Chapter 15
If only the Force was powerful enough to save us all. If only the Jedi were really invincible. Perhaps then, we wouldn't be headed straight for our doom. Perhaps then, we could save ourselves. If only we could just save the universe from ourselves. The universe is a cruel, cruel place. At every corner a villain exists. And for every bright soul that exists, there are a hundred dark ones there to sully their innocence. But let the light live on. Let the innocent survive. Make the cruel and greedy be aware. If you mess with the Cruciatus Animus, you mess with the balance of the universe. Then the light will outnumber you, and you will pay.
But to where did it lead?
Where was Arthenia sending him to? Would he find Obi-Wan this time, or would it be another clue?
As Qui-Gon walked down the alleyway, he suddenly became anxious. The adrenaline started building up in his blood stream. He grabbed his lightsaber, prepared for battle, until the object he longed to destroy was right in front of him.
Arthenia had lead him right to the monster that had started this whole thing. She lead him right to the monster that had nearly destroyed Qui-Gon in these past few days and to the very person who had made his Padawan a traumatized shell of a person.
Qui-Gon growled at the offending creature standing before him in the alleyway. It had yet to notice his presence.
Money, money, money, money, money. I'm gonna be so rich, then I can retire and live happily ever after in the great land of wealth and power. I can smell the money now and it smells a lot like…burning?
Helena jumped back just as a lightsaber grazed her fur. She came face to face with a furious Qui-Gon Jinn.
"How did you find me?" She growled.
"The force is a very mysterious thing. You should be more careful, Helena. Where is Obi-Wan?" To say that Qui-Gon was angry was an understatement. His eyes flashed dangerously, his lightsaber was held out before him menacingly, ready to attack. He wanted answers though.
"Like I'm going to tell you."
"If you know what's best for you, then you'll tell me where Obi-Wan is."
"Eat shit." Helena then threw sand at his face and ran for it.
Qui-Gon blocked most of the sand with his arm, but soon discovered that he was at a disadvantage. That one split second he wasted was enough to allow Helena her escape. That crazy creature could run like a cheetah. But Qui-Gon took off after her none-the-less.
She ran straight for the busiest street. It was market day. The streets were crowded with the citizens, but he was determined not to let her get away. He ran faster than he had ever before. Thank God for her bright fur, she was easy to spot in the crowd. He glanced up just in time to see her dash into an alleyway.
Believing that she was safe, Helena stopped in the alleyway, crouching behind a dumpster. Her breathing was labored as she regained her composure, but as soon as she began to relax, her spine began to tingle.
She rolled out of the way, just in time to avoid a sweeping blow from the sword of Qui-Gon Jinn. Helena pulled out her blasters and fired round after round off, but the Jedi Master rushed at her like a madman. A dangerous gleam settled in his calm eyes and the enraged Jedi attacked the bounty hunter. Helena ducked in time to avoid a sweep of his sword and she rolled behind him, catching him in the back with a strong kick. He stumbled slightly, but retaliated by twirling around and catching her with a vicious kick to her side. She growled before backflipping to avoid another kick. She took another step back, but her back connected with the wall. Qui-Gon had her cornered, but she wasn't about to give up.
She let him pin her to the wall. His rage had completely blinded him. He grabbed her throat with his left hand and began to squeeze the life out of her.
"Where is Obi-Wan?"
"He's dead. I killed him."
"You Lie!" He yelled enraged, tightening his hold around her throat. Helena's face had turned a dark shade of red as she struggled to breath. She was strangely limp in his hands, because she knew that she had the upperhand.
Qui-Gon never saw it coming. His rage at the infuriating creature had dulled his connection with the force. So when Helena kneed him as hard as she could in the crotch, the Jedi Master instinctively let go of her throat. Helena gasped briefly for the precious air that Qui-Gon had denied to her lungs, before bolting for the streets. She was gone before he could recover.
Helena bolted for the airport to meet the woman who was going to make her rich by taking that damn brat off of her hands for reasons she could care less about. She ran the whole way and never looked back.
But left in her wake was a devastated Jedi Master that had just lost his last chance at finding his apprentice.
Obi-Wan watched amazed as the chains fell from his wrists and the collar from his neck. He walked towards the door of his cell and was surprised to find it unlocked. In his delusional state, Obi-Wan believed that his spirit had walked through the door.
He continued walking, or as he saw it "floating" through the halls of his prison when he stumbled across Dei'ma. His body collided with that of the older creature. Dei'ma gapped at him, too startled to say anything. Obi-Wan's confused mind wandered why he hadn't walked right through Dei'ma. He was ever so slowly beginning to realize that he wasn't dead. And as Dei'ma approached him, his hand outspread to slap the injured Padawan, Obi-Wan instinctively put his hand up to stop him. He had been cut off from the Force for so long that he barely remembered what it felt like, but as a blue stream of energy fired from his hands effectively knocking out Dei'ma, Obi-Wan knew that wasn't the Force that did that. He wasn't about to stick around and find out what it was though. So he slowly picked himself off from the floor as his tired and abused muscles protested his every movement.
Walking out the door, Obi-Wan knew that he had completely lost it. He wasn't quite sure where he was headed to. He wasn't quite sure if he was dead or delusional anymore. He decided on dead because that was easier to believe, easier to accept. Thus as he took his first step out of the door, he was really embarking into the spirit world where he could become a new person, where he could start life over again, where he didn't have to have a troubled past, where no one new him. The vast horizon stretched out before him, his first new opportunity. Perhaps that was the best place to walk to, the best place to begin his afterlife.
He closed his eyes. A dozen wet little balls landed squarely on his face. It was snowing. I guess it snows in the Force, was the only thought that came to mind. His confused mind refused to believe anything else, so it walked forward, towards the never-ending horizon, towards his goal. Having forgotten everything else, he had one last thought on his mind. "I'm almost there."