The world burned around him, but all Obi-Wan cared about was the woman in his arms. No. This is not how it ends.
Obi-Wan reached out with the Force and found only the faintest echo of life within the woman he loved so dearly. Faint, but she clung to life. A sob choked him. He shouldn't have doubted. Adrina was the most stubborn woman alive; her life would not be so easily claimed.
Obi-Wan laid Adrina back on the hangar floor. Had their positions been reversed, Adrina possessed a number of skills and tools to coax an ember of life into a roaring flame, but he lacked them all. Instead, he did the only thing he remembered. Obi-Wan centered his hands on her chest and began chest compressions.
He refused to allow that faint flicker of life to be snuffed out.
He refused to allow her to wage this war for her life alone.
Obi-Wan paused compressions. "Breathe," Obi-Wan demanded, removing his mouth from hers and resuming compressions. "Don't you dare do this."
Compressions. Breath. Compressions. Breath. Finally, a soft inhale from Adrina. Obi-Wan collapsed on his backside. He nearly sobbed with relief. She remained unconscious, but she breathed on her own.
"Move aside," a droid commanded. Obi-Wan scrambled to his feet. The droid swept past Adrina to extinguish a large fire in the corner. A crew of droids flooded the hangar, tamping out the last of the flames before the waiting healers and medics could safely enter. Only then did the horrific extent of the explosion, the pained screams of other survivors, the blaring alarms, come rushing into awareness. But why did the Jedi medical staff linger outside of the chaos? Why didn't they brave the remaining flames and fumes?
"She needs help," Obi-Wan pleaded. Smoke and grief rendered his voice hoarse. "Please…."
But they did not move. Anger strengthened his body and he lifted Adrina. If the cowards would not come to her, he would bring her to them.
Obi-Wan spotted a familiar head of blond hair pushing through the throng of medical personnel rooted in the doorway. Maelle glared at her compatriots. "What are you waiting for? There are survivors crying for help! Are you deaf or the worst cowards alive? Move it!"
"Assistant Amon!"
"Master Kenobi!" Maelle held her bag to her side tightly as she ran to him, jumping over debris and ducking under fallen wires. She paled. "Healer Adrina," she breathed.
Obi-Wan's throat clogged as he described what had happened and the measures he had taken.
"You saved her life," Maelle said, rapidly applying field dressing. She called for a stretcher.
"Will she live? She…. She hasn't woken."
Maelle pressed her lips together. "We will do what we can. We must trust the will of the Force."
The pressure gripping his chest threatened to suffocate him.
A medic droid scurried up. Maelle and the droid transferred Adrina to the stretcher. Obi-Wan followed after the stretcher until a bloody hand caught his ankle.
For a brief moment, a similar scene flashed behind his eyes, of Padmé Amidala tumbling through hot Geonosian sand and Anakin's panicked cry to lower the ship. "She would do her duty." And so would Adrina. Obi-Wan's heart squeezed. She wouldn't lay her duties aside to stay by his side, were he the one injured, nor would he desire her to do so; she would give him a tongue-lashing.
Obi-Wan knelt by the maintenance worker and assessed their grievous injuries.
"Master Obi-Wan!" Ahsoka materialized behind him. Maelle followed behind her. "There are survivors able to talk. We should interview them."
Obi-Wan looked back at the worker, passed out from shock.
"Let me take him." Maelle placed her hand on the victim's bloody temple. "You both go."
"Yes, thank you." Obi-Wan stood.
"But clean your hands first," Maelle called behind him.
"My hands?" Obi-Wan brought his hands up for closer inspection. His stomach dropped to his feet and his throat constricted. Blood coated his hands. Adrina's blood. Boiling anger and freezing grief battled for dominance.
Obi-Wan closed his eyes. Difficult though it was, he acknowledged his passion - his emotions - and tucked them away. He could not allow them to rule him if he was to be of any benefit.
He exhaled deeply and opened his eyes.
Maelle grimaced sympathetically. She directed them out of the hangar and towards the room the survivors without injury were waiting. Obi-Wan quietly thanked Maelle and made haste to the nearest fresher. He clenched his eyes shut as the water washed his hands free of blood. He blindly scrubbed his hands until his skin burned. Only then did he open his eyes and exit the fresher.
"You alright, Master?" Ahsoka pushed off the pillar. She gestured to the empty storage room down the hall where the survivors waited. "I can handle the interviews if you need some time."
