The Lightsaber

I don't usually write a lot of Anakin fics, mostly because I don't really like writing Anakin. But I entered this short story for a one-shot contest with the prompt, "Anakin, I have a bad feeling about this."

Actually, it turned out much better than I expected, and I'm pretty happy with the results. It may run a tad on the melodramatic side, but Anakin isn't exactly the most stable of people. Anyway, hope you enjoy it!

The ground trembled.

“Anakin, I have a bad feeling about this.”

It wasn’t as bad as it could be. That is, there had been some times, a few at least, where it had been worse. But Anakin was having some difficulty remembering said times.

That was irrelevant. They hadn’t been called upon to reminisce about the past. They had been called upon to do their duty to the Republic. And that was all that mattered. The past didn’t matter because, literally speaking, there is no past. Nothing dictates the future except for the present, and the present doesn’t last very long.

Except when the past refuses to go away.

With an effort that was almost physical, Anakin thrust that thought from the cold chasm of his mind, shutting his eyes tightly against the pain that was certain to follow. But, as usual, the icy tendrils of doubt refused to unclench their death-grip on his soul. For it wasn’t his mind that ached; it was Anakin Skywalker’s heart.

“Anakin! Where are you?”

Pausing to inhale deeply the dank, musty air of the cavern, Anakin opened his eyes to a darkness almost as oppressive as the one that continued to haunt his very existence. It was almost hypnotic, in a way, the different shapes and flashing colors that his unfettered imagination fashioned out of the unrelenting darkness.

“Anakin? Arty’s almost got the entrance open. They’re going to be pouring through here any minute!”

“Coming, Master,” Anakin called, his voice echoing throughout the recesses of the cavern walls.

Surrendering himself to the foresight granted by the cool brilliance of the Force, Anakin sought out Obi-Wan’s presence amongst the various beings that dwelled within these dark barricades.

With his consciousness buried within the Force, Anakin no longer needed to strain his eyes to see through the darkness. He now possessed a sight that was greater than seeing, that was deeper than thought, where a simplicity dwelled that belied the complexity of the Force.

“This isn’t so bad, Master,” said Anakin, skidding to a halt behind Master Kenobi.

Obi-Wan turned from where he was overseeing the precise-hit charges that Clone Commander RT-1931 – nicknamed “Arty” – and his men placed against the entryway of the cavern.

“Nice of you to show up,” Obi-Wan said, lifting a comlink to his bearded lips. Through the dim light filtering through the cracks appearing in the cavern wall, Anakin saw that this wasn’t so bad at all.

This was terrible.

Anakin Skywalker was accustomed to the carnage of war, but that didn’t stop the bile from rising in his throat every time he witnessed the sheer terror of destruction that was continuously wrought upon the galaxy. Shuddering uncontrollably, but unable to wrench his gaze away,

Anakin gripped the reassuring bulk of his lightsaber so tightly that his hand began to shake almost as violently as his body. Only a raw fragment of will permitted him to lift his gaze from the death flaunted like so much waste, to the small cylinder in his hand.

His lightsaber. Chuckling a bit, despite of himself, Anakin thought back to the countless discussions he had with his Master over the years about the responsibility a lightsaber entails. This lightsaber was his duty, his life, his being, and nothing could take that from him.

“Beta-257, this is General Kenobi. Beta-257 this is General Kenobi. Do you copy?” Obi-Wan paused, his face contorted in a struggle to hear what was being said via comlink over the impatient rustle of static that blanketed his communications. “How did things go with Ventress?” he muttered to Anakin, his concentration obviously absorbed in several different directions.

Anakin’s glance hovered uncertainly, dropping to the black glove that veiled his mechanical hand. There had been whispers around the Jedi Temple when he had sacrificed his hand to the tyrannical Sith Lord Count Dooku, murmurs that he had begun to lose himself in a shroud of inhumanity that fed itself on his growing power. When his eyes began to sting, he tore them away.

“I lost her about a mile and a half away from here, Master,” he replied, lifting his chin and staring into the unnaturally grim face of his old mentor. “She blasted out of the system, and I decided to come and find you.”

“Oh, did you?” answered Obi-Wan, eyeing the comlink anxiously. “Beta-257, can you read me? Blast,” Obi-Wan swore, lowering the comlink to his belt. “They must’ve taken out our western flank. Looks like we’re on our own.”

As if to punctuate his words, the ground shuddered violently, knocking several clone commandos off their feet.

“How are things going here?” asked Anakin.

“We’ve managed to avoid detection so far, but goodness knows how long that’ll last. Those blasted droids are giving us quite a beating upstairs, but hopefully they’ve got all their attention focused up there and won’t noticed us until we’re in the base.

“We’ve lost half the Seventh Fleet and the rest was forced into full retreat. We’ve lost more artillery equipment than I care to count, not to mention our clone commanders. And now…”

“The western flank,” completed Anakin, nodding grimly. “What about our reinforcements?”

“Those were our reinforcements.”

“Things have been worse,” he murmured. Sensing that there was a fragment of the conversation that his Master was avoiding, Anakin added, “Tell me the bad news.”

“The bad news? Dooku isn’t here.”

Anakin’s eyes grew wide at the mere mention of Dooku’s name, his artificial hand clenching until the servos whirred in protest. Narrowing his gaze, Anakin slowly eased his hand open and breathed slowly through his nose. A red mist began to descend across his field of vision.

“Any good news?”

“Yes, as a matter of fact. General Grievous is in the base.”

“Grievous!” Anakin gasped, the mist lifting. “He’s here?”

“That’s what intelligence reported before our communications were knocked out.”

“When are we going to bust through?”

“I don’t know. Soon, I hope. We’ve got a sizeable gap drilled into the wall, but we need to blast the whole thing before we can go in. Otherwise, we’ll never get through those horrid Super Battle Droids. We’ve been attacked by several waves of battle droids, but so far, the SBDs are unable to break through.”

“Well, that’s something.”

“Yes, Anakin, indeed,” answered Obi-Wan, a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

“Sir,” said Arty, jogging up to Obi-Wan and saluting sharply. “We’ve placed the charges and we’re set to go at your mark.”

Nodding thoughtfully, Obi-Wan turned to Anakin.

“Ready when you are,” Anakin said.

“Start the cycle.”

“Yes sir.” Turning smartly on one heel, Arty motioned to his men. “Commence cycling maneuvers.”

“We’d better find some cover,” Obi-Wan said, kneeling behind a large, bluntly serrated rock formation. Unclipping his lightsaber from his belt, Anakin joined him.

“They’re going to come through there fast. When they do—”

“I know, Master,” Anakin interrupted, eyes fixated on the walls of the cave.

“Do you?” asked Obi-Wan, raising an eyebrow.

“You’ve only been talking about it ever since we arrived, Master. And you haven’t stopped since I got in the cave.”

Before the sentence hardly escaped his mouth, Anakin grimaced, expecting harsh words from his former Master about his inability to listen when the situation demanded it. Instead, and much to his astonishment, Obi-Wan smiled.

“So you’re right, Anakin.” Looking down in slight consternation, Obi-Wan said, “I suppose I should acquaint myself with the fact that you’re no longer my Padawan learner. I owe it to all you’ve accomplished to be a bit more…tolerant.”

Blinking slowly, Anakin opened and shut his mouth several times before a small sound finally edged through his lips.

“Master…”

“Clear!” Arty shouted, shattering Anakin’s thoughts.

Inhaling sharply, Anakin ducked under the protective cover of the massive boulder, struggling to protect his head as the explosion rained solid fire upon the Jedi. Anakin barely managed to raise a haphazard barrier of Force energy before he was assailed by the burning chunks of ash and stone.

Throwing off the Force shield and leaping over the confines of the boulder, Anakin ignited his blue blade and rushed through the vast, smoldering opening created by the explosive charges. The opening was consumed by the ubiquitous firepower of the battle droids, spraying the cavern walls with red tendrils of pure death.

Each slash of his lightsaber was a life that would not be lost, a loss that would not live to prey upon his consciousness like so many others.

And from the tattered remnants of memory and premonition, the visions returned.
“Ani…Is that you?”

“Mom…”

“Oh, Ani…”

“Don’t leave me, Mom.”

