Thank you to all the people who reviewed.
To all of you who didn't review: Don't be shy! It won't hurt my feelings if you hate my story! Any review is welcome, especially ones that criticize my writing and offer suggestions on how to improve.
I'm sorry it took so long for me to update. Family vacation, a week without the ability to read or write anything . . . the worst kind of torture. But it's up now! Enjoy!
I still don't own the universe.
Pain ripped through Obi-Wan's head as he fell back into consciousness. The world faded in and out of sight, twisting and turning whenever he tried to move. The danger of being sucked into the Force was gone, but the aftermath of whatever had happened to cause such a surge still affected him. Groaning, he tried to shove himself to his feet, but failed and fell back onto the floor of the ship. He rested for a moment to try to gather his the Force to assist him, but was floored by a fresh wave of agony and grief.
* * *
Anakin sat up groggily. His head throbbed in rhythm with the ship's engines, forcing him to lie back down.
"It is good to see you have finally awakened. I was beginning to worry," the man came in, carrying a tray with a glass of liquid on it. "Drink this. It will help." The man propped Anakin up and helped him to sip from the glass. The liquid was disgusting. It seared Anakin's throat as it went down, making him gag. Anakin choked and coughed, but found his headache was fading as he drank the liquid.
"Where am I?" Anakin asked when he had drained the cup.
"You are in my quarters," the man said. "I found you after that surge in the Force made you collapse."
"Where's Master Obi-Wan?" Anakin asked.
The man paused. "Anakin, are you familiar with the circumstances surrounding the death of Qui-Gon Jinn?"
"Yes, I think so. He was killed by a Sith, and then Master Obi-Wan killed the Sith."
"Convenient, isn't it? Master Obi-Wan killed the only person who could have confirmed the story. We really don't know what happened down there. What we do know is that a powerful presence in the Dark side erupted down there, like a Sith dropping his shields," the man said.
"What are you saying? Of course there was a Dark presence. There was a Sith!" Anakin was confused by the man's tactics.
"Yes, but was that Sith really the one with the red and black face? Only darkness can destroy a Sith. Master Obi-Wan must be dark, to have killed Darth Maul," the man commented. "He didn't want to train you because you would just get in the way of his sabotage."
"You're lying. Master Obi-Wan would never turn to the Dark side," Anakin declared. "He's one of the greatest Jedi!"
"Really," the man said. "Did he ever tell you that he left the Order?"
* * *
Qui-Gon watched in horror as the man twisted the story of Obi-Wan's betrayal. /Anakin, don't believe him!/ he thought madly, even though he shared no bond with the boy and could not communicate with him.
The man turned around, bringing his face close to Anakin's. Qui-Gon reeled backwards as he got a good look at the face of the man. "Dooku," he murmured in shock, then worry as he realized the peril facing Obi-Wan and his apprentice.
* * *
//Obi-Wan! Wake up! You must!// The words rang through Obi-Wan's head, echoing across the bond he shared with Qui-Gon.
"Don' wanna," Obi-Wan complained groggily. "Hurts."
"Obi-Wan!" Qui-Gon yelled in frustration. "Obi-Wan, Anakin is in danger. Dooku is on the ship, and he is trying to convince Anakin that you are a Sith. You have to help your apprentice."
The mention of Anakin's name made Obi-Wan jump to his feet. His mind threw off the blanket of exhaustion that had kept him unconscious. "Well? What are you waiting for?" he demanded impatiently.
Qui-Gon smiled. "Good morning. Follow me." He took off down the corridor towards Dooku's rooms.
* * *
Anakin struggled to comprehend the torrent of new information. /Master Obi- Wan, a Sith?/ he wondered. /But how come the Council didn't know?/
"Anakin, do you understand what I'm saying?" the man asked. "It is vital that you tell me what Obi-Wan is planning. I must know so that we can stop him."
Anakin nodded dully. "He's going to try to capture some guy named Dooku because that's supposed to free Master Qui-Gon or something like that."
The man stopped, shocked. "That's what he told you?" he asked incredulously.
"Yeah, that's what he said."
"We must not allow that to happen! I am the only one who can free Qui-Gon from the prison Obi-Wan has constructed for him. If I die, Qui-Gon will never be free!"
"You?" Now Anakin was shocked. "You're Dooku?"
"Yes. I could not tell you before, because I was uncertain what your reaction would be." Dooku stood up. "Do you know when Obi-Wan will notice your absence?"
Anakin's mind was reeling. "He won't," Anakin said. "He doesn't care about me, remember? He's probably even forgotten I exist."
* * *
The peril facing his young Padawan was the only thing on Obi-Wan's mind as he tore through the halls of the ship. He tried to sense the boy through their bond, but was blocked by a swirl of angry dark energy. /Somebody else is hiding Anakin from me,/ he thought. /Dooku?/
Obi-Wan rounded a bend and crashed into a mechanic. The toolbox the mechanic was carrying popped open, spraying tools everywhere. "Sorry," Obi- Wan said as he scrambled to his feet. "I'm in a hurry."
