Why are you still chasing Ona Nobis? I do not think it is because of the reward.'
Her warm gaze grew hard. 'She shot him as though he were nothing, just something in her way.'
'Yes. She feels nothing for living beings. But revenge makes one careless,' Qui-Gon said. 'Leave Ona Nobis to us.'
She shook her head stubbornly. 'I can't.'
Annoyed, Qui-Gon fell silent. He could not control Astri's behavior.
She was a distraction to the mission, but he could not allow her to go off alone. He was too close to her father and cared too much for her to watch her walk off into danger.
Qui-Gon sighed. 'I have no right to tell you what to do.'
'Now we agree,' Astri said cheerfully.
'But I have a right to make a request,' Qui-Gon added.
She looked at him warily.
'Remain with our party for the time being. Ona Nobis is here on Belasco. Either we will find her, or she will find us. You will learn more with us than without us.'
Hesitantly, Astri nodded. 'All right. I thank you.'
'If you persist, I cannot protect you,' Qui-Gon warned. 'But at least I'd like you near.'
Obi-Wan walked up. 'Adi is feeling a disturbance in the Force.'
Qui-Gon hid his dismay. He had not felt anything.
'All right,' he said shortly. 'Come, Astri.' 'What about my friends?'
Astri asked.
Obi-Wan glanced over. He saw Cholly, Weez, and Tup trying to make themselves inconspicuous nearby.
Qui-Gon frowned. 'After years of disapproval of your father's friends, now you consort with criminals?'
One corner of Astri's mouth lifted. 'They are not competent enough to be criminals. And I'm almost growing fond of them.'
With a sigh, Qui-Gon beckoned to Cholly, Weez, and Tup. The trio came forward uneasily. 'It appears that we are stuck with you,' Obi-Wan told them.
'It is usually our policy to run away from trouble,' Cholly said. 'So don't worry.'
The group headed over to Adi and Siri.
'Something is wrong, Qui-Gon,' Adi told him in a low voice. 'I'm feeling desperation and fear here. Look at the departure checkpoint.'
Qui-Gon's keen gaze swept the Belascans in line. Now that Adi had alerted him, he felt what he should have known all along — a rippling disturbance in the Force. But he did not need the Force to alert him to the fear on the faces of the Belascans.
'You are right,' he said. 'And this landing platform is extraordinarily busy.'
'Everyone seems to be leaving, not arriving,' Siri observed.
'Let's walk a few blocks into the city,' Adi suggested. 'Maybe we'll pick up on what is wrong.'
They took the turbolift down from the main landing platform to the city streets below.
'We did not have time to do much research on Belasco,' Adi said.
'Here is what we know. This is a wealthy world with a rigid class system.
The planet was once ruled by a royal family, but now a Leader is elected, who then elects his own Council. Senators are greatly revered.'
'And Uta S'orn is a favorite of the current Leader, Min K'atel,' Obi- Wan said.
'Look,' Qui-Gon pointed out. 'There are clinics set up on almost every block. They look temporary. Maybe a sudden illness has infected the population. There aren't many people on the streets.'
An elder Belascan sat nearby on his front stoop, his hands dangling between his knees, a lost look on his face. He wore the distinctive elaborate headwrapping of the Belascan people, but two loose ends of fabric trailed over his shoulders as though he'd lost interest halfway through the task. Adi walked closer.
'I'm sorry to disturb you,' she said gently. 'We have only just arrived on your world. We sense that something is very wrong here.'
'Very wrong.' The handsome elder turned a bleak gaze on them. 'Have you not heard? Our water supply is contaminated.'
'We have not heard. You get your water supply from your Great Sea, do you not?' Adi asked.
He nodded. 'It is run through the desalinization tanks and provides us all with drinking water. Every seven years, a naturally occurring bacteria invades. We prepare for this. We know how to contain it, and we stockpile water for our use while the scientists control the bacteria. This year, they could not control it. It has multiplied and spread. But not before it took the lives of many elders and children. Among them my granddaughter.'
'I am so sorry,' Adi said. She bent down slightly to give the man a brief touch on the arm. Underneath Adi's regal manner, her intuitive nature gave her insight into suffering.
