It was getting dark… Around the Krayt Dragon's carcass, the survivors had set up an improvised camp. To drag such a behemoth somewhere? There were only two ships: mine, and the remaining pirates'. According to one of them, their crew no longer even had enough sentient beings to properly "do their usual work on this rust bucket," which resembled a heavily modified Consular… The ship was battered, many elements were twisted and rusted. And how did they fly it? In any case, neither of the two ships was suitable for transport. Therefore, it was decided to butcher the dragon's carcass right here… The task promised to be long, so the survivors, splitting into "interest groups," created a camp around the dead dragon.
Of course, they decided to start almost immediately… Only they helped each other. Considering that we had shed blood together killing it, they now offered help regardless of squad affiliation.
"Let's begin," Jacob announced. The Mandalorians, even during the butchering, did not remove their immutable armor.
The dragon was enormous. It had to be divided into three parts. The head, the torso, and the rear section. Therefore, we also divided ourselves into three teams. Each received a part for butchering. The Tuskens were content with the head, the pirates received the rear section, with the hind legs and tail. And we received the largest part of the body: the torso. The only problem was that even separating the designated parts from each other was difficult, practically impossible. The dragon held up too well against blows. Of course, we had "vibro-tools that worked on a specific frequency"… But even with them, there was a tiny problem. Cutting required a lot of energy, and moreover, it was very slow.
"By the way," I addressed Hori, then nodded at the Tuskens, "what are they gesturing and pointing at me for?"
"They're complaining," the Mandalorian said. "With your last attack, you practically burned its brain. Their droid investigated the dragon's insides. The blow hit the palate and ignited almost everything in its head."
"So that's why it died," Vanda said.
"One attack on a vulnerable spot can decide a lot," Jacob replied calmly.
"To hell with attacks on vulnerable spots! Give me a couple of grenade launchers, and I'll capture the Senate!" Bombur exclaimed.
"More likely you'll destroy it, and in the best case, yourself," Hori remarked. "Even if so, aren't we getting sidetracked?"
The cutting device was a huge rod, about ten meters long. The rod resembled a sword in shape, with only one difference – where its "handle" was, there was something like a power unit from which wires ran. We decided to connect the wires to the pirate ship's power system. They claimed they couldn't fully extract it from here with their team anyway. And the sound the tool made was like dragging a fork across glass… It created an acute desire to take the one dragging the fork across glass and shove it into the eye of the impudent one… But here we had to endure it all.
"By the way," I said, almost shouting to be heard, "how do we direct it at specific body parts?"
"The instructions said that this machine should be installed in a workshop…"
"Stop!" I interrupted the pirate. "So you bought it…"
"We stole it! We raided a starship dismantling facility and just took everything that wasn't nailed to the floor. And this thing," he nodded at the working unit, near which the Tuskens were now doing something, or rather, judging by their active gesturing: they were sincerely puzzled how to operate a unit weighing a couple of tons, "we took with us. It was nailed to the machine… But the Captain liked its feature so much that he ordered it unscrewed along with the power cables."
"What kind of archaic factory did you find?" Vanda asked. "For cutting, they've long used lasers, similar to lightsabers!"
"The vibro-tool also has its advantages," Hori explained. "Turn it off, we haven't figured out how to lift it yet! This device is used for breaking armor. Industrial-type laser beams have power limitations compared to a lightsaber. A lightsaber cannot cut through certain materials. Frik, beskar, neuraniium, ultrachrome, and cortosis. And industrial lasers don't have all the properties of a lightsaber. But there's such a wonderful thing as vibration frequency. In fact, with the right frequency, any material can be cut. But… You clearly stole it without the frequency adjustment panel, right?"
"Well…"
"It's all clear with you," Hori sighed heavily.
"Is there a way to select the frequency for the dragon's scales?" Jacob asked.
"No," Hori shook his head. "I don't even know at what level this tool is currently used."
"And what do we do?" one of the pirates asked. "First, we can't even lift it."
"Well, we can lift it," I said, calculating another telekinesis training session. "But whether this thing will work on the dragon's scales or not – it's the Will of the Force, nothing more. Either it works, or it doesn't. The alternative is to take it to a settlement; in principle, we can do that, but there we'll have to protect it, not to mention…"
"That the Tuskens find it unacceptable," Hori said. "And we agreed to respect each other after all the sacrifices made."
"How long can it rot?" asked the pirate.
"This option is unacceptable," the Mandalorians replied in unison.
"Alright, alright," he raised his hands, "I get it, you're in a hurry."
