Promises Page 2

  "Tahiri, what are you afraid of?" he asked. "You don't have to go."

  "I don't know," Tahiri said softly. "But it's more complicated than

  that. Sliven knew it would be, and so did Master Luke. Anakin, don't you

  see - I'm not like you. I don't have a brother and sister, or a mother and

  father who were heroes of the Rebellion. I don't know who my parents were,

  or how I ended up with my tribe. All I know is that the Tusken Raiders are

  the only family I've ever known. The only family I have. If I choose to

  remain at the academy, I'll lose them forever. I'll truly be an orphan."

  Tahiri turned to look out the shuttle window, her unseeing eyes filled with

  tears.

  "There's more, isn't there," Anakin asked softly.

  "Yes," Tahiri admitted. "I feel so mixed-up right now. I'm about to

  return to the only home I know. It's a place I hate and love, both at the

  same time. Just as I hate and love the Tusken Raiders. My life is as

  confusing to me as the golden globe. Except, unlike with the globe, I don't

  have any clue about who I really am. I don't even know if Tahiri is my real

  name, or just a name given to me by Sliven."

  Tahiri paused and gulped for air.

  "Anakin, you have a family, a history. Even though being the grandson

  of Darth Vader frightens you, at least you know where you came from, who

  you came from. All I have are these two thumbprints. I'm afraid that if I

  don't return to the Raiders for good, I may never have the chance to find

  out who I really am. But if I do, I'm afraid I'll discover I'm meant to be

  something other than a Jedi Knight."

  Anakin recognized the look on Tahiri's face. It was the same desperate

  cry for help he'd seen when, after being tossed from their silver raft,

  she'd thrashed in the river's water, struggling to survive. The same look

  she'd worn on Yavin 8 when a reel-a giant violet-colored snake-had wrapped

  her in its coils and tried to crush her. The look reminded Anakin of how

  much they'd been through together. How much they'd learned about

  themselves, and their strengths in the Force. He'd used the Force to keep

  Tahiri from drowning in the river, and he'd actually probed within the body

  of the reel with his mind, to force the creature to release its hold on

  her. Together they'd even toppled a purella, the giant red-bristled spider

  with glowing orange eyes that had been poised to devour them, slowly.

  And then they'd learned from an elder Melodie on Yavin 8 the

  information that they'd needed to read the Massassi symbols in the palace

  and break the curse. But to do that, they had to work together, as a team.

  Anakin was certain that neither of them was strong enough in the Force to

  wage the war alone.

  "You once told me that no matter who my grandfather was, I was meant

  to become a Jedi Knight and use the Force for good," Anakin said softly.

  "The same goes for you. I understand that you want to know your history,

  but is it as important as the lives of the children trapped inside the

  golden globe? Only you can know which is more important. But whatever you

  decide, I'll always be your friend.... Okay?" Anakin said gently.

  "Okay," Tahiri said with a nod. Anakin didn't tell Tahiri that even if

  she chose to remain on Tatooine, he'd still attempt to break the curse. To

  fight the good battle, even though he knew in his heart that without

  Tahiri's strength he would never leave the depths of the Palace of the

  Woolamander alive.

  "Five minutes to landing," old Peckhum transmitted back to Anakin and

  Tahiri.

  The Jedi instructor Tionne glanced back to make sure her two charges

  were seated. Luke Skywalker had sent her to watch over Anakin and Tahiri on

  Tatooine-to make sure that nothing harmed them. And that Tahiri returned to

  the Jedi academy, if she wished. Anakin strapped himself in and readied

  himself to meet Tahiri's people. But nothing could have prepared him for

  what lay minutes away, beyond the safety of the shuttle's cool silver

  hatch.

  Anakin threw himself in front of Tahiri. Above him, three Tusken

  Raiders growled, their tall, broad forms masked in strips of white

  material, their faces covered with gray breath masks and dark round

  protective goggles. Held high in each of their hands was an axelike metal

  weapon with a double-edged blade that glinted beneath the harsh twin suns

  of Tatooine. They moved forward to attack.

  "Get back in the shuttle," Anakin commanded his friend.

  Tionne stepped forward, her silver eyes flashing. Anakin could sense

  the hostility and raw anger that came from the group of Raiders.

  "It's all right," Tahiri said calmly. "They're from my tribe."

  Tahiri took a step out from behind Anakin and Tionne and moved toward

  the Raiders.

  "Are you sure?" Anakin asked uncertainly as he watched Tahiri walk

  forward. The three Raiders parted, and a fourth, who had been hidden behind

  them, emerged. He, too, held the axelike weapon high, and Anakin tensed. He

  was ready to spring forward if Tahiri needed him. Tahiri grunted toward the

  fourth Raider. It was a deep, guttural sound that Anakin had never heard

  from his friend. The Raider growled back.

