From Darkness, I Rise

by Kurenaino

The Jedi are thrust into a war that threatens to tear the galaxy apart, and prospects are bleak when the fearsome Sith Negotiator begins to win key victories against the Republic. Sequel to From Grace, I Fall. Also, more Sith!Obi keeps the sadness away. Search your feelings. You know it to be true.

48. Disturbance in Sundari

Chapter 48: Disturbance in Sundari

Eyes closed and deep in the Force, Qui-Gon Jinn could feel the Dark Side long before the Duchess arrived. Obi-Wan was here, as he had hoped he would be. He took a huge risk by coming here, but he wasn't lying when he said he was the only one that could have talked sense to Satine. Furthermore, calling Obi-Wan reasonable when Quinlan was involved wasn't saying much, as the two had always been close. Qui-Gon needed to test Kenobi. If the Sith was truly able to listen to reason, than he would see it now. If not, than it was almost certain that he would die, but Qui-Gon had a contingency plan for that as well that he had not shared with his fellow Masters.

He was approached by a tall, thin man with shockingly blond hair that the Jedi knew to be Mandalore's prime Minister, Almec, and Qui-Gon bowed, cordially saying, "I thank you for meeting with me, Prime Minister."

"I'm troubled by the rumors that have brought you here, Master Jedi," Almec said quietly as he shook the man's calloused hand. "Our Duchess has paid them no mind, of course, since she would never turn her back on her values in this way, but if the Jedi are investigating, than perhaps these rumors have become accusations."

"I am perfectly aware of the Duchess' views, and no, I am not here to lay accusations before her." Qui-Gon smiled gently. "Consider my visit as a social call."

"Even still," Almec continued, "you should know that all the Mandalorian warriors have been exiled, and they have since died out. Our violent past is behind us."

"Are you certain?" the Jedi asked softly, smiling when the man bristled. "Saboteurs wearing Mandalorian armor have been attacking Republic cruisers with impunity. There are a reason that the rumors exist, Prime Minister."

"They would be common bounty hunters, then!"

Qui-Gon slipped his hands into the opposite sleeves of his robe. "That certainly could be, yes."

"Master Jinn." The voice was clear, calm and collected, and Qui-Gon looked over Almec's shoulder to see Satine enter with guards in tow, and sat herself upon her elevated throne.

"It's good to see you again, Duchess," he said softly, his easy smile wilting under the Duchess' cold gaze. He quickly took measure of the room and found no sign of her Sith lover. He'd have to remain vigilant. This could very well be a trap.

"You are awfully polite for a man that comes to Mandalore to accuse me of treachery toward the Republic."

"I feel there's no reason not to be polite to anyone, regardless of the circumstance," Jinn said, his long stride taking him to the base of the shallow steps that led to her throne. "And I would never accuse you of personal wrongdoing. After all, I know your character, Satine. I am certain you are uninvolved. However..." He eyed the Duchess closely as she tensed, felt through the Force for her feelings and found her highly apprehensive as he drew a holodisc out of his robes and activated it, the image of a man in Mandalorian armor effortlessly shooting down bridge personnel on a small cruiser. "Republic ships have been attacked by Mandalorians, or at least those masquerading as them, which leads the Senate to believe that these rogues are in league with the Separatists. Certainly you can see the logic."

"I cannot."

"Ah."

"Clearly, your investigation was ordered because the Senate wishes to intervene in our affairs!" the Duchess cried, slamming her hand upon the armrest of the throne, and Qui-Gon winced. Satine was so...angry.

"I told you they could not be trusted..." a smooth voice drawled, the hooded man quickly striding in through the side entry and mounting the stairs to stand beside the throne, golden eyes blazing in the shadows of a face that was fixated on the Jedi, and Qui-Gon tensed. The Dark Side ran cold and furious off Kenobi, all prior attempts to hide his presence gone and replaced with a storm of rage and hatred that drew the very Force to him. This was unlike the last time the shell had cracked and the Sith Lord was left exposed. This time, Obi-Wan wasn't using the Force. The Force simply gathered around him, held him close and refused to let him go. Qui-Gon's own Padawan exhibited the same unique surging of the Force, but while Anakin's draw was like a calming, if rippled lake, Obi-Wan's was a raging tempest.

