Jedi Quest 2: The Trail of the Jedi

Chapter Eight

Floria looked as though she might faint. "A bomb? Can you d-defuse it?"

"I'm afraid not," Obi-Wan said. "It could go off at any time. So lets go."

"The comlinks — " Anakin said.

"No time. Go!" Obi-Wan ordered, leaning forward to access the landing ramp.

Floria was already out of her chair and running to the exit. Obi-Wan pushed Anakin ahead of him and they hurried after her, leaving the bomb behind.

As they raced down the ramp, Obi-Wan caught a glimpse of a figure dressed in black at the cargo door. He was trying to sneak aboard.

Floria screamed, and the bomb went off. Obi-Wan was blown off his feet. The figure in black went flying as well. Smoke rolled over them. Obi-Wan raised his head, trying to see. Coughing against the acrid smoke in his mouth, he struggled to his knees.

Obi-Wan peered through the rolling smoke to make sure Anakin and Floria were all right. Anakin was already standing and bending down to help a coughing Floria to rise.

"Anakin, check the area!" Obi-Wan shouted as he headed for the figure in black.

The figure rose shakily. Stumbling and falling, he attempted to run away. Obi-Wan raced towards him.

He had almost reached him when he felt something heavy land on his back. Hands covered his eyes. Hair brushed against his face.

Obi-Wan tried to twist away. "Floria?"

Suddenly the slender young girl had the moves of an assassin. She used a variety of intricate holds to slow down Obi-Wan while he struggled to move toward the figure in black. He tried to shake her off, but he didn't want to harm her.

Hands covered his eyes, and he carefully pried them off.

"I don't want to hurt you. " he said.

She didn't answer, just wound one leg around his, trying to trip him, while she grabbed his ear.

"That's enough." Obi-Wan grabbed her wrists and expertly flipped her over and down onto the ground. Her breath left her as she landed hard.

The figure in black hesitated. It was easy for Obi-Wan to stride forward and grab him by the scruff of the neck.

"All right, you two. What's going on?" he asked sternly.

Anakin ran back to him. "The blaster fire and explosions were set off by timed devices." He looked at Floria, who gazed up at Obi-Wan furiously from the ground. Then he looked at the squirming figure in Obi-Wan's grip. "What's going on?"

"That's what I'd like to know." Obi-Wan the back the figure's black hood. Close-cropped blond hair and wide eyes the same brilliant blue as Floria's met his. The boy was only a few years older than Floria.

Obi-Wan looked back Floria. "Your brother, I presume."

The boy shot Floria a look clearly intended to keep her silent. Obi-Wan sighed. "Anakin check his pack."

Anakin picked up a small pack the boy had worm on his back. He opened it and went through it. "Just some basic survival gear. A tarp and some rations."

Obi-Wan gave the boy a little shake. "I'm losing patience."

"Dane, we've been double-crossed," Floria said, rising gingerly and rubbing her elbow. "Why shouldn't we tell them? I'm getting a bad feeling about this planet. There was a sleeper bomb aboard that ship! That's totally against the rules!"

Dane said nothing.

"What rules?" Anakin asked.

"Now we're stuck here with the Jedi with no way to get off the planet," Floria continued. "we destroyed that ship for nothing. You and you're big ideas!"

"You destroyed your own ship?" Anakin asked in disbelief.

"Cooperation doesn't seem like such a bad idea, considering the circumstances," Floria said, still speaking to her brother.

Dane shrugged. "So things didn't work out. They could have."

"But they didn't," Floria said.

"But they could have," Dane shoot back.

"Who are you two?" Obi-Wan asked angrily, his patience exhausted.

"Bounty hunter," Floria said.

Anakin and Obi-Wan exchanged an incredulous look. These two young people, bounty hunters?

"Who are you hunting?" Anakin asked.

"You," Floria told him. "We're supposed to find the Jedi and bring you back, dead or alive."

"Bring us back where?" Obi-Wan asked. "Who hired you?"

"Let me point out that we weren't going to kill you," Floria said quickly, not answering Obi-Wan's question. "We weren't the ones that planted the sleeper bomb, obviously."

"What about the blaster fire?" Anakin asked.

"We knew you could handle that. We just wanted to add a little urgency to the situation," Dan said. "You'd take off if you thought you were under attack."

"We didn't to kill you," Floria assured them. "We don't kill beings. We just trick them. Just like we tricked you. It would have worked if there hadn't been that bomb. Listen, tricking is much safer."

"Are you actually successful at this?" Anakin asked.

Floria and Dane exchanged a look. Floria sighed. "Nobody ever believes we're bounty hunters. It's so insulting. Yes, we're successful. Take our last case. We — "

"Who hired you?" Obi-Wan asked in frustration, interrupting her brusquely.

