Good news

The slow-moving transport had been in hyperspace for a week. Despite the hyperdrive, the journey from one of the central worlds to the outskirts of the galaxy was not a short one-three days along the main hyperspace route and another three days along the secondary route leading to Mandalore.

During the week, the only living person aboard had time to suffer from boredom, draw both of his swords, and even meditate on merging with his power.

Skywalker's sword is a separate issue - the one he created, with access to valuable technology, was no match for the old one - the new sword was slimmer, with a long, graceful hilt of titanium. Anakin's long work with hyperdrive metals and innate strength abilities took his mastery of metal manipulation to a new level. Inside the titanium body, covered with a thin layer of freak on top, hid the thinnest web of neuranium, which was woven into the metal, and was an excellent shield, protecting the sword components both from radiation and from detection by various sensors, and sensitive to the force - to feel the crystal through such a network was resolutely impossible. Inside, there was a vacuum between the sword components, and the heat-generating components were cooled by the heat output through heat-absorbing tubes that led to the cap on the end of the sword.

You may ask, what was it about the sword that radiated heat, since others didn't have that? There's a reason it was Skywalker's sword and not anyone else's. Accustomed to increasing complexity and functionality, Skywalker added a whole complex of electronic components to his sword. Sensors that registered the sword's position in space and recorded all movements on memory cards, so that the sword remembered all movements, which could later be viewed on a datapad. A small computer was added, the functionality of which was to record the location of the sword itself, as well as recording the occurring conversations - the sword could well be a recording device - when you say some key phrases began recording from the microphones. The crowning achievement of the swords was the integration of two expensive bugs, which could conduct video and audio recording, and can be easily removed for use from the hilt. Such a sword could be an aid not only in combat, but also in intrigue, of which there was far more than bloodshed in the galaxy.

As the ship flew through hyperspace, Anakin managed to get around his purchase. On the whole, he liked the ship, despite the fact that it was cheap and simple - Skywalker didn't like expensive things - they attract too much attention, and the G9 was the simplest and cheapest. Even pirates wouldn't attack one of these - there was hardly anything of value to be found on board the G9. All in all, an almost perfect transport from Skywalker's point of view.

Last on the list was the lightsaber lesson. Anakin had set up a firing range in the cargo bay and was waving his lightsaber deftly. It was pretty useless, though - just getting used to swinging such an exotic weapon, nothing more. He had his phasers with him, too, so he also had a pair of Westars, which Anakin always carried with him - without them and the lightstaff it would be better not to leave the ship at all - this former Tatooine and smuggler knew absolutely for sure. They'd cut him down or shoot him, and that would be it, the end.

The only thing that dispelled Anakin's boredom on the second leg of the journey were the books in the memory of the secretary droid and the datapad. Reading them, he passed another couple of days and finally the ship came out of hyperspace. There was a planet in front of Anakin - the droid brought the ship, God willing, a thousand kilometers from the surface, that is, practically in orbit. Anakin fell against the windshield, peering at a planet he'd never been to before. Mandalore was strikingly similar to Earth from space.

With a masculine movement of his hand, Skywalker put on his headset and heard that he was already being summoned:

- G9 serial number 65435249, come in.

- G9, do you read me?

- State your purpose of arrival," the girl operator began to ask. Anakin distracted himself from looking at Mandalore and gave out the required information:

- Excursion. Private, ship owned, no cargo, one man.

- Acknowledged. Entry cleared. May I escort you to the spaceport? - asked a pleasantly surprised female voice.

- No need, I would like to visit the city of Enzeri.

- Acknowledged. Transmitting coordinates to your droid," the voice said and disconnected. Erdva turned the sensors to the side and changed color and beeped:

- The coordinates have arrived. Are we flying?

- Let's fly, Erdva. Though wait, let me..." Anakin sat down in the first pilot's chair and grasped the controls.

- Give me the direction from the current course.

- One hundred and twenty-four," the droid beeped. Anakin made a turn without reducing the thrust of the main engines and flew, keeping the correct course. Orbit was much easier to fly than in the atmosphere - his G9 was not aerodynamic.

