Star Wars - Jedi Apprentice - Special Edition 01 - Deceptions Page 7

  Anakin had never seen such a fascinating ship. It was crowded with beings from all over the galaxy, and there seemed to be plenty to do. Most of the beings worked at least part of the day, either in the tech centers, scientific labs, or service industries. There were all kinds of restaurants and cafés, with food from many worlds. There were game rooms and libraries and music rooms. One whole area of the BioCruiser was devoted to the Collection Center, where plants, flowers, and animals from many worlds were kept. Anakin could not imagine ever being bored. He wasn't sure how he felt about Uni's philosophy, but he thought living aboard a ship would be outstanding.

  The tour took several hours. Andra left them at their quarters.

  "I hope you can tell the Senate that we wish no harm. All aboard are here of their free will," she said to Obi-Wan.

  "I hope so as well," Obi-Wan answered politely.

  Andra cocked her head. "Ah. I had forgotten how noncommittal the Jedi can be."

  "We reserve our judgment until we can speak plainly," Obi-Wan said. "We enjoyed the tour, Andra. Thank you."

  "I'll tell Den you're aboard. I'm sure he'd like to see you." With a last friendly wave, Andra headed off.

  As soon as she was gone, Anakin turned to Obi-Wan. "Who is Xanatos?"

  The question seemed to startle Obi-Wan. But Anakin had sensed something when Andra had mentioned the name. He had felt something from Obi-Wan, something he wanted to know more about.

  "Not now," Obi-Wan said.

  "Shortly?" Anakin asked, discouraged. "I keep hearing that word. Why won't you tell me now? Is there some reason I can't know?" Again, he felt frustrated. It was hard to penetrate Obi-Wan's reserve.

  Obi-Wan studied him for a moment. "No," he said finally. "There is no reason you can't know. Xanatos was a former apprentice of Qui-Gon's. He turned to the dark side. He used the Force to build his own power. He was the head of the Offworld Mining Corporation and laid waste to whole worlds. Life meant nothing to him."

  "Is he still alive?" Anakin asked.

  "He died on Telos," Obi-Wan answered. "He preferred to take his own life rather than surrender to Qui-Gon." He studied Anakin for a moment. "Now let's clean up and go out for the evening meal."

  Anakin went into his quarters. He felt a buzzing in his head, as if his thoughts were so numerous and confused that they could not register. He could not take in what Obi-Wan had told him. He could not imagine that such a thing could happen. How could a Jedi turn to the dark side? How could a Padawan betray his Master? If he hadn't heard the story from Obi-Wan, he would have refused to believe it.

  At last Obi-Wan had shared something real with him. There were times, especially early on, when Anakin questioned Obi-Wan's motive in taking him on as Padawan. He knew Obi-Wan had done it because it was Qui-Gon's wish. Was he a burden to Obi-Wan? Just a promise made to a dying friend? More than anything, Anakin longed to have the kind of bond with Obi-Wan that his Master had had with Qui-Gon. There were times when that closeness seemed very far away.

  CHAPTER 15

  Alone in his cabin, Obi-Wan splashed cold water on his face. When he raised his head and gazed into the small mirror over the sink, he was almost surprised to see his mature face. He had been plunged back into his boyhood twice today. It left him feeling rocked and tentative, as though he was once again that thirteen-year-old boy.

  Seeing Andra was a pleasure. It brought back a satisfying memory. The mission on Telos had been treacherous, but Obi-Wan remembered it as a time when he and Qui-Gon had begun to rebuild the bonds between them after he had left the Jedi and his Master for a short time. They had worked together in the old rhythm, and for the first time since Obi-Wan had left, Qui-Gon had truly welcomed him back. He had made Obi-Wan feel that their bond was strong and would grow even stronger. As it did.

  But Kad ... Uni, Obi-Wan corrected himself. That confrontation had been less pleasant. He still remembered the hate in Kad's eyes, the sound of the table splintering as the rod came down, the knowledge that this boy wanted to kill him. And how he had waited for the blow, defenseless, feeling that in some way if the blow fell he would at last be at peace with Bruck's death. He would have paid a debt.

  He had never told Qui-Gon about that moment. It was not the way a Jedi should think, or feel. He should have felt peace with the outcome of his battle with Bruck. But, Obi-Wan thought, staring bleakly at his mature reflection, twelve years later he still had no peace.

