Down the Wrong Path, Chapter 3
What is being human, after all?
"So, once more, I find myself in a metal cylinder," Obi-Wan mused, unable to scratch his beard in annoyance, or even fold his arms as he so prefers to do in these situations. But his brow, that he could still furrow. "At least there are none of those blasted bugs this time."
And at least this time it wasn't dark. Light streamed in through slits along the ceiling, that much he could see. Now he knew the shape and size of his new cylinder. From where he lay frozen on the ground, he couldn't tell whether or not these walls had those holes from whence the insects came. The Force wouldn't be able to tell him that either. Even if he could sense it, let alone use it.
It was a very peculiar feeling, again, not being able to sense anything through the Force past his immediate body. Worse than not being able to move, he'd experienced that numerous times before. This was a feeling of emptiness, and of being smothered in some slick gelatinous ooze that prevented him from touching and feeling anything past the slimy covering. Of course, that had happened to him before as well, much to his young apprentice's amusement. This time was worse. He couldn't just step into the vibroshower to wash it off.
If he wasn't such a Jedi Master, Obi-Wan might actually feel a tinge of fear. As it was, he was only mildly annoyed.And not being able to scratch his beard or fold his arms only made that worse.
So the venerable negotiator lay flat on his back, arms at his side, watching the light inch across the ceiling. He hummed musical scores that had always been so important to him growing up. He replayed memories of battles and friends from long ago and watched them as if they were holo-vids, smiling and cringing at the events as they unfolded in his mind. He watched Darth Maul battle Qui-Gon. He watched Anakin battle Dooku, and then came Yoda - he still marveled at watching the little fellow burst out into his acrobatics to face down the centuries younger Dooku. Various battles during this war against the Separatists. Funny how they all seemed to be the same battle, over time and through the distance of memory. Even a Jedi's memory.
The problem with memories, though, is that they go so damned fast. He'd manage to go through his whole lifespan of interesting events, and the cylinder was only beginning to turn dark. He knew the planet's cycle. He had been out of contact with Anakin and the squad for ten hours now. Surely his young friend had regrouped with the squad and was patiently and thoroughly combing the islands looking for him.
He had nothing to worry about...not that he'd worry.
"Keep away from me!"
A rush of air whipped out from around him, pushing the damn buzzing horde away from him and his lit blade. Every single time Anakin ignited the saber to cut through the blasted jungle so that he could actually look for Obi-Wan, the damn insects would swarm around him. It was getting beyond annoying.
The Force-push was a temporary respite, and Anakin unleashed his saber into the forest to cut a swath in from of him. Let the insects follow the blade. Another buzzing caught his attention. Anakin picked his comlink from his belt.
"Commander Skywalker, we have picked up a faint homing beacon, from General Kenobi's comlink. Is everything all right, sir?"
Shit, I forgot to tell them. Way to think straight, Skywalker.
Anakin took a deep breath. Should he alert the squad now that he had lost Obi-Wan? They'd want to join him in the forest, but that would mean distracting them from finding Dooku. And that could mean letting Dooku escape.
Fist flexing, he wondered what Obi-Wan would do.
A Jedi's mission is for the greater good. Personal concerns are a distant second to this.
Luckily for Anakin, finding Dooku was both for a greater good and a deep personal concern, and one that the squad could quite handle themselves. In the same sense, finding his mentor was also both, and one he was certain he could handle all alone.
"Captain, continue with your survey," Anakin responded, voice even. "General Kenobi's safety is my concern."
"As you wish, sir, Captain Jaetao out," was the crisp and even more even response.
Anakin summoned his lightsaber back, shutting it off far before if got to him to keep that damn swarm away. He'd managed to cut a path deep into the forest, which was rapidly becoming darker and darker the further in he looked. He'd been walking for hours. Obi-Wan's lightsaber hung heavy on his belt, slapping his thigh mockingly.
There was nothing. No sense of his friend. Normally the bond he and Obi-Wan shared made the older man glow in the Force, a beacon of all that the Force was supposed to be. But that light had gone out.
Trudging deeper into the forest, he felt it welling up, the old memories, the old pain, so crystallized in his soul. Not again. He told himself over and over after the Tusken camp, not again, to anyone. Let alone the man he cared the most about in the entire galaxy. So he kept calm by telling himself it was just this planet, the weird Force cloaking at the edge of his senses, keeping him duller than normal. And Obi-Wan was probably unconscious, which turned his beacon into a dim glow. So finding him with these dull senses only exacerbated this state they found themselves in.
But dull senses, an unconscious Jedi Master, and a dark forest were not about to stop him. This planet wasn't big enough to keep Obi-Wan from him.
And Obi-Wan was not dead. He would make sure of that.
Obi-Wan was bored. Bored, bored, bored, bored, bored. This wasn't normal operating procedures for abduction. Someone should have been in by now to interrogate him, torture him, kill him. Or at least feed him. His stomach wasn't numb, and it sure was grumbling. The last time he ate was while they were in orbit. He had rations in his belt pouch, but they might as well be a parsec away in his current state. If it was Dooku's men who took him, they were being very negligent in their conduct towards prisoners of war.
Oh well, could be worse. At least he wasn't in energy bindings this time, rotating like the latest landspeeder model for sale.
A scraping noise, from behind him. Obi-Wan craned his eyes, but all he could see was the ceiling. He stretched out with the Force, and felt a rush - a warm glow of life, as if someone had just thrown up dark curtains to let in the sun.
"Are you awake?"
The voice was light, halting, and not quite human. It was only basic Basic, as if spoken by a child for the first time.
