When Ikase comes to, he is chained to a mostly upright board by his wrists, which are together above his head. He looks to his right and sees Obi-Wan in the same predicament. "What happened to using the Force?" Ikase repeats.
"I sensed his presence, I just couldn't react in time." Obi-Wan replied.
"A lot of good you are, then..." Ikase said, rolling his eyes. He looked around, and saw the Geonisian they met when they arrived on the planet. At the Geonisian's side is a small table with both Ikase's and Obi-Wan's weapons on it. "Hey," Ikase says to Obi-Wan, "why don't you redeem yourself and use the Force to retrieve your blaster?"
"It's not a blaster, it's a lightsaber. And I can't use the Force to move objects without my hands," he said, trying to get his hands free.
"Don't be ridiculous! You've been training to use the Force your whole life. You can move your lightsaber from across the room with just your mind!"
Obi-Wan rolled his eyes. "Well, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to try, since there's not really another way out of this situation." Obi-Wan closed his eyes and emptied his thoughts. He focused solely on the small lightsaber on the table in front of him. Ikase watched as the lightsaber lifted off of the table and into the air! It floated slowly toward them.
"You're doing it!" Ikase said. But then, he watched it float past them and behind them. "...Uh, I think you made it go too far."
"What?" Obi-Wan said, opening his eyes. "I didn't even feel it move. Where did it go?"
A deep voice is heard behind them. "That's because you are weak." An aging man walked into view, with gray hair and a scruff gray beard and mustache. He wore a dark brown cape around his shoulders that connected at the front of his collar.
"Are you here to save us?" Ikase asked, knowing very well just how low the likelihood of that being true was.
"No..." the man replied.
Obi-Wan spoke up. "What could be so important that the great Count Dooku has come all the way out here on his own?" Having thrown that out there for Ikase and Count Dooku to discuss, Obi-Wan began moving his hands in what little way he could to try to use the Force on something.
"Isn't it obvious, Obi-Wan Kenobi? I'm here for your execution. This Geonisian was more than cooperative when he learned the reward for your capture."
"Ah, Count Dooku. I sensed you were coming." Ikase said.
"You just made that up," Count Dooku replied. "You can't use the Force."
"Neither can Obi-Wan..."
Count Dooku pressed a button on Obi-Wan's lightsaber. A green beam of light extended from it, and stopped at a fixed length so that it formed an oval-shaped blade. He then pulled another lightsaber from his waist, and did the same. A beam of light extended from it, as well, to about the same length, but this one was red. "Two blades," he continued. "I never did like using more than one blade in combat." He walked up close to Ikase so that their faces were only a couple inches apart. "What about you? Can you handle using two lightsabers at once?"
Ikase stared at the empty air above Count Dooku's head and squinted. "Why is everyone in this world so much taller than Yoda?" he asked randomly, as if he had grown bored of listening to Dooku's words.
"Size matters not," Count Dooku automatically said, having heard Yoda say it a thousand times. He shut his eyes in self-anger, having repeated his former master's words.
Just then, the shackles around Ikase's wrists let go, and he punched Count Dooku in the face with as much might as he could. The impact forced Dooku backward two steps, and to drop the red lightsaber. As soon as his feet hit the floor, Ikase rolled forward and retrieved the lightsaber. Immediately after returning to an upright position, he haphazardly threw it at the chains above Obi-Wan, cutting him free.
He then ran to the table, retrieved his blaster, and shot the Geonisian with it. A burst of electricity ran threw the strange being's body, and he fell over unconscious. "He didn't talk much anyway," Ikase remarked, turning his aim to the old man.
Obi-Wan landed in a kneeling position, and, without looking, extended his hand behind him to bring the red lightsaber to him with the Force. He stood up, and held it straight up with both hands. "No worries, Count. You'll only be using one blade today."
The two walked in a circle, looking at each other. Ikase fired the blaster at Count Dooku, but he deflected it with the green lightsaber he held in his hands, and that was Obi-Wan's cue to attack. He charged at his opponent, and slashed at him. Dooku slashed back at the same time, causing both beams to collide. A small explosion of color appeared where they met, and sparks flew from it in all directions. The two continued circling, and slashing at each other, neither landing a single hit.
