Chapter 8 The Descending Path
"Boba, where is the path down?" Obi-Wan asked.
Boba pointed out into the open area beyond where the first shot had hit, well lit in by the rising moon, "That way." Boba answered resignedly.
"Alright, give me that box of slugs in your knapsack." Obi-Wan instructed.
"Why?" Boba asked as a slug hit the rock above him.
"No questions; just do it." Obi-Wan ordered.
"Yes sir, geez." Boba replied as he began to dig through his knapsack.
"What are you going to do, Master?" Zak asked after another slug hit the snow to his left.
"Create a diversion." Obi-Wan told him, pulling the slug thrower from his shoulder.
"With that? You don't even know how it works." Boba protested.
"I'm a quick study, I'll figure it out." Obi-Wan said as he examined the weapon closely.
"Well, here are the slugs; for whatever good they will do you." Boba said, laying the box at his feet.
"Thank you." Obi-Wan said without looking up, "Now, I want you both to be ready to go."
"Wait, go where? Master Kenobi, you're not planning on staying here are you?" Boba questioned.
"What I do is not your concern. I want you and Zak to get off this summit as soon as you can. I will use the slug thrower as a diversion. I am quite sure that whoever is shooting at us probably knows I have this, but he may not think I know how to use it." Obi-Wan answered.
"That's because you don't." Boba told him.
"Well now, that is not entirely true." Obi-Wan replied as he opened the slug chamber and popped two of them in.
"Alright, so you figured out how to load it; so what." Boba said.
Obi-Wan responded by turning toward the direction of the shots, putting the butt of the weapon to his shoulder and squeezing the trigger. 'BAM' and Obi-Wan fell back as the recoil of the slug thrower hit him, "Well, it does have a kick." He declared, smiling.
"Wow; I take it back, maybe you do know what you're doing." Boba admitted.
For several moments, there were no more shots; this was enough to convince Obi-Wan that it was possible for Boba and Zak to get to the path if Obi-Wan could keep up a steady barrage.
Confident that he now had some idea how the weapon worked, Obi-Wan turned his attention to Zak. Removing his gloves once again, he begins to massage his leg, "You know what you have to do, don't you?" He asked.
"Yes, Master; get down off the summit, find the Chancellor and tell him to send the Clones up here to help you." Zak answered calmly.
"I know you do not want to leave me, but right now, it is the only way. You do understand this?" Obi-Wan continued as he worked.
"Yes, Master." Zak assured him.
"Right; Zak let me have that pocket slug thrower." Boba interjected.
"No, Boba; you are going with Zak." Obi-Wan countered.
"Huh uh, Boba Fett is not a coward." Boba retorted.
"Neither is Zak." Obi-Wan replied.
"I didn't say he was; someone has to go get help, and he's the one you chose to do it." Boba answered.
"And you are injured; both of you must get off this summit now." Obi-Wan insisted.
"He's right, Boba; how long do you think you will be able to use that weapon when your arm is already injured?" Zak reasoned.
"I don't like running." Boba said.
"This is not running; it is a withdrawal." Obi-Wan told him.
"But you're not withdrawing." Boba protested.
"No, I am covering your retreat." Obi-Wan reasoned; he stopped working on Zak's leg and pulled the document out of his sack, "Here, you give this to the Chancellor."
Boba took it reluctantly, "Yes sir." He replied.
Obi-Wan nodded and turned to Zak, "How is your leg now?" He asked.
"Better, I think." Zak answered.
"Good enough to run a little way?" Obi-Wan asked.
"Yes, I think so, Master." Zak assured him.
He examined the chamber of the slug thrower; it looked as if there was room for ten slugs. He loaded them in, one by one, "I can give you ten shots; do you think you and Boba could make it to the path before I use them all?" Obi-Wan asked.
Zak looked across the expanse and then at Boba, who nodded, "Yes, Master; we can do it." He answered.
"Alright, then; let me know when you're ready." Obi-Wan said.
Zak took his hat off and handed it to Obi-Wan, "I think you're going to need this more than I will now." He said.
Obi-Wan started to protest, but the look on his Padawan's face stopped him, "Thank you, Padawan." He simply replied as he took the hat Zak offered him and Zak merely nodded.