A vergence in the Force.

The question now was if Satine had been manipulated, and if so, how much?

"All of you," the Sith whispered, but his voice seemed to carry through the hall, "leave us." The guards looked at each other, but didn't move, and Almec started to say something but found he could not, the entire hall dropping to a frigid chill. "I said leave us!" Kenobi hissed, this time with the weight of the Force behind his words, and there was no questions after that as the guards and the Prime Minister filed out of the room. "And seal the doors behind you when you leave!"

Qui-Gon never took his gaze from the burning fury of the Sith Lord, his focus easily kept as the great doors closed with a deep, reverberating rush of air, the Dark Side howling in his ears, but never touching him. Qui-Gon had worked a long time to build his defenses against the Dark Side of the Force, steel himself against the pain he had felt by his student's betrayal, and he had slowly turned that hurt to compassion and sympathy, which provided him a perfect shield now. He closed his eyes when he felt the Sith's will reach out and grab at him, the ferocious strength of the Dark Side attempting to bore into him, but his walls remained strong, unbreakable, and Kenobi snarled in fury as he moved to approach the Jedi, but Satine's hand shot out and grabbed the Sith's forearm, and he stopped.

"Obi-Wan, don't," she pleaded softly. "If you have any respect for me, you won't do anything."

Kenobi smirked dangerously and drew closer to the Duchess and whispered, "My Satine...do you trust me?"

"No." The answer was immediate and unwavering and left no room for doubt. Qui-Gon watched with interest as the Sith threw back the hood of his cloak and tore the garment from his body, carelessly tossing it to the side, his hand gripping his lightsaber. The Jedi simply stood with his hands folded before him and he didn't move.

"You did this!" Kenobi shouted, rushing down the steps to stand before the Jedi Master, and, upon having to crane his neck up to look at the towering man, growled and retreated up two steps so that he could stand eye to eye with Qui-Gon. "Before you came and interfered in my business, she trusted me! This is your fault!"

Qui-Gon put his hands up at shoulder level in a placating gesture. "Obi-Wan, all I did was talk to her about my concern for a mutual friend," he said softly, patiently, projecting calm through the Force, and it further enraged the already furious Sith. "If any mistrust or ill-will arose from that, it was your making. Though I am sorry for it none the less."

"Me?! This isn't me, this was you! None of this would have happened if you didn't try to get between us!"

"I did no such thing."

"Obi-Wan, stop it!" Satine snapped, standing up and glaring at the furious Kenobi. "You know why I don't trust you, and Qui-Gon had nothing to with it, and you know that."

"No, he did! All of it, this is all his fault!"

"Obi-Wan, look at you..." the Jedi said softly, instantly diverting the Sith's fury away from the Duchess and back to him, the handsome face contorting in rage. "You're out of control and so, so angry. What has happened to you"

"You did!" The red blade ignited, and the Sith Lord pointed it at the Jedi's chest, hardly registering the firm, frantic grasp of the Duchess at his arm. "You did this to me, Qui-Gon, all of this, all of it, is because of you!"

"You're right," the Jedi said sadly, reaching under his robes to take his own lightsaber in his hand, the Dark Side around him blazing as Kenobi's focus shifted to the weapon. Qui-Gon gently tossed the lightsaber to the Sith's feet, and for a moment, the Dark Side receded. "Your fall to the Dark Side was my fault," he whispered. "I handled you poorly, Obi-Wan, and terribly unfairly, but we don't get to decide where the Force takes us, do we?"

Kenobi's hand tightened around the blazing weapon in his hand. "You're making excuses."

"I'm not. The Force led me to Anakin."

"If you mention his name in my presence once more-"

"And in turn, the Force led you here, to the Dark Side, to the embrace of the Sith." Qui-Gon chuckled, his voice pained. "If I had been a better Jedi, or a better Master, perhaps I could have sensed the danger and stopped it from happening, and for that, I am deeply sorry, Obi-Wan."

