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Chap 9
Obi-Wan sat beside Rynik, rubbing his thumbs over his cuticles. He felt… lost. The whole ordeal had shaken the padawan to his core. And he had no one to meditate with, not his master, not Bant, not anyone. The closest thing he had to a friend was lying on the cot beside him, breathing deep and even. Obi-Wan felt a sudden onslaught of homesick, and buried his face in his hands. Where was he? Why was he so far away? He missed his master…
He wondered if his master missed him?
A warm hand cupped the back of his skull, and Obi-Wan flinched upwards. Rynik looked at him wearily, eyelids heavy.
"S'ok?" The pilot slurred.
Obi-Wan nodded, imagining it was his master who lay there, safe and sound and concerned. He shook his head, embarrassed at the thought and smiled thankfully at the pilot. But the Commandent's eyes were shut again, head tiled to one side.
"He's going to be fine, dearest," Galliya said softly from the entranceway to the small room. "Would you like some tea?"
"Yes, please," Obi-Wan said thankfully, casting one last glance to his bedridden friend and stood, following the tall woman out of the healers.
"Who is Spire?" Obi-Wan asked, walking beside her down the long spiraling corridors of the Embassy.
The older woman gave a soft sight, hands clasped before her as they walked.
"Spire has been in the service of Ghan for several years now, she is our Master of Arms, a general," the woman said, "She is devoutly loyal to the Scion, and serves as not only his advisor, but personal body guard at times."
Obi-Wan nodded, rounding a corner with the elder woman.
"How did she come to be here? She is an amazing duelist."
Galliya frowned. "Indeed. Her past is indeed shrouded in secrecy. I knew that like you, she was not from our part of space. Perhaps you should ask Lord Khas? He is sure to know all which you seek."
"Alright," Obi-Wan agreed, and followed the woman into what seemed to be a dinning hall. Ardemis and Khas were speaking quietly at the end of the long table, though both nodded to the boy and elder.
Obi-Wan sat a ways back, nodding gratefully to the young man whom brought him a tray of tea and small crackers. For the first time in many, many long months, Obi-Wan closed his eyes, and let down his shields, his protection.
In his mind, the training bond was frozen, frigid and cracked with ill use. Obi-Wan breathed on it, let his mind fill the causeway. He blinked and started violently when he felt something breathe back from the other end.
…./master/ he whispered.
"Obi-Wan."
The boy jumped, and looked up, startled. Bareli looked at him quizzically, taking a seat to his left.
"My apologies, sir, I was just thinking," Obi-Wan panted, rubbing his ear.
"All is well, my boy. Now," the lord said, glancing at Ardemis from across the room, "I first and foremost wish to apologize for not offering proper protection. I do not understand the nature of whom wished you harm – but I apologize nonetheless."
The padawan shook his head in dismissal, taking a sip of tea – it was sweet and warmed his throat.
"I was in the conference room last night with several members of "management", if you will, when out of the blue, my general stood up and bolted for the door. Apparently she sensed danger."
"Is she a Jedi Knight, sir?" Obi-Wan asked intently.
Bareli leaned back in his chair, putting a hand palm down on the sheer wooden table.
"I don't believe she attained that rank, no."
Obi-Wan frowned. How can that be? What else could she be?
"Her story is a difficult one to tell. Plus, I do not know of her home, where you are from, nor the worlds of the "Republic". She has told me some of her past life. But I do not believe she was ever knighted."
The padawan shook his head. "She had to be, from what I saw, she is amazing with a lightsaber! That kind of skill comes from strict self discipline…"
"You speak as if you know what you talk about."
The boy nodded. "Often, when upset that my master was… not around, I spent my time training to distract myself."
"Indeed," Bareli nodded, sipping his own tea. "Well… she told me, she was, during her apprenticeship, well known for her rare skill with the double sided blade. She told me of how she used to participate in duels among students, of how her master allowed her to train with an ancient Jedi whom mastered the blade."
Obi-Wan blinked and inhaled.
"Oh, force!"
"What?" The Lord asked, frowning.
"Her name… Spire…" Obi-Wan looked at his hands, then back to the confused man before him. "Her name is Karin Enspire."
