Precipice by shadowsong26
Aftermath: Chapter 3
"It appears this ambush has happened everywhere."
Senator Organa's words had been tumbling back and forth through Obi-Wan's mind since they'd first made contact, about a half hour before. They had played on a loop as he made the quick jump to the coordinates the Senator had fed him and were continuing to do so as he docked with the Tantive IV.
It was a good thing, the portion of his mind that had somehow remained rational through the fog of shock noted, that he had completed procedures like this one often enough that he could have done this in his sleep. He might as well have been asleep.
"It appears this ambush has happened everywhere."
The implications were too-too terrible to contemplate. It can't be, he told himself. It can't be. Master Yoda and I can't be the only ones. If I survived, then surely-surely Master Windu, or Master Fisto, or Master Plo, or… He couldn't tell. That was the worst of it, in some ways. If there could be a 'worst' part of this. The Force was raw and wounded, screaming around him. It was all but impossible to pick out individual voices in the chaos around him.
There is no chaos, there is harmony.
He found precious little of that, no matter how he reached for it. And he knew his current state- this numb fog of shock-wouldn't last forever. But, at least for now, it was cushioning the blow; keeping him moving, keeping him functioning. It would do, until he had a chance to breathe.
A green light flared on his console; he was secure in the docking bay, with enough air and pressure to leave his ship safely. He closed his eyes and let out a long slow breath. Focus. You can do this.
There is no emotion, there is peace.
As composed as he was likely to get for the time being, Obi-Wan pushed open the canopy and climbed out of his borrowed ship. Senator Organa was waiting for him. He seemed tired, strained; but, apart from a truly impressive black eye, unharmed.
"Thank you, Senator," he said, trying to contain a universe in those words.
Organa half-bowed in acknowledgement. "Are you injured?"
He shook his head. "No, I-I got away clean." The word felt wrong as soon as he said it, but he let it pass without correcting himself. "What about you?" He knew he was asking as much as a deflection as out of genuine concern for his friend. And hiding from his own problems in someone else's wasn't the right way to handle things, but he didn't have the luxury to do otherwise right now.
When did doing things properly become a luxury? he wondered, dimly, then moved on. Later, later, he would answer those questions later.
Organa reached up and touched his face lightly, with a faint wince. "It looks worse than it is," he said. "When General Skywalker crashed into me at the Temple, he-"
"Anakin-Anakin is alive?" Obi-Wan interrupted, all other relevant details briefly washed away under an onslaught of giddy-and somewhat guilty-relief.
Attachment, he thought, trying to suppress the edge of faintly-hysterical laughter that came with it. I'm as bad as he is. Still, that one hint of good news-as small as it was, compared to the darkness surrounding them- was enough to help him center himself.
There is no chaos, there is harmony.
And then he caught the look on the Senator's face. "What happened?" he prompted, as calmly and as gently as he could.
"I saw…" Organa drew in a deep breath. "I saw thousands of troops attack the Temple."
The words hit Obi-Wan like stones, and he struggled to hold on to what little composure he'd managed to regain. The Temple-they even attacked the Temple? "Are there...how many other Jedi managed to survive?"
He shook his head. "Skywalker was the only one who...I was taking him to Polis Massa when-"
"I-I'm sorry, where?"
"A medical facility," Organa said. "Associated with an archeological research project my mother's family invested in. Almost no one knows of my connection, and no one's paid much attention to it in the past decade or so, but the facility is still operational."
Which meant the equipment would likely be correspondingly out of date, but, on the other hand…
"So whoever-whoever is behind this-" the Sith Lord, of course, but we still don't know who that is "-won't think to look there."
"That's the idea."
And, right now, I think secrecy and safety win out over all other concerns. He nodded. "So, you were headed there, and…?"
"That's when we picked up Master Yoda's distress call, and then yours," he continued.
"But you haven't heard from anyone else?" Obi-Wan asked quietly, though a part of him already knew the answer. The Senator had said as much obliquely, but until he heard it straight out, it wouldn't be real. And, until it was real, he couldn't process it and find a way to move on.
"No."
And Anakin was the only one who had made it out of the Temple.
There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no passion, there is serenity. There is no chaos, there is harmony. There is no death, there is the Force.
The Code felt like meaningless platitudes, in the face of all of that.
"How badly is he injured?" Anakin's absence was telling, and Senator Organa hadn't mentioned him arguing about being taken to a medcenter, which was even more alarming.
And, worst of all, Obi-Wan couldn't even sense his apprentice, not really. He should have been able to, quite clearly, now that he was this close; even with everything else echoing through the Force. Their bond remained tight enough for that.
But all he got was the barest flicker, all but swallowed up in the maelstrom surrounding them.
There is no chaos, there is harmony.
Senator Organa's face went grim, only confirming what Obi-Wan had already guessed. "I don't have much on board," he said quietly. "I haven't ever-even with the War, I haven't ever needed more than a basic medical droid. We've been doing what we can to stabilize him, but…" He shook his head. "He's still breathing. Master Yoda is with him now."
