* Thanks for sticking with me this far. :)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Obi-Wan ran back through the maze of corridors trying desperately to get back to Sari and the children. He continued to sense their fear and also the arrival of several more dangerous beings. Why had he allowed her to come? If only he had been more insistent that she stay behind, then..... then.... he never would have gotten so close to her and now be so terrified of losing her.
Coming up on the last corner before the room where the children were, Obi-Wan was focused enough to sense someone approaching from the opposite direction. He stopped and took a deep breath before peeking around the corner. As he did, a blaster shot whizzed by his face, missing it by mere inches. He retreated behind the corner again and ignited his light saber, ready for his attacker. Taking one more deep breath, he jumped out into the middle of the hallway only several yards from the other man. Kreeg, surprised to see Obi-Wan, stopped abruptly while trying to get off another shot. Once he fired, he was stunned to see the Jedi deflect every single shot he sent that way.
The snarl on Obi-Wan's lips assured Kreeg that this man was not playing games. Slowly and confidently, the Jedi began to walk towards the other man, his light saber continuing to protect him from the blaster assault.
"You'll not succeed, so you may as well surrender," Obi-Wan stated. He could see that Kreeg was weighing his options, but finally the man raised his blaster in one last vain attempt to hit Obi-Wan. Now close enough, Obi-Wan swung his saber in one swift stroke, cleanly separating from Kreeg's arm the blast gun along with the hand that held it. Kreeg screamed in indescribable agony, gripping the stub of his wrist before passing out in shock. Obi-Wan checked the man's pulse and then stepped over him, continuing on to where Sari waited.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The blaster shots and terrifying scream jolted everyone in the room. All of the men, Perrin included, turned to the door and then each other, the questions evident in their eyes.
Sari had no questions. She knew that Obi-Wan was on the way.
Perrin directed the other three men to go find out the source of the sounds----- immediately. Like any other brainless lackeys, they followed orders without question. Jaik turned to Sari, then moved quickly to grab her arm.
"It's him, isn't it?" he asked her. Perrin overheard the question and became curious himself.
"Who?" he asked.
"The Jedi. It's him, isn't it?" he asked her again.
Smugly, Sari grinned at both men before answering. "You'll find out soon enough."
"A Jedi? Here?" Perrin asked. He knew now that he had to get out as soon as possible. He couldn't afford to run into a Jedi. Twenty alien children were not worth that much trouble. There were plenty more where they came from. "Take care of her and the children, Rafe. Get rid of them now. Then join me at the ship. We leave in ten minutes."
Perrin hastily fled the room leaving Sari and the children guarded only by Jaik Rafe.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The three men busted out of the room and into the hallway to face a very annoyed Jedi knight weilding a glowing light saber and a very bad attitude. He was tired, angry, and frustrated in more ways than one. These guys were simply another silly obstacle in his attempt to reach Sari.
He deflected their first round of blaster shots easily, but then the men circled around him, their faces aglow with pride in their quick action. Obi-Wan remained in his ready stance, saber lit, Jedi frown of concentration etched on his face. Through the Force, he effortlessly sensed their every move before they made it and blocked whatever they threw his way.
The men decided to attempt direct hand to hand combat and lunged at the Jedi, swinging fists and proffering kicks. In only seconds, the scene became one of utter chaos-- legs and arms flailing this way and that. All four men combined as if to form some kind of eight-armed, eight-legged creature. No one could have made out an individual person as the fight continued.
Obi was trying not to kill the men, so he had turned off his saber, relying instead on his physical prowess and grace---- along with the Force. Finally, he had had enough. Mustering the Force against the three men determined against him, he stood straight, throwing his arms up and out to the sides. Then he Force-slammed each of the three men into walls and floors, knocking them unconscious. Straightening his tunic, Obi-Wan Kenobi was ready to finish this mission at once.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"So, we're alone again," Jaik said after Perrin left the room. Sari could hear the scuffle going on down the hallway, and her heart soared. Rescue was so close! She glanced back at the children, casting them a reassuring glance and hoping they would understand her meaning.