The lightsaber in his hand trembled, the Force shifting around him as he tried to discern Qui-Gon's thoughts, feelings, intentions, but the Jedi was safely guarded behind walls that were impenetrable, not a single crack or weakness in the Jedi's resolve. Qui-Gon was changed. There was something about him, something different, something new, something...dangerous. Obi-Wan called the Jedi's lightsaber to his hand and ignited it, the blue blade humming to life and feeling so perfect, so familiar. It didn't have the same feel to him as the red in his right, and it felt wrong to hold it, as if the blade no longer belonged to him, but it felt comforting still, like a long-forgotten memory that had been suddenly and fondly recalled.

"You've made a huge mistake in coming here, Qui-Gon," Kenobi said dangerously, tearing his arm out of Satine's grasp and slowly advancing on the stalwart Jedi Master.

"I'm unarmed," Qui-Gon calmly stated, indicating with his head the blue blade in the Sith's hand.

"You walk with the Force, you are never unarmed."

"I won't fight you, my old friend."

"Then you're going to die."

Obi-Wan stopped his advance when the Jedi smiled, his yellow eyes narrowing when he felt the Jedi's resignation, his fearlessness, almost as if he wanted this. For half a second, the Dark Side was stoked to a blazing rage, and as suddenly as the flames consumed the Sith, they died, not just down to glowing embers, but down to ash as the Dark Side receded and screamed with warning. Murderous intent gone, Obi-Wan was able to look at the Jedi with eyes unclouded by intense rage and hate long enough to see power within his old Master that he had never seen before from any Force wielder, not just in the light, but in the dark as well. Not even from Yoda, that infuriatingly powerful Grandmaster. He had always wanted to kill Qui-Gon for what he had done, but now, the Dark Side warned against it. The Force was actually protecting Qui-Gon Jinn. Obi-Wan would have to meditate on this development. Acting heedlessly of the Force was the quickest way to downfall.

"You can't kill me, Obi-Wan," Qui-Gon said softly, his presence relaxed even as the Sith Lord seethed in silent rage. "I'm here to investigate the Senate's allegations against Satine. If I die here..." He shrugged easily. "It would all but confirm their suspicions about her connections to the Separatists, and Mandalore would become a battleground."

The rage returned, greater and more intense than before. Qui-Gon Jinn was correct. With a snarl of unconstrained wrath, Kenobi threw the blue weapon toward his former Master, the Jedi simply raising his hand and wrapping his fingers around the hilt when it hit his palm, swiftly retracting the glowing plasma blade and returning it to its place on his belt. Kenobi shifted his focus back to the Duchess, shaking in futile rage. "Do you see what he is doing?! He is trying to get between us again!"

"Keeping you from murder isn't getting between us, Obi-Wan!" Satine shouted back, rising from the throne to stand towering above the Sith from her elevated place.

"Yes it is! He means to expose you to the Senate, he is trying to bring Mandalore into the Republic! This is how he means to get between us again!"

"I am doing no such thing, and I have no interest in involving myself in your domestic squabble," Qui-Gon said calmly. "I am just here to help."

"I don't need help!" the Sith shouted, and finally, Qui-Gon's dark blue eyes narrowed, his calm shifting to annoyance with his former student.

"I'm not here to help you, Obi-Wan, you have made it clear that you are beyond help and beyond saving. I am here to help Satine." The Sith withdrew, yellow eyes wide and quickly scanning the Jedi Master and filled with the frustration that came with a lack of understanding. Qui-Gon scoffed. "Contrary to what you seem to believe, Obi-Wan, not everything is about you. There are bigger, more important things in this war than the Jedi's struggle against your resentments."

"You speak of helping, but you have already thrown serious accusations at me," Satine said sharply. "You are only here because the Republic is trying to interfere with Mandalorian neutrality!"

"The Senate didn't send me, Duchess. No investigation on these attacks have been ordered yet. I came on my own to see if I can't help get to the bottom of this before the Republic gets involved. I worked too hard here to see you come to the throne, just to have it all destroyed in the crossfire of another war."

