Chapter 2 - A Jedi's Shadow

Qui-Gon followed the protocol droid along the Trade Federation ship's pristine corridors. There was a faint glimmer of warning in the Force though, from which direction or where from he could not be sure. He smiled as he though of Obi-Wan and he could almost hear him say,

'I have a bad feeling about this, Master.' And he instantly knew what his reply would have been. Following his own advice he focused on the moment, allowing events to develop naturally. He was left alone in a large room dominated by a conference table. Qui-Gon pushed back his cloak. His features were lined with age and his hair, though still thick, was grey. He could see his reflection in the windows and once again his thoughts turned to his last Padawan.

'I've changed much in five years, I have aged, Obi-Wan and I wonder often how you must appear now.' since that time when he had received news of his apprentice's death he had tried to imagine Obi-Wan as he must look now. With every new year he tried to see Obi-Wan a year older. He tried to envision Obi-Wan in the present, but still he saw him as he had been when last he saw him; young, carefree, and excited about the future. Even now he could hear his voice in his mind. From his first mission without the younger man he had missed his dry humour and now his own mind supplied it for him.

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"What is it?" the image of a cloaked man flickered as it stood before the Trade Federation ship's captain and the Viceroy.

"This scheme of yours has failed, Lord Sidious," the Captain told him. "The blockade is finished, we dare not go against the Jedi."

"Viceroy, I don't want this stunted slim in my sight again." Sidious showed his contempt for the ship's captain. The Neimoidian shuffled away.

"This turn of events is unfortunate," Sidious continued. "We must accelerate our plans. Begin landing your troops."

"My Lord, is that legal?"

"I will make it legal."

"And the Jedi?" The Viceroy asked tentatively.

"The chancellor should never have brought them into this, kill him immediately."

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Qui-Gon stood quickly, feeling the danger and death of the two pilots as their ship was destroyed. In the same instant the room began to fill with gas. He drew in a large lung full of clean air and waited for the doors to open.

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When Qui-Gon had left the transport ship the two pilots had sat in the cockpit together, waiting for further instructions. Their stowaway quietly made his way to the open cargo bay doors.

He had felt the stirring in the Force just as Qui-Gon did. There was no time to save the pilots. He ran from the ship seconds before it exploded. He used the Force to make him run faster. Those watching the explosion saw a blur leave the craft, its presence easily explained as a piece of debris flying away from the exploding metal.

The shadowy Jedi did not stop running until he was far enough away from the docking bay as not to be seen. Up ahead he could sense Qui-Gon. He swiftly walked around a corner and was in time to see the Jedi Master emerging from a room thick with gas, lightsabre swinging. He watched as Qui-Gon easily dispatched the few droids that has been waiting outside, then without a backward glance Qui-Gon ran down the corridor in the direction of the ship's bridge, fighting droids as he went.

The Master's Jedi shadow followed a discrete distance behind. So far he had seen nothing that would explain the disturbance he felt in the Force, however he would stick to the other Jedi until he did know and until he was safe from its threat.

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Qui-Gon began to cut through the doors that separated him from those in the ship's bridge. Both the Jedi felt it as the Viceroy gave the order to close the blast doors. Unperturbed, Qui-Gon withdrew his lighsabre from the hole he had been cutting only to plunge it back into the doors' centre. The metal began to heat up and melt.

From behind him the Jedi Master's Shadow heard more droids approaching. Droidekas. He stepped back and concealed himself in an open door way as three of the new droids came up the corridor. The Shadow took one out as it went past him with his lightsabre. As it was moving it had not yet been able to put up its shield to protect itself from the unexpected attacker.

Further up the corridor, Qui-Gon saw the Droidekas round the corner and approach him. They stopped several feet from him before they rained blaster fire down upon him. Knowing it was a stand off, he deflected several of the bolts before he turned and ran down the hall towards the cargo bays with Force-enhanced speed.

The Droidekas continued to fire at him as he faded into a blur and fire at the second blur that ran past them and followed the Jedi Master like a Shadow.

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Upon arrival in the large cargo area both Qui-Gon and the still undetected Jedi were stunned. Thousands of battle droids were being loaded onto planetary transports.

'An invasion army.' Both Jedi though and it seemed to them that they heard two voices saying simultaneously. Qui-Gon frowned and glanced around him, searching through the Force for any sign of another person. His frown deepened when he found nothing to explain the overlapping voice. Now, with even more care, the Jedi Master stowed away on one of the transports, not withdrawing his senses from the Force as he did so.

From behind a crate of weapons the second Jedi cursed his carelessness. With the exception of Yoda, any other Jedi would not have noticed his slip. While being Qui-Gon's Shadow he was going to have to be a hundred times more careful and secretive. Their connection lived still and despite being dormant for five years the bond that stretched invisibly between them still joined their minds. It was weak and almost unnoticeable, but present nonetheless.

He could break it, it was that fine. Qui-Gon was almost unaware of the still existing bond. To break it now, with him so close, would just draw attention to it. Better to leave it for this mission and destroy it later when he was a galaxy away from Qui-Gon.

Choosing a different transport Qui-Gon's Shadow stowed away on board a ship for the second time in his task to protect the older Jedi.

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Alone in the dark, Qui-Gon once again found himself thinking of his lost apprentice; he often thought of Obi-Wan since his Knighting ceremony. Now, though, somehow the young man seemed almost closer. He could not have described the feeling to another, other than to say it was almost as if Obi-Wan was with him. The music in the Force bubbled back to life and was almost deafening.