After a few minutes on the sublight engines, Skywalker took the ship to the right spot and began its descent.

As the planet's surface approached, he turned to Erdwah:

- My friend, put a hundred kilometers strictly north of Enzeri.

- A hundred kilometers?

- Exactly. Come on, don't be shy..." Anakin encouraged him. Erdva reached into his holonet for the Mandalore maps. After a minute, he found what he needed and, having plotted a course, he took over the controls. Anakin relinquished control to the droid and the ship headed north at a brisk pace - the altitude was somewhere in the region of a dozen kilometers. Below them floated a relatively small town and a couple of small rivers. The journey in the atmosphere took twenty minutes, but still the astrodroid took the ship to the right point.

- Well, why did the Vongs bomb here..." Skywalker chuckled as he saw the pristine forest beneath the belly of the ship. The trees of Mandalore were completely unfamiliar to Skywalker, but still, Anakin was not wary of them. The problem arose of where to land. Anakin took control and, with a strong word and his own skill, found a small creek, just far enough between the trees to land.

The transport flopped on its belly just in the middle of the stream, but Skywalker didn't pay much attention to it - the ship was prepared for such operation.

- Now let's get out, Erdva. Will you come with me? - Anakin asked.

- I don't like the forest," Erdva squeaked, "I'd rather stay here.

- As you wish, my iron friend," Skywalker shrugged. It took him another five minutes to strap on his belt with his blaster and sword and open the hatch.

He hadn't chosen a good place to land, but there was no other. At least there would have been a clearing...

Skywalker stepped onto the planet's surface and breathed in the heavy, thick forest air.

He did not intend to walk long through the forest, but he stepped back a few dozen meters for prevention, and sat down on a large protruding tree root and began to think. Somewhere here must be, presumably, beskar, a particularly valuable ore. True, it's not easy to get, but the Mandalorians themselves haven't discovered the deposits just because they were discovered after the Yuuzhan-Vong bombardment. And if the deposits were discovered after the bombardment, then... Then there is something above them besides the ground that prevented exploration by traditional means.

Anakin, sitting on the root of a tree, decided to rely on the force and put his hands to the ground...

A stream of power passed through his hands, but did not go further than two or three meters, at which point Anakin felt nothing, much less a beskar.

He got to his feet and moved a few meters to the side, repeating the procedure - same result, no change. Skywalker sat on the ground, cranking his sensitivity to maximum. He had to be lucky, there was no way around it!

* * *

Naboo

* * *

Through the long corridors of the royal palace, a servant girl hurried along, carrying a new set of royal clothes in a large, thick bag. As they passed her, some guards greeted her, or simply nodded in greeting. The woman responded in kind - she'd gotten to know most of the palace's servants well over time, even though there were several hundred of them, including the queen's servants.

She got through the doors to the queen's chamber without a hitch and went inside. And inside...

- Shmi? - the queen turned around. Her right cheek was already wearing ceremonial makeup, as were some other parts of her face. Shmi put the bag on the bed and turned to the queen:

- You're a good sleeper, Padme," Shmi glanced at the queen disapprovingly. She just smiled and turned back to the mirror. The makeup girl immediately began to finish her work.

- What's the matter with you? - Padme asked, keeping her eyes closed.

- No, nothing," said Skywalker, sighing. But Padme couldn't keep up:

- "I can tell something's wrong. Don't keep me in suspense.

- I haven't heard from Ani in a long time," the woman said sadly.

- Ah, you're worried..." she understood Padme, "unfortunately, we don't know anything yet. I'd be wondering where he's gone too.

Shmi was about to say another piece of news, but not before the queen interrupted her:

- Come on, he's a smart and capable boy, he won't go away. I'm sure he'll come back.

- Yes," Skywalker nodded, "I will wait for him.

Padme didn't answer. Shmi hesitated a little longer before she continued:

- And one more thing...

- Yes?" The queen turned to Shmi and peered intently into her face.

- Ed... well, he wants to get married.

- To whom? - Padme wondered before she realized.

- Me.

- Well, that's news... and you didn't say anything? - Amidala even rose from her chair.