"Yeah, it sure looks that way," Sari replied, her thoughts drifting once again to the blaster hidden at her side. //All Obi needs is a few more minutes,// she thought. Surely, she could give him that much.
"Well, it appears that we have once again run out of time in this relationship. Perrin wants you out of the way, and I have to do it. It's nothing personal, Sari. Really."
//Does he realize how much of an idiot he is?// Sari thought as he spoke.
Jaik once again raised his blaster and took aim at the young teacher. Sari peered quickly at the door, but no Obi-Wan. Maybe he wouldn't make it in time after all. Fear gripped her heart, and she closed her eyes waiting for the worst.
"Goodbye, Sari," Jaik said with a slight hint of remorse.
Sari heard the blaster shot, but didn't feel anything. Was she dead?, she wondered. Slowly, she opened her eyes to find Jaik sprawled face down on the ground, his blaster across the floor. She also saw the scar in the wall where his shot had hit. Something wasn't adding up.
In the hall, the sound of fighting could still be heard. No, Obi-Wan was not here. Confused, she turned around and found an unbelievable sight. Aido, the Rodian boy, stood holding the metal lid of a storage box, a look of shock on his own face. It only took a second for Sari to figure it all out. Aido had crept up and whacked Jaik with the lid sending the man crumpling to the floor in a heap.
Jaik groaned and began to move just a little. Sari instantly pulled out her blaster and held it firmly at Jaik. Then she began to laugh. A stunted chuckle at first, but then it became louder and more prolonged as the realization of the situation dawned on her.
The children Jaik had betrayed, had now redeemed themselves.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Obi-Wan had seen it with his own eyes, but almost didn't believe it. Just as the Jedi was entering the room, Jaik had shot at Sari, only to be bashed on the head by one of her students. Sari and the boy were stunned by the result, as was the Jedi. He quickly ran over to where they stood and took control of the situation.
"Are you all right?" he asked Sari and the children.
"Yes," Sari replied in between her laughter. "Yes, we're fine... all of us." Then she handed the blaster to Obi-Wan and grabbed Aido, squeezing him with all her might. Pulling him back to arm's length, she smiled from ear to ear. "Thank you, Aido. Thank you. You saved us all."
The other children moved to encircle him and offer their thanks and praise for his bravery. Sari stood back and watched them with satisfaction and love. Obi-Wan again watched her with great affection. She took a few steps back and bumped into him.
"Oh! I'm sorry!" she offered. Obi-Wan held her gaze silently and then wrapped an arm around her pulling her close. Sari responded in kind by throwing her arms around him and laying her head against his chest. They both held on to each other for dear life, and Obi-Wan repeatedly lavished kisses on her head as he thought of how close he had come to losing her.
"We'd better get going. I don't know how long they'll be out for."
Sari simply nodded in agreement before gathering the children around for one last set of directions.
Obi-Wan led the entourage out of the warehouse and into the dawn's early light. Not much darkness was left, so they'd have to move quickly. Sari brought up the rear where she was flanked by several of the students who were now unwilling to leave her side.
"Miss Zendar, do you like Jedi Kenobi?" asked one little girl.
"Yeah, I think he likes you, Miss Zendar! He was kissing your hair!"
Sari just chuckled. Seeing the children concerned with this instead of with wondering if they would live another day, renewed her heart.
"Do you really think he likes me?" she asked playfully. Their little heads all nodded vigorously, and she smiled largely. "Well, I like him, too!" she said as if sharing some big hidden secret. The children giggled and moved quickly to share the 'news' with the others ahead of them. In no time flat, the information had traveled the 'telephone' line up to the front. Ney'la, the Twi'lek girl, was the last 'station' before Obi-Wan, and so she was the chosen messenger. Prompted by the urgings of her classmates, the girl tugged on Obi-Wan's tunic to get his attention.
"Jedi Kenobi?"
He glanced back and said, "Yes?"
Ney'la looked back to her classmates for one last surge of confidence and then spoke.
"Do you like Miss Zendar?" Giggles rose from the front half of the group as they awaited his answer. With a big grin, the Jedi replied, deciding to play the game.
