Chapter 9
"My only conclusion can be that it was a Sith Lord," Qui-Gon reported, standing in front of the twelve Jedi Councilmembers. Rhys and her padawan stood behind Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan as they gave their report.
"A Sith Lord?!" Mace Windu sounded personally affronted that someone would dare suggest that the Sith had made an appearance. Rhys tried not to roll her eyes.
"Impossible! The Sith have been extinct for a millennium," Ki-Adi Mundi said in an attempt to counter Mace's outrage.
"Need I remind you, we sat here three years ago debating the continued existence of the Sith after Master Talik killed the one on Nar Oto," Depa Billaba reminded them. Rhys flashed a quick smile to one of her favorite Councilmembers.
"The very Republic is threatened, if truly involved the Sith are," Yoda said sagely. Mace voiced his disbelief that the Sith could come back without the them knowing. Rhys bit her tongue to keep from speaking – while she respected Windu as a powerful and skilled Jedi, she didn't agree with him very often. After she had killed Torra on Nar Oto, he had led the opposition to deny her the rank of Jedi Knight. Mace was also known to have a very rigid interpretation of the Jedi Code, and did not sanction any deviances from it. He lived in a galaxy of black and white, Sith and Jedi, order and chaos.
"Hard to see, the Dark Side is," Yoda said, putting the matter to rest, "Discover who this assassin is, we must." Rhys' heart dropped slightly when she heard her Master's words. Assassin… she thought as the Council continued to discuss how to reveal the assassin's identity, Assassins don't carry red-bladed lightsabers!
"We will use all our resources here to unravel this mystery and discover the identity of your attacker," Windu said, closing the discussion entirely, "May the Force be with you."
Rhys turned to leave with Obi-Wan and Tam, but stopped when she realized that Qui-Gon hadn't moved, even after the blatant dismissal. She mentally cursed the older Jedi, knowing that he was going to bring up Anakin and open up an entirely new can of brain-worms.
Master, what is he doing? Tam spoke through their bond, his confusion seeping through. She didn't answer as Master Yoda asked Qui-Gon if he had more to say.
"With your permission, my master, I have encountered a vergence in the Force," he reported. Immediately, Yoda's eyes flickered to his former padawan as he remembered Qui-Gon's words more than fourteen years ago, describing the girl he had found as a vergence in the Force.
"A vergence, you say?" Yoda mused thoughtfully.
Mace Windu clearly remembered the events that had occurred fourteen years earlier as well, "Located around a person?"
Qui-Gon nodded in affirmation, "A boy… his cells have the highest concentration of midichlorians I have seen in a life form. It is possible he was conceived by the midichlorians."
"You're referring to the prophecy of the one who will bring balance to the Force," Mace accused skeptically, "You believe it's this boy?"
"I don't presume-"
Yoda cut him off, "But you do! Revealed, your opinion is." Rhys groaned inwardly… Qui-Gon was really in for it now.
"I request the boy be tested," Qui-Gon asserted firmly. The Councilmembers looked between each other as they pondered his words. They were quiet for a moment until Windu turned in Rhys' direction.
"What are your thoughts on this boy, Master Talik?" he asked. Rhys stepped forward under the gaze of all in the room.
"I believe Anakin Skywalker to be a very special boy," she said calmly, "I sense that he is destined for great things. He is powerful, but very inexperienced. If he is to be trained, he must be taught to control his power and use it for the good of the galaxy. There is, however, the question of his age to be taken into consideration, as to his own attachments and emotions." The Councilmembers seemed to take her words into consideration, turning away from her as they continued to debate mentally. Yoda finally broke the silence.
"Trained as a Jedi, you request for him, Master Jinn?"
"Finding him was the will of the Force, I have no doubt of that. There is too much happening here for it to be otherwise," Qui-Gon answered, taking a firm stance to convey his position.
"Bring him before us, then," Mace said tiredly. Rhys resisted a smirk – clearly the decision was not in his favor. Sensing the firm dismissal now, Rhys herded Tam and Obi-Wan out of the Council chambers, relieved when Qui-Gon followed. As soon as the doors behind them were closed, she rounded on Qui-Gon angrily.
"Why can't you just listen to the Council for once, Qui-Gon!" she hissed. Both padawans backed away at the clash of their two obstinate masters. Qui-Gon smiled infuriatingly back at her.
"I believe that it does them a bit of good to have someone stand up to them once and a while," he answered mildly, "Therefore, it is my duty to provide a bit of bucking under the system."
Rhys threw her hands up in the air, "Maybe if you listened to the Council once in a while, they would take you more seriously!" Qui-Gon merely shook his head in amusement and stepped into the waiting elevator, Obi-Wan slipping in behind him.
"I'll have Obi-Wan comm you when we next meet with the Queen," he said, still so infuriatingly calm as the doors closed. Rhys let out a quick noise of frustration before calming herself and releasing her emotions into the Force. Tam was staring wide-eyed at her when she turned to him. Rhys groaned and placed a hand on her forehead.
"I'm sorry you had to see that, Tam," she apologized wearily, "That's one argument between me and Qui-Gon that has been building up over a long time… we don't always agree on certain aspects of the Code." The padawan nodded hastily, not wishing to upset his Master further. Rhys placed a hand on her apprentice's shoulder, "Head over to the apartment and get some sleep – I still have to speak with Master Yoda before I leave."
The boy's face lit up at the mention of some extra hours of sleep and his long-awaited reunion with his bed. After giving his Master one last concerned look, Tam entered the elevator and disappeared from sight. As soon as he was gone, Rhys sank into one of the nearby chairs to wait for the Council to convene.
Within a matter of moments, the Council doors reopened and the Councilmembers left the room. Master Yoda, as usual, was the last to leave the Council chambers, standing in the center of the ring of chairs when all of the others had left. As Rhys entered the circular room she closed the doors behind her.
"Wished to speak to me, you did, Padawan?"
Rhys knelt before her Master as to be directly on his level, "Yes, Master, I wished to ask your opinion on the… conflict… between myself and Master Jinn. He believes that Anakin can be trained solely on his presence in the Force, but I don't agree. The boy is powerful, but he's very emotional and forms attachments easily."
Yoda closed his eyes thoughtfully before he spoke, "Clouded, the future is, by the Dark Side of the Force. Sense Skywalker's fate, I cannot. Agree with you, I do, that tested he must be."
"I just can't help but feel that he's important for the future… for the fate of Naboo… for the Jedi Order," she said, reminded of her past visions.
"Know the future, we do not," Yoda reminded gently, "But follow the will of the Force, we must. Meditate on this, I will…" Rhys nodded her assent and stood up.
"I'm going to speak with the Queen about her plans for the Senate session later," she said, bowing slightly to her former Master, "May the Force be with you, Master."
"May the Force be with you, Padawan."