Bareli narrowed his eyes.
"How do you know?"
The boy looked down in thought, a smile lighting up her face. "I read about her in texts, the top duelist of her class four or five years ago and –" he squinted, rubbing his index finger on his jaw, "I don't remember what happened to her."
"Her master died."
Obi-Wan's eyes shot upward, meeting the elder man's. … He thought back to the night he looked into the records, of padawans….
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padawan Karin suffered injury alongside her master. Their attempts and negotiation on the moon of Jaongar II proved a failure. The uprising caused a cataclysmic event in the republic of the world, and three separatist groups rallied against the dominant political group. War ensued, and Master Jedi Arkken fell in defense of the commandent leader of the republic of Jaongar while Padawan Karin continued the defense of the civilian sector on her master's orders. … Upon return to the Jedi Enclave, Padawan Karin remained for her master's funeral, but disappeared shortly afterwards. / warning – whereabouts of student unknown / -
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"She disappeared. Like I just did."
Bareli nodded. "I sense many similarities between you two."
"She didn't seemed thrilled to see me."
The Scion chuckled, the firelight casting shadows over his aging face. "She comes off that way at first. It took her a long time to trust me." Bareli touched his hand to his chest. "She has had a painful time in recent years."
The boy nodded. "The death of a master or of a padawan is terrible."
The king huffed, crossing his legs. "Especially in her case. She blames herself everyday. For not getting there fast enough, for not being good enough. She keeps it all to herself, but its there, that even I can sense." He sighed, pinching his nose. "There is so much I don't know about her. She is so strong, so proud. I know she would sacrifice herself in a moment for me, or for any of Ghan."
"She… uses the dark side of the force," Obi-Wan said in a hushed voice. "I- I think she did? I haven't any experience –"
Bareli leaned in close, tipping his head downwards. "Spire is a wounded creature, Obi-Wan. There is much pain that lives in that heart. I know that before she came here, she was in… a bad crowd. But I also know that the love she carries for her master still, after all these years, and the love she carries for me is enough and all I need to know that she is on the side of good." He said the words with such conviction that Obi-Wan realized that perhaps the girl was not a dark Jedi after all. Bareli's eyes traveled upwards, and the padawan turned his head –
Spire entered the room, made eye contact with the pair. A look of displeasure flashed across her face but then it was gone, and she was making her way across the floor. She held herself with a quiet dignity, no emotion in her movements.
She sat slowly across the table from her leader and the boy, resting her hands loosely before her. She nodded, her voice tired. "Sire. Padawan."
Bareli extended his hand to her. "This, padawan Kenobi, is my Master of Arms, Spire. Spire, I believe the boy would like to have a few words with you." Despite the fact that Obi-Wan sensed she really did /not/ want to do that, she nodded.
"Yes, sire."
She turned her eyes, her cool grey ones meeting his of ocean green.
Obi-Wan chose his words carefully, curling his toes in anticipation.
"You're Karin Enspire."
She tongued the back of her molars, looking down briefly before meeting Obi-Wan's gaze. "Yes. Though I would prefer that you just refer to me as Spire. It's a good a name as any."
He nodded, sudden adrenaline burning his chest. "I'm – a huge fan, though that's not the reason for my wishing to speak to you, Ma'am." She glanced at Bareli, who sat contented, sipping his tea. She nodded, blinking heavily.
"I… left the Order."
"Obviously."
"It was such a fast thing, one moment I was there and it seemed the next, I was here."
"Why did you leave?" she asked monotone.
"My master… I felt that I did not deserve him anymore."
Her eyes narrowed. "Who is your master?"
"Qui-Gon Jinn."
She swallowed, eye brows rising sharply. She sat back, crossing her arms over her armored chest.
"Why do you feel you are unworthy of your master?"
Obi-Wan slowly, then gaining momentum, told the story of the last few months. Despite her cool demeanor, she gave the padawan her full attention, listening intently without interruption. When it was over, the young boy sat still, though she could feel the tremendous emotion swirling within.
She sat silent for a few moments, seemingly gathering her thoughts. Obi-Wan tried to calm his tense nerves and took a sip of now cool tea.
