Chapter 55
he place was dark, except for a small strip of light. Major Doran Whain scrambled to his feet and stretched out his hands, like a blind man. Except for the strip of light the darkness around him was impenetrable. He even couldn't see his outstretched hands. He started to move towards the strip of light.
'Where am I?' He thought, 'What happened. I can't recall how I came here.'
Suddenly he lost his balance and nearly fell on his knees. He wasn't able to move any further. In the darkness he groped down his left leg and found a kind of manacle with a chain around his ankle. He pulled the manacle, but he couldn't untie himself.
'Another of this guy's surprises. They tied me to the wall with a manacle around my ankle. How did I came here?'
Doran sat on the floor and recalled what had happened in the communication center. He had been able to refit and activate that communication equipment. After a short test he had told those guarding droids to warn their master. Not long afterwards the guy had entered in a hurry. He had said nothing.
Doran shook his head, trying to recall what had happened next. He had noticed that Darth Golluth had entered some codes. The holographic display had popped but that was the last thing he remembered. He couldn't recall anything else. Had Darth Golluth used that peculiar pike with those electric bolts on him again, or did those nasty droid stun him?
Doran pulled at the manacle again, but in vain. The chain seemed to be attached to the wall. He sat on his knees and crept along the floor, keeping the chain in his left hand. Within a few minutes he bumped against a wall and felt the clamp which had been driven into the wall. He turned and looked at the strip of light on the opposite side. Was that the door? The entrance to this cavern.
He sprang on his feet and screamed.
"Hey, get me out of here!" He yelled on top of his voice.
Almost immediately the tiny strip of light grew, became an streak of light and a door opened.
"Do you want anything, sir?" the mechanical voice of the protocol droid asked. The droid took a few steps inside the cave.
Doran started to laugh cynically.
"Do I want anything? Of course, I do, you fool. Release this manacle. I'm not your master's prisoner."
"I'm sorry, sir, but I told you that my master has ordered that you should stay with him, in case he needs you for further repairs."
"Untie me. Immediately. I have fixed your master's system, so I have done my job and now I want to get back to my ship."
He tore at the chain.
"You will be treated fairly, sir, if you cooperate. I have the orders to get you proper meals and drinks."
Doran felt outraged, but managed to control his emotions about these new developments.
'So I'm taking prisoner, as I feared would happen. Think rational, Nori, play along with Trevor's intentions. It seems that for now that deserted admiral wants you to stay in this underground abode of him, keeping him company or whatever. That is exactly what you wanted. So act as if you agree with his intentions. Some formal protest is of course necessary, but stay calm and act if you accept the situation.' He thought.
"I want some more light in here." He snapped angrily.
"Of course, sir," the droid answered and almost immediately the cavern bathed a bright light. To Doran's surprise the cave had been lavishly furnished with several comfortable looking sofas, sideboards against three walls, a huge table with several upholstered chairs. Near the sofas three upholstered armchairs stood around a low, but expensive looking coffee table. The main part of the floor was decked with thick carpets.
"Leave me," Doran snapped. He rose and walked over to the nearest sofa. The chain at his ankle was long enough to allow him as much freedom as he needed to make use of any of the furniture.
The droid was about to leave, as Whain remembered he wanted a drink.
"Wait! You said, you could bring me a meal and a drink," he said still using a snappy tone.
The droid bowed, left the cave and the door locked. Three minutes later the droid appeared again with a tray.
"Here is your meal, sir. You might indeed be hungry after all the excitement of last night."
The droid put the tray on the table and walked back to the door.
"Enjoy your meal, sir."
Whain walked over to a chair and looked at the tray. It wasn't what he had expected. There was enough food to serve a hungry man and the smell was mouth-watering. Suddenly feeling hungry he forgot that he had been more or less imprisoned against his will, although from the beginning of his mission it had been his intention to get inside the deserted admiral's abode. He ate with appetite and scraped the last bits of the plate. He poured some pale yellow liquid in a glass and sipped, then he swigged the wine in a few gulps.
"Palomintar Quelan Wine. Excellent harvest. This guy has an exquisite taste as it comes to food and drinks.
He poured another glass, walked over to one of the sideboards and saw that the shelves held a great number of interesting, but ancient looking, books. He took one volume from the shelf, walked over to one of the upholstered armchairs and relaxed. He looked down at the manacle at his ankle, but the meal and the wine had warmed him. He spend some time browse through the book, but more and more he became drowsy. He poured himself a third glass and put his feet on the coffee table. The long chain didn't really hamper his movements. He leaned back in the chair, closed his eyes and fell asleep.
