Archive: By Master & Apprentice, my site, WWOMB and
SithChicks
Pairing: O/Other, Q/Other, O/Q
Category: Alternate Universe
Rating: NC-17 for the series; this episode NC-17
Disclaimer: George, you want me, come get me. I'm probably a
better writer than you anyway (not that that's saying much luv,
sorry...).
Warning: Hmmm...
Summary: Follows canon. Qui is dead, and in building a new
lightsaber Obi accidentally finds a way to move to different
realities, where he discovers many strange and wondrous things
in his quest to be with his beloved Master again.
Notes: I'm paying homage to the great SF author, L. Sprague
DeCamp with this story. Back in the 30's-40's he wrote the
definitive AU novel called "The Wheels of If", which conceit
I'm borrowing here. Thanks (as always) to Beta Readers Par
Excellence Fox, HiperBunny and Emrin Alexander. Thank you,
ladies, my cup runneth over with your support.
Notes from Hiperbunny: This (the first part of it) is an
official Bonds of Choice product. It is used here by permission
of the writer (me) and also co-authored by the Bonds of Choice
writer (me). Therefore, any similarity between this episode of
Wheel and the series 'Bonds of Choice' is purely intentional.
Draw what you will from the content, but don't expect any real
answers. I leave it to you: Is this Bonds of Choice, or a Bonds
of Choice 'If'? Only time will tell.
The bang of re-entry was lost in a sea of noise, coming from
the cross-corridor just ahead, which led to the garden. Obi-Wan
stumbled, then shook his head, regaining his balance and
equilibrium. He pulled up his hood and made his way outside to
get his bearings, and found a surprise. The garden of this new
world was wholly dissimilar to the one he had just departed.
The trees were thick with streamers, colored lanterns hung from
barely-visible threads, a band played on a dais not far away.
Obi-Wan simply stood in the doorway and goggled.
A line of dancers approached him and he turned away quickly,
hurrying back through the door. Once back inside the Temple he
discovered a large stand of masks and quickly selected one, a
blue half-face that neatly obscured his features. He paused to
take in the decorations of the Jedi Temple, but simply couldn't
comprehend it.
The walls were thick with flowers, the ceilings obscured by
chains of golden hoops, paper hearts, mock birds, origami
bells, dialedas... oh. It suddenly occurred to him what he was
seeing: every wedding symbol he'd ever encountered, plus a few
that were new but recognizable. It appeared that someone was to
be married.
He walked to the end of the hall and pushed through a screen of
beads. The grand promenade was thickly crowded with Jedi in
festive clothing. They mingled together, sharing drinks, food,
laughter. Lots of laughter. One particular laugh drew his
attention. He turned, following the sound to its maker, and
felt his jaw drop with surprise.
If I keep doing that, I'm gonna have to get a sling for
it! he berated himself. The universe, it would seem, had
more surprises for him than mere aggression and violence.
Qui-Gon was lounging against the promenade railing, a paper
crown upon his head. He was nominally wearing a thin white
shirt, though it hadn't been buttoned. His denim pants stopped
at the knees and showed considerable signs of wear. The sandals
upon his feet were the next thing to useless. He was conversing
with several other Jedi, but seemed to be waiting for
something.
Obi-Wan had only the loud clatter of boots and a smattering of
shouted laughter to warn him before he was shoved aside with an
oddly familiar "Scuse me, pardon me, coming through, one side
there..." He was buffeted on all sides as a copy of himself ran
past him with three young Jedi in hot pursuit. Obi-Wan stood,
stunned, as he watched himself skid up to join Qui-Gon, hiding
behind the Jedi Master.
Qui-Gon crossed his arms and put on a formidable expression,
stopping the posse in its tracks. He held out one large hand
and the leader of the group, a blue mergirl, gave over the gold
paper crown she had been menacing this new Obi-Wan with.
Qui-Gon said something, and they all laughed.
Then, with a look of utter tenderness, he placed the crown on
Obi-Wan's head and a kiss upon his nose.
The girl snatched a glass from a passing tray and raised it.
"Huzzah! Hurrah du penda netu! Hurray Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon!"
The cheer was taken up by everyone on the promenade. Obi-Wan
turned and made his way to the lifts. Hurrah the happy couple
indeed.
Obi-Wan lay sprawled face-down across the ledge of a fountain
in the garden where he had spent the night. The sun was up now,
and shone on the water reflecting into his eyes, making them
tear. He had one brown bottle in his hand, and his foot was
beating a slow tattoo on the marble. His hair was still damp
from the shower he had gotten in one of the gyms earlier that
morning.
Sitting up, Obi-Wan stretched a bit, and took another sip from
his bottle. He looked up at the sun, as though to gage the
time, and pulled his backpack to him, rummaging through it.
