CHAPTER 4

Obi-Wan watched as Luke clumsily ran through the simple form 1 movements he had demonstrated. His worries were washed away as Luke finished with a flourish, waving his arms about. Then Luke lost his balance and fell, but before he hit the ground Obi-Wan was there and swept Luke up into his arms.

The hard eyes of Ben looked down at Luke with renewed concern, "Are you alright?"

Luke giggled "Uncle Ben is fussy"

It had been a month since the loss of the Lars' and ever since Obi-Wan had admitted Anakin was his brother Luke had called him his new Uncle Ben. Ben thought this was good 'certainly less suspicious' he had asserted, while it just made Obi-Wan feel joy and melancholy.

Obi-Wan sighed, and the famed negotiator retorted "If I'm fussy then you're unruly."

He must have gained a thousand wrinkles trying to teach the ever moving boy to sit and meditate. Finally he had compromised, letting Luke learn form 1 was a practical way to centre oneself and the boy had gone far in learning to cloak his presence.

By now, Luke had wriggled out of his arms and was rolled to a stop on the ground, he stared up at the night sky, which was coming into view as the suns set. Luke pointed up at a random star, eyes never looking away from the sky, "What's that one?"

Obi-Wan lay down next to Luke on top of his cloak dragging the dusty padawan onto the makeshift blanket. "Oh, that one is Geonosis."

"Have you ever been there?"

Obi-Wan winced "Yes… although it feels like a lifetime ago."

"Tell me about it?" Luke suggested clumsily probing at his thoughts.

"Sure, it is a rocky world, one of mesas and mountains and home to the Geonosians. Way back when starships from the Trade Federation and the Commerce Guilds took deliveries of battle droids from the foundries on Geonosis."

"Cool," said Luke "I'll go there too."

Obi-Wan looked over at Luke, bemused "you want to go to Geonosis?"

"Yeah! I'll see all the stars!"

Ben muttered secret thoughts but Obi-Wan dismissed them quickly and looked back at the sky, the suns were almost down now. "Really? What about invisible stars? How will you see them?"

Obi-Wan felt annoyance though the force, although muffled by training, was still very loud. Luke harrumphed "that's a lie."

The Negotiator couldn't help himself, "Well, hearsay really."

"Fine hear…" Luke yawned and curled into Obi-Wan "say."

"Would you like to go to bed Luke?" Obi-Wan asked.

"Nooo…" Luke whispered as exhaustion finally took him and in seconds Luke was asleep.

Ben tisked, Tatooinians had such strict bedtimes because of Tusken Raiders.

Obi-Wan looked back towards his home as he led his bantha, laden with his possessions and equipment, out of the Junland wastes. They couldn't stay on Tatooine, he had killed Jabba's men, and it was time for Luke to receive his inheritance. Luke swayed from side to side on the bantha, singing softly the highs and lows of a desert folk song. Obi-Wan had planned that they take a passenger liner offworld with his and Luke's forged chain codes and from Tatooine make their way outside of Hutt space as Ben and Luca Tonor. Now they were several hours into their journey and had joined up onto the old landspeeder paths, cresting the next rise would bring Anchorhead into view.

"Luke, come down for a moment"

Luke slid off the saddle and walked up to Obi-Wan.

"There are a few things I need you to remember, while we're alone."

"Uh huh." Luke nodded.

"Remember what I told you earlier. If we are ever separated you must go to the planet Dagobah, there will be a great Jedi master there who will train you." Obi-Wan paused, "and keep in mind you are Luca Tonar and I am your Uncle Ben Tonar, we're former farmers who want offworld after the destruction of our farm."

"Ok," said Luke "I'm Luca Tonar."

"Good"

As they began walking again Obi-Wan had a strange feeling… of danger! Obi-Wan stepped to the side as the blaster bolt meant to disable him zipped past.

"Luke down!" screamed Obi-Wan rushing towards the boy. Using his enhanced strength he tackled Luke behind the Bantha for cover. And as the Jedi rose the ground erupted, sand, rock and dust flew everywhere. In the cloud of dust rose a metal monolith wielding a massive blaster its eye's red like flame. A low droid growl emerged from the figure "Chok-EE!" and it marched out from the dust cloud blaster spitting fire.

Obi-Wan knew that droid but Highsinger, the droid assassin and bounty hunter wasn't working alone. Obi-Wan swept up Luke under one arm and ran behind the now injured bantha. Highsinger had been buried in the ground and was now trying to drive them into the sights of his sniper compatriot. Obi-Wan waited for Highsinger to round the corner before he slapped the Bantha's flank sending one leg into the droid's chest, throwing him almost a metre away. Obi-Wan turned his attention to the sniper and felt their presence in the force on top of the nearby dune. He had to take out the sniper before Highsinger forced him into an exposed position.

Obi-Wan dropped Luke and shooed him into the injured animal's side, "Hide with the bantha Luke."

With a movement of his hands Obi-Wan sent the sand at his feet flying outwards in all directions forming a makeshift smokescreen. Then he rushed the sniper's position at a blistering speed if he was right then it would take a second for them to switch to a different scope setting. As he crested the rise he saw a pale, thin woman, built like a whipcord. She was bald except for a horsetail and wore desert camouflage and handling an advanced sniper rifle. Obi-Wan could remember her from somewhere. She rolled away and drew her pistols firing at a blistering rate towards Obi-Wan's movement. The Jedi ducked and dodged his way through the barrage of plasma dealing a swift kick to her core. She grunted at the impact and threw a vibroblade which Obi-Wan dodged as it flew over his shoulder. As he closed the gap between them Obi-Wan remembered the woman he now fought was Aurra Sing. He delivered a punch to her face and she took the hit, falling over the sand dune and rolling to the bottom, undoing all of his work to close distance. Highsinger was up and joined Sing pinning down Obi-Wan behind the dune as Sing rose.

Obi-Wan heard Aurra yell, "I'll get the kid!"

He panicked, snatching the sniper rifle Obi-Wan charged down the hill. Using the force to confuse Highsinger he fired off three shots damaging the droid and disabling him for the moment. He rushed past Highsinger and lunged towards Sing who fired back at him while pulling Luke from his hiding place kicking and screaming. Obi-Wan slowed and dodged backwards, into Highsinger. Cold metal hands grasped around his throat and lifted him into the air, Obi-Wan prepared to use the force to free himself but before he could six stun bolts caught him in the chest, legs and arms.

He was barely conscious when they stunned Luke and then everything faded into darkness.

Aurra Sing didn't recognize the man they had just captured. He looked ageing with dull red hair streaked with grey, wrinkles and skin aged by the tatooine sand. They had expected a militia not one man, but Jabba had hired them to find the ones who killed his goons and they had found one. Highsinger and herself had tracked the man confirming his name as Ben, some kind of desert wizard. They dragged his things to their speeder and ensured that the boy and man were restrained well. It was unlikely that this man was a Jedi, there must only be tens left in a galaxy of trillions. She concluded it far more likely that this man was a Guardian of the Whills with his martial arts and superhuman ability, it was probably Zama-shiwo skills. But all the same, it was Jabba's money and he wouldn't be around for much longer so it was a good idea to get in on the take now before he was wiped off of even Tatooine.

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