by Jude Watson
urgency, as though every moment counted.
Bant stood, her arms folded, her eyes on the brilliantly lit caf©.
Obi-Wan wondered how to start a conversation. Suddenly, after years of
talking to Bant about everything that was on his mind, he had to struggle
to find something to say.
Bant held her slight body rigid. Her stare was as fierce as Mace's.
Her stiffness and concentration made it even harder for him to break the
silence.
Then he noticed that she was not as contained as she appeared. Her
hands were gripped together tightly. He realized that far from being lost
in concentration, Bant was struggling to maintain her composure.
When he looked closer, he saw that her eyes were full of tears. She
was struggling to keep them from falling.
"Bant." He said her name gently. He didn't know what else to say.
"She should be here," Bant said in a choked voice. "It seems
impossible that she's not here. I can't believe she won't come around the
corner any second. I keep hearing her scold us for making such a big fuss
and coming here to save her." The tears tumbled down her face. "It hurts so
much, Obi-Wan. I can't find peace in her death. I know I'm supposed to
accept it. I can't."
It was the longest flood of words she had spoken since she'd arrived.
Obi-Wan realized that Bant had said all the things he had been feeling. It
did seem impossible that Tahl was dead. He knew that part of him hadn't
absorbed it.
He knew that he was focusing on his worries about Qui-Gon so that he
wouldn't have to.
"I know what you mean," he said. "When we found her, and she was so
weak, I never for one moment thought she could die. Tahl was so strong. She
was as strong as Qui-Gon."
"Did she say anything?" Bant asked timidly. "Anything before..."
"She was too weak to talk when I saw her," Obi-Wan said. "Qui-Gon was
with her when she died."
"I'm glad such a good friend was there," Bant said.
Obi-Wan hesitated. He did not know whether he should speak. But
didn't he owe Bant his confidence? Maybe it would help to close the gap
between them.
"I think Qui-Gon and Tahl had become more than friends," he told her.
"Here on New Apsolon, something changed. That's why Qui-Gon is grieving the
way he is."
Bant turned, surprised. "You mean they loved each other?"
Obi-Wan nodded.
Bant looked down at her clasped hands. "Then it is even more sad,
isn't it?"
"Yes," Obi-Wan said. "It's the saddest thing I've ever seen. That's
why I'm worried about Qui-Gon."
Bant reached out and squeezed his arm. Obi-Wan was happy to feel the
spontaneous gesture. "We will help him, Obi-Wan," she promised. And for the
first time, Obi-Wan felt that maybe they could.
Just then Mace emerged from the caf©, his robe swirling around his
ankles. He crossed the road and came up to them.
"I haven't learned much," he admitted. "But I did pick up an item of
interesting gossip as I was leaving. Just today Legislator Pleni has
announced that she will run for Supreme Governor. She has kept a low
profile in the Legislature, so this was surprising. In just an afternoon,
she managed to sway some powerful Legislators to support her."
Mace saw the look of puzzlement on the faces of Bant and Obi-Wan.
"Her sudden bid for power and the quick support she received could mean
that she bought the list from Oleg," he told them. "At any rate, it is
worth investigating." Mace gathered his cloak around him. "If she has the
list, she could be in danger. Whoever has possession of it could end up
like Oleg. Come. Her residence is not far."
Mace's long stride covered more distance than Obi-Wan could make at a
slow run. He and Bant had to jog to keep up with him.
Legislator Pleni lived alone in a small, elegant dwelling made of the
gray stone that so much of New Apsolon was built with. All the lights
inside the house were on. Mace pressed the illuminated bar that would alert
her that she had visitors. They waited by the panel to announce themselves,
but there was no answer.
"She could have left the lights on when she went out," Mace said.
"But let's explore just the same."
The look on his face was uneasy. Mace had a deep connection to the
Force. Obi-Wan had felt nothing, but now he focused his attention on the
Force, reaching out around him. He did not pick up anything.
They walked around the perimeter of the dwelling. Mace seemed to grow
more worried as they walked. When they reached the back, Obi-Wan felt it,
too - a disturbance in the Force. He glanced at Mace, who saw traces of a
probe droid's entry into a high window.
The door was secured, but Mace didn't hesitate. He cut a hole in it
with his lightsaber and strode in. Obi-Wan and Bant followed.
