I, Jedi

Chapter Four
I, Observer

As soon as Ben's eyes rested on the demi-saiyajin's figure, he could not help but open his mouth in surprise. "M-me, sir?" he asked, disbelief evident in the tone of his voice. Afterwards, he shook his head, not really knowing how to react to the old man's announcement --- though it was in a silent manner --- that he could possibly become a Jedi Knight. "Um, it's uh... flattering... to, um, know that I'm strong in that 'Force' you're talking about, but... um, that's not what I came here for. I just wanted to deliver the message to you, because, um... I... I wanted to know if something's going on. And, well, I... I like helping pretty girls." He fell short, however, as soon as he saw Videl's piercing glare, and then he quickly corrected, "I mean, I like helping... those in need."

He rose, not really knowing what was making him react that way, but it was most probably because he didn't really believe the Force ruckus he was told, even if it seemed logical and true. "We'll be leaving now," Gohan said, bowing in apology. "Thank you, sir, it was... uh... most kind of you to tell us what you know, but I believe we should return to our planet now. Alderaan's much too far away, and my mother is going to be... um, mad, if we don't return as soon as possible. We actually left without asking permission, leaving her behind to keep her out of trouble." He shifted his gaze towards Luke. "Thanks for everything, Luke."

"You've been wonderful company," Videl added.

Gohan wasn't the only one who reacted as such, however, for as soon as he said those words, Luke hopped off the repair seat with a dazed expression on his face. It was as if the surroundings suddenly closed on him, the formerly intriguing furnishings and alien artifacts now frightening. He looked around wildly as he exclaimed that he wasn't going to Alderaan and that he didn't even know where Alderaan is, trying to avoid the gaze of Ben Kenobi... old Ben... crazy Ben... General Obi-wan...

He immediately seconded, "Yes, we've got to get back home." He glanced at his friends. "I've got to help them, uh, repair their ship so they can return to their world, and I've got to think of something to tell my uncle --- I hope." Remembering something, he gestured towards the motionless astromech droid, and with only his raven eyes, the demi-saiyajin silently urged him to do the same. "You can keep him. He seems to want you to. And you'll need him if you're going to Alderaan."

Without any further words, the three hurried out of the cave, but not before they were once again stopped by Ben's voice, a mixture of sadness and firmness of durasteel. "I need your help," he began silently, not moving from his spot. He allowed them to turn back and look at him. "I'm getting too old for this kind of thing, while you three are young and energetic. I can't trust myself to finish it properly on my own, as this mission is far too important." He nodded towards Artoo. "You heard and saw the message. The Empire is making its move, and there aren't enough Jedi Knights to counter its advances. I am the only one who remains."

"But... I can't get involved with anything like that! I've got so much work to do; we've got crops to bring in, even though Uncle Owen could always break down and hire a little extra help. I mean, one, I guess," Luke protested, getting even more uncomfortable by the minute. He wanted nothing more but to leave the area and return to the farm, even if it would mean more work for him and another battle of words with his uncle. "But there's nothing I can do about it, not now. Besides, that's all such a long way from here. The whole thing is really none of my business."

"Excuse me," Videl suddenly interrupted, something crossing her mind. "So this Empire is a big bad organization that's out to crush planet after planet, and you're planning to destroy it by teaching Gohan and Luke how to wave that glowstick around?" She then shot a look at Gohan, knowing enough of the teenager's capabilities, although not everything about him and his past, to brag. "I'm sure Gohan can fight that Empire, if ever it crosses our path, without using that 'Force' you speak of all the time. If you should know, he can fly, catch successively fired bullets with one hand without getting hurt, lift cars and jetcopters and other objects that seem to big to carry, and jump from one rooftop to the other. That's without using the Force, but by using ki."

The silence thickened as one second passed after the other, all eyes resting on Gohan's rather muscular figure. At that, the demi-saiyajin laughed, rubbing the back of his head as he did so, until the old hermit stood up and stroked his chin in deep thought. "Interesting. Very interesting," he muttered. If he was surprised by the teenager's supernatural capabilities, he didn't show it. "In my life as a Jedi, I never knew anyone who could fly. But tell me, what is this ki you mentioned?"