"It's not that," Vanda shook her head, "maybe you're used to digging in the mud and for you the stench of a decomposing corpse is like the air from the best resort on Naboo, but for us, it's unacceptable. No matter how – we will butcher it."
"Light," Jacob addressed me, "come on, use your Force. And you," he turned to the pirates, "start the tool. Try to cut off its tail first."
"Tsk…" I spat, stepping aside and closing my eyes. That unpleasant sound, like a fork on glass, was heard again… The machine was started. The main thing is that the wires are long enough. Suddenly opening my eyes, I directed my hand towards the tool. A strange sound was heard… When they were unloading the pirates' corvette, it was literally dropped near the monster's carcass… Fortunately, they didn't think to drop it on the monster itself.
Weight… What difference does it make what weighs how much? I've been using telekinesis for so many years that I've realized the following: there is no weight. After all, kilograms, tons… These are all conventions of our mind, to measure something, to characterize it. But it's really not important. No matter how much something weighs, it's nothing compared to the power of the Force.
Of course, I will feel exhaustion, but before that, I will accomplish everything that is necessary… With the edge of my consciousness, I felt all the sentient beings looking with surprise at the lifted tool. One meter… Two… Three… Five meters. Now move it into place at the tail. A couple of moments, and the tool touched the tail with a disgusting sound… A rattling was heard, I abstracted myself from hearing, using the Force, focusing only so that the edge of the blade could touch the tail… Incredible! It can actually cut through what even my lightsaber couldn't. I carefully lowered the device onto the tail section… Cutting this carcass. Sweat appeared on my forehead, it became very hot… The thing is, even seeing that our assumption worked, I didn't let the blade cut through the tail. The whole construction looked too fragile. And I had no desire to break it completely. I'd rather control every centimeter than let go and break something.
With the edge of my ear, I heard jubilation from everyone present. The tail was slowly separating from the body. When it was all done, I sat down on the sand from exhaustion. Damn, there's no weight, but exhaustion doesn't cancel it out. Directing the Force so precisely is difficult for me. After all, I'm more of a fighter than a skilled consul. Simply put – I have considerable potential, yes, but subtle techniques are a real hassle. It's easier to hit harder and with all my heart…
"Excellent!" Vanda exclaimed. "Now another pass! The head from the torso!"
"You're a cruel woman," Hori's voice was heard. "Look at him. He's barely breathing…"
"Difficulties temper you," Jacob said in a calm voice. "Right now, you can't, say, lift twenty kilograms, so what? Should you stop because of that? Move forward, try to overcome yourself, and there will come a moment when thirty will be easy for you. Isn't it like that in your Force?" he turned to me.
"Y-yes," I said. "Although it's not like I'm particularly exhausted. I've had experience… interacting with heavy objects, much heavier than this. It's just that here I also focused on precision. After all, we only have one vibro-weapon. As well as the reactor that powers it. I don't want to give my ship's reactor, and I won't. It's better to drag it to Mos Espa."
My hand again pointed at the tool, the sand dust around which dispersed. It soared into the air again, and this time, carefully, I moved towards the neck, which was harder to cut. It required surgical precision so as not to hack into unnecessary body parts. Carefully… Lower… Damn! I cut a little crooked, the cut turned out to be oblique, which might offend the Tuskens, as I cut off part of their share… No. They rejoiced even at such a result, which was a failure for me. The innards of the Desert Terror were abundantly thrown onto the sand, which made me feel nauseous. I, of course, also cut people with a lightsaber strike… but a lightsaber cuts and cauterizes, and in the heat of battle, you simply don't have time to pay attention to such things… And now everyone saw the part of its guts that had fallen out. At the same time, its body was so huge that it seemed like a cave. Sentient beings could almost go inside and get what they needed, simply gutting it. Which is what we did… gutting. Without even discussing it, I was assigned the stomach, because it was there that I felt something strange, something familiar and warm. Jumping onto a part of the esophagus, I thanked the Force…
It's good, after all, to be able to abstract oneself from feelings. Of course, I'm far from a master of this technique. But it's enough for my knowledge not to vomit from the smell. This part of the body would seem like a cave, a mystery, dark… but in the distance, I saw a glimmer. And I felt it. However, to get to it, I had to rip out either the lungs with the heart, or go in from behind, and pull out the fallen intestines to the end. Considering the options, I decided to act from the lungs. But where is all this? I'm not a biologist; I haven't participated in dissections. The author – yes. Not pleasant, I'll tell you. But you have to start somewhere. I jumped down, to the base…
"You always have to start somewhere," Hori said. "Did you look inside?" he asked me. "Here, I found the anatomy of Krayt Dragons. The heart is three-chambered, like in reptiles, the ventricle…"
"Shove it up your ass," Bombur rudely interrupted him. "You'd better tell us – how do we get everything out of him completely? It all looks so monumental…"
"No need to blow anything up," Hori interrupted him. "Each organ in a living organism's body is attached mainly to the elements of the musculoskeletal system…"
"What?"
