Chapter 236: Into the Star
Watto was a little worried these unwanted visitors might smash his shop or do something worse.
"I still wanted to invite them over as guests," Jabba said, reluctance in his voice. "My palace is empty and needs some visitors."
"Then you'd better hurry, before they leave this planet," Watto said.
"No one can refuse my invitation." Jabba waved his stubby hand. "Let's go. Let's retrieve our guests quickly."
The ability to turn stone into gold, if he could grasp that power and use his brilliant mind to use it properly, wouldn't he make a fortune?
Jabba's disgusting face broke into a brilliant smile. He definitely had to invite those strangers to his palace as guests.
...
Outside the town, in the open desert, Jabba's subordinates soon found Raven's group, who were strolling and talking.
Riding hoverbikes, they quickly surrounded the party.
"Gentlemen, our boss wants to invite you as guests," a mercenary stepped forward, blaster in hand, his tone unpleasant. "Please come with us, don't make this difficult for us."
"Inviting guests with guns?" Raven's expression turned mocking. "Your master seems quite enthusiastic."
"Say, if we say no, what do you plan to do?"
"Haah, as I said, please don't make this difficult for us," the mercenary said, his tone threatening. "In this star system, no one dares to provoke Jabba. The last guy who did was thrown into a star."
The mercenaries on their hoverbikes all held their weapons, expressions unfriendly.
Valdor frowned, about to deal with these ignorant fools. But Raven stopped him by raising his wing.
"Cmon, Big cob, since they're so sincere~ in their invitation, why not go and pay a visit?"
Valdor glanced at the Emperor. The Emperor looked helpless but nodded. Better to let Raven have his way and waste a little time than deal with him being unhappy and having to hunt down new flavors of fries to appease him.
The One and Primus had no objections. They were both immortal, eternal beings. Time held no meaning for them. Coming with Raven was simply to observe a different universe. This kind of small-fry courting-death drama was merely a passing entertainment for their journey.
"Be more polite in front of Jabba. It'll save you trouble," the mercenary leader said impatiently.
If not for Jabba's orders, he'd have resorted to violence already. Did they really think having some status made them special? Two rifle butts would make anyone cry, no matter how high their rank.
Raven's group boarded the mercenaries' hovercar and was taken to Jabba's palace.
The group happened to pass by Jedi Master Qui-Gon's ship.
Qui-Gon, experienced as he was, immediately recognized those mercenaries as trouble. Something about this felt wrong. The Force whispered unease through him.
"Something happened to them?" He frowned in confusion. "Even I could easily defeat those mercenaries. How could those thugs capture them?"
He approached an alien native helping move supplies nearby.
"Whose subordinates are those mercenaries?"
The alien looked and trembled with fear. Only after the mercenaries had gone far into the distance did he dare whisper to Qui-Gon.
"Those mercenaries work for Jabba the Hutt. That slug is the biggest crime boss in this star system. He's cruel and ruthless. I heard some people who provoked him were thrown into a star and burned alive to ash. Some suffered even worse, chained and collared like animals in his palace for him to play with and humiliate."
Qui-Gon's expression darkened. He'd heard of Jabba before, the Hutt's reputation stretched far across the Outer Rim. "We must help them." He walked up to Padmé Amidala and addressed the young queen.
"Calm down, Master Qui-Gon. You might be misunderstanding things here," Padmé said, frowning.
She'd been watching the strangers since they arrived on Tatooine. "Those people are powerful; even you're no match for them, Master Jedi. How could a few mercenaries capture them?"
"They must have used backhanded means; maybe they are blackmailing with something," Qui-Gon said, worry creasing his features. "They took that child with them. No matter what, we cannot abandon him."
Padmé studied the Jedi Master's face. His conviction was absolute; she knew that look. She couldn't argue with it. "Alright, but we need to be quick. The Trade Federation will be chasing us soon."
After the final inspection concluded, Qui-Gon had everyone return to the ship, then piloted it to chase after the mercenaries.
Jabba lived in a faded but still luxurious palace in the desert.
Upon reaching their destination, Raven and the others were ushered out. The mercenaries fanned out, blocking all possible escape routes. They were clearly well-practiced, having done this many times before.
"Ahh, my distinguished guests, welcome to my palace."
