Pain ripped through him, but he did not extract his arm. He maneuvered his body so that his other arm was free. He reached over to the lab table. A long, steel instrument lay on the table, just out of his reach. Concentrating the Force, Qui-Gon caused it to fly into his hand.

Using all his strength, he pushed the door farther open. It opened, centimeter by agonizing centimeter. When the opening was big enough for him to squeeze through, he wedged the steel instrument against the door to hold it. Then he eased through.

He raced down the hallway, every sense alert. He did not want to run into Zan Arbor. Three doors led off the hallway. One to the left, one to the right. One straight ahead. Qui-Gon paused.

He listened with the Force. He sent out as much of his energy as he could. The effort was exhausting.

He felt an answering burst.

Qui-Gon turned right. He accessed the door and found himself in another hallway. Qui-Gon took the first door to his right. To his disappointment, he saw he had merely accessed a storage area. Shelves ran from floor to ceiling and were filled with durasteel containers and medical bins. He glanced at the labels. There were enough antitoxins and medicines here to cure whole worlds…

There was a disturbance in the Force. Qui-Gon began to turn, but he felt a pain in his back. His legs went numb. He fell.

"That's enough!" Jenna Zan Arbor barked.

Qui-Gon saw her approach along with Nil. Nil was carrying a harness.

He strapped it onto Qui-Gon, who was now paralyzed.

"Drag him back to the lab," Zan Arbor said. "Thank you, Qui-Gon, for that magnificent demonstration of the Force. I will have some readings to analyze now. Thank my stars I can always count on Nil to be outsmarted."

Nil leaned down. Fury twisted his face.

"We should kill him," he said to Jenna Zan Arbor.

"All in good time," she said coolly.

Chapter 12

In a galaxy full of notorious planets, Simpla-12 was one of the most notorious of all. Once, it had been rich in minerals, but held little life and no native beings. The planet had been mined and abandoned. Then gradually it became a landing spot for trawlers and a haven for space pirates. A small colony sprang up, and an economy of sorts developed, based on gambling and the sale of black market goods. Violence was common.

There was only one colony on Simpla-12, called, in a burst of optimism, Sim-First. No other colonies had followed. Instead Sim-First had spread like mold over the planet's surface. The outpost was a sprawling, snaking growth of buildings with a maze of narrow walkways made of metal ties sunk into the dirt. Mud oozed from the cracks between the ties. Many of the buildings had fallen into disrepair and had been patched with scrap metal and odd bits of plastoid materials.

Simpla-12's sun was weak. The planet was known for its heavy cloud cover, which made for a constant drizzling rain that dripped from a sky of lead.

"You take me to the nicest places," Astri murmured as they slogged through the mud.

"It's perfect for someone who wants to hide," Obi-Wan said. Was that why his instinct told him to come here? Was Jenna Zan Arbor's secret lab on Simpla-12? When he had contacted Tahl to tell her his destination, he could tell by her tone that she thought he was on the wrong trail. She did not try to stop him, however. She had sounded distracted, as though she was concerned with more important leads. No doubt she was relieved that Obi-Wan and Astri were pursuing what she felt would be a fruitless mission. It would keep them safe and out of trouble.

Obi-Wan had to agree that he was following the slenderest of threads.

He tried to call Qui-Gon, reaching out to the Force. He felt nothing. He touched the stone inside his tunic and felt its reassuring warmth. He could not shake the feeling that every step he took brought him closer to his Master.

It did not take them long to discover the names of Ren's associates on Simpla-12. On a world such as this, information could be bought for a few credits. Ren's associates-Cholly, Weez, and Tup-could be found at the 12 Tavern.

They were directed down an even narrower, dirtier lane. The metal ties that formed the walkway were completely covered in mud and garbage.

Ahead a sign with the number 12 roughly painted in red swung in the drizzling rain.

They were almost to the building when suddenly a body came flying out of the tavern's front door. With a thump, the body landed face first in the street, sending mud flying. A second body followed, landing with a squeal and a curse.

The first body stirred. "Weez! That's my foot!" Astri started forward. Obi-Wan put a hand on her arm. "I think we'd better wait."

A third body flew through the air, landing a short distance from the other two.

"Don't be so touchy!" the third being yelled back at the tavern.

A huge Devaronian stepped out onto the front porch of the tavern.

Quickly, the three beings scampered backward on their hands and knees. Obi- Wan could not tell their species, but they were all humanoid.

"And don't come back again!" the Devaronian boomed. He turned and thumped back into the tavern. The door slammed shut behind him.

"That was your fault, Tup," the first being said. He was the tallest of the three, with hair that straggled down his back.

"Was not," Tup said, wiping mud off his round face. "Gibbertz and ham, who knew he had no sense of humor?"

The one called Weez wiped mud out of his eyes. "Most beings don't like having their mothers called Kowakian monkey lizards."

"I thought his mother was a Kowakian monkey lizard," Tup said.

The first being, who Obi-Wan assumed was Cholly, stood and tried to wipe the mud off his face with the end of his tunic. He only succeeded in grinding more mud on. "What are we going to do now? We've been thrown out of every tavern in Sim-First."

Obi-Wan walked forward. "Maybe a few credits would get you back inside one of them."

Tup puffed out childish plump cheeks and blew out a short, explosive breath. "Woosh. Great idea, stranger. Thanks for the tip. Only, guess what?

We don't have any credits."

"Maybe there's a way you can earn some," Astri said.

"You have work?" Weez asked. He stood next to Cholly. He was a few inches shorter. "Sorry. We have a back injury."

"I can see why, if you keep getting thrown out of places," Astri said.