Jemba gave a roar of anger and launched himself at Clat’Ha. He hit the door frame, which began to crack and splinter under the pressure. Si Treemba, terrified, hissed and pressed himself against the wall. Obi-Wan watched in fascination. The Hutt could bring down the entire sickbay!
Clat’Ha drew her blaster, but Qui-Gon stepped in front of her and raised his hand. He locked eyes with the Hutt. Obi-Wan felt the power of the Force fill the room.
“Enough,” Qui-Gon said quietly.
Jemba stopped pushing to get inside the room. The Hutt knew he could not get to Clat’Ha. Qui-Gon glanced at Clat’Ha. Slowly, she lowered the blaster and returned it to the holding device on her leg. Obi-Wan had to admire Qui-Gon’s skill. He felt a pang of regret. There was so much he wished he could learn from the Jedi.
“Now,” Qui-Gon said in a reasonable tone, “let us review the situation. The machines were sabotaged. Yet both of you insist you did not do it. There is nowhere to take this except open warfare.” Qui-Gon looked at each of them in turn. “And that is something that neither of you wish for, I’m sure.”
“Jedi,” Jemba said, “you think yourself to be a fair man. But when Hutts and Humans argue, even the fairest of men join sides against my kind.” The Hutt’s voice boomed in a tone of pure venom. “If it is war that she wants, then war will come. And if you take her side, I swear, I will squash you like a pta fruit! Your Jedi status does not protect you!”
Menace hung thick in the air. It was clear that the Hutt meant everything he said. He was willing to kill anyone who stood against him. Obi-Wan had never encountered a creature of such malice.
It would be so easy to solve the situation, Obi-Wan thought. The Hutt was vulnerable, trapped in the small hallway outside the sickbay. Qui-Gon could draw his lightsaber, lunge forward, and slice the Hutt in half.
But Qui-Gon merely nodded his head graciously. “Thank you for the warning,” he said simply.
Of course, Obi-Wan realized. The warning is a gift.
Jemba nodded as if satisfied, then slithered down the hall. Clat’Ha let out a long breath.
“Well, that went well,” she muttered. She hurried to the door. “I have to warn my people. If this isn’t war, it’s something close to it.” Clat’Ha raced out.
Qui-Gon shook his head sadly. “There is a strong hatred between those two. Neither of them will listen.”
“I don’t understand,” Obi-Wan said. “Why did you let the Hutt go? He may be innocent of the crime of which he has been accused. But I’m sure he’s guilty of others.”
“Yes, he’s guilty,” Qui-Gon agreed. “But Clat’Ha can defend herself. As Jedi, we are bound only to defend those who have no other means of defense.”
“Still, one of Jemba’s crew has to have sabotaged those tunnelers. Why doesn’t he try to find out who did it?” Obi-Wan asked.
Qui-Gon answered, “Because if one of Jemba’s men did do it, it will make him look bad before the miners’ guild. He might be ordered off Bandomeer permanently. He knows that, so he won’t point any fingers at his own.”
“Ah,” Si Treemba said. “And Clat’Ha must feel the same. If anyone learned that one of her workers tried to frame Jemba, the miners’ guild would be furious.”
“But it shouldn’t be to hard to find out who really sabotaged the tunnelers,” Obi-Wan pointed out excitedly.
Qui-Gon cocked an eyebrow. “This is not your affair,” he warned. “If you went looking for those thermocoms, all you would find is trouble. You must stay out of it. And stay away from the Offworld side of the ship. You’re not fully recovered yet, Obi-Wan.”
With that, Qui-Gon turned and strode from the room. Obi-Wan waited for a few seconds. Then he carefully got up from bed.
“But the Jedi said you’re not recovered!” Si Treemba cried in concern.
“Si Treemba,” Obi-Wan said slowly, “how big are those thermocoms?”
“Not big.” Si Treemba held his hands up eight centimeters apart. “Not hard to conceal.”
“If we find those thermocoms, then we’ll know who did it,” Obi-Wan asseted.
“That’s true Obi-Wan,” Si Treemba agreed. Then he stopped and made the same odd hissing sound again. “We are sorry. But when you say ‘we’ —“
“I mean you and me,” Obi-Wan said.
“Ah,” Si Treemba said. His greenish skin seemed to pale. “We would have to go to the Offworld side of the ship.”
“I know,” Obi-Wan said quietly. He knew the risk. And qui-Gon had ordered him not to. But he was not Qui-Gon’s apprentice. He was not honor-bound to obey him.
No doubt Qui-Gon thought him unworthy of the task ahead. But Qui-Gon’s hesitation paled next to the Jedi principles. Justice must be sought out.
“Si Treemba, Clat’Ha has great courage,” Obi-Wan explained. “But Jemba has power on his side. He is ruthless as well as cunning, and he will stop at nothing. Therefore, he has to be stopped. It’s as simple — and as difficult — as that. I understand if you don’t wish to help. Truly. We will still be friends.”
Si Treemba swallowed. “We will follow you, Obi-Wan,” he said.
Chapter 9
Obi-Wan’s sense of purpose made him feel strong again. He and Si Treemba decided search the Arconan half of the Monument. It made sense to eliminate the easiest task first.
Obi-Wan and Si Treemba were able to search the kitchens, storage rooms, exercise rooms, and lounges without looking suspicious. Obi-Wan even had Si Treemba lower him down the garbage chutes. They found no dign of the missing thermocoms.
“We have to search the cabins, Si Treemba,” Obi-Wan said, picking a stray piece of garbage from his hair. He sighed. Over four hundred Arconan miners were in those cabins. He couldn’t imagine that they would let him just search their rooms.
“That will be no problem, Obi-Wan,” Si Treemba replied.
Obi-Wan had forgotten how Arconans think. They had no word for me or mine. So Si Treemba wandered from cabin to cabin, searching each bunk and storage compartment. A dozen times, Arconans asked, “What are we doing?”
Each time, Si Treemba answered, “We are looking for something that was lost.”
To which the Arconan would ask, “May we help find it?”
And Si Treemba would merely answer, “We need no assistance.” The Si Treemba and Obi-Wan would search the room and leave.
But not all the workers for Arcona Mineral Harvest were Arconan. Some were short, silver-haired Meerians returning to Bandomeer, some Human. Obi-Wan had to treat these carefully. More than once he found himself using the Force to convince some burly miner to let him search.