Star Wars - The Han Solo Trilogy - Hutt Gambit, page 3
Putting on a burst of speed, Han reached the edge of the crowd. The woman was running now, but Han was moving at top speed and he caught her in a dozen swift strides.
Reaching out, he managed to grab the black fabric, yank her to a halt, then he grabbed her elbow and spun her around to face him-
only to find that the woman hed chased was a tota] stranger
How could he have mistaken her for Bria? This woman wasnt homely, she was even pretty in a rather worn way . . but Bria-Bria had been one of the loveliest women Hah had ever seen. This womans hair was dark blond, not gold with warm reddish highlights.
Bria had been tall. This woman was short.
She was also angry. What do you think youre doing? she demanded in Basic. Leave me alone or Ill summon security!
I . . . Im sorry . . . Hah mumbled, stepped back, holding up both hands in as nonthreatening a manner as he could manage. I thought you were someone else.
Well, I feel sorry for her, the woman said huffily.
With an ill-mannered, scruffy tout like ycm in her life!
Look . . . Han continued to back away, hands up. I said I was sorry, sister. Im going, okay?
I think youd better, she said pointedly. That priest has summoned security, I think.
Hah looked over his shoulder, cursed, then took to his heels, heading away from the crowd. He could see Chewbacca waiting for him, and waved to the Wookiee.
He lengthened his stride, and a glance back at his pursu-ers reassured him that he was losing them.
Been drinking too much . . . he decided as he ran. Thats gotta be it. Im gonna be rrure careful from now on . . a lot more carefid . . .
Did Han get away? Bria Tharen asked her friend as Lanah Malo walked into the room, carrying Brias black cloak under her arm. Bria was seated on the single human-styled chair in the cheap room theyd rented for their short stay on Devaron.
I think so, Lanah Malo replied, tossing the cloak to her friend, then picking up her travel bag and dumping it o n the bed. The last I saw, he and that big Wookiee he was traveling with jumped into a public skimmer. Security was still on foot. My guess is, he made it.
Hes probably off-world by now, Bria said softly, wist-fully. Rising, she walked over to the window, then stood for a moment gazing up into Devarons c)ral-tinted sky. Tears gathered in her blue-green eyes. I never thought Id ever see him again. I never thought it would hurt so much . . .
The pain she felt completely eclipsed the triumph she should have been experiencing. Today shed faced the Ex-ultation and successfully resisted it. After years of fighting her addiction to it, now she finally knew for certain that she was a free woman. Shed looked forward to this day for a long time-but any joy she felt was drowned in her grief at seeing Hah again, and knowing she couldnt be with him.
Couldnt you have talked to him? the shorter woman asked, almost echoing Brias own thoughts. Bria turned from the window and watched her friend and comrade-in-arms pulling on her battered, khaki-colored jacket. Quickly Lanah stuffed the last of her personal belongings into the small travel bag. What harm could it do? she asked, giv-ing Bria a sharp, quizzical glance.
Bria shivered, then pulled the cloak around her shoul-ders. It was chilly, now that the sun was low on the horizon. No, she said in a low voice. I couldnt talk to him.
Why not? Lanah asked. Dont you trust him? Moving as methodically and carefully as a droid, Bria checked the charge in the blaster she wore strapped to her thigh-low-down the way Han had taught her, five years ago when theyd been partners, companions . . . lovers. Yes, she said, after a moment. I trust him. I trust him with anything thats mine. But what were trying to accom-plish thats not mine. Thats all of us. Betrayal at this point could mean the end of the entire movement. I couldnt risk it.
Lanah nodded. Solo showing up when he did sure messed up our plans, she said. No telling when well get a clear shot at Veratil again. My guess is that hell hightail it back to Ylesia to tell Teroenza he spotted your ex-boy-friend.
Bria nodded tiredly as she ran her hands through her hair. Hah loved to do that, she thought with a sudden surge of memorY so vivid that it felt like a blow. Oh, Hah . . .
Lanah Malo gave her an assessing glance that was half sympathetic, half cynical. You can fall apart later, Bria. Right now weve got to catch the transport back to CoreIlia. The Commanders going to expect a full report. Even if we failed to take out Veratil, we still succeeded in making con-tact with the Devaronian group . . . so the trip wasnt a total waste.
