Disclaimer and such in Part 1
Hey ya'll!! Sorry it took me so long ot get this up, I've been really busy with finals lately. BUT, now finals are over and I can finally write on a regular basis. Hope ya'll enjoy this chapter. Much thanks to Jedi Keladry for her beta-reading.
By midday Qui-gon, Obi-wan, and Padme were ready to head out to the secret, treetop hideaway that held the food Illyria had supposedly left for them. Keeping unnaturally silent, Padme walked behind her two closest friends as they made their way down the spiral staircase, all the while replaying in her head the strange feelings that had passed between her and Obi-wan earlier that morning. She didn't know why she had run away from her best friend's gentle touch, because in all truth she had enjoyed it very much. She was troubled, though, by the intensity his gaze had held. Never before had she seen him look at anything in the manner he had looked at her. In fact, she had never before seen anyone look at another person the way he had looked at her. Well, perhaps she had seen the same intensity in the gazes her parents would direct at each other, but no one had ever given her a look like that; so, she didn't know what to make of it. Indeed, she had been frightened, but not of the look itself; rather, she had been frightened of what it implied. Obi-wan had romantic feelings for her? No, surely that wasn't the case. Padme shook her head. As appealing as the thought of becoming intimately involved with Obi-wan might seem, she knew it was impossible. They were both Jedi. Which meant no love, no romance, no attachment, period.
She closed her eyes and tried to clear her head. Now was not the time to be thinking of such things: they had a mission to accomplish. Opening her eyes, she continued her way down to the ground, pushing all thoughts of her personal affairs out of her head.
They again reached the little sitting room quite easily and without incident. And for the third time since their landing on Iagone, Padme climbed the ridiculously tall tree and began to tie the two ropes to a study branch. When she had secured the knots of the ropes, she lowered the remaining lengths and walked towards the hidden doorway. Just before entering the door, however, she spotted three large, male Iagonians. They were fifty meters away, searching the distant tree branches. Flattening herself against the trunk of the tree, Padme studied their movements, hoping not to attract their attention.
As she studied them, though, her brow furrowed. Something wasn't quite right. She couldn't put her finger on what was bothering her about the three men, but a feeling in her gut was telling her that there was definitely something wrong. Glancing down to see how far Qui-gon and Obi-wan had progressed up the ropes, she racked her brain trying to figure out the reason for her unease.
"Force..." She breathed out in fear, as realization came over her, 'They hunt in groups of five!'
She turned to climb down and inform Qui-gon and Obi-wan that they needed to leave as soon as possible, but halfway through her turn, a pair of strong, furred legs swung from the branch above her and connected with her chest, sending her flying into the trunk of the tree.
Both Qui-gon and Obi-wan looked up at the loud, thumping sound Padme's crash made. Their eyes widened at the sight of two Iagonian males advancing on Padme's hunched form. Without thought, they tripled the pace of their climb.
Padme coughed as she tried to pick herself up off of the wide branch. The force that the two men in front of her could muster was surprising, to say the least. She reached for her saber, but her attackers were quicker. They roughly pulled her up by digging their sharp claws into her arms. Padme opened her mouth to scream, but the pain was so overwhelming, she couldn't utter a sound. Gathering as much strength as she could, she kicked out in both directions, hitting the men in their knees. They let go of her, but she barely had any time to move from between them before they were on her again. She fought as hard as she could, hoping desperately that Obi-wan and Qui-gon would reach the top of the ropes any minute, but she was no match for their strength without the Force. The three Iagonians in the distance hadn't yet noticed the fight that was raging between her and the other two men of their party, so Padme wasn't going to jeopardize that by calling the Force to her aid. Facing five of the men at one time, instead of two, was not something she wanted to do anytime soon. Especially when she was three hundred meters up a tree.
She was faring all right against the two men, but as she tried to block a slash from one of them to her face, the other kicked her in the chin from the other side.
Padme fell.
Qui-gon watched as the two Iagonians sent his padawan over the edge of the branch to fall to her death. Without skipping a beat, he reached out with one hand and grabbed her by the arm. The impact the stopping of her speedy fall generated caused both of them to slide down the rope a bit, but Qui-gon's left hand held on strong. When their descent ceased, Padme looked to her master and nodded. He gave her a quick smile and let go of her hand, allowing her to attach onto the rope below him. Continuing his climb, Qui-gon looked up just in time to see the two Iagonians calling to someone in the distance. It was then that he saw the remaining three of the hunting party.
"There is no possible way we are going to be able to do this without the Force." He stated matter-of-factly and moved his gaze to Obi-wan, who was still climbing determinedly towards their now five attackers.
"Padme," Qui-gon murmured as he halted his ascent, "follow my lead." He grabbed his saber from his belt and, for the first time in what seemed like forever, used to Force to propel himself to the branch to face the Iagonians. Padme, although bleeding and somewhat beaten, took hold of her saber as well and copied her master's actions.
Obi-wan watched as his two fellow Jedi tapped into the Force and landed in front of their attackers with their sabers lit and ready for battle. Smiling, he unhooked his saber and relished in the feeling of the Force flowing through him as he flew through the air to join in the fight.
