Skye: I think you know why I chose the date I did below. Noted its 2009, not 2008
I was clearing up my story inventory and trying to decide what to throw out. If this storyline does not appeal to you, let me know. Yes, this is a Saga - not something I'd want to start on unless there is real interest in it. Frank and Joe are 18 and 17 respectively. This stuff happened just before the blockade of Naboo - soon after this, Finis would be voted in as Supreme Chancellor. That would make Obi-Wan about 21 or 22. And please read below for background of this story. Story would continue all the way through Phantom Menance to Episode 3.
Summary: Earth was about to join the Galactic Senate, but there are dark influences at play. Will the Hardys be able to help the two Jedi Master and his Padawan untangle the web of conspiracy before all is lost?
Jedi
By Nomi
CHAPTER ONE
Date: March 17, 2009
Venue: United Nations Building, New York City
There was excitement in the air.
It was a very special day for Earth. From noon of today, Earth would officially be a member of the Galactic Republic. The World Leaders, led by the President of the United States, would meet with the Representatives of the Galactic Republic Senate, led by the Vice Chair Finis Valorum, in the General Assembly Chamber, where they would sign the treaty.
The entire Turtle Bay where the United Nations Building stood, all the way up to Park Avenue and East 34th Street, were totally clear of the normal crowd. Every once in a while, a military jeep could be seen making its way up and down the various streets and avenues. They were on the lookout for any unauthorized persons from trying to sneak in. Their orders were simple: apprehend first, and ask questions later.
Beyond the cordoned area, huge crowds gathered before huge screens set up in various pockets of open-space such as Bryant Park so they could watch the momentous event on real time on screen. Further away in Chelsea Park, demonstrators gathered to protest what they considered to be a lost of sovereignty for Earth. If one were to disregard the messages each group were trying to broadcast, then it mattered not where one goes, since the atmosphere was almost equally festive from both ends.
Back in the United Nations Building, world leaders met and mingled with each other in the huge ballroom reserved for State Functions. The G7 leaders and the Secretary General of the United Nations were gathered in a much smaller and private conference room, having a last minute meeting to clear up any point of discontentment.
Back in the General Assembly Chamber, where the signing was to take place, the security officers were doing their final rounds of checks with metal detectors and dogs. On a temporary constructed viewers' gallery just above the General Assembly Chamber, the few selected audience waited impatiently for the ceremony to begin.
In another equally exclusive and private chamber, the Vice Chair of the Senate, Finis Valorum, was scanning the terms of the treaty for the last time and issuing some last minute instructions to his men, requesting them to respect the security efforts of their host despite the difference in technological capabilities. His two personal bodyguards stayed close, having been briefed by the local Chief of Security on the security measures that were in place. They were satisfied at the competency of the security chief, a local security expert by the name of Fenton Hardy.
And that was how Laura, Frank and Joe were able to get seats at the gallery overlooking the General Assembly Chamber to witness this historical event for Earth.
"Security sure is tight here. We had to go through three metal detectors and a number of body searches. But this is well worth the troubles. I can't believe it, after all these years, we finally have irrefutable proof that there is life out there," seventeen year old blond headed Joe said to his big brother. "See, I told you every cent I spent on all those UFO books and Sci-fi novels were well worth it!"
Frank, who was a year older, rolled his eyes. "I bet you read less than half of them. Anyway, security had to be tight because not everyone here is happy about us becoming a part of another empire."
"I bet not everyone on the other side would be happy about Earth joining in either," Laura said, and sit back to listen to her sons' opinion on the matter.
"Earth's entry to the Galactic Republic would be a very controversial move from both sides, since technically speaking, Earth is not a part of their galaxy. Given the way the Galactic Senate was organized, and the way votes were tabulated on galactic issues, Earth would end up with a disproportionate amount of power relative to our vote, given our population size and our level of technology," Frank commented.
Laura nodded in agreement. Frank was right, of course. The only reason how Earth was 'founded' in the first place was the result of the opening of a wormhole between Earth's galaxy and their galaxy. The wormhole was located close enough to Earth that it could be viewed using a standard high powered telescope that one could purchase from any Astronomy Hobby Shop. Frank and Joe had of course immediately emptied their bank accounts to grab one of the best they could afford; the elder to feed his personal interest in Astronomy, and the younger to feed his interest and beliefs in UFOs.
