Hand of Fate

Chapter 17 / A Thickening Plot


Two heads broke the surface of the Mon Calamari ocean, appearing as insignificant little dots beneath the soaring size and scope of Coral City structures above. Sputtering and gasping, Sabé gulped in cold night air and held tight to Obi-Wan as the choppy surface careened them up and down nauseatingly. Her senses were confused and disoriented, and the adrenaline rush, or perhaps the explosion and pressure change had made her feel weakened and sick.

"Over there!" Obi-Wan shouted against the sound of the waves. He was indicating a small ladder nearby that disappeared beneath the water then climbed upward to connect to the bottom of the city's main level. Sabé nodded as best she could and they began to swim as one, an arm around each other against the risk of being separated in the water otherwise. Snow swirled and pelted them, and the incredible coldness of the water made Sabé's teeth chatter and body shiver despite her best efforts. The surf splashed them, making it hard to see against stinging salt water and simultaneously leaving them to sputter against mouthfuls of ocean.

They made it to the ladder and Obi-Wan then all but shoved Sabé at it, ensuring she went first. She grabbed on with one hand and hauled him up behind her with the other before they began to climb. Her stiff fingers were like ice. Against the strong winds, Sabé felt numb to her bones and was shivering like a leaf in a hurricane. Ragged, disjointed thoughts about hypothermia and oxygen poisoning flew across her mind but she batted them away, knowing that concentrating on her actions was the only thing that would contribute to survival.

She came to where the ladder dead-ended into a screw-release portal and she wrapped an arm through a ladder rung to hold on then grabbed on hard with both hands and dug deep for the effort it took to open the hatch. With a great exclamation of effort, she managed it and the spring-loaded portal popped upwards and open. Sabé weakly climbed through and immediately turned around to help pull Obi-Wan up with the last reserves of her current strength. Sabé then fell back onto her back and elbows onto solid ground of a deserted sidewalk, panting hard with shaking muscles. She let her head fall back a few scant seconds as she closed her eyes and focused on the feeling of abundant air in her lungs. Soft, cold kisses of snow peppered her exposed skin. The horror she'd felt in that last moment of near-death stuck with her, making her feel a sort of fear she hadn't felt in a long time, the kind that left her feeling powerless and dizzy.

"Are you all right?" came a familiar voice, and Sabé opened her eyes to Obi-Wan, who was crouched beside her, worry in his eyes. Water droplets dripped off his face, and snow caught in his beard, leaving him devastatingly handsome even in such a dire moment. Shaken up and traumatized, Sabé could only realize one thing: he had just definitely saved her life. Without one single doubt.

"I—I thought that was the end," was all she could manage, unable to break the gaze between them as she remembered with vast confusion how she'd heard his voice in her mind while underwater. Had she imagined it? Had that been real? How was that even possible? She wanted to ask him about it. He touched a hand to her shoulder then, the concern in his eyes matching the gentle way he steadied her there. More confusion swept Sabé as she remembered the soulful kiss she'd shared with this man who had then told her it had essentially been some kind of mistake he would not repeat. Did he purposefully look at her and touch her this way to make her suffer? Or was she simply seeing things that weren't there?

She didn't have time to contemplate further, because she was suddenly struck by one single, terrifying thought. "Padmé," she said, her voice suddenly tight with urgency as she rolled to her side and pushed up awkwardly. Obi-Wan stood in tandem and watched with a shrewd expression as she hit a hand up against her commlink to shake off excess water. "Typho, are you there?" The device was waterproof, as most of her things were, but the speaker did sound very muffled and tinny when the equally anxious reply thankfully came.

"We're here—thank the gods you made it—we heard the explosion. Where are you?"

Sabé shook her head uncertainly, glancing around the nondescript street they'd come up into while pushing some wet hair stuck to her face away—her hair tie had come out at some point in the tide, leaving her dripping shoulder-blade length hair wild. "Not sure, but I'll find out."

"We're going to the ship to do an orbit until we sort everything out," Gregar said. "Should I wait for you two?"

Sabé hesitated, her wits returning as she thought the situation over. "No," she replied as focus returned and her strength renewed and leveled out. She had Tikkes on audio saying he intended to have Padmé killed—and evidence of the attempt and multiple witnesses who could confirm that he'd made good on that statement with the bombing of Padmé's quarters. She was suddenly feeling much more herself as a plan formed in her mind. "I have an arrest to make." She cut the transmission decisively then got out her blaster and squinted one eye down the barrel, checking the readout to make sure the water hadn't jammed it.

She turned to ask Obi-Wan if he would join her, but he answered before she even asked. "I'm with you. Let's go."


