Qui-Gon took the opportunity to press the point. 'Adi Gallia and I have seen your Tech Circle and your Med Circle. We have seen what you do have compared to what you could have. There have been advances in medicine and technology that could save your people suffering and hardship. Is it right to deny them?'
'We do not deny them,' V-Tan said, shaking his head. 'We save them.'
'There must be some sacrifice in order to preserve the General Good,' 0-Vieve said, turning back to them. Her voice once again rang with firm authority. 'This meeting is over. We will send your Padawans after you. We have a good ship, well-stocked, equipped with a hyper-drive for them. We send you good wishes on your journey.' Her blue eyes suddenly held the glint of steel. 'But if you try to remain in Kegan atmosphere, know this: Your ship will be blasted out of the sky.'
Obi-Wan and Siri were able to slip back into the throng of students crowding around the large data screen while the stragglers completed the course.
0-Bin read the scores, her usual fixed smile on her face. It faltered.
'O-Siri and V-Obi, step forward.'
Obi-Wan and Siri stepped forward.
'You have tampered with the data screen,' she rapped out. 'Ten punishment marks apiece — '
'Excuse me, Guide O-Bin.' The soft-spoken girl named O-lris spoke up.
'V-Obi and O-Siri completed the course that fast. I saw them leap up on the durasteel wall.'
'And I saw them navigate the twisting beam in only three seconds,'
another boy said. 'No one has ever done that.'
'They were already through the first lap while I was only a third through the first,' someone else said.
0-Bin's smile disappeared. She cleared her throat. 'I see. Well. Let us see if O-Siri and V-Obi can match their skill on the rec course with obedience in class.'
She walked off quickly. The students lined up to follow. Many glanced at Obi-Wan and Siri, speculation in their eyes. Obi-Wan had not foreseen that their prowess on the rec course would gain them more attention.
Obviously, no one had ever run the course so fast.
Back in class, 0-Bin began the lesson.
'Today we will cover the Kegan system of government as compared to other worlds. After studying other societies throughout the galaxy, V-Tan and O-Vieve have devised the best form of government. No one citizen on Kegan is more important than any other — '
'Really?' Siri said bluntly. 'Then why do V-Tan and O-Vieve tell you what to think and what to do?'
'Three marks, O-Siri. You're amassing quite a collection,' 0-Bin said, her smile tight. 'I suppose you enjoy kitchen duty.'
'It sure beats sitting in class,' Siri shot back.
This time, Obi-Wan heard a few students stifle a giggle.
'Two more marks,' O-Bin said. 'Getting back to the lesson, the freedoms we enjoy here on Kegan are unparalleled — '
Again, Siri interrupted. 'Is that why all the children are confined to a walled compound and can't leave without triggering an alarm?'
'0-Siri!'
'And why aren't citizens free to travel off-planet?' Obi-Wan chimed in.
'V-Obi! Four marks for both of you!'
'But Guide O-Bin, they have a point,' 0-lris said. 'Can you address it?'
0-Bin's lips thinned. 'No, I cannot. It is not a valid observation.'
'It seems valid to me,' V-ldo said hesitantly.
'And if we're free, why can't we choose what jobs we want to do?'
another student asked.
'My father wanted to work in the Tech Circle, but was assigned to Traffic Control,' someone said. 'He hates it.'
'They say they are not of our world,' 0-lris said. 'You call them liars. Yet we saw how they ran the course. No one on Kegan has that kind of skill.'
'That's enough!' 0-Bin's face was red. She turned to Siri and Obi-Wan.
For once, her anger was evident, not covered up with a bland, false smile.
'This is all your fault!' she said shrilly. 'Yours is not to question The Learning! It has been devised by those far wiser than you. It is taught by those who know more than you.'
'Then you should be able to explain it,' Siri pointed out.
'If we are so free, why can't we speak out?' O-lris asked.
'Enough!' O-Bin shouted. She stabbed at a red button by the door.
Seconds later, Security Guides burst in.
