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CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
Obi-Wan lay awake, holding his head against his bent arm, gazing at the mother of his child. His son.
His hand shadowed over Padmé's sleeping form and lingered over the growth of her belly.
Three more months and you will be born. I wonder who you will look like? Me? Or your mother? Hopefully your mother! Obi-Wan grinned in the darkness.
We will have to wait and see young one. But one thing is for certain, you will be strong in the Force. Already I can feel your presence within it. You will be a powerful Jedi, my son.
Obi-Wan lightly placed his hand across Padmé's taut stomach and lay down to go back to sleep.
He was awakened some time later by the sounds of moaning coming from the fresher and was hit by powerful surge of nausea and weakness, but this time, there was also pain.
Staggering into the fresher, he found Padmé lying on the floor. Her skin was pale and there was traces of blood upon her lips.
"Padmé!" He reached down to lay his hands upon her brow and found it cool and clammy with sweat. He was no healer, but he sent a wave of Force energy through her body, ebbing away much of the nausea, but the weakness remained and so did the pain. Something was wrong.
"Padmé." He smoothed the silky strands away from her face. "I'm taking you to the healers. Can you grab onto my neck?"
"Obi-Wan...hurry. Something's wrong...with the baby."
Scooping her up into his arms, Obi-Wan reached out to the Force for assistance and rushed through the Temple halls, heading for the Healer's wing and Sokula T'Pal.
Dawn found Obi-Wan in an outer waiting area, head in his hands. He had found meditation impossible. The only thing he could focus on was Padmé and the baby. T'Pal had put Padmé into a Force-induced sleep, along with the baby so that they could both be examined in comfort. All Obi-Wan could do was wait.
A three-fingered grip to his knee startled him. So distracted was he, that he did not even sense Master Yoda's presence.
Obi-Wan's bloodshot eyes beseeched the gentle Jedi Master for information.
"Strong in the Force the child is. Know this, you do."
"Yes Master."
Healer T'Pal had approached to join the conversation. They were double-teaming him. Obi-Wan's heart began to ache as he realized that their news was possibly worse than he had imagined.
"We have done an intrauterine midichlorian count." T'Pal began. "The child's is over twenty-thousand."
"Twenty-thousand? But that's higher than..."
"Yes." Yoda confirmed his thoughts before he could speak them.
"What does that mean? And how will that affect Padmé?"
"We will do everything we can to ensure the safety of her and the child." T'Pal sat down on the bench next to Obi-Wan. "You must understand that since Padmé is not Force sensitive, the child is basically playing havoc with her body. Her blood pressure is not stable, her enzymes are abnormal. If we do not do something quickly, we could lose them both."
"What can you do?"
T'Pal shot Yoda a concerning glance and Yoda nodded in return, which worried Obi-Wan even more.
"We must inhibit the Force surrounding the baby and Padmé. It is the only way that we can stabilize her vital signs and assure a safe pregnancy and delivery."
"Inhibit the Force? But that will mean...our bond. What will that do to the bond?"
"Inhibit it as well. Difficult it will be, Obi-Wan, but necessary." Yoda assured him.
A momentary sense of loss flashed through Obi-Wan, but he quickly put aside his selfish thoughts and focused on the well-being of Padmé and their child. "Do whatever you must. Just don't let them die."
"We will do all we can." Healer T'Pal placed her long fingers on Obi-Wan's shoulders, gave them a reassuring squeeze, rose, and moved back into the treatment room where her patients awaited.
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"And what of the child?" The black-hooded figure addressed the blue flickering image of the Jedi that appeared before him.
"There was danger, but the child lives. A Force inhibitor has been placed on the woman. Her and Kenobi's bond essentially no longer exists."
"Good...good." The evil voice sneered. "Bring her to me. The child will be strong in the Force. He will be mine."
"Yes, my master."