Chapter 33 – The Vision
Author's Note: At least the cliffhanger isn't half as bad as it was in the last chapter. XD
~ Amina Gila
Reva rounds the final corner to where the fight is – was? – taking place in time to see how it ends. She sees her dad trying to deflect purple lightning from the Jedi. It feels wrong in the Force, making her skin crawl. And she sees as her dad's Force shield fails and the electricity hits him. His body convulses, and he collapses to the ground.
She screams, and she screams even louder when the lightning somehow ignites his armor, purple flames that make her feel sick to the core spreading across him.
Something snaps inside of her, and she races toward him without thought to her own safety. If something happens to her dad, it won't matter anyway.
"Reva!"
Master Kenobi is yelling her name, but she doesn't stop, crashing to her knees next to the burning, prone figure. His Force presence is dim, as though he's unconscious, and she reaches out with the Force, trying to make the flames stop. Someone is talking, or maybe more than one person, but she doesn't look, doesn't care. She has to save him. She has to, has to –
The Dark answers when she reaches out, and she knows that she's not supposed to touch it. It's dangerous. It goes against everything she's ever been taught, and she knows that her dad uses it sometimes, but that's different. He knows how to wield it while still being himself, but she can't stop to think, can't do anything other than surrender to the panic and terror and rage that are bubbling furiously in her chest as she reaches out with the Force, clamping her metaphysical hand down on the flames and squeezing.
The purple sputters, flickering wildly in protest, and Reva pushes harder. She throws her entire self into it, no matter that being so close to something that feels so unnatural makes her want to throw up. The flames die out, smoke rising from his armor. She doesn't think it actually penetrated it, but that doesn't mean he's not hurt. The armor is metal, and when metal gets hot…
She shudders inwardly, distantly aware of the sound of clashing lightsabers. It doesn't matter. All that matters is her dad, and she reaches out awkwardly, not sure where to put her hands, or if she should touch him at all.
A part of her just wants to start crying. She doesn't know what to do. She wishes she wasn't here alone. Maybe if her mom had come, too, this wouldn't have happened.
"Dad?" Reva calls, voice trembling. "Dad!"
He doesn't even stir, his presence just as dim as before. She pushes at him through the Force, silently calling to him, silently beseeching him to awaken so they can escape from this place before the Jedi – or whatever he is, since he can't be a true Jedi – comes back or hurts Master Kenobi. Or does worse to him.
"Dad," she presses, gingerly touching his shoulder and shaking him. "Dad, wake up." His lightsaber is destroyed, and she can see the pieces lying not far away.
"Dad?"
She crawls across the ground, gathering the destroyed halves of the saber and tucking it away. He wouldn't want to lose it.
"Dad, please wake up." She shakes him harder, and this time, he stirs, a weak groan escaping from him. Tears sting her eyes, and she leans over him, trying to see if there's something she can do to help. "Are you hurt?"
Stupid question. Of course, he is. She can feel the pain and exhaustion that he's radiating.
She shakes him again, and the Force flickers only moments before he jolts back to semi-consciousness. Red electricity springs to his fingertips, and she's so close, touching him, that a shock hits her. She yelps at the jolt, pain racing through her nerves as she scrambles back to a safer distance.
"What–" he croaks. "What's… happening…"
His voice fades as he passes out again, and Reva struggles to push through the electrocution. He didn't mean to hurt her, and it wasn't that bad. The pain only lasted for a moment, even if her body is still tingling unpleasantly. She's more concerned about her dad and the way the Force is nudging her warningly.
He's injured. Badly. And he's unconsciously using the Force to keep himself stable, but he's at risk of overusing it, and that could be bad. Reva doesn't know what it would mean if it happened, but at the Temple, they were always warned not to go too far or too deep lest they slip too far to come back. Something about a coma she thinks? One from which they won't awaken unless they find their way back.
And she can't – she can't let that happen to him.
Taking a deep breath, she tries to quiet her fear the way she was taught and push aside her guilt for having used the Dark to extinguish the unnatural flames. Her dad saved her life at the Temple. He saved her from dying, and this is her chance to return the favor.
She rests her palms against the scorched metal of his armor, ignoring the uncomfortable heat radiating from it and reaching into the Force. She tries to find the Light amidst the cloud of death and destruction around them. It's hard, but when she reaches inward, she finds it.
Reva takes a moment to acknowledge her terror. She has no idea what she's doing. She could make him worse. She could hurt himself trying to save him, but she can't – she can't leave him. He needs help, and Master Kenobi is… well, she doesn't know where he is, but he's not here, so he can't get the help that her dad needs.
It'll have to be her.
She lets the Force flow through her, weak but steady, into his unconscious body. The Light tells her that he's not in a good condition. He might be okay, eventually, but she's not a medic like Kix. She doesn't know if he's in critical condition or if it'll be fatal, and her fear is clouding her ability to properly guess from what she's sensing.
All she knows for sure is that he's unconsciously using the Force to keep his heartrate steady, so she guesses that must be most important. She directs the Light into him, trying to heal him. A wave of exhaustion washes through her, and she bites her tongue, attempting to remain conscious. She can't stop until she knows he'll be okay.
