Jedi Quest 1: The Way of the Apprentice

Chapter Four

The Senate transport slid into orbit around Radnor. No transports were allowed to land on the planet. They would take a small cruiser to the surface.

Anakin stared down at the planet. From space, it looked blue-green, and he knew that vast seas covered much of the surface. The main landmass was small, and appeared as thought the seas around it would swallow it up.

He had visited other worlds since he'd become a Padawan.

It no longer surprised him when he saw planets whose surfaces were dominated by oceans and seas. As a boy, he could not imagine seas that could stretch as far as the eye could see. On Tattooine, he had lived in an ocean of sand.

"Hard to imagine, isn't it," Tru said, breaking into thoughts. "When you look down at a planet, I mean."

"What?" Anakin asked.

"Suffering," Tru said. "Everything seems peaceful from orbit. Then you get down there, in the middle of things, and everything changes."

"How many missions have you been on?" Anakin asked.

"Enough," Tru said softly. "Enough to have seen what I've seen. Enough to know I will see more."

It sounded like a riddle. Yet, strangely, Anakin knew what he meant. Each mission made him feel so much older. Each mission had exposed him to sadness and anger and grief.

Nevertheless he looked forward to the next, and the next.

That was what Tru meant.

"This is my first mission." Darra Thel-Tanis spoke behind them. She had not said much on the journey, instead studying the research materials the Council had provided. She had lively, rust-colored eyes and a piece of bright fabric woven through her long Padawan braid. Her energy crackled. Anakin could almost feel it in the air when she was near. "So I'm depending on you two to make me look good." Darra gave Tru and Anakin a cheerful grin.

Obi-Wan came by and put a hand on Anakin's shoulder. "It's time to board the cruiser."

The four Jedi teams — Anakin and Obi-Wan, Tru and Ry-Gaul Darra and Soara, and Ferus and Siri — made their way to the cargo bay. They settled into the cruiser and Siri took the controls.

Ferus Olin sat up front next to her, the light glinting off the streaks of gold in his thick dark hair. Anakin watched his profile. It was strictly emphasized in the Jedi Temple that no student was better than another. Different students had different gifts. Yet Ferus had them all. He was steady and brilliant, a physically gifted athlete, and popular with all the students. He was a few years older than Anakin, and the Masters were still talking about him long after he had gone on to become a Padawan.

He had excelled at everything he tried. Yet no student was jealous of him. They admired him and wanted to be like him.

He was also popular with the Jedi Council. Anakin knew they expected great things of him. There was no one at the Temple who did not speak the name Ferus without praise.

Except for Anakin. There was something about Ferus he did not like. That was not appropriate, of course. It was not up to Anakin to like or dislike a student. Judgment was forbidden in the Jedi Order.

He tried to control the feeling. He would control it. He knew well that he couldn't be a Jedi without doing so.

Siri expertly maneuvered the craft down to the landing site at Tacto. She came in fast and whipped the craft around, landing with a whisper-light touch that Anakin admired. All Jedi were excellent pilots, but it was rare to find someone who approached the task as artfully as Siri.

"Great landing," Anakin told her. Obi-Wan just sighed.

Siri activated the landing ramp, and they filed down onto the surface of the planet. Ry-Gaul carried the case holding the needed medications. Anakin reached out to the Force to feel what he could about the mission ahead. He exchanged a glance with Obi-Wan. The Force was dark here. Fear had gripped the population of both cities — and with fear came desperation, anger, and chaos.

Radnorans were a humanoid species, short in stature and sturdy in appearance. Several uniformed security officers waited at the transport desk. A Radnoran dressed in a white unicoat hurried forward.

"Welcome, Jedi. We are relieved to see you. The city of Tacto is under great stress." He passed a hand over, his head full of curly brown hair. "The people don't believe that there will be enough room on the ships."

"Who are you?" Soara Antana asked bluntly. She was known for her no-nonsense approach. Her powerful hands rested lightly on her belt.

"Excuse me. I should explain. I am Galen, the coordinator of the rescue effort. The officials have abandoned the planet, so I suppose I'm now in charge. Only a small security force remains. I inherited this job — I'm normally a scientist. Most of my colleagues have left. | volunteered to help with the evacuation. My sister Curi has gone to the Isolation Sector to help there." Galen turned to the security officers. "Remain here with the Jedi ship."

The lead officer nodded. "Affirmative."

"Let me take you to the emergency command post,"

Galen said.

Galen started across the landing pad, taking quick steps with his short, muscular legs. "Rumors come and go daily.

The ships are late. The ships are not coming. There will not be enough room. We try to keep information flowing, but it's difficult. So many have left, and those who remain are frightened."

