Writer's note: My apologies, both for how long it's been since I posted, and for the shortness of the last chapter. I didn't realize how short it was.
Ch. 10: "I'm a Prisoner of Hope" - Ace of Base, My Deja Vu
Kalifa Sendar met them at the spaceport on Nemorina, a tall, willowy humanoid Qui-Gon had never met. "Welcome, Master Jinn," she said, a pleasing lilt to her voice. She gave a perfunctory nod to Obi-Wan, and then turned to lead the way out. Qui-Gon kept her in sight through the crowd streaming out of the spaceport, and he and Obi-Wan caught up to her when the crowd thinned. She led them to a parking area, and gestured them into a four-man vehicle.
"Halldor is Adolar," she said once they'd joined the rest of the traffic. "His daughter Dorlisa went missing yesterday, out of the private garden. Guards found her companion, an older woman who'd been with the family for a long time, asleep near the center. The Adolar has recieved no ransom demand as yet. Due to some political unrest, he has asked for the Jedi's help in finding her. I was here on assignment already. Thank you for arriving so quickly."
"How old is Dorlisa?" Qui-Gon asked.
"About eight cycles," Kalifa said. "She isn't prone to running off, her father said."
"Do you believe him?"
"Yes. I spoke to the servants and the guards. Even if she'd wanted to, sneaking away isn't easy. She has been known to hide, but the guards around the garden swear she didn't get past them. When she was discovered missing, they thoroughly searched the garden, including the pond. Dorlisa had no place to hide in there. Her nanny doesn't have a record of sleeping while watching the child, but the in-house medic found no evidence of drugs."
Qui-Gon frowned. They'd left much of the traffic and the city behind, motoring through higher class and ever richer neighborhoods. Houses and grounds grew more larger and more ornate the further they went. Ahead of them, he could see the Residence, a solid-looking building of warm tan. "You asked specifically asked for someone with a senior Padawan," Qui-Gon said. Obi-Wan shifted in the seat behind them. "Why?"
"I wanted to cover more ground," Kalifa said. "I cannot abandon my mission. Rumors run rampant here, of children kidnapped from the city to work in the gem mines." She gestured to the mountains in the distance. "More vanish from the country side. I believe Dorlisa is in the city, but the rumors are too persistent not to look into. Haldor has maps of the area, and contacts. Your Padawan is able to work alone?"
"In most situations," Qui-Gon said. But anything I wouldn't send him into, I wouldn't go alone. He didn't say it out loud. Obi-Wan's amusement came down the bond, which told Qui-Gon that he'd either gotten the thought or the gist of it.
Kalifa nodded. Qui-Gon felt a sharp coldness, and he glanced at her in surprise. She didn't look away from the road in front of them, so he filed it away to examine later. "We will do as you direct," he continued.
Kalifa nodded again. "I feel it would be more beneficial to have your expertise here in the city. Your Padawan will fit in with the people in the mountains, and is able to follow rumors easily enough. One young man won't cause the slavers to hole up like a full guard troop would."
"Obi-Wan?" Qui-Gon asked, agreeing with her.
"I will go where I'm sent," Obi-Wan said.
Qui-Gon could feel Obi-Wan's anticipation through their bond. "When will we begin searching?"
The walls of the Residence rose on their left. Qui-Gon hadn't realized how close they'd gotten to the building. At the first gate, Kalifa turned off the road and stopped in front of it. An armed guard stepped out of the guard booth, weapon to hand. "Kalifa Sendar, Jedi, with two expected guests," Kalifa said. The man looked them all over, nodded, and stepped back. It took a couple of minutes before the gate slid sideways into the wall, and Kalifa drove forward.
The courtyard beyond held a wide selection of ground transportation, from a small personal two man transport to the large, formal transport for official functions. Kalifa stopped the one she drove near the far end. A Hanani in uniform came out of one door and waited respectfully as they climbed out. Kalifa lead them toward a different door, and had to repeat the words she'd said at the gate to a guard standing there. This time it took much less time, and the doors slid ponderously open, vanishing into the walls. Kalifa led the way in, down tall, wide hallways. They narrowed the deeper the Jedi walked into the palace, guards standing at attention at each of the cross halls. Kalifa stopped in front of a guarded door. The guards there did the same as the others, looking them over before stepping aside to let them in.
This hallway felt more lived in. "These are the family's personal quarters," Kalifa said as she led them down the hallway. A servant standing before one of the doors took somewhat longer in looking them over, and Qui-Gon noted with approval that the man held himself like a fighter. He finally gave a curt nod, and the door slid open to let them in.
Tall windows let in the warm afternoon sunlight, falling across burgundy couches trimmed in gold thread and an amber carpet. A white table reflected the sunlight onto the ceiling, lightening the room further. A man to the right of the windows stood, and Qui-Gon recognized Halldor, Adolar of Nemorina.
He stood about Obi-Wan's height. Care and worry aged him beyond the 45 cycles the Jedi records said he'd lived. The angle of the light emphasized the lines on his face. "Welcome," he said, moving into the sunlight. He wore something that resembled the uniforms on the guards and the servants, if finer. "Thank you for coming so quickly."
"Adolar Halldor, may I introduce my associate, Qui-Gon Jinn and his Padawan, Obi-Wan Kenobi," Kalifa said.
Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan bowed. "We are honored, and sorry to meet under these circumstances," Qui-Gon said.
"I asked Master Jinn to help with the search in the city. The young man can follow the leads we've gotten in the countryside."
Qui-Gon stifled a frown at her terminology, but then let it go.
Halldor nodded. "Thank you. My daughter is dear to me. Her mother died some cycles ago, so Dorlisa is my only heir. It is of vital importance to me, and to my people, that she is found." He took a deep breath. "I know you have traveled far. Please, take some rest and refreshment, and we will meet again this evening to plan." At his words, servants filed into the room. "These will show you here you will sleep, and will show you back here after we have eaten. Jedi Sendar, if you will accompany me," he added, and she bowed to Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan before following him as he walked through a door near where he'd been sitting when they'd come in. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan bowed at his retreating back, then followed the servants out through the door they'd come in toward their quarters.