Epilogue
The piercing suns of Tatooine beat down on the simple hut. Inside, Obi-Wan Kenobi sat waiting for the day to cool off as the suns set. Times like this had him wishing he had installed a cooling unit into the structure, but he never quite got around to it.
Moving to another part of the small hut, where it was just slightly cooler, he shed his brown cloak. To this day, he still wore the traditional robes of a Jedi, preferring them to regular clothes.
Out here, in the Jundland Wastes, no one would pay attention. No one this far out in the galaxy would recognize the clothing of a Jedi Knight of the Republic. And those that did paid Obi-Wan no mind. To them he was Ben Kenobi, a crazy old hermit living out his last days in the Tatooine wastelands.
Nothing special there.
As he moved, Obi-Wan's eye caught an old locked case. For a second he was tempted to open it and look at the contents. But, as always, he resisted the temptation with a shake of his head. Looking at what lay inside was still painful.
All these years later, Obi-Wan did not quite remember how he pulled himself away from Anakin. The duel took something out of Obi-Wan. It made him question everything he believed about being a Jedi. Every time he thought about that last day, the heartbreak came back as fresh as it had been that first time. He felt the pain of his former Padawan almost as if it were his own.
And he had left him there to die.
Had wanted him to die.
Obi-Wan shut his eyes, willing the memory to leave. The past. It had to be let go.
Now, years later, a new terror dominated the galaxy, second only to Emperor Palpatine. The appearance of his black mask was domineering enough to strike deadly fear into the hearts of the strongest men. The name was enough to make Imperials and Rebels quiver like sniveling children.
No one dared stand up to Darth Vader.
Obi-Wan knew, though, that out among the stars the small Rebel Alliance was devising plans to bring down the Empire. Out there was the one person who could end the tyrannical rule of Vader and his master, the Emperor. The thought that he might gain some salvation, for his actions on Mustafar especially, by helping this small rebellion kept him from despair. With a deep breath, he settled back in his seat.
Obi-Wan was a Jedi – one of the last.
He could wait as long as necessary for the call to come.
The End.
Thank you to everyone who read this story, and even more thanks to those of you who left comments. I appreciated all of them:-)