“Desh,” Ventress said, turning, and the words died in her throat.
It was Vos. “Please,” he said, “let me talk to you.”
Ventress turned away quickly, continuing to stride down the hallway. “Not interested. Clearly.”
“Just for a moment?” He hurried ahead of her, blocking her path. Pain at the movement rolled off him, but not the choking darkness she had sensed before. Ventress came to a stop, and her eyes searched his. There was no hint of ugly yellow or blood red in them, only the warm brown depths in which she had once lost herself.
Against her better judgment, she nodded. He jerked his head in the direction of an alcove, and Ventress followed. Vos stared at her, apparently unable to find words now that she had agreed to listen to him.
“Well?” she snapped.
“I’m so sorry.”
Ventress rolled her eyes. “Not this again.” She made to shove past him.
“Hey,” he said, and grabbed her arm.
Cold fury shot through her and she whirled. “Take your hands off me,” she demanded.
Vos obeyed at once, holding both hands up in a placating gesture. “Please,” he said, “I’m…I’m begging you. Just hear me out.”
Ventress did not try to pass him again, but neither did she look at him. Vos took a deep breath, and she sensed him still struggling for the right words. It was important to him—but she did not know whether it was because he was truly sorry, or because he was still trying to trick her. The thought knifed her.
“I made the wrong decision. I should have just seized the chance to escape when you came for me. But I thought if I stayed, I could complete the mission. I never for a moment thought you’d really believe I’d turned. If I’ve lost you, it wasn’t worth it. Nothing would be worth it. I can only hope you can find your way to forgiving me, as I forgave you when you lied to me.”
She had, hadn’t she? Deliberately, and selfishly. Ventress knew in her heart that she could tell herself all she liked that she’d done it for the mission, but that, too, would be a lie.
“Asajj…Everything we had was real. It still is. My feelings for you haven’t changed.”
Despite herself, Ventress’s heart leapt. Now she did permit herself to look at him. It was true. She could feel it in the Force. Had she been mistaken?
Then her gaze fell on the brown cloak Obi-Wan Kenobi had placed around Vos’s shoulders. She had watched the Jedi Council welcome him back. He had said nothing to them about his feelings for her. So, in the end, even if it were true, it meant nothing.
Ventress reached out and fingered the coarse brown fabric. “But that is not the Jedi way, is it? You’ve chosen your path.”
She could feel his eyes as she walked away. Tears filled her own. But she didn’t look back.
—
Anakin was able to leave the Temple and sneak into Padmé’s apartments at something resembling a reasonable hour. Vos’s arrival had thrown everyone into a state, and Anakin was glad of the reprieve. He marched into their living room, where Padmé was preparing a light supper for herself, and swept his petite wife into his arms for a long, passionate kiss.
“Anakin!” Her eyes sparkled with pleasure as he gently placed her down. He grinned. His name, when spoken by her lips, was the sweetest music in the galaxy.
“Were you expecting someone else?” he teased.
Padmé punched his chest playfully. “I was expecting my husband, but not so early. I’m glad.”
He poured them both a glass of wine and they sat on the couch while Anakin filled her in on what had happened with Vos. He took creative license with the part about Vos being sent to assassinate Dooku. He was pretty sure a senator would not approve of such an action, and so modified “assassinate” to “capture.” Chancellor Palpatine had not been informed, either; the mission was deemed to be Jedi business. Anakin wasn’t sure that was the right call. It felt wrong to him for the Jedi Order to keep secrets from the Chancellor, but the decision, like so many others, was out of his hands. Padmé had met Vos on occasion, but she was not as familiar with him as she was with some of the other Jedi, so the whole story was new to her.
She listened raptly, her brown eyes wide, and when he had finished, she sighed sadly. “What do you think about all this?”
“It’s a mess,” Anakin said, shaking his head. “I was against the idea of Ventress being involved at all, but nobody asked my opinion.”
“But you said neither you nor Obi-Wan sensed that he had gone dark. Why do you think Ventress did?”
“It’s pretty clear she seduced him,” Anakin said. “She’s…kind of like that.”
