Consciousness came slowly, and with it came pain. A lot of pain. At first, Qui-Gon did not move; he was not sure he could.
"What happened?" His head throbbed like someone was working it with a hydraulic hammer. Slowly, memory came back to him. He remembered fighting the pirates, Obi-Wan was beside him... The captain of the Reliant had panicked and in the way of his people had sought destruction over capture. He keyed in the self-destruct code, setting off a deadly string of explosions. The pirates began fleeing back to their ships. There was an explosion right next to Qui-Gon which flung he and Obi-Wan opposite directions. The explosion knocked the Padawan out cold and dazed the Jedi Master. The next thing he was aware of he was being dragged out from under some wreckage by rough, urgent hands. Some of the pirates, mistaking the fallen Jedi for one of their own motley assortment of comrades, hauled him out of the rubble. Looking around desperately for his apprentice Qui-Gon caught sight of Vu Kaa's back as he carried Obi-Wan out of the bay, towards the escape pods.
"Vu Kaa!" he called, and he was almost certain that the other Jedi had heard him, how could he have not? But Vu Kaa did not hesitate for even a moment. Before Qui-Gon could follow, he felt the hands of the pirates on his arms, tugging at him, urging him toward the air locks a mere few meters away. He struggled with them for a moment, then the lights went out. From the way his head ached he guessed that they had deemed clubbing what they thought was their bewildered fellow brigand a faster way to gain his compliance than arguing with him.
It was indeed an odd twist of fate that had saved his life, but where was he now? Surely the pirates had realized their mistake by this time, depending on what 'this time' was. Questions swirled in his mind. Where was Obi-Wan? Was he all right? Why had Vu Kaa left him to what could very probably have been (or still might be for that matter) his death? Reaching out with the Force, he searched for his Padawan, but could not find him. He did not think he was dead, it didn't feel quite like that. They were simply too far apart for Qui-Gon to feel him, and for some reason, Obi-Wan was not reaching out to look for him.
Well, if he couldn't get any questions answered that way he would have to open his eyes and see where he was. Even the thought of so small a motion seemed exhausting to the weary Jedi. At last he overcame his fatigue and forced his eyelids open. He found that he was lying flat on his back on what felt like a cold, hard table in a dimly lit room of indeterminate size. His shirt and tunic were gone, and he found that his wrist and ankles were strapped quite securely to the table he lay on. He could not move. So, they had discovered their mistake then.
"Ah, he's waking up," he heard an unpleasant voice on his right say.
"Good," someone, also out of sight, on his left replied. "Trog will be pleased."
Qui-Gon did not have to wait long to find out who Trog was. Not many minuets later, a huge Togorian entered his line of sight. It was true that to the untrained eye, many humanoids of the same race looked alike, but even so, this Togorian struck Qui-Gon as remotely familiar somehow, with his dark hair and flashing green eyes.
The Togorian pushed his face right into Qui-Gon's, leering at him evilly.
"You don't know me Jedi," the pirate rasped, "But I know you. You killed my brother a year ago. Do you remember Jedi?!" Trog drew his arm back suddenly and punched down hard, socking his captive in the stomach. The force of it took Qui-Gon's breath away. As he struggled to regain the air he needed, Trog grabbed a hand-full of his hair, and pulled his head up, off the table. "That worthless mining ship, the Monument, do you remember?!" the Togorian nearly screamed, slamming the Jedi's head back against the table and bringing it up again.
Yes, Qui-Gon remembered very well, the whole, ill-fated trip. Not a thing had gone right from the beginning. Being attacked and boarded by pirates was merely one more incident amidst the chaos that that trip had become, albeit, one that very nearly got him killed. The particular Togorian that Qui-Gon felt sure Trog was referring to was the former captain of the crew that had attacked the Monument on its way to Bandomeer. The pirate captain had come very close to taking Qui-Gon's life that day, and had wounded the Jedi badly with his vibro-axe. It would have been Qui-Gon who did not survive the encounter, had not a young woman named Clat'Ha stepped in and blown the pirate captain's head off. In point of fact, it was she, not Qui-Gon who killed Trog's brother. Whoever Trog had gotten his information from had obviously gotten the facts a trifle garbled, but Qui-Gon did not imagine that trying to explain that would do any good.
Trog slammed his captive's head back once more, making bright flashes explode across Qui-Gon's vision. "Not everyone died that day Jedi. Some lived to tell the tale, and when I heard what happened I swore a blood-oath that one day I would avenge his death. Now, fate has granted me that opportunity." He grinned, showing Qui-Gon all his teeth.
