Adumbration
by AlexPart 5
Belial clasped his hands behind his back and began to slowly circle the chair to which Obi-Wan was bound. Obi-Wan refused to look at him, keeping his eyes closed, striving for calm.
"Have you ever been to Sullust, Kenobi?"
The question, a shift in focus, threw Obi-Wan off slightly.
"No."
"Pity. It's possessed of a rather inhospitable climate...the surface is almost entirely volcanic, and most of its inhabitants live underground. The cities of Sullust are incomparably beautiful, though, and every kind of pleasurable vice is encouraged. I suppose it stands to reason that your master would not take you there." He stopped, cocking an eyebrow. "No, the Jedi would hate it there, wouldn't they. In any case, Sullust is where I...grew up, you might say."
Obi-Wan remained silent, wondering where all this was leading.
"My master awaits us there."
Ah.
The Sith lord stared at Obi-Wan, frowning. He sauntered to the bench in front of the Jedi and sat, picking up a durasteel implement with a wicked-looking hook at one end, idly turning it about in his hands, not looking at his prisoner.
"I was to kill you." Let the Jedi chew on that. Belial looked up and saw that Obi-Wan's eyes were open and were watching him unblinkingly, ignoring the instrument in the clone's hands.
"Had I not intervened, you would be dead now, Jedi. My master thinks that you are too dangerous to keep alive. After all, hostages unused as bargaining tools or bait are really so much pointless cargo."
"Your plot will be discovered, and you will be severely punished," Obi-Wan replied quietly. "The Jedi will discover the impostor in their midst...and my Master will certainly be able to detect the differences between us. You are a fool to think him so unskilled in the Force as to not know that you and I are profoundly dissimilar."
"Don't misunderstand me, Padawan. I am well aware of your Master's Force-adeptness. But I am also aware that the training bond between the two of you has been greatly diminished in recent years. Why is that, I wonder?"
"You dare to presume--"
"I don't presume, Jedi. I know. I've had ample opportunity to observe you. Before I ever laid eyes on you, I was schooled in the vat to absorb the full scope of your entire being. There's nothing I don't know about you. And I must confess, I find myself quite taken by you. Of course, I'm grateful to you for my life, but it's more than that, Kenobi. You really are very interesting, for a Jedi. Such complex emotions for one so young, one dedicated to the Light.
"The relationship between you and Qui-Gon Jinn, now...that's intriguing, I think."
"How so?" Icily. Do not engage this being in debate, all his instincts shouted. Silence is the best response. He attempts to draw you out, make you vulnerable. Yet he felt compelled to defend Qui-Gon in his master's absence.
"Well, for instance, it's quite plain that you love each other."
"Naturally. He is my teacher, and my dearest friend."
"Don't be coy, Jedi. It's sickening. You desire each other."
Obi-Wan's face bled of all color.
"What?"
"Oh, yes," Belial said. "I've been watching both of you, you see. It's quite impressive, that Jedi reserve. But feelings are always revealed in the eyes, Obi-Wan, despite the masks you throw up. It's a good thing that none of the Council has seen, or you'd have some explaining to do. Certainly you'd be censured, perhaps even separated."
Obi-Wan gazed intently at Belial, barely hearng his last words, hardly daring to breathe. He searched the clone's face, seeing no deception in the face, his own face, staring back at him.
Was it truly possible...his master...Qui-Gon wanted him.
Wanted him.
A smile spread over Obi-Wan's face then, a smile of love and trust and radiant happiness, and Belial's heart twisted viciously. His next words were spat out contemptuously.
"It's a shame that the Code prohibits the sort of relationship that you desire, is it not?"
Obi-Wan looked up at him then, and his eyes were calmly triumphant.
"I won't be his student forever."
"Determined to obey...the Council would approve. Still...how can you be sure that Jinn will wait for you? He is only a man, after all, and he may grow weary of waiting. In fact, I know that he frequents a particular brothel, fucks a young man that looks like you. It appears that any substitute will do," Belial sneered.
"He'll wait." And Obi-Wan knew that it was true. If Qui-Gon was frustrated, how could he blame him from seeking pleasure in the arms of another, hesitating to upset his apprentice? And Obi-Wan had taken his share of lovers, all the while wishing each was Qui-Gon.
But if they both knew...everything would be different.
Belial's voice, cold and precise, interrupted his thoughts.
"He might, Padawan. Then again..."
Obi-Wan looked serenely at the Sith Lord.
...all danger passes...one need only be prepared...
He would escape. His predicament was temporary. He would warn the Council of the impending danger to themselves and to the Republic.
...I will not fear...
And then...then he would lay his heart bare before his master.
The Sith lord was regarding him thoughtfully. A slow, malevolent smile spread across his features.
"Then again, Padawan Knight...he may not have to wait."
Obi-Wan scowled at him, perplexed. Surely his captor had no intention of releasing him. He would need to rely on his own wits to escape, so what was he talking about, unless...