She remembered how both of them were practically glued to the net and to the TV for days, right after the first official Extra-terrestrial ship landed in the military air-base in Washington DC. And when Fenton told them he got this job…. Laura recalled the expressions on her sons face with a chuckle. They looked like they were two and three again, their face bright with wonderment and hope. And their father had delivered.
"I don't think it matters to some people here whether the Galactic Republic is part of this galaxy or not. There will always be some party that are resistant to the idea of becoming a tiny part of another system," Joe stated.
That was also true, Laura conceded. There would always be small-hearted narrow-minded people around. She turned her focus to the activities unfolding in the Chamber below her. The security officers were giving the area a final sweep before letting the Leaders in. And her husband, Fenton was down there followed by a tall distinguished man with long silvery hair dressed in long brown and white flowing robes.
"Look! That's Dad! And that's a Jedi with him!" Joe said excitedly, giving his dad a quick salute when Fenton happened to glance his way for the briefest second.
"I wondered where his Padawan is," Joe rattled on like a runaway train.
"How do you know he has a Padawan?" Frank asked.
"Yes he has a Padawan," Laura answered. "He's a Jedi Master. His name is Qui Gon Jinn, and his Padawan's name is Obi-wan Kenobi."
"You've been peeking at Dad's files!" Frank accused his Mom good naturedly.
Laura merely raised her brows and smiled.
"And there he is," she said, as a young man with reddish blonde hair and a little plait entered and stood next to his Master.
"Oh… I hope I can get to meet them later," Joe continued as if Frank and his mom never spoke. "I can't wait to try out my mastery of Galactic Basic with them! And maybe they might even let me try their lightsaber!"
Laura shook her head at Joe's childish excitement. In preparation for Earth's entry into the Galactic Republic, the United States government had authorized a special channel dedicated exclusively to teaching the history and the official language the Galactic Republic. Joe, who inherited her knack for languages, had easily picked up Basic, that official language. Frank on the other hand had immersed himself in the intricacies of history, culture, and politics.
Following an announcement, silence overtook the room. But the air around them shimmered with the latent excitement of what was about to conspire in that room.
The first of the Leaders entered with much prom and ceremony. Everyone in that room, all those who would be proud witnesses to that memorable momentous occasion held their breath as they waited for every leader to settle into their seat.
That was when Laura started to feel uneasy. She glanced a little uncomfortably about her, and noted that both her sons were fidgeting too. Joe looked especially nervous, his eyes flickering left and right at the crowd below them, then covered the entry ways one by one. Frank had already done the entry ways, and had returned his attention to the crowd. Her sons were good together, they complemented and back up each other perfectly. Laura also noted that both the Jedi Master and Padawan were also starting to move. For a moment, she almost stopped breathing as the Master's eyes paused on her. She forced herself to calmness, and soon those piercing eyes slid away to something else.
The Secretary-general of the United Nations was now at the signing table, and the Vice Chair of the Galactic Senate was about to join him when the Jedi Master moved.
"DOWN!" he yelled as he leapt across to the podium, igniting his lightsaber in a smooth motion, and deflected two potentially deadly laser bolt aimed at the two Leaders.
The laser bolts were followed by a several gun shots coming from the crowd below and also from the viewers' gallery, indicating that the assassins were both Earthlings as well as Aliens, who might or might not be working together. The deflected bolts smashed into the ceiling, and cement fragments came raining down onto the occupants on the gallery.
Chaos reigned as the security people worked desperately to move the World Leaders and Senate Representatives out of the General Assembly, as everyone else were also trying to fight their way out in terror. There would be more casualties from the mad rush than from bullets or laser wounds.
Then Laura gasped in horror as a number of the occupants on the gallery shook off their clothings to reveal themselves as droids, and started firing into the crowd, and one of them was firing straight at Joe.
Frank reacted instantly, shoving both his younger brother as well as his mother onto the ground and out of the deadly path of those deadly bolts. Screams pain and the smell of burning flesh told the elder Hardy that someone else behind them was hit. He winced, but could not make himself regret his actions. He would always put his family's safety first. And how the heck did those metallic droids make their way through the metal detectors in the first place?
A shadow loomed over all three of them, and Frank gulped. There was no way they were going to get out of this one, he knew. He only hoped his father would not be overly devastated by their demise.
A flash of blue swept pass his eyes, and the droid went down with a sizzle.
