How like Xanatos. Concealing and revealing. He’d forgotten how clever his apprentice was about secrets. He would reveal something, leading you to think he had told you everything. But what he revealed was always trifle. He kept the most important secrets under his control.
The only piece of furniture in the office was the stone desk. Qui-Gon pressed a button, and a data pad rose from the top of it. He accessed the filing system.
Just as he suspected, it was holographic.
The files rose before him. He flipped through the directory. There was a file on the Home Planet Mine, and he accessed it. It wasn’t very helpful, just a list of money and droids that had been loaned after the explosion. He closed it.
Then he saw a file directory with no name. An icon hovered where the label should have been. Two broken golden circles that overlapped. Qui-Gon’s heard beat faster. The two broken circles could be read as letters, too. O and C.
Offworld Corporation.
Qui-Gon accessed the directory, but a warning red light pulsed.
“Password, please,” a voice said.
Qui-Gon hesitated. Knowing Xanatos, he had only one chance to get it right.
And if he didn’t, Xanatos had surely rigged the hologram to alert him that someone had tried to break in.
It was a risk. But he had to take it.
“Crion,” he said, using Xanatos’ father’s name.
The directory flipped open. He scanned the list of files. To his dismay, they were all written in code. He would never have time to break it. And if he removed a file, Xanatos would know he’d been there.
But he’d gotten what he’d come for, anyway. Qui-Gon closed the filing system thoughtfully. Two broken circles had formed the initials of Offworld Corporation. Perhaps others would see that as a coincidence. But he knew that nothing was casual to Xanatos. Qui-Gon’s instinct told him that he had found the person who controlled Offworld. Perhaps Xanatos had even founded it. But why would he keep it secret? So he could maneuver more easily, Qui-Gon guessed.
Xanatos had always preferred stealth and trickery to achieve his ends. The question was : what was Xanatos after?
Chapter 10
Qui-Gon was sure Xanatos was ready. He had spent years with the boy, watching him become a man. His mastery of the lightsaber was unsurpassed in his class.
His ability to focus on the Force matched his Master’s. He passed the preliminary tests with a near-perfect score. Qui-Gon was ready to welcome him as a Jedi Knight. It was a proud moment.
But Yoda was not so sure. Yoda said there would be one last test.
The holographic picture of Yoda rose before Qui-Gon. The transmission was clear. His heavy-lidded eyes blinked slowly, making him appear bored, but his long ears twitched. Qui-Gon had come to recognize the sign of the Master registering surprise.
“So Xanatos could be planning a great evil, you say,” Yoda said. “That you have discovered this is good, Qui-Gon. Yet time to react, it is not.”
“Bit I suspect he might be planning to take over Bandomeer,” Qui-Gon protested.
“This planet has no resources to fight. It must be prevented before it happens.”
“But safety id your concern, is it not? Demand that you move slowly, that does.
Proof of a plan you do not have,” Yoda pointed out. “Read the files, you could not.”
“I can read him. Xanatos.”
“Ah, so certain, are you? Certain you always were about him.”
Qui-Gon fell silent. In his quiet way, the Master had rebuked him. Yes, he had been certain about Xanatos. He had defended him against every gentle warning Yoda had given.
“You have pushed aside your past for too long, Qui-Gon,” Yoda said, after a pause. “Running from it, you are. Yet you can run a little longer before you turn and fight.”
“If you say, Master.” Qui-Gon tried to hide his impatience. He struggled to consider Yoda’s wisdom. It was never wise to dismiss his advice.
“Use Xanatos’ tactics against him, you must,” Yoda offered. “He plays with you.
Play along for now, you will. Give him room to make a mistake. Slip he will.
The trick is to wait for it.”
“Yes,” Qui-Gon said. “I see a path now.” He began to sign off, but Yoda held up his hand.
“One last thin I have,” he said. “A question, it is. Why do you leave Obi-Wan in the dark, Qui-Gon? He knows not of this, I think. Yet he is on the same trail you are on, in a different place.”
“That’s true,” Qui-Gon admitted. “But there is no need for him to know yet. It places him at risk. I’m keeping him out of danger.”
“The apprentice accepts the danger when the Master accepts the apprentice,” Yoda replied.
“You forget,” Qui-Gon said coolly. “I did not accept Obi-Wan. He is not my apprentice. We are on a planet together. There is a difference.”