Chapter Text
They had come to the planet for a relief mission, nothing more.
The Separatists had taken over a small, insignificant planet in the Inner Rim, and it was more the fact that they’d bothered with it at all that had sent Obi-Wan and Anakin along to investigate. The two hadn't had any leave time since the onset of the war, nor would any request for such be approved, not with their forces spread thin as it was. Obi-Wan had felt the effect it was having on his men - the constant action, the constant loss. He’d jumped at the chance to pull Anakin and himself out of the fray, even if that was… a matter of perspective.
It turned out that there was a rather large vein of ionite close to the planet’s core. Both sides of the war had been strapped for materials, but the Separatists especially so, given how their fighting force was made of metal. (The passing thought that they were lucky, with clone production already paid for, was met with immediate horror at the implications of such an equivalence, no matter how unintended.) The natural result of that discovery had been a figurative gold rush; mining corporations and assorted unsavory figures (namely, the Hutts) had been duking it out with the locals for months now. The arrival of the Separatists had put an end to that, if only because the droids shot anybody that got in their way.
And so what had appeared a simple rout turned into a middling-length campaign, the Jedi rooting out pockets of mercenaries that had been attempting to weather the storm even as the Republic troops took on the Separatists. After that there were negotiations to be had and matters of diplomacy to maneuver. The planet was sparsely inhabited, and its residents largely nomadic, but the land the mine had been built upon was managed by one clan in particular. The clan’s Leader, Corva’wynn, had become the de facto spokeswoman for the planet’s loose system of government.
This is how Obi-Wan Kenobi found himself in a large tent that served as the clan’s town hall, staring down a diminutive, elderly woman as she laughed at him.
“In our interest, Jedi? I think that it is in your interest, our joining the Republic. The sooner we agree, the sooner you leave, yes? The sooner you get onto more pressing matters than our tiny planet and our petty disputes.”
“There is nowhere I’d rather be,” Obi-Wan lied through his teeth.
Corva’wynn wheezed once more. Her kind had large, curving horns that with maturity would meet in an arc over their heads; Corva’wynn was so old that her horns had already met and crossed, curving back down towards her vulnerable skull. He'd heard in passing that should somebody survive to the point where their horns reached their scalp, they wouldn't be ground back, but allowed instead to pierce their brain. It was considered the most honorable death one could have. Obi-Wan thought it sounded immensely painful.
“You’re adorable. I quite like you, Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi; I hope you keep to your word and visit, when this is all done and dusted.”
“... so you do intend to join the Republic?”
“Of course I do,” Corva’wynn said, eyes twinkling. “But why would I acquiesce to you, my dear Jedi, when my obstinance has netted us a famed Senator of the Republic?”
“A Senator ? Leader, I’ve heard nothing of the -“
She cut him off with a dismissive wave of her hand. “I received a communiqué from one Padmé Amidala in the late hours of the night; apparently she is nearby, and was notified of our plight by your General Skywalker. She said that she would be arriving presently.”
Of course she was. The urge to strangle Anakin was sudden and all-consuming; he took a deep breath and willed it away, into the Force. How Anakin and Padmé thought they were anything approaching subtle was truly beyond him.
“I admit, that is a… surprise to me, but I am glad to hear it. Is there anything that we can do for you and your people, while we await the good Senator?”
Corva’wynn considered him. “Hm. No tasks, but we have a question - not a necessary one, but a matter of intrigue that you might enjoy.”
“And what might that be?”
“There is a temple, hidden amongst the arms of the mountains,” Corva’wynn said, tilting her head thoughtfully. “Sitting upon the shore of the bottomless lakes. It repels most supplicants; but you, Jedi, I think it might accept. Does that merit your interest?”
Obi-Wan was so taken aback that he just stared, for a moment. He hadn’t been expecting her to suggest something that actually sounded fun.
“I would be delighted to investigate it for you, Leader. Will my presence be needed for anything else, today?”
“No.” She curled a grin at him. “Run along now. Enjoy yourself.”
He began to protest that he’d already been enjoying himself, of course, but she just laughed and waved him away.
-
“And where are you headed?”
Obi-Wan turned. “Ah, Anakin, I was just looking for you. Corva’wynn has recommended a local point of interest to me - an ancient temple of sorts, with a fraught history. I am taking Ahsoka, Captain Rex, and a squad out to examine it.”
Anakin wrinkled his forehead. “You’re abandoning the negotiations? I thought you wanted to get out of here already.“
Obi-Wan gave him a sardonic smile. “Oh no, far from it. I am no longer needed, as Senator Amidala has decided to grace us with her presence. As such, I am recommending that you take over my role in the interim.”
