Jedi Apprentice 9: The Shattered Peace (звёздные войны) Read online

  They glided over the calm, aquamarine sea, hugging the shore until they came to a lagoon surrounded by a cluster of small islands. A hut fashioned of tree trunks and woven grasses sat on a floating dock offshore. Leed tied the craft to the side and they disembarked.

  "The Nali-Erun clan lives on the far island, "Leed said, pointing to a lush green island a few kilometers away. "They watch out for me."

  "All Senali watch out for one another," Drenna said.

  "Why are you hiding in such a remote area, Leed?" Qui-Gon asked. "Are you afraid your father's reach could extend this far?"

  Leed nodded as he crouched to untangle some fishing line. "I spoke to my father so many times. We were in regular communication, the way I was with Taroon. But after I told him of my decision, he cut me off. He refused to hear me. He said Meenon had influenced me. If it pains him to hear the deepest wish of my heart, why should I go on trying to speak with him?"

  Qui-Gon sat down on the dock next to Leed so that they could be at eye level. He began to help untangle the line. "Because he is your father," he said. "And he is afraid he has lost his son."

  Leed's hands went still. "I am still his son," he said firmly. "And if he would not be so stubborn, we could be in constant contact. I could come to Rutan for visits, and he could come here. But ever since the war, there is no travel between the two worlds. I would like to change that."

  Qui-Gon nodded. "That would be a good change. That is one of the things you could do as ruler of Rutan. You would have it in your power to change many things. Why don't you want to help your world, your people?"

  Leed gazed out over the lagoon. "Because Rutan does not feel like my world. Its people don't feel like my people. It is hard to explain. But I found myself here. Underneath this sun I feel at home. And if Rutan is no longer my home I do not have the right to rule it. Senali is in my blood and bones. It is something I cannot help. Even as a small boy, I did not feel part of Rutan. I was afraid to leave my family and come here. But as soon as I stepped off the transport, I felt at home." He glanced at Drenna. "I have found myself here," he said.

  Obi-Wan saw hurt on Taroon's face as Leed spoke. As his brother shared a private smile with Drenna, Taroon's face tightened with anger.

  Jedi were supposed to remain impartial. But Obi-Wan felt Leed's words strike his heart. Now instead of connecting them to what he'd felt on Melida/Daan, he connected them to the Temple. It was not where he was born. The Jedi Masters were not his parents. Yet it was home. He knew that in his heart and bones. He believed that Leed felt the same.

  "I understand all that you say," Qui-Gon said. "And I ask you this: Is your decision to act according to your heart worth plunging two worlds into war? Are your individual desires so important?"

  Leed angrily tossed aside the line. "I do not start a war. My father does."

  "He does it for you," Qui-Gon told him.

  "He does it for himself!" Leed protested.

  Taroon had been restraining himself, but now he stepped forward. "I don't understand you, brother," he said. "What is it that is worth so much to you? A world of strangers? How can you risk the peace of your home planet just for your own desires?"

  "You don't understand," Leed said, shaking his head.

  "No, I do not!" Taroon shouted angrily. "I do not understand this deep wish of your heart. Is it more important for you to live with primitives than to take up your birthright?"

  "Primitives?" Drenna exclaimed. "How dare you call us that!"

  Taroon turned on her. "Where are your great cities?" he demanded. "A cluster of shacks bobbing on the sea. Where is your culture, your art, your trade, your wealth? On Rutan, we have centers of learning. We develop new medicines and technologies. We explore the galaxy —"

  "Our wealth is in our land and our seas and our people," Drenna said, facing him down. "Our culture and our art is part of our daily lives. You have been on Senali for half a day. How dare you judge us?"

  "I know your world," Taroon said. "Any culture you have the Rutanians brought to you."

  "I know you brought your taste for blood sports and your arrogance," Drenna shot back. "We got rid of all that when we got rid of you. If we kill a creature, we kill it for food. We do not kill it for sport, or to sell its skin. And you call us primitives!"

  "I do not think it helpful to debate the differences between Rutan and Senali when —" Qui-Gon began, but Drenna interrupted him furiously.

  "Only a fool debates with ignorance," she said fiercely. "I do not debate! I speak truth."

  "You speak with your own arrogance," Taroon exclaimed. "You don't know Rutan any better than I know Senali! All you know is prejudice and disdain."

  "You came here to look down on us," Drenna said with contempt. "I saw that at once. Why do you think your brother should listen to your opinion when it is full of your own bias?"

  "Because I am his family!" Taroon roared.

  "As am I!" Drenna countered.

  "You are not his family," Taroon shouted. "You were just his caretakers. We are his blood!"

  "No, Taroon." Leed stepped between them. "Drenna is my sister as you are my brother. And she is right. This is what I leave behind on Rutan," he continued, his voice rising to match Drenna's and Taroon's. "This attitude that you are superior to the Senalis. You do not know Senali, nor do you wish to. Do you really want to live the life of our father, living only to chase animals and feast until you cannot move? Do you want your life goal to be the gathering of more and more wealth, just for the purpose of possessing it?"

