Title: Hidden Shadows Seeking Light

Rating: I wish I knew. I am putting it at PG-13 just because I don't know any better and would rather err on the safe side.

Genre: Drama/Mild Angst

Feedback: I would love to get feedback on this story. I would appreciate it if everyone would put down their flame throwers though because this is only my second time out and I know I made mistakes on the first story and have no doubt I will make many on this one. I need constructive criticism so that I will get better not mean comments that will only serve to make me cry. I thank each and every one of the readers who take the time to review this story. I love fan fiction and hope to write stories that can entertain others as much as their stories have entertained me.

Disclaimer: I own none of the characters in this story. They are, were and will always belong to Mr. George Lucas creator of an amazing universe. Not only does this story contain elements of the universe that Mr. Lucas created but also the Alternate Universe (AU) found in a wonderful story called An Untimely Frost by CYNICAL21.

Just to a little guide as to what things mean:

/-/ Bond thought //-// Private thought "-" Speaking aloud

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Adi and Qui-Gon stood for a moment lost in thought. What had Master Yoda just implied? Well more than implied he had all but stated that Obi-Wan Kenobi was the Chosen One. Qui-Gon shook his head as he considered how the Master could believe such a thing. Anakin was the Chosen One. He fit all the prophesy elements. He had a midichlorian count that was off the charts. The Master had felt certain that he had been led to the boy by the Force itself. He was of course fond of Obi-Wan, but had never felt his Force connection or ability set him apart. He as a good Knight and had been a loyal and skilled Padawan, but the Chosen One? There was simply no way. He stared at Adi for a moment.

"How can this be? He's obviously mistaken." He asked then gazed where the smaller Master had disappeared into the brush.

"Well there go our answers. Mistaken or not he is sure that he knows where Obi-Wan, Anakin and the girl are, so that is the direction we go." Adi said and turned to follow Yoda. She wondered what it meant if Obi-Wan was the Chosen One. She tried not to think about it, but found herself stumbling over the thought in her mind over and over again. She racked her brain for what she knew of the prophesy. She had never really given it much thought. It had seemed more of a myth or legend than something that might actually ever come to pass.

The Chosen One would bring balance to the Force. She could see that. Balance requires stability. The Knight was the most stable person she knew. Obi-Wan was always so centered in his actions. He was always so mindful of the Force in his dealings. He was able to perform his duty in spite of his emotions. There had always been something special about him. It seemed people were drawn to him. Could it be that they were all drawn to him because he was the Chosen One ? She wondered for a moment about her own attraction to the Knight. Realizing she was too concerned for his safety to think about her feelings she decided she would have to wait to consider all the ramifications later.

It took them a bit of work of catch up with the little Master who wasn't nearly as slow or impaired as he appeared to be.

"Master Yoda I can't believe that you would stoop to deception." Adi joked as she struggled to keep up with him wondering where his cane had disappeared to.

"Deception it is not. Distraction it is. Hope to throw my enemies off of my real weaknesses by causing them to focus on a false one. Good strategy it has been but failed me today it did. Saw my weakness the Sith did. Took him from me because of it. " She could hear the anger he felt towards himself.

"Master, we have not lost him yet." She encouraged him. He appreciated her support. They came to a clearing where Yoda stopped. He reached out as if searching to insure that they were indeed on the right path. Once he seemed satisfied that they were he started to take the lead once more but Qui-Gon stopped him.

"Master I don't mean to be disrespectful but how could Obi-Wan possibly be the Chosen One?" He seemed utterly undone. Obviously he too had been thinking of little else while racing to catch up with Yoda.

"Disrespectful you may not mean but give it you do. No time to debate with you have I Qui-Gon. Obvious to me from the moment he became my Padawan it was. Blind you were. Too busy focusing on his faults to see his virtues. Missed it you did. Chosen One he is." He stared at the taller Master looming above him with the look of a man not to be argued with.

"I believe I would have known had he been the Chosen One while I was training him." Qui-Gon argued anyway.

"Never have you seen your Padawans for what they are. Sense you did not Xanatos turning. Sense you did not Obi-Wan's great potential and purpose. Even now blind you are to Skywalker's natural attraction to the dark side." Never had Adi seen the old Master so vehement in his argument.