Anakin’s face was a fascinating canvas of guilt, embarrassment, excitement, and indignation. “Padmé’s coming? That’s a relief. I heard from The Negotiator that she'd gotten jumped by some space pirates in the area, so she's on board for repairs. Kind of her to help us out,” he said, faux casual. Then, he appeared to catch up to the conversation. “Wait, you’re taking Ahsoka and Rex, but making me stay behind and do the boring stuff?”
“Oh, I’m sure the senator will be entertainment enough.”
Anakin’s face turned bright red, and he coughed. “Yes, I, um. Will be glad to see her! She’s a good friend! Of mine. We are friends. Yes, I have not seen her in a while and miss her… friendship.” He rubbed the back of his neck and looked away, flustered.
Obi-Wan smirked. “Yes, I imagine that she will feel the same way. Try not to get too excited.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Anakin shot him a sharp look.
Obi-Wan shrugged innocently. “All I ask is that the negotiations take priority. Like you were saying, we have a primary mission, here.”
Anakin floundered as he considered how to respond. Likely deciding discretion to be the greater part of valor, he settled with a meek, “Yes, Master,” before quickly vanishing into the bowels of the camp - before Obi-Wan could say anything else.
-
Rex wasn’t that hard to find; all Obi-Wan had to do was look for the thickest concentration of clones and follow the shouting. Ahsoka was sprawled out against some crates, watching the proceedings.
“Hard at work, Padawan?” She jumped a little at the sound of his voice right behind her, and scrambled to her feet.
“Master! I was uh, I was - Master Skywalker told me to meditate! So I was doing that.” She nodded once, as if in affirmation.
“Of course. How would you like to join me on a little excursion?”
“Out of the camp, you mean?” She was a little too eager - though they had been stuck here for a while.
“Yes. We’ve been invited to investigate a local temple, up in the mountains. The trip will take us away for most of the day, perhaps overnight - can you bear to tear yourself away from your meditation?”
“Please. Should I go grab Rex? I know Cody went up with the transport this morning, to check in with Admiral Yularen - “
-
Obi-Wan had to say, for all the troubles it presented, the planet was truly gorgeous. It was as of yet unnamed - it had only a designation on star charts, B9-603 - and the locals were in disagreement about what their ancestors had called it. That was another headache they’d have to overcome, one that he would happily pass along to the Senator, if he could manage it.
The area they’d set up camp in, the one near the entrance to the mines and the settlement that had sprung up around it, was situated in a great expanse of plains that dissolved from the hills and mountains they were now flying towards, and which stretched on and away until they abruptly ended in dramatic cliffs overlooking a moody sea. If the locals played their cards right, they might find a niche in eco-tourism.
But then, Obi-Wan thought to himself, they’d been doing just fine up until now. They might rather seal up the ionite mine and go back to their old ways of living, as long as the universe would allow them to, and honestly he wouldn’t blame them.
He sort of wished he could go back to the Jedi Temple and do the same.
They crested the tops of the hills - which also might be quite good for vineyards, he noted absently - and began to weave between the peaks of the mountains, headed for the coordinates they’d been provided. The mountain valleys were packed with alpine forests and glimmering lakes, and he could see how a group of people might be lost amongst them. What was maybe an hour’s flight by transport looked like at least a week’s hike, if not a month’s.
And eventually, amidst the forests and the mountains and the lakes, there were gleaming white ruins shining up at them, perched on the edge of one such body of water.
As they touched down and the blast doors slid open, and as the clones spilled out with their typical businesslike efficiency, Obi-Wan took a moment to step away and breathe in the fresh air. It was summer in this hemisphere of the planet; what was baking heat and cold nights down in the plains below was crisp and sweet warmth up here. A light breeze made waves on the water, which reflected the sun into his eyes. A local insect droned by. A small splash caught his attention as the surface of the lake was disturbed by the flick of a seemingly small, finned tail.
A strange foreboding overtook him, despite the idyllic scenery, and he stepped away from the shore.
Everybody seemed cheered by the nice weather and interesting diversion, as there was a general clamor of chatter and noise as the clones set up a makeshift camp, a deployment point, and Rex began sorting out logistics. They'd be divided into two contingents for this mission; about two-thirds of their forces would investigate the ruins, while a third would stay behind and run topography scans and further documentation for the Rebublic's profile of the planet. An unnecessary level of detail that they wouldn't bother with normally, but since they were there - and well, it might be helpful in the future. Obi-Wan considered asking Ahsoka to stay with this smaller crew, so that both the recon team and the base team would have a Jedi to them, but she had an unimpressed and rebellious look leveled on him before he could even get the words out. He let the matter drop.