Sabé and Obi-Wan all but kicked down the door of Tikkes' residence, expecting to find him there, since they had just been there not even fifteen minutes prior. But instead, the home was empty, and in fact, looked as thought a hurried exit had been made. As Sabé checked the rooms with her blaster trained for potential threats or unexpected encounters, she saw clothing and belongings strewn around, and evidence of things missing that someone would take with them if they were leaving for a long time—his tech station in his study had been stripped and his personal safe was left open and empty. Obi-Wan shadowed her and covered her back, his lightsaber handy but not ignited. They finished the sweep with a look into the final room, a very fancy and stark kitchen. Sabé was about to frustratedly declare that no one was there when a sound in what seemed to be the pantry caused her to switch to high alert and signal Obi-Wan.

He heard it too and nodded and got ready to open the door, mouthing one-two-three! as Sabé held her blaster ready to fire at any sign of attack or threat.

The door swung open at the count of three to reveal… "…Rett?!" Sabé exclaimed, blaster immediately going to the holster. He was gagged and tied to a chair with rope. Sabé was already tearing his gag off.

"About time, I thought I was gonna rot in this damn pantry!" he exclaimed as Sabé took in his appearance with a temporarily baffled expression. He was sweaty and had a red mark on his forehead, evidence of some kind of attack.

"I take it you two know each other," Obi-Wan commented, watching Sabé pull out her knife and cut her partner free.

"This is my imaginary partner, Rett Chronos," Sabé said darkly, then fixed Rett with a dangerous expression as he stood up and rubbed against his rope burn wincingly. "How did this happen?" she demanded, as if it were somehow his fault.

He shook his head as he moved to stand more centrally in the kitchen. "I dunno, I got hit in the head at the reception then woke up here. Heard that Tikkes guy in here, I think, I guess it was him or one of his cronies." He peered at Sabé and then Obi-Wan oddly. "Why are you all wet?"

Sabé ignored the question, fractionally pissed off at his priorities at such a dire moment. "Where is he now, Rett? Did you hear? Did he leave? And how long ago?"

"Yeah think so," Rett said, taking much too long to answer. "Said something about leaving the planet. You just missed him, pretty much."

Sabé swore lowly, thinking fast. "Perhaps he heard that Padmé survived," Obi-Wan offered.

"He doesn't even know we were here in his house and or that we have evidence of him incriminating himself," Sabé countered. Something wasn't right here. But it didn't matter. She was already off at a brisk stride. Part of the intel package given to her by RDI was a rundown of where persons of interest, including Tikkes, came and went from. Personal launchpads, spaceports they frequented, etc. Pulling out her wet datapad and thanking the stars it was waterproof, Sabé quickly looked in her files for where Tikkes would most likely make his escape from. She found it within thirty seconds. "The business district space dock down in sector six, it's a few blocks from here past the antechamber. Let's go!"


The three of them ran the entire way, making it to the very small and exclusive spaceport just in time to see a Mon Calamari Corvette cruiser blast off into space—and all three stopped short, seeing that no other ships currently were docked there. Tikkes had gotten away.

Out of breath from the run and still damp and cold, Sabé's chest heaved as she stared after the escaped senator. She was at a total loss. How had Tikkes even known to flee? Who had tipped him off?

"Damn." Nearby, Rett ran a hand through his tousled hair as he watched the departing ship. Past him, Obi-Wan's noble profile scrutinized the escaped ship with a puzzled, troubled expression.

Hooded eyes drawn to her partner, Sabé pulled her commlink up to her lips. "Gregar, come get us from the location I'm about to send you."

A familiar voice replied a couple seconds later. "A please would be nice, Nebira."

Sabé's expression was hard to place—somewhere between impatient and slightly endeared. "Now, Typho." She switched off the communication and shivered, momentarily hoping she'd be able to borrow something dry and warm from Padmé, if there was anything left on board. That explosion had taken quite a lot of luggage and supplies with it, not to mention a whole other case of Sabé's agent gear. Disappointed in herself and how much of a mess this mission had become, Sabé withdrew into vexed silence as she studied middle distance unseeingly.

"So do I get an introduction?" Rett asked. Sabé looked at him and blinked twice, unsure what he meant, then realized what she'd overlooked entirely.

Obi-Wan, ever the patient and watchful one, took it upon himself to give his introduction, accompanying it with an incline of the head toward Sabé's current partner. "Obi-Wan Kenobi."

Rett nodded, sizing the other man up. "You an agent, or…?"

"He's our Jedi contact," Sabé said, her impatient tone strongly implying he should have already figured that out.

