The Ties That Bind Read online

  seven-hour journey to Coruscant. Each minute seemed to tick by in crisp

  eternities.

  Obi-Wan was silent during the journey. They had come to understand

  each other over the years. Obi-Wan knew when Qui-Gon needed silence.

  Qui-Gon didn't know why the disturbing vision of Tahl had appeared.

  He only knew that he had to get back to the Temple and make sure she was

  safe.

  At last they entered the atmosphere of Coruscant. The tall spires of

  the multilevel city came into view. Qui-Gon swung the craft into the

  fastest lane, cutting off a larger transport. Obi-Wan looked at him,

  startled, but Qui-Gon merely pushed the engines to go faster.

  He landed the craft and activated the ramp.

  He stood, but for the first time in four days he hesitated before

  moving.

  "I'm sorry for my haste, Obi-Wan. I'll explain one day." When I

  understand this myself.

  He didn't give his Padawan a chance to reply, but turned and hurried

  down the ramp. He would leave Obi-Wan the chore of arrival procedures.

  He strode through the door and stopped at the security checkpoint,

  where Jedi Knight Cal-i-Vaun was stationed.

  "I need to find Jedi Knight Tahl," Qui-Gon said.

  Cal-i-Vaun quickly touched the screen in front of him. "She is not in

  her quarters. One moment." He touched another point on the screen. "She is

  not answering her comlink."

  "Thank you." Even the simple courtesy cost him an effort to remember.

  "Is she here at the Temple?" he barked.

  "Yes, I show no record of departure."

  Qui-Gon's fingers drummed on the desk. He did not have the patience

  to search the Temple. There were only a few places Tahl could be where she

  would turn off her comlink. She was either meditating or swimming in the

  lake or...

  Or in the Jedi Council Room.

  Qui-Gon hurried to the turbolift and took it straight to the Council

  Room. The doors were closed. The Council was in session. Qui-Gon broke a

  revered Temple rule and accessed the doors without requesting entrance. He

  strode in.

  Tahl stood in the middle of the circle. She turned at the sound of

  the opening door. Even without her sight she knew his presence immediately.

  Qui-Gon was so glad to see her he did not mind her frown.

  Yoda blinked at him impassively, but Mace Windu's eyebrows lowered.

  "To what do we owe this... intrusion, Qui-Gon?" Mace Windu asked.

  "I apologize to all the Jedi Masters," Qui-Gon said, bowing. "I knew

  Tahl was here, and I felt I had to be present."

  To his surprise, Mace Windu nodded, as though Qui-Gon's reason was

  logical.

  "We will allow you to remain, seeing that you have a connection to

  this mission," he said. "We would have requested your presence had we known

  you had returned."

  Qui-Gon hid his surprise. Tahl clasped her hands in front of her for

  a moment. Beneath the folds of her long robe, he saw her long fingers

  clench and unclench. She was not happy he had interfered, that was clear.

  Her voice was calm when she spoke, however. "I will resume the

  briefing," she said, angling her body slightly so that Qui-Gon was now

  slightly behind her. It effectively demonstrated to the Masters her desire

  to remain the focus of the meeting. "I received a distress call this

  morning from the twin sisters Alani and Eritha from the planet New Apsolon.

  "

  Now Qui-Gon understood Mace Windu's reaction to his presence. Years

  ago, Tahl and Qui-Gon had been sent on a mission to Apsolon. They had been

  sent as Jedi observers to ensure a peaceful transition of government.

  "Let me review my last mission there," Tahl said. "Apsolon used to

  have a totalitarian government ruling over a civilization split between a

  prosperous minority called the Civilized and a majority called the Workers.

  The Workers lived in a separate sector of the city in poor housing and had

  to pass through checkpoints at an energy wall to travel to work. The

  Civilized kept control through a feared and hated secret police, called the

  Absolutes. As no doubt members of the Council are aware, Apsolon is a

  center of the high-tech industry. The Workers tried to achieve what they

  called a 'bloodless revolution' through a campaign of industrial sabotage.

  The civil war was conducted with some violence, but nowhere near as bad as

  we have seen on other worlds. Mostly the violence came from the Absolutes

  as they tried to stop the sabotage and demonstrations. But the Workers were

  not stopped. The economic pressures forced the government to call for free

  elections and give each Worker a vote. As a result, a Worker leader who

  had been a hero to the people, Ewane, was elected. Apsolon was renamed New

  Apsolon to symbolize this new direction."

  Qui-Gon remembered Ewane well, as well as his two daughters. Ewane

  had been imprisoned for many years. The girls' mother had died when they

  were young, so they had been raised by his supporters. They had been

  pretty, quiet girls who had looked at Tahl with awe and brought out a

  tenderness in Tahl he had rarely seen.