"Padawan," Vu Kaa halted Obi-Wan in the middle of his lightsaber drill. "This is no good."
Obi-Wan extinguished his blade and wiped the perspiration from his brow. "I'm sorry Master. What did I do wrong?"
"It's not that. You preformed the exercise satisfactorily. It's us. We do not yet seem to have the proper kind of connection between us. If we cannot connect, my teaching and your efforts will both be in vain. Open your mind to me Obi-Wan, let us see if we cannot find the path to each other." Vu Kaa wondered if he were pushing the boy too fast, it had only been three days since the decimation of the Reliant. Although Obi-Wan had greatly impressed the older Jedi with the focus and determination that he showed to continue his training, he was still grieving deeply and Vu Kaa could feel it. It seemed that hardly five minutes could pass without the boy's thoughts returning to his former Master. This irritated Vu Kaa, but he tried to be patient, soon enough he would make the boy forget. The first step to that, or anything for that matter, was to be able to get inside Obi-Wan's head. This he could not do unless the apprentice chose to let him.
"Come here Padawan," he patted the space before him and Obi-Wan knelt obediently.
The apprentice's heart still seemed to cry every time he heard a voice that was not Qui-Gon's call him by that name. Obi-Wan felt strangely hesitant to open up to Vu Kaa. He chided himself for his reluctance and forced his mind to relax and remove its guard. This was his Master after all. If he could not trust him, whom could he trust? He felt Vu Kaa enter his mind, but it did not feel the same as when Qui-Gon would in past. Vu Kaa was looking, but not sharing much of himself in return. It was almost a one-way connection, with all the giving on the Padawan's side.
"Of course it doesn't feel the same," Vu Kaa chided him in his head. "Do two people ever feel the same? You must stop comparing he and I; we are different, which is as should be. We are different, and we teach differently. You must learn to follow my style now. I know it is difficult to change midstream, but I think you are strong enough to make the shift."
"Yes, sir," Obi-Wan agreed mentally.
"Yes, what?" Vu Kaa demanded a trifle sharply.
"Yes, Master," Obi-Wan corrected quickly. Somehow, it was even harder to use that term in his mind than it was with his mouth.
"Oh Obi-Wan, I have so much to teach you, if only we can reach a connection..."
Obi-Wan hesitated, but Vu Kaa had almost invited the question. "Master? I can't feel you."
"That is because you're not open enough. Show me the paths through your mind, take me through them."
Obi-Wan balked uncertainly. Qui-Gon had never required such a thing of him; but then again, it had never been necessary. They had been connected since before they ever officially became Master and Padawan, even before Qui-Gon had wanted any kind of connection or attachment with him. Yet, he knew it did not always happen that way. Is this what Masters and Padawans usually needed to do to bond? He did not know.
"I told you to quit comparing us," Vu Kaa snapped impatiently. "Don't you trust me?" Now he sounded hurt. "And if you don't, then what good is any of this? If you won't trust me, than I cannot possibly begin to teach you."
"Forgive me Master," Obi-Wan apologized, sorry to have kindled such emotions in his mentor. He proceeded to show Vu Kaa all the doorways to his mind and the paths that lay beyond, yet as he did so, he felt strangely naked and exposed. He was revealing things very personal to him, things that made him vulnerable. After this, there would be nothing Vu Kaa did not know about him; no doorway that could remain closed to him. But then again, that was how it should be, shouldn't it?
Several times, Obi-Wan hesitated, only to be urged, no, pushed on again by Vu Kaa's silent will. When they were done, Obi-Wan felt exhausted.
"Now let me show you something," Vu Kaa offered. He did not open his mind entirely, but he did allow Obi-Wan to see certain thoughts, knowledge and desires. Obi-Wan found him to be incredibly knowledgeable, perhaps more so than anyone he'd ever met before, but not all of what he saw made sense, and not all of it was comfortable.
Running especially thick throughout was strong desire. Desire for more knowledge and desire for more control. There was nothing wrong with that per se. Jedi were always seeking for more knowledge, and better control of oneself, and yet...
"There is usually more than one way to accomplish a goal," Vu Kaa was saying.
Obi-Wan had heard this before.
"But sometimes there is more than one goal to be accomplished, don't forget that."
As suddenly as it had come, the rush of sharing ceased, leaving Obi-Wan more drained than before, and also confused. "I don't understand Master," he said aloud, raising his eyes to meet Vu Kaa's.
