Collective Punishment
by ardavenport
Master Qui-Gon Jinn sat between Master Nulum and Master Moodi Tom on one of the cushioned tiers that looked down on the well of the conference room. A full audience of senior Jedi watched Master Zamtoe as he bowed to the silver protocol droid that was assisting him.
"While all droids to have deactivation switches, it is best to only employ them as a last resort, when you are sure that no other action is available..." Master Zamtoe, pointed one long, blue finger toward the back of the protocol droid. The humanoid-shaped machine started, holding it's arms up in a fairly good display of distress, though it didn't step away.
The Living Force in the room was a stale malaise of boredom.
Behind Master Zamtoe, a row of other machines watched in rapt attention, their eye sensors turning or swivelling to catch every move. They were a selection of the most commonly used droids in the Jedi Temple; among them were various little floor cleaners, a larger, gray-metal housekeeping droid, a shiny black and silver medical droid, a big, flat-topped load-lifter with yellow and black trim, a spindly analysis droid, various environment maintenance droids and binaries, a tall, cylindrical, red-hued inventory droid, three different consumable-preparation droids, water filtration binaries, air filtration binaries, solid conversion binaries, several different astromechs, several mechanique-maintenance droids, and a lift-shaft maintenance binary.
Zamtoe cheerfully invited all the binaries forward. The protocol droid stepped back into the crowd while Zamtoe scurried to catch a few binaries that didn't understand what he wanted. There was a flurry of various shades of brown robes and large sleeves as the Jedi in the first tier row of the hemisphere of seats joined Zamtoe in the chase. One gray-haired Master used the Force to pull the lift-shaft maintenance binary off of a wall and gently floated it back toward the rest of the herd. Everyone who picked up or pushed a machine treated them with careful respect.
When they were all assembled and the front row of the audience back in place, Zamtoe pointed to each one, what it did and where one may encounter it in one's daily routine.
Qui-Gon Jinn already knew most of this information, and he was fairly sure that the other hundred or so Jedi Masters listening did as well. The only thing even remotely interesting to Qui-Gon about this seminar was Zamtoe's interactions with the various machines buzzing and beeping around the hem of his coarse, light brown robe. He clearly recognized the subtleties of the Living Force and knew how it flowed through even non-living things. Qui-Gon made a mental note to speak with him about it later.
After he had endured his current assignment.
Qui-Gon Jinn knew what had led to his present situation. He had sensed it in the Force.
Some crotchety, old Master had kicked a floor maintenance droid down a flight a stairs, so now everyone else in Jedi Temple was burdened with....
....Mandatory Binary and Droid Awareness.
Qui-Gon noted the discomfort of the senior Jedi around him, sitting on the tiers of seats around Zamtoe. Below and to his left, Qui-Gon spied two Council members. One of them, Ki-Adi Mundi, did not even attempt to stifle his yawn. Moodi Tom, the humanoid sitting on his left, shifted his large body in his seat, which was practically fidgeting for a Jedi Master. And Master Nulum, on his other side, clearly wasn't paying any attention at all. There was a constant, quiet noise in the room of various people moving or nudging their neighbors.
Qui-Gon did not think that it was right at all for Master Zamtoe to be inflicted with such an unwilling room of students, especially when one of them was himself. It seemed to him that the Jedi Order was punishing itself over one thoughtless act to impress upon everyone that it should not happen again. But it was the way Jedi did things and Qui-Gon had no suggestions for how to alter people's behavior without such convocations.
When there were complaints about litter in the lower level corridors, nothing had changed until everyone had been called to group meetings that had included a tour of all the proper disposal receptacles and the cleaning droid closets. Sometimes messages and notices just didn't have the same effect as dragging everyone's person to a real-time lesson.
Down below, Zamtoe extricated his robe sleeves from under a floor droid that had tried to clean them when he had bent to put another one down. This got a small laugh from the audience, which Zamtoe joined in before pointing out the various indicator lights on the boxy little floor binaries.