Im not going to fall apart, Bria said dully, holstering her blaster without looking at it-the way Hah had taught her. I got over Han long ago.
Sure you did, Lanah agreed, not unkindly, as the two women picked up their bags and headed for the door. Sure you did . . .
Han Solo shuffled into the tiny control room of the Duro-sian ship, cradling a mug of stim-tea. He glanced at the viewscreen, which showed the comforting starline pat-terns of hyperspace, then blinked blearily over at the big Wookiee who lounged in the copilots seat. I overslept, he said accusingly. You didnt call me.
Chewbacea made a short comment Well, yeah, I prob-ably did need the rest, Han admitted. But youre the one who got wounded. Hows the arm?
The Wookiee reassured Han that it was healing just fine. The Corellian glanced at the wound, and nodded, then he sank into the pilots seat. Good. Let me tell you, pal, its fortunate that you showed up when you did, yesterday. That Barabel wasnt messing around. Things could have gotten sticky.
Chewie pointed out, truthfully, that things had gotten sticky. Hah shrugged. Youre right. And that reminds me of something. Getting up from his seat, he went over to the toolbox that was standard issue on every ship, and came back with a tiny lasertorch and a microfile. Tang his blaster out of the holster, he carefully sliced off the sight at the end of the barrel, then began smoothing the spot.
Chewbacca wondered aloud what Han was doing. Fix-ing my weapon so it wont ever hang up in my holster again, the Corellian explained. That was a bad couple of seconds in that tavern, there, when I couldnt draw. Im a good shot losing the sight wont affect my aim.
Chewie watched as Han worked. After a moment the human spoke again. Bad enough that I couldnt draw. If it had been a blaster shoot-out, instead of a slugfest, I dont think either of us would have made it out of there alive. But I guess it could have been worse. We were actually in more danger at that Ylesian revival. If Veratils security people had grabbed us . .. believe me, pal, those tlanda Til dont mess around. If theyd caught us, wed be in deep humbaba manure, my friend.
Chexvie made an interrogatory sound. Yeah, I guess I do owe you an explanation about that, Han said with a sigh. Ysee, about five years ago I needed experience pilot-ing big ships, cause I was hoping to get into the Academy. So I took a job piloting for the tlanda Til on Ylesia. Ever hear of it before?
Chewie whined, low in his throat. You got it. The pil-grim colony. Cept that it aint, pal. Its nothin but a big scam, a major trap. The Hutts control the place. Pilgrims travel there hoping to join with the cosmic All, or some such, but they turn em into slaves and make them work in the spice factories. Most of the poor fools dont last long. They had three colonies on Ylesia when I was there, but I heard theyve expanded to five or six, now. Chewbacca shook his head sadly.
Han grimaced as he sighted down the barrel of his blaster. Somebody ought to go in there and shut those creeps down, Chewie. Ive been a thief, a smuggler, a con man, a gambler, and some other things I aint particularly proud of, pal . . . but slavery-I cant stand it. Or slavers, either. Scum of the universe. For two credits, Id blast em all into oblivion . . .
Chewbacca, naturally, voiced vehement support for Hans opinion. The Corellian grinned crookedly as he ran his thumb over the now-smooth barrel tip. Satisfied, he replaced the weapon in his holster. Yeah, well, I kinda forgot who I was talkin to. But anyhow, its a long story. The end result was, I decided I had to get outta there, so I stole a bunch of stuff from the High Priest. He had a great collection of art objects, jeweled weapons, stuff like that. Only trouble was, Teroenza and his Hutt boss, Zavval, showed up at a real inopportune time. The shooting started, and Zavval died.
Chewbacca made an interrogatory sound.
Han sighed. No, I didnt shoot him. But you could sorta say it was my fault that he bought it.
Chewie commented that from what he knew of Hutts, the fewer the better. Yeah, Ive thought that myself, Han said. But we may wind up workin for a Hutt, so youd better keep your opinion to yourself, pal. He sipped his stim-tea and looked out at the racing star patterns for a long second, lost in memories. So, anyhow, I got away. But I wish Veratil hadnt gotten a look at me yesterday. I got a bad feelin about that. The tlanda Til can be pretty nasty . . .
Chewie asked a question. Han looked down and cleared his throat. Whyd I go back into the crowd and give Veratil the chance to see me? Well, pal... there was this girl...
