In the short time since the battle on Tatooine, everyone in the Order seemed to have forgotten that the late Jango Fett had a son. Or more likely, they simply did not attach any importance to this fact, considering Bob too young to understand what was happening. But this was an unforgivable mistake. Bob was already ten years old, and since he had been raised without the use of special programmes for clones, which developed obedience but, alas, blocked free will and personal initiative, he was able to assess the situation and form his own opinion about it. Of course, it cannot be said that his opinion was correct, given that he saw everything only from the outside and did not hear what the dark-skinned Jedi and Bob's father said to each other. He understood and realised only one thing: the Jedi acted solely for their own benefit, killing those who displeased them, regardless of what that person thought or felt. And with all his childish inquisitive mind, he turned to the hatred that was growing in his heart, but not towards the entire Jedi Order, but towards one specific person named Mace Windu. Bobba did not yet know what he would do, but he knew for sure that Windu had to die. Yes, those were the three words the boy repeated like a mantra all those months. It must be said that this desire was partly justified, as Django's tragic death had, one might say, broken the boy's life. He fled the battlefield on a ship of the Dark Servants, but Asajj Ventress, never one to be particularly fond of children, dealt with the foundling without much fuss — she simply returned him to Kamino and slipped him into a batch of clone cadets. Boba tried to object, but Ventress quickly silenced him by pressing her swords, joined together in an S-shaped staff, against his throat:
"If you don't shut up right now, you're dead!" That was her entire response to his timid:
"Maybe I'd better stay with you?
Boba cowered in fear and silently accepted his fate. The cadets were a little surprised by this addition, but they accepted him peacefully, although they immediately nicknamed him "Shaggy." The fact was that all the other cadets had their hair cut short, while Boba's strands had grown down to his temples. At first, the young Fett behaved withdrawn and thought only of how to escape, but soon, when training in piloting and shooting began, he realised the opportunities his new position offered him. After all, if he learned all this, he could easily steal a ship and track down the hated Mace, then simply blow him to pieces, along with the ship. And with an enthusiasm unprecedented and not quite characteristic of clones, Boba began to study the ship's design and its gun. Today was the day of the exam.
"So, cadets, go one by one into the pilot's cabin and show me what you have learned during our course," said the group leader loudly, and the future soldiers obediently lined up in a straight column. Bob lagged slightly behind, lost in his usual thoughts, because, as he had heard that morning, several Jedi Masters were due to arrive on Kamino at about this time, and Vindou was supposed to be among them. This thought had been troubling the young Fet all morning. He felt that the day had come and that there might not be another chance.
"Shaggy, do you need a special invitation?" Greg, standing in front of him in the column, snapped at him. Bob perked up and fell into line, deliberately taking the last place so he could think through his plan in detail. It was simple and not particularly original, but it required quick reactions. Each of the cadets took turns entering the cockpit and showing off their skills. Finally, it was Bob's turn, and he had managed to come up with a way to retreat.
"The Masters are already on their way," said the leader. "Only Master Windu is a little late; he will be the last to arrive."
Boba could barely contain his excitement. This was exactly what he needed; all that remained was to track down the ship. Entering the cockpit, he demonstrated his skills, which were better than the others, and he did not try in vain, but with a clear goal in mind, which the instructor told him about a second later:
"Excellent, Cadet K-328, you have shown brilliant results. I trust you to fly the ship on the training flight!"
"Thank you, commander," Bob replied modestly, almost clapping his hands with joy. If only the timing had been right, although that wasn't so important anymore. He had secured the main thing; all he had to do now was wait. The fact that one of the other cadets would be flying with him as co-pilot, and therefore at risk, seemed unimportant to Bob. He had no warm feelings for his comrades and was obsessed with revenge against the Jedi. Greg was chosen as the co-pilot, and after receiving detailed instructions, both cadets began to take off. They were instructed to fly around the central sector of the planet and, upon returning, fire at a training meteorite.