No, Obi-Wan was not alright - far, far from alright. But Adrina lived. Obi-Wan felt her quiet light burning in the Halls of Healing. He focused on that light, that assurance. It would have to be enough. So Obi-Wan, not realizing he never answered his padawan, turned on his heel and marched towards his duty.
Ahsoka jogged after him. "Master, I really think you should-" She silenced herself when Obi-Wan opened the door to the storage room.
A dozen survivors filled the small room. Some faces he recognized under the filth and grime, though others were unfamiliar. Many kept their eyes averted and some even turned their bodies away. The blatant distrust alarmed Obi-Wan.
"I am Master Obi-Wan Kenobi and this is my padawan, Ahsoka Tano. We are here to help," he said.
"Help?" One worker scoffed. "How do we know it wasn't a Jedi who was responsible for that bomb? Good men died down there. Our friends." Ahsoka recoiled.
Obi-Wan bowed his head. "And I am truly sorry for your losses. I, too, want to get to the bottom of this. My….friend was grievously injured in the explosion."
A Chiss maintenance worker hunched over in the corner of the room raised his hand. "Talk to Jackar. He was the one working all morning in the section the blast came from. That was the last place I saw him, when I passed him on my way out for shift change."
Obi-Wan stroked his beard. "Jackar Bowmani?"
The worker nodded.
"Thank you." Obi-Wan bowed.
Obi-Wan left the storage room with a heavy heart and a bad feeling. Master Mara had reported that Bowmani had felt ill, yet refused to leave work. Was the illness real - and his presence coincidental - or was nervousness regarding a nefarious plot to blame? But if the blast emanated from Bowmani's section, Adrina would have been heading directly into the heart of the explosion. Obi-Wan's chest tightened.
Finding Bowmani became Obi-Wan's top priority. Had he escaped the blast or was he counted among the victims? Had there been a body near Adrina?
"What are you thinking, Master?" Ahsoka crossed her arms. She eyed him with concern.
Adrina… Obi-Wan's stomach dropped. "We have to tell Anakin," he murmured. He pressed his comlink.
Ahsoka frowned. She glanced back at the storage room.
Anakin answered with an explicit string of curses. "I've been trying to reach you for the last ten minutes!"
"It must have been muted from Mandalore," Obi-Wan apologized wearily. "Anakin, you need to get to the Temple immediately."
"That's why I was calling," Anakin growled. "I'm on my way. I sensed a strong disturbance. What happened?"
Obi-Wan and Ahsoka stepped into an alcove, out of the way of droids and Jedi transporting survivors to the Halls of Healing. Obi-Wan clenched his jaw. Stretchers bearing bodies draped in fabric followed the survivors. Too many dead.
"Obi-Wan?"
Obi-Wan forced his attention back to the present. There was nothing more he could do for the dead but discover their killer. "There was an explosion in the hangar."
"Terrorism?"
"It is a possibility. Ahsoka and I are investigating. But there is something you should know." Words and emotion clogged Obi-Wan's throat. He gathered his courage tight, bolstering his frayed and bedraggled armor and said, "Adrina was caught in the explosion."
Long silence, then, "Is she…"
"She's alive." Obi-Wan focused on that bright light. "But badly injured. Worse than the bounty hunter incident."
"She survived the bounty hunters. She can survive this." But Anakin's voice trembled.
Obi-Wan ducked his head. Her heart had stopped. But he spared Anakin the pain and only said, "Yes. She is strong." She is the strongest person I know.
"I'm joining the investigation," Anakin stated. "I'll be there in a few minutes."
"Meet with Ahsoka. I have a feeling I'll be mired in Council meetings. Master Yoda is attempting to get through."
Anakin signed off.
Ahsoka raised an eyebrow at Obi-Wan and crossed her arms. "Care to fill me in? You know something. I sensed some strong emotions from you when he mentioned Jakar Bowmani."
Obi-Wan's comlink beeped. His fingernails dug into his palms and ignored it.
Ahsoka shifted.
Guilt briefly superseded Obi-Wan's anger. He sighed. "I know Jakar Bowmani's name." He succinctly shared his theories.
Ahsoka bit her lip. "Maybe this is all a coincidence. Maybe it was a freak accident! That could have happened, right?" Her large eyes pleaded with Obi-Wan to bolster her shaking faith, but he couldn't.
