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“A plan would be great right now, Master!” Ahsoka called as she deflected another blast with her lightsaber.
“Asking Anakin Skywalker for a plan would be like asking these droids to stop shooting,” Obi-Wan reminded her on her other side. “You’d have more luck convincing a Jawa not to steal all the valuable tech from your ship.”
The three of them were nearly cornered in a Seperatist ship, no way forward as the droids advanced and no way out with the wall behind them. Of course, they could have cut through the wall but with the droid blasts hitting at all times, there wasn’t a second of leeway to turn their back on the attack.
“Cutting it close Master,” Ahsoka stressed, ignoring OBi-Wan.
“I’m thinking !” Anakin snapped from her other side, irritation filtering through their bond. As he continued to deflect blasts, Anakin focused on the Force, letting it guide him to the best possible location.
There was a small corner of the hallway behind them that could be closed off. While it would corner them, it would also give them an opportunity to breathe and think of a plan or perhaps even contact the Resolute for some back up.
“I’ve got a plan!” Anakin called.
“I have a feeling we’re going to hate it,” Obi-Wan remarked.
“Who cares!?” Ahsoka shouted. “If it gets us away from these droids, then I love it!”
“Obi-Wan, do you have your communicator?”
“Yes.”
“Will it work ?”
“If we can get some space from these droids, I believe so.”
Anakin nodded, then used the force to fling the droids away from them before turning and swiftly cutting a hole in the wall. A droid shot narrowly missed his head and he cursed as Obi-Wan and Ahsoka jumped into the fray to protect his back.
“Come on!” He shouted, leading them into the hole he’d cut into the wall. They all jumped through, following Anakin as he rushed down the hall to the end, pressing a button nearby to close the sector off.
Finally alone and mostly safe, at least for now, they all breathed quiet sighs of relief.
“Quick thinking,” Obi-Wan remarked. “You couldn’t have done that sooner?”
Anakin just scowled. “Just contact the Resolute,” he demanded, crossing his arms over his chest.
On the other side of the wall, the droids lead Count Dooku to where the Jedi were trapped.
“We trapped the Jedi in there,” one bragged.
“We did?” Another asked. “I thought they put themselves in there.”
The first punched the other in the head. Count Dooku, meanwhile, regarded the small section they’d shut themselves in.
“Do you want us to override the controls, sir?” another droid asked.
Count Dooku shook his head. “This hallway is designed to filter in Dhixal-7, in the event of an invasion.”
“Uh…” the droids looked at each other. “Roger roger?”
“I want all Dhixal-7 canisters deployed into that section.” He pointed to where the Jedi were trapped. “Let’s see how long it takes them to notice.” He narrowed his eyes. “Let’s see how long they can last.”
“But sir, aren't Togruta immune to Dhixal-7?”
“Then the padawan will be trapped and forced to watch her masters die ,” Count Dooku decided as he walked away. “Get it done .”
“Roger roger.”
After the droids walked away, Dooku regarded the door in front of him before using his lightsaber to damage the door controls on his end. After another moment of thought, he harnessed the Force to drag the steel wall over, blocking the door. The wall was made of Croanyx, which was a type of metal that could not be cut by a lightsaber.
The Jedi would not make it out of there alive.
…………………………
“Anything?” Anakin asked.
“I haven’t been able to get a clear connection through,” Obi-Wan replied. “But I will continue trying.”
Anakin pressed his lips together as he forced his irritation away to turn to his padawan.
“You doing alright, Snips?”
“Just fine,” Ahsoka replied. “It’s not like we’re trapped in a Seperatist ship, with Count Dooku, who is probably waiting on the other side of the door to open it up and kill us with droids.”
“Have faith in the force, little one,” Anakin told her.
Ahsoka crossed her arms over her chest. “Can’t I just have faith in you?”
“Same thing, isn’t it?” Ahsoka rolled her eyes as Anakin turned back to Obi-Wan. “Anything?”
“Anakin, it has been less than a minute since you asked me the last time,” he said calmly. “No, nothing yet. Perhaps you and Ahsoka could meditate ?” It was less a suggestion and a little more of an order but before Anakin could object it too aggressively, Ahsoka placed a hand on his arm and said,
“Master Kenobi is right. We can do light meditation. That way, if we come under attack, we’re still quick and ready to fight.”
Anakin agreed, but only because his padawan was the one suggesting it now instead of just Obi-Wan. So double checking that the door was locked, at least for the moment, Anakin and Ahsoka sat down across from one another and began to meditate.
…………………….
