He didn't know what to expect as Mut led him back to Mos Eisley, but he was relieved that he didn't have to walk barefoot this time. He was dressed rather modestly, in fact. And his wounds had been seen to with some Bacta. He was feeling pretty good, save for the uncertainty ahead of him.
"Wait here," Mut instructed as they approached the cantina. Obi-Wan did as he was told— where else could he really go, after all— and watched as Mut went inside.
A few minutes later, he came back out, but this time he was joined by a man wearing a thick black cloak that obscured his face. There was a strange chill to the air surrounding the man in the black cloak, though from the calm-yet-slightly-smug look on Mut's face Obi-Wan felt he might've been the only one to feel that strange chill.
"Good," the man in the cloak murmured as he appraised the young man he'd just purchased. "Good. He is just as I had hoped, Brovado. You have done well."
The man in the black cloak stepped forward and Obi-Wan swore he could smell death on him. He backed away, not wanting this strange man to touch him. Mut glared at him.
"Obi-Wan, that's no way to treat your new Master," he said. The strange man turned to look at him.
"Obi-Wan? Did you say his name is Obi-Wan? Oh, how delightful! How delightful indeed." He turned his attention back to the boy, who was still actively showing his disapproval.
Mut took the chain that hung from Obi-Wan's shackles and yanked him forward until he was within arm's reach of the man in the cloak, who immediately placed his hands on the boy's face. Obi-Wan cringed, screwing his eyes shut as he tried to pull away, but the man's grip was firm.
))((
When all was said and done, the death toll at the Jedi Temple was seventy-four, with forty more injured and seven— including Obi-Wan Kenobi— missing and presumed lost.
Though he knew there was much that needed to be done at the Temple, Qui-Gon knew he could not remain there. The memories the place stirred within him were far too painful.
He did not share his plans with the Council yet they were unsurprised to see him go.
He packed minimally, bringing only what he could carry on his belt and in his cloak. He didn't foresee needing much else.
He left the Temple without a single goodbye. It wouldn't be until hours after that anyone would discover that he had gone. Yoda would be the only one to feel him leave, and his only acknowledgment was to glance out the window from where he was teaching a group of younglings. Qui-Gon did not look back as he hurried away from the Temple.
He would travel as a drifter, working for transport from system to system. Someday he would return to the Temple, that much he was certain of. Until then there was an awful lot of the galaxy he had not seen, an awful lot of spaceports in which to lose himself.
An awful lot of people who could use the help of a man who would not pause long enough to tell his name.
))((
Jango left Mut with his life after extracting the information he needed, true to his word. Of course, he had taken pleasure in ridding the man of the use of more than one limb. It was possible to live without an arm and a leg, after all.
A Sith Lord. Jango had heard of and dealt with some strange clients over the course of his career, but this was the first he'd heard of any real dealings with a Sith Lord.
Darth Sidious, he thought as he read the dossier Mut had provided. Jango realized that his real client had been the Sith the whole time. I've heard of him. Whispers in the shadows of the Dark Lord rising to power. The boy was a special request, and from Mut's recounting of their first and only in-person meeting, the Sith had been mildly impressed that the Jedi he'd come to purchase had been the one he'd requested.
Qui-Gon needs to know this, he thought. He can't let the boy remain in the hands of the Sith.
As he took off from Tatooine, he weighed his options. He knew if he returned to the Temple the odds were good that he would be arrested or even killed, but Qui-Gon might not respond to a transmission from the bounty hunter.
Well, old friend, he thought as he punched the coordinates for Coruscant into his navigational computer, I certainly hope the Jedi are as peaceful as you've always boasted.
))((
On the transport from Tatooine to wherever he was being taken, Obi-Wan's sole reason for existing seemed to be just to stay as far away from the strange man in the black cloak as he possibly could. Every time he sensed that strange, cold presence drawing near to him, he fled his hiding place in search of someplace better. For him, it was terror for his life.
