. . . . "The freighter had only one class: steerage. Padm\u00E9 and Nalanda sat on boxes with a packing crate between them while Anakin was asleep on one of the bunks. With their hoods and cloaks they passed unnoticed among the refugees in the hold of the freighter. At one end was the food line where a serving droid dished out small bowls of tasteless mush. R2-D2 fetched a bowl then deposited it on the crate between Padm\u00E9 and Nalanda with a soft chirp. \u201CYou must do a lot of travelling as a Jedi,\u201D Nalanda said, curiously poking the mush with a spoon. \u201CAnd if you can\u2019t?\u201D \u201CMaster Kenobi?\u201D"@en . . . . . . "Attack of the Clones (AU)/Chapter 9"@en . . . . . . . . . . "The freighter had only one class: steerage. Padm\u00E9 and Nalanda sat on boxes with a packing crate between them while Anakin was asleep on one of the bunks. With their hoods and cloaks they passed unnoticed among the refugees in the hold of the freighter. At one end was the food line where a serving droid dished out small bowls of tasteless mush. R2-D2 fetched a bowl then deposited it on the crate between Padm\u00E9 and Nalanda with a soft chirp. \u201CYou must do a lot of travelling as a Jedi,\u201D Nalanda said, curiously poking the mush with a spoon. \u201CWe do a fair bit,\u201D Padm\u00E9 replied, \u201Cbut it\u2019s not the side of the galaxy that you generally would want to see. Helping solve hostage situations, assisting settlers on radiation stricken worlds\u2026nothing like the Holonet heroes we are generally associated with.\u201D \u201COn the contrary,\u201D Nalanda said, \u201CI think a lot of good work goes unrecognised, particularly these days. It\u2019s far more often we hear about a war or a murder than someone who has done something worthwhile.\u201D \u201CTrue,\u201D Padm\u00E9 agreed, \u201Cbut all the same, I would rather do something worthwhile and not get recognised for it at all.\u201D \u201CMom\u2026\u201D At this both women turned. Anakin was mumbling in his sleep, and from his face he seemed to be having a bad dream. After a few minutes he turned over and relaxed again. \u201CHe\u2019s\u2026having bad dreams again,\u201D Padm\u00E9 said turning back. \u201CHe\u2019s still having a hard time letting go of his mother.\u201D \u201CThat\u2019s what I've never understood about the Jedi,\u201D Nalanda said. \u201CWhy is it that you shun any form of affection?\u201D \u201CWe don\u2019t,\u201D Padm\u00E9 replied. \u201CBut that depends on how you would define affection. Attachment is forbidden, because attachment can lead to possession which leads to jealousy and that leads to the dark side. But compassion is central to a Jedi\u2019s life; we need to be able to embrace all that we meet in order to be whole.\u201D \u201CBut what about emotions?\u201D Nalanda pressed. \u201CWhat about falling in love?\u201D \u201CNot in that sense,\u201D Padm\u00E9 told her, shaking her head. \u201CA thousand years ago the Jedi could marry and have children, but it was stopped when it was realised that such a thing endangers too many.\u201D \u201CSo what happens if it happens to you?\u201D Nalanda asked, by now Padm\u00E9 knew what she was speaking about. \u201CLike everything you have to accept it,\u201D Padm\u00E9 said, she was having trouble meeting Nalanda\u2019s gaze. \u201CThen you have to let go, leave it all behind.\u201D \u201CAnd if you can\u2019t?\u201D \u201CYou don\u2019t have a choice,\u201D Padm\u00E9 told her. In the vast chamber that housed the Jedi Archives, Obi-Wan Kenobi stood studying the bust of Count Dooku: one of the Jedi that left the Order that made up the Lost Twenty. The latest, and as some said, the saddest. Though Obi-Wan had never really known him, despite the fact that he had been Qui-Gon\u2019s Master. Qui-Gon had hardly mentioned him, Obi-Wan had always had the impression that they had not had a close relationship such as he and Qui-Gon had shared. Still\u2026 \u201CMaster Kenobi?\u201D Obi-Wan turned to see the Archivist, Madame Jocasta Nu standing beside him. A somewhat older and slight woman, but she had a voice that could send even Mace Windu to do her bidding. The Archives were her domain, and woe betide anyone who was guilty of wasting her time. She examined the statue with interest. \u201CImpressive, isn\u2019t he?\u201D she mused. \u201CHe was one of the most intriguing Jedi I had the privilege of knowing.\u201D \u201CReally?\u201D This somewhat surprised Obi-Wan. \u201COh, yes,\u201D she replied with a nod. \u201CHe was often out of step with the views of the Jedi Council, much like your Master, Qui-Gon Jinn.\u201D \u201COh.\u201D That had not occurred to Obi-Wan either. It had been no secret that Qui-Gon would often follow his own initiative rather than the Council\u2019s ruling. But to such an extent as this? \u201CThey were alike in many ways,\u201D she said. \u201CVery individual thinkers. Idealists. He was always striving to become a more powerful Jedi. He wanted to be the best.\u201D She smiled and her eyes seemed to go far away. \u201CWith a lightsaber, he had no match. His knowledge of the Force was\u2026unique.