"How are things in the Isolation Sector?" Soara Antana asked.

"Worse," Galen said curtly. "Communication is erratic. The toxic cloud has apparently interfered with our comm systems.

We — "

Suddenly, they heard the roar of engines. They turned just in time to see their transport lift off the landing pad and zoom high above.

Galen turned to them, his round, ruddy face suddenly pale.

"The security officers stole your ship. I am so sorry.

Things here are very bad. Even the officers are panicking.

Why shouldn't they? Everyone else is, and their own leader has fled. But don't worry — I have a transport in a safe location. It is at your disposal."

"We accept your offer with thanks," Siri said.

"We can go there after you see the command post," Galen said, beginning to walk again.

"We can assure your people that the ships are on their way and there is room for all. What is your biggest problem at the moment?" Obi-Wan asked.

"I have too many problems to single out one," Galen said.

"The government is practically nonexistent. The security officers — the ones who remain — are in danger of disbanding. You can see that loyalty has evaporated on Radnor."

They exited onto a boulevard and found themselves in the city center. The streets were eerily empty. Occasionally a Radnoran would pass, walking quickly. They saw a family go by, their bundles held tightly against their chests, darting glances testifying to their panic.

They passed looted stores and houses. Doors were broken down and windows were smashed. Anyone they passed had at least one blaster prominently displayed on a hip or strapped across a chest.

Anakin had never seen anything like it. He could almost smell the fear in the air.

They walked by a small space cruiser, its interior bombed out and its engine looted.

"Most of the transports that have remained have been fought over and destroyed," Galen explained. "There have been frenzied crowds desperate to get off-planet."

"Tell us about the looters," Soara said. "Do you have any clues as to who they are and where they are based?"

"No," Galen said. "I don't have time to find out. At any rate, we don't have a security force to control them. I can tell you that the raiders have somehow stolen a small army of prototype Battle Droids from a research laboratory. They use the droids to control the situation while they steal the goods."

Galen's comlink signaled, and he answered it. After exchanging a few words, he turned to the Jedi. "It is my sister, Curi. I'd like you to see this."

A miniature hologram appeared of a small Radnoran female.

They could just glimpse curly dark hair like Galen's beneath the white bio-isolation suit she wore. Every inch of her body was covered, with the material stretching over her boots. A transparent mask fitted over her face and head. The hologram flickered, and some of the words were unclear.

"… three deaths today of med personnel. There aren't enough of us to take care of… We need the new medications as soon as possible. Please tell the Jedi. ."

The hologram sputtered and died.

The message might have been garbled, but the controlled panic in her voice was clear.

"We should head there immediately," Soara said.

"I can take you as far as the energy gate that divides the sectors," Galen told them. "It's not far. I can supply you with bio-isolation suits."

They came to a store guarded by several Radnorans with blasters. A sign in the window announced: bio-iso suits 5,000 karsems.

"Five thousand karsems is a full year's salary," Galen remarked. "We are lucky to have suits for you. They are hidden. I don't keep them at the command center, because it's already been attacked by looters looking for suits."

Suddenly, they heard the sound of screams coming from the street ahead.

Galen looked nervous. "What now?"

The Jedi did not stop to wonder. Masters and Padawans charged ahead, running toward the source of the sound.

They rounded a corner. Ahead was a large, prosperous- looking house. Its windows had been hastily covered with durasteel panels. The door had been nailed shut with thick durasteel slabs crisscrossing it.

None of the attempts to make the house a fortress had worked. The door had been kicked in. Two of the windows had the durasteel torn away. Raiders were throwing goods out of the windows.

Twenty Battle Droids like none Anakin had ever seen were wheeling in formation. They had advanced repulsorlift systems, allowing them to move with astonishing speed above the surface of the ground. While they guarded a huddled group, Radnorans systematically loaded the looted goods onto gravsleds.

One Radnoran male lay on the ground in a spreading pool of blood. A female crouched over him. Children stood nearby, rooted to the spot, while another older female tried to herd them to safety.

Anakin saw all this at once. His gaze took in the number of droids, the number of raiders, the Radnorans who must be protected, and the possible angles of attack. He knew every Jedi had observed the same. The droids had a fluid movement he'd never seen be fore. They did not maneuver in a jerky, programmed fashion. It was almost as though they had grace built into their sensors, and their blaster accuracy ratio was much higher than the usual Battle Droid.

One of the Radnoran raiders spotted them. Anakin saw his fingers fly on a remote device clipped to his belt. Five of the droids moved to surround the raiders for protection. The rest wheeled and came straight toward the Jedi in attack formation.