So much pain…

“Now, I am complete…”

“No! Mom! I can’t go on without you…”

You were too weak.

“Anakin!”

“Master Qui-Gon?”

“No…Anakin…”

“Master Qui-Gon! Don’t go…don’t go…”

Too weak.

“Anakin? Anakin, I need you!”

“Obi-Wan…”

You have anger, you have hate…

“Anakin! Come here, my boy. Help me!”

“Chancellor…”

Use them, Anakin.

“Ani…Oh, Ani…Where are you?”

She’ll die, Anakin.

“No…Not Padme.”

She’ll die.

“Anakin!”

Gasping through waves of nausea produced by a now fading rush of pure adrenaline, Anakin stopped so suddenly that he nearly lost his balance.

“Anakin, they’re gone.”

Staring into the humming blue blade of his lightsaber until he thought he might go blind – or mad, whichever came first – Anakin looked up into the concerned frown of Master Kenobi. Obi-Wan’s elegant features were crusted in the dirt and grime and filth that could have come from a thousand battlefields on a million worlds, his mouth twisted into a grim line.

“Master…” Anakin began, but was unable to finish. He seemed to have forgotten how to communicate. His brain and heart and soul were so disconnected that he could no longer express how he actually felt.

“Anakin,” said Obi-Wan, gently placing his hand on his old apprentice’s shoulder.

“The droids,” Anakin managed to croak above the hum of his lightsaber.

When Obi-Wan didn’t answer, Anakin looked down. He immediately whished he hadn’t.

The ground was littered in droid parts of various forms, thrown together in a vicious parody of sentient death. Spindly heads and thin bodies were heaped together in irregular piles that would have made even a junk dealer tear his hair out.

“I…I did this?” Anakin asked.

“You don’t remember?” prompted Obi-Wan.

“What…” Anakin shook his head, partially to clear it and partially out of resignation.

“Anakin, we all have our fights with the darkness. The dark side is in all of us. You can’t stop that.”

I couldn’t stop you from dying, Mom.

“But you can keep the dark side from entering you if you remain true to the Force. To the Jedi. Remember your training; it won’t fail you.”

“People change…” Anakin muttered.

“But the Force is still with you. Always.”

I don’t want things to change.

But you can’t stop the change…any more than you can stop the suns from setting.

“Master?”

“Yes?”

“What does it mean? To be a Jedi?”

“A Jedi’s ultimate devotion is to the Force, Anakin. To goodness. The Jedi are selfless; we do only what is required of us to protect the Republic.” He looked at his former apprentice. “You do understand that?”

Anakin glanced at his lightsaber, still pulsing in his hands. The hypnotic hum that was once so comforting brought only pain. Weary, he shut it off.

“Of course, Master. Now let’s go get General Grievous.”



“I was blind, Luke. I didn’t see Anakin as I should have…as Master Qui-Gon trusted me to. Looking back, I don’t know if any of the Jedi saw in him the goodness that ultimately destroyed him. You see, Luke, he was a good man. And I failed him. I failed us all.

“I leave you this hologram that was taken by Anakin’s droid during the Third Siege of Ricotti in hope that you will someday seek wisdom from the errors of the Jedi before you. I’ve seen much of your father in you, Luke, but you have something that he did not. Anakin was robbed of freedom when he was a young boy, and he learned to enslave himself to everything he loved. So when he lost it…he lost part of himself.

“But you, Luke…Before you were even born, a great burden was placed upon you. Your destiny as a Jedi. But you can look upon the story of your father not as a tale of tragedy, but as a tale of hope. You, Luke Skywalker, are our new hope.

“When you look at your father’s lightsaber, think not as the last of the old Jedi, but as the first of the new.”



“That’s it, Artoo.”

The droid beeped inquisitively.

“No, I’m alright. You can shut down now.”

With a short bleep of appreciation, Artoo powered down.

Luke ran his thumb across his father’s lightsaber, stopping at an area near the top where the metallic sheen had been scratched off.

Your father’s lightsaber. This is the weapon of a Jedi Knight…

“Master Skywalker?”

Luke glanced up at the young apprentice who stood fidgeting near the doorway. He smiled absently, noting that the young boy, who couldn’t have been more than five or six years of age, was projecting little nervousness through the Force.

“Yes?”

“Master Horn instructed me to tell you that the Academy is waiting.”

Luke nodded.

“I’ll be there shortly.”

Bowing slowly, the apprentice exited the room.

Tilting his head, Luke centered himself in the Force and brought to mind the words he needed so desperately to say, that the Order needed so terribly to hear.

The Yuuzhan Vong are poised to break us from within, but we will not be broken. For we are Jedi, and we will stand strong.

And Luke Skywalker placed his father’s lightsaber on the table, walked toward the doorway, and out into the Jedi Temple. He didn’t look back.

Part 20 - A Reunion

PART 1 - PART 2 - PART 3 - PART 4 - PART 5 - PART 6 - PART 7 - PART 8 - PART 9 - PART 10 - PART 11 - PART 12 - PART 13 - PART 14 - PART 15 - PART 16 - PART 17 - PART 18 - PART 19


"Master Traelyn, I'd like you to meet Jeran Terasol, our newest Jedi initiate," Luke said carefully.

"It's an honor to meet you, Master Jedi," the young man said.

"Welcome to the Jedi Temple," Traelyn said quietly, trying not to stare. Add a Padawan braid and a Coruscanti accent and he'd be Obi-Wan in his early 20s. "Tell me about yourself while I take a look and make sure you're as healthy as you seem to be."

"Well, I grew up on Talus, near Dearic, in a large family. I graduated from the University last year and I've been teaching. Master Skywalker here really surprised me with this Jedi business, though."

"Please call me 'Luke'. I haven't earned the Master title yet," Luke said slowly.

Traelyn smiled approvingly. "Well," she said, closing her medscanner. "You are perfectly healthy. Would you mind giving me a small blood sample?"

"Please, do whatever you need to do," Jeran replied with a smile. "May I ask, have we ever met before? You seem awfully familiar."

"I haven't been to Talus in your lifetime."

"I'm not sure I'm from Talus, I was a war orphan, my parents tell me. I was left at a refugee center with only my first name and this." He withdrew Aidriac's shiny pendant from his pocket.

Obi-Wan!

Easy, Traelyn, you can get through this. Let him ask the question.

She busied herself with the drawing the sample and running the analyzer. "You have a very high midi-chlorian count, that's why you're sensitive to the Force. And in checking your genetic markers I can tell you a little bit about yourself."

"You know who I really am?" he asked curiously.

"You are who you are, Jeran. But I can tell you that your biological parents were Jedi Masters."

"Are they dead?"

"Your father is, although when you learn to use the Force you should be able to speak with him."

"And my mother?" He eyed her suspiciously. "You're my mother, aren't you? That's why you seem so familiar."

Traelyn sighed, and felt Obi-Wan's presence comforting her, but a tear rolled down her face as Jeran reached out and put his hand on her shoulder.

"Yes, I am. That is, I gave birth to you. Your father and I gave you up to protect you. I hope you can understand this. And the people who raised you are your true parents, never forget that."

"Please don't feel bad, I had a wonderful childhood. My father, my Dad I mean, told me a lot about the Old Republic and the Jedi. He's a bit of a fan, you might say." He smiled, just as Obi-Wan would have.

Luke chuckled. "A Jedi fan? That's a new one. My uncle wouldn't allow the word 'Jedi' to spoken in our house. He was afraid of Imperial spies."

"Dad's a history professor. He used to run the local holonews station, back before the Empire. So I know how dangerous it must have been for you."

"I'd very much like to meet your parents someday, Jeran," Traelyn said with a smile. "I'd like to thank them."

"And this?" He held up the pendant.

"It's a healer's crystal," she replied. She reached over and took it in her hand, and the crystal glowed. "It was my apprentice's."

She turned away, closing the subject. From the corner of her eye, she caught Luke giving Jeran a slight shake of the head.

"I'm sorry," Jeran said.

"Don't be," she replied. "You are curious, and that's natural. I don't want you to be afraid of asking me things. You have much to learn."

* * *

LATER THAN NIGHT

"Obi-Wan, why didn't you tell he me looked so much like you?"

