Chapter Six
Obi-Wan flopped down on his padded portable sleep couch in his tent. The wind howled outside, a low and mournful sound. He felt like he was a giant block of ice. They had been searching all day around the lake and found nothing, though Qua assured them that it could simply mean that their instruments weren't working correctly in the bitter cold. He sighed and for the millionth time that day wondered about his master.
A dull bell clanged, barely audible in the wind, summoning the group to dinner. He would have to go out in that wind again to get to the central tent where they ate and had meetings.
There is no cold, there is the Force, he thought to himself ruefully as he stood and braced himself against the biting wind. Quickly, he struggled against snow pelting his face to stumble into the dry central tent. He saw that Greon was cooking tonight. "Hello," he greeted, eyeing the group as they stopped talking at his entrance. Something told him that they were planning something...
Qua smiled warmly at Obi-Wan as he entered. "Hi, Obi-Wan," she greeted cheerfully. "We've just been discussing our plans. I want to try looking in just one more place before we loose the light. But I don't want to leave the camp unattended," she said as she glanced at him.
Obi-Wan frowned as he took his dish of food. The only ones who hadn't scarfed down their food were himself and Lucas, it seemed. "So I assume you want me to stay here? Wouldn't I better off protecting you?"
Qua shook her head. "I won't be going alone. Greon and Jebitha are going with me. Someone needs to stay here."
Obi-Wan glanced at Lucas, who smiled at him wanly. "So Lucas and I are staying here? Why can't he just stay and I go with you?"
"He'll need protection. I don't think it's a good idea for any of us to be alone. If he ran into trouble or something then he would be alone without any help," she explained.
Obi-Wan sighed. It looked as if nothing he could say would get him out of staying at the camp. "How long will you be?"
"Not too long, I hope. We have to be back before the sun goes down. No one could survive night on Hoth without proper shelter," Qua informed him.
Obi-Wan nodded, and finished his meal. By the time he was done, the three researchers had left. Lucas was fiddling with something at his table. Obi-Wan sighed and approached him. "What's that?" he asked, curious. It was a small black box with complicated dials and metal prongs on it.
"It's called something I can't pronounce, Jedi. Gonna see if we can boost the warmth in this place. It's still kind of cold to me. It's a heater, but Qua got it from some planet that calls it a really odd name," Lucas explained eagerly.
Obi-Wan felt a prickle of warning through the Force. Slowly he started to back away. "You do know how to use it, right?"
"Of course I know how to use it. Don't be stupid," Lucas said as he crossed two wires.
Obi-Wan felt the Force flare right as Lucas crossed the two wires, and then he knew nothing as his world exploded into light.
Qui-Gon dozed on the portable sleep couch in his shelter, Sassi curled up right next to him. He jerked awake, sitting up abruptly, feeling the bond between himself and Obi-Wan suddenly get cut off. Obi-Wan?!he sent.
Sassi was startled awake by his movements. She blinked, rapidly becoming awake and gazed at him. "What? What is it?"
"Obi-Wan's in some kind of trouble. I lost contact with him," he said in a worried voice.
Sassi frowned. "Obi-Wan himself, or the whole other team? Can you tell?"
"I think it's just Obi-Wan, but I don't know for certain," he responded, frowning a little.
Sassi propped herself on her elbow. "Do we need to rouse the team and go over there?" She reached for her top and pants.
Qui-Gon continued to frown. "No," he said at last. "Let me wait for a few minutes and see if I can rouse Obi-Wan. If I can't then we'll go look for them."
Sassi nodded and snuggled back into the very warm blankets beside Qui- Gon. Her eyes remained on his face, concerned and wide.
Qui-Gon lay back down and sighed. He wondered what had happened to Obi-Wan and hoped it hadn't been anything too serious.
Qua hurried back toward camp when she heard the dull explosion. She knew that Lucas was accident-prone, but she had hoped by tactfully getting Obi-Wan to stay with him that things would be safe. As she hurried up the hill and saw flames licking at the central tent she felt her heart sink. She must have been wrong.
"We've got to see if they're okay," she shouted over the now-dying wind as she sprinted toward the tents.
Obi-Wan!Qui-Gon sent after several, very long minutes. He sighed when there was no reply. "Sassi. Let's go. We have to wake the rest of the team."
Qua peered through the smoke and flames to try to find the two people who had to be in the tent. Quickly, she spotted one of them lying sprawled nearer the door than the other. "Help me!" She screamed as she rushed into the tent. She and Greon took a shoulder each and pulled the young man out of harm's way. Flames ate at his clothing and Qua frantically patted them out in the snow, revealing a chest that was badly burned from fire, bits and pieces of some metal imbedded there. Obi-Wan Kenobi was unconscious. "Take him to his tent," she barked as Jebthia came running up with Lucas' body in her arms. There was no hope to save the young researcher—he must have been at the brunt of the explosion. Qua closed her eyes in mourning.
Qui-Gon set the ship down close to where the other team's shelter had been set up. Smoke was billowing and flames were shooting out of it. His breath caught in his chest. Obi-Wan.
