Jump

Qui-Gon grabbed his lightsaber and activated it, illuminating the stairwell. Obi-Wan did the same, only a second behind him, and in time for them to run out of the stairwell into what turned out to be a very large, very crowded room. Specifically, one of the Hutts’ spice-hookah dens.

Heavy, sweet smoke fogged the air. Musicians played atop various floating platforms, which hovered at different heights above the spice-addled denizens below. From his gilded dais, Wanbo the Hutt sucked in enough smoke to fill all three of his lungs. Nobody was alert enough to immediately notice the two Jedi Knights who’d appeared above them. But lightsabers tended to attract attention.

“Apa hoohah gardo!” Wanbo croaked, dazedly gesturing with his tail. One of his Gamorrean guards squealed and waddled to intercept them at the foot of the stairs. This concerned Qui-Gon far less than the heavy thudding of half a dozen human guards on the steps, only seconds behind, and two more Gamorreans at the door.

“Jump!” Qui-Gon called. With that he leapt across the room to land on one of the band platforms, currently occupied by the horn section. The Kitonak stumbled back in alarm, and one of them toppled from the edge of the platform into the filthy, pillowed moat that surrounded Wanbo. She landed atop a Trandoshan, who hissed in protest, but most of the dazed group hardly seemed to notice.

Master & Apprentice Chapter 1