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"Master! Master wake up!" Obi-Wan was jerked out of his peaceful slumber by his overexcited padawan.
"Master, we're almost there!"
"Yes, that's good Anakin." Obi-Wan had to refrain from rolling his eyes. I definitely was not this annoying when I was ten. Obi-Wan groaned and stretched as he got out of his comfortable sleep-couch.
Obi-Wan joined Anakin at the window of the ship, while the pilot was waiting for permission to land. He was shocked when he looked at the Roden. It was a mass of deep-gray clouds steadily swirling. It was almost difficult to see next to the blackness of the universe surrounding the planet. If it had not been for the small patches of land that shone through the opaque clouds, Obi-Wan might have said that there was no planet, simply a swirling mass in the stars.
"It doesn't exactly look very inviting," Anakin muttered.
"No," Obi-Wan replied, "Not exactly." He just couldn't shake the odd feeling in his body.
The sleek ship finally broke through the clouds and arrived on a small landing pad.
The capital city of Roden, Atenn, was full of buildings that held the remnants of beauty and true artistry, but were covered by wood, metal, and it seemed, any other form of protection that the residents could find to protect their town from the cold.
When Obi-Wan and Anakin stepped off the ship, a gust of frigid air hit them, and they drew their long robes around themselves tightly, and they pulled their hoods around their faces to shield them from the wind.
"Where do we go first, Master?" Asked Anakin.
"We need to find the leaders of the Shadow League. That is our first priority."
"Where exactly are we going to find them?"
He is really starting to get to me. Obi-Wan was well known for his patience, but this mission was eating at him, and he felt sure of nothing. He knew that it wasn't the boy who he was mad at, but himself. He felt helpless and he didn't like the feeling. He just wanted some of Qui-Gon's wise and gentle guidance to help him in the right direction and to calm his nerves. "Come, Anakin."
"Do you know where to go Master?"
"When in doubt, Anakin, there never fails to be information in a bar."
"A bar?" Anakin exclaimed, "You want to find information for this mission in a bar!"
"Anakin, you will soon learn that the lowlifes and drunks of a city often traffic in useful information that they choose to share in shall we say, less desirable places, than others." Obi-Wan couldn't help but be amused at the surprised expression on Anakin's young face.
Obi-Wan couldn't even count all of the bars and nightclubs where he had found information on his missions with Qui-Gon. But nevertheless, it was a truth of the Jedi that, when there appears to be no path to take, follow the road to the bar and there you will find answers. An interestingly phrased piece of Jedi wisdom, Obi-Wan couldn't help thinking.
The streets of Atenn were practically deserted, save for a few stragglers, hunching their shoulders against the freezing cold and wind.
"Here, Anakin." Obi-Wan had just stopped abruptly at rickety door with uneven steps and a few lone drunks found easing their stomachs onto the poor ground.
"Lovely," said Anakin, stepping over the heaving men into the dusty bar, "absolutely charming."
"Anakin..." Obi-Wan warned, when truly, he was thinking the exact same thing. Obi-Wan tried not to sigh at the fact that he could feel another sigh creeping up his throat. He tried to gather his thoughts, motioned to Anakin, and together, they stepped into the dusty and crowded bar.
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The wave in the Force hit Obi-Wan like he ran into a wall. He glanced at Anakin to see if he had felt it, but his young padawan seemed not to have noticed it. Obi-Wan knew that whatever it was that was disturbing the Force was alive in this very room.
Obi-Wan glanced around the room and immediately realized that he would have to be careful. This is not a group that we should mess with..., he thought to himself. Most had their faces hidden in the shadows, and Obi-Wan could feel the eyes of many tracking his and Anakin's every move.
Thinking quickly, Obi-Wan motioned to Anakin, and they made their way over to the bar. Obi-Wan ordered the first drink on the list, and when the bar-master delivered the thick, mud-colored substance, Obi-Wan had to work to conceal his disgust.
Obi-Wan slid a packet of credits across the bar. As silently as possible, he whispered to the bar-master, "Shadow League?"
The bar-master looked at Obi-Wan with interest for a fleeting moment, and then resumed his stern expression and jerked his head towards a dark and dusty corner. Obi-Wan nodded in acknowledgment and gratefully abandoned his drink.
Obi-Wan glanced at Anakin and together they sat in rickety chairs in the shadowy cornet. The strange presence in the Force was now practically smothering him.
The movement in the shadows was slight, but it was just enough light for Obi-Wan to glimpse a young face with piercing blue eyes. Obi-Wan was surprised to realize that the girl could be no older than Anakin, but he could not see her whole face because her hood was raised.
"So...Jedi. I must say, your type are pretty rare out here." The girl said this very quietly, and there was a twinkle in her shockingly blue eyes. "In fact, I would go so far as to say that the last time Jedi were on Roden, was so long ago, it may not have ever even happened." She grinned slightly, held up her drink, toasted the Jedi, and tipped the whole of the blue substance into her throat.
"The name's Sarah Walterr. You two can call me Sarah, but don't tell the others...they'll think I've gone soft." Her grin widened as she gazed interestedly at the Jedi. "So, do you two have names, or do the Jedi just go by intimidation?"
Obi-Wan was instantly captivated by this girl. The Force was drawing him to her, and he felt it swirl around her more powerfully than any Jedi that he had ever met. He was amazed. Around Sarah, the Force was pure and clear and perfect. Obi-Wan could feel the clarity of the Force seep into his soul, and he drank it in. The darkness that had been slowly clouding the Force since Qui-Gon's death felt lighter here in her presence.
A thought suddenly struck Obi-Wan. A thought more powerful and more frightening than any. What if...no, it can't be. Get a hold on yourself Kenobi! But, Obi-Wan could not shake the feeling deep in his bones. There was something about this girl...the way the Force surrounded her...
Anakin glanced at Obi-Wan, confused at the peculiar expression on his Master's face.
Can't he feel it? Obi-Wan thought.
"I'm Anakin Skywalker," he glanced at Obi-Wan, wondering if he was angry that he had answered. With no response from his Master, he continued, "And this is my Master, Obi-Wan Kenobi."
Sarah nodded. "So, what can I do for you guys?"
Obi-Wan finally snapped out of his revelries and said, "We are looking for information on the Shadow League. The bar-master said that you could help us."
Sarah gazed at Anakin and Obi-Wan for a moment, and the twinkle in her eyes seemed to burn out, and the blazing blue was replaced with a dull cobalt. "That's funny, the bar-master normally doesn't say anything to anyone."
For a moment, there was only silence, but then, in the musty bar, over the dull clinking of glasses and muted conversations, was a noise that broke all of this. The howling wind shook the entire structure, and the pitter-patter of rain on the windows was oddly threatening.
Sarah's intensely blue eyes suddenly shone with a new fire. "The storm." Her voice was a mere whisper. "I must go. I'm sorry that I was not able to help you." She gave Anakin and Obi-Wan an apologetic glance as she rose from the table.
The rain was falling harder by the minute, and Sarah obviously wanted to get going as quickly as possible, but something invisible seemed to hold her back.
She looked back at the Jedi, and then glanced out the windows at the pounding rain. "Do you have shelter?" She asked the Jedi with a pointed expression.
"We will find something," Obi-Want told her.
"You don't have time. When the storm comes, it doesn't wait for Jedi." She paused, "You can come with me."
The Jedi glanced at each other as thunder and lightning began to present themselves ferociously. They raised their hoods and quickly followed Sarah out into the raging storm.
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