Chapter 5
Summary: A rescue and a couple of conversations. (I totally suck at this)The running steps of many feet could be heard down the long corridor that led to the lake, the few Jedi that populated it at the moment stopped curious of such rare occurrence. As the group approached and passed those few scattered souls, had the situation been any other Qui-Gon would have laughed at the comically astounded faces they left behind in their rush. It was rare sight indeed if not completely unheard of, a handful Council Masters running in such undignified way.
Even the members of Order sometimes forgot that the Masters that spent a good part of their days sitting on their asses, overseeing the running of that same Order, were in fact Jedi. They knew to hurry when needed.
Then they reached their destination.
High overhead the skeletal forms of catwalks and blocks of illumination banks were revealed. So was the repulsorlift that ran horizontally, crossing the lake and connecting the nursery and care center for their youngest to the dining halls, the panels that normally hide them from sight broken on the ground.
For a moment Qui-Gon stood frozen taking in the small image of Obi-Wan perched on the unstable shaft connecting the repulsorlift to the service catwalk, walking carefully towards the trapped younglings and their caretaker.
That image finally crystallized itself and as the boy took a moment to be sure of his balance before using the lightsaber to cut into the repulsorlift, he pelted up the same stairs his padawan had taken, pushing his first panicked thoughts into the calm warmth of the Force.
Qui-Gon could feel the Force surge with the combined will of the council as the masters concentrated on supporting the repulsorlift that hung by the one remaining engine, behind him followed a couple of Temple Guards. Where had they been when Obi-Wan had decided to attempt a rescue all by himself?
He reached the catwalk in time to see the boy going back into the makeshift opening he'd created as a little girl promised to wait. As he approached she smiled, this big bright show of teeth that completely ignored the dangerous situation she had just been in, proving once again the resilience of younglings everywhere.
The Guards that had followed him approached and he sent her down with one of them, she sobered immediately looking worriedly back.
"Your friends will be alright, little one."
She hesitated a moment still, and then looked at him calm.
"Obi-Wan will get them." she proclaimed and allowed herself to be led down.
He let a smile free at her tone, Obi-Wan had just gained an admirer.
Qui-Gon moved towards the opening to evaluate the situation. He had to keep himself from following after, immediately realizing the shaft would not resist so much weight in its fragile state. It hadn't just been a malfunction, someone had placed small charges on the engines and the safety brakes and when they had gone off they'd also damaged the surrounding areas. The Force was with them though, for it appeared one of the charges had not exploded, otherwise this rescued would not be necessary.
Qui-Gon would come back to that information later, for now he could see Obi-Wan returning with a boy in his arms and positioned himself to catch the youngling.
"I'll take the child."
Obi-Wan swung out as Qui-Gon reached and safely passed the boy to him.
"There are still eight children left and Ali-Alann." he informed
"The masters are bellow, keeping the repulsorlift aloft."
They could both feel the tremendous wave in the Force, strong and deep. Obi-Wan looked down, bellow the tiny figures of the masters stood in a ring, their focus on the repulsorlift and looked back.
"Why, such a small fall. I bet I wouldn't feel a thing once I hit the ground." he commented on a drawl.
"Let's try not to fall just now." Qui-Gon responded after a surprised pause.
"Do or do not, master." and he went on his way back down the shaft.
"Then don't" he called out "I would not appreciate having to scrap you of the ground." the boy just waved at him.
Obi-Wan made his way back and forth, his step sure.
Qui-Gon could feel the ease with which he reached out, balancing with the aid of the Force. He had discovered in the year they had been together, that despite his padawan's difficulty in feeling for the Force while meditating or training, when the situation and need were real reaching out for Its embrace came as naturally as breathing for Obi-Wan.
One by one he carried the children out, one by one he handed them to Qui-Gon. Not one cried, the younglings already trained in calmness and the Force. Enveloped in the presence of their caretakers trusting their rescuers and to carry and hand them over a gap a few dozen meters above the ground.
Finally, only two were left and Obi-Wan kept back, waiting for Knight Ali-Alann to walk down the shaft, Qui-Gon heard it creak under the weight of the tall Jedi, Ali-Alann had similar build to his own and they both could see the shaft wobble as the man slowly made his way towards the catwalk.
The shaft was weakening.
