Archive: My site and the m_a archive. Anyone else, just ask. I
won't say no.
Category: AU. Totally.
Rating: PG-13
Warning: Non Canon.
Spoilers: TPM, ANH. Some for the second book of JA.
Summary: Obi Wan fights against Vader and the Empire.
Disclaimer: Everything here belongs to George Lucas, who is
god. And I'm not making any money out of this... so it would
really be pointless to sue me for it.
Content: Q/O, O/Other
Feedback: I love it. It's inspiring... and if anyone would have
time to detailed feedback, I would really appreciate it.
Notes: This is a really, really weird plot bunny that came to
me as I was writing Hope to those who have not. It has been
biting me ever since Hope pt. 2. It's a weird, really weird
alternative universe, but since it's starting to block my ideas
for Hope pt. 7, I decided I'd just start writing it too. Hope
you like it :)
Obi-Wan instinctually closed his eyes as a burning pain coursed
through his body and wondered how could he have miscalculated
the door's cycle time by so much.
He and his Master were fighting the Sith Lord in Naboo, and it
was a much harder fight than they had expected. His Master was
tired, and he himself was shielding his feelings too tightly.
Their coordination had been non-existent, and then the Sith
Lord had thrown Obi- Wan off the platform, forcing him out of
the fight.
He had run almost blindly, knowing too well that his Master
would not be able to defeat the dark lord alone. It had been
then when he was caught in the energy door.
Darkness claimed him, as he saw his Master kneeled form ready
to fight the Sith.
Luke watched with horror as the red blade of Darth Vader's
saber cut through Obi-Wan, as the body of the man he had just
beginning to know disappeared and the brown cape fell, empty,
to the floor. It was as if all his hopes shattered in that
moment, when the man who had took him away from Tatooine died.
Then his horror turned to surprise as a blue lightning shone
right in front of Vader, and a younger man appeared with a
lightsaber activated. He was around Luke's age, his hair cut
very short except for a small ponytail in the back and a longer
braid dangling from his right ear. And he was dressed just as
the old Ben had been, in a beige tunic with brown boots.
Vader stepped back, obviously surprised at this, but he didn't
turn off his lightsaber.
It was then that Luke found his voice.
"Ben! Let's go!"
Obi-Wan blinked in surprise, as he saw the tall figure in front
of him. It was a Sith Lord, of that the young Padawan had no
doubt, the Dark Side was too strong around him, his presence
almost overwhelming. But it was not the one that he had been
fighting with his Master, and he was not in Naboo.
He reached out in their bond, only to find it oddly silent...
As if Qui-Gon was there and not there at the same time.
"Ben! Let's go!" Obi-Wan turned to see the young man who was
screaming at him, using the familiar nick-name that his brother
used for him. A name that Obi-Wan had not hear in at least
three years... There was something oddly familiar in that boy,
but he wasn't sure of what it was. He had a blaster in his
hand, and was shooting at what seemed to be an army of white
armored soldiers as he shielded a wookie, two droids and a
young woman who looked like an older Amidala who were trying to
get to a extremely impressive Corellian battleship.
As the dark Lord seemed ready to fight, and Obi-Wan was not
sure of what side he should take on it, he dashed towards the
boy, trusting the Force to guide him as he jumped over the
soldiers and their fire, lightsaber blocking the blasts shoot
in his direction, and ran to the runner to board the ship.
"What's going on?" he asked to the boy, who was looking at him
as if he had grown a second head.
"Ben...?!"
"I hope he had time to disable the tractor-beam" A second man
in the cockpit was saying, as the wookie sit at his side. They
were obviously escaping, even if Obi-Wan had no idea of why,
from whom and how he had ended up there.
"What tractor-beam?" The Padawan didn't had time to ask more,
as the ship violently lifted off and escaped the base at an
incredible speed.
"That was amazing, Ben!" The young man began saying, as the
ship flew at light speed towards Yavin, under the not very kind
instructions of the Amidala' look-alike. He had been busy
before the ship engaged in lightspeed, as he and the pilot, a
rude Corellian who seemed to have seen more about life than
what his age would reveal, shoot their pursuers in a quite
violent battle that rocked the ship constantly.