I'm sorry love, I didn't think about it. It startled you, didn't it? That and the pendant.

She paced the sitting room, pausing to refill her glass with wine. "He'll make a fine Jedi, I'm certain of it."

Traelyn, are you sure that you should...

"Don't you even suggest that I shouldn't teach him! He's my child, and I will teach him about the Force the way I think it should be taught! The way Qui-Gon would have done had he been allowed to do so."

I didn't say anything! But he's my son, too, and I'd like to help. When he's ready, of course. And why are you so tense?

She said nothing, but continue to pace, finally stopping near the window.

Are you second-guessing our decision not to raise him ourselves? You know we did the right thing. Look at what a fine man he turned out to be.

He waited patiently while she gazed out the window at the lights of Coruscant.

"Why didn't you come back for me?" she asked suddenly.

Ah, so that's it. I tried, my love, I truly did. You don't think I missed you? But I could not endanger your life. I would not. He moved closer to her. Come here. He wrapped his vaporous arms around her.

"Oh my goodness!" she exclaimed. "I can feel you! It's almost as if you are really here!"

I am really here. I've been working on this. Give me a few years and I'll be making love to you again.

She was smiling. These lightning quick mood changes were one of the things that had intrigued him about her for so many years.

He smiled back. Ah, Traelyn. I love you.

"I know."

* * *

"Master, Artoo says there are intruders at the main entrance," Luke's voice crackled over her comlink.

"I'm on it, meet me at the top of the staircase."

Soundlessly Traelyn raced to the landing of the two-sided grand staircase that graced the main entrance of the Jedi Temple, arriving just as Luke did.

Together they crouched behind the railing. "I sense six, no seven presences," Luke whispered.

"I agree, but who and where?" She replied just as she caught sight of six figures in white armor. "Clones!"

"Imperial Stormtroopers," Luke said. "They're splitting up, I'll take the right. Can you handle the left?"

"There are only three of them," she snorted. "Your dark clothing may give you some camouflage."

"Doesn't matter, Stormtroopers have night vision in those helmets."

"Well," Traelyn grinned, "We have the Force."

Luke stepped out onto the right hand staircase. With the flick of the switch, his illuminating green blade sprang to life with a frightening snap-hiss sound.

The trooper opened fire, but Luke effortlessly deflected the blaster shots, neatly sending three back into the trooper's midsection.

The other two immediately started shooting, but Luke's saber was a whir of green light as the bolts bounced harmlessly away. In one smooth movement, he pulled the blaster from the trooper's hand and kicked him square in the chest, sending him tumbling down the stairs.

The third trooper was blasting away desperately when he tripped over his fallen counterpart, and Luke swiped him across the chest with the blade of his saber.

Traelyn sprang out from behind the railing, breathing deeply as she let the Force flow into her. She jumped onto the staircase, igniting the sky blue blade of her saber.

The first two troopers went down in a flurry of deflected blaster bolts, the second one rolling to the bottom of the stairs. Traelyn leaped over the body of the first, slicing the blaster of the third trooper in half. Shocked, the trooper lunged at her, and she whirled about, impaling her blade completely through his chest.

"Stinking clones! Luke! The door!" She shouted, as she saw a figure dressed in black running towards the main entrance.

"I'm on it, Master," Luke called. With a blast of Force energy, he pushed the running man face first into the closed door. He slid to the floor with a thud.

Traelyn and Luke both rushed to the prone figure. Traelyn lit a glow stick, shining its light in the man's face.

"Who is he?" She asked.

"I have no idea," Luke replied. "But I've got some cuffs." Luke rolled the man over and Traelyn clamped electrobinder cuffs around his wrists. She pulled a stimulant capsule from her med pouch and waved it under the man's nose.

His eyes opened, but he was dazed and disoriented.

"Who are you?" Luke demanded. "Who sent you here?"

The man looked at Luke with confusion. Traelyn took advantage and drew upon the Force, focusing on the man's mind.

"You want to tell us your name," she said.

"I want to tell you my name," he replied tonelessly.

Traelyn tried again, "You will tell us who sent you here."

"I will tell you who sent me here."

"I think you knocked him senseless, Luke," she said with a smile. "One can be too simple minded for that trick to work, you know."

"Let's turn him over to New Republic Intelligence," Luke said. "I'll comm General Madine myself."

"I'll get the droids working on the lights."

Luke made his call, and then turned back towards Traelyn. "Master, I need to ask you a question."

"Of course, Luke, what is it?"

"What were the clones like?" he said curiously.

"Oh, Luke, that's more than one question. It was very complicated. And, the answer would depend greatly upon your point of view."

Luke rolled his eyes. Traelyn chuckled.

"Not the answer you really wanted, was it? I suppose I ought to get to work on those history lessons."

* * *
Editing by Qui-Gon Reborn!

Part 19 - The Return Home

PART 1 - PART 2 - PART 3 - PART 4 - PART 5 - PART 6 - PART 7 - PART 8 - PART 9 - PART 10 - PART 11 - PART 12 - PART 13 - PART 14 - PART 15 - PART 16 - PART 17 - PART 18

The halls of the Jedi Temple were eerily quiet. Traelyn kicked a rusty, dented cleaning droid out of the way as she, Luke Skywalker and R2-D2 made their way through the musty corridors.

"Well," Traelyn said acerbically as she looked around the grand lobby of the temple, her eyes sad. "It's looked better."

Behind her, R2-D2 hooted encouragingly and Luke smiled. "We have cleaning droids and a repair crew coming in. We'll get it back to what it was."

Traelyn shivered, a moment of sorrow for her lost friends passing over her. "Oh, Luke, it'll never be what it was. But we can make it something special again."

"Construction engineers have been through the entire building," Luke said. "The eastern towers are unsafe for occupancy, but the western and center spires are fine. But... " His voice trailed off.

"What is it, Luke?" Traelyn asked. "Is there something bothering you?"

He thought for a moment, weighing his words carefully. "I went near the elevator in the center spire, and something felt terribly wrong. I don't know what it was. A disturbance in the Force."

Traelyn looked concerned. "That shouldn't be, the center spire is right over a nexus in the Force. You should feel stronger and more serene there, not disturbed. Let's take a look."

They entered the elevator, and Artoo plugged himself into the control jack. "Take us down, please, Artoo," she said.

"Master, the problem doesn't seem to be down, it seems to be above us."

"All right, let's go to the council chamber then, it's at the very top. We'll start there."

* * *

"Can you get us any more light in here, Artoo?" Luke asked his droid as they entered the council chamber.

"I'm not sure that will help, Luke, what you're sensing is the dark side of the Force. There's something very wrong here."

"I can sense the presence of my father," he commented sadly. "And something else, something frightening. Death."

Traelyn pulled out a glow rod and began to search the room. Something in the Force pulled her to one side of the room, and her empathic senses heightened.

Then she saw it, sticking out from behind a chair was something small, delicate and very out of place. It was the skeletal hand of a very small human.

"Oh!" said. "Oh, it's a youngling!" She knelt beside the small figure and reached a hand towards it. Closing her eyes, she opened herself up to the Force and sought the consciousness that had once inhabited the body.

"Nothing," she said. "Just fear and bewilderment."

"There are more," Luke said. "Seven of them."

"This one was decapitated by a lightsaber," Traelyn said.

Luke closed his eyes in pain. "My father did this." Reeling, he sat down in a nearby chair.

Traelyn took the seat next to him, calmed herself, and sent soothing waves of the Force in his direction. "Steady, Luke. Let the Force help you."

He nodded. She left him to his thoughts. As she sat there waiting for him to regain his composure, she felt a sense of peace come over her, and she realized whose seat she was sitting in, for although he hadn't sat there in over two decades, the echo of his presence was like a warm blanket on a cold night.

Obi-Wan?

I am here, Traelyn. Be strong.

"Luke," she said softly, "Whatever happened here happened a long time ago. Nothing we do now can change it."

"They were just children!"

"I don't know what you've heard about the Jedi Massacre, Luke, but there were no survivors in the Temple. Not even the younglings," Traelyn said gently.

"You will uncover a lot of ugly truths about your father as you learn more about the fall of the Jedi and the Old Republic. This is only the beginning. Decide now that you are strong enough to get through it, and you can become a greater Jedi that any of us."

