Wow, hey guys as I said before I want to write and update but I am busy till my college stuff is in! But hope you enjoy! Thanks for sticking with me! Reviews are appreciated they also encourage me to update more frequently;P


CH 11

"What is it?" Obi Wan said answering his holo. The scowling visage of Maul appeared.

"Kenobi I require your," he paused as if hesitant to continue.

Obi Wan raised an eyebrow. This was good, very good Maul had thought to call him. Now for some tormenting, "Yes?"

"I, master, wants, needs," Maul corrected himself, "Us to assassinate Andel Hek."

"Really? I've never received such instructions." So Maul wanted to play it like this. Well Obi Wan was no fool and he sure as hell wasn't about to go on doing favors and planting trees of friendship while dancing through a happy field of flowers. Maul would pay him back in full and with interest, he was already hesitant. Maul hated keeping debts and of course such a weakness couldn't be left for Xanatos to exploit. Oh wait Xanatos was to Kriffin boneheaded for things like that.

"Kenobi, I'm not playing games" he snapped, "If this is not done master will be most displeased."

So Xanatos convinced Sideous that Maul had already outgrown his usefulness had he? What was his angle? Did Lord Sideous purposefully give this mission to Maul for him to fail or did he simply not know where the man was? Or did he assume Obi Wan would simply take care of it. Or was this all part of Xanatos's way of finding out whose side he was on? Well, all things considered if Maul wanted his help he would have to grovel and squirm little.

"Who will he be displeased with Maul? Me or maybe you? After all from what I understand our Master gave you an extremely important task. How could you possibly allow someone other than yourself to do it?"

"Enough of your nonsense every moment is closer to sunrise."

So a time limit? Interesting. "You owe me two then, agreed?"

Maul's eyes narrowed in displeasure. "Fine," he fumed.

"Fine what?" Obi Wan smirked.

Maul grimaced, "Damn you Kenobi, fine I owe you two." Obi wan could almost feel Maul's hate in the force even light years away.

"Now that we have made a deal like civilized men who is this Andel Hek?"

Maul relaxed. "He is head of the Naboo intergalactic negotiations, it is a great surprise you do not know him he practically owns the Cartell on Naboo's star system."

"And his current location?"

"Is in his own office in the Naboo palace," Maul finished.

"It will be done," Obi Wan smirked as he close the channel. Now would be the perfect time to see how truly ignorant of the force the Jedi were. An assassination by a dark lord right under their noses this was too good.


It was two in the morning on Naboo, or still night to be more precise. Master Windu was roused from his meditation by a familiar force signature.

"Come in."

Qui Gon Jinn entered. He had wasted no time in demanding an explanation. Mace motioned for him to sit on a meditating cushion across from his own.

Both men faced off. The mountain and the wind. The mountain caved in first.

Mace sighed, "What exactly it is you want to know Qui Gon?"

"Everything," Qui Gon demanded. "Deception is not the way off the Jedi, what happened on Bandomeer?"

Mace wasn't one who liked dancing around the bush, he frowned. "I suppose there is no harm in talking, since it was never very secret to begin with. All you had to do was pull up the archives."

Mace ran his hand over his scalp waiting for a retort from the maverick but Qui Gon remained silent.

"As you know force users who do not receive a master are sent to the Agri Corps until they come of age. Then they are given a free ride to any destination of their choosing. However, occasionally things happen, such as epidemics, most force users are more resistant to such things especially with the medicine we have today but even we and docters are not infallible. This particular epidemic that occurred on Bandomeer targeted force users. The reports showed that they fell like dracoflies. Many did not survive. The name Ben was among them. That was the name Kenobi had chosen on leaving the order and apparently so did a few others. However, when I received the reports I believed it was he who died since on the passcard was Kenobi's lifeday and his picture. Perhaps with all the deaths our representatives on Bandomeer didn't have enough time to confirm which Ben it was.

Qui Gon rose and leaned against the wall next to a painting of a forest which must have cost a fortune. "Have you ever thought that the Agri Corps might be a mistake on our part?"

The question rang true in the force. "Perhaps, however we simply do not have enough masters for such a task.

"Have you ever wondered why," mused Qui Gon, "Perhaps if one year we let Masters take on two students this would double the amount of students we could train in ten years and so forth."

This philosophical argument though rare in the Jedi temple amongst Jedi Masters was only too common among the Jedi council who were constantly looking for ways to train more Knights over the ultimatum which was the Agri Corps.

If Qui Gon thought he would somehow come out victor in the argument well Mace would demonstrate to his wayward friend why it was he who sat on the council.

"You forget an important factor Qui Gon, rivalry. If per say a master took on two apprentices then if they were both male and even different genders they would eventually begin to compete for their master's approval. When one would be praised the other would feel neglected and when one would be reprimanded the other would feel all the more superior. This would lead to anger and hate which is a direct path to the dark side If however they were different genders then eventually a strong bond would most likely form which would lead to attachment and love and eventually the dark side."

"Yes but doesn't a bond make us stronger? After all love and compassion are not that far from each other and isn't compassion required of every Jedi? Are these not both one and the same? If one does not love people why would he feel the need to protect them? After all if one distances themselves from feeling then to them a human being would be no more than a droid carrying out its programing."

Ah the famous Qui Gon question. Mace steeled himself for a decisive Dooku Makashi strike, "Perhaps compassion in essence is a bond, however compassion is not love it is pity for those weaker then ourselves, to be compassionate is the way of the force. Love however is a deeper bond one which we as living beings feel all too well as much as we would like to reject it. Not everyone can deal with the loss of a loved one properly. There have been cases centuries ago where Jedi who lost loved ones tried to resurrect them with dark rituals. This is what led to the banning of love for Jedi. We come to protect love and peace in the galaxy yet we have no right to partake in it fully. That is in essence the greatest sacrifice of the Jedi."

"Yes but should the errors of few punish the rest?"

Mace sighed, "It is late Qui Gon perhaps we will continue another time." If he didn't end the conversation now they would be going at it till dawn and he needed his daily meditations it was his order of things his necessity. After all order was one of the only things he truly had.

Qui Gon rose and left to check on Anakin. Mace sighed, was the Jedi temple right in its treatment of those force users who had no master? Or would this somehow backfire on the order as one big joke of the force, one day, which would be laughing at and not with them. He closed his eyes; perhaps the force would provide answers and guide him.