"The Force led me to Anakin. His midichlorian count is off the charts greater than even yours." He argued back unwilling to believe that he could have overlooked such qualities in his student and resenting the harsh reprimand by the other Master.

"What side of the Force led you to Skywalker? Asked yourself this you have not. Two sides there are to the Force the light and the dark. Skywalker's count is high but never did you check Obi-Wan's records to see what his was did you? Assumed you did that his was below your own because of his lack of connection to the living Force. Assumed wrong you did. Checked his records I did once I formed our bond and I suspected his destiny. Higher than Skywalker his count was." He sighed exasperated with the man who was too stubborn for his own good.

"Why wasn't it flagged? Why didn't someone notify me? He was almost sent to Bandomeer. Almost never to be a Jedi at all." Qui-Gon asked.

"A question that is for the late Master Dooku. In charge of that portion of the screening process he was when to the Temple Obi-Wan came. As for not being a Jedi that was almost your mistake not the Force. Remember the bond that was formed without any effort. Why think you the Force created this bond? Ever heard of another Master/Padawan bond forming in this way?" He charged.

"Masters we are losing time." Adi could hold her tongue no longer. Each second was putting Obi-Wan in further danger. They also had the Commander's daughter and Anakin to rescue as well. She couldn't care less if Obi-Wan was or was not the Chosen One he was her chosen one and she had no intention of sharing him with a Sith Master.

"Split up we must and look for a way into the estate." The other two Master's nodded. "Our chief objective must be the Commander's daughter. Obi-Wan and Skywalker must come after. She is an innocent." Adi and Qui- Gon understood. This was the part of being a Jedi that was very difficult. They had to separate their emotions from their duty and carry on. It would be difficult being in the estate and not immediately searching for the ones they were closest too. Hopefully all three were in the same area of the estate. Adi imagined how frightened the young girl must be.

Yoda, Adi and Qui-Gon separated deciding to enter the estate at different points. From the East side Adi took her first hard look at the building where the Sith had stashed their prisoners. There appeared to be several small windows at ground level. Adi wondered if it were some sort of basement. Catching Qui-Gon's eye she motioned in the direction of the windows. He nodded indicating that he had noticed them as well. Once they had secured their assigned areas they would proceed to the basement.

She waited just outside the main security fence for Yoda to give the signal. She would then spring into the air and launch herself over the fence and into the compound. She would need to have precise timing. This wasn't a typical mission. There were Sith in that estate. She wondered if they would sense her presence. She felt a chill as she reached out trying to pinpoint their location. She could feel the darkness. It caused her to shudder. A moment later she received the signal and leapt.



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Anakin thought he had heard the door swing open. It wasn't like before though. Whoever had opened it had done so very quietly. If he had not seen the same column of light flow down the stairs that he had seen before, he might not have recognized the sound at all. Once he saw the light he knew for certain that the door was open and he felt his hopes begin to rise.

He waited his breath coming rapid and shallow. He felt his eyes trying to see beyond their limit. They were trying to see through the ceiling and wall that blocked the upper portion of the staircase. //Please be my Master. Please be my Master.// He thought over and over again. And just like that his pleas had been answered as the form of Qui-Gon Jinn descended the stairs.

He took a moment to orient himself to his new surroundings.

"Master!" Anakin cried out relieved beyond reason to see the man. He had never looked so good to the boy. Laroon sighed in relief as well. Qui-Gon cast a look about the room seeing the young girl chained to the wall and also the Knight still crumpled against the far wall. He made his way over to the girl first.

"Miss La'Kol?" He asked. She nodded.

"Master Jinn I am so glad to see you. Can you get us out of here?" She felt her chains cut through.

"Can you walk?" He asked. She attempted to stand but tensed immediately and returned to the cold dirt floor.

"I don't think so." She answered her expression growing more concerned by the moment.

"All will be well. Fear not." He smiled at her reassuringly.

"Anakin are you injured?" He asked over his shoulder.

"No Master but Knight Kenobi is." Anakin tried to keep from sounding smug but failed a bit. He wondered if his Master would reprimand him for his attitude. He watched as Qui-Gon quickly made his way over to him. He felt the heat of the blade as it cut through his chains with impressive precision. Anakin wondered when he would be able to wield his blade like that. Free again he felt as if a weight had been lifted from him.