The Wookiee grunted a phrase. Translated, it meant, Why am I not surprised?
Well, this one was ... special, Hah said, feeling rather defensive. Bria Tharen. Yesterday, in that crowd, I thought . . . He shrugged, his eyes shadowed. I thought I saw her. I coulda sworn that was her, standing there in the crowd. Five years ago, we were . . . friends. Close friends.
Chewbacca nodded. After only a month with Han Solo, the Wookiee was perfectly aware that human females al-most invariably found the Corellian attractive.
Hah shrugged again. But my eyes were playing tricks on me. When I finally caught up to her, she wasnt Bria. It was really aw- He cleared his throat self-consciously. Uh, that is . . . I was sort of disappointed. I really hoped Id found her again. He took another gulp of the cooling tea. I dreamed about Bria last night, he muttered, almost to himself. I was wearing my uniform, and she was smiling at me . . .
Chewbacca made a sympathetic sound. Han looked up at the Wookiee. But, hey, Brias part of the past. I gotta look ahead. What about you, pal? You got a girlfriend?
The Wookiee hesitated. Hah grinned knowingly. Some-one special? Or someone youd like to be special?
Chewie fiddled with the STABILIZER CONTROl. button. Careful, dont push that, Han said. Okay, you dont have to tell me. But hey . . . I told you. If were gonna be partners, doesnt that mean we oughta trnst each other?
His hairy companion mulled that over for a moment. Finally he nodded, and began talking, slowly at first, then with increasing confidence. There was a young Wookiee female, Mallatobuck, that Chewie found attractive. She had come around several times to help care for elderly mem-bers of Chewies arboreal community on Kashyyyk, and had helped Chewbacca care for his father, Attichitcuk, an aged and rather irascible Wookiee.
So, you like her, Han said. Does she like you? Chewbacca wasnt sure. Theyd never spent much time alone together. But there was a warmth in her blue eyes that he remembered . . .
So, how long has it been since youve seen her? Han persisted.
Chewie thought for a moment, then growled a reply.
Fifty years Han yelped. He knew Wookiees lived many times longer than humans, but still . . .
He took another swallow. Hey, pal . . . I hate to tell you. Mallatobuck might be married with six little Wooks by now. You sure ask a lot, wanting a girl to wait for you that long.
Chewbaeca agreed that perhaps he should return to Kashyyyk and reestablish contact as soon as possible.
Tell you what, Han said. When weve gotten our own ship, bought and paid for, Kashyyyk will be our first stop, okay?
The big Wookiee roared an enthusiastic agreement. Han glanced over at him, and found himself thinking that it was nice to have someone to talk to during voyages. Space travel, once you made the jump to hyperspace, could be pretty dull.
I saw that package you brought aboard, he said, changing the subject. What did you buy?
Chewbacca fetched the bundle, and returned to the co-pilots seat. He opened the parcel. Inside was a jumble of various lengths of metal and wood, plus a handgrip and a powerful-looking spring attachment.
Han eyed the assortment, puzzled. Whats that?
The Wookiee grunted a reply. Its going to be a bow-caster, Han repeated. Well, good luck puttin it together. That spring is so strong that no human would be able to draw a weapon like that.
Chewie agreed and, taking out the toolbox, began put-ting his new bowcaster together.
You a good shot? Han asked.
Chewbacca modestly allowed that among his people he was considered quite a marksman. Good, Han said. Were headin for Nar Shaddaa, so well need to cover each others back. Its a moon that orbits the Hutt planet, Nal Hutta. You ever hear of it? Chewie hadnt.
Well, Ive never been there, but from what Ive heard, it can be a little rough. Even the Empire doesnt mess with Nar Shaddaa. If youre hot, or you want to make some kinda deal that the authorities would frown on-you go to Nar Shaddaa. Its that kinda place.
Han began checking the controls, making sure every-thing was shipshape. Not much longer before they emerged into realspace, not far from Nar Hekka. Chewbacca watched him with bright blue eyes, then asked a quiet question.
Hah glanced up. I did try to find Bria, he admitted after a long moment. At first I was mad at her, for leaving me, but hey . . . she was going through a lot. A couple of years ago, while I was on leave from the Academy, I looked up her dad, Renn Tharen. He said he hadnt heard from her in a year. He had no idea where she was. Han sighed.
