Summary: "He tried to forget what had happened to him…" Obi-Wan was kidnapped by unknown persons. He is finally found, but he refuses to talk about what happened to him at the hands of his kidnappers. Will Qui-Gon be able to return the young man to normal and find out what happened to him, or will somebody silence him for good?
In response to one of my reviews, Obi-Wan is about sixteen in this one. I don't think there's anything else that you need to know for this chapter. Read and enjoy!Chapter Two
Miracles Happen
Qui-Gon Jinn, Mace Windu, and Yoda sat talking for quite a while, unaware of the turmoil that Qui-Gon's Padawan was experiencing at the moment. Although they focused most of their attention on Obi-Wan, they could only see the outward expressions, which only allowed an occasional twitch of his eyebrows.
The door opened once again, and all three Jedi Masters focused their attention on the medic that had just walked in. The medic was a female Twi' lek with bright blue eyes. Her white lab coat made her look all the more professional, but anyone would have agreed that wearing something else would have made her look better. Perhaps a darker blue coat wouldn't make her green skin stick out so much. The Jedi Masters, however, hardly paid attention to this, looking forward to hearing news on Obi-Wan's condition.
The medic hesitated before she spoke. "He wasn't looking too good when he was brought here, and we're afraid that he's still not looking too good," she started. "As you can see, he seems to be in a daze. We have assessed his injuries, and among them is what we think to be brain damage. It looks as if he was smashed in the back of the head by a very heavy, blunt object. We're afraid that it might have caused brain damage, which could leave him this way for the rest of his life. We're not sure if he will ever fully regain consciousness and awareness."
The words hit Qui-Gon like a ton of bricks. His Padawan might never be able to talk or joke with him again? However, the next words are what caused his heart to be torn open and cry out in anguish. "Even if he does regain consciousness," the medic said, very hesitant and glancing over at Qui-Gon with something like sympathy and compassion in her eyes, "we have come to another conclusion. We believe that he might never have use of the Force again."
Qui-Gon had to bite back a cry. Not being able to talk with his Padawan, he might have been able to bear with; but he could never bear it if Obi-Wan awoke without use of the Force. It would tear his Padawan apart, and it would tear Qui-Gon apart. The Force and the ways of a Jedi were all Obi-Wan knew. He would never be able to bear having to return to the normal world and learn everything. He wouldn't survive either. Qui-Gon and the other Jedi Masters knew all too well that Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan had aggravated many people, especially here on Coruscant. If one of them were to recognize Obi-Wan, Obi-Wan didn't stand a chance.
Qui-Gon decided not to think about that as the Masters looked at each other uneasily and then at the young man lying on the bed. It was then that Qui-Gon resolved in his mind to help Obi-Wan get through this… with his Force abilities. Qui-Gon would do everything he could and more. He just hoped that it was enough.
Later on that night, Qui-Gon sat by the windowsill in Obi-Wan's recovery room. The window overlooked Coruscant's busy streets and highways. The air taxis and all the forms of transportation were speeding along in such a hurry, the large buildings with their bright neon signs casting a red-orange glow around the area looming over them.
Everyone is in such a hurry. We should all just slow down, Qui-Gon thought, glancing over his shoulder at the sleeping form of his Apprentice. He then focused his attention back out the window and to the busy traffic below. The bright signs on the buildings would make most people's eyes hurt, but Qui-Gon didn't notice it. He was too preoccupied in his thoughts.
A sudden slight noise prompted him to glance back over at Obi-Wan. What he saw nearly caused him to fall out of his chair. There sat a smiling Obi-Wan. The young man was sitting up in his bed, propped up against his pillows and looking over at Qui-Gon with a huge grin. Despite all that had happened, he couldn't help but smile when he saw his Master.
Qui-Gon could only stare opened-mouthed at his grinning Apprentice. "I was wondering how long it was going to take you," Obi-Wan said. His words were slightly slurred, a definite effect of the anesthesia; but his voice was like water pouring down a man's dry throat to Qui-Gon.
