Rating: PG-13 ß-- just another warning that I've upped it one here.
Note: Ciria: Where the heck do you live? It's just as well, then you aren't constantly tortured by the taunting advertisements every time you pass by the cereal section. And don't feel stupid about what you wrote; I love it when people are weird like me :) This should answer some of your questions too. Antigone: You called me hun ::wiping away a tear:: sorry, got some dust in my eye; that is so sweet! Thanks for your review too! I hope I can keep you interested :) Aneiki-Rose: LOL!! I like Liam Neeson, however Qui Gon I will admit I was a little pissed with about the whole Anikan dealio. However, I wanted to keep a nice Qui in this one, so Yeah :) Shanobi: Ventilation shafts… yeah there's more where that came from, hee hee hee. About Obi, I plan on taking care of him… sort of… okay, so I promise he'll be all good in the end :) Liyanette: You have no idea mwahahahaha :) Rieyeuxs: I don't know; I've still got a pretty short braid. It may be a while before I get enough experience to cut it off and be a Knight :) Cascadia: ……… I am so at a loss for words at this moment. Excuse me, I think I've got some more dust in my eye. Thank you so much for your kind words!
Chapter 4Pitch black. That was all initiate Obi Wan Kenobi had seen his entire trek through the ventilation shafts. He knew there had to be other openings somewhere nearby, but so far he hadn't found any. He crawled on though, intent on not letting Master Yai'De and Master Qui Gon down. He had no clue as to what it was the Creche Master had placed in his trust; he'd seen her pull it out once or twice, but didn't pay much attention. It didn't matter though. Master Yai'De gave him a mission and he was going to do it! --Bang-- Obi Wan cried out as his head ran into something hard in his path.
"Ow." He half whined as he rubbed a hand against his forehead. From the tinny echo it was obviously something metal, and pressing his tiny hands against the cool, smooth object confirmed it. His little fingers played over the obstruction, searching for a way to possibly move it out of his way. His fingers passed over a small button, accidentally pressing it down. A small whirring sound activated from the object and two red lights blinked to life. Obi Wan sat back, slightly startled. The object started moving, or growing rather as far as he could tell in the now dimly red lit shaft. He saw something in the form of a head lift, the two red lights looking at him.
"Identify." Came a metallic, tinny voice.
"Um… hi. I'm Obi Wan Kenobi and I need to get by you."
The machine paused a moment. "You do not compute. Prepare for annihilation."
Obi Wan's face scrunched up in confusion. "Huh?" His eyes suddenly widened as the machine extended another limb; a limb holding a blaster. He may only be four years old, but something about being asked to sit still while something blasted you sounded ridiculous even to him. Obi Wan turned himself around and crawled as fast he could back the way he'd come. He heard a brief high-pitched noise of the blaster preparing to fire when a he had a strong, sudden urge to turn left. He did so without thinking, finding himself inside another shaft; one he had obviously missed in the dark. He saw a brief flash of red whiz by the shaft opening he'd just passed through and decided going back probably wasn't a good idea.
He hesitated going farther down this new path until his ears picked up a high screeching noise of metal on metal… coming closer to him. He hurriedly crawled forward. Glancing behind him, he saw the two red eyes peer around the corner, finding him.
"Prepare for annihilation." The tinny voice of the droid ordered again as it raised its blaster.
"Stop!" Obi Wan cried as the blaster lit up. The droid suddenly slammed against the back of the opening, the blaster shot hitting the wall. Obi Wan didn't hesitate, he turned and crawled as fast as he could down the shaft. Suddenly the ground beneath his hands disappeared and he fell forward; tumbling down a vertical shaft until he slammed into the ground with a loud thud that reverberated along the metal walls.
Obi Wan remained where he landed, dazed, and in too much immediate pain to deal with his surroundings. Small whimpers escaped his throat as he did his best to breath. He felt as if his lungs had taken on a life of their own and absolutely refused to let him breath. Finally convincing his lungs to work, the four-year old bit his lip to try and stifle the pain radiating through his entire body. Another whimper escaped as he tried to lift his head. He didn't want to move, everything hurt, and he just simply wanted to lie there and wait for someone to find him.
