The Dangerous Rescue

CHAPTER 8

  Obi-Wan had captured her laser whip back on Simpla-12. He was not

  happy to see that she had replaced it. It danced toward him, an arc of

  supple, lethal light. He struck out at the whip before it reached him. The

  two lasers tangled and smoked.

  He could not move as fast as Ona Nobis. That, he remembered. He could

  not defeat her with quickness. She was an astoundingly agile fighter with

  lightning-fast moves. Her mind was quick as well. She always had surprises

  up her sleeve.

  Cleverness. Acrobatics. Cunning. Flexibility. She had everything he

  had been taught was important in battle. His adversary did not have the

  Force, but she might have the advantage.

  In this partially enclosed space, he was too vulnerable. He must get

  out in the open. Obi-Wan drove Ona Nobis back with a furious flurry of

  moves, forcing her to concentrate on defending herself. When she was

  slightly off balance he vaulted to the top of the unfinished wall.

  Balancing for a moment, he leaped down into the construction site.

  Here there were obstacles - graysleds, drills, large piles of metal

  poles, blocks of stone, a durasteel skeleton of the exterior walls of the

  wing, a deep, muddy pit. Yet he could use them for defense and attack. Here

  the Force could help him.

  The whip snaked to the top of the wall behind him, curling around an

  exposed rod. A moment later Ona Nobis used it to haul herself up. Her head

  swiveled toward him in the black visor she wore to conceal her eyes. Then

  she leaped down, landing lightly, already furling the whip for another

  attack.

  Her lips curled back from her teeth. "I've been waiting for this,"

  she said.

  He was ready. Every sense was alert, every particle of his being

  focused on the battle ahead. He had to be. The trick was to get her close.

  From a distance, she used the whip to devastating effect. If he were

  closer, she would have no room to maneuver.

  The perfect attack begins with your attention. Every pebble can be an

  obstacle or an opportunity. Hone your focus. Add speed, timing, strategy,

  surprise. Do not forget the Force is with you.

  Obi-Wan leaped to his opponent's left side. He used a technique Qui-

  Gon called "false attack." He knew he would not win with this strategy, but

  he did not mean to. He wanted to draw her forward toward him.

  His lightsaber whirled and blurred as he moved, deflecting her

  curling whip with its spiked edge. He saw her hand move toward the blaster

  strapped to her hip and he blocked it with a flurry of moves so fast she

  had to concentrate to keep up.

  The ground was treacherous with mud and debris, but he used the Force

  to aid every step. He leaped on a pyramid of stone blocks and used the

  momentum to flip in midair and come at her left. Instead of stepping

  backward, she stepped forward, an unexpected move for anyone but Ona Nobis.

  Good. He had expected it, planned for it.

  He twisted in midair, adding momentum to his leap. He landed behind

  her. Now her back was to a sinkhole filled with mud and water. There was no

  telling if it was shallow or meters deep.

  He drove her relentlessly backward. He saw her lip curl with anger as

  she flicked the whip, sending it within millimeters of his flesh. He

  slashed downward. The lasers tangled with a buzzing noise.

  Suddenly the blaster was in her hand. He had only caught a blur of

  movement as she reached for ft. But he was ready, his lightsaber spinning

  in a continuous arc to deflect the fire. The Force surged in him, making

  every movement sure.

  But he could not concentrate on everything at once. He lost his

  connection to the ground. Chips of stone lay around the muddy surface, and

  they were slippery. His foot slid and he lost his balance. He caught

  himself before he fell but his loss of concentration cost him.

  She moved to his right and charged, firing as she went. Obi-Wan slid

  on the slippery stones, struggling to regain his footing as he deflected

  the furious round of fire, twisting his body. He felt the rush of air as

  the whip snaked around him.

  For the first time, he was seriously worried. He was outmatched and

  he knew it. He did not have Qui-Gon's perfect mastery of the Force. And he

  could not meet the dual challenge of the whip and the blaster. He could not

  get close enough to disarm her, and he doubted he would be lucky enough to

  capture the whip a second time. He had only managed to do so back on

  Simpla-12 because Astri had barreled down on Ona Nobis in a gravsled.

  Doubt is your first enemy. How many times had he heard that in class?

  Yet he knew deep within that this doubt was justified. With a whip as well

  as a blaster, she could keep him running while she remained still. Sooner

  or later he would tire. He saw how much he depended on Qui-Gon during a

  battle. He could pick up on Qui-Gon's strategy, but he could not formulate

  it himself. He would put up a good fight, maybe even wound her, if he were

  lucky to get close enough. But she would win. She knew this territory well

  and she had set the trap. He had walked right into it.

