Джуд Уотсон - Jedi Apprentice 10 - The Shattered Peace

Obi-Wan began to run. Qui-Gon ran ahead of him, matching the animals' speed. He reached out to touch the nearest animal's flank, racing alongside it. Obi-Wan knew his Master was calling on the Force.

With a gigantic leap, Qui-Gon landed on the animal's back. While the animal bucked and twisted, trying to throw him, he slashed at the seeker droid with his lightsaber. Metal sizzled and the smoking droid fell to the grass. Qui-Gon leaned down and hugged the kudana's neck. It quieted, allowing him to ride.

Obi-Wan didn't see any of this. He was busy trying to avoid the flashing hooves of the kudana around him. Their panicked attempts to avoid the laser beams caused them to veer and swerve. He quickly saw that if the seeker droids weren't disabled, he would be trampled.

He, too, reached out gently to the animal closest to him, feeling its muscles bunch and quiver. He leaped high and landed on his feet on the animal's back. Quickly, he settled astride the animal, picking up the animal's rhythm so he would not fall. He reached out and connected with the frightened mind of the animal, sensing which way it would move.

Keeping his balance, Qui-Gon swung his lightsaber overhead at the next seeker droid. He slashed it in two pieces.

Obi-Wan held onto the silky mane of the kudana for a moment to get his balance, then leaped over the galloping animal to land on another. He swung his lightsaber as he jumped, and neatly cut another seeker droid in two.

The fourth seeker droid buzzed overhead, zooming forward to lock on Obi-Wan's position. Qui-Gon rode on a kudana by Obi-Wan's side, standing perfectly balanced and rocking with the movement of the animal's gait.

"I'll take care of it, Padawan!" he shouted. He reached up and demolished the seeker droid with a left-to-right swipe. Then he jumped off the kudana, keeping to the side of the pack. He motioned Obi-Wan to do the same.

Obi-Wan hit the ground and ran alongside the kudana. Now that they could not see the red lasers, the animals began to calm down. They ran easily, without the panic that had made them veer and shy. Gradually the animals surged ahead, and Obi-Wan found himself alone alongside Qui-Gon.

Qui-Gon slowed his stride and turned off his lightsaber. "Well, Padawan," he said, "my guess is that our mission has begun."

Obi-Wan tried to catch his breath. He felt the ground rumble underneath his feet once more. He and Qui-Gon turned at the same time. Clouds of dust rose in the distance.

"More kudana?" Obi-Wan asked.

"No," Qui-Gon said. "We have seen the prey. Now we'll meet the predators."

Soon Obi-Wan could distinguish creatures called huds coming from the distance. They were native to Rutan, four-legged creatures with black-and-red-striped coats, bred for their strength and speed. Blue-skinned Rutanians rode on their backs, dressed in colorful furs and hides. Barking alongside and occasionally leaping up to snap at the heels of a hud were fierce nek battle dogs attached to the huds' saddles with tethers. Despite their fierce, unpredictable natures, many Rutanians bred them and kept them as hunters and pets.

Qui-Gon waited as the group rode up to them. The Rutanian at the head of the party swung off his hud with an angry motion.

Rutanians were known for their height, standing nearly a meter taller than Qui-Gon. This Rutanian was taller than most. He was a hostile presence, dressed in the skin and pelts of various creatures sewn together with thick silver cord in a colorful patchwork. His long, glossy hair was elaborately braided and hung over his shoulders. His thick fingers, overgrown with hair, were covered with jeweled rings.

"You scared away my herd!" he bellowed, stomping toward the Jedi in heeled boots.

"Black holes and blast the galaxy! What kind of fools are you?"

"We are the Jedi you summoned from Coruscant, King Frane," Qui-Gon said calmly.

"You're a couple of gundark brains!" King Frane continued to bellow. "Did you see that herd — we could have captured twenty-five skins at least. I've been tracking them for three days. You'll pay for this!"

Obi-Wan looked at Qui-Gon to see how he would respond. He couldn't believe that King Frane had insulted the Jedi in such a rude fashion. Would Qui-Gon turn on his heel and leave?

Qui-Gon was silent for a moment. He stared at King Frane without rudeness, waiting out his anger. The intelligence and calm in the Jedi's gaze soon made King Frane uncomfortable. His unease quickly changed back to anger.

"Don't use any Jedi mind tricks on me!" he fumed. "You destroyed my sport for today. I've a mind to send you back to your Temple and declare war on the Senalis! At least I know I can blast them before they get away."

"Especially if you have seeker droids to track them," Qui-Gon said. "Aren't seeker droids illegal on Rutan? I understood that they were outlawed so all Rutanians would have an equal chance at the game. Even the king," Qui-Gon added pointedly.

King Frane's glassy green eyes glinted in his dark-blue skin. Obi-Wan could not decipher what he saw there. Would the king explode and insult them further? Obi-Wan knew that hunting was a popular pastime on Rutan. Rutanian skins and pelts were renowned throughout the galaxy for those who wore such things. Animals were bred specifically for the smoothness and beauty of their hides. Then they were sent in the wild in order to provide sport for the population.

King Frane prided himself on being the best hunter of all. Lists of kills were posted at the end of every year, and the king was always first. Now Qui-Gon had exposed the fact that he cheated.

Suddenly, King Frane let out a loud, explosive laugh. The royal party behind him broke out into nervous chuckles as well.

"Trumped by a Jedi! I'll be a gundark brain myself!" King Frane chortled. "I can see that I sent for the best minds in the galaxy. That means I am as smart as they are, am I not?"

He threw an amiable arm around Qui-Gon's shoulder. "Come, friend," he said. "I am glad to see you after all. You and your young companion are welcome to join us at our feast. There, we can discuss the foul and treacherous Senali."

The Jedi were led into a vast stone hall in the center of the royal palace. A huge bonfire was blazing in a pit set in the middle of the hall. The surrounding walls were blackened with smoke. Nek battle dogs lay on the cold stone floor, chained to posts carved with scenes of past battles. Stuffed heads of kudana and other native creatures were mounted on the walls at regularly spaced intervals. One large, fierce kudana was stuffed and stood on its hind legs at the entrance to the hall, sharp teeth bared. Qui-Gon reflected that it was one of the least appetizing dining halls he'd ever been in.

"Sit down, sit down," King Frane urged them as he took a seat at the head of the long table. "No, Taroon. Let the Jedi sit next to me."

A tall, light-blue Rutanian with coiled braids arranged in loops around his head stepped back and glowered at the Jedi.

"My son, Prince Taroon," King Frane said. Qui-Gon turned to greet him, but King Frane waved his hand, and Taroon took a place at the other side of his father. "Let's talk about Leed. That's the reason you're here, eh?"

Qui-Gon sat as a server placed a heaping plate of meat in front of him. He nodded his thanks.

"Prince Leed has decided to stay on Senali —" he began.

"Decided!" King Frane interrupted with a roar. He pounded the table. "So that lying dinko Meenon tells me! My son has been kidnapped!"

"But you yourself saw the holocom," Qui-Gon pointed out. "I have seen it, too. Prince Leed seems sincere."

"He has been coerced, or threatened," King Frane insisted, forking up a huge piece of meat. He shook his fork at Qui-Gon. "Or they gave him one of their potions. They are primitives. They can use herbs and plants to cloud the mind. Leed would never decide to stay. Never!"