"How did you know?" he asked playfully, stopping to bend down to her level. "I was trying to keep it a secret!" More giggles sprung up as he lightly touched her nose with his finger.
"Well, she likes you, too!" Ney'la added, thinking she was revealing something new to him.
"She does?" Obi-Wan replied in feigned shock. "Well now... I might just have to do something about this then, won't I?" He sweetly put his arm around the girl and continued to lead them through the still quiet city, back to the hangar and their ride to freedom.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
During the hike back to the hangar, Obi-Wan mulled over the outcomes of this mission. Even though these children were now safe, for all intents and purposes, Perrin had escaped unharmed, free to strike again. At least now, Obi-Wan had proof that the man was involved in the slave trade. When he got back to Coruscant, he could make sure that Perrin was investigated and prosecuted for his crimes.
Coruscant.
The thought was like a dagger through his heart. He glanced back at Sari who caught him looking and offered a breathtaking smile.... a smile that said all that words could not. How could he leave her?......... He couldn't....... he wouldn't. There had to be a way.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
They reached the hangar just as the sun was rising to herald the beginning of a new day on Melkior. Sari was slightly envious of all of the couples who had stayed 'in' the night before. Right now she was so unbelievably tired that any reclining surface would suffice, padded or not.
As they boarded the ship, her heart sank to the soles of her feet. With each passing minute, she was drawn closer to time for Obi-Wan to depart. She wanted to beg him to stay with her, but knew she'd only be setting herself up for disappointment. Absent mindedly, she took the glitterstone necklace, the symbol of their bonding, in her hand and rubbed the stone between her fingers. She refused to believe that it meant nothing to him, for it meant everything to her.
She glanced up and saw him watching her. He quickly looked away. //He knows// she said to herself. //He knows what I'm thinking.//
Sari stayed in the cargo hold long enough to get the children settled in for the flight back to Ankara. There, they would refuel and restock their supplies. Sari had happily donated the funds after withdrawing from her bank account. Obi assured her that she would be reimbursed, but she insisted it was her pleasure to help the children she loved.
Obi-Wan had plotted their course and was meditating in the pilot's seat of the cockpit when Sari entered. She sat down quietly and tried not to disrupt him, but he could sense her before she even walked through the door.
"Are they all settled in?" he asked, his eyes still closed.
"Yeah. Most of them are already asleep." She wiggled around in the co-pilot's chair, trying to get comfortable. "I showed them which button to push if they needed us."
Awkward silence filled the air. Neither one wanted to mention the inevitable. Finally, Obi-Wan decided to speak.
"Sari, I think we should talk about things. Don't you?"
"Yes... that's a good idea," she replied as she squirmed into a new position.
"Well, we need to discuss what's going to happen when we get back to Teemar. I'll have to return to Coruscant and report on the mission... and check on Anakin." He glanced over at her and she had her back to him and her head snuggled into the back of the chair. "You realize that I have to go, right?" A slight nod let him know she was still listening.
"Well, I've been racking my brain trying to figure out what to do about us. We both have other responsibilities. I have Anakin, and you have your students." He decided that he would continue since he was on a roll, even though she wasn't responding. He knew she was upset, as was he.
"I just want you to really think about what you want to do about all of this. I care a great deal for you, Sari...... a great deal." Still no response. "I... I... want to stay bonded to you-- if you'll have me. I want to be with you. I love you."
There. He had said it.
"Sari?" he asked, surprised that she hadn't responded at all. "Sari?" He leaned up in his seat and peered over, only to realize why she had been so quiet.
She was asleep.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The blaring alarm woke Sari from her sleep in the copilot's chair. Sitting bolt upright, it took her a few seconds to orient herself and realize where she was.
"Do you feel better?"
Obi-Wan's voice caused her to jerk her head around to look at him, but she regretted the quick move as a sharp pain shot up her neck to the back of her head. A small groan escaped her lips as she tried to rub the ache away.
"Yeah.... I think," she added with a hint of sarcasm. Slowly, she remembered falling asleep and the conversation she had begun with Obi-Wan yet did not finish. "I'm sorry I fell asleep. I didn't realize how tired I was," she apologized.