During that time, as the woman was busy with the droids, a
protocol droid and R2D2, the unit that had saved their lives in
the trip to Tatooine and the only really familiar face for him,
the Jedi hadn't been able to get any information about the
situation. Much less a communicator to get Naboo or Coruscant.
Still, he thought that Yavin was a good shoot too. The Jedi
temple was new in that system, but there he would be able to
contact the Council and find out what had happened to his
Master. "I thought you had died when Vader struck you!"
"Vader? Is that the Sith Lord's name?" The blonde's eyes shone
with confusion when Obi-Wan spoke. Great... the Jedi
sighed Now we are both confused "Ben... are you feeling
all right?"
"How do you know my name? I haven't been called Ben ever since
I started training." Obi-Wan was aware that he was being rude
with the blonde man, but his patience was growing short...
Another reason why he was sure he was not ready to take the
trials to knighthood. "What is going on here? Who are you?"
"I... well... come on, Ben...you know all that..." the young
man stammered, nervous. His anxiety broadcast all over. Obi-Wan
could sense that the boy was strong with the Force, and had
some very rudimentary training with it... But not enough to
shield his very strong feelings. "...We left Tatooine
together... I wouldn't have left it if the Empire hadn't killed
my Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru..."
"Uncle Owen?" Obi-Wan Kenobi repeated, unbelief coloring all
his thoughts.
"Owen Lars... he and Aunt Beru raised me... He said that he had
known you when you were an..." Hesitation and fear emanated
from the young man, and Obi-Wan sighed. What kind of fool had
trained him? "... old... crazed hermit. I'm Luke Skywalker..."
Skywalker... Somehow it made sense. All the unthinkable things
that had happened in his life in the past weeks had been around
or because Anakin Skywalker. Being replaced by his master was
just as bad as learning that his brother Owen and his new wife
had somehow ended up dead on Tatooine. But it still
could have a logical explanation. "Are you related in any way
to Anakin Skywalker?" The Padawan asked, as he tried to regain
a little of the calm he had lost ever since being caught in the
energy doors.
Luke's face glommed upon hearing the name, and the blue bright
eyes were casted down. "He was my father."
Shock overwhelmed Obi-Wan as he remembered the young, nine
years old boy that he had meet mere days ago in Tatooine. Sure,
Luke had the same hair, the same eyes... But... still... "Your
father?!!"
"Your father?!! But... How? He cannot be your father...
he's just a kid!" Obi-Wan looked at Luke, shock slowly
dawning in his features. "I... I think the Force has done
something to your memories, Ben... You knew my father when he
was a pilot during the Clone Wars." Luke's voice, if still
confused, was confident. He was convinced that he was telling
the truth, which make even less sense to young Obi-Wan.
"Clone Wars? Clones have been forbidden by the Republic
since... Oh... no... the Sith!"
"Yes, General Kenobi." The beautiful young woman walked inside
the room, her face a mixture of hope, wonder and sadness. She
looked very much like Queen Amidala, a young regal woman who
had the weight of duty over her shoulders. "The Sith were
responsible of the Fall of the Republic, and the Death of all
Jedi. They helped the Emperor to kill my father, Senator
Organa, and all the Emperor's enemies. That is why my father
sent me to find you... for you fought at his side during the
Clone Wars. Please, help us Obi Wan Kenobi. You're our only
hope."
But Obi-Wan did not hear the last part of her plea. His mind,
reeled of all the information, and the sudden and absolute
silence in the Force... it simply shut down from the weight of
the knowledge that all Jedi had been killed by the Sith Lords,
and the young Padawan fainted, wishing, as the darkness closed
around him, that he would awake to find himself at his Master's
side.
"What's wrong with him?" Han asked as he left the cockpit. They
were still days away from Yavin, even at lightspeed, and he
wasn't looking forward to , making the journey with a sick old
man... Even if said old man was looking even younger than
himself at the moment.
"I don't know..." Princess Leia was worried, a first since Han
had met her. Up until that moment the woman had been a royal
pain in the ass, giving orders and bossing her way around while
they were risking their hides to save her. But now, as she
cradled the fallen Jedi in her lap, softly caressing his
forehead with a damp cloth provided by 3PO... well, her
highness looked almost human. "He didn't seem to recognize
anything at all..."