Abruptly, he felt a Force probe skitter across his mind; he
gasped and turned towards the Temple looking for the source of
the probe.
In the shadows near the Temple walls, a man stood observing
him. He was of medium height with longish, very curly brown
hair, one strand of which was currently wound about a finger
and being tugged on as narrowed green eyes studied Obi-Wan. Not
dressed as a Jedi, he wore blue pants, low soft boots and a
gray suede tunic, unlaced at the throat.
The man came towards him, body utterly relaxed, eyes flicking
from trees to fountain to Obi-Wan and back again. He stopped
about four feet away and crossed his arms, one foot absently
rubbing at the other. He smiled, a warm invitation to
confidence. His eyes glittered with curiosity. When he spoke,
his voice was pleasing, a light tenor that belied the
seriousness of his words.
"Well, if it weren't for the fact that I saw Obi-Wan Kenobi get
kidnapped by Trainees not ten minutes ago, I'd think you were
him," he said. "You'd better have a good excuse for being an
exact replica of a Jedi Knight. Otherwise, you're dead where
you sit."
Propping his knees up under his chin, Obi-Wan took another swig
from his bottle and studied the reflected sunlight on the
water. "Well, best do it now then. Because you wouldn't believe
me if I told you."
Once again the Force probe skittered across his shields, and
this time, Obi-Wan let it in past some of his barriers. The
other man chewed his bottom lip for a long moment, considering
his options, but his eyes never left Obi-Wan. The young knight
felt that if he even breathed wrong, he'd be dead faster than
he could realize he'd passed on.
"Try me," the other man finally invited, cocking his head to
one side, the tenor of his voice intensely curious.
Snorting, Obi-Wan said, "All right. I'm from another reality,
another dimension, where my Master, my Qui-Gon, has died. A
different Temple entirely. I was accidentally put on this road,
but now I'm traveling all the possible 'ifs' looking for a
place I can live, a place... a place with Qui-Gon." He took
another swig. "Going to kill me now?"
For a long moment, the only sounds were birdsong, mechanical
humming, the muted roar of overhead traffic. Then the strange
man said, "No, but if you've got another bottle to offer me,
I'd be glad to join you. I'm no stranger to the complications
of reality variation. You see, I'm in the habit of shifting the
threads of time. Same theory, different practice."
Obi-Wan grinned and fished into his backpack, coming up with
another brown bottle. Taking it and popping the top, the man
stuck out his other hand. "Kourt Crowe."
"I think you know my name," Obi-Wan responded, returning the
firm grasp. "Should I call you Master Crowe?"
Bouncing to a seat next to Obi-Wan and taking a long swig,
Crowe said, "You can call me anything you like. I'm sure I've
been called it before. This is good stuff."
"Yeah. Only have three bottles left, though, and when it's
gone..."
Crowe looked at him askance. "Huh? It's good, but it's just
root beer. Get some more."
Gaping at him, Obi-Wan said, "You have ROOT BEER in this
reality? Damn. Maybe I should think about staying..."
"Ah. I take it you weren't thinking about it earlier, then." He
propped one foot up on the ledge before him, wrapped his knee
in his arm, and began tugging on his hair again. It was
starting to dawn on Obi-Wan that this man was never
still, and his whole body was beginning to twitch in sympathy.
"No." Obi-Wan shook his head and looked back at the water.
"I've been here since last night. I-I saw Qui-Gon. He's not
my Qui-Gon, and anyway, there's a me here too." He
grinned weakly at Crowe. "Does that even make sense?"
Blinking solemnly at the younger man, still tugging on the
abused lock of hair, Crowe said, "Sure it does. But then, I'm
weird for a Jedi. Why don't you think he's your Quigs..
I mean, Qui-Gon?"
"Well, for one thing, my Qui-Gon wouldn't wear ripped pants and
flip-flops," Obi-Wan replied wryly.
Laughing out loud and scaring some birds into flight, Crowe
said, "Well, then your Qui-Gon is stuffier than ours. And ours
is pretty stuffy at times." After another swig from his bottle,
he continued, staring out at the trees around the garden, "And
just so you know, he belongs to this reality's Obi-Wan anyway.
So I guess I couldn't advise you to stay long either."
Sighing, Obi-Wan finished the last of his drink and stood,
picking up his backpack. "I-I noticed that, last night. I'm
getting a little tired of being beaten out by myself at every
reality... and that doesn't even make any sense. I guess I..."
"Hold on." Crowe fished a small device out of his pants pocket
and spoke into it. "Corubia Nall." After a moment, a female
voice issued from it.
"Nall."
"Rubi! Are you done spoiling the initiates? Can you do me a
favor?"
"Sure, Master, what's up?"
"Stop by a caterer and pick up a six-pack of root beer. The
good stuff. Meet me by the big ugly fountain in the seolant
garden."
