"Uh Oh", he squeaked when the branch snapped back and hit him full-force in his face. A loud WHACK accompanied the disaster and the gungan was thrown to the ground. With less than a shrug, he got up again. Instead of the noise of the forest or the animals of Naboo, the only thing audible to him was a high-pitched ringing sound, similar to tinitus. He shook his head and the long ears slapped around him, first to the left, then to the right. He only felt them lightly because the sting of the branch still burned brightly. "Meesa not like that", he exclaimed and hit the branch once more, but this time he stepped away from it and it harmlessly swung back again. His task was to find the Gungans for the Rebels, his friends and close allies. They had been the only people that did not dislike him from the beginning. They had treated him nicely and did not hold any prejudice against him. As he walked further into the depths of the forest, Jar Jar saw a group of droids through the canopy. Their mechanical limbs tore through the underwood as if it were paper and he quickly jumped behind a tree and hid. They were the enemy. The enemy of the free people, the free will and of all Gungans. They were bad...things. He heard them approach his tree and he closed his eyes. They will find him if they-
Bzzm!
Four shots cut all of them in half. Jar Jar peeked around the tree and saw the Rebels in front of him. They had saved him at last! Joyfully, he jumped up and down and clapped in his hands once before being shushed. He nodded and stopped it. But he finally made it back! At least, he met the Rebels again. Not that they had lost him; or he had lost them..but he had not seen them for several minutes and he was getting restless whether they had abandoned him or not. Now he knew that this was not the case. He thanked them all in a silent manner and then turned back to his original path towards the Gungan's hiding place. It was close. He could smell it. However, he also smelled something else, something more sinister, something..strange. Jar Jar picked up speed. He jumped over a small river, breached through several branches and then exited the underwood with a loud THOMP! He stopped for some moments to catch his breath, while the Rebels all came out of the forest too, and they all beheld the sight of destruction. Fear crawled over Jar Jar's back for a moment until he realised that there were no corpses anywhere. He rejoiced for a silent moment and then frowned.
"Ello! Where das everybody?", he shouted. Nobody answered or dared to answer him. His frown deepened. Behind him, he heard two people whisper to each other. He ignored them. It seems as if the Gungans had fought here. Bullet holes and signs of a battle - littered magazines and sprays of different liquids - were all over the place.
"Dare-sa nobody dare. All gone. Some kinda fight, I tink. Sorry, no Gungas...no Gungas." He bowed his head and followed a trail of sad thoughts. Tanaka and Obi-Wan asked whether they were taken to camps or even wiped out, but Jar Jar shook his head.
"No...mesa no tink so. Gungan hiden. When in trouble, go to sacred place. Mackineeks no find them dare."
Jar Jar then told them that he would lead them to this sacred place in the morning. The sun was deep over the horizon already. The night life of the local flora and fauna was about to begin. They were near a swamp lake, but Jar Jar slept well - better than the others, because he was not bitten by mosquitoes and other insects that flew around in the area during nighttime. As the rose, so did the rebels. Despite countless bites and stitches, no moan came over their lips; their journey was still long and the day young. They prepared a meagre breakfast and then packed their bags. Binks helped them to cover their resting place. The droids should not be able to notice it after they were done. When they were satisfied with the result, the Gungan lead them head-on back into the thick forest. The hours dwindled past them until the forest froze under a crack of a branch. The animals stopped. The rebels froze.
The forest held its breath.
It was not a natural sound.
It was the calm before the storm.
Then it hit.
Hard
Fierce
Inhumane.
An entire reinforced platoon of battle droids opened fire from their elevated positions and forced the rebels to take cover. The battle of Canopy Hill had begun!
Obi-Wan Kenobi and his master Qui-Gon Jinn jumped in front and took their battle stances with ignited lightsabers. Blaster bolts filled the air. A lightshow of red projectiles surrounded the two Jedi, whose weapons deflected the blaster bolts like a racket in a tennis match. Every deflection was accompanied by a high screeching sound. Jar Jar held his hands over his head and cowered in fear. He could not participate in the battle. The Queen of Naboo hid as well, while her servants protected her with their lives. The first droids were hit. Kenobi stayed with the bulk of the rebel forces while Qui-Gon headed to the left to flank the droids. Nobody dared to follow him into that death trap. They fought well; however their lack of firepower soon showed off as well. The rebels only sporadically return fire to save ammunition. Kenobi remained defensive. Jar Jar stayed behind his tree. Then, suddenly, the screeching sound of metal on metal shrieked through the forest. A tree fell over. "Uh oh"-sounds of several battle droids followed, together with lone blaster shots. They were silenced soon after.
"Those were all!", the Jedi master shouted. The forest took a deep breath. Jar Jar too; for the battle of Canopy Hill was over. The ambush was not enough to stop them. However, it also brought their foes the knowledge of their location. An entire missing platoon would only mean one thing: The dissidents were somewhere in the vicinity. They had to move. They had to move fast. Jar Jar took the lead again. He jogged past Canopy Hill and followed a small stream into the direction of the sacred places.
It was a long march. The rebels were already exhausted from the prior battle, but they carried on. They had to. The Queen was sure that the Trade Federation had already sent search parties for them. Jar Jar was tired too. His tongue sticked out. His ears were lumping down his head. His breath was shallow and quick. He wanted and needed a break. But before he could stop, a voice shouted 'Let's take a break!' and he fell to the ground, exhausted. Before darkness embraced him, Qui-Gon had walked up to the Gungan and helped him up. He held him firm with both hands. His eyes examined the Gungan from top to bottom. A slow nod followed suit. He pet his cheek and then said:
"You did well Jar Jar. Drink some water. Rest a bit. Our journey is still long from what it seems. There is no use in wasting your entire energy in the beginning."
Jar Jar simply nodded and then took some sips from the bowl the Jedi held towards him. He closed his eyes again and this time, Qui-Gon did not stop him from a dark, dreamless, deep sleep.
Jar Jar could not decide whether the explosion or him being thrown against a tree woke him up. Either way, he felt the pain in his ts. He was groggy. Jar Jar shook his head. Great, now he was dizzy AND groggy. His hearing was apparently gone too. He saw flashes of red and yellow and white but he did not hear a thing. Someone was moving his mouth in front of him. It was one of the servants. She held a blaster in her hands. The Gungan looked up and then squeezed his eyes together. The morning sun was still visible through his closed eyes. He tried to speak but he felt the urge to vomit directly. He formed the words in his heads and then tried to speak again. It did not work. Jar-Jar shook his head again and tapped both his ears after leaning left and right. The servant rose an eyebrow. Jar Jar simply moved his shoulders. The Rebels were on their retreat. He felt it when he woke up again. They were running back. Or left. Or right. He could not say. But at least he had his hearing back once more. He looked around again and then moved. Someone dropped him. The sounds of war had perished, too. The Gungan looked around. He was surprised. They even went into the right direction, towards the sacred place. He took the lead again. They were close. Very close!
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Finally