"Maybe it's an after-shock from... well... whatever happened
after Vader struck him." Luke was still looking at the fallen
man with adoring eyes. That had been a slight nuisance on the
trip to Aldeeran, when that adoration had been directed at an
old man, now that it's center was a young man... well, it made
Han feel uneasy.
"Well, how do you know it's the old man? Sure, he
appeared right in the moment Kenobi disappeared, but it could
be a trick..." Han looked at the fallen form of 'Obi-Wan' with
some reserve. Unconscious, the young man didn't look different
from Luke or Han at all... And he sure didn't look like a
legendary warrior.
"I have seen many holos of General Kenobi," Leia didn't even
turn to look Han in the eyes. That was very unnerving. If
Obi-Wan, Ben Kenobi, or whoever the young man was woke up and
found himself in the arms of a Princess looking at him as if he
were the main course in a meal, they weren't going to get many
answers from him. "And R2 was under his service for a long
time... No one could fool him."
As if to make the Princess' point even more clear, R2 beeped
happily at Han's side.
"Very well, your highness." The Corellian pilot conceded, sure
that he wouldn't be able to convince his passengers that
perhaps the young man was nothing more than a young man. "It's
not my trouble, anyway. I'll drop you at Yavin and get my
reward. Just make sure he doesn't do anything funny."
Han sat down to watch Chewie have another match against R2,
sure that no one had paid any attention to his warning.
Obi-Wan didn't really want to open his eyes, but as a Jedi, he
had to face whatever came to him.
Even if that was sheer madness.
The first thing that came into focus was a female face-
familiar but not by much- brown eyes looking down with worry,
soft lips shut in a thin line of self-reproach.
"P...Padme?" The alias of the Naboo Queen was the first one to
come to his mind, and he prayed to the Force that he was in
Amidala's presence.
"No, General Kenobi...It is me, Leia Organa, Princess of
Alderaan..."
"Why do you keep calling me 'General'?" Obi Wan struggled to
rise to a seated position when he realized he was lying in the
Princess' lap. "I've never been part of any army."
Her face lost a little regal confidence then, just as Queen
Amidala's hadwhen she had realized that the Senate would not
listen to her pleas, and Obi-Wan felt pity for her. Whatever
that was happening, she was expecting someone to help her.
Someone that wasn't him.
But how to make her see that? How could he think clearly when
all what he knew was destroyed or twisted?
"I am sorry, your highness," he began, his voice somewhat calm
again. "but I cannot help you. I barely knew your father... and
I do not remember any Empire destroying the Republic, or the
death of all Jedi." He rose to his feet, bowing in front of
her. "I fear that I will not be able to help you until I can
understand what has happened to me."
"Y...yes..." Leia's voice didn't hide her confusion. But that
was to be expected. "I understand, Gene... Jedi Kenobi. When we
reach Yavin, and I have finish my mission, I am sure we will
find someone who can help you."
"Thank you, your highness." He bowed once again, and left the
room. He wasn't very sure of where he was going in the vast
ship, but he wanted to be away from both Princess Leia and Luke
Skywalker. He didn't need hear someone talking to him as if he
was aware of all what was going on. What he needed was some
quiet time to think.
After finishing his routinely check on the route, Han Solo
decided that it was time to see how his 'cargo' was doing.
Against his own judgement, he had grown curious about the weird
group that the Millenium Falcon carried.
Luke was watching how Leia was sitting in her bulk, talking
with R2. She looked as beautiful as the holographic image he
first had seen of her, before his life had so radically
changed. And he still thought that she was the most beautiful
woman who he had ever seen. Especially now that he had seen her
without her cold Princess mask.
"She let him go?" Han asked, as he walked to his side, his face
showing a mocking grin. "That Princess of yours is really
something."
"Han... Do you think that a Princess like her and a guy like me
could...?" The young Tatooine farmer's voice was full of hope,
and Han had to contain a bitter laugh.