"Ooookay..." The pleasant female voice seemed puzzled but
accommodating. "I'll be there in five."
"Great! Oh, wait! Is Obi-Wan still with you?"
"Uh-huh."
"Good. Make it a six-pack of root beer and a six-pack of that
nasty ale he likes, and bring him along."
As he replaced the tiny communications unit in his pocket, he
shrugged at an open-mouthed Obi-Wan. "Might as well let you go
well-stocked."
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Obi-Wan sounded dubious.
"Have you run into yourself in your travels before?" Crowe
demanded. "Did anything bad happen?"
"Yeesss... and no."
"Well then. Pretty good odds, don't you think? Anyway, Obi
could use a sympathetic ear just now. This was supposed to be a
small, intimate ceremony, but now everyone in the
Temple's involved. I can't blame them, we could use a good
party." Obi-Wan blinked, completely and utterly lost. Crowe
didn't seem to notice, just continued on blithely.
"Once the kids get here, you can tell us a bit about what's
happened to you, we can drink some good root beer, eat a couple
of sandwiches and speed you on your way. Obi-Wan is a
spectacular cook. But I suppose it's not a good idea to
introduce you to Quigs. He'd probably want to take both of you
to bed and his Obi-Wan is a bit possessive."
The backpack dropped with a thump as Obi-Wan sat back down and
watched the iridescent blue-green mer-woman from the evening
before - and himself - approach from across the garden, each
bearing a six-pack.
It was a sated and happy Obi-Wan who sat in lotus and centered
himself before powering his 'saber. Master Crowe had suggested
that, in order to avoid the nausea and disorientation from the
transfer, he use the Force to better ground himself
before-hand. Slipping into a light trance, he powered his
'saber. The disorientation was still there, but lessened, more
tolerable. Obi-Wan was glad for that, considering all the
sandwiches and root beer he had just consumed.
Coming out of his light trance, he looked up. Nothing in the
sky at all but some small, puffy clouds. // All right... // he
thought, then looked out at the horizon. No buildings. //
Hmmmm... // Twisting slightly, he looked back at the Temple.
// Whoa. // The Temple was a slender, pure white tower,
shooting up into the sky. Instead of the high-tech,
glass-enclosed bubble, it was all pure lines and glorious
smooth perfection. Obi-Wan realized his jaw was once again in
his lap, and closed his mouth slowly. // Am I EVER going to get
used to what the universe keeps throwing at me? // he wondered
in futility.
Wrenching his eyes from the spectacular sight before him, he
looked around the garden - a garden curiously devoid of trees.
There was a figure - a man? - in white seated on the grass not
far from him, his back to Obi-Wan. Although this person had
undoubtedly heard his noisy arrival, he had never moved from
what looked like a lotus pose. Cautiously, Obi-Wan approached
him, drawing a wide circle as he approached the man's front.
// Oh, shit, // he thought, as he recognized the serene face
before him. // It's me again. //
Before he could turn, gray-green eyes opened and regarded him
pleasantly. "Welcome," the other man said quietly, smiling
gently. "I've been expecting you. Would you like to sit down?"
Blinking, Obi-Wan considered the request. // Here we go again,
another bizarre one, // he thought, resigned. "All right," he
said slowly aloud, kneeling. He kept his hand on his 'saber,
just in case. As he knelt, he became aware of a niggling Force
prescience gnawing at the peace in the back of his brain. When
he tried to focus on it, it simply skittered away. He knew what
this meant, and simply tried to relax himself to all sensation,
tried to be aware of the Moment when the reasoning for the
prescience would make itself clear.
"You probably have many questions," his other self was saying
earnestly. "I know I would. And since you're me..." A coy smile
lit the young-looking face, one that Obi-Wan found himself
mimicking stupidly.
"Um, yes. How is it that you could be expecting me? And why..."
he trailed off.
"Why am I not running from you, screaming?" he laughed. "Same
reason, I guess. The Goddess told me to expect you. Of course,
I didn't know exactly when you'd be here, but I knew you
would. You see, you are going to be our savior."
Taken aback, Obi-Wan digested that news with a bit of alarm.
"Um... if it's all the same to you, I'd rather not," he finally
said. "I mean, I've had a busy couple of weeks lately, and..."
"Oh, I know," the other interrupted. "The Goddess told me you
would arrive after many trials. We have plenty of time... well,
perhaps not PLENTY, but enough. Come on. I'll take you to see
Priestess Billaba. Between the two of us, we can explain."
Obi-Wan agreed and rose with the other man, aware of a strange
sense of 'wrongness' that he associated with the Force warning.
The inside of the Temple was as beautiful as the outside.
Obi-Wan discovered that the reason he had not seen any other
buildings was that the garden in which he had arrived was
suspended VERY high up along the Temple spire. "We had it built
when we found out you would arrive," his other self explained.