  All of these calculations roared through Obi-Wan's mind even as he

  regained his footing and faked a pass at Ona Nobis, forcing her to retreat

  a few steps. He knew it was a temporary victory.

  The hardest decision, Qui-Gon had told him once, is to walk away. He

  had not understood that. Until now. It went against everything he'd learned

  about battle, everything he was as a Jedi.

  Or did it? The mission was his first concern.

  Ona Nobis was not part of his mission. As far as they knew, she had

  no connection to Jenna Zan Arbor now. She had picked a fight solely for

  revenge.

  Which meant there was no reason to fight. Behind Ona Nobis, tall

  girders framed a wall of the wing. He needed a few seconds, that was all

  Concentrating all his will, he reached out a hand toward a

  fusioncutter lying on the ground. He felt the Force move, and the

  fusioncutter slid along the mud and then flew with sudden momentum straight

  toward Ona Nobis.

  Surprised, she slashed at it with her whip. Obi-Wan felt the power in

  his legs as he leaped straight over her head toward the girder above. He

  landed, slipping just a bit from the mud on his boots. But he knew he would

  regain his balance. He bent his legs and leaped again, this time to a

  higher girder.

  Far below, the whip snaked toward him. It could not reach him as he

  leaped to the next high girder. From here, he leapfrogged his way down, out

  of her reach at the far side of the site. Her howl of rage rang in his ears

  as he raced away.

  CHAPTER 9

  Siri was waiting for Obi-Wan back in the atrium, her vivid blue eyes

  snapping with impatience.

  "This place is crazy," she said before Obi-Wan could speak. "There is

  no Wing M. Or if there is, I can't find it, and would you care to make a

  bet on how helpful the Sorrusians were? Plus, Astri isn't even registered

  here. I went to Wing A, and they had never heard of her. So then I asked

  about Rai Unlu. Get this - they've n
ever heard of him, either. Or at least

  that's what they tell me. I don't know whether they're lying, or I'm

  trapped in a nightmare." For the first time, Siri noticed Obi-Wan's mud-

  splattered tunic and dirty face. "Did you fall in a puddle?"

  "I had a run-in with Ona Nobis," Obi-Wan said. "This whole thing was

  a setup. I don't think Astri's here at all. Ona Nobis lured us here to get

  revenge on me."

  "So what happened?" Siri asked, instantly poised for action.

  Obi-Wan thought the decision to leave the battle was hard. He hadn't

  thought ahead to telling Siri. This was harder.

  "We fought. I left," he said.

  Siri looked incredulous. "You ran away?"

  Obi-Wan felt his annoyance rise. Why did Siri have to put it that

  way? He struggled not to let his anger show. The best way to tell her what

  happened was not to offer excuses.

  "I was outmatched this time." The words seemed to come out smoothly,

  but they felt as though they'd been torn from his throat.

  Siri opened her mouth, then snapped it shut. Obviously, there were

  many things she wanted to say. Just as obviously, Adi had taught her well.

  For once, she kept her thoughts to herself.

  Yet the expression on her face spoke more clearly than anything she

  could have said. Siri could not understand leaving the scene of a battle.

  She could not imagine a situation in which she would give up. She had not

  been in as many battles as Obi-Wan. She was more used to the training rooms

  at the Temple, where she had usually been the winner. When she had lost,

  she had bowed to her opponent with grace. Then she beat them in the next

  encounter.

  She did not yet realize that even for the best Jedi, there were

  battles that could not be won. Qui-Gon had taught Obi-Wan that. As skilled

  a fighter as he was, Qui-Gon knew that surprises in battle came often. You

  could train for them, but you could not predict them. Sometimes you had to

  cut your losses.

  He wanted to tell Siri this, but Siri would not listen. She liked to

  find things out her own way. And you did not go to her for a sympathetic

  ear.

  "We'd better contact Qui-Gon and Adi," Obi-Wan said, turning away.

  They found a secluded place to talk in the gardens in the center of

  the med complex. Qui-Gon's calm voice came through the comlink, and Obi-Wan

  quickly described what had occurred.

  There was a pause. "You did well, Padawan," Qui-Gon said. Obi-Wan

  felt some of the tension inside his body uncurl. Qui-Gon understood his

  decision, at least. "Ona Nobis is only a distraction for us now. But this

  news distresses me. Astri has not checked in with Tahl. If Ona Nobis used

  her as a lure, that means she must know that Astri is on Sorrus. She must

  know where she is."

  "Siri and I can look for her - "

  "No," Qui-Gon interrupted. "Hard as it is, I must agree with Tahl.

  Astri has made her own decision. She has not asked for our help." "But - "

  "Obi-Wan, listen to me. Do nothing. Tahl, Adi, and I will discuss

  this. You and Siri return to the Temple immediately."

