At last I have had some inspiration to add to this tale. LOL my apologies for the delay….Force willing the muse will continue to sing to me. :D Enjoy!
EIGHTEEN
The streets of Khuta En were a little less busy than when Iya and Qui-Gon had begun their search, for which Qui-Gon was immensely grateful; the initial experience of people walking straight through him more than a bit unnerving. He couldn't help but wonder once more what Obi-Wan had thought of these strange sensations.
"Anything?" Iya asked him softly, for what seemed like the thousandth time. She could sense the odd ripple here and there, but no direct contact with Obi-Wan, where it had seemed that for at least that small moment earlier Qui-Gon had actually gotten a sense of the apprentice through the bond, a specific communication. It was more than strange; she had been able to pinpoint Obi-Wan half a galaxy away but here on her homeworld could not gain a simple fix on his presence.
"No." He answered his daughter simply, truthfully…anxiously, despite several attempts to release his worry to the Force. Khuta En might not be the largest city he had ever been in, but it was certainly large enough. "We need a point of reference; we could spend months here and not find him."
A small ache presented itself at the base of Qui-Gon's skull, or where it would be if he had one in this plane of existence, and he winced a little. Just that quick, Iya was facing him, watching him with concern.
"Does it hurt, Dajo?" Her voice was soft, but urgent. He started to protest, but she shook her head. "Tell me the truth; if it hurts we must go back. I want to find your Learner as much as you do, but I will not sacrifice you to do it."
Qui-Gon hesitated just the briefest of moments. Surely he could withstand a little discomfort if it meant locating Obi-Wan and returning him safely. However, Iya's eyes clearly displayed her concern, and abruptly the small ache blossomed into a sharp pain and even in this incorporeal form he could tell it was an echo of his physical body, back on the balcony at the House Inais.
Suddenly there was a rushing sensation, like standing at the end of a wind tunnel and then all at once he felt as if he were falling forward and finally he was aware of someone carefully laying him down onto the cool permacrete balcony. Slowly bodily awareness began to return to him, and he could hear his own breathing, a bit ragged, and felt a slender hand against his face.
"Iya…" He murmured as midnight-blue eyes blinked open to take in the slightly blurred image of his daughter sitting next to him. Belatedly he realized that she had caught him as he'd begun to black out, and it was her sheer force of will that had kept him from losing consciousness totally.
"Sshh." Iya soothed gently, her palm still held softly at his cheek, her thumb stroking comfortingly against the beard. "Rest awhile, regain your strength. I told you soul-walking is not easy."
"But…Obi-Wan…our time is…limited." Qui-Gon found his voice was hoarse, weakened much as the rest of him by the extended effort they had made in seeking his Padawan.
"I will go out looking for him, Dajo. I won't give up on him, I promise."
"I want…I want to go with you." Something absurd about a father asking his daughter permission for something, even more so as a Jedi. Iya shook her head a little bit.
"Maybe later, but not until you've slept awhile; you're exhausted. You will be no good to him if you are hurt…or killed…trying to find him. This is a delicate and dangerous thing for a non-Walker."
Qui-Gon could see that there would be no arguing with her; she was as stubborn as her mother had been, perhaps even more so, and just as skilled at persuasion. He closed his eyes a moment, the feeling of solid floor beneath him was a welcome sensation.
Iya moved her hand now to his shoulder, and Qui-Gon looked back up at Iya once more, his vision more focused now. Wordlessly, she helped him to sit up, and they stayed like that for several moments.
"Thank you." He said at length, and Iya shifted a bit.
"Do you think you can stand up?" It was a moment's work; Qui-Gon felt blasted out, hollow, and he swayed unsteadily as he regained his feet. Iya quickly got an arm around him and steered him back into the room, past Obi-Wan's body and over to the long old-fashioned wood-frame couch that ran along the wall a few feet away from the padawan's bed. Qui-Gon sank down onto it gratefully, and Iya brought him a pillow, slipping it beneath his aching head. "Rest now, Dajo. I promise I will return soon. Hopefully Obi-Wan will be with me."
It wasn't like he could argue it with her; almost as soon as he felt the soft comfort of the couch cushions beneath him he could sense himself starting to drift, his drained body and mind demanding sleep of him. He blinked drowsily, still gazing at his daughter and then turned his eyes toward Obi-Wan's still form just a few feet away.
"May the Force be with you, Iya." Qui-Gon whispered huskily, and then his eyes closed. Mere moments later he was asleep. For a long moment Iya stood beside him, watching over her father with an expression both tender and determined. She would not fail him; she had taken his Padawan from him, she would return his Padawan to him.
Dropping down into a cross-legged position not far from her father and his apprentice, Iya allowed herself to drift back down inside, and then drawing herself out, to begin again to seek the Padawan for the Padawan's sake.
