Dyad - A Star Wars Story

Chapter 3 - The Gungan

     At the first sign of light, Cora ran. She sprinted through weeds and brush, dove through tree branches, all the while praying the Neimodians hadn't noticed her desperate leap out of the ship.
There was no chance she could ever outrun the droid transports, not with her sore legs and the sheer unpredictability of her surroundings. But she had to find Obi-Wan. If she found Obi-Wan, he would find Qui-Gon, they would warn the Queen, and go back to Coruscant where everything was routine and safe. She took in a sharp inhale and dove through the brush, only to- ooh that was close- almost hit a large tree. She kept running, darting around bushes, leaping over rocks until-
    She ran headfirst into Obi-Wan Kenobi, knocking them both to the ground. They both sat up, panting for air.
   "I'm sorry Mas-" she began, only to be grabbed by the wrist and flung along with the Jedi Padawan.
    "No time," he panted. "Run!" He let go of her arm, now being upright and moving on her own.
   "Do you," Cora began. "Do you even know where Master Jinn is?"
   Obi-Wan turned to her and smiled. "Nope!"
   They soon reached a clearing, and Obi-Wan skidded to a halt. He held out his arm to stop his companion as well. He signaled for her to be quiet. He slowly turned his head, ear perked up. Cora could hear a high-pitched voice. It spoke as if... as if it were speaking to a youngling, although one much younger than her.
   While Cora didn't exactly want to go toward the voice, she didn't have much of a choice when Obi-Wan started running in its direction. She hesitated, but when she heard the whizz of a speeder, her decision was made. She was not going to just stand there and wait to be shot , and she was most definitely not going to wander around by herself.
    She then understood why he had done it, though, because the next clearing she followed him into was already occupied. Master Qui-Gon and a Naboo local stood together, Obi-Wan already joining them. Qui-Gon looked up to see Cora struggling through the brush, with a droid closely on her tail. He disarmed it with ease, and the small girl ran to his side. She nodded her head in gratitude, before turning to look down at her newly stinging arm. It was a small scratch, although the skin had broken. Between the small dribble of blood, and the fact that she had no idea which plant had done the deed, she opted to let it be. Ignoring her barely-existent pain, she turned to listen to whatever the group was talking about. It was too late though, because Qui-Gon, followed by Obi-Wan and the strange local immediately began running off again. How the kriff were they not exhausted by now? Cora thought, panting and struggling to keep up. Her boots squelched through long standing mud, only slowing her down further. Luckily for her, the local wasn't a very good runner either.
   "What are you?" she asked him between desperate breaths.
   "Meesa Jar Jar Binks!" the Gungan smiled, showcasing his grimy teeth. Cora tried not to grimace, but his breath smelled like a dead womprat.
   "Where are you from, Jar Jar Binks?" she paused. "Is it safe?"
   The Gungan looked as if he just had a revelation. "Exqueeze me!" he called ahead. Qui-Gon and his apprentice stopped in their tracks. They turned to each other with a look, then trekked back to where Cora and Jar Jar were standing. Cora had her hands on her hips, taking deep breaths; while Jar Jar looked absent minded and oblivious. "Exqueeze me," he began again, despite the fact that he was holding the undivided attention of all three Jedi. "But the mostest safest place would be Gunga City! It's a hidden city! Tis where I grew up!" he smiled.
   "A city?" Qui-Gon inquired. Jar Jar nodded. "Can you take us there?" he asked.
    "Ehhhh," Jar Jar sighed. "On second thought... No. Not really. No."
    "No?" Qui-Gon asked, looking to Cora as if the Gungan were her responsibility. Cora concluded that at this point, he probably was.
     "Tis embarrassing," Jar Jar whined. "My afraid my've been banished! The bosses would do terrible tings to me! Te" -he gargled his lips and spit flew everywhere- "Terrible things to me if meesa goin back der!"
    The ground shook, and a distant crash made Cora shudder. Looking to the little girl, and then back to the adult male with the mind of a little girl, Qui-Gon had an idea.
    "You hear that?" he asked the Gungan.
     "Yes?" Jar Jar replied, mildly confused. Although he seemed to always be confused.
     "That is the sound of a thousand terrible things heading this way," he threatened.
      Obi-Wan took it one step further. "If they find us, they will crush us, grind us into tiny pieces and blast us into oblivion!" he added, miming with his hands and getting up close to Jar Jar's face. The Gungan jumped back in fear. Cora could only stifle her laughter.
     Jar Jar began to rethink his former stance. "Uh. Yousa point is... well seen. This-a way!" he called, beginning to walk east before tripping over his own feet, landing facefirst in the mud. His dilemma only got worse when he tried to get up, still slipping, and landed on his butt. He eventually resorted to crawling out of the mud like a soldier, before finally standing up. His face was caked in dirt, and he was soaked to the bone. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan barely got out of the way before he began shaking himself off like an animal. Cora was left spattered with dirt. Once the Gungan was satisfied, he started running in his desired direction yet again. "Hurry!" he called.
   The Jedi, of course, followed him. He did happen to be their only current hope of survival.
   They were led onto a small beach, devoid of any sand. It was mostly filled with various ferns and grasses, and certainly not large enough for a hidden city. Chirping and hooting were the only sounds that filled the misty air.
  "How much further?" Qui-Gon inquired, stopping in his tracks.
   Jar-Jar flipped around, and Cora was surprised when he didn't fall over yet again. "Weesa goin underwater, okidae? An my warnin you, Gungans no liken outsiders so... don't spect a warm welcome."
Aw great, Cora thought.
  Obi-Wan was the one to speak up. "Oh don't worry," he quipped. "This hasn't been our day for warm welcomes."
  A smile fought its way onto Cora's lips, threatening to break into a laugh when Jar-Jar let out some sort of wild cry. He jumped, multiple feet in the air, before diving into the suddenly deep water. That was certainly something to keep note of.
  Qui-Gon looked to his padawan, who was already reaching into his utility belt for his breather. They gave each other a look, then began wading into the water.
Welp.