Qui-Gon smiled at the memory. "She didn't leave either of us that night, taking my discomfort into herself until I could manage it by myself. Then she repaired the damage to my leg. She was a very caring young woman."
Luke thought of the woman from the painting and the vid-chips. "She must have been."
Qui-Gon then turned to him. "And you believed it was I who turned her over to the emperor."
Luke gave him a sheepish look. "Her betrayer was a man named Jinn."
"So you were told," Qui-Gon said.
"So I was told," Luke answered, knowing without a doubt this man would never betray anyone. "But master," he asked, "I don't understand why she would be dismissed from the Jedi. Nothing I've found can explain it."
Qui-Gon eyed him curiously. "Why do you wish to know?"
Luke's intensity surprised him. Showing him the paintings, he said "I found these on Tatooine, and from the moment I discovered them, I feel like I'm beinging guided to this. I can't explain it, Master. I'm sorry."
Qui-Gon smiled then. "You are fulfilling the will of the force, young padawan." He waited a moment, then asked, "What did Obi-Wan tell you? They were very close."
"Only that she was a Jedi who died a long time ago." Luke sighed, venting his frustration. "Then I learned she was not Jedi when she died, she was a grey witch, whatever that is."
Qui-Gon looked at him seriously. "A grey witch is a being that has the capability to harness both the light and dark sides of the force. They were the only beings truly in harmony with the whole of the living force, light and dark, and therefore the most dangerous. The only grey witches I was aware of were killed in the Sith wars over a thousand years ago. The first Sith master believed them to be the only creatures strong enough to defeat him and exterminated them to eliminate the threat."
"So you believe Tal-Ishara turned? That she became a Sith?" Luke asked, finally gaining a little clarity.
Qui-Gon shook his head. "No, she would never have turned. Her skills, her training, her very nature would not allow it."
"Then what happened? Why would she be dismissed?" Luke asked.
"Because according to Jedi code, grey witches were deemed too dangerous." Qui-Gon explained, "Even though Ishara was a Jedi once, the code is specific concerning grey witches. Once she gained that level of power, she would no longer be considered Jedi."
"Then how did she end up in the cloning facility," Luke mused. "If she was that powerful, who could have caught here and taken her there? A Sith apprentice?"
Qui-Gon was no longer listening. "I must speak with Obi-Wan," he said rising to his feet. Turning one last time to Luke, "You said she lived on Dathomir, perhaps that is where you should seek your answers."
Luke scrambled to his feet. "I will Master, thank you." Qui-Gon disappeared
in a mist, leaving him one step closer to an answer.
Return to Archive List
Continue on to Part Seven