Wedge and Yarmod made their way inside the chasm and found the path along the underground river. They both used their flashlights and moved on carefully. Every now and then Wedge checked the map with the dotted red line.
"We're nearing the passageway to the hidden door, Yarmod. It must be at the end of this path, where the river vanishes."
"I hope master Luke has been able to warn Liane, otherwise we're stuck here."
"We always can return along the same path and get back to our speeder. Look here's the dead end of the river, our passageway is on the right," Wedge commented.
On the right side a dry plateau lead to a shallow corridor. Within a few steps they stood in front of a wall which seemed to be made of impenetrable rock. Wedge moved the beam of his flashlight over the rock.
"My young padawan, I want you to use the power of the Force to slid aside this rocky door." He said turning to Yarmod who stood behind him.
The young man flashed the beam across the wall, then he turned it off. For a moment he stood motionless in front of the wall. His master had stepped aside and watched his young apprentice closely. Yarmod Martan made a step forward, tuned in on the Force and stretched out his hands until he felt the rocky wall. After a slight Force push a soft scraping sound was heard and the rocky wall slowly slid to the right. In the dark corridor Wedge Antilles smiled and nodded approvingly.
"Impressive, young padawan. This time you were fully one with our ally," He said
"Thank you, master. I must confess that when I started I felt some uneasiness, but after I became aware of the Force surrounding this door I knew how to open it."
"You suppressed your fears about a possible failure and fully trusted the Force to help you." Wedge commented and patted his padawan at the shoulder, "Well, we can proceed."
They passed the aperture and Wedge secured the hidden entrance. For a moment, they observed the dark space behind the passage in total silence. Somewhere behind the rocky wall to the left they heard the gurgling sound of the underground river. Wedge stepped forward and raised his right hand. He tuned in on the Force and focussed on the hidden lighttubes Luke had mentioned. One by one the lighttubes started glowing. Astounded the Jedi master and his apprentice looked around. Their glance slid over the stacks of sealed boxes, the transparisteel cabinet and the cosy workspace at the corner.
"This is Jedi cavern," Wedge said and entered the huge cave.
"It seems that master Luke is staying here sometimes," Yarmod remarked pointing at the lounge, the desk and a small kitchen cabinet.
"He is. He has been studying here several times. He wants to learn as much as he can about the old knowledge of the Jedi Knights."
They walked to the middle of the cave. For several minutes they only absorbed the enormous quantity of Jedi knowledge that had been stacked all over the place. Finally Yarmod took courage and walked over to the nearest box. He checked the seal and carefully lifted the lid. With awe he looked at the thousands of tiny datacrons that were stored in transparent boxes. A small device drew his attention. He bent down and took it in his hands.
"Look, master, there are thousands of datacrons and a special reader stacked in this box."
"Each of these boxes must contain a part of the Jedi history. Luke told me that every box has its own reading device. The content of all the old Jedi scrolls and books has been stored on these datacrons. These data carriers survived the destruction of the Jedi temple, because they were stored in the vaults of the temple. It's extremely lucky that Luke and Leia have saved these boxes, for the original old books and scrolls have been burned which is a great loss. This box has been opened before. Use your power pack to activate the reader and slip one of the datacrons in the reading slot. I want to see what it reveals."
Yarmod clicked a battery pack form his belt and connected it to the reader. He took the first datacron from the box and put the square card in the slot. Immediately the holographic display of the reader activated and the content of a book popped up. The page was perfectly readable. Wedge looked over Yarmod's shoulder.
"It's in Jediese, the ancient language of the Jedi. This must be written in the days of the old Jedi Order."
Yarmod examined the sides of the reader.
"I don't see a kind of translate button, master. If we can't get a good translation we won't be able to learn from its content."
"I know Luke has been busy translating some of these ancient books. I'll ask him later. Put everything in place again and see what's more in the place. I want to look at those holocrons."
Yarmod switched off the reader, took off his power back, put the datacron in its box, and close the lid of the box. In the meantime his master had walked over to the transparisteel cabinet. Yarmod followed him.
"These device are of great value, my young padawan. Each of them contains the lessons of one of the old Jedi master. Look, that one is master Yoda's holocron and next to it is the one master Arca Jeth, a Jedi master who has lived more than four thousand years ago. We are so lucky that these holocrons haven't been destroyed."
