They returned to where Obi-Wan left the eopie. He helped Lorna mount, then swung up behind her. The beast grunted in protest at the double load but set off at a steady pace when he clicked his tongue.
As they rode, the last vestiges of twilight faded from the sky. The moons cast long shadows across the dunes, transforming the desert into a landscape of silver and black. The air grew chill, and Lorna shivered, pulling her cloak tighter around her shoulders.
"It's not much further," Obi-Wan murmured.
She nodded, remaining silent. The gentle sway of the eopie was lulling and with Obi-Wan's solid, strong presence behind her, exhaustion settled in. The adrenaline and fear that had sustained her were fading fast. Fatigue seeped into her muscles until it took all of her energy just to stay upright on the saddle.
At last, she spotted a humble dwelling, a dome of weathered stone half-buried in the sand. Obi-Wan dismounted and helped her down. He led the eopie to a small lean-to beside the hut, removing its saddle and giving it a pat before turning to her.
"It's not much," he said, clearing his throat as he gestured toward his home. "But it's shelter from the sand and the cold."
She managed a faint smile. "After the last year, any refuge is welcome."
He swung open the door, ushering her inside. The rich, spicy scent of sapir tea greeted her as she entered. Her chest tightened. The last time she'd had sapir tea, she had been in the Jedi Temple. She wondered where Obi-Wan had gotten this small luxury on such a remote planet.
His small lamp bathed the room in warm, golden light. She glanced around, unable to help her curiosity about this glimpse into the Jedi Master's home. A narrow cot tucked into a circular alcove, a battered table and chairs, a few crates that served as storage—sparse, but infinitely more welcoming than her room above Evo's.
"Please, sit," Obi-Wan gestured to one of the chairs. "I'll make us some tea."
She sank into the offered seat, her fingers absently tracing abstract patterns on the table's scarred surface. Her mind wandered in sluggish thoughts and half-formed plans as a profound weariness enveloped her.
The soft clink of a mug drew Lorna back to the present. Steam curled invitingly from the green liquid within, smelling of sapir leaves.
"I know you must have questions," he said, sitting across from her. "As do I. But perhaps it's best if we both get some rest. We can talk in the morning."
She nodded, wrapping her hands around the warm mug. The heat seeped into her palms, chasing away the lingering chill of the night.
"Thank you," she said. "I just… you have no idea what a relief it is that I found you, Master Kenobi."
"I am sorry for... for how harsh I was with you earlier," he said softly, staring into his mug. "Surely you can understand the necessity of keeping my identity a secret here. Please, at least in public, accustom yourself to calling me Ben. And whatever you do, don't call me Master." His brow furrowed slightly, his gaze kind but serious in a way that brooked no argument.
"I understand," she agreed, a flush creeping into her cheeks realizing how her surprise at seeing him momentarily clouded her senses. Of course, he could not use his real name in public as she did. Unlike herself, he was well-known in many places throughout the galaxy.
They sipped their tea in companionable silence. Her eyes began to feel heavy. Obi-Wan rose and gestured to the cot.
"You take the bed," he said. "I'll be fine on the floor."
She started to protest, but a massive yawn cut her off. "If you're sure…"
"I insist."
As Lorna settled onto the bed, Obi-Wan retrieved an extra blanket and pillow from one of the storage crates and spread them on the floor nearby. She was asleep before he even extinguished the lamp, covering the hut in a blanket of darkness.
Lorna squeezed her eyes shut against the blinding sunlight streaming through the window. For a moment, she forgot where she was. She abruptly sat up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. When she noticed the table and chairs where she had sat the night before, her shoulders relaxed. Master Kenobi had brought her to his home.
As the fog of sleep cleared, the questions that exhaustion had kept at bay, surfaced. A quick scan of the hut confirmed Obi-Wan was gone.
She shuffled to the table, where the two teacups had been replaced by a cup of water and a plate of bantha jerky and haroun bread. She realized she was ravenous.
She devoured the bread, drained the water in long grateful gulps, and chewed the tough but satisfying jerky. Curious about Obi-Wan's whereabouts, she headed outside.