Satine glared at the Sith by her side, his eyes lowered and pensive and lost in thought. "I stand corrected, Master Jedi. Your offer is gracious. Will you come on a walk in the city with me?" Qui-Gon nodded, looking between the Duchess and the incensed Sith with caution and interest. She clearly had more to say, and whatever it was, she didn't want Obi-Wan to know.

The Duchess walked down the shallow steps to Qui-Gon's side when the Sith jolted to action, deactivating his lightsaber and swiftly grabbing her hand, which she tore away from him with an impatient sneer. "You can't do this," he said, concern on his face when he felt the Force tremble as it gripped him, clutching his mind with a haze that threatened to overtake him as his control waned. The Dark Side wasn't violent or raging, it was cautious, warning, trembling in anticipation, though from what, Obi-Wan did not know.

"I can and I will," she hissed, grabbing Qui-Gon's arm, and the Jedi looked at the Sith Lord apologetically when he felt jealous rage rush through him.

"Obi-Wan." Qui-Gon had whispered it, but to Kenobi, the words were harsh and loud, his rage leaving him focused on nothing but his old Master, his muscles tensing as he fought for control of his emotions, and despite the Dark Side seeming to recoil violently from the Jedi, the young Sith couldn't stop the unbridled rage. "Please, allow me to help. You certainly don't want to see Satine pulled into this war."

"...no, I don't."

"I feel that puts our desires in alignment. I am not your enemy in this."

It took a long while for the rage to abate, but when it did, Kenobi lowered himself onto the Duchess' throne, using the Force to call his discarded cloak to him and wrapping it around him, pulling the hood over his head to hide his face in black shadows, but the golden eyes still glowed. "No..." he said softly. "But someone is."

"I'd like to discover who that is before it becomes a problem on the galactic front," the Jedi said, and Kenobi nodded.

"I would like that as well. Very much so." He steepled his fingers and carefully observed his Duchess linked arm in arm with the Jedi, but the jealousy had faded, giving way instead to cold, patient logic and a desire for revenge, not against Qui-Gon, who the Force seemed to be protecting, but against the assailant on his lover's reputation. "The way I see it, there are only two possibilities," the Sith quietly continued, the Jedi having to lean in to hear him. "Either Satine's exiled warriors aren't nearly so dead as she seems to believe, or the Separatists are attempting to bring a Republic military presence to Mandalore."

Qui-Gon looked at him curiously. "Wouldn't you be in a position to know about the Separatist activities?" Satine held her breath as she observed her lover, relaxed and calm and so, so distant on that throne, and felt new mistrust begin to grow within her, though toward who, she was uncertain.

"Apparently not," was the icy, removed response, and the Jedi felt the Dark Side return from its retreat, the Force gathering toward the Sith Lord like a star caught in the clutches of a black hole. "I cannot be seen together with Satine, lest my presence confirm suspicions about her Separatist associations. Go, investigate, but be cautious, Qui-Gon. Something feels wrong, and if any harm comes to her..."

"She will be safe with me, Obi-Wan. You have my word."

The Sith Lord nodded. "May the Force be with you in this, Qui-Gon Jinn." With a small bow, the Jedi and the Duchess left the hall, leaving Kenobi alone to his meditations, reaching into the Force to identify the meaning of the attacks and the Force's protection of the Jedi Master.

---

"I spoke to him, like you asked," the Duchess said quietly, walking closely beside the tall Jedi Master through one of Sundari's cuboidal business districts, her personal guard bringing up the rear some distance away. It was fair and peaceful in the city, so different from the war-torn waste Qui-Gon had come to know during their violent and bloody civil war.

"I see he did not take it well."

She laughed harshly. "Not in the least. To use his words, he had corrected my recollection of the events. I only remembered recently what actually transpired between us."

The Jedi looked at her in shock, mouth slightly parted as he tried to make sense of it. "That...was unexpected. I'm so sorry, Satine. I'm at fault for this. I didn't expect him to do such a thing, I thought..." He exhaled sharply and looked at the woman next to him, her face impassive and detached. It appeared that the woman had spoken about this before. "Has he...altered you further?"

"No. He seems repentant, but..." Satine sighed and drew closer to the Jedi. "He's changed so much since the war began."