As quickly as he felt his hands released he watched the blur of his Master turn his attention to the fallen Knight. He seemed to assess the man's condition rapidly. He performed the same maneuver on the Knight's chains as he had on the other two captives. Turning quickly to the stairs he strained listening for someone.

"Anakin." He frantically whispered. "Move Laroon over to the darkest corner where she will be better hidden from view. " Anakin immediately rushed over to the fallen girl and helped her over to the corner blocked by the staircase while Qui-Gon threw Obi-Wan over his shoulder. Once he had the Knight comfortably situated on his shoulder he made his way over to his Padawan and the confused girl.

"Laroon listen to me. Master Adi Gallia, a Jedi like Obi-Wan and I, will be here in a moment. She will help you out of the complex. She is a beautiful woman with lovely blue eyes and warm dark skin. When you see her call out to her quietly, but only to her. If the dark ones come back be very quiet and remain hidden. There is a disruption field in this room. Without your help they will have no way to sense your presence." Laroon nodded still very confused. She didn't want to be left behind. She wanted to be free. She wanted to be back with her Father. Why would Master Jinn leave her here?

Qui-Gon read her confusion. "I must take Anakin and Obi-Wan with me. I must get them away from the Sith as quickly as possible. I have to take them off planet immediately. Master Gallia and Master Yoda will take you safely back to your father. I am sure that you would rather be with him than up in a ship." He smiled and she smiled back more confidently. "Be brave and be quiet until Adi finds you." She nodded once more. Anakin leaned over and gave her a hug. He wasn't sure why but even though he hadn't known her for long he felt attached to her. Perhaps it was their near death experience that caused this connection, he wasn't sure.

Laroon watched as they disappeared up the steps. She was very concerned about the Knight. She had so hoped to talk with him and spend a little time in his company before he left the planet but now those hopes were dead. She hoped he would be alright. Wondering what the Knight had managed to endure in order to be so completely unconscious, she forced herself to remain still and wait to be found. She wondered again why Master Jinn had left her. She had picked up on his urgency. He had been almost desperate to get his Padawan and the Knight away from the Sith. Hearing a sound coming from the floor above, she slunk back further into the shadows and waited for Master Gallia.

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Qui-Gon rushed to one of the waiting transport with Anakin close behind. He was amazed at the speed with which the boy could move. Once they arrived he quickly asked Anakin to set the coordinates to the State House port. He turned his attention back to the Knight. Obi-Wan was still unreachable but in time he was sure that he would find a way to get to the man. He smiled at that thought.

Now all he had to do was get to the ship and then far away from the troublesome planet of Tiress.

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Adi Gallia had searched the first floor and found nothing. She got a sense that the dark presences were all moving away. Their signatures becoming fainter by the moment, she wasn't quite sure if that was a good thing or not. Reaching out she made her way down the corridor until she saw a door that had been left slightly ajar. Finding that odd, she approached it with great caution. As she moved to open it she felt the approach of Master Yoda. Nodding to him she opened the door a bit more and began making her way down the stairs. As soon as she reached the floor she knew that the captives had been held here. She could see the three spots where the broken chains hung on the wall.

"We're too late." She sighed in frustration. Her heart ached. They had been so close.

"Master Gallia." A voice cried out from behind the stairs. Adi whirled quickly and ignited her saber. A young girl appeared out of the shadows. Adi was amazed that she had not sensed her then realized that there appeared to be a dampening field in the room.

"Are you Master Gallia?" The girl asked tentatively looking her over. Laroon felt certain that she was but it appeared that the Master hadn't expected to find her here waiting.

"Yes. You must be Laroon La'Kol." The girl's face erupted into a smile as she launched herself past Yoda and into Adi's arms. Tears of relief and gratitude trailing down her cheeks she could only manage a nod as she continued to hold on tight to her savior.

"Where are Anakin and Obi-Wan?" Adi asked scanning the room once more wondering if she had missed something.. Laroon pulled back and swallowed hard getting her emotions back under control.

"Master Jinn took them with him. He said he had to get them to a transport and then off planet as soon as possible. He is the one who told me that you would find me." She watched as both Master's faces furrowed with concern. Adi shook her head. //Jinn always the rebel. Can't he just follow the plan for once in his life?//

"Obi-Wan left you here willingly?" Yoda asked finding Laroon's explanation even more concerning than Master Gallia did. .

