Star Wars - [Jedi Quest 09] - The False Peace (by Jude Watson)

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Star Wars

Jedi Quest

Book 9

The False Peace

by Jude Watson

source: IRC

uploaded: 09.I.2006

CHAPTER ONE

He had chased after one man for years. He had found him. He had fought

him. He had lost him and found him again. Each time, he had vowed that this

encounter would be their last.

This time was no different. Obi-Wan Kenobi wanted a showdown with

Granta Omega. Once and for all, he wanted to put a stop to a criminal he

knew was dedicated to bringing down the Jedi Order. Deep in his heart, he

knew the showdown was near.

But he also suspected that, like the others, it would not come in a

manner of his own choosing.

Obi-Wan strode through the busy streets of the capital city of

Falleen, Anakin Skywalker by his side. Siri Tachi and her apprentice, Ferus

Olin, were only a step behind. They had landed on the planet only the day

before. Obi-Wan was grateful to his friend Siri. She had pledged to help

him bring Omega to justice, and so far she had traveled halfway around the

galaxy, fought an army, and worn a dress in order to do it.

Now he felt responsible for her impatience. Siri believed that

problems were solved by vivid action. If there was one thing she avoided,

it was uncertainty.

Obi-Wan wasn't crazy about it, either. They couldn't pinpoint Omega's

location. Instead, they had to randomly search for clues to his

whereabouts. They knew he was on Falleen. But they did not know where, or

why.

He wished he did not have the feeling that Omega was always one step

ahead. He wished that in his mind, the same scenario did not constantly

revolve: He would burst into an empty room just in time to see a transport

take off. Omega would have escaped again.

Obi-Wan glanced at his apprentice. He knew Anakin had no such doubts.

Anakin did not consider the possibility of failure. He was not haunted by

his defeats.

Other things haunted his Padawan. Things too deep for Anakin to share

at one time.

Yet they worked so perfectly together now. Thoughts and feelings were

shared, sometimes without speaking. There were times when Obi-Wan thought

that the shadow he sensed within Anakin was gone. That the struggle to

accept his role as the Chosen One had been conquered. That Anakin was at

ease with where he was, and the gifts that had been given him. Obi-Wan

hoped that was the case. Anakin had shared his feelings with his Master -

and the release had changed him.

The Jedi moved carefully through the streets, staying in the middle of

the crowds. They were dressed as space travelers, and they were careful not

to attract attention. The walkways of the city were filled with beings from

many worlds. The city was built on three levels, and every caf©, hostel,

and multi-residence was packed.

Factories on Falleen were booming, and more were being built every

day. In a quick survey, the Jedi had learned that most of the factories

manufactured weapons. Jobs and opportunities were plentiful. Visitors from

star systems all over the galaxy flocked to the small planet to make their

fortunes.

But if the booming capital city made it easy for the Jedi to hide, it

also made it easy for Granta Omega to conceal his activities. They had

learned on the planet Romin that Omega was in league with the criminal

scientist Jenna Zan Arbor. She had developed a secret drug, called the Zone

of Self-Containment, which could make beings feel blissfully, if

dangerously, content, leading them to forget their cares, or any need for

taking action. They knew that she had not yet learned how to transmit the

Zone to more than a few individuals at a time. Anakin himself had been

under its influence for a short while.

The two criminals, along with the former dictator of Romin, Roy Teda,

had plans to pull off a major criminal operation. The Jedi suspected they

planned to use the Zone to do it. Zan Arbor had enlisted the help of a

criminal gang, the Slams, to help them.

The Jedi knew that much. But that wasn't enough.

They had followed Zan Arbor and Teda here, but Omega had managed to

hide them well. So far they had kept a low profile and traveled through the

streets and caf©s, attempting to pick up some word about the criminals'

whereabouts. There was plenty of talk swirling about the best factories to

work in, and who was hiring. Obi-Wan had contacted the Jedi Temple with the

names of various corporations that owned factories on Falleen, but it would

take some time before they could discover if any had ties to Omega. Weapons

merchants often hid ownership of companies behind other companies, so that

it was hard to trace who exactly owned what.

Which is exactly what Omega counts on, Obi-Wan thought.

"I've never seen this much security on a peaceful planet," Anakin

remarked, adjusting his hood as he walked.

It was true. Surveillance droids were everywhere. "They aren't all

official security droids," Obi-Wan observed. He had studied the various

droids over the past few hours, cataloging them in his mind. "As a matter

of fact, most of them seem to be private droids. And they're armed."

"Omega?" Siri asked. Her blue eyes were keen. "Looking for us,

perhaps."

"Just as we are looking for him," Ferus Olin said. "So we're even."

"Any ideas, Master?" Anakin asked him in a low tone. They had been

walking through the streets for some time.

"That new factory we've heard of - Blackwater Systems," Obi-Wan said.

