Chapter 8 - Confrontation
In the early morning, Morgan Katarn and his wife woke to find the two Jedi already up and kneeling in their living room, meditating. Although Patricia couldn't sense it, Morgan felt it almost as soon as he opened his eyes. A subtle thrum in the Force. When they came down the stairs, they found both Obi-Wan and Kento sitting back to back, a collection of components floating in the air before each of them, slowly assembling into their lightsabers.
Obviously they couldn't travel with the traditional Jedi weapons worn openly on their belts, but disassembled and hidden across a dozen different items didn't register at all to either scans or physical examination. Now, when they might be needed, it was time to make preparations.
As the last pieces slotted into place, the hilts twisted in the air until they were upright and, through the Force, both Jedi activated their weapons, the characteristic hum and buzz signaling they were in proper working condition. Kenobi and Marek's blue sabers reflected in a glow on both their faces and surroundings.
After several seconds, the blades vanished and once again only the hilts floated. Then they lowered into the waiting hands of the Jedi.
"Amazing," Patricia said.
"It is something," Morgan agreed. As a boy, he could make toys walk and dance, but after a fight with a bully went wrong, he swore off using his talent. So, it was almost mesmerizing to watch those skilled in the Force. Shaking off thoughts of the past and focusing on the here and now, Morgan bid his guests good morning and outlined their plans for the day while his wife prepared breakfast.
###
"We'd like to once again thank you all for considering our services for your needs," Marek said with a polite, shallow bow. He and Obi-Wan wore a pair of clean, but not too expensive, suits. Ones suitable for meeting with the bigger farmers on the somewhat back water agricultural moon, Sulon. The larger of planet Sullists two natural satellites.
While Morgan Katarn talked to the farmers, the two Jedi left the meeting and waited outside.
Not that they were doing nothing. Rather, they both entered a meditative state, feeling out the world around them through the Force. If Imperials were on the planet, they hoped to sense something, a premonition, a sensation. Sitting in Morgan's speeder, deep as a dreamless slumber, they felt the faintest of ripples.
"Kyle?" Marek voiced.
"No, it feels different. Almost-" Obi-Wan started to say when they both froze.
The Jedi opened their eyes, returning from meditation to the waking world. What they both felt at the end was a surge in the Force. A Dark Sider used a great deal of power and, unless they were mistaken, took a life. Neither too near nor far away, they felt the sputtering flame of a life flicker out as it became one with the Force and the shadowy power behind the murder pulsed with confidence as it happened.
Bad as it was, the worst of it was the certain sense both Kenobi and Marek had of intention. They hadn't stumbled upon something. Someone wanted them to see it. To know they weren't the only Force users on Sulon.
"That wasn't Vader was it?" Kento Marek asked, pale faced.
"No. This one is nowhere near as strong, thankfully."
"Nowhere near-!? How powerful is this damned Emperor."
"I beat him once, but it was a near thing. This one, it isn't strong enough to take us both. You're an even match, but be careful. Who knows what other tricks this one has."
"You two look like you've seen a ghost," Morgan said as he approached the speeder. "Feeling alright?"
"The Emperor may have sent a Sith after us." Marek said bluntly.
Eyes growing wide, Morgan's hand shot under his jacket for the concealed blaster he carried.
"Not here," Obi-Wan said raising a hand to reassure him. "We felt it through the Force. But whoever it is, they are no amateur. They killed someone, and they wanted us to know it. We need to speak to your rebels as soon as possible."
###
"We're missing two people," Morgan noted, his expression grim. With the news his Jedi guests relayed, it left a knot in the pit of his stomach to mark the absence. After taking a peek into the private room at the local bar, Katarn turned back to Obi-Wan and Kento, eyes seeking an answer.
"We should assume the worst. At least one of them is dead, and the other may be as well, unless he's being probed for information," Kenobi said.
"If he wasn't a mole from the start," Marek added.
"I'd like to think I know my friends better than that," Morgan replied with a scowl, "but I suppose now isn't the time for fond hopes. Come on." With that all three walked into the small room where a dozen locals gathered. Ever since the late Supreme Chancellor began to accrue power, groups like this formed across the galaxy. Friends talking about the war and trying their best to weather the storm, slowly coalescing into the core of resistance cells that Sabe and those like her would reach out to, forging them into the embryo of a rebellion against the Galactic Empire. However, if a Force user was here to kill them off, the fight against Vader would be stillborn. At least in the Sullist system.
"Friends," Morgan began. "Thank you for coming. I know we've all been concerned ever since that Imperial shuttle landed. We all thought we were far removed from the troubles of the Core Worlds, but now they've come to our doorstep. So, what are we to do?"
A few murmurs, but no one spoke up with a solid answer.
"As some of you know, I've been in touch with outside allies. They've sent us some aid," Katarn said and motioned for the Jedi to enter. "These are Jedi who yet live and fight for the Republic. They've come to help us."
"As much as I want to bring you good news," Obi-Wan began. "Not long ago we sensed a Dark Side user take a life."
The room went from hopeful to fearful in a blink.
"You've noticed not everyone is here," Morgan went on. "Its possible the Imperials have them. If so, they could torture them for information, or even use the Force to break their mind and drag the knowledge out of them. All of you need to be careful and watch your backs. Don't travel alone if you can avoid it."
"Can't the Jedi protect us?" one member asked.
"Not all of you," Marek said. "We'll be investigating the Empire, and even if we weren't, it's just the two of us."
Morgan continued, laying out plans for how to stay safe while continuing their work in keeping Sulon safe from the Empire. Meanwhile, Obi-Wan and Kento stepped aside to make their own plans for infiltrating the section of Barons Hed star port claimed by the Imperial shuttle. With access to computer systems, they might discover where the Empire's lapdogs were staying. If one of Morgan's friends still lived, rescue would be the priority. If not, at least eliminating the enemy would leave Sulon unmolested for the time being.
