Just as Luke finished making the deal, a cloud of swirling sand appeared from behind the old, empty palace of Jabba the Hutt.
But it wasn't a desert storm. The sand was being kicked up by the hooves of dozens of lumbering four-legged Banthas. The Banthas were beasts of burden, huge elephant-like creatures with big tusks. And on their backs were tall Tusken Raiders hollering war slogans and charging to attack with waving spears!
The regional manager of the JDT began babbling frantically in the jawan language.
"It's a land dispute," Threepio translated. "The sand people say this is their holy burial ground. But the jawas say this land used to belong to Jabba the Hutt, and so belongs to the government. They claim it's perfectly legal for them to hold their droidfest here."
Legal or not, the Tusken Raiders seemed determined to put a stop to the droidfest Their Banthas trampled the jawas' tents. They kicked and stomped, knocked over droids, and speared several jawas. And then they went after Luke and Ken.
"Watch out, Ken!" Chip shouted.
Ken dodged a spear, and it just barely missed him.
"Now you can see why none of us wanted you to leave the Lost City!" Chip cried frantically.
"Ken, get all our droids into a sandcrawler!" Luke shouted.
Ken quickly led their four panic-stricken droids, including Kate, into the shelter of a big, treaded vehicle.
Meanwhile, Luke fought on, outnumbered and surrounded.
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