It wasn't that he himself had wondered about it when he had
first meet the Princess, but as a pilot, Han knew about those
things. Leia was a Princess, she would never let herself to be
involved with a Tatooine farmer. Or with a smuggler like
himself.
Still, after the struggling in the garbage bin, Han had allowed
himself to think that maybe Leia wasn't as unattainable as she
wanted them to believe. That his charms had a chance with her.
Not anymore.
Now her Royal Highness had found a living legend; her Knight
with a shining sword had appeared.
"Not a chance, kid. You better forget it."
As the Millenium Falcon approached Yavin, Han Solo got more and
more annoyed with Luke and Princess Leia.
Even when they were leaving Obi-Wan alone, he was all what they
talked about. Luke had a thousand theories as to why Obi-Wan
didn't remember them or the Empire, each more ridiculous than
the one before, while Leia continually enumerated the great
General Kenobi's actions during the Clone War.
All of it seemed impressively boring to the pirate.
So he really didn't blame Obi-Wan for staying as far away as he
could from his fan-group. In fact, he needed a little time away
from them too.
He wasn't really looking for Obi-Wan when he found the young
man sitting in one of the quad lasers' gun turret, looking out
into space with an extreme sadness on his face.
One that Han had seen many times in the pilots forced to stay
on planet, unable to fly away to the stars.
"Aren't you enjoying the view?" he asked out loud, and smiled
when he saw the other man jump a little. Maybe Obi-Wan
was really some sort of mystical knight of legend, but
he wasn't above being surprised.
"I was thinking on how different the stars look now... As if
many years had passed since the last time I saw them." Obi Wan
turned to see him, his greenish-gray eyes locking with Han's.
"Is there anything I can help you with, Captain Solo?"
"I was just doing my usual check on the Falcon - don't worry."
"It's a truly impressive ship, Captain." Obi-Wan let out a
small smile, the first since all the madness had begun. "You
must be very proud of her."
Han lifted his eyebrows, surprised. Even though he was
convinced that the Millenium Falcon was the best ship of her
class, even though he was immensely proud of her speed and
body, he rarely encountered anyone who shared his opinion. Even
Chewie called her 'a piece of junk' when he was particularly
frustrated with one or two repairs. But there was no sarcasm in
the young Kenobi's voice. What Han could hear was sincere awe.
"Yeah. She's great. The only ship to finish the Kessel run in
less than 12 parsecs."
"Really? You must be some pilot!" Obi-Wan's eyes widened with
wonder, loosing the solemn serenity he had been trying to
maintain ever since waking up in Princess Leia's arms.
"I wasn't on board back then." Han confessed, with a chuckle,
as he sat at Obi-Wan's side. "She was owned by a friend of mine
then. She makes point five past lightspeed now... I've made a
lot of special modifications myself."
"What are you going to do when we arrive at Yavin?" Obi-Wan
ventured, encouraged by Han's smile. " You don't seem to be
part of the Rebellion like Princess Leia..."
"I'll return to Tatooine. I've got some unfinished business
there. After that, I don't know... Keep away from the Empire
for a while, get down with business. The usual." The smuggler
shrugged and turned to look at the stars, smiling.
A comfortable silence fell between them, and it stayed until
Han had to go and begin the procedures to land on Yavin.
Obi-Wan knelt in front of what had been the entrance to the
inner gardens of the Jedi Temple on Yavin. It was the only part
left of the Temple that still was as Obi-Wan remembered... or
at least, enough to be recognized. The rest of the planet,
which had been heavily populated in his own time, was totally
covered with a dense jungle.
It hadn't been until he saw the long abandoned Temple, now used
as a rebel base, that Obi-Wan believed what had happened to
him.
Right after the Millenium Falcon landed, Princess Leia had
taken him and R2 to the leaders of the Rebellion, who
supposedly would be able to help him. They all had been shocked
to see him, and after a few moments of listening to them, he
knew why.
For some unknown reason he had traveled almost 50 years into
the future. All that he knew, all that he held dear, had been
destroyed in that lapse of time.