"It's called the hanging garden. It's the highest green space
on all Coruscant."
Digesting this interesting - and rather alarming - tidbit,
Obi-Wan remained silent until they reached the much lower, more
inhabited portions of the Temple. In a sunny, pleasant room,
which rather reminded Obi-Wan of the Council Chamber, they
found Depa Billaba. The lovely woman was wearing a snow-white
robe and was sitting at a loom, weaving some sort of tapestry.
She looked up as they came into the room.
"Ben! He's finally arrived, then," she said, locking the loom
down and rising. Mimicking the other man, Obi-Wan bowed over
the hand that was presented to him. Depa Billaba was strong in
the Force in Obi-Wan's home world, and she was just as strong
here. But that persistent sense of 'wrongness' permeated her as
well, and the slight frown between Obi-Wan's eyebrows remained.
"We are so happy to see you, Knight Kenobi," she said. "Come,
let us sit and talk. I'm sure Ben hasn't had enough time to
explain the whole situation."
Following Master Billaba to a comfortable-looking sofa, Obi-Wan
looked at his doppleganger. "Ben?" he asked, confused.
They sat, and Billaba poured tea. "Ben is my milk-name," the
other man replied. "I was given the name Obi-Wan when I was
accepted to serve the Goddess, but when I started having
visions of you coming, well, we reverted back to Ben. To avoid
confusion."
Obi-Wan nodded, outwardly seeming as if this were the most
normal pronouncement in the world, inwardly gibbering in
confusion, overcome with bafflement. Billaba laughed lightly.
"Your heart belies your bewilderment, Knight Kenobi. Ask your
questions, please. Be at ease."
Sipping the sweetened tea, Obi-Wan wondered where to start.
"All right. You keep referring to the Goddess. I'm afraid I
don't follow. Where I come from, we serve the Force."
Ben and Billaba exchanged smiling looks. "The Goddess said you
would follow her by another name," Ben said. "She is that which
is in all things. The light and love; the goodness that is in
all hearts. Or at least most..."
"Ben." Billaba's voice was lightly chiding but she still
smiled.
"Sorry, Priestess," he murmured, ducking his head a bit.
"Ben is yet a Padawan of the Order," Billaba explained to
Obi-Wan. "He still has trouble believing that everyone has
goodness in their heart, has the protection and love of the
Goddess. Even the Enemy."
Obi-Wan took a deep, cleansing breath and slowly let it out,
trying to release his frustration and confusion as well. It
didn't work. "All right... " he said slowly. "Then who is your
Master, Ob-I mean, Ben?"
"Priestess Billaba is my Mistress," Ben replied. "She says I
have much potential."
"High potential?" Obi-Wan murmured, remembering something from
the last reality he visited.
"Yes, Ben has much potential," Billaba said. "He is very highly
favored by the Goddess. Witness your arrival! She has told us
that when the Enemy becomes strong, a Champion will appear. And
here you are. Our Champion."
Really confused by this time, still plagued by the sense of
wrongness the Force was feeding him, and not a little put off
by his hosts' calm acceptance of his presence, Obi-Wan shook
his head. "Er, I hate to burst any bubbles, but I really don't
think of myself as anyone's champion. And from the looks of
things, you really don't need one. You're not at war are you?
Are the Sith active here?"
Shaking her head, Billaba said, "That is not a word I am
familiar with, Knight Kenobi. Our Enemy is but a single one, as
has been foretold. He seeks to pervert all that the Goddess
brings about, all happiness, all joy, all goodness. The Goddess
has indicated that you will be the one to defeat the Enemy,
lest he destroy all that we have built here."
// This is ridiculous, // Obi-Wan thought to himself. "All
right. Let's start there. Do you have these prophecies written
down anywhere? Perhaps if I can get a better handle on them,
I'll understand what you're talking about." // Fat chance, //
he continued to himself. The level of bliss around here was
actually getting to him.
"That is an excellent place to start. Ben? Why don't you take
Knight Kenobi to the library. Perhaps you can assuage his
puzzlement there."
"Yes, Priestess," Ben murmured, standing. "This way, Knight
Kenobi, I'll take you there."
As they walked out of the room and through the Temple, Obi-Wan
kept his eyes open. Everyone wore white, and appeared to be in
a constant state of happiness. He saw no arguments, no
fighting, no anger apparent... but he also saw no teasing, no
loud laughter, no yelling. Even the playroom they passed, full
of children at play, was quiet and peaceful. "Ben?"
"Yes, Knight Kenobi?" Ben replied, turning and smiling at him.
"Oh, please. Just Obi-Wan or Obi... after all, you're ME.."
