Trust in the Force

Part 6

It was about three hours later by the time the Duke returned. The butler had leaped from his office to the door as soon as the speeder had stopped outside, but the Duke ignored him as he entered, and headed straight for Obi-Wan.

"Jedi!�

Obi-Wan got to his feet and bowed in the most dignified way he knew. �My lord?�

"You�ve saved my son�s life. Name your price.�

"My lord, that is not necessary. I am a Jedi. We follow the will of the Force, and do not act for recompense,� Obi-Wan replied in the way he�d been brought up.

"You don�t act for recompense?� The Duke seemed to have trouble following this concept.

"That is correct, my lord.�

The Duke rolled his eyes. �No wonder my grandfather didn�t let Otoria join the Republic. Never mind. And does the will of the whatsit forbid you from being my guest?�

"No, my lord, it does not.� In fact, the Force was screaming at Obi-Wan to accept.

"Fine. You�re my guest of honour.� The Duke signalled to the butler to come forward. �Give him an unlimited cash card to pay his hotel bills and any other expenses he might have. You may not refuse, Jedi, and you must use it! That�s part of being my guest.�

"Yes, my lord,� Obi-Wan and the butler said at the same time.

"And what brought you here to our beautiful planet?�

"Our hyperdrive is damaged. We landed to buy some replacement parts, but although they have been ordered, they have not yet arrived.�

"Where did you order them?�

"Piniker�s Parts, my lord.�

"When?�

"Three days ago.�

To the butler, the Duke said, �Comm Piniker and offer him two hundred in advance if he�ll have the parts ready by to-morrow noon.�

"Yes, my lord,� the butler replied with obvious distaste.

"Right, then, that�s settled, you�ll stay here to-night. I�ll expect to see you at dinner.�

"My master --�

"Bring him, too.�

"He�s very ill and needs a Healer --�

The Duke turned to the butler again. �Get the Healer back here. And remember, Jedi, your cash card covers every expense, even Healers and hospitals.�

"Thank you, my lord.�

"Anything else we can do for you, Jedi?�

Obi-Wan bowed in acceptance, relief flooding through him. �It is more than enough. Thank you for your generosity, my lord.�

"It is nothing in comparison to my son�s life, but if you are content with this, the least that I can do, then I will also be content,� the Duke replied, breathing true feeling into a standard phrase. Then he sighed. �I told him not to get involved with a girl from the other side of the city. But he was determined to have his fun before we arranged a marriage for him, and he was too inexperienced to see that she wasn�t welcoming him with open arms just because of his handsome face. Her whole family must have really been hoping--never mind. I have to get back to work now. Time is money, you know.�

He strode off down the corridor and Obi-Wan bowed quickly in farewell, then straightened up again. With a barely disguised look of disdain, the butler went into his office and returned carrying a small metal tray, upon which rested a small chip card. He extended the tray, and Obi-Wan took the card wonderingly, seeing the insignia of the Duke on one side and the word �unlimited� on the other.

It was the same Healer as before who drove Obi-Wan out to the space port, asking questions about the onset of the illness and making the �huh� sounds again after each of Obi-Wan�s statements. After scanning Qui-Gon in detail, taking a blood probe and then examining the wound, he reached for his comlink and notified the emergency medical transport. Obi-Wan was allowed to ride in the front next to the driver, but was then sent to a half-ful waiting room as soon as they arrived at the hospital.

Not long after, a female Otorian nurse called for the Jedi, and he stood up, expecting to be led to Qui-Gon, but she merely came over and said, �Antidote for the poison, nine hundred dennars, cash in advance.�

"Poison?� Obi-Wan asked, automatically handing over the card. The nurse�s eyes widened in awe as she turned it over and saw the word �unlimited�, but she didn�t answer his question, merely disappeared back the way she�d come. It was another half hour before Obi-Wan was called again, but this time, he was ushered into a cramped office where a very old Healer was looking at something on a computer screen. Without a word of greeting, he announced, �I�m surprised he�s lasted so long, but it appears we�ve caught the poison in time. With the antidote, your master should make a complete recovery.�

"Poison?� Obi-Wan asked.

"Yes, poison. You mentioned the planet Ramasia? They used to dip their arrowheads and spearheads in poison, now they roll their projectiles in it. Technology didn�t change that part of their so-called civilization. They�re still savages at heart. We get at least one case of Ramasian poisoning here a month. They�ve engineered it to mimic the symptoms of normal flu, except that it�s deadly, of course. I understand that--what was his name again?�

"Master Jinn.�

"Master Jinn was on an IV when he arrived here. I suppose that�s what saved his life--he wouldn�t have lasted more than another day. I have to say it again, I�m surprised he held out this long.�

Obi-Wan thought about how close he�d come to refusing help for the Duke�s son, and repressed a shiver as he realised what the consequences would have been. �May I see him?�

"Ten dennars, cash--oh, wait. We�ve got this.� The Healer added ten dennars to the bill on the screen, then removed the card from the reader and handed it back to Obi-Wan. �My assistant will take you to his room. Wait outside please.�

It was almost half an hour before the assistant arrived to lead Obi-Wan to a room on an upper floor of the hospital. The head end of the bed had been raised a little, and Qui-Gon was lying on his back, still wheezing occasionally when he breathed. Pulling up the single chair in the room, Obi-Wan sat down, placing his hand on Qui-Gon�s shoulder and reaching out with the Force. He could feel that his master was marginally better than he�d been two hours ago, and was improving steadily, if slowly. Shutting his eyes, Obi-Wan channeled more Force energy into Qui-Gon, giving him more resources with which to fight alongside the antidote.

When at last he was satisfied that he�d done what he could and Qui-Gon really was going to recover, Obi-Wan left the hospital and walked back to the Duke�s Townhouse for dinner. The food was excellent, not just because it was the first real thing he�d eaten in days, and Obi-Wan was easily able to ignore the curious stares of the other guests, who had no doubt expected the Jedi to eat with his fingers or maybe with his lightsaber. The worst part had been when they�d stopped all conversation and listened in obvious horror as he�d asked for some more meat. They had all relaxed, however, when he�d finished saying �baby vakhtel�, as though they�d been expecting him to stop after saying only �baby.� But he�d smiled, and they�d smiled, and the meal had continued without incident after that.