It was only through a great exercise in control that he had
been able to stay calm and focused during the Leaders' meeting,
mostly because they all urged him to get up to date as soon as
possible so he could join the Rebellion. Most of the older
members saw him as some sort of sign of their triumph, the Last
Jedi Knight in all his prime leading them against Emperor
Palpatine and Darth Vader.
Hearing the Emperor's name made Obi-Wan pale and his stomach
rebel. The memory of Senator Palpatine's grinning face was
still too fresh in his mind, and it seemed hard to believe that
the man could have gathered enough power to overcome the
Republic without the Senate discovering him.
But it had happened.
What was even more disturbing were the few things he had
learned about the Fall of the Jedi, at the hands of one of
their own, a rouge Knight named Vader. By putting together what
the Rebellion leaders told him and what Luke had said... There
was something wrong there... Obi-Wan couldn't exactly put it in
words, but he could sense it.
He had a bad feeling about this.
After politely leaving the leaders' meeting chamber, explaining
that he would need time to understand all the changes that had
been made since his own time, he searched for the Temple
Archives, only to find them decimated. There was nothing there
that could help him.
But he couldn't bring himself to believe that he was the
last Jedi... Not when he was just a Padawan, not even ready to
take the trails... alone without a Master.
Alone without his Master.
He closed his eyes and let his thoughts fly and his awareness
flow with the Living Force, trying to reach something past his
silent bond with his Master, letting calm wash over him as he
repeated the mantra of the Code.
There is no Passion, there is Serenity.
Suddenly, his surroundings blurred, and he could see the garden
as it had been in the past - the past, where he belonged.
He saw Master Mace Windu, lightsaber ready in hand, facing a
dark figure.
A dark figure with a shining red lightsaber in his own
black-clad hand.
The duel was furious and fast... and more than once it seemed
as if Master Windu could have won. But in the end it was the
red lightsaber which struck the deadly blow, and Obi-Wan
watched in his mind as his Master's oldest and dearest friend
fell to the ground.
"You..." Master Windu began saying, but the air deserted his
lungs and he died before finishing his last words. He had
recognized his assailant, but Obi-Wan could not see his face.
"You should have heeded your own council, old man." The dark
figure said, and Obi-Wan could almost taste the hate and pride
mixed with the young tone. "I promised myself long ago that you
would be the first to fall." He could almost identify it, sure
that he had heard it before.
But he could not remember where.
Then there came a blur of images, not all of them clear, and he
witnessed the death of all the Jedi in the Yavin temple. Some
at the hands of this Dark Figure, some at the hands of imperial
soldiers.
With a gasp, he opened his eyes, to face the cruel reality of
the ruined Temple that confirmed his vision.
And amidst the almost forgotten gardens of the Jedi Temple,
Obi-Wan Kenobi cried for them, feeling utterly and completely
lost.
Han was hastily loading his reward in the Millenium Falcon,
when he saw Obi-Wan walking towards him. The young Jedi Knight
was now wearing a long brown cape like the one that had been
worn by his older self, and Han could see the similarities now
- if not at all in face, then in movements.
Even though he was still unconvinced of the whole Force and
Mystical Order stuff, the pirate had to admit that Obi-Wan did
look the part.
"You got your reward, Captain Solo." Obi-Wan observed, once
again using a proper tone. "I assume you will return to
Tatooine now."
"You got that right. These fools think they can direct an
attack on the Death Star and I don't want to be even one parsec
near this system when the Empire wipes them out!" Han signaled
to the rest of the hangar, where pilots and their R2 units were
rushing to combat. "If I were you, I would do the same."
"Ben! " Obi-Wan opened his mouth to say something when Luke
interrupted him, running toward the Falcon. He was dressed like
all the other pilots, in an orange and gray uniform. It was
obvious that he was one of the 'fools' Han had been referring
too. "Will you convince Han to join the battle? We really could
use his experience."
"I'm not going to risk my life, kid. I already told you that."
Han insisted, and Obi-Wan smiled slightly.
"Captain Solo will return to Tatooine. Hopefully, he will
accept me as a passenger again." The young Padawan said, and as
soon as the words left his mouth, he could see Luke's eyes
break with disappointment, as well as Han's surprised smile.