All right. Somewhat worse than Obi-Wan had already guessed. There is no emotion, there is peace.
"Which way?"
"Follow me."
Obi-Wan didn't need to be told twice. He followed the Senator through the ship, to the ship's basic medbay. Despite the Tantive's considerably larger size, the medbay was no bigger than the one on the Twilight, and substantially less well-equipped.
Which is only logical, he reminded himself. This is a Senator's private vessel, used for diplomatic and mercy missions. The Twilight was, for all intents and purposes, a military ship. Even Anakin hasn't ever been foolish enough to-
There is no emotion, there is peace.
The ship's single medical droid was beeping-not quite anxiously, though Obi-Wan almost wanted to attach the word to it. Master Yoda was perched on a chair on the other side of the bay's single table, humming thoughtfully to himself, mind opaque.
And on the table-
Oh, Anakin…
He was so still; that was the first thing Obi-Wan noticed; and Anakin was never still. His hair was matted with sweat and blood; a gash went along his chin, coming perilously close to his throat; another crossed his right shoulder, disappearing under a chestplate that seemed to be holding his ribs in place. A small pile of extracted stone and transparisteel fragments, some of them disconcertingly large, had been gathered on top of his tattered, bloody robes, which had been cut off to allow the droid easier access for treatment. There were at least four distinct blaster burns that Obi-Wan could see, none of which would likely be fatal on their own but compounding each other were cause for grave concern. His flesh arm was strapped to a splint; the mechanical one seemed undamaged. He was chalk-white, near colorless, despite an empty bag indicating he'd been given at least one transfusion; his breathing was shallow and unsteady; Obi-Wan had barely taken a cursory look at half his Padawan's body and already-
"Master Kenobi."
The faint hint of reproof in Master Yoda's voice called him back to himself.
There is no emotion, there is peace.
"Master Yoda," he said, with an abbreviated bow.
Master Yoda eyed him for a minute, then sighed. "Stubborn, he is, the boy you trained-but nearly gone."
Obi-Wan swallowed and looked away. He knew what the Grandmaster was saying. This wasn't- yet-an instruction to give up hope, to let his friend go; merely a warning to prepare himself. If they didn't get to Polis Massa in time, or if the center there was inadequate…
There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no death, there is the Force.
"I understand, Master."
"A moment with your Padawan, take," he said, not unkindly, as he jumped down off the chair.
"Then decide, we must, how to proceed."
"Yes, Master," he said, bowing distractedly as Master Yoda collected his gimmer stick and stepped past him, leaving with Senator Organa.
There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no death, there is the Force.
Obi-Wan sank into the chair, resting a hand as gently as he could on Anakin's and closing his eyes.
"I'm here," he whispered, drawing on the bond they still shared to send what strength he could; to at least dampen his friend's pain a little. He doubted it was doing much good-it was a feeble enough effort, as healing had never been his strong suit-but he had to try. "I'm here."
There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no death, there is the Force.
The hand under his twitched, just a little, and the droid let out a startled beep... what? No, am I-is he-can this be possible? Obi-Wan opened his eyes, hardly daring to hope, and, sure enough, Anakin was awake, and looking at him; his eyes were cloudy with pain and not altogether focused, but he was awake. "Mmaster…?" he croaked, uncertainly.
"Shh, shh, easy," Obi-Wan said, ruthlessly suppressing the urge to cling tighter and risk hurting him worse. "It's all right, Anakin, you're safe now, Senator Organa got you off Coruscant, we're-"
"Palpatine," Anakin interrupted.
"What?"
"Sith Lord," he said.
The information wasn't-wasn't exactly a surprise. It was unexpected, yes, but once the words were out there…
With everything that's happened today, who else could it have been? Or so the small corner of Obi-Wan's brain that remained rational said. The rest of him was consumed by a white-hot burst of raw feeling, the likes of which he hadn't experienced since Maul had cut Qui-Gon down in front of him. Anakin had trusted Palpatine, he had for years; what the man must have been doing to him-
I left you alone with him, I allowed this to-
There is no passion, there is serenity. There is no chaos, there is harmony.
He took a breath and let it out. "We'll handle him," he promised Anakin quietly. "Don't wo—what on earth are you doing?"
Anakin was struggling to sit up. The droid started beeping frantically, sorting through its vials, probably seeking a sedative.
"Have-have to-" He went, if possible, even paler.
Oh, for the love of-you can't possibly intend to go after him yourself, not right now!
"Anakin, stop," Obi-Wan said, as firmly as he could. He would have shoved him back down into place but restrained himself in an effort to avoid accidentally aggravating his injuries. He was doing enough of that on his own. "Anakin, you're-if you go now, he will kill you."