  "It's okay, Anakin," Tahiri said softly without turning away from the

  Raider. "His name is Sliven, and he's the leader of my tribe. I'm greeting

  him and introducing you and Tionne. Neither of you were expected-that's why

  the Raiders took a battle stance."

  Anakin nodded, but neither he nor Tionne took their eyes off the

  Raiders. Sliven moved toward Tahiri, lowering his weapon as he walked. Then

  he let loose a string of grunts and growls, connected by a dialect Anakin

  could neither recognize nor understand.

  "He wants to know where my robes and foot coverings are," Tahiri

  began.

  Sliven stared down at the girl, his adoptive daughter, as she gazed up

  at him. Her green eyes, the color of the water he had hunted all his life,

  were unreadable. Then she spoke to him, making the harsh language of the

  Raiders sound soft.

  "I just told him that one of the conditions I made when I entered the

  academy was that I no longer had to wear robes or shoes," Tahiri told

  Anakin. Her translation was cut short by several deep barks.

  "He says that some things never change, and my stubborn nature is one

  of them," Tahiri explained with a grin.

  Anakin followed Tahiri and her people away from the shuttle. They'd

  landed at a special spot in the desert, where Tahiri had been expected. As

  they walked, Anakin squinted in the bright sunlight to study his

  surroundings. Endless yellow desert stretched out before him.

  Anakin had hoped they'd land in Mos Eisley, Tatooine's infamous city.

  Because of its remote location, Mos Eisley was known throughout the galaxy

  for attracting thieves, pirates, and smugglers. It was there that his

  father, Han Solo, first met his uncle Luke and the Jedi Master Ben Kenobi.

  Uncle Luke and Master Kenobi had hired his father to pilot them to Alderaan

  in his freighter, the Millennium Falcon. That was the beginning of

  adventures that led his father and uncle to rescue his mother, P
rincess

  Leia Organa, from the Death Star and Darth Vader, Anakin thought with

  pride.

  The heat rolled in thick waves over the sand. Anakin felt his jumpsuit

  beginning to stick to his back as sweat rolled down in time to the beat of

  his heart. Tahiri walked in front of him, talking to Sliven. The other

  three Raiders walked to the side, scanning the desert for hidden enemies.

  Tionne walked in silence, her large eyes never leaving the Raiders. Several

  times Anakin sensed danger, but the group traveled safely up and down

  rolling sand dunes. Sliven's deep voice interrupted Anakin's thoughts. The

  Raider motioned for Anakin and Tahiri to follow him up yet another sand

  hill.

  "Bangor!" Tahiri cried when several large, brown, furry animals came

  into sight. One of the animals raised his head at the sound of her voice

  and began to tug at the thick rope that held him to a wooden stake in the

  sand. Tahiri raced forward and stretched out her arms. The animal bumped

  his soft brown nose against her side. Tahiri reached up and scratched

  between his long, spiral horns. Sliven growled beside Anakin.

  "He repeats that some things never change," Tahiri translated with a

  giggle.

  Although Sliven's words sounded gruff, Anakin sensed something beneath

  them, a caring that he hadn't expected. After all, the Sand People, as the

  Tusken Raiders were also known, were famous for their aggressive, violent

  nature. They'd been known to attack the settlements of moisture farms on

  Tatooine, to steal and fight, and many times to kill. In the back of

  Anakin's mind, he wondered if that wasn't how Tahiri had ended up with

  these people. Perhaps they had attacked her family's settlement and killed

  her parents.

  Anakin pushed the thought away. It was too gruesome to think that

  Tahiri might have lived for most of her life with people who had killed her

  parents.

  "Anakin, come meet my bantha," Tahiri called over her shoulder.

  Anakin walked toward the three-meter-tall creature.

  "His name is Bangor," Tahiri began.

  Sliven cut in abruptly with a string of grunts.

  "Sliven says that we don't name our banthas." Tahiri turned to face

  the leader of her tribe.

  "Well, I do," she shot back in Basic.

  Anakin looked confused.

  "Oh, Sliven understands Basic, although I don't know where he learned

  it. But he pretends he doesn't, so I usually speak in his language," Tahiri

  explained slowly, so that she could be certain Sliven understood her words.

  The Raider didn't reply. Anakin studied the bantha beside Tahiri. He'd read

  that the Sand People used them as beasts of burden, and that they could

  survive for weeks in the desert without food or water. He reached up and

  petted the creature. Bangor turned its large brown eyes toward him, gently

  blinking long lashes.

  "Bangor is an orphan, too," Tahiri said. "He was found wandering alone

  in the desert shortly after I was found by Sliven."

  At that, the Raider growled fiercely.