She answered, "It's the term we use for life energy. It's somewhat similar to the Force, just..." Videl trailed off, unable to finish the sentence she started. What was the difference between ki and the Force? Ki surrounded everyone and gave those who knew how to manipulate it special powers --- just like the Force. Not knowing how to continue, she looked at Gohan helplessly, who understood the concept of ki a lot more than she did. But he chose not to say a word, not to hold out a gesture. "It's just that the capabilities you acquire through your knowledge of the Force is not as powerful as that of ki," she finished, just playing around with words, before she bid farewell and hurried out.

"Remember, the suffering of one man is the suffering of all," the old man droned, making them stop in their tracks once again. They didn't know if he used the Force to influence them, or if he was plainly gifted at making others listen to him. Ben clasped his hands together casually. "Distances are irrelevant to injustice. If not stopped soon enough, evil eventually reaches out to engulf all men, whether they have opposed it or ignored it, whether they use the Force or ki." He then stood up. "May I ask one last favor? To get to Alderaan I have to go to Anchorhead or Mos Eisley to find someone I can hire to take me there. An old man such as I will take a very long time to get there, and I don't have a landspeeder I can ride on..."

The three looked at each other in silence, analyzing the situation. Then, Luke turned to his friend and offered, "We could take you as far as Anchorhead."

"Very well. That will do for a beginning. Then you must do what you feel is right."

"Someone look over there. Smoke, I believe so," Ben ordered, pointing to the southwest with one frail-looking finger. The landspeeder continued to race over the gravelly desert floor beneath them, sending clouds of dust all over the area. His three young companions were apparently distracted, however, in deep thought about the situation at hand. Luke, deep inside his heart, wanted to go with the old man to Alderaan and embark on an adventure, as it was something he had been longing for. Gohan, on the other hand, might not have accepted Ben's teachings about the Force, despite the conversation that transpired between them that compared the two seemingly parallel ideas, but he was ready to help fight against the Empire if there need be.

Luke spared a glance at the direction the hermit indicated, squinting his eyes. "I don't see anything, sir."

The demi-saiyajin's eyes narrowed significantly as the farmboy turned the speeder towards a particular angle, noticing the wisps of smoke Ben detected earlier. After rising slightly, the landspeeder dropped down a gentle slope into a canyon that was filled with twisted, burned shapes, some of them inorganic, some not. Dead in the center of the carnage and looking like a beached metal whale lay the shattered hulk of a Jawa sandcrawler.

At that, the pilot brought the speeder to a halt, and all four of them climbed down, along with their droids, examining the detritus of destruction. "Looks like the sandpeople did it, all right. Here's Bantha tracks..." Luke's voice trailed of as he noticed a piece of metal half-buried in the sand. Picking it up, he shook his head in confusion. "... and a piece of one of those big double axes of theirs. But I never heard of Raiders hitting something this big, though."

"They didn't," Ben declared casually as he examined the broad, huge footprints in the sand along with Gohan, who found them interesting as well, "but they intended that we --- and anyone else who might happen to come into this --- should think so. Look at these tracks, carefully, all of you." He pointed at the nearest one, then up at the others. "Whoever left here was riding Banthas side by side. Sandpeople always ride one Bantha behind the other, single file, to hide their strength from any distant observers." The old man then turned his attention to the sandcrawler, pointing at destroyed parts of the transport. "Look at the precision with which this firepower was applied. Sandpeople aren't this accurate. In fact, no one in Tatooine fires and destroys with this kind of efficiency."

Everything fell into place inside Gohan's mind. His house was burned down before he left for the planet, after. "Imperials," he breathed in realization, looking at his companions. "Only Imperial troops could do this, at least from what you said, sir. And they destroyed my home back on Earth, too, in search for these droids..."