But this isn't something she's ever done before, and she's at risk of overusing the Force, too. Weariness creeps up, and she blinks tiredly, gritting her teeth and refusing to give up. She can't – can't…
Darkness creeps up to claim her.
**w**
Obi-Wan watches with numb horror as Anakin goes down and Reva runs to his side without thought to her own safety. The mercenaries who were coming after them seem to have given up because he hasn't seen any for a few minutes. That's how he and Reva managed to track down Anakin… only to walk into this.
He turns toward the Predator, lifting his lightsaber and moving to intercept him before he can go after Reva. He doesn't know who this Jedi is, much less what he wants with Anakin, but Obi-Wan intends to take no chances. Their blades clash, blue against blue, and it feels as though it's an echo of what happened on Alderaan.
"You never told me what you wanted on Alderaan," Obi-Wan says, though he doesn't think the Predator can hear. "You were searching for Anakin, weren't you."
No answer. No response of any kind, and he can tell that the Predator isn't planning to play games. The duel lasts only a few minutes before he can sense that the Jedi's attention is going elsewhere, and suddenly, he flips back, holding out a hand and evading Obi-Wan's follow-up strike.
Something heavy suddenly presses against Obi-Wan's mind, and he lowers his weapon, trying to fight it off, trying to shrug away the unnatural weight bearing down on him. This is not the Dark. This is not a power that he knows. It's nothing he has ever encountered once, and it scares him, though he doesn't want to admit it.
It crashes through his mind, washing away all conscious thought. The last thing he registers is the feeling of his body hitting the ground before the world goes dark around him.
And then, he's drifting, walking across a starlit path toward an unknown destination. He doesn't know where he's going or why it's important, but he knows that he can't stop.
"Obi-Wan," calls a too-familiar voice, and his heart clenches in his chest.
Slowly, he turns to see a blue, translucent figure standing there. "Qui-Gon," he says numbly. "How is this possible? Is this– is this really you?"
"I have learned many things," Qui-Gon replies. "All things are possible with the Force. Master Yoda never had the chance to tell you what he learned from me. I taught him how to preserve his consciousness after death."
Obi-Wan stares at him, speechless. "That's not possible," he argues.
"There are some who said that the prophecy of the Chosen One was not possible, either," Qui-Gon replies dryly. His expression grows serious, almost grim. "You must wake up, Obi-Wan. Now."
Wake up? Obi-Wan frowns, trying to remember. "What happened? Where am I?"
"You were in a fight. You lost," answers the ghost of his former master. "It is not your time to die, but if you don't get up, you, Anakin, and Reva will be found by the Empire. You don't have much time."
Anakin…
Right. He was trying to find Anakin, and then he tracked down a lead on Maul that took him to Daiyu. His breath catches in his lungs. Daiyu. Anakin and Reva. The Predator.
"The Predator," he says aloud. "Who is he?"
Qui-Gon shakes his head. "I'm afraid I cannot tell you that."
"But–"
"Listen to be carefully," he interrupts. "There is something I must tell you before you leave."
It's the grimness in Qui-Gon's voice that makes Obi-Wan listen to him immediately, the memories of what that tone meant when he was a padawan rising to silence any objections that he has. He's not a child anymore, nor is he as young as he was when Qui-Gon was still alive, but he knows what that tone means, and he listens.
"Yes, Master?"
Qui-Gon glances away for a moment, something solemn in his eyes. "You are in a very pivotal moment in history, Padawan. What you do from here, will change everything."
"How?" Obi-Wan asks before he can second-guess himself. The more he knows about what's coming, the better.
"You are in the unique position to make peace between the Jedi and the Sith."
The response is so wholly unexpected that Obi-Wan blinks in startled shock. "I– what?"
"I know it sounds impossible, but if you stay with Anakin, it will change your destiny forever," Qui-Gon informs him, taking a few steps closer. Even if death, he is an imposing presence. "The only option is to find a way to bridge the gap between the Light and the Dark. Forget what you were taught by the Jedi. You need to be there to support Anakin. Help him, and he will help you. Together, you will be able to weather the coming storm. The Sith is not the only threat out there." The grim certainty is somehow terrifying.
Obi-Wan has questions. So many questions, but he can feel the reality around him slipping away no matter how hard he tries to grasp it.
"Obi-Wan," Qui-Gon calls, "wake up."
He jolts back to consciousness with a gasp. The streets are quiet, but the Force is thrumming with the promise of danger. The Empire is coming. He remembers Qui-Gon's warning and also his cryptic words. Make peace? With the Jedi and Sith? And a threat greater than the Sith? What does that mean? He has more questions than answers. Typical with Qui-Gon.
Sighing, he shakes his head, trying to put those thoughts aside for later when they're safe and dispel the lingering fogginess from being rendered unconscious in such a strange manner. It wasn't a sleep suggestion. It didn't feel like the Force at all. It felt… unnatural. Like the Nightsiters' magicks but somehow more.
He doesn't like it.
