'I don't take test,' Xanatos snapped. 'I make the rules. Bandomeer is mine. All I have to do is reach out my hand and take it.'
He circled closer, his cloak swirling and brushing against Qui-Gon. 'It's a tiny planet. Galactically insignificant. Yet it pours forth wealth into my hands. If you would only lose the tiresome rules of the Jedi, it would do the same for you. But no, Qui-Gon is too good. He is not tempted. He is never tempted.'
'Bandomeer is not yours to own.' Qui-Gon pulled an arm's length away from Xanatos. 'You were always overconfident. You have gone too far this time.'
'No.' Xanatos' dark blue eyes glittered. He drew his lightsaber. 'Now I have gone too far.'
In a flash, Qui-Gon's lightsaber hummed to life. When Xanatos leaped to deliver his first blow, Qui-Gon was already moving to deflect it. The sabers met and sizzled. Qui-Gon felt the power of Xanatos' stroke move up his arm.
Xanatos had not lost his fighting edge. He had only grown more powerful, moving with economy and grace. His lightsaber flashed, he thrust again, always with a surprising twist or direction.
Qui-Gon moved defensively. He knew he would not be able to tire Xanatos, one method of Jedi strategy.
Xanatos had more than physical skill. Qui-Gon could feel the power of his mind. Xanatos was till in touch with the Force. He had gathered the energy of darkness, not light.
Qui-Gon leaped aside to avoid another blow. Xanatos laughed. It was time to change the rules of engagement. Enough defense.
Qui-Gon sprang at Xanatos, his lightsaber humming and flashing. He delivered one blow after another, which Xanatos deflected. Smoke and sizzle filled the air. Xanatos laughed again.
Qui-Gon used a slashing sequence of moves to position Xanatos against the wall of the building. But Xanatos leaped onto the slag heap and flipped over in midair, landing on Qui-Gon's other side.
'You destroyed everything I loved,' Xanatos accused, his lightsaber barely missing Qui-Gon's shoulder, so close it singed the fabric of his tunic. 'You destroyed me that day, Qui-Gon. Yet I was reborn. Stronger, wiser. I have surpassed you.'
Their lightsabers tangled, buzzing furiously. Qui-Gon felt the charge in his arm, but didn't waver. Xanatos kicked out with a foot, but qui-Gon was expecting it, and moved aside. Xanatos lost his balance. He almost fell, but recovered in time.
'Your footwork has always been your weakness,' Qui-Gon said dryly as he dealt a blow to Xanatos' shoulder. Xanatos twisted away, but not before Qui-Gon saw him grimace with pain. 'If you've surpassed me, it's only in your mind.'
Perhaps it was the taunt. Perhaps it was because Qui-Gon had finally caused him real pain. Xanatos whirled the other side of his cape behind his shoulder. A second lightsaber was suddenly in his hand.
Startled, Qui-Gon lost his focus for an instant. There was only one person to whom that lightsaber could belong.
'And where is your new apprentice?' Xanatos sneered.
So Xanatos had been responsible for Obi-Wan's disappearance. Now he knew for sure.
Xanatos faked a charge to the left, went right, then danced back to the left again. Qui-Gon remembered the move from the Temple. He easily blocked the blow.
He was fighting the past. His past. Perhaps he could defeat Xanatos, but the battle would not be won. Only the future mattered now. Obi-Wan was the future. The past would wait.
Qui-Gon paused, knowing Xanatos was ready to escalate the fight. Ready to deliver a death blow, if he could.
Suddenly, Xanatos whirled around, took three long steps toward the slag heap, and pushed himself off, flying through the air with both lightsabers slashing toward Qui-Gon, every muscle ready to drive the blow home.
He met empty air. Qui-Gon twisted away, grabbing Obi-Wan's lightsaber from Xanatos' unprepared grip.
Then, for the first time in his life, Qui-Gon ran from battle. He had to find Obi-Wan. The cold wind whistled past his ears as he crossed the mine yard at top speed.
He heard Xanatos' voice rise from the mist.
'Run, coward! But you can't escape me!'
'It appears that I have!' Qui-Gon shouted.
Xanatos' laugh was chilling. 'Only for now, Qui-Gon. Only for now.'
Chapter 13
For two nights and two days, Obi-Wan struggled to use the Force to override his electro-collar. His wounds were healing slowly. His body was worn down by work in the mines.
The miners were kept in half-starved condition, but id anyone faltered, the guards beat them savagely with an electro-jabber. All of the guards were Imbats, creatures known for their size and cruelty, not their intelligence. They were tall as trees, with leathery skin and massive legs ending in broad, grasping toes. Their heads were small for their bodies and dominated by large, drooping ears.
Lift tubes took the miners below the sea floor. The small tunnels were hazardous. There were frequent leaks, and occasionally a tunnel would burst, drowning everyone inside. But what the miners dreaded most was a backflow of bad air into the tunnels. It was a slower death by suffocation.
