RonTha led the way into the dome. The vast, enclosed place was lit by an artificial sun, actually an illuminated bank set high in the dome. Outside the dome was a vast brown wasteland, but here they were surrounded by rustling grain and grasses. Around them gardeners hurried to and fro, their arms filled with flats of baby plants, or seed dishes.
Dazzled by the light and heat, Obi-Wan and Si Treemba trailed after RonTha as he listed the many agricultural experiments taking place.
"With all this talk of food, we're getting hungry," Si Treemba whispered to Obi-Wan.
"We sure are," Obi-Wan agreed. He swallowed as he glimpsed a grove a trees ahead. Large, golden fruit hung from many branches, close enough to pick.
A tiny monitor on RonTha's belt began to glow. He switched it off. "I'm being called to the administration building," he told them. "You're free to wander about, if you wish. Just don't go off the path. And don't touch anything!" RonTha hurried off.
Obi-Wan eyes the fruit. "Do you think when he said don't touch anything, he meant fruit?" he asked Si Treemba.
Si Treemba's triangular head bobbed nervously. "Hard to say."
"Probably not." Obi-Wan looked around, then quickly swiped a yellow fruit. He tossed it Si Treemba, then got one for himself.
"We really shouldn't," Si Treemba said, biting into the fruit.
"Mmmffff." Obi-Wan waved a hand dismissively, chewing.
The fruit was sweet and succulent, yet had a crisp tang. It was the most delicious fruit Obi-Wan had ever tasted. "We'd better find someplace private to eat these," he said.
Just then he and Si Treemba heard footsteps. They exchanged guilty glances, their mouths full. With a jerk of his head, Obi-Wan indicated that they fall back behind the trees.
A group of gardeners came into sight, carrying baskets. They headed for the orchard.
"Uh-oh." Obi-Wan whispered. "We'd better get out of here." He didn't want the mission to end with a disciplinary problem. He'd already had enough troubles on the journey here from Coruscant.
"Hey!" one of the gardeners yelled. "You there!"
Si Treemba began to choke and dropped the fruit. He tripped over it as he tried to run. Obi-Wan hauled him up and they dashed through the orchard, finally reaching a field. Obi-Wan yanked Si Treemba under cover of the tail grain.
"We'll have to cut through the field to get back to the main path," Obi-Wan panted.
They ran down the rows, trying to find a way out. The field was much larger than they'd thought. All they could see was green, and the artificial blue sky above.
Finally, they burst out of the last row, Obi-Wan felt his feet suddenly slide into something damp and marshy. They flew out from under him and went flying. Si Treemba followed. Clots of dirt splattered their faces and tunics. They finally landed and slid into a huge pile of dirt.
"What's that smell?" Si Treemba said, wiping a clot of dirt out of his eye. "It smells worse than a bantha on a hot day."
"I think we found the fertilizer," Obi-Wan groaned, pulling himself out of the muck. They surveyed their surroundings. Behind them was the field. Ahead was a blank wall.
Something about the wall bothered Obi-Wan. It was tall and seamless, and curved out of sight around the fertilizer pile.
He walked closer and placed his hands against the wall. The surface was cool, like metal. When he took his hands away, to surprise he saw, just for an instant, that his touch had caused transparency. It happened in the flicker of an eyelid, to quickly for him to see inside.
"What are you doing?" Si Treemba asked impatiently. He let out the Arconan hissing sound of anxiety. "Let's go. This smell will kill us."
Si Treemba hadn't seen the wall flicker. Perhaps the Force was at work. "One moment," Obi-Wan said. "I think this might be another way out."
He felt carefully along the wall, watching as his fingers left a shimmering transparency behind. He'd never seen a metal with this quality before. Finally, he found what he was looking for — a seam. He traced it with a finger. It was a door.
Keeping his hand flat on the door, Obi-Wan felt the energy from the living things around him, the grain and fruit, the people, the rich, organic island that was the dome.
Si Treemba gasped as the entire wall suddenly turned transparent. They saw that it was actually an annex that extended back to the dome wall. Inside, Obi-Wan could see bags of fertilizer and cargo boxes of various sizes.
"It's just a storage area,' Si Treemba said, disappointed.
It seemed innocent. So why had it been so well concealed? Obi-Wan pushed skillfully on the door. He heard a soft electronic beep, and it swung open.
Si Treemba hissed nervously again. His pale, luminous eyes flickered. "Are you sure we should go inside?"
"You stay here," Obi-Wan instructed. "Keep a lookout. I'll be right back."
He stepped inside the space. Immediately, the walls turned opaque again. It was like being inside a white cube. He bent over to examine the labels on the cargo boxes. The labels were black triangular shapes that showed a red planet with an orbiting holographic spaceship.
Obi-Wan recognized it instantly — Offworld. He leaned over to read markings on the side of the crate. He moved from box to box, reading the descriptive labels. Explosives. Turbo-drills. Detonators. Tunnel borers. Biotic grenades.
These were mining supplies. But they were on protected Agri-Corps land. Agri-Corps was strictly forbidden to concern itself with any profit-making enterprise. Was someone here secretly in league with Offworld?
"Obi-Wan, hurry up!" Si Treemba called. "We stink! We want to take a shower!"
Obi-Wan saw a small box in the corner that he had missed. This one had no label, only a metallic icon that served as a clasp. It was a broken circle.
He had seen enough for now. Obi-Wan slipped past the boxes to the door.
"What is it?" Si Treemba asked.
"Some kind of secret annex for Offworld," Obi-Wan said. "They're up to something."
Si Treemba's greenish skill paled to a dull gray. "Here? But they're forbidden."
"Since when does that stop them?" Obi-Wan said grimly. "Let's get back. I have to contact Qui-Gon."