The Iagonians seemed a bit surprised at the Jedi's capabilities, but nonetheless, reached behind themselves to produce weapons of their own. The three Jedi watched nervously as the five men each pulled out a small, metal ball. They didn't have to wait long to find out what the balls did, however, as one by one the Iagonians tossed a ball into the air and waited until each spun itself into a long, cylindrical item, almost two meters in length. The men reached into the air to retrieve their new staffs. Smiling maliciously, two of the men rushed Qui-gon, figuring that he was the leader and the strongest among the three, while the remaining Iagonians turned their attentions to Padme and Obi-wan, thinking that they would be easy pickings.
Qui-gon wasn't having much trouble defending himself against his attackers, but, much to his astonishment, his lightsaber had absolutely no affect on the metallic weapons the cat-like creatures were using. They might as well have been both fighting with primitive swords, for all that it mattered.
Padme and Obi-wan were also surprised that their lightsabers didn't cut straight through the metal staffs, but, like Qui-gon, didn't let that fact waver their concentration in the slightest. They stayed back to back to fight off all three attackers at once, figuring that neither one of them would be a match for two of the creatures on their own. The Iagonians seemed to sense that notion and promptly executed a plan to separate the two padawans. Two of them moved in directly facing either Padme or Obi-wan and attacked, engaging their lightsabers enough to allow the third man to move in from the side to try and make the two Jedi move away from each other. Unfortunately, their plan worked. Obi-wan and Padme both spun to their lefts, leaving them on opposite sides of the branch with three ferocious warriors between them.
Two went after Padme, hoping to get her out of the way so all three of them could take on Obi-wan, but Padme wasn't about to give up easily. She jumped from branch to branch, blocking all of their attempts to hit her with their weapons. Eventually, though, she found herself once again cornered with her back to the tree trunk. There was no escape to the right or the left, so Padme took a deep breath and let herself fall off the branch. Growling, the two men dug their claws into the trunk of the tree and began to follow her down.
Qui-gon, meanwhile, was faring well with the Iagonians against which he was fighting. He had successfully disarmed one of them, but that had only fueled the other to come at him with even more force. At the moment, he was being pushed towards the branch over the side of which Padme had thrown herself. He was blocking every blow the creature threw at him, but the thing had greater strength and was still pushing him backwards. Qui-gon felt a savage kick to the chest, and he steeled himself for impact against the tree trunk. But instead of the expected collision, he reeled into the hidden sitting room.
Illyria let out a scream as the Jedi master came crashing through the invisible door and tumbled over the large chair. This was definitely not the entrance she had been expecting from her guests. Regaining her wits, she quickly rushed over to Qui-gon to help him up. He accepted her help, but in the next moment pushed her aside as the Iagonian male came through the door, weapon flailing. Their fight continued for a few moments inside the room, but Qui-gon didn't want to cause Illyria harm so he made his way for the invisible door, continuing to fend off his attacker.
Once back outside, Qui-gon was joined by Obi-wan, who had, by then, disarmed and rendered his assailant unconscious. They briefly looked at each other, then glanced down to find Padme still fighting two men on a branch far below them. Instantly, they jumped backward and let themselves sail through the air until they came upon the branch on which Padme fought. Slowing themselves down with the Force, they landed on either side of their fellow Jedi.
Padme's attackers were surprised and worried at the appearance of Qui-gon and Obi-wan, but those feelings soon subsided as two of their fellow hunters joined them on either side as well. The Jedi were still outnumbered.
'This is a stalemate.' Qui-gon projected to the two padawans' minds with as much calm as he could, but frustration was evident in his tone.
An idea formed in Padme's mind. 'Illyria said they're afraid of the ground,' she sent.
Qui-gon and Obi-wan both gave her sidelong glances and then, looking at each other, nodded. Together all three Jedi stepped off the side of the branch and freely fell towards the ground two hundred meters below.
The Iagonians ears perked up in interest at the move their targets made, but almost immediately afterwards jumped to the trunk of the tree and clawed their way to the bottom to meet them. When they were a few meters off the ground, they leaped from the tree and landed with a loud thud on the soil in front of the three waiting Jedi.
"I hope Illyria was telling us the truth." Obi-wan murmured and increased his grip on his saber, waiting for the Iagonians to approach and attack.
Silently, the other padawan was thinking the same thing. If Illyria had misspoken, Padme knew that they might lose this battle. She understood now that she had underestimated the power of the Iagonians. They were more than a match for a Jedi. The reality of how dangerous their situation really was finally sunk into Padme's mind. With a breath, she quickly pushed out any ounce of fear that dared to creep into her being.
Figuring they had already won, the four Iagonian men grinned. Unlike they had done when they first engaged the Jedi, the men slowly walked forward in a row, like a squad of soldiers would march, gripping their metallic staffs tighter with each step.
They didn't get far, though, because within a matter of moments, they stopped their movements and bolted their ears completely upright. Their eyes widening in fear, they quickly looked behind their shoulders and dropped their weapons. In seconds the men reverted their weapons back into the metallic balls and, giving the Jedi a last murderous look, sprinted as fast as they could away from the scene.
