The Bartokk Assassins Read online

  Star Wars

  Episode 1 Adventures

  2

  The Bartokk Assassins

  By Ryder Windham

  Scanned by [BroD] June 2003

  Introduction

  Before the events of the Trade Federation's invasion of Naboo, the Jedi

  Council received a mysterious data card that alerted them to the construction

  of fifty droid starfighters, each equipped with hyperdrive engines. The

  Council sent Jedi Master Adi Gallia to the planet Esseles in the Darpa Sector

  to investigate. When Master Adi failed to report back from her mission, the

  Council sent a rescue team to Esseles. Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn led the team

  that included two Jedi Knights: Vel Ardox, an amphibian from the Ploo Sector;

  and Noro Zak, a winged Bax - thrax. Against the wishes of Mace Windu, Qui-Gon

  also brought his Padawan apprentice, Obi-Wan Kenobi. On Esseles, the Jedi

  realized Adi Gallia was trapped within a starship factory that had been seized

  by renegade droids. After the Jedi rescued the factory's owner, a reptilelike

  Kloodavian named Boll Trinkatta, they learned the starfighters had been

  manufactured for the Trade Federation. Trinkatta claimed he had not wanted to

  work for the Trade Federation, but he'd changed his mind after his test pilot

  had vanished. Trinkatta believed the Trade Federation was responsible for the

  pilot's disappearance, and feared for his own safety. The Kloodavian ordered

  his droids to build the starfighters.

  Before the finished starfighters could be delivered to the Trade

  Federation, Trinkatta's droids were reprogrammed by the Bartokks, a species of

  insectoid mercenaries with a hive mind. The Bartokks had intended to use the

  droids to take over the starship factory and steal the droid starfighters.

  Much to the dismay of the Bartokks, the starfighters had already been stolen

  from Trinkatta's factory by an unknown enemy. The Jedi defeated the

  reprogrammed droids along with two Bartokks, and Master Adi was found in need

  of medical treatment. Qui-Gon decided that Vel Ardox and Noro Zak would

  immediately escort Master Adi to the nearby planet Rhinnal, famed throughout

  the sector for its citizens' expertise in medicine. Meanwhile, Qui-Gon and

  Obi-Wan remained on Esseles, where they hoped to track the trail of the stolen

  droid starfighters. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan feared that the starfighters might

  have fallen into the clutches of someone even more menacing than the Bartokks

  or the Trade Federation. In need of a guide to Esseles' capital city Calamar,

  the Jedi enlisted the reluctant Trinkatta.

  Qui-Gon Jinn belted himself into the front passenger seat of the

  landspeeder while Obi-Wan Kenobi slid behind the controls. Obi-Wan gunned the

  turbine engines and angled the speeder away from Trinkatta's starship factory

  and toward Calamar. The capital city was already visible in the distance, a

  silhouette of several hundred towers that hugged the lush, green horizon.

  "This is madness!" Boll Trinkatta exclaimed from the speeder's backseat.

  "Even if all fifty droid starfighters are still on Esseles, how do you two

  hope to take them from the Bartokks?"

  While the speeder zoomed over the grassy plains, Qui-Gon turned to his

  outraged passenger.

  "As I said, Trinkatta, the Bartokks don't have the starfighters. If they

  did,

  they wouldn't have left two assassins to guard your factory. With those

  two dead, the surviving thirteen members of the Bartokk hive are probably

  still searching for the ships."

  "Then I should flee this planet immediately!" Trinkatta shouted, his beak

  opening wide. "And not just because I'm afraid of what the Bartokks might do

  to me. Since the droid starfighters weren't delivered to the Trade Federation,

  the Neimoidians who ordered them are probably already on their way to Esseles

  to investigate. They'll kill me if I can't deliver those ships."

  "Then maybe you shouldn't have done business with the Trade Federation in

  the first place," Obi - Wan commented as he neatly directed the landspeeder

  over a dirt road that led into the city.

  "I didn't have a choice," Trinkatta insisted. "If I hadn't built those

  starfighters, the Trade Federation would have made me vanish without a trace,

  just like my test pilot. I'm lucky those Bartokks only reprogrammed my droids

  to cut off one of my arms." Trinkatta winced at the memory of the violent

  interrogation. With his left hand, the reptile-like alien massaged his right

  elbow, where his lower arm was rapidly growing back.

  As the landspeeder approached Calamar, Obi - Wan kept his eyes on the

  road.

  "Master! I don't understand why you suspect the droid starfighters are in

  Calamar. Wouldn't it have been smarter for someone to hide them at a remote

  location or even offworld?"

  "Don't underestimate the intelligence of the thieves, Obi-Wan," Qui-Gon

  stated. "If they could steal fifty starfighters from Trinkatta's factory

  without alerting the Bartokks, they're very smart indeed. And in my

  experience, the best place to hide a needle is among other needles. I've a

  hunch the starfighters are in a spaceport."

  "I don't believe it!" Trinkatta snapped. "You're risking my life over a

  hunch'?"