Unless...
"No."
The clone only continued to smile at him.
"No...no..." Obi-Wan shuddered violently.
The clone started to laugh, and Obi-Wan, filled with helpless fury, once again struggled, wriggling like a fish in a net, hissing with pain as the carbon rope cut into his flesh, yet quite unable to stop himself.
"NO!"
Belial's laughter pealed throughout the room, filling Obi-Wan's ears, taunting him as he fought to free himself. Angry tears sprang into Obi-Wan's eyes and he clenched his teeth as he raged at the clone.
"If you touch him, I will kill you, I swear it, I swear." More laughter, and Obi-Wan bit back an enraged sob.
"Kill me, Jedi? Kill me, in anger? A stain on your soul."
"I'd gladly spill your blood, clone," spat Obi-Wan.
Belial wiped his eyes, still chuckling. He walked over to Obi-Wan's discarded tunic and retrieved it, tearing it into strips. He stood in front of the Jedi and rolled one of the strips into a fairly large ball. He seized Obi-Wan's lower jaw in one hand. Obi-Wan shook his head in a spasm of negation and in an attempt to escape the clone's painful grip. The clone merely tightened his hold, and digging into the delicate pressure points on Obi-Wan's jaw, forced his mouth open and stuffed the cloth inside. He tied another strip of cloth over his mouth, knotting it behind his head.
"Careful, Kenobi," Belial said. "Don't choke on that."
Obi-Wan screamed his defiance, but the scream was reduced to a stifled wail, and tears slid down his cheeks.
The Sith resumed his seat on the bench and considered his captive.
"It's not that I think that anyone will hear you and come to your rescue, Jedi. We're far beyond anyone hearing you...or caring. I want to show you how completely I own you. Nothing you do will be without my consent. Your will is not your own. Speech is a luxury, not a privilege."
Two pairs of eyes the same shape and hue met each other squarely; one rebellious, the other contemplative.
"Perhaps I should just cut your tongue out."
Obi-Wan glared at the clone.
Belial shrugged and stood.
"I should thank you, Kenobi...I'm almost surprised that it didn't occur to me sooner. I was simply going to kill Jinn, and make you watch. Of course, I will still kill him, and he'll have no idea that it's not his own beloved apprentice taking his life."
Obi-Wan shook his head, his eyes wild, making smothered inarticulate noises behind the gag.
Belial turned to the monitor bank, switched it on.
An image formed on the screen.
Qui-Gon's bedroom.
"Your Order really has become soft, Jedi. I put that tiny hovercam on your quarters more than a week ago, and you never noticed. Lax," he chided.
"Lucky for you that I did, though," he continued."You'll be able to witness the end result of years of repressed desire...Obi-Wan Kenobi finally gets to fuck his master!" He laughed again.
Obi-Wan pulled futilely at his bonds again. He had to free himself, had to stop this...
The Sith lord moved behind Obi-Wan and leaned down, putting his mouth next to the Jedi's ear. One hand came up to cup Obi-Wan's chin; the other drifted to the young man's chest, fingertips lazily circling his nipple.
"My lovely padawan," the clone whispered soothingly. "So beautiful. So innocent. It's going to be such a pleasure to train you."
Obi-Wan made a noise of protestation.
"Not a pleasure, you say? I disagree."
Obi-Wan tossed his head, trying to twist out of Belial's grasp, hating this forced intimacy, but the Sith lord held him fast, still speaking into the Jedi's ear.
"You are lost, Jedi, as is your once-great Republic. Its days are numbered, and there is nothing you can do to save it."
...no...
"You can submit willingly, or you can resist. Those are your only options. There is no chance of escape, and no hope of rescue. No one will look for you. As far as anyone knows, Obi-Wan Kenobi is performing his usual duties at the Jedi Temple.
"Two choices, Jedi. Either one will bring me pleasure. "
His tongue flickered out, traced Obi-Wan's ear. His teeth nipped the Jedi's earlobe, and his fingers tightened, pinching Obi-Wan's nipple.
"Sweet...like honeyed wine. Lovely."
Obi-Wan's gorge rose.
The clone straightened.
"I'll leave you to meditate on your choice, Kenobi."
He walked to the door, pulling up the hood of Obi-Wan's robe.
"Meanwhile, you'll be entertained. I'll make sure you don't miss anything."
He left, bolting the door behind him.
Obi-Wan threw his head back, let out a muffled, despondent cry. He began to work on the restraints again, attempting to arch his back and flex his limbs. He tried to focus, his fingers curling, seeking a knot or break in the cord.
...there is no emotion; there is peace...
The rope abraded his skin from his frenzied efforts.
...there is no ignorance; there is knowledge...
His body gleamed with sweat despite the dank chill of the room.
...there is no passion; there is serenity...
Tears streamed from his eyes.
...there is no death...
...Master...
...there is no death...
For the first time in his life, he felt the first stirrings of hopelessness.
His eyes fastened on the monitor above him.
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