He unstrapped from the chair as soon as he touched down, and dashed toward the ramp, waiting impatiently for it to lower.
Qua met him at the bottom of the ramp. Tears rolled down her cheeks, though she managed to say in a reasonably calm voice, "The explosion happened about an hour ago. We thought that you might come." She sniffed, her light skin paling further.
"What happened?" he questioned anxiously, worry for his padawan eating at him as he saw the tears pouring down her face. He couldn't contact Obi-Wan. Their bond had abruptly severed.
Now Qua's voice did break, and she did not look at him, nor at the other team members who had joined them at the bottom of the ramp. "Lucas was fiddling with something and it exploded in the central tent. He didn't make it. Obi-Wan..." She hesitated, then glanced up at him, choking on a sob. "We don't know yet."
Qui-Gon headed for the shelter running as fast as his bulky clothing would let him. Sassi was right behind him. He had to find Obi-Wan. He had to be alright. He choked as the smoke billowed out of the shelter as he entered.
"He's not there!" Qua shouted from behind him. "He's been placed in his tent. Second down the left row..."
Qui-Gon abruptly turned around and headed in the direction she said. He entered Obi-Wan's tent, and his heart fell into his stomach at what he saw.
Obi-Wan lay on his portable sleepcouch, his hair in disarray around his face, his Padawan braid singed. His chest, face and arms were covered in puss-filled third-degree burn bubbles. At first, he did not seem to breathe at all, then a very slight rise of his chest showed that he was in fact alive, though hanging on for all he was worth.
"Oh, Obi-Wan, what happened?" Qui-Gon whispered to his unconscious padawan. He went over to him and gently took his hand, sitting down in a chair next to the sleep couch. Obi-Wan?He sent again into the Force, hoping the boy would feel that he was there.
No answer. Sassi slowly walked into the tent and put her arm around Qui-Gon's shoulders in silent support. The padawan looked so fragile laying there, barely breathing. Finally, after several silent minutes, she whispered, "Can you help him any?"
Qui-Gon sighed deeply. "No. I can't even reach him." He stood. "He's not responding. I'm going to go meditate for awhile and then I'll be back to check on him."
"Be careful!" she called after his retreating back in the dark of the evening, then turned to Obi-Wan. With a sigh, she sat down next to him and gently held his hand. "You must get better!" she whispered to him urgently. "You must!"
Qui-Gon sighed as he headed away. He needed to get a clear head to try and figure out where to go from here. He hoped the Force would give him some guidance.
Obi-Wan flopped down on his padded portable sleep couch in his tent. The wind howled outside, a low and mournful sound. He felt like he was a giant block of ice. They had been searching all day around the lake and found nothing, though Qua assured them that it could simply mean that their instruments weren't working correctly in the bitter cold. He sighed and for the millionth time that day wondered about his master.
A dull bell clanged, barely audible in the wind, summoning the group to dinner. He would have to go out in that wind again to get to the central tent where they ate and had meetings.
There is no cold, there is the Force, he thought to himself ruefully as he stood and braced himself against the biting wind. Quickly, he struggled against snow pelting his face to stumble into the dry central tent. He saw that Greon was cooking tonight. "Hello," he greeted, eyeing the group as they stopped talking at his entrance. Something told him that they were planning something...
Qua smiled warmly at Obi-Wan as he entered. "Hi, Obi-Wan," she greeted cheerfully. "We've just been discussing our plans. I want to try looking in just one more place before we loose the light. But I don't want to leave the camp unattended," she said as she glanced at him.
Obi-Wan frowned as he took his dish of food. The only ones who hadn't scarfed down their food were himself and Lucas, it seemed. "So I assume you want me to stay here? Wouldn't I better off protecting you?"
Qua shook her head. "I won't be going alone. Greon and Jebitha are going with me. Someone needs to stay here."
Obi-Wan glanced at Lucas, who smiled at him wanly. "So Lucas and I are staying here? Why can't he just stay and I go with you?"
"He'll need protection. I don't think it's a good idea for any of us to be alone. If he ran into trouble or something then he would be alone without any help," she explained.
Obi-Wan sighed. It looked as if nothing he could say would get him out of staying at the camp. "How long will you be?"
"Not too long, I hope. We have to be back before the sun goes down. No one could survive night on Hoth without proper shelter," Qua informed him.
Obi-Wan nodded, and finished his meal. By the time he was done, the three researchers had left. Lucas was fiddling with something at his table. Obi-Wan sighed and approached him. "What's that?" he asked, curious. It was a small black box with complicated dials and metal prongs on it.
"It's called something I can't pronounce, Jedi. Gonna see if we can boost the warmth in this place. It's still kind of cold to me. It's a heater, but Qua got it from some planet that calls it a really odd name," Lucas explained eagerly.
Obi-Wan felt a prickle of warning through the Force. Slowly he started to back away. "You do know how to use it, right?"
"Of course I know how to use it. Don't be stupid," Lucas said as he crossed two wires.