At last knight and child secured, Obi-Wan started on his last trip down the shaft.
Halfway through he stopped and met Qui-Gon's eyes as the Force whispered a warning. There was a blur as Obi-Wan leaped for the railings, Qui-Gon reached out holding the pair to the railing as the shaft swayed and finally broke away towards the ground. They both followed its path, below its momentum slowed and the metal came to a rest far away from the Master at the bottom.
With a shared look of relief Qui-Gon helped the boy and his precious burden onto the catwalk.
The day passed slowly with long hours of work, the detritus was taken away and the repulsorlift eventually inspected. The older initiates helped relocate everyone to a couple of empty training sales for the night and the Council organized several teams to help patrol the Temple.
Night found Yoda meditating, he sat in the middle of a warm comfortable room high in the central tower, warded against surveillance with the windows looking out to the image of the forever awake world outside, illuminated in a myriad of colors.
The door swish open and Qui-Gon Jinn steps halted near him.
Many thoughts troubled Yoda. Not least of which centered on Qui-Gon and his young padawan - who was showing himself much changed, strong presence, strong shields... grown much he had. Such was worrying if also quite entertaining. However, now was not the time for more pressing matters required his attention.
"Confirmed it is by Miro Daroon," he informed Qui-Gon. "Small charges in the repulsorlift engines and a bug in the central core shut down the lift tubes and comm units in the area. Find this person we must, Qui-Gon. After the younglings now, he is. Believe I do not that young Bruck could be involved in such a thing," Yoda brooded.
"The last engine held," Qui-Gon pointed out. "I do not think the repulsorlift was meant to fall."
The old master thought the time had not yet come to make known the presence he'd felt keeping the structure together as the council had come to help. He had his suspicions. It was both familiar and hard to pin down. Yoda did not think any of the other masters had noticed, he himself had almost missed it.
"Taunting us, the intruder is? Endangering the lives of babies for a joke?"
"Maybe we should be looking for other motives," Qui-Gon said. "It's not clear to me. Initially I thought the thefts designed to irritate and tease. But the stolen items appear to have served various purposes. The stolen school records trouble me" Qui-Gon pondered "Bruck's last name is Chun his was one of the records taken I wonder if they might have been stolen to conceal something."
Yoda nodded. "Time it will take, to gather information anew. Something not many know, Qui-Gon - a sensitive time for the Jedi this is. A secret mission for the Senate we have undertaken. Held in our Jedi treasury, a large shipment of vertex is."
Yoda acknowledge Qui-Gon's surprise. Vertex was a highly valuable mineral. After the raw substance was mined and cut it was often used as currency. Many worlds used crystalline vertex instead of credits.
"It is unprecedented for us to accept such a shipment." Qui-Gon commented "Is this why you did not contact the Judicial forces to start an investigation on the thefts along with our own? Seeing as it is part of their job."
Yoda agreed "The Council thought it best. To out of the public eye keep this news. Two star systems there are, locked in conflict over the shipment. Agree to peace talks they would not, unless a neutral party held it. If word there is that the Temple is vulnerable, war there could be." his voice dropped in concern. "A large war it would be, Qui-Gon. Many alliances these star systems have. To the peace talks with a small delegation Master Tyvoka went. Until news from him we have, discreet we must be."
Qui-Gon digested the information. It often struck him that even while the Temple appeared to be isolated from the chaos of the Republic at large it was also connected to the galaxy in many intricate ways.
"Then we must solve this quickly," he told Yoda. "I will start with Miro see if we can discover how Bruck and this intruder manage to navigate around the Temple without being seen. Well coordinate with Tahl."
Yoda blinked at him. "And Obi-Wan?"
"The Council has ordered Obi-Wan to stay out of this," Qui-Gon answered, carefully.
"Predict I do that the boy will find a way to offer his help again," Yoda said.
"And I should refuse?"
Yoda waved at him, amused. The folly of these young beings always asking him for strait answers to their problems. "Directly involved the boy should not be. But shut him out, I would not."
Qui-Gon smiled grimly as he turned to leave. It was typical contradictory advice from Yoda. Yet the Master's advice somehow always turned out to make perfect sense, in the end.
He hesitated before stepping out of the room.
"More to say you have, Qui-Gon?"