"Are you nervous?" Greg asked Bob, noticing his overly concentrated expression. "Don't worry, everything will be fine," he said, placing his hand on Bob's shoulder. "You're doing great, you've always been the best of us."
Bob didn't even think about being nervous. He just smiled indulgently and felt something nice for his friend for a moment. But a second later, the thought was gone, never taking root in the boy's mind, because the scanners on the instrument panel had already begun to detect approaching Republic ships. Windu was the last to take off. It seemed to be the only one, which could be better? And Boba, without thinking about anything, flew around the central sector, but instead of returning, suddenly made a sharp turn and flew in the opposite direction from the station.
"Boba! What are you doing?" asked Greg, not understanding what he was up to.
"Nothing, just decided to take a walk, want to join me?" said Fatt, who had almost stopped noticing anything but his beloved ship. He zoomed in on the panel and was delighted to see that Mace was indeed flying alone. And so, now all that remained was to wait until he fell behind the others, and then...
"Fire!" Bob commanded himself mentally and, with one long-practiced movement, activated all the guns.
"What have you done, Bob? Are you out of your mind?" Greg almost fainted at the sight.
"He got what he deserved!" replied the younger Fett smugly, leaning back in his chair. "After all, it was Windu who killed my father."
"He defeated him in a fair fight," Greg said in horror. "And you... What have you done? From behind, in the dark, soldiers don't do that!"
"And Jedi do?" Bob retorted, frowning his black eyebrows. "Vindou simply took his head off! Just like that, without even finding out what happened! I saw it myself."
"You saw, but you didn't hear," Greg replied, trying not to look at the burning remains of Mace's ship. "Windu was saving others, and Darth Vader wanted to kill them all, including the little Hutt. The Master stopped him. So which one should be judged?
Boba was silent for a long time, getting used to the new information, but no matter what Django was like in life, he was his father, and that ultimately won out:
"One way or another, Greg, I have restored justice," replied Fett, looking away. "And if you don't want to understand me, then we're not on the same path.
"I knew you weren't like us," said the cadet, lowering his head. "But I didn't think you had no heart. I'll report what happened to our leader.
"Go ahead, I'll see if I took enough credits with me to get by for the first while," Bob was already laughing openly at what he considered to be the stupidity of his who, despite doing well in his piloting lessons, had managed to find a rescue capsule and eject from the cockpit before Fett took off and sped away in the opposite direction from the central sector of Kamino.
Greg sent a distress signal and help rushed from the base. What had happened came as a big surprise to both the Jedi who arrived and the other cadets.
"Why did he do that?" Asoka wondered, listening to the group leader.
"His programme must have malfunctioned," Kenobi suggested, not knowing what else to think.
"I think I know what's going on," said Windu, entering the base where the future soldiers were training. "It's personal revenge.
He miraculously managed to survive, saved by his years of training. At the last moment, the Master managed to dive into a rescue capsule.
"What is it?" asked Obi-Wan, who was unaware of what had happened on Tatooine. "What could be so contradictory between you and a little cadet?"
"The thing is," Mace began when everyone had gathered, "I was unwittingly responsible for the death of his father, or rather, the man Bob believed to be his father.
"He can be understood," said Ahsoka, who remembered her feelings after her father's death very well.
"However, we must not forget that revenge means admitting that you are hurt," said Obi-Wan, who was accustomed to seeing a philosophical subtext in everything. "All we can do is feel sorry for him.
"And neutralise him before it's too late," said Windu, looking thoughtfully out of the window at the quietly murmuring ocean.
"Yes, I always knew that Shaggy wasn't like us, he was always a bit odd," said a cadet named Vince when the leader told them all what Bob had done.
"But I hope he is like us," replied Greg. "Only then will he understand how wrong he was.
Right or wrong, it's not for them to judge. The truth is, everyone has their own version, and some people see it in their own way. For example, those Bob turned to after fleeing the scene of the crime.
***
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