[Jedi Quest] - 02(13)

Obi-Wan dropped to his knees. Floria looked down at him asthough he were crazy.

“Is he afraid?” she whispered to Anakin. “I don’t blamehim! Let’s take off!”

“Wait.” Anakin watched Obi-Wan. He knew now that thedarkness was inside the ship, not outside it.

“I found it.” Obi-Wan’s voice was muffled, and Anakin hasto strain to hear over the sound of the blaster fire.

Obi-Wan raise his head , then stood. He held a black box inhis hand, “A sleeper bomb. If we had taken off, we wouldhave been blown out of the sky.”





Chapter Eight


Floria looked as though she might faint. “A bomb? Can youd-defuse it?”

“I’m afraid not,” Obi-Wan said. “It could go off at anytime. So lets go.”

“The comlinks -” Anakin said.

“No time. Go!” Obi-Wan ordered, leaning forward to accessthe landing ramp.

Floria was already out of her chair and running to the exit.Obi-Wan pushed Anakin ahead of him and they hurried afterher, leaving the bomb behind.

As they raced down the ramp, Obi-Wan caught a glimpse of afigure dressed in black at the cargo door. He was trying tosneak aboard.

Floria screamed, and the bomb went off. Obi-Wan was blownoff his feet. The figure in black went flying as well.Smoke rolled over them. Obi-Wan raised his head, trying tosee. Coughing against the acrid smoke in his mouth, hestruggled to his knees.

Obi-Wan peered through the rolling smoke to make sure Anakinand Floria were all right. Anakin was already standing andbending down to help a coughing Floria to rise.

“Anakin, check the area!” Obi-Wan shouted as he headed forthe figure in black.

The figure rose shakily. Stumbling and falling, heattempted to run away. Obi-Wan raced towards him.

He had almost reached him when he felt something heavy landon his back. Hands covered his eyes. Hair brushed againsthis face.

Obi-Wan tried to twist away. “Floria?”

Suddenly the slender young girl had the moves of anassassin. She used a variety of intricate holds to slowdown Obi-Wan while he struggled to move toward the figure inblack. He tried to shake her off, but he didn’t want toharm her.

Hands covered his eyes, and he carefully pried them off.

“I don’t want to hurt you… .” he said.

She didn’t answer, just wound one leg around his, trying totrip him, while she grabbed his ear.

“That’s enough.” Obi-Wan grabbed her wrists and expertlyflipped her over and down onto the ground. Her breath lefther as she landed hard.

The figure in black hesitated. It was easy for Obi-Wan tostride forward and grab him by the scruff of the neck.

“All right, you two. What’s going on?” he asked sternly.

Anakin ran back to him. “The blaster fire and explosionswere set off by timed devices.” He looked at Floria, whogazed up at Obi-Wan furiously from the ground. Then helooked at the squirming figure in Obi-Wan’s grip. “What’sgoing on?”

“That’s what I’d like to know.” Obi-Wan the back thefigure’s black hood. Close-cropped blond hair and wide eyesthe same brilliant blue as Floria’s met his. The boy wasonly a few years older than Floria.

Obi-Wan looked back Floria. “Your brother, I presume.”

The boy shot Floria a look clearly intended to keep hersilent. Obi-Wan sighed. “Anakin check his pack.”

Anakin picked up a small pack the boy had worm on his back.He opened it and went through it. “Just some basic survivalgear. A tarp and some rations.”

Obi-Wan gave the boy a little shake. “I’m losing patience.”

“Dane, we’ve been double-crossed,” Floria said, risinggingerly and rubbing her elbow. “Why shouldn’t we tellthem? I’m getting a bad feeling about this planet. Therewas a sleeper bomb aboard that ship! That’s totally againstthe rules!”

Dane said nothing.

“What rules?” Anakin asked.

“Now we’re stuck here with the Jedi with no way to get offthe planet,” Floria continued. “we destroyed that ship fornothing. You and you’re big ideas!”

“You destroyed your own ship?” Anakin asked in disbelief.

“Cooperation doesn’t seem like such a bad idea, consideringthe circumstances,” Floria said, still speaking to herbrother.

Dane shrugged. “So things didn’t work out. They couldhave.”

“But they didn’t,” Floria said.

“But they could have,” Dane shoot back.

“Who are you two?” Obi-Wan asked angrily, his patienceexhausted.

“Bounty hunter,” Floria said.

Anakin and Obi-Wan exchanged an incredulous look. These twoyoung people, bounty hunters?

“Who are you hunting?” Anakin asked.