"Yes, I am awake," he replied, just as slowly, and realizing now how dry his mouth was. "Can I have some water?"
The scraping noise returned, and as quick as it came, the warm glow of the Force disappeared. Aha, so it is something about this cylinder...
A face appeared into his line of sight. It took a moment to recover from the surprise.
The face was a human, a young woman. And she reminded him of Padme. Same thick, long, soft brown hair, tied into braids to frame a round face with large, brown eyes that held so much innocence he thought he was seeing, well, something beyond human.
She knelt beside him and cradled his head in her lap, holding it as she tipped a waterflask into his mouth. Obi-Wan drank eagerly, his eyes never leaving hers. She took the water away, and began spoon feeding him something soft, green and surprisingly sweet. He'd ask about it later. Right now, he just ate. After the first spoon full, he probed her for information. Unless the droids had come up with a very good form of disguising themselves, this girl wasn't one of Dooku's.
"Are you a human being?"
She kept feeding him, like a girl would feed her pet gremial, her head cocked to the side.
"What is being human?"
Obi-Wan smiled at the way she talked. "Well, I am human."
Her brow furrowed, head cocked further. "If you are Human, how can I be?"
It took a moment, but he understood her confusion. "No, my name is Obi-Wan, and I am a human being. It's my, my people."
"Oh, then it is my people, too!" she responded happily.
"But how? Xaantins are not humans."
"What are Xaantins?"
"It's the name of the people who live here."
"Oh, yes, they are my people, too."
Obi-Wan thought he was getting an idea of what was happening. "Do they look like you?"
"No, they are different."
"I see." Obi-Wan didn't want to press further, afraid that the conversation would become too hard for the girl to follow. But he'd bet a thousand credits in a sabacc hand that she must have been from some downed craft and adopted by the Xaantins. And if they could treat her nice - actually, looking closer at her, her face was dirty and her hands shook. He could even see fading bruises around her wrist, half hidden under the rough clothing she wore. Perhaps keeping her with them was as nice as the Xaantins thought they needed to be.
"What is your name?"
"Eyuria, they call me."
"And a lovely name you have. How long have you been with them, Eyuria?"
"How long?"
"Yes, um," Obi-Wan paused to quickly remember the cycles of the planet, to find a way to translate what he meant to her. "How many full moons have you seen?"
"I have seen them all."
Okay, getting nowhere, negotiator. "Do you remember a time when you were not here?"
"There is none."
Well, that tells him something. "Eyuria, can you help me?"
"I give you water, food. Do they not help?"
"And I thank you, very much. Can you tell them I will not harm them?"
Eyuria dropped the spoon into a bowl, and set his head down, somewhat abruptly, as she got up.
"They do not trust you. You are dangerous."
"Dangerous? Wait, Eyuria, I do not understand."
"You are powerful. Like the other."
The scraping noise returned, and the warm glow again reechoed across his being, momentarily jarring him out of the present moment.
"And like me."
And then she was gone, the opening again closed, and his connection again severed.
Only then did Obi-Wan fully realize what she had just said. He was dangerous because he was powerful. They knew he could use the Force, and so they put him in the cylinder. And like the other - did they mean Dooku? Did they think he was in league with that Sith? Well, if they didn't have much contact with Jedi or the universe at large, being a primitive civilization, then why would they think differently?
And like me? Did that mean, Eyuria was Force-sensitive? Or was it just because he was human, too? Were they hurting her? Were they planning on doing the same, or worse, to him?
A flicker of impatience washed over the Jedi Master. He'd had just about enough lying around on his back all day. Too many questions, and now a young woman in possible need of his help.
If only he had his lightsaber. He flexed his right hand, aching to grip the metal handle.
Wait. He flexed his hand, and his fingers actually moved. Even without using the Force, there was a definite tingling in his right hand. Now that he focused, it was in his left hand too. And his feet! He could wiggle his toes!
Obi-Wan let out a sigh, his lips turning up into smile.
Okay, back to being patient.
Eyuria leaned against the hut, head bowed, gripping the waterflask and bowl tightly. She closed her eyes and concentrated. It took only a moment to come out of the trance. When she opened her eyes, the disguise was gone. And she saw Elder Chief Tamolok glaring at her, thick arms folded across a massively formidable chestplate.
He hissed when he spoke, which was only natural for a Xaantin speaking his natural language.
"Who is it?"
"It said it is human, named Obi-Wan, and it is a male," she hissed back, slightly bowing herself in the Elder Chief's presence.
"He is powerful?'
"Yes, lord, I could sense it. He may be more powerful than the other."
"Then he will be useful to us," Tamolok sneered, happily. "Did he see you?"
"No, lord, I believe he is contained."
"Good, then you will be the first."
Eyuria stiffened. It was meant as an honor, to be called upon for such duty. Especially as a princess to the tribe. But she dared not let her father see the fear in her eyes.
"I will honor you by taking him as my first."
"Go, prepare yourself. The effects will soon wear off, and you will need to be strong."
Eyuria bowed deeply, and remained stooped over until she heard the rattling of Tamolok's bone ornaments. With her father gone, Eyuria sank down against the hut, her eyes reflexively drawn to the stars sparkling through the canopy overhead, to where he must have come from.
That human had looked so deeply into her eyes, how could he not have seen? Or did he? Did he know what was going to happen to him? She could feel his power radiate off of him, warming her like a bonfire. How could he not have seen?
And what would he do when she came back, to take him as hers?
She shivered, but bit her lip and rose to return to her hut to prepare. She was a princess, one of the daughters of the Elder Chief, and the most powerful of her sisters. She was given a great honor to serve her people. She would not let them down.