Ben chuckled. "I guess that's right. It's not as hard as I
thought it would be to be with you." The young man actually
blushed a bit as he walked. "I-I had no idea I was... well, so
good looking. Do we REALLY look that much alike?"
Obi-Wan grinned. "Like looking into a mirror. You... ah, you're
very nice looking too." Unaccountably, he found himself
blushing. // Odd, // he thought, // I didn't feel like this
with the other 'mes' I met...//
"Anyway. I wanted to ask you, Ben... why is it so, well, so
quiet?"
The other man looked at him askance. "Quiet?"
"Well, yes. Even the children don't yell at play. It's like...
well like everyone's on drugs."
Ben seemed very confused. "Why would anyone want to raise their
voices? Except, of course, in praise of the Goddess. Don't you
live by the Code in your world, Kni... I mean, Obi?"
"The Code? Well, yes, if you mean 'there is no emotion, there
is peace.' But that's just a guideline. Master says we should
follow our hearts, as the Force won't guide us the wrong way."
As he spoke, the Force prescience that had been relegated to
the back of his mind suddenly surged forth again, demanding his
attention.
Frowning, Ben said, "It's NOT just a guideline to us, Obi. The
Goddess dictates it. There is no emotion, there is peace. There
is no passion, there is serenity. We live by the Code, it
shapes our very lives. Oh, here's the library."
Shelving the discussion momentarily, Obi-Wan stood and gaped at
the size of the room they were in. Easily four stories high,
there must have been millions of books, all different sizes,
types, and kinds. Electronic, paper bound, scrolls - they were
all here. "This is amazing."
"It IS pretty neat, isn't it," Ben agreed happily. "The
prophecies are over here."
Indicating a space the size of Obi-Wan's apartment in the
Temple, Ben walked to a large table and opened one enormous
book. "There are thousands of books on prophecies, but this one
is the best for what you are looking for. It details what the
Enemy will be like, and how the Champion will defeat him."
"I'm supposed to read THAT?" Obi-Wan said, his heart sinking.
"Oh, no," Ben laughed. "I've already done that. I can show you
where the best parts are. Here." Gently, he lifted the huge
pages until he found a section near the end. "This is it. 'And
the Champion shall come, and he shall be as one of the Goddess,
yea, the very likeness thereof, but he will not know Her.'
That's you. You're just like me, but not me at the same time.
Get it?"
Rolling his eyes, Obi-Wan nodded.
"Now, here's the description of the Enemy. 'And he shall come,
bearing tales. And these tales shall seduce the Children' -
that's us - 'and they shall be amazed and overcome. Guard the
Children well, lest they turn their faces from the Code and be
corrupted.' That's what the Enemy will try to do, corrupt us,"
Ben said, with a shudder. "And here's where you come in. 'And
the Champion will rise, and with the Enemy will meet.' See?
You're going to fight him."
"Um, Ben," Obi-Wan said slowly, reading ahead in the passage,
"meet does not necessarily denote fight, you know."
"Oh, I know," Ben said easily. "But this is archaic language,
you know. Everything has a subtext."
Biting his tongue, Obi-Wan didn't answer. Instead, he said, "I
don't see anything here that says this Enemy will destroy you.
Why can't you fight him?"
"Oh, no!" Ben said, appalled. "We don't fight. Not ever. 'There
is no passion, there is serenity' you know."
Obi-Wan just stared at the other man. "You don't fight. Ever?
Not even to defend yourselves?"
"Grace of the Goddess, no! It would go against everything we
hold dear. We are HOLDERS of the peace. Not defenders of it!"
"So if someone... like this Enemy... were to attack you, you'd
just roll over and die." Obi-Wan tried, but couldn't quite keep
all the scorn out of his voice. Ben didn't notice.
"Better to die and join the Goddess than to pervert all She
stands for," Ben said piously. It was beginning to grate on
Obi-Wan's nerves. He sighed. Something was REALLY wrong here.
The Force was jangling at his nerves harder than ever, giving
him a slight headache.
"All right," he finally said, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"Can you show me to my quarters? I think I need to meditate."
"Oh, of course!" Ben said. "I usually meditate in the
afternoons as well. Could I join you?"
"Sure. I guess. Whatever."
Quickly, Ben guided him to a spartan apartment, which was
obviously not a guest quarters, judging from the few mementos
scattered about. "Ben, is this your room?" Obi-Wan asked,
suspicious.
"Well, yes," Ben replied, confused. "I do hope you don't mind
staying with me. We're a bit cramped at the moment. And... and
well," here Ben frowned. "For some reason, I want you to stay
with me. I think... I think the Goddess is indicating we should
stay together for now."
"Oh, all right," Obi-Wan said, setting his backback down and
removing his cloak. He sat on a small wooden chair and removed
his boots, wiggling his toes with a sigh. "That feels better."
