Chapter 6 – Discovery
"I think I can fix this, but it'll take some time," Anakin proclaimed as he peeled off some of his outer garments.
"Good. The ship's computer could tell us much about what happened here."
"Master, if this was damaged in the crash then it won't really help us find the scientists."
"Maybe you're right Anakin. But this is the best course of action available to us right now. If we cannot learn where the scientists have gone perhaps we can learn where they have been."
Anakin attacked his task with an enthusiasm and focus that Obi-Wan wished he would display in his Jedi training. Still, the padawan's connection to the Force was remarkable. It would have taken Obi-Wan far longer to locate this ship on his own. Obi-Wan walked around the remains of the ship as Anakin worked. He noticed the shattered Jomma board, as well as several picture frames. Obi-Wan picked one up and slammed it with his palm. The holographic image flickered to life, surprising Obi-Wan. The image was of a determined looking woman and a dashingly handsome young man. Too handsome in Obi-Wan's estimation to be a scientist, much less settle down with this woman. And yet, Obi-Wan had to admit that Saya Vil, who he knew from the one picture he'd seen in Depa Billaba's report, had an undeniable power about her. Perhaps it was the handsome man, Obi-Wan assumed it was Saya Vil's husband, Pollo Lytner, who considered himself the luckiest of the two. Obi-Wan felt a stirring in his heart, a desire to find Saya Vil and the other scientists to make sure that they returned home. Even though he knew it was hard to decline a direct request from the Senate, these scientists had agreed and set out to do something good for the Republic. There was so little of that these days that somehow Obi-Wan felt it a cosmic injustice that these people might lose their lives while others who participated in the Republic's decay would live. Such feelings should have been beyond a Jedi Master, yet Obi-Wan felt them all the same. He would do everything in his power to see that these scientists lived.
"Master, I think I got it," Anakin yelled, causing Obi-Wan to sprint forward.
When he arrived, the computer terminal was humming with life, though his Padawan's glance told him that this minor miracle might not last long.
"Good job Padawan. Access the last flight recording."
Anakin touched a large button and a shower of sparks flew from the console. The humming continued though and soon Obi-Wan and Anakin were listening to the voice of Saya Vil.
"It has been 3 days since we crashed here. I have sustained only minor cuts and bruises. Cranner seems to be mostly unharmed, in a fashion so remarkable that he has begun joking about studying himself when we get back instead of the project he was working on."
At that, Saya Vil gave a small smile, but somehow Obi-Wan knew the smile was forced. He observed Saya Vil's small shift in on her left foot, as though she had sustained more than minor cuts and bruises.
"Pollo… Pollo…" Saya Vil began, but quickly trailed off as tears welled up in her eyes.
A large hand touched her shoulder and moved her out of view of the recording device.
"My good friend, Pollo Lytner, died one day after our crash here," the Jedi heard Cranner Zib say. "He suffered injuries that we were unable to heal. Had we only possessed some of the Hydera we mined," Pollo was saying, the balled up fist at his side the only indicator of the pain he felt. "Unfortunately, it was all lost in the crash. We have crashed, our friend is dead, and we have nothing to show for our efforts."
Cranner Zib walked away from the recording device and Saya Vil took his place. Determination was etched on her face. In that moment, Obi-Wan knew that this woman had made a choice to live.
"We will not despair though. We have formulated a plan to move to one of the large caves near here where we can find shelter from the cold. The laser technology from the ship is damaged but still workable for our purposes. We have many supplies and Cranner estimates that if we reach a cave successfully we can survive here for close to two months. Hopefully, for those who may be listening to this, you will be able to offer us assistance before our time is up. We await you."
With that the transmission ended. For a long moment there was only silence inside the wrecked ship. As usual, Anakin was the first to speak.
"One month left Master. We must find them."
"I agree Padawan. Unfortunately, I am not sure where we should begin. I have seen no caves. Perhaps you have a suggestion."
"Maybe the Force will guide us to them as it guided me to this ship."
"Do you sense something?" Obi-Wan asked, though somehow he already knew the answer.
"No," Anakin admitted, "but that does not mean I won't."
"I don't think we should come to rely on such things. The Force will guide us once we are on the path, but first we choose a path."
"I sense you have an idea Master."
"Can you use some of this equipment to rig up a sonic pulse?"
"A sonic pulse," Anakin replied, truly baffled by his Master's question.
"If we had a sonic pulse, we could fire it in all directions from the ship. This world is mostly flat from what I've seen. And consists largely of ice," Obi-Wan finished with a raised eyebrow in Anakin's direction.
"I get it. You think the ice will repel a sonic pulse. If we fire it off and it bounces back then…"
"We'll know that the ground is not flat in that direction," Obi-Wan finished. "This makes it more likely that we will find caves in that direction."
"A nice idea Master. I'm not sure how great a range the pulse will have though."
"It's a start anyway. Of course, if too many of the pulses bounce back then we're really in a bind."
"I'll get started Master," Anakin said enthusiastically. He knew he shouldn't be feeling this way with the scientists lives in danger, but all these mechanical challenges were actually making this mission fun.
"I'll assist if you need me," Obi-Wan responded. "For now, I will ready our gear for the trip and see if there are any supplies still left here that might be of use to us."
Anakin began working feverishly, tearing out parts of the communications console, and splicing them with the weapons system. Obi-Wan activated his lightsaber and proceeded to make them a fire. Anakin had been so wrapped up in his work that he hadn't even noticed that it was getting dark, or that it was getting cold.
"It's not too cold so I figured a good old natural fire would be sufficient. We'll save the heat sticks for later in case we need them," Obi-Wan said.
"Somehow, it wouldn't be a Jedi mission unless we did need them," Anakin responded between splicing circuits.
Obi-Wan smiled ever so slightly at Anakin's remark. He understood completely. Jedi missions rarely seemed to involve much peace and quiet. His missions with Anakin had become almost legendary around the Temple for their seemingly endless string of dangers. Obi-Wan hoped that this mission might be different.
"I think it's ready," Anakin remarked about an hour after Obi-Wan set him to the task.
"Aim that way first," Obi-Wan said pointing off to the left of the ship.
Anakin engaged the makeshift machine, and sent a single sonic pulse screaming from the only remaining top turret gun the ship possessed. After a brief moment it was clear that no sonic pulse was returning to the ship.
"Now that way," Obi-Wan said. "We'll do this as systematically as possible."
Anakin fired again. This time a tiny spark was emitted from the console.
"Not good. There's too much damage. We won't be able to keep this up very long," Anakin proclaimed.
No sonic pulse returned to the ship this time either. Obi-Wan moved to the console and without communicating a word traded places with Anakin. Obi-Wan gathered the Force to him, felt it flow through him with more power than he usually tapped. They needed to choose right before the makeshift machine blew. Obi-Wan rotated the turret gun ever so slightly and fired. The moment seemed like an eternity, but Obi-Wan couldn't hide the relief on his face when the hull of the ship gave off a loud thud.
"I think that's the direction we need to go," Obi-Wan said
"Are you sure Master? We haven't had a chance to fire in that many directions. There could be other bounce backs."
"We've got no other choice. Unless I'm mistaken, that's all she's got," Obi-Wan replied.
As if on cue, a shower of sparks began to fly on the ship's console. Anakin tried furiously to fix the problem, to no avail. Obi-Wan gently placed a hand on his Padawan's shoulder and spoke.
"You did great work to get as much out of it as you did. The Force has guided us. I am confident that this direction is correct."
Anakin stopped fiddling with the damaged console and turned to regard his Master. Obi-Wan's face and tone were confident. That was enough for Anakin.