Obi-Wan's comlink beeped again. He snarled. Obi-Wan reined in the anger simmering scarcely below the surface. He paused, just for a moment, to breathe. He ignored Ahsoka's pity and silently answered the call. As expected, Master Yoda summoned him to the Council Chambers.
"Requisition a crime scene analysis droid. Coordinate with Anakin and Assistant Amon, or whoever is in charge of the hangar. I want answers."
Ahsoka saluted. "You got it, Master."
0
Obi-Wan pinched the bridge of his nose. Two hours wasted on administrative nonsense.
No, Obi-Wan corrected himself. The meeting was not nonsense. Reviewing Temple security hardly qualified as nonsense in the wake of a possible terrorist attack on the Temple and an ongoing protest on the Temple steps, but Obi-Wan's attention constantly drifted to Adrina and Jakar Bowmani. He'd missed half of what was discussed.
"Am I boring you, Obi-Wan?" Master Windu raised an eyebrow.
Obi-Wan shifted in his seat and cleared his throat. "Not at all."
"Good. I've asked Anakin and young Tano to bring us their report. Hopefully you can spare them more attention than you've granted us."
Obi-Wan clenched his jaw.
"Anakin Skywalker was an excellent choice, given the general distrust towards the Jedi in the wake of the explosion," Master Plo Koon commented
Obi-Wan sensed Anakin and Ahsoka arrive; he waved the door open. Anakin and Ahsoka stepped into the center of the room, hands clasped behind their backs. Obi-Wan sensed Anakin's turmoil and knew, without a doubt, that he witnessed the destruction of the hangar. Obi-Wan leaned forward. "What have you discovered?"
Anakin spoke first. "Ahsoka and I – along with Russo, the crime scene analysis droid Ahsoka acquired – determined that nano-droids caused the explosion. Pieces of shrapnel from near the blast origin were covered in them. However, no nano-droids were in the inventory or manifest. They had to have been brought in by the attacker. This was certainly a well-planned bombing."
"One of the witnesses implicated Jakar Bowmani," Ahsoka continued. She glanced at Obi-Wan. "I pulled up his file. He's the foreman over all the gunships, bombs, and weaponry. A munitions expert. And he is still unaccounted for."
"We have to assume he is alive," Obi-Wan said. "Finding him is our utmost priority."
Anakin nodded decisively. "Agreed. I've notified security to be on the lookout. We have also instructed Russo to keep the nature of the explosion a secret. Don't want word of rogue nano-droids sowing more distrust or fear. There's too much of it as it is."
"Russo is searching the Temple for traces of nano-droids as we speak," Ahsoka added.
Anakin glanced at Obi-Wan. "Nano-droids are highly regulated. We could submit legal inquiries, but my guess is these came from the black market."
"No doubt," Obi-Wan agreed. "Good work, both of you."
Windu steepled his fingers. "Let us hope we can get to the bottom of this quickly. There are whispers that the Senate will be holding a special meeting to determine whether or not the military police will become involved in the investigation."
"They can't do that!" Ahsoka spluttered. Obi-Wan shared her indignation, though not her surprise.
"Twenty-five dead and thirty injured," Master Plo said. "The majority of which are clones or civilians. The Senate takes notice of such things, regardless of location."
Ahsoka ducked her head.
Anakin glanced at his comlink. "Russo has something for us. Care to join us, Obi-Wan?"
Obi-Wan did not wait for permission. He stood. "Yes." He sensed displeasure from a few of the other Council members, which he promptly disregarded.
"You have something on your face, my friend," Anakin muttered as the Council Chamber doors closed behind them.
Obi-Wan touched his beard and frowned.
"Anger."
Obi-Wan arched an eyebrow. "I thought I was hiding it rather well."
"You were in there," Anakin assured. "Mostly."
Ahsoka snorted. She put her hands on her hips when Obi-Wan swiveled narrowed eyes to her. "Hey! I'm just saying. You're clearly upset. Which," Ahsoka held up placating hands. "We all understand."
Obi-Wan cut off any addition Anakin would have made with, "I need to focus on the investigation."
Anakin and Ahsoka exchanged a glance. "Absolutely," they said simultaneously.
Obi-Wan narrowed his eyes.
"Just come on." Anakin gestured for Obi-Wan to follow.