"Oh yeah," Rett said, flashing a grin and putting his hand out in greeting. "Nice to meet you."

Obi-Wan was distinctly reserved as he returned the gesture in kind. "Likewise, I'm sure." Sabé eyed him thoughtfully, the icy wind from the open air spaceport causing her to shiver again and clench her teeth. In her experience, Obi-Wan was friendly and open and congenial, but now that she thought it all over, that was really only when they were one-on-one. Mentally running through every time she'd seen him speak to others and comparing it against how their interactions together were—which were completely different—she began to stare outright as she realized what she never had before. That she and Obi-Wan had a much deeper and more familiar relationship than she'd realized before, if her theory was right. A thought she had never articulated to herself before. A thought that made her feel a spike of… something very strong indeed.

"So what's next, boss?" Rett's voice startled her out of her thoughts, and with both men looking at her expectantly, Sabé was under immediate, uncomfortable pressure to perform.

Eyes darting, Sabé had to put on a mask of focus despite her other thoughts. "I'm… going to see if Artoo can parse any of the deleted drive I copied," she said, checking to make sure it was still in her zippered jacket pocket. It was. "I have a feeling there's incriminating information waiting to be discovered." Her mood began to lift a bit as she realized that even without Tikkes, they still had a case here and the possibility of finding that alleged droid factory. That, and she was glad of something to distract her from this damned overthinking about Obi-Wan. She paused, her optimism faltering. "If it can be recovered."


Victorious arrived a few moments later and swept Sabé, Obi-Wan, and Rett up before jettisoning up off into the safety of space. There, Sabé loaded the drive she'd copied into Artoo and began the recovery attempt process and briefly discussed with Padmé and Typho their next move, which was to alert city officials (once the hour was proper) about what had happened and wait and see what to do next concerning the rally. It was now around midnight local time if not a bit later, so everyone would sleep, rest, and wait until then.

Padmé brought Sabé a spare outfit before she turned in—a dark gray flightsuit and one of Dormé's hooded dark blue velvet cloaks. After showering and drying her hair and body alike, Sabé felt much better and warmer and ready to turn the mission around to something more successful. She didn't bother with the hood, but certainly enjoyed the coziness Dormé's cloak provided. While Sabé might have not fussed with doing much with her hair otherwise—she usually settled for a simple tied back bun, a horsetail, or a side braid—she'd impulsively decided to leave half down and take the other half back via a series of two smaller braids criss-crossing against a bigger one. All the braids hung down freely to the lengths of her loose hair, resulting in a more elegant and pretty style. She hadn't done anything fancy with her hair in years, so it took a few tries to remember how to do a couple of spots, and she ended up having to ask Dormé for assistance. A funny turn-around situation, since Sabé had assisted with Dormé's defense and security training just before she'd left the forces for RDI.

Once Sabé was presentable again, she went to the tech lounge portion of the ship where she'd left Artoo, hoping to check on the process. There, she forgot her mission when she found Obi-Wan sitting casually with one ankle crossed over his knee, deeply engrossed in a datapad. He had dried off and changed outfits as well—and he was in what looked to be one of Gregar's uniforms, minus the hat. The sight of him like in the familiar uniform of her homeworld caused an unexpectedly intense moment of tenderness and pause as Sabé hovered in the doorway. She could somehow imagine immediately if he'd been a Naboo citizen all his life then a forces officer and all the possibilities that might have come along with that, too. It was a feeling like nostalgia, but for something that had never existed.

Obi-Wan looked up just then, and he took in her change. "You look like you're feeling better," he observed, and she could have sworn he appeared similarly nostalgic to her.

Nervous that her thoughts were plain on her face, Sabé tried a nonplussed smile. "I am." She headed toward the nearby kitchenette, knowing that doing something would break up the tension. That and she was getting tired and needed a boost—she already knew sleep wasn't going to be possible for her tonight. "You want some caf?"

"Yes, thank you."

"How do you take it?" Sabé asked, checking the caf brewer and seeing that everything was set to begin.

"Black please," Obi-Wan replied. Sabé smiled a little to herself. Of course he wanted the beverage straightforward and undoctored. It seemed perfectly fitting of him. Even though Sabé remained focused on programming the device then starting it, she could feel his gaze remaining on her. "Your partner seems… well, I can't put my finger on it exactly," he said, his tone giving away his stance on it.

Sabé all but snorted. "I agree completely." She finally chanced meeting Obi-Wan's gaze. "He's useless Obi-Wan. Absolutely useless," she said, then regretted herself. She was basically complaining and then left to fear Obi-Wan would judge her for it. So she cracked a joke as the caf began to stream out into the waiting carafe. "I'd rather have Jar Jar as a partner."