"Stupid Jedi," Obi-Wan could barely hear the mechanic's muttered words as he ran away. "Alus in a hurry tuh git sumwhere."
Obi-Wan skidded to a stop. "You've seen my Padawan?" he asked.
"Sum boy's been sneakin' down here tuh practice with his sword. Sum other guy's bin helpin' him."
"What did this other man look like? It's urgent that you remember!" Obi- Wan said desperately.
"Tall, white hair, deep voice, long cloak," the mechanic said.
"Thank you very much!" Obi-Wan ran around the corner, trailing his ghostly Master. /So, Dooku's been seeing Anakin this entire trip. I wonder why I couldn't sense him before?/
* * *
Dooku helped Anakin to his feet. "Obi-Wan is coming. Something has alerted him to my presence. You must hide."
"But I want to help you!" Anakin whined. "I don't want to run away and hide."
Dooku paused. /This boy may be useful as a decoy,/ he thought. /Surely Obi-Wan will be reluctant to kill his apprentice./
"Very well," he decided. "You may help me. Get out your lightsaber, but do not ignite it."
* * *
Obi-Wan burst through the doors to Dooku's quarters, lightsaber in his hand and ignighted. In the room, however, he saw something that made him stop cold. "Anakin?" he asked, incredulous. "Anakin, you're in danger. Go away."
"I'm in no danger from Dooku," the boy said calmly. "You're the Sith lord. You're the one who killed Qui-Gon."
"Anakin, that is a lie." Obi-Wan was shocked to hear his Padawan say something so false. "Look at me in the Force. I'm not Dark." He dropped all of his shields to allow Anakin to see his essence, and found himself instantly wrapped in a cloak of Dark energy.
"You look pretty dark to me," Anakin said, his eyes burning through Obi- Wan's body. "How long did you think you could hide it? This isn't even a mission approved by the Council, is it? You've been using me, training me to become a Sith like you. Even Yoda's in on it. He didn't want me in the Order, either."
Obi-Wan struggled to break free of the Dark blanket coating his energy. He couldn't access the Force to speak to Anakin without allowing the Darkness to taint him. He was so preoccupied with his fight against the Darkness he never noticed the small needle pricking his neck.
Please remember to review!
tbc . . .
To all of you who didn't review: Don't be shy! It won't hurt my feelings if you hate my story! Any review is welcome, especially ones that criticize my writing and offer suggestions on how to improve.
I'm sorry it took so long for me to update. Family vacation, a week without the ability to read or write anything . . . the worst kind of torture. But it's up now! Enjoy!
I still don't own the universe.
Pain ripped through Obi-Wan's head as he fell back into consciousness. The world faded in and out of sight, twisting and turning whenever he tried to move. The danger of being sucked into the Force was gone, but the aftermath of whatever had happened to cause such a surge still affected him. Groaning, he tried to shove himself to his feet, but failed and fell back onto the floor of the ship. He rested for a moment to try to gather his the Force to assist him, but was floored by a fresh wave of agony and grief.
* * *
Anakin sat up groggily. His head throbbed in rhythm with the ship's engines, forcing him to lie back down.
"It is good to see you have finally awakened. I was beginning to worry," the man came in, carrying a tray with a glass of liquid on it. "Drink this. It will help." The man propped Anakin up and helped him to sip from the glass. The liquid was disgusting. It seared Anakin's throat as it went down, making him gag. Anakin choked and coughed, but found his headache was fading as he drank the liquid.
"Where am I?" Anakin asked when he had drained the cup.
"You are in my quarters," the man said. "I found you after that surge in the Force made you collapse."
"Where's Master Obi-Wan?" Anakin asked.
The man paused. "Anakin, are you familiar with the circumstances surrounding the death of Qui-Gon Jinn?"
"Yes, I think so. He was killed by a Sith, and then Master Obi-Wan killed the Sith."
"Convenient, isn't it? Master Obi-Wan killed the only person who could have confirmed the story. We really don't know what happened down there. What we do know is that a powerful presence in the Dark side erupted down there, like a Sith dropping his shields," the man said.
"What are you saying? Of course there was a Dark presence. There was a Sith!" Anakin was confused by the man's tactics.
"Yes, but was that Sith really the one with the red and black face? Only darkness can destroy a Sith. Master Obi-Wan must be dark, to have killed Darth Maul," the man commented. "He didn't want to train you because you would just get in the way of his sabotage."
"You're lying. Master Obi-Wan would never turn to the Dark side," Anakin declared. "He's one of the greatest Jedi!"
"Really," the man said. "Did he ever tell you that he left the Order?"
