Chapter Eleven

He had come, just like she knew he would. Her Jedi Knight with shining lightsaber. It couldn't have even taken that long, as she'd not been fed at all during her confinement. Well, she hoped that was just a temporal issue, not a tactic of torture.

Obi-Wan grasped her hand with his and led her out of the doorway of her cell.

"How did you find me?" she whispered. She looked around warily at the guards sprawled just outside the cell door.

"The Force."

"Who…who did it?"

"I don't know," he replied tensely, and his hand clamped harder on hers. "But I will find them and they will pay."

"Obi-Wan," she said carefully, a little frightened at his tone of voice and the wildness in his eyes. She was aware, not for the first time, of the physical power of this man. Along with his Jedi skills and that hard glint in his glare, she was sure that his arms could tear a human's head off. Something in her was both scared by this ability and comforted by the fact that he would do this for her. "Are you sure that's wise?"

He regarded her seriously for a moment. "You're right," he replied, sounding considerably more relaxed. His hand loosened its grip slightly, too.

They began moving swiftly, dashing down corridors and making sharp turns. On an empty stomach and with a headache returning, Padmé began to fail in her stamina. Wheezing, she eventually slowed to a stop.

"What's wrong?" he asked, concerned.

"I'm just…not doing well running," she gasped, sliding down against thestone wall as her wobbling legs gave way.

"Stay standing," he ordered, holding her up. "We can rest for a minute, but then we have to keep going. It's only a little farther."

"You're not evenbreathing hard!" she panted.

"This is nothing for a Jedi," he smiled, a little twinkle in his eye. Then, suddenly, he stood a little straighter and his gaze became unfocused. "We've got to go." Padmé nodded and pulled herself up, ready to run again, Once more, Obi-Wan led the way through criss-crossing corridors. They ran, ran, ran, and Padmé felt like she would throw up, collapse, and explode all at the same time. But Obi-Wan's hand reached back to squeeze hers every time she felt a little worse, and that was what kept her going.

Obi-Wan stopped abruptly in front of a staircase. They had passed many, but always had gone in a different direction. Now, clenching her hand, he turned to her and looked her straight in the eye, deadly serious.

"I'm going up those stairs," he whispered quickly. "At the top, behind that door, are two guards I must fight. Stay as hidden at the top of the stairs as possible, but be ready to run on my mark. Do you understand?" She nodded, trying to look as brave as he did butknew that she was scared to death. He pulled her to him and kissed her hard for a few seconds. "I love you," he whispered when they broke apart. Then he had leaped up the flight of stairs and was out the door before she had regained herself.

Followinghis instructions, Padmé crept up the stairs, listening intently for sounds of a fight. As she reached the top step, blaster bolts began ringing through her ears and fear began ringing through her heart. Then Obi-Wan was yelling her name.

"Padmé!"

She burst through the door and saw him deflecting bolts with his blue blade. Two men crouched behind shields about ten meters away, shooting with good aim. The close quarters and blaster bolts whizzing by made her feel claustrophobic and she wanted more than ever to throw up.

"The door!" Behind him, perhaps five meters, was a metal door that he was slowly backing towards. She mustered all her queenly courage and ran out, behind him, and through the unlocked door. In oneflurried but fluid movementhe deflected a bolt, joined her through the door, slammed it shut, welded the lock with his lightsaber, and grabbed her hand as he began to run.

"Only a little farther!" he yelled back. Her stomach still turned but she pushed the sensation from her mind. His hands, or maybe hers, probably hers, were slick with sweat and she had to squeeze hard to keep his palm from slipping away. In the background, somewhere, came the dulled ringing of blasters. Her legs ached from so much running, but something propelled her forward. Adrenaline…maybe the Force. She didn't think whatever it was would keep her going much longer.

"Here!" He ran up another flight of stairs and she followed. A flash of blue and there was a smoldering hole where the door handle and lock had been. They barreled through and were suddenly outside. Padmé stepped again, but her legs, as unstable as two blades of grass bending in the wind, finally gave way. Without a word Obi-Wan picked her up, ran to a landspeeder nearby, and dumped them both in. Within seconds, they were shooting away.