  "Is that what you think of us?" Taroon demanded. "Now I know you've been brainwashed! There is more to Rutan than that, and more to our father as well."

  "I spoke hastily," Leed said, gathering control of his voice. "I apologize. Yes, there are good things on Rutan. But they are not things that interest me."

  Taroon grasped his brother's arms. "Leed, how could you want to live like this?"

  Leed shook him off with an angry gesture. Drenna turned to Leed. "You see? I told you of the contempt the Rutanians hold us in. Even your brother. You did not believe me. Now you must see that you can't go back."

  "No," Leed said. "I can't go back."

  "You cannot face our father because you know you are wrong," Taroon said. "You are afraid of him."

  "I am not afraid of him," Leed countered angrily. "I do not trust him. There is a difference. I don't want to be under his influence. I am glad was brought up by others, without being exposed to all his faults. You know after our mother died that there was no one to check him. He is not a bad man, Taroon. Just a bad father."

  Taroon's face was tight. "And I was brought up by his side, inheriting all his bad traits, while you have all the good. Is that right?"

  Leed took a breath. "That is not what I'm saying." He rubbed his hands over his hair in frustration. "I am not going back, Taroon."

  "That is fine," Taroon said, his icy rage now burning hot. "I realize now that I was wrong to try to persuade you. Because even if you were to change your mind, I would not stay here in your place."

  Qui-Gon exchanged a helpless glance with Obi-Wan. They had come to Senali hoping that gentle persuasion would help the situation. Qui-Gon had thought that brother to brother, the obvious affection between Leed and Taroon would bring them to common ground.

  Instead, the two brothers were farther apart than ever. And the two worlds were now closer to war.

  Chapter 9

  Night fell swiftly on Senali. The four moons rose and stars appeared. Leed silently rolled out bedding for them. He placed a simple meal before them. No one spoke. Qui-Gon thought it better to let the tensions cool. He had found through long experience that one thing was the same for all cultures on different worlds: Even the most extreme crises looked better in the morning.

  He lay on his sleep mat next to Obi-Wan. "What do you think, Padawan?" he asked softly. "Is Leed right or wrong?"

  "That is not for me to say," Obi-Wan responded after a short silence. "I am to re
main neutral."

  "But I am asking you what you think," Qui-Gon said. "You can have a feeling. It does not have to affect your behavior."

  Obi-Wan hesitated again. "I think that personal happiness is less important than duty."

  Qui-Gon frowned. His Padawan had evaded the question. He had not lied, but he had not told the truth, either. Yet Qui-Gon would not chide him. The evasion came from a place of goodness. Somehow Obi-Wan must feel that to tell Qui-Gon the truth would be wrong. Qui-Gon would let the question rest there. He would not push. He was learning how to be a Master as surely as Obi-Wan was learning how to be a Padawan.

  Learn not to teach, you must, Yoda had told him. As surely as you must guide, you must also be led.

  They fell asleep to the gentle slap of the waves against the dock. The sun rose, and they awoke to the sound of birds and the splash of fish in the sea.

  "I'm afraid I have no more food," Leed said to them. His manner was friendlier than last night. Qui-Gon thought that was a good sign. It reinforced his decision not to push today. He would stand back and wait to see if Leed and Taroon could find each other.

  Drenna had been awake for some time and had untangled fishing line and lined up short spears for each of them.

  "On Senali, we are taught from an early age to be responsible for our own nourishment," she said to them. "If you wish to eat, you must fish."

  "I am not hungry," Taroon said haughtily.

  Drenna met his gaze steadily. "That is not true," she said. "You are hungry. And you are afraid."

  Taroon bristled, and Qui-Gon gathered himself for another argument. He would not allow this one to go so far, he decided. A day of harmony would do them all good.

  But before Taroon could speak, Drenna added in a gentler tone, "It is natural to fear water when you cannot swim. But I can teach you. Senali and Rutanians are the same species. If we can be expert swimmers, you can be, too."

  Taroon hesitated.

  "Of course," Drenna said, shrugging, "you might have a problem. You can't send seeker droids after fish. And if you hit them with a blaster, there goes your breakfast."

  She smirked at Taroon. Drenna had thrown out a challenge, Qui-Gon saw.

  "I can learn by myself," Taroon said.

  "No, you can't. Do not worry," Drenna said in a soft tone. "I won't make fun of you. I had to learn myself, once."

  Taroon rose stiffly and picked up some fishing line and a spear. "All right, then. Let's go."

  With a whoop, Leed dove off the dock. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan dove into the warm, clear water after him. Drenna took Taroon on the boat closer to shore to give him his first swimming lesson.

  Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan donned their breathers as Leed treaded water.

  "The principal source of food for many Senalis is the rocshore fish," he explained. "It has a spiny body with three large claws. If you take only one claw, the animal lives and grows another. You spear the fish through the tail, where it has no feeling. Then you grab the claw and twist it hard. Be careful or you can lose your fingers. You can watch me take a claw first, if you like."