When the meeting came to a close, Morgan and the Jedi watched most of the members head home. Considering the frontier nature of their farms, it wasn't unusual for the steads to have defenses of one sort or another. More than a few pests and wild animals fell to automated blaster turrets. With a quick bit of retooling, they could be pressed into service as perimeter defense, so they were, by no means, defenseless if the Empire came knocking.
"Take my speeder," Morgan told Obi-Wan and Kento. "I'll hitch a ride," and he motioned to one of his friends waiting with a similar model vehicle.
Nodding their thanks, the Jedi jumped in and raced off raced towards the city and Morgan wished them all the luck the Force could give.
###
Kyle was working on putting the gearbox together again when he heard his mother's scream. A shriek of surprise and fear, the boy peeked out of the workshop and towards the main house. He saw a figure through the kitchen window moving around. Without much thought, he walked down the short path and into the house, expecting to see that something fell or broke.
When he entered the kitchen door, a man in brown robes and a hood stood in the middle of the room, over his still mother who lay on the floor.
"You'll be the child then?" the figure said, voice coming from deep within the hood.
A sense of imperiling dread suffused Kyle and he instinctively turned on his heel and bolted out into the fields.
###
Moving through the shadows, Obi-Wan and Kento watched a pair of Imperial officers moving about the shuttle. It looked like they were loading supplies up, almost like they planned to leave soon.
"Think they did what they intended?"
"Perhaps," Obi-Wan answered. "But if killing one or two locals was all they wanted, why not send an assassin. I've met more than a few bounty hunters who'd take the job."
While they stuck to the shadows, climbing amongst the rafters and hiding from sight within the darkness, they observed a tall figure in black armor striding across the hangar floor towards the shuttle.
"We've received confirmation. Katarn will be dealt with soon enough. Prepare for immediate take off. We leave no later than dusk." The one who spoke, obviously in charge, was pale skinned, with a few red markings. A Pau'un, Obi-Wan knew, and this one was skilled in the Dark Side.
At a glance, both Jedi knew what they had to do. Dropping from the rafters, their lightsabers burst to life as they landed. The officers drew blaster pistols, but the Pau'un waved them off. "Don't bother. Unless you want to die from your own lasers bounced right back at you." He drew a lightsaber from his own belt and activated the crimson blade as he stalked forward. "I must say, its an honor to meet you, Obi-Wan Kenobi. Lord Vader told me much about you."
"Nothing good I hope."
"However, your friend is an unknown."
"No one important, Sith."
The Pau'un smiled, showing off a set of sharp teeth. "I'm flattered you think so highly of me, but you're wrong on both counts. I am not Sith and there is no such thing as an unimportant Jedi. Allow me to introduce myself. I am the Grand Inquisitor, head of the Imperial Inquisitorius. Our goal is to root out Force using dissidents, such as yourselves, and deliver peace and justice to the galaxy. And unlike your fallen order, we intend to succeed."
"The peace your kind offers is a poison pill," Obi-Wan quipped as he and Marek settled into their stances.
"I won't throw any false modesty your way. I'm good. However, even I can't take on two Jedi of your skill. That being said, can you really both afford to stay here and play with me? I can't beat you, but I can put up a fight. Will the Katarn family have the luxury of waiting for rescue?"
The pair of Jedi glanced between themselves, the direction of their speeder, and the Grand Inquisitor. "Go, Kenobi," Marek said. "He's not even a Sith. I can deal with him. But Morgan and his wife can't fight trained soldiers. You survived the Clone Wars. Whatever they throw at you, you'll handle it."
After a moment of hesitation, Obi-Wan turned and sprinted back the way they'd come.
###
Racing along at break neck speeds through the city and out across the countryside, Kenobi's knuckles were white on the steering wheel and his mind flashed back to the days of Anakin's hectic, but skilled piloting. He could use that here, but the past was long gone.
Zipping back and forth around slower traffic, he bounced over hills and barely managed to maintain control on the tighter turns, but eventually he escaped the limits of Barons Hed and was well and proper into the sticks and farmlands.
As he cruised along the dirt roads, he caught the faintest hint of a wispy trail of smoke rising up from beyond the horizon.
His eyes narrowed and he adjusted his grip. It was coming from the direction of the Katarn stead.
Seeing no other choice, Obi-Wan reached out with the Force. It was a trick Anakin told him about when he was tinkering with their ships. Something only Jedi could do, because only a Force user would be able to alter the interior workings of an engine while it was in operation. Much as the mind placed subconscious limits on the body to protect it from over exertion, machines were designed to work within standard safety limits. Push them past that point and they would quickly break down. But if you only needed to operate beyond tolerance for a few minutes, like say, in the middle of evasive maneuvers, it was fine. Either that or you didn't care if the vehicle in question could ever function again.
With some subtle adjustments, power surged through the speeder, its velocity increasing by almost twenty-five percent. Within seconds the display shorted out and Kenobi smelled something burning under the hood.
Getting closer, the Jedi saw the black smoke billowing out from the Katarn farmhouse, Even their fields were on fire. A warning to others about what happened to anyone willing to cross Emperor Vader, no doubt. There, in front of the house, was another vehicle. Obi-Wan recognized it. He last saw Morgan jumping in it when his friend gave him a ride as the group parted company. Swinging the speeder into a drifting stop, he noticed the small fire in its instrument panel.
Ignoring it, he jumped out before it came to rest and sprinted towards the house. He approached the front door and as it began to open, the servos sputtered.
Obi-Wan's eyes widened as he felt the disturbance through the Force.
Somewhere inside the Katarn home, a bomb exploded.