"How can you use them, master?"Yarmod asked
"As far as I know only a fully trained Jedi Knight can use these devices, that is what Luke told me," Wedge answered.
"That's not true. I can use them and I'm not a Jedi Knight," A voice said and both master and apprentice looked up. Near the cosy workspace stood Liane with a laughing welcoming face.
"Liane!" Yarmod said and walked over to her, "So good to meet you again. How are you?"
"I'm fine, Yarmod. How are you? Welcome to the temporary Jedi library. It still looks a bit chaotic, but one day Luke will have everything put in order. Welcome, master Antilles," she said and made a slight bow.
"Nice to meet you again, Liane Solichor," Wedge Antilles and stretched out his hand.
He looked at Liane in amazement. Was this young woman the crying devastated girl he had stopped from running away on Endor? She looked so much more mature, full of self-confidence. Her whole attitude betrayed the tremendous change she had undergone. He felt the strong influence of the Force radiating between them.
"We're glad to be here, Liane. I hope you and I can settle our little conflict on Endor." He said
"Master Antilles, I never blamed you for stopping me. I don't think there is any misunderstanding or conflict between us," Liane said, "I just heard you say that the holocrons can only be use if a person is a fully trained Jedi. That's what Luke told me the first time. He let me take out the holocron of master Yoda, and I had an interesting talk with Luke's old master."
"You're privileged, Liane. Luke told me about the progress you made using the Force. Does her influence still scare you?"
Liane shook her head.
"Not anymore, master Antilles. I have accepted that I possess the ability to feel the Force in everything that surrounds me. I want to learn to make use of that power the right way. Shall we go to the Supreme Chancellor's residence. It's quite a walk, but Threepio and Artoo will have a diner ready when we arrive."
She saw how Wedge and Yarmod looked longingly around at the stacks of boxes.
"We can come back here any time, master Antilles. Luke has asked me to show you everything. He wants you to start your study of these datacrons as much as you want."
"That will be difficult, Liane, for most of these texts are written by the Jedi masters of the Old Republic. They are in Jediees, a very old and difficult language, from what I've heard," Yarmod said.
Liane started laughing.
"Then I have another surprise, Yarmod. You can read all of this datacrons if you use the Force flow that emanates around the text. I've just discovered to do it myself. My maternal ancestress, Nomi Sunrider taught me how to use the Force to read them."
"Nomi Sunrider is your ancestress?" Wedge asked curiously.
"I'll tell you the story while we're on our way to Mon Mothma's residence. Shall we go? Please, follow me."
Luke, Leia and Ian were doing some Jedi training on the center plaza of Cantamaga. As always there was quite a number of spectators who cheered and supported the three Jedi while they were practising with their training lightsabers. Luke and Leia had challenged Ian to defend himself against their attack. The young padawan who got the cheers of many of the supporters was by far the most popular of the trio, with Luke and Leia exuding more authority as fully-fledged Jedi Knights.
Luke noticed that among the spectators were master Kamalin and Chati. He noticed that Kamalin was explaining things to the young woman who listened attentively to what Kamalin was telling. He saw that Chati asked Kamalin several questions. The older man smiled patiently and seemed to gave satisfying answers, for Chati continued looking at the training without talking to her companion. Luke parried effortlessly Ian's attempts to put him off balance. He counteracted the young padawan's attempts and switch off his lightsaber and waved to his sister. Leia nodded and took over Ian's training session.
Chati noticed that Luke had stopped and found her way up to him.
"Master Jedi, you did very well," She exclaimed while looking at him with devotion.
"Thank you, Chati. I saw our companying your old teacher again. Have you been helping him in the garden."
"Master Kamalin has payed my parents a visit last evening. He has asked them if they would be willing if I would become his assistant. I'm going to teach some younger children in the community, while master Kamalin will pay his attention to the older group. My mother wasn't happy with his proposal, but my father heartily agreed. I'm also have moved in to Kamalin's house next to the school building, for after school hours I will work in the garden, because master Kamalin need more time as chairman of the Council of the Elder now that my father and my uncle are back. He also is going to tell me more about the Force after the school day is over. Remember you told me about the Force and why you can use her power as a Jedi, when I was showing you around here. Master Kamalin has told me that he often uses the Force to make the best decision for our community and he told me that he wanted to teach me how I also can use the Force to serve our community. Master Jedi, you promised me, that you would tell me how you met your second teacher and how you became a Jedi Knight." She started to laughed, "Like you, master Jedi, I now have found myself a teacher too."
