Chapter 9 – News
And so Anakin was returning home after the mission to Felucia. He walked in and looked for the twins first, as he usually did. They were playing behind a baby-gate, all safe and sound. Both twins were one year and nine months old at this time.
"Ani," Padme's eyes went wide when she saw him. "Ooh Ani, you've been injured!"
Anakin had his arm already wrapped up. Obi-Wan's field medicine put to use. "Yeah. We went to Felucia to help Shaak Ti and Maris Brood evacuate…" Anakin began. Padme already knew this part. "We didn't get out on time and the Imperial Navy arrived. Tel-Mac didn't make it, and Shaak Ti chose to stay behind." This part hurt Anakin more than his arm.
"Ooh, Anakin." Padme put her head against her husband's good shoulder. "Don't leave me. Don't ever leave me." Anakin put his injured arm as best he could around his wife's back. "I can't do this without you. The twins, they've been opening the baby-gate. This morning I found Luke inside the closet. What if I hadn't found him? What if he'd gotten the bottles open. Oh, Anakin, we're having another child. I can't take care of them and…" she rubbed her stomach pointedly. "Not without you. You have to be safer. Promise me you'll be safer."
"Padme?… Another?" Anakin looked back and into his wife's eyes.
She nodded. "I found out this morning, and was so excited to tell you. Just promise me you'll always come home."
Anakin could not have imagined hearing the news of another child would make him so happy. He grabbed his sobbing wife and kissed her. Then he bent down to level with her stomach and he could, indeed feel the little life form inside.
"Now, I got leave to come home so I can get extra bacta patches for my arm. I can spare the time to look at that baby gate, but I'll need to leave after that. We've got to get the Felucian Refugees settled. Most of them are very young, and none of the Jedi are used to taking initiate Felucians."
"This should do it," Anakin said, shaking the newly locked baby-gate. "This type of lock I wasn't able to break out of til I was thirteen. I think it'll hold the twins." Padme didn't look reassured.
"Isn't there anything else you can do?" Padme asked him. "We've got those special knobs for the cupboards, but I've seen Leia open them from across the room with the force?"
"Hmm. I'll have to try asking Yoda." That's after he finishes laughing, that is. Anakin couldn't help but think the last part. Yoda, is there any way to baby-proof the force? Anakin would've laughed at it, if it weren't for the situation.
After sending Anakin off to get his arm treated, Obi-Wan headed for Melren. The small, uninhabited planet was where Yoda decided to move his Praxeum Academy and his Jedi initiates. It had a breathable, but humid atmosphere and was prone to earthquakes in all except for several small pocket regions. The planet was also covered in jungles, which they hoped would make the Felucians feel more at home.
Yoda was leading a group of Jedi as they cleared a section of land and built a fence around the perimeter. Buildings would have to be built later, for now large tents were being placed.
Obi-Wan made a mental note to talk to the others about making sure their settlement was not visible from orbit. He learned that from watching the Empire attack Felucia. Better they have to search for the settlement on foot, if it should come to it.
Maris had arrived before Obi-Wan. As he led his group of refugees off the ship, she came running up. "Ti, Ti..." She stopped and turned around in confusion.
"Maris, Shaak Ti made a decision last minute to allow two other refugees aboard. She chose to stay behind."
Maris looked up at Obi-Wan with angry confrontation in the Zabrak's eyes. "You left her behind?"
Obi-Wan looked down. A voice in his head thought to lecture her on her attachments, but then he remembered his own reaction to watching his Master be killed.
"Noooooo! You left her." Maris cried.
"Maris…" Obi-Wan started, but he was not given the chance to continue. Maris ran away, pushing past the other Jedi.
Obi-Wan went to join Yoda, who was standing on a rock, overseeing the others build.
"Lost Shaak Ti, we did."
"Yes, but not just her. Tel-Mac was lost posing a distraction for us to escape. His ship went down…"
"Here, he is." Yoda interrupted, pointing his hand to one of the Jedi at a distance.
Obi-Wan blinked, sure he was seeing things. When the image of Tel-Mac didn't fade from his view, he ran over to him. "Tel-Mac!" When he got there he put his hands on him and breathed a sigh of relief. Then he threw the man a couple of feet. "What were you thinking!"
Tel-Mac wiped his already dried, bloody and bruised face with his sleeve. "I-I…"
"Get away, you did… How?" Yoda asked when he approached.
Tel-Mac tried to stand up again, and righted his clothing. He stuttered over his words for a moment. "I-I got away."
"But your ship went down. The troopers were approaching." Obi-Wan pointed out.
"Yeah, it was planned. Shoot the dead center of the Hyperdrive port, impossible. But to steal another ship to escape the enemy, any real Jedi can do that." He stuck his chin up.
"So you stole a ship." The others jumped and turned suddenly to see Anakin approach from behind them with a fresh bacta patch on his arm.
