2
"Brave or crazy, we shall see." Guerra said, unconcerned. "With Jedi along, what can go wrong?"
It was too easy, Qui-Gon thought. He and Paxxi strolled down the warehouse unnoticed while looking for the anti-register device. Something nagged at the back of his mind. When had a mission ever been this simple? Some unforeseen event was going to happen to put him and Paxxi in danger. The Force wasn't telling him so; he was just thinking pessimistically. Paxxi searched the high shelves with his eyes but still could not find the device. He hoped that Obi-Wan and Guerra were having better luck. So far there was nothing.
"Are you sure it is here?" Qui-Gon asked calmly.
"Of course Jedi-Gon!" Paxxi reassured.
Qui-Gon smiled slightly at the name the Derida brothers had adopted for him and his padawan. In his experience he had been called many things (and most of them unpleasant) but it always touched him in untold ways. Nonetheless Qui-Gon was getting impatient. He knew he could always come back, but that would increase the risk of getting caught.
"I don't see it anywhere!" Paxxi exclaimed. "Guerra and Obawan must have found it by now."
"You don't know that." Qui-Gon quietly said. "It is a large warehouse."
"It'd be better if he did! I have no luck!"
Qui-Gon could almost imagine Obi-Wan countering that statement with, "Then how have you managed to stay alive for so long?" His padawan was young and hadn't seen much of anything outside of the temple. He did not know that loyalty and virtue came from the most unlikely places. He would learn, in time.
Qui-Gon scanned the shelves, but he did not know what he was looking for. Paxxi softly muttered to himself as he looked at the shelves. He would shake his head and move on. They had been there for too long already. They had to leave. Two guards walked towards them and Qui-Gon inwardly tensed. They stopped in front of Qui-Gon and Paxxi. Paxxi struggled to remain calm. Qui-Gon met the guard's gaze squarely.
"These night shifts are killer." One said.
"They work us like dogs!" The second said.
Qui-Gon's tension eased. The guards did not suspect them. They were just making idle chitchat with their supposed fellow guards.
"And what to we get for it? Nothing! That's what!" The first guard finished.
"We get the good feeling inside for serving the noble and virtuous Syndicat." Paxxi said sarcastically.
The two guards laughed.
"Ranti, I didn't know we had another joker on our shift!" The first guard said. The second guard, Ranti, just shook his head.
"I didn't know either. Fortune is with you Tenru! Now you don't have to face the dredge of the night shift just listening to me." Ranti said.
"So true!" Tenru said. Tenru slapped Ranti on the back in a show of friendship.
"I've never seen you two around here." Ranti said. "Then again they don't keep anybody in the same place for a long."
"Except us." Tenru said. "Unfortunately."
The Intercom buzzed and a flat, monotone voice said,
"Guard K23M9, report to security. Guard K23M9, report to security."
The two guards raised their eyebrows.
"Poor fellow. He's going to get it bad. Speaking of which... It's almost lockdown." Tenru said.
"Thank the stars!" Paxxi exclaimed. "I'd almost fell over with fatigue."
Tenru and Ranti looked at Paxxi strangely then began to laugh loudly. They patted Paxxi on the back while chuckling.
"Your friend there is too serious. Tell him to lighten up." Ranti said to Paxxi, pointing to Qui-Gon.
"That is so! It's always work with him! He doesn't even smile!" Paxxi said.
Qui-Gon raised his eyebrows at Paxxi and, falling into his new role, began to scowl.
"Do you see? Not once! It was a joke!" Paxxi exclaimed.
Qui-Gon felt unsettled. He hoped that the intercom announcement had nothing to do with Obi-Wan or Guerra. He had to have gotten outside the building by now. Obi-Wan and Guerra were probably waiting for them.
"We're going to get a drink after our shift is over. Do you want to come with us?" Tenru asked.
Qui-Gon looked sternly at Paxxi. Paxxi smiled sheepishly.
"We're afraid we cannot. My friend here will explode if he has even the littlest bit of fun!" Paxxi said.
Tenru and Ranti shrugged.
"Too bad." They said and left with a wave.
Qui-Gon and Paxxi exited the warehouse and hid in the shadows. Obi-Wan and Guerra were not there yet. It had been well over twenty minutes. Where was his padawan? Paxxi was worried as well. He had already lost a sister to the Syndicat. He shouldn't have to loose his brother. Qui-Gon silently paced. He hoped his padawan hadn't gotten himself in trouble. Qui-Gon tried reaching out to his padawan but their Master-Padawan bond was new. He could only feel Obi-Wan's presence. In time it would grow stronger, but right now he could do nothing.