In the meantime Kamalin had joined Chati while she was chattering to Luke. Luke looked up and exchanged a knowing look with Kamalin.
"Master Jedi, this chattering daredevil girl already has told me dozens of times in one day that you had promised her to tell her how you have become a real Jedi Knight. May I invite you to tell that story in my house, so her curiosity will be satisfied", Kamalin said and winked again.
"I will gladly come over with you anytime, master Kamalin," Luke answered.
"Master Kamalin, he can come now with us. He can tell us his story and we can have dinner with the three of us," Chati exclaimed eagerly, "Master Jedi, will you come with us. I will prepare dinner tonight and I will make something special. I'm sure you will like it. I will make my oldest brother's favorite recipe. He always asked me to make it. Master Kamalin, may I use some of the vegetables from the garden."
Kamalin and Luke started to laugh.
"Shall we go, master Jedi, for I think if we continue listening to this young lady that our dinner will be a very sober meal."
Kamalin made an inviting gesture to Luke and together with a constantly talking Chati Fonaldris they left the plaza and walked at a leisure pace to Kamalin's. Arrived at his house Kamalin ordered Chati to serve refreshments and some food. The chairman of the Cantamaga Council took Luke to his lavish living again. He look grateful at his Jedi visitor.
"Thank, master Jedi, I have never seen her happier after I'd asked her parents if their daughter would become my assistant. In fact I needed someone to help with my teaching obligation and your request was a welcoming proposal to give me the opportunity to have Chati Fonaldris as my assistant."
"My pleasure, master Kamalin. I only hope that Chati will stop her chattering every now and then. When she showed me around in Cantamaga I didn't have to say much, she was so open about everything what's on her mind."
Kamalin laughed.
"Already as a young girl she was talking much, indeed as you say, telling everything what's on her mind. I don't care, master Jedi, I have seen how she changed over the years, from a happy young girl into a defiant young woman who provoked our traditional way of life. But here she comes."
Chati entered the living and served hot caf and delicious looking snacks.
"Do you like caf, master Jedi, otherwise I can make you something else."
"Caf will do, Chati. What are those snacks made off."
"It's a variety of different recipes of the nuts the harvest men gather in the woods. You will taste different flavors but the nuts always are at the base of each snack. I hope you will enjoy what I made."
Chati wanted to leave, but Luke called her back.
"If you're so eager to hear the rest of my stories you'd better sit down, Chati."
Luke stretched out his hand and one of the snacks hover above the plate and drifted to his outstretched hand. Luke looked at Chati who sat looking at the snack with wide open eyes. Kamalin did the same and Chati looked from Luke to Kamalin uncomprehendingly.
"Master Kamalin you can do that too? I've never seen you doing that before."
"It's not something I would do in public, Chati, but I'm a Force user and making use of my skills makes my work often much easier. Moving things with help of the Force is very basic knowledge. I'm sure that our visitor once started his awareness of his Force skills, learning to move things as let the Force tell what he wanted to achieve. I'm a right, master Jedi."
Luke nodded with a smile.
"Chati I told you that my first master died suddenly, just after he had made me aware of the Force and what she expected of me if I wanted to make use of her power. I told you that the Force binds everything together, humans, other species, nagawa's, birds, even the ferocious Urams in the nut woods. The Force tells me constantly what I have to do, but I also can asked her to support me if I needed her help.
It took me years of hard practise to understand what the Force really could mean to me and what she expected of me.
In the beginning I learned to use the Force to move objects, first smaller ones, later also much heavier things like huge rocks and closed doors. Sometimes I succeeded, but I often had to learn by trial and error as there wasn't anyone to tell more.
Many years after my first experiences with the Force I went to Dagobah where I met master Yoda, the grand master of the Jedi Order and chairman of the Jedi Council. At first he wasn't convinced I could be trained as a Jedi. I was too impatient, too reckless and certainly not committed to what was needed to become a Jedi Knight. I wanted to become a warrior and fulfill my obligation as a fighter pilot in the Rebel Alliance.
Outside Dagobah the war between the Empire and the Rebel Alliance still raged on and I thought it was my duty to be part of it.
On Dagobah I had to learn to fully commit myself to master Yoda's teachings, for only then the Force would become my ally as a Jedi Knight. My training under master Yoda was tough and full of failures and mistakes, because I had a lot of difficulty believing that the Force always was the ally of the Jedi Knights.