His attention was suddenly torn from his quickly disintegrating emotional control when a distant noise quietly echoed off the walls. Suddenly finding the strength, Obi Wan lifted his head and listened, hoping it wasn't the machine. The sound came again, only it wasn't a mechanical sound, it was voices… human voices! Obi Wan suddenly remembered the small device in his hand; happy he hadn't dropped it during his fall. He remembered his mission and decided maybe the voices could help him find Master Yoda. He painfully pushed to his knees and slowly crawled towards the voices.
Following the deep insistence within him, he turned a corner and found another passageway; only this one was dimly lit further down. He crawled towards the light and found another passageway to his left, a bright light coming from the end of it. He rubbed his eyes, waiting a moment until he could properly see again without the blinding haze that happened when one walked out of complete darkness into the bright of day. He heard the voices, louder now, not as muzzled from the echo. Finally he made it to the end of the passageway, a metal grate stopping him. He peered through the slots discovering a well-lit room with ivory marble flooring and white walls.
"I think it came from in here sir."
Obi Wan almost called out as he saw a group of men enter the room. Again though, that strong urge formed inside him; telling him to stay put. He frowned confused now. He dearly wanted to get out of the dark passages and into some loving arms again, but he also knew… felt with his entire being that he should stay put.
The men, all armed and looking a little edgy were circling the room while one of them who seemed to be the leader followed a man towards a second door at the far side of the room.
"The lock's been tampered with sir."
"Any movement on the other side?" the leader asked, his eyes warily scanning the room. The other produced a small device, holding it up to the door.
"Captain, I'm picking up a life sign."
The leader snapped his fingers to quiet the rest of the men. He looked at the man holding the device again. "Where?" he whispered.
The man seemed to stop breathing and his eyes locked onto the leaders. "He's practically leaning on the door." He whispered. The Captain stilled and then looked to the door. "I think he's listening to us sir."
Suddenly the door on the other side of the room slid shut. All the men swerved, their guns taking aim at the door. One of the uniformed men cautiously approached the door and tried opening it.
"It's locked." He quietly announced.
"Obi Wan! Can you hear me?" Obi Wan jumped, startled at the sudden voice coming from his hand. His back hit the side of the shaft creating a deep metallic thump. Obi Wan pulled the com unit to his chest to try and muffle the voice coming from it. "Obi Wan, it's Qui Gon, just speak into the device and I'll hear you." Obi Wan looked out the grate slots again, seeing the soldiers inside now looking at the ventilation shaft… looking at him. He knew these men were Temple Security guards, and he shouldn't fear them, but that strong feeling inside him told him not to let himself be found.
Suddenly they were all swallowed in darkness as the lights in the room went out. The room was completely silent, still and tense. A soft whoosh signaled one of the doors opening; quickly followed by the sound of something small sliding across the floor. The sound of the door whooshing shut again immediately followed. Without warning the lights came to life again. Nothing in the room had changed except a single metal disk in the middle of the room. The guards, wide-eyed, scanned the room, their weapons trained and ready for anything.
The Captain took a few slow, cautious steps towards the metal disk. He knelt down, looking it over. A click was heard and then a thin metal piece extended from the center of the disk, only a few inches tall. The Captain leaned back, still staring at the object. Something akin to a small force field abruptly appeared around the disk, followed by a small whirring noise. The Captain eyed it another moment before jumping back.
"Get out." He warned his men. "GET OUT!"
Suddenly laser blasts filled the room, all coming from the disk. The Captain stumbled backwards into the wall as a bolt hit him in the chest; his body sliding down the wall, leaving a blood trail in its wake. The other guards tried to take aim at the little device, but the shield deflected their efforts. The room was littered in deadly red bolts, scorching flesh and slamming into arms, legs, chests, heads; their armor proving little protection.
Obi Wan watched in horror as the men locked inside the room cried out in terror and pain, firing their weapons at the walls and running, trying to get away from the blasts. He jumped back with a cry as a hand slammed against the grate, a face appearing, screaming for help and fingers grasping at the grate, trying to find an escape. Obi Wan was frozen to his spot in fright. Suddenly the man's head slammed against the grate as blood spurted all around him, some coming through the grate and splattering the terrified four-year old inside. The silenced body fell from the child's sight.
After a few very long and grueling moments, the massacre ended. An eerie silence engulfed the room. Obi Wan sat frozen, his breath caught in his throat, in complete shock and fright. He could see the slaughtered bodies scattered about the room, some with their eyes still staring open in shock; blood dripping from the walls and pooling on the marble floor. A small whimper slipped from the child's mouth and soon his breathing was out of control; gasping harshly and too fast. Tears pooled in his eyes. Already the stench of burned flesh and spilled blood filled his senses.