"In short, everything is like ropes with something suspended from them," Vanda said.
"Almost," Hori put his hand to his visor. "Almost... We need to destroy these elements, and then Light can pull out the organs."
"Why can't I, relying on the Force, pull it out all at once?"
"There's a high chance that some thing will get damaged. I'd look at the brain you burned. Its internal organs aren't that strong. Yes, maybe you only need crystals from the stomach, and they're definitely not fragile. But we'd like to get all its organs, more or less intact. There are many who will pay a decent price for them. Destroying these elements is our task. Yours is to use the Force and pull out what we 'detach' from it."
As a result, we worked even at night. No one felt like sleeping then, despite the incredibly difficult day. Everyone got so absorbed in the butchering that no one noticed how they spent the whole night. Difficulties arose almost immediately even with "cutting the necessary parts." The organs were difficult to extract because they literally lay on top of each other. As a result, by morning, although I wasn't in the best shape, the Krayt Dragon's stomach lay before me… It was precisely in it that those crystals that many Jedi sought were located. And I found them. The stomach was mangled by my lightsaber, and before me appeared the crystals. There were a great many of them, and they shimmered with different colors. But two crystals stood out particularly, shining with a green light… Not the kind my lightsaber shone with. No… It was a slightly darker version of green, I would say – harsh. Here they are… I feel the warmth emanating from them. Directing my hand towards them, I pulled the crystals towards me.
"Are these them?" Vanda's voice was heard. "Your share?"
"I'll take some scales too," I replied to the Mandalorian. "They'll be useful when creating armor. Not all of them…"
"It doesn't matter," Jacob said, approaching closely. "I understand that you want to finish your business quickly, Light Flaingstar, Padawan. You've earned a trophy, even more than many. So don't make excuses. Take as much as you want."
"True," Hori said. "And maybe don't rush to leave? After every job, our company likes to celebrate. We'll have a good time, I promise you."
"Stay for the evening. Uncle Bombur will teach you how to drink," the last Mandalorian said.
"You don't know how to drink yourself," Hori remarked.
"Shut up!" Bombur exclaimed. "Don't embarrass me in front of the kids!"
"So?" Jacob asked.
"Perhaps… I wouldn't refuse a rest. After all this," I gestured around the area.
"Ugh!" I groaned, standing up and shaking myself off. Did I fall asleep in my clothes? Where? In the middle of the Tatooine desert. "What the hell?!" My head was splitting. The drinking spree wasn't exactly grand. We just decided to drink and celebrate the final butchering of the carcass.
First, we celebrated using the not-so-rich food supplies from my ship, then the pirates came and offered their services, or rather – to share the Captain's bar on their ship. Seeing what the main pirate kept in his bar, everyone whistled, even I, who, when it came to alcohol from the Outer Rim, always kept Corellian whiskey in mind. But what did we get in the end? Corellian whiskey, Chandrilian vodka, rye, many types of liqueurs and brandies… And the cruelest thing – a tincture produced by Wookiees. They make it from some leaves, according to Hori. And according to reviews – even the shaggy ones get drunk from it. And if Wookiees, with their build, strength, and endurance, get drunk from such a tincture, what will happen to other sentient beings?
"This tincture… KHA!" one of the pirates coughed, to my right. A second later, he parted with his food in an unconventional way. "The last thing I drank from their planet! Gods! The Force! Why me?!"
"In the name of Mandalore – don't yell," Bombur's voice was heard. I turned and saw Hori, who was carrying Bombur on his shoulder. "It feels like I've been hit by a heavy turbolaser."
"And I told you that you don't know how to drink," Hori remarked. What the hell? He chugged a whole bottle of this Wookiee tincture! And apparently, he sobered up. "And anyway, I liked this minty taste."
"And where are Vanda and Jacob?" I asked Hori.
"Hmm… How should I put it, kid," Bombur said. "They… They. In short, they decided to celebrate together, a little separately from the rest…"
"I understand…"
"Understand?" Hori asked. "Inteeeeresting. I've seen a couple of Jedi, they're about thirty, and they've only heard of sex…"
"I've done it," I stated firmly. "Don't believe me?"
"Why not?" Bombur asked. "Even droids would react to your pretty face."
"I won't give my master to anyone!" BB beeped loudly.