Master Qui-Gon's Padawan, Obi-Wan Kenobi had already been to his own session and from what he'd said, Zamtoe's presentation to the senior Masters seemed to be largely the same as Master Minee's talk to the Padawans. Obi-Wan had assured him that he would not abuse any machines in the Temple or anywhere else, but since Qui-Gon was fairly certain that Obi-Wan would never have done anything like that before this lesson, he didn't see that much had been gained from it.
Zamtoe brought forward the medical droid. It nodded it's head toward the audience as it was introduced. Medical droids were quite a bit more intrusive than floor cleaners, so Qui-Gon thought that some people might benefit from the reminder to not interfere with them. But he still could not shake the feeling that this whole exercise was excessive.
They seemed to be following a pattern of obediently attending lessons, while losing their purpose. When some brainless idiot had left the water running in his room, the resulting minor flood had led to Temple Water Cycle Awareness. When someone had returned from a mission with small animals that had harbored parasites that had infested a storeroom, this had inspired Transport in Contaminated and Undesirable Fauna Awareness. After three Padawans used the Force to make a stack of data tapes up to the ceiling of the Archives main hall, the Archivists had demanded Proper Research Methods and Etiquette.
These were only the one-time seminars. Qui-Gon supposed that the annual Mind Influences and Morals Awareness was necessary, but he wondered if the yearly Lightsaber Safety Training had ever been changed since the founding of the Jedi Order.
Zamtoe invited some members of the audience to come meet the droids. He was doing his best to involve his audience in this assignment, to just get them to care, but Qui-Gon felt that the whole thing was becoming increasingly counter-productive. He sensed that some people in the room would be even more dismissive of machines and droids after this. Worse yet, Qui-Gon sensed that Zamtoe knew it, too.
"All you need, is to be aware that the Force flows through all things, even..."
Zamtoe had said the same thing, in various ways, throughout his talk. Like a revelation, Qui-Gon realized that this was indeed all he needed.
Qui-Gon stood up. Master Moodi Tom hastily pulled his legs in to let Qui-Gon out to the aisle. He bowed politely to Zamtoe's surprised, blue face down in the well of the conference room.
"I thank you, Master Zamtoe, for reminding me that this is all I need to know. I shall meditate on it," he stated sincerely. "And I shall be especially conscientious of all the machines and droids that serve the Temple and Jedi Order so well."
Qui-Gon Jinn turned around and walked up the stairs to door. It slid aside for him.
"Master Qui-Gon..." This was Ki-Adi Mundi's voice. Qui-Gon kept going. The door closed behind him.
Qui-Gon Jinn breathed deeply as he strolled down the vast, columned corridor outside. He would stop and explain himself if someone came out after him, but he didn't think anyone would.
No one did.
Qui-Gon strolled contentedly around a corridor into an even grander colonnade in subdued reds, browns and blues and lit by tall window-simulants on the walls. He could feel that it wasn't real sunlight, but it was still warm and comfortable. He pushed his long, brown hair away off his shoulders so it hung down his back.
He enjoyed walking in the Jedi Temple and he had his whole morning ahead of him. He tucked his arms into the opposite sleeves of his robe and nodded to the other Jedi in the halls.
He passed up the lifts and went down several ornate stairways and to a corridor that led to an enclosed garden grotto that he liked. Dark, leafy plants lined the columned walls and encircled the fountain in the center of the room. He conscientiously noted the round, brown droid pruned a bush under clusters of little white flowers. From the entry archway, Qui-Gon noted that a young Jedi was already seated on a mediation pedestal. Her legs and tail were tucked up onto the pedestal, her eyes closed in meditation. Qui-Gon enjoyed the cool, freshly scented atmosphere of the room for a moment more before moving on.
Eventually Qui-Gon ended up in the Room of One-Thousand Fountains. He had planned on meeting his Padawan there for the midday meal. In no hurry, he walked the curving pathways among the green plants, over little bridges that crossed the artificial streams. Again, he conscientiously noted the occasional little binaries trimming the tall grasses and droids sweeping up leaves under the trees; he contentedly left the machines to their mindless tasks.