His eyes flew wide open in shock as he figured out what was going on, while Luke was already sprinting insanely towards the landspeeder. He had already started the engines when Ben called out for him to stop, and not wanting the farmboy to face the Imperials on his own, Gohan jumped into the craft, followed shortly by Videl, who knew where her place was as well. As for Luke, he heard nothing except the roaring in his ears, felt nothing save the burning in his heart. He threw the accelerator full over as son as he got into the transport, and in an explosion of sand and gravel he left an old man and two robots standing on their own in the midst of smoldering bodies, framed by the still smoking wreck of the sandcrawler.

Obi-wan Kenobi's pride did not prevent him from wrapping an old scarf over his nose and mouth to filter out a portion of the bonfire's drifting odor. The two droids, on the other hand, worked together to throw the last of the bodies into the blazing fire, then stood back and watched along with everyone else as the dead continued to burn. Not that the desert scavengers wouldn't have been equally efficient in picking the burned-out sandcrawler clean of flesh, but Kenobi retained values most modern men would've dreamed archaic. He would consign no one to the bone-gnawers and gravel-maggots, not even a filthy Jawa.

Gesturing for the two robots to follow, Kenobi started towards the landspeeder that was parked a short distance away from the bonfire. He saw Luke Skywalker sitting motionless in the pilot's seat, his female off-worlder friend Videl Satan sitting beside him, her hand enclosing his as she tried to comfort him. Standing outside, his back resting against the transport's hull, was Gohan Son, his eyes closed and a strange aura radiating from him. Kenobi blinked, realizing that the young man was trying to suppress the anger that was leaking out of him from every possible exit point, and reminded himself to keep a close eye on the teenager. Anger was of the Dark Side.

"I share your sorrow, Luke," he finally ventured softly. "But there was nothing you could have done. Had you been there, you'd be dead now, too, and the droids would be in the hands of the Imperials. Not even the Force---"

"Damn your Force!" Skywalker snarled with sudden violence, his voice filled with ire. He then turned and glared at Kenobi, the expression on his face that of a much older man. His eyes turned to look out across the desert, to focus on something beyond sand, rock and canyon walls. After what seemed to be a long time, he whispered, "I'll take you to the spaceport as Mos Eisley, Ben. I want to go with you --- to Alderaan. There's nothing left for me here now... I want to learn to be like a Jedi, like my father. I want..." He paused, the words blocking his throat.

"Then I'll go with you," Satan blurted out with conviction, making the farmboy look into her fierce blue eyes. "Force or no Force, I'm going."

At her announcement, her fellow off-worlder Son opened his eyes to regard everyone else in the group. He didn't want to go, but he was left with no choice. The Imperials burned down the spaceship they used to get to the rock-and-sand planet as well; the only way for them to secure another transport would be to go to Mos Eisley. And since his companions were planning to go there to get to Alderaan, then why would he desert them, most especially at his hour? Not only could he help them, he could also help Senator Organa and those opposed to the Empire. "I'm going, too," he voiced out, which made a smile appear on Kenobi's face.

"Very well. Luke, I'll do my best to see that you get what you want. Gohan, Videl, I'm not forcing you to believe in what I believe in. I just hope that our varying strategies will not bring conflict when the time of battle comes," the hermit said, before he climbed into the landspeeder and slid into the cockpit. He then turned to Luke, who was piloting the craft. "But for now, let's go to Mos Eisley."

Unlike Anchorhead, there were enough people in Mos Eisley to require movement in the heat of the day. Built from the beginning with commerce in mind, even the oldest of the town's buildings had been designed to provide protection from Tatooine's twin suns that generated more than enough heat that was necessary. They looked primitive from the outside, and many were. But oftentimes walls and arches of old stone masked durasteel double walls with circulating coolant flowing freely in between.

Luke was maneuvering the landspeeder through the town's outskirts when several tall, gleaming forms appeared from nowhere and began to close a circle around him. For one panicked moment he considered gunning the engine, to race through the pedestrians and other vehicles in an attempt to get away from them, but a startingly firm grip on his arm both restrained and relaxed him, almost as if his companion read his mind. He glanced slightly behind him to see Ben smiling at him in warning.