"Yes, I would imagine it would appear that way..."

Satine looked at him with a mix of curiosity and disbelief. "You don't think he has?"

"No, no, he has. There is no doubt about that." The Jedi smiled down at her. "But you have as well. I sense it within you, this war is straining your beliefs. You are being tested."

"If you aim to make me change my stance, Qui-Gon, I will not," she said firmly, leaving no room for debate, and the Jedi laughed and shook his head. She dealt in absolutes in the exact way that the Sith her lover belonged to were said to do. In this, they made a fair, if uncompromising, match.

"I see it as the purpose of the Republic to make certain that the war never reaches you here so that you may maintain those ideals. And to do that, I need to know the measure of what is happening here on Mandalore."

The Duchess took a deep breath and lowering her voice, she said, "I believe the rogue you are looking for came from a group that calls itself Death Watch. They idolize Mandalore's violent past."

Qui-Gon frowned. "Not very subtle, are they?"

"No, they aren't. They are dissenters that hail from Concordia, but they have never done anything beyond public vandalism. We have rounded up a number of them, and we should have the trouble contained soon." She crossed her arms over her chest. "Not everyone agrees with the new way we have established here on Mandalore."

"And you couldn't tell me about this in the palace?" he asked, and Satine looked away from him. "Does Obi-Wan not know about this?"

"No, he doesn't. I can't tell him, he's so violent now, he will do something rash." She bit her lip as she thought, slowing the already languid pace down until they may as well have been at a standstill. "The last thing I need to do is explain to my people why the population of Concordia was slaughtered."

"You believe he would kill them all?"

"I believe he has it in him."

"And you cannot trust him not to?"

Satine sighed and closed her eyes, stopping in the middle of the walkway. "I don't know if I can trust him at all. Certainly not in a situation where he feels wronged."

"And yet..." Qui-Gon said in a low, deep voice, wrapping his large hand and pulling her closer to him. "You are wronging him now." Satine pulled away from his grasp quickly and narrowed her bright blue eyes in anger. The Jedi swiftly brought a finger to his lips to silence her. "Satine, he needs to know about this. He and I may be on different sides of a very dangerous conflict, and he may belong to the Jedi's ancient enemies, but if anything can be said about Obi-Wan Kenobi, it's that he's distressingly effective at what he does. What do you suppose he's going to do when he finds out that you are dealing with a very real threat on your own, and you didn't trust him enough to tell him?"

"Vandalism isn't a very real threat, Qui-Gon!"

"Not yet. But if they are attacking Republic ships, how long do you suppose it will be before they begin attacking you?" Qui-Gon moved to stand close to the woman again, and this time, she didn't move away. "I agree with your ideals, Satine. And I admire your commitment to them. However, without something or someone to protect them, they will not last long. The galaxy doesn't lack for those that lust for power. Your ideals are noble, but they are not realistic. You need protection."

"From who?" she scoffed. "From your Republic? As I have said, I will not have troops stationed here that will bring us into the war."

"Satine, you may already be in it..."

Whatever she was going to say was drowned out by a deafening sound that set the Jedi's ears ringing as a large building before them exploded. Qui-Gon grabbed the woman and pulled her around to act as her shield, bits of rubble striking him in the back, some hard enough to break the skin through his thick robes. When it had ended, the Jedi Master looked around to see the building in flames and ruins, the dead and the injured laying scattered around as emergency personal and guards quickly rushed to the scene.

"Is this what is considered vandalism on Mandalore these days?" Qui-Gon asked, swiftly checking the woman for injuries as she frantically tried to get out of his grasp and rush to aid her people. Seeing she was alright, the Jedi let her free to check on the wounded, conferring with the medics that were first to arrive before she returned to the Jedi.

"This must be the work of an off-worlder," she said absently, but stopped her train of thought when she saw a jagged, glowing orange hologram in the image of a Mandalorian Shriek-hawk. Qui-Gon felt panic well up inside the woman, though her appearance remained collected. He recognized the symbol as well. It had been worn by soldiers that fought against the New Mandalorians during Mandalore's prolonged Civil War.