For Darth Sidious, it was an amusing game. The boy thought he could hide, thought he stood a chance against the Lord of the Sith. How quaint. He would indulge the boy for a while, it was a long journey back to Coruscant, after all. The boy would grow weary. On Coruscant, he would no longer be able to put up a fight.
Run, little Kenobi, he thought, amused, as he felt the boy scamper away from him yet again. Wear yourself out. It is only a matter of time before you will be mine.
The boy's fear was positively delicious. The Sith was almost certain that Mut's assurance that he was as slow and docile as one who'd had a lobotomy was false. There was too much fight in the boy. Clearly he was still attuned to the Force, even if he couldn't understand what he was feeling.
Obi-Wan climbed into a cupboard near the cockpit. He just barely fit, but it was the best hiding place he could think of. He had to get away from Sidious. Just being in the man's presence made him feel dirty. He hoped to be able to escape upon landing, but he wasn't counting on it. Sidious seemed to know where he was before he'd even managed to properly hide each time. It was almost as though he was reading his mind.
The telltale footsteps approached again and Obi-Wan drew in a deep breath and closed his eyes, waiting. He could feel the man's presence grow stronger as he approached. He wanted to flee, oh how he wanted to run and find a place the man would never find him.
"It's not often that I have the opportunity to torture a Jedi," he heard Sidious say on the other side of the cupboard door. "Were I you, Obi-Wan, I might run and hide, too." He chuckled darkly then, and the sound shook Obi-Wan to the core. He pulled his knees tighter to his chest and hid his face in his arms.
The cupboard door opened in a flash and Obi-Wan found himself being pulled forcefully from his hiding place. He kicked and flailed, but it was no use. As he opened his eyes to appraise his situation, he realized that the man wasn't even touching him. This realization only served to cause him further panic. Sidious' smile grew even wider and more sinister as Obi-Wan continued to struggle.
"It's no use," Sidious said in a mockingly sad tone. "You're simply no match for me any longer, Obi-Wan. There was a time that your old Master spoke so highly of you that it reached even my ears. It seems, however, that you've been rendered too simple to be of any real use to me. No matter. Imagining Qui-Gon Jinn's torment at finding that a Sith Lord has been responsible for the torture and death of his apprentice will be just as sweet as using you against him."
))((
Jango changed out of his armor as he approached Coruscant. If he was to get far enough into the Jedi Temple that he could see Qui-Gon, he'd have to look and seem as non-threatening as possible.
He landed in front of the Temple and was not surprised to find that there was a small group of Jedi waiting for him as he debarked. He stepped onto the landing pad and put up his hands.
"I seek audience with Qui-Gon Jinn," he said as the Jedi approached him. "I'm an old friend and I've information about his Padawan Learner that he needs to hear."
"Qui-Gon Jinn is not here," replied a tall black man Jango had seen on more than one occasion. He was nearly certain that he was on the Jedi Council, but he'd never bothered to learn the man's name. "He left several days ago."
"Did he say where he was going?" Jango asked. "It is very important that I make contact with him at once."
The man folded his arms across his chest. "He is in mourning for the loss of his Padawan. We are allowing him space."
Jango sighed. "Great. Well this was a waste of time."
As he turned to walk back to his ship, he felt a strong hand take his shoulder.
"Jango Fett, you are under arrest for the abduction and memory wipe of multiple Jedi."
I don't have time for this, thought Jango. He glanced back. There were five Jedi and only one of him. He had one blaster, they each had their lightsabers. The odds were stacked against him, but when in his life had they ever not been?
As the Jedi moved to pull his arms behind his back, Jango whipped around and pulled his blaster, shooting the possible Jedi Council member in the shoulder. In that same instant, the other four Jedi that had come out to meet him had their weapons drawn, electric blades humming ominously as they approached.
Jango backed up the ramp into his ship and sprinted to the cockpit. He felt one of the Jedi jump onboard before the ramp went up all the way. He was loathe to have to deal with another Jedi, especially with the new obstacle of having to find Qui-Gon Jinn before being able to do anything about the Sith Lord that had Obi-Wan…
Why did I decide to try and help?