Before I completed my training I left Dagobah to help my friends. A Force vision which frightened me was showing me they were in danger. I thought that I was ready to save them, but in the end it were my friends who had to save me, after I lost a battle with our most menacing opponent, Darth Vader. In that battle I lost my lightsaber and my hand. After my friends had rescued me I was brought to a medic center where they replace my hand with a prosthetic one. By that time I began to understand that I had made a terrible mistake, leaving master Yoda too early.
After I managed to assemble a new lightsaber I went back to Dagobah to complete my training. Master Yoda was pleased and complemented me about the changes in my behavior, but I wasn't a Jedi Knight yet, for it would be my ultimate task to defeat the Emperor and Darth Vader.
I met them both on the second Death Star where I fought again with Darth Vader. I defeated him, but the Emperor got angry with me, because I refuse to kill a defeated enemy. I was near killed when Darth Vader came to my rescue and threw the Emperor in the abyss of the Death Star's core. With his deed Darth Vader who had once been a Jedi Knight, renounced the Dark Side and became again Anakin Skywalker: my father. Being severely wounded he died in my arms."
Chati looked at Luke silently and seemed completely overwhelmed with what she heard.
"Thank you, master Jedi," She finally whispered, "Thank you for telling me that you not only have lost your first master but also your father.
"I also lost master Yoda, Chati. When I returned to Dagobah, he had become very ill and he died after he had told me what he expected of me and had charged me with the task to defeat the empire."
"You have become a Jedi Knight in the end, but it has caused you many losses. You spoke the truth when I asked you it was difficult to become a Jedi Knight." Chati said humbly
"It's a difficult path to walk, with many failure, mistakes and losses, but in the end it had been rewarding, for despite the losses of my masters and the man who had been my father, I also discovered that Leia was my twin sister and I found many friends along my long struggles, for instance Han Solo and his first mate Chewbacca, the Wookiee."
"Thank you for your honest story, master Jedi," Kamalin said, "I'm sure that our lady daredevil will remember your stories long after we will be ack in Ribana and you will be serving your duty as a Jedi Knight elsewhere in the galaxy. Chati, you promised us and exquisite dinner. Do you need my help."
Chati jumped to her feet.
"No, master Kamalin. I manage. You'd better stay with our famous visitor and has some chats."
"Chati, one question. Will you show me that holographic image of me you still have in your possession."
Chati's eyes got a bashful look.
"I get it, master Jedi."
A moment later she returned and hesitantly handed the old holographic recording to Luke. He glanced at it, and smiled serenely, before he handing it back to her.
"It has become a bit creasy, master Jedi. I took it with me when had to flee Ribana. I put in a pocket of my pants, but during our long march through the wild it became crumpled."
"Before I go to Myr to see what my friends and I can do to solve the problem of your people, Chati, I will hand you a new one. Not precisely looking as the young pilot on this holographic image, but an older Luke Skywalker who had become a Jedi Knight after many difficulties. When I'm gone I'm sure that you often will cast a look at it, so you will remember what I told you about the Force and how I became a Jedi Knight."
Chati's green face got a shaded of reddish-green.
"I will cherish both images, master Jedi, and I will never forget what you told me. And now I'm going to prepare our dinner."
She rushed off. Kamalin and Luke looked at each other.
"There goes a very happy young woman going to make us happy with her cooking skills. Although she despises household chores she has become a very good cook," Kamalin said, "In the future I will make her a fine Force-user, master Jedi, you have my word on that."
Mon Mothma was leaning back in her chair while thinking about Liane Solichor. She had become very fond of the young woman who once had been accused of being a collaborator of some unworthy representatives of the New Republic. Liane had been very lucky having some Jedi friends as her protectors and guardians. But now they all had left her that underground residence.
'I pity her,' Mon Mothma thought, 'My dear Liane, so far your life has been full of troubles and problems. Raised by Darth Vader, exploited by Zolgathrii, abused on Wegoyy by commander Dendicott, and now pursued by another Dark Side user who's living on Palomintar Four. You told me you have been so happy teaming up with Luke Skywalker on Endor and Tatooine, living the life a normal free person, but we had to bring you to a secure place for your own safety. Liane, my dear, how are you doing? I'm really worried about you, now that I can't get in touch with you. Maybe I should pay you another personal visit? Let me check my appointments.'