"Firstly – I do not believe your choice of actions was correct. Running away from your problems is never the answer. Yet, here I am, though our situations were hardly the same. So I offer these words to satisfaction," Spire said, straightening her back, a small crack audible. "I honestly believe I have an idea as to why your master is acting in such a manner."
The boy blinked, hands tightening on his cup.
"You said that what you felt to be your actions caused risk to Tahl, correct? I know for fact, that Jinn has strong feelings towards her. Plus – you almost abandoned him. I have not seen the Master in many years, but I remember clearly the pain of Xanatos's betrayal. I am sure that did not bode well for your relationship."
Obi-Wan dropped his head. Spire sighed. "I am not blaming you for your actions. Master Jinn can be extremely wise in the force, but at the same time be completely oblivious to what's right before him. And for that man to accept another padawan," Spire leaned forward, looking deeply into Obi-Wans eyes, "Must mean that you are one very special boy." Obi-Wan swallowed thickly, ignoring the pinprick of tears behind his eyes.
"Now," Spire said, leaning back again, "I'm going to go ahead and say that the Jedi order, despite their good ratings and public view, are not infallible. It doesn't surprise me that this has occurred – the masters are not as omnipotent as they seem. But you could have gone to Yoda with this. He's a good creature and could have told you exactly what I've told you with a far smaller fuel bill of getting you here."
The padawan felt a sting of guilt, the kind he sometimes felt when being scolded by his own master.
"But then, I would never have met you."
Spire raised her eyebrow, and huffed, looking off to her left.
"Perhaps it would have been best that way. I didn't ever expect to be found by a Jedi here."
"You don't consider yourself a Jedi?" Obi-Wan asked, confused.
A dark look passed over the woman, and she turned her head slowly to face the padawan. He felt a shiver race up his spine.
"I ceased to be a Jedi the day I let my master die," She said lowly, eyes burning. Every nerve in Obi-Wans body tremmored, and again the padawan sensed the cold presence of the dark side emanate from the woman across the table.
He steeled himself –
"Are you a dark jedi?"
The last thinkable reaction to being accused of such a thing, laughter, burst from the woman, a bark of laughter that chilled him to the bone. She leaned forward again, and whispered –
"They only wish."
Obi-Wan shook his head, "I don't understand."
"I am neither good or evil, young padawan. I just… am. I serve my purpose, I do as I am told by a good man. If that is what it is to be a "light" Jedi, then so be it."
"But I felt it! The dark side lives in you!"
Spire straightened and crossed her arms again over her chest, staring at the boy. Behind her, a young woman replaced the teapot with a fresh batch, and Spire held her breath, waiting until the woman had retreated to continue.
"Then lets have a lesson. The "dark side" lives in all of us, boy. You must feel it, the heat of pain, something other than the cold of being forgotten by the one you hold dear. I use the dark side of the force just like I use the light – for me, it is but a tool to serve my Scion. But- it's chasing not me, but you, Obi-Wan Kenobi. If you choose to give in to the pain, let it consume you, and forget to find reason, those you call "dark jedi" will have found themselves a powerful ally. But ultimately, the choice, for now, is yours."
"For now?" He whispered haggardly.
"There were many dangers of leaving your temple, in such rash haste. The dark jedi earlier, the man who came for you did not come of his own accord. His superiors want you. Hell, they'll take any force user they can turn," Spire said nonchalantly, drumming her fingers on her armor plated biceps. "If they get you, things won't be so easy. Right and wrong won't seem so far apart and who knows what will happen to a boy like you with people like them."
Obi-Wan sucked in a deep breath, worrying over this new information. A moment or two passed in silence.
Then Spire laughed softly, "Don't fret so, padawan. While I'm sure Lord Khas has told you how similar we are and how much I can help you, I will affirm this: I will not let them have you. It's the least I can do for Jinn's padawan." With that she looked to her Scion. "Anything else?"
Khas opened his mouth to speak, but decided against whatever it was he meant to say. Glancing at the boy, he was pale and trembling.
"I believe this is enough for today. You may go, though I will see you later tonight."