"Come on, hurry, move!" Obi-Wan growled at the three Hardys.
The Padawan continued to deflect the incoming bolts from the droids as the Hardys worked to direct the remaining surviving occupants off the gallery. Frank and Joe tried to get their mom to leave with the others, but she refused.
"Go… go!" Obi-Wan yelled as he used a force-shove to push all three of them through the doorway.
Obi-Wan swiftly followed and slammed the door shut behind him.
"RUN!" the Padawan screamed.
The four of them ran down the corridor. A second later, the door behind them burst opened, and the droids followed. They heard screams ahead and watched horrified as a group of gunmen started to shoot point blank at the escaping viewers with semi-automatics and Uzis.
"Here!" Laura pulled at her sons' arms as she gestured to them the corridor just to their left.
The four of them turned and head down the only available path to them as one. There was nothing they could do for the unfortunate crowd facing the Uzis. They ran smack into another group of security officers and their charges trying to make their way out, and both groups had to retreat even further back into the building. No, they were being herded back into the General Assembly Chamber.
Frank and Joe exchanged worried glances. They had a very bad feeling that whoever planned this had intended maximum casualty, and possibly the death of all the leaders gathered here. And while both brothers were crack shots, they had no guns on them at the moment. Not that those guns would be of any use against the droids, but at least they could have helped with the humans part of the fight.
Soon, they were all back in the General Assembly Chamber, up on the raised platform and trying their best to seek shelter from the tables and chairs and podium. Laser bolts and bullets rained down on them from the gallery, as well as from the ground.
Then, a third group was driven towards them from a side door.
"Frank!" Joe suddenly hissed. "That's the Vice Chair! And the Jedi Master! And Dad too!"
And Frank knew they were in deep shit. They had the Galactic Republic Vice Chair, the President of the United States, and the Prime Minister of United Kingdom with them. And they were cornered, trapped at the bottom of a pit with deadly bullets and bolts raining down on them.
The two Jedis pushed to the fore and stood before the other security officers, their light saber swinging rapidly in wide graceful arcs to and fro, deflecting incoming laser bolts and vaporizing bullets. But Frank and Joe could both see that they would not be able to hold forever. There were just too many incoming bolts and bullets to deflect. Sooner or later, a lucky shot would find its way through here and there, and they, being trapped in the corner would be picked off one by one.
"Frank, Joe, I need a distraction. There is a little known passage from the southwest corner. If we can clear a path there somehow, we can get out!" Fenton managed to crawl through the crossfire over to his family.
Frank and Joe nodded, glad that their father trusted them enough to let them help out. Frank, who was closer, reached out for the gun that his dad was trying to pass to him.
"Laura, stay close and stay down!" Fenton hissed when he noted that his wife was slowly inching towards an injured security officer. Laura might be a skilled medical personnel, but this was not the time to be compassionate.
A burst of laser bolts from a new batch of droids smashed through Obi-Wan's defenses, and the lightsaber went flying into the air. The Padawan was hit – the force from the hit sent the young man crashing back into the chair. Joe quickly reached out and dragged that semi-conscious youth to safety behind the table he and Frank were crouching under. Without the young Jedi providing cover, a number of security officers went down, hit by the deadly bolts.
"Shit!" Frank heard his father cursed. But it was his mom that had his full attention at the moment. The three Hardy men watched in shock as Laura kicked off her heels, leapt gracefully onto the table, her fingers outstretched. The lightsaber flew into her hand, ignited, and soon she was deflecting those deadly bolts, the blue blade swirling and her eyes flashing with grim determination.
"Jinn! We need to clear a path southwest!" Laura's voice was confident and authoritative.
Fenton noted from his wife's tone that Laura seemed to know the Jedi Master personally. But that was impossible, right?
The Jedi Master paused in shock for the tiniest fraction of a second before continuing his task of deflecting the bolts.
"Tahl?!"
Tahl in the Star Wars verse was Qui Gonn Jinn's love interest, but they pushed back their love for the Jedi cause. In that universe, Tahl was killed after being drugged and captured by Balog. Jinn was depressed after that. For the purpose of my story, the Balog incident never happened. This is AU for Tahl - she did not die but ended up on earth and that story would be told here - but will keep the forbidden romance bit. Okay, I think that's it.
The second bit: Just want to ask, would you like Frank to have midichlorins in his blood or not?