Mon Mothma activated the holographic key to access her infocom and checked her order of business. She sighed heavily as she read the long list of appointments and tasks she had to attend the oncoming days and weeks. Disappointed she shook her head.
'I can't cancel any of these meetings. I'm sorry, Liane, my visit to you has to wait. Let's see if I have some spare time next month.'
She scrolled through the list of appointments. The earliest possible time in her busy schedule was eight weeks away. Quickly she typed a coded message on the open pages, so she had secured a planned visit. With another deep sigh she closed her schedule list. Too busy, too much to do and still no information about the Jedi Knights on Palomintar Four. A beep on the infocom made her look up at the alerts again. The incoming messages formed another list almost as long as her appointments. One message immediately tracked her attention. She selected it and pressed her access code. The holographic image of Wedge Antilles popped up.
'Wedge,' she thought, 'the other Jedi. Maybe I should send him to Liane and see if she is safe.'
The message was a recorded one. She activated the hologram and listened.
"Ma'am," Wedge said, "My padawan and me I have finished our mission on Lumeara. We managed to convince the board of overlords of the planet of the intentions of the New Republic. They want to come to an agreement with the New Republic and have accepted the credentials. We have promised the overlords that the government of the New Republic will contact them as soon as possible. Details of our temporary agreement go along this message. We are leaving Lumeara tonight and are heading for the Palomintar System. Luke Skywalker has asked my assistance. We will report back to you on our arrival on Dalmaran as soon as possible."
The holographic image disappeared. Mon Mothma checked the date of the message. Her diplomatic emissary had left Lumeara almost four days ago. She had missed an opportunity to send the only other Jedi to Liane. Wedge Antilles and his padawan would have reached Palomintar Four three days from now. What had been so urgent that Luke Skywalker needed his friend's assistance? How was the situation on Palomintar Four? Mon Mothma looked up with a determined look on her face. She pressed several buttons on her desk.
"Yes, Mon," the voice of Crix Madine sounded.
"General, please, can you come over to my office?"
Within a few moment general Madine entered.
"Crix, how long will it take to get a scout ships to the Palomintar System?"
"Our scout ships aren't equipped with those new fast hyperdrives. I estimate they can reach the system within thirty, maybe forty hours."
"Send one, immediately, general. The crew has to carry out the following order: make contact with Jedi master Skywalker or his sister and asked them if they are in need of help."
"Do you want the ship to go straight to Palomintar Six, Mon?"
For a moment Mon Mothma was silent.
"Yes, send them to Palomintar Six, Crix. You said there is a very elementary kind of supervision on that planet. If their inquiries are in vain they have come back to Irithim at once and report to me. We will decide what to do, after their return. I'm getting worried, Crix. I just received a recorded message that Jedi master Wedge Antilles is heading towards Palomintar System too."
"I'll see to it that a scout ship will leave as soon as possibly, Mon." General Madine said, while he rose, "Any further orders?"
"Thank you, Crix. We can only hope that our friends aren't caught in a dangerous situation."
"You have changed, Liane. You're completely different from the person I met on Endor," Yarmod said. He looked in awe at the young woman who could so easily use the Force in her actions.
"Don't you think so, master?" He said, turning to Wedge Antilles.
Wedge Antilles didn't comment on the words of the young padawan who seemed to be in awe of Liane's use of the Force.
"Luke has taught me a lot about the Force, Yarmod," Liane said, "He taught me how to feel the Force and use her power to raise these doors."
They had just entered the last store room and Liane put her hands on the wall to close the secret door.
"There is another way to get to Mon Mothma's secret residence. It's much shorter that the path we're following now. I'll show you one of these days, for now we have to climb on top of these containers. There's only little space between the containers and the ceiling, so mind your head."
Liane jumped and wormed her way on top of the stacked containers to the other side of the cave. There she jumped down and waited for the others.
"It's not to easiest way to get to Mon Mothma's residence, but Luke thought it would be better not to move these containers." She said, when Wedge and Yarmod stood next to her.
They stood in front of the durasteel door that separated the last store room from the long passageway that led to the herb caves and the underground lake.
"This door lead directly to the garden of Mon Mothma's residence, " Liane said and wanted to place her hand on the doorlock.
"What kind of lock is this, Liane?" Wedge Antilles asked, "I mean, can anybody open this door who knows the code."
Liane shook her head.
"It's what Luke called, a random lock; for it changes the code every time the door has been opened. I have to reset the code using the Force to open this door.
