Two of them held comlinks that doubtless kept them in con stant contact with the camp, while several of the riders pointedly displayed weapons that were anything but primitive.

Having the advantage of a much higher seat, Kyakhta nudged his suubatar forward a couple of paces and identified himself and his companions. The Yiwa listened stonily. Then one wearing a cape fashioned from two arc-striped shanh skins kicked his equally well-decorated sadain forward. His bulging red-brown eyes traveled suspiciously between Alwari and off-worlders. Luminara expected initial comments to be directed at her or her fellow humans. She was wrong. The crash training in the most frequently spoken local vernacular she and her companions had received prior to being dispatched to Ansion now proved its worth. The Yiwa dialect was harsh, but not incomprehensible.

"I am Mazong Yiwa. What are clanless ones doing riding suubatars?"

Kyakhta swallowed. Obi-Wan was shocked at the ease and speed with which the heretofore confident guide was intimidated.

"We beg your understanding, Highborn Mazong. Through no faults of our own, my friend and I," he indicated Bulgan, "have been forced to travel the trail of the outcast. We suffered greatly, and have only recently been restored to health, if not clan, by these wise and generous offworlders. They are representatives of the galactic Republic itself, come to treat with the over-clan Borokii."

Leaning to his right, Mazong spit deliberately at the foot of Kyakhta's suubatar. The great animal did not move. Anakin started to tense but, seeing his Master apparently unconcerned, did his best to appear likewise.

"The matter of your casting out remains unknown to us. Why should we believe you, or invite you to partake of our hospitality?"

"If not us," Bulgan responded, "then do so for our friends. They are Jedi Knights."

There was a stir among the welcoming party. Luminara re membered what they had been told in Cuipernam. While the Al wari nomads chose to hew to their traditional way of life, that did not mean they were primitive or eschewed modern conveniences. The comlinks and solar-powered homes, the blaster rifles and sidearms they displayed, were proof enough of that.

Mazong's gaze roved among the humans. As he carried out his inspection, he shaded his eyes with one limber, three- fingered hand. Because of the protruding, convex nature of their eyes, Ansionians could not squint. In fact, Luminara had discovered in the marketplace, when the feat was performed by a human or another sighted creature capable of it, any Ansionian close enough to observe it would wince noticeably. The thought of squeezing an eyelid partway shut induced in them the same reaction a human would have upon being forced to listen to fingernails dragging across a piece of slate.

"I have heard of the Jedi." The leader of the Yiwa band kept his hands on the circlet of flexible metal that looped through the bump of cartilage above the huge single nostril of his sadain. "They are said to be honorable people. Unlike so many of those they work for." When none of the humans chose to react to this spur-of-the-moment provocation, Mazong grunted approvingly.

"If you seek an overclan, why trouble the Yiwa with your presence?" Behind him, his clanfolk stirred expectantly.

"You know how the Borokii move about, and how they would react to being tracked by machines." Kyakhta held his suubatar steady.

Mazong laughed, and several of his supporters smiled. "They would blow them out of the sky, along with any who came after them."

"Haja," Bulgan agreed. "So we seek them out in the time- honored way." He indicated the community by the lake. "A fine camp, but as usual, a temporary one. It is ever such for the Yiwa, as for all Alwari. In your recent traveling, have you come across any of the overclan?"

Trotting forward, a magnificently bedecked female whispered into one of Mazong's aural cavities. Indicating under standing, he looked back up at the visitors.

"This is no place for conversation. Come down to our camp. We will eat, and talk, and consider your needs." Looking past the two guides, he locked eyes with Luminara. "An agreeable color, blue. No indication of whether the individual behind it is likewise." Turning, he urged his sadain to a gallop. Yelling and waving their weapons, his clanfolk followed him.

The visitors trailed at a more sedate pace. "It doesn't seem too promising, Master." Having grown used to the staid attire of urban Ansionians, Barriss found herself captivated by the Yiwa's purposefully wild appearance.

"On the contrary, Padawan, a good merchant knows that getting a foot in the door before the servomotors can slam it shut is half the battle in making a sale."

They were guided to a transitory central square that had been created by placing half a dozen of the self-erecting huts in a semicircle facing the lake. Laughing and squealing children appeared from nowhere to flank the group, while the youthful equivalents of Anakin and Barriss stared in obvious envy at the two Padawans. Anakin did his best to stifle any incipient feelings of superiority. It was an ongoing problem with him that Obi-Wan had been at pains to point out on more than one occasion.

Their suubatars were taken away amid mutterings of admira tion for such first-class mounts. Luminara had a momentary concern for their supplies, but Kyakhta reassured her.

"We are officially guests now, Master. To steal anything from us would be to breach ancient traditions of hospitality. The thief would be cast out permanently-if not fed to the shanhs. Worry not for your belongings."

She put a hand on his arm. "Forgive me for not trusting you, Kyakhta. I know you would have said something if there was any reason for concern."

They were led to the edge of the lake. A section of reeds had been cleared away to provide a clear view across the tranquil body of water. Small balls of black fluff darted among the reeds, chirping like runaway alarms. Intricately woven mats topped with thickly padded cushions had been set out on the bare ground. While the adults went about their business and children barely coming into their manes watched silently from a respectful distance, Mazong and two advisers sat cross-legged opposite their guests. Food and drink were provided. Luminara took one sip of the dark green liquid placed before her and immediately choked on the spicy concoction. A concerned Barriss was at her side in an instant.

Mazong grinned, then smiled, and finally had to place a long- fingered hand over his face to cover his muted laughter. His advisers did little better. The ice was broken, and none was the wiser for knowing that the Jedi had tolerated the strong local liquor without difficulty, only to fake her reaction for the very purpose of putting their hosts at ease.

That did not mean, however, that by gagging embarrassedly she had instantly gained their friendship and assistance.