Ghost of Nightmares Past/Chapter 14

BACK TO THE TEMPLE

Obi-Wan dared not open his eyes, just because he didn't want to see what was around him. Yet, he could hear Ahsoka's voice, as she tried desperately to comfort Anakin.

"Master, I'm so sorry,"

"Stop it Snips," He heard Anakin say; his voice was shaking with grief. "I can't lose him again, not after Jabiim. I just can't."

Obi-Wan felt the wound on his chest pierce him with pain for a moment, and he heaved a small breath through his now working lungs. Finally, his eyelids, quivered, and he slowly opened them. Anakin had his head bowed low, his brown hair tickling Obi-Wan's cheek, which felt wet, where Anakin's tears had fallen. Ahsoka had her arms around Anakin, her head on top of his, her head-tails falling onto his puffy hair. "We've got a job to do," Mace's voice sounded from somewhere close. "Bruck will be going to the temple, to kill Yoda and the others. We must get there fast." "What about communications?" Ahsoka asked. "Can we tell them?"

"We can't," Rex's voice sounded, "He has skilfully jammed all our transmissions to the Temple as soon as we arrived on the planet. By the time we get the Cruiser in the air, it'll be too late. General Tachi had gone on ahead to warn them."

"I'm not leaving just yet," Anakin said softly, almost too quietly for them to hear. "I...I want to give Obi-Wan a proper burial...somewhere...somewhere on Naboo...where Qui-gon is buried."

Obi-Wan felt the pang of guilt in his heart for not speaking that moment, but he just felt too tired to move just now, as the rest of his body began to regain control properly and closed his eyes again.

"Can you feel that?" Ahsoka suddenly said.

"Yes," Mace said, and Obi-Wan can feel his eyes turn towards him. He felt Anakin shift above him, and felt his head on his chest.

"I can hear a heart-beat." Anakin finally said. Obi-Wan was suddenly shook slightly, "Obi-Wan?"

His head was thumping like anything now, and slowly, he huffed, as Anakin shook him again, "Ouch, my head."

He opened his eyes.

Anakin was staring at him disbelievingly, Ahsoka was smiling, and Mace was just staring at him with wonder in his eyes. Finally, Anakin spoke, anger plain in his voice "You...left me hanging for all this time, and now you decide to open your eyes?"

Obi-Wan chuckled, and, slowly, pushed himself off the ground. The clones backed off slightly as he held himself up with his hands, and he stared down at his chest. "Ah, that looks bad." He said, staring at the smouldering hole in his chest. He looked behind him, where the entry point was visible. "And so does that."

He tried to get to his feet, but they were numb, and Anakin placed his hands on his arms and slowly pulled him up to his feet. Obi-Wan swayed, and stared back at the hole in his chest. "Can I maybe get something to cover it up?"

A clone handed him a robe, and he pulled it around him. He turned to regard the three amazed Jedi behind him. "Come on, let's stop wasting time on how I managed to come back from the dead, and get back to the Temple before Bruck kills everyone."

And he turned, walking back to the Cruiser, with the Clones and the others rushing with him.

The first thing Obi-Wan did was go in the Bacta Tank. After arguing with the ten medics on the Cruiser, he finally decided to go in, and try and get the wound on his chest to heal over. After stripping, he pulled the oxygen mask on, and, slowly, he was lowered down into the blue liquid.

Five minutes, he was told.

As he floated in the blue liquid, he closed his eyes, trying to reflect on what he needed to do, and how he was going to do it.

He was standing over the little Green creature, sabre drawn and ready, as the other Jedi ignited their own sabres. In a swift movement, he pulled the force to him and expelled it in a repulse, lightning flashing and striking the marble work of the Temple.

"STOP!"

He turned, as the stonework started to litter the ground, as a hooded figure walked towards him, sabre drawn and ignited. Ready to duel.

His enemy pulled his robe off him, and, with a snarl, he began the duel, bringing the red blade crashing onto the blue...

Obi-Wan opened his eyes, suddenly afraid. He had never fully accomplished a Force Repulse, and when he did, it was in small bursts, like he did with Durge. He had never attempted one with such a high scale as the one he had just seen. Slowly, he turned his head to his chest, smiling when he saw the skin was healed over, only slightly darker than the rest of his skin. He raised his head, and the medics pulled him out of the tank. Coughing and shaking his head free of the liquid, the medics helped dry him and give him fresh clothes to wear. Once changed, and his hair was dry, he took his sabre from the stand where his clothes lay, and walked up towards the bridge.

Mace was standing, arms at his sides, Anakin and Ahsoka next to him. When Obi-Wan joined him, Mace instantly said, "We've just received a transmission that Bruck is about to enter the Temple, and that the rest of the Jedi are on high alert."

"Won't be enough to stop him though," Obi-Wan said, folding his arms, as the Clones activated the hyper jump. "I had a vision of him using a very powerful Force Repulse. More powerful than anything I have ever seen."

"Master Yoda will stop him," Ahsoka said, sounding confident. "I know he will."

"No," Obi-Wan said shortly, and they all stared at him. "When I was at the Ghost Plain, I met Qui-gon," He ignored Anakin as he perked up instantly. "He explained to me that when the Sith resurrected Bruck, they forgot to mention one little detail to him. He can only be killed by the person that killed him previously. Which was me."

"You killed him?" Anakin asked, staring at his former master. "But...why?"

"Bruck was turning to the Dark Side Anakin," Mace answered for him. "He was stealing. He attempted to kill Yoda numerous of times and pinned the blame on Obi-Wan. He tried to kill Bant by drowning her, and he would have succeeded if Obi-Wan had not stopped him. Bruck broke his own neck and slipped." "I would have caught him, but I was too slow." Obi-Wan said sadly. "He fell to his death because of my weakness."

"But you did what was right!" Ahsoka said instantly. "If we were in that position, we would have done the same!"

The Cruiser lurched as it came out of hyper space. As it descended the atmosphere of Corusant, Obi-Wan felt a massive force signature that he instantly identified as Bruck's. That meant he was on the planet. "Sir?" A clone said, "The Chancellor is here."

Obi-Wan peered through the window of the bridge, and, true enough, he could see the white hair of Palpatine, and the blue horned head of Mas Ammedda. Anakin slowly led them to the ramp, as it lowered. Instantly, Palpatine was at Anakin's side, sadness on his face. "I'm so sorry for your loss, Anakin."

"Er.." Anakin started, and he stepped to the side, showing Obi-Wan before the Chancellor. Palpatine gazed at him, and his mouth hung open.

"Oh my goodness me!" He said, clasping a hand to his heart. "I'm sorry my friend. It's just...Master Yoda said he..." "I was sent back," Obi-Wan said, bowing slightly to him. "If you excuse me, I must get to the Jedi Temple."