Jabba appeared on the palace balcony with several scantily-dressed servants standing beside him, humbly attending to him.
"You're the one who wanted to see us?" Raven asked. "Now that you've seen us, are you satisfied? Can we leave?"
Jabba's repulsive face broke into a smile. "Of course not. You are my honored guests. How can you just leave casually? Do you have no respect for me, your host?"
Raven nodded. "Indeed, no. And you're not worthy of respect from any of us."
Jabba froze.
The mercenaries surrounding Raven's group also froze.
"..."
Wasn't that a bit too arrogant?
Did this bird not know whose territory it was on?
Even the local military governor had to salute Jabba respectfully.
The mercenaries showed expressions of anticipation. They could already envision this bird being plucked, marinated, and put on the grill by a furious Jabba.
"Do you think you're very humorous, you silly bird?" Jabba straightened his worm-like body, eyes wide, and roared in fury.
"Do you think you're very imposing, you little fat, greasy worm?"
Raven's mouth was like poison; one sentence could make someone lose their composure.
"Teach them a harsh lesson!" Jabba trembled with rage. "I want them to know that the most foolish thing in this universe is to provoke Jabba!"
"Big Corn Cob, you—"
Raven was about to have Valdor make his move when he heard an engine roar behind him.
A spaceship appeared above Jabba's palace. The thrusters' air churned, making everyone's clothes flap wildly.
"Release them!"
Qui-Gon and his apprentice, Obi-Wan, leaped down from the ship, lightsabers ignited, assuming combat stances. The starship's cannons swiveled to aim at Jabba's palace.
The mercenaries turned their guns, pointing them at the Jedi Knights and the ship. Both sides faced off, the atmosphere tense and explosive.
"Big Corn Cob, hurry up," Raven said, clenching his wings in frustration. 'Why did I even come here' "Finish this quickly."
Valdor nodded and extended his hand toward Jabba.
Jabba felt the surrounding environment distort. Before he could react, he appeared directly in front of Valdor.
The mercenaries' eyes widened. They all aimed their guns at Valdor, threatening him to release their boss.
The next second, their weapons went limp, like men over a certain age, unable to get the lightsaber straight.
Raven spread his wings, walking through the air as if on solid ground. He approached Jabba with a mocking smile.
"Looks like you can't teach us a lesson. You're about to be taught one by us instead."
"You..." Jabba stuttered, terrified.
"I heard you like throwing people into stars. How about we throw you in, too?" Raven casually opened a spatial portal leading directly to a star.
Scorching heat emanated from the gateway. Jabba saw the boiling magma and swirling plasma currents on the star's surface and turned deathly pale.
If thrown in, he'd be instantly incinerated.
"No!" Jabba screamed.
"You dare to act arrogant in front of me? ME!! Off you go!" Raven wouldn't waste time with Jabba. He had Valdor throw Jabba and his minions directly into the star.
The criminals passed through the spatial portal and fell toward the star's surface. As soon as they entered the corona, the terrifying heat burned them to the point where even ashes didn't remain.
This arrogant crime syndicate was casually wiped out.
Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan stood frozen, watching Jabba disappear into the star. The Jedi Master felt the Force ripple with the sudden deaths, a disturbance, then nothing. His eyes widened with shock; he couldn't hide.
To open a spatial portal to a star so casually. Was Force Portal even a thing? Who exactly are these people?
Now, the legendary master of the Force looked like a children's tale compared to this display of raw power.
"Ahh, Master Qui-Gon, I didn't realize you were so kind," Raven said, looking at Qui-Gon with some appreciation in his tone. "Thank you for coming to rescue us."
He hadn't expected this Jedi Master to put aside their previous conflict and come help them. 'Well, it is Qui-Gon we are talking about, or maybe I'm just biased.'
But thinking about it, it made sense. The Jedi were inherently a group that wielded the Force with compassion. No matter how much they were criticized, it couldn't erase the fact that they'd truly set aside personal grudges to promote peace.
"No need to thank us," Qui-Gon said quietly, his composure returning. He deactivated his lightsaber, the blade hissing as it retracted. "Even without us, those thugs couldn't have harmed you."
From the brief display, it was clear Raven's group had been playing with Jabba all along. If they didn't want to be captured, they could have easily eliminated Jabba's subordinates from the start.
[End of Chapter]