And for his Master's.
++++++
Obi-Wan wondered vaguely how long he had been here; time seemed to have slowed down, fragmented, ebbed and coalesced again into an unending boredom. It could have been just a few hours…or just a few days…or even a few months and he might never have known it. Well…all right, perhaps not months but the feeling of being cut off was…stifling, overwhelming. How long ago had it been since he had felt that gentle brush of his Master's mind? How long since had had heard the welcome news that Master Qui-Gon was searching for him?
How long until he would begin to lose hope that he would be found?
Pushing that thought as far back into the recesses of his mind as he could, Obi-Wan set himself to once again try to reach out into the Force to contact Qui-Gon. He was tired…as tired as he could be without a body, but it was…like a drained feeling, an exhaustion of the mind that he could not describe.
Slowly he set himself to meditate, to gather up as much strength as he could before venturing into the bond once more, and he allowed his mind to turn, to drift into the warmth of the Force, once again finding his calm center much more quickly than before, understanding that there were not any physical distractions to deter him from focusing.
He thought of his Master, pictured the strong leonine features, imagined the authoritative voice, and recalled the familiar feeling of Qui-Gon's presence through the bond or of a hand on his shoulder. Funny that he could remember what the felt like even though he technically had no shoulder at the moment. Obi-Wan allowed himself to dwell on that thought a few moments longer…it felt…warm, safe…reassuring. He wondered for a moment if he would ever feel Master Qui-Gon's hand at his shoulder ever again; even if his master located him, could they find a way to…to fix him? For a moment the young padawan's concentration wavered; he hadn't truly considered that since he'd left the House Inais. What would happen if they couldn't…blend him back together?
Even more troubling was his current captivity…he still was no closer to knowing exactly what Nacena Berayl and this member of the House Inais wanted with him. He had only gathered the fact that his master's life was in greater danger the longer he remained in the home of Roeh Inais Touko. Somehow he had to find a way to warn Master Qui-Gon; if only he could establish and maintain contact through the bond for just a little longer than before…
Obi-Wan tried to release his anxieties into the Force; it would do his efforts no good to dwell on his fears. Making a sound that was akin to a sigh; he stretched out, into the training bond and projected outward.
Master? Master can you hear me? Master Qui-Gon!
He wasn't sure if the silence he was met with was expected or not…but the slight sinking of his heart signaled his displeasure with it. Chiding himself for giving up so easily, he marshaled himself once again and reached outward. Master Qui-Gon…hear me. It's Obi-Wan! Master…hear me. Hear me. Obi-Wan called out again and again and again until, had he been crying aloud, his throat would be raw from the effort.
Slowly the cries stopped as his strength began to wane; there was only so much he was capable of in this plane of existence it seemed, and he was coming to the end of what was possible.
"It won't do you any good, you know." Obi-Wan refused to look up at his captor's approach, preferring instead to focus on a spot a few feet away, trying to shut out the taunting tone of her voice. "Oh, come now, Padawan Kenobi…only I can't really call you a padawan any longer…you're no longer confined to the Temple, or your own body for that matter…and you are no longer Qui-Gon Jinn's…"
That drew Obi-Wan's attention, and he tried not to show his distress. What did she mean by that? Was Master Qui-Gon all right, or was she merely referring to Obi-Wan's separation from him? He searched Nacena's face, received no answers, wished he could probe with the Force but remembered what pain that would mean.
Come on…come on…leave him alone already.
Obi-Wan tried not to react; he couldn't stifle the first, startled expression that stole across his incorporeal features but he hoped Nacena had not seen; had not sensed his surprise and recognition. Carefully he did what he could to control his thoughts, to layer in some sort of shields against detection. He knew that voice!
Nacena watched her "prisoner" from heavy-lidded eyes, like a feral thing waiting to pounce, inwardly scorning that cursed Jedi reserve. The apprentice did not rise to the bait, although he was meeting her gaze evenly and steadily as if he would pull the very thoughts from her head. Slowly she smiled as if in possession of a lovely secret and drew closer. Obi-Wan was not certain if it was his current state of being or if it was simply that she made no effort to conceal it, but he could almost see the roiling darkness that consumed her, the same black fingerprint he had felt before the House reception. She held his gaze a lingering moment longer, silently.
"What do you want?" He finally asked her, blunt and to the point.
"What do I want?" Nacena echoed him slightly and her eyes widened a little as if in surprise. "What I want, Kenobi, will be plain to you soon enough."
Wait. Please wait. Obi-Wan thought desperately, hoping that the brief contact of a moment ago hadn't been just some sort of fluke or a product of his overworked mind.
Hurry. Can't…hold much longer. Already the contact was fading.
Nacena regarded him just seconds more before turning away, her silvery laugh drifting back to him and setting him on edge. Obi-Wan waited a handful of heartbeats more before tentatively reaching out into the Force.