He could feel Anakin's thoughts, echoing around them-I have to stop him, this was my fault, I was supposed to be the Chosen One, I was-
"No, Anakin-listen to me, this isn't your fault. It isn't, I swear it. And we will fix this, trust me on that, but with-with everyone else-if you go back, he will kill you. He will kill you, and we can't afford to lose you, there are...there are so few of us left right now, and we need you, Anakin, I need you."
Obi-Wan wasn't sure if it was Anakin's current physical limitations catching up with him, or simply the pain; or if he had, for once, actually gotten through his apprentice's thick skull, but Anakin at last sank back, eyes closed.
"Now, let's have no more of that," he said. "Please."
Anakin didn't answer, just let out a slow breath. But he stayed down, at least. Progress. I'll take it.
"We will deal with Palpatine, I promise," Obi-Wan said. "And then…" We'll rebuild. Somehow.
The droid had finally found its sedative and was approaching with a needle. Probably for the best, he thought. Or he'll just try to get up again as soon as I walk away.
"Rest now," he said, squeezing Anakin's hand as gently as he could. "All right?"
Anakin's eyes flickered open again, and he tried to wave the droid off.
"Anakin-"
"Master," he whispered, and there was a different sort of urgency to it now. "Master, I...h-have to...have to tell you…"
"It can wait."
He shook his head and hissed a little at the pain as the gash on his chin split open again. "Mmaster, I...P-Padmẻ and I…"
Oh.
On any other day, it might have mattered. But in the face of everything else that had happened,
Obi-Wan couldn't quite bring himself to care about his friend's violation of the Code.
"Shh, it's all right. I know," he said instead, as soothingly as he could.
Anakin blinked. "Wh-what…?"
"I have for a long time," he admitted. Well, not for sure, not until just now, but only because I was very careful to avoid knowing for sure. You two really aren't anywhere near as discreet as you think you are, you know.
"Why…?"
There were at least a dozen answers he could have given, all of them true to an extent. Technically, I only suspected the truth. I had no evidence you'd actually acted on your feelings, and I didn't want to ruin both your lives without actual proof. I was waiting you to come to me. I wanted you to trust me with this. She made you happy, and you've had so much pain in your life. How could I possibly take that away? You seemed to make her happy, and she deserves that, too. I've been where you were, and perhaps a part of me was living vicariously through the choice you made, the one I couldn't. If I had told anyone, they would have expelled you from the Jedi Order. I would have lost you.
But the droid was beeping indignantly now, finally in position to sedate Anakin, so Obi-Wan went with the simplest answer, to be sure he heard it before he slept.
"You're my brother, Anakin," he said quietly. "I love you."
Anakin's eyes widened just a hair, then started to drop as the drug kicked in.
"Rest, little brother," he said. "Heal. We can sort everything else out later."
He went limp, safely drugged past arguing now. Hopefully, he'll stay that way.
"General Kenobi?"
He jumped a little and turned to face Senator Organa. I wonder how much of that he overheard…
"We're about to drop out of hyperspace," he said.
Polis Massa, at last. Anakin had made it this far. Obi-Wan felt himself relaxing a little at the thought.
"All right. Thank you."
"And...we've received a coded retreat message," Organa added quietly. "It requests all Jedi return to the Temple. It says the war is over."
Part of Obi-Wan, the part still a little drunk on the euphoria of Anakin, alive; Anakin, conscious;
Anakin, lucid; wanted to believe that that meant more survivors. But the rational part of him knew better.
"A trap."
The Senator nodded. "Master Yoda said the same."
Which meant his moment was over, and they needed to plan their next move. "Of course." He stood up, gently setting Anakin's hand down, then paused. If I tell him, and he doesn't already know-no, it doesn't matter anymore. "...when we get back to Coruscant, if you...if you happen to speak to Senator Amidala…"
He trailed off. What do I say? The smart move would probably be to let everyone, including Padmẻ, think that Anakin is dead, in case-in case we can't bring Palpatine down on the first try. That would be safer, I think. For both of them. For all of us. But that would also be incalculably cruel. And Anakin would likely never forgive him.
Senator Organa's eyes flickered over to where Anakin lay, and he nodded slowly. He does know.
That simplifies matters. "I won't compromise his safety."
It was probably better that way; better to leave the decision in someone else's hands. Obi-Wan was, he realized, quite thoroughly compromised on the subject. His judgment could not be trusted.
"Thank you," he said.
Organa smiled at him briefly, then led the way to the ship's conference room, where Master Yoda was waiting for them.
Things felt different than they had just an hour before, though not much had really changed. The world had still ended, and the Force was still raw and screaming, and a Sith Lord still had total control of the Republic. But-Anakin was alive, and as long as that were so…
There is no emotion, there is peace.
It wasn't the right way to go about things, and Obi-Wan was more than aware of that. But as long as Anakin was alive, despite the maelstrom of death and darkness that had descended on them all, he found it in him to hope.