- He just told me last night," Shmi excused herself.

- So... and...

Shmi answered reluctantly:

- I haven't said anything yet, but I promised to think about it...

- That's right," smiled Amidala, "she doesn't think anything of herself...

- Oh, come on, Padme, I've been dating Ed for a year now, what am I supposed to do, play games with him? He knows me well...

- And you'll answer him..." the queen coaxed.

- Yes, of course," Skywalker smiled, "I'm not going to let my luck slip away.

- That's right," Padme nodded. - When's the wedding? Oh, yes, I'm sorry, I forgot, when's the bridal shower, will you invite me?

- 'Of course,' said Shmi indignantly. - If you come.

- Of course I'll be there. I wonder how Anny will feel about that when she gets back..." Padme wondered.

Shmi didn't say anything...

* * *

Mandalore

The week after A. Skywalker's arrival.

* * *

The teenager hid behind a tree. It was unfamiliarly quiet, only the sound of Skywalker's breathing breaking the silence. Even the wind seemed to have died down, to wait out the moment and play in the trees again. He was not able to hide - Anakin felt the predator's gaze on him, and pushing off the ground, helping himself with his strength, in an unthinkable jump three his height away from the throw.

- Well, damn it, bear-pig, I warned you..." Skywalker growled, standing firmly on the ground. He reached for his sword and activated his weapon. The raptor, called a bear-pig, sensed the danger, but was not about to cancel the dinner menu he had already mentally approved and lunged at Skywalker once more. Anakin wanted to move away, but he sensed that the bear cub would easily reach him with its paws, and there was no way to dodge it. The sword ripped through the air, illuminating the small and sparse forest. The beast moved a few meters away and began to prepare to leap again. Anakin, who had already prepared a plan of attack, stood and as soon as the large, fur-covered carcass lunged at him, pirouetted upward, simultaneously activating his blade to slash across the beast's back with a sword-slash-half-circle. The bear cub was powerless against the lightsaber and fell to the ground. Skywalker, who had landed, switched off his sword and immediately pulled out his blaster and unloaded half a clip into the beast's belly. Though Anakin didn't want to waste his energy on the hunter's craft, nature forced it - the sword, after shortening and thinning the blade with appropriate twists, turned into a thirty-centimeter-long light machete.

The beast looked like a bear, except for the head, which had two fangs and a real boar's heel. It was like an overgrown boar with fur. Skywalker immediately skinned the bear pig, dug a hole in the ground with his telekinesis, and buried the tripe, leaving only the meat and skin for himself. Skywalker's gut told him that the beast was edible. When he returned to his ship after such an expedition, he dumped the meat into the small reservoir that had formed after he had blocked the stream with his ship. A large puddle, knee-deep, with strikingly clear water. Skywalker ran into the ship and asked Erdw to find information on the bear cub. A few seconds later, the droid had already found the right information on the planetary network.

It turns out that it is a native Mandalorian predator, occupying a place similar to a bear or boar - omnivorous, aggressive, the pelt serves for clothing, and the meat is consumed as food.

- Erdva, see what you can make from it?

- Now... recipes..." the droid was silent, but then it displayed information on the holomonitors with recipes - soups, stews, pies, and other delights. True, Skywalker had no kitchen - the ship was simple and cheap, and all the rations that were available were half-finished "just heat it up.

- No, that's not the way it's going to work. Keep looking, kebab's over there...

The droid did not know the word "kebab," but Anakin, realizing that the meat was quite edible, decided to improvise himself.

- All right, I'm off to the woods.

- We have enough food, don't we?

- This ration would drive you crazy. I'm going to the woods," Skywalker said, and took his IQA-11 rifle with him before he left the ship. Ask me where the rifle came from. It's an optional question - guns aren't forbidden on Mandalore, and there's an abundance of choices for all tastes and colors on Alderaan.