Anakin did not feel well. It was hard to explain, though maybe ‘well’ wasn’t the right word. He felt…off. He squeezed his eyes closed, trying to focus on meditating, but it was…
He opened his eyes. He felt…uneasy. Restless. Like something was crawling under his skin. He shifted but it didn’t help. He shifted again and lowered his head, swallowing thickly. Behind him, he heard shifting and almost flinched when Obi-Wan asked,
“Anakin?”
He just shook his head. “Nothing.” But the word was weak and they both knew it was a lie.
“Are you alright?”
Anakin swallowed again. “I’m not sure,” he admitted and his honesty was enough for Ahsoka’s eyes to fly open and Obi-Wan to quickly hurry to his side, crouching next to him and placing a hand on his shoulder.
“What is it?” Obi-Wan asked. “What’s wrong?”
Anakin shook his head. “I can’t place it,” he replied. “Something’s…off.”
“Is it the force?” Ahsoka asked. “Is it warning you?”
“No, this is different,” Anakin replied. “It’s not the force.”
Ahsoka and Anakin shared glances. “You just feel off?” Obi-Wan asked. Anakin nodded. “You’ll let us know if you get worse?”
If they weren’t already worried before, they were when Anakin replied with pure honesty,
“Yes.”
……………………………
“Sir, it seems Skywalker has begun to suffer the effects of Dhixal-7,” a battle droid reported.
Dooku hummed in thought. “And Kenobi?”
“Not yet.”
“Fascinating,” Dooku mused. “What difference is there, I wonder? They’re the same species, aren’t they? So why is Skywalker already feeling…” he stilled, stroking his beard. “Unless…”
He turned and quickly strode away.
……………………………
Anakin groaned, closing his eyes. Ahsoka was at his side immediately. “Master?” she asked, while Obi-Wan continued to try and get his communicator working. “What’s wrong?”
Anakin shook his head, pressing a hand to his forehead. “Dizzy,” he murmured. “Feel sick.”
Obi-Wan and Ahsoka glanced at each other. “Do you feel anything, Master Kenobi?” she asked.
“Restless, perhaps,” Obi-Wan replied, “But that is merely from my concern for Anakin. And you?”
“I’m fine,” Ahsoka replied. “I promise I’ll tell you if I’m not.”
Obi-Wan nodded. Anakin shifted, eyes opening slightly. They were unfocused and he swayed slightly as he glanced towards Obi-Wan, struggling to focus on him.
“Anything?” he asked quietly.
“Nothing,” Obi-Wan replied. “It seems we’re cut off from communication in here.”
Ahsoka pressed her lips together. “Why hasn’t Dooku cut down the door to get to us?”
Obi-Wan followed her gaze. “That’s a good question.” He frowned, glancing at Anakin. “I’m afraid I might have my suspicions.”
“Which are?” Anakin mumbled, shifting to lean against the wall, peeling his eyes open to gaze blearily up at Obi-Wan as the man stood and lifted his scanner towards the vents in the ceiling.
“Unfortunately, correct,” Obi-Wan answered after his scanner beeped and he read what it said.
“What is it?” Ahsoka asked, walking over to gaze over his shoulder.
“Dhixal-7,” Obi-Wan replied.
“Okay,” Ahsoka said slowly, worrying her lip between her teeth. “What does that mean?”
The expression on Obi-Wan’s face was grave. “It means we have sixty minutes to get Anakin out of here.”
………………….
“Sir, the prisoners have identified the gas,” a droid reported.
“Let them,” Dooku said dismissively. “They cannot call for help and they’re certainly not getting out of that room in time. Anakin Skywalker will die.”
Then, he turned and plotted a course back to the Seperatist base, informing them that he would be arriving with at least one dead Jedi.
……………………
“Master, he looks really bad.”
A hand against his forehead, brushing his hair back. “Anakin?” Obi-Wan called. “Can you hear me?”
Anakin hummed, the sound quickly dissolving into painful coughs that had him curling in on himself and left him breathless and wheezing when they were over.
“Obi?” he mumbled, struggling to tug his eyes open but feeling too sick and dizzy to even be able to pinpoint his master in the spinning wheel of color. He groaned softly and closed his eyes again, head lolling back against the wall and starting to roll onto his shoulder until a gloved hand cupped his cheek gently.
“What are we going to do?” Ahsoka asked from his other side as he trembled lightly between the two of them, feeling too cold despite the sweat coating his skin and the heat thrumming beneath his veins.
“Keep him calm,” Obi-Wan instructed. “If he is…” he eyed Anakin, hesitating, before going on. “If he’s being separated from the force, as I suspect, he may begin to panic. That’s only going to make it worse .”
Ahsoka nodded and Anakin heard and somewhat felt her sit next to him, tangling her fingers between his own flesh ones.