  "Ewane ruled for five years as Supreme Governor and was reelected,"

  Tahl went on. "Shortly after this, he was murdered."

  Qui-Gon closed his eyes in a moment of remembrance. Tall, elegant

  Ewane had been frail from his years of captivity, but his inner strength

  had given him an aura of nobility. His sense of loyalty and purpose had

  made him an ideal leader. He had been committed to bringing justice, not

  punishment, to his former enemies. How sad that he hadn't been given a

  chance to fulfill his great promise.

  "His successor is his close associate, Roan, who was one of the few

  Civilized who called early on for social change. Roan was admired by most

  of the population at one time, but now many among the Workers believe he

  backed Ewane's killers and took the office in a coup. The planet has

  plunged into instability once again. Ewane's daughters, Alani and Eritha,

  are now sixteen. They are in hiding and fear for their lives. They have

  appealed to me for help. They want safe passage to Coruscant. I must go to

  New Apsolon and escort them."

  "A worthy mission," Mace Windu said. "Of course the girls must be

  rescued."

  "Sad it is that the planet is plunged into chaos once more," Yoda

  said. "Ask for our help the government itself does not, however. Therefore

  unofficial, your mission is."

  "I owe the girls my loyalty," Tahl said. "I must go."

  Qui-Gon was not surprised at Tahl's determination. She had formed a

  close bond with the young twins. They had been the cause of a serious

  disagreement between the two Jedi. Once the elections were held and Ewane

  had been elected, Qui-Gon had been ready to leave the planet. Tahl had been

  concerned about Ewane and his family's safety, and felt the new government

  was too fragile and new to trust. There were still powerful factions among

  the rich minority that wanted it to fail, and she suspected that the

  Absolutes had not disbanded, as had been promised, but were still working

  in an underground capacity. Qui-Gon had agreed that some of
this might be

  true, but it was not the Jedi's job to remain as an occupation force.

  They had argued over whether to remain or go. Privately Qui-Gon had

  felt that Tahl's connection to Eritha and Alani was influencing her

  feeling. The motherless girls had come to depend on her. But in the end,

  Qui-Gon prevailed, and they left the planet.

  Was this the source of Tahl's coolness to him now? He could feel it

  like a presence in the room. Did she remember their quarrel? Did she feel

  justified now? The girls were in danger. Perhaps if the Jedi had remained

  to clear out the last nest of Absolutes, Ewane would not have been

  murdered.

  Perhaps. There was no way to know. And lately there had been tension

  between Tahl and Qui-Gon that did not have to do with missions. It was a

  tension he did not completely understand. Tahl had taken the Jedi student

  named Bant as her Padawan, but had not entirely accepted her as a partner,

  often leaving to go on missions alone. She knew that Qui-Gon disapproved of

  this. He knew how capable she was and was astonished at how she compensated

  for her blindness. Still he feared that a situation could arise in which

  she would overestimate her abilities. Her need to go on missions alone

  distressed him.

  No matter how he chided himself, he could not stop feeling protective

  toward Tahl. It was not because of her blindness. It was because of her

  need to prove her blindness did not matter.

  "We will arrange for a transport and pilot to be ready," Mace Windu

  told Tahl. "We request that you keep in touch with us frequently, since you

  are going alone."

  "I am willing to go with Tahl on this mission," Qui-Gon said quickly.

  "Since I, too, know the situation well, I can be of help."

  "There is no need for Qui-Gon to accompany me," Tahl said. "I have a

  contact on New Apsolon. I should be able to collect the girls and return in

  a matter of days."

  Qui-Gon nodded in Tahl's direction. "Respectfully, I must point out

  that the Jedi made enemies on Apsolon. There were some on both sides who

  did not welcome us. The Civilized blamed us for the election of a Worker.

  The Workers blamed us for supporting neutral trials for war criminals. Tahl

  could be in danger."

  "I do not think that this warrants another Jedi presence - " Tahl

  began, but Yoda interrupted her.

  "Made his point, Qui-Gon has," he said. "A good one, it is. Yet wish

  you do not a companion on this journey, and true it is that it will be a

  short one. Suggest I do that you conceal your identity upon your arrival."

  Tahl looked relieved. "I can do that."

  Qui-Gon opened his mouth to speak, but Yoda gave him a piercing

  glance.

  "Settled it is, then," Yoda said.

