Obi-Wan had to agree that he was following the slenderest of threads.
He tried to call Qui-Gon, reaching out to the Force. He felt nothing. He touched the stone inside his tunic and felt its reassuring warmth. He could not shake the feeling that every step he took brought him closer to his Master.
It did not take them long to discover the names of Ren's associates on Simpla-12. On a world such as this, information could be bought for a few credits. Ren's associates-Cholly, Weez, and Tup-could be found at the 12 Tavern.
They were directed down an even narrower, dirtier lane. The metal ties that formed the walkway were completely covered in mud and garbage.
Ahead a sign with the number 12 roughly painted in red swung in the drizzling rain.
They were almost to the building when suddenly a body came flying out of the tavern's front door. With a thump, the body landed face first in the street, sending mud flying. A second body followed, landing with a squeal and a curse.
The first body stirred. "Weez! That's my foot!" Astri started forward. Obi-Wan put a hand on her arm. "I think we'd better wait."
A third body flew through the air, landing a short distance from the other two.
"Don't be so touchy!" the third being yelled back at the tavern.
A huge Devaronian stepped out onto the front porch of the tavern.
Quickly, the three beings scampered backward on their hands and knees. Obi- Wan could not tell their species, but they were all humanoid.
"And don't come back again!" the Devaronian boomed. He turned and thumped back into the tavern. The door slammed shut behind him.
"That was your fault, Tup," the first being said. He was the tallest of the three, with hair that straggled down his back.
"Was not," Tup said, wiping mud off his round face. "Gibbertz and ham, who knew he had no sense of humor?"
The one called Weez wiped mud out of his eyes. "Most beings don't like having their mothers called Kowakian monkey lizards."
"I thought his mother was a Kowakian monkey lizard," Tup said.
The first being, who Obi-Wan assumed was Cholly, stood and tried to wipe the mud off his face with the end of his tunic. He only succeeded in grinding more mud on. "What are we going to do now? We've been thrown out of every tavern in Sim-First."
Obi-Wan walked forward. "Maybe a few credits would get you back inside one of them."
Tup puffed out childish plump cheeks and blew out a short, explosive breath. "Woosh. Great idea, stranger. Thanks for the tip. Only, guess what?
We don't have any credits."
"Maybe there's a way you can earn some," Astri said.
"You have work?" Weez asked. He stood next to Cholly. He was a few inches shorter. "Sorry. We have a back injury."
"I can see why, if you keep getting thrown out of places," Astri said.
"The galaxy," Cholly said sadly, "conspires against us."
Tup struggled to his feet. "We are merely victims of its violent tendencies."
"Innocents must suffer," Weez sighed. "Such is fate."
The three stood next to one another. Covered in mud, they were like three descending steps. This ridiculous trio was his best lead to Qui-Gon?
Patience, young Padawan. Suspend your judgment, and every being has something to teach you.
Obi-Wan sighed. "We're not offering you a job. We want information and we're willing to pay for it."
Cholly attempted to look shrewd. "What kind of information? We don't squeal on friends."
"Unless they get on our nerves," Weez said quickly.
"This friend is dead," Obi-Wan said.
"In that case, let's see the credits," Cholly said, as Weez and Tup looked more cheerful. Astri held out a few credits.
"That's all?" Tup asked in dismay.
"We haven't heard anything worth paying for yet," Obi-Wan pointed out.
"What do you want to know?" Cholly asked. He reached out for the credits, but Astri closed her fist before Cholly could grab the currency.
"It's about Ren S'orn," Obi-Wan said. "Can you tell us about his last days?"
At the name, the three friends traded sad glances.
"Ren." Tup took a deep breath, then let out a long, drawn-out sigh.
"Poor Ren. He told us about this offer he got. He was going to get paid a lot of credits. We're always talking about the big score. Something to get us out of here. Ren said he found it."
"Did he say what it was?" Astri asked.
"He was going to be part of this big experiment," Weez said. "Some scientist thought his brain was really special or something. Wanted to study him. Ren said he'd do it for awhile, but she was going to end up paying bigger than she thought."
"Obviously, Ren ended up paying bigger than he'd thought," Cholly said. The three friends bowed their heads.
"Did he tell you where the lab was?" Obi-Wan asked.
The three of them shook their heads. "When he got back, he wouldn't say."
"What was he like when he came back?" Astri asked.
"Different," Tup said.
"Weak," Weez said. "He shook all the time." "He was scared," Cholly said flatly.
"And then he was killed," Tup said. "Woosh. It was sad."
Again, the three bowed their heads.
"Why was he scared?" Astri demanded. "Don't know. He wouldn't say."
"Maybe Tino would know," Weez said.
"Who's Tino?" Obi-Wan asked. Asking this trio questions was like pulling the fur off a Wookiee one hair at a time.