“Don’t worry, Master,” she said softly. “We’re going to get you out of here.”
Gently, Obi-Wan’s hand slipped from beneath Anakin’s cheek and he groaned softly, eyes fluttering, as his head lolled forward.
“So what does Dhixal-7 do?” Ahsoka asked, worry making her not want to sit in silence any longer.
“It’s essentially called the Force killer,” Obi-Wan replied as he turned to the panel on the door and began working on removing it, hoping that he could find some way to use the wires inside to jumpstart his communicator and get at least one small communication out to the council. “It leeches away the force from whatever area it’s filtered into.”
“But…” Ahsoka cast a fearful gaze towards her master who was looking worse by the minute; pallor too white, sweat beading down his temples even as he shook as though freezing. His lips had taken on an unnatural hue. Ahsoka squeezed his hand and only allowed herself to breathe when he very weakly squeezed back. “Master Skywalker is-”
“Half-Force,” Obi-Wan confirmed. “Which is why we need to get him out of here as soon as possible.”
……………………
She could hear her master’s breaths, raspy and wheezing in his chest. By now he had squeezed his eyes closed and the shivering had gotten worse. His lips were parted in an attempt to help him breathe but from the sound of it, it wasn’t working.
He wasn’t squeezing Ahsoka’s hand back anymore, but whenever Obi-Wan placed a hand on his shoulder, he’d open his eyes. He was awake, at least. Though how aware and for how long, they didn’t know.
“How are you feeling, Ahsoka?” Obi-Wan asked. He was taking a break to breathe, having recently attempted to cut through the door, only to discover the Croanyx metal that Dooku had covered it with.
“I’m fine,”Ahsoka replied. “It feels…odd. Not being connected to the force.”
“Indeed,” Obi-Wan agreed. He shifted and coughed quietly. Ahsoka shifted, worried.
“Master?”
“It seems that Dhixal-7 is not the only thing being pumped in here,” he remarked, picking up his scanner and standing again, raising it to the vents, though Ahsoka didn’t miss the way he kept a hand on the wall to steady himself.
“What is it?”
“Vecyne,” Obi-Wan confirmed. “A poison gas.”
“But I feel fine.”
“That’s because Togruta are immune to it,” he told her. “Anakin and I are not.”
Ahsoka looked worriedly between the two of them. “How long do we have?” she asked quietly.
“Myself?” Obi-Wan asked. “Several hours, perhaps.”
“And Master Skywalker?”
“Twenty-two minutes.”
……………………
Master Kenobi said that as it got worse, Anakin would begin to panic. But now it had gotten worse and she didn’t think her master even had the strength to panic. He was lying down with his head in Obi-Wan’s lap, eyes closed tightly as he gasped, the sound horrible. Ahsoka thinks that if he were stronger, he might have been struggling more but as it was, he just lay limp; trembling and occasionally flinching when Obi-WAn’s hand brushed over his forehead.
“How much longer?” Ahsoka asked softly.
Obi-Wan shifted and glanced at his scanner. “Twelve minutes,” he replied quietly.
“How are you feeling?”
“A bit lightheaded,” Obi-Wan replied, brushing his hand through Anakin’s hair again, murmuring something too soft for Ahsoka to hear, when Anakin let out a small, wounded sound at the touch. “Tired, perhaps.”
Ahsoka pressed her lips together, looking around. “We can't get out through the door because of the Croanyx,” she murmured. “We can’t get through the wall because we’d be sucked into space.”
As if sensing her next thought, Obi-Wan opened his eyes and said, “But what about the floor?”
“It’s our only shot,” Ahsoka replied, as she got to her feet. “I’ll cut a small enough hole so that we can see what’s below us. If it’s safe, I’ll make it bigger.”
“As long as we get out of here,” Obi-Wan replied.
Ahsoka nodded and stood, stepping away from her masters and igniting one of her lightsabers, kneeling down to cut just enough of a hole in the floor that she could peer below them.
“I think it’s maybe an old landing bay,” she said, looking up at Obi-Wan. “I don’t see or hear anything below.”
“Even if there is something, it’s our only chance,” Obi-Wan said. “Let’s do it.”
………………………….
The change was immediate and Ahsoka gasped, stumbling, as the Force hit her full, well, force . Even Obi-Wan groaned, coughing quietly into his elbow as he carefully lowered Anakin to the floor, his lungs aching as they were finally exposed to clean air.
