He started back to the main tunnel. Obi-Wan did not move.
“Come, Padawan,” he said.
Reluctantly, Obi-Wan trailed behind him. Qui-Gon felt worry fill him. There was something closed in Obi-Wan, something unmoveable, that he had never sensed in his apprentice before. It would be good to return to the Temple, where the wisdom of Yoda and the calm surroundings could help Obi-Wan find his center again.
Qui-Gon heard a roar from the main tunnel, voices shouting, pounding feet on stone. He quickened his pace and burst into the space, Obi-Wan at his heels.
Nield spun around to face them. “The offer for negotiation was a trick. The Elders have attacked!”
Chaos reigned in the tunnels. The passageways were choked with bodies, children desperately trying to escape the battle raging above. Some were wounded. Others hurriedly tried to arm themselves for the counterattack. Hundreds of the Young were trapped above in open parks and squares. They needed reinforcements.
“We need medics and a supply line for weapons,” Cerasi said.
“We need to strike back hard!” Nield cried.
Obi-Wan rushed to huddle with Cerasi and Nield. Qui-Gon saw anguish on all three faces. It was right that his Padawan help while he could.
But they had to get Tahl off-planet immediately. Now it was imperative.
Qui-Gon hurried to her side. She was sitting up, listening intently to what was going on around her.
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He crouched by her side. “I had hoped to go back to the city to find more med supplies and borrow a floater, but I’m afraid that’s impossible now. War has broken out, and we must leave immediately.”
She nodded. “It’s all right. I can walk, Qui-Gon. Your medicine has already helped me. I can make it, if you guide me.”
Qui-Gon bent to gather up their things. They had lost their survival packs, but he had gathered supplies over the past few days. He stashed them in a pack Cerasi had given him.
When he turned to search for Obi-Wan, the boy was gone.
Cerasi and Nield were gone as well. Qui-Gon dropped the pack and searched the adjoining tunnels. He went as far as he could, but he was wasting time. Obi-Wan had probably gone to the surface with Cerasi and Nield.
Perhaps he thought that Qui-Gon still needed to gather more supplies, as he had told Obi-Wan. In that case, Obi-Wan might be planning to meet him at the starfighter. The boy had disobeyed him again, but Qui-Gon felt sure Obi-Wan would appear at the starfighter.
In any case, he couldn’t waste any more time. He gathered his pack, helped Tahl to rise, and started through the tunnels to the edge of Zehava.
The smell of smoke and the sound of cries were in the air as Obi-Wan, Cerasi, and Nield climbed above ground. They crouched behind a wall for shelter. Starfighters circled overhead, strafing the park where the Young had gathered. Children ran for cover, or tried to shoot down the ships with shoulder-mounted torpedo launchers. The Starfighters were able to stay out of range.
“They’re wasting ammunition!” Nield cried.
“They must have flown in the Starfighters from another base,” Cerasi said. “Or maybe they’d hidden them somewhere we didn’t know about. We can’t fight them from the ground!”
Obi-Wan gripped the wall. A starfighter came in low. He saw rapid flashes from the forward gun pod. Blaster fire ripped into the grass. A young girl sprang for cover. Another boy wasn’t so lucky. The fire hit him in the leg, and he fell. Before Obi-Wan could move, the boy’s companion dragged him to safety. Anguish ripped through Obi-Wan. The children were helpless!
Cerasi squeezed her eyes shut, as though she couldn’t bear to see any more. “We have to stop this,” she said numbly.
“There’s only three Starfighters,” Obi-Wan said tensely, scanning the sky above.
“That’s enough,” Nield said grimly. “We’ve
got to get organized. They’re going to drive half of us out of the city if we don’t do something!”
Nield turned to Obi-Wan. “We need your starship again, my friend. We have to fight them in the air. With your skills, we can shoot them down, just like we hit those deflection towers.”
Stricken, Obi-Wan gazed at his friends. “You said you would not ask me to go against Qui-Gon’s orders again.”
“But everything’s changed, Obi-Wan,” Cerasi pleaded. “Look around you. Children are dying. We’ll lose everything if we can’t fight them from the air.” Tears ran down Cerasi’s cheeks. “Please.”
Obi-Wan’s ears rang with the cries of the terrified children. Even though he was safe behind the wall, he felt as though blaster fire had ripped through his body. He had been torn in two. Everything he’d known, everything he’d thought was important had been shattered. His Jedi training lay in pieces at his feet. It meant nothing compared to what was going on around him now.