Adumbration
by AlexPart 19
There was no sound but the humming of three lightsabers.
Qui-Gon and Belial stood opposing each other, their faces illuminated by their radiant weapons.
"You should not have come here, Qui-Gon," Belial whispered.
Qui-Gon gazed at him steadily.
He had given Obi-Wan a cursory examination. His padawan had lost weight, and there were bruises on his waist and his hips...marks that looked like handprints. A sudden anger seized him. He felt Obi-Wan's tangled emotions: fear for Qui-Gon, frustration at his own powerlessness, hope, and shame.
/Still, my padawan. There is no cause for shame./
His answer was a chuckle from the one who stood behind Obi-Wan, his scarlet blade held nearly close enough to burn the young man's skin.
The Darkness was overwhelming, thick and redolent with evil. Belial had not lied. He was a Sith, but the primary source of the Darkness was not Belial; it was the dark-robed one, the one using his padawan as hostage and human shield. Sith. No honor in that gesture, but there was no honor in evil, Qui-Gon reminded himself.
There would be justice, Qui-Gon thought. He allowed his anger to flow through him and out of him.
"You have come for your apprentice, Qui-Gon Jinn."
"Fear not, Padawan," Qui-Gon said softly. "I'll have you free soon."
"Your confidence is misplaced, Jinn."
"Release him at once," said Qui-Gon.
"You're a fool, Jedi," said the Dark Lord. "And you are beaten already. Surrender now, and I promise you a quick death."
"If you do not release him, then you force me to destroy you." Qui-Gon moved into a ready stance. Belial followed suit.
Another laugh, and the blade inched closer to Obi-Wan's chest.
"Jedi." The voice was full of contempt. "This boy...is he worth dying for?"
"No," whispered Obi-Wan. "Master, please-" The Sith's arm slipped around Obi-Wan's neck and tightened, cutting off further speech.
Qui-Gon never took his eyes from the clone.
There was a febrile glitter in Belial's eyes. He lifted his chin and smiled at Qui-Gon.
"Worth dying for, yes," said Qui-Gon. "And if I must...worth killing for."
"Yes..." hissed the Sith Lord. "Perhaps he is."
The Dark Lord took his arm from Obi-Wan's neck. The crimson blade moved up to Obi-Wan's throat and a white hand slid over his belly. Obi-Wan bore the touch without protest, though Qui-Gon could sense the young man's distress.
"Take your hand away from him."
The hand slipped lower.
"I sense your rage, Jedi. Release it."
"I do not wish to destroy you."
"No? What about Belial?"
"I do not wish to destroy him either."
Belial stared at Qui-Gon, his expression unfathomable.
"You don't wish to destroy him...what if I told you that he raped your apprentice, Master Jinn? Yes...I feel your anger. Strike him down. Kill him."
"Master?" Belial's eyes flicked toward the Sith Lord.
"Yes, Jedi." The voice was a gleeful whisper. "Kill him."
Qui-Gon felt an unexpected pang of sympathy at the shock and wounded betrayal in the clone's eyes.
He looked at Belial. "You are expendable, young one. The Sith uses you for his own ends, and would discard you when your usefulness is at an end."
"You lie," whispered Belial. The clone's face contradicted his words.
"No, Belial. You know I speak the truth. Search your feelings...surely there is still some Light in you."
Belial's eyes narrowed. He sprang at Qui-Gon and struck the first blow, arcing his saber downward from a high attack position. It was a common maneuver, and Qui-Gon deflected it easily, bringing his own saber up to meet Belial's with a sizzling crash. Qui-Gon shoved Belial back, and Belial stumbled and righted himself quickly.
The two, Jedi Master and Sith clone, circled each other warily.
Qui-Gon noted his opponent's motions. The clone moved gracelessly, and his breathing was shallow.
"What has he done to you, young one?"
"All that he has done," gritted out Belial from between clenched teeth, "is shown me the truth about the Jedi...you are all weak-minded fools. He gives me strength."
"Then why do I sense pain and fear in you?"
Snarling with rage, Belial launched himself at Qui-Gon in deadly earnest. Qui-Gon retreated as the clone's blade advanced upon him in a shower of vicious blows.
Belial was a skilled fighter, and his rage made him even more powerful. Qui-Gon executed a graceful somersault, landing behind Belial, who whirled to meet him, his long braid flying. Their sabers locked, crimson and green, sputtering angrily. Qui-Gon pushed Belial away, his greater size and strength giving him a momentary advantage.
"Belial, " he said, "come back to Coruscant with us. You can be healed." He pitched his voice persuasively, using Force. He felt the clone's mental shields slam up. "Let us help you," he continued. "You can escape this Darkness."
The clone attacked again, saber held high, then feinted and swooped in low. Qui-Gon stumbled back in time to avoid evisceration, barely shying off the aggressive offense.
The Sith standing behind Obi-Wan laughed. Belial glared at Qui-Gon.
"Fool Jedi," he rasped. "Why would I want to go back to Coruscant, back to your mewling clutch of monks? My master has given me more than the Jedi ever could. If only you'd give in to your passions, Qui-Gon, you'd know such power. I could have shared it with you and Obi-Wan...now you force me to kill you."