"Don't worry about it. We can finish later. Right now we're nearing Ankara Station. We'll refuel, buy some food, and then leave as soon as possible. I'm also going to find a public holo and call ahead. I'm sure their families will want to know they are all okay."
"Sounds good!" she replied. He was always thinking of others first and tending to his responsibilities before all else. A sudden silly thought flitted through her mind. She would love to tend to him..... pamper him a bit and let him know how wonderful he was. But would she ever get the chance? She definitely couldn't do anything on board this ship with twenty kids in the next room! Now she could have smacked herself for falling asleep without hearing what he had to say.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ankara Space Station only had the pleasure of the group's company for little over an hour. That's how long it took Obi-Wan to take care of business and blast off back into space running full speed to Teemar. Sari had kept the children on board the ship to avoid any complications. She knew they should return the children to their families as soon as possible, but part of her didn't want to hurry because the sooner they arrived, the sooner Obi-Wan would be gone from her life.
The return trip would be quicker than their first on the run-down transport---- only one day in hyperspace as opposed to two in regular spaceon board the 'luxury liner'. After making sure that all coordinates were entered and all systems functioning normally, Obi-Wan relaxed into his chair for some quiet meditation, and hopefully some much needed shuteye.
Sari peered into the cockpit and grinned at the sleeping form of Obi-Wan Kenobi. She held her finger to her mouth and shushed the others behind her in the corridor. Unable to resist, she tiptoed over and placed a soft kiss on his forehead. The feelings she had for this man filled her heart until it seemed it would burst. The prospect of never seeing him again ripped her soul in two.
Slowly, his eyes opened and a contented smile spread across his handsome face. "Thank you," he offered, grabbing her hand and placing a return kiss on the back of it. A few stifled giggles sounded from outside the cockpit, and he leaned back in his chair to see three little faces looking back at him.
"Well, what have we here?" he asked playfully. "I was unaware we had rescued a ship full of... spies!" His feigned shock brought more giggles from the children and their teacher. Waving his hand, he invited them into the cockpit. "Come in, come in." The children entered eagerly and instantly began asking the function of every single knob and switch on the control board. Sari watched as Obi-Wan patiently answered every question with answers simple enough for even the younger ones to understand.
Finally, figuring he had had enough-- even though he didn't show it-- Sari shooed the children back down the corridor to join the others. In just a few moments, she returned to the cockpit and slumped into the empty seat next to Obi-Wan.
"Whew!" she sighed. "They are exhausting, aren't they?"
"The energy of youth should be fostered--- not stifled." His statement made Sari feel a bit ashamed. "But, you're right. They can be a handful." That helped soothe her open embarrassment.
"You really are wonderful with children. It's almost a shame that you can only have one padawan at a time. Anakin is one lucky young man to have you as his teacher."
Obi-Wan snorted. "I doubt he would agree with that conclusion. Besides, one willful, stubborn padawan is all I could possibly handle. At times, one is almost too much!"
"Well, believe me or not, children adore you," she replied, unwilling to let him ruin this compliment.
"What about you? Do you adore me?" he asked, regretting the words as soon as they escaped his lips. Sari turned to him in surprise. She hadn't expected that question at all. "Forget I said that," he stated quickly, not daring to look at her.
"Yes," she said, not taking her eyes off of him, willing him to look at her. He finally did.
"Yes. I admire you.... I respect you......... and I ... adore you, Obi-Wan Kenobi." She held his gaze for several moments before looking away. Neither knew what to do or say next, and an uncomfortable silence filled the air.
"Miss Zendar?" came a tiny voice from the door. Both adults turned as the small Ryn girl explained that Sari was needed in the cargo hold.
Watching Sari leave, uncertainty surrounded Obi-Wan's thoughts once again. Duty had always been his guiding light, but when did duty to himself ever take precedence over service to others? Surely, just because he had chosen to be a Jedi didn't mean that he could never do anything for himself--- did it? Usually with time things became clearer to him. In this case, time was only serving to confuse the situation even more. He had to think of something--- and fast. Teemar was only several hours away.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
More to come.......