Call of the Wild
Chapter 2
"It's just past meridian, master – do you think a probe has been sent after us yet?" Obi Wan Kenobi hoped not; the temptation to stay here, in relative shelter, away from the scourge of the sun and the scouring wind, was a challenge even to Jedi resolve. Perhaps they could wait out the remainder of the day here, and move onward under cover of darkness…. But then again, perhaps staying here was nothing but suicide. He squinted at the painful blue expanse which peeked intermittently through the prickly canopy overhead.
"I sense no immediate threat," Qui Gon Jinn replied. "Do you?"
"No… but what about other natives? There are huge predators out on these grasslands. I saw them before we, ah, landed."
The Jedi master turned his head a little, to regard his apprentice dubiously. "I'm surprised you had time to see anything. That was quite the crash."
"I like to know what I'm getting into," the Padawan muttered, squeezing his eyes shut against the noonday glare, bright even beneath the protective boughs. "And a watering hole might be a focus of territorial dispute," he added, still elaborating on the theme of present anxieties.
"I don't think so," the older man assured him. "A watering hole is a sacred place. I sense our host's feelings. Here we may rest without fear of being disturbed; in fact, we need not even keep watch. Our friend is doing that already." He inclined his head slightly toward the shaggy, powerful form of Gerroo, lying stretched upon the ground a stone's throw away. "I cannot say when we will have another opportunity to rest, so make the most of this one."
"Yes, master." It wasn't as though the Jedi Padawan needed much encouragement to rest. Their escape from the Trandoshan mercenaries had been narrow, a harrowing end to a frustrating mission. The resultant crash had not been to his liking; and the subsequent hike across these blazing grasslands, in an effort to put as much distance between themselves and the easily traced hulk of their ship, had been grueling. The temperature had climbed into astonishing reaches by mid morning. Now, thirst sated and tired limbs finally eased upon the soft earth, he needed only his teacher's permission to fall immediately into the boneless sleep of exhaustion.
Qui Gon smiled and closed his own eyes, allowing the Living Force to pulse and flow around and through him. Here, on this unknown world, it was vital and uncomplicated, harsh yet invigorating, like the sun's beating rays.
It was quite true that he did not know when they would be able to rest again; indeed, there were many things he did not know. Their exact location was among these lacunae in his omniscience. Whether there were any sentient people dwelling here besides those represented by their guardian-host was another question, and attendant to it was this query: did anyone here possess technology sufficiently advanced to enable the Jedi to repair their fallen ship's comm equipment, or to send a long-range distress signal? He did not know, at the moment, when their next meal would come, or whether the nighttime would dictate that they find or build shelter, or whether the seeming truce they had established between themselves and the creature nearby would last any meaningful length of time. Another being might have felt a twist of anxiety at this impressive phalanx of unknown factors – or even have succumbed to a full blown panic attack. Even another Jedi, such as Qui Gon's young apprentice, might consider these questions worthy of brooding contemplation. But Qui Gon himself was not of a temperament to fret for the future or any of the changing and obscure possibilities it involved. He was confident that the Force harbored full understanding of these difficulties, as well as a solution to each and every one of them; the fact that he did not at present participate in this knowledge bothered him not in the least. It would all be revealed in time- and the difficulties of survival would also be overcome, one by one, in the order they presented themselves.
He rolled his dark cloak into a comfortable pillow behind his head and slitted one eye open to be sure their host was still keeping watch. She was; her long legs stretched out upon the mud-cooled earth, her deep, dark-hued eyes trained on him with equal respect and caution, a curiosity to mirror his own. He sensed her confusion regarding his metaphysical status, her hesitance to touch him or his Padawan. That wasn't a bad thing, necessarily. He decided to let it remain unresolved for now. Behind her fretful musings about the unexpected intruders, there was also her solemn desire to protect the scared peace of the watering hole, a conviction that sprang from a blurred wellspring buried deep in primal instinct and burbling out into half-formalized religious belief. That in itself was fascinating; while the creature crouched so near had no outward appearance of sentience, her presence in the Force was unmistakable.
Intrigued, he reached out to nudge at her mind again, only to receive a low growl and a half-hearted baring of long canine teeth in answer – a warning to desist. Withdrawing, he folded his hands over his bare chest and decided to ponder the implications of this fortuitous meeting later. Within minutes he had joined Obi Wan in a deep, much-needed slumber.