From the air they'd seen that large parts of the temple had been beaten down by time and the elements, but the doors were still intact. They were grand: situated at the top of a flight of stairs, which were carved of the same brilliant white stone, tall and wide enough to accommodate a Walker, etched deeply with a variety of symbols and a strange, swirling motif. As he got closer, he could see that many of the details had been worn away, which was a shame. He wondered if this was the work of those ancestors that the locals had been squabbling over, or somebody else’s doing entirely.
“Perhaps we ought to document this and send it back to Madam Nu,” he mused quietly; he startled, a little, when Ahoska replied.
“We should probably wait to do that until we’re off planet. With our luck, she’ll bully the Council into making us stick around another week, just to research it.” When she saw Obi-Wan’s flinch, she raised an eyebrow. “You forgot I was here, didn’t you?” she accused.
He coughed. “Of course not, Padawan. I was merely… lost in thought.” A smirk spread across her face (Anakin’s signature look) and he hurried on before she could interject. “Go fetch the holoscanners, will you? I’ll see what I can do about these doors.”
“Sure thing, Master,” she said, still smirking. “Try not to get too lost in thought while I’m gone.” She pivoted on a heel and strolled away. He shook his head and returned his attention to the doors.
The carvings really were quite fascinating; he could see now that in the midst of the spirals, filling in gaps or situated in their centers, were hundreds of pictographs depicting a variety of subject material. He could see the sun, stars, and the planet’s twin moons high above him, then a line of mountains lower down (which must represent the mountains they were currently in!); at his hips there was a depiction of the surface of the ocean, with what looked like an impossibly large, absolutely monstrous leviathan in its depths.
There were twin hollows at differing heights, almost like a pair of inverted doorknobs. There seemed to be carvings in these, as well - he fumbled with his backpack, trying to find a torch, then gave up and activated his lightsaber to get a better look.
These hollows had been better protected from rain and sun, so they were better preserved. He did have to clear out a bit of debris, though, leaves and an old bird’s nest. And then there, carved ever so carefully into the stone, was a figure that looked quite a bit like him.
No, it looked exactly like him. Down to the lightsaber that it was holding, angled above its head.
He glanced at his own lightsaber, and suppressed a grimace.
He had a bad feeling about this.
“Ahsoka,” he called over his shoulder, “Do you have those holoscanners, yet? I find myself in need a second opinion.”
“Coming, Master!” He extinguished his lightsaber and turned, unable to suppress his smile at how the Padawan rushed up the steps, arms laden with gear.
The smile died when she dumped it at his feet. “Careful, Ahsoka, it’s very delicate equipment - “
“Right, sorry Master,” she winced. “You said you wanted my opinion on something?”
“Well, yes,” he said with one last frown at the pile. “This carving, namely,” he said, indicating the hollow.
Ahoska had to stand on the tips of her feet to see; Obi-Wan finally dug the torch out of his pack and held it for her.
“It looks like a warrior of some kind,” she said, voice muffled by the hollow. “Maybe a Jedi. I wonder if,” she turned to face him, then froze. She stared at him, wide-eyed realization narrowed into a squint of suspicion. She looked back into the hollow, then back at him.
“No way,” she said.
She turned to the other hollow, and Obi-Wan followed. This one was at the height of Ahsoka’s head, which blocked it from his sight, but at this point he didn’t really need the visual confirmation of what would be inside - a loud Mando'an curse from the slight Togruta was sufficient.
He hummed. “I concur.”
And now it was Ahsoka’s turn to startle, caught out in her own little lapse. “Though, my dear Padawan, I am most curious as to where you learned that kind of language.” He raised an eyebrow at her guilty face, then turned and sought out Captain Rex’s eye, waving when he caught it. The clone nodded at him, finishing a conversation with one of his troopers before beginning to jog over.
“Can we uh, just ignore that for now, and focus on more pressing matters? Like this?” She waved at the door. “This is strange, right? It’s not like, normal for you?”
Obi-Wan laughed. “No, this is concerning for me as well. Captain,” he turned to Rex as the man reached them. “I’m afraid we may have a bit of a situation.”
The clone eyed him. “What kind of a situation, sir?”
“There’s these weird little carvings that look exactly like us,” Ahsoka cut in. “Look, they even got my outfit right!” She tugged him over.