Ahsoka eyed her master, unresponsive and unmoving on the floor. “Is he-”
“Still weak,” Obi-Wan replied. “But he won’t be getting any worse, provided Dooku doesn’t realize we’re not up there and assuming this room doesn’t have vents that can seep out that very same gas.” He pulled up his communicator and Ahsoka heard him let out a quiet sigh of relief as it finally worked, connecting to the Resolute at last.
“Sir!” Commander Rex stood at attention. “You’ve been gone for ages. We were just getting ready to-”
“No time for talk, Commander Rex, Anakin is badly ill,” Obi-Wan informed him, keeping one hand on his old padawan’s forehead to still him as Anakin shifted and groaned, the force clashing against the Dhixal-7 in his body. “Can you get to us? I’m afraid getting to you is going to be very difficult.”
“Yes sir,” Rex confirmed. “It looks like you’re in an old docking bay. One we happen to be almost right outside of. If you can open the bay doors, I think we can get the ship inside.”
“Good.” After closing communications, Obi-Wan looked up at Ahsoka and said, “Help me get Anakin behind those boxes.” He nodded towards a nearby stack of crates. “It’ll be safer to hide him while we search for the bay door controls. In the event that Dooku arrives, I’d rather he assume Anakin was left behind than know he’s here and defenseless.”
………………..
“... event that Dooku arrives, I’d rather he assume Anakin was left behind than know he’s here and defenseless.”
“So what are we going to do, sir?” a droid asked.
“They can’t open the doors and defend Skywalker at the same time,” Dooku replied as he stood. “It seems that we’ve just gained a very powerful bargaining chip.”
…………………..
There was a large distance between where they’d hidden Anakin and the controls for the bay doors and Ahsoka didn’t like it in the slightest and voiced this to Obi-Wan.
“It doesn’t feel right,” she murmured as they headed towards the other end of the docking bay where it appeared as though the controls were on the opposite wall, next to the ship’s entry door. “He can’t defend himself and we’re too far away. If something happens-”
“If something happens, then we’ll figure it out,” Obi-Wan replied as they finally got to the controls. It didn’t take long to figure them out and within moments, the bay doors were sliding open, an air shield already in place.
Pulling out his communicator, Obi-Wan got in touch with Rex. “Sir!” Rex greeted, jumping to attention.
“We’ve opened the bay hangar doors,” Obi-Wan told him. “We’re going to retrieve Anakin.”
“We’re on our way, sir. We had to move the ship to avoid being spotted. We should be there in a few moments.”
Nodding, Obi-Wan and Ahsoka returned to where they had hidden Anakin. But just feet away, Dooku emerged from the shadows, dragging a barely aware, barely coherent Anakin with him.
The Jedi’s eyes were cloudy, unfocused, and barely open, lips parted as he continued to struggle to breathe, the arm locked around his upper chest and torso no doubt making that just a bit harder. He was gripping onto Dooku’s forearm not to fight but to try and keep his balance, stumbling over his own feet.
“Not another move, Kenobi,” Dooku said calmly as he ignited his lightsaber, the red glinting off of his and Anakin’s faces. “Or I kill him.”
“Let him go, Dooku,” Obi-Wan said. At his side, Ahsoka reached for her lightsaber but Obi reached towards her, shaking his head. Not now. Not yet. He had a plan.
Well, he wanted her to think he had a plan.
By now Anakin had tilted his head back against Dooku’s shoulder but his struggle for breath was still audible, even from this distance.
“No,” Dooku replied calmly. “You won’t do anything with him so close.”
“You want him as a bargaining chip against the Jedi,” Obi-Wan guessed. “But Anakin is sick. He’s not going to last much longer without medical assistance. We’re leaving without a fight, Dooku, so long as you return Anakin to us.”
“I wonder what it would take to push you too far,” Dooku mused. “How much would you have to endure to join the Dark Side?” He shifted his lightsaber so that the tip was just underneath Anakin's exposed jaw. At Obi-Wan’s side, Ahsoka growled. “Or perhaps the death of your padawan, who you could have protected, would be enough.”
“What do you want him for?”
“I think the Chosen One, dead or alive, would fetch a very hefty price,” Dooku replied. Obi-Wan, who had been looking for an opening to get Dooku away from his old padawan, got his opportunity a moment later when Anakin went limp. Dooku, not expecting that at all, stumbled and began to lose his grip.
That was all Obi-Wan needed to harness the force and fling Dooku back. Anakin slid a few feet as well and both Obi-Wan and Ahsoka flinched when they heard his head hit the ground.
“Protect Anakin until Rex gets here with the ship!” Obi-Wan ordered as he ignited his lightsaber and hurried towards Dooku who was already getting to his feet. “I’ll deal with Dooku.”