The stone floors gleamed. Not an item seemed out of place. They
walked through the empty rooms in the eerie silence. Then they mounted the
stairs.
Upstairs, they finally saw evidence of a struggle. Furniture was
overturned. Large crystal vases were smashed.
Mace looked up to the ceiling. He pointed to several smudge marks.
"Probe droids."
The disturbance in the Force was now more than a ripple for Obi-Wan.
It was a cresting wave. He moved forward, his hand on his lightsaber hilt.
He turned a corner into Legislator Pleni's bedroom. It was untouched except
for a halfway ajar door riddled with blaster fire.
Obi-Wan walked forward slowly, dreading what he would find behind
that door. He nudged it open with the toe of his boot.
Legislator Pleni lay curled up in the corner, her hands clutching a
blaster. A probe droid lay at her feet. She was dead.
Mace came up behind him noiselessly. Obi-Wan heard his deep sigh.
"We are always one step too late on New Apsolon," Mace said. Obi-Wan
could locate in his voice the determination that this would no longer be
the case.
They heard noises below, and the sound of feet on the stairs. Minutes
later, a security squad burst in.
"She is in here," Mace said.
He brought Obi-Wan and Bant downstairs, where the evidence of
Legislator Pleni's horrible death was not in front of their eyes. They were
questioned by the security squad, then told they were free to go. Still,
Mace lingered.
When the security squad came downstairs at last, having completed its
investigation, Mace stopped the head officer.
"Any conclusions?"
"Yes," the officer said, brushing past them.
Mace stood in front of him, effectively blocking his path. "You know
that Manex has ordered the security squads to cooperate with the Jedi."
The officer hesitated. A gleam of malice lit up his eyes. "Fine. Let
me tell you what we discovered then. Legislator Pleni was killed by a probe
droid. We have been able to trace its owner."
"You have a name?" Mace Windu asked.
"Certainly." The security officer bared his teeth in a smile. "Your
Jedi friend, Qui-Gon Jinn."
CHAPTER 10
Qui-Gon got starte
d early the next morning. He had spent most of the
night going from caf© to caf©, trying to gather information. As the hours
got later, tongues grew looser, but he did not discover anything that put
him on Balog's track. Gossip swirled about Alani's bid for the Supreme
Governor position and a growing swell of support for Manex. Neither helped
him at all.
He spent the rest of the night on a bench in a grassy park,
impatiently waiting for dawn. He could feel Balog out there, maneuvering,
scheming, plotting his next move. He could feel the absence of Tahl as an
ache so deep he could not face it directly. When he thought of her last
days, what Balog had put her through, he would have to move, have to get up
and walk through the park, driving himself to exhaustion so that he would
not think of the dark vengeance that burned inside him. He would have to
conquer it... somehow. He pushed his mind to numbness. It was the only way
he could go on. Before long he had explored every path in the large urban
park. He could draw a map of it blindfolded.
The suns rose, and people began to trickle out into the streets. Qui-
Gon saw the morning begin with relief. He went to a caf© across from the
Legislature for a light breakfast and watched and waited until the official
buildings were full of people beginning their day.
Qui-Gon was still dressed in a traveler's cape over his tunic. He
hoped he would not be recognizable as a Jedi. He decided to pose as a
businessman looking for new opportunities on New Apsolon.
Just as he was about to leave, he overheard a conversation behind
him. Two aides had just greeted each other. He heard the name "Legislator
Pleni." And then he heard the name "Qui-Gon Jinn."
Qui-Gon bent over, pretending to sip his tea, while he filtered out
the noise of the caf© and concentrated on the conversation behind him. He
then received the unwelcome shock of discovering that he was wanted for the
murder of a Legislator.
Which might make his intelligence-gathering plans in official
buildings of the Legislature this morning more difficult than he had
anticipated. Qui-Gon had great respect for the security officers on New
Apsolon. He was certain that every one of them had a detailed physical
description of him. And the Legislature's offices were guarded by security
officers.
Qui-Gon's hands curled around his teacup. He had to place them in his
lap. The urge to smash the cup into tiny pieces was too great. It seemed
that every time he wanted to take a step forward, he was kicked a step
back.
He let out air through his nose, breathing quietly and steadily. He
was not thinking like a Jedi. Frustration must be controlled. There was
always a way.