Obi-Wan's face pulled quite the expression. "Oh gods, Jar Jar. I'd somehow forgotten about him. How is he, do you know?"

She was surprised he didn't know but also a bit gleeful to be the one to tell him and see his reaction. "Oh yes," Sabé said, a smile playing on her lips. "He's a junior representative of Naboo, and apparently works for Padmé from time to time."

Obi-Wan did indeed look taken aback and for several long seconds, he tried to think of a reply. He finally settled on: "I'm quite frankly left speechless."

Sabé chuckled deep in her throat. The caf machine beeped, signaling completion. "Perfect time for some caf then, hmm?"

She brought two steaming mugs over, both black—that's also how she took it unless she was in some kind of special mood. Obi-Wan received his with an appreciative smile. "Thank you."

Sitting opposite of him on another lounge, Sabé blew across the surface of the hot beverage, contemplating Artoo for a moment—the little astromech was still processing with probably a few hours left to go on a full rebuild of the entire drive. It was difficult to say if information would be there or not. And even if it were there, would it be useful? She could only remain hopeful at this point.

"Where did you partner go?" Obi-Wan asked presently, sipping delicately at his caf.

"That's the question of the hour, isn't it?" Sabé returned glibly, then shook her head with a sigh. "Probably flirting with one of Padmé's handmaidens if they're still awake."

Obi-Wan paid little attention to her jab, his eyes inquisitive and slightly narrowed. He set his caf down onto the table beside him and leaned forward a bit, shifting the mood entirely. "Do you trust him?"

The sudden question and its directness surprised her. Sabé took a long moment to study him, wondering at his angle. She knew he didn't mean did she trust Rett with the handmaidens to behave himself. Obi-Wan was asking on a much deeper level. If it had been anyone else, she wouldn't have answered because of suspicion. But for Obi-Wan? The truth was easy to tell and she didn't fear that it would be used against her. Despite her nature, she somehow didn't feel suspicious in any way. "No."

Obi-Wan nodded thoughtfully. "I didn't think so." He took his caf mug up again and sent her a meaningful, almost warning look. "And I think you're right not to."

There was a prick of morbid interest and Sabé's eyes narrowed. "Do you know something I don't?" she asked. In the game of politics which they were all involved, Sabé would be surprised at very little.

But Obi-Wan merely shook his head. "No. I only have my instincts." Sabé had often felt the same about Rett, but hearing this from someone else left a disquieting effect. Then his next statement: "Be careful, will you?"

It was uncanny how this Jedi could pop back up into her life so suddenly and leave her to feel like he'd never been gone at all. And it was unnerving, the way he looked at her when he asked her that question. "I'll do my best," Sabé replied momentarily, again unable to break the gaze. He mystified her, in ways that were both frustrating and almost addicting in nature. It still astonished her that out of all the Jedi in the Order, he was the one here with her. Millions of starsystems, trillions of beings in the galaxy, and yet here they were, for the third time, drawn together by seeming chance. It blew her mind completely. In the same vein, the explosion and the subsequent expulsion into deep ocean flew across her mind again. "You… saved my life today, Obi-Wan," she murmured, thinking of his voice present in her mind so clearly. "If you hadn't been there…" well. They both knew what the outcome would have been. She tried to lighten the conversation with a halfhearted joking statement. "Let's just say it's very handy to have a Jedi around sometimes."

Obi-Wan's eyes crinkled slightly to match the soft smile as he looked down at his caf. "It seems a hallmark of our times together, doesn't it?" he asked. "Near death experiences." He peered back up at her.

Still deep in thought, Sabé's smile back was distracted and brief. It felt like they were dancing around something. "You're not wrong."

As she sipped her caf, Obi-Wan was silent and watchful, his eyes missing nothing. "Are you sure you're all right?" he asked after a moment.

Her eyes flicking back up to meet his, and she debated asking him what she so badly wanted to know. "I will be," she said, pulse beginning to pick up. She thought if she didn't gather her courage to ask him now, she never might. So, she plunged ahead. "Obi-Wan, when we were underwater… I… I think I heard you somehow."

He didn't look astonished or confused like she'd imagined he might. Instead, he looked calm and rational. "Yes, I believe you did."

A little taken aback at his response, Sabé frowned. "And… did you hear me?" she ventured carefully.

Again, he answered readily. "Yes I did." But, this time there was a twinge of something to his expression. Hesitation.

"…how?" Sabé asked, voice lowering to a whisper, as if they were discussing something secret and forbidden. "Isn't that only the kind of thing a Jedi or Force user could do?"