  He wrenched his mind back to the present. He had noted his Padawan's admiration of the workings of the BioCruiser. There was much to admire. But Obi-Wan was disturbed by Uni's philosophy. To his mind, the BioCruiser held a gathering of disillusioned idealists. Uni's philosophy of withdrawal was based in anger and bitter disappointment. He did not like the change in Andra. He remembered her as a fierce defender of her planet. Had Uni caught her in such a low time in her life that he had tapped into her bitterness and sense of futility?

  Obi-Wan had been on missions that had seemed hopeless at the start. He had seen criminals win, of course. He had seen civil war tear worlds apart. But he had also seen beings band together to fight for their planet and succeed against impossible odds. Uni's philosophy did not impress him. Uni was a cynic hiding behind a veil of idealism.

  He was also disturbed by the idea that all who joined the BioCruiser donated their wealth to the treasury. Andra had said this offhandedly, but Obi-Wan had to wonder who controlled such vast sums and who had access to them. Kad? His father? He still did not trust Vox Chun. Despite his supposed rehabilitation, Obi-Wan did not forget his part in the plundering of Telos. He was surprised that Andra could. She seemed to have left her healthy skepticism back on her home planet.

  Still deep in thought, Obi-Wan fetched Anakin and suggested the nearby café for the evening meal. He would like a chance to observe the inhabitants of the BioCruiser when they were relaxed and at ease.

  Anakin was soon engrossed in his food, which was fresh and delicious. Food meant less to Obi-Wan as he grew older. He had come to realize what a good Master Qui-Gon had been, in small ways as well as large ones. Qui-Gon had treated him as a Jedi, but never forgot he was a growing boy. If he hadn't had Qui-Gon's example, Obi-Wan wondered if he'd be as sensitive to Anakin's needs as he tried to be.

  Obi-Wan ate methodically. He glanced casually around the crowded room, but he was alert and attuned to every gesture. He watched carefully how the various diners interacted with one another.

  Suddenly a tall man plopped down in a chair opposite him, a wide grin creasing his rugged face. "So. What are the odds?"

  Obi-Wan grinned back. "Den!"

  "It's good to see you again, my friend. If someone told me you'd end up on this rust-bucket, I never would have taken the bet." Den grinned amiably at Anakin. "Hey there, kid. I heard you like big ships."

  "I like most ships," Anakin said, his mouth full.

  "Not me. I prefer to have my feet on the ground."

  "So what are you doing here?" Obi-Wan asked, pushing his empty plate away. Den looked only a little older than he had all those years before. His sandy hair was still boyishly tousled, and the smile lines around his eyes were only a little deeper. Den's pleasant expression did not falter.

  "Escaping the horrors of corruption and environmental degradation. What about you?"

  "Investigating you," Obi-Wan shot back. He had forgotten the bumpy rhythms of Den's speech, the way he seemed to treat no subject seriously. He remembered how Qui-Gon had accepted Den immediately and had been amused by him. It had taken Obi-Wan a bit longer to get used to the fact that they were depending on a thief to help them on an important mission.

  "Yes, Andra told me," Den said. "Why don't I walk you back to your quarters?"

  Obi-Wan nodded. Anakin combined the three remaining bites on his plate into one and hurriedly crammed it into his mouth. Still chewing, he followed Obi-Wan and Den from the café.

  "Tell me how you truly feel," Obi-Wan said quietly to Den as they strolled down the corridor.


  Den sighed. "I only joined up because I didn't want to lose Andra."

  "Ah," Obi-Wan said. Den had confirmed what he'd suspected. He couldn't imagine independent Den surrendering to someone else's idea of how to live.

  "The ironic thing is, I was the one to make her go to Uni's lecture," Den went on. "She was in a bad state, Obi-Wan. You have to understand that many felt the same. Telos was dying, and no one could save it. Uni offered hope. Andra was one of the first organizers of the BioCruiser." Den made a wry face. "She had a cause again."

  "You tried to talk her out of going?"

  "Sure. I told her we should stay and fight for Telos. Or emigrate to another world, not reject the galaxy and become crazy nomads. Naturally she agreed to everything I said. Joke! Since when does Andra ever agree with me?" Den asked morosely. "I had no choice. I pretended to swallow this wacky idea, and I came aboard. Something didn't smell right to me, and it still doesn't. Listen, I may have gone straight for Andra's sake, but the criminal antennae never die. There's something wrong with this operation."