The pair circled each other slowly.
"You are in need of healing, Belial," Qui-Gon repeated. "Let me help you."
"Help me...how, Jedi? Will you fuck me again? Will you give in to your passions, Qui-Gon?" His voice rose tauntingly.
"Our joining was a mistake, and that you know," Qui-Gon said. "I did it out of love for Obi-Wan."
"And I?"
"Tell me, young one. Why did you do it?"
Belial let out a howl and tore forward, his lightsaber hissing in a flurry of violent thrusts. Qui-Gon parrried his attack, returned the blows, escalated the battle.
The scintillating blades moved with blinding speed, crackling loudly as they made contact. Sparks flew madly; the air filled with the electric, ozone smell of the sabers.
Belial dodged a wide swing and stumbled. Qui-Gon pressed his advantage, striking the clone a blow on his bare swordarm, then again, through his left shoulder. Belial let out a cry, retreated, lost his footing, and fell to the ground. Qui-Gon heard the distinctive snap of a breaking bone. He looked down at Belial as he grimaced in pain, saber held up against him. Qui-Gon lifted his lightsaber. It would be easy to kill him quickly...
"Stop, Jedi...or Obi-Wan will die. I promise you that."
Qui-Gon turned and gazed at the Sith Lord.
"Before you joined us, Master Jinn, Obi-Wan was about to plead for your life, and the life of the Council. Were you not, young Jedi?" The Sith's white hand was fondling Obi-Wan obscenely. Obi-Wan's eyes were closed, his head tilted back. His bound hands were clenched, and he made no sound. Once again, Qui-Gon felt his shame and frustration.
/No, Padawan. No cause./
Another laugh.
"Belial..."
Qui-Gon's gaze swiveled to the clone, who still lay on the floor, his face twisted in pain. Belial slowly tugged a small black object from the waistband of his leggings with his free hand, his saber still activated.
A remote.
Qui-Gon knew then the reason for Belial's presence outside the Council Chamber.
"Your choice, Kenobi. Join me, and your Master and the Council will live...defy me, and they will die."
Obi-Wan opened his eyes and looked at Qui-Gon, his face a picture of utter misery and pain.
Qui-Gon would not send to Obi-Wan. The Sith had intercepted all of Qui-Gon's mental communication. Instead, he looked at Obi-Wan tranquilly, allowing his eyes to speak for him.
Courage, my Obi-Wan.
Obi-Wan opened his eyes and looked at his master.
How can I choose? How can I condemn the Council to death?
And Qui-Gon?
Qui-Gon's eyes were fixed upon his, blue and fearless and full of warmth...and love.
He made his choice.
Obi-Wan twisted slightly.
"If I joined you, Sidious," he said, his voice full of strength and clarity of purpose, "I would do the Council, and my Master, a greater disservice than if I killed each of them with my own hands. I am a Jedi, dedicated to the Light...and I will never join you. Never."
Qui-Gon smiled.
"That is your choice?" The Dark Lord's voice was ominously soft.
"Yes."
"So be it...Jedi. My apprentice...kill them."
Qui-Gon turned to leap at Belial, to take the remote. A wall of Darkness stopped him, held him still.
Belial, only half-conscious, thumbed the switch on the remote.
Qui-Gon closed his eyes.
There was silence.
Qui-Gon concentrated, bracing himself for the devastation, the passage of the greatest minds of the Jedi Order.
There is no death...
"There is the Force." A murmur.
Obi-Wan...he wheeled.
Obi-Wan's eyes were shining.
Oh, gods, oh gods...he was there, his padawan, and his eyes were alight with joy, summersea eyes, beautiful, and unafraid, searing death mere centimeters from him and still unafraid. Jedi to the core.
/Master/
/My Obi-Wan/
The Light surrounded them, and Qui-Gon's face broke into a smile.
"They live."
The crimson blade at Obi-Wan's throat dipped. "What...?"
"The Council lives, Sith. You have failed."
There was a brief, bitter laugh from the floor. Qui-Gon glanced down at the clone, whose lips were set in a mirthless grin.
Qui-Gon felt the dark ripple as the Sith Lord stretched out and sought the truth.
"No." A strangled whisper, choked with rage and hate.
"You failed, Master." Belial's voice, a hoarse whisper.
"No."
The saber fell from Obi-Wan's throat.
The Sith's hold on Qui-Gon was broken. Swifter than sight, Qui-Gon leapt forward and sliced through Obi-Wan's chains with one clean motion. Obi-Wan dropped to the floor, and Darth Sidious was unprotected.
Another wall of Force picked Qui-Gon up and slammed him into the opposite wall. When Qui-Gon struggled to his feet, the Sith was gone.
Qui-Gon rushed to Obi-Wan, who had stood shakily. Quickly he stripped off his robe and draped it over Obi-Wan's shoulders.
"Padawan," he said. "Are you hurt?"
Obi-Wan shook his head. "No, Master. Darth Sidious...we have to stop him."
Qui-Gon hesitated. Obi-Wan was injured, he couldn't possibly pursue the Sith...
