Postcard 15
by Padawan Li'Ann (padawan_liann@hotmail.com)
Series: Postcards
Rating: G
Category: JA setting, angst.
Archive: M_A please. Early Years, Wolfie's Den and Padawan
Journals if wanted.
Warnings: Mostly fluff in honor of Halloween. Nothing profound
here. Inspired by listening to the Genesis song "Home by the
Sea" far too many times. Not a song fic, though.
Disclaimer: Not mine. Not even the story idea is original this
time. Pretty much borrows from every spooky atmosphere-type
movie or book or song you've ever encountered. <g>
Acknowledgements: Special thanks to Pumpkin for the beta help!
I can't express how very much I appreciate all the assistance
and advice she's given to me for each installment of this
series. I truly feel that Pumpkin has helped me to evolve as a
writer, and I am greatly indebted to her. Also thank you to
Diane Coffin for her encouragement and input. Diane is a
wonderful friend and allows me to bounce ideas off her, even
when they're only half-baked. :) She really helped me a lot on
the development of this one, and I'm quite grateful!
Author's Notes: This was originally planned as a long story,
but I ran out of time and knew I'd never finish it once
Halloween was over. So I decided to turn it into a postcard
instead, just using my favorite scene.
Slowly, Qui-Gon opened the ancient door. Its rusty hinges
squeaked loudly in protest, announcing his entry like an
ages-old sentinel. The room was dark and the odor of mildew and
dust permeated the air. He could feel and hear the low hum of
energy that resided here, as if this were its focal point. As
his eyes gradually adjusted to the relative darkness, Qui-Gon
finally located the object of his search. His padawan was
kneeling in the center of the room, his back to his master and
his head bowed in meditation.
"Obi-Wan?" Qui-Gon asked softly as he entered, his relief
turning to apprehension as his padawan did not reply. Their
training bond was quiescent, muted somehow by the power of this
place. He took several steps toward the boy before he abruptly
felt himself rebuffed by something. The same energy that
made this room feel almost electrified was holding him back,
keeping him from reaching Obi-Wan.
"Padawan?" he asked as he tested the perimeters of the barrier.
"Are you all right? Can you hear me, Obi-Wan?"
The boy did not answer, did not move. Qui-Gon sought to come in
front of him, wanted desperately to see his face, but the
barrier would not permit it. He considered drawing his
lightsaber. Perhaps he could cut through, but he was not
certain what that might do to Obi-Wan. The boy seemed connected
to this place somehow, as if his very life had become entwined
with the supernatural energy which resided here. Qui-Gon cursed
himself for not realizing it before. The events of the past few
days had been strange, and all of the odd occurrences seemed to
be connected to Obi-Wan. Until now, he'd not considered that
the events had been leading up to something, that the boy might
be in actual danger.
"Padawan!" Qui-Gon repeated, more insistent this time. His
heart thudded in his chest, and relief washed over him as the
boy finally began to rise. He'd get Obi-Wan out of the estate,
he'd take him back to the transport. Qui-Gon did not understand
these forces, these...spirits. He made himself use the word. He
had not believed in such things before this, still did not know
what to believe now.
He watched as his padawan finally turned to face him. Qui-Gon's
resolve shattered instantly and icy tendrils of fear clutched
his heart as the boy's eyes slowly rose to meet his own.
The familiar features were changed. Obi-Wan's expression was
blank, his face deathly pale. The normally grey-green eyes
glowed faintly yellow, giving him the appearance of a nocturnal
creature. He seemed insubstantial somehow, his presence dulled
both physically and within the Force.
"Obi-Wan?" Qui-Gon whispered, then quelled his fear ruthlessly.
"What have you done to my padawan?" he demanded.
"It is time," the boy answered. His normally lilting accent was
gone. This voice was different, a blend of many voices,
speaking together but merging as one inside of him. The chorus
of speech vibrated in the air. It was barely above a whisper,
yet seemed to resonate and echo, increasing the chill of the
darkened room.
"Time for what?" Qui-Gon asked flatly.
"You will not interfere, or you will be destroyed."
"Interfere with what?" Qui-Gon asked again.
"It is time for us to use this vessel in order to rejoin the
Force. We will become one for all eternity."
"And what will become of Obi-Wan?" he asked, suddenly afraid of
the answer.
"This vessel will accompany us. It will lead us to the light as
well as to the darkness. All will become one within the Force."
"Obi-Wan is not a vessel," Qui-Gon insisted evenly. "He
is a boy, as well as a Jedi. It is not his time to rejoin the
Force." Qui-Gon started in sudden realization. "Is that what
happened to the others?" he asked. "Did you try to use them as
well?" He and Obi-Wan had been sent here to investigate the
disappearance of several individuals. The missing townspeople
had not been Jedi, although all were reportedly Force-sensitive
to varying degrees. Perhaps they had not been controlled enough
in the Force to provide the bridge that the spirits required.
They had likely perished, but their deaths had not resulted in
the pathway that had been sought.
"There must be another way," Qui-Gon insisted when the spirits
did not reply. "If it is Force control that you need, I am a
Jedi master. Obi-Wan is but a padawan learner. Surely I could
provide you with what you need far better than he? Allow me to
trade places with him."