"About Obi-Wan, I'm worried. He's... changed. And the vision in the Council chambers..."
"Hum..." Shrouded his future is. Yoda turned to Qui-Gon. He would have to make some time to talk with young Obi-Wan. "Very troubling it was. Believe I do that wait we should, meditate on it we must. Other problems on our hands we have, more immediate they are."
Qui-Gon considered those words as he left. He had been unbalanced since going to Obi-Wan's aid. That vision was one more concern that he would have to wait to deal with... and his shields, he should not have been able to create them at such high level.
This more than anything was worrying the master. For where or from whom had he learned them? Yet the Force surrounding the boy remained clam and light, no deception could be perceive. Later, he old himself, later he would talk to boy.
He walked purposefully through the winding paths, barely noticing his surroundings, intent on the problem at hand once more.
When he passed the destroyed footbridge from the attack on Yoda, Qui-Gon stopped his thoughts suddenly in the past. Years ago on a world from the Outer Rim he'd dealt with a tyrant's strategy based on a simple equation: Disruption + Demoralization + Distraction = Devastation.
That was the pattern, Qui-Gon suddenly realized. The thefts had followed that same formula. Disruption: the petty thefts disrupting classes. Demoralization: the theft of the Healing Crystals of Fire and the attack on Yoda causing many students to lose heart. Distraction: the failing of the cooling system, the security breaches, and the destruction of one of the main repulsorlift s meant that the Jedi had to focus to keep the Temple running. Was someone using such strategy? It was simple enough, yet distinctive.
Qui-Gon felt a disturbance in the Force. It cleaved the air in front of him. The dark side still lingered here. The fountains continued their flow as he surveyed the area carefully, noting every leaf and shadow. He saw nothing out of the ordinary. But knew something was there. Waiting, observing, planning.
Qui-Gon turned in the direction of Tahl's rooms he needed an ear to talk his thoughts through.
A few levels down a figure knelt alone in the map room, the projection of numerous star systems all around him, their swirling dance and calm light soothing frayed nerves.
In deep meditation Obi-Wan thought back to the day, he saw everything in a flash but with the clarity of slow motion. The memory right there to grasp.
The meeting with the council – there was a time the legends that follow those names would have left him, as with many of his pears, filled with a somewhat fearful awe. It was quite common for the young padawans to stand in the council room feeling like they didn't belong. It would eventually fade away but it generally took time for the experiences outside the protected walls of the Temple to amass and for the confidence in their abilities to build.
Obi-Wan had stood on both sides, he had experienced this once upon a time and observed others grow into themselves. This experience now was surreal, he could follow the line of thought of the masters but his action confounded them. He expected a form of acknowledgment that never came, for they only remembered him as a rebellious padawan.
He'd left that meeting unbalanced only to immediately have to deal again with Xanatos petty plans.
The turbolift that connected the creche to the dinning halls had been sabotaged and he couldn't exactly do nothing, last time everything had held together but with it swaying slightly just threatening to plunge down any moment he hadn't dared rely on past experience.
When he'd woke up six months before, on Melida/Daan, initially he had simple repeated what his younger self had done, convinced it wouldn't be wise to change the past. He had not known if this situation was temporary, he still didn't.
But even doing nothing, changes were happening. He could not understand how initially. What was the catalyst for the changes? Eventually he realized, just as his choices were now open so were everyone else's. The path was not linear, the possibility had always existed and a choice that had once been turned into nothing more than that was this time a reality.
He had no guaranty the turbolift would hold. After much meditation, it was his understanding that many events he lived before, would still be repeated. The path might not be linear, but tended to certain patterns already set in motion for some time, still he must be wary of details and changes.
So as he stood there having to choose again what to do, Obi-Wan thought it better to follow his master's advice and concentrate on the moment. At that moment, he couldn't stand around and do nothing.
He had confirmed the location of the turbolift and ran towards the narrow staircase leading up. He'd taken the stairs two at a time, his legs pumping, his muscles tiring as the long climb went on - he must really to do something about that, in his prime there was no one who could outlast him. Still, he had not faltered.
Stretching out with the Force to the last engine trying to understand the damage - Obi-Wan was not as adept with machines as Anakin, he was also no slouch - he then he wished he could have remained as ignorant as his younger self... Shit, that thing was barely holding! He'd concentrated the Force on the weak points, willing them to hold.