  "Sliven is angry," Tahiri explained to Anakin. "He says that I'm not

  an orphan. He says I'm a Raider, and that we've wasted enough time and must

  return to the tribe before dark." Tahiri frowned at Sliven, then whispered

  softly to Bangor. The bantha knelt, and she climbed aboard his back. Then

  she reached down to Anakin and pulled him up behind her. The bantha gently

  rose to his feet. Sliven pulled Tionne up behind him. Then he barked, and

  the banthas trotted away from the outskirts of Mos Eisley toward an expanse

  of desert which looked endless.

  Anakin was suddenly overcome by the feeling that he and Tahiri were

  traveling into unspoken danger.

  They had been traveling for hours. Anakin felt the heat of Tatooine's

  twin suns beating down on his head. Tahiri had pulled the collar of her

  orange jumpsuit up to protect her face from blowing sand. The grit of the

  desert filled Anakin's mouth and eyes. There was no way to keep the sand

  out. Anakin wondered if this was what it was like for the young spirits

  trapped inside the globe. He hoped not.

  An hour before, Sliven had offered the Jedi candidates some cloth to

  wrap their heads, and two pairs of eye protectors. Tahiri had declined for

  both of them, although she did accept shoes for herself. She was being

  difficult, but Anakin understood. His friend felt torn. Tahiri had thought

  it would be easy to make the decision to stay at the academy. But now that

  she was here, the decision would be more difficult.

  No one spoke during the journey into the desert. Sliven led the group,

  but didn't utter a word.

  "Is it always this quiet?" Anakin finally whispered to Tahiri.

  "Yes," she replied. "Now you can understand why I talk so much. In all

  my years here, I don't think I said as much as I would in one day at the

  academy. And don't think I didn't try," Tahiri added with a laugh. "But the

  only one who would ever talk to me-really talk, once I learned his

  language-was Sliven."

  "He's not talking now," Anakin noted.

  "He will," Tahiri said. "He will, because he's the reason I'm here.

  Sliven is the leader of our tribe, but he's more than that. He's the one

  who found me. The Sand People are nomads, traveling in small tribes within

  the harsh desert. They're experts at survival, because above all else

  they're practical. The weak are left to die. Only the strong, those who can

  care for themselves, are part of the tribe. And outsiders, any outsiders,

  are of no concern. Especially children who don't belong to the tribe."

  "But you were an outsider, an orphan child," Anakin interrupted.

  "Yes," Tahiri said softly. "And for some reason Sliven chose to take

  me into his tribe. To care for me in the only way he knew how.. I didn't

  grow up with a father or mother like you did, Anakin. But Sliven was as

  close to a father as I'll ever know. He taught me how to scavenge for food

  and water, how to train and ride a bantha. And how to fight with a

  gaderffii stick. "Sliven knows that if I choose to remain at the academy

  the tribe will refuse to take me back. I think that having me return to

  make my decision was Sliven's way of giving me one last chance to remain

  with the tribe, and with him."

  "It sounds like he truly cares for you," Anakin offered.

  "Cares?" Tahiri weighed the word thoughtfully. "In his own way, I know

  he does. But he's never cared enough to give me the one thing in my life

  that I wanted. He has never told me the story of how he found me. And if he

  truly cared, he would give me my history," Tahiri ended sadly.

  "Are you sure he knows?" Anakin asked.

  "I've sensed all my life that he knows more than he's said," Tahiri

  replied.

  Sliven barked once, and the banthas halted at the top of a large sand

  dune. Anakin looked around them. There was nothing in sight-no structures,

  no other Raiders.

  "Can you feel them?" Tahiri whispered to her friend.

  "Who?" Anakin whispered back.

  "The tribe-they're all here," she replied. And, as if on cue, some

  twenty Raiders topped the sand dune to the left of
the group. Silently they

  walked toward the Jedi candidates. Tahiri commanded Bangor down, and the

  bantha knelt so that she and Anakin could drop to the ground. Tahiri stood

  erect, her blonde hair blown back from her face by the licks of a hot

  evening breeze. The suns were beginning to set, casting a pale pink shadow

  along the dunes. Anakin watched his friend as she faced her tribe. There

  was confusion in her large green eyes, but there was also a resolve he

  hadn't seen there before.

  The Raiders who had traveled with them moved to join the rest of their

  tribe. All except Sliven. He stood one meter to the right of Tahiri. A

  female Raider's voice rose from the group and spoke.

  "Her name is Vexa," Tahiri. said, not trying to hide her dislike. "She

  says welcome home."

  The Raider stepped forward. She, too, was covered from head to toe;

  only her voice indicated that she was a woman.

  "She says that they did not expect me to return. They did not expect

  me to fulfill the promise."

  "What promise?" Anakin asked under his breath. He sensed that Tahiri

  was uncertain, but his friend said nothing. The Raider continued in her

  strange, rough dialect. Tionne stepped forward. Seeing Anakin's confusion,

  she began to translate.

  "Sliven said you would come, that you would fulfill the promise he

  made many years ago. I myself am sorry to see you, for two reasons. First,

  I do not think you will survive, and the tribe will gain nothing by your