Saga The Threat of Waking--Sequel to 'If I Were..." 7.13

Wahh! Wow, he's out of it. But he's on his way...to another prison. Sheesh. And I thought I was mean to him.

Lovely job, LE!

Shaindl

 

Poor Obi! Maybe instead of sending him back to the temple, I should just go take care of him.
Another wonderful post...keep them coming. You are such an inspiration for a newbie writer like myself!

 

Close to the ending already? Ohhhh boy oh boy! Can't wait to see when Qui gets the message and arrives to see how bad shape he's in. I wonder if he's gonna go ballistic?? "Who did this?! Where are they?!" I can almost picture his burning blue eyes!!!

Great work! Sad he thought it was his Master there all along. Poor Obi!!

 

Poor kid. I'm glad he was able to tell them who he is. Like Shaindl mentioned, it's rather sad to think what he is going back to.

 

Whoa boy, the poor kid is really out of it. And he's going to go back to another prison!!! Oh, dear.

Keep going.

 

Qui's coming to make it all better soon, I hope.

 

Is Qui really going to be there soon? Or will you have another evil twist for us? But Shaindl is right. You can be really mean to him.

I still want to know what will happen next!

 

I'm so muddled today that when Shaindle said he's on his way to another prison, I didn't think he had been rescued- then I remembered the other story.

 

These last chapters have been so good! I feel terrible that I haven't been able to keep up with it. I'm glad he got rescued, but worried about the prison he will find himself in.

 

Wow! You have done a beautiful job with this LE. I have finally caught up and love what you have done with this story. Getting inside of Obi-Wan's head makes the coming problems with Qui-Gon so much harder to take. That last post with Obi-Wan so out of it and looking for his master was heartbreaking.

More soon please, Obi-Wan needs his master.

 

My predictions were correct about this. It's sooo much more difficult to write than 'Eyes' was.

Shaindl Thank you!

jm2 To be told you're an inspiration is about the best compliment I can think of. Thank you, so much!

Kynstar I'm looking forward to writing Qui-Gon's reaction a lot.

o_e Don't worry! It all ends up good at the end, remember?

diane

Opal I hope so too! [face_shocked]

Indra Evil twist? Just who do you take me for?

PK

L_S Don't worry about it! I know that some people have lives...I just don't happen to be one of them! Glad you're enjoying!

Sheila Look what they have now: Isn't it great? And thank you for your comments, of course.



Nine: Hallucinations

I dreamed of nothing at all, except feeling, if you can qualify that as dreaming. As I slept, I was surrounded in a downy cocoon of warmth and assuredness. The cold roil of unending awareness of my prison was gone. The bars dropped. I felt-I feel-safe.

Now my eyes open, and those emotions disappear.

Where am I now?

It?s a little room, with reflective steel walls and deep green material that covers the windows, the bed, me. The darkness is gray and fabricated.

I can?t remember much about my previous waking, only the soft, far off voices, but I know this isn?t the same place. It?s colder. Smaller.

And I?m alone.

Something thick rises in my throat. It can?t be my heart, because that?s still down at my chest, hammering against my rib cage. I sit up in a rush, not caring that the speed causes my head to throb and my vision to spin, sends currents of ache up my back and arms.

I feel like I?ve been thrown back to the cell, and I?ve awakened from the hot ether of sleep to find myself unmoved, to discover that my rescue was a tease born of my lonely, fevered mind.

Maybe it?s true. Hells, it?s not like I?ve never done it before.

Oh gods no oh gods oh force no

My breaths are coming fast, too fast. The word is ripped from my mouth, ?Master!?

I don?t wait to listen for footsteps. I repeat the name, over and over, sweat trickling from my forehead like melted ice down sunburned skin.

?MASTER!?

please let him be here please he has to be here he has to make it okay again

The door slides open and light breaks through the shadow, nearly blinding me. A towering form heads toward me, and moisture spikes my eyes.

?Master you?re here you?re here.? I?m gasping, unable to stop.

Arms wrap around me. ?Quiet now, young one. You need to sleep.?

I feel the voice reverberate against me. I can?t see his face. Not even an eye, as I could in the cell?s dust-caked floor. But it?s him. It must be him. Who else? Trembling, I lay my head down, and for a few minutes, experience the closest thing to peace I have in months.

?Mace? Is he alright?? Someone asks in the distance.

Mace? I open my eyes, narrow them, then look up. Through the clouds, I can make out Master Windu?s brown eyes, shining and solemn.

?Damn.? He swears, his gaze traveling from me to whoever stands at the door. ?No.?

I wipe at my face and pull back, the pain in my temples thudding. Mace reaches out to steady me, but I push his hands away. ?Wh-Where?s my Master??

He swallows, his dark countenance chiseled smoothly of composure and coolness.

And right now, I hate him for it. ?Where is he??

?Coruscant.? He replies in a low tone.

My stomach clenches. ?And where am I??

?On a transport ship. Back to Coruscant.? He sighs heavily. ?Obi-Wan, we?ll be at the Temple shortly. It was better that I just let you believe-?

?That he?s here?? I croak, the lump in my throat growing more dense and sour. I look around the room, jerking when I see that it?s empty. ?He?s not here. But he was. He had to be. He was there, to get me out and-? I seal my eyes, as dread binds me, strang

 

Oh, it's so sad to see Obi-Wan so broken and lost.

Good work!

 

That's just heartbreaking to read!

 

Oh, that was so sad. Obi-Wan can't tell reality from his nightmares any more. Oh dear, oh dear. He really needs Qui-Gon.

