DISCLAIMER: *evil laugh* HAHA! I have done it! I have recovered my One Ring of Unlimited Copyright Privileges, and now own Star Wars! Yay me! *Yoda hits me with the infamous gimer stick and runs off with the Ring* Ow! Stupid troll...

I don't own Star Wars. I don't even own the inspiration for this fic. It's a challenge that Darth KenObi-Wan posted a while back, and I finally got around to writing it. That being said, I hope you enjoy it!

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It was raining. There was mud and blood everywhere. In the middle of the battlefield were two figures. Closer inspection revealed them to be Jedi Knights. Obi-Wan Kenobi knelt in the mud, his head resting against Mace Windu's shoulder as he sobbed. They had already taken his body away.

Mace reached his arms around Obi-Wan, holding him close as the Knight grieved. "Shh. It'll be all right. He'll be fine."

"How do you know that?" whispered Obi-Wan. "He could die!"

"But he's as stubborn as you are, Obi-Wan. He'll get through this all right."

Obi-Wan risked a glance behind him, to the patch of bloody ground where his best friend Garen Muln had fallen only minutes earlier. A sniper hidden in the trees, probably hired to kill the Prime Minister of Lavisar, had caught the Jedi by surprise, hitting Garen in the abdomen and shoulder. Obi-Wan and Mace had managed to deflect the rest of the blaster bolts, but by then it was too late, for Garen was laying in a puddle of his own blood, the life-sustaining fluid merging with the muddy soil.

Luckily for Garen, there was medical staff on standby at the government building, who had stabilized the Knight until he could be rushed to the nearby hospital. Obi-Wan had fallen to his knees as his friend was taken away, heedless of the mud and blood staining his robes. Thankfully, Mace had stayed with him.

"I can't lose him, Mace. I've already lost Qui-Gon, and I've come close to losing Anakin so many times. I can't lose Garen as well!"

"You won't." Mace gave his friend a gentle squeeze. "Garen's a tough fighter. He'll get through this."

Obi-Wan drew in a shuddery breath. "I hope you're right." He slowly got to his feet, aware of Mace supporting him. "I don't think I could stand it if-" His words were cut off as he caught sight of the large pool of blood. He suddenly felt an image flash through his mind... Garen screaming as the bolts ripped through his flesh... blood, blood everywhere... humans shouldn't be able to lose that much blood...

He doubled over and vomited his lunch into the bloody mud. Mace stood beside him, rubbing his back soothingly. "Easy, easy..."

Obi-Wan eventually managed to stop, carefully getting back up. "Mace, I need to get out of here. I can't stand it..."

"I know." Mace wrapped an arm around his friend's shoulder. "Let's go see how Garen's doing with the healers."

Forty minutes later, in the healers' ward, Obi-Wan collapsed, a wordless cry escaping his throat. "No!"

Mace knelt beside him, wrapping his arms around his friend's shoulders. "I'm so sorry, Obi-Wan. I'm so sorry." The Councillor couldn't quite stop his own tears at the news that Jedi Knight Garen Muln had died on the operating table.

Outside, the rain continued to fall, beating Garen's blood into the mud.

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And there's a reason why I don't like writing character death fics... *sniffs* And Garen's one of my favourites...

Anywho, please leave a review! Thanks!

Xaja