I liked her dad. The rest of her family was a pain in the
butt, but I liked Renn. He helped me out when I was in a
spot. Most of my first six months paychecks when I was
commissioned went to pay him back some money hed
loaned me. He was-
The ships hyperspace alarm sounded. Coming out of hyperspace, Han said, his hands flying over the controls. Next stop, Nar Hekka. Weve got to find us a Hutt Lord named Tagta, pal.
After landing the Duross ship at the spaceport the alien had specified, Han and Chewbacca gathered up their scanty belongings and left it behind, under no illusions that it would be there when they got back. Together, they boarded a public tube-speeder that would take them into the city where Tagta the Hurt held court.
Hah had been to Nal Hutta, and found it an unpleasant world . . . damp, slimy, and smelly-rather like the Hutts themselves. Hed braced himself to endure more of the same on Nar Hekka, but he was pleasantly surprised. The planet was a cold world that orbited a dim red star on the edge of the YToub system, but Hutt credits and colo-nies of various galactic species had transformed it into a technological wonder. Beneath enormous hothouse domes, the skies shone blue with a faint tinge of violet. Although the planet had little indigenous plant life, vegetation from many worlds had been transplanted and carefully culti-vated. There were numerous parks, botanical gardens, and arboretums. Everywhere Hah and Chewie looked, beds of flowering plants boasted large, lovely blooms of differing hues.
Once in the city, Han and the big Wookiee walked along enjoying file sights. Artificial convection currents wafted soft breezes that caressed their faces. Being outside on a balmy day was a wonderful change of pace from being cooped up in a cramped spaceship, Hah said, and Chew-bacca agreed with a throaty growl.
All too soon, it seemed, they approached an imposing white stone edifice that theyd been told marked the home and business center of Tagta the Hutt. Even though Tagta worked for Jiliac, he was still a prominent and wealthy Hutt Lord in his own right.
They walked up the ramp (Hutt designs did not utilize stairs, for obvious reasons) and then paused outside the huge doorway, large enough to admit even a corpulent Hutt on an anti-grav sled. The majordomo was a diminutive Sullustan female. Her jowls quivered as Han introduced himself and requested an audience with Lord Tagta.
The Sullustan left, ostensibly to check out their bonafides, and returned a few minutes later. Lord Tagta will see you. He asks me to ask you whether you have eaten? He is partaking of the noonday meal.
Han was hungry, and he suspected Chewie was, too, but the thought of eating with a Hutt was not appetizing. Hutt body odor was strong enough to turn a sensitive humans stomach. We just finished, Han lied. But we thank Lord Tagta very much for his graciousness in inquiring.
After several more minutes, the two smugglers, escorted by three liveried Gamorrean guards, were ushered into the Hutts private dining chamber. The room boasted high, vaulted ceilings that reminded Han of cathedrals hed seen. A large, floor-to-ceiling window allowed reddish sunlight to flood in, making the white walls appear faintly rosy. Their host was reclining (Hutt anatomy didnt permit sitting, after .all) before a table, sampling various dishes.
Hah took one glance at the wriggling, squirming fare that comprised the noontime repast, and averted his eyes. He didnt allow his squeamishness to show, however, as he and Chewbacca approached the Hutt Lord.
Hah had learned Huttese while on Ylesia, and under-stood it well. He couldnt speak it, though, because the language depended on subharmonics for subtle nuances in meaning, and the human throat was not constructed to pro-duce those sounds. He wondered whether he and the Hurt Lord would need an interpreter droid. He glanced around, but didnt see one.
Tagta was reclining on a hovering anti-gray sled, but Hah got the impression that the Hutt could move around if he wished. Some Hutts, he knew, grew so corpulent that they c, uld no longer glide about under their own power, but Tagta didnt seem either that old or that fat.
Still, watching the Hutt delicately select yet another wriggler from a glass aquarium filled with viscous fluid and stuff it into his mouth, Hah figured that Tagta would proba-bly make it to tile fully corpulent stage of Hutt life. Green drool gathered at the corners of Tagtas mouth as he rolled the live treat around in his mouth before, finally, swallowing it.
Hah forced himself not to look away.
Finally, after several more minutes of gluttony, Tagtas hunger seemed to be abating. He looked up at his visitors and said, in Huttese, Does either of you comprehend the spoken communication of the only truly civilized beings?