Anakin stepped out, though darkness was already taking its toll - only the light from the starship's passenger hatch illuminated the area. However, Skywalker didn't intend to wander through the forest for long - he found a clearing with fragrant mint-scented grass growing in it. That's what the young Forsuzer went out to get. As he used his power vision, the darkness was no obstacle for him, and moreover, he repeatedly noticed birds flying by and small rodents hopping in the tree crowns. As he approached the clearing, Skywalker ducked and peeked out from behind a tree. Force by force, and the thermal imaging scope was still on - Anakin could clearly see a large cluster of birds near the clearing. Deciding to shoot one, he aimed his rifle and fired. To his disappointment, he missed - shooting with such a weapon requires serious training, which, of course, Anakin didn't have.

- Well, fuck it," Skywalker shrugged, and found the grass he needed.

"At home," that is, in the camp, Erdva was waiting for him, who, as it turned out, was worried about his master.

- Don't worry, iron man, I'm not going anywhere without you," Skywalker put down his weapons and while the droid checked the grass for edibility, sat down to construct the necessary equipment. If any Jedi who worshipped the force knew that the force could be used to make a good barbecue and skewers, they would be in a state of permanent shock. But of course none of the Jedi knew, so, in total obscurity, a thick-walled brazier and a dozen skewers were constructed from scrap metal that came along. Erdva had already returned to Skywalker:

- Inedible, used as a condiment in canning vegetables.

- Great," Anakin sharpened one skewer by force, and sliced through the meat one by one. There were ten kilograms of meat from the carcass, so ten skewers wasn't enough - I had to work a little harder to find more metal and expand the brazier. The droid, already used to the sight of Anakin's abilities, only squeaked and moved aside.

- Erdva, do you think we came here for a reason? What about Mandalore?

- I don't know, it's your idea, you decide," the droid replied.

- That's right ... but I can't find a bezkar anywhere. I'm so trained, I can feel our ship from a couple of hundred meters away, but there's still no metal...

- There must be some reason. Where have you been looking?

- Everywhere. I dug through the whole forest, and a little bit of it to the south, east and west. And nothing, not a damn thing. They can't be small, can they?

- No," the droid said. The meat, already decayed and exsanguinated, took up residence on the brazier.

- Didn't you look here?

- Where here? - Skywalker asked. During his search for ore, the range of detection by force had increased manifold, and he was unable to find the metal.

- Beneath us.

Erdva was silent, and Skywalker's face showed the work of his mind.

- Well, turn the meat over every minute," Anakin said. The fire was already mostly out, and the heat from the coals made the still raw meat ooze with the sizzling juices.

Anakin got to his feet and ran to the ship, ran inside, and then the ship soared into the air - the repulsors were ready to go every second.

After flying a few dozen meters from his home base, Skywalker landed the ship lower down the stream and exited, jumping right out of the hatch without waiting for the boom that served as a ladder to drop.

Skywalker ran toward Erdwah and the kebabs, avoiding the water, which, for lack of a dam, immediately rushed down in a torrent.

The teenager sat down on the ground and put his hand to the ground... the smell of meat already starting to roast was throwing him off-balance, but Skywalker persisted and bravely endured... after a minute of such torture he opened his eyes:

- You know... there really is something there... deep down. You can barely feel it.

- See, I told you so! - The droid beeped happily.

- Yes, you're right as usual, my iron friend," Skywalker returned to his meditation and after about ten minutes he came back to reality:

- Right! Metal. Lots of it. Down there! - He jumped up cheerfully to his feet, and except that he kissed Erdwah. The droid also showed his joy.

- Today is my day!" rejoiced Skywalker.

- You've worked hard," Erdva praised him.

- That's right," Anakin smiled and returned to the ground. This time he was trying to get some of the metal through the ground. It was difficult - there was a layer of stone between the surface and the ore, but still, Anakin managed to get exactly the metal - from a hundred meters deep, shiny fine sand rose to the surface, which was immediately turned into a small ball.

- Here," the teenager showed his booty to Erdva, "is the most valuable thing in this earth! Now let's think how we can get money for it.

- Sell it? - The droid suggested.

- Obviously. But to sell something unnecessary, you have to buy something unnecessary, and that doesn't make sense," Anakin turned the kebab over, sat with it some more, and returned to the ship.