  "Tell me," Obi-Wan urged.

  Den waved cheerfully at a group across the corridor. "Things just don't feel right. I'm not sure about Uni, but Vox definitely has my antennae quivering. He managed to convince everyone on Telos that he had nothing to do with handing our sacred spaces over to Offworld, even though he was in Xanatos's pocket. He keeps to himself on the BioCruiser, stays up in those fancy quarters of his. But twice I've spotted him having a pretty intense conversation with a tech worker named Kern."

  "Why is that suspicious?" Obi-Wan asked.

  "Vox thinks he's too good for the rest of us," Den said, his eyes narrowing. "Why would he waste his time talking to some low-level tech worker?" Den tapped his nose. "I'm telling you. Doesn't smell right."

  "Anything else?" Obi-Wan asked.

  "Whenever we dock for fuel and supplies, it's always at some industrial planet," Den said. "Why is that? And why is Vox always among the landing party?"

  "He wasn't back at Hilo," Obi-Wan pointed out.

  "Yeah. I noticed that. I figure he didn't want to ride back with the Jedi team. Maybe he thought it would be suspicious if he went down. Who knows?" Den tapped his nose again and wrinkled his face as if he'd smelled something foul.

  They stopped in front of their quarters. Anakin's eyes were on Den. Obi-Wan could see the boy was listening intently.

  "I don't know, Den," Obi-Wan said. "You don't have much for us to go on."

  "Did you know that one of the reasons we stopped at Hilo was to do a repair that didn't need to be done?" Den asked. "It turned out to be a readout malfunction. The actual part was fine."

  "That happens--“

  “--sometimes, I know. But guess who's in charge of readout systems? Kern."

  Obi-Wan nodded, but he still wasn't convinced. He sensed that Den was searching for anything that would prove that the BioCruiser operation was corrupt. His desire to have his wife back could be coloring his perceptions.

  "Now that you're here, my odds of getting to the bottom of this just improved a thousand percent," Den said, slapping Obi-Wan on the back. "Get a good night's sleep. You'll need it."

  Den gave them a cheerful wave and hurried off. Obi-Wan sighed.

  "You don't trust him?" Anakin asked.

  "It's not that," Obi-Wan said. "I'm just not sure I trust his perceptions."

  "But he's thinking like a Jedi," Anakin pointed out. "He's trusting his feelings. Shouldn't we honor that? Besides, we don't have any other paths to follow at the moment."

  Sometimes, Anakin reminded Obi-Wan of Qui-Gon. He had the same mix of logic and emotion that Obi-Wan struggled so hard to balance.

  "I trust my own feelings," Obi-Wan finally muttered. "Not Den's."

  CHAPTER 16

  Obi-Wan and Anakin had barely finished their morning meal when Den came to Obi-Wan's quarters.

  "I have a way to break into the text-doc files on the BioCruiser," Den announced.

  "I thought you had given up being a criminal," Obi-Wan said.

  Den shrugged. "I was bored. It's been a long time since I got a chance to flex my muscles." His eyes twinkled. "Don't you want to see Kern's background?"

  "If the Senate finds out that the Jedi illegally broke into the BioCruiser's confidential records, it could compromise the investigation," Obi-Wan said with a frown. "I don't think--was Den flourished a sheaf of durasheets. "Too late! I printed out the information for you."

  "Great!" Anakin enthused. "Now we can start."

  Den grinned. "I like your style, kid."

  With a sigh, Obi-Wan took the durasheets. He quickly glanced through the information, absorbing it. Then he handed it to Anakin.

  "You see the problem?" Den asked Obi-Wan.

  He nodded.

  "I don't get it," Anakin said. "Everything seems in order to me. He's got top-level security clearance. From the Senate, even. Isn't that hard to get?"

  "Yes," Obi-Wan said. "Very hard. That's why there's a problem."

  "Why would a low-level tech worker like Kern need high-security clearance from the Senate?" Den asked.

  "It's odd, but it doesn't necessarily have significance," Obi-Wan said. "It probably just means that he worked on sensitive material at one point. Everyone has a past."

  Den collapsed in a nearby chair. "If you're going to think that everything I bring you is useless, we're not going to get anywhere."

  "Relax, Den. I didn't say we wouldn't follow up." Motioning to Anakin, Obi-Wan stood. "As a matter of fact, I'd like a more complete tour this morning. Do you think you can lead us to the tech center?"