Obi-Wan set down his mug again, eyes following it. "Not necessarily." His gaze lifted to look into hers again, and she saw the subtle way his eyes went back and forth as he looked from her left to right eye in contemplation. "Some beings, for reasons unknown," he finally explained, "experience elevated levels of connection to each other. Force sensitive or not."

When he said nothing else, Sabé followed his statement to what she thought he was getting at, although she was fearful she was only going to embarrass herself. "And are you saying that we have that elevated level of connection…?" she asked, feeling tightly drawn as she waited for his answer.

"Well, yes," he said, but he was no longer factual. He seemed like he was phrasing himself carefully and holding some part of himself back. The ghost of a smile appeared on his face when her astonishment showed. "You're really just now figuring it out?" he asked ever so softly, a bittersweetly asked question that in all honestly shocked her. Not so much that he wondered, but that he would dare ask it that way. It acknowledged things she thought weren't up for discussion, things she thought were forbidden or scandalous. Her mind flashed memories of his touch to her face and the sensations it had left on Tatooine, the inexplicable surge of grief across the distance she'd felt from him when Qui-Gon died, the kiss they'd been helpless to escape from after Cilpar, and now hearing his voice in her mind underwater and communicating back to him, too. And yet his question of if she was just now figuring it out felt so intimate and private. His expression, which had seemed quietly confident and knowing just a moment ago, was growing more apprehensive. Could he sense her feelings?

Swallowing against a suddenly dry mouth, Sabé shook her head shallowly. "Sometimes the things you say…" she said, then trailed off, unable to think of how to describe what she was feeling.

Obi-Wan looked uncharacteristically anxious, like he'd gotten himself into something he hadn't meant to, but still couldn't resist following the path to its conclusion. "What?" he all but whispered.

She wet her lips, unable to take her eyes off his, hooked into the moment completely. "In a different lifetime," she said, using the very phrase he'd used to her years ago after their kiss, "I'd wonder a lot more about what they meant." Her voice lowered further, barely above a breath. "And I think I'd have a lot more to say back, too."

Her words hung there between them and tense silence ensued. The truth was, in this lifetime, she still did wonder, even though she knew she probably shouldn't. Sabé's heartbeat was in her ears, her blood felt fuzzy in her veins, and she didn't know what to say or even how that moment between them had turned from friendly and normal to… that. She could sense somehow that Obi-Wan was feeling the same. This inexplicable connection they'd discovered nearly ten years ago during the Naboo crisis quite frankly frightened Sabé at this point with its ever-increasing intensity. Even more disconcerting was the way it clearly frightened Obi-Wan. The places this could go, the path it could lead down… Sabé was no fool. But she was also only human, and somehow the more afraid she was of this intensity between them, the more she wanted to know exactly how far it went. It was so much more than a physical attraction, although that was certainly part of it. But beyond that, there was a longing she couldn't name or quench aching deep in her chest. A longing that she knew only he could ever alleviate. After all… she thought she was going to die, and her very last thought of all… had been of him.

Artoo suddenly gave a series of beeps, and both Obi-Wan and Sabé were disproportionally startled as if they'd been caught red-handed. Thankful for the interruption but completely flustered, Sabé almost knocked her caf over in her haste to go see what the droid was carrying on about.

Sabé examined what Artoo was projecting, at first just for show, barely remembering how to do anything for a few seconds… until the astromech projected a single file he had recovered for her to see via his holo display. "That was quick, my friend," she murmured, curiosity and interest helping her mind switch tracks. She squinted at the readout and requested an enlargement even as she heard Obi-Wan stand up to come see too. Sabé's eyes took in what looked like a blueprint, and turning her head sideways, she began to make sense of it. "It's a blueprint of what looks like a factory…" she said, halfway to herself and halfway to Obi-Wan. She grew much more excited as she realized what else was lettered at the bottom of the blueprint, "and a sector location!" she exclaimed, jumping to her feet. "Obi-Wan, I think this is the droid production factory my department got the tips on! We have to go back to the surface and investigate, now." His expression was solemn, caught between two places, and hers fell to match. The two of them regarded each other for a moment, each no doubt thinking of what had just transpired between them. Whatever that had been, Sabé knew they couldn't dwell on it, or possibly ever even speak of it again. So she gathered herself and steeled her expression then swept her cloak aside, checking her gear belt on the flight suit underneath. She was already heading to the bridge to get the pilot to return them to Coral City. Everything else would have to wait.


Author's Note: Wow, I need a drink to take the edge off. These two are killing me. Help.