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Obi-Wan walked towards the residential area nearby. He wanted to see what family life was like – if there was such a thing on this planet. He walked around for a good while, but he didn't really learn all that much. He stopped by a park and watched the kids play. Gender politics existed even amongst the kids! The boys were smaller than the girls their same age. The boys and the girls didn't play with each other at all. The only contact the girls had with the boys was to make fun of them periodically.
Once it got dark, Obi-Wan decided to head back. He found it sad that even the children were involved in the prejudice toward males. Obviously, they were taught it from birth. As he walked down the quiet, dark street, he suddenly received a warning from the Force. He quickly ducked and saw a dart go sailing past. When another warning hit, he jumped high and just missed another flying dart.
As he quickly made his way toward the nearest intersection, Obi-Wan found himself suddenly surrounded by about ten women. They were tall, strong and wielding dart guns. Oh, boy. He looked around and knew he couldn't fight his way out. Just as three of the women fired their dart guns, Obi-Wan shot up and flipped over their heads. The darts kept going and struck the women on the opposite side.
Now outside the circle, Obi-Wan moved backward quickly with his lightsaber ignited. Three of the women had fallen down unconscious, but several more were still firing at him. In a flurry of motion, he deflected the small missiles. Master, I'm in trouble!
Another warning came from the Force, but it was too late. A dart struck him in the back of the neck. A woman had come out of a doorway behind him. The world went black as Obi-Wan fell to the ground in a heap.
One of the women hissed out her breath. "She wasn't kidding about this guy! Who would have thought it would take so many of us to capture one man?"
"Come on. Let's get the transport loaded. Be careful with him. The boss doesn't want him hurt…yet." The women laughed as they got to work.
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Qui-Gon was meditating when he suddenly sensed that his padawan was in danger. He jumped up and ran to find either Lahrna or Zirta. A cry rang out in his mind. Master, I'm in trouble! Qui-Gon paused. Obi-Wan? But there was no answer. Their bond was suddenly completely quiet. He saw Lahrna coming down the hall and rushed over to her.
"Obi-Wan is in trouble."
Lahrna looked surprised. "Where is he?"
"Out in the city somewhere. He was looking around, trying to learn more about your culture."
Lahrna's eyes widened. "You let him do that? What kind of master are you? It's dangerous for someone like him to be out alone!"
"Obi-Wan is quite capable…" Qui-Gon paused. "What do you mean 'someone like him?'"
Lahrna looked at him like he was a silly child. "He's young, good-looking, tall and strong. That makes him quite a prize for any slave dealer or potential owner."
Dread flowed through Qui-Gon. I should have known better! "I'm going to go look for him." He turned to leave.
"Wait. We prefer to keep it under wraps that we have Jedi here. YOU would be hard to explain. I will send out a security team to look for him. Where in the city was he?"
"I believe he went to a nearby residential area." Qui-Gon looked at her with determination in his eyes. "I will abide by your wishes for now. But if Obi-Wan isn't found soon, I will lead the investigation myself."
Lahrna stopped and looked at him like an insect. "I like your apprentice. I found him to be quite… impressive - for a man." Unlike his master. "I will do my best to find him." She walked off quickly to round up a search party.
Qui-Gon did not like the idea of waiting while others looked for his apprentice. If Obi-Wan had been taken to be a slave, he could be anywhere and forced to endure Force-only-knows what. Worry coursed through him. Qui-Gon took a deep breath to center himself. As he'd lectured Obi-Wan just the day before, it would do no good to get all worked up. He would meditate and try to find Obi-Wan through the Force.
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The new master stood back and gazed at Obi-Wan's still form on the bed. She turned his lightsaber around in her hand. "Jancy, Krana, get him out of his clothes."
Jancy grinned. "Gladly." She started unbuttoning his shirt. "You sure picked a looker this time, Boss!"
Krana pulled off Obi-Wan's boots. "Umm hmmm. Just look at how he's built!" Both women rushed to undo his pants. When he was in nothing but his undershorts, both women looked at each other with a wicked grin. They lifted up his waistband and took a peek.
Jancy whistled. "Oh, my! I get dibs!"
Krana looked up sharply. "No you don't, I do!"
The master stepped forward, lightsaber still in hand. "Neither of you do! He's off limits – for now, anyway." She ignored the groans of disappointment. "Get his leggings on and put on the collar."
Jancy snapped the collar around Obi-Wan's neck while Krana pulled on his leggings.
"Now, leave us." Jancy and Krana nodded and left the room.
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Obi-Wan's eyes were cemented shut – at least, that's how it felt. He willed his eyes to open, but they didn't want to cooperate. His head hurt and he felt like his mind was in a fog. He groaned as he tried to move. His limbs didn't want to cooperate, either. He tried calling out to the Force but found deadness.
Confusion reigned as Obi-Wan tried to remember what had happened. As the fog in his brain started to lift, he began to recall. He was ambushed. He had been hit with a dart. He again tried to get his eyes to open. They slowly came open to reveal a blurry ceiling. He blinked his eyes, trying to get them to focus.
