Two new chapters coming right at you - and also a brief note from me to follow that :)
"Has anyone else noticed that there have been no more explosions in a while?" Ten suddenly said. Everyone turned towards him.
"The one that brought me and my future self here did not occur too long before the one that brought this man here. Why have they stopped?"
"They opened the right hole", Rosalie said after a while and rose. Ten nodded.
"Exactly. Whatever the terrorists were after it exists in this man's universe."
"Rosalie, you know that universe", Picard said. "Could you say what they are looking for?"
She shrugged.
"Could be anything", she admitted. "A weapon, an ally, an artifact… but if he had just left for a mission, it might be located in the capitol."
"What capitol?" Ten asked.
"The capitol of the Republic; the planet of Coruscant", Rosalie answered. There was a groan from the man on the floor and she immediately sank down next to him again.
"Master Kenobi?" she said. "Master Kenobi, are you alright?"
"Mind if I asked what happened?" the man asked, still keeping his eyes closed. Beverly seemed surprised that he sounded so calm.
"There was an explosion which created a hole between two universes", Ten answered. "You were pulled through."
"I did not see it coming", the man admitted.
"It came from the other side of the void", Rosalie said. "Not even with the help of the Force you could have seen that coming."
The man slowly turned his head towards her and opened his eyes.
"You know me", he said.
"I do, indirectly."
"Rosalie, he still needs to rest", Beverly said. "The wounds might be healed but he has still got a concussion."
"O'Brien, how is the transporter coming along?" Picard asked, tapping his badge.
"Negative, Captain", O'Brien answered. "Every time I think I've found the problem, another one appears."
"Crusher to sickbay, we need a bier brought to cargobay two, right away", Beverly commanded.
"One question; do you use the transporters to get to the surface?" Ten suddenly asked.
"Yes, we do", Picard answered. "Why do you ask?"
"Well, if I was a terrorist, I would probably try and stop those who tried to stop me", Ten said and shoved his hands into his pockets. "So perhaps they used the explosion to knock out the transporters on purpose."
"But they can still get to the surface", Rosalie protested. "The Enterprise has shuttles…"
"A shuttle is a lot easier to shoot down", Picard said, realizing what the skinny man was talking about. "In one way, they have stranded us here."
Rosalie stared at the bald man and then turned back towards the man on the floor, who had once again closed his eyes.
"Where were you going?" she asked.
"Away", the man answered. "Away from it all…"
"You were running?"
"Yes. I couldn't stay…"
He opened his eyes again.
"I am no warrior and yet I was asked to lead a squad into battle. We lost it, because of me…"
The doors opened and the medical team brought in the bier. Ten got Rosalie away from the man as to let the medics work alone.
"He seems… broken", Rosalie said, visibly shaken.
"Another thing you never thought could happen to him?" Ten asked, forcing a smile.
"Not really… I know that he has been through a lot, but when the war raged…"
She hesitated and watched as the medics carried the man away.
"He and another man, Anakin Skywalker, were known as the greatest heroes of all time. Nothing could stop them. If he is this broken at the beginning of it all, then time might be rewriting itself."
The afternoon onboard the Enterprise passed by in what would later be remembered as a strange silence. The transporters were constantly offline, despite the various attempts of reparations from the engineers. The higher ranked officers were briefed on the situation of the terrorists finding the "right hole" and did their best to try and find that hole so that the ship could follow, but without result. The two Doctors and the two humans who travelled with Eleven, Amy and Rory, used their own ships to try and find the holes but found their scanners blocked by debris from the recent explosions. Beverly had sedated the Jedi to give him the best chances possible to heal fast from the concussion and had then moved him to his own quarters. Since then Rosalie had been seated on a chair by the wall.
It seemed like they had all met the one foe that they could never defeat.
"The void has been torn in several places, but we cannot find the holes and where each of them leads", Eleven explained to Picard as the two Doctors, along with Commander Riker, met with the Captain in his ready room later that night.
"It seems like the terrorists did try to damage their ships as well", Riker explained. "Their shields partly blocked the explosion, however, resulting in minor damages."
"How long before you think the damages will be repaired?" Picard asked.
"Well, it really should have happened already", Ten said. "It seems that we have encountered the same problem as you have; once one thing is repaired another thing appears."
"It seems like someone down on the surface knows of our sort of technology as well", Eleven filled in. "And since the explosions stopped after the Jedi was brought in…"
"It seems likely that they also know his kind of technology", Ten finished. Picard leaned back in his chair, thoughtful.
"We have no choice but to keep working", he said and rose, tugging the hem of his jacket. "Keep me updated on your process. Number One, you have the Bridge."
"Aye, Sir."
Picard walked out of the room and over to the turbolift, with which he rode down to the floor where the still sleeping Jedi had his room. He rang the doorbell, but received no answer. Still he decided to head inside.
The room was dark, but not dark enough to keep him from seeing the contours of furniture.
"Captain."
The silent voice caused him to walk over to the door leading to the bedroom, finding the Jedi awake and sitting up in bed. He inclined his head to the nearby chair where Picard saw Rosalie sleeping.
"Has she been here the whole time?" the Jedi asked as Picard pulled off his jacket and placed it over the girl.
"I believe she has", Picard answered as he sat down in an empty chair. "How are you feeling?"
"A lot better, thank you. Your medical team did a good job."
"Do you remember what you were told when you were brought in?" Picard then asked.
"I do", the man answered. "This is not my universe, which I was also able to see when I woke up here. No cruisers back in the Republic are designed like this."
He looked at Rosalie.
"How come she recognized me, but no member of your crew did?"
"Rosalie is not from this universe, like yourself", Picard answered. "I believe that in her universe we are all stories and that is why she recognizes us, and why we all find it so easy to trust her."
"You all do, then?"
"Yes."
The Jedi leaned back against the pillows, thoughtfully studying the sleeping girl.
"There is nothing evil in her", he said after a while. "There is no reason why I should not trust her as well."
"Rosalie called you Master Kenobi", Picard said, drawing the man's attention. "Is that your name?"
"It is what they call me", the man answered. "My name is Obi-Wan Kenobi, but the formal greeting of a Jedi is usually Master Jedi or, in my case, Master Kenobi."
"I am Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the ship you are on is called the USS Enterprise."
He hesitated, wondering if he should question the other man about what he had told Rosalie earlier, but decided not to; he did not know anything of this man's history and would not be able to draw any conclusions because of that.
"Well", he said instead, "since you might be unfamiliar with what this ship has to offer, let me give you a few basic instructions. Whenever you need information, state your question to the computer."
"What sort of questions am I able to ask, then?" Obi-Wan asked.
"You can try any question you like", Picard answered. "For example, you can ask the computer to locate someone. Like this; computer, locate Commander William Riker."
"Commander Riker is currently commanding the Bridge", the voice of the computer asked. Rosalie stirred in the chair, but did not wake up.
"Sounds quite useful", Obi-Wan said once he was sure Rosalie was asleep. "What else should I know?"
"In the other room, you have a replicator from which you can order any food or drink you might want to have", Picard said. "And you can decide on the lightning simply by commanding the computer to either dim or lighten it."
"You seem uncomfortable", Obi-Wan noted with an amused smile. "I do not think that this is usually how you greet newcomers on your ship."
"Not exactly", Picard admitted.
"Do not worry about it, Captain. I am sure that I can find my way around."
Picard nodded, feeling slightly relieved at being dismissed.
"Captain, your jacket", Obi-Wan remarked as he was about to walk out through the door. Picard stopped, then shook his head.
"I have more of those."