* * *
Qui-Gon watched in horror as the man twisted the story of Obi-Wan's betrayal. /Anakin, don't believe him!/ he thought madly, even though he shared no bond with the boy and could not communicate with him.
The man turned around, bringing his face close to Anakin's. Qui-Gon reeled backwards as he got a good look at the face of the man. "Dooku," he murmured in shock, then worry as he realized the peril facing Obi-Wan and his apprentice.
* * *
//Obi-Wan! Wake up! You must!// The words rang through Obi-Wan's head, echoing across the bond he shared with Qui-Gon.
"Don' wanna," Obi-Wan complained groggily. "Hurts."
"Obi-Wan!" Qui-Gon yelled in frustration. "Obi-Wan, Anakin is in danger. Dooku is on the ship, and he is trying to convince Anakin that you are a Sith. You have to help your apprentice."
The mention of Anakin's name made Obi-Wan jump to his feet. His mind threw off the blanket of exhaustion that had kept him unconscious. "Well? What are you waiting for?" he demanded impatiently.
Qui-Gon smiled. "Good morning. Follow me." He took off down the corridor towards Dooku's rooms.
* * *
Anakin struggled to comprehend the torrent of new information. /Master Obi- Wan, a Sith?/ he wondered. /But how come the Council didn't know?/
"Anakin, do you understand what I'm saying?" the man asked. "It is vital that you tell me what Obi-Wan is planning. I must know so that we can stop him."
Anakin nodded dully. "He's going to try to capture some guy named Dooku because that's supposed to free Master Qui-Gon or something like that."
The man stopped, shocked. "That's what he told you?" he asked incredulously.
"Yeah, that's what he said."
"We must not allow that to happen! I am the only one who can free Qui-Gon from the prison Obi-Wan has constructed for him. If I die, Qui-Gon will never be free!"
"You?" Now Anakin was shocked. "You're Dooku?"
"Yes. I could not tell you before, because I was uncertain what your reaction would be." Dooku stood up. "Do you know when Obi-Wan will notice your absence?"
Anakin's mind was reeling. "He won't," Anakin said. "He doesn't care about me, remember? He's probably even forgotten I exist."
* * *
The peril facing his young Padawan was the only thing on Obi-Wan's mind as he tore through the halls of the ship. He tried to sense the boy through their bond, but was blocked by a swirl of angry dark energy. /Somebody else is hiding Anakin from me,/ he thought. /Dooku?/
Obi-Wan rounded a bend and crashed into a mechanic. The toolbox the mechanic was carrying popped open, spraying tools everywhere. "Sorry," Obi- Wan said as he scrambled to his feet. "I'm in a hurry."
"Stupid Jedi," Obi-Wan could barely hear the mechanic's muttered words as he ran away. "Alus in a hurry tuh git sumwhere."
Obi-Wan skidded to a stop. "You've seen my Padawan?" he asked.
"Sum boy's been sneakin' down here tuh practice with his sword. Sum other guy's bin helpin' him."
"What did this other man look like? It's urgent that you remember!" Obi- Wan said desperately.
"Tall, white hair, deep voice, long cloak," the mechanic said.
"Thank you very much!" Obi-Wan ran around the corner, trailing his ghostly Master. /So, Dooku's been seeing Anakin this entire trip. I wonder why I couldn't sense him before?/
* * *
Dooku helped Anakin to his feet. "Obi-Wan is coming. Something has alerted him to my presence. You must hide."
"But I want to help you!" Anakin whined. "I don't want to run away and hide."
Dooku paused. /This boy may be useful as a decoy,/ he thought. /Surely Obi-Wan will be reluctant to kill his apprentice./
"Very well," he decided. "You may help me. Get out your lightsaber, but do not ignite it."
* * *
Obi-Wan burst through the doors to Dooku's quarters, lightsaber in his hand and ignighted. In the room, however, he saw something that made him stop cold. "Anakin?" he asked, incredulous. "Anakin, you're in danger. Go away."
"I'm in no danger from Dooku," the boy said calmly. "You're the Sith lord. You're the one who killed Qui-Gon."
"Anakin, that is a lie." Obi-Wan was shocked to hear his Padawan say something so false. "Look at me in the Force. I'm not Dark." He dropped all of his shields to allow Anakin to see his essence, and found himself instantly wrapped in a cloak of Dark energy.
"You look pretty dark to me," Anakin said, his eyes burning through Obi- Wan's body. "How long did you think you could hide it? This isn't even a mission approved by the Council, is it? You've been using me, training me to become a Sith like you. Even Yoda's in on it. He didn't want me in the Order, either."
Obi-Wan struggled to break free of the Dark blanket coating his energy. He couldn't access the Force to speak to Anakin without allowing the Darkness to taint him. He was so preoccupied with his fight against the Darkness he never noticed the small needle pricking his neck.
Please remember to review!
tbc . . .