Arid, dust-laden air greeted her and she had to raise her arm to shield her eyes as they adjusted to the Tatooine sunlight. She spotted Obi-Wan under the lean-to with the eopie, scraping a thick-bristled brush over the skin on its flank.
"You're finally awake," he said with a smirk. "It's almost midday."
"I can't remember the last time I slept so well," Lorna admitted, stretching the last traces of sleep from her muscles.
She glanced around, noticing structures she hadn't the night before. A moisture vaporator towered over the hut, connected to a transparent dome built from salvaged materials. Inside, Lorna could see rows of green plants growing in tubes without any soil. The earthy smell of manure lingered in the dry desert air.
"I never pictured the famous General Kenobi tending crops," she remarked, a note of surprise in her voice. She also never pictured him looking quite so… unkempt. His auburn hair, once neatly styled, was long and windswept, the tidy beard now shaggy and uneven. The disheveled farmer before her stood in stark contrast to the legendary warrior she'd heard about during the Clone Wars.
He nodded towards the hydroponic structure. "This provides most of what I need. The rest I trade for or purchase in Mos Eisley. The less I need to venture into town for supplies, the better. Self-sufficiency serves a purpose."
"How long have you been here?"
"Almost a year." So he had been here nearly the entire time she had been in the Underworld. He finished brushing the eopie, and the beast let out a satisfied grunt. He gave it pat. "There you go, girl. That ought to give you some relief from the sand mites."
" Why are you here?"
"Because it is an Outer Rim planet outside of the Empire's control," he answered shortly.
He walked over to the moisture vaporator and unspooled a hose coiled around its base. Carrying it to the lean-to, he released a valve and filled the eopie's small water trough.
There had to be some reason he'd chosen Tatooine, some reason he hadn't been looking for other Jedi survivors. She couldn't guess why he wasn't being forthcoming about it.
"But why here?" Lorna tried to keep the exasperation from her voice. "Where are Master Yoda, Master Windu, and the rest of the Council? Why does Emperor Palpatine think the Jedi are traitors?"
Obi-Wan didn't look at her, but his shoulders tensed. She hadn't meant to bombard him with her questions, but she had been in the dark too long. Now that she had someone who might provide them, she was desperate for answers.
He put the hose away and headed toward the hut entrance. Lorna followed, her steps determined as she plodded through the sand.
Inside, Obi-Wan wiped the sweat from his brow with a rag. "I promised you answers, Lorna, and I shall give them as best I can."
He sipped some water, swallowing hard. He gestured to the bed. "Please, sit."
She did, and he pulled a chair to sit across from her. She remained silent, reminding herself that a Jedi was meant to show patience.
"The Emperor thinks the Jedi are traitors because… he is a Sith Lord," he began.
Lorna's blood turned to ice in her veins. "How can that be?" she asked, her voice wavering.
Her mind raced, piecing together fragments of information she'd gathered over the years. "The Sith... I remember hearing from my master when you defeated Maul on Naboo. She said it was the first Sith the Jedi had seen in a millennium."
Obi-Wan nodded gravely. "Yes. We had hoped the threat had ended there, but we were wrong."
"Master Secura mentioned rumors of a Sith Lord secretly manipulating events from within the Republic. But Palpatine? He was the Supreme Chancellor. How could no one have known?"
"The Dark Side clouds everything," he said, his eyes hardening. "We were blind to the threat growing right before our eyes."
Her thoughts whirled as the pieces fell into place. "It explains so much."
His expression grew even more solemn. "The deception goes beyond what any of us could have imagined. The Clone Wars, the fall of the Republic, the rise of the Empire—it was all part of his grand design to seize power."
"And the rest of the Council? Other Jedi? There have to be other survivors."
"I returned to the Temple after… after the order to execute the Jedi had been given." His eyes grew distant and guarded, and Lorna could sense pain and anger simmering beneath the surface of his thoughts. "Master Yoda and I were the only surviving Masters from the Council, though I do not know where he went after I came here. As for other Jedi—you're the first I've come across."