With the ripples of distress and fear coming to him from the younglings trapped inside Obi-Wan had hurry with his plan for a rescue. It had been a bit of a strain to separate his attention between the engines, at the same time calm the children and kepping his use of the Force hidden from a bunch of Force sensitive beings. And the freaking turbolift was heavy. His years of study on Tatooine had come quite handy, right then.
"Bant tells me that you've become quite suicidal." the voice was musical and the tone full of mirth as a body sat next to him, interrupting his meditation unapologetically.
"Taria."
Having felt her approach Obi-Wan simply opened his eyes to look at his friend, meeting her laughing golden eyes. A fond smile found it's way into his expression. She had always had that effect on him.
While Bant resembled more a mother hen despite being younger, Taria had always been a partner in crime, level headed and to the point. They had been friend for a long time, sometimes more, all their interactions marked by an easy going companionship, they loved each other as friends and enjoy the other's company.
Taria Damsin was a human female from the planet of Ghaina her coloration of dark-brown skin, gold eyes and blue-green hair always turned heads, funnily enough she'd become a Shadow. Her death had come not at the hands of an enemy, but from a long lasting disease. Even as her death pained him, it was not marked by the horrors of war. She was like a breath of fresh air.
"I wouldn't know what she could possibly be referring to."
"Really? So you didn't challenge Master Windu after being soundly reprimanded on the dangers of rushing without thinking?"
"... you have showed again that impulsiveness is your flaw. The same flaw that has led us to hesitate on your suitability to be a Jedi. You acted alone. You did not wait for help and direction. You could have endangered the children needlessly." Mace's voice resonated again in his head.
Oh, Mace. You really misjudged me back then. Years later Mace would tell him, that the reason he'd been so hard on Obi-Wan was to make him see his mistake and had not truly understood that every hard remark had shipped away at Obi-Wan's self-confidence until Tahl had cornered him and made him see reason. Mace had always been a hard man and harder above all with himself. But seeing the man so stubbornly holding onto his reserve Obi-Wan just hadn't been able to stop himself.
"I did no such thing. I simply asked him a question."
"And what was so important you had to call out after being dismissed."
"Obviously if my actions were wrong, I just wanted to know how he would have solved the situation." and Obi-Wan knew the man well enough to bet on him doing exactly the same and win. "He had no answer to give me besides a flopping mouth." he grinned at Taria.
"Oh Obi-Wan." she laughed "You didn't."
"I did. When I called out I could actually see Master Windu hesitating, I think he almost ignored me. I was just waiting for him to keep walking. After, he just nodded and went away"
"Of course... you just challenged him, for a laugh."
"I did not."
She was right of course, but after the others had left Obi-Wan had to take a minute to calm down, only then noticing the slight trembling in his body, the stress of hiding.
These confrontations with Mace were getting him nowhere. As an adult he had delighted in cutting away at his friends serious facade, Mace needed to be kept real for he sometimes relied too much on ideals and forgot the people behind them. Anakin had never understood that friendship, judging it through the same parameters of theirs.
But now, it helped no one to be at odds with Mace. Obi-Wan had just fallen in the habit of poking fun at his friend, always sharing that conspiratory look with Yoda, someone who understood what he was doing and rejoicing when Mace lost some of the tension in his frame. On the other hand he now appeared to simply be taunting the man.
Not good, Kenobi.
"I knew you had it in you, Obi-Wan." Taria continued ignoring his protests "I always told you, you should show that humor of yours more often. This last couple of years you've been so tense, first with Bruck and the trials and then always on the move with your master."
Bruck's name brought him back to reality. Taria had a way about her, she always knew when he needed to be taken out of himself. She immediately noticed the sobering atmosphere.
"Is everything alright Obi-Wan?" she extended a hand his way and he accepted her comfort, she had always been very tactile "Are you worried about being accepted back?"
"No. I mean that as well. I just didn't think I would come back to Temple in such disarray."
She looked on for a minute then with a gentle smile stood up pulling him along.
"Sleep will do us a world of wonders. And you look like you need days of it. Tomorrow will be time enough to think heavy thoughts again."
He followed after her comforted by the easy familiarity of her presence.