Ahsoka nodded and rushed towards her master as Obi-Wan used the force once more to push Dooku further away, keeping the fight from his defenseless padawan. Dropping to Anakin’s side, Ahsoka leaned over him.
“Master?” she asked, but he was still unresponsive, eyes barely open though Ahsoka doubted he was still conscious. She pressed her fingers to the pulse point on his neck and then put her lekku to his chest. He was still breathing, but it was shallow, his pulse point too fast to be normal.
His skin was hotter than it should be, dotted in sweat, even as he continued to shiver.
“Don’t worry, master,” she whispered. “Rex is coming with the ship. You’re going to be fine .”
…………………
When Rex and two other clones arrived in a small rescue ship, the Resolute docked just outside, they helped Ahsoka get Anakin up and dragged him towards the ship. Turning, Ahsoka saw Obi-Wan was still fighting Dooku. She reached for her lightsabers but paused, glancing back towards Anakin.
Finally, she called to Rex, “He inhaled Dhixal-7 for approximately forty-eight minutes. It’s a force killer. He needs the Halls of Healing at the Jedi temple. Prep the ship, Master Kenobi and I will be there as soon as we can.”
“Yes Commander!” Rex assured before hurrying with the others to get Anakin back to the Resolute. Knowing her Master would be safe, Ahsoka rushed to assist Obi-Wan.
……………….
The fight with Dooku is pretty easy, once she joins the fight and he realizes they’re not going to let him get to Anakin. He shoves them both back with the force and as droids begin blasting at them, he makes his escape.
Obi-Wan lets him as they make their own escape back to the rescue ship, returning to the Resolute. Anakin has already been taken to medical and the ship is now enroute to the Jedi Temple.
“He’s going to be okay, right?” Ahsoka asked quietly where she and Obi-Wan are sitting in medical with Anakin, hoping that the force can use some of their energy to help heal him. “We got better after we got out, but he…”
“The Dhixal-7 was killing him. Killing half of him,” Obi-Wan replied. “In many ways, right now he is almost half dead. It will take a long time to heal him.”
Ahsoka just blinked at him. “You know you made it worse, right?” she asked. “I asked if he was going to be okay, but you just made it worse.”
Obi-Wan gave her a gentle smile as he placed a hand on her shoulder. “Have faith in the Force, Ahsoka,” he told her.
That was the end of their conversation.
………………………..
“We have him placed in a Force-Sensitive room, on life support,” Vokara Che reported, several hours later after they had arrived at the Jedi Temple and Anakin had been whisked away to the Halls of Healing. “All we can do now is wait and have faith in the Force.”
“How long will it take?” Ahsoka asked.
“As long as it takes, young one.”
She was already sick of that answer.
……………………
Anakin opened his eyes a week later. For the following seven days, he vomited constantly and trembled through the night, temperature dancing between too high and too low.
Three weeks after that, he was coherent enough to hold a conversation, though it was still advised that they not overwhelm him too much. Unfortunately, Obi-Wan and Ahsoka had been away on an extended mission and she hadn’t gotten to see him.
One month after waking, he was finally permitted to leave the Halls of Healing but still had to wait another three weeks after that before he was finally permitted to board the Resolute and return to his duties as a Jedi Knight.
“Master!” Ahsoka said, rushing to him as he entered the cockpit of the Resolute. “I’ve missed you.”
“I’ve missed you too, Ahsoka,” he assured, laughing as she huffed him. To Obi-Wan, who approached at a slower pace, Anakin bowed his head. “Obi-Wan.”
“Anakin,” Obi-Wan returned. “It’s good to see you awake and well.”
“It’s good to be awake and well,” Anakin returned. “Admittedly, I don’t remember much.”
“Dhixal-7.”
“I thought that stuff was outlawed.”
“Not for a Sith.”
“Mm.” Anakin nodded. “How close did we cut it?”
“Too close,” Ahsoka replied. “I thought we were going to lose you.”
“She was quite distraught when we heard you woke but were unfortunately away and unable to visit. We’ve been quite busy, after all.”
“The mission comes first,” Anakin said, even though Ahsoka had heard him say that that was a stupid phrase, behind Obi-Wan’s back, on more than one occasion. But she kept her mouth shut now because something told her that for once, he did actually agree with it.
“Well, now that we’re all caught up,” Obi-Wan said. “Shall we?”
“I call pilot,” Anakin said, pushing his way past Obi-Wan and towards the pilot’s seat. While the older master was too busy rolling his eyes, Ahsoka eagerly scampered over and chirped,
“I call co-pilot.”
Behind them, Obi-Wan laughed while Anakin and Ahsoka beamed at one another, both pleased to be working together again.