Qui-Gon heard hurried footsteps coming towards him. He put his hand on the hilt of his lightsaber, preparing for a fight. Guerra's soft voice called out,
"Paxxi? Paxxi? Is that you?"
"Brother! I was not worried that you would return to us. Not so! I lie! I was very worried." Paxxi said.
Paxxi and Guerra embraced in a brotherly way and Paxxi smiled brightly. Qui-Gon waited. Obi-Wan must be coming soon now. He most likely sent Guerra in front and he would protect their escape. Qui-Gon's eyes searched the darkness, but no one came. He turned his steely gaze over to Guerra.
"Where is Obi-Wan?" He asked, keeping the worry out of his voice.
There was no chance to escape. The situation was getting even more hopeless than before. Obi-Wan felt fear creeping up on him. He tried to push it aside but it grew stronger. 'Fear has no place inside of a Jedi. If you let fear conquer you then the dark side will take hold.' How many times had he heard that? How many times had he repeated the same creed to himself? Yet it still did not help. At least he still had his lightsaber, but he couldn't fight a whole army of guards that was swarming the Syndicat headquarters. Obi-Wan waited.
The guards continued to shove him forward in an unfriendly way.
'You know the penalty. We will escort you to headquarters. Resist and you're dead.'
What was the penalty? That was the part that scared Obi-Wan the most. Would they go as far as renew him for such an offense? No. That would be too drastic even for the Syndicat. But what if they found out he was not a Phindian? What would they do then?
A harsh blow across the back of his head with a blaster brought him out of his thoughts. Obi-Wan reeled and struggled to maintain his composure. His head spun, but it soon cleared. The guards then began stripping him of his guard armor. Obi-Wan cooperated, knowing he'd be forced to cooperate anyways. Perhaps if he appeared to be beaten they would let their guard down. They didn't. The security forces doubled and Obi-Wan saw his hopes slip away again. They were going to take his lightsaber. Once he lost that he would have no way to escape. Should he attack now? He reached out to the Force, but it gave him no answers. It just washed over him, calming him. He would get out of this eventually. He just had to be patient.
Once his armor and visor were taken off the guards stopped for a second. Obi-Wan sensed the slightest shock from them.
"He's not Phindian." A scowling Phindian commented.
"He doesn't look a day over thirteen." Another said with shock coloring his voice.
'I'm two days over thirteen!'Obi-Wan thought with bleak amusement and insincere outrage. It was better to keep his spirits up by forcing his bad situation to seem comical. It was how Guerra and Paxxi did it, and they were still alive. Besides, he thought, he was tall for his age.
Obi-Wan said nothing to the guards and waited. A guard reached out and took Obi-Wan's lightsaber. Obi-Wan felt all of his hopes being crushed as his unique weapon was taken away. Now it would take a miracle or divine intervention to get him out of his predicament. Obi-Wan hid a smile as he saw the guard try to activate it, but could not. At least they did not know what they had.
"What is this? Some primitive weapon?" The guard asked mockingly.
Obi-Wan said nothing. The guards didn't know what to make of him and he detected a hint of nervousness from them. What were they worried about?
"We'd better take him to Weutta." A guard said and they all nodded in agreement.
They pushed him with their blasters and Obi-Wan winced as they jabbed into his back.
"Move rebel!" They said gruffly and Obi-Wan walked where they directed him.
They ended up in a small office with a particularly ugly looking Phindian sitting at a desk. The guards snapped to attention as he looked up at them.
"What now?" He asked impatiently.
"We found this rebel impersonating Guard K23M9." The guard with his blaster in Obi-Wan's back answered.
Weutta laughed.
"Him?" He asked pointing to Obi-Wan with a sneer on his face. "He's just a boy! Are you telling me he is the cause of the disruption yesterday?"
Little? He wasn't little! Anger seeped inside of Obi-Wan, but he caught himself before he let it make him do anything rash. Obi-Wan calmed himself and adopted the Derida brother's philosophy again. Weutta wasn't one to talk about calling someone little. Most of the guards towered over him by half a foot. Obi-Wan tried but he couldn't suppress a smile. Weutta scowled.
"What's so amusing rebel?" Weutta asked in a dangerous tone.