Obi-Wan and Count Dooku were moving too quickly for Ikase to fire at the Count directly again. As he watched the battle, he continually tried to take aim. Finally, he let a shot out. It impacted both lightsabers just as they impacted each other, and they were knocked into the air. Both combatants extended their arms upward, and altered the paths of the lightsabers so that they would return to the hands of their original owners. As soon as Count Dooku caught his, he extended his other arm forward and let forth a Force push, knocking Obi-Wan all the way back and into the wall. Dooku walked toward him slowly. Ikase shot at him again, but he deflected it without even looking.
This isn't working, Ikase thought. I need to do something! He looked around, and ran to one of the few machines that was left standing. Twenty robotic arms lined an empty track. Ikase kneeled down to a latch beneath the track, and tried to pry it open until his fingers began to hurt. He took a step back, and shot the latch with his blaster. It came open, and a deposit of more blasters was inside. How did nobody know this was here? he wondered. He pulled his hologram screen back out of his coat pocket, and began typing on it.
Meanwhile, Obi-Wan used the Force to launch a large piece of rubble at Count Dooku. The Count put both arms forward and stopped the rock about halfway between them. The two fought over control of it for a few more moments, until Count Dooku moved his arms to his sides, breaking the rock in two. He immediately jumped into the air towards Obi-Wan, and kicked him with both feet on the chest, slowly flipping backward and landing upright. He used the Force to lift Obi-Wan into the air, and began to choke him. Another blast came at Count Dooku from Ikase, and he turned his head slightly as he deflected it with his blade. Then he let go of Obi-Wan and turned around completely, just in time to see a barrage of lasers coming at him. He put his arms in front of his face as the lasers rained down on him, causing great damage to the ground and wall. A cloud of dust surrounded them. After Obi-Wan stood up, he emerged from the cloud and ran toward Ikase. Ikase had given blasters to the robotic arms, and hacked them to fire at Count Dooku. "I don't have time to ask you how you did that; we have to get out of here."
"I'm okay with that," Ikase replied, and the two ran out into the dusty air of Geonosis' outside.
"The Emporer is not going to be happy when Count Dooku returns after failing this mission," Obi-Wan said, the two of them still running.
"I'm sure he'll find someone else to kill. We barely escaped with our lives, there's no way we could have beat him if we continued to fight."
"Not today," Obi-Wan said. "But I assure you, someday Count Dooku and the rest of the Confederacy will fall."
They arrived back at the ship and boarded it, and it immediately began to take off. "Is it safe to leave the old man here with civilians?" Ikase asked, concerned.
"It should be no problem," Obi-Wan said, catching his breath. "Count Dooku will have no business here once he discovers we have escaped. And beyond that, this planet is under tight Republic control. He's smart enough not to attack by himself. Regardless, we'll remain in orbit until we see him leave the atmosphere. I'll call in for the Geonisian traitor to be arrested."
"That creepy bug thing?"
"The Geonisians are a respectable race. Don't call them bugs."
"Sorry... I've only met the one." Ikase hears a beeping sound from inside his coat, and he pulls his hologram screen out, which is now blinking red. "Really?"
"What is it?" Obi-Wan asked.
"It's time for me to move on to the next dimension. But I don't feel like I accomplished anything here."
"Of course you accomplished something, Ikase! You saved my life, and proved your bravery on the battlefield. Count Dooku is not the kind of person you punch in the face."
"No, Obi-Wan. Count Dooku is exactly the kind of person I punch in the face!" The two laugh, and Obi-Wan puts his hand on Ikase's shoulder.
"You did good today. And whatever world you go to next, I'm sure you'll continue to do good."
"Thanks," Ikase said, thinking. Obi-Wan took his hand off Ikase's shoulder. "I saved just one life today: yours. And that was enough for my path to the next world to open. That means you're destined to make a difference in this world's future."
"Well... I hope so," he said. "I hope I can help protect the galaxy alongside my fellow Jedi."
"Good luck with that," Ikase said, again easily bored. "Take this," he said, putting a small object in Obi-Wan's hand. "It's a cocoa bean. Plant it, and it will grow more. You can use them to make something called chocolate. Chocolate is awesome. Oh! And smile!" he said, holding his hologram screen in front of them and getting close to Obi-Wan. He smiled, and Obi-Wan smiled confusedly as the screen snapped a picture. "Thank you very much! For everything! But it's time for me to go now. This is a fun world, maybe I'll come back someday!" With that said, he put his hand on the screen, and a bright flash of light consumed Ikase.
"May the Force be with you!" Obi-Wan said, and the light faded, with Ikase nowhere in sight. He looked down at the bean Ikase had given him. "There aren't many places for plants on Coruscant. Maybe Anakin knows a good spot..."
