Daunsearly Light

Rating: T+
Summary: With the backdrop of the blockade of the Trade Federation at Naboo, Obi-Wan Kenobi has to deal with the worst possible thing to ever happen to him.
Disclaimer: All cannon characters are owned by the Great Flanneled One, and now Disney. All others are mine. I make no money off this.
Note: This is a sequel to Into the Gloaming

Timeline: 32 BBY

Speech: " "
Training Bond communications: /
Internal thoughts: italics

Chapter Six

It had been over a day since Qui-Gon had left the transport. Except for the two communications from him, there had been no news. Obi-Wan wasn't sure if that should be good or not. What was strange was that Captain Panaka was more than a little nervous. Why would he be nervous when the Queen was safe on board? He had no idea why he could be acting that way. He was also one of those who knew how to shield his thoughts. In fact, all the handmaidens along with the Queen had that ability. At least he didn't have to worry about being bombarded by stray thoughts. Whenever he was outside the Temple and in Coruscant the first thing he had to do was tighten his shields.

That second communication from Master Qui-Gon, though really bothered him. He wanted to put the ship down as collateral for of all things, a podrace? He wasn't entirely familiar with the sport, but he knew enough that it was dangerous. They had to figure out another way to get the money for the hyperdrive because if it didn't work out, then they'd be stuck for a very long time.

That night, and after eating dinner, Obi-Wan went back into the room he had commandeered so he could meditate. This way he could respond to any problems that might arise quicker than if he had actually gone to sleep. Just as he was sinking down into the Force he felt a presence just outside the room. It paused for a short time before continuing to the Queen's personal chambers. The young leader had kept to herself and only appeared when they had received that message from Naboo. At least Qui-Gon had gone along with his decision. That was happening more and more often. Technically he had not been lead on a mission yet, but he knew he needed to do that sooner rather than later, especially with him being a senior padawan.

Which is what happened. Through some distant thought, Obi-Wan felt more than heard his communicator chirp. He blinked a few times to clear his eyes, then reached for the small device he had placed on the blanket beside him. A quick glance to the chrono let him know that it was later than he realized. Sometimes when he was in deep meditation it felt like time crawled, when it was actually the opposite.

It chirped again. Picking up the device Obi-Wan saw that it was Qui-Gon calling him. "Yes, Master?"

"Padawan," Qui-Gon's voice came out tinny from the small speaker, "I'm transmitting a blood sample. I want you to run a midichlorian count on it."

Obi-Wan blinked in surprise. That was not what he expected. He got to his feet and worked his way to the cockpit. For something like this he wanted to be as far away from the Queen and her handmaidens as possible. Even though each ship had a program that could run the information, it was best that he be alone. He sat down in the navigator's seat. Instead of the main lights being activated, the space was lit up with a dull red coloring. This way it was easy enough to see what he was doing, but also dark enough to not draw anyone's attention.

After plugging in the sample he waited as the computer ran the test. In every Republic ship computers had programs for this. It dutifully beeped its result and flashed its answer on the screen. For a moment Obi-Wan had a difficult time trying to comprehend what he saw. It really wasn't possible. "Master?" he brought the comm back to his face. "I think there's something wrong with the sample."

There was a pause, "What does the reading say?"

"It's twenty thousand. No one, not even Master Yoda has a count that high." Obi-Wan bit his bottom lip, waiting for Qui-Gon to give him some sort of answer.

"Good night, Obi-Wan." And with that the comm was closed down.

Obi-Wan set his comm back down. Something was up, which was obvious to him, but he wasn't sure what it was at this point. Whomever had this insanely high midichlorian count…. He shook his head. There was too much for him to deal with at this point in time. After making sure that the number wouldn't be saved, he closed out the program, then went back to his room. Coming around the corner he ran into the same handmaiden he spoke to before the communications from Naboo. He stopped and cocked his head to the side in more of an unspoken question. It was late, and she was out and about.

"Oh," she brought her hand to her face. "I'm sorry."

"No bother." Obi-Wan gave her a hint of a smile. "It's late though. I feel that tomorrow will be a day of firsts." He had no idea where that came from, but he knew it was correct.

She took a step forward and stretched out a hand as if to touch him. "Do you think we will get off this planet?"

For a moment Obi-Wan watched her. Even though she drew close he willed himself to not take a step back. "If the Force wills it, ma'am." With a quick nod, he took a step back and moved around her to get to his room. Only when the door closed did he take a deep breath, glad to be away from her. He knew he had to be very careful, and not make her think that he was trying to lead her on, which he wasn't. Even though she was highly trained, he could still tell she was still so young, and impressionable. In a final thought, he waved his hand to the door and felt it lock and then sealed it shut. The only way it would open now is from the inside, and by using the Force he did not want to wake up in the morning only to find her in his room.