He noticed Ben watching him curiously, and asked, "What? Is
something wrong?"
"No," Ben said, quickly, bending to remove his own boots. "It's
just... I find you... I think I'd better meditate," he
finished, blushing.
Obi-Wan saw that blush and wondered, then grinned as a thought
hit him. He stood, stretched luxuriously - making sure Ben saw
him - and sauntered over to where the other man knelt. As they
composed themselves for meditation, Obi-Wan asked, "So, Ben.
Are you seeing anyone? Is there any Temple gossip I could
hear?"
"S-seeing anyone?" Ben stammered. "I don't know what you mean."
"You know. Dating. One of the first worlds I went to, 'I' was
bonded to Bant. Is she in this reality?"
"B-b-bonded?" Ben's eyes were huge, and just confirmed what
Obi-Wan suspected.
"Uh-huh. Lovers. Hard to believe, huh? I always thought of Bant
like my sister. And that one reality where Master was female...
" he shook his head, rolling his eyes in an exaggerated
fashion. "I never thought I could find a woman as attractive as
I did her. Wow. When we kissed..."
"You KISSED someone?" Ben's eyes by this time were basically
jumping out of his head, and his skin was beet red.
// I bet he's radiating into the infra-red, // Obi-Wan thought
to himself. "Ah. You must be a virgin in this reality. I'm
sorry to have embarrassed you..."
"Oh, that's all right," Ben said hurriedly. "It's just that...
I mean I never... well..."
"Would you like to hear about the worlds I've been to?" Obi-Wan
asked, all innocence.
Swallowing heavily and glancing at the door, Ben dropped out of
lotus and leaned forward. "Oh, COULD you? Would you?"
"Sure."
Obi-Wan spent the next hour, as the sun slowly descended across
the window, telling Ben about his adventures. Somehow, the
tales ended up focusing on the sexier parts, rather than the
fights and adventures. Ben kept licking his lips as his jaw
grew slacker. There was a rather noticeable bulge in his
leggings. Fondly remembering his times with Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan
noticed he had a similar bulge.
He looked at Ben, who was taking on the aspect of a canine in
heat, and said with a wry grin, "I'm sorry, Ben. I've gotten
you rather hot and bothered. If you'd like me to leave you
alone..."
"Oh, no, please," Ben said softly. "I mean, I can meditate any
time..."
"Meditate? Is that what you call it?" Obi-Wan laughed.
Ben looked confused. "What else would I do?"
That brought Obi-Wan up short. "Wait a minute. Ben. What do you
do when you... ah, oh shit. What do you do when you get a boner
like you've got now?"
"A what?" Obi-Wan pointed to the other man's crotch and the
bulge therein. If it were possible to turn more red, Ben did.
// How can he have a hard-on when all the blood in his body is
in his face? // Obi-Wan wondered absurdly.
"The precepts are clear," Ben said, in a level tone of voice,
pedantically. "Carnal desires are not of the Goddess. We
meditate and release all negative forces into Her."
Obi-Wan closed his eyes and shook his head. "That's... that's
just WRONG, Ben. The Force is all around us. It is everything
that is a part of us. Including our sexuality."
Looking dazed and confused, Ben said, "But... there is no
passion..."
"Screw that," Obi-Wan all but growled. Taking a deep, cleansing
breath, he centered himself and sank into the Moment, seeking
his path. It was as he had come to suspect... these Jedi had
basically gone too far... WAY too far... in one direction. They
needed to be brought back to the center again, taken from this
way that would eventually lead them to their destruction. It
was so plainly and painfully obvious Obi-Wan wondered how it
was that these people couldn't see it for themselves.
He opened his eyes again to see Ben gaping at him. "You-you
touched the Goddess! You really ARE the Champion! I've never
seen someone so attuned..."
Frowning, Obi-Wan said, "All right. If that's what you call it,
fine. But I have to ask you to do something, Ben." Abruptly, he
leaned across the small space that separated them and locked
his lips onto the other man's. It wasn't nearly as strange as
he thought it might be, in fact, it was quite nice. Except that
Ben, too shocked to move, didn't respond.
"Close your eyes," he whispered roughly, breaking the kiss.
"Seek the For.. I mean, your Goddess. Determine your path, Ben,
and act accordingly."
Shaking, Ben did as he was bid. His eyes closed, and Obi-Wan
could feel him slowly ground and center, the process a bit
hampered by his extremely serious arousal. After a moment, his
eyes flew open to meet Obi-Wan's. He lunged, and Obi-Wan found
himself with an armful of himself, clumsily kissing him.
// Now THIS is weird, // he thought, struggling to gain control
of Ben. He managed to straighten his legs out, and then rolled,
pinning Ben beneath him. "Act, don't think," he murmured,
kissing Ben passionately. "Trust in your instincts."