So they continued at a normal town cruising speed, the pilot hoping that the Imperial troopers had business elsewhere and that they wouldn't cross paths with them. Gohan, despite his casual demeanor and relaxed posture, was undeniably keeping a close eye on the white-uniformed soldiers that scattered around the town, while Videl had shifted to the edge of her seat, ready for anything, whether they should fight or flee. At that, Luke concluded that the two weren't ordinary off-worlders; they were off-worlders with special abilities --- at least, Gohan had them --- and they were both used to battle.

One of the Imperial soldiers raised an armored hand, and Luke had no choice but to respond. As he pulled the transport over, he grew aware of the attention they were receiving from curious passersby. Worse yet, it seemed that the trooper's attention was in fact reserved not for Ben, his friends, or himself, but for the two unmoving robots seated behind them. "How long have you had these droids?" the trooper who had raised his hand demanded in somewhat a bark. It was obvious that polite formalities had been dispensed.

"Three or four seasons, I guess."

The trooper in charge did not comment on that, or for the old man's remark that the droids were actually for sale, because he was busy examining the landspeeder's underside, as if sensing something suspicious. He then turned to the pilot and asked sternly, "Did you come from the south?"

Luke answered quickly, "No... no, we live in the west, near Bestine."

At that, the Imperial trooper gazed at him through his shiny-looking helmet. "Bestine?" he murmured, walking around to study the landspeeder's front this time. Luke forced himself to stare straight ahead, while Videl slid further back into her seat in her attempt to calm herself. Gohan and Ben, to the other two's surprise, were very calm and relaxed, as if they both had something under their sleeves. Finally, the armored figure concluded his examination, moving to stand really close to Luke and snapped, "Let me see your identification."

The farmboy's resolution of not long before to be ready to take on anything had already disintegrated under the unwinking stare of this professional soldier. He was aware of the consequences if they got a look at his formal ID, with the location of his homestead and the names of his nearest relatives on it. Something seemed to be buzzing inside his head; he felt faint. However, it was then when Ben leaned over and engaged in a casual conversation with the soldier. "You don't need to see his identification," the old man said in a strange-sounding voice.

Staring blankly back at him, the officer replied, as if it were self-evident, "I don't need to see your identification." His reaction was the opposite of the old man's, and despite the fact that his voice was normal, Luke and his friends could tell that his expression was peculiar. The farmboy wanted to look at his friends and see if they were thinking of what he was thinking --- that is, what was going on and how the Imperial suddenly had a change of heart --- but he was too nervous to glance anywhere else.

"These aren't the droids you're looking for," Ben told him pleasantly.

"These aren't the droids we're looking for."

"He can go about his business."

"You can go about your business."

The expression of relief that spread across Luke's face should have been as revealing as his previous expression of nervousness, but the Imperial ignored it. When Ben whispered, "Move along," and the Imperial instructing him the same, he nudged the landspeeder's accelerator, moving it forward and drawing it away from the circle of soldiers. As they prepared to round a corner, Luke risked a glance backward, and saw the officer who had inspected them arguing with several comrades, though at their distance the farmboy couldn't be very sure. He then peered at his companions, and saw that Gohan and Videl were looking at Ben as well. The old man only shook his head, however, and smiled.

Swallowing his curiosity, Luke concentrated on guiding the speeder through steadily narrowing streets. Ben pointed and the pilot pulled the landspeeder up in front of what appeared to be one of the original spaceport's first blockhouses. It had been converted into a cantina with different kinds of transports parked outside, some of which Luke recognized, the others he had only heart of. The cantina itself, he knew from the design of the building, must lie partially underground. But his mind, however, was still too full of their narrow escape for him to comment on what lay ahead of them. "I still can't understand how we got by those troops. I thought we were as good as dead."

"Well if they caught us, Gohan and I would've knocked them down without trouble. They don't look too tough," Videl blurted out confidently, looking behind her to catch a glimpse of the soldiers. She didn't see any. Then, she turned to the old man who sat behind her and Luke, her expression transforming into that of curiosity. "But how did you do that? It's like you pulled them into hypnosis or something."