Obi-Wan's head shook in negation. "The Force is too strong with
you, Jedi. You repel the darkness like a beacon. Pure light
will burn and pure darkness smother. But this vessel is more
balanced within the Force. Only in equilibrium will the pathway
be provided."
Qui-Gon was forced farther back by the barrier which surrounded
his padawan as the boy moved to kneel in the center of the
room. He could feel the intensity of the energy increase
tenfold. The walls and floor felt charged. Qui-Gon could only
watch in growing horror and despair as Obi-Wan's presence
seemed to decrease even further now that he was within the
nucleus of the maelstrom. As the boy's body and spirit dimmed,
Qui-Gon could suddenly see the spectral forms of those which
possessed him. He could count at least ten; male and female,
human and humanoid alike. They expanded and surrounded the
padawan. As they separated from the boy's body, Qui-Gon could
suddenly sense Obi-Wan's presence along the training bond, as
he had not been able to for the last several hours.
"Obi-Wan!" he cried within the bond. "Padawan, hear me!"
"Master?" the response was weak, but there. "What's happening,
Master? Where are you?"
"I am here, my Padawan. But you must stay with me, you must use
me as your anchor. If you do not, you will be lost to me. There
is no other way I can help you."
"I... I don't understand, Master. I can't see you, where are
you? I can't see anything... it's so dark..."
Obi-Wan's mental voice was weakening, and Qui-Gon clung to the
training bond desperately. "Obi-Wan, you must focus.
Stay with me, Padawan. I forbid you to leave."
"Master, I..."
With violent force, Qui-Gon suddenly felt himself cut off from
his padawan. He was flung away from the boy both mentally and
physically, stunned for a moment as his body impacted the solid
mass of the stone wall. He regained awareness just as the
torrent of energy in the room's center suddenly peaked and
imploded. The noise, light and power collapsed in upon itself
instantaneously, leaving nothing in its wake.
Nothing except for the limp body of his padawan learner lying
motionless in the middle of the floor.
Qui-Gon rushed to the boy, pulling the still figure into his
arms and delving deep within himself and the Force to search
for Obi-Wan's presence along the training bond.
"Please, Padawan," he pleaded silently. "Please come back to
me."
There was no response, no spark along the bond to let him know
that Obi-Wan was still alive, still reachable. Qui-Gon breathed
for the boy, once, twice. Compressed the muscular chest to
stimulate the heart, all the while searching desperately along
the training bond, which still existed. As long as the bond was
not broken, there was hope.
"Come, my Padawan, my Obi-Wan. I forbid you to go. You have
done their bidding, I can sense it. But you cannot stay with
them. I will not allow it." Qui-Gon breathed for the boy again,
feeling the beginnings of dread welling within him as noted the
blue tinge to Obi-Wan's lips even as he filled his padawan's
lungs with expired air.
"I lost Xanatos to Darkness. I will not lose you, Obi-Wan, even
if it is to the Light."
Suddenly, Qui-Gon felt a small spark along the bond. It was so
faint that at first he believed it to be imagined. Realizing
quickly that it was not, he grasped it, anchoring it, while
continuing the resuscitation with renewed hope.
The Jedi master felt relief wash over him in a glorious wave as
his padawan drew a weak, shaky breath on his own. He could
palpate the boy's pulse at his throat, thready but gaining
strength as respiration improved. It was several long moments,
but finally Obi-Wan opened his eyes, and Qui-Gon was never so
happy as when he saw those grey-green depths peering up at him
in hazy confusion.
"M..Master?" Obi-Wan whispered, his voice hoarse but his own
again.
"Shh, Padawan. There will be time to talk later."
He cradled the boy against him, reveling in the feeling of
Obi-Wan's breath as it gently warmed his shoulder. The Jedi
master berated his self-control as he felt a tear escape his
closed eyes.
The room was silent now, except for the reassuring sound of his
padawan's steady breathing. The boy was already asleep, the
bone-weary exhaustion that Qui-Gon could now feel through their
bond taking its toll. Qui-Gon was careful not to wake him as he
scooped Obi-Wan up in his arms. Rising slowly, the Jedi took a
final look around. The room had returned to normal, with no
trace of the spectral energy remaining. He was certain that
Obi-Wan had indeed assisted the spirits in their quest to
rejoin the Force. The hauntings and the disappearances of
Force-sensitives here would continue no longer.
"Thank you for allowing him to return to me," Qui-Gon said
softly as he gazed around the empty room.
At the sound of his voice, Obi-Wan stirred a little, and
Qui-Gon soothed him with a gentle touch of Force. The Jedi
master smiled at him fondly as the boy settled down into sleep
once again. The Force was strong in this place, but it was also
strong within his padawan.
Without further delay, Qui-Gon stepped from the room, making
his way out of the estate toward their waiting transport.
And neither the Jedi master nor his sleeping padawan noticed
when the front doors of the manor shut quietly behind them as
if guided by an unseen hand.
--Help us someone, let us out of here
living here so long undisturbed
dreaming of the time we were free
so many years ago
before the time when we first heard
welcome to the Home by the Sea
<From Genesis "Home by the Sea">
Archive