Is that…is that you? He realized he yet did not know her name. Tell me who you are.
I am Amagi Iya…Jinn. Your master is my father. Her voice was so soft and musical now, unlike the blindingly white pain of her earlier contacts, although Obi-Wan could sense the immense amount of work it was costing her in control. I can't…stay… Her voice was fading quickly.
Wait! Don't…I have to tell you…Master Qui-Gon is in danger! You have to tell him… Obi-Wan's thoughts spilled out into the Force like a stumbling child, and he waited anxiously for an answer, a reply, anything that would tell him his warning had been received and would be heeded.
But he was met with only silence.
Silence and an immense weariness. Quietly Obi-Wan settled down to await his fate.
++++++
It was a strange scene the Master Healer Obuk walked into when he returned to the room in which his young charge laid. Obi-Wan was still and silent, as before, the shell of his body existing on the thin thread that yet connected him to his true self, for there must yet be some connection remaining for his body to continue functioning. Qui-Gon was deeply asleep on the couch along the far wall, so deeply that Obuk could barely sense his Force-signature; it was like the Jedi Master was nearly comatose himself. Planing apparently took a lot of energy.
And then there was Iya Jinn. Well…maybe she wouldn't take her father's name but Obuk already looked on her as a Jinn. She had her father's stubborn will that was certain…she was sitting on the floor, in a heavy trance; Obuk could only guess that she was planing, seeking Obi-Wan's…essence, or soul, or…whatever it could be truly called.
He watched her briefly before crossing over to Obi-Wan, checking the apprentice over carefully, knowing that it was a fine line between life and death for the padawan, and that the balance must be maintained as long as possible to buy Iya and Qui-Gon enough time to find and "repair" the young Jedi.
"How is he?"
The quiet voice startled him and he looked up to see Qui-Gon slowly sitting up.
"Same." Obuk replied just as quietly, almost as if afraid of disturbing the girl meditating on the floor. He watched as the tall Jedi Master rose to his feet and crossed over to the bed, touching his hand to his Padawan's shoulder briefly, a small reassuring touch even though the boy could not possibly be aware of it.
"We are coming, my Padawan. Hold on for me…we will find you."
"He's stronger than we give him credit for sometimes, I think." Obuk gave his friend a wise look. "So far there has been nothing beyond that single seizure to indicate further trauma. And it seems to me that your daughter has an amazing gift. Along with inheriting the Jinn tenacity." The healer smiled gently. "I do believe she'll save your padawan's life."
"Tenacity?" Qui-Gon raised an eyebrow. "You're not usually so…polite, Obuk." Obuk's smile deepened.
"Everybody knows you're stubborn as a gundark, Qui. Just not everybody needs to remind you of it every ten standard minutes."
"Oh thank you very much, I feel much better." Jinn's tone was a little lighter; there was still the underlying tension, worry over Obi-Wan beneath it but the familiar light banter was a comfort in the middle of it, steadying him.
"You should probably sleep awhile longer." Obuk observed, his voice taking on the role of healer a little more than friend. "You look exhausted."
"I do feel better." Qui-Gon was quick to reassure, and indeed he did feel much more in command of himself than after his initial "soul-walking" experience. "And I promise I will be careful. But there is a greater danger than just my Padawan's missing…spirit. There is a Dark presence here on Bahreen, Obuk, and if it is allowed to go free, I fear that there will be grave consequences for the Order. I must find the source of this darkness if we are to succeed here. When my daughter returns," Qui-Gon spared a quick glanced toward the motionless girl sitting nearly in the center of the room. "Tell her that I will meet her below before the evening meal with the Roeh's family."
Qui-Gon rested his hand once more on his apprentice's shoulder. Obi-Wan looked so…small almost, lying so deathly still on the large bed. With a gentle squeeze at Obi-Wan's arm, the Jedi Master gave Obuk one more look of trust, and silently strode from the room.
"Force preserve you, Qui-Gon Jinn."
++++++
The gardens were always so peaceful no matter the time of day; the pressures of leadership and decision-making always seemed so far away here in this place. Inais Touko walked the paths of his home with a slow, appreciative step. His own Force-sensitivity was just at a level where he was aware of the beauty of life around him at every turn, the vibrations of life's Force-signatures humming around him. He had no true ability; for his daughter to have the sort of gifting the Jedi Master had identified there must have been a deeper influence from her mother's relations; many of her brothers and sisters had been adept-level users.
But he appreciated the thrum of life all around him and he drank it in, a peace that he knew the Jedi cherished as well. So it was that he greeted very kindly the figure of Qui-Gon Jinn as the honored Jedi Knight joined him on the garden path, falling into step alongside the Roeh and waiting for his acknowledgement.