After removing his boots, Obi-Wan stripped down to his undertunic and lay on the bed under his cloak. After closing his eyes, he let himself drift off to sleep, and dreamed once again. His eyes flew open as he tried to understand the chaotic images. It was a tangled mess was all he could come up with. The young boy showed up again, asking what would happen to him, along with something about the Trials. Even with his heart pounding, he sat up and ran a hand through his short hair, then looked around the darkened room. Running lights around the enclosed space glowed a dull red. Like the cockpit, it was enough to see by, but not enough to forcibly wake anyone up from a deep sleep. Pulling out his personal chrono, he was surprised to find out that it was already morning.

Reaching over, Obi-Wan turned on a nearby lamp. There were things he needed to do, plus he had a feeling that Qui-Gon would be returning and hopefully with a hyperdrive generator in tow. After his morning meditations, he pulled on the rest of his tunic and boots. He paused as he sensed movement in the corridor, but he couldn't tell who it was.

The last thing he did was to record down all that he could remember from the dream like vision. The foreboding he felt before they left for Naboo came back, this time with a vengeance. Something was up was the only thing he could figure out.

Emerging from his room, he worked his way down to the common area. Several guards were gathered around one of the screens, anticipation emanating from them. They were eagerly waiting for something, of what he had no idea. As he moved across the space for the kitchenette he heard something akin to 'podrace' or something similar. Obi-Wan turned and approached the group and looked at what they were watching. Individuals holdings banners were walking across a field while podracers waited patiently. "What's this?"

One guard answered without looking over his shoulder, "It's the Boonta Eve Classic. We've been watching it for some time now."

Qui-Gon mentioned a podrace. Could this be what he was referring to? The massive engines on the podracers rose to a loud whine and all but one took off at an unknown signal. A few moments later that one began moving and soon it looked like it was trying to catch up with the other racers. Considering how much time had already passed, and the speed they were going, he figured that it wouldn't happen. After several more minutes Obi-Wan grew bored with it all and turned back to the kitchenette to get his breakfast.

"You know," the same handmaiden from the previous day had come into the room and approached Obi-Wan, "I never introduced myself."

Several guards cheered as Obi-Wan turned his attention to the young girl. He looked back to the tea he was preparing. "Yes?" when that was finished, he pulled out several capsules and began preparing his breakfast.

"I'm Sabé."

"Does the Queen know you're here and speaking to me?" Out of the corner of his eye he could see her take a step back. Apparently she never did that that into consideration. There was something else though. It wasn't much, but enough to make Obi-Wan wonder if there was something else going on. Instead of dismissing it entirely, he set the feelings off to the side so he could take a look at the hyperdrive one last time. He had never installed a new one, so he knew what he needed to study.

After breakfast, Obi-Wan left the common room and went back to the hyperdrive. The room was as stuffy as it was before. Crawling and squeezing into every space he could think of, he found no information on how to replace the drive itself. And then there was the R2 droid. It had followed Qui-Gon over to Mos Espa, so he really couldn't use it. Maybe he could when they returned.

With nothing else to do, Obi-Wan went back to his room while making sure he didn't run into Sabé. While in the corridor his comm chirped once again. With a frown, Obi-Wan looked to see who it was. It was Qui-Gon once again. Either there would be good news or bad news. Personally, he wanted the good news. He really didn't want to be stuck on this planet for Force knew how long. "Yes, Master?"

"Padawan, I shall be returning shortly with a new generator."

This was the news he was hoping for. "And the R2 droid? I would like astromech to help with the installation."

"Yes, it will be here."

And with that the comm ended. It was as abrupt as the one from the previous night after he ran that midichlorian test. Obi-Wan still thought there was a problem with that blood sample. Having a count of over twenty thousand was basically impossible. It would be as if the Force created the individual, or something similar. Pausing, he mentally touched the anchor that strengthened the training bond he had with Qui-Gon. Maybe it should be removed. The problem was that he had no idea how to do that. Garen had mentioned shortly after his raising that his own training bond had been formally unraveled. He then hedged on how it was done. Apparently he figured out how it was done just by paying attention.

Shrugging that off, Obi-Wan eventually made it back to his room and began studying on how to replace the generator, and what to do with the one that was burned out.

Sometime later, and with Qui-Gon approaching, Obi-Wan left his room and went back over to the Nubian ship's entrance. What was surprising was that Captain Panaka was already there, relief leaking from behind his shielding. "I know why you're relieved," Obi-Wan kept his voice low. A spike of anxiety emerged but was squashed quickly. "Master Qui-Gon is bringing a hyperdrive generator to be installed."

"Good." Panaka nodded, his dark eyes showing even more relief.

Entering a code, the door unsealed and the two of them were hit with a blast of heat as if from an oven, and then the ramp lowered. It looked like it was about midday on where they were on the planet. Even with heat rising as in waves from the sand Obi-Wan could just make out something in the distance, approaching.

"Who is that?"

