuum

 

[Levet Vizsla]

Levet was glad he would get the chance to explain himself and did not waste the opportunity. He began soon after they began walking and only stopped talking when his master dealt with the speeder salesman and resumed when it was finished. "So...I don't know if you know this but I was there on Kashyyyk when you were defending the temple with the other knights and masters. Anyways, I didn't get to stay and fight alongside you which I would have liked. Instead the Mark IV droid in charge of some of the padawans and younglings had us get to a transport and evacuate. It was a pretty nice ship too. What class was it... T-6 shuttle?"

"Anyways we make it into orbit and think were headed towards Brighthome or something. Somewhere safe. It doesn't matter because the next thing I know the ships been hit by lasers and ion cannons or something and all the lights go out. Even the gravity goes off and the next thing I know we're being boarded by Trandoshans. It was chaos, I tried to fight as best as I could but they got me with a stun bolt or maybe a dart, I don't know."

"The next thing I know I'm in a brig on a Trandoshan big game ship though they probably were slavers too judging by all the stun cuffs. I'm stuck on this ship for a bit, waiting for an opening and overhear them talking about hunting Bantha or something and sure enough, I guessed it, we had arrived on Tatooine. It sounded like they were going to use me for one reason or another and none of them sounded fun and all of them sounded like they would get me killed. Human bait, target practice, manual labor, you get the idea."

"I wasn't going to be some scaly poacher's trophy so I tricked one of them into making an opening for me. I nabbed my stuff and got away. I think they're still on Tatooine but they're going after a rare breed of Bantha. I don't know if they also took the architect droid but he was disabled before I was knocked out. He might be worth recovering and these hunters are going to just attack someone else unless we do something about it."

"I asked around and found out this breed of bantha is protected and ridden by an isolated tribe of Tusken Raiders. They live on the move but are rumored to primarily travel in the polar regions of the planet, primarily the north I think. We're headed to Beggar's Canyon now. It's the northern most settlement that will give us good access to the the northern Kuar Dunes. We can stop there if there's anything you think we might need but its populated by hermits, exiled from Mos Espa. I'm not sure if that means they're friendly or particularly unfriendly."

Levet could go on or speak in finer detail of the vents that had transpired. The padawan had moments where he was focusing entirely on survival. Even though he was still on Tatooine lightyears away from a safe Jedi Temple, the Mandalorian felt a sense of security at having Dash join him.

@Alhon

 

[Dash Pavan]

Dash listened closely, head cocked to one side as Levet told him everything that had happened. The mention of the fight on Kashyyyk sent a chill down the Rhinnalian’s spine, not that the Padawan would know it. Levet wished he had been more involved and they had something in common there; Dash had run from a fight and it still pained him.

The Rhinnalian grimaced at hearing Levet had been taken by Trandoshan slavers. It sounded horrific. Dash could only imagine the other Jedi had found himself in between them and now. But he was heartened, and a tad impressed, to hear that Levet had escaped. “You did well to get out of their clutches” he said, looking at the Padawan with new respect. He supposed he was a mini Mando after all.

Dash was entirely less sure about the merits of chasing after a droid and a rare breed of bantha. But Rhinnalians maintained a close bond with many similar animals on the ice flats of their home world. Dash was not blind to the importance such creatures could hold.

”Beggars Canyon then” Dash said, resolving to go on for now. “Guess you can show me how well you fly”. He kicked his speeder into full throttle and zoomed off over the desert dunes toward the Canyon as fast as he dared. His partner Ezra was a natural flying any vehicle at all, but Dash had no more than average aptitude, even with the Force on his side.

@Darasuum

 

[Levet Vizsla]

Levet's shoulders relaxed, glad to not hear his master chastise him for any of his choices. "Thanks." His smile spread across his young face but it was covered by his iconic T visor helmet. He actually was complimented which was a bit of a pleasant surprise. But maybe there was something else distracting Dash. Regardless, Levet took the compliment.

From what he could read from his master he seemed to be hesitant. Maybe he was just wise and cautious which probably meant Levet should follow his lead. However Dash did not seem to object towards his plan.

Not to look a gift horse in the mouth, the Mandalorian nodded and chuckled nervously. He knew very little about starships or flying them but thankfully in this context his mentor meant the bikes they were driving. If Dash's words were not obvious his actions were. The Jedi Knight's speeder leapt ahead of Levet's.

"Oh ho ho! It is on!" He was probably too far away already for Dash to hear the excitement in his voice before he too gunned his engines. The undicur jumpspeeder carrying Levet raced after Dash's and tried to catch up to him. The Mandalorian had come this way already once before and was getting a little more familiar with Tatooine and sought to use that to get in front of Dash. His competitive nature began to peak through and he increased the altitude of his vehicle more and more until it was twenty feet above the desert dunes.

The padawan also choose to use the laws of gravity to their advantage. Levet dared to do something dangerous but he did it with a smile on his face. The jumpspeeder began to fall from its height but before it smacked into the ground Levet reengaged the altitude controls and kept the bike from hitting the earth. The teenager used the movement from the fall to enhance his vehicles speed slightly and not have to rise and fall with each dune. Coming along side Dash, he looked towards the man that could be his older brother to see how he was doing.

@Alhon

 

[Dash Pavan]

They sped over the sand flats like two tiny comets, their speeders sending up thin trails of dust in their wake. Dash was pretty fast, but it turned out Levet was faster. The Padawan overtook him after a short while, his T-visored helmet glinting in the sun as he took to the sky, manipulating his ride’s controls to briefly pull ahead.

”So you can go fast” Dash acknowledged, chuckling over the comm “but how‘s your agility?”.

