TITLE: Dark Sacrifice 21/36
AUTHOR: Cara & Quintus
E-MAIL: [email protected]
RATING: PG-13
CATEGORY: Pre-TPM, Jedi Apprentice, Original Characters
ARCHIVE: Yes. Please keep headers intact.
DISCLAIMER: Star Wars is the property of Lucasfilm Ltd. No copyright infringement intended, no profit is being made from this fiction. All original characters and story belong to the authors.
FEEDBACK: Constructive feedback appreciated.
TIME FRAME: Pre-TPM @ 1-2 years
SUMMARY: When Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan join a diplomatic mission to the planet Sahmly II, they uncover a strange vergence in the Force, centered around a young padawan whose actions may determine far-reaching changes in the Jedi Order. Obi-Wan’s decisions about the padawan could save the boy's life, or drive him to the power of the Dark Side.
DARK SACRIFICE
By Cara & Quintus
Chapter 21
"What is the meaning of this?"
The voice, calm but powerful, sliced through the argument and stopped it in its tracks. Master Toock hopped into the room and leapt to the seat of a nearby chair. She fixed her steady gaze on each Jedi in turn. "Sit down. Everyone." She waited until they all took seats around the wide table. Master Toock switched chairs so she could be at the head of the table. "Now, why could I hear my negotiators clear to the front doors of these Quarters? You are Jedi. Jedi do not bicker like Chich Hens." The Kushiban gave her assistant, Saa Duut a nod, and the Twi'lek woman moved silently to close the doors to the dining area and give them privacy.
The Jedi looked at each other, but no one spoke.
"What was the argument about?" Master Toock asked sharply.
"The argument was about my padawan." Dushiko replied. "He is missing. Knight Yeriamman believes he ran away."
"I see. You behaved childishly over a child." Toock twitched her nose as she thought, her fur changed from its customary white to a russet color. "Why is the young one missing, Ak'ra Dushiko?"
"I don't know," Dushiko replied. "We came back from negotiations, and he was not in our rooms."
"Obviously the boy circumvented the security system and left the grounds," Bondura said. "I grow weary of the fuss over one disobedient padawan."
"How long has the padawan been gone?" Toock asked, large indigo eyes fixed on the Weapons Master.
"I am unsure. All I know is he wasn't in the room when I got back."
"The room you locked him in," Adin added.
Toock raised a paw and gave Yeriamman a pointed stare. "Silence, Adin-Duanath. You will be respectful." She turned to Dushiko. "Is this true, Ak'ra? You locked your padawan in the room?"
"Yes."
"But he is now missing?"
"Yes."
"Was there any signs that he was taken against his will?"
"No, Master Toock." Dushiko rubbed his face with a hand. "Remii's robes, utility belt, and light saber were gone. This is why Knight Yeriamman believes him to have run off."
Toock nodded, licked her paw and rubbed it absently over one drooping ear. "I see." She turned and looked at Obi-Wan. "And what do you think, Apprentice Kenobi?"
Obi-Wan swallowed, glanced at Adin and then at Dushiko. "I do not think Remii ran away," he said firmly. He tipped his head as he'd seen Qui-Gon do many times. "But I don't think he was kidnapped either."
"It has to be one or the other, Padawan," Bondura said with a snort.
"Not necessarily," Qui-Gon said. "Someone could have removed Remii from the room."
"Who? We agreed none of us did it. Who else is there?" Dushiko said.
"Whoever it was, they had to have a fairly persuasive reason to get Remii to leave," Adin added. He moved to a chair and dropped into it with a sigh.
"You still haven't convinced me that the boy didn't simply run off," Bondura said.
Master Kai nodded agreement. "We've spent too much time on this already. We have more important things to do. There is a city to save."
"The city is part of the problem," Adin said. He explained the Dark resonance and his theory once more, for the Master Negotiator. "That is why we must search for the padawan."
The Jedi all looked to Master Toock. The Kushiban went into deep thought for several moments, ears twitching minutely. She nodded to herself, and looked up. "Perhaps what I have to tell you will change your perspective on the issue of the padawan," she said. "Just before Saa Duut and I returned, we discovered a Jedi was seen in the Ga Scree caste hospital, healing the injured from the bomb blast."
Dushiko groaned softly.
Adin Yeriamman sat up straight. "There is the missing piece. Remii left to help out at the hospital."
