Chapter Title: Into the Mire
Series Title: Turn the Page
POV: Obi-Wan
Chapter Summary: Obi-Wan battles an unexpected adversary as he struggles to locate a missing Qui-Gon
Then they drew back the sheet.
It's quite possible that I've never been as relieved as I was in that moment.
The man under the sheet. Dead. Tortured probably. But a stranger. An unknown. He was not Qui-Gon Jinn.
If my sigh of relief sounded more like a partial whimper, it was. The rumors had been rampant. A Jedi had been killed. Tall, brown-graying hair. Dark brown robe. I'd lost my Force connection with my master about the same time the rumors began spreading. This man under the sheet, he fit the description, but he was neither Qui-Gon nor Jedi. I was grateful for both, but I'll admit that the knot in my stomach loosened a notch when I saw it wasn't Qui-Gon.
"This is not Master Jinn," I informed the local authorities after they'd revealed the dead man. "He is similar in appearance, but this is not him. I am sorry for this man's passing, but Master Jinn remains missing. Has your team..."
The large blue alien - Chief of security - stuck a furry hand into my face, halting my words. "Do not question my team, young Jedi. They are experts in their field and require no assistance from a... boy."
I kept my cool. "With all due respect Chief Galeck, I am not a boy and I know the missing person better than any other here. My inquiry as to your team..."
Another hand as the imposing creature stepped forward, towering over me. "Do. Not. Question. My. Methods. Boy. You will assist if needed. We will seek you out if needed. That man there on the slab, you were relieved when we pulled the sheet back. It was not your teacher. You offer no care for who this man actually is. His family or his acquaintances. You seek only information of your own kind."
My eyes broke contact with him and I settled into deep breaths, pushing my impatience silently into the Force, resisting the urge to face plant this creature into the wall. Of course, I wasn't certain I could to that, he was gigantic and I was not. In addition, without Qui-Gon's calming presence, there was always that chance that I end up slicing someone's head off. I was rather certain that would be a bad thing.
Once I had control, I addressed the man again. He wasn't completely wrong, but the way he'd said it... my fists clenched and released. Focus and refocus, sending bad ideas into the Force.
"I do care who that man is and that he was treated so badly before death. But we also have a missing person who could still be alive. A Jedi ambassador that came here to help you and your people."
He imposed again, towering at least two heads about my height. Chilling yellow eyes rimmed in black and boring into me.
"You float in here with your light-sword and your fancy magic, but we are not fooled by your trickery. Do not flatter yourself to think that you Jedi care about our people, our planet, our lives."
"With all due respect, Chief Galeck, you are wrong. Master Jinn cares deeply about anyone and everyone. He is a man of honor and respect and dignity. You dishonor him if you do not make every effort to locate him with my assistance."
"Our search will proceed as previously indicated. We will advise you if we find your Jedi. You will leave now, boy. Do not return to this room until you are called."
Arguing further would serve no purpose other than fueling my already frayed impatience and anger. Neither of which would benefit in finding
Qui-Gon. I left the room without venturing far. My mind turned to Qui-Gon again. What would he do? How would he proceed?
Meditation. His go-to in any impossible situation. My knees sank gently to the cold floor. Hands crossed on my lap. Eyes closed. Unlike Qui-Gon, I did not yet have the ability to simply sink into the Force on a second's notice. It took me a minute. Or several. And the depth I achieved could not approach his. I had improved in the last year and Qui-Gon always made certain I was aware of that improvement and that he was proud of my growth. Would he be proud of me now? I couldn't say. But I would do my absolute best, in his absence, to honor his training.
I found the Force. Quicker than anticipated. It wandered though, my mind. I sought assistance, guidance. In my studied concentration, I sensed something.
Qui-Gon.
Faint, but there. He was alive!
The knot in my stomach re-twisted. Alive, but where? I had no idea how much of the city Galeck's people had searched, if they had searched or even if Qui-Gon was still in the city limits. Honestly, he could be anywhere. The next man they floated in under a sheet...
Settle yourself, Kenobi. You felt him. This was a good thing. There was hope. I debated going back to speak with the security chief. I could offer no physical proof of what I'd felt, and it was clear that Galeck held no respect for the Jedi or the Force. Engaging in further argument would be futile.
