Alex Rider: Mission Jedi
Jedi Goat
Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars or Alex Rider.
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Chapter 12: Crash Landing
All Alex could see was an orange blur out the view screen before the ship plunged through Tatooine's heavy atmosphere. Now the ship dropped straight down before thumping on the sandy ground. A cloud of sand puffed up and then settled over the ship.
Alex waited a few moments and then slowly sat up. Rubbing his head, he waited for the world to stop spinning. When it did, he realized he, Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan and Captain Panaka were all sprawled out on the ceiling. The ship had landed upside-down.
Obi-Wan raised his head. "Ow," he grunted. Qui-Gon and Panaka were soon up as well.
Qui-Gon quickly took charge. To Captain Panaka, he ordered, "Go check on the Queen and the others." Once the Naboo was gone, Qui-Gon stood up and checked the systems report on the screen above. "We've lost the stabilizers. We'll need to find new ones."
Alex pushed himself off the floor, holding the wall to keep himself steady. "I'm sorry. I got us hit."
Obi-Wan shook his head. "You did what you could. That's all that we can ask for."
Qui-Gon strode toward the door. "I'll go out and see if I can get us some new stabilizers."
At that moment, Jar Jar surged into the room in all his annoying glory. Qui-Gon caught the Gungan by the arm. "You will come with me."
"Meesa? Going wheresa?"
"To the nearest city. We're looking for stabilizers."
"Oh oh," murmured Jar Jar, gazing uneasily out the view screen. "Meesa no like da sun. Make skin be hot! Hot!" He rubbed his arms nervously to prove this point.
Qui-Gon ignored the Gungan's protests and towed him toward the door. Obi-Wan got up and he and Alex stumbled after the Jedi Master.
In the foyer, the group met up with Captain Panaka and one of the Queen's handmaidens. The handmaiden was a girl not much older than Alex was, with mousy brown hair cascading down her back and dark, determined eyes. She wore the rough clothes of a peasant.
"Her Highness commands you take her handmaiden, Padmé, with you," Panaka reported, his voice ringing with authority.
Qui-Gon shook his head tiredly. "No more commands from Her Highness today, Captain. The city is not going to be a pleasant place."
"The Queen wishes it," urged Panaka, "She is curious about the planet."
Padmé spoke up, in a gentle but strong voice. "I'm not afraid, and I can take care of myself."
Qui-Gon inclined his head, thinking the matter over as he observed the handmaiden. Finally, he nodded to Panaka. "She may come." Then to Padmé, he added, "Stay close to me."
Qui-Gon paused in the doorway of the ship, looking down at the sun-baked ground where Padmé, Jar Jar and an astromech droid named R2-D2 were waiting. "Padawan."
"Yes, Master?" Obi-Wan stepped forward.
"You will be in charge of the ship while we are gone."
"Yes, Master." Looking at Panaka, Alex could see that the head of security wasn't pleased with Qui-Gon's decision to leave Obi-Wan in charge.
"Continue training Alex."
"Yes, Master. I will," Obi-Wan promised. "May the Force be with you, Master."
"May the Force be with you too, Padawan." And then Qui-Gon strode out.
Obi-Wan watched the group leave, his face suddenly dark. He murmured softly so that Panaka couldn't hear, "I have a bad feeling about this."
Alex shrugged. He had already deduced that he wasn't very adept at sensing the future with the Force. "Let's hope they come back soon, then."
"Hmm," Obi-Wan commented, and then headed into the cockpit to meditate on the subject.
The next day dawned as hot and dry as before. Alex had left his backpack on the Republic ship, and he now regretted having only one set of clothes left, as they were not adapted for the immense heat. His legs were sweltering under heavy jeans, and his shirt, sticky with sweat, clung to his back. Alex sat in the small amount of shade under the canopy of the upside-down ramp. Obi-Wan sat beside him, scanning the surrounding landscape.
Alex closed his eyes to the bright, shimmering illusions of light reflected by the sun on the sand. He leaned back against the hull of the ship, imagining it was a relaxing day at the beach and not a day on this torturous hot planet.
With a yelp, Alex sat up straight, rubbing the spot on his back where the red-hot ship had burned him. Obi-Wan cast him an amused look. "Black absorbs heat. Didn't you know that?"
"Is that my lesson for today?" Alex hissed through gritted teeth, scuttling further away from the ship.
Obi-Wan grinned. He had been aloof and worried since Qui-Gon had left. The sudden lift in his mood seemed gigantic. "No. We're going to lift objects with the Force."
"Didn't I already do that?" inquired Alex, following the Padawan as he stepped outside the shaded area.
"Not big objects." Obi-Wan had stopped a few feet away from the ship. Alex glanced around. What am I supposed to move?
Then he caught sight of the space ship, dark hull glinting in the brilliant sun. Oh… Alex gulped nervously. "The ship?" Obi-Wan nodded affirmatively. The ship's huge! How am I supposed to move that?!?
Obi-Wan seemed to sense Alex's doubt and put a hand on his shoulder. "The ship will be as light as a feather if you make it so. It's just the same as everything you've lifted so far."
"Except the ship is big."
"Size matters not." Alex wondered why Obi-Wan was suddenly smirking.
The Jedi Padawan moved away. "Just turn the ship over," he advised lightly.
Alex turned back to the matter at hand. The gargantuan ship lay upside-down with sand pooled in banks around it. There seemed to be no way to budge it. A pilot who'd been around ships their whole life wouldn't be able to turn the ship over. But they wouldn't have the Force.
Alex stretched out his fingers, staring at the ship with complete focus. Slowly, he raised one hand and extended it toward the ship. Alex felt the Force vibrating in the air around him and drew on it. He gathered the Force around the ship and lifted his hand higher.
The ship hummed with Force energy, dislodging itself from the ground. It raised itself up, sand pouring off its shiny surfaces in mini waterfalls. Now it was time for phase two.
Alex turned the ship over in midair, feeling the terror of the Naboo inside as their transport rolled. Gritting his teeth, he gently lowered the ship to the ground and released his hold on the Force, exhaling deeply in relief.
It was only then that Alex heard Obi-Wan's cry of warning.
To be continued...
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Author's Note: Ooh, cliffie! (evil laughter)
Anyway, the quote from Yoda is just that, a quote, because it's something that Obi-Wan already heard before.