"Obi-Wan?" he half whispered in question. And then all was silent, his heart, his mind and the Force were quieted. There was no sound, no sense, no nothing. Another Jedi would have perceived the silence as a sign of nothing; there was nothing there to sense. Qui-Gon, in the back of his mind, sensed something else, not nothing, a void. A void that was unnatural and conspicuous. For the first time he felt as if he was being followed and he was not sure the void made him feel glad.

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In another transport, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Shadow of the Jedi, all but groaned.

'Force damn you, Qui-Gon Jinn.' With infinite strength he gathered his gift to him and added such power to his concealment that even Master Yoda would have been amazed.

'Alright, you know someone is near, but not who or why. That will have to do for now.'

The transports landed on Naboo's surface and once again the two Jedi were running for their lives.

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Obi-Wan did not find Qui-Gon immediately after landing on the planet. The Jedi Master had land cruisers to worry about while Obi-Wan fled from battle droids. The Knight had the advantage of surprise. The Trade Federation army was only expecting and looking for one Jedi Master; Obi-Wan was perceived as a lesser, easier target. Not fighting flesh and blood allowed the young Jedi a chance to release his frustrations with his foes. He was not held back by morality or humanity. They were machinery with no emotions, thoughts of families.

Obi-Wan gradually made his way towards the place where he could sense Qui-Gon, occasionally having to stop to fight off another droid or wait for Qui-Gon to get further ahead. Quickly he realised the Jedi Master was not making the progress he should have been even with a forest full of enemy troops. He could not sense any real danger in the Force and Qui-Gon did not seem to be injured, nevertheless concerned, the Shadow moved forward. When he got within a hundred yards of his quarry he once again stopped and listened. He could hear voices and though the Force he could sense a life form accompanying Qui-Gon.

Memories of his apprenticeship flew though Obi-Wan's mind and despite the circumstances the Jedi Knight could not hold back his groan. Gathering the Force to him he leap up into the branches of the trees and made the rest of the way to the two life forms above ground. Eventually he could make out two figures walking side by side. Qui-Gon walked briskly, occasionally voicing an affirmation or a disagreement to the other's chatter.

The second figure was peculiar looking; orange skin, eyes on stalks storks, big feet and big ears. It was also talking incomprehensibly about owing Qui-Gon his life. The creature wittered on oblivious to the danger even though moments before he had been running for his life.

'Yep, another pathetic life form.' Obi-Wan had still not achieved his Master's tolerance of creatures such as the one below, but through his apprenticeship he had slowly grown to appreciate their place in the galaxy. Missions, like the one Qui-Gon went on, they could be of great help for the type Obi-Wan went on they usually got themselves killed.

Obi-Wan allowed the two to put some distance between them so that he could follow behind at ground level without being seen. This went on for several miles until Obi-Wan found himself on the edge of a large lake. Qui-Gon and his new friend continued to grow further from him, which could mean only one thing. He looked down at the water.

"Damn!"

At the same moment as he swore a patrol of droids on speeders broke though the foliage and opened fire.

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Qui-Gon entered the Gungan city with some unease. He hoped that not all the residents were like Jar Jar. He was relieved to discover that they were not. As he was led to the people's leader he could hear Obi-Wan's light laughter in his mind. Once again, out of an entire planet and its people, he had managed to find the 'pathetic life form'. It was easier to smile when he thought of his missing apprentice.

As he walked, Qui-Gon once again thought on the presence he had felt. It was gone now, it had not followed him into the water, but he was not fooled. He had not lost what ever it was. It had followed him from Tyron to Coruscant to here. It will find me again. And there was also the vague sense of Obi-Wan.

'Are you trying to get home to me now? After all there years are you free to return?'

Qui-Gon returned from reverie to realise he had missed something. Jar Jar's life was apparently forfeit. With subtlety he turned the King's mind around and acquired Jar Jar as his guide through the planet's core and a vessel to travel in.

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Obi-Wan stole the patrol's speeder. It would do for now, but if he was to get to Theed, which undoubtedly was where Qui-Gon was heading, he would need something bigger. A wicked grin split his face and a very un-Jedi like look of glee filled his eyes. He gunned the engine and plummeted head first into the first camp he could find. As he suspected most of the droids were still off line and the others sent to guard them did not expect a blur of man and machine to race straight by them and into their camp's centre.

The defensive perimeter they had set up turned and fired inward towards the blur, but by then it was too late. Obi-Wan jumped off the speeder, allowing it to carry on at full speed into approaching droids and jumped into a larger land cruiser. The exchange barely took a second and soon he was heading through the gap the explosion of speeder and droid had left in the camp's defence. Obi-Wan pushed the land cruiser as hard as he could. It would take time to reach Theed, time Qui-Gon may not have.

The Viceroy seemed dismayed when he received word about they events down on the planet.

"The Naboo could not have reached them that quickly." He said to the captain.

"The Jedi perhaps?"

"Tell the droids to let him go, if it is him he is too late to stop what has started and if he tries to get to Queen Amidala then the droids in the capital will apprehend him."

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Other than the 'big fish' incident, the journey through the sea was largely uneventful. He would have loved to have seen Obi-Wan's face when he had made the 'there's always a bigger fish' comment. Even after five years of waiting and being without the younger man he still found himself saying things that he only ever meant for Obi-Wan to hear or make sense of. He loved to see his Padawan's responses, especially when he managed to surprise the far to serious young man into a laugh.

He could have done with Obi-Wan's mechanical aptitude even though he had managed to restart the vessel. He had been relieved when they had broken the surface of the water and finally arrived at Theed. He had not been sure how much longer his patched job on the craft was going to last.