Jedi Master Dooku and his Padawan Qui-Gon Jinn arrive in a troubled village where tensions are high and food has become scarce. Inside a shadowy cantina, permeated by unease and silence, Dooku demands intel on Senator Dagonet's missing son. Instead, they come face-to-face with the kidnappers.

Inside a country barn, the Jedi find the boy, who has taken the side of his captors. Dagonet's son believes the farmers and townsfolk who kidnapped him had no other choice to make their voices heard.

Suddenly, the conversation is interrupted by the arrival of Dagonet and his soldiers. Without knowledge of the Jedi mission to negotiate for the boy's release, his father has taken matters into own hands, challenging the authority of the Order. "Step aside, Jedi. You serve the senate," Dagonet says. But Dooku is resolute. "We serve the people of this Republic," he replies.

Blaster fire rips through the night, with the Jedi coming to the defense of the townspeople. "I will destroy this town and make an example of it," Dagonet proclaims. "None shall defy me!" His resolve is cut off along with his breath as Dooku reaches through the Force to squeeze at the senator's throat, his anger at Dagonet's atrocities subsuming his Jedi training. Only one person can save him...

Qui-Gon frees the boy, who rushes to his father's aid just in time. "Corruption like yours must be eradicated," Dooku says, before snapping to his senses. The aftermath is bleak. Although the senator's son vows to put an end to the suffering of his planet, as he and his father return to the capital the townsfolk are left to rebuild on their own.