Obi-Wan felt the Force flare right as Lucas crossed the two wires, and then he knew nothing as his world exploded into light.
Qui-Gon dozed on the portable sleep couch in his shelter, Sassi curled up right next to him. He jerked awake, sitting up abruptly, feeling the bond between himself and Obi-Wan suddenly get cut off. Obi-Wan?!he sent.
Sassi was startled awake by his movements. She blinked, rapidly becoming awake and gazed at him. "What? What is it?"
"Obi-Wan's in some kind of trouble. I lost contact with him," he said in a worried voice.
Sassi frowned. "Obi-Wan himself, or the whole other team? Can you tell?"
"I think it's just Obi-Wan, but I don't know for certain," he responded, frowning a little.
Sassi propped herself on her elbow. "Do we need to rouse the team and go over there?" She reached for her top and pants.
Qui-Gon continued to frown. "No," he said at last. "Let me wait for a few minutes and see if I can rouse Obi-Wan. If I can't then we'll go look for them."
Sassi nodded and snuggled back into the very warm blankets beside Qui- Gon. Her eyes remained on his face, concerned and wide.
Qui-Gon lay back down and sighed. He wondered what had happened to Obi-Wan and hoped it hadn't been anything too serious.
Qua hurried back toward camp when she heard the dull explosion. She knew that Lucas was accident-prone, but she had hoped by tactfully getting Obi-Wan to stay with him that things would be safe. As she hurried up the hill and saw flames licking at the central tent she felt her heart sink. She must have been wrong.
"We've got to see if they're okay," she shouted over the now-dying wind as she sprinted toward the tents.
Obi-Wan!Qui-Gon sent after several, very long minutes. He sighed when there was no reply. "Sassi. Let's go. We have to wake the rest of the team."
Qua peered through the smoke and flames to try to find the two people who had to be in the tent. Quickly, she spotted one of them lying sprawled nearer the door than the other. "Help me!" She screamed as she rushed into the tent. She and Greon took a shoulder each and pulled the young man out of harm's way. Flames ate at his clothing and Qua frantically patted them out in the snow, revealing a chest that was badly burned from fire, bits and pieces of some metal imbedded there. Obi-Wan Kenobi was unconscious. "Take him to his tent," she barked as Jebthia came running up with Lucas' body in her arms. There was no hope to save the young researcher—he must have been at the brunt of the explosion. Qua closed her eyes in mourning.
Qui-Gon set the ship down close to where the other team's shelter had been set up. Smoke was billowing and flames were shooting out of it. His breath caught in his chest. Obi-Wan.
He unstrapped from the chair as soon as he touched down, and dashed toward the ramp, waiting impatiently for it to lower.
Qua met him at the bottom of the ramp. Tears rolled down her cheeks, though she managed to say in a reasonably calm voice, "The explosion happened about an hour ago. We thought that you might come." She sniffed, her light skin paling further.
"What happened?" he questioned anxiously, worry for his padawan eating at him as he saw the tears pouring down her face. He couldn't contact Obi-Wan. Their bond had abruptly severed.
Now Qua's voice did break, and she did not look at him, nor at the other team members who had joined them at the bottom of the ramp. "Lucas was fiddling with something and it exploded in the central tent. He didn't make it. Obi-Wan..." She hesitated, then glanced up at him, choking on a sob. "We don't know yet."
Qui-Gon headed for the shelter running as fast as his bulky clothing would let him. Sassi was right behind him. He had to find Obi-Wan. He had to be alright. He choked as the smoke billowed out of the shelter as he entered.
"He's not there!" Qua shouted from behind him. "He's been placed in his tent. Second down the left row..."
Qui-Gon abruptly turned around and headed in the direction she said. He entered Obi-Wan's tent, and his heart fell into his stomach at what he saw.
Obi-Wan lay on his portable sleepcouch, his hair in disarray around his face, his Padawan braid singed. His chest, face and arms were covered in puss-filled third-degree burn bubbles. At first, he did not seem to breathe at all, then a very slight rise of his chest showed that he was in fact alive, though hanging on for all he was worth.
"Oh, Obi-Wan, what happened?" Qui-Gon whispered to his unconscious padawan. He went over to him and gently took his hand, sitting down in a chair next to the sleep couch. Obi-Wan?He sent again into the Force, hoping the boy would feel that he was there.
No answer. Sassi slowly walked into the tent and put her arm around Qui-Gon's shoulders in silent support. The padawan looked so fragile laying there, barely breathing. Finally, after several silent minutes, she whispered, "Can you help him any?"
Qui-Gon sighed deeply. "No. I can't even reach him." He stood. "He's not responding. I'm going to go meditate for awhile and then I'll be back to check on him."
"Be careful!" she called after his retreating back in the dark of the evening, then turned to Obi-Wan. With a sigh, she sat down next to him and gently held his hand. "You must get better!" she whispered to him urgently. "You must!"
Qui-Gon sighed as he headed away. He needed to get a clear head to try and figure out where to go from here. He hoped the Force would give him some guidance.