The Brain Spiders Read online

  Star Wars

  Galaxy Of Fear 7

  The Brain Spiders

  by John Whitman

  PROLOGUE

  In the middle of a wide chamber sat a high table. A tray next to it was covered with sharp metal instruments. On the table, a man struggled desperately, but his arms and legs were held down with unbreakable straps. Several figures glided out of the shadows. One of them wore a long brown robe that hid his face. "Is everything ready?" he asked. Another nodded. "We can begin." The first figure pulled back the sleeves of his long brown robe and from the tray picked up a wicked-looking blade. "Please," said the man on the table. "I didn't do any- thing. Let me go!" The figure in the brown robe did not respond. "I'm begging you," the man pleaded again. "I didn't do anything. Please don't hurt me! " The dark figure smiled. "Hurt you? You don't under- stand. I am not going to hurt you. I am going to show you the mysteries of the universe." He held up the sharp blade, which had many jagged sawlike teeth, and nodded to his companion. "All right, let's remove his brain."

  "Welcome to Koda Spaceport. Welcome zzzzz! to Koda Spzzzzzz! port..." The hospitality droid was programmed for one simple task to welcome visitors to Koda Space Station. But one of those visitors had fired a blaster shot through the droid's main computer, frying its circuits. The tall, humanoid droid shuf8ed back and forth in the huge gateway, repeating his welcome over and over again. Tash and Zak Arranda, along with their uncle Hoole, stood at the entrance to the spaceport. "I can't believe no one's even bothered to fix him," Zak said sympathetically. Tash looked past the droid into the passageway beyond. Blaster burns and scrawled graffiti covered the walls. Trash littered the Aoor. She couldn't tell exactly what kind of trash it was, but from the smell, she guessed it was old food, spilled drinks, and other things she didn't want to think about. "Looks like no one's bothered to fix a lot of things around here." Hoole frowned. The lines on his long, gray face deep- ened. "I did not suspect Koda would be in such a state of disrepair. Still, it is a busy port, and a good place to hide. Let's proceed." The tall Shi'ido led them past the shuAiing droid and into the spaceport.

  Koda was a tiny, insignificant spaceport in a small, back- water corner of the galaxy. The nearby planets were sparsely inhabited by a few poor settlements. The only peo- ple who came to Koda were local farmhands looking for excitement and bored smugglers looking for trouble. "Stay close to me," Hoole ordered his niece and nephew. Zak glanced back down the hall at the damaged droid. He sighed. "I miss Deevee." Tash nodded. "I do, too. But he's happier now." DV-9 had been their uncle's research droid. He had also been Tash and Zak's caretaker and friend. The droid had been heavily damaged during some recent adventures. They had been able to repair him, but Deevee told them, "I be- lieve I've had all the excitement my servos can take."

  Hoole had agreed to free the droid from service. It wasn't fair to keep dragging him around the galaxy espe- cially since they were still wanted by the Empire. With Tash and Zak's help, Hoole had been able to destroy a secret scientific experiment run by the Empire. Unfortunately, their victory had also made them a terrible enemy: Darth Vader. Zak, Tash, and Hoole had managed to escape his clutches, but now they were on the run, wanted in every star system in the galaxy. All this was too much for the damaged droid. Deevee had retired to the Galactic Research Facility on the planet Koaan. "I wish I was with Deevee now," Zak muttered as they waded through the trash-covered hallway. "Oh, don't be such a baby," Tash said. "A little garbage won't kill you." Tash saw her younger brother scowl at her. She shrugged. Lately, he'd seemed awfully immature to her. After all, she was thirteen heading toward fourteen and he was only twelve, not even a true teenager yet. "Anyway, we've been through worse," Tash went on confidently. "This place is nothing we can't handle. Right, Uncle Hoole?" "Wrong." Hoole had just stopped at the entrance to the spaceport's cantina. It was made of a hard, see-through material called transparisteel. On the far side of the entryway, they could hear screams, shouts, and laughter mixed with the sounds of glasses shattering and furniture smashing. Something Tash couldn't tell if it was a very large person or a very large couch banged into the transparisteel door like it had been thrown by a giant. Zak started to speak. "It's like " " the end of the world," Tash interrupted. "Yeah," he agreed. "No, look," she said, pointing at the sign on the door. "This place is called 'The End of the World.' " "Aptly named," Hoole said. "This is the worst-run es- tablishment I've ever seen. Even more dangerous than a cantina I once visited on Tatooine. I think you two should return to the ship." "Why?" Tash objected. Hoole turned his steady gaze on his niece. "Tash, I need to make sure there is no Imperial activity at this spaceport. I also need to decide what our next move will be. A cantina like this is the best place to acquire information. However, it is not the best place for children." "Children!" Tash blurted out. "Uncle Hoole, we're not kids and we've been through worse than this." Hoole paused. It was true. Tash and Zak had been through some frightening adventures. But all that was be- hind them now. There was no need to take unnecessary risks. "Please return to the ship. I will meet you there

