Damn that Lando Calrissian! He's as impulsive as the rest of them! Imagine, tossing a thermal detonator into the garbage chute!
Obi-Wan knew he'd have to respond, or Luke would not let up, and he was wasting his time. So, he pressed the response button on his comlink with great regret. "No, Padawan, you must leave here with the others! I'm too badly injured; I'll never make it out of here in time!"
"I sensed you've been hurt. It's your leg? Can you get to the elevator? If you can get there, I'll be able to find you and get you to the launchpad on level 50," Luke told him. "Master, are you there?"
Obi-Wan stared at the elevator doors just across the hallway, and reconsidered his options. Did he really want to die like this? He'd be trapped in the collapsed building, under tons of rubble, to either suffocate or starve to death, and then rot away, aware of it the whole time! He drew a deep, shuddering breath, then said, "Alright, I'm going into the lift now..." He didn't manage to hear what Luke said after that, but Obi-Wan was confident that his Padawan would find him. Vader was right about one thing, he thought dimly as he dragged himself by his arms across the floor; there was definitely a Jedi bond forming between him and Luke. Well, that hadn't taken long at all.
Once inside the elevator, Obi-Wan tried to stand on his one remaining knee to reach the UP arrow button, since he was unable to reach the button for the 50th level. He hoped he'd be able to time it just right to stop the lift at level 50. His broken leg was bleeding badly, and now, the pain was throbbing. There was blood on the polished metal floor of the lift, and Obi-Wan tried vainly not to think about how bad this was becoming. Instead, he tried to meditate.
And that was when the lift shut down with a loud thud.
"What the..." Obi-Wan gasped. He switched on the comlink again frantically. "Luke! The lift has stopped moving! What's going on?"
"Master, I have a feeling that Xizor, spiteful thing he is, has shut down the rest of the lifts. What floor are you on?"
Obi-Wan searched for the display. "I'm between levels 44 and 45. That's it! You can't hang around here, Luke, you need to leave!" Obi-Wan said, trying not to choke with the disappointment and fear.
"No, I'm not leaving you here! I can get the elevator up to the the 50th level, but you'll need to cut through the doors with your lightsaber to get out. Can you manage that?" Luke asked.
Just like his father, Obi-Wan thought sadly. "Very well, if you must, but hurry!" Obi-Wan sighed, not wanting to waste any precious time arguing. He'd learned, from his years of experience training Anakin, that stubborn Padawans can be dealt with after the crisis was over. And if, by some miracle he survived this, he was going to be sure and chew Luke up one side and down the other for this! Just how was Luke supposed to get the lift moving, anyway?
Obi-Wan suddenly noticed the Force flowing around him. It was Luke! He had power at least equal to his father's, of that, Obi-Wan was certain. No wonder the Emperor was so keen to get his hands on Luke! Obi-Wan himself would never have been able to lift this elevator. And that was what Luke was doing. Obi-Wan had to trust that his Padawan didn't just make a big mistake trying to do this, so he concentrated instead on igniting his lightsaber and cutting a nice sized hole in the doors. He used a Force push to shove the melting metal out, so that he would be able to look out and up the shaft to see Luke's head peering down at him through the hole he'd cut in his set of doors with his lightsaber.
The lift stopped when it reached the other set of doors with the hole. They weren't aligned perfectly, so Obi-Wan knew he'd have to be careful not to fall through between the two sets of doors. Luke would not be able to give him any help, either, because he was using the Force to hole the elevator lift in place. So Obi-Wan braced himself, and used his one good leg to try and propel himself out.
He winced as his other leg, that painful dead weight, made one wrong move as he slid through the first set. Obi-Wan's heart pounded as he gripped the other doors and heaved himself up through them as well. When he finally fell through onto the duracrete floor of Level 50, he painfully sat up. Luke let go of the Force, and the elevator fell down the shaft.
"Master," Luke said, panting from that stunt he'd just pulled, "lean on me. The launchpad is just through here..." And with Obi-Wan on on side, and his lightsaber ready to go into the other, ready to deflect any shots that might come their way, Luke made his way to the Phoenix. Princess Leia was waiting anxiously for them by the open cargo hold, with her eyes nearly bulging out of her head. Obi-Wan tried to stand a bit better, but that leg was still as broken as it was five minutes ago.