  Den indicated Kern with a nod as they entered the tech center. He was a good ten years older than Obi-Wan, with close-cropped light hair and eyes set close together.

  "This is our info-tech center," Den began. "As you might imagine, the readout panels are extensive. Every single aspect of the ship is monitored, from damage control to how our plants are growing in the greenhouses."

  "A complex operation," Obi-Wan observed. He gave Anakin a look. He had already briefed his Padawan on what he should do.

  While Den continued to talk and Obi-Wan murmured admiring comments or questions, Anakin slipped away. He stood examining a readout console. When he knew Kern was looking at him, he glanced up and caught his eye.

  "I've never seen a board like this one," he said.

  "It's a big ship." Kern turned away, bored by the prospects of conversation with a young boy.

  "Do the readout monitors really capture every single thing that could go wrong?" Anakin asked.

  "Yes."

  "Are there separate readouts for every engine part?"

  "Yes."

  "The thrust trace dampers, even?" Anakin pitched his voice high. He had an ability to seem younger than he was.

  "Yes," Kern said, exasperation coloring his voice. "Go away, Jedi kid, I'm busy."

  "Let's say your power core overheats, but there's no emergency readout on the converters, and the hyperdrive conduits show a steady lightspeed. Would your readout take into account a faulty hydrostatic field connector?"

  Kern swiveled in his chair. "You know a lot for a kid."

  "Do you know the answer?" Anakin asked.

  "I'd check the readout for the hydrostatic field connector, but first I'd investigate the drive turbine air intake," Kern said. "We've got a couple of sublight engines of the Dyne class, and sometimes those flaps can get gunky if the fuel lines get clogged. Okay, kid?"

  "Okay," Anakin said cheerfully.

  He joined up with Obi-Wan and Den, who was concluding the tour. As soon as they were outside, he repeated the conversation to Obi-Wan.

  "I'm telling you, something's up with this guy," Den said. "Readout tech workers are totally separate from motor experts. They don't know about sublight engines. They just send the information to the mechanics."

  "He could have worked on engines before," Obi-Wan pointed out.

  "But it doesn't say that in his t
ext doc," Den shot back.

  Obi-Wan frowned. "I know. Let's go back to my cabin."

  It was at times like this that Obi-Wan missed Tahl. When he'd been with Qui-Gon, they could always rely on Tahl to do an exhaustive search, using all her contacts. She inevitably turned up clues that brought them to the next step. And she'd done it fast.

  He didn't know Tnani Ikon, the Jedi Knight now in charge of computer searches at the Temple. But Obi-Wan called him and quickly told him that they needed deep research on Kern, sending Tnani all the text-doc information they already had. He asked for priority, but he could never be sure what other Jedi missions were at stake. Obi-Wan cut the communication but did not put away his comlink.

  "What is it?" Anakin asked.

  "I have an idea." Obi-Wan contacted Tnani again. "While you're doing the search, can you also investigate any Kerns who have died within the last twenty years?"

  The impassive Jedi Knight did not question Obi-Wan. "I will do so."

  Obi-Wan cut the communication again. Den looked at him quizzically.

  "What was that about? Sure, the guy is ugly, but he doesn't look dead," Den said.

  "I'm still thinking about that high security clearance," Obi-Wan said, tucking his comlink back into his utility belt. "I remember that Qui-Gon told me that there are secret operatives called "no-names" who are used by the Senate. They use fabricated identities that are retired when they die. Except Qui-Gon knew of several cases where if someone had enough money or influence they could buy a retired identity." Obi-Wan shrugged. "Maybe Kern is a purchased identity. It's worth checking into."

  "I knew I needed you!" Den said, clapping Obi-Wan on the back.

  "But if Kern is a bought identity, that means that somebody powerful wanted him to infiltrate this ship," Anakin said. "Who could it be? And why?"

  "That," Obi-Wan said, "just might turn out to be the most important question of all."

  CHAPTER 17

  Den had to return to his job--"They've got me raising vegetables, can you believe that?"--so while he was waiting for Tnani to reply, Obi-Wan suggested to Anakin that they strike up conversations with some of the residents of the BioCruiser. They spoke to as many beings as they could--a librarian, a tech worker, a teacher, a former ruler of her planet who was now an administrator aboard ship. Each of them spoke glowingly of Uni and their life aboard the BioCruiser. Each of them looked at their decision to leave their worlds as a kind of salvation.