"Are you so certain of that?" A crowd was beginning to gather, whispering and pointing and Qui-Gon could feel the Force tremble with their anxiety and their fear, the people being jostled and moved out of the way to make room for a cloaked man that came rushing into the site of the explosion. A wave of his hand knocked the guards that tried to block his progress effortlessly to the side, and he rushed to the Duchess and grabbed her tightly. A swift check for injuries revealed nothing, and Kenobi quickly reeled on the Jedi Master.

"You said you would keep her safe!"

"She isn't harmed. Calm yourself."

Gold eyes narrowed from the shadows of his hood, but Obi-Wan said nothing more, quickly turning to survey the crowed of people around them. Without looking in it's direction, he pointed to the hologram that was projected in the rubble. "Calling card?"

"It seems like it," the Jedi responded, and he could hear the Sith Lord growl, but could no longer feel the man's presence in the Force.

"I recognize it, and in a few moments, I'm going to become very, very angry, so I suggest you take Satine to safety, because she isn't going to like what I'm about to do." He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, and Qui-Gon drew closer.

"Obi-Wan."

"Were you not listening to me? Why can't you just obey, Qui-Gon."

"This is the work of the Death Watch," he whispered, drawing even closer to the smouldering Sith. "Satine says they have been active as of late." The Sith didn't look at him, but Qui-Gon could feel Kenobi's full attention shift to him.

"...I heard nothing about this."

"It's been nothing big. Small cases of vandalism, she says."

Kenobi was quiet for a moment as he centered himself in the Force in an attempt to preserve his waning patience. "This is a political statement against the Duchess. She isn't safe here. Take her back to the palace." He straightened up and swiftly grabbed Satine away from her guard and handed the protesting woman to the Jedi, shooting her a glare that silenced her. "Can you feel them?" he asked quietly to nobody in particular, but Qui-Gon was listening. "They're afraid, nervous, shocked...guilty." His temper flared as he felt clashing emotions from the crowd, and loudly commanded the guards, "Nobody leaves here until I have interrogated everyone, am I understood?"

The guards didn't get a chance to respond before one in the crowed pushed his way out and rushed down one of the many streets, and within moments, the Sith Lord was after him, jumping easily over any obstacle in his path and quickly gaining on the culprit. The bald man didn't make it very far. Less than a minute after he began his frantic flight, the bomber ran down a flight of stairs that ended in a balcony overlooking a massive drop to the lower levels of the city. The Sith jumped down the stairs after him, and the man quickly drew his blaster and pointed it at the cloaked figure, only to find the weapon pulled from his hands by an invisible force, the pistol sparking and screeching as it was twisted and bent in the very air before him.

Eyes widening in fear, he turned from his pursuer and made for the balcony's rail, only to be stopped in his tracks when his legs ceased to function, and he fell face first to the ground, nose splitting open and bleeding profusely when it struck the hard stone. His hazy eyes saw the shadows of fine leather boots pass by him, and a second later, he was dragged up by the nape of his neck to face the cloaked figure sitting cross-legged before him. He flailed, trying to strike at the apparent second man that held him up, but where his fists should have connected with legs and arms, there was only air. His eyes locked with sinister glowing ones, a light smile on the face of the man that held him with the power of his will.

"Comfortable?" Kenobi asked softly, his smile growing when the man didn't respond. He didn't look up to see Qui-Gon enter with Satine, the Jedi holding her at the entrance to the balcony and both of them silent. "Yaim'la?" He laughed when the bomber's eyes widened with shock and recognition. "Ni liser jorhaa'ir Mando'a, meh gar jatne emuurir." Slowly, the man nodded, and from his place, Qui-Gon crept closer, bringing the Duchess with him, stopping when he could make out the words. "Tion'ad ke'gyce gar at vaabir ibic?"

"What's he saying?" Qui-Gon asked, and Satine held up a hand.

The man said nothing. Smiling, Obi-Wan very slowly drawled, "Suit yourself. I don't need you to tell me anything." He held out a hand, fingers splayed, a smile on his lips, and the man's eyes widened, jaw clenching for just a moment before he started to scream when the blood in his veins began to boil.