It took them only a few minutes to get into position; crouched down near the edge of the mound, they waited for Obi-Wan to start firing.
"Alright, be ready, I'm going to shoot off the first slug." Obi-Wan announced as he hugged the weapon tightly to his shoulder; this time prepared for the recoil.
"We're set, Master….and Master, may the Force be with you." Zak replied.
"May the Force be with both of you, Padawan." Obi-Wan answered as he braced himself and squeezed the trigger, "Now, go."
At the sound of the shot, Zak was up and running; he did not have to check if Boba was with him, he could hear him breathing on his right. He set his sights on the place where Boba had indicated the path down was located. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Boba taking a slight lead, and he knew that the bounty hunter was guiding him to the exact spot. One shot hit the snow in front of them, but they did not stray from the course that Boba was setting for them. He heard four more shots, all closer and knew that they came from his master's weapon. He counted the shots and gauged the distance they had to cross. Two more shots and they were nearly to the path and the cover it would provide; one more shot rang out and Zak realized they had only a little more time before the one who was shooting at them could begin again. Boba must have realized this as well because he seemed to press on faster. Another shot and they were nearly at the head of the path. He could hear Boba's breath, ragged and labored and he could feel the muscles in his right leg tightening up again. Now Zak could see the path ahead winding gradually down, he pushed himself a little harder as the final shot rang out.
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"Something must have gone wrong; they should have come back by now." Bail Organa told his wife as he paced nervously.
"How much longer are you going to wait for them, dear?" Breha asked.
"I am not going to wait. I have already requested a Clone escort; we will go out to find them." Bail answered.
"Be careful, Bail; I do not want to lose you too." Breha said, embracing him.
He squeezed her tightly for a moment, "There, there; you must not worry. I will be back soon." Bail assured her.
"I will worry; until you and Boba and Master Kenobi and Zak are all back here." Breha replied.
"Then I will not be gone long." He promised as he pulled away from her hold and kissed her hand.
She walked with him to the entrance hall; Gemma ran to him as he was putting on his cloak, "Where ya' going, Papa?" She asked.
"I am going to see where your brother has got to." Bail answered.
"Can I come with you?" Gemma asked.
"No, not this time; it is very cold and dark outside now." Bail said.
"Oh, I don' like the dark." Gemma admitted.
"I know; but I promise I will not be gone very long." Bail told her as he picked her up and kissed her cheek.
"Did he go to find who kilt the 'rax?" Gemma asked.
"Yes, but, Gemma, how did you find out about that?" Bail asked.
"I sawed it." Gemma answered.
"But you couldn't have, honey; Master Kenobi had it all wrapped up in his cloak." Breha said.
"Oh, not then, Mommy; I sawed it when he was showing Papa." Gemma corrected.
"No, you were not with us, Gemma." Bail countered.
"Umm…Gemma peeked." Gemma confessed.
"Peeked?" Bail repeated.
"Uh huh; I was upstairs and I sawed out the window." Gemma explained.
"Well I am sorry, little one; Master Kenobi wrapped it in his cloak so you would not see it." Bail said as he handed her to Breha.
"I'm sorry, Papa." Gemma replied.
"That's alright; it was not your fault." Bail answered gently, kissing the top of her head and then kissing Breha. "I'll be back as soon as we find them."
Micah came into the hall, "Chancellor, the Clone escort you requested is waiting outside." He announced.
"Thank you, Micah." Bail replied, kissed his wife once more and then departed.
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As soon as he used up the last slug, Obi-Wan ducked back down and began to reload. He chanced a look to see how far the boys had gotten; he was surprised that it appeared as if they had crossed the entire space and were just about to start their descent. He heard another shot and felt the slug whiz past his ear before striking a rock behind him. He pushed the last slug into the chamber, closed it and then waited. Another shot hit the top of the mound and Obi-Wan moved up, shouldered the weapon, fired back and then waited, hoping the sniper would reveal himself. He wished that he had remembered to take the scope that Boba had brought out of the cave; it would have made aiming much easier. "Master, we have made it safely and are starting to go down." "I knew you could do it; find the Chancellor." "Yes, Master." Obi-Wan breathed a sigh of relief; at least they had made it safely away from the shooter, all they had to do now was climb down and find the summit. Boba had told them that this was the easier path and Obi-Wan was confident that they would reach to bottom safely. Then he saw it, a quick movement among the rocks above him, the sniper raising his head to get a bead on Obi-Wan; they both fired at the same moment.