  Qui-Gon could do nothing more than follow Tahl from the room. He

  could not share his disturbing vision with the Council. He would not share

  it with Tahl. Jedi did not feel that visions should necessarily govern

  behavior. They were easily misinterpreted and were sometimes grounded in

  inner fears that one did not fully understand. It would be of no use for

  Qui-Gon to explain his anxiety.

  As soon as they exited the chamber, Tahl turned to him. "I don't know

  why you insisted on interfering like that, Qui-Gon" she said. "But I do not

  like it."

  "I was on the original mission," Qui-Gon replied. "I thought I could

  be of help."

  She turned to him. Her unusual striped green-gold eyes were just as

  piercing as they'd ever been. One arched eyebrow lifted.

  "Tell me. Did you know that New Apsolon was the subject of that

  meeting when you arrived?"

  Qui-Gon could not lie to Tahl. "No. I did not."

  Her face tightened. "Then it is as I thought. You will not allow me

  to act as a full Jedi Knight. Because I am blind, you think I need a

  caretaker."

  "No - "

  In a rare show of anger, she stamped her foot. Her caramel skin

  flushed with pink. "Then what? Why do you keep insisting on interfering?"

  "Friendship."

  One corner of her full mouth lifted. "Then in the name of friendship,

  dear Qui-Gon, leave me be."

  She turned abruptly toward the turbolift. He felt the drift of her

  soft robe against his hand as she moved, and then she was gone.

  CHAPTER 3

  Matters that took place in the Jedi Council were private, but it was

  not difficult for Obi-Wan to discover what had happened in the Council

  Room. Tahl had briefed Bant, her Padawan, and a disturbed Bant had confided

  in Obi-Wan. He heard that Qui-Gon had barged in without an invitation and

  had asked to accompany Tahl on her mission. He knew that the Council and

  Tahl had refused.

  Bant was upset that once again Tahl had left her behind. True, the

  mission was a short one, but Bant struggled not to feel that Tahl did not

  trust her fully.

  "I must learn to accept the way she is and believe that she knows

  best," Bant told Obi-Wan as they walked around the lake early one morning.

  The illumination banks overhead simulated a soft dawn. "But it's so hard. I

  thought that at last we were beginning to become full partners. She seemed

  to rely on me more. She went on fewer missions alone. I think Yoda might

  have spoken to her about leaving me behind. Yet now I find that she has

  gone off with only a few words to me."

  If Qui-Gon had done the same, Obi-Wan knew he would be as upset as

  Bant. Perhaps more so. He had been with Qui-Gon longer than Bant had been

  with Tahl. They had had opportunities to work out the various bumps in

  their relationship. Bant had a rockier time. Tahl was kind and humorous,

  but she kept a part of herself aloof.

  "It took years for Qui-Gon and me to develop our closeness," Obi-Wan

  tried to reassure her. "The only thing I can advise is patience. Just as

  you once advised me."

  "I don't get the chance to be close to Tahl," Bant said. "I'm too

  busy sitting here at the Temple without her."

  Obi-Wan understood a bit of her distress. For the first time in a

  long while, he did not know what his Master was thinking.

  In the days since Tahl had left, Qui-Gon's restlessness had deepened.

  Obi-Wan could see it. His Master had already decided to follow their

  tracking and survival exercise with physical training at the Temple. Qui-

  Gon threw himself into this without a break. He studied with the Jedi

  Masters, perfecting his battle skills, his endurance, his strength. Obi-Wan

  would often have to remind him to eat his evening meal. Qui-Gon looked

  tired and depleted.

  "There is distance between me and Qui-Gon right now," Obi-Wan

  confided. "I don't understand it, but I know I will in time. Qui-Gon has

  told me that each of us is still an individual. We will have worries and

  concerns that are unique to us. We cannot expect to always understand each

  other. The commitment is what is important."

  "But is that commitment important to Tahl?" Bant asked. Her silver

  eyes searched his.

  "I think it is," Obi-Wan answered. "She is a Jedi."

  "The mission was supposed to take two or three days at
the most,"

  Bant said worriedly. "It has been almost two weeks now."

  Obi-Wan put his hand on Bant's shoulder. His words could not help

  her. He only hoped his presence could.

  Qui-Gon tried to lose himself in training. If he worked his body hard

  enough, he could push worry aside for short periods. But the weeks passed,

  and the nagging feeling that Tahl needed him still preyed on his mind. She

  had not checked in with the Council. This was not unusual. Events happened

  that could prevent contact on any mission. Yoda had told him with unusual

  sternness that the Council was not worried.

  He was the only one who worried. But did that mean he was wrong?

  All he could see were her eyes. Usually they blazed like green

  crystals with traces of gold. Now they were black and dull, filmed with

  suffering.