  "That sounds like a good idea," Qui-Gon said.

  They dove deep into the lagoon, down where the water was cool and clear. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan followed Leed as he easily speared one rocshore fish, then another, grasping a claw and twisting to sever it, then dropping it into the pouch he wore at his waist. Soon Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon had speared their own rocshores and their pouches were full of the meaty claws.

  They were almost ready to return when they saw Taroon and Drenna swimming nearby. Taroon was gliding through the water. Drenna had been a good teacher. Taroon's long legs and arms coordinated with smooth strokes and powerful kicks. He did not seem awkward as he had on land. He speared one rocshore, then another. Drenna swam beside him, pointing out fish and spearing her own with deft, perfectly aimed shots.

  When they surfaced, Taroon grinned, holding up his full pouch. Qui-Gon realized that he had never seen Taroon smile.

  "Pretty good, for your first try," Drenna said. "You are a fast learner."

  "You helped," he conceded.

  "It took me weeks to learn how to swim that well," Leed told his brother admiringly.

  Taroon turned his head to scan the shoreline. Qui-Gon saw that he was trying to conceal his pleasure at Leed's compliment. "Well, it's better than drowning," he said gruffly.

  They swam toward the shore of the lagoon, where Leed and Drenna built a fire. They roasted the claws and cracked them open, squirting juice on the claw meat from tart fruit that Leed and Drenna had gathered.

  It was a delicious meal. They ate their fill, then discovered that they still had more than half left over.

  "We can take these to the Nali-Erun clan," he said.

  They paddled over to the nearby island. The clan had built their homes in the center of the island, underneath the cool shade of the trees. The structures were different from the ones in the main city. Here, they were built with leaves and reeds. They looked flimsy, and some looked ready to tumble down. When Leed held up his present of fish, children ran toward him hungrily.

  "Why are they hungry?" Obi-Wan asked.

  "They cannot fish in the lagoon," Leed explained in a low tone. "The Homd-Resa clan controls the surrounding seas. The two clans have recently been at odds. The Homd-Resa conducted a raid and destroyed much of their dwellings. The Nali-Erun had to rebuild quickly. They still have not recovered. And for months now they've had to live on fruit and what grains and fish they are able to trade for."

  Taroon raised his thick eyebrows at Drenna. "All Senali watch out for each other?"

  Drenna looked uncomfortable. "Naturally some clans have conflicts. I did not say Senali was a perfect world."

  "Why doesn't Meenon step in?" Obi-Wan asked.

  "Because the clans are self-governing," Drenna explained. "Meenon is more of a symbol to us than an actual leader."

  The Nali-Erun clan happily distributed the fish and offered the group some. Leed refused but took a bag of pashie, the sweet fruit that grew abundantly on the Nali-Eruns' trees.

  Drenna also handed the head of the clan a pouch full of shells she had collected from the sea floor. The clan members held up each shell and admired it. One of the members began to string a few of the loveliest shells on a cord to fashion a necklace.

  He held the finished necklace out to Drenna. She took it with a smile, then hesitated.

  Her smile turned impish, and she turned to Taroon and placed it around his neck. "Now you are a real Senali," she said, tilting back her head and smiling up at him.

  Taroon was startled. He touched the shells. His eyes met Leed's. "I am still Rutanian," he said. "But I am learning."

  They caught small silver fish for the evening meal and Leed made a delicious stew. Taroon ladled it into bowls. Qui-Gon watched as the two brothers passed the bowls between them. There was an ease in their relationship now. The four moons rose, high and full, sending four silver paths down the dark water.

  They sat underneath the wide dark sky. Qui-Gon stayed silent. He sensed something growing in Taroon, a new feeling the young man was struggling to voice. He hoped Taroon would find the courage to speak. Tomorrow was the third day. He would have to contact King Frane.

  "I suppose we should be getting to sleep now," Leed said at last. "Thank you, Qui-Gon, for allowing us this day without trying to convince me to leave."

  "It was a fine day," Taroon said hesitantly. "And I have come to a decision. I will not oppose your wish to stay here, brother. I see what draws you here. I spoke hastily this morning." He turned to the Jedi. "It is a fault I have. I'm sorry for my rudeness to you as well." He gave a wry grin. "You are right, Qui-Gon. I inherit my temper from my father."

  "Thank you, brother," Leed said quietly. "You opened your mind and heart. I will do the same. I will return to Rutan and face our father."

  "And I will take your place here until you return," Taroon said.

  "Obi-Wan and I will ensure your safet
y," Qui-Gon promised Leed. "You will be free to return if you still wish to."

  The brothers grasped each other's forearms in a show of affection.

  "We will not let this divide us," Taroon said.

  This was precisely what Qui-Gon had hoped for. Yet sadness hung in the air. Leed had taken the step to remove himself from his family.

  Taroon had accepted his right to do this. It was clear that both brothers were heartbroken.

  They all said good night. Obi-Wan rolled out his sleep mat next to Qui-Gon's. "Did you know that would happen?" he whispered. "Is that why you didn't challenge Leed today?"