"Let's head there. It was built quickly and already has a bad reputation

among the Falleens. There are rumors that bribes were paid to the

government to keep away inspectors."

The factories were built just beyond the outskirts of the city. The

Jedi hopped aboard a cloud bus to take them, blending in with the other

passengers. They exited at the last stop.

Here the three grand pedestrian levels were narrow and squashed

together, one on top of the other, so that a tall species would have

trouble on the lower ones. Large factory complexes were built on ground

level and rose into the sky. They knew that at night the factories belched

their toxins into the sky. The Falleens called this area the Yellow

District because a constant haze of that color hung in the sky.

The Jedi were now alone here on upper walkway, underneath the yellow

sky. This was not an area anyone would stroll in, and it was in the middle

of a factory shift, so the workers were inside. The Blackwater Factory was

at the end of the long line, more than two kilometers from the last cloud-

bus stop. It was colder here. The wind howled off the vast plains outside

the city and carried a special bite, tasting of the vast ice sheets from

the distant mountains.

The Blackwater Factory rose in their vision as they approached. It was

windowless and completely fashioned from black durasteel and stone. One

main building hulked on the site, with a wing flung out from one side like

a useless arm.

As he drew his cloak around him, Obi-Wan suddenly tensed. He saw one

surveillance droid zoom into his line of vision. Another followed. These

did not seem to be moving aimlessly. The Force surged to warn him.

"We're being tracked," he said to the others. "Move normally. Could be

routine."

"Up ahead," Siri remarked, casually swinging her arms as she walked.

Ahead, a narrow alley led diagonally off the main walkway, running

along the side of the main building. As they passed they darted inside and

began to run. The droids would have to double back, and those few seconds

could make a difference. The Jedi turned a corner, then another. They could

sense rather than see that the droids were still in pursuit, but hadn't

been able to get a fix on them. The alley was narrow and twisted around,

connecting the factory to various smaller outbuildings.

"What now?" Ferus asked. His voice was steady, even though he was

running hard. Siri's Padawan did not have Anakin's great Force connection,

but he made up for it with excellent physical training and a keen mind.

Anakin's head cocked. "I hear something. This way."

Following Anakin now, they ran through the maze. They passed gravsleds

and durasteel bins marked as waste. They didn't see any tiny creatures or

birds here. No living thing would linger in this place if it didn't have

to.

Their race ended at a tall stone wall. Anakin stopped. Now the others

could hear what he had detected so many twists and turns before. A crowd

was on the other side of the wall.

The Jedi activated their cable launchers. Quickly they scaled the

wall. The crowd was just ahead, focusing on a female Falleen who was

speaking. Her voice rolled over the crowd.

They jumped down and quickly moved into the crowd for concealment. The

two teams had doubled back during their run and were now standing outside

the main gate of the factory. The Falleen female stood, hanging on to the

gate with one hand to keep herself above the crowd while she spoke into a

voice amplifier headset. She was tall for the species, with the distinctive

gray-green color to her scales.

"... and we ask them, what are the wastes you produce, and what is

your disposal system? And they tell us - "

"NOTHING," the crowd shouted.

"And we ask them, what is the nature of the experiments you are

conducting in your secret wing? And they tell us - "

"NOTHING!"

"And we ask them, what about the four workers over the past three

months who have died without any reports being filed? And they tell us - "

"NOTHING!"

"And we ask them, when you have your products and your profits, what

will you do for the citizens of Falleen? And we know the answer, don't we?"

"NOTHING!" The crowd screamed the word.

"And will we do nothing, or will we demand what is our right to demand

- a full accounting of what is made here?" the female Falleen shouted. "If

our leaders will not make them obey our laws, we must! Are you with me?"

"YES!" the crowd shouted.

"Are you willing?"

"YES!"

"Are you ready to go in and find what we need?" "YES!"

"Then come on!"

A small explosive charge went off. The Falleen female leaped to the

ground. At first Obi-Wan thought she'd been hurt, but then it was obvious

that she or one of her cohorts had set it off, for the gates swung open.

With a cry, the crowd surged forward.

"We shouldn't be in the middle of this," Ferus said. Anakin looked

fascinated.

It didn't matter if they should be there; they were caught. The crowd

was ahead of them and behind them now. As it moved, they moved with it. And

then ahead, Obi-Wan saw black objects fly out from the factory.

"Attack droids," he shouted. "Take cover!"

The crowd panicked and moved backward like one great breaking wave.

Then they turned and ran, back toward the walkways. The Jedi fought their

way through the crowd, moving against them, toward the droids.

Obi-Wan watched the Falleen female. As soon as the droids had come,

she had dropped from the gate. Instead of fleeing with the others, she ran

along the outside of the gate. He knew she was heading toward the alleys.

He saw her make a turn. In that direction, she would run straight into a

wall.

Two of the droids peeled off and followed her. "Anakin!" Obi-Wan

called. "Let's go."

CHAPTER TWO

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