"Yes, It's over there." Tel-Mac pointed out.
"It might still have a code chip in it's software. The Alliance will want that. Next time we hear from Ahsoka."
"Well, I don't know. I mean I didn't look for that." Both men ran over to the ship.
While the boys were examining the ship, Kazdan Paratus walked over to Obi-Wan and Yoda. "Masters, I have news from Luminara Unduli."
"Kazdan, about this, we spoke. Dead, the Jedi Masters are."
"But you don't understand. I was just meditating in the mental-scape. It's mostly empty now, because so many are here now to build. But Luminara appeared. She says she's been held prisoner by Sidious, and she has a warning. She says the Sith has a new Apprentice in his sights. Says he's already given him valuable information on Jedi whereabouts. Sidious got the message during her last torture session."
Obi-Wan looked at Yoda, neither of them believing the story they were hearing. "You've said this before, Kazdan. You've said you'd seen the former masters to safety, but they never made it there. They never made it out of the temple. Luminara was killed by her clone regime in the purge. There's no shame in admitting that."
Kazdan opened his mouth to argue back, but then closed it, realizing it was in vain.
"Well, Did you find a code chip?" Obi-Wan asked as they approached Tel-Mac's recent acquisition.
"No, but I've got it's nav-history here. The alliance'll want that." Anakin closed a section of the ship he had been working in.
"Give it to Ahsoka, we will." Yoda said.
The Jedi walked back to the center of the newly established Jedi base. There the youngest initiates were allowed to crawl in an area set up for them. When one of the little ones crawled out of the area Yoda used the force to float the child back to the center.
"Master, I've been meaning to ask you. Is there something I can build to keep the little ones out of trouble. I mean, with them crawling and learning to walk, they're bound to get into trouble. And when they start to use the force…"
The masters laughed at him. "Use the force… Hm hm hm."
"Oh Anakin, you make me laugh." Obi-Wan said. "Little babies using the force."
"Eyes of living Jedi, better to use. Kept safe, the initiates will be."
"Actually, Master Yoda. I was wondering if there would be room for one more in the camp here. I think I need to leave my safe house." Obi-Wan said, though he tried to hide his frown.
"Room for one more, we can make." Yoda confirmed.
"What's this about you needing a new place?" Anakin asked Obi-Wan when the two found time to walk alone.
"It's not really safe. Not for the person who gave me the home." Obi-Wan said, disheartened. "If the inquisitors come there looking for me, good people could get really hurt."
"Oh, I'd try to get you a place, but…" Anakin started.
Obi-Wan held out his hand. "Now I don't think I could stomach your lifestyle. Staying here will be good for me. It'll be like the temple again, sort of." Anakin didn't know what Obi-Wan meant by that, but he wasn't going to push it.
As he walked away, Anakin thought about what if Obi-Wan had wanted to stay with him. He imagined for a moment bringing the man home and introducing him to the twins. He knew the strict Jedi would probably be very cross, learning about Anakin's breaking the code, but he couldn't help smile at the prospect.
About three months later, the twins had just celebrated their second birthday, Anakin entered the mental-scape for one of the council's regularly scheduled meetings. When he arrived he found things in an uproar.
"Anakin. Anakin, do you enjoy making me tense." Just as he thought Obi-Wan would hug him, he swatted him instead.
"Oww!" Obi-Wan's swat went straight through due to the bodiless state of the mental-scape, but Anakin yelled all the same. "What's going on?" Anakin was definitely confused.
"I heard about it this morning. The Zillian Flyers were attacked and arrested by the empire. It wasn't hard to figure out that you've been staying with them. How'd you get away? You did get away, didn't you?"
"Uh… yeah." Anakin tried to think fast over what to say, only he couldn't think of anything to say.
"Good to see you, it is." Yoda said to him.
"Anakin!" Tel-Mac's jaw dropped.
Maris sighed and wiped away a nonexistent tear. She still wore black in mourning for her late master. No one had seen or heard from Shaak Ti since she chose to stay behind.
"Anakin…" Everyone turned suddenly to the unexpected voice. "Masters..." Ahsoka knelt to greet the council. "I have news from the rebellion and a need for Jedi assistance."
"Hear you, we will," Yoda prompted.
Hi Everyone
The planet Melren here is one I made up. Wookieepedia does not have a list of uninhabited planets, and searching one by one through the rest seemed like it would take forever.
As promised I had a few surprises in there. At least I hope you found them surprising. If you don't, rest assured I have more surprises in store.
By the end of the chapter, when the twins are 2, I intend for Padme to be at least 6 months pregnant. The next chapter I'm really excited to write because it is one of the ones that's been swimming in my head since I started this thing. Though it may take two chapters to write out in full, I'll have to see as I start writing it.
Thanks for the comments and reviews guys. It is always fun to hear what you have to say.