"The Force is in the mind, and sometimes it can be used to influence others," the old man replied with a knowing smile as he prepared to get off the landspeeder, but not before sweeping his gaze from one teenager to the other. "It's a powerful ally, yes. But as you come to know the Force, you will discover that it can also be a danger. There are many things --- emotions, primarily --- that can lead one to the Dark Side."

If the off-worlders understood what Ben explained, Luke didn't know, as he was nodding at the hermit without really understanding and at the same time, indicating the run-down through the popular cantina, another thought crossing his mind. "Do you really think we can find a pilot here capable of taking us all the way to Alderaan?"

Ben was already out of the speeder, and Gohan was following his lead, helping him pull the two robots out as well. "Most of the good, independent freighter pilots frequent this place," Ben explained, "though many can afford better. They can talk freely through here. You should have learned by now, Luke, not to equate ability with appearance." At that, he extended his hand towards the young pilot, offering to help him get up, while their female companion jumped out of the landspeeder without trouble, almost as if she flew out of it. "Watch yourselves, everyone. This place can be tough."

The cantina, they soon learned, was not the place for them to be. As soon as their guardian disappeared to look for someone to take them to Alderaan, they were assaulted by aliens --- some of them targeting Skywalker, who was too respectful for their tastes; a handful hit on Son, who did not say a word as they got inside but merely looked around, as if they were intimidated by his silence; the others decided to flirt with the female member of their party, who was undeniably pretty even with her tomboyish demeanor. The real trouble began, however, was when she decided to teach the aliens a lesson, taking one of them by his clothes and pinning him to the wall, her fist ready to wreck his face.

Chaos then erupted as everyone reacted to the situation at various ways, and Satan, who was then the target of most of the aliens, dropped into a fighting stance and prepared to combat whoever would dare approach her. The demi-saiyajin, who stood not far from her, was about to intervene when a small group of monstrous-looking creatures charged for her, but he quickly pulled away as she knocked them down without trouble. She rubbed her hands together, as if dusting the dirt off, when a blaster suddenly made its way behind her, its tip dug into the back of her head.

"No blasters, no blasters! Not in my place!" the bartender shrieked as soon as he saw one of his customers bring out the weapon to the female off-worlder's head, charging clumsily around the end of the bar, waving his hands frantically but still taking care to stay out of range.

Sneering, the creature squeezed the trigger, but not before Satan dropped and kicked him on where even aliens didn't want to be kicked. He let out a yell, his blaster firing, and everyone ducked for cover. The bolt was deflected, however, by the fiery blue-white light that appeared in the dimness of the cantina, hitting the creature who fired it in the first place. Luke and his friends, on the other hand, had taken the opportunity to rush to Kenobi; they didn't want to cause any more trouble than they already had.

At that, the old man led them to a booth at the rear end of the cantina, where they encountered a sharp-featured young man perhaps five years older than Skywalker --- or perhaps a dozen, it was difficult to tell. The look on his face was difficult to tell as well; either he was utterly confident, or insanely reckless. At their approach, the man sent the humanoid waitress who had been wriggling on his lap on her way with a whisper, which left a wide grin on her face. Only that, well... it was inhuman. His Wookie companion, who they soon found out to be named Chewbacca, rumbled something at the man, and he nodded in response, glancing up at the newcomers pleasantly.

"You're pretty handy with that saber, old man. Not often does one see that kind of swordplay in this part of the Empire anymore." He swallowed a portion of whatever filled his mug without trouble, motioning for them to sit down at the empty chairs that were designated for them. He then became all businesslike. "I'm Han Solo, captain of the Millennium Falcon. Chewie tells me you're looking for passage to the Alderaan system?"

"That's right, son. If it's on a fast ship," Kenobi replied.

"Fast ship? You mean you've never heard of the Millennium Falcon?"

The old man appeared amused. "Should I have?"