  It was Qui-Gon's sternest voice. Obi-Wan tucked his comlink back into

  his belt. Reluctantly, he turned to Siri. "We'll be able to hitch a ride

  from the main landing platform."

  She nodded. She was silent on the walk back to the landing platform.

  Obi-Wan did not know what to say, either. He and Siri had formed a bond

  during their adventure on Kegan. He had liked her spirit and humor and had

  depended on her courage. Obviously, they still had a distance to travel

  before they became real friends. He felt a sudden sharp ache for his friend

  Bant, who would never let him feel like a coward for leaving the scene of a

  battle. She would trust his judgment. Siri only trusted her own.

  When they got to the landing platform, Obi-Wan looked for a hauler on

  a direct run to Coruscant. The first pilot he approached refused, but

  pointed to another pilot nearby.

  "Donny Buc is about to make a run. He'll probably let you hitch a

  ride. He's been laid up for repairs for a day, but he's ready to roll."

  Obi-Wan saw a pilot squatting near his ship, drinking a carton of

  muja juice. He signaled to Siri and approached him.

  "Sure, I can always find room for Jedi," the pilot said. "Are you

  ready to leave now?"

  "Yes." Obi-Wan had a sudden impulse. "By any chance, has someone else

  tried to hitch a ride earlier today? She's tall and has a shaved head - "

  "Sure, I remember her," the pilot said, taking a last gulp of juice.

  He wore a tattered leather helmet and sported a short black beard. "Her and

  some of her friends were looking for transport to the far desert."

  "Friends?" Obi-Wan asked, puzzled.

  "Three of them," the pilot said. "They kept quarreling about how much

  they were willing to pay. Wouldn't listen to a word the girl said."

  Obi-Wan closed his eyes. "Their names wouldn't be Cholly, Weez, and

  Tup, by any chance?"

  "That was them!" the pilot chortled. "What a bunch of chuckleheads."

  "Did you transport them to Arra?" Obi-Wan asked. That was no doubt

  where she was headed.

  He shook his head. "Couldn't swing it, I had repairs to wait for. I

  told them to take an air taxi. Saw them heading toward the taxi platform."

  Obi-Wan drew Siri aside. "Now we can be pretty sure that Astri is

  here. We've got to check this out. It won't take long. If this pilot will

  take us to Arra first, we can pick up Astri and bring her back with us to

  the Temple."

  "But Qui-Gon and Adi want us to return immediately."

  "That was before we knew for sure that Astri was here," Obi-Wan

  argued. "We know that Ona Nobis is here in the capital city, so we won't be

  in danger. We can swing by, pick up Astri, and head straight for the

  Temple."

  Siri shook her head. "We are wasting time, Obi-Wan. I don't

  understand why we had to rescue Astri in the first place. Why is Qui-Gon

  bending the rules for this girl? She isn't a Jedi. She can't lead us to

  Jenna Zan Arbor. This is a distraction."

  "She needs us," Obi-Wan said. "Qui-Gon has known her since she was a

  child. If she is in danger and we can help, we must. Your Master sent you

  here to Sorrus, just as much as Qui-Gon did."

  Siri gave him a stony glance. "Adi did not want to. She went along

  with Qui-Gon out of loyalty."

  "Then you should do the same for me."

  Siri said nothing for a long moment. She squinted into the distance,

  as if counting the tall buildings in Yinn La Hi. "All right," she said

  finally. "But we must not delay more than a few hours."

  Obi-Wan quickly made a deal with the pilot.

  "All right. It's only a little out of my way," the pilot said. "I

  wouldn't want your friend to get herself in trouble."

  They boarded the transport and took off. Obi-Wan's impatience made

  the flight seem to last forever. As the pilot slowed the engines and began

  landing procedures, a blinking warning light suddenly lit on the panel.

  "Well, eclipse my moon, there's that same problem," he said, hitting

  the panel with an angry fist. "That mechanic didn't fix my pr
oblem after

  all. Maybe I shouldn't have bought that discount part. I'm going to have to

  drop you and head back to Yinn."

  "But we have to get to Coruscant!" Siri exclaimed.

  "Well, you can come back with me, if you want," Donny Buc said

  genially, slowing the engines further. "Don't worry, we'll make it back to

  the landing platform. Should be a couple of hours, that's all."

  Siri groaned in frustration. "I don't believe this! We could have

  been halfway to Coruscant by now."

  "Sorry, little girl," Buc said cheerfully. "The hyperdrive's busted.

  Lucky we made this detour so I can get back to the mechanic. You could

  hitch another ride from Yinn, I guess. But nobody else was making a run

  near Coruscant today."