Beside her, Chewbacca rumbled a question. “No, I’ve never even seen holos of a Wookiee village,” she breathed. “My loss, obviously.” They were getting closer now; close enough for her to see that the Cloud City-type unipod she’d expected was nowhere to be seen.
For that matter, there was no support of any kind visible. Was the whole city being held up by repulsorlifts?
The Lady Luck banked slightly to the left. Directly ahead of them now, at one edge of the city and a little above it, was a circular platform rimmed with landing lights. The platform seemed to be sticking straight out from one of the trees, and it took a few seconds for her to realize that the whole thing was nothing more or less than the remnant of a huge limb that had been horizontally cut off near the trunk.
A not insignificant engineering feat. Dimly, she wondered how they’d disposed of the rest of the limb.
The platform didn’t look nearly big enough to accommodate a ship the size of the Lady Luck, but a quick glance back at the city itself showed that the apparent smallness was merely a trick of the tree’s deceptive scale. By the time Chewbacca put them down on the fire-blackened wood, in fact, it was clear that the platform could not only easily handle the Lady Luck, but probably full-sized passenger liners, as well.
Or, for that matter, Imperial Strike Cruisers. Perhaps, Leia decided, she shouldn’t inquire too deeply into the circumstances of the platform’s construction.
She had half expected the Wookiees to send a delegation out to meet her, and she turned out to have been half right. Two of the giant aliens were waiting beside the Lady Luck as Chewbacca lowered the entry ramp, indistinguishable to her untrained eye except for their slightly different heights and the noticeably different designs of the wide baldrics curving from shoulder to waist across their brown fur. The taller of the two, his baldric composed of gold-threaded tan, took a step forward as Leia headed down the ramp. She continued toward him, using all the calming Jedi techniques she knew, praying that this wouldn’t be as awkward as she was very much afraid it would be. Chewbacca was hard enough for her to understand, and he’d been living out among humans for decades. A native Wookiee, speaking a native dialect, was likely to be totally incomprehensible.
The tall Wookiee bowed his head slightly and opened his mouth. Leia braced herself-
[I to you, Leiaorganasolo, bring greetings,] he roared. [I to Rwookrrorro welcome you.]
Leia felt her jaw drop in astonishment. “Ah … thank you,” she managed. “I’m-ah-honored to be here.”
[As we by yourr presence arre honored,] he growled politely. [I am Ralrracheen. You may find it easierr to call me Ralrra.]
“I’m honored to meet you,” Leia nodded, still feeling a little dazed by it all. Apart from the odd extended growling of his final r sounds, Ralrra’s Wookiee speech was perfectly understandable. Listening to him, in fact, it was as if all the static she’d always had to plow through had suddenly cleared away. She could feel her face warming, and hoped her surprise didn’t show.
Apparently, it did. Beside her, Chewbacca was urf-urf-urfing quietly again. “Let me guess,” she suggested dryly, looking up at him. “You’ve had a speech impediment all these years and never thought to mention it to me?”
Chewbacca laughed even louder. [Chewbacca speaks most excellently,] Ralrra told her. [It is I who has a speech impediment. Strangely, it is the kind of trouble that humans find easierr to understand.]
“I see,” Leia said, though she didn’t entirely. “Were you an ambassador, then?”
Abruptly, the air around her seemed to grow chilly. [I was a slave to the Empirre,] Ralrra growled softly. [As was Chewbacca also, beforre Hansolo freed him. My captorrs found me useful, to speak with the otherr Wookiee slaves.]
Leia shivered. “I’m sorry,” was all she could think of to say.
[You must not be,] he insisted. [My role gave me much information about the Empirre’s forces. Information that proved useful when yourr Alliance freed us.]
Abruptly, Leia realized that Chewbacca was no longer standing at her side. To her shock, she saw that he was locked in a death grip with the other Wookiee, his bowcaster trapped uselessly against his shoulder by the other’s massive arm. “Chewie!” she snapped, hand dropping to the blaster belted at her side.
She’d barely gotten hold of it, though, before Ralrra’s shaggy hand landed in an iron grip on top of hers. [Do not disturb them,] the Wookiee told her firmly. [Chewbacca and Salporin have been friends since childhood, and have not seen each otherr in many yearrs. Theirr greeting must not be interrupted.]