Wedge Antilles nodded. Yarmod laughed.
"So, only a Force-sensitive person can open this door on this inside," The young padawan remarked.
"Yes, but not on the outside. As soon as this door has been opened from the inside; which means that someone has been visiting the Jedi archive, the code will reset to the code Mon Mothma's technicans installed. As long as someone has gotten access to the Jedi Archive through this storage cave nobody will be able to enter here. Luke told me, it's one of his precautions measure to avoid any unauthorized access to this storage cave."
"Well, this will be a great opportunity for my padawan to use his alliance with the Force. Yarmod, I want you to open this door," Wedge said and stepped aside.
Liane looked at her young friend expectedly. The young padawan focussed his thoughts on the lock and touch the buttons with his fingers. Several soft clicks were heard and the door slid aside.
"Wow, great, Yarmod," Liane said with a smile, "You can easily use the Force without going into a Jedi meditation trance. Luke says, that I still have to learn to feel the Force in everything around me."
"You have already learned some other ways to use the Force," Yarmod said, "Have you been using those Jedi healing powers after you and Luke left Endor. By the way did those four tree bears recover?"
"They did, Yarmod, thanks to you and Ian too," Liane said, "I have been using my healing powers twice after I left Endor. I'll tell you later about it. Especially my last experience was overwhelming and I still don't understand how I did it."
Meanwhile they had entered the dimly lit passageway. Liane walked ahead, using her flashlight to support her guests.
"Only the tech droids use this part of Mon Mothma's secret residence. In these locked caves all kind of different technical supplies are stored. I seldom came here before Luke showed me the secret entrance to Jedi Archive, now it's my main access to it from Mon Mothma's residence."
"You said there's another shorter way to the caves behind the last store room. Why didn't we use that?" Wedge asked.
"Because Luke advised me to shut off the main entrance to the residence. He fears that some spies of my adversary might find their way to this hide-out. I'll show you," Liane said.
They walked on for some time, but suddenly Yarmcod stopped and sniffed.
"Whats that smell, Liane?"
"We just passed the cave where I use to dry the herbs and berries I harvest."
"Smells nice, but it's a very heavy fragrance. Can we have a look?"
Liane walked to the wall and pressed the pad to activated the light tubes.
"Have a look," She said and made a inviting gesture.
Wedge and Yarmod stepped into the small cave and looked around.
"On Endor Logray, the shaman, taught me how to preserve all kind of herbs and berries. Luke liked what I have done. It's one of the chores I scheduled. Mon Mothma encouraged me to develop some regular tasks to do."
"You must have felt lonely, Liane, being here all alone," Wedge said with some compassion in his voice.
"Some times, yes, I do, but I've set up a tight schedule of tasks, so I don't have much time to realize I'm alone here. I have Threepio and Artoo around to talk to, but it's nice you two want to stay with me for a while. Shall we get to the main part of the residence."
They passed the entrance to the garden.
"Stay here. I will turn up the lights again," Liane said and rushed over to the terrace. She quickly activated the control panel. As she turn off the light switches the central system took over.
Wedge Antilles and his padawan stopped. Walking to the terrace door they looked around in wonder.
"I knew of the existance of this place, but I couldn't imagine what it would look like," Wedge said, looking at the lake, the garden, the lawn to the terrace and the huge entrance to the forest cave.
On the terrace Threepio and Artoo appeared.
"Master Antilles, master Martan, so good to see you. Welcome to this very comfortable and quiet accommodation. Artoo and I have prepared your guest rooms, so you can refresh yourself," Threepio said with a bow. Artoo whistle a welcoming stream of binairy beeps.
"Thank you, Threepio. Nice to see you again," Wedge said.
"Can you show us the other parts of this place, Liane?"
"Sure, Threepio, will you serve drinks, please, after I have shown master Antilles and Yarmod this place."
"With pleasure, mistress Liane, come on, Artoo, I need your help," the droid said and shuffled inside.
The next hour Liane was busy showing Wedge and Yarmod Mon Mothma's residence with all its facilities. Finally she brought her guests to the living. She activated the wall panel, and pointed to the wall with the camouflaged blast doors.
"The wall consists of two diagonal blast doors. They protect the main entrance to this accommodation. I'll show you."
She pressed the red button. The blast doors disappeared in the floor and the ceiling. Wedge walked over to the transparasteel doors.
"There aren't locks on these doors, Liane?" He asked.