"If you're going to confess to everything, you might try to be organized about it," Dane said to Floria. "You always get off the subject."

"I don't," Floria protested.

"You do, too. Always."

"You shouldn't say always," Anakin broke in. "Absolutes are rarely true."

"Enough!" Obi-Wan roared. "Who hired you> I want answers and I want them now."

Obi-Wan's thunderous look cowed Floria and Dane.

"Granta Omega," Floria said. "Do you know him? He's on his ship, orbiting the planet. Our plan was to lure you onto your own ship and get you to pilot it to what you'd think was my rendezvous ship but was actually Omega's transport. Then we'd leave you there, collect our reward, and take off. Easy right?"

"Obviously not, since your standing here with us now," Obi- Wan said. "So who put the sleeper bomb on the ship?"

"I don't know," Floria admitted.

"It could be anyone." Dane said. "Omega hired four other bounty hunters besides us. The first one to succeed wins the prize — an enormous fortune. The only rule is that the bounty hunters aren't allowed the harm one another."

"Obviously, someone broke the rules," Floria said disapprovingly. "I could have died aboard that ship."

"Not to mention us," Anakin said.

What about the other Jedi?" Obi-Wan asked.

"He's not part of the deal," Dane said. "We're supposed to ga after the Master-Padawan team. That was it."

"What information were you given about us?" Obi-Wan asked. "How did you know where to find us?"

"We knew you were on a training mission to Ragoon-6," Floria said. "That's all."

That's all? That's too much. Obi-Wan couldn't believe it. The training missions weren't secret. But Jedi did not speak of them to outsiders. Of course, there were those in the Senate who knew about them. And Senators, Obi-Wan knew too well, could be bribed.

"Tell me about the other bounty hunters," Obi-Wan said. "Do you know them?"

Dane nodded. "They are well known to those who know about these things. Teleq is one. We know him by reputation only. He's known for his cunning use of technology. Then there is Mol Arcasite. She is ruthless. She will take innocent lives to get what she wants. And she doesn't care if she brings her prey back dead. Most bounty hunters prefer to catch beings alive. It saves them a possible security arrest themselves. You never know who is watching."

"Mol gives us all a bad name," Floria said. "Come to think of it, she could have planted that sleeper bomb. It's just her style."

"What about the bounty hunter with the Stokhli stick?" Obi- Wan asked.

"Don't know him," Floria said. "he was awfully good. But he almost blew my cover when he saw me. I couldn't believe it when he said 'They were mine.'"

"So he was talking about us," Anakin said, indicating himself and Obi-Wan. "And you made us think you were concerned about your friends!"

Floria's eyes shone. "Wasn't I good?"

"She can cry on cue," Dane confided.

"Who is the last bounty hunter?" Obi-Wan asked.

"Hunti Pereg," Dane answered. "He has the most awesome reputation of all. he has never failed to capture his prey. Not once."

"Of course, he has never met the Jedi," Floria rushed to assure them.

Obi-Wan gave her an exasperated look. "Neither have you. If you had, you'd know we can see through flattery. You think Hunti Pereg can catch us."

"Well, he is very good," Floria said.

Obi-Wan stood, thinking a moment. Now that he knew those vague feelings had a source, after all. He knew one thing for sure: Wren had not left those clues. One of the bounty hunters had.

It was time to contact the Temple. A Jedi was in danger. He could feel it. But their comlinks had been blown up with the ship.

"We were deliberately led into the malia den," he told Anakin. "And the cavern. Someone left those clues for us tp follow."

"which mean that Wren. " Anakin began.

"Has been captured or possibly even killed," Obi-Wan finished gravely. "But why? Why is this Granta Omega after us? What else do you know about him?"

"Not much. We've never seen him. We've communicated through comm channels. The only thing that we know is the richest being in the galaxy," Floria said.

"Not the richest," Dane corrected. "You always exaggerate."

"Okay, one of the richest," Floria said.

"Why has he targeted the Jedi?" Anakin asked.

Floria and Dane shook their heads. "We don't know," Floria said. "In this business, you don't ask too many questions. It's better not to get too involved."

"Speaking of which, hanging around with you too might be dangerous to our health," Dane said. "So if you don't mind, Floria and I will take our chances on Ragoon." He grabbed Floria's hand and began to edge away.

Obi-Wan blocked their path. "Not a chance," he said firmly. "You're not going anywhere until we find out exactly what's going on. We might need your help."

"What help could we possible be?" Floria asked. "We told you everything we know."

"I'm sure you did not," Obi-Wan said. "You know the bounty hunter who are after us. You're not going anywhere until we know mare about who is after us. and why."