Then he heard one of the door's slide open. Obi Wan did his best to calm his breathing and not make a sound. Through the grate his eyes fixated upon a large black form that stepped into the room, stepping over and around the bodies as if they were nothing more than trash in it's way.
When the dark-haired man reached the middle of the room, he stooped down and picked up the retracted metal disk, placing it within a pocket of his robe and then standing to full height. Only then did the dark man look at the massacred bodies splayed about the room.
"Know this," the man's voice was calm and smooth, "your deaths will mark a greater achievement."
Obi Wan's frightened eyes followed the man's every move.
"And in the circular room, the one will witness the death of many… and he will be found." The man murmured to himself.
"Obi Wan, I want you to stay where you are." Obi Wan jumped and pressed the com unit as hard he could to his chest, covering it with both hands to quiet the device. The rest of the message came out muffled, but still quite loud. His head shot up to see the man staring directly at the ventilation grate. Obi Wan didn't wait this time; that feeling inside was screaming at him to run. Immediately he turned towards the darkness and crawled faster than he'd even thought possible; his last vision being that of the evil man rushing towards him.
"Stop!" the man's voice echoed through the shafts as Obi Wan turned the corner. He thought he vaguely heard the sound of metal being torn; he must have ripped the grate off. Obi Wan turned another corner, having no clue as to where he was heading, all he knew was that he had to get away; away from that room, away from the bodies, away from the blood, and away from the man, whose voice he could still hear echoing off the walls. He turned to his right and found two red eyes staring at him. He cried out and jumped backwards. The droid he'd managed to escape earlier took in the small form and lifted the blaster. Suddenly the wall Obi Wan had backed into disappeared and a pair of hands ripped him from the ventilation shaft just as the droid fired.
Qui Gon Jinn yanked the little initiate from the shaft opening and pulled him into his arms. Yai'De quickly disposed of the droid still inside with one swift shot of the blaster still in hand. She turned to see Obi Wan crying out, pushing against the Master's chest; struggling to free himself.
"Obi Wan!" Qui Gon said loudly, trying to get his attention. "It's alright." He said as the child suddenly stopped. Large, frightened, blue-green eyes found his. "Are you harmed?" he gently asked as he noticed blood splattered on his tunic. He could feel the terror and fear pouring out of the trembling child. He tried to send soothing waves of the force to him, but the child was too overwhelmed for it to have much effect. Qui Gon took in the boy's dirty face, smeared by tears and colored with a few bruises. The Master's heart lurched as the child simply stared at him as if not sure whether he was real or not. Obi Wan cautiously reached out and placed a hand over Qui Gon's heart. His eyes looked up into the Master's; tears welling. The little initiate's chin quivered and his breath hitched in his throat as tears began to fall freely down his dirty cheeks.
Qui Gon took pity on the boy and drew him close to his chest. He ran his hand over the dirty, ginger hair and rubbed circles over the sobbing child's back, trying to soothe him. He glanced Yai'De who also had a few tears in her eyes, but more so, a look of shocked relief.
She took a deep breath and pushed her loose strands of hair back. "We should go."
Qui Gon nodded and followed the Creche Master towards the lift. His heart poured out to the child. Something more than just the droid had devastated the boy sobbing into his chest. He drew upon the force, surrounding him and the initiate with gentle caresses of warmth and love. He could feel little hands digging into his robes, gripping on for dear life.
Yai'De looked to him as they entered the lift. "Healers?" she asked, holding her hand over the lift command keys.
"No. We should inform the council. We'll contact the Healers once there, and have them send someone up." The Creche Master nodded and punched in the codes. "This goes deeper than just an attack on the Jedi… and I fear we've only seen the beginning." Qui Gon stated as the doors slid shut.
TBCNotes: Hey ya'll, I hope you don't mind my little notes at the beginning. I just like to respond to those who took the time to let me know how I'm doing and what they think. You all have been awesome and I owe you for all your kind words! I think my ego has gone up like 50% since I started posting this story. So thank you!
Note #2: Check this out!!! Another post in just under two days!! You guys are so spoiled… well okay maybe not. It's not like they're long chapters. Oh well, it was the thought that counted :)