Obi-Wan had never slept so hard in his entire life as he did when finally he allowed himself to rest after the latest cave-in. The moment his head hit the bunk he was out.

Much to his dismay, his slumber was accompanied by dreams, most of them painful.

In his dreams, he was young again and just starting to train beneath Qui-Gon. The man was distant but not entirely cold with him, far more guarded than he ever had been in recent years.

Small Obi-Wan was trying so desperately to please his master, to prove himself. In the dream, as in real life, Obi-Wan felt that his master wasn't paying attention to the improvement he showed.

The dream changed. Suddenly Obi-Wan was older, no longer a Padawan Learner. Behind him, he heard the snap of a lightsaber being ignited. He turned around to find himself bathed in the green light of his master's saber.

Another lightsaber ignited, this one was red and held by a shadowy figure. Obi-Wan fumbled for his own saber, barely getting it ignited a his master and the shadowy figure began to duel. As Obi-Wan charged forward, the shadowy figure plunged his lightsaber through Qui-Gon's chest, killing him.

Obi-Wan woke in a cold sweat, breathing hard. It was nighttime. He could only tell because the mines below were still and silent, save for the occasional terrified wail coming from deep in the mine where good men and women were still trapped beneath tons of dirt and rubble.

After that dream he knew there wasn't a chance of him falling back asleep even with how exhausted he still was.

-Qui-Gon,- he started, wanting to make certain that his master was okay, but halfway through the thought he thought better of it. He sighed. It's not my concern any longer, he thought.

))))((((

Qui-Gon went back to his ship immediately after that first meeting. There was something deeply wrong and it extended far past the melancholy that had taken his Padawan. Something terrible was on the verge of happening. He couldn't quite see what, but he could feel it the same way he could feel the ache in his bones after a particularly strenuous mission with his apprentice, dull and lingering.

"…A mission, you have, Qui-Gon. Abandon it you cannot," Yoda concluded as Qui-Gon waited patiently after explaining the situation with Obi-Wan.

"Something catastrophic is about to happen on Bandomeer," Qui-Gon insisted. "I cannot simply leave Obi-Wan on his own—"

"Capable, your Padawan is," Yoda replied, cutting him off. "Proven this, he has. Where you are you must stay, Qui-Gon. When ended, negotiations have, return to Bandomeer you may."

Though it had been the answer Qui-Gon had been expecting, it was not the answer he wanted to hear. Something was amiss on Bandomeer. He hadn't been able to sense it while still on the planet, but the longer he stayed away the clearer it became.

-Obi-Wan, be on your guard. Trust no one. I will be back for you soon.- He didn't know if his Padawan would be listening, but he had to try.

))))))((((((

It had been four days since Qui-Gon had abandoned him on Bandomeer and Obi-Wan had finally made it down into the mines to help with the main of the rescue operation. He might've found it exciting, might've even enjoyed the challenge that keeping focused while the walls crumbled around him presented, if he hadn't still been trying to figure out what exactly he had done to put Qui-Gon off training him again.

The frustration he felt in not finding a suitable answer to that question was fuel enough to keep him working for far longer than Milna or any of the other miners were comfortable. He was able to push past exhaustion and continue digging as shifts changed or meal times approached. He didn't care to rest. He didn't care to eat. He was consumed by his want— no, his need— to prove himself. If he couldn't be a Jedi, he would be the best worker Milna had ever seen.

"You can't skip three meals in a row, Obi-Wan," Milna said in a stern voice. She stood about four meters behind him, watching him carefully as he moved chunks of rock nearly as big as he was with great ease. She didn't see the strain in his face, the intense focus it took to lift each rock with the Force. "We can't have Master Qui-Gon returning to find you to be just a pile of skin and bones."

Obi-Wan cleared another boulder out of the way with the Force before moving forward to dig through the gravel and dirt with his hands. "He's not coming back," he said, barely able to mask the pain in his voice as he thought about the Jedi Master. Milna gave him a confused look.

"Of course he is. Why would you think he wouldn't come back?"

Obi-Wan grunted as he heaved himself back away from the wall of dirt and debris, but he said nothing. Closing his eyes, he focused on the large boulder he'd just uncovered with his bruised, swollen fingers. He strained against its weight as he pulled it free.

"He's your master, isn't he?"

Obi-Wan ignored her, willing the boulder forward.

"I saw the way you look at him. I know what is in your heart, Obi-Wan."

The boulder he'd been moving into his debris pile hit the ground with a thud that echoed flatly through the tunnels. In the distance they could hear a quiet, ominous rumbling.

"You don't know anything about me," Obi-Wan said. He felt the color drain from his face. How did I look at him? Did my eyes linger on his face too long? I thought I'd been good about ignoring him!

The rumbling grew louder and less distant.

"Obi-Wan, we really ought to get out of the mine, I think—" Milna started, but her final words caught in her throat as the tunnel caved in on top of her, heavy boulders crushing her in the blink of an eye. Obi-Wan stared at the spot where she'd just stood in shock.

"Milna?" he asked, his voice tiny, frightened.