Obi-Wan glanced over to the captain, sweat was already beading on his forehead, then back to the ramp before him. "It's Master Qui-Gon." He walked down the ramp to reach the sandy ground before him then moved over to stand under the ship. With his fair skin he knew it was best to wait here. If he wasn't careful, he would turn red, and then the outer layer would peel off. Not a good thing. I wonder if Eira would only grow darker if she was here.

What Obi-Wan saw in the distance only grew in size until he could make out several beasts of burden towing something behind them. "I was getting worried," he commented as Qui-Gon stopped the animal he was riding. Jar Jar rode the other one that was off to the side. For a moment he wasn't sure where Padmé, the other handmaiden was until Qui-Gon dismounted and then helped her to the ground. What they were towing turned out to be the generator that was acquired. The pallet floated above the ground, while the astromech droid waited patiently next to it.

"Start getting this generator installed." That was an obvious order, "I need to go back for some unfinished business." Qui-Gon took a step towards him.

"Business?" Obi-Wan couldn't help but give him a long look.

"Don't worry, I won't be all that long."

Out of the corner of his eye, Obi-Wan saw Jar Jar go back into the ship while muttering something unintelligible. He turned his full attention back to Qui-Gon, "Why do I feel that we've picked up another stray."

This time Qui-Gon pulled him to the side and lowered his voice, "It's the boy who's responsible for getting us these parts." He paused while looking around. It was as if he didn't want anyone to hear what he was about to say. "The same boy whose blood sample you tested for midi-chlorians."

"Boy?"

"Yes, a human child by the name of Anakin Skywalker."

Obi-Wan's sense of unease flared up again. Instead of outwardly complaining about it, he frowned before turning his full attention to the generator. He had decided to focus on that so he wouldn't have to deal with what was turning out to be a new stray, an apparent Force sensitive stray with an impossibly high midi-chlorian count.

With Captain Panaka's help, along with Artoo trundling behind them, they were able to get the generator into the ship and installed fairly quickly. Artoo was able to get the more intricate wiring completed. Soon it was up and running, now if it worked was something entirely different. At least it was running, which made Obi-Wan smiled. Personally he didn't want to be stuck on Tatoonie any longer. The burned out drive would be scuttled once they were safely in space.

There was a flurry of activity coming from the area of the common room. Reaching out, Obi-Wan sensed Qui-Gon approaching along with a stronger disturbance in the Force than what he first felt when they landed. Joining the captain, Obi-Wan appeared in the cockpit to see what was happening. The disturbance turned chaotic. Padmé was there with a boy. For the moment he paid no attention to this new stray, but turned his attention to the handmaiden.

"Qui-Gon is in trouble," her voice didn't quaver, which was a surprise.

"He said to take off," a young voice answered.

Instead of looking out of the viewscreen, Obi-Wan closed his eyes, reaching for the link that bound him to the Master Jedi. His eyes flew open and he leaned over the pilot. "There," he pointed off to the side. "Get us in the air and over there. Make sure you fly low."

Ric nodded while letting his hand fly over the controls. The engines of the Nubian vessel roared to life. They rose above the ground and began moving towards what was turning out to be two combatants. Their lightsabers swirled in the dust as they went back and forth. Obi-Wan's eyes narrowed as he focused on the green and red glow. It took him a moment before he realized what he saw. The shop paused as soon as they had neared the two and Ric had the ramp lowered. Another screen focused in on what was happening. Qui-Gon jumped to safety, forcing his adversary to follow. With another strike Qui-Gon pushed what turned out to be a humanoid off the ramp and he backed into the ship, letting the ramp and door seal behind him.

Hurrying from the cockpit, Obi-Wan went to Qui-Gon to make sure he was all right. He knelt beside him and helped the older Jedi to a seated position then began probing their bond.

"Are you all right?"

Obi-Wan finally turned his attention to the boy that appeared in the cockpit and threw up his shields. He knew this boy. This was the same boy that had been in his visions, and it bothered him more than he cared to admit.

"I think so." Qui-Gon took a deep breath while brushing the child off. "This was a surprise that I won't soon forget."

This time Obi-Wan frowned. "What was that?"

Qui-Gon gave him a thoughtful look. "I really don't know. Whoever, or whatever he was, he was trained in the Jedi arts. My guess is that he's after the Queen."

"Is he going to follow us?" the boy's voice wavered.

Even with his shields up, Obi-Wan could fee the child's fear.

Qui-Gon gave the boy a kind smile. "We'll be safe as soon as we reach hyperspace. I don't doubt he knows our destination, which means he'll be able to find us again."

"Then what are we going to do about it?" the boy demanded.

"We?" Obi-Wan turned his frown from Qui-Gon over to the boy.

"We shall be patient," Qui-Gon broke through the stalemate while bringing the attention back to him. "Anakin Skywalker, meet Obi-Wan Kenobi."

TBC...


I apologize for disappearing and not posting anything. We had a family emergency and only in the last few days was I able to get this completed. I hope there won't be an interruption like this, but you never know.