"It still doesn't explain how he got out of the room," Dushiko said. "Or how he found his way to the infirmary."
"Remii wouldn't have left the Residence unless he had a good reason," Obi-Wan interjected. "The best reason I can think of is that he was needed to help. His need to heal is a powerful thing. It's part of who he is." He looked at Qui Gon. "It connects him to the Living Force."
His master nodded, slowly.
"But who besides us would know that the padawan is a healer?" Bondura asked.
Adin and Obi-Wan looked at each other, then at Dushiko.
"My padawan healed one of the kitchen staff when she burned her arm," Dushiko said heavily.
"And you did not think this important enough to tell me?" Master Toock said. She twitched her nose. "Your padawan may have altered the delicate balance of caste status on this planet, Ak'ra Dushiko."
"I am sorry, Master Toock."
"Not as sorry as the padawan will be. His lack of discipline reflects poorly on all Jedi." Toock drew herself up to her full half-meter height. "There was another incident before we returned. The Lho Scree refused to meet with us. They claimed an outworlder killed their caste leader. An outworlder that they described wearing Jedi clothing. As ruling caste, the Lho have no reason to make up such a story. Even so, I did not take the claim sincerely. Until now." She looked at Dushiko. "There is only one Jedi among us missing."
"Remii wouldn't kill anyone!" Obi-Wan said. Qui-Gon placed his hand on his apprentice's shoulder.
"This we do not know for sure, Apprentice Kenobi, we do not know of the circumstances," Toock said. "But I want the padawan brought back. We will question him. Master Dushiko, he is your responsibility. Find him. Take Knight Yeriamman with you. He knows the city well." The Kushiban's eyes flashed sapphire as the two men began to protest. "No arguments! You will work together and you will find the padawan. The rest of you Masters will continue on the negotiations. This bombing changed everything. We will meet in one hour in the conference room." With that, Toock leapt off the chair and headed for the door, Saa Duut trailing in her wake.
Masters Bondura and Kai got up and returned to the table that held their plates, and began to eat. Obi-Wan wrapped food in a napkin, then stuffed it inside his robes before placing the Breeck inside a piece of greenbread and taking a big bite.
Adin looked at Dushiko. "If you have a piece of Remii's clothing, bring it. Bellicus may be able to track him."
"Very well, Knight. I will get his tunic from our rooms," the Weapons Master replied. "I'll meet you at the front in ten minutes."
Qui-Gon placed his hand on Dushiko's arm. "Take Obi-Wan with you. He can help. He's been around the city with me and spent time with your padawan. Maybe he will notice anything we have missed."
"I cannot, Master Jinn. What if something happens?"
"Ak'ra, Obi-Wan nears his trials. He is a child no longer. How are we to train him to take his place among us if we do not expose him to the dangers as well as the delights of being Jedi?"
Dushiko smiled slightly. "You are eloquently persuasive as usual, Master Jinn. Very well, Apprentice Kenobi may accompany us. I will trust in him as you trust in him."
Qui-Gon inclined his head. "You will not regret it, Ak'ra. I have a great deal of faith in Obi-Wan. And Adin-Duanath. They are good men." Qui-Gon studied the three Jedi in front of him. "Set aside your differences, gentlemen and find Remii. His life may depend on you."
Lho Scree Quarter
Almost an hour passed before the Lho Scree on the bed shuddered, and died. Remii sat in a chair across the room, head in his hands. He felt the death through the Force, and it was not pleasant. Remii was so profoundly weary, that he couldn't get up and go to the door to tell the waiting Sahmlians.
It didn't matter, because a minute later Ga-Ree-Jen slipped into the room. She looked at his tear-streaked face, then looked at the still form on the bed. "You could not save him?"
Remii shook his head. "I tried! I did my best…" He bit back a sob. "I didn't want him to die! You have to believe me!"
She studied him a long moment, rills flaring, then nodded. "I do not think there are many who could have saved him. But the Lho Scree will not be happy. They will demand retribution for failure. It is our way." Her rills flared so wide Remii could see the soft, tan membrane inside. They slowly settled, and tightened against her head. "You are not caste, you cannot be lowered." She pursed wide lips. "You must leave, Master Jedi. Immediately." Ga-Ree-Jen went to the window and peered out. When she turned around, her face was set. "Go towards the speeder. Then get out of the area. You will not have much time."