\u201D \u201CInteresting,\u201D Obi-Wan murmured, but Madame Nu did not seem to hear him. \u201CIn the end he left because he lost faith the in the Republic,\u201D she continued. \u201CHe felt the Jedi had betrayed themselves by serving a corrupt Senate. He always had very high ideals and expectations about government.\u201D \u201CI still don\u2019t understand,\u201D Obi-Wan said. \u201CNone of us does,\u201D the archivist replied. \u201CHe disappeared for about ten years,\u201D she said, her eyes focusing beyond the statue, \u201Cand then showed up recently at the head of the Separatist movement. Anyway,\u201D she once more looked at Obi-Wan. \u201CYou called for assistance and I don\u2019t think it was for a history lesson.\u201D \u201CYes, yes I did.\u201D Obi-Wan crossed to the terminal he had left when he had contacted Madame Nu. \u201CI am looking for the planetary system of Kamino. For some reason it doesn\u2019t show up on the archive charts.\u201D \u201CKamino,\u201D she leaned over his shoulder and pressed a few keys. \u201CIt\u2019s not a system I am familiar with. Do you have the correct coordinates?\u201D \u201CI just have the quadrant,\u201D Obi-Wan replied. \u201CIt should be about here, just south of the Rishi Maze.\u201D \u201CLet me see,\u201D she pressed a few more keys. \u201CI\u2019ll try a gravitational scan.\u201D They waited for the scan to complete. \u201CCould it have been destroyed?\u201D Obi-Wan asked. \u201CNo, not unless it is very recent,\u201D she replied. The scan showed nothing. \u201CI\u2019m sorry, but it appears that the planet you are searching for does not exist.\u201D \u201CImpossible,\u201D Obi-Wan said, \u201Cthere must be some mistake! Perhaps the archives are incomplete\u2014\u201D \u201CMaster Kenobi,\u201D Jocasta Nu said in a very patient voice, \u201Cif an item does not show up in the archives, it does not exist. That you can be sure of. May I assist you with anything else?\u201D Obi-Wan shook his head, still staring at the screen after she had gone. This was the second dead-end he had come to in his investigation of Nalanda\u2019s assassin. Fortunately, he knew exactly where to go to sort this out. Shortly thereafter Obi-Wan found himself walking towards the room where the young Jedi initiates\u2014or younglings as they were more often called\u2014trained with Master Yoda. \u201CFeel the Force you must,\u201D Yoda said in a low meditative voice, \u201Chelp you it will.\u201D He noticed Obi-Wan entering the room and made a gesture that caused all the seekers to go to the ceiling. \u201CEnough, younglings, a visitor we have, Master Obi-Wan Kenobi. Welcome him.\u201D \u201CHello Master Obi-Wan,\u201D the children chorused beneath their helmets. \u201CHello,\u201D Obi-Wan could not help but smile at all the faces transfixed upon him. He turned to Yoda. \u201CMaster, I hope I am not intruding.\u201D He had been a bit hesitant to approach Yoda with the matter since he himself had been given the assignment. \u201CWhat help may I be?\u201D Yoda asked, his ears moving slowly. \u201CI'm trying to locate a planet I heard from a friend,\u201D Obi-Wan explained. \u201CI trust him, but the planet doesn\u2019t show on the archive maps.\u201D He indicated that he had a holocube with him. \u201CHmmm.\u201D Yoda turned to the gathered younglings with a meditative, but slightly amused expression on his face. \u201CLost a planet, Master Obi-Wan has, how embarrassing. How embarrassing.\u201D Several of the younglings tittered as he took the cube from Obi-Wan and went across the room. Yoda glanced at one of the children. \u201CLiam, the shades,\u201D as the room darkened he glanced around so he had all of their attention. \u201COpen your minds younglings and find Obi-Wan\u2019s wayward planet we will.\u201D Yoda flicked the projector on and the darkened classroom was flooded with the light of stars. Obi-Wan smiled as he noticed some of the children try to touch the projection. How like Yoda to turn his problem into a lesson! He waited another moment then walked through the hologram. \u201CIt ought to be here,\u201D Obi-Wan pointed to a blank spot in the projection. \u201CBut it isn\u2019t. Gravity is pulling all the stars in this area towards this spot.\u201D \u201CHmmm, a puzzle we have here,\u201D Yoda said. \u201CGravity\u2019s shadow remains but nothing there is. A thought, anyone?\u201D There was a pause and then one of the younglings tentatively raised his hand. Yoda nodded. \u201CMaster, because someone erased it from the archive memory,\u201D the child said. \u201CThat's right!\u201D several others chorused. \u201CIf the planet blew up,\u201D a young Togruta suggested, \u201Cthe gravity would go away.\u201D Obi-Wan looked sceptical, but Yoda merely smiled. \u201CTruly uncluttered, the mind of a child is.\u201D He turned to Obi-Wan. \u201CThe Padawan is right, go to the centre of gravity\u2019s pull you must and find your planet you will.\u201D \u201CBut Master, who could have erased it from the archives?\u201D Obi-Wan retrieved the holocube and opened the shades. \u201CThat\u2019s impossible, isn\u2019t it?\u201D \u201CDangerous and disturbing that puzzle is,\u201D Yoda replied, his brow furrowing. \u201COnly a Jedi could have done such a thing. Meditate on this, I will.\u201D And there Obi-Wan left him, with more questions than answers but at least a destination."@en . . . . . . . . .