Obi-Wan's limbs still felt like dead weights. They weren't quite ready to move yet. He moved his eyes about the room, trying to determine where he was. Then he saw a figure come away from the wall and move to stand by the bed. Anger coursed through him. "Zirta."
Zirta smiled as she pulled up a chair. "From now on, Obi-Wan, I would prefer you call me Master."
"I already have a master, Zirta, and it certainly isn't you."
Zirta's smile widened. "It is now. You are my property."
Obi-Wan's eyes narrowed. "I am no one's property!"
"Ah, but you are! You might as well get used to it. I have big plans for you, Obi-Wan."
"How nice. But I'm afraid I have plans of my own, and they don't include staying here on Aurelia as your slave."
Zirta laughed. "I like your spirit, Obi-Wan. It will come in handy." She leaned over Obi-Wan and grabbed his chin in a tight grip. "Like it or not, you are my slave. You WILL do as I wish." She loosened her grip and ran her thumb over the cleft in his chin.
"Don't count on it, Zirta." Obi-Wan's blue eyes held hers steadily.
Zirta ran her hand down to his chest. She started to play with the hairs on his chest. "You'll cooperate, I promise you that."
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Qui-Gon came out of his meditation frustrated. He hadn't been able to sense Obi-Wan in the Force at all. What if he's…No, I would have felt it if he'd died. Qui-Gon's thoughts were interrupted by the door buzzer. He quickly got up and answered it.
Lahrna quickly strode in. "There was no sign of Obi-Wan anywhere. However, we did find quite a few darts strewn about on one of the side streets."
"Darts?"
"That's the most popular way to capture new slaves, shooting them from a distance with a dart gun. From the number of darts we found, I'd say their target gave them quite a fight."
Qui-Gon nodded his head. "That's Obi-Wan, alright."
Lahrna smiled a bit. "He struck me as a fighter. No one in that neighborhood saw or heard anything. I won't lie to you and say that it's going to be easy to find him. It won't be. But we have already started questioning all known slave dealers in the city. We're hoping to find a lead that way."
"I have advised the Jedi Council of the situation. They have dispatched another Jedi to Aurelia. Therefore, you and your security team have three days to find Obi-Wan. If you don't, the other Jedi and I will take over the investigation." Qui-Gon noticed Lahrna's frown. "One of our own is missing and probably in great danger. We don't take that lightly."
Lahrna sighed. "Very well. I will keep you appraised of our progress." She turned to go.
"Where is Prime Minister Zirta?"
Lahrna turned back to Qui-Gon. "I was told by one of her aides that she was called away on business. She should be back tomorrow afternoon."
"I see. Thank you, Prime Minister."
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Early the next morning, Zirta went back into Obi-Wan's room. He was already up and gazing out the window. "Impressive, isn't it?"
Obi-Wan turned around, irritation in his eyes. Zirta was able to sneak up on him, thanks to his Force-suppression collar. "What's impressive?"
Zirta came up beside him. "My training compound. This is the largest gladiatorial training facility on Aurelia. But it's a well-kept secret. Not many people know about it, nor who owns it. I have close to one-hundred gladiators here right now." Zirta smiled as Obi-Wan turned towards her. She ran a hand down his arm. "You will be my star gladiator. You are going to make me a LOT of money!"
Obi-Wan pinned Zirta with a steely gaze. "So that's why you're so determined to legalize slavery."
"This little venture of mine has already been quite profitable. But if slavery were legalized, I could make a killing. I'd no longer have to hide the fact that I own this facility and these gladiators. Right now, that's kind of a no-no being the head of a government."
Obi-Wan shook his head in disgust. "You're willing to destroy your planet's economy so you can profit personally?"
"Yes, I am. I've worked too long and too hard to build this little side business to risk losing it. The larger this gets and the more gladiators I own, the greater the chances are of my being connected to it. Slavery must be legalized in order to protect my interests." Zirta put her finger under his chin. "And you, my Obi-Wan, are going to make me richer than I ever dreamed."
Obi-Wan moved away. He didn't want Zirta even touching him. "You're despicable!"
Zirta's face hardened into stone. "You will not talk to me that way, Slave."
Determination shone in Obi-Wan's eyes. "I would rather die than cooperate with you."
A malicious smile crept onto Zirta's face. "I know that. That's why if you don't cooperate with me, you won't be risking your life, you'll be risking the lives of all the gladiators I own."
"You can't be serious."
"Oh, but I am. If you don't do everything I tell you to do, every one of your fellow slaves will be killed. It doesn't mean anything to me. I can always get more slaves." Zirta smiled at the look of disbelief on Obi-Wan's face. She slowly moved closer to him. "You will train on using the weapons of a gladiator. Once you're adept at that - which I'm sure won't take you long – you will fight for your life AS a gladiator. You will either kill or be killed. But if you refuse to fight or if you get yourself killed, know that the blood of all the slaves here will be on your head."
Zirta was now nose-to-nose with Obi-Wan. "This compound is EXTREMELY well secured. Even if you try to escape, you won't succeed. But if you do try to escape, the punishment is the same. You will kill all of your fellow slaves. The choice is yours."