"Don't worry my young Padawan, you will, you will," he assured. "But enough for now. Everything is right between us."
Obi-Wan nodded, but he wasn't so sure. If everything was right, then why did it feel so wrong?
"Disturbed over the findings you are," Yoda interrupted Mace Windu's thoughts.
"Yes," the bald man responded slowly. "They found no remains of either of them, not their weapons, DNA particles, nothing. It's as if they vanished, or... weren't there."
"Feel right this does not," Yoda agreed. "Trust Vu Kaa, I do not."
"What are we going to do?"
The elderly Jedi shook his head. "For now, wait we must. Patient we must be, lead us, the Force will."
Dust swirled about the two figures as they stepped out of the ship and onto the parched landscape of Syridan. "There is a dispute over water rights and usage," Vu Kaa briefed Obi-Wan as they made their way towards a large adobe building in the distance. "The resource in questions is claimed by both parties and neither is willing to share with the other."
Syridan was only lightly populated, and mostly peaceful, but the people were a stubborn race and once they had an idea in their heads they were impossible to reason with. Obi-Wan soon found this out when they met with the representatives of the arguing factions. The calmly stubborn Syridians would never revert to anything so hostile as warfare, but they were perfectly prepared to sit there and stare each other down until everyone died of thirst. It was ridicules. Discussion seemed useless and futile. You just could not reason with these people. Obi-Wan wondered what Vu Kaa would do, and was surprised when he found out.
"Good people, there is no need for all this," Vu Kaa said persuasively. Going into their minds he implanted a desire to listen to him, to do what he said. The contumacious Syridians immediately latched on to the suggestion, clinging to it just as surely as they had their argument before.
"There is plenty of water for everyone. You will be only too happy to share with each other. Isn't that right?"
"Yes, yes, of course it is," they agreed readily.
"You will set up guidelines for how and when each division is to access the water."
"Of course, it is well thought of."
Obi-Wan watched in amazement. He did not know exactly what had turned the tide. He suspected Vu Kaa had used some kind of mental suggestion on them, but he had not been able to see or feel what kind. If Vu Kaa had used mind power on them, then it had been directed specifically at them, and the padawan could feel nothing. Would Vu Kaa use his strength to influence them in such a way he wondered? Was it right? Things moved quite well after that and the situation was wrapped up swiftly.
"Master?" Obi-Wan ventured on the way back to the ship.
"You wonder at the way the conflict was resolved," Vu Kaa did not wait for Obi-Wan to voice his question, but spoke it for him.
Obi-Wan felt strangely ashamed for having questions at all and said nothing.
"Tell me Padawan, which is more wrong, to use the power one has to resolve a problem, or to have the power to do so and do nothing?" Vu Kaa fixed him with a steady gaze from his sharp black eyes.
Obi-Wan made no reply. The answer seemed obvious, but Qui-Gon had taught him that what seemed obvious was not always the best choice, and then there were all his Temple lessons about the strict rules that guarded the way a Jedi could use mind control.
Before the issue could become a point of contention, both of their attentions were diverted. The Force issued a sudden warning and they just managed to dodge as a large, cat-like creature with long teeth and razor sharp claws sprung at them from almost out of nowhere. Obi-Wan hit the earth rolling and sprang up like a coil, out of harms reach. From the reading he had done about Syridan on the way here, he recognized the beast as a Pir'dr, a vicious carnivore, native to the planet. Something else from what he had read popped into his head and he only just managed to duck away again as a second beast lunged for him. Pir'drs always hunted in packs.
He ignited his lightsaber. Out of the corner of his eye he could see that Vu Kaa had already done the same. Six of the huge brutes were on the scene now, alternately circling and pouncing at their intended prey. Obi-Wan cut down one beast, stopping him in mid leap, but the dagger-like claws of another tore his shoulder from behind, sending a wave of pain through him that threw him off his center.
Vu Kaa's white blade swung close by Obi-Wan's head, dispatching one of the Pir'drs before he could sink his teeth into the apprentice's neck. Without braking step Vu Kaa quickly whirled to fence off another that sought to come at him from behind.