  shortly," he said. Then he turned and walked into the End of the World. "Okay by me," Zak said. "I'm about ready for things to get back to normal, anyway." He motioned to Tash. "What do you say we go back to the ship and play a few holo- games. I might even let you win at Starbattle!" Tash frowned. "Hologames are for kids," she grumbled, and quickly followed Hoole into the noisy gloom of the cantina. Tash blinked as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. She hadn't meant to snap at Zak like that he was her best friend. But lately she'd started to feel, well, older than her brother. After all, she would be fourteen in a few weeks. Also, she had recently become aware of her sensitivity to the Force, the mysterious power used by the ancient Jedi Knights. Squinting, Tash searched for Hoole, but the cantina was so dark that she could barely see where she was going. Besides, Hoole was a Shi'ido, and the Shi'ido were shape- changers. The moment he stepped into the dark bar, Hoole could have transformed into any shape in the galaxy. The only real light leaked out of a row of tiny lamps over the squid-shaped head of the bartender. Tash saw many humans lined up at the bar, as we11 as a few alien species. There was a long-snouted Kubaz, a small group of pudgy Kitonaks, and a horn-headed Devaronian. But most of the customers seemed happier hiding in the shadows. A bulky figure sitting at a nearby table suddenly let out a deep sigh, and Tash found herself engulfed in a cloud of smelly t'bac smoke. "Hey!" she said without thinking. "You blew that smoke right in my face!" She threw an angry glance in the direction of the smoker, and found herself looking into the ugliest face she had ever seen. One of the smoker's eyes was wide and bloodshot, but the other was so Aat and squinty that it looked as if one side of his face had been crushed by a gravity well. His nose was wide and Aat, and it bent in two different direc- tions as it grew down from his forehead. His mouth was twisted into a permanent snarl. He had no neck just two huge, sloping shoulders and a pair of arms thicker than Tash's waist. "Yeah, I did," the smoker agreed with a growl. He blew another cloud of smoke that made Tash cough. "Stop it!" Slowly, the smoker stood up. He was almost as tall as a Wookiee. He leered down at Tash. "Who's going to make me, little girl?" "I *' Tash swallowed. She knew she should just back off, but she hated being called little girl. "I will," she said weakly. The bar fell silent. Everyone waited to see what the huge being would do. The smoker looked at Tash again, then threw back his head and let loose a roar of laughter. Tash felt her cheeks

  burn with embarrassment. When the creature was done laughing, he put one huge hand on her head. Then he bent down to look her in the eye. "Little girl, I would eat you for lunch if you were big enough to make a meal. You're lucky Drudo found me someone else to eat. Now run along before I decide to have an appetizer." He spun T
ash around so she was facing the opposite direction, then gave her a gentle shove that sent her stum- bling across the dark cantina toward the exit. A ripple of laughter followed her. When she regained her balance, Tash fumed. She didn't care how big that bully was he didn't have the right to embarrass her. She walked up to the bartender. "I want to see the owner." The squid-headed bartender blubbered something in a thick, liquid-sounding language. It sounded like laughter. Then he said in Basic, "He's in the back room. But you don't want to disturb him. He's not in a very good mood." "Yes, I do," Tash said stubbornly. The smoker had in- sulted her, but she decided to handle the situation like an adult. She would register a complaint with the management. She strode over to a door next to the bar and stepped through as it slid open. Tash found herself in a small, brightly lit room. A man in a white apron stood with his back to her, working over a

  table. /I' "Excuse me," she said. "It's not ready!" the man yelled, whirling around. As he did, Tash saw that the table was covered in blood. Then she looked at the man's hands. In one hand he held a blood-stained vibroblade. In the other he held a still-beating heart.

