"Look, that must be Zan Arbor's ship," Anakin murmured to Obi-Wan.
Anakin and Ferus were wearing their minimal disguises, while Obi-Wan was nearly unrecognizable in his finery. All had managed to conceal their lightsabers except Siri, whose outfit was simply too revealing to cover much of anything. So Obi-Wan carried hers.
A sleek white ship was parked in a hangar nearby. Obi-Wan recognized the Luxe Flightwing. The nose of the cruiser was curved, the wings folded back like a bird's in flight. The ship's exterior was made out of a rare gleaming white ore.
A security officer met them at the bottom of the ramp. He was dressed in an ornate uniform with silver cords looping over his shoulders. The Romins were a species with golden skin and eyes. Their noses were flat, barely raised on their faces, and their mouths were wide and expressive.
"Welcome to Romin. Docs, if you please."
Obi-Wan handed over the ID docs. The officer perused them carefully.
"You have come to Romin for what purpose?"
"We would like to relocate here," Obi-Wan said.
The officer looked up. "There are procedures and waivers. We do not allow just anyone to be a citizen of Romin."
"We will be happy to follow all procedures," Obi-Wan said. "In the meantime, we would like to enter your beautiful city." He passed over a bundle of credits.
The officer slid them into his pocket in one practiced movement. "One moment."
The officer left with their four ID docs. He took them to a console and began entering the information.
"He plugged in our names and discovered that we're escaped criminals,"
Siri murmured as the officer's face changed. He looked up and gave them a quick glance. Then he spoke into his comlink.
They waited. The officer spoke, waited, spoke again. Then he put down the comlink but did not return to the visitors. The Jedi waited. They knew how to be patient. In a few moments, the officer's comlink signaled and he spoke into it again.
"We have to hope that Roy Teda's contacts are wide," Obi-Wan murmured.
"He will know that there is a fortune in crystalline vertex out there, and that we know where it is."
When the officer returned to them, he was smiling broadly. "Forgive me if I failed to welcome you properly earlier. We are so busy here, you see."
"Of course," Obi-Wan said, waving his hand extravagantly and ignoring the empty spaceport.
"Due to your status as important guests, Great Leader Teda would like to extend a personal welcome," the officer said. "My name is Becka. With your kind permission, I am to escort you to his grand palace."
Becka led them to a large turbolift, which quickly brought them down to the planet's surface. A large, six-seat airspeeder was parked nearby.
Becka indicated that they should board. He slid into the pilot seat. They glided out into moderate traffic on a wide boulevard.
"Eliior has no crime, as you will see," Becka said. "We have peace and prosperity here. Citizens have plenty of work and plenty of leisure time.
Our gardens are renowned and our goods are the finest in the galaxy. I will take you by our best shopping street on the way to the palace and you will see."
"You are lucky to live on such a world," Siri said. "We are lucky to have a leader such as Roy Teda," he replied. "He has created the great perfection around us." Just as Becka finished this statement, they drove by a battered security wall, hundreds of meters high. Security droids buzzed overhead.
"What is that?" Obi-Wan asked. He knew the answer, he was just interested in the official explanation. In a dictatorship, it rarely matched reality.
He'd been thoroughly briefed by Tyro. The city of Eliior was populated by the wealthy. The workers lived outside the city walls in concentric rings of hovels that grew progressively worse as their distance from the city increased. The wall was manned by guard droids and surveillance devices. The workers had to obtain passes in order to enter the city, and they needed a work reason for coming. Those inside the city rarely ventured outside its walls. If a trip was necessary, it was taken under heavy guard.
Becka made a quick turn down another wide boulevard lined with tall, leafy trees. "You mean the Cloud-flower Wall. Some of our citizens prefer to live outside the city. There is beautiful countryside outside Eliior.
The wall allows them to have the illusion that they live in wilderness. It is planted with cloudflower vines on the opposite side. Another great step of progression by Great Leader Teda! Truly, he is remarkable."
Just then they passed a large laserboard. In pulsing light, the image of a noble-looking Romin appeared in profile. Words appeared in Basic: WATCHING CARING PROTECTING GREAT STEPS OF PROGRESSION GREAT LEADER TEDA LOVES HIS PEOPLE Becka beamed. "Now, here you will see examples of our excellent commerce and wonderful goods."
They rode down a street full of the exclusive shops that Becka had promised. They caught glimpses of luxurious goods arrayed in bright window displays. Becka slowed down and gestured to the shops with pride. Yet the street was nearly empty. There were hardly any customers in the stores.
"There's no one in the shops," Siri said.
"Not a traditional shopping day," Becka said. "Ah, now, here are our great residences."
Past the shops, the palaces began, made of stone and durasteel and glimpsed behind fortified walls. One by one, the grand structures appeared, framed by lush gardens and sparkling fountains.
"Many of our most substantial citizens live here," Becka explained.
"One after the other, in luxurious and spacious villas. The boulevard ends at the grand palace complex of Great Leader Teda."
Soon a pair of ornate gates appeared ahead. Becka stopped the airspeeder at the security checkpoint and was admitted. The massive security gates opened. Ahead was a huge palace that sprawled over a lush landscape of flowers, trees, and shrubs. Flowering vines snaked around the trees and the high walls surrounding the compound. Their scent was heavy in the warm, humid air.
Becka pulled up in front of the main doors. "It was a pleasure to serve you," he said. Then, with an amiable wave, he took off.
The durasteel doors swung open. A short Romin man in flowing multicolored robes stood in the doorway. Obi-Wan recognized him immediately. He was surprised. Great Leader Teda had come to welcome them personally.
"Welcome to my world," Teda said, opening his arms wide. "So, what do you think of my Romin so far?"
Obi-Wan wondered what the flamboyant Slam would say. "Amazing!" he cried. He opened his arms wider than Teda's. "Incredible! We're overcome!"
"I am seeing that this is true by your faces!" Teda answered, beaming.
"We Romins are so proud of our world that we are not surprised when visitors decide they must live here. On behalf of all Romins, I welcome you!"
Obi-Wan threw back his purple cloak and gave a short bow. "I am Slam.
These are my associates, Valadon, Waldo, and Ukiah."
"And I am Great Leader Teda." Teda ignored Anakin and Ferus and headed directly for Siri. He slipped an arm through hers. "I have heard of your beauty, but words are nothing next to the reality of the realness of you.