Obi-Wan almost groaned aloud.
” - Vista wasn’t there, and so Bog accessed his datapad. He thought as a fellow Council member he could do this - ” Her hand to her throat, Astri got the words out fast, between her panting breaths. ” - and discovered that the Podrace is not only fixed, but booby-trapped. The nav computer will lead the Podracers close to the city’s hub. The lead Podracer will get taken over by the nav computer. It will be made to crash into the crowd! We don’t know if Vista himself is aware of this, it could have been sent to his dataport without his knowing. We cannot believe that Maxo Vista would be involved. Bog replaced the datapad and told me what he’d seen. He is going to tell Liviani Sarno. But I came to you.”
“Does Vista know about this?” Anakin is in danger. Obi-Wan reached for his comlink as he asked the question.
“I didn’t. But now I do.” Vista’s voice came from behind him. He smiled as Obi-Wan turned. “I promise you, I can explain everything. This way, Obi-Wan.”
Obi-Wan hesitated.
“Trust me.” Maxo Vista had a blaster pointed at Astri, but the friendly grin was still on his face. Astri could not see the blaster, which was on his other side.
“This way,” he repeated meaningfully to Obi-Wan.
Obi-Wan stepped inside. He would follow Maxo Vista’s instructions, but only for a few seconds. He had to make sure Vista would not hit anyone with blaster fire.
The floor moved under his feet. He realized that he had not stepped out into the VIP box, but onto a moving podium. It suddenly zoomed to the center of the stadium. Vista’s hand dropped and the blaster was lost in the folds of his cloak.
“It is a long-range model, and it is still pointed at Astri,” he said pleasantly.
Obi-Wan tried to signal Astri to move, but she stood watching him from afar, not knowing the blaster was pointed at her. He could reach for his lightsaber, but he wasn’t sure if even he could be fast enough to block the shot.
Light suddenly hit his eyes, dazzling him for a moment. “Welcome to the exhibition match!” Maxo Vista’s voice was amplified throughout the stadium. “Jedi against athlete! Let the event begin!”
The crowd roared. A cube of white light settled over Obi-Wan. Another flashed over Maxo Vista. A holo - graphic image of a treton, a wild creature from the planet Aesolian, appeared in front of them. On the tip of one pointed ear a green laser glowed. His snarl was amplified and echoed through the stadium. There was a collective 00000hh of fear. Even though the spectators knew the treton was holographic, its fierce battle cry struck terror into their hearts.
An announcer’s steady voice boomed over the stadium. “Ten seconds. Contestants, prepare….”
Obi-Wan reached for his comlink to contact Anakin, but it was dead. Now he remembered that in the stadium center a jamming device was employed so that no contestants could use hidden devices to aid them in their events. Maxo Vista had trapped him, no doubt in order to buy time.
Obi-Wan judged the distance back to the stadium. It was too far. The podium was too high for even a cable launcher. He would have to wait. He was now officially in the obstacle course, and subject to its rules. He was trapped. And Anakin was just about to begin the Podrace.
“Welcome to my world, Obi-Wan Kenobi,” Maxo Vista whispered. “I had a feeling the Jedi would show up, so I’ve been planning this. Sorry it had to be this way, but at least you’ll have some fun before you die.”
“Five seconds, contestants…”
A lightweight weapon emerged out of the platform floor in front of Obi-Wan. He grabbed it. At the tip was a green laser. Obi-Wan guessed that in order to score points, he would have to hit the laser on the hologram with the laser tip of his weapon. He wished he had seen a holographic obstacle course before. He had no idea what was in store.
“Yes, Obi-Wan. Something will go wrong and you will die in this stadium. You won’t know when it will come, or how to fight it.” Maxo Vista smiled. “May the best man win. Which means me, of course.”
“Begin!” the announcer said.
The treton rushed forward. Maxo Vista was prepared. He charged ahead and slashed at the Treton even as it zoomed upward and around in a crazy evasive dance that no bulky treton would ever accomplish. Vista hit the creature precisely on the ear and a loud joyful clang clang! resounded through the stadium.
“Point, Vista,” the voice announced. The stadium erupted in cheers for the favorite.
Obi-Wan’s laser tip now glowed pink. The edge of the platform elongated into a ramp that rose almost straight upward. Vista began to bound ahead.
After a second of hesitation, Obi-Wan followed. He had no choice. He would have to hope that somewhere in the course he would be able to break free.