Lives & Adventures

by Ryder Windham

  Obi-Wan’s lightsaber flashed, sweeping through the rifle’s barrel. The guard released the boy, who fell back into his young sister’s arms as the shattered barrel fell and rolled across the street. The other two guards moved as if they were about to raise their own rifles, but then they looked beyond the blazing lightsaber to meet Obi-Wan’s gaze.

  “A Jedi,” murmered a voice from the crowd. “He’s a Jedi!”

  A silence fell over the street, all eyes on Obi-Wan and the guards. Obi-Wan was about to order the guards to drop their weapons, but before he could get a word out, the entire crowd broke out in an exultant cheer.

  Obi-Wan kept his eyes trained on the guards. As the crowd continued to cheer for the Jedi, the guards dropped their weapons. While the unarmed guards shifted nervously in the middle of the street, Obi-Wan felt a finger gently tapping at his right shoulder. He turned to see Qui-Gon standing behind him, and quickly deactivated his lightsaber.

  Raising his voice so he could be heard over the applauding crowd, Qui-Gon said, “Should I have reminded you to stay out of trouble?”

  Obi-Wan retorted, “You asked me to wait outside!” Remembering Dexter Jettster, he glanced back to the alley, where he saw Jettster leaning against the wall outside the bar. Jettster had joined in the applause, clapping hands with his two upper arms while using his lower hands to point to the ground. Jettster had stayed where he was told.

  Obi-Wan thought, He’s really not a bad guy. Quite helpful, actually.

  Returning his gaze to his Master, Obi-Wan said, “Before you issue reprimands, shall I tell you where we’ll find the Hardy Harrow?”

  Qui-Gon stared at Obi-Wan for a moment, then said, “And just how did you come by this information?”

  “A little four-winged bird told me.”

  Denon-Ardru Mutual had sent a small army of security guards to Ord-Sigatt, but all of the guards surrendered without protest to the Jedi. After all, they had been paid only to push ordinary people around. The guards returned to Denon in the Hardy Harrow, but without the carvanium shipment.

  Neither the Galactic Senate nor the Jedi Council was pleased by a Denon Senator’s attempt to use the Jedi to recover an unmanned drone barge, especially when they discovered the same Senator had a controlling interest in maintaining Denon-Ardru Mutual’s secret monopoly on the carvanium from Ord Sigatt.

  Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon remained on Ord-Sigatt for a few days to help return the local government to normal. They spent a good deal of time with Dexter Jettster, who not only impressed them with his keen observational skills and memory, but with his excellent cooking. It was during one meal that Jettster faced Obi-Wan and said, “Do you know the true power of a lightsaber?”

  “The true power?” Obi-Wan echoed. He looked to Qui-Gon for support.

  Qui-Gon said, “It’s a fair question.”

  Returning his gaze to Jettster, Obi-Wan said, “Well, I suppose it’s the lightsaber’s ability to cut through almost anything.”

  Dexter beamed. “That’s what I used to think,” he said as he pushed another plate of food toward Qui-Gon. “But then one day, I saw a young Jedi named Obi-Wan Kenobi activate his lightsaber on Ord Sigatt. And that was when I learned the weapon’s true power.”

  Obi-Wan shifted in his chair at the dining table. “I…I’m afraid I don’t understand.”

  “Cutting through things is merely a lightsaber’s technical function,” Jettster continued. “But its real power is in the eye of the beholder. The sight of a lightsaber can inspire great fear, but it can also inspire great hope. It all depends on whether one regards the Jedi as friend or foe.” Reaching out with his right upper arm, Jettster placed his hand on Obi-Wan’s shoulder and said, “With one quick sweep of a lightsaber, you gave hope to everyone who saw your blade. Except for the bad guys, that is. Your lightsaber brought them to their knees, and without spilling a drop of blood.”

  “Well,” Obi-Wan said, “I did destroy the one guard’s blaster—”

  “Haw!” Dexter laughed. “That you did, but still…consider this, my young friend. Many weapons can kill, but only the lightsaber can inspire such extremes of hope or fear. And I shall add that I will be forever glad that only Jedi carry lightsabers.” He raised his glass to Qui-Gon.

  As the Jedi prepared to leave Ord-Sigatt, Jettster walked with them back to their waiting transport. As they neared the hangar, Jettster pulled Obi-Wan aside and whispered, “Listen, son. Thanks for not telling anyone how I blabbed about the blasters or the missing freighter. You saved my reputation.”

