Obi-Wan felt seconds tick by, precious seconds, while he absorbed this. To have come this far and have Xanatos win! He could not let it happen.
'His hatred has led him to destroy a planet just to destroy me,' Qui-Gon mused. 'Not to mention a sizable fortune. VeerTa said the wealth of the ionite vein alone is immeasurable.'
'Ionite?' Obi-Wan asked. 'I though this was an azurite mine.'
'They found a vein after the explosion,' Qui-Gon said. 'The force blew rocks upward from the core.' He gestured down the tunnel.
'Does the bomb have a clock?' Obi-Wan asked.
Qui-Gon nodded. 'An ion clock. Precise to the second. Why?'
Obi-Wan didn't answer. He flew down the tunnel, toward the pile of debris. He picked up a rock and scraped a fingernail against it. He saw the glow of ionite. He picked up more rocks, stacking them in his tunic.
'One minute left,' Qui-Gon called.
'We're not dead yet,' Obi-Wan answered, running back to him. He placed the rocks carefully around the bomb.
'What are…?' Qui-Gon's question died on his lips. The digital readout had stopped functioning. 'What — '
'Ionite,' Obi-Wan said. 'It has a neutral charge. Makes most instruments stop dead. Especially times. Miners fear it, but now, it will save them.' He grinned. 'You've got your fifteen minutes, Qui-Gon.'
Qui-Gon blew out a long breath. 'Then I'd better get started,' he said.
Chapter 19
Covered with grime, their tunics stiff with sweat, the Jedi wearily made their way to the governor's palace. There, they found SonTag in conference with VeerTa and Clat'Ha.
'There was an emergency evacuation at the mine,' SonTag told them, frowning worriedly. 'Yet our sensors show nothing wrong.'
'We just replaced and double-checked them yesterday,' Clat'Ha put in.
'And we received word that Offworld had a problem on their deepsea mining platform,' VeerTa added. 'The miners' electro-collars all malfunctioned. They revolted and abandoned the mine. Their leader — a Phindian named Guerra — said to tell you that he's okay.'
Obi-Wan felt a glow of satisfaction. Guerra was free.
'Not that we sympathize with Offworld,' Clat'Ha added. 'It's a good thing. Those miners were slaves. But why are we all having sensor malfunction?'
'Equipment failure is not your problem,' Qui-Gon told them. 'I'm afraid I have a more painful failure to to reveal.'
Quickly, Qui-Gon told them what had happened at the mine.
'So Xanatos was behind the first explosion,' SonTag said, grief in her face. 'if only we hadn't trusted him!'
'I knew we shouldn't have!' VeerTa announced, her eyes flashing.
Clat'Ha simply watched Qui-Gon. 'What do you mean when you say you must reveal a more painful failure?' She asked.
Leave it to Clat'Ha to jump to the next step, Qui-Gon thought admiringly. 'Someone close to you has betrayed you,' he said. 'Someone was in league with Xanatos. They betrayed Bandomeer for personal gain and told him about the ionite.'
VeerTa went pale. 'But who would do such a thing?'
Qui-Gon let his gaze remain on her. Slowly, her paleness was replaced with a flush of color.
Clat'Ha turned to her. 'VeerTa?'
'It was for the good of Bandomeer!' VeerTa cried. 'That's what he told me. If Offworld was secretly behind the Home Planet Mine, it would be sure to be profitable.'
'Did you really think that he would allow us to own the mine?' Clat'Ha asked her furiously.
'There is something else,' Qui-Gon said. 'Xanatos had a back-up plan. He wanted to blow up most of Bandomeer. Those black boxes were planted next to explosive is all the Enrichment Zones, plus the mining platforms. Somebody helped him smuggle those boxes into the domes.'
'He said it was mining equipment for future operations,' VeerTa whispered.
'Bandomeer was almost destroyed,' SonTag said, her voice as sharp as the edge of a vibro-blade. 'If it weren't for the Jedi…'
'There was no way I could have known!' VeerTa cried. 'Why would Xanatos destroy Bandomeer? He would destroy his own profits!'
Qui-Gon said nothing. He knew that if there was one thing stronger than greed, it was revenge. Xanatos had plotted for this very day. He had used VeerTa. He knew that Qui-Gon would die knowing he had been unable to save countless lives. It was the most painful death Xanatos could arrange for him.
Qui-Gon had underestimated Xanatos once again. He had not realized that his former apprentice was just as much a slave to the past as he was.