He unclipped Obi-Wan's lightsaber from his belt and handed it to him.
"You stay here. Guard Belial. We'll take him back with us."
Obi-Wan opened his mouth to protest, then closed it again.
"Yes, Master."
Qui-Gon flew out of the room and down the corridor.
Darth Sidious slipped wraithlike into his private hangar. It was empty but for a young Iridonian Zabrak, who was cleaning the aft of a small, sleek ship, the MARAUDER.
"You!" Sidious snapped. "Is this ship prepared for takeoff?"
"Yes, my Lord." The Zabrakian's face was carefully respectful.
"Set a course for Coruscant. Now."
He boarded the ship and watched the young pilot make efficient, hasty preparations for departure. Minutes later, they blasted out of the hangar. Shortly, Sullust was behind them, and the stars were pale streaks as they made the jump to hyperspace.
Sidious allowed himself to relax, though his heart was filled with rage.
You have deprived me of an apprentice, Qui-Gon Jinn, and you and your padawan will pay for that. Some day, you will both pay for that. You have cost me years and tremendous expense, and now I must find a new apprentice. You will pay.
He sat back in his chair and meditated.
The young Zabrakian made his way to the passenger lounge where the Dark Lord sat.
"We will reach Coruscant in approximately nine hours, my Lord." His voice was soft and deep.
The Dark Lord regarded the young man thoughtfully.
He felt a strong ripple of Force.
He smiled briefly.
"Sit," he invited the young man.
Obi-Wan ignited his lightsaber and walked over to where Belial lay.
The clone's face was white, and his eyes were closed. The wounds on his arm and shoulder had been cauterized by the intense heat of Qui-Gon's blade, but they were serious. He would need healers, and quickly. His still-lit saber was clutched in his hand.
"Well, Jedi," he rasped, "I congratulate you. You have defeated me."
"Your Master has abandoned you, Belial." Obi-Wan's heart was heavy. Belial had chosen the dark path, but Sidious had manipulated him all along. Who could say whether the clone's choice was his own? He looked at the still white face...so like his own.
His dark twin.
Belial's eyes opened.
"Why don't you kill me, Obi-Wan? I know it's what you've wanted to do for days now..." his voice shook.
Obi-Wan shook his head. "Perhaps I did. But I was wrong. Qui-Gon was right. You can be healed."
Belial sat up slowly. Obi-Wan backed up. He was weak, but Belial was weaker. If he had to overpower him, so be it.
Belial smiled at him, and there was a sweetness in that smile despite the agony in his eyes.
His twin...
Obi-Wan felt the sting of tears behind his eyes.
"Belial...how much of me is there in you?"
The clone gave a little hitching laugh.
"Not enough, Jedi. Not enough."
Suddenly, with stunning speed, Belial lifted his blade and drew it across his throat.
"NO!" Obi-Wan leapt toward him as he slumped over on his side. The lightsaber clattered onto the stone floor, deactivated.
Obi-Wan knelt on the floor and lifted the clone into his arms. Blue-green eyes met, held each other.
Belial raised a hand.
"...loved..."
The cold hand found Obi-Wan's.
Belial's eyes went wide and sightless.
Qui-Gon returned to the chamber, panting for breath.
"He got away, Pada-"
He stopped short. Belial lay in the center of the floor, his eyes closed, an ugly gash across his throat. Obi-Wan had stripped the still-sleeping guards of their cloaks and had surrounded the clone with torn strips of the fabric.
"Belial's dead, Master."
Qui-Gon didn't reply.
Obi-Wan took the torch from the wall and poured the torch oil on the torn cloaks. He silently handed the torch to Qui-Gon, picked up Belial's saber and placed it in the clone's hands. Then he took the torch back from Qui-Gon and touched it to the fabric. It ignited immediately, surrounding Belial in flames. Obi-Wan stepped back and folded his arms, the chains clinking on his wrists.
He stood apart from Qui-Gon, lost in the voluminous black robe, his face somber.
Qui-Gon remained silent. There was much to say, so much, but now was not the time.
They watched the flames consume the body of Darth Belial together.
Obi-Wan turned to Qui-Gon hesitantly.
"Master..."
Qui-Gon faced his padawan slowly.
Obi-Wan's mouth trembled.
"Obi-Wan."
He opened his arms, and Obi-Wan was there, clutching him convulsively, and he wrapped his arms around him, burying his face in the young man's hair, not bothering to hide his tears. They held each other tightly, not letting go, each taking comfort in the other, seeking refuge, seeking Light, seeking love, and finding it in each other.
/You are safe now, my padawan. My beloved./
/Safe./
Qui-Gon looked down at Obi-Wan, and his heart tightened. Obi-Wan's face was happy, happier than he'd seen in years, despite his ordeal, despite the pain and anguish he'd suffered.
And the cause of that happiness?
Qui-Gon shook his head unbelievingly.
/Yes./
And Obi-Wan kissed him, and the Force washed over them, sweet and pure and alive with power and Light, and their tears mingled as he returned the kiss, certain that he had never been happier in his entire life.
/Let's go home, Padawan./
/Yes, Master...home./
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