"It's the ship that made the Kessel run in less than twelve standard timeparts!" Solo told him indignantly, a look of anger on his face. "I've run Imperial starships and Corellian cruisers. I think she's fast enough for you, old man." His outrage subsided rapidly, not wanting to waste the chance of earning. Kenobi's bunch seemed easy to fool and manipulate. "What's your cargo?"

"Passengers. Myself, the boys, the girl, two droids --- no questions asked." He then leaned forward, peering casually into the Corellian's eyes. At that, the three other humans looked at each other, as if predicting that the old man was going to use another one of his mind tricks again. "Let's just say we'd like to avoid any Imperial entanglement."

"These days that can be a real trick. It'll cost you a little extra." Solo did some mental figuring, tapping the table with his fingers as he did so. He gave a knowing glance at his Wookie co-pilot before he gave their customers his answer, which he was sure would startle them, but will leave them with no choice but to give in. "All in all, about ten thousand. In advance." He then added with a smile, "And no questions asked."

"Ten thousand?!" the off-worlders chorused, as the pilot expected

Skywalker gaped. "Ten thousand! We could almost buy our own ship for that!"

The older man shrugged. "Maybe you could, and maybe you couldn't. In any case, could you fly it?"

"You bet I coudl! I'm not such a bad pilot myself! I don't---"

Again, the firm hand on his arm. "We haven't that much with us," Kenobi explained. "But we could pay you two thousand now, plus another fifteen when we reach Alderaan." He let out a smile, glancing at his companions to indicate that everything was all right. "I promise you that --- from the government of Alderaan itself. At the worst, you'll have earned an honest fee: two thousand. But there's nothing that could possibly go wrong, could there, son?"

But Solo seemed not to hear the last few words, absorbed in the amount the old man told him earlier in their conversation. "Seventeen thousand... All right, I'll chance it. You've got yourselves a ship. As for avoiding Imperial entanglements, you'd better twist our of there or even the Millennium Falcon won't be any help to you." He nodded towards the cantina entrance, as if indicating something, rose and added quickly, "Docking bay ninety-four, first thing in the morning. But now, we gotta scram."

Four Imperial troopers, their eyes darting rapidly from table to booth to bar, had entered the cantina. There was muttering from among the crowd, just like the usual, but whenever the eyes of one of the heavily armed men went hunting for the mutterers, the words died with sullen speed. It was evident that even if the soldiers didn't look so tough, the people feared them, nonetheless. Moving to the bar, the officer in charge asked the bartender a couple of brief questions, all of which he answered with a hint of hesitation. He then pointed towards a place near the back of the room. As he did so, however, his eyes widened slightly. The expression on the officer's face, on the other hand, was unreadable.

The booth the bartender was pointing to was empty.


To be honest, I'm not actually the type of person who cares much about details, but it can't be helped that such details have to be taken into consideration. I would like to thank everyone who pointed those out, and most especially to those who had such wonderful suggestions! I apologize if there will be any mistakes; this is my first crossover attempt and thus I'm not very experienced. So anyway... keep the suggestions coming! Don't worry, when this is all over, I'm going to make a list of those who helped out, giving credit where credit is due.

To Bebi-Mara-Jade: Yes, Mara's really Vegeta-ish, and that's what makes her very cool! But seriously, she'll make an appearance, of course. Remember the Sail Barge vision Luke had in the Thrawn Trilogy? I forgot which book that was in, but that scene will be put into play. With slight revisions, but more or less, that.

Thanks everyone! If you want to talk some sense into me regarding this fic, feel free to email or IM me. =P

Next chapter: The trip for Alderaan aboard the Millennium Falcon begins. Luke gets to practice using his lightsaber and experience the Force, while someone who Obi-Wan failed to notice will show signs of being Force-sensitive. At the other end of hyperspace, the Death Star will undergo target practice, while back on Earth, it's time for the World Martial Arts Tournament to begin.

I, Jedi © Kaz, 2003
Dragonball Z © Akira Toriyama
Star Wars © George Lucas