"Oh, yes," Ben moaned, as Obi-Wan opened his tunic and explored
his chest.
Obi-Wan proceeded to remove both their clothing slowly, keeping
Ben on an arousal high that had the man fairly vibrating.
Dimly, kissing his way down Ben's chest, he realized he was
fracturing into several pieces. One part was listening to the
Force direct him, and knew this was the correct path. One part
was laughing hysterically over the situation, and was making
rude comments about masturbation. One part dispassionately
dredged up every sexual encounter he had ever had, remembering
what had felt good and what hadn't. But the biggest part just
had a raging hard-on that needed attention, and this young man
with his face was a more than willing vessel to assuage it.
More than willing indeed. When Obi-Wan's mouth reached Ben's
penis, the other man screamed hoarsely and came violently,
after just the one lick. Bemused, Obi-Wan used his
post-orgasmic torpor to remove the rest of both of their
clothing, then used Ben's semen to slick his cock and fingers.
"Roll over, Ben," he whispered. "It just gets better, trust
me."
Dazed, Ben rolled over, and Obi-Wan urged him to his knees.
Gently, he inserted one semen covered finger past the other
man's anus, searching for and finding the little gland deep
inside. Ben yelled again, bucking against his finger. "Wh-what
are you DOING?" he gasped, looking back over his shoulder.
"Something you should have done when you were sixteen," Obi-Wan
answered, adding a finger and stretching gently.
"Oooooohhhh..." Ben moaned, burying his head in his arms. "This
is... oh, Goddess, I can't... Obi-Wan... Please... PLEASE!"
"Please what, Ben?" Obi-Wan asked, grinning ear to ear. His
gentle stretching done, he placed his slick cock at the tight
opening and began to push gently. // This might be just
glorified masturbation, // Obi-Wan thought as his cock was
enveloped into tight heat, // but by GODS it's good...//
Ben proved to be every bit as sexual a being as Obi-Wan was.
Their first wild penetration ended in both of them orgasming,
and suddenly Ben couldn't stop. He demanded kisses and licks,
learned about sucking and biting, and basically reduced Obi-Wan
to a puddle of bliss. Several hours later, in the dimness of
the early evening, they lay in a sated, sweaty heap, covered in
semen and incapable of moving.
"Ben?" Obi-Wan asked softly. "You feel all right?"
"All right?" Ben asked incredulously, languorously. "I've never
felt this good in my LIFE. I don't understand why this is
prohibited...?"
"I don't either," Obi-Wan said, managing to turn himself over
and lifting himself on one elbow. "But I'm going to find out.
And fix it if I can." Reaching out his hand, he laid it across
Ben's forehead and with a gentle Force push, put him to sleep.
Rising, he carried Ben to the bedroom, where he tucked him into
bed. After using the 'fresher to clean himself up, he went back
to the main room and got dressed.
"I think it's time to meet this Enemy," He muttered to himself
as he clipped on his 'saber. The Force agreed with him.
The Temple was quite still as Obi-Wan made his way back to the
library. There was something he had seen in the big book that
made him wonder... It was still on the table, still open. He
glanced down at the page, reading quickly, then smiled to
himself in satisfaction.
It wasn't hard to slip out. He had noted from Depa Billaba's
window a small, thriving town surrounding the Temple, at a
small remove from it. He walked quickly along the well-kept
road, looking for lights and noise.
He found it in a boisterous pub on the far end of town. The
bartender was a genial man who did not recognize him as a Jedi,
and to Obi-Wan's questions, let him know that the Jedi were
considered to be gentle but pretty much useless. Then he
directed the young man to a large house about a klick outside
of town, lending him a lamp to see in the darkness.
It wasn't long before Obi-Wan was knocking on the door of the
large, comfortable house. The door opened to warmth and music,
and Obi-Wan looked up into deep blue eyes. "Hello, Qui-Gon," he
said, smiling.
The house was filled with animals - canines, felines, ferrets,
birds - all living in harmony with Qui-Gon Jinn. Obi-Wan was
set into a large comfy chair by a fireplace, fed, and used as a
perch for half a dozen animals. Qui-Gon took the chair opposite
him and they talked long into the night.
Qui-Gon accepted his wild story easily, in fact, was fascinated
by it and asked numerous questions. The only problem he had was
when Obi-Wan began talking about the Jedi in the nearby Temple.
"So they consider me to be the Enemy? How absurd," he said with
a snort. It was late that evening, and both men were getting
tired.
"You feel Force sensitive," Obi-Wan said, sipping tea. "Were
you a Jedi? One of them?"
"Well, yes and no. I was raised in the Temple, but cast out as
a young man, a very young man. I--"and here Qui-Gon reddened a
bit, smiling wryly, "I couldn't control my passions. It's a
rather sordid tale."
