The Fight for Truth

18

At first he had struggled to block out the voice.

Trust the Guides to show you the way to the General Good. They monitor it. They know it. Trust them. Do not trust your friend or neighbor.

Then he realized that he should not struggle. That only made the voice more insistent. He practiced the Jedi way and accepted. The voice washed over him like water. He did not have to drink it in.

How long would this go on? It seemed to be lasting for hours. He could find his calm center; the voice would not penetrate. He knew Siri could do the same. They would not go crazy listening to that steady, melodic voice that told lie after lie.

But what about Davi?

At last he was released from the sensory-deprivation suit by his Guide. At first he could only blink. The soft noises of people and movement outside his door, the breathing of the Guide seemed loud and intrusive. Obi-Wan imagined that this was like being born.

“How long have I been here?” Obi-Wan asked.

“That I cannot say,” the Guide said pleasantly. “Now it is time for the cleansing room. I’ll lead you if you can’t see quite yet. It’s normal.”

“I can see.” Obi-Wan’s eyes were adjusting now. The gray walls and gray floors were like an extension of the darkness he had been plunged into for so many hours. He walked next to the Guide down the corridors, passing a Medic Guide, this one different from the one he’d seen aboveground so many days before.

No. Today. I saw that Medic Guide earlier today.

He had to hold on to his sense of time. He would find a way to mark it in his room.

I won’t be here that long. We came for Davi. We’ll find him and get out.

They had come because they felt they owed Davi. They had come to help a friend. They had thought it would be easy to rescue him and get out. They were wrong. This would not be easy. It had been impulsive, Obi-Wan realized. And he had promised himself back at the Temple that he would not be impulsive again. He would be careful.

Maybe he’d been influenced by Siri. She was always ready to jump, to move, to take action. He shouldn’t have listened to her.

Do not listen to others. Listen only to the Guides.

Obi-Wan shook his head, blocking out the memory of the voice. The Guide ushered him into the cleansing room. He pointed out the heating spray and cooling spray, towels, and a fresh tunic.

“I will be back in three minutes,” he said.

Obi-Wan felt the pulse of the warm water against his back. He felt a sudden connection to the land above him, the living creatures, the beings around him. Qui-Gon was here. He was searching. He knew it. He felt the strong, sure connection.

I’m here, Qui-Gon. I am below. Don’t stop searching.

They had this connection once, but it had frayed. Would Qui-Gon hear him? Would he answer him?

He felt nothing.

Obi-Wan moved to the cooling spray, then toweled himself off and dressed. He was on his own. He could trust no one.

Only the Guides could be trusted for truth and …

Obi-Wan stopped in the middle of buckling his utility belt. He had not heard those words as spoken by the voice in his ear. He had heard the words in his own voice.

Fear snaked through him. They had gotten to him in only one session. Obi-Wan took a breath. He summoned up his training. He focused on the calmness within. It drove out the fear.

I am not alone, he told himself firmly. I have Siri. And I trust her.