* * *

"I really don't think you should stay here alone, Master," Luke said as he was leaving the Temple for the night. There's plenty of room at my sister's place, you are welcome to stay there."

"This is my home, Luke. I've been waiting a long time to see it again, I'll be fine."

"All right, but I'm leaving Artoo here to help you out. I'll see you in the morning."

"As you wish, Luke. You must think about making this your home, too. I see you living a long and fruitful life here."

* * *

"Artoo, it's too hot to sleep in here. Let's go upstairs to Obi-Wan's; he had that apartment on the outside ring with a balcony. Maybe we can get some night air."

Barefoot and dressed in the simple clothes she'd brought with her from Craltor's Moon, she left her quarters and she and Artoo made their way to Obi-Wan's door. The droid chirped and whirred as he hooked into the computer interface and slid the door open. It creaked a little from disuse, but Artoo managed to open the sliding doors to the outside, and cool fresh air rushed into the musty rooms.

"Ah, that's marvelous, Artoo, thank you."

She made her way to the railing of the small balcony. It was not much more than a ledge, really, but it was big enough for a person to sit there in a chair, and up high enough to avoid the layer of air pollution that plagued the planet.

Comfortable?

"Yes, quite. You always did have the softest chair."

I thought perhaps there was another piece of furniture in here that you missed. He chuckled. I know I do.

"If you mean your bed, I've thought of nothing else for the last 20 years," she said teasingly. Then she sighed.

"Ah, Obi-Wan, I'm so grateful that you're here with me. What I saw today... Did you know they were there?"

No, I didn't know, I'm sorry. Traelyn, Qui-Gon and I have been talking, and we have a mission for you.

"A mission? You're joking."

No, I'm serious. You're to correct history.

"Correct history? Jedi history, you mean."

We were made out to be traitors, insurgents. You should tell the galaxy what really happened.

"But I don't know what really happened, I wasn't here!"

With your talent for speaking with the dead, that shouldn't be a problem.

She pondered his words.

"You're right, I should tell their stories. The truth should come out. But who's going to believe me?"

You'll see.

* * *

A half-year passed. Luke studied the Force, and Traelyn went back to school to take refresher courses in medicine.

The Temple was cleaned and repaired, and Traelyn moved herself and her meager belongings into Obi-Wan's old quarters.

It's not like I'm going to be using them again, he said with good humor. And you do seem to love this balcony.

"I lived in the outdoors for all those years and being inside gets a little claustrophobic."

Jedi don't get claustrophobia! Silly.

"Don't be a smart poodoo, Obi-Wan."

* * *

Traelyn honored Obi-Wan's wishes and did not instruct Luke in the ways of the Force. Not much, anyway. He pestered her with questions, and she did her best to steer him down the correct path, all the while avoiding the subject of his father.

He spent much of his days in the archives, but found time to go out and about around the galaxy searching for Force sensitives.

More often than not, it was Obi-Wan who actually found them, as he spent his days flitting about the galaxy through the Force. Soon there were dozens of young adults in the Temple, training and studying the skills of the Jedi.

Traelyn taught them to use a lightsaber, supervised their physical training, and tended to their injuries.

"Master Yoda told me to pass on what I had learned," Luke told her one afternoon as they sat in the waning sunlight in the council chamber. "But I'm not sure I'm qualified. Why won't you help me teach them?"

"It's not my place, Luke. I'm a healer. I am doing what I can, and what I do best."

"But I can't teach them what I don't know!"

"Then you will learn together," she said firmly.

* * *

Late one night, Obi-Wan appeared at Traelyn's bedside.

"Obi-Wan?"

Traelyn, my love, are you awake? I must speak with you.

"You know you're always welcome here. But what is it that has you so agitated?"

I believe I have found him.

Traelyn's heart skipped a beat. "Jeran?" she whispered.

He nodded. He is on Talus. You must go see him, bring him back here to the Temple. He's very strong with the Force, just as we always thought he would be.

"Are you certain? Does he have the pendant?"

His presence in the Force feels exactly like you. It has to be him. And, yes, he has the pendant. Or rather, his mother does. His adoptive mother, I mean.

"Ah, yes, she's his mother, I gave him away, remember?" she said with resignation. "I will send Luke. A young man's much more likely to believe a galactic hero than a crazy old woman. But, I never told Luke."

Times have changed, Traelyn. The Jedi have changed. He won't judge us.

* * *

"Good morning, Master, you wanted to see me?"

"Yes, Luke, sit down please." She patted the bench beside her in the fountain room.

He sat and waited patiently for her to speak. "It's beautiful in here," he said finally. "Threepio did a wonderful job getting the water systems back online."

She nodded, and smiled. "Luke, there's something I've been keeping from you, but the time has come for me to share my deepest secret."

"About you and Master Obi-Wan?" he asked with a smile.

She chuckled. "That's not much of a secret. But in a way, yes it is about us. Obi-Wan has found a young man on Talus that I need you to bring back to the Temple."

Luke nodded. This was not an unusual request, so he knew there must be more to the story.

Traelyn continued. "Obi-Wan is certain that the boy is our son."

Luke blinked at her. "I see." He looked puzzled.

"Luke, in our time Jedi did not have children. He was born on Craltor's Moon, and when he was a half-year old Obi-Wan took him away to be adopted, for his own safety. I haven't seen him since. He doesn't know who I am, or who his father is."

She looked thoughtful for a moment. "You might find the old Jedi ways a little odd, since you were not raised among us. Attachment was frowned upon, and although many of us had casual relationships with one another, Obi-Wan and I were dedicated to each other ever since we were younglings."

"I know," he said. "I can see it in your eyes when you talk about him. And I've seen you together around the Temple. Even in death he adores you, there's no hiding it."

"You're quite perceptive, Luke." She smiled. "Now, please go to Talus and find my son."

* * *


Edited by Qui-Gon Reborn with her usual flair and unerring use of the comma.

The Secret Adventures of Luke's Hand

I needed a drink.

I never really knew what that sensation was like before then, but I certainly knew what it was like at that moment.

It wasn’t merely the fact that I had breached the height of several buildings, shuddering from raw, mordantly bitter exhaustion, survived a brutal act of mutilation, and was separated from a dear friend and companion, but when I reached the top of the tunnel…

…I almost wished I had let myself die at its depths.

Casting my mind back toward that dark time, I probably had retained a certain amount of ability with the Force through the same midi-chlorians that had facilitated my endurance. Because what I experienced at the return of the site where I had lost my old friend, it was almost too much to bear.

But I crawled past the ledge, toward the building, and toward my destiny.

For, after all, isn’t that what Luke Skywalker would’ve done?

The Secret Adventures of Luke's Hand

The problem with tasks that don’t require your mental faculties to do much work is that they give your mental faculties time to do too much work. Your mind wanders, your heart is freed, and you find your soul tumbling down into some dark and thrilling oblivion from which there can be no escape. From which you would never dream of escaping.

Then you are forced to awaken once again, your mind is tugged sharply back into the state of being that is known as present, your heart put back in chains, and your soul captured and caged, safe and secluded from dreams once more.

I know not which is worse. The reality of dreams or the dreams of reality.

Upon reaching the tunnel that had been above my landing point, I glanced upward and surveyed the dark confines of my environment. The landscape abounded with crevices and valleys, ledges and terraces, footholds and -- for all intents and purposes -- handholds. It was not as smooth as it had appeared on first glance, and it seemed that it would be possible to make the climb all the way to the top.

That is, if I could make the climb all the way to the top.

And so began what I can only feasibly describe as the most terrifying experience my poor heart, or what ever mechanism powers my senses, could ever hope to endure. Imagine, for one instant, the most horrendous of nightmares, every nuance of your most fondest of drams trampled against the most unspeakable of evils and pounded to dust before your eyes. There is not even the most faded desire to escape because you can’t remember how.

Imagine, for one instant, that nightmare.

I lived it.