My internal debate plodded on for minutes when I heard a heavy trail of booted steps closing in. One of them kicked me hard in the knee. Galeck's booming vice followed the painful impact.
"Boy. A lead in the search for your Jedi. You doubted my people, but I will allow you follow. Do not interfere."
A lead, I thought, rubbing at my knee. That meant evidence. Certainly Galeck would never bother following a lead without a swallow of evidence. Had Qui-Gon managed a visual sign when he pushed into our Force bond? I could only hope.
"I will follow," I said to Galeck, I would play the obedient one; delegated to the rear of both the land-speeder and the search party. My senses alert and searching for anything that was Qui-Gon.
Off the speeder, and on foot now, we plowed slowly through the bogs. Boots sucking and sticking in the deep black mud. Our movements were grudgingly difficult and got to the point where we were essentially stuck in place. I was perilously close to losing a boot and I dared not know what flesh-feasting creature might be dwelling in the dense mud.
We did make our way out, exiting the bog and navigating further into the swamps - with better footing - we came to a grave-like area. Corpses lined the shores. Stained white sheets covered most. Others were laid out naked and... burnt? Yes. That explained the smell. I saw no evidence of human bodies though that did little to calm my anxieties that were currently pinned down tight. One wrong thought and my actions might be lost in them.
But no. No. No. I was better than that. I was maintaining calm. Cool. Even in the humidity of the swamps and the intense heat from the nearby lava pools.
Okay. Lava pools.
Burnt bodies explained.
Where the lava originated from, anyone's guess. I suspected strongly that Galeck knew, but I didn't dare ask the question. My brow was thick with sweat and welts; I'd slapped at the bugs that decided chewing on my face would be their favorite past-time. The welts itched and irritated and I'd deal with it later.
Galeck counted the corpses before turning toward me. "These bodies are fresh. Our people. This is why we have no use for Jedi. Our people, our problem. Outside interference leads only to more death. Your Jedi was taken and we search for him instead of our own."
"Perhaps," my words were careful to not inflame. "Perhaps where Master Jinn is, there are others of your kind still alive. It's a thought we must hold. I believe Master Jinn is alive, you must believe that if there are more of your people here, they too might still live."
It would be a lie to say that Galeck's yellow eyes didn't creep me out. They did. They struck cold against his dark blue skin and held no emotion that I could tell. That glare of his, intense and determined. One that never wavered, as he never wavered. I'd given him something to think about though.
"You speak sense, boy. We may find our kind alive. Or we may find them dead with your Jedi. Tell me, with your magic, do you still feel him?"
I stopped walking for a moment to reach towards the bond I shared with Qui-Gon. At first, there was only a hollow emptiness; I feared the worst. But then... then the slightest of tendrils. Yes, he was still alive. Beyond that...
"He is alive. That's all I know."
"Nonsense magic. What good does it do if you cannot know more? It should lead you toward him. You are bonded, are you not?"
"We are, but it doesn't work like that. The Force is not a locator beacon.
With a strong connection, it can possibly pinpoint direction, but Master Jinn's essence is in a greatly weakened state. Not strong enough for guidance. He is either injured or in a place where the Force is dimmed."
"He could be dying." Galeck said flatly. Zero emotion. Was that his kind? Was that how he was as leader? I'd no way to be sure. I did know that he spoke the truth.
Qui-Gon could be dying. The knot tightened again, yet I kept it from choking me. This boggy swamp was creating interference. Whether it was man-made or just the make-up of this unfriendly place, that was the mystery. I'd hang onto hope until I found my master.
We trudged past more bodies. All but one had white sheets draped across them. Human feet stuck out from one and I tore the cover back expectantly to find... Relief. Not Qui-Gon. Not human. Not one of Galeck's either.
"Not yours, boy. Not mine. This bog, it claims all who enter."
I certainly hoped not. That would not be good news for anyone involved, but I kept my mouth shut. The less I said the better as we moved forward. A shout came from our right. Blaster fire followed. Then deflected. A familiar hum followed the deflections.
"Master Qui-Gon?" I yelled and began running toward the sound before Galeck grabbed my collar to yank me to a halt in my tracks.
"Let me go! Qui-Gon is in there. That was his lightsaber."
"Was it? Do you know? Does his have a distinctive sound different from yours or other Jedi?"