  Qui-Gon cast a sympathetic glance at the Kloodavian and replied,

  "Be assured, Trinkatta, no harm will come to you while you're with us.

  All we ask for is your help."

  "But what can I do?" Trinkatta answered, shrugging his shoulders.

  Qui-Gon raised an eyebrow at the alien. "You can start by telling us

  about your contact with the Trade Federation. Did Neimoidian leaders come to

  your factory?"

  The Kloodavian nodded.

  "Yes, there were two of them. Officers, I think, although they never

  identified themselves. They brought a prototype hyperdrive engine with them

  and insisted l duplicate it for all fifty droid starfighters."

  "And what about your test pilot?"

  "He was a Talz named Bama Vook," Trinkatta replied. "He was an excellent

  pilot, even if he was sometimes a bit reckless. His copilot was an LE-PR34

  navigator droid called Leeper. They were such good friends the droid didn't

  even address Bama as 'Master.' Oh, and Bama had a young son named Chup-Chup, a

  real rascal. The poor lad must be an orphan now. But why do you want to know

  about Bama? Like I said, the Neimoidans got rid of him."

  "Actually, you said he vanished without a trace," Qui-Gon corrected.

  "Perhaps Bama Vook escaped from the Neimoidians, but they simply let you

  believe they were responsible. I can't help but wonder if Bama Vook's

  disappearance is somehow connected with the missing starfighters."

  Obi-Wan shot a quick glance at Qui-Gon, then turned his attention back to

  the road.

  "Master, are you suggesting that Bama Vook is still alive, and that he

  stole the droid starfighters from Trinkatta's factory'?"

  "I'm not suggesting anything," Qui-Gon replied, then fix
ed his gaze on

  the Kloodavian.

  "Did Bama Vook ever mention that he had any friends in Calamar?"

  Trinkatta scratched his head with his good hand while he tried to

  remember.

  "Now that I think of it, Bama did spend some time at a place over by

  Calamar Intergalactic Spaceport, a saloon that was popular with starpilots.

  It's called the lon Sandbox."

  "Then that's where we're going," Qui-Gon commanded.

  When the air traffic controllers at Calamar Intergalactic Spaceport

  authorized the landing of a sleek, dark green starcruiser, they did not notice

  anything unusual about the vessel. The cruiser's identification numbers and

  three-winged profile matched those of an executive trade ship from the Duro

  system. The cruiser's two passengers had large eyes and thin slits for mouths.

  They did not have noses. They were all physical attributes of the Duros

  species. The only problem was that the passengers were not Duros. They were

  Neimoidians. Disguised as Duros traders, Rune Haako and Daultay Dofine wore

  heavy green cloaks with tapered hoods. They exited their green cruiser and

  walked down the landing ramp to the gritty tarmac.

  "I never thought we'd have to return to this dull planet," Haako

  muttered. "When I get my hands on Trinkatta, I'll crush his windpipe."

  Dofine stopped and turned to his superior.

  "Are you sure we shouldn't transmit a message to Viceroy Gunray and let

  him know

  we've arrived on Esseles?" Dofine asked.

  Lieutenant Haako's smooth brow furrowed.

  "Don't be a fool, Dofine! Have you forgotten this is a secret mission'?

  Our orders were clear. We're to investigate Trinkatta Starships and learn why

  the droid starfighters were not delivered to us. Also, whoever informed the

  Jedi Council of the starfighters must be found and silenced."

  "It was probably Trinkatta who alerted the Council," Dofine suggested.

  "The Kloodavian wouldn't have had the nerve," Haako sneered. "After his

  test pilot disappeared, Trinkatta knew better than to toy with the Trade

  Federation."

  As the pair entered a lift tube to leave the hangar, Dofine dared to ask

  another question.

  "How do you think the Jedi Council have responded to the report of droid

  starfighters on Esseles, sir? I hope we do not encounter any Jedi."

  As the lift tube came to a stop, Haako replied,

  "I doubt the Republic would send their precious Jedi to this horribly

  distant world."

  The lift tube doors hissed open, and the disguised Neimoidians stepped

  outside. It was the end of the business day, and the streets of Calamar were

  fiiled with pedestrians and vehicles. The citizens of Calamar paid little

  attention to the two hooded aliens that walked away from the hangar entrance.

  "We'll hire a landspeeder and approach Trinkatta's factory with caution,"

  Haako declared. "If he's up to something, I want to catch him by surprise. But

  before we go, I need a little refreshment."

  Daultay Dofine silently followed Lieutenant Haako into a nearby saloon.

  Over the entrance, the establishment's name was prominently displayed on a

  glowing sign: ION SANDBOX. The lon Sandbox resembled any number of spacer bars

  throughout the system. Aliens from all over and beyond the Bormea and Darpa

  Sectors swapped stories and rubbed elbows at the cramped tables. Instead of a

  live band, a holographic quintet shimmered and gyrated on a small elevated

  stage, their prerecorded performance dominated by thundering drums and blaring

  horns. Customers shouted their conversations over the music, and the air was

  filled with heavy smoke. As the disguised Neimoidians stepped up to the bar,

  Dofine noticed a furry Talz seated at a corner table. One of the Talz's four

  eyes was covered by a black patch.