Part 18 - The End of an Era

PART 1 - PART 2 - PART 3 - PART 4 - PART 5 - PART 6 - PART 7 - PART 8 - PART 9 - PART 10 - PART 11 - PART 12 - PART 13 - PART 14 - PART 15 - PART 16 - PART 17

A HALF-YEAR YEAR LATER

“Come on, Aidriac, don’t be a sissy. Use that thing like a Jedi!” She taunted her apprentice during lightsaber practice. She waved her blade in his face, poking at him, making faces, laughing at his mistakes. But he never angered, never wavered from his calm determination.

“That won’t work on me, Master,” he said, smiling.

She awoke with a start and, shaking off the effects of the dream, went to sit beside her campfire. She stirred the embers and added wood, coaxing the flames into a decent blaze.

Something was different. Something in the Force had changed. Everything seemed clear, and more in focus, and she perceived a quiet sense of peace she hadn't felt since she was a youngling.

“Obi-Wan?” she said, feeling that familiar presence.

It's over, Traelyn. The Empire has been defeated.

“I felt an huge shift in the Force. The Sith?”

Gone. Palpatine is dead, and Anakin returned to the light.

Traelyn looked skeptical. “Returned to the light side? How?”

Luke. Anakin saved him from certain death and killed the Emperor.

“But he's dead?” she asked cautiously.

Obi-Wan sighed.

Sensing his mixed emotions, Traelyn was careful with her thoughts.

He is here in the Force.

“You saved him?” she asked, unable to keep the shock from her voice. “After the things he did? He betrayed the Jedi order, you told me he killed millions of innocents!”

That's in the past, Traelyn. Those were the acts of a Sith Lord, not Anakin.

“He killed you!” She was angry now. “He deserves to spend eternity in all nine of the Corellian hells!”

Traelyn, he was my Padawan, I loved him like a brother. Wouldn't you do the same thing for your apprentice?

“Don't you dare bring Aidriac into this. He never murdered anyone!” She stormed out of the shelter and went to sit beside the stream, barely able to control her rage.

Traelyn! Control your anger! Qui-Gon's voice echoed in her head.

“I suppose you helped with this... this atrocity!” she said.

Beware the dark side, my dear. You are still a Jedi. You will accomplish nothing if you succumb to the dark side.

Obi-Wan appeared beside her, his spirit calm as usual, and he waited for her anger to subside. He sent soothing waves of the Force to wash over her, calming her with his love and compassion.

Traelyn, my love, if I can forgive him, shouldn't you be able to? He was led astray by Palpatine, and the dark side of the Force. Even in death he is suffering terrible guilt. Nothing can undo the things he has done, but he regrets them. Have some compassion.

“Don't,” she said. “Don't act the Jedi Master to me. I'm a healer, I know compassion. But I felt the death of thousands of Jedi and I'm not likely to forget it.”

Obi-Wan said nothing, but continued to caress her mind with his own.

“He destroyed everyone and everything we ever knew. There's nothing you can say that will change that.”

No, we cannot change the past. You know that. You need to let it go.

“I can't!”

Hate leads to the dark side, and losing you there would truly kill me.

Traelyn knew it was true, but, in spite of his soothing thoughts and words, nothing could quell her burning hatred for Anakin Skywalker.

* * *

A HALF-YEAR YEAR LATER

“I still have those holocrons we recorded for Jeran,” she told Obi-Wan as she was leaving the lake after her morning swim. “If I don't survive to get off this moon, send someone for them. He needs to know who he is.”

You can take them with you when you leave. Luke is coming for you today, Obi-Wan said.

She toweled off her long hair, and dressed in a plain shirt and leggings. “It's about time!” she said, faking annoyance. “What's so important that he couldn't get here sooner? Blowing up another Death Star?”

He has been busy, you know. With the retaking of Coruscant, it's been a busy time for the Rebel Alliance. The New Republic, that is.

“Oh, please! Defeating the Empire, saving the galaxy, I've heard it all. I've been out of caf and chocolate for years and he's off fighting the Sith instead of coming to my rescue...” She grinned.

It's nice to see your sense of humor has returned. Try to take it easy on Luke when he gets here, please? You should put on your shoes, and comb your hair. Try to be respectable. He chuckled.

“Too late,” she said with a grin. “He's here. And what a piece of junk...”

Obi-Wan roared with laughter. That's the Millennium Falcon, the most famous ship in the galaxy! It's quite an honor to have Captain Solo come on an errand such as this.

“An errand?” she said with a glare. “You call coming to rescue a Jedi Master an 'errand'?”

* * *

Luke Skywalker was an unlikely looking hero. Handsome in a youthful way, he was quiet and soft-spoken, and his small stature belied the power that shone within him.

Traelyn's senses were nearly blinded by his light.

What an incredible presence in the Force! I see why you wanted to protect him, Obi-Wan. I'm sorry I doubted you.

“Are you Traelyn Zavall? The Jedi Master?” he asked politely.

“What do you think?” she asked. “If I'm not, you're on the wrong moon.”

He looked her over, eying her casual appearance, from her bare feet to her loose, tangled hair. He seemed confused. “I'm Luke Skywalker, and I'm here to rescue you. I was...uhmmm, told you were expecting me,” he said doubtfully.

“Skywalker? Like Anakin Skywalker?” She ignited her lightsaber.

“Hey, I'm not him. I'm not anything like him!” He put his hand on his own weapon.

She held up her hand, sending a tiny Force push into his face. “Don't even think about it!”

Traelyn, he is much stronger than you, and he doesn't have our disciplines, be careful!

She extinguished her lightsaber. “Well, come inside,” she said, holding back a heavy branch.

Inside? he thought. What inside?

She sat down by the fire, and started stirring her stew pot. “I was about to have lunch. Would you like some blackbird stew? Come on, don't be shy. It's actually quite good.”

Luke sat down, unsure what to say. He remembered his first meeting with Yoda, and wondered if all Jedi Masters got cranky at mealtimes.

“So, young Luke, who fancies himself to be a Jedi, tell about this rescue you have in mind. Do I look like I need rescuing?”

He cleared his throat. “Obi-Wan Kenobi sent me.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Did he now?”

She thinks I'm crazy, he thought, but he blundered on. “I'm to take you back to Coruscant, to the Jedi Temple.”

Traelyn, take it easy on the boy, you're confusing him. Obi-Wan chuckled. And Captain Solo is waiting in the ship. Don't you want to go home?

“Don't you want to go home?” Luke said at the same time.

Traelyn laughed. “All right, Luke. I was just teasing you. I haven't had any visitors here in a long time. A very long time. Go wait by the stream and I'll get ready. Go on,” she shooed him out of the shelter.

She went into the shuttle pod, and opened a bottom storage drawer and pulled out her Jedi clothes. Old, but not worn since she'd landed there, they were still intact. She put them on, caressing each piece as she smoothed it over her body. It was almost ritualistic. She pulled on her boots, snapped on her belt and braided her hair tightly to her head.

Into a small carrysack she tossed the holocrons, the wood from Jeran's cradle, a few articles of clothing, and Aidriac's lightsaber. Placing her own weapon on her belt, she left the shelter and stepped into the sunlight. Luke stared at her.

“Master,” he said somewhat stupidly. “You look just like a Jedi Knight!” And indeed she did, like something out of a history book, a book his uncle had once forbidden him to read.

He's such an innocent! she thought.

“Luke, I left the Temple as a Jedi, and I intend to return as one. Now, let's go!”

She strode across the field, hopping on the rocks to cross the river, and made her way to the waiting ship. She never looked back.

* * *


As usual, Snips provided smooth solutions for some awkward passages!

Part 17 - Return to Exile

PART 1 - PART 2 - PART 3 - PART 4 - PART 5 - PART 6 - PART 7 - PART 8 - PART 9 - PART 10 - PART 11 - PART 12 - PART 13 - PART 14 - PART 15 - PART 16

Obi-Wan returned to Tatooine heartsore and defeated. For although he had saved Jeran, he had also lost him, and he had not returned for Traelyn. He was determined to keep his promise to her, though to return now would be to endanger her further, and he would not permit himself to risk her life no matter how much he missed her.

The Imperial ships moved away from Craltor and now patrolled the edge of Hutt space. Vader left the system and the Hutts and Imperials maintained an uneasy standoff along the border.

With Qui-Gon's help, Traelyn slowly began to put her life back in order. She resumed her Jedi meditations and in time her heartache faded from white-hot grief into a dull ache that never quite seemed to go away.

