The Dark Rival(12)

The guard suddenly produced an electro-jabber. He raised it against Xanatos as Obi-Wan raced to stop him.

Obi-Wan deflected the move with his lightsaber, but the electro-jabber dealt a glancing blow against his ribs. Blinding pain shot through his body. He reached out for the Force dizzily, but someone smashed him from behind. His vision turned gray and fuzzy, and he sank to his knees.

The last think he remembered was hitting the floor.





Chapter 9


Now Qui-Gon could see his mistakes. He had been blind to Xanatos’ faults. He indulged the boy. He gave without seeing. He was a failure as a Master, because he trusted his apprentice too much. He let his fondness blind him to what he should have seen all along.

After some reflection, Qui-Gon decided to ask SonTag and VeerTa if they had seen a box like the one Obi-Wan described. They had both visited the Agri-Corps Enrichment Zones many times. Perhaps there was a simple explanation for what Obi-Wan had found.

Qui-Gon described the box, and VeerTa nodded. “I’ve seen a box like that.”

“So have I,” SonTag agreed, thinking. “In the Western Enrichment zone. I was there just recently.”

“I think I saw one in the Northern Zone,” VeerTa added. “It was with the other equipment. I’m sure it contains Agri-Corps instrument.”

It was exactly the response Qui-Gon had been hoping for. The box must not be significant. In the other zones, it had been in plain view.

So why was he worried?

Maybe because it had been placed with Offworld mining equipment. Obi-Wan couldn’t have been wrong about that.

Back in his quarters, he jacked into his data pad to investigate Offworld. He was curious about what position Xanatos held. His former apprentice had been uncharacteristically silent on that subject. If he was a high official, wouldn’t he have boasted of his title?

Qui-Gon searched Offworld company records. He could fin no mention of the name Xanatos. Which meant what? Either Xanatos had been lying about his involvement, or his position was a secret within his own company. But why?

Qui-Gon clicked a few more keys. The head of the company was anonymous, but a board of directors was listed. Qui-Gon recognized most of the names, rulers of worlds that were virtually controlled by Offworld. Figureheads.

There were no answers … yet. But he had an idea where to look for them.

It was time to pay a visit to Offworld Headquarters.

Offworld did not try to beautify their Bandomeer office. The building, a black, windowless block, echoed the grim mines that surrounded it.

Qui-Gon entered the center hall with its azurite-studded walls. The mineral was its only decoration. A Hutt security guard sat behind a black cube that served as a desk. His body rolled past the confines of the desk. He turned flat, dead eyes toward Qui-Gon.

“I have come to see Xanatos,” Qui-Gon said.

“Move, wretch,” the Hutt replied, bored. “Take your petty complaints to you immediate supervisor. There’s no one here anyway. Xanatos is on an exploration trip to the northern mine quadrant.” The Hutt reached for a blaster. So much for corporate hospitality.

Qui-Gon didn’t move a muscle. He concentrated on the Hutt’s greasy mind, pulling in energy from the Force.

“Perhaps I should wait in his private office,” he said.

“You should wait in his private office.” The Hutt repeated tonelessly. “Take the restricted tube to Horizontal Thirty.”

“Security controls should be lifted,” Qui-Gon said.

“All security controls shall be lifted.”

Qui-Gon entered the tube marked RESTRICTED. There was only one indicator light, for Horizontal Thirty. The lift tube reached the floor in seconds. He stepped off into a reception area. The chairs were made of stone. The cubelike desk was empty. He could see no door to another room, just a blank, empty wall.

A blank wall …

He placed a hand against the wall. When he took it away, he saw a brief flicker of transparency.

Obi-Wan’s description togged at Qui-Gon’s memory. He’d read about the technological advances on Telos, the home planter of Xanatos. Recently they had been able to cover transparisteel with a special coating the rendered it opaque.

When a thermoelectrical was generated, the wall returned to normal transparency.

He pressed his whole body against the wall and it turned transparent. He could see the inner office. Still, where was the door?

Qui-Gon drew the Force in and Felt it move within him like a cresting wave. The entire wall became transparent. The hidden door swung open. As soon as he was inside, the wall was once more opaque.

It was a clever system, Qui-Gon thought, walking toward the enormous stone desk.

Xanatos could control the transparency from the reception area. He would be able to see inside the office before he entered. If someone managed to slip past security checks, the intruder would be unable to hide in the office.