"As you wish, Sire," Spire said softly, standing and stretching her shoulders.
Obi-Wan also stood, reaching out across the table. Spire paused and looked at the outstretched hand as if it were the possible carrier of some disease. But she composed herself, and took the hand, holding it firmly.
"I'm glad to have met you, Karin," Obi-Wan said softly, withdrawing the hand and following Bareli out of the common room. Spire squinted, rubbing the bridge of her nose wearily. She turned and moved closer to the fire, sitting heavily in one of the elaborately embroidered Ghanin couches. She tilted her head back and let her eyes fall closed, mouth slightly open.
"So, how did it go-o?" A smooth, deep voice asked politely as she felt the couch sink beside her.
"Glorious. I've got a fan club from half a parsec away."
Ardemis sighed setting his drink on the small end table, and leaned back, propping his head up with his fist.
"And how are /you/ doing?"
Spire swallowed roughly, lifting her head and opening her eyes, glancing at him. "I'm unsure. I feel, perhaps that my safe haven has been intruded upon."
"How so?" he asked, slipping his fingers into his dark hair, tapping his skull.
She sighed. "I don't know. I feel as if I have a home on Ghan, a purpose on Ghan, and most blessedly, a new life away from my memories here on Ghan. I find I do not like being reminded of the past."
He nodded, taking his hand and resting it gently on the back of the young woman's neck, and began to kneed gently. She dropped he head and let her eyes slide closed.
From outside in the corridor, Obi-Wan thought deeply on the conversation he had just been part of.
"That went rather well, yes?" The Scion asked kindly, handing his empty tea cup to a passing maid as they walked.
"She doesn't trust me."
"She doesn't trust anyone. Well, I am proud to say I believe she trusts myself, Ardemis and Galliya."
Grumbling, Obi-Wan thumbed his robes. "The Jedi Console would have a fit if they knew she was still alive, let alone using the dark side of the force."
Bareli looked at the boy in surprise as they walked. "Really?"
"Of course. The records show she disappeared without a trace some five years ago."
The lord clasped his hands behind his back, nodding, looking upwards while lost in thought. "How odd. I did not meet Spire until four years ago. I wonder what she spent her time doing. Perhaps, she was not even in this galaxy." The king shook his head and paused outside a door. "I believe someone was looking for you, Obi-Wan."
Bareli touched the keypad to reveal a disgruntled Rynik, sitting hunched over some papers at a work terminal.
"Rynik!" Obi-Wan said, delighted.
"Kid!" The man said warmly, and Obi-Wan entered the office. Bareli nodded, and headed out, letting the door slide closed behind him. The Scion stopped in his own office, gathering some documents and other things he needed to read that evening. He trusted the boy with Rynik – it was late, and much of the compound would be resting soon. The Commandent could take the boy for the night.
Bareli spent some time in his office, longer than he intended. Finnaly, after several hours of paper work and the like, he sat back in his large chair, looking at the small carving of the a feline that guarded his desk. He blinked, and rose, turning off the lights as he exited.
As the Scion headed back to the residential area of the structure, he pondered the conversation between the two students of the "force." He frowned to himself, pausing outside his officer's door. He palmed the doorkey, and stepped inside the cabin.
Spire's residence was sparse. A small computer terminal rested on her small desk in the main room, with a few ancient books lining the walls. A ill-used sleeper sofa faced a small holovid. Bareli continued into her cave of a sleeping room, for it was always dark. Ardemis sat beside her bed in a soft chair, his arms crossed in the darkness. The Scion wondered what they had been talking about before he entered.
He slowly lowered himself to sit beside her. She was silent, but he knew she was awake.
"How are you?" The elder asked, his deep voice soft in the darkness.
"Thinking."
"About?"
She paused, hesitant to reveal her thoughts.
"The past."
Bareli placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"What part?"
Even in the darkness of the room, her eyes found his and something flickered there.
"The dark part."
"The part you refuse to tell me about."
She shuddered ever so slightly, and Bareli only knew it because he touched her. She clasped her hands tightly together on her stomach. She closed her eyes briefly, then looked to her king again.
