Master Jinn managed to fool everyone around him including Mace Windu, yes everyone but Yoda. He displayed the appearance that he was put out by his former master's arrival to "check up on him."
Yoda knew differently and not from Jinn's outward form. The training bond once shared, supposedly severed, but remained with just a tentative touch of master to apprentice in mind, flourished with thankfulness.
Yoda kept quiet about the façade created by Qui-Gon because like Jinn he believed his private thoughts and matters were just that, private not for others to speculate upon.
If Qui-Gon wanted those around him to assume he was upset with Yoda with what could only be described as treatment of him as if he was still a small padawan under his master's care, Yoda would allow it. A twitch of his ears and a hint of mirth on his face was the only visible acknowledgement of Jinn's ruse.
Jinn noticed Yoda's understanding, outward with his facial features and most importantly inward with the wrapping of minds in comfort and sanctity. The rest was oblivious to Yoda's true feelings.
Dorrie remained silent during Yoda and Qui-Gon' staged argument. To her it was as real as any disagreement between them she had ever witnessed and she during her tenure at the temple had witnessed several as had most Jedi knights or masters her age. Mace stood by the way side, arms crossed with the most smug look on his face. His thoughts on their arrival had been proven right; Jinn was indeed upset that Yoda had so come.
Finally after seemingly placating Mace and Dorrie that their fiery disagreement was real, Jinn excused him and Yoda and walked with the green troll of a master to the small garden behind the Jedi's temporary residence.
Once there Yoda had one pondering question for his padawan turned knight, raised to level master with more regalia and justified respect than any Jedi living in present day himself, not included, of course. For no one had surpassed Yoda's Jedi abilities in over his eight hundred years of life and no one was expected too until the coming of the prophesized "Chosen One".
"Know with certainty who took your apprentice, do you?"
"No, but I don't believe it was Gunray. And besides we don't know for sure that anyone took him. He ran away."
"Irony I see in your reply. Believe I do Gunray exactly is the reason our masters missioned on Telos now one with the force they are. Gone this long Kenobi would dnot be hadn not sonone taken him after he felt his abusive master ..hey..? Kow a little about your apprentice newly acquired I do. Favored one of mine he is."
Qui-Gon ignored Yoda's comment about Obi-Wan. He had already heard from Bruck that Yoda in some way thought Obi-Wan was special . He however did not see it. Instead of Yoda's praising words for Kenobi, he focused on the twinge of hurt with the mention of Telos and it wasn't because of the masters' untimely demise, although he grieved their loss immensely. No, the sorrow gut wrenching rendered from Qui-Gon from just the name of the planet was due solely because of his former apprentice, Xanatos De'Crion, failed apprentice and for a long time caused Jinn to believe he'd failed as well.
His master, Yoda had very compassionately and cunningly convinced him Xani's was not his disappointed weight to carry. Still though Jinn remembered with cringed trepidation the day he was forced to kill the elder De'Crion, Xanatos' father. The man was not a good person, was not blessed with even one virtuous redeeming value but the fact remained he had been Xanatos' father; only living blood relative to him.
" I certainly took care of that. Now Xani wanders his home world a proverbial orphan, devoid of all family. That is the burden my master forgets I carry even if I should shed the guilt of Xani's departure from the Jedi order."
"I know nothing of the events on Telos that led to our masters' death. I know only what goes on here and some mighty weird things have been happening here not here on this planet but here," Jinn pointed to his head. "Up here in my mind."
Jinn looked down at Yoda and waited for him to confirm any of his memories of what transpired between Yoda and Tahl in his head.
"Yes real it was, if wait on me you do to confirm the battle of wills that worked out in your mind it did. Well real as in your head we were, boot to boot battling to control you. Failed she or it did because share more of the force between us than she alone does though powerful that one was, Most powerful and eerily evil "THAT" Tahl was."
"Well thanks for reassuring me I haven't gone mad but I am still not sure what I witnessed."