Obi-Wan didn't respond and hid his smile. Weutta struck him across the face and Obi-Wan staggered. 'So maybe now wasn't the time to joke after all.' He thought painfully.
The security forces forced Obi-Wan through a retinal scan and compared them to Guard K23M9's. The words NO MATCH came up on the screen, but nothing else.
"So we have no record of you, rebel." Weutta said derisively.
Suddenly Weutta got so close in front of Obi-Wan that he could smell his horrid breath. Obi-Wan tried to keep himself from flinching from the vile smell.
"Who are you working with? I knew it wasn't just you who gave us trouble at headquarters yesterday." Weutta growled, glaring at Obi-Wan.
Obi-Wan said nothing.
"Who are your contacts?" Weutta asked dangerously.
Again, Obi-Wan didn't answer. Weutta nodded to a guard and he shoved his elbow into Obi-Wan's gut. Obi-Wan let out a gasp of air, but did not fall to the ground.
"Why have you come to Phindar? What happened to Guard K23M9?" Weutta asked again.
Obi-Wan didn't answer and got a light jab in his left side with a force pike in punishment. Obi-Wan fell to his knees. Obi-Wan didn't cry out but his side was on fire and his head was spinning. He had felt much worse on Bandomeer, but it was still painful.
"I'll take him to Baftu. We're on High Security. He wants to see all rebels." Weutta said.
Two guards pulled Obi-Wan from the ground in a less than cordial way. Weakened from the force pike Obi-Wan could barely stand. Weutta roughly pushed Obi-Wan all the way down a long corridor that he assumed led to Baftu. When they reached a massive and ornately carved door Weutta pushed Obi-Wan to the ground. As Obi-Wan tried to get back up Weutta stepped on his back, preventing him from doing so.
"Wait here slug," Weutta growled. "And don't look up."
Obi-Wan obeyed, but moved his eyes so he could see Weutta better.
Obi-Wan watched with interest as Weutta quaked under Baftu's temper. It would have been quite funny except he was lying on the floor and he still felt weak from the force pike. After a threat from Baftu that involved impaling and an electro-jabber Weutta ran out the far doors.
"Baftu! I'm not finished!" A female voice roared. Obi-Wan knew it was Terra.
Obi-Wan could see the annoyance on Baftu's face as he turned back to his female companion.
The door was left ajar and if Obi-Wan strained his ears and sharpened his senses with the Force enough he could hear their heated debate. They argued about an alliance with Prince Beju and whether he was trustworthy or not. Terra believed the Phindian people were on the brink of revolt, but Baftu laughed it off.
"This is not a joke Baftu!" Terra screamed furiously.
"Ah, you're getting soft, pretty Terra." Baftu purred. "But if the state of things on Phindar worries you, then why don't you handle it? You can appease the people with some extra food this week. Not a bad idea, since Beju is coming. It will distract them. Just don't give them any Bacta-- I've promised it all to Beju."
"I do not trust the Prince--" Terra started.
"As you have said over and over again." Baftu interrupted, his voice calm. " I will handle the meeting. You handle Phindar. Now I have work to do."
"What about the rebel?" Terra asked, struggling to contain her annoyance.
"You handle it. Phindar is your responsibility now, remember?"
Obi-Wan heard an exasperated sigh and the soft clicking of a door. He felt the nudge of a boot against his shoulder and dread filled him.
"Head up, rebel." Terra said dispassionately.
Obi-Wan obeyed and looked into the eyes of Paxxi and Guerra's sister. They were so alike yet unalike. Where he saw friendliness and loyalty in their eyes he saw anger and cruelty in hers. Obi-Wan shivered. She had been renewed...
"Who are you?" Terra asked impatiently.
"A friend." Obi-Wan answered.
Terra rolled her eyes and snorted.
"Not to me. You impersonated a guard. You know the penalty."
Obi-Wan flinched as he heard those words for the second time this night.
"Well, perhaps you do not. Perhaps your Phindian friend did not tell you. You will be renewed and transported off planet." Terra said scornfully.
Obi-Wan froze. No... Not renewed. He couldn't have everything he had ever done erased like it never existed! His life as a Jedi was just beginning. Qui-Gon had accepted him! They couldn't take that away! It was his destiny to be a great Jedi. Renewed? No... It couldn't be! 'You know the penalty.' No! He would rather not know. Obi-Wan was ready to accept torture. What was bodily pain next to nothingness? That is what scared him the most. Nothingness.