"Captain Solo will return to Tatooine. Hopefully, he will
accept me as a passenger again." The young Padawan said, and as
soon as the words left his mouth, he could see Luke's eyes
break with disappointment, as well as Han's surprised smile.
"But... but... you're a Jedi Knight! You're supposed to protect
Peace and Justice!!" Luke's words were not aimed to hurt, but
they still opened a very sore wound in Obi-Wan's heart.
"I am just a Padawan..." he whispered, but it was loud enough
for the young pilot to hear.
"What is a Padawan?"
"An apprentice. I... I haven't passed my trials to knighthood."
He had to bite down on the thought that remind him that if he
was really the last Jedi then he would probably never pass the
trials. "I cannot do this alone. I have to know why I traveled
in time, and if it is true that I am the last Jedi because of
it. I'm sorry, Luke."
"You're sorry!?" Shock turned to anger, an anger so strong that
it almost hurt Obi-Wan physically. "My life was turned upside
down because of you!! If the droids hadn't been looking for
you, Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru would still be alive!!... I
thought you were a great warrior, Ben... but you're just a
coward!!" He seemed to have more to say, but instead Luke just
turned away and disappeared amidst the pilots who were still in
the hangar.
Obi-Wan couldn't say anything to defend himself, as Luke's
words echoed in his mind. It was not only that he was alone, he
had also been the cause of his brother's death... It had to be
true, Luke had no reason to lie.
But how could he hope that young Skywalker could understand
what he was going through? The loneliness that was now filling
Obi-Wan's mind?
//Master... I need you...//
"He'll get over it." Han walked behind him, placing a
sympathetic hand on the Padawan's shoulder. "Now, let's go."
They walked together into the Millenium Falcon, without
breaking the small contact between them.
Lord Vader was meditating in his room, while every soldier in
the Death Star prepared for battle.
Even though the battle would surely bring triumph to the
Empire, the Sith Lord was worried.
There was a disturbance in the Force that he could not
pinpoint. It had begun when his Old Master had chosen to board
the Death Star, but in that moment Vader had been able to feel
his bond with Kenobi, the almost forgotten Master- Padawan bond
that neither of thre unwelcome.
That was what bothered the Sith Lord. When the young Kenobi
appeared, the constant link was still in Vader's mind, but it
didn't seem to reach the rejuvenated Jedi. It was as if his
call were just received by the Living Force.
Kenobi had to die.
Before, it had been just a matter of principle, as all Jedi
were to fall under the Emperor's reign. Now, it was more
urgent. Because a Jedi Knight in all his prime within the
Rebellion ranks would only bring new hope to those who tried to
oppose the Empire.
And the memories kept drilling on his head.
Obi-Wan looked barely older than when he had passed his knight
trials... How could a deadly wound cause the old knight to
regain his youth, his full strength? Vader still could remember
the times when he had admired Obi-Wan... when they had been
friends.
However he was not going to dwell on those times. Not until
Kenobi died. He was sure that his former Master would be
helping the Rebels, and now that his energy was back, it
wouldn't be from the sidelines. No, Kenobi would fight in the
battle... In a ship. Because the Jedi had always been an
excellent pilot in his time - he even taught Anakin some tricks
of astro-navigation...
Darth Vader rose and walked to the door of his chamber. The
battle on Yavin would start soon, and the Rebels would be
annihilated. All of them, including Obi-Wan Kenobi.
Han was finishing the calculations for the hyper-space jump
that would get them back to Tatooine. But he felt guilty over
it... a feeling that did not go well with the pirate. After
all, it wasn't as if the Empire had really affected him in his
business, or as if he cared for the Republic...
By all means, he should not be worrying over the fact that most
of the pilots he had seen on Yavin were now flying to their
deaths.
He caught Chewie's eyes, and could read the question in them.
"We're going to Tatooine, Chewie! It's not our trouble if those
fools have a Death Wish!"
Now he had to convince himself.
Obi Wan was standing outside the cockpit of the Millenium
Falcon, feeling a turmoil of emotions in his mind and heart. He
had tried to find his center, focus on the peace of the Code,
only to find Luke's words echoing in his mind, piercing his
heart with redoubled strength.