I stopped fighting. He had me there. In my anxiousness, I'd done exactly what Qui-Gon would have scolded me for. What Galeck was scolding me for. Rushing unprepared into the unknown with zero plan of action.
I shook my head slowly, relenting. "No, there is no difference. We do not know what is beyond there. It could be anyone."
"It's why you remain a boy, boy. Impatience. Unthinking. Impulsive." The powerful blue hand released my collar. "Perhaps one day you will no longer house those things inside you. Until then, you follow."
Deep breaths. So many deep breaths. Scolding my own self internally as Galeck harped on me from the outside.
The blaster fire and saber hum began again. I slapped at a needle-thin razor bug that was chewing on my forehead and wiped sweat dripping into my eyes. Our party slowly made it's way forward into a large tunnel. Coating the diameter walls of the tunnel was a thick black moss creeping down. It was alive, eager to attach itself to us. A giant web of a plant that made it virtually impossible to see through to the other side. Galeck and his crew chopped at it with little success. It moved with them. At them. After them. A long strand wrapped my ankle tightening quickly, and I stopped all movement. The moss did the same. So, there was something. I began thinking. Perhaps I could catch it off guard. I leaped forward and slammed hard onto the ground. So much for that idea.
This plant... it had intelligence. Qui-Gon, so deeply in tuned with the Living Force, would have sensed it immediately. If only I could see through the thicket to the far side of the tunnel... there was a cave there, but it remained obscured.
I lay on the ground, not moving. Was the attack based on movement? On thought? Body heat? What would be the most logical? Think, Obi-Wan. Think...
My gut said movement. I wiggled a finger, the moss wrapped around it. I stopped, the moss' motion stopped. Okay. Mystery solved, though at this point I was still flat on the ground with the plant hugging my ankles and I was unable to see Galeck or his team.
"Galeck? I can't see you, are you there?"
"Here, boy. We cannot move through the mire. It had taken two of my men."
"Don't move. It attacks based on movement. If you move, it moves."
"If we cannot move, how do we defeat it?"
Good question for which I had no answer. But Qui-Gon probably did. I was certain he was there in the cave, just beyond. A few others were with him, but who or what they were, no. Everything I had was based on feeling and that feeling, it was strong enough that I took the gamble. I mean, after all, the worst thing that could happen was death, so...
"Master, can you hear me?" I yelled without moving, willing the Force to keep my body still.
A familiar voice returned my call.
"Obi-Wan. I am here. The plant attacks with movement. Don't move."
"Yes, right. I've discovered that, but how do we get past it?"
"I have a thought. It should work, but I could not attempt it on my own. It would save me but the others here would perish. I'd hoped you'd be along to find me."
"Sorry it took so long. I have Chief Galeck here and some of his team. We are tangled in the thicket. What is your plan, Master?"
"The moss can utilize the Force."
Okay then. I'd not seen that one coming.
Qui-Gon continued. "It senses your decision the second before you actually move, it's why you cannot surprise it. All we need do is lure it into false thinking that we are moving when we are not."
That sounded like an impossible idea and I was completely confused by it.
"Master... what?"
"Focus, Obi-Wan. One of us must connect to it through the Force, make it think one thing and then we do the opposite of what we are making it think."
Qui-Gon and his addiction to the Living Force would surely get us killed one day. Was that today? The plan was still lost on me. I sighed my frustration, the planet tightened it's grasp as I moved just that small amount. Qui-Gon sensed my bewilderment.
"You're confused, that's all right, Padawan. One day it will all be clearer. For now, do as I say and I believe we all get out of this alive."
"Yes, Master." Qui-Gon's confident words managed to comfort me just enough and I listened to the plan.
"I will seek connection with the moss. I will make it believe that myself and the others are traveling away from the entrance. It's intelligent, but only to an extent. If my connection is deep enough, we will remain stationary, but the plant will slide left to where it thinks we are going. I'll hold it long enough for you and Galeck to get his people free. You get them out and then you run. It won't travel to the deepest bogs, there is danger in the bogs that it's wary of. So once you make it there, you'll be safe."
Qui-Gon had a habit of making the most difficult things sound mundane. I was skeptical, he was confident.
"You have to be ready, Obi-Wan. I need you to direct everyone to safety. They will need your Force guidance to safely navigate to the deep bogs. The moss will black out what little light is here so vision will be less than optimal. You can feel your way there."