He didn't need to wait for long before the man screamed, "Vi Kelir bring kyr'am at te evaar'la Mando'ade bal yaimpar kot at Manda'yaim."

Satine paled, Qui-Gon looking at her with concern, and very slowly, she translated, "We will bring death to the New Mandalorians and return strength to Mandalore."

The man was slammed to the ground, and he began to convulse, and for just a moment, Kenobi looked confused. When understanding dawned on him, he quickly flipped the man over, blood frothing from his mouth and eyes rolled back into his head, and the Sith snarled in outrage and pulled the man up, only to have him fall back to the floor as deadweight, the convulsions stopping as he died. Satine and Qui-Gon both knelt at the man's side, the Duchess mumbling in Mando'a under her breath, and the Jedi bending to examine the body. After a moment, Satine rose and to face the pacing Sith. "You killed him!"

"Oh, did I?" Obi-Wan snapped, the railing beginning to shake under the power of his fury. "Why would I do that, he was more useful to me alive!"

Qui-Gon held up the deceased man's hand, a small, bleeding cut in the ridged palm. "Poisoned," the Jedi said softly. "Obi-Wan didn't do this." Satine breathed a sigh of relief, but it was short lived, as the Sith was suddenly before her, drawn to his full height and furiously angry.

"This is your fault," he growled, advancing on her as she backed up until she was pressed against the wall, the Sith's arms planted beside her and preventing her from moving away. "All of it. Every death that occurred here today is because of you!" She started to respond, but Kenobi cut her off with a harsh laugh. "What did I tell you?! The delusions of a dreamer will not bring you true peace, and now you have a group that wants you dead! There is no reasoning out of this, Satine, they are calling for your blood!" She looked away from him, and growling, Kenobi grabbed her arm and pushed her toward Qui-Gon, the Jedi quickly catching the woman.

"Obi-Wan, it isn't fair to blame the Duchess for the dead..."

"Perhaps not, but if she told me about these troubles, I could have prevented things before they got out of hand, and now, they are out of hand!" He took a deep breath to calm himself, but it wasn't working. "The dialect wasn't Mandalorian, and he lacked your accent, so where was it from, Satine? Mandallia, or Concordia?" She didn't say a word. Eyes narrowed in anger, the Sith Lord snarled, "Your way doesn't work, Satine, so now we're going to do things my way! You want to sit here and abhor violence, and that's fine, but if you want that sort of freedom, someone is going to have to fight for it! So if pacifism is what you want, fine, you shall have it, my love, I will gift you with peace."

"Obi-Wan, don't, please!" the Duchess started when the Sith quickly turned from her, and Kenobi spared her a glance over his shoulder.

"These aren't people that can be reasoned with," he said calmly, and Qui-Gon could sense a tenderness there that he hadn't observed before. "You heard him. They want you dead. I won't allow it, and these are people that only respond to violence."

"No, it won't solve anything!" she cried, trying to pull away from Qui-Gon, but the Jedi wouldn't let her go. "Violence begets more violence, there will be retaliation for whatever you do!"

"Not if you make them afraid," he hissed. "My weapon isn't violence, Satine, it's fear. I will make them so overwhelmingly afraid of what will happen if they cross into my territory again that they would rather take their own lives than set foot on Mandalore. Inflict pain on a person and they will recover, but if you inflict terror, you can change the path of a culture for generations." He ran his hands over his face. "I'll ask you one more time. Where was the dialect from."

Satine looked away from him, breathed deeply, and slowly whispered, "Concordia." Kenobi nodded.

"Escort the Duchess back to the palace, Qui-Gon. I have business to attend to." The Sith said nothing else as his long stride took him from the balcony, and the Duchess slowly gripped the Jedi's arm.

"...go with him," she whispered, blue eyes pleading. "Make sure he doesn't do anything foolish..."

"I'll do my best," he said, laying a hand on her shoulder and leading her from the balcony, feeling the woman's emotions and finding them scared and conflicted, but devoid of any of the anger that was there before. "...he's doing this because he loves you, Satine."

"...I know he does." Holding her close, the Jedi Master and the Duchess walked the rest of the way back to the palace in silence.