"Padawan!" a voice barked.
Qui-Gon's eyes snapped open. His new master, Dooku, stood over him, looking very cross. "You should have been up hours ago," the Jedi Master scolded.
"I-I'm sorry, Master," the youth stammered, his face turning beet-red. "I had to stay up late last night to work on a project."
Dooku frowned. "What project?"
"It wasn't important, Master," Qui-Gon muttered. In truth, he had been out searching for his lightsaber, which he had foolishly misplaced while playing with his friends. His mission had been a failure, and he hoped his Master wouldn't notice his saber's disappearance.
However, the Force apparently was not with him, as Dooku announced, "I thought we could go sparring before your lessons begin."
"With training sabers?" Qui-Gon asked hopefully.
Dooku's eyes narrowed. "Padawan, where is your lightsaber?"
Qui-Gon gulped. "I-I- well, you see"-
"You lost it, didn't you?" It wasn't a question.
"Yes, Master," Qui-Gon confessed in a small voice.
Dooku sat down on the bed beside him. "Why don't you tell me the whole story?"
Qui-Gon took a deep breath and told his Master the entire truth, his face flushed with shame. "And, well, that's about it," he concluded, when he was finished.
Dooku stood up. "I see," he said sternly.
"What are we going to do?" Qui-Gon asked, after a few moments.
"First," said Dooku, after a minute of consideration, "you are going to go out and find your saber. Then you are going to give it to me for safekeeping until I can trust you with it again."
"But, Master!" Qui-Gon protested, his eyes wide. "You can't! That's not fair!"
Dooku remained unmoved. "Maybe not, but it ought to teach you a lesson, no?" He gave his Padawan a hard stare.
Qui-Gon squirmed uncomfortably under his Master's harsh gaze.
"Well?" Dooku prompted.
"I guess so," Qui-Gon said reluctantly. "But I still think-"
"Your opinion is uncalled for, Padawan," Dooku interrupted sharply.
Qui-Gon flinched. "Sorry."
At that moment, Dooku's comlink chimed. Qui-Gon stood respectfully off to the side as his Master answered. However, as the conversation continued, he couldn't resist the urge to try and listen in…
"Padawan!" Dooku snapped, as he switched off the comlink. "Eavesdropping is very rude and disrespectful. You should be ashamed of yourself."
"I'm sorry, Master," Qui-Gon mumbled.
Dooku sighed. "I'm afraid finding your lightsaber will have to wait. The Council has assigned us to a mission."
"Oh," Qui-Gon said, without much enthusiasm.
Dooku raised an eyebrow. "I should think you would be more excited."
Qui-Gon shrugged. "I guess I was just hoping that I would get to bring my lightsaber on my first mission."
Dooku frowned. "Understood, my apprentice, but it was your own foolishness that caused you to lose it. Now you must suffer the consequences."
Qui-Gon sighed. "Yes, Master."
Dooku nodded. "Now come with me. Master Yoda is going to brief us on the mission."
Qui-Gon reluctantly got to his feet and followed his Master out the door.
OoOoOoOo
"So… Master Yoda said something about a Lightbook," Qui-Gon remarked, as the Jedi cruiser dropped out of hyperspace above the planet Oniphyerus. "So I was just wondering, what exactly is a Lightbook?"
"It is a book of rules that provides guidance and instructions for the Oniphyeran people to live by," Dooku explained, "much like our own Jedi Code. And now it has gone missing."
"More rules?" Qui-Gon made a face, but he was quickly silenced by a glare from his Master.
Qui-Gon said nothing as the ship pierced through the hazy atmosphere and alighted in a small docking bay. He quietly followed his Master out of the ship, where two of the Oniphyerans stood waiting.
"Welcome," one of them said. "I am The Instructor. I'm glad you are here."
Dooku dipped his head respectfully, and Qui-Gon followed suit.
"This is The Keeper," said The Instructor, gesturing to his assistant. "The Keeper is- was- in charge of protecting the Lightbook, before it was stolen by our enemies."
"Who are your enemies?" asked Dooku.
"They are the infamous Dark People," The Instructor replied in an ominous tone. "Many years have they lived secretly underground, plotting to steal our Lightbook and plunge us into chaos."
"Well… why would the Dark People want your Lightbook?" Qui-Gon blurted out. "It's just a bunch of rules."
"That is an excellent question, my inquisitive young friend," The Instructor said, before Dooku could begin one of his lectures. "You see, without the Lightbook to guide us, we Oniphyerans are nothing."
"Oh," Qui-Gon said dubiously.
Dooku frowned. "We will do our best to recover your Lightbook," he promised.
Qui-Gon nodded. "Yes, we"-
"Well, goodbye for now, Instructor," Dooku interrupted loudly. "My apprentice and I had best go and prepare for tomorrow. We shall commence our search in the morning."
The Instructor nodded and bid the Jedi farewell.
OoOoOoOo
"Next time, you let me do the talking, understood?" Dooku hissed, as he and Qui-Gon again entered the ship.
Qui-Gon winced. "Sorry, Master. I was only trying to help."
"You will have opportunities to help later on," Dooku said sharply. "In the meantime, you must be respectful."
"But I wasn't"- Qui-Gon started, then quickly shut his mouth. He didn't want to further aggravate his Master.
Instead, the Padawan flopped into the co-pilot's seat and listlessly pulled out a datapad. It was going to be a long night.