I can feel my way there. I. Not we. Wait a second. "Master, You are coming too!" I stated firmly, though I was concerned that Qui-Gon had launched into some type of crazy self sacrificing mood.
"Padawan. You can do this. I know you can."
Not the answer I was looking for. "Master, you are coming with us." I repeated.
"I have every intention of doing so, but I'm trusting you to do as I've asked without question and without delay."
No matter the cost, I was to make sure all were safe. It was an oath I'd taken as a Jedi and despite my connection and attachment to Qui-Gon, I would do right by my training. I breathed heavy and said, "Yes, Master. I will."
"Good. Give me a moment. Reach for our bond. You will know when I connect to the plant."
I reached, he reached, the creepy moss reached. Before Qui-Gon put his plan into action, he sent a tendril of comfort to me. I relaxed then. This very strange and far fetched plan, it would work. I had to believe it. I would believe it.
Qui-Gon melted into the Living Force, losing strength in our bond, but throwing himself (literally) full force into the mire. Long moments passed and my confidence began to wain. I couldn't see Qui-Gon, but I was able to envision in my head how he would have appeared. Shoulders relaxed. Face neutral. Mind lost in the depths. It was fascinating and amazing all in one.
Yeah. That menacing black moss never stood a chance.
It tried though. It tried with everything it had and for a brief moment, it managed to turn the tide in it's favor... only to be lured to it's defeat.
I waited until Qui-Gon had a firm hold of the vegetation and it's mass began advancing toward him. It was then I finally saw him. He was dirty and covered with very familiar insect welts, but he seemed mostly functional. As he moved backwards, tricking the moss toward the left, I noticed a severe limp on his right leg. Not ideal for his own escape, but I had to trust he knew what he was doing as I was occupied elsewhere.
Waiting. Waiting. Until just that perfect moment when most of the plant's mass had detached from the tunnel walls - slowly releasing Galeck and his team in the process. The moss slogged deeper into the cave.
Galeck stood and waited for my signal. "Hold a few seconds longer... Qui-Gon has it... and, ready... go, go, go! Everyone go! Galeck you and your team run to the deep bogs, now!"
At my hand signal, the four others who'd been trapped with Qui-Gon also ran for their lives. Almost all had escaped when the moss realized it's mistake.
Intelligent Force-wielding plants. Was this what we'd come to?
Attracted by his movement toward the exit, the plant turned suddenly in Qui-Gon's direction. The movement lightening fast compared to it's previous sluggish speed.
Qui-Gon yelled at me. "Obi-Wan, run! That's an order. Go, now!"
I should have. It was an order from a Jedi Master. It was an order from my master.
I should have run.
I didn't.
Qui-Gon would never escaped the mossy monster on his own, not as badly as his leg was dragging. The others were out, they were rushing to the bogs. They would be safe. Qui-Gon was limping - practically hopping - on one leg, unable to use the other for anything other than balance. The moss' speed increased again and it seemed what now... angry?
Great. Perfect. Not only was this giant plant smart and Force-wielding, but now it had emotions?
We'd managed to tick off the galaxy's biggest heap of vines and sludge.
This would be quite the story to report to the Council - assuming we lived to report anything. Being smothered by a gigantic plant was not my idea of a noble death so I decided against it. Instead, I dove toward Qui-Gon, taking half his weight onto my shoulders. I was on his right side. We ran (hobbled really) as quickly as our legs and the Force could take us. It wasn't very fast and the annoying plant-beast got my ankles again, taking me down. But, I managed to push back up, Qui-Gon grabbing my tunic to lift me at thee same time the blackness descended around us. A few more steps was all we needed...
And finally, we were out of the tunnel and trudging determinedly to the bogs. At the same time, thick carpets of vegetation threatened to reduce us to lifeless corpses covered in white sheets. Where exactly had those sheets came from was my thought as we took one last step, hurling ourselves into the deepest of the bogs. Our feet drowned below as that horrible mud-sucking sound was suddenly music to our ears. That despite the fact that we were being dragged downward far faster than we were able to fight it.
Massive blue hands reached out. Galeck. He grabbed the scruff of my tunic and yanked me through the muck. Other hands did the same with Qui-Gon. We landed filthy but safely on the bog shore.
Upright on the soiled ground, Qui-Gon leaned heavy on me, winded and worn from his onerous efforts.