Obi-Wan was watching his Master intently, wondering what he would do. It had been quite a fight to come back, and for a good forty-five minutes of the hour he had just spent hovering on the brink of unconsciousness again, the darkness had been getting the better of him. At first, he thought that the darkness was going to win; but he came through at the last second and pulled through to consciousness. His own voice sounded strange to him, but he knew that it would pass.
Qui-Gon didn't even know he had moved. One minute, he was in his chair; and the next, he had Obi-Wan in a bear hug, unwilling to let go. Not only had Obi-Wan pulled through, he had proved everyone wrong about his disabilities. Well, he had proved all but one wrong.
Obi-Wan was surprised when his Master's warmth was drawn away, Qui-Gon himself drawing back slowly. He only pulled back enough to see Obi-Wan's face, and his hands clasped onto Obi-Wan's biceps. "Obi-Wan," he said slowly, "I need you to do something for me."
The solemnity in his Master's voice told Obi-Wan that something was very wrong. "Anything, Master," Obi-Wan replied to Qui-Gon's request. "You know that I'd give my life for you."
Those words pained Qui-Gon's heart. It felt like someone had twisted a knife into his chest and was now dancing the blade about inside. You might have already, Qui-Gon thought sadly. "I need you to call upon the Force," Qui-Gon finished.
It was an odd request but one that Obi-Wan had to comply. He could see the pain and sadness in his Master's eyes, and he knew that he had to do it, if not for himself then for his Master.
Qui-Gon watched the different emotions dance through his Padawan's eyes. The final one that he saw was resolution. "I'll do it," he heard Obi-Wan say. He watched as the young man closed his eyes, concentrated, and exhaled. His face was calm, though Qui-Gon knew that if he could see his Padawan's eyes, they would not be quite so serene.
Obi-Wan concentrated deeply. He was going to tap into the Force. He had to. He finally finished his preparation, and he tried to tap into the Force. There was nothing, nothing but a cold and empty black darkness void of anything. He tried again and again, but each time, he came up with nothing.
Qui-Gon watched as his Padawan tried to connect with the Force. He also reached out to the Force, waiting for Obi-Wan to connect, but he felt no other presence. He looked at Obi-Wan's face, which was now covered with a thin sheet of sweat. It shouldn't have taken so much struggling to connect with the Force, and he still wasn't even connected. Qui-Gon frowned, his eyes clouding over and filling with a slight mist, which he blinked away. Something was very wrong.
Obi-Wan's eyes suddenly snapped open. What alarmed Qui-Gon was the terror that he saw in them. He had never seen Obi-Wan so frightened, and he didn't know what it was that was frightening his Padawan so. He needed to find out. He wanted to find out. He wanted to help his Padawan. "What's wrong?" he asked gently.
"I… I can't connect with the Force," Obi-Wan replied, returning to normal.
"And that is enough to terrify you," Qui-Gon prodded.
Obi-Wan's head snapped up to look at his Master, the fear returning to his eyes. He didn't want his Master to know what had happened to him, but it was quite obvious that Qui-Gon knew that there was more. Well of course he did! Obi-Wan looked back down again. "I had a vision."
"What did you see in this vision?" Qui-Gon asked. He might have been going a little too fast, but he needed to know what was going on.
"Nothing, Master," Obi-Wan replied. "What's happened to me? Why can't I connect with the Force?"
Qui-Gon wasn't happy with the change of subject, and he would get back to it later, but right now, Obi-Wan's questions deserved an answer, but an answer that only Obi-Wan could give. "That's what I would like to know," Qui-Gon said, grabbing Obi-Wan's chin gently and making the young man look at him. "The medics said that this might happen. They said that you might not even wake up, or if you did, you might not be able to communicate. What happened?"
Obi-Wan didn't answer. Instead, his face became tense; and his head began to hurt. He put a hand to his eyes and started rubbing them. He was having another flashback.