“And how would you know?” Padmé tried to look serious, but couldn’t quite hide a smile. Anakin loved that expression of playfulness, so rarely on his serious wife’s face. He brushed back a lock of her brown hair.
“Rumor has it,” he said, unable to resist adding, “You should see how she flirts with Obi-Wan when they’re swinging lightsabers at each other.” His humor faded. “If Vos did go to the dark side, I’m pretty sure it’s her fault. She as much as admitted that she wanted him to be stronger. But he couldn’t handle it. Vos should never have gotten involved with her.”
“You said Ventress seemed genuinely upset.”
“She was. First time I’ve seen a real emotion out of her that didn’t involve removing someone’s body parts. But it doesn’t matter. A Jedi isn’t supposed to…um…”
Anakin’s flow of words slowed as he realized how hypocritical he sounded. Padmé was watching him with a slightly wry smile, but her eyes were kind. “We’re different,” he said. “We’re in love.”
Padmé ran a small hand along his cheek. “Yes, we are,” she said. “And maybe they are, too.”
“Ventress isn’t capable of anything as selfless as love,” Anakin scoffed. “And Vos couldn’t possibly have cared about a murderess like her. Besides, she’s the one who took him to the dark side in the first place.”
Padmé shrugged. “Stranger things have happened,” she said. “And maybe, if she loves him, she’s his way back from it.”
Anakin found he had no response to that.
“Big day today for Quinlan,” Desh said, falling into step with Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker.
“Indeed,” Kenobi said. “But I’m not terribly concerned about it. Vos has performed well on the smaller assignments the Council has given him. I’ve no doubt they’ll pronounce him fit to take on more important ones.”
Desh nodded, but he looked somewhat troubled. “Something on your mind, Jedi Akar?” Kenobi asked.
The Mahran hesitated, then said, “When she left, Ventress seemed to think that there was something wrong with Master Vos. And he’s been avoiding me, I can tell.”
Kenobi sighed. “It doesn’t surprise me to learn that Vos might be avoiding people he’d been particularly close with, having realized the damage attachment can cause. I’m sure it’s nothing you’ve done. As for Ventress…she and Vos were, ah, entangled. I think she was disappointed that he chose the Jedi and not her. She kept insisting that Dooku had turned him, but no one—not I, not Anakin, nor anyone on the Council, has seen or sensed anything that leads us to believe she was correct. Ventress’s emotions colored her perception, that’s all.”
“Or else she’s just flat-out lying,” Anakin put in. “I mean, come on. This is Asajj Ventress we’re talking about.”
“I prefer to give her the benefit of the doubt,” Kenobi said.
“You always take the high road, Master Kenobi,” said Desh. He looked relieved. “Well, I will miss knocking back drinks with Vos and reminiscing about old times, but if the trade-off is that we have him back, alive and well, there’s no question that it’s a minor price to pay.”
“Anakin, you and Desh can wait outside if you wish. I think this is one Council meeting that won’t take particularly long.” Even as he had gently chided Desh for his affection toward Vos, Kenobi knew that he, himself, had not been impartial. It was dif
ficult not to like Vos, even when one wished to strangle him. He reminded himself that he would have done the same for any Jedi.
“Master Kenobi,” Yoda greeted him. “A happy duty to discharge, we do. Tell us of Master Vos, if you will.”
“With pleasure, Master Yoda. I sent you all the 2-1B’s reports on Vos’s physical condition. He will have scars, but over the last month he has healed physically.”
“And otherwise?” asked Plo Koon. “Dooku has broken others ere now. A former Jedi Master would understand our weaknesses better than any other enemy.”
“I cannot deny the truth of your statement,” Kenobi admitted. “Vos was…wounded in spirit, as well. It was for this reason that I’ve spent so much time in his company, and been the one to supervise his missions. But I doubt if any of us could say any differently had we been in Dooku’s prison cell. I’ve seen nothing that makes me think that Quinlan Vos succumbed to the pull of the dark side—if, indeed, he ever really ventured there at all.”
“It is our understanding that Asajj Ventress felt that he did,” Mace Windu said.