"I feel it in me, the darkness. The pain. There was a time… when I let it rule me, and I was but a tool for the darkness in us all." She looked away, to the wall. "It is the wish to make my master, my… leaders proud, to honor them that keeps me from becoming something horrible, I sense, sire." She clenched her jaw.
Ardemis leaned forward, and rested his larger hand upon hers.
"Your guilt haunts you," he whispered. "He would never have wished it upon you."
Spire made a soft noise, swallowing thickly. Bareli looked to Ardemis, who nodded.
"My child," Bareli whispered, "I thank the gods each day for your presence. It's a miracle you found your way halfway across the galaxy to us, how you've done it I still do not understand, but I do not question. I know I, nor anyone else in this world is the man you long for. But for as long as you wish to stay," he smiled, "We will always be here for you."
A small, rare smile lit Spire's face.
"You honor me, my lord."
"Fair night, my general. Please think upon my words." The lord stood and exited. Spire lay in stoic silence, her form rigid. Ardemis knew enough about the silent warrior to know she was upset. But as usual, she kept it to herself.
"Say, perhaps you would like to watch the worldspan with me? I missed it earlier today." She agreed, and wearily lifted herself from her bed. It was this time of night that memories of the past plagued you, whispered at you when you had no defense. He led her to the sofa and she sat as he activated the holovid, the news popping on with low volume. The elder man sat heavily beside her. Ardemis knew for fact that she ached, even now, the death of her master. He had his limitations, mostly placed by her defensive wall, but sometimes, like now, he could do small things to ease her burden.
In the quiet of night, a lost Jedi padawan's head dipped forward, and when snapped back, rested against the soft of a gentle man's arm. A hesitation – but it was allowed. Ardemis gripped her shoulder tightly and breathed softly.
Similarly, Obi-Wan dozed quietly on Rynik's plush couch, his hands twitching. The pilot kept an eye on the boy as he filled out paperwork, his least favorite thing to do. A few moments passed, and the Commandent was deep into the separation of hull segments and frames when a hurried sharp breath and the pained word, "master," broke his concentration. He frowned, and stood.
He knelt, his hand on the boy's shoulder, rubbing tenderly.
"Master," The boy said again, brokenly.
"Master," Spire murmured in her light sleep, the sound hoarse.
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Maul tried to intake as much air as possible, but it didn't seem to be doing any good.
He lay on the floor writhing, in pain. Beside him, two Sith Masters stood vigil. Again, Darth Sideous commanded a force spike, and one of the Sith placed his palm outward, again blasting the crumpled man on the floor. He gritted his teeth until his gum bled, but withstood the awesome pain without crying out.
"Enough. Rise, Maul."
Wheezing, the young apprentice stood shakily, his nerves still screaming.
"Your failure causes me much… concern."
"For-" Coughing, hacking, "Forgive m-me, Master. There was another with her, a Jedi-"
Sideous hissed, "I will take it upon myself to bring the little padawan creature here, to me. Obi-Wan Kenobi will see the error of his ways, and join us. It has been foreseen. Perhaps as my own apprentice, if you do not reach… higher achievements."
Maul bowed his head, silent.
Darth Sideous turned his head, blue and blurry in the long-range transmission. "Contact the other Sith Lords in your system. We have a galactic senate to wreak havoc upon. Perhaps when Kenobi's precious master tastes the blade of a sith and falls, the boy will… consider coming home."
Despite his injuries, a small smile lit Maul's etched face.
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A/N's
So, I was going to continue, but christ, 12 pages. O.o
Some things. First, and this in a pet peeve –
CAR-en / EN-spire. Think/say it right. :)
Also, when I designed my characters looks, here are some casting things. Bareli Khas would be played by patrick stewart. Ardemis by Alan Rickman. Galliya, Sigourney Weaver. Rynik is kind of the brunette rouge – perhaps Gerard Butler? No Scottish accent though. Spire? Imagine Spire as the part of yourself that's lost someone. And Spire's master, probably…. Someone like Sam Neil.
I know there was a lot here… more action-y stuff coming next Thanks for reading! More twists and turns ahead.
S