"No there aren't. The first time I never bothered about my security. There are two set of blast doors, this one on the inside of the residence, the other set closes off the main entrance on the outside."
Wedge walked through the transparasteel doors to the artificial terrace and the jetty and carefully checked the entrance. Liane and Yarmod followed him. He looked around, noticed the small path at the other side of the underground river Luke had mentioned, jumped to the other side and squatted. Carefully he seemed to inspect the artificial terrace and the jetty. Then he rose and looked at his padawan and Liane.
"Get back inside, Yarmod. Liane, could you, please, close those blast doors again."
Liane raised her eyebrows, but Yarmod pulled her inside.
"Do as he asks you. My master will explain later," Yarmod said.
They walked back to the living. Liane pressed the red button. The blast doors activated and Liane shrugged her shoulders.
"Why did he ask me to do this? What's he looking for, Yarmod?" She asked, but the young padawan didn't seem to hear her.
'Yarmod, ask Liane to deactivated the doors. It's just as I thought,' Wedge Antilles said to his padawan using Jedi telepathy.
'Yes, master,'Yarmod answered and turned to Liane.
"My master asks you to deactivate the doors again, Liane."
Liane looked offended and her eyes got a dark gloomy look.
"Master Antilles could have asked me that himself. Luke taught me how to use Jedi telepathy already on Endor," She snapped.
For a moment the young padawan was left dumbstruck after Liane's blunt remark.
"Sorry, Liane, we didn't know you're familiar with the use of Jedi telepathy. You'd better tell my master yourself."
Liane had already pressed the red button and a few moments later Wedge Antilles entered the living. Immediately he sensed the tension between his padawan and Liane.
"So you heard what I asked my padawan, Liane?" He said and looked at the girl.
"Yes I did," Liane answered unfriendly.
"And how are we supposed to know you can use this Force use?" Wedge Antilles said sternly.
Liane heard the same reproachful intonation in his voice she knew so well. Immediately she controlled her dissatisfaction.
"You're right, master Antilles. Of course you can't know everything Luke has already taught me. I apologize for my unreasonable outburst," She said apologetic.
Wedge started to laugh and the tension between them disappeared.
"It's lucky I know you've quite a personality, Liane, moreover Luke has warned me not to provoke you. Now come with me; you too, Yarmod."
Wedge walked them to the entrance and jumped to the other side. He beckoned them to follow him. Liane looked curiously, but jumped immediately. Wedge looked approvingly at her. Yarmod landed next to his master.
"Well done. Now look closely."
He stretched his hand and to Liane's surprise the blast doors on the outside closed, but even more surprisingly she looked at the mooring place, the jetty and the artificial terrace. Slowly the blast doors sealed off the complete entrance, while the construction, that could betray the existence of a secret hide-out, disappeared underwater.
"How did you know?" She stammered.
"I didn't, but the Force showed me that the entrance could be sealed off completely, leaving no trace at all. Now it looks like a bend in an underground river and nothing gives away the existence of Mon Mothma's secret residence. These are very good precautions. In case an intruder finds the underwater entrance by accident, or deliberately, he will not get any indication about what behind those walls."
"You mean, I'm absolutely safe if I leave those doors closed," Liane said with a frown.
"Absolutely, but I agree that the entrance looks more welcoming if those blast doors are hidden. Walking from the jetty to entrance you can look straight inside up to the inner terrace, the lawn and the lake. Anybody can see what's going on here. Liane, I know what you've been thinking; with the doors closed it feels like you're imprisoned again," Wedge said on a serious tone and he placed his hand reassuringly on Liane's arm.
Liane looked up at him.
"I'll keep them closed, master Antilles, for that's what you're advising me, don't you?" She said determinedly and she continued with a twinkle in her eyes.
"Now, could you, please, lower those blast doors, so we can get inside again. Threepio will serve your drinks and supper on the terrace."
Wedge bowed and said laughing.
"Yarmod and I will gladly accept that invitation?"
Suddenly Liane started to roar with laughter, she grabbed the sleeve of Wedge's cassock.
"So that's why you jumped to the other side of the stream, without telling Yarmod and me, why we had to get inside and ... "
... raise those blast doors. I didn't want you both to get soaking wet."
He lowered the blast doors and the jetty and the terrace reappeared. One after other they jumped to the other side and stepped through the transparasteel doors. Immediately Liane went over to the wall and activated the doors again, before they all went to the terrace to enjoy the supper Threepio had prepared.