The streets were still crowded, but he needed to keep moving. He also
needed a better disguise than a cloak. He could not hide his size, but he
could transform himself in different ways. Qui-Gon left the caf© and went
shopping.
Within a half hour, he had transformed himself into a dark-eyed
businessman in a veda cloth robe. His long hair was concealed by a wrapped
cloth headpiece favored by the elite of the planet of Rorgam. He had found
it in a small shop selling used items. It would be good cover to pose as a
citizen of Rorgam, a world made up of immigrants from many different
worlds.
Qui-Gon headed for the halls of the Legislature. Because New Apsolon
was a tech center for this corner of the galaxy, many deals were made here.
With the growing instability of the planet, there was a certain frenzy in
the air.
A security officer stood at the first checkpoint. Qui-Gon had no
choice but to walk through. If he couldn't walk through the hallways
without a challenge, he wouldn't be able to do anything.
He was relieved when he made it past the security officer, who merely
gave him a bland look and moved his gaze to sweep the visitor behind him.
He was lucky that Manex had not instituted higher security procedures that
required text docs for admittance.
There were several things he needed to know. Why was he a suspect in
Pleni's death? He had never heard of her until that morning. Was her death
connected to Oleg's? Had she, too, tried to buy the list? Qui-Gon decided
that the only course open to him was to present himself as a possible buyer
as well. If the word got out that a prosperous businessman from Rorgam had
money to spend, sooner or later someone would come forward with something
to sell.
Drawing his robe around him, Qui-Gon plunged into the throng.
He was deep in conversation with an important Legislative aide when
he saw Eritha and Alani heading down the hall. Alani was talking with a
group of admirers who clustered closely around her. To his relief, they
turned off down the hall. Eritha brought up the rear, and she spotted Qui-
Gon. A look of surprise, then greeting, came over her face. Qui-Gon ignored
her.
Eritha hesitated. Then her face smoothed out and became emotionless
when she realized he did not want her to recognize him. All of this took
only a beat of a moment. Once again Qui-Gon had cause to admire Eritha's
cleverness. The girl had good reflexes.
Eritha signaled him discreetly and moved into a side hall. Qui-Gon
wrapped up his conversation with the aide and casually strolled after her.
The hallway was empty, and she made sure he had followed before
accessing a door. He followed her inside into a small conference room.
To his surprise, Eritha threw herself in his arms. "I'm so glad to
see you," she said. "I was so worried." He patted her shoulder, and she
stepped back. "You shouldn't be here. Do you know that you're wanted for
murder?"
Qui-Gon nodded. "Do you know why? I've never met Legislator Pleni.
Did Balog set this up?"
"I don't know," Eritha said. "Possibly. I know that Alani is still in
touch with him. I'm here trying to get information. I think I have a lead.
But I have to be careful. I don't want Alani to suspect, so I'm pretending
to completely support her candidacy. And there's a rumor going around the
Legislature that you should know about. Manex has the list of secret
Absolute informers."
"Manex?"
Eritha nodded. "I have a feeling that Roan's brother is more
ambitious than he pretends. He wants to hold on to his power."
"I'll need to be able to get in touch with you," Qui-Gon told her.
"I'll be moving around frequently."
Eritha bit her lip. "Can you wait here for just a few minutes? I'm
close to finding out where Balog is hiding. This conference room isn't used
much anymore. I can be back within ten minutes."
"If you're delayed - "
"I won't be," Eritha said confidently, and hurried out the door.
Qui-Gon sighed. Eritha had all the impatience and optimism of youth.
If she didn't return, he would have no way to get in touch with her. He
would have to sneak into the Supreme Governor's residence.
There was nothing to do but wait. He could spare ten or fifteen
minutes. Qui-Gon settled hi
mself into a chair, going over what had happened
that morning. He had dropped hints about how he was looking to buy power
and would pay handsomely for it. He had even hinted at the existence of a
list. Now and then he had caught a spark of interest in a Legislator or an
aide, but he wasn't sure if it was based on knowledge or simply on pure
greed.
Five minutes passed. Qui-Gon got up restlessly and went to the
window. He looked down below at the crowded street beyond the Legislature
wall. Was Balog moving about freely, or was he hiding during the daylight
hours, letting his allies like Alani prepare the way for his return?
