Chapter 4
It was cold on the ship, but the pilot didn't care. Some would say that he was impatient, but he just hated the passivity. Flying through hyperspace without doing anything reminded him too much of the time not long ago, when he dwelt on the depraved garbage planet, his existence barely more than that of an animal. He had done nothing more than to survive, to stay in that awful state of misery.
But it ended, and he owed that to mother Talzin and his brother. Oh, he did not feel like he was in debt. Mother Talzin surely had her own agenda to bring him back. He still did not know what that was, but he didn't care. He would just do what he dreamed of since the day of his disfigurement. Having his revenge.
Maul was not sure if his little excursion would be a success, but it was definitely worth the risk. If he could get his hands on a Jedi, one sent to rescue Obi-Wan, he would have the trump that he needed. He was not totally convinced that somebody would show up at TER-32, but if the Jedi hadn't gotten the clue he left them, they were even more pitiable than he thought.
Finally the hyperspace-jump ended and he got a view on the dying planet, which would still fight against its death long after his'. An eternal battle doomed to failure.
He entered the atmosphere and instantly felt the heat that was to be expected this close to the sun. He would search for a nice spot to spent his time waiting. But not too concealed, after all he wanted to be found as soon as possible.
Obi-Wan was still lying in the corner of the room. He had no energy left for his muscles, everything he had was in his head, spinning thoughts around in an endless swirl, not coming to a conclusion. It was sad. He should not be such a mess after Maul's verbal assault, but the Sith had kicked a pebble into motion that caused a landslide of emotions and memories to resurrect from oblivion. And with that came the realization that he had not released these things into the Force and put them behind, as he thought he had. He had done much worse. He repressed them. And now, tons of thoughts buried his mind, torturing him with the demerit their existence stood for. Why had he not acted like a Jedi? Was he not meant to be one from the beginning? How could he be a Master when he did not get his emotions under control?
But there was one branch he could hold on to while drifting in his very own maelstrom. Anakin. He was his branch and anchor to escape. Because Maul was wrong. If Obi-Wan had lost the battle on Naboo, there would have been nobody to train Anakin. The Chosen One would not be a Jedi and the hope of an end to the Sith threat would not even be a distant prospect. Anakin and the hope he symbolized was worth it all.
Obi-Wan was a bit surprised about himself, to weigh the deaths of so many Jedi for Anakin and consider it even, but he was convinced that every Jedi would sacrifice a thousand other Jedi to destroy the Sith. It was their duty to restore light in the Galaxy. And he would fight for that whatever the cost. Regardless of what it already cost him, who it already cost him. They were now one with the Force, and he would not mourn for them, he would remember them as they were, beings of light, his friends, willing to sacrifice themselves for the greater good.
He would have to accept their deaths some day, but for now, it was enough to know that they did not die for him. He just hoped that handling it would not take him as long as it did with Qui-Gon's death. It had taken him months, no years to accept it; to not slip into sadness when something reminded him of his Master, and in the first days after his death, everything, the temple, other Jedi, even Anakin evoked that unbearable feeling. He had tried to not let it show, but Yoda knew anyway. And during that time, the way he looked at Yoda changed drastically. He went from the old, respectable and severe leader of the Jedi Order to an understanding, helpful...adviser.
And he could nearly hear Yoda's voice in his ear right now, telling him: Not mourn for the dead you shall. Stay alive and escape, you should concentrate on. Otherwise only more death to grieve there will be.
Along with a faint query of his sanity, he agreed with mental-Yoda. He shoved away all his thoughts, which had thankfully dissipated into a small rivulet. He embraced the little Force that he had, and concentrated on his surroundings. Oh yes, there was still the awful pain in his arm. He nearly forgot that...how nice of his body to help him remember, he thought with a pained smile.
But something was strange...he only felt one presence near. As long as he stretched his mental fingers, he could not find a hint of Maul.
Obi-Wan was instantly alert. That could be his opportunity of escape. His chances were at least twice as high against only one Sith. Sadly they would still not go over one percent, but Obi-Wan never dreaded bad odds. Quite the opposite. If one had bad odds, one was often underestimated, and that had been the downfall of many of his enemies.
He just had to wait until the Force presented a way.
Ahsoka was disgruntled. Couldn't her Master be a bit less impulsive?
"Master, it's too dangerous. You can't fight two Sith all by yourself."
"Ahsoka, I won't fight them, you heard me as I told the Council. I will just take a closer look, to see if Obi-Wan really is there."
He nodded to the terrifying planet right in front of their shuttle with slitted eyes. The closeness to the sun made the cockpit consist only of black and white, despite the shading mechanism of the shuttle's windows. Nevertheless, they could see a trail of glowing objects drift from TER-32 to its sun which devoured them greedily. The planet was so near to the sun that her mass tore the planet slowly apart. The side facing the sun was glowing and sending a steady stream of matter to the sun, while the other side was in eternal darkness. It really was a dying planet.
"If you just take a look, why can't I come with you?"
"I don't know how long it will take and somebody has to stay in space to wait for the other Jedi. And as you should know, taking a look can end up in trouble, and I don't want you anywhere near the Sith."
"Everything ends in trouble as soon as you are involved," she said with a smile, knowing that she couldn't win that argument. "Please, don't take any risks and find Obi-Wan."
"I will. Now let's go down near that ship we detected. I contact you as soon as I find anything."
"You sure that -"
"Yes, I will manage. And you will stay in orbit and wait for either my signal or the reinforcements. Are we clear?"
"Yes, Master."
They descended to the surface in silence. When Anakin opened the hatch to leave the shuttle, a wall of hot air nearly boiled the inside of the shuttle. Ahsoka heard Anakin mutter some Huttese about his black clothes, then he went outside. When her Master waved his hand, Ahsoka steered the shuttle back into the atmosphere, concerned for both her Master and her Master's Master. Hopefully Anakin would contact her soon. For Ahsoka, waiting was among the worst things one could be forced to do on a mission.