He collects his lightsaber, clipping it to his belt and hurrying to where he last saw Anakin. He's still there, Reva's body slumped on his.
Obi-Wan is terrified, for a moment, that he was too late, but as he hurries closer, he can sense that they're still breathing. Alive. Good.
He kneels, shaking Reva's shoulder. She rouses with a groan.
"M-master Kenobi?" she mumbles, swaying a bit as she sits up. She looks worn out enough that he almost expects her to go back to sleep right then and there. "What's going on?"
"The Empire is coming," he tells her, infusing his words with as much urgency as possible. "You need to help me get Anakin out of here. Can you do that?"
She straightens, and her exhaustion is still visible, but he can see her setting it aside. "Tell me what to do."
Obi-Wan checks over Anakin quickly. His armor is scorched, but he doesn't sense any injuries that would mean moving him would be bad. Thankfully. Anakin doesn't feel as though he'll be awakening anytime soon, so Obi-Wan lifts his unconscious form, carrying him in much the same way that Anakin once carried him off the Invisible Hand so long ago.
Reva gets to her feet a bit ungracefully, but she's quiet as she follows.
"I know someone," Obi-Wan murmurs as they press their backs against the wall, checking for approaching stormtrooper patrols. "They can get us on a transport off-world even if the ports are shut down."
Because he has no doubt that the ports will be shut down by the time they get there. That would be the obvious place to go, and undoubtedly the first place the Empire would search for them. Better to go to a less likely place, and somewhere the Imperials wouldn't locate immediately.
"Will he be okay?" Reva asks. He can hear the quaver in her voice, though she tries to hide it.
He touches her shoulder, a fleeting gesture of comfort. "He's had worse," Obi-Wan replies, "and he's always come back from it. He'll be fine."
Or so he hopes. He has never seen anyone like the Predator, nor has he encountered any power of that magnitude in the past. Whoever he is and whatever he's become, he is something… different. Something that was strong enough to defeat Anakin. Perhaps the only reason he didn't stay to finish the job was because the Empire was coming.
Or perhaps, Obi-Wan thinks darkly, it's because he wants more than Anakin's death. Perhaps he also wants Anakin to suffer.
But that, too, is a thought for later.
First, they need to escape. They can figure out everything else afterward.
**w**
The moment Kenobi hits the ground, Windu is turning to leave. He's exhausted, worn all the way through with only a small amount of power left inside of him. He pulls his hood up to conceal himself and his helmet, making his way to the spaceport.
The Empire is coming. He can feel it. He knew it was inevitable, though he had not anticipated it would be so soon. Maybe it was that the duel with Skywalker took longer than he realized. His defenses are strong, no doubt about it, and Windu is loathe to leave him, but after what he did to the Jedi, the last thing he deserves is a clean death.
There will always be another chance, he supposes, and it may only help him in the long run to have Skywalker run back to Sidious' side and tell him what happened. Sidious will know it's him; he undoubtedly heard the report from the other Fallen Jedi who escaped from him in the Underworld of Coruscant. Sidious will know that the Predator is coming for him. The masked vigilante. The bringer of justice. Sidious will know, and he'll be afraid.
If he's afraid, he will make mistakes, and any error in judgment will work to Windu's advantage. It will work to the rebellion's advantage.
He hasn't made it to the spaceport before a group of criminal thugs attack him. He can feel them closing in. He can feel their malicious intent, but they're nothing, mere insects, certainly nothing worthy of using a lightsaber. He calls on his lightning, and it lashes out, catching them all in its unforgiving currents and incinerating them. Stray currents catch a nearby building. He can feel the undying flames ignite.
It would be easy to put them out, but Sidious will see, and he will know.
It's a sign. A reminder.
Windu flees, disappearing into the shadows and moving steadily toward the spaceport. Already, the Empire is here, patrolling the streets and spreading out to search. Perhaps they will find Kenobi. It doesn't matter to him if they do. Kenobi could never be an ally. He is too loyal to Skywalker. He will justify anything that Skywalker does. He will always choose him. Their attachment to one another is dangerous.
The Empire does not, however, find him.
He stands in the shadows of the spaceport, searching for an escape route with the Force instead of his eyes.
And… there.
The ship reeks of Skywalker and his little sidekick. They won't be needing it. Even if Skywalker survives, he'll be in critical condition. Windu slips aboard, only removing his helmet when he's safely in the cockpit. By the time the stormtroopers realize that someone snuck through, it's too late. He's already taking off. The Force will guide him past whatever Imperial forces are in orbit. No one else will escape, which is bad news for Kenobi.
Oh well.
He chose his side, and if he sides with the Darkness, then he, too, is the enemy and must be destroyed. Unfortunate, but he is not the first former Jedi that Windu has been forced to kill. He will not be the last, either.
He buries the regrets deep down and the betrayal even further.
One day, this will be over. One day, he will look back on this time and feel as though it was only a bad dream. One day, the Light will prevail and guide him to destroy the Sith and restore the Jedi, the Republic, and justice.
One day.
But that day is still in the undoubtedly far-off future, and Windu will have to wait.
That's okay. He's good at waiting.
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