In his own time, he would have rationalized that Jedi were not
to interfere in any war situation without the consent of the
Council... but if he was the only Jedi in this era, what was he
supposed to do? Could he really turn his back on people who
needed him just for a Code that most likely didn't exist
anymore?
Hadn't Qui-Gon more than once defied the Council in similar
situations?
"I'm sorry, Captain Solo..." he began, as he entered the
cockpit hoping that he would not have to use the Force to
convince the Pirate. "...I'm afraid I made a mistake... I have
to return to Yavin."
To his surprise, Han Solo smiled when he turned to meet his
gaze. It was a knowing smile that eased Obi-Wan's worries.
"Strap yourself in, Obi-Wan, we're going back!"
The battle was progressing just as Darth Vader had envisioned,
with the final victory of the Empire over the Rebellion.
And he had Obi-Wan in his sight.
It hadn't been hard to guess where his former Master was
hiding. Even if Kenobi wasn't using the Force in combat,
probably because he believed that it was not honorable, it
shone around an X-Wing, marking it for Vader's weapons.
Red-5 was heading to the lone weak spot in the Death Star,
while the other members of his squadron were falling under the
Empire's fire. It had to be Kenobi's ship.
But just as he was going to fire the killing shot, one of his
guard's Fighters was shoot down by another ship, distracting
him.
Because even if there was an unusual concentration of the Force
around Red-5, there was a greater control coming from the
Corellian Fighter that had just joined the fight, the same ship
that had been used by Kenobi to save Princess Leia.
The ship that now was clearing Red-5's path to the destruction
of the Death Star.
Luke was scared.
For the first time in his life, he was seeing people around him
die, people that he had talked to, people that he had called
friends.
And he was being tailed by the Imperial Fighter that had caused
most of those deaths.
But suddenly, a shot fired very close to his X-Wing, and from
the corner of his eyes he could see one of the TIEs behind him
crash. Someone had saved him.
"Yee-Haa!!!" Han's voice came to him through the radio, and
suddenly Luke felt much better. His friends hadn't really
deserted him.
"Han?"
"You're free to attack, Kid..."
"We will keep the Empire away from you." Obi-Wan's voice was as
calm as it had been when he announced that he would not be
helping the Rebellion, but the change of words was enough to
ease Luke's fear. "Trust your feelings, Luke."
Sure that his friends would keep their word, Luke restored his
course. It was an almost impossible shot, one that he had been
sure that one of the most experienced pilots would have a hard
time making... he had seen the others fail... and now he was
the only one that could try it.
But how?
//Use the Force Luke//
"Ben?" He got no answer, the radio was silent. But it hadn't
been the same voice that had told him to trust his feelings...
The voice sounded older; it was the voice of the Old Ben he had
met in Tatooine.
There was no time to question it. Luke shut down his monitor,
not listening to Artoo's complaints. He closed his eyes,
remembering Ben's lessons on the Millenium Falcon.
And when he felt ready, he fired.
After Leia handed Luke, Obi-Wan and Han their medals, the Rebel
Alliance cheered their saviors. Everybody was able to relax and
let down their guards a little to enjoy a frugal, but none the
less emotive, banquet. All of them, except for one. The
legendary knight that had return from the past to guide them
into a New Hope.
Because he didn't felt the same way.
He had many things on his mind, and he did not want to face the
young Skywalker until he had sorted them.
They had arrived to the hangar between cheers of happiness and
relief. As soon as he and Han walked out of the Millenium
Falcon, Luke rushed to hug them.
"I knew you would convince him to come back!" The young pilot
said to Obi-Wan, but the Jedi shook his head.
"I did not convinced him, Luke. We both decided to come back...
you were right, I was a coward." It was hard for Obi-Wan to say
those words, as he had spend all his life trying to prove his
worth. It was even harder to say them to the son of the one who
had taken his place at Qui-Gon's side. Trying to change the
subject, he looked at the doors of the hangar, where they could
still see the light from the explosion. "You did a great job up
there."
"I couldn't have done it without you." Luke answered, blushing
a little. "You told me to use the Force... but it was a little
weird to hear you in my mind."