There were four men. The odds might have actually been against them, but Obi-Wan was in no condition to fight. The last three times these burly men had come in, they had been given the element of surprise. It was a dark room, and Obi-Wan had no way of telling what time it was or whether it was day or night. He had lost track of the outside world totally. He guessed he had been there about a week, but after the first three days, he stopped counting.
The first time the men came was when Obi-Wan was asleep. They charged in, closing the door behind them. Obi-Wan was immediately awakened, but it took a few seconds before his grogginess of just waking up passed. During that time, the men got in some good kicks and punches. Obi-Wan quickly surmised that there were four men and that they were very big men.
Obi-Wan did not have his lightsaber, but he did have the Force, and he did have his strength. Obi-Wan thought that his kidnappers had not been very wise to continue letting him have access to the Force.
Obi-Wan concentrated on the men in the room with him. He got in some very good kicks and punches while avoiding the ones the men tried to throw at him. One time, he hit a man in the face; and he heard a crack. Infrared goggles, Obi-Wan thought. They may have that advantage, but they're no match for the Force.
Well, that was what he had thought. Obi-Wan did have the Force, and he was a very good fighter. But these men had been trained since birth in the art of fighting. They knew how to pick just the right time, just the right places, and just the right moves. Obi-Wan was no match without his lightsaber.
The men came in two times after that, and Obi-wan was no match for them. He was no match for them now, as they continued to beat him wherever they had missed the last three times. Obi-Wan was on the ground, blood pouring from a split lip, a gash in his forehead, and other places as well. His right eye was almost swollen shut. He tried to get to his hands and knees, but just as he reached them, he was kicked in the stomach and sent back to the ground.
The door suddenly opening grabbed the men's curiosity for the minute, and they stopped beating Obi-Wan. The light that assailed the room hurt Obi-Wan's eyes and only added to the massive migraine he already had.
A sudden voice cut through his foggy mind, and though it was hard to make out, Obi-Wan understood what the man said. "You can stop playing with the boy now," he heard the man say. "I think I've perfected something that will ruin his life forever." He walked over and crouched down next to Obi-Wan so that the young man could see him. He held up a syringe. "Such a horrible fate for such a young Jedi," he said. Obi-Wan looked up at the man with defiant eyes. "Must you always have such a burning fire of resistance, even when you've been reduced to this?" the man asked, gesturing at Obi-Wan's pitiful state. "No matter. All you've ever known your entire life was the Force. That's how you evaded my men for so long, much longer than any other prisoner. That's how you've gotten out of worse situations than this. But what if I told you that you would never have use of the Force again? That's what I've got in this syringe, a formula that will block your access to the Force, making it impossible for even such a fighting Jedi like you to access the Force ever again."
These last words he said directly into Obi-Wan's ear, and Obi-Wan's whole body shivered. His eyes widened as he realized the full impact of what the man had just said. He looked up at his captor, the fire still burning brightly in his eyes. The man just smiled, shook his head slightly, and put the syringe tip against Obi-Wan's side. And as much as the young man tried to move away, he couldn't. He couldn't even move at all. It hurt too much.
"This might sting a little," the man said. He didn't even give Obi-Wan time to react before he plunged the needle into the boy's ribs. Obi-Wan let out a strangled cry of pain. "All done," the man finished, emptying the contents into Obi-Wan's body. "I'll give you a few days to recuperate. Then we'll see how you've fared."
There were footsteps, and the door closed. Obi-Wan barely noticed. The pain in his head was becoming unbearable, and his body was wracked with chills. No doubt he was coming down with a fever. His body started convulsing, and the pain became unbearable. The next thing Obi-Wan knew was darkness.
Okay. Don't expect any more flashbacks. I've done too many already. I do promise, however, that the rest of Obi-Wan's predicament will be revealed at the end of the story. Sorry it took so long to get this chapter up. We just moved, and my computer was down for forever. After that, we didn't even get the internet back until a few days later. So again, sorry. I'll try to get the next chapter up soon!