  Obi-Wan grinned. “Take care of yourself, Dexter,” he said, extending his hand.

  “A handshake just won’t do, son,” Dexter said, and he grabbed the boy and lifted him off his feet to embrace him in a four-armed hug. “Until we meet again.”

  With Ben Kenobi’s journal spread open before him, Luke Skywalker reviewed the instructions for building lightsabers. Ben’s cellar workshop was equipped with most of the tools he would need, but he would have to collect most of the weapon’s electronic and mechanical parts from dealers, which meant a trip to one of Tatooine’s spaceports. Mos Espa was closer to Ben’s house, but was also crawling with Imperial spies, so he would have to go to Mos Eisley. Princess Leia, Han Solo’s first mate Chewbacca the Wookiee, and their new ally Lando Calrissian were already in Mos Eisley, trying to gain information about the whereabouts of Boba Fett. Luke was expecting his friends to arrive soon and give him an update, so he could then ride back with them to Mos Eisley.

  As for the lightsaber’s focusing crystal, that would be the real trick. Because he didn’t have any natural jewels at his disposal, he would need to build or buy a small furnace to create and form the jewel, and then he would have to cut the jewel and polish it. There was also the matter of installing the crystal and tuning the lightsaber’s photoharmonics. Although Ben’s instructions were clearly written, it seemed the entire construction process was an inexact science, and possibly dangerous. If Luke made even a minor error, the lightsaber could explode in his hands.

  Luke was sitting at the low round table in Ben’s living area as he prepared a list of components he hoped to obtain in Mos Eisley. Lifting his gaze, Luke saw R2-D2 standing on the other side of the table, watching him. It had been in this same room that Ben had first told Luke about how his father had been a Jedi Knight, who was betrayed and murdered by Ben’s pupil, Darth Vader. Recalling Vader’s contradictory claim at Cloud City, Luke wished he knew the whole story.

  Ben had described Luke’s father as a cunning warrior and a good friend. On Dagobah, Master Yoda had commented that Luke, like his father, had “much anger” in him. Were they even talking about the same person?

  Luke wanted to read more of Ben’s journal, but then he heard a landspeeder approach. He peered out a window to confirm the speeder carried Leia and the others. He quickly returned Ben’s journal to the boa-wood box in the cellar, then instructed R2-D2 to stand guard while he went to Mos Eisley. As he left Ben’s house, he found himself wondering absently, I wonder what my father was like when Ben first met him?

  Qui-Gon should have returned by now, thought Obi-Wan Kenobi. He sat in the bridge of the gleaming Naboo Royal Starship, which had landed at the outskirts of Mos Espa Spaceport on the remote planet Tatooine. Obi-Wan was now twenty-five years old, and in his twelve years as Qui-Gon Jinn’s apprentice, he had come to know his Master’s eccentricities well.

  Although Qui-Gon was regarded as a most capable Jedi Knight, he also had a reputation for ignoring rules and following his own instincts. He routinely questioned authority, including the Jedi Council. He had even turned down at least one opportunity to join the Council because he refused to be tied down to their “orthodox philosophies.” He had excellent manners but seemed to prefer food that did not require utensils. He was almost overwhelmingly empathetic with all life forms, even if the creature happened to be some monster that was trying to take his head off.

  But Obi-Wan had never known Qui-Gon to behave quite so i
rrationally as he had over the past two days. Looking out the bridge’s viewport and seeing no sign of Qui-Gon on the surrounding desert wastes, he thought, What’s taking him so long?

  Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan were acting as emergency guardians for Queen Amidala of Naboo. Their original mission had been to dispel the Neimoidian Trade Federation’s illegal blockade of Naboo, but that was before the Trade Federation’s droids destroyed their Republic cruiser and tried to kill them. Hoping to deliver Amidala to Coruscant, where she could formally protest the Trade Federation’s actions, the Jedi had fled Naboo with the Queen’s entourage in the Royal Starship, only to be immediately attacked by Trade Federation forces. Had it not been for the swift action of the astromech droid R2-D2, who managed to repair the ship’s damaged shield generator while under heavy fire, they never would have survived the escape. Unfortunately, the starship’s T-14 hyperdrive was damaged beyond repair, leaving them unable to continue to Coruscant.

