Chapter Three
An Eye For An Eye
Again Qui-Gon awoke to the sound of the beeping Comm. unit. Fearfully he pressed the activation switch, worrying about what he would see this time. An unfamiliar female face appeared on the screen.
"Are you Jedi Master, Qui-Gon Jinn?" She asked.
"Yes."
"You are receiving a transmission from a Master Mace Windu. He says it�s urgent. Should I put the transmission through?" she asked.
"Yes please," Qui-Gon replied, suddenly feeling that he was about to receive bad news.
The woman nodded her head, her image disappeared and was replaced by that of Mace Windu. Qui-Gon immediately noticed that his friend�s face was drawn, and the Councilor had dark shadows under his eyes.
"Qui-Gon, I'm sorry to wake you, but something has happened that I thought you would want to know," Mace began his voice a low monotone.
"It's Obi-Wan isn't it?" Qui-Gon asked, fearing that his Padawan was now one with the force.
Mace nodded, "There was a fire last night in the Healer's Wing. Someone accidentally dropped a bottle of cleaning solution near the medication storage unit, across the hall from the recovery room where Obi-Wan was recuperating,� Mace explained.
"Why was Obi-Wan in the Healer's wing?� Qui-Gon asked, feeling as though he already knew the answer to his question. He just needed to be certain whether or not he was correct.
"Yesterday afternoon while on his way to midday meal, the lift tube that he was using malfunctioned. He was battered quite a bit; it�s mostly bruises, a few cracked ribs, a dislocated shoulder, and a badly bruised knee. However, when the medications and cleaning solutions mixed together, they caused an explosion in the hallway outside the room where Obi-Wan was receiving treatment."
"Is Obi-Wan, is he..." Qui-Gon stammered, unable to get the words out of his mouth to finish the question and he dreaded receiving the answer.
"No, Qui-Gon," Mace told him, realizing what his friend was trying to ask. "He�s still alive. We couldn't get the fire out to reach him quick enough. We thought that we were going to lose him, but somehow your Padawan managed to get into the ventilation shaft despite his injuries, and Padawan Siri Tachi found him. He was very lucky," Mace assured him.
"How seriously is he injured? I know you wouldn�t get in touch with me unless his injuries were serious."
The image of Mace on the screen sighed, "Qui-Gon, he suffered first and second degree burns on both his legs. He inhaled a great deal of smoke and was unconscious when Siri found him. As we speak the boy is still in a bacta tank and has not yet regained consciousness."
"Will he be alright?" Qui-Gon asked.
"I'm afraid we won't know for certain until he is removed from the bacta tank. We don't know how badly his lungs were damaged. The Healer hopes he will make a full recovery if there are no further complications."
"I will come back immediately," Qui-Gon told Mace.
"Qui-Gon, that really is not necessary. You should remain on Schumson and finish your mission. There is nothing you can do for the boy at this time."
"Mace he is my Padawan learner. I should be there when he regains consciousness. I have many things that I need to discuss with the boy," Qui-Gon replied. The stern expression on his face told Mace that he would not be easily convinced to remain on Schumson.
"You will get that chance when your mission is completed. I will keep you updated on his condition if there are any changes," Mace assured him.
"Fine," Qui-Gon conceded, knowing the negotiations should be over in a day or two. "Let me know if there are any problems."
�I�ll be sure to do that, don't worry. Mace out."
Qui-Gon sat on the sleep-couch feeling relieved that Obi-Wan would recover. Something, however, in the back of his mind, nagged at him to return to the temple and keep his Padawan safe. Qui-Gon did not like the feeling at all.
* * *
Bant, Reeft, and Garen sat in the new recovery room where Obi-Wan lay, so very still on his sleep-couch. They watched as his chest rose and fell evenly in time with the machines that helped him breathe. The three friends remained silent as they sat and watched their friend sleep.
A knock on the door broke the silence in the room. The door slid open to reveal Siri Tachi slowly entering the room. "How is he?" the young girl asked.
"He should make a full recovery," Reeft answered quietly as if he were afraid of disturbing his sleeping friend.
"Siri," Bant began, "I know that you don't always get along with Obi-Wan, but I, um, I just wanted to thank you for saving his life."
"I couldn't just stand by and let him die. I may not agree with what he did on Melida/Dann, but he didn�t deserve this," the girl waved her hand at Obi-Wan. The four students kept a silent vigil during the next few hours, none of them willing to leave his side until later in the evening when the Healer forced them out of the room.
***
Qui-Gon returned to his guest apartment at the end of negotiations for the day and sat on the edge of his sleep-couch. He had a feeling there was more to Obi-Wan's injuries than simple accidents. Qui-Gon hated the idea of his Padawan lying alone in the Healer's wing of the Temple. He felt that he should be with the boy.
A knock on the door pulled Qui-Gon out of his reverie and he walked the few feet across the room to the door and opened it.
A young man stood at the door, "Are you Qui-Gon Jinn?"
"Yes."
"This message came for you a few minutes ago. It�s marked urgent and it�s from the Jedi Temple on Coruscant,� the young man explained, holding out a data pad to the Jedi Master.
"Thank you," Qui-Gon muttered as he accepted the data pad.
"Have a good evening sir."
"You too," Qui-Gon answered as the young man turned and walked away. Qui-Gon closed the door behind him and turned the data pad on. He sat down on the sleep-couch and began to read the message:
Master Qui-Gon,
It�s been a long time since I've seen you. It's a pity that you couldn't be here at the Temple while I�m visiting. I�ve met your new apprentice; he seems to be having a bit of bad luck, riding in malfunctioning lift tubes and getting trapped in fiery rooms.