"Sure of its being or its origination I am not, Padawan. Suspicions yes, certainty no.. But know with conviction the Tahl inside your head tainted by evil so dark startled me it did, that her presence resided in one so pure as you. Know of only one who can match that evil they bring me such shuddering, Sidious. Sidious marked with the macabre of the dark side that mirrored the Tahl in your head it did. Believe I do Tahl in your head only a ghostly remembrance of her not returned from the force has she honestly."
"What was she, this Tahl that invaded my thoughts and tried to break our bond?"
"Not sure of what but from where she came as I have said have my suspicions."
"And that is?"
"The dark side she came but to the dark side she will return because no more will I allow her to harm you. Surprise you it may, suspect something else I do?"
"Could this get any worse?"
"If invaded your thoughts she did convinced you a master of half your fifty years could she not mind manipulate another whose force powers not developed fully?"
"Obi-Wan?"
"Who better than another who loved her as much as you did. Used your life she did to help her succeed in bringing out possibly the worst in you. Can she not do the same to Obi-Wan or worse perhaps?"
"Kenobi had been acting strangely. Then again I can say that now and be sure of it with that strange Tahl in my mind it was hard to think about anything clearly. I mean she had me so controlled mentally I didn't know my front from my back."
"Well a start for you to admit it. Later my padawan will speak later with you the inept obligation to our newly acquired apprentice. Best now to find him or no need to discuss his future there will be. Also find out possibly the reason for the evil Tahl's involvement in all this."
"Very well, tell me what I should do now?"
"Easy that part is. Go to the mines we shall and arrest Gunray?"
" Have you gone mad? On what charges?"
"Charges I don't need. Spoken with Chancellor Valorium I have. Arrest warrant he will waitingby the time Gunray steps off the ship onto Coruscant land.Get oneslime bag out of ourway we will and continue on to find the other more dangerous rogue, Sidious."
"What about Obi-Wan? You plan to have me leave him here? I'd be the first to admit I haven't bonded fully with the boy but I can't just leave him can I?
There was a part of Qui-Gon would have like nothing better than to forget about his new apprentice. That thought only lasted a moment before he felt his face heat up with shame because he knew it was wrong and that Yoda knew his thoughts about his new padawan.
Jinn thought he heard the crack before he felt the gimer stick landing soundly on his right knee, which so happened to be the one that carried arthritis in it from an old battle injury.
"M.a.s.t.e.r.!" Jinn yelped at Yoda in pained surprise. "Why did you hit me and did it have to be on on my bum knee?"
"Know well of why I struck you. Do it again I will if feel thoughts about your apprentice a fellow Jedi like the one that just crossed your mind. Admit finally to me incomplete bond reason this is for Kenobi's being lost to you. As for that bad knee, exactly the one I meant to bring my gimer stick down on it was. Pain only thing that brings your attention back to me it is. Now listen you will."
Qui-Gon continued to rub the aching knee, but he made very sure Master Yoda had his attention.
"Procure Gunray we will and send Bruck and Master Starworth back to Coruscant with Gunray. No need all of us in mortal danger."
"Yes good idea. After we have accomplished that… what?"
"Getting to be like your best friend, Mace you are. Must I walk you through the entire plan? Look ahead yourself Jinn tell me what "THEN"?"
"Find Sidious and you think we will find Obi-Wan?"
"Exactly that is. Finally beginning to see you are."
"It won't be easy to get Gunray off his home world. He is after all, the leader of his land."
"Easy the righteous actions never are."
"Come with us Gunray willing or unwillingly it can be. Prepared for either we will be."
Yoda pulled his saber, little in size but no less powerful, ignited it, and allowed the glow of the Jedi weapon to speak for him….
XOXOXO
The size of this post is short to commensurate with the interest I seem to have drawn with Xani's appearance to this story.
MORE INTEREST LONGER CHAPTERS! Next post will have some action, real Jedi action with Yoda welding his saber against Gunray. I suppose the odd frog-man Gunray decides not to go easily back to Coruscant.
THANK YOU TO THOSE WHO DID READ IT OR POSTED FEEDBACK!
T.B.C.
ewen