  Seeking a safe place to land, Obi-Wan had used the ship’s navicomputer to locate Tatooine, a desert world that was small, out of the way, and poor. These aspects, along with the fact that Tatooine was controlled by the Hutts, ensured that the Trade Federation had no presence on the world.

  Shortly after their landing, Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan had both acknowledged that they felt a disturbance in the Force. Obi-Wan had remained with the ship while Qui-Gon led a small party to obtain a replacement hyperdrive from a parts dealership in Mos Espa. After that, the detour to Tatooine had taken a series of even stranger turns.

  Evidently, there was only one working-condition T-14 hyperdrive available in Mos Espa, but its junk-dealer owner—Watto, a Toydarian who was immune to Jedi mind tricks—refused to accept the Republic credits that Qui-Gon offered. But Qui-Gon had also encountered a nine-year-old boy, a slave owned by Watto, who wanted to help the Jedi. Much to Obi-Wan’s bafflement, Qui-Gon had endorsed the boy’s plan to compete in a Podrace so that he might win a cash prize, which he would then donate for the purchase of the hyperdrive. Apparently, the boy’s mother—also Watto’s slave—had supported this plan, too.

  But that was only part of the story. The night before the Podrace, Qui-Gon had discreetly acquired a blood sample from the boy and transmitted the sample’s data to Obi-Wan. Using an analysis device in the starship, Obi-Wan had confirmed that the boy had a midi-chlorian count that was over 20,000 per cell, which was higher than Master Yoda’s.

  Obi-Wan wondered how such a thing could be possible. Could the boy be stronger with the Force than Yoda? Although he understood why Qui-Gon would find the boy intriguing, he also wondered if the boy had become a distraction to their mission.

  What could Qui-Gon be thinking? Even with that kind of midi-chlorian count, the boy’s too old to begin Jedi training. It’s not as if we can do anything beyond possibly liberating him from the Toydarian’s ownership.

  As things had turned out, the boy won the Podrace and also his freedom. Following the race, Qui-Gon had returned to the starship and delivered the necessary parts, but then declared that he was going back to Mos Espa for “some unfinished business,” and instructed Obi-Wan to install the hyperdrive unit.

  Which Obi-Wan had done. The ship was ready to launch. They were just waiting for Qui-Gon.

  Where is he?

  The disturbance in the Force was almost tangible, as if an ominous current charged the air. Obi-Wan rose from his seat on the bridge and glanced at the ship’s pilot, Ric Olié, who had so skillfully guided them through the blockade at Naboo. Olié appeared relatively composed as he checked his instrument console, completely oblivious to the disturbance Obi-Wan sensed.

  Suddenly the door behind them slid open. Obi-Wan turned to see a young, blond-haired boy in ragged clothes lead the Queen’s head of security Captain Panaka and handmaiden Padmé Naberrie onto the bridge.

  “Qui-Gon’s in trouble!” Panaka said.

  Because the Queen’s safety was the top priority of the mission, Obi-Wan looked to Ric Olié and said, “Take off.” As Olié’s fired up the engines, Obi-Wan hunkered down beside the pilot and peered through the viewport. Outside, a short distance from the starship, he saw two figures engaged in a lightsaber duel. One figure was Qui-Gon. The other was a black-robed humanoid wielding a red lightsaber.

  “Over there,” Obi-Wan instructed the pilot. “Fly low.”

  The starship lifted off the ground and traveled fast toward Qui-Gon’s position. Olié retracted the landing gear but left the portside hatch open and its boarding ramp extended. Obi-Wan kept his eyes on the duel. The sweeping blades had become a furious, deadly blur as they smashed again and again at each other. He could only imagine the identity and origin of Qui-Gon’s opponent, or where the creature had learned to fight with a lightsaber, but he had never seen Qui-Gon engaged with such a deadly adversary.

  Obi-Wan lost sight of Qui-Gon as the ship traveled over the duelists, but then Olié pointed to a monitor and said, “He’s onboard!” The monitor displayed an interior view of the forward hold. Qui-Gon had leapt onto the boarding ramp and rolled into the rapidly rising starship.

  Obi-Wan raced for the forward hold, the boy following at his heels. Entering the hold, they found R2-D2 beside Qui-Gon’s supine form. The boy cried out, “Are you all right?”

  “I think so,” Qui-Gon answered breathlessly as he pushed himself up to a seated position. Obi-Wan and the boy crouched down beside him.

  “What was it?” Obi-Wan asked.

  “I’m not sure,” Qui-Gon replied, still gasping, “but it was well-trained in the Jedi arts.”