Thoughts churned in Obi-Wan's mind, but every thought turned back to Adrina.
"Bowmani better give us answers," Ahsoka muttered under her breath as they arrived at the appointed destination.
"I am confident this will be an illuminating interview," Obi-Wan said.
They entered the room. Russo's motor whirled as he turned. Obi-Wan frowned. "Where is Jakar Bowmani?"
"I thought you said you found him," Anakin said.
"And so I did," Russo confirmed. "He is right here. What's left of him, anyway." Obi-Wan's stomach sank.
"Now is not the time for jokes," Anakin growled. Nevertheless, they followed Russo further into the examination room.
Russo halted at a table in the far back of the room. "This is all that remains of Jakar Bowmani," Russo stated.
They stared down at the object on the table. "Gross," Ahsoka said with a disgusted sniff.
Obi-Wan glanced at Russo. "A hand?"
"Jakar Bowmani's hand," Russo corrected.
"Well, where is the rest of him?" Anakin demanded.
Russo spread his mechanical arms wide as if shrugging. "Disintegrated in the blast."
"Disintegrated," Obi-Wan repeated. He clenched his jaw. A blast that strong…. Adrina…
"Because he was so close to the bomb?" Ahsoka asked.
Russo shook his head. "Because he was the bomb." Russo handed Obi-Wan a datapad connected to the scanner he held. "This is the connection we were searching for." Russo waved the scanner over the severed end of Bowmani's hand.
Obi-Wan blinked. He stared at the screen for a moment before tilting it to allow Anakin and Ahsoka a better view. "How did nano-droids enter his bloodstream?"
Anakin sighed and clapped Ahsoka on the shoulder. "Looks like we're going on a field trip, Snips." He turned to Obi-Wan. "Me and Ahsoka will investigate Bowmani's home, see if we can't find how these buggers got into his blood and maybe see if we can't determine if he ingested them willingly. Bowmani may be as much of a victim as the others."
Russo wheeled away, leaving them alone in the room with Bowmani's hand.
Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow. "And where will I be?"
Anakin mimicked his expression for a split second before a more somber shadow dimmed his eyes. "Ahsoka and I can handle this," Anakin said quietly. "Right now, you're needed elsewhere." Silent communication passed between them.
Obi-Wan swallowed the lump in his throat. "Thank you, my friend."
0
Obi-Wan's heart hammered erratically with each laden step towards the Halls of Healing. As if sensing his approach, Maelle greeted him stoically at the entrance. "She will live," Maelle said softly.
Obi-Wan's shoulders sagged. He scrubbed his face. "Truly?"
A ghost of a smile flitted over Maelle's lips. "You may see her now, if you like."
Obi-Wan nodded eagerly.
"I should warn you," Maelle said as they walked, "That she is still in a bacta tank, unconscious."
"How bad is she?" Obi-Wan asked hoarsely. He immediately felt extremely foolish. She had been on the brink of death when he found her.
Maelle hesitated. "Her vitals are stable now," she said finally.
"Now?"
Again, she hesitated. "It was touch and go for a bit," Maelle admitted. "But she is responding, finally. Her body is acting in its own defense. We must be patient with such cases. It could take days for her to regain consciousness. She is already uncommonly lucky to have survived. We are still determining the extent of her internal injuries, particularly to her brain, but, for now, we are optimistic. She was just placed in a bacta tank."
Obi-Wan sucked in a breath. "Do you suspect brain damage?"
"Yes."
There was more Maelle did not say, but Obi-Wan didn't press. He wasn't sure he could handle the unmitigated truth. Instead, he said, "You will keep me apprised?"
The harsh lines around Maelle's mouth softened. "Of course."
Obi-Wan's headache mounted. Maelle led him through a set of double doors, down a row of bacta tanks. Many were occupied, but Obi-Wan zeroed in on the bacta tank in the far back right. It was of the new design, laying horizontal instead of upright.
Maelle paused a few beds away. "Just remember that the outside wounds are the easiest to mend. Don't be afraid."
Obi-Wan frowned.
Maelle shook her head and led him the rest of the way. "I'll give you a moment," Maelle murmured. Her fingers brushed the bacta tank and then Obi-Wan was left with the soft hum of the machine.