 

Oh wow, that was sad. But I loved Mace's compassion in trying to pass himself off as Qui just to take care of Obi-Wan. Now there's a character that really needs exploration by someone.

If you dare suggest me, LE, you're in trouble.

Lovely job; if this is any hint, the reunion between Master and Padawan is going to be absolutely heartbreaking.

Shaindl

 

I have to agree with my fellow readers--
Loved the scene between Mace and Obi-Wan. I can't wait for the reunion between Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon! Wonderful job! Keep it coming!

 

You tease, LE. Having it be Mace instead of Qui was not what any of us were expecting. Nicely done!

 

Poor Obi.. he had soooo hoped it was Qui... and when he was told that his Master was never there... poor kid!! Sad and torn... he's gonna be torn even when he meets back up with Qui-Gon. Boy feels betrayed somewhat. Poor kid.

Great play with Windu! Loved the little bit as well with him trying to play as Qui. And even 'hugging/holding' Obi!! Ahhhh chocolate eyes of his! hehehe sweet Mace!! Though not readily to admit that he wouldn't be! Catch the stern Master playing nice!!

Great job!!

 

i can't believe i missed so much of this. it's so sad so sad. kleneex should be sponsoring this. too bad OW won't be met with open arms by Qui-Gon. or he will but then Qui'll close the arms way too tight. please more! [-o|

 

jeday Thanks.

o_e

diane Don't worry. Qui-Gon approaches!

Shaindl Me, suggest a bunny to you? Isn't that o_e's job?

jm2 You'll get a taste of that reunion today!

PK Aw, don't cry yet. Wait until they can be happy tears!

Opal A tease? So I'm either evil or a tease. What do I have to do to get into your good graces?

Kynstar I thought ol' Windy would have a soft spot.

In_luv_wit_Kenobi But at least you got caught up! Glad to have you around, and hope you're enjoying!



Ten: The Precise Apparition

The ship rumbles. I can feel it under me.

We must have stopped.

I haven?t been able to escape this illusion yet. My sleep was short, disrupted whenever Master Windu or another passenger would come in, to change a bandage, offer sustenance, or see how I was feeling.

I wonder who these intruders really are, beneath the masks my subconscious has created for them. Maybe I?m in solitary again, and the jailers are bringing me my meager, dried out food portions for the day.

In either case, I haven?t accepted the meal. It sits on a metal tray a few feet from the bed. I?ve been hungry for as long as I can remember, the emptiness churning in my stomach. But I know what it?s like to believe that void has been filled again-I felt Qui-Gon?s arms around me for those few, deceitful moments-and I won?t subject my body to that same wicked game that was played on my mind.

The warm aroma wafts around my face. I turn away, facing the other wall.

I wish this dream were not so painful. Literally painful, from the bruises and bloody wounds. I need to be numb to it, but I haven?t found a way to accomplish that. Even after the passing of seven months, there?s still too much that seeps into my awareness.

Sleep never lasts long enough.

The door slides open, a clean, quick sound I?ve grown to loathe.

?Obi-Wan.? Mace?s quiet voice, behind me. ?We?ve landed.?

I wrap my arms tighter around myself. I know I?m real, it?s the only thing I can be certain of.

He steps closer and touches my back. ?Obi-Wan, your Master?s outside waiting for you.?

I shrink away from the hand and clench my eyes shut. ?Leave. Me. Alone.?

?He?s waiting with the healers. They?re all waiting to help you, Obi-Wan.?

I lift my eyes to his face, where a strip of shadow is slashed across the mahogany skin. So lifelike, but I don?t remember him being this cruel. ?Help me?? I can barely force the words out. ?Help me the way you?ve helped me??

Mace?s expression is unchanged. He sits beside me on the cot, and I make no move to evade his proximity. If anything, he?s a mirage. Insubstantial. A figment that?s walked out of my tortured dreams, to haunt me in this version of reality.

?Obi-Wan,? He grasps my arm gently, ?Why, after all this time, would you reject your Master??

The fingers are like sizzling venom on my skin. I sit up, immediately dizzy, but focused. ?I would never reject him.?

?Then why won?t you go to meet him??

I stare at him, incredulous, on the verge of an outraged, overwhelmed sob. ?He isn?t here! He?s gone. You?re gone.? Fire covers my face, soothed none by the moisture running down my cheeks. I can?t breathe. ?I know this isn?t real so just LEAVE ME ALONE!?

The scream has taken everything from me, gutted out the last bit of strength. I collapse on the bed and my head throbs.

For a few minutes, there is silence.

It isn?t beautiful. Or comforting.

It is nothing. And it?s what I?ve wanted all along. Now, if I could just slip away, fall from these last shackles that chain me to consciousness?

Something, someone pulls me up, into strong, unyielding arms.

I keep my eyes closed. ?Please leave me alone.? I can only give a croaking whisper and hope that finally I will be shown pity.

?I can?t do that.? A voice replies, rich and baritone, and despite myself, I have to look at the owner.

My Master?s face is

 

Oh, that's so sad. Poor Obi-Wan that he still believes that Qui-Gon is a figment of his imagination. That certainly explains why Qui-Gon is so solicitious of Obi-Wan. Poor both of them

Good job.

 

Damn you LE!!

 

you're still making me cry!

 

Where did I put my Kleenex's? Absolutely beautiful! It was heartbreaking to see Obi-Wan's belief that everything around him was a hallucination until his Master came! Thank you again for sharing your incredible talent with us! Looking forward to more Obi and Qui!