  Dofine nudged Haako and whispered,

  "That Talz over there looks a lot like Trinkatta's pilot."

  "Don't be ridiculous," Haako replied. "Bama Vook didn't wear an eye

  patch."

  As the Neimoidians ordered drinks, the tall Talz slowly rose from his

  corner table and headed for the back door.

  Obi-Wan Kenobi guided the landspeeder through a narrow alley and parked

  next to the receptacles behind the lon Sandbox. As soon as Obi-Wan turned off

  the speeder's loud engine, the noise was replaced by the sound of bizarre

  music and alien laughter that drifted out from the saloon. Trinkatta jumped

  out of the speeder and ad - justed his cape to cover both his head and injured

  arm. He didn't want anyone to recognize him.

  "Come quick," he urged Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon. "We'll enter through the back

  door."

  The two Jedi climbed out of the speeder and followed the Kloodavian to a

  high oval doorway. Trinkatta was just about to step over the threshold when he

  bounced off a tall alien who was exiting the saloon.

  "Oof!" Trinkatta expelled as he hit the ground. When he looked up, he saw

  that the alien was a Talz. Trinkatta's jaw dropped open in surprise. The Talz

  was covered in thick white fur and stood just under two meters tall. Around

  his neck, a collar was equipped with an expensive vocabulator that could

  translate his own guttural language into Basic. At his right hip, a heavy

  blaster was holstered to his weapons belt. His most distinguishing

  accoutrement was a black patch over his upper left eye.

  "You don't fool me with that eyepatch, Bama!" Trinkatta snarled as he

  pushed himself up from the ground. "How dare you let me think the Trade

  Federation killed you!"

  "You must have confused me with someone else, stranger," Bama Vook

  replied via his vocabulator. Then he leaned forward so his nose nearly touched

  the Kloodavian's, and raised the black patch to reveal a perfectly healthy

  eye, which he winked at Trinkatta.

  In a low voice, Bama said, "Yes, it's I, Trinkatta, but keep your

  infernal voice down. There are two Neimoidians inside the bar. They're the

  same pair that threatened me at your factory."

  Bama Vook rose to his full height and readjusted his eyepatch.

  "Sorry about pulling a vanishing act on you, Trinkatta, but I didn't want

  to wind up working for the Trade Federation. The owner of the lon Sandbox owed

  me a favor, so he let me hide out here. You could have blown my cover,

  blundering into the bar with these two humans."

  Trinkatta nodded to Qui-Gon, allowing the Jedi Master to make his own

  introduction.

  "I'm Qui-Gon Jinn and this is Obi-Wan Kenobi. The Jedi Council sent us.

  You must be the one who sent the data card that alerted the Council to the

  droid star fighters."

  "You're Jedi?" Bama asked with disbelief, but something in Qui-Gon's

  expression convinced him otherwise. "Thank the stars, you came to help! Yes, I

  sent the data card."

  Obi-Wan was stunned by this latest revelation.

  "Excuse me, Master, but how and when did you figure out that Bama sent

  the data card?"

  "As soon as I realized Bama Yook was still alive, it all added up," Qui-

  Gon answered.

  "Since Trinkatta didn't send the data card, I surmised Bama must have

  done it after he escaped the Neimoidians."

  "Indeed, tha
t's exactly what I did," Bama beamed. "As soon as those two

  Neimoidians arrived at Trinkatta's factory, l knew the Trade Federation was up

  to no good. It's bad enough they're operating outside their own territory, but

  it's worse that they commissioned droid starfighters with hyperdrive engines.

  With those ships, they could level most of Calamarf Well, it wasn't about to

  let that happen."

  Qui-Gon smiled at Bama.

  "Your experience as a pilot for Trinkatta Starships must have made it

  easy for you to liberate the droid starfighters from the factory."

  Qui-Gon's statement amazed Obi-Wan, who felt as if he were always three

  steps behind his Master's deductions.

  "It was hardly easy," Bama confessed. "I kept my eye on the factory from

  a distance. At first, I was trying to figure out a way to break in and destroy

  the starfighters. But two nights ago, I saw someone loading the starfighters

  into a spike-covered freighter. I figured they were working with the

  Neimoidians. While my copilot Leeper distracted them, I bypassed Trinkatta's

  security system, broke into the factory, and stole the freighter. I thought it

  would be best to hide the ships until the Jedi Council could investigate the

  Neimoidians."

  Trinkatta was stunned. "You admit you stole the starfighters?" he cried.

  "I got more than that," Bama said with pride. "The freighter also

  contained the Neimoidians' prototype hyperdrive engine. Without that

  prototype, they'll have a tough time building any more droid starfighters on

  Esseles."

  Trinkatta fumed. With his left arm, he pushed back his cape to reveal his

  injured arm.

  "Forgive me, Bama, if I don't applaud!"

  Seeing Trinkatta's mangled limb, Bama gasped and his four eyes went wide.

  "The Neimoidians cut off your arm?"