Metal coverings obscured Adrina's body from the shoulders down, making it impossible to discern the true extent of her injuries, though he supposed it afforded modesty to vulnerable patients where the older design did not. Even so, the glimpse the tank afforded chilled Obi-Wan to the bone. Someone had cleaned Adrina prior to her submersion, rendering the scrapes and deep gashes on her face, neck, and shoulders all the more clear. The worst of the lot was a neatly stitched laceration stretching from shoulder to shoulder. It looked deep. How close had she come to decapitation?
He shuddered to think what injuries the rest of her bore. The pain she must have endured….still be enduring….
Obi-Wan sighed and touched his fingers to the glass where the soft skin of Adrina's cheek should have been. Tendrils of hair floated around her face, escaping from the rushed braid her hair had been secured in. Despite it all, she seemed at peace, and that eased some of the tension coiled deep within Obi-Wan.
"I miss you," he whispered. "So much. Would that I could take your place."
Obi-Wan sank to the floor. He rested his head against the cool glass so that his eyes were parallel to her face. He focused on the vitals monitor. The steady peaks assured Obi-Wan that - whatever internal injuries she sustained, whatever battles she yet faced on the road to recovery - she was gloriously alive.
Adrina was alive.
Obi-Wan closed his eyes as a tidal wave of emotion threatened to sweep him away into dark, terrible depths. Perhaps meditation could return a semblance of balance to him. He slowly slipped into the welcome embrace of the Force, drawing immense comfort from the glowing warmth of Adrina's presence.
Five minutes or five hours later - Obi-Wan couldn't tell – Maelle returned. She offered no words of comfort or encouragement, only silent understanding.
Each step away from Adrina grew heavy.
"May I come again tomorrow?" Obi-Wan broke the silence when they reached the exit.
Maelle nodded her assent.
Obi-Wan nearly smiled. He forced himself to leave the Halls of Healing. Obi-Wan halted abruptly. He blinked. "Anakin! Here to see Adrina?"
Anakin hitched a shoulder. He leaned against the window and stuffed his hands in his pockets. "She's alright?"
Obi-Wan sighed. He joined Anakin in the alcove. "They are….optimistic." He summarized the report he received.
Anakin seemed far less comforted by the report than Obi-Wan hoped, but he said, "Good." Anakin rubbed the back of his neck. "We searched Bowmani's apartment. It was his wife, Letta, behind it. Jackar had no idea. We arrested her, though she's been transferred to a Republic prison."
Obi-Wan exhaled. "Is it over, then?"
Anakin hesitated. "Russo said there were no more…" He cleared his throat. "Explosives and he has found no evidence that she had a partner."
Obi-Wan folded his arms. "Yet the explosives came from somewhere. Source?"
Anakin lowered his voice. "I suspect Letta has a partner. Russo combed through her finances. There were no unusual transactions - large or small. All Republic inventories are accounted for. And Russo tracked her movements for the last month, with no luck finding anything hinting at a black market deal. But she had to get them somewhere."
"A partner."
Anakin scrubbed his face. "It's just a hunch, really. Letta could have stolen them months ago but…." He sighed. "Whoever Letta was working with, they're well concealed."
"They'll turn up," Obi-Wan said quietly. "If they were bold enough to strike the Temple, they'll strike again."
"That's what I'm afraid of." Muscles in Anakin's jaw feathered.
Obi-Wan's brow furrowed. "Are you alright, my friend?" He sensed Anakin's wildly shifting emotions, too much like his own.
"I can't stop moving," Anakin admitted. "Because if I stop, I'll be consumed by my thoughts and fears. And if I go in there, if I see her, it will all be real. And I-" Anakin's voice cracked.
Obi-Wan understood only too well.
Anakin glanced at Obi-Wan with a grimace. He cleared his throat and crossed his arms across his chest. He nudged the carpet with his toe. "I've been having nightmares, you know. About Padmé. Adrina. Like before my mother died. Padmé dying in childbirth, Adrina drenched in her own blood, surrounded by fire."
Obi-Wan crossed his arms. "And now that Adrina…"
"It can't all come true," Anakin whispered brokenly. "I can't lose Padmé."
What could Obi-Wan say to alleviate his friend's fears? Twice now reality proved his nightmares accurate. Obi-Wan remained silent.
Anakin sighed. He ran a hand through his hair. "This is why I can't stop," he muttered under his breath.
Obi-Wan rallied. "Then let us focus on the things within our control."
"I don't even know what that is these days."
Neither did Obi-Wan.