The remaining Pir'drs gathered themselves for their next onslaught and so did the Jedi. As they stood, back to back, Obi-Wan opened himself to the Force to guide his actions. Another miscalculation could be fatal. He felt it flow through him strongly, pulsing through his veins... He was startled by the intensity of it. It was as if someone was channeling it directly to him, he had never felt so strong. His adrenaline surged as the remaining Pir'drs made their move. The massive beasts flung themselves simultaneously at the two Jedi. Obi-Wan's lightsaber cut through the air, striking home again and again as he twisted and turned to an unheard rhythm.
Vu Kaa felt confidence radiating from the apprentice. That was good. He continued to direct a good deal of his power towards Obi-Wan, making the boy's chemicals surge and his mind feel sure.
Obi-Wan's lightsaber severed one of the Pir'drs in half and it's blood stained his hands. A strange feeling of satisfaction that he had no control over washed over him.
"No, don't stop to think! Let your emotions go!" Vu Kaa used the connection he had to Obi-Wan to control his body and pump up the feeling of aggression.
Obi-Wan fought viciously, unlike he ever had before, dispatching the remaining Pir'drs almost by himself. When it was all over he flicked his lightsaber off. Victory felt so good. Yet, a part of him was concerned. He expected Vu Kaa to remonstrate him for the ferocity of his attack, and for the way he had felt during the encounter. To his surprise however, Vu Kaa praised him.
"Well done my young apprentice," he smiled at the boy. "You are becoming stronger by the day."
Obi-Wan smiled. Vu Kaa's pleasure with him felt good.
Vu Kaa turned. "Let us go back to the ship now. We have so much to do."
"Slave!" Trog bellowed. "Slave! Get over here!" A tug on his chain brought Qui-Gon abruptly up to the Togorian's side. Heavy chains ran between the manacles on the Jedi's wrists and the collar about his neck, connecting into a long chain that Trog kept clipped to his belt at all times.
"Tell the dredge over there to fetch me a drink," he ordered, shoving the Jedi Master towards the other slave in question. She was only on the other side of the room and Trog could very well have told her himself, but he liked ordering his newest 'prize' around. He was the only pirate that he knew of in the entire galaxy who owned a Jedi slave, and he could think of no better way to make this man pay for killing his brother than the slow torture and eventual death that comprised a slave's life here.
Qui-Gon swallowed the temper that would have liked to rise in him and relayed the request. He needed to keep his mind clear and free of distractions like anger if he was going to find a way out of this. A jerk on the chain brought him quickly back to the pirate's side, like a puppet on a string.
Trog backhanded Qui-Gon, nearly knocking him down. "You move too slow slave," he sneered, taking hold of Qui-Gon's bare arm and letting his claws dig into the human's flesh.
"You would move much faster if you were wearing this much chain," Qui-Gon bit back exactly the same kind of response he would have severely remonstrated his apprentice for giving. So much for Jedi Masters being perfect. He wondered where that fallacy ever got started anyway.
"Maybe you'd like another stay in the Dre'lb," Trog taunted, running one claw over a nasty welt on the Jedi's shoulder.
Qui-Gon had already spent some time in that room of horrors and was not anxious for a second visit, but he said nothing.
Trog kicked his feet out from under him, knocking the tall man to his knees. "You sure are a quiet one," he accused. "In these past two weeks I don't think I've heard five words out of you." Trog kicked him in the ribs.
Qui-Gon resisted the urge to bite his lip. "Two weeks, three days, fourteen hours," he mentally corrected. He had been counting.
Trog kicked him again. "Tell me, are you dumb as well as stupid?"
"Patience," Qui-Gon told himself sternly. "I've got to be patient!" But it was not easy. He knew he could take Trog in a fight, but there were always too many other pirates present. Besides, and most importantly, he did not yet have a plan for how he could get off the pirate's ship once he did escape, and attempting such a thing without a solid strategy would be worse than suicide.
Trog kept him by his side at all times, except when he slept, at which time Qui-Gon was locked in a guarded cell and given sedative shots to knock him out. Trog was taking no chances with Qui-Gon, he knew there was a reason no one kept Jedi slaves. He was willing to take the risk, but not without strong precautions. Even so, Qui-Gon was slowly learning the ways of the pirate vessel. He was gradually memorizing the corridors and bays and beginning to formulate a plan. It was too slow a process for his liking, but there was nothing he could do to speed it up. So, as he often told Obi-Wan, for the present all he could do was wait and be patient.
