[Jedi Quest] - 04(6)

Obi-Wan remembered another world, another day. Qui-Gon carrying a desperately weakened Jedi Knight - his close friend Tahl. He remembered how Tahl’s hand kept slipping off from around Qui-Gon’s neck. It is too late for me, my friend, she had told him.

He had seen the refusal to accept the fact in Qui-Gon’s eyes. At the time, as a Padawan, Obi-Wan had thought it impossible that a Jedi Knight could die.

Perhaps the first moment of his adulthood was the moment he had seen Qui-Gon’s face when he realized that Tahl was dead.

Why am I thinking about death? Obi-Wan wondered.

It was this planet. Ever since he had landed on it he’d felt uneasy. The darkness here was more than a result of cloud cover. It hung in the air. The Force dimmed with it. He knew it had affected his Padawan. Anakin was sensitive to the dark side of the Force. He felt it sooner and deeper than Obi-Wan had at his age.

Darra would be all right. A blaster wound to the leg was serious, but not life-threatening. Yet her limp body and her slip into unconsciousness worried him. There was a disturbance in her Living Force. He could feel it.

“The village is ahead,” Soara said. He could see in her face that she, too, was worried about Darra. “They are not giving up.”

“We must stop. Darra - “

“Yes. I must treat her.”

The village had been large and prosperous. That was easy to see, even in the close darkness. Clouds covered the pale moon as they filed swiftly through the streets, looking for the best shelter they could find.

Soara and Obi-Wan chose a building packed in the middle of a crowded street. Thanks to a half-destroyed wall, they would have lookouts on all four sides. Yet there was enough shelter for Darra to stay warm.

They wrapped her in a thermal cape. Soara administered bacta to her wound.

“It doesn’t look bad,” Obi-Wan said.

A line appeared between Soara’s eyebrows. “That is what worries me,” she said in a low tone. “She should not be unconscious.”

“Will you allow me?” Joveh D’a Alin spoke up gently. “I trained to be a medic before my scientific degree.”

She came closer and bent to examine Darra. She touched her with gentle, expert hands.

“Without instruments it is hard to tell,” she said. “It appears that she is in shock. Is it possible that the blaster bolts carried a chemical charge?”

“It is possible,” Soara said. “It is what I feared.”

Obi-Wan saw his Padawan swallow. Anakin’s eyes looked dark in his pale face. Obi-Wan knew that his Padawan felt responsible. Anakin had leaped impulsively, not trusting Darra to evade the fire. As usual, his Padawan had thought that he was faster, stronger, than anyone else.

The problem was that it was often true. But not always

“She needs care that we cannot give,” Joveh D’a Alin said. Her gray eyes were compassionate. “But her vitals are still good. The bacta should help.”

“We need to get her to the Temple,” Soara said. She reached out and, with one finger, touched the dusty fabric in Darra’s braid.

“Master, I will go,” Anakin said.

Obi-Wan turned, distracted. “Go where?”

“To the Haaridens. I will negotiate a truce so that we can continue to the transport.”

“What makes you think you will get within a hundred meters of a Haariden without being attacked?” Obi-Wan asked.

Anakin kept his gaze steady. “I am prepared to risk it.” Obi-Wan shook his head. “No. That is not the solution.”

Soara joined them, closing her comlink. “I’ve contacted the Temple. They will pressure the Haaridens for a cease-fire. But it will take time. No one is sure who is in charge on either side. They are sending a medic to us, but it will take two days.” She glanced at Darra. “What if it’s too late? Can we risk moving her? Can we carry her to the transport? It’s still kilometers away.”

Obi-Wan had never seen Soara look so uncertain. If his Padawan had been lying so still and pale, he would have felt the same way.

Tic Verdun spoke up. “We can all take turns. We aren’t as strong as the Jedi, but we won’t let you down.” “Thank you,” Soara said quietly.

“We have other options,” Obi-Wan said. “I’ll be back.” Anakin took a step toward him. “Do you need me, Master?”

“No.” Obi-Wan hurried away. He regretted the brusqueness of his answer immediately, but he would work quicker alone. He needed

his

own perceptions. And, although he didn’t like to admit it, he needed time alone to think of a way out of this. When he’d told Soara they had options, he’d meant it. He was sure they existed - he just didn’t know what they were. He did not think that carrying Darra over kilometers of rough terrain while being pursued by an attacking force was the best idea.