"He was still unconscious." She offered. "He never woke up the whole time he was here. I heard him moan once but that was it." Adi could tell that the girl was upset about the condition of the Knight. Adi had not seen him but from the look on the girl's face he must have been injured. She and Yoda exchanged equally concerned looks.

At that moment there was the sound of footsteps at the top of the staircase. The room went silent as its occupants realized that someone else was coming their way. Adi silently moved Laroon back behind the staircase where she would be protected as she took up a defensive posture and Yoda an offensive one. Yoda tried reaching out but could not get a sense of the being approaching them. The dampening field was very strong in the room. He wondered how it would affect his saber abilities. He raised his saber and prepared to strike the first blow when he suddenly recognized the intruder. It was Jinn. He was alone.

Yoda and Adi exchanged quick glances both wondering where Anakin and Obi- Wan were. Had Qui-Gon changed his mind and come back for the Commander's daughter after all? Disengaging his saber Yoda waited for the man to reach them. . "I didn't encounter any of the Sith. Did either of you have any---" He stopped once he too took in the condition of the room they were occupying."

"Where are Anakin and Obi-Wan? Did you leave them alone on the transport?" Adi asked irritated that the Master had completely ignored the mission objectives.

"What? What transport? I haven't found them yet? I was hoping that you had?" He indicated the three sets of broken chains. "They were here. Did we miss them?" He sounded defeated. Yoda continued to size up the man before him. Seeing the sincere confusion and desperation on the man's face the smaller Master felt his throat grow tight. He shook his head unable to speak as event unfolded around him. Keeping his saber close he reached out still unable to truly get a reading of the man before him.

Laroon La'Kol came out of her hiding spot once more and approached the Master with an accusatory tone. "You took them. You said you had to get them off planet and that Master Gallia would come for me. You took them!" Qui-Gon shook his head and looked from Laroon to Adi and finally to Yoda. He had not been in the basement.

"I have no idea what she is talking about. I just now finished up on the upper floors and came to assist Adi in her exploration of this basement we both noticed from outside the estate. I assumed she would secure the first floor and then move down so I went to the second and moved up. I sensed the two dark ones retreating and feared a battle. I came to lend my support as well as to locate the prisoners." He paced as he spoke trying to piece together why the Commander's daughter would think he had taken Obi- Wan and Anakin. He felt anger rising within him as he continued to watch Master Yoda view him with intense scrutiny. Misunderstanding the reason for the stare, he turned on the smaller Master with undisguised disgust.

"I would not have left the girl behind. I would not have left her unprotected. Surely you know me better than that." Yoda shook his head. He did know this about Qui-Gon.. Qui-Gon might be infuriating at times but he would never leave an innocent behind unprotected. He held to that portion of the code without fail. He was a Jedi.

"Right you are. Not you it was that took your Padawan and mine." Yoda's voice sounded grave to the other Jedi.

"Yes it was. He spoke to me. I saw him!" Laroon insisted stepping forward the best that she could on her crippled ankle.

"Looked like Qui-Gon he did but Qui-Gon it was not." Yoda replied calmly. He turned his attention back to Adi and Qui-Gon. "Get the Commander's daughter to safety we must. Then locate both of our Padawans we will." Yoda started up the stairs while Qui-Gon lifted Laroon into his arms and headed up after him. Adi glance once more around the room before following.

"Master if it wasn't Qui-Gon then who?" She asked as they continued.

"The Sith Master it was. Able he is to change his appearance. Deceptive the dark side is." He replied. A shadow of dread fell over the group, each member was lost in the implications of the old Master's revelation. Their sense of urgency intensified to reach the Knight and Padawan before it was too late. Staring for a moment at Qui-Gon's back, Adi felt her heart ache at the thought that for her Knight time might have already run out.

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Okay I posted earlier than Sunday. I wasn't sure I was actually going to be able to get online Sunday so I didn't want to be late so I did it early. Next week it will be on Sunday though. So see ya there with more of the goods..Oh and just to let you guys know when you review I read all of them and you make me think. Your comments make the story better. Your questions and observations spark ideas in me as the writer that send my imagination off in areas I had never considered before. Thank you for reviewing. You are making this story so much better than I could ever make it on my own. Also if you haven't reviewed yet feel free to jump right in. I would love to hear your ideas and comments..though remember to please be constructive.thanks.