Obi-Wan... Where was he? Was he all right? "Obi-Wan, Obi-Wan," he stretched out silently, trying to contact his Padawan for the hundredth time. This time however, he thought he felt a faint touch of Obi-Wan's presence, but it was quickly cut off from him. That both disturbed and worried Qui-Gon. Their relationship was still so relatively new that he did not yet know what to consider normal. Was someone intentionally trying to keep them apart? Or was it simply the physical distance that separated them? He did not know, but he was filled with a new sense of urgency that he must escape the pirate ship, and soon.
Obi-Wan fumbled, his concentration broken. The lead balls he had been levitating crashed to the ground and he missed his step, rolling to his knees. "Master?" he called, reaching out, but he felt nothing. Had he imagined the momentary, familiar brush of Qui-Gon's mind? It must be so, but it had felt so real!
Vu Kaa clenched his fists, quickly shutting the call away from them. So, Qui-Gon had not died then. Well, it did not matter; the boy was his now.
"I am your Master!" Obi-Wan heard Vu Kaa rebuke him sharply in his mind.
"Yes, Master, but what I just felt..."
"You should not have allowed your concentration to be so easily broken Padawan," Vu Kaa remonstrated aloud. "Continue with the drill."
"But-" Obi-Wan started to protest.
Without warning, Vu Kaa hauled off and slapped the young man across the face. "Don't ever talk back to me."
Obi-Wan stumbled back a step, stunned. Vu Kaa had accompanied the physical blow with a mental one; leaving both his cheek and mind smarting. "I-I'm sorry Master, I didn't mean – I mean I-" Obi-Wan stammered, taken aback by Vu Kaa's reaction. He really did not know what to say. Certainly everyone's methods of instruction were different, he had learned under the guidance of enough different teachers during his years at the Temple to know that, but neither they, nor Qui-Gon had ever found the need to use physical discipline on him before.
Another stinging slap caught Obi-Wan off-guard, jerking his head to the side.
"You disobey me Padawan, I have told you more than once not to compare us."
Obi-Wan wiped his bleeding mouth, he wished Vu Kaa would not listen in on his thoughts like that.
"You will kneel and you will make apology to me for your behavior," Vu Kaa commanded sternly.
Part of Obi-Wan rebelled at making penance to the other Jedi when he could not truly understand what he had done wrong, but another part of him told him that he must obey his Master, or he would be guilty of a true transgression. Forcing himself to kneel at Vu Kaa's feet, he bowed his head apologetically. "Forgive me Master. I am sorry I spoke back to you."
"You are forgiven," Vu Kaa placed his hand on the apprentice's head, his voice becoming warm again. "Obi-Wan, it has been almost three weeks now, you must let go. I know this is difficult, but you must put him out of your mind all together." The older Jedi seemed to be reaching some kind of decision. "I forbid you to think of him again," he finished.
"Master?" Obi-Wan's head jerked up in shock. This was impossible! This he could not do!
"It's for your own good Padawan," Vu Kaa said decidedly.
"But Master, I cannot!" Obi-Wan protested, forgetting that he had just gotten finished apologizing for talking back. "If I put him out of my mind and heart, I lose everything he taught me and I dishonor his memory!"
Obi-Wan grabbed his head as Vu Kaa's disapproval shot through it with a stab of pain.
"You dishonor it now by your lack of control," Vu Kaa condemned him calmly. "When some time has passed, and you have learned better control and obedience, then it will be safe for you to think of him again. Until then, you will obey me in this matter. Is that understood?" Vu Kaa sent another wave of pain through Obi-Wan's mind when he did not answer.
Obi-Wan winced and grabbed his head again.
"I said is that understood?" he repeated quietly.
"Yes, Master," Obi-Wan whispered, barely audibly.
"Good," Vu Kaa's voice was calm, soothing. "I do not like to cause you pain, nor is it my wish to seem harsh. Someday you will understand. I am not a hard man Obi-Wan, I know this isn't easy for you, but it is best for you," he reasoned gently. "If you obey me, you will not find me a hard Master, Padawan. But I believe in discipline and I will punish disobedience," he warned quietly. "I will punish it very sternly. But that won't be necessary, will it? I think we understand each other, you and I. You may return to the exercise."
Obi-Wan did, but inside he was confused, oh so very confused. He felt that his last link with Qui-Gon had been stripped away, and in so doing, he had lost a piece of himself. Perhaps Vu Kaa was right, but something did not feel right... yet every time he tried to think about his doubts a calm hush, like a lullaby seemed to come over his mind, making him want to trust Vu Kaa, want to please him.
"That's it Padawan," Vu Kaa encouraged. "Concentrate, concentrate."