“Tell me about Obi-Wan,” she asked him. “When is he coming back?”

Obi-Wan is on Tatooine. He is trying to come back, but so far it's too dangerous for you both.

* * *

She hid Jeran's cradle behind some rocks near the face of the cliff, and moved the sleeping platform away from the fire pit and into the trees. She could not bear to sleep in the bed she had shared with Obi-Wan, the bed where their son had been born, and instead continued to spend her nights in the narrow bunk inside the shuttle pod.

Two years passed. The weather was continuously like springtime, some days warm, some days cool. The lush forest continued to supply her with food, the hot spring continued to bubble up from the ground, and ferns grew up and around the cradle.

Every morning she went for a run through the woods, until she'd worn a path through the trees to the edge of the cold-water lake, where she liked to swim after her workouts.

Often in the afternoons, when she wasn't hunting or preparing food, she would sit on the bank of the stream and try to reach into the Force and speak with the Jedi who had not survived the massacre.

“You can't be the only one, Master,” she'd told Qui-Gon. “Teach me how to contact the spirits. Someday I may be able to tell their stories.”

* * *

FIVE YEARS LATER

Obi-Wan woke from a dream in which he'd been lying in bed with Traelyn's head on his shoulder, the baby asleep, nestled in between them. It had seemed so real that that he felt as if they'd been ripped from his arms. Once again, he regretted that of all the times he had held her, the last time she'd been sobbing with fear and grief, that their last kisses had tasted of tears.

His mind was assaulted with memories of Traelyn, from the tiny girl who toddled across the nursery floor to fall into his lap, gigging, to the five year-old who'd pushed him into the lake. “I like you Obi-Wan, you make the the Force feel funny.” And the grown woman with whom he'd shared his most intimate moments, the woman who had given him a son.

Images of the baby filled his mind. The last time he'd held his child he'd been handing him over to strangers.

I'm sorry, Jeran.

He held his hands to his face, willing away memories that refused to vanish.

As the desert air cooled, he went outside to sit beneath the stars. He opened his mind up to the Force, and reached out for the presence he so longed to touch.

Traelyn?

On Craltor's Moon, Traelyn was also sitting beneath the stars, staring at the bright cluster she knew to be the Core, and wondering if she'd ever see her home again. She reached out into the Force, sliding her consciousness into its currents and sending a tendril of thought across the galaxy.

Obi-Wan?

For a brief moment he felt her mind touch his, and she was aware of a whisper of his thoughts.

This is a dangerous game you two are playing. Qui-Gon said sternly.

"I'm sorry, Master Qui-Gon," said Traelyn.

"I'm sorry, Master," said Obi-Wan. "You're right." He broke contact with the Force.

Tomorrow he would go into town and check on the travel situation, although every time he did it seemed to have grown bleaker. Blockades, Imperial patrols, bounty hunters, and worse. There were rumors of battle stations with the destructive power of an entire fleet. He no longer had the courier ship. The rightful owner had gotten out of prison and demanded it back, and although tempted, Obi-Wan had given it over without resorting to mind tricks in order to keep it.

He had no doubt that with enough credits, he could go anywhere he wanted, but credits were something he didn’t have, especially Imperial credits.

Do not despair, Obi-Wan. It doesn't befit a Jedi of your power.

“My power does not help me much while I'm stuck on this dirt ball of a planet!” he said in frustration.

Patience. You and Traelyn will be together again, and you will see your child. The future is clouded but this much I have seen.

Obi-Wan sighed. There were times he envied Qui-Gon, who could flit about the galaxy as he pleased. Dying wouldn't be so bad, he thought. The searing heat of the Tatooine desert seemed to be leaching the life out of his bones, and he felt terribly old.

It's not up to you to decide how long you'll live, Obi-Wan. You are still a Jedi Master, and so is Traelyn.

“I promised her I’d come back,” he said. “She’s been all alone on that moon for years now. Master, if I don't survive here, please tell her I'll wait for her in the Force.”

TEN YEARS LATER

Obi-Wan awoke one morning with a strange feeling, a message emanating from the Force. Luke needs your help. He felt something pulling him outside, into the Jundland Wastes.

* * *

Behind the ferns and rocks near the face of the cliff, the log that had once been Jeran’s cradle had disintegrated into ragged chunks. Traelyn tossed most of them into the fire pit, all except for one small piece, a tiny chunk that bore the scar where a limb had been attached.

She slept with it beneath her worn pillow and as she fell asleep each night she held it in her fingers. She could feel the essence of Obi-Wan’s hands and she could almost smell the sweet baby scent of Jeran.

Early one morning, she felt a tremendous disturbance in the Force, a massive cry of fear and agony. It resonated through her senses as she felt the death cries of millions of people. She nearly fell to the ground, blind with the pain in her head.

As it faded, she took a long walk in the forest to clear her mind. Along the way, she felt the touch of Qui-Gon’s presence. “Master?” She stopped and tried to touch his thoughts.

I cannot stay. I just came to see if you were all right, and to tell you not to worry.

“I felt something terrible happen.”

Alderaan has been destroyed.

She gasped in shock.

I will be back, but right now I need to look after Obi-Wan.

“Take care of him, Master. “

* * *

Traelyn was sleeping soundly when a cold whisper of the Force swept across her, chilling her to the bone.

I'm sorry, Traelyn.

Then a terrible rift in the Force jolted her awake. Obi-Wan was dead.

She went to sit beside the river, beneath the blanket of stars she'd come to know so well. The dark side of the Force swirled around her. Obi-Wan was gone, and with him all her hopes.

She had her lightsaber, death would be painless. She gathered the Force around her, pushing away the darkness and gathering in the light.

Obi-Wan saw her, the Force burning bright within her. For a moment all he wanted was for her to join him, to be with him again, but his conscience would not allow it.

No, Traelyn! You must live. It isn't your time yet. His transparent image appeared next to her.

"Obi-Wan," she whispered. "Let me come with you."

No, my love. I’m sorry. One of us has to live for Jeran, and for the Jedi. Be patient.

She sighed, tears running down her face.

Trust me. There’s something I have to do, but I’ll be back.

* * *

The Rebellion has scored a great victory, and young Luke is on his way to becoming a Jedi.

“And for that you sacrificed your life? For Anakin’s son?” she asked bitterly.

Traelyn, I did what I had to do. It’s all for the best, please believe me.

“I do,” she sighed. She sat back against her favorite rock, pulling her cloak around her. “I should not take my anger out on you. In fact, I should not be angry at you at all, you’re the one who died.”

I am not angry. I am… relieved.

She was silent for several minutes. “Why don’t you look any older?” she mused. “I must look terrible. Many years have passed. I’m starting to feel it, too.”

You look wonderful. The years are mellowing you.

“You make me sound like Nubian Spring Wine,” she snorted.

Are you telling me I don’t look any different from the last time you saw me?

“Not a bit. You haven’t aged a day. Maybe you’re even younger.”

I aged plenty, believe me. White hair, wrinkles, pot belly…

She chuckled. “Don’t try to make me feel better!”

It’s all true. You just have no frame of reference in which to see me that way.

“Is that how it works? I see you the way I remember you?”

So it seems. I like the idea, you know.

“That you can stay young while I age? How old am I, anyway? How long have I been here?”

I cannot say.

“Or you won’t say.”

It's just that I'm not certain. But you could check the chronocron in the shuttle if you really wanted to know.

“It's broken. How old is Luke?”

He's a teenager. Late teens. Perhaps 20.

Traelyn gasped. “Jeran! He'll be almost grown now. And he doesn't even know he's a Jedi, or who we are.”

I haven't forgotten him, Traelyn. I will find him.

* * *

THREE YEARS LATER

“If you're speaking to Luke, why don't you tell him to come get me off this rock?”

Your presence might endanger the Alliance.

“And his doesn't? Come on Obi-Wan, that's not it.” She thought for a few moments. “You don't trust me to teach him!” She laughed out loud.

I'm sending him to Master Yoda.

“Master Yoda?” she said with dismay. “Oh, Obi-Wan, is that wise?”

He crossed his arms across his chest, just like he always had when he was annoyed. Just because I'm dead doesn't mean you should stop trusting me! I haven't lost my mind, you know.