  The man stuck the throbbing heart in Tash's face and snapped, "Is this what you want?" Tash jumped back in surprise and terror, trying to shut the horrible sight from her eyes and the smell from her nose. "No!" she shrieked. The man blinked and looked at Tash again. "Wait a min- ute. You're not a Whiphid." "No, I'm not," Tash said, her own heart pounding faster as the one in the stranger's hand began to slow; "I I'm Tash." The man grunted. "Sorry. Thought you were one of those Whiphid brats. There's a family of 'em in the cantina. Been pounding the tables asking for their meal for the last half hour." He jabbed his blade at the pile of guts on the table. "Whiphids are born hunters. Only like fresh meat." Glancing at the table again, Tash realized that the blood and body parts belonged to a slaughtered nerf, not a sen- tient being. Not that that makes things much better, she thought, shuddering at the sight of the animal's remains. But at least she knew the manager wasn't some kind of mass murderer. The man plopped the heart on the table and wiped his hand on his smock. "Name's Drudo. I run the End of the World. Wha'd'ya want?" Tash took a deep breath. "I was in your cantina when a big man with a smashed face blew smoke at me, Then he threatened me. I want you to throw him out." Drudo laughed almost as loudly as the bully had. He stabbed the blade down into the table so that it stuck there, quivering. "Big guy, you said? Smashed face? Was he about this tall?" Drudo stood on his tiptoes and stretched his hand up as high as he could. '-'Yes, that's him," Tash replied. She felt more confident. This Drudo was treating her like an adult, and it looked like he was going to help her. "Can't help ya," Drudo said. "What?" Tash blurted. "Why not? You own this place, and I'm a customer. That man was rude to me!" "Listen, kid," Drudo drawled. "You're lucky all he hurt was your ego. You got any idea who he is?" Tash bristled at the word kid, and shook her head. Drudo went on. "Well, I'll tell you. That there's Karkas, the most wanted criminal in about a hundred light-years.

  He's got the death sentence in at least two dozen star sys- tems. Everyone and I mean everyone wants that. guy dead or behind bars. The Rebellion is after him, and so is the Empire. They say he's. even wanted by a crime gang called Black Sun. You know how many people he's mur- dered?" Again, Tash shook her head. "Exactly ninety-one," Drudo said, glaring at Tash. "You know how I know?" "How?" Tash asked. "Because every time Karkas kills someone, he carves the letter K right on their forehead." The cantina owner drew the symbol in the air just millimeters from Tash's face. "Ninety-one times. Kid, that monster would swallow you whole and then forget he'd ever seen you. You're lucky to have walked away with your life.*' "I agree," said Hoole. Tash jumped. She hadn't seen or heard Hoole enter the room. He could be so quiet, sometimes she thought he floated across the floor. Hoole put a hand on Tash's shoulder. "I believe I re- quested that you return to the ship for your own safety." "Yes, but " she started to say. "I apologize for any inconvenience," Hoole said to the cantina owner. Drudo picked up his knife and started hacking into the organs the Whiphids had ordered for lunch. "No problem. Not like she was keeping me from anything interesting." Keeping one hand firrnly on Tash's shoulder, Hoole es- corted her quickly through the cantina and back down the hallway. "Uncle Hoole, I could have taken care of myself," she insisted as they approached their ship. "I doubt it," the Shi'ido said sternly. "This is a most dangerous place." "If it's so dangerous, why did you bring us here?" The slightest of frowns crossed Hoole's face. "An error. I was hoping to find someone with the skills to help us evade the Empire, but this place is too far out of the main space lanes. No one here has the equipment we need. We'll have to go somewhere else for help. Somewhere I had hoped never to visit again." "Where?" Tash asked as they boarded the ship. Hoole barely glanced at her. "To the palace of Jabba the Hutt."