No doubt as missions went? This would be one of our most memorable. And our most confusing.
I kept Qui-Gon vertical. Galeck knelt beside us.
"You, boy. Saved my people. You, Jedi, gave up your escape to keep them alive. I am grateful. Perhaps too harsh. We will get you back to the village."
"Thank you, Galeck." I nodded, concerned. "What of the dead in the swamps? Some of them were your people. We can assist you in retrieving their bodies. You can give them an honorable farewell."
"A decision for will later. For now, your Qui-Gon Jinn needs medical treatment. We all need rest."
He wasn't lying and Qui-Gon wasn't the only one who needed treatment. The welts on my face were beginning to itch now that excitement was over. I'd end up ripping my face raw if I didn't get some type of salve.
Galeck's team got us to the waiting land-speeder. There was limited room with the five extra persons so Qui-Gon and I sat on the floor in the back. Qui-Gon's head bobbled around, he was trying to meditate; to find healing and strength, but the effort was strained at best. I tucked my arm into his and leaned to his shoulder.
"Master, it's a long ride back to the village. You can lean on me."
"I told you to run. To go. You disobeyed me."
He whispered low, words for only me. As a Jedi Master he had to address it, but there wasn't much passion behind the correction.
"I did and I'd do it again. The others were safe. You were injured and weakened after the Force effort to sway that thing. Master. You would have died there. That wasn't going to happen. I'm not sold on watching you die in front of my eyes. So, you can rebuke me or the Council can, but I would save you again."
He expelled an extended breath though his nose.
"Padawan. Thank you."
—-
Arriving back at the village, Galeck escorted us to the front door of the hut where we'd been housed during our assignment here.
"Misjudged you I did, boy... Apprentice Kenobi. Great respect to you and your master. I will alert our healer that you require aid. We will see to our people. Once you are well, you should leave this village, this planet and go assist others. Good will to you both."
No chance for me to get a word in as Galeck hurried off. It was the last I saw of him.
—-
Their healer wasn't anything like our Temple healers. This one was a huge blue-skinned female with the same intense yellow eyes that Galeck had. No emotion. No nothing. She handed us a bottle filled with a cloudy-white gel substance, a single towel and two cups of water. Then she was gone.
"These are a confusing people, Master. I guess this gel goes on our welts."
I stuck my hand in the container and grabbed enough medicine to cover most of my face. Qui-Gon did the same. Before spreading the gel, I took the towel and cleaned the muck away from his eyes and ears, then did my own.
"We smell horrible," I said to him, applying the medicinal gel and wondering what our next move should be. "We'll need to hitch a ride to the spaceport. I don't think we can count on Galeck to help us. He has a limit and we reached it. No doubt, during our search for you, he was on the verge of decapitating me."
Qui-Gon grinned softly and patted my knee.
"Obi-Wan. For now we rest. Too much talking and thinking and doing. We sleep and tomorrow morning, we determine our next step."
I agreed, not about to argue with him ordering me to sleep. "Let me help you get onto your cot, Master." It was small, but he'd managed for a week prior to disappearing, he'd do all right again. As lodgings went this wasn't even close to the worst we'd seen.
"No need to wait on me, Obi-Wan. I'm not dead just yet."
"But you are injured and tired and not at your best. Let me help you."
A Qui-Gon Jinn without a struggle was a man at his limits. I didn't tell him that, but I assisted where I could. That included walking him to the cot, getting him comfortable and covered with a warm blanket.
"Slowly, Master. We don't know how bad your leg is and you don't want to cause further harm."
"That healing class coming in handy, I see."
"A little. There, are you all right?"
"I am. Thank you, Obi-Wan. I am grateful to have you with me. I will see you in the morning."
I slept hard. He slept harder. The next day we hitched that ride to the spaceport and hitched another ride home. We'd arrived here on pubic transport, I didn't think it best to return that way. Qui-Gon would need room to stretch out. He, of course argued the idea with me, but as I was the more mobile of our team, his influence only went so far.
We found the ride a few hours later and arrived home on Coruscant early the next morning. Reporting to the Council, a trip to the healers, long hot showers and ordered rest.
We'd get a little time off until Qui-Gon's leg was good to go and as long as our next mission didn't consist of giant man-eating, intelligent, Force plants, I'd be ready.
—-
...turn the page...