Before Levet could answer, the Rhinnalian kicked his speeder forward hard, pulling directly in front of Levet’s own and carving a winding path. He kicked up spurts of sand behind him and reached out with the Force to twist them into curling columns. The Padawan would have to adapt fast and weave around them if he was to make it through.

Beggar’s Canyon beckoned, but he was strangely enjoying having a little fun along the way.

@Darasuum

 

[Levet Vizsla]

The controls at the Padawan's finger tips made his hands tingle from the vibrations as the whole bike shook from being pushed to the max. But his master's bike sent dirt and sand into his face. Thankfully the Mandalorian reflexively closed his eyes and held up one hand to block some of the sand but then remembered he had a helmet on. The smell kernels of rock pinged effortlessly off of his visor and helmet. He had forgotten he was wearing the helmet.

Regardless of whether or not he was phased by the kicked up sand, Levet found it hard to see ahead. The teenager moved to one side or the other but Dash blocked him, reading his every move. Accepting his situation he knew not to panic.

Emotion, yet peace

He breath in through his armor's filter and breathed out. There were natural formations in the route ahead. Levet had come once from the opposite direction already.

Ignorance, yet knowledge

The Padawan guided his swoop bike to not tailgate his master so closely. His awareness spread to the area around him. Everything passing by so fast was hard to process with this new perception. But he held tightly to it as did his gloved hands to the controls of the swoop.

Passion, yet serenity

The echo of flowing wind in a cave reached the Padawan's ears and he was determined to follow it. The swoop bike turned and swerved out of the dust cloud before flying into the mouth of a cave. Stallagtites and stallagmites rose up and down. Some had formed collumns in this subterranean area. Even with the spotlights activating on the padawan's bike, his eyes remained closed, trusting in the Force.

Chaos, yet harmony.

The force sensitive youth wove safely through the shortcut and came out the cave system. He was ahead of his master and knew he could win this if he kept it up. However there was one conflict that made the padawan falter. He broke out of his focus. The sensation that had come was gone as quickly as it had come. Perhaps it had something to do with the last verse of the Jedi Code. Death, yet the Force. The padawan would ponder it at a later time but for now he was in the lead.


@Alhon

Spoiler: Dice

85/100

 

[Dash Pavan]

Dash half wondered if he was being a bit tough on Levet, setting a challenge like this for a Padawan so young and green. He would not have enjoyed such a trial one bit, especially on a rusty speeder on a back alley world like Tatooine.

But it seemed Levet was not him. The mini Mando only seemed to buckle down harder. Far from struggling or scattering about, glances over Dash’s shoulder revealed Levet calmly taking a different path, weaving between local formations and briefly disappearing from sight. Dash actually slowed, turning back, heart in his mouth as he worried the guy had got into trouble.

But he felt no danger in the Force, only the desert wind on his face. Then he heard something in the distance behind him, turning with amazement to find that Levet had got ahead of him. Dash smiled and kicked his speeder across the sands.

——-​

It took Dash a little while to catch up and the Rhinnalian made a point of encouraging the Padawan, though after suggesting they should stick together from now on. Tatooine was a dangerous place to split up, even briefly.

They pulled into Beggars Canyon a short time later; a collection of downtrodden buildings, sheltering against the frontier lands beyond. Dash saw no sign of the hunters they tracked, or indeed any special bantha, whatever they looked like.

”Let me know if you see anyone that looks familiar‘ Dash said, conscious that Levet had seen many of the slavers before, even if he might not remember exact faces until he saw them. A quick glance might be the only warning of trouble they got. “You mentioned a droid, do you know any more about it?”. The Rhinnalian was not particularly technical, but droids could carry a lot of knowledge. Perhaps this one had data that could help the Jedi.

@Darasuum

 

[Levet Vizsla]

Levet was unbothered by the contention of their setting. In fact, he felt invigorated. Things were going well for the the teenage padawan. While it was hard to see the armored learner's facial expressions his body language and surface feelings were positive and optimistic.

The two Jedi were here together, as master and apprentice. Levet had a purpose, a righteous one that he felt they could accomplish. They were making good time and had already come this far. Every bit of training Levet had endured led to this moment based on his choices and those around him. Things could be far worse but it felt good to be a part of something greater. He felt close to the Force in those moments and tried to keep it going for as long as possible, not thinking about it too much and just enjoying the harmony.

"The slavers, hunters...whatever they are, they're Trandoshans. some of them had some colorful orange splotches and others had yellow. They're also particularly mean looking even as far as trandos go." He did not want to assume all Trandoshans were slavers or accidentally jump a barrabel.

The duo soon approached Beggar's Canyon together at a more steady pace. Levet eased up on his engines the closer they drew. There did not seem to be anybody out in the open as far his eyes could tell. There was virtually no traffic of speeders or pedestrians.

The padawan did not know too much about the droid. "I think his designation was K3-3P though everyone called him Keeper or Keep. He had a tower or castle insignia on his shoulders. He made a bit of a fuss when I wanted to make my lightsaber. I swear I did not know droids could sigh until I met him." He looked around, not letting his recollection of the droid distract him from the present.

There was an air of caution that swept through the canyon. It carried through from a time before the Jedi had arrived so there was a chance the two would sense it at a distance. The padawan reached out in the Force to sense the emotions of any creatures in hiding. The hermits probably did not want to show themselves for any number of reasons. The two Jedi could investigate the area a bit first or move on. The Trandoshan slavers did not seem to be present at least. There did not seem to be any bloodlust or malice so he felt safe.

A massiff being ridden by a Jawa, pulled a treaded sled out from behind a ground level storage dome. A red droid arm on a stick was held in one arm by the petite scavenger. "M'um m'aloo!" It shouted in squeaky Jawaese <"Are you here to hunt or enslave anyone?"> The merchant's reptilian-canine steed growled in the Jedi's direction and remained at a distance.

@Alhon