“No, you've just lost everything else!” she snickered.

* * *

More thanks to Snips for smoothing out some passages that had been bothering me for almost two years!

A Faithful Droid's Demise

TD-19 was a simple protocol droid, or at least that was what it liked to call itself. In truth, its owner had programmed some assassination protocols into its system, thus upgrading TD-19 to a protocol droid slash assassin droid slash bodyguard. Its behavior core had not been modified to accept these changes, however, and it found itself trying to ignore its potential for violence.

Unless, of course, certain situations prompted the protocols. In those instances the normal protocol routines were overridden and Teedee -- as its master sometimes called the droid -- found itself voicing threatening language and periodically damaging organic beings who unwisely ignored its warnings. It found itself making apologies for its violence afterwards, which did not make any difference because mostly the organic beings were by then very much unable to do anything.

It often wondered why organics could not be repaired after being torn into pieces.

Right now, a female organic was trying to gain entry into the room Teedee guarded the door for. Its instructions were clear, however; no-one was to enter the room until its master told it otherwise.

"Please step aside," the woman repeated, "so I can enter."

Obviously she had not been informed of this order, so Teedee shared the information. "Negative. All access to this room is forbidden at this point." When it realised she would not be on her way, it added, "please wait for guards to detain you."

It silently attempted to establish a connection to the Senate main computer, but there seemed to be no answer. It would try again in 30 seconds.

"Look, I really --"

She did not give up, despite Teedee's very clear explanation. Perhaps a warning was in place.

"Repeat: Please wait for guards to detain you. If you resist detention, you will be painfully and bloodily executed." Shocked by its own words -- as much as any droid could experience being 'shocked' -- Teedee wondered just how much those assassination protocols had influence over its standard programming.

Thankfully, its words seemed to have their effect on the trespassing human, for she appeared to be hesitating. Teedee tried to avoid violence whenever possible, for each conflict was potentially threatening to its functionality. Not that such a thing had ever happened.

Main computer still did not reply. Perhaps the transmitter was broken? System check revealed a non-functional transmitter -- in fact, it was not there. It must have been removed during the last routine maintenance, earlier today. As soon as its master arrived, Teedee would inform him of the missing component.

The woman seemed to come to a decision, and reached for something. Teedee's scanners identified it as a lightsaber. The information Teedee had on this weapon stated clearly that its wielders were either Jedi or Sith, and were extremely dangerous.

Teedee's assassination protocols took over at this point, although the protocol functionality insisted on warning the human of the risk she took.

"Repeat: If you resist detention, you will be executed."

Unphased, the woman uttered, "yeah yeah, I know. Try me," and attempted to damage the droid's head with her weapon and missed. Teedee had anticipated her move, being on full battle mode now, and easily stepped away from the blade while producing its own weapons. It immediately fired a round with its fully loaded DC-15S and DC-17m blasters, which the human had trouble deflecting in the narrow hallway.

"Perceived hostility. Painful and bloody execution is imminent," the droid heard itself say. Who had created those protocols? Why did Teedee have to imply the nature of the already uncomfortable execution?

Protocol dictated that Teedee alerted the main computer, realising only microseconds later that it could not.

Calculating the best strategy for immobilising its enemy, Teedee ventured closer. Having no mechanic reflexes, the human was slower to react to hostilities. Also, her defence seemed to be slightly vulnerable on the left side. Teedee planned to make a faint to her right, then aim at her left foot with its other blaster.

Teedee had barely begun shooting before the woman had deflected its shots. She appeared to have become much quicker than before, becoming a blur of motion that Teedee could barely follow with its droid sensors.

One of the deflected shots found its way to a photoreceptor, and Teedee had only half the visual information. This had an immediate effect on its aim, and only after several microseconds did the droid aim correctly at the human again.

However, the woman was closer than it has estimated and rather quickly, Teedee's sight was taken entirely. Elsewhere in its circuitry, the left arm ceased to provide input.

Its head and arm were gone.

"Perceived criminal action," Teedee found itself saying; "damaging a government-owned droid." Quickly Teedee ran a check through its files on intergalactic law and the respective punishments for each offence. "Penalty: Compensation through loss of offender's comparable parts."

It tried to hit the woman's arm, but with no visual information, the effort was useless. "Please wait while your left arm and your head are removed, then wait for guards to detain--"

The voice modulator was damaged suddenly. Alarms went off as various circuits stopped replying. Connections were lost with the right arm, the left foot, the left leg -- the signal that informed Teedee it had fallen to the side was just one of many alarms as the droid lost control of one system after another.

Belatedly, it realised that the only one who could have removed its transmitter was its master. He must have planned something like this to happen, although for what purpose Teedee did not know.

Teedee did not want to disobey its orders, though, so it kept trying to fight--

Suddenly, the military protocols were inactive. The only part of the droid that still had any sense, the protocol part, realised its only chance was to move away from the rampaging human. It did not, however, realise that the direction it chose for retreat was, in fact, right towards the woman.

A crush of her boot destroyed the last piece of circuitry, and TD-19 was no more.

The Sting

The Setup

It could be said with a large degree of certainty that there was not much in this galaxy that Dexter Jettster had not seen, heard, experienced, participated in, devised, thought of, smelled, created, laughed at, cried for, or cooked. But the shock and uncertainty that fluttered between his large, penetrating eyes, and his wide mouth, so often twisted in gentle and uncompromising amusement, was, to young Obi-Wan Kenobi, quite surprising.

The young Padawan had relayed his Master’s tale up to the point wherein Yoda requested his help at the diner tomorrow. The expression on Dex’s face had first belayed his intense shock, then wry humor, terror, humor again, more shock, and, finally, thoughtful understanding. Business was business and duty was never unclear when it came to Dexter and his relationship with the Jedi Order and the tentative body known as the Republic. He knew where his responsibilities lay. But that didn’t stop him from being a tad conspicuously uncertain.

“Qui-Gon, old buddy,” he began, casting an uneasy glance at Obi-Wan, who looked back at him with those solemn, deep gray eyes, “you know I would do anything for you, anything at all, but—“

“Dex, what I really need you to do is provide precisely what I ask for, and do it as soon as possible, if not sooner,” said Qui-Gon, his speech halting but flowing a bit easier after several hasty bacta applications to his nose. “I need to be ready by tomorrow evening. There’s no time to question what we must do.”

“But, Qui-Gon, you never liked Yoda! You always used to tell me that he was just striking back at the galaxy because of his size—“

“Dex,” cautioned Qui-Gon, anxiously looking down at Obi-Wan.

“Master, you used to say that Yoda is—“

“Obi-Wan,” said Qui-Gon, fixing his Padawan with a cold stare.

“Sorry, Master,” Obi-Wan replied, his cheeks turning a low pink with embarrassment.

“That’s alright, my Padawan. You must remember that I was a young boy just as you are now, and the way in which I perceived things at that time differs greatly because of a change in my perspective. Perspective depends solely on where you’re standing, Obi-Wan. You will have a different view of the galaxy from the top of a mountaintop than at a crevice buried deep within the soil.”

“You mean instead of thinking he’s just trying to get back at the universe because he’s short, now you think he’s an arrogant, ronto-brained, gutless murglak?”

“Obi-Wan, didn’t I just tell you—“

“Oh, could we stop with the Jedi Ethics 101 long enough to think about our next move?” interrupted Dex, his tone thick with exasperation.

“I concur. Obi-Wan,” Qui-Gon said, tilting his head toward the young boy, “we will continue this discussion later. Now, Dex, what do you suggest?”

“Well, Yoda says he wants to make her happy, and the Force knows that most Jedi are impossible to please. So, we need something epic. Something huge.”

“And can you do something epically huge?” asked Qui-Gon.

“Qui-Gon, old buddy, epically huge is my specialty! I’ve got everything you need right here. Now, Obi-Wan?”

“Yes, Dex?” asked the Padawan, brightening.

“Do you have a comlink on you?”

“Of course!” he answered, pulling out the small grey device from beneath his Jedi robes.

“And yours, Qui-Gon,” said Dex, holding out his uppermost left hand as the Jedi Master passed him the communication device.

“Now, are these both standard Jedi xx20 models?”

“Yes,” answered Qui-Gon.