Rex scratched the back of his neck as he looked into the hollow that Ahoska’s body was still partially blocking. His eyes got a little wider and his tan skin paled, then with a kind of bleak resignation, he walked over to peer into the other hollow. He looked between Obi-Wan and his carved depiction.
“How, sir?” The clone asked wearily.
Obi-Wan opened his mouth, hesitated for a moment as he considered his words, then shrugged. “Perhaps... Force bullshit, as I believe you and your men would say.”
“Master! ”
“General, I’d never - “
“As apt a description as any,” Obi-Wan cut off the captain’s prevarication with a fond clap on the shoulder. He was pretty sure Rex was blushing, which was a fascinating reaction. Ahsoka seemed torn between scandalized and delighted. “Regardless, I am getting the feeling that this will not be so clear-cut as we originally thought.”
“Is it ever, sir?” Rex said, finally collecting himself.
“One day, Rex. One day everything will make sense and be normal again.”
He said it dryly, like a joke. Ahsoka chuckled and turned back to the - well, he could see it now, a minuscule carving of what is undoubtedly a young Togruta - but Rex just kept looking at him. As if he understood how much that wasn’t a joke, so much as a prayer. A recitation, attempting to be manifestation.
Obi-Wan just grimaced at him and moved on.
“We’ll attempt the doors, Captain, if you and your men are ready to deploy.”
“Of course, General.” Just like that, the man’s austere, military professionalism snapped back into place, and he threw in a salute for good measure before leaving to round up the squad.
Obi-Wan took a few steps back from the doors, contemplating them. “I think the Force would be best applied here, wouldn’t you agree?” he said to Ahsoka.
She shrugged. “I mean, sure, but don’t you think we should try using the handles, first?”
“Handles?”
“Yeah. You know,” she stuck her hand into the hollow and tugged on the upper lip of it demonstratively. “Handles.”
“They’re awfully big for us to just be pulling them open.”
“Yeah, well,” she screwed her face up in thought. “I can’t help but think that this is going to be one of those weird kind of places we always stumble into, and,” she gestured at the carving of her, “maybe they put these here for a reason beyond freaking us out.”
A fair point. He moved to join her. “On your mark, then.”
“Okay! One, two, three, pull!”
And sure enough, the door gave under his hand. It swung as easily as any of its smaller brethren might; Obi-Wan had to scramble out of the way, so that it didn't knock him over with its momentum.
Sunlight spilled into the darkened temple, and through the gloom he could make out some patterned floor tiles, most of them cracked and dirtied, but little else. A wave of stale air swept over them, heavily laden with dust and rot.
Ahsoka smirked. “What did I tell you? Weird.”
“You are certainly more masterful in this than I. Perhaps I should recommend your services to the Archive.” She made a face.
“I do have to wonder, though,” he continued, stroking his beard, “if it was our involvement, or if these doors would have opened for anybody. Corva’wynn said that the temple had rejected many supplicants before; now that we’re here, I wonder what she meant by that.”
“We could close them again, then have two of the men try? Maybe?”
Obi-Wan thought about it, then shook his head. “No, it’s not worth doing just to satisfy simple curiosity - especially not if there are some darker forces at play. Now come along, Padawan, let’s collect our Captain and venture into the belly of the beast. I’m sure it will be fine.”
“Okay, you’re really just tempting fate with that one.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he laughed. It echoed strangely behind him, in the dimly-lit ruins.
-
As they progressed through the temple, cracked bits of the ceiling provided a little light. Obi-Wan could make out a whole section where an enterprising group of “supplicants” had blasted through; their rope was still there. As were a few skeletons.
One of the clones groaned lowly behind him as they came into view, and to be honest, he felt the same way.
Beyond the skeletons, it was really a marvelous structure, with a focus on circles and spirals in its design, and sweeping arches that disappeared into a high, high ceiling. He ended up having to float a light source up to even see said ceiling, which revealed the remnants of frescoes, paintings of the heavens interspersed with humanoid figures, all crowned in horns. And there was something else there, as well, a twisting sinuous form weaving through all of it, nearly indiscernible. He wondered what religion, what gods this temple had been dedicated to.
About midway in, the floor they’d been walking on crumbled away, revealing caverns below. There was a staircase somewhere before them, but the ground between them and it seemed so unstable as to dissuade the thought of crossing it. At Obi-Wan’s pause, peering down into the depths below, Rex called for the squad to set up rappel lines.
Obi-Wan, of course, needed no rope. He was honestly tempted to just jump down - Rex always made the most interesting expressions when he pulled such an Anakin-type maneuver - but for the sake of his Captain’s blood pressure he floated a light down once more.
And down, down, down it went.