you to our world and make sure you're comfortable. I am 0-Rina and this is V-Haad.'
Her companion smiled and bowed. He was tall and balding, with warm dark eyes.
The Jedi bowed in return, and Qui-Gon introduced them. 'We were called here by two of your citizens.'
The younger couple stepped forward. 'I am V-Nen and this is my wife O-Melie,' the man said. 'We are the parents of O-Lana.'
The woman's eyes studied them, then looked down. She seemed nervous, as did her husband. No doubt they were worried about the approaching examination of their child.
'The child is at their dwelling,' V-Haad said. 'We will transport you there. Please follow.'
The Jedi followed the Guides and the parents to a battered-looking landspeeder. Obi-Wan had never seen such an old model in use. He wondered if it would be able to start.
The repulsorlift engine fired up with a worrisome clatter, but it ran perfectly. As they sped over the rugged ground, Obi-Wan looked around curiously. They were traveling along one central unpaved road that curved around a low wall. Inside the wall were domed structures. The landspeeders parked outside looked as ancient and battered as the one they were riding in.
'There is but one city on Kegan, and we are all its keepers,' 0-Rina shouted over the noise of the engine. 'The rest of the planet is used for food and animal cultivation. There are large areas of open space. We are passing the Tech Circle right now. Kegan is divided into circles for each area of work. The Tech Circle leads into the Communication Circle, which leads to the Study Circle, which leads to the Garden Circle, and so on. They all ring the Gathering Circle, where we hold meetings. We are heading now to the Dwelling Circle.'
A shadow passed over them, and Obi-Wan looked up. A skyhopper zoomed overhead, an old model he wasn't familiar with.
'Perhaps you are amazed that our transports are still running,' V-Haad said to him with a chuckle. 'Here on Kegan we do not destroy, we reuse. Our Tech Circle is expert at keeping old technology functional. We have no need for the newest models.'
'Do you have currency here?' Adi Gallia asked in an interested way.
V-Haad shook his head. 'We are a barter economy. Everything belongs to the General Good. We may give up great riches here, but we have no crime. I would rather live peacefully and safely than with worry on my shoulders.'
'It seems a good philosophy,' Qui-Gon agreed. 'Do you have a system of government?'
'We have Benevolent Guides, V-Tan and 0-Vieve,' O-Rina said. 'They were the first to devise a new way to live here on Kegan. They have an Advising Circle, but they guide rather than rule. We are all given a voice.
Everything is adjusted for the General Good.'
Obi-Wan had to admit that the system seemed to work on the surface.
Perhaps because Kegan was a tiny planet with a small population, it managed to avoid the strife of other worlds. As they sped by, people lifted their heads from their tasks to wave and smile. They all seemed busy and happy.
Still, he noticed something strange. 'I don't see any children,' he said to the Guides.
'Children are precious here,' O-Rina told him. 'Education is very important. They are sent to school at an early age to learn and explore. Ah, here is the Dwelling Circle.'
V-Haad piloted the craft through a break in the wall and guided it to a penned enclosure where a few battered landspeeders were parked. They walked toward one of the many domed buildings that curved around the core in a spiral. Each building was connected to the next.
V-Nen opened the door and stood aside to let them in. The small room was furnished simply but comfortably, with low benches piled with thick cushions.
Qui-Gon turned to V-Haad and O-Rina. 'Thank you for bringing us here.
We would like to examine the child alone with the parents.'
'Oh, of course, we understand your procedures,' V-Haad said.
'But we cannot follow them, so sorry to say this,' O-Rina added.
'0-Melie and V-Nen have asked us to stay. They are nervous with outsiders.'
Qui-Gon looked at the parents kindly. 'There is nothing to be nervous about. We will simply tell you if your child is Force-sensitive. If so, we will explain what that means and what can be done, should you wish it.'
V-Nen and O-Melie exchanged glances. O-Melie swallowed. 'We wish for the Hospitality Guides to stay.'
V-Haad and O-Rina smiled. 'You see? You must not think of us as outsiders in this house,' O-Rina rushed to assure them, 'Everyone on Kegan is part of the same family. This is true, 0-Melie?'
'Yes,' O-Melie said.
Suddenly, 0-Rina and V-Haad's smiles seemed fixed to their faces, as though what was inside did not match their friendliness. A small trickle of warning snaked through Obi-Wan. He had learned to trust that feeling.
Something was wrong here. Things were not what they appeared to be.
V-Haad and O-Rina had seemed to welcome them, but Obi-Wan had a feeling they were not happy the Jedi were here. Not at all.
Qui-Gon didn't trust V-Haad and 0-Rina from the start. Despite their wide smiles, they gave off a sense of unease that he could not attribute to being unused to strangers. And why were there Hospitality Guides when the planet allowed no visitors?
He nodded at them anyway, meeting their friendliness with his own. 'Of course you may remain if V-Nen