“Good,” Dex said, rubbing together his four hands with apparent glee. That strangely familiar, good-naturedly voracious glint leapt to his eyes, the light passing over him that had awarded him every skill he had ever acquired. Qui-Gon quirked a small smile of reassurance, certain, or as near to certain as he could get, that Dexter had the situation well in hand.

“Now, Obi-Wan, take these three comlinks and slave them to this master system I have right here,” said Dex, gesturing toward a battered but formidable-looking computing system near the back of the small room.

“Sure,” mumbled Obi-Wan, his eyes narrowing with focus.

“Qui-Gon, you’re going to need these earpieces that will correspond directly to the master system your Padawan is working on. All you’ll have to worry about is showing up when the little guy and his…heh heh…his girl get here, and following the instructions that I give you on via the earpiece.”

“I’ll be too recognizable. And I don’t think a disguise is very feasible in this situation. Yaddle will sense my presence as soon as I enter the diner.” Qui-Gon stroked his dark beard in thought, his eyes defocusing as he opened himself to the tender, enveloping embrace that is the Force.

“Obi-Wan,” he said suddenly, glancing down at the small boy, his fingers feverishly playing across the surface of the computer.

“Master?” asked Obi-Wan, his brow arching slightly.

“Obi-Wan will be our front, Dex.”

“Ah, that’ll work fine. Now, you two better run along before our Rodian friend decides to come looking for us. I’ll have the details worked out by tomorrow evening.”

“You’re certain?” asked Qui-Gon, more out of courtesy to Dex than an expression of lack of faith in his old friend.

“Come on, old buddy, have I ever let you down?”

“Not yet,” said Qui-Gon. And, yet, he began to wonder...

...what tomorrow would bring.

Part 16 - A Narrow Escape

PART 1 - PART 2 - PART 3 - PART 4 - PART 5 - PART 6 - PART 7 - PART 8 - PART 9 - PART 10 - PART 11 - PART 12 - PART 13 - PART 14 - PART 15

In spite of his parents' total ignorance of baby care, Jeran thrived. He grew plump and happy. He loved to sleep in his mother's arms and giggled when nuzzled by his father's bearded face. He learned to crawl early, and loved to sit in the warm water of the stream, splashing about with glee.

Traelyn and Obi-Wan reveled in their son's happiness, and he did much to ease their heartaches over the past and turn their focus towards the future.

In the depths of an unusually cold night, baby Jeran whimpered in his cradle. “What's the matter, little one?” Obi-Wan said quietly as he lifted the baby up and placed him in the bed between himself and Traelyn. “Cold? Hungry?”

“Probably both,” Traelyn said with a sleepy smile. She unbuttoned her nightshirt and began nursing the infant.

Obi-Wan lay on his side, his head propped on one elbow and watched. Suddenly, he was hit by a feeling of complete and total happiness, the happiest he had ever felt in his life. But just as suddenly, horrendous images flashing through his mind, a sense of overwhelming dread enveloped him, and he was unbearably sad.

“What is it, love?” Traelyn asked softly.

“We cannot raise him as a Jedi. If the three of us were to be accessing the Force, it would be like a beacon in the darkness.”

“So we're to deny him his birthright?” she asked.

“I...I had a vision. I thought I saw myself as a boy, only I was dressed in black and wielding a red lightsaber. But it wasn't me, it was Jeran.”

'We cannot let that happen,” she said firmly. “We won't let it happen!”

“We must get off this moon,” he said thoughtfully. “We'll go farther out, past the Rim. There are colonies out there that would gladly welcome a doctor, no questions asked. We can change our names and our appearance.”

“And how are we to get there?” Traelyn asked.

“Tomorrow I'll go to the nearest outpost and see if I can arrange transport. We can work aboard a ship if need be. It'll be risky, but we can do it.””

Traelyn nodded. “It would have to be better than here. “

* * *

But it was not to be. The next morning, while returning from the stream with water, Obi-Wan caught a sense of the dark side approaching.

“Traelyn!” he said, rushing into the shelter. “There's a ship in orbit around the planet.”

“Imperial?” she asked anxiously. “Is he up there?”

“I think so,” he replied. He knew she meant Vader. There was no mistaking the tension in her voice. He picked up the sleeping baby, cradling his head on his shoulder, and started towards the glen where he'd hidden his tiny courier ship. “I've got sensors on board, let's go take a look.”

* * *

“I see it,” Traelyn said, punching buttons on the sensor control panel. “Three star destroyers and four Hutt ships are facing off. This can't be good.”

Obi-Wan thrust the baby into her arms. “Take him and run. Head to the Outer Rim and beyond. It's me Vader wants, not you.”

Traelyn shook her head. “You forget he put a bounty on me, too. And I can't fly this thing. You're a better pilot than I am, and the Force is stronger in you. Take Jeran and go. I'll stay here and cause a disturbance in the Force, and maybe it will distract Vader.”

She placed the baby into the tiny cargo pouch behind the seat and strapped him in, wrapping the netting around him like a cradle. “I'm sorry, Jeran.” She took off the durindium pendant that had been her Padawan's and placed it around the baby's neck. “I will see you again someday, I promise.”

“I'll protect him with my life, Traelyn, I swear it.”

“There's no place you can hide, Obi-Wan, especially not Tatooine. Take the baby somewhere he can be adopted by a good family, someplace where there are no Jedi and his Force talents won't be discovered.”

“Traelyn, if there were any other way...”

“There isn't.” She was sobbing against Obi-Wan's chest, her arms thrown around his neck. “I love you both so much, make him safe and come back to me. You know I'd rather die out there with you than live here alone.”

She turned and ran back towards the shelter, using all her Jedi disciplines to keep from grabbing the baby and running into the forest. She sat down and stared into the fire. She opened herself up to the Force, sending out all her anguish and despair. She held her thoughts on that star destroyer, battering it with her pain and grief.

She felt the presence of another mind, not a dark evil one, but one made up of pure light. Qui-Gon.

You can let go now, Traelyn. Obi-Wan's made hyperspace. Your baby is safe.

“Master Qui-Gon. Protect them, please,” she said, choking on her tears.

I'm here to protect you. You did what you had to do, you know that.

“Now I know why the Jedi fear attachment. I didn't even want a baby, but now I feel as if my heart has been ripped out because he's gone.”

* * *

Traelyn slept her day and nights away in the tiny bunk inside the shuttle pod. For nearly a month, she rarely roused herself enough to eat or drink. She grew thin and pale, her eyes swollen from bouts of weeping.

Traelyn, you must take care of yourself. You cannot see your son again if you don't live.

“Qui-Gon. Go away, you can't help me now.”

Yes, I can. And you need me, Obi-Wan can't get back here now. I promised him I'd look after you.

She turned over in the small bunk, her face to the metal wall, sinking back down into despair. She was alone. Her baby was gone, her love was gone, her life was gone.

You're still a Jedi. As long as you still live, there is a light in the darkness.

She wanted to curl up and die. But Qui-Gon's words echoed through her mind during the night, and the next morning she dragged herself to the hot spring for the first time in weeks.

She languished in the soothing water, unwilling to expend the effort to dry off and get dressed. Suddenly, a shimmering vision of Qui-Gon appeared on the shore.

“Master!” she exclaimed, grabbing a towel and wrapping it around her. “Really, you could have waited until I'd gotten dressed!”

I guess that means you can see me, he chuckled, and turned his back while she hurriedly dressed.

She walked over to stand beside him. “I must say, this is much better than a disembodied voice.”

I've been working on it. Traelyn, even when I was alive I would never have looked upon you in a lustful manner.

“Is it true, what Obi-Wan said? Are you my father?”

He nodded. Yes, I am.

“Then you know what it's like,” she said sadly, “to love a child.”

But not to lose one. By bringing you to the Temple I was able to be a part of your life, to help raise you. I cannot imagine the pain you are feeling, but I can tell you that your son is part of a happy family now. He has four siblings and they adore him.

“Don't tell me where he is, I don't want to know.

I cannot tell you, I do not know. I only saw them leaving the refugee center with him. He is safer if you don't know.

“Master.... what am I supposed to do now?”

Survive.

* * *

Extra thanks to "Snips" for her editing and suggestions!