Leia was the only one who saw a young boy run off in the opposite direction, and she leapt out of the transport after him. He heard her coming and picked up speed, but Leia found she could keep pace with him easily. He was just about her size, wearing a simple homespun outfit. A peasant, then.

"Stop, in the name of the empire!" Leia tried to use the force to stop him like she'd seen her father do, but she wasn't strong enough.

"Wait, you're just a kid." The boy turned around. His blue eyes gleamed in the bright sun. "What do you want with me?"

"You have information about Obi-Wan Kenobi. He lives around here, doesn't he?"

"I don't know anyone by that name. I only know a Ben Kenobi."

"Where is he?"

"I'll never tell you."

Leia drew her blaster. "I think you will."

The boy drew his own blaster in response and held it out, hand shaking.

"So you wanna play it this way?" Leia fired her blaster, aiming away from his vital organs, but she missed him altogether. Now he fired back. She glared and pulled out her lightsaber—it was easier to block blaster shots this way. She fired with one hand and blocked his shots with the other. If she kept this up, she could—well, she could kill him. Leia frowned and lowered her blaster. It didn't feel right, killing a kid her age.

He sensed that she was slowing down and drew his own lightsaber, a bright blue one.

"A Jedi!" Leia gasped, raising her blaster again. Perhaps she could apprehend him after all.

"You want to fight with two weapons, then bring it on." He swung the saber to block her next blaster shot. Leia screamed in frustration and dropped her blaster, charging forward with just her lightsaber. He responded in kind and red clashed against blue.

They began a fierce battle, sidestepping and ducking and whirling. This boy was a difficult opponent, almost as difficult as the times she trained with her father and he didn't go easy on her. It wasn't just that he matched her skill level; there was more to it than that. It was as if their brains worked the same way, and no sooner did she attack than he countered with the perfect defense.

But Leia sensed that she was gaining an upper hand. They were both skilled, but he held back. He wasn't willing to hurt her, whereas she thought she might at least maim him. She pressed forward, seeing the fear creep up in his eyes. If she angled just right, she get her lightsaber through his heart. Leia faltered and stepped back, ducking as he swiped at her. She decided to go for a softer victory and performed a disarming move her father had taught her, knocking the saber out of his hand.

The boy gasped and looked up. Leia stooped and picked up the lightsaber, swinging both of them out in front of her. They hummed with dual power, light and dark at once.

"Please don't kill me." The boy whispered. "My grandma doesn't want me to die."

"I'm not going to kill you. But you're a Jedi. I can't let you escape."

He turned and ran. Leia gripped the lightsabers tighter and ran after him. She'd caught up to him once, she'd catch up to him again. But as she watched, he tripped over a stone and fell hard, clutching his ankle. She was close enough now to see the fear in his eyes—he knew he wouldn't escape now. "I said you're not leaving." She shut off the blue lightsaber and tucked it in her belt, then pulled out her commlink. "Reva! Grand Inquisitor Reva, come in!"

"What is it, Leia?"

"I'm a little ways away from the moisture farm." Leia looked around. "South. I'm south of the farm. I found a boy. He's a Jedi. He knows Kenobi. I need your help to capture him."

"I'll be there."

Leia shut off her commlink and looked at the boy again. He'd pulled himself into a sitting position and was examining his ankle, which was puffing up and turning purple. Without a weapon of his own, he seemed to have no desire to try to run. "I've radioed for help." Leia told him. "You're not going anywhere now."

"I know that." He whined through gritted teeth. "Just shut up." He grimaced. "Do you have an ice pack? You're not from here. No one has ice packs here on Tatooine except the doctor, but you only get one from a doctor if you're badly hurt."

"No. No I don't have an ice pack." Leia frowned and pointed both lightsabers at the boy again. The sooner Reva got here, the less time she'd have to spend talking to this weirdo.

Reva came on foot, wheezing and doubling over as soon she reached them. "Speeder." She mumbled. "Piece of junk broke down." She straightened up and looked at Leia. "What is it?"

"Him." Leia gestured to the boy with her red lightsaber. "I found him. I apprehended him but I want help capturing him." She turned off both lightsabers and stepped aside.

Reva cocked her head, then drew her lightsaber.

"Wait! Don't kill him!" Leia wasn't sure why, but she knew there was more to this boy than met the eye. "I—I want to find out who he is."

"Leia, the orders are to kill anyone who gets in our way."

"I outrank you!" Leia shouted. "My father will hear about this, and he won't be too pleased to hear about you bossing me around! Please don't kill him!"

Reva sighed. "Well, he's not much of a threat. And he may yet be useful." She thumped the boy on the back of the head with the hilt of her lightsaber to knock him out. "Leia, ask for transport back to Mos Eisley. I took the farmers' speeder, but it crapped out on me in the middle of the desert. I had to run all the way back here."

Leia radioed another inquisitor and asked for a speeder to meet them at their coordinates. Presently a ship came down to meet them and take them all the way back up to the star destroyer.

When they were all safely on board in the air conditioning and the prisoner was tied up, Reva turned to Leia. "What do you want with this kid? Why waste our time and resources going after him?"

"He's important." Leia said. "I can't explain why, but I know he's important. It's this feeling I have."

Reva sighed. "That's not a good enough reason. Not for your father."

"Well, he's also a Jedi. I think my father does want to know about that."

"He's too young to be a Jedi. Order 66 was ten years ago. He probably wasn't even born then."

"No, he is too a Jedi. He had this." Leia held up the lightsaber she'd taken from him.

Reva's face turned pale as she stared at the saber, her eyes widening and sweat dripping down her face. "Don't lose that." She said in a strained voice. "I think Lord Vader will want to see this."