Kenobi hesitated. Vos had never spoken of Ventress to him, except when directly asked. He was loath to place doubt if no one else knew what he did, but Kenobi felt that total honesty was the only way to truly restore Vos’s reputation. Kenobi told Windu what he had said to Desh a few moments before—that he suspected the Jedi Master and the former Sith had been involved, but that it was clear that Vos had chosen the Jedi over Ventress, and she had mistaken his rejection of her for a descent into the darkness.
Most of the other Masters nodded as he spoke, but Windu frowned. “Asajj Ventress isn’t a good person to develop feelings for. Are we certain she didn’t just turn him over to Dooku?”
“Vos says no,” Kenobi replied. “During their joint attack on Dooku, they were forced to fight both him and Grievous, as well as dozens of droids. In the end, they were simply outnumbered. I will remind the Council that Ventress even attempted a rescue mission at a later point, but failed to recover Vos.”
“Because Vos didn’t want to go with her,” said Mace.
“Master Vos has explained what happened several times,” Kenobi replied. “He’s not hiding anything. He stumbled, yes, but he did not fall.”
“Made his choice now, he has, and a wise one, it is,” Yoda said. “Painful though it was. Satisfied, I am, with what I am hearing.”
The others echoed Yoda’s words, all except for Windu. “I would prefer we give him another month. Just to be certain.”
“With all due respect, Master Windu,” Kenobi said, “Vos has been in a unique position. For a time, he convinced Dooku that he was on the count’s side—that he could be trusted. He’s learned so much, and reported it all to us. Going forward, we can use that knowledge as we strategize.”
“I agree, but Vos doesn’t have to be in the field.”
“But if he is there, he will be able to react immediately with any knowledge he has that we don’t,” Shaak Ti said. “I feel he is ready to be sent on a more delicate mission.”
Windu looked troubled, but he bowed his head. “I yield to the will of the Council. Send for him.”
A few moments later, Master Quinlan Vos appeared before the Jedi Council. Kenobi thought of how he had looked a few short weeks ago: malnourished, pale, bleeding, and brokenhearted. His healthy color had returned, and he now moved without any hint of pain. Quinlan Vos looked every bit the Jedi Master he was. Perhaps, mused Kenobi, this ordeal had, in a perverse way, been exactly what Vos needed to temper his occasional excessive enthusiasm.
“Performed well, you have, Master Vos,” Yoda said.
“Thank you, Master Yoda,” Vos said, bowing. “I want you all to know I understand why you have been so hesitant about putting me back in the field. I’d have done the same thing to anyone who’d spent months in the tender loving care of Count Dooku.”
“Satisfied, we are,” Yoda said. “A task for you, we have.”
“I will serve you with all my ability,” Vos said.
Mace Windu pressed a button on his chair. The hologram of an asteroid appeared in the center of the room. “We’ve gotten a tip on the location of a Separatist supply storage base.”
Vos tried, and failed, not to look disappointed. “Of course. As the Council wishes.”
“This is no little matter, Master Vos,” Ki-Adi-Mundi said. “The base is massive and concealed in the interior of this asteroid. Our intel says it contains medications, arms, ship repair materials, and foodstuffs. If we can take this base, we can get vital supplies to worlds that are in desperate need.”
“And deny them to the Separatists,” Mace added. “Did Dooku mention anything like this to you, Vos?”
Vos thought for a minute. “He did say something about a supply base once, but I thought it was on a planet. Maybe Toola?”
“We’re pretty certain it’s here,” Windu said.
“I’m sure there’s more than one such base,” Vos conceded.
“Master Kenobi, Master Vos, you two will lead this mission,” Windu continued. “Take two other Jedi with you, and as many clones as you think necessary to transport the supplies. It looks like any defense you will encounter will be sparse; I think Dooku was relying on the obscurity of the location to keep it secret, but you should go in prepared for a fight just in case this hidden base has some hidden fighters.”
“Understood,” Kenobi said. “With the Council’s permission, I’d like to take Skywalker and Akar-Deshu with us.”