-

It took a while for Padmé to regain a normal breathing rhythm. Obi-Wan let his driving be guided by the Force as he focused his attentions on the woman in the seat next to him.

"Are you all right?"

"Yes…I think so." Her voice was weak. He looked over at her. Face smudged with dirt and plagued with fatigue, dress ragged at the bottom hem, hair knotted and tangled…he had never been so glad to see her, and she had never looked so beautiful to him in all the time he'd known her.

"They didn't hurt you, you're sure?"

"Yes. I had a headache, but I don't think…" she drifted off. He glanced over again and saw her eyelids weighed down with exhaustion, but she kept trying to open them.

"Darling, sleep. We can talk later."

She smiled, eyes closed. "I love you."

"I love you too."

She fell silent and he drove on, letting the day's emotions and experiences wash over him. He had come close to the dark side—he could have murdered every being in that hidden complex. But seeing her, alive and safe, made restraining himself worth it. As a Jedi, he could never betray the Order and himself like that, but as a man he didn't ever want to hurt her. That didn't mean he wouldn't do everything in his power to discover who had kidnapped her, though.

The sun began to set and it was still many hours until they would reach Theed, so Obi-Wan stopped the speeder in a small town. He found a room to sleep in, promising a rich payment to the owner when Padmé awoke in the morning. He scooped her into his arms, resting her head against his chest, and carried her to the bed. He removed her shoes and covered her in a light blanket, then sat down in a chair to keep guard for the night. About an hour later she began tossing and woke.

"Obi-Wan," she whispered. Powerless, he was drawn to her. She reached her hand out and he took it as she pulled him down to kneel on the bed's edge. He sank the rest of the way and she placed his arms around her, pressing her face into his chest and her body into his. He kissed the top of her head lightly and she sighed. It was not a purely happy sigh, but something much deeper and somehow more meaningful. This was like the first, beautiful night, but in some way more intimate, and they fell into slumber in each other's arms.

-

"How did she escape?" A figure in a dark cowl watched a tiny holographic projection of Governor Sio Bibble, who was currently a quivering, kneeling mass.

"I--I know not, my lord," he replied nervously. The Royal Guard have not yet searched in that area." He paused a moment. "But, a landspeeder was stolen two days ago, and the Jedi Kenobi cannot be found." The fool was afraid of giving this news, too slow-witted and simple-minded to see that this had been Sidious' plan for the abduction all along.

"Have you reviewed tth security tapes?"

"They are...they are still being processed."

Incompetent.

"How many men killed?"

"None, my lord," the Governor answered, looking confused. "And none seriously injured. Merely disabled."

Of course the dull little man could not see the significance of this. It meant that the plan had failed. Despite what should have been unbearable temptation, Kenobi had clung to the Light Side. His Padawan would be brought up as any other, with a deep bias against the Dark Side, and without the taint of a Master secretly giving in to it. This was a setback, but not entirely unexpected. This was Qui-Gon Jinn's apprentice, after all; Kenobi had learned from a great knight. No matter. There were other ways to turn young Skywalker.

"Remain in your position," the Dark Lordordered abruptly.

"But, my lord, what if they investigate? They could find connections!"

"Well make sure that they do not," he replied icily, angry at being question and disgusted at this man who could think nothing for himself and must be guided every step of the way. "Destroy the compound. Silence the soldiers. You will remain with the Queen when she returns," he ordered again. "I will call on you when you are needed."

"Yes, my lord." Bibble bowed even lower and Sidious cut off the link before the man had risen again. He sneered at the blank screen.

You are nothing but an old fool, but now is not the time to dispose of a weak link. One day soon, however, your death will not look so suspicious...

So, um, It's been a month. Sorry 'bout that. I'm happy witht he way this chapter turned out, though. I just don't want to end this story, and I'm afraid it's getting toward the end! Anyway, I'm having a bit of a dry spell with my writing, but hopefully it'll clear up soon and I'll have lots of juicy stories to post. Oh, and the Bibble thing is purely my own speculation, as I think it's entirely possible he worked for Palpatine. And this explains why he was such a big meanie to poor Obi back in chapter nine.