Qui-Gon emerged from under the curtain of the hanging branches of a mantel willow to find Obi-Wan and another Padawan standing before Yarcel Poof, a member of the Jedi Council. The other Padawan was a dark-haired girl, younger than Obi-Wan's twenty-plus years. Her tunic and tabards were dark brown in contrast to Obi-Wan's off white ones. Both Padawans carried their robes, each hanging down over one arm.
Obviously sensing his presence, Obi-Wan turned and spotted his Master with a look of surprise. The other Padawan looked curiously in his direction. Yarcel Poof blinked and tilted his small, pale head on it's long, thin neck at Qui-Gon. Obi-Wan excused himself and left the other two. He put his robe on as he joined Qui-Gon who was already strolling down a pathway of red-hued gravel.
"You're early Master. Is the lecture finished so soon?"
Qui-Gon raised his eyebrows. "I don't know," he answered honestly. Obi-Wan frowned.
"Were they finished when you left?" he asked.
"No. But I was." Qui-Gon felt Obi-Wan's alarm through their bond as his Padawan's eyes widened with shock.
"You just left?" he asked, aghast.
"I excused myself first. And I thanked Master Zamtoe; his appreciation of—"
"Qui-Gon?!"
Qui-Gon stopped walking and looked down at his shorter Padawan.
Now Qui-Gon was surprised; he saw real panic in Obi-Wan's blue-gray eyes. Obi-Wan Kenobi was a fine and proper Jedi, but was he so fond of rules that he would consider this a crisis?
"If the Council wishes to discipline me, I shall certainly accept it, even if some of it's members privately wished to act as I did."
Now, he felt sadness from Obi-Wan.
"Master, you are being considered for appointment to the Council." He hung his head. His thin, Padawan's braid hung down from behind his ear, down onto his chest. This was news to Qui-Gon and presumably what Poof had been speaking about to Obi-Wan before he had arrived.
"Aaaah." Qui-Gon nodded his understanding, turned and began walking again. Obi-Wan followed.
Qui-Gon felt a flush of pride at the prospect of being invited to join the Jedi Council. While pride was contrary to the Jedi Code, Qui-Gon accepted that he and other Jedi did feel proud of their accomplishments. He would contemplate it for a bit before letting it pass. The Jedi Council may be so unimaginative that it inflicted tedious seminars on the Jedi who served under it, but the Masters appointed to the Council were all wise in the ways of the Force. It was an honor to be asked to join them.
Obedience to the Council, however, was also a part of the Jedi Code. And responsibility to the Order. And shared commitment to the Order. Even the Council members had not exempted themselves from Mandatory Binary and Droid Awareness.
And disobedience, no matter how small the act, would be a reason to reconsider a Council appointment.
They walked together on the path, the pebbles crunching under their boots. Qui-Gon Jinn inhaled deeply the living air of the Room of 1,000 Fountains. The Living Force was all around. The artificial sunlight shone down from the simulated blue sky above the canopy of tree branches over them. And a knot of disappointment walked next a contented Jedi Master.
Qui-Gon appreciated Obi-Wan's sadness; one casual and trivial act had quite likely changed his life. Obi-Wan clearly felt it was for the worse, but Qui-Gon found that he could let go of the prospect of a Council appointment even easier than his pride over it.
If he had been on the Council, Qui-Gon realized that the added responsibility would have drawn him to stay and endure Zamtoe's well-meaning demonstrations. He did not like that idea, that status would compel him to make a lesser choice, even if it was a small one. Then Qui-Gon discarded the speculation, since it was now an unlikely prospect.
He laid a hand on Obi-Wan's shoulder. Obi-Wan lifted his head and apologized for his outburst.
"It's not my place to question your decision on this," he finished. Qui-Gon knew that the good and proper Obi-Wan would make a much better Council member than he.
"I did violate the Code, my young Padawan. Technically. It is your place to question such an act," he reminded. Obi-Wan bit his lower lip and looked down for a moment.
"Technically, Master." A small smile curled his lips. "You weren't the only one who wished to act."
– End –
(This story was first posted on : 08-Jul-2006)
Disclaimer: All characters and situations belong to George and Lucasfilm; I'm just playing in their sandbox.