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The path down was steep, but it was a far cry from the sheer face of the cliff they had scaled to reach the top of the summit earlier in the day. Zak's leg felt as if it were on fire; the muscles had begun to seize up and he forced himself to keep moving. Ahead of him, Boba clutched his upper arm as he led the way. As they descended, the air around them warmed and it became easier to breathe. At last, they were at the end of the steep path and climbing down from the lower reaches. Only when they had reached the bottom did they stop for a moment to catch their breath before heading back to report to the Chancellor. Zak rubbed his leg trying to ease his tired muscles. Boba looked at him, "Are you alright?" He asked.
"Yes, it's just a little stiff that's all. How are you?" Zak asked.
"Fine, are you ready to get going?" Boba asked.
Zak nodded, "We have to find the Chancellor; Master Obi-Wan is going to need help." He said.
"Yeah, come on." Boba replied and again took the lead.
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They took three speeders; Bail was in too much of a hurry to hike all the way to the summit. Within minutes, they had reached the foot. Bail sent two of the Clones to scout ahead and they soon returned to report that the area ahead had been buried by a snow slide and they could not get through that way.
"Oh no; they could be buried in there. We will have to start digging." Bail said, moving past the Clone and starting up the path.
"Sir, I don't think it would be very safe for you…" One of the Clones began.
"It does not matter what you think." The Chancellor interrupted, "Now, we have some digging to do."
"Yes sir." The Clone said as he followed the Chancellor with all but two of the Clones. They did not think to bring shovels, they would have dig by hand.
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Boba moved as quickly as he could; he knew that Zak's leg was bothering him and was reluctant to push him, but he also knew that the Jedi, Obi-Wan Kenobi, was still in danger up on the summit. They had heard several shots while they were climbing down and Boba wondered how long that one box of slugs would last. His arm throbbed, but he ignored it; he did not dare to look at it because he knew he could not afford to pass out now, not yet. It occurred to him that two years ago, he would not have even considered the possibility that he would have a young Jedi apprentice for a friend or that he would be working for the Supreme Chancellor of the Republic. However, he was happy with the change….happy; he had not felt happy since the death of his father in the arena on Geonosis. At that time, he thought the only thing that would make him happy would be to see Mace Windu's head lying on the ground next to his father's. But that was before; now he could see it as Windu saw it and as Kenobi had seen it. Jango Fett had been trying to kill Windu and the Jedi Master had only been defending himself. His father had been a violent man and it had taken another Jedi Master and his apprentice to make him realize that violence was seldom the answer to anything. Now, he had a family, if he wanted it…..if he wanted it. He thought of Lady Breha, adjusting the collar of his coat, telling him to come back in one piece. Bail telling him that he would be missed if something happened to him. Zak telling him they would always be friends. Master Kenobi telling him that he could make a difference. I'm sorry, Dad; you were wrong, he thought. He heard voices off to his right and stopped.
"Why did you stop? I don't need to rest." Zak said.
"We're not resting; listen." Boba replied.
Zak said nothing for a moment, "Oh, do you think it might be more of those hunters? They might be going up after Master Obi-Wan."
"I don't know; but there's only one way to find out." Boba answered as turned and moved toward the foot, hugging close to the rocks.
Zak followed without protest; if there were more hunters, he wanted to stop them before they reached the summit. They circled toward the voices, Boba leading the way until they were close enough to see them.
"Clones! They're Clones!" Boba exclaimed with relief. "It must mean that Bail is looking for us."
He moved away from his hiding place quickly and approached the Clones.
The Clone brought his blaster up until he recognized the figure coming toward him, "Boba Fett! Where the devil have you been? The Chancellor…" The Clone began.
"We have to see the Chancellor right away." Boba said without giving him time to finish.
"Well, he's up there." The Clone pointed toward the path they had taken earlier. "Apparently there was a snow slide; he thought you all had been buried. He will be very happy you weren't."
Boba took off at a run toward the path; Zak followed, ignoring the burn in his leg.
The Chancellor was on his knees digging into the snow when Boba spotted him, "Ba…Chancellor!" He shouted.