"But-"
"No arguments, Master Jedi. You have shown the Ga Scree much honor, but you demonstrate the same lack of understanding as the others. We will not go back to what we have been. We were not always as you see us now. I will remind all Screes of that." She shook her head at Remii's puzzled expression. "Do not concern yourself with us any longer. Go back to the Quartering. You will be safe there. Go now. Do not linger. Clear your face." She waited until Remii wiped his eyes with the bottom of his tunic and tightened his robes around himself before she dimmed the lighting, went to the door and opened it. She spoke to the guard in Basic. "The Jedi needs more. He will go to the speeder. I will remain with the Lho."
The guard stuck his head in the room, and frowned. "Fine. You stay. Jedi comes back, you go." His rills flared.
Ga-Ree-Jen's rills remained flat against her head. "Agreed. When he comes back, I will go."
Remii understood then, what Ga-Ree-Jen was doing. He couldn't argue in front of the guard and she knew it. He shook his head and looked at his boots.
"Go, Master Jedi. Now."
Remii's eyes widened at the mental nudge she gave him. He moved past the guard and down the hall before he realized. Remii was tempted to turn around at the end of the hall, but didn't. It wouldn't be dignified. He pelted down the stairs, soft booted feet making no sound on the stone floors. A few Lho Scree in the entry rooms looked at him curiously, but no one tried to stop him. Remii walked out past the door guards, down the drive, and past the speeder. He kept going until he could turn the corner.
There he burst into a full tilt run, fleeing the Sahmlian contingent and the man he failed to save, fleeing the idea that Master Dushiko had been right. He was incapable of healing and it should be forbidden to him. Remii ran the narrow streets, basing his turns on areas that had less people than others. The few Sahmlians out and about stared at him, or turned away. Soon, the buildings grew more dilapidated, the people more infrequent. Remii slowed to a walk. Several blocks in the distance he could see where the city ended and gave way to the rolling plains of the Sahmlian savannah.
A tug on his mind caused him to slow, and turn onto a street that ran perpendicular to the one he walked. It opened into a square, with a dark jade fountain in the center. Wide steps ran up to the foundation. Six bowls were stacked on top of each other along with a wide basin at the bottom to catch the water that cascaded down the layers. Remii stopped at the edge of the wide bottom basin and scooped up a handful of water. When he tried to examine it with his senses, he got little feedback from the Force. He felt uneasiness, and a trace of the pauses between the music, but ignored them in favor of feeling the delicate cascade of water over stone. With a shrug, he drank, then scooped up another handful to wash the dust and grime from his face. He looked down at himself. Green blood spattered his robes, and spotted his tunic and trousers.
Remii removed his robes and dipped them in the water, then wrung them out. The special material would dry within minutes. The tunic was another matter. Remii contented himself with scooping handfuls of water on the spots and rubbing at them. That faded the spots to a tolerable level, but now he was stuck with a damp tunic. It clung to his skin and rubbed. He sighed, refastened the cloak around himself, and sat on the stone lip of the fountain.
He was exhausted, hungry, and his emotions were in turmoil over the death of the Sahmlian. Not to mention he was hopelessly lost. He found a small energy bar in his utility belt and ate it dispiritedly, washing it down with more handfuls of water. No Sahmlians were on the streets around this fountain, which Remii found curious. No Sahmlians seemed to be anywhere about. A block or two away he saw them scurry past the street and continue on their way. The bomb likely scared them all indoors.
The hexaped canines that roamed the city streets stayed back or lurked in the shadows, and watched him with flat emerald eyes. The buildings around the fountain square were short, ringed with broken stonework and disintegrating walls. It was not a good area. Remii shivered.
Even with his eyes closed, he couldn't call up the image of his master or reach him through their bond. When he opened and released the shield he'd thrown up to keep his master out, nothing happened. Remii had never exhausted his Force ability to this degree, and it frightened him.
Master? I need you…
Adin?
There was no answering touch. The fatigue pulled at Remii, and he felt himself sliding down. He fought the urge to sleep. He had to get back to the Residence and his master.
Remii sighed and opened his eyes. The sight in front of him made him jump and almost fall into the fountain. Two Jedi stood before him, and for an instant Remii believed them to be his master and Adin Yeriamman. When his excitement cleared, he found himself staring at two Jedi he didn't know.
--Continued in Chapter 22--