Obi-Wan laughed. "Then I think we have a solution to this
'problem.' According to that ridiculous prophecy, the Champion
is to meet with the Enemy. Well, here we are. The next line is
the key, I think. Do you know it?"
Rolling his eyes, Qui-Gon said, "I spent years studying that
piece of drivel. Depa Billaba believes it to be gospel, but you
know what? Half of those other books contradict it. And I've
done research on the Jedi who wrote it. He was quite mad."
Shaking his head, Qui-Gon stroked the cat purring on his lap.
"We've forgotten what we were supposed to be. We've even
forgotten how to heal. Did you know," he leaned forward, "the
townspeople used to be able to go to the Temple for help, for
all kinds of help. Depa closed it off ten years ago. Said the
Jedi were becoming corrupted by 'outside influences.' Now the
townspeople come to me, and others like me, who couldn't stand
to just sit idly by and count our toes while people died." He
took another sip of his tea. "Depa just might have a rebellion
on her hands one day, if she's not careful."
Grinning, Obi-Wan said, "Then it seems to me that the Enemy is
just the one to lead it, no?"
Qui-Gon looked startled, then laughed. "I guess so, young Jedi,
I guess so! But then, if you think that way, just whose
champion are you?"
"Now, that's the secret," Obi-Wan said, rubbing the side of his
nose and still grinning. "That next line... it says, 'For lo,
the Champion will bring the Goddess back to the Jedi, and all
will be amazed, and all will be changed.' Now aside from some
pretty bad free-form poetry, I think that's pretty telling,
don't you?"
Qui-Gon had to agree.
Very early the next morning, pre-dawn, Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan went
back to the Temple. Creeping in, they made their way to the
quarters of one Ben, otherwise known as Obi-Wan, Kenobi.
Qui-Gon had no clue who the young man was. "I was cast out over
twenty years ago, Obi-Wan," he had argued. "This young man
means nothing to me."
"Oh, I think he might change your mind, Qui-Gon," Obi-Wan had
said, smugly. "Anyway, the Force... I mean, the Goddess, is
telling me this is the right course. Trust me."
Reaching their destination, Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon entered the
room and moved to the bedroom. Ben had been put to bed without
being cleaned up, and had been indulging in some pretty wild
sexual shenanigans beforehand, so he smelled much like a
whorehouse might. The room was ripe with it, and Obi-Wan could
tell Qui-Gon was not unaffected.
Sitting on the side of the bed, Obi-Wan gently shook the young
man's shoulder. Ben woke slowly, smiling and stretching
sensuously under the thin sheet. "Obi-Wan," he purred.
"What...?" Suddenly he saw the other man in the room and his
eyes widened. "Who is that? Obi-Wan?"
"Calm down, Ben," Obi-Wan said. "It's a friend. Ben Kenobi, I'd
like you to meet Qui-Gon Jinn."
Qui-Gon simply couldn't take his eyes off the gorgeous young
man on the bed. He was physically an exact replica of Obi-Wan,
who admittedly was very attractive, but... but... there was
something about this Ben... Going to his knees by the side of
the bed, Qui-Gon took his hand and said gently, "I'm very happy
to meet you, Ben."
Obi-Wan stood and moved away. The Force was singing between the
two men VERY strongly and very happily, pulling them together.
Obi-Wan noted wryly that Ben's eyes were locked on Qui-Gon, and
he was blushing again, a bright, fiery red. If the tent under
the sheet was any indication, Qui-Gon was in for a very
interesting couple of days.
Picking up his backpack, which was still in the main room of
the apartment, he threw his cloak back on. He felt only a
slight pang at leaving; this reality was absolutely not for
him, that much was clear. But as to why the Force had brought
him here...
"What have you done?" Depa Billaba stood in the hallway outside
Ben's rooms, her arms akimbo, an expression on her face that
could have melted plastic.
Shrugging, Obi-Wan said, "I met the Enemy, and, well, he's in
there." A psychic Force explosion rocked them suddenly, it's
epicenter a few feet behind them. "Ah. I think your Goddess has
spoken to them. She might speak to you too, if you let her."
"No! This isn't... oh, no, please..." Billaba moaned, shaking
her head.
Feeling sorry for her, Obi-Wan put his hand on her arm. "Listen
to your Goddess, Priestess. You've been closed up for far too
long." As an afterthought, he quickly tugged her head down and
kissed her, quite passionately, with significant tongue
involvement, leaving her breathless. "Why don't you go in and
see if you can help them?" he gently suggested to the dazed
woman, patting her on the shoulder as he walked towards the
stairs.
By the time he reached the hanging garden, the entire Temple
was in an uproar. Obi-Wan sat in lotus and centered himself,
chuckling. // Well, it was interesting at least, // he
thought, as he pulled out his 'saber and pressed the switch.
Archive 