  An hour later the Shroud was traveling smoothly through hyperspace on its way to the planet of Tatooine. Zak and Tash had been there once before, when Hoole needed a favor from the gangster called Jabba the Hutt. But back then, Tash had been preoccupied with other troubles, and she hadn't paid much attention to the planet or its people. That 's because Uncle Hoole always seems to know where we 're going, she thought. He 's always leading us around

  ... like we were little kids. But I'll bet if I knew more about Tatooine, I could help him. Activating the computer in her cabin, Tash called up in- formation on the planet Tatooine. There wasn't much. It was a desert planet, a giant ball of dust spinning through space, with only a few small settlements and one busy spaceport called Mos Eisley. "Still, there's got to be something unique about the place. Otherwise, why would Jabba the Hutt make his home there?" Tash asked herself. She found a computer file that contained a detailed report on Tatooine. "Aha! I'll bet I can find something here Uncle Hoole doesn't know." But her hopes were dashed when she saw who had writ- ten the report. It was Hoole! He had studied the planet years before and written an eyewitness account of its inhab- itants. Tash knew that Hoole was an anthropologist and that it was his job to study different cultures. But there were so many mysteries surrounding her Shi'ido uncle that she'd nearly forgotten he had a job. "He really does study people," she reminded herself. She skimmed the report, but read more closely when she fouod mention of a group of people called B'omarr monks. They seemed to be religious students, seeking knowledge and trying to understand the mysteries of the universe. Tash wondered if their studies included the Force. Tash was fas- cinated by the ancient Jedi Knights and the Force that gave them their power. And even though she'd recently learned that the Force was with her, too, she had no one to teach her how to use it. Now that I'm getting older, she thought, I'll need a teacher. Maybe the B'omarr monks can help. Reading on, she smiled. Uncle Hoole had called his re- search work boring, but his report was filled with drama. On Tatooine, he had been chased by tribal savages called Sand People and had nearly been captured by Imperial stormtroopers. Wherever Uncle Hoole went, Tash thought, trouble seemed to follow. ALERT! ALERT! ALERT! Suddenly, the lights in her cabin went out, and the small red emergency light blinked as alarms blared in her ears. Tash leaped a full meter out of her seat. That was the collision alert! They were going to crash! Scrambling to her feet, Tash threw herself at the door. As it slid open, she stumbled out into the hallway to find... .. -. Zak, standing in the corridor, laughing hysterically. There were no alarms in the hallway. No emergency lights. No crash. Just Zak, giggling and holding two wires that were con- nected to a panel in the wall. He had cross-circuited the alarm system in her cabin. "Gotcha!" he said, tears of laughter rolling down his cheeks. Tash scowled. "Grow up!" she snapped angrily.

  Zak chuckled, but the look on his sister's face took the fun out of his prank. "Hey, it was just a joke." "Yeah, funny," she said coldly, "if you're in pre- school." She turned and stalked down the hallway toward the cockpit, leaving her brother standing there with his crossed wires. Tash trudged into the cockpit and slumped down in the copilot's seat. At first, Hoole ignored her as he busily punched command
s into the ship's console. Finally, with- out looking her way, the Shi'ido said, "There was a distur- bance back there. What was it?" Tash gave her head a world-weary shake. "Zak, trying to play an immature joke." She sighed. "Kids." Hoole glanced at her out of the corner of his dark eye. "Indeed." Tash waited. When her uncle said nothing more, she added, "Why is he such a child? I mean, by the time I was his age I had already read half the library on Alderaan. Mom and Dad were talking about sending me to an academy for advanced students." Tash felt her throat tighten when she mentioned her parents. They had been killed when the Empire destroyed Alderaan, turning Zak and Tash into orphans with one blast of the Death Star's superlaser. "I mean," she went on, "why doesn't he just grow up?" Hoole turned toward her, his long gray face unreadable. "He is growing up, Tash. In his own way."

  1A "Well, he's sure taking his time about it," she said, looking down at her boots. The Shi'ido cast a meaningful glance at her, but she missed it. "Perhaps he is in no hurry," Hoole said. "One should never be in a hurry to grow up." He was about to say more, but a signal from the ship's hyperdrive indicated they were leaving hyperspace. They had arrived at Tatooine. Hoole took the ship smoothly to sublight drive and steered it toward the giant yellow planet that appeared be- fore them. "Is it safe for us to visit Tatooine?" Tash asked as the ship entered the hot atmosphere. "We are wanted by the Empire, aren't we?" "Yes," Hoole agreed. "But the Empire is a big place, and news doesn't always travel quicldy. Besides, Tatooine is so remote, I doubt the Imperials here would even care about us." The flight controllers at Mos Eisley gave them per- mission to land at Docking Bay Ninety-four, and Hoole guided the Shroud down to the landing platform. No one had asked them their business, and no Imperial ships had appeared to intercept them. Tash and Hoole met Zak in the corridor. "You see," Hoole said to his niece, "there's absolutely no danger here." He opened the hatch. But as he did, a white-armored