Disclaimer: I own nothing. All characters and quotes are the property of George Lucas and Lucasfilm Ltd.
Alright everybody, here comes chapter 11! It's very short, but hopefully it will answer some questions...Anywho, Anakin has gained some new abilites; the Vader is making him more powerful. We'll see some in this chapter, others will have to wait until later. But, it's only a few more chapters until the end of SoS. Happy ending here we come!
The pain is excruciating. My shoulder screams as I ritch into an upright position, grunting with the effort. The white-hot knives of agony scramble my brain, but at least the babies are safe.
I take deep, slow breaths, forcing myself to focus on something other than the pain. It's just beginning to work, when Anakin hobbles around the corner.
My mouth drops open, and I want to be sick.
Anakin's right arm is gone, reduced to a welling red stump.
"What..." I wonder aloud.
"Obi-Wan," Anakin's noncommittal grunt is his only response. He reaches down and gently helps me to my feet.
"So that's it, huh? We're just going to ignore the fact that I've been shot, and you're missing an arm?" I screech, waving my good arm incredulously.
"We're not going to ignore it, we just need to get the important things sorted out first; you need that bullet wound looked at, and I need to do something about this arm." Anakin explains, flapping the stump of his arm for emphasis.
I wince at the motion, wanting to reach out and stroke his cheek, to kiss him tenderly on his lips, his jaw, his neck...but the hardness in his eyes tells me he's in no mood for touches of passion at the moment. Still, I can't resist planting a peck on the side of his face. "Does it hurt?" I ask him, gesturing to his grotesque injury.
Anakin shakes his head. "Not really. The Vader helps to numb the pain." He shrugs off my hand and then takes it in his left. "Come on, let's get that looked at."
Anakin leads me through the winding hallways, almost as if he's following some kind of invisible trail.
Eventually, we end up in a small surgical theatre.
"I know you're here!" Anakin roars. With a wave of his hand, he sends the surgical bed flipping across to land upright on the other side of the room.
Cowering where the bed had been is a waif of a woman, dressed in hospital scrubs.
"D-d-don't hurt me!" She pleads
Anakin scoffs, yellow eyes glinting with scorn. "You're not worth the effort." He beckons with two fingers and a chair slides across the floor. "Please," He says, with a seductively charming tone and a wave of his hand. "Have a seat."
The woman complies, staring at Anakin with a blank gaze.
"Padmé?" Anakin calls beckoning me.
He stares at the woman before waving his hand again. "Treat her wounds. Immediately."
The woman nods and then gets up to bustle around the room and prepare things.
"What's your name?" I ask her.
"Vokara Che." The woman responds flatly, continuing to dress my wound. There are a few uncomfortable twists and some less-than-pleasants tugs as she applies the bandages and batch patches but soon, she's finished.
And I have to admit, my shoulder is starting to feel better already.
Anakin takes my place on the bed peering at the doctor with stoic inquisitiveness. "Now to business; What do you know about mechanical arms?"
***SoS***
Ahsoka rounds another corner in the maze of hallways in her search for Obi-Wan, pausing in shock when she sees the smoke pouring from a hole in the wall. She tentatively steps over to the gap, fanning the thick smoke away from her face. Faintly, she can hear someone calling out from inside.
"Hello?" She responds. "Is anyone in there?"
"Help me!" Comes the frantic reply.
"Hold on, I'm coming to get you out!" Ahsoka calls back, taking a deep breath of fresh air before picking her way through the massive opening.
She immediately chokes on the acrid scent of burned flesh, and she follows her nose to the rear of the construction sight; she gasps at the horrible sight before her.
Obi-Wan is face-up on the floor, impaled on a long, thin piece of rebar. He is badly burned over most of his body and his eyes are closed. Ahsoka wonders if he's breathing.
"Obi-Wan?" She asks quietly, fearing the worst.
Obi-Wan's eyes jerk open and he tries to sit up, screaming in agony as the rebar through his gut makes itself known. He immediately regrets that decision, as it is extremely difficult for him to breathe.
"Ahsoka?" He wheezes.
"I'm right here, just hang on and I'll go get help."
Obi-Wan doesn't have the energy to speak, but manages to nod as Ahsoka sprints from the room.
He doesn't have the energy to speak, though if he did, he would tell her not to bother; he probably won't be alive when she gets back.
Yeah, it's short, but it's more of a filler chapter until we get to the more important events in the next chapter. Kind of like a snack to hold you over until the meal...Don't forget to Review!
May the Force be with you,
~Ink