The Force shuddered, and one instant later, so did the building. "Leia, the detonator went off! Tell Lando to get us out of here!" Luke shouted from halfway across the launchpad. Leia, thinking quickly, pressed the control for the tow cable while she told Lando to take off through her comlink. "Good girl," Luke muttered as he grabbed the tow cable and looped it around himself and Obi-Wan. It was just in time too, as the Phoenix lifted into the air, carrying Luke and Obi-Wan with it, as the launchpad's duracrete surface disintegrated under their feet.
As they began their reckless flight, a barrage of blaster fire rained down on the two hanging Jedi. The Virago, Prince Xizor's ship, was hovering beside the Phoenix, angrier than a hornet whose nest had been destroyed. Luke grit his teeth and tried to swing them both out of the way of each bolt. Obi-Wan had other ideas; he was getting Vader on the comlink. He's had just about enough of this Xizor fellow. "Vader do you copy? I know you're there, dammit, I can sense your presence!" Obi-Wan snapped.
"Wait, I'm just watching as a building is collapsing across from here..." Vader's metallic growl reported. "Unless of course, that's what you've been up to. It's not nice to leave me out, you know."
"I just knew I could count on you to, as usual, do exactly what I had asked you not to do! So, Vader, here's your big chance! I need you to get into your ship and get the Virago off our tails! Prince Xizor wasn't terribly happy with our redecorating ideas, I'm afraid."
"Is he trying to kill Luke?" Vader asked.
"Well, yes, he is. He's also trying to kill me, not that you care," Obi-Wan answered with a bit of sarcasm.
"I can sense you're in pain," Vader commented. "No doubt that's why you're in such a wonderful mood. Very well, I'll mop up after you lot, but don't expect this all the time. The Emperor might start to get suspicious..."
Obi-Wan was about ready to throw his comlink in annoyance, but he wisely refrained. Instead, he swung back and forth with Luke, as Leia operated the tow cable to lift them into the cargo hold. The door was still open, and Xizor's blasts were hitting near her as well. She took cover inside, but her safety was in almost as much question as thiers. He could sense Luke's anger at Xizor for shooting at Leia, and he was surprised to feel his own anger rising. She had no lightsaber to deflect the shots, she could get hurt! Obi-Wan ignited his own lightsaber, and as Luke swung them around, he bounced a few of Xizor's bolts back at him. Obi-Wan could see the Falleen's face, and it showed the rage they all were feeling at the moment.
A few seconds later, a second set of shots filled the nearby air. Luke gasped when he saw the TIE Interceptor bearing down on them. "Oh, now we're done!" he yelled.
"No, I called him here. Took him long enough..." Obi-Wan complained.
"Wait, is that...Father?" Luke groaned. He could even barely make the outline of Darth Vader's mask through the glare on the windsheild of the TIE. Luke felt the pull, the same one he'd felt when he was escaping on the Falcon from Bespin. He is coming to rescue us, see, I knew he wasn't all bad after all... Effortlessly, Vader weaved in and out of the air traffic, surrounding the Virago with warning shots, and at least the blaster fire from Prince Xizor stopped.
"Leia, be careful!" Obi-Wan called to her. For she was leaning out the door, gaping at the TIE shooting at the Underlord of Black Sun himself. Suddenly, she came to her senses, and continued towing Luke and Obi-Wan back into the ship. Thanks to Vader's cover, she was able to get them both safely inside the Phoenix and close the cargo hold door at last.
She hugged Luke, then looked down at the mysterious Jedi who had found her. Her heart began to pound when she saw his leg. "Guri?" she stammered.
"Yes," Obi-Wan answered. He hated seeing Leia so shaken; obviously, Guri had unnerved her more than most people ever did. "But we're all safe now, Princess Leia."
"And you've yet to tell me who you are," Leia commented. "As soon as we get you somewhere comfortable, you're going to have to explain why Luke calls you his master."
Obi-Wan was silent, though, as he was brought to one of the few built in cots that the Phoenix was equipped with. He was thoughtful, mindful. He'd sensed Luke's reaction to Vader's proximity through the Jedi bond. And he'd seen Leia nearly fall out of the cargo door. She might have felt the pull as well. He wasn't sure how he felt about this. What did it all mean?