Only his years of training to conceal his true feelings helped
Obi-Wan to mask his surprise after hearing that. He hadn't
tried to link with Luke, because he was fully aware that he
could not teach anyone until he finished his own training and
that his mind had to be focused on returning to his own time.
But if Luke had heard a voice... who had been guiding the young
boy? "It wasn't me, Luke." he said, and eased Luke's surprise
with a smile. "It was your victory, and your shot. You don't
need to thank me for anything."
After that, things had been a little awkward. The surviving
pilots and those who had been in the control room during the
battle surrounded them with questions and praises. Luke seemed
a little flustered by all of it, while Han was mostly
unaffected and took them all with irony, sarcasm and an
undeniable charm. Obi-Wan envied the pirate and the easiness
with which he handled the Ceremony.
Inspired by Han, Obi-Wan managed to stay and smile during the
full Ceremony, but at the banquet he could not sustain that
false cheerfulness. After the main course he politely smiled
and excused himself, explaining to Princess Leia that he needed
to meditate upon his future actions.
The Princess' eyes had beamed with admiration... something that
Obi-Wan still had trouble accepting.
His steps took him back to the meditating garden where he had
seen the terrible vision of Mace Windu's death. Now in the
aftermath of the victory, the garden seemed a little more
alive. Although no one had took proper care of it in at least
40 years, the handwork of thousand of Jedi was still palpable.
But that was all. If he reached out with his mind, the only
thing he received were echoes of their deaths, and not their
presence. So who had been the one who had guided Luke? Or had
it been just wishful thinking from the pilot? He had too many
questions, and the ones he could turn for answers only managed
to confuse him further.
//I cannot do this alone, Master...//
"You plan to stay here a long time?" Han walked inside the
garden looking at the puzzled Padawan.
"You should be at the Banquet, Captain Solo. It is in your
honor."
"Our honor." The pirate smiled, as if there was nothing
Obi-Wan could say to that. "I got bored, so I left... What
about you? This doesn't look like meditating to me."
Seeing the seriousness in Han's face, Obi-Wan couldn't repress
a chuckle. It was very easy to relax a little of his control
around the pirate, as he was the only one who didn't look up at
him as if he were some kind of miracle alive. In his own time
Jedi were respected, sometimes feared... but never worshipped,
and thus, it was only around Han where Obi-Wan could feel a
little more like himself.
Where he didn't had to pretend or live up to some glorious
myth.
"I am not accustomed to be treated like a hero." He finally
confessed. "Whenever we got invited to a banquet, I could find
my way out of it quickly. It was my Master the one who had to
sit through all the boring ceremonies."
"Master? I thought Jedi were against slavery..." Han frowned.
It was very clear that the pirate tried to appear to everyone
as an amoral man, but had a deep morality.
"It's the title of my mentor, Qui-Gon Jinn..." then Obi-Wan
smiled, and the memories lighted his eyes. "It has been a while
since someone mistook the meaning of the word."
"If you walked behind a man calling him 'Master', it surprises
me that it wasn't the cause of many misunderstandings." Without
any ceremony, Han sat in a nearby rock, smiling again. In that
moment Obi-Wan discovered that he liked the pirate smile... it
suited him much better than the frown.
"What will you do now, Captain Solo?" he asked, sitting on a
stump. "You're a hero now."
"I'll ask you to stop calling me Captain Solo, or I'll start
calling you 'Padawan Kenobi'" Again, Obi-Wan could see the
gleam between threat and enjoyment in the man's eyes. For some
strange reason, it made him feel better. "The Empire will be
after me for sure; the Falcon is hard to miss. I guess I can
stay for a while... after I finish my business on Tatooine.
Care to join me?"
"I'll be glad to, Cap... Han." Obi-Wan smile was very natural
and truthful. He still wanted to see where he would live his
last days, see if he could find a reason for his own death. But
he had suspected that the Rebellion would appoint him a pilot
that would 'respect' the Jedi, not that he would make the trip
to Tatooine in the company of the only man in that strange era
that he could call a friend. "I really look forward to it."
And in the abandoned garden of the Temple, the two men let the
silence surround them, celebrating their victory and their own
newfound friendship away from everyone else.
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