Repercussions: Chapter 25
Qui-Gon looked around the room blearily. It was hard to make his eyes focus, harder still to make sense of anything that he was seeing. His attempt to sit up was quickly aborted when the world began to spin crazily about him. Laying back down, he groaned softly.
"It's alright Qui-Gon. Just relax." Kyran held a cup of water with a straw to his friend's lips. "Drink some water. It will help."
Qui-Gon sipped gratefully, the cold water felt wonderful going down his dry throat. His stomach, however, seemed to be undecided about whether to welcome it. Qui-Gon closed his eyes and concentrated on convincing his stomach to behave itself.
Kyran felt his friend trying to calm his stomach and reached out to the Force trying to aide his friend in healing. "It's alright." He said again.
"The surgery? How did it go?" Qui-Gon whispered. His leg was sore, but not the intense pain he'd expected. Perhaps the pain blockers were still in his system.
Kyran chewed at his bottom lip. He hated having to tell Qui-Gon that the surgery he'd expected never happened. He knew how disappointed his friend would be at not being able to regain his mobility as soon as they'd hoped.
Qui-Gon frowned at Kyran's reaction. Something was wrong. That was when he realized that he was on his bunk on the ship. Looking down at his leg, he saw no signs of any repairs. It was just as twisted as it had been this morning. "What happened?"
"Bounty hunters found us right as you were taken into the operating room." Kyran said quietly.
"Devin?" Qui-Gon sat up again, this time ignoring the dizziness. Frantically, he asked "Where's Devin? Is he okay? Are you okay?"
"He's fine. Lay down. " Kyran ordered. "He's piloting the ship. Somebody has to. We're both fine. No injuries."
Qui-Gon grabbed hold of Kyran's arm, in part to steady himself and in part to be able to better examine his friend for himself. "The truth! No hiding anything."
Kyran held his arm steady for Qui-Gon and then looked at him in the eye. "I am telling the truth. We're fine. You don't have any new injuries and neither do we. It's all alright."
"All right? We're still fugitives, you and Devin have again been attacked by bounty hunters, I'm still half crippled and you say we're fine, its alright." Qui-Gon began to laugh hysterically, burying his face in his hands, shoulders shaking. Soon sobs became intermixed with the laughter.
Kyran sighed deeply and drew his friend closer and rubbed his back comfortingly. "Qui-Gon. We have to trust the Force that things will work out for the best." He said.
Qui-Gon shoved away Kyran's hand. The hysterical laughter disappeared. "This is my punishment from the Force and I deserve it for falling to the Dark in Tuvlat. Go home Kyran. Take Devin and go home."
"Qui-Gon. Nobody deserves to endure what you endured." Kyran said his stomach twisting with the reminder that it was his fault. "We're not leaving you. We've been through this already."
Qui-Gon slumped back into his bunk. Perhaps this was part of his punishment, also. To watch his friends be hunted across the galaxy. "Where are we going now?"
"We haven't actually decided yet. " Kyran said. "That topic is still open for negotiation. If you have any suggestions -- other than us taking you back and us going home without you -- we need them."
Someplace to hide. Both times his friends had been found because of him. Once because he had demanded to walk about a city alone. Then when they attempted to get medical care for his leg. This time the priority would go to finding a place where they would be safe. Someplace that three fugitives could disappear and there would be no one they had to worry about seeing them.
"Null," Qui-Gon said suddenly.
Kyran looked at him in confusion. "Where is that? Never even heard of it."
"Its on the edge of the known galaxy. Master Dooku mentioned it to me once. Primitive world, mostly because the people there have rejected technology rather than having a lack of access. A few small towns scattered about. Its mostly forests and mountains. There are a few hunting and camping cabins that are available. The natives are very insular and don't talk much with outsiders, beyond what they need to rent out space. Master Dooku said it was an excellent place for a covert meeting."
Kyran started to object to the idea of going to some backwards planet. They needed to find someplace where Qui-Gon could get the medical attention he needed. But another look at his friend made him hesitate. There was a desperation to Qui-Gon, as if he was hanging on to his sanity by the barest of threads. The cumulative stresses of the past year were driving him almost to his breaking point. Perhaps spending some time isolated on a forest world, surrounded by the Living Force that Qui-Gon was so strongly connected to would be for the best. Allow Qui-Gon to restore some of his balance, before they once more moved on in search of better care.
"Null it is. I'll tell Devin so he can lay in the course. In the meantime, rest. If you need anything, just let me know. Okay?"
Qui-Gon relaxed back into the bunk, thankful that Kyran had agreed with him. For a moment it looked like he was going to disregard his suggestion. Perhaps his friends didn't think him a complete failure if they were willing to at least consider his counsel.
Planning on eating any of that?" Kyran asked mildly after watching Qui-Gon rearrange the cooked grains in his bowl for about fifteen minutes, without ever actually managing to put any of it in his mouth.
Qui-Gon struggled awkwardly to his feet. His chair clattered noisily to the floor, tipped over by his clumsy movements. Picking up the bowl, he threw it angrily in the direction of the kitchen sink. Its contents splattered across the floor and wall, the plastic bowl ricocheting off the wall to land at Devin's feet. "Its none of your concern if I eat or not," declared Qui-Gon angrily. He hobbled out of the room.
Through the window, Devin and Kyran watched as Qui-Gon limped down to the stream that bordered the clearing in front of the hunting cabin. Fists clenched at his side, head bowed down to his chest, back to the cabin, Qui-Gon stood motionless. Long minutes passed, the two friends looking back and forth at each other and Qui-Gon. Finally, Devin rose and began to clean up the mess. It was not the first destructive outburst from Qui-Gon they had cleaned up in the week since they had arrived.
"He's almost completely stopped eating," Kyran sighed, rising to help in clean up the remains of breakfast. "I don't think he's sleeping more than a few hours a night either. And he won't even attempt to mediate anymore. That staring off into space is just a way to keep us out, it seems."
"We're not mind healers, Kyran. That's what he needs," said Devin.
"No problem, we'll just zip on back to the Temple and see it there are any appointments open," snapped Kyran
"Kyran," there was a gently tone of reproach in the name.
"What?" Kyran snapped. Then he paused. "I'm sorry Devin." He sighed. "I'm just worried."
"I know. He's getting worse and nothing we do seems to help."
"What do you do when you try to help someone and nothing works?" He said in frustration. "We've tried almost everything."
Devin shook his head, not having any answer. "We'll just have to keep reaching out to him and hope that eventually he'll reach back."