  R2-D2 emitted a worried beep, and then Qui-Gon continued, “My guess is it was after the Queen.”

  The boy’s eyes went wide with worry at this, and he exclaimed, “What are we gonna do about it?”

  Obi-Wan glanced at the boy. We?

  Qui-Gon sighed, then faced Anakin and said, “We shall be patient.” Then he gestured from the boy to his apprentice and said, “Anakin Skywalker, meet Obi-Wan Kenobi.”

  “Hi,” Anakin said as he pumped Obi-Wan’s hand. “Are you a Jedi, too?”

  Obi-Wan smiled politely and nodded.

  Anakin smiled back. “Pleased to meet you.”

  He looks so…ordinary, Obi-Wan thought. Despite the fact that Jedi were trained from an early age to know that people as well as things were not always what they appeared, Obi-Wan would never have guessed or imagined that the boy beside him might be more powerful than Master Yoda.

  After delivering Queen Amidala to Coruscant, Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon brought Anakin to the Jedi Temple. There, the small, green-skinned Jedi Master Yoda, Mace Windu, and their ten fellow members of the Jedi Council were alarmed to hear Qui-Gon’s account of his duel on Tatooine. For a thousand years, the Jedi Order had believed that their deadliest enemies, the Sith, were extinct, but after listening to Qui-Gon, they suspected that the Sith had at long last resurfaced.

  The Jedi Council and Obi-Wan were even more astonished when Qui-Gon asserted his belief that Anakin Skywalker had been conceived by the midi-chlorians, and that he was the Chosen One, a Jedi who would fulfill an ancient prophecy to destroy the Sith and bring balance to the Force. Despite the fact that most Jedi were brought into the Jedi Order at infancy, the Jedi Council reluctantly agreed to test Anakin’s powers.

  While the tests were in progress, Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon adjourned to a Temple balcony. The sun was setting over Galactic City, and there was heavy air traffic in the sky. Obi-Wan said, “The boy will not pass the Council’s tests, Master. He’s too old.”

  Qui-Gon replied. “Anakin will become a Jedi, I promise you.”

  “Do not defy the Council, Master…not again.”

  “I shall do what I must, Obi-Wan.”

  “If you just follow the code, you would be on the Council. They will not go along with you this time.”

  Qui-Gon placed his hand on Obi-Wan’s shoulder and said, “You still have much to learn, my young apprentice.”

  Obi-Wan gazed out across the surrounding s
kyscrapers. “What if the boy decides he wants to be with his mother?”

  “That would be Anakin’s choice,” Qui-Gon said. “However, I’ve already taken a step to help his mother. I’ve arranged for a courier to go to Tatooine and deliver a Tobal lens to Shmi Skywalker.”

  “A Tobal lens?” Obi-Wan said. “You mean the crystal used to convert heat to light, the type used to power Renatta photon drives?”

  Qui-Gon nodded. “The Toydarian who owns Shmi won’t accept Republic credits, and he would be suspicious, to say the least, if Shmi suddenly had any large amount of currency to buy her freedom. However, I believe that if Shmi acquired an item such as a Tobal lens, she would recognize its value as a bargaining chip.”

  Obi-Wan shook his head. “You can be most baffling, Master.”

  Qui-Gon shrugged. “As I said, you have much to learn.”

  After the tests were done, Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon rejoined Anakin before the Council. As Obi-Wan had predicted, the Council deemed Anakin too old to become a Jedi. Yoda said the boy would not be trained.

  “He is the Chosen One,” Qui-Gon maintained. “You must see it.”

  Yoda closed his large, wise eyes and tilted his small head back. “Mmm. Clouded, this boy’s future is.”

  Obi-Wan sensed what the members of the Council were thinking. They all believe Anakin is dangerous.

  “I will train him, then,” Qui-Gon said, calmly but still defiantly. Stepping beside Anakin, he placed his hands on the boy’s shoulders and proclaimed, “I take him as my Padawan learner.”

  Indicating Obi-Wan, Yoda said “An apprentice, you have, Qui-Gon. Impossible, to take on a second.”

  “The code forbids it,” added Mace Windu.

  Qui-Gon said, “Obi-Wan is ready.”

  Facing Yoda, Obi-Wan stepped forward to stand beside Qui-Gon and declared, “I am ready to face the trials.”

  “Our own counsel we will keep on who is ready,” Yoda said.