She shivered as she grasped the full scope of his words. A plot so vast and intricate, it defied comprehension. "So many dead…" she whispered, closing her eyes. Visions of that night at the Temple played in her mind, so she opened her eyes again, searching for something to focus on to keep the violent images away.
Her gaze met Obi-Wan's, his gray-blue eyes regarding her, reflecting the same haunted, grief-stricken expression she knew must be mirrored in her own. There was a small relief at simply being able to sit in her sorrow with someone who didn't merely sympathize but felt the truth of it deeply.
"You're the only Jedi I've seen since I escaped the Temple," she said softly.
At the mention that she'd been at the Temple, Obi-Wan's features tightened. Lorna hesitated, acutely aware of a burning question she had been avoiding—the fate of Anakin Skywalker. If Obi-Wan returned to the Temple, then he saw what his former Padawan had done. But as she studied the lines of distress etched into Obi-Wan's face, she decided against asking. Some wounds, she sensed, were still too raw to probe.
"Where did you go after?" he asked, a little too quickly.
"I was able to hide in the Underworld for the last year. That was where I met my friends who were supposed to get me off-world."
She explained to him finally how she had met Niko and Sinya and how they had slowly learned to trust each other at Evo's. He listened attentively as she recounted the events in the hangar, his arms crossed over his chest. At the mention of the Inquisitor, he uncrossed them briefly to stroke his beard in contemplation.
"Then we must be cautious," he said, his voice grave. "If they can sense Force users, venturing into Mos Eisley could be dangerous for both of us."
"Master K–Ben," she caught herself, forcing herself to use his preferred alias finally. She already hated it. It didn't suit him.
"I understand the need for caution, but there is still the problem of my ship." She kept her tone as respectful as possible. "I need credits for repairs, which means finding work in town."
He rose from his seat and went to the kitchenette, filling a kettle with water for tea. "If we have patience, the Force will guide us." He looked at her with a small, tight smile. "Perhaps we can find alternative means to acquire what you need."
Her earlier annoyance at his reticence resurfaced. "You don't really intend to just stay out here in the middle of nowhere indefinitely, do you?"
"Yes, actually," he replied dryly.
"But why?" She could not, would not , go back to cowering in the shadows. Living like she had on Coruscant, a life of hiding, clinging to survival.
He set the kettle on the electric burner and turned to face her. "I've promised you my aid until you can repair your ship and continue on your way, and I shall give it. My path does not converge with yours beyond that. I am to remain here until the Force guides me elsewhere."
She studied his face. He had not answered her question. But his tone made it clear he wasn't willing to elaborate further.
He turned back to the stove. "Sometimes, young one, wisdom lies in knowing when to act and when to wait."
His advice reminded her of something Master Secura would say, and the ache of her Master's absence resurfaced. Without her Master's guidance, her fears had grown and her connection to the Force had weakened. She found herself wondering what Master Kenobi had been like as a mentor. A bold thought came to her.
"If I'm to remain here for now, perhaps... perhaps you could continue my training?" She held her breath, watching his reaction carefully.
His eyebrows rose in surprise, conflicted emotions flickering across his face. "My days as a teacher are over," he said quietly.
Her hopes deflated, but she pressed on, aware of the weight her request placed on his shoulders. "Please, I was so close to facing the Trials before... before everything happened. I know the Order is gone, but I need to be prepared for what comes next. Sith Lords, Inquisitors, the Empire—I cannot afford to leave my training unfinished!" She paused, then added softly, "You may not want to leave Tatooine, but I want to find other Jedi. I want to help them. If you could guide me while I'm here, even a little, it would mean everything."
Obi-Wan closed his eyes, a deep sigh escaping him. Lorna recognized the signs of meditation; he was reaching out to the Force for guidance. It surrounded him so powerfully that it seemed to hum with resonance, filling the small space between them. She felt almost envious of the strength of his connection.
When he opened his eyes again, there was a gentle resolve in his gaze. "Very well," he said at last. "We can begin tomorrow."