You see Master, as a matter of fact; I think he�s very lucky. He should have died in the lift malfunction and definitely in the fire. However, there�s no need to worry; your precious Padawan will die. I had to watch you kill my father, so I�ve arranged for you to watch your brat Obi-Wan die.
Xanatos
Qui-Gon's heart began to race as he stared at the signature of his former apprentice. Realizing his Padawan was in trouble, Qui-Gon reached for the Comm. unit, but before he could press the activation switch the device began to beep. Qui-Gon hesitated momentarily before he pushed the switch to activate it.
Immediately after pushing the switch, an image of a recovery room appeared on the screen. Qui-Gon felt helpless as he watched Obi-Wan lying on the sleep-couch. A tube provided him with oxygen and special medications were used intravenously to help remove the smoke residue from his lungs. A monitor over his head displayed his vital signs including his heartbeat.
Suddenly, out of the shadows in the corner of the room, something moved. To Qui-Gon's horror, he realized a person wearing a long black cloak with the hood pulled up to conceal his face moved across the room to stand over Obi-Wan. He had no doubt that the man was Xanatos.
Qui-Gon watched as Xanatos pulled a syringe out of his cloak and injected a dark green colored fluid into Obi�s arm. Obi-Wan lay on the sleep-couch unconscious, completely oblivious to the danger that surrounded him. The man then took a small device out of his cloak, attached it to the back of the heart monitor and it ceased to function.
Qui-Gon knew that if indeed the man was Xanatos, then the device would keep the healer's from knowing there were problems with the equipment. Looking down at Obi-Wan, the man stared at the boy for a few seconds before he ripped the oxygen tube from his mouth and hurried out of the room, leaving the boy alone once more.
Qui-Gon immediately cut the transmission and tried to make contact with the Jedi Temple, but the call wouldn�t go through. After trying again to contact the temple, Qui-Gon quickly rushed out of the guest apartment and hurried down to the ground level where the Communications Center for the building was located.
"My Comm. unit is not working and I must make an urgent transmission," Qui-Gon explained to the first person he saw upon entering the communications center.
"I�m sorry sir, but all communications throughout the city and the surrounding areas have been disabled. There are teams working on the problem as we speak. If you will leave your name and apartment number, we will notify you when the problem is fixed."
"That will be too late," Qui-Gon mumbled as he turned around, and quickly ran out of the center.
He hurried back to his apartment, quickly packed his things, and rushed up to the main floor. Stopping at the desk, he requested immediate transport to Coruscant.
***
Mace Windu read the reports pertaining to the fire for the third time. The most damage was sustained in the medication storage unit and recovery room 14 a. This was the room where Obi-Wan was recuperating. Everything in the report seemed to indicate that the fire was an accident, but Mace felt the Force telling him it was no accident. His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of his door chime and he wondered who would be visiting him this late in the evening.
"Master Mace," Cam said, as Mace opened the door. "I'm sorry to disturb you this late at night, but I have finished my assessment of the lift tube malfunction, and it was most definitely not an accident."
�Do you mean it was tampered with?�
�Yes, that�s exactly what I mean,� Cam responded, as Mace motioned for him to enter the apartment. "Whoever did it was very smart; they made it appear that the lift was faulty. I thought it seemed like too much of a coincidence when the boy happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time twice in one day, so I checked everything I could think of.� Cam reached into his cloak and pulled out a small smoke colored device and held it out for Mace to see, �I found this. If I hadn't looked for it, Master Mace, I wouldn�t have found it. The lift�s erratic movements were created by a remote control linked with this device. Someone outside the lift tube controlled its movements and I believe he tried to kill the boy. When that failed, I assume that person then set the fire after making sure the fire suppression systems would malfunction. I still haven�t found any evidence that the fire was not an accident but I will keep looking.�
"Thank you very much Cam. I need you to make a full report to the Council tomorrow concerning your findings."
"I have already prepared a report. Just let me know when you need me in the Council�s Chambers. I�ll say good evening then Master Mace," Cam responded, leaving Mace alone in his apartment to ponder the new information he had just received.
Mace decided that he would pay Obi-Wan a visit in case anything else should happen to the boy before he could make a full report to the Council recommending that Obi-Wan be placed in protective care. Mace left his apartment and headed toward the Healer�s Wing.
As he stepped off the operating lift tube, Mace noticed a man wearing a black hooded cloak run into one of the burned rooms at the far end of the corridor. Mace ran down the hall calling out for the man to stop, but by the time he had reached the end of the corridor, the person that he assumed was a man by his build, had disappeared.
Mace quickly ran toward Obi-Wan�s recovery room. As he ran, he called Security and ordered the Temple to be placed on immediate lock down, allowing no one to enter or exit without a Council member�s authorization.
Once inside the room, Mace noticed the heart monitor was not operating. He looked at Obi-Wan and noted that the oxygen tube had been removed from the boy�s mouth. His skin had a bluish tint and Mace stepped closer to check his condition. Obi-Wan was having difficulty breathing and was sweating profusely. The Councilman quickly activated the switch that called the healer to Obi-Wan�s aid.
He watched Obi-Wan suddenly stop breathing, as the healers rushed into the room. �He stopped breathing,� he informed them, backing out of the way so they could help the boy. Mace suddenly remembered accusing the boy of purposely boarding the malfunctioning lift, without having all the facts. �I�m sorry Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan,� Mace reflected, as he began to feel guilty.
Next Chapter