Qui-gon, Obi-wan, and Padme gave each other nervous glances, all hoping that in their attempt to get rid of one enemy they hadn't given themselves a newer, more dangerous one. Their thoughts were interrupted, though, by the sound of something scraping against tree bark. Illyria was clawing her way down the trunk of the tree to meet with them. About a meter from the ground, though, she stopped dead in her tracks. When she heard a low growl rumble from nearby bushes, her face filled with fear. She quickly leapt from the tree to where the Jedi were standing.
"They're here." Panic was obvious in her voice.
The three Jedi didn't have much time to think about what her words meant, as the low growling became thunderous in their ears. They looked about trying to figure out where the sound was coming from, but they could see nothing out of the ordinary.
"Who..." Padme's sentence was cut off when a slight movement at the base of a nearby tree caught her eye. Transfixed, she watched as what she had thought to be a shadow slowly slithered its way off the bark and molded and remolded itself into undeterminable shapes, all the while moving towards the small group.
Illyria noticed the movement a brief moment later. With a gasp, she grabbed Qui-gon's hand.
"Run!" she screamed and started to pull Qui-gon with her as she fled for her life. Padme and Obi-wan followed close behind them, also frightened by the mysterious, shapeless creature that they could feel following them.
After they had run less than a kilometer, the creature's presence faded from their minds and sunk back into nothingness. Pausing to rest, the Jedi halted their movements, stopping Illyria as well.
"What....what was that?" Padme questioned between bated breaths.
Illyria didn't answer, but rather, simply looked around nervously. She obviously was too frightened to speak.
Qui-gon looked to Padme and Obi-wan. Whatever that thing was, they weren't going to get answers about it from Illyria while they sat out in the middle of the woods, hoping it didn't follow them.
"I...I..."Illyria stammered out, trying desperately to think clearly through her fear, "I need to to get back to my village."
She walked towards the closest tree and prepared to start climbing, but Padme placed a warm hand on her arm, stopping her completely.
"Illyria," Her eyes were pleading, "what about...what about the food?" They had nothing left at the tree house besides some tea and a few emergency ration bars. It would not last them thirteen more days.
Illyria's eyes seemed to focus then, and her tone grew more controlled.
"Oh, yes," She brought the pack she had slung over her shoulder to the ground in front of her, "it's in here." She then turned back to the tree and let loose one set of claws into the bark.
"But..." Padme continued after quickly looking through the contents of the bag, "There's only enough here for a few days, how will we find you in the future? They saw me head towards the hideaway."
Illyria sighed after a moment, and faced the group again.
"I do not know what to suggest to you, Padme." She looked to the faces of the other two Jedi, "Perhaps, you could show me where you are currently hiding, so I may bring you your food there in the future."
Qui-gon's eyes widened at Illyria's suggestion. Could they really trust her that much? She had saved them from the shapeless thing that had chased them on the ground, but possibly she had just been trying to save herself. There was so much to think about when answering her request, and he didn't know where to go with it. He looked to Obi-wan, but only found the young man's eyes brimming with his same concerns. He then looked to Padme, knowing that she was gifted with intuition. What he saw in her eyes was not what he wanted to see, though; it was trust. Trust in him and trust in Illyria. He crossed his arms in front of his chest and looked to the high branches, wishing he could ask the Force for help. Finally, he sighed and brought his gaze back to Illyria.
"I do not like this." he said gravely and turned to walk
in the direction the tree house, motioning for all of them to follow.
TBC...
OKAY TIME FOR BIG "THANK YOU'S"
JEDI KELADRY: THANKS SO MUCH FOR ALL THE KIND WORDS YOU'VE SAID TO ME ABOUT MY STORY. IT'S REALLY APPRECIATED! YEAH, A GUESS A GAME-SHOW HOST SMILE IS EXACTLY WHAT CANTON WOULD HAVE, LOL. THANKS SOO MUCH AGAIN FOR BETA-READING FOR ME!
SMENZER: HEY GIRL! A BIG THANK YOU TO YOU FOR, WOW, REVEIWING EVERY SINGLE CHAPTER! I ALWAYS LOVE IT WHEN PEOPLE DO THAT, HEHE. DOES THIS PERK UP YOUR CURIOSITY SENSORS IN REGARDS TO THE "VELACERAPTORS" (LOL)? DON'T WORRY YOU'LL KNOW A LOT MORE IN THE NEXT CHAPTER.
SASKIA: THANK YOU FOR YOUR REVIEW! I HAVEN'T HEARD FROM YA IN A WHILE! LOL, IF YOU HATE CANTON NOW, WELL, HEHE, YOU'LL JUST HAVE TO READ FURTHER.
SASSY-SATINE: THANKS FOR E-MAILING ME WITH SUCH
A WONDERFUL REVIEW! HEHE, YOU WEREN'T THE ONLY ONE WHO WANTED OBI-WAN TO
KISS PADME. I GOTTA HAVE THE ANGST IN THERE, THOUGH, OR ELSE WHERE WOULD
THE FUN BE?