“Of course,” Windu said. He addressed both Kenobi and Vos, but Obi-Wan noticed his gaze lingered on the other Jedi. “Gentlemen, these supplies could potentially help us save thousands of lives. It’s not a glamorous assignment, but it’s a vital one. May the Force be with you.”
—
“I can see why Dooku thought no one would spot this as a base,” Anakin said. “It looks just like a big rock.”
“That’s pretty much what an asteroid is, yes,” Desh said. He, Anakin, Kenobi, and Vos were all in their own Eta-2 Actis-class interceptors, heading toward the asteroid. Certain materials in the asteroid’s composition had rendered it impossible for sensors to detect whether anything—or anyone—was inside it, so a visual inspection was necessary.
“All right, everyone ready for our first pass?” Kenobi asked.
“Let’s do this!” Vos exclaimed, clearly happy to be, as he had said to Kenobi, “sprung from his cage.”
“More than ready,” Desh said.
At that moment half a dozen droid starfighters emerged from the asteroid’s interior. “Oh, hey, look at that,” Anakin said. “I think we’ve found the right place.”
“We’re outnumbered two to one,” Desh said. “This’ll be easy.” Even as he spoke, Anakin had swooped down on one of the starfighters, scoring a hit. The damaged ship spiraled out of control and then exploded. Kenobi jigged and jagged as two latched on to his tail.
“I’m on it,” Vos said, coming up behind the two. Kenobi pulled up and back, executing a loop and firing while upside down. He struck his target squarely, and Vos took care of the second one.
“Three down, three to go!” said Anakin. “Watch this.”
“Anakin—” Kenobi cautioned, then added under his breath, “Why do I even bother?”
Anakin flew over two of the ships and fired on each one, then came around beneath the third. He fired on it, as well. Like anoobas that had spotted a jakrab, the three fighters set off in hot pursuit. Kenobi, Vos, and Desh brought up the rear and picked off the last three.
“That was not nearly enough fun,” Anakin lamented.
“Let’s just be glad it was only six and not a dozen or more,” Vos said.
“Master Vos, you disappoint me,” Anakin chided. “You’re as dull as Master Kenobi.”
“Now, now, let’s not exaggerate,” Kenobi said, permitting himself a small smile. “I think we’re safe now. Fall into single-file formation and we’ll fly over it, slowly and carefully.”
>
Somewhat to his surprise, they obeyed, and then, in the shadows of a concavity, Kenobi saw the entrance. It was large enough to admit a medium-sized transport, and the single-person interceptors had no trouble negotiating it. The tunnel was long and curving, but it widened as the Jedi maneuvered around a bend and entered an enormous cavern. Abruptly, the chamber flooded with light. Kenobi realized that they had probably passed through an environmental field, and the grotto would therefore be able to suit humanoid life. The light illuminated crate after crate of various supplies, and caught the gleaming curves of metallic ship parts.
Anakin whistled. “Okay, Master Windu had good intel. You lost this round, Master Vos.”
“I’m delighted to be wrong,” Vos replied. “Look at all this!”
“We’re going to have to requisition more transports, but I think that’s a problem we’re grateful to have,” Kenobi said.
They brought their ships down onto a vast landing pad that would easily accommodate the three transports they had brought and had room for several more. The four Jedi hopped out of their vessels and paused for a moment to simply take it all in.
“This is going to help a lot of people,” Vos said.
“And,” put in Desh, “make Dooku gnash his teeth when word gets out that we now have control of it.”
“Enough patting ourselves on the back,” Kenobi said. “Let’s get to work.”
Desh returned to the Jedi light cruiser to inform the clones that they could bring in the transports. Kenobi, Vos, and Anakin looked around, and then at one another.
“I hardly know where to begin,” Anakin said.
Kenobi stroked his beard. “It is rather intimidating. Fortunately, it’s not our task to catalog or distribute the items. All we have to do is assist the clones in getting the supplies onto the transports.”
“If I may,” Vos said, “I’ll leave you two in charge of that. I’d like to have a look around. I’ve got a hunch that there might be something more valuable here than food, a few blasters, and spare parts.”
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