"You have a unique grasp of our customs, Master Jedi." Touko said genteelly. "You speak our language, you know when to speak and when to wait…you honor the House in which you stay and I am curious, just how have you come to be so knowledgeable?"
It was a question that, Qui-Gon realized, his apprentice must also have been dying to ask, but to Obi-Wan's credit, the young Jedi had not pressed to reopen old wounds, despite the minor inquiry into Ina's holopic before their departure from the Temple. He was quite sure it would be an…interesting discussion to explain his daughter to Obi-Wan, to say the least. To explain…Ina. Returning his focus to the moment at hand, Qui-Gon merely inclined his head slightly, a gesture of respect.
"I…spent some time here on Bahreen when I was younger, and…I knew a Jedi Knight who was Bahreena."
"Knew?" The Roeh of the House Inais regarded him curiously, and again Qui-Gon made the small deferential nod before answering.
"She…was killed." He replied simply, not wishing to get into details.
"You have my heartfelt condolences." Touko replied honestly, giving Qui-Gon his own sign of respect, an upraised hand making a traditional Bahreena sign of blessing. "And you have been a welcome presence in this household, Master Jinn."
"Bash tai." Qui-Gon thanked him just as honestly. He waited a heartbeat longer. "With your permission, Roeh, I would like to talk to you about…this dark one you wished us to uncover."
"Certainly, Master Jedi." Inais Touko was quick to cooperate, something else that tended to lend him toward the trust end of the scale for Qui-Gon, although he remained alert and watchful. "What do you wish to speak of?"
"I'd like to ask you about the current political climate…" Qui-Gon prefaced carefully. "Since you believe there to be an informant in one of the major Houses, there must be some reasoning behind their actions, behind their alliance to the Dark Side of the Force."
Touko glanced up from the footpath now to regard the taller Jedi frankly.
"You also know how to ask the hard questions, I see." The slender Bahreena leader sighed a little. "As you know, Bahreen has served the Jedi Order for many generations, lending out children and our resources to the Anhri Jotar without reservation. In the last few years, however, there has been something of a…resistance movement to our support of the Jedi, advocating keeping our children rather than "sacrificing" them. Many of the smaller, less-well-supported Houses have taken up that line of reasoning; that they would do better to keep as many future citizens of their regions on-world rather than turning them over to what they advocate is an antiquated tradition."
"I see." Qui-Gon turned this information over slowly. If this was indeed the case, then the situation was that much more serious and more complicated than he'd even realized. "And what of the larger Houses? What do they say?"
"Most of them," Inais Touko indicated a small bench along the pathway and he sat, Qui-Gon taking the other end of the bench and gazing at him steadily. "Are too traditionally-minded for that sort of thinking. They are the Old Families, House leaders for generations for whom the proper way of doing things still counts for something, even if most of them have now abandoned a few things, like Bahreeni in favor of Basic standard as the language of the House, that sort of thing. But there are a few voices of dissent among some of the large Houses. Even…"
The Roeh allowed his voice to trail off as his gaze was pulled from the Jedi sitting next to him by another Bahreena male, slender and tall but shorter than Touko; however still bearing the stamp of the House on his features. Qui-Gon followed Touko's gaze and followed the Roeh in rising to his feet.
"Roeh?" He inquired politely. Touko glanced at him briefly.
"Even my own brother, Inais Idriah, speaks of such notions. Personally I find it very insulting."
Insulting? Qui-Gon wasn't sure if that was reassuring or not. After all, this was the very man who had refused his own daughter to the Order simply on the principle of tradition, that the eldest child would rule the House when the time came. While he felt he could trust the Bahreena Roeh, he still wasn't sure to what degree, and so remained silent, simply watching the approaching member of the House Inais alertly.
"Peace be on you." The younger Inais spoke first, and Touko returned the greeting. "I see I have returned to guests, brother."
"Yes…I present to you Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn. His Learner is the one in Bala's room; he's been injured and we are seeing to him until they return to Coruscant."
"Bala will remain with me; it is no trouble." A slight bow. "Master Jinn, Peace be on you. I am Inais Idriah, Third in Line and my brother's caretaker." The Bahreena gave his sibling a mischievous smile, and Touko merely shook his head.
"Peace be to you, as well." Qui-Gon answered smoothly, but watchfully. There was something…something that he did not trust about this man, and he carefully filed that observation away for further study. He would continue this conversation with the Roeh at a more opportune time but for now he observed the polite niceties of greeting and bowed deferentially to the member of his host's House. "It is a pleasure to meet you."
"It is always an honor to have…guests in our home. Welcome to Bahreen."
Qui-Gon couldn't contain the slight shiver that passed through his frame; there was a chill undercurrent in the voice that made him wonder just how sincere the youngest ruling clansman of the House Inais was being.
Perhaps Inais Touko had good reason to be distressed.