He turned and met Qui-Gon's eyes. 'What kind of place is this?' he asked.
'A mausoleum,' Qui-Gon said.'A place for the dead to rest. But here on Melida/Daan, the memories stay alive. Look.' Qui-Gon pointed to the offerings that they now saw heaped on pedestals in front of the columns. The flowers were fresh, the trays of seeds and cups of water replenished.
They walked down the aisles, past row after row of graves, activating hologram after hologram. The vast, echoing space filled with the voices of the dead. They saw generations tell their stories of blood and vengeance.
They heard tales of whole villages starved and then slaughtered, children torn from their mother's arms, mass executions, forced marches that ended in suffering and more death.
'The Daan sound like a bloodthirsty people,' Obi-Wan remarked. The accounts of suffering and agony had moved through him like growing pain from a deep wound.
'We're in a Melida mausoleum,' Qui-Gon replied. 'I wonder what the Daan have to say.'
'There are so many dead,' Obi-Wan observed. 'But there's no clear reason why they fight. Battle follows battle, each one conducted to avenge the one before. What is the real dispute?'
'Perhaps they have forgotten it,' Qui-Gon said. 'The hatred is bred in their bones. Now they fight over meters of territory, or to avenge a wrong that happened a hundred years before.'
Obi-Wan shivered. The damp, cold air had invaded his body. He felt cut away from the rest of the galaxy. His world had funneled down into this black, shadowy space full of blood, revenge, and death. 'Our mission here hasn't even begun, and already I have seen enough suffering to last a lifetime.'
Qui-Gon's gaze was sad. 'There are some worlds that manage to hold onto peace for centuries, Padawan. But I am afraid that many have seen terrible wars that scar the memories of each generation. It has always been.'
'Well, I've seen enough for now,' Obi-Wan said. 'Let's find the way out.'
They walked quickly now, hurrying past the markers, searching for an exit. At last they saw a square of brightness ahead. It was a door fashioned from a translucent material that emitted a white glow.
Qui-Gon pressed the exit indicator light, and they spilled out into the weak sunshine with relief. They remained in the shadow of the doorway, scanning the immediate area before moving on.
The mausoleum was perched on a ridge. Ahead of them rose a steep hill that ended in an overhanging cliff. A path wound through gardens to their left, a wall to their right.
'I guess we have to go that way,' Obi-Wan said, pointing to the path.
'I suppose,' Qui-Gon said. Still, he hesitated, his keen gaze searching the steep hillside in front of them. 'But I-'
Suddenly, the dirt exploded in front of Obi-Wan's feet.
'Snipers!' Qui-Gon yelled. 'Take cover!'
The blaster fire came from the top of the overhanging cliff. Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon leaped to the top of the wall on their right. Chips of stone splintered and flew as blaster fire ripped into the wall. Qui-Gon took a split- second to balance and survey what lay below. Then he leaped down, Obi-Wan directly behind him.
They landed in a small area with humming banks of machinery. Walls surrounded them on three sides, the mausoleum building on the other. They would be trapped here under fire, but at least the blaster fire could not reach them. Qui-Gon wondered fleetingly if the snipers would get bored and go away.
Unfortunately, in his long experience, snipers never got bored and went away.
Qui-Gon examined the machinery. 'These must be the heating and cooling units for the building,' he observed as blaster fire continued to rip over their heads.
'At least we're out of the line of fire,' Obi-Wan said.
'I'm afraid we have a bigger problem,' Qui-Gon said. He bent down to examine a metal tank. 'This is full of proton fuel. If the blaster fire hits it, we'll be blown from here back to the starship.'
He exchanged a concerned glance with Obi-Wan. They would have to expose themselves to the snipers. They could not remain here and continue to draw fire.
'Let's see what's on the other side of that wall,' Qui-Gon said, indicating the wall opposite to the one they had leaped over.
Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon summoned the Force. When Qui-Gon felt it grow and pulse around them, he jumped, along with Obi-Wan. As they leaped into midair, they took a quick survey of what lay on the other side, blaster fire suddenly intensifying around them. Qui-Gon deflected it with his lightsaber.
They fell back to the ground.
'It's a big drop down to that ravine,' Obi-Wan reported to Qui-Gon. 'Do you think we can make it?'
'The ground looks soft,' Qui-Gon said. 'That could help our landing, but if it's swampy, we could be in trouble. We don't want to be swallowed by a bog. Remember that the terrain of Melida/Daan can be treacherous.'
'At least we'll surprise the snipers,' Obi-Wan pointed out. 'They won't expect us to risk it.'
Qui-Gon nodded. 'We can work our way around the cliff and scale it from the other side to surprise them further. The brush will cover us. They won't know which way we went, and probably won't expect us to attack.'
'The only alternative, Master, is to go back over the wall. Once we made it to that path, we'd have shelter in the gardens.'
Qui-Gon paused, thinking of their next move. While he considered the odds, he thought about the way he and Obi-Wan had come to function together as a unit. Though at times their relations could be bumpy, under