"Beep less, tin can," Bombur's voice was heard. "Mmm… Hori! I need to pee! Help!"
"Hutt," Hori exclaimed. "Alright. Rest, Light."
Yeah, right… I could use some water. Exactly…
"BB, you…" I looked at the droid.
He simply and unceremoniously pulled a bottle with a liquid shimmering in the light of Tatooine's two Suns from inside his body. Gods… This is so… So…
"Master?"
"BB. I'll tell you honestly… Maybe I'll find many other women for myself in this galaxy. Wounds heal, and Mila wouldn't want me to mourn her and ruin my life, but I can only truly love you…" I snatched the bottle from the droid's manipulator, instantly opened it, and greedily latched onto the neck. The Force, how wonderful, magnificent, divine!
The mood after the drinking spree won't improve much. But at least it's something…
"I hope a declaration of love to a droid for a liter of water isn't all you can do right now?" a mocking voice asked from behind.
"Master," I turned sharply. "And you're here…"
"I don't hear joy," the part of Kuro's face I could see was contorted into a smile. "You worked well. And you received a worthy payment for your labor."
"Yes, although it was difficult. And now I have two crystals that resonate with my Force."
"Two?" Kuro asked. "This gives you two possibilities. First, you can become an adept of Jar'Kai. This is the most convenient option. You are fast and agile, this style suits you perfectly. Second, you can create a full-fledged lightsaber staff. This weapon is not popular among Jedi, but it has its advantages."
"And you advise Jar'Kai?"
As a practitioner of the Soresu Center of Being, you studied the Center of Being, as well as the philosophy of the storm's center," Kuro said importantly. "As a practitioner of Ataru, you are incredibly fast and agile. All of this can be useful for a Jar'Kai practitioner. By moving quickly and striking from different directions, you can defeat many opponents. And the ability to 'be in the center of the storm,' as a Soresu practitioner, will help you defend yourself even in the most difficult situations. Of course, I am only finishing your training. How you proceed is entirely up to you."
"I don't think there's anything to decide," I said with a sigh. "Studying the staff will take time. But switching to Jar'Kai won't. I need to develop my left hand," since I am right-handed and usually fight with a sword in my right hand, even when using Ataru, which involves many two-handed attacks.
"Wonderful," Kuro clapped her hands. "I'll find you some materials on Jar'Kai. You can also ask the mentors who train younglings. They all have colossal knowledge in Jedi fencing."
"Thank you."
"And one more thing," Kuro said. "You will have to process the crystals. Or did you not understand? They don't appear from the stomach ready to be installed in a lightsaber. You will have to process the crystals... And the slightest mistake in this process could be your last in this life!"
"I know..."
The Star Path from Tatooine, even after we finished our business, did not leave. I acquired not only crystals, but also elements of scales, which I will integrate into my bracers and armor. I also got a few fangs and claws, from which I intend to make grappling hooks. Mos Espa was buzzing... Rumors were circulating in the city about those who went up against the ancient Krayt Dragon... They said it even breathed fire and lightning, that it could even fly. And none of us were in a hurry to dispel the rumors... Let them believe what they want, after all, it's about reputation.
"It's time to say goodbye," Jacob said seriously at the spaceport. Behind me stood the "Star Path," inside which the mentor and VV had already settled, the latter having started warming up the engines. "You helped us a lot, although I was skeptical of you."
"Especially Vanda," Bombur chimed in, for which he received a smack on the back of the head from the aforementioned person. Although he probably didn't feel anything.
"If there's good work, Jedi," Jacob said, "you have my contacts," though I doubted I'd need them. Though swearing off something is the last thing you should do in the world of Star Wars.
"We'll see each other again," Hori promised. "All the best..."
"Yes. Goodbye," I said, heading towards my ship. I still had a long way to go.
The Star Path shuddered, launched from the spaceport, and headed for the heavens.
"Where are we flying now, mentor?" I asked the woman.
"The Council has given me a mission. After which I will make a decision regarding you," the woman said, not distracted from contemplating the stars. "First, you will have to deal with your new lightsaber."
"What about Jar'Kai training?" I asked.
"I don't use that style, but we'll stop by Coruscant on the way and get all the information you need. And after that, it's up to you. You are almost a Knight, and you must acquire skills and abilities yourself, study what you need. I'm not your nanny. It will take us two weeks to fly to that planet. Sernpidal is our next destination. So, take us into Hyperspace and get to work."
"And what's there on Sernpidal?"
"Many sentient beings, of various ages, have disappeared. It seems like a local police matter, but the Council believes a Dark Gifted individual has been involved. That's why they're sending us. Based on the results of this mission, I will make a final decision regarding you."