Inside, Tash saw that two pilot chairs had been pulled out of the ship and set up on the floor. Zak and Uncle Hoole had been strapped into these chairs. Both of them were dressed in clone jumpsuits. Their own clothes, Tash realized, must have been taken by clones. In front of each of them stood a droid similar to the one Tash had seen in the cloning chamber. Vader stood over the two droids, making adjustments to their circuits.
One of the Zak clones approached Vader. “My lord, we’ve caught the other one.”
Vader looked up from his work. “I don’t need her. I’ve decided to use a mindscan to get the information I need. Dispose of her.”
The clones nodded and turned away. The captured Tash clone redoubled her struggles, but more hands grabbed her. In the commotion, the real Tash slipped behind the landing gear of the derelict starship to watch.
“You have given me an invaluable gift,” Vader said to Zak and Hoole. “The cloning technology is a powerful tool. With it I can create an instant army of clones. The mindscan that accompanies the cloning process allows me to instantly imbue each clone with a personality. But at first I had little to work with. Only the handful of DNA samples I could scrape together from this abandoned station. They were only skin and hair samples, with no mindscans to accompany the genetic growth. The result was a race of idiots. I left them to their own devices. I had tried several times to capture Dantari from which to make clones, but they proved too elusive. And then you arrived.”
Hoole struggled against his bonds. Vader turned to him. “This is your last warning. If you attempt to shape-change, I’ll crush the boy with a single thought.”
Hoole became still. Vader continued. “Now you have provided me with your DNA and a complete mindscan. With similar scans of the boy and girl, I was able to clone the girl, and that clone allowed me to lure the Dantari into a trap. With the Dantari DNA, I can build a race of powerful soldiers and slaves.”
Hiding behind the landing gear, Tash realized what had happened. The cloning machinery was set up beneath the round room. Their minds were scanned when they entered the room, and the mindscan was stored by the droids. Then, somehow, Vader had acquired samples of their DNA. She didn’t know how he’d done it, but it would have been easy. With the mindscan and the genetic material, Vader had created his clones.
“Now all I need,” the Dark Lord said, “is your ship. Then I will be able to leave this accursed planet. I want the code to your remote activator.”
“We won’t tell you,” Zak said defiantly.
“I don’t intend to ask,” the Dark Lord said. “I will take the information. A simple adjustment to the mindscanners of these processing droids should make them nearly as effective as the probe on a torture droid. And even more painful.”
Vader flipped a switch on each droid. Blue beams of light shot from the droids’ faces and fell on Zak and Hoole. Both captives immediately winced in pain and fought against the straps that held them down.
Tash knew she had to do something. But she also knew that Vader could squash her like a bug. Maybe if she moved fast enough, she could surprise him
She never had a chance to find out. A dark figure suddenly stepped out of the shadows. The figure had broad shoulders and carried a stone ax. Tash recognized him immediately.
“Offworlder!” Maga bellowed. “Free my people!”
Vader laughed. “Another primitive savage for my labor camps.”
“I am the garoo of my people,” Maga growled, advancing toward the Dark Lord of the Sith.
“You are an insect,” Vader replied. He raised one hand, and Tash felt the dark side of the Force churn outward. Maga was hurled through the air and slammed against the wall. Growling, the Dantari stubbornly climbed to his feet.
“You are strong,” Vader said. “This should prove interesting.” He took a step toward Maga and raised his hand again. Again, Maga was hurled like a rag doll across the room.
Tash saw her chance. She bolted forward, reaching the two mindscanning droids in a few steps, and shut them down with a quick motion.
“Tash!” Zak said weakly. “Prime…”
“Is Vader distracted?” Hoole demanded.
“Yes,” Tash replied, seeing him with Maga in his grip.
Instantly, Hoole’s body seemed to melt. The straps that held him tight went limp as the Shi’ido transformed into a small monkey-lizard and slipped out of the bonds. By the time Tash had freed Zak, Hoole had recovered his own shape. Vader was still toying with Maga.
“Come on!” Tash said.
“The remote activator,” Hoole whispered.
“Looking for this?”