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Obi-Wan had entered the seedy cantina approximately an hour ago. Then, their comm connection went dead.
.
They had been on this moon world for a fortnight already. The battles had ceased here and no military presence was allowed for as long as the negotiations were ongoing. The government officials were talking to both the Separatists and the Republic at the same time. Obi-Wan had been chosen to represent the Republic in this matter, both for his talking skills and the fact that he could keep himself safe.
Weapons weren’t allowed and neither were bodyguards or soldiers. Each representative was allowed one servant, however, or somebody along those lines, it differed across cultures. And well, Cody wasn’t going to let Obi-Wan go in there alone. He didn’t, not even for one second, think that the Separatists were going in without weapons.
Obi-Wan might need him, Jedi or not.
The first two days were uneventful, basic talks went on. Cody didn’t really have much to do. He stood next to Obi-Wan, watched their surroundings, and once in a while poured Obi-Wan a drink so at least he wouldn’t look too much like a bodyguard.
It all changed when Obi-Wan was getting ready for bed. Cody, as a trusted servant, got assigned a much smaller room adjacent to his. They had gone over their plan for the next day and the next round of meetings and then Cody left him and prepared for bed.
He had just put on a woolly shirt that had been left for him by the local maids when he heard Obi-Wan calling his name. He didn’t sound scared or anything like that, but the urgency in his tone made Cody hurry back to him.
When he entered the main bedroom, Obi-Wan stood by the window, a note of flimsy in his hands that Cody hadn’t seen before. His head was cast down as he stared at it, a thoughtful crease between his brows.
Cody quickly assessed the situation. A window still open, buildings across from their own. The lamp cast light across Obi-Wan’s room. Cody jogged toward him, grabbed Obi-Wan’s shoulders and swiftly pushed him and his back against the wall. “How did it get in here?”
Cody didn’t look at Obi-Wan and instead peered around the edge of the window, looking for any reflections opposite them. Nothing. He closed the window and look for the remote they had showed them earlier. It was thrown on the bed. He got it and hit the button that darkened out all the windows. With that done, Cody was breathing a little easier.
“A drone delivered it.”
“And you just opened the window?” Cody didn’t outright glare at him but it was a near thing. Technically, this was neutral territory, but Cody still thought of it as an enemy zone, especially with the Separatist representatives who were clearly warriors more than diplomats and in the room on the next floor.
“I felt no danger from the drone itself, this note, however…”
Cody got close, his elbow pressing into Obi-Wan’s hand. “Looks like a local address. This here—” he pointed to the last character “—is the name of this city, and this district. I saw a sign on our way inside.”
Obi-Wan nodded. Cody felt it more like a shift in the air than actually saw it. “So not far. How considerate.”
“Did the drone carry anything else? Which model was it?”
“No, nothing that could help us identify it. And I didn’t recognize it.”
“I didn’t notice anybody telling you to meet them earlier.”
Obi-Wan hummed. “I think it’s one of the locals, not the Separatists.”
“Or maybe they want us to think that.”
“A trap. Perhaps.”
“Is the Force telling you something?” Cody asked. Sometimes Obi-Wan acted based on where his gut was telling him to, called it following the Force.
“Not really. No clear path is set for me here.”
“Could be a good sign.” Cody considered it. Not the best odds, but if not an outright warning…
“We should check it out regardless.”
“Yeah.” There was no way they could simply ignore it. And by the looks of it, whoever had sent it was desperate to meet the Jedi soon. Cody checked the address. It was a twenty-minute shuttle ride away and the meeting time was an hour before dawn. Nights on this moon lasted longer than they were used to so they still had some time to prepare.
Cody made sure their comms were working. There wasn’t a weapon Obi-Wan could take. Cody wanted to go with him, but Obi-Wan thought it would be better if Cody stayed behind as a back-up should he need it, and if case something went wrong, at least one person would know about the note and the secret meeting.
It made sense. Cody wasn’t too happy about it.
He and Obi-Wan kept up a steady chatter as Obi-Wan entered the place, a cantina in what seemed to be a rather poor part of the district, nothing like the opulent hotel where the talks were taking place. It reminded Cody a lot of Coruscant, actually.
He stayed two streets down, at an alley that seemed to be a good place to hide out for a while without anybody bothering him. To be fair, he had on a dark hood that covered most of his face and out here, that was a deterrent enough to most people. Cody used that to his advantage.
“I’m in,” Obi-Wan spoke through the comms.
“Good. I can still hear you loud and clear.”
“Not too loud, I hope.”
“Just right.”
He heard Obi-Wan’s light chuckle, but that was it. They had to limit their conversation to the essentials.
Cody checked the time. There were still a few more minutes left. “Do you see anyone who could be that person?”
“No.”
Maybe they wanted to come later after making sure Obi-Wan was there, unarmed and alone. Cody’s stomach churned at the idea. He reminded himself how skilled Obi-Wan was and that there was nothing to fear.
“Report,” Cody said to the comm after a couple of minutes of silence.
“Bar,” Obi-Wan replied, quieter now.
“Are you sitting at the bar?”
“Yes.”
“Any contact?”
There was silence. Then, “No.”
Cody didn’t worry. Not yet. Obi-Wan wouldn’t be able to immediately answer every time. Cody had no idea what was going on inside and what the situation was like, whether talking would draw suspicion.
He settled for more waiting.
Almost an hour later, the comm crackled but no voice came. Cody stilled, listening intently.
“C..Cod-y…” Obi-Wan slurred, voice nothing but a whisper. Cody took off in the direction of the cantina, pushing people out of the way as he ran.
“Obi-Wan, what’s happening?” The comm sent out more static sounds. “Obi-Wan!”
Then nothing. Their communication had cut off entirely.
“Kriff,” Cody muttered under his breath. The cantina was in his sight now. He fucking missed his helmet now, had to rely on his sight and the terrible lamps outside. Half of them were busted.
He was still too far when a tall and hooded figure exited the cantina doors. They had a man clinging to their side, an arm slung tightly over their shoulders. The man that was at their side could have passed for a drunk, but Cody could easily identify somebody unconscious.
Another person walking down the street bumped into them which jostled the unconscious man and his head lolled back, cloak falling and revealing him. Cody’s stomach dropped at the sight of that familiar mullet.
It was Obi-Wan. Of course it was.
Cody full-out sprinted, but he wouldn’t reach them in time. There were too many people on the street and even if the place was empty, he wasn’t fast enough. There was no Force to give him a magical boost.
The person half-carrying, half-dragging Obi-Wan speed-walked toward a parked shuttle. The door opened for them and in the next second, the shuttle was slowly making its way into the traffic lanes.
So two kidnappers at least.
And they hadn’t noticed Cody yet.
He took in the street. He wouldn’t be able to hail a shuttle for himself here. He didn’t even see one.
Cody wasn’t too happy about it, but needs must. Some kind of delivery guy was just mounting a speeder. Cody ran up to him and pushed him off with one hand, grabbing the handles with the other. The person protested, very loudly, but nobody was rushing to help and Cody had no time to apologize or explain.
Obi-Wan had walked right into a trap and he was defenseless.
It wasn’t ideal. The speeder had logos and a design of the chain of restaurants that the guy must have worked for. Whatever local authorities were down here, they would be able to spot Cody fast. As long as he managed to follow the shuttle with Obi-Wan… Cody might have enough time.
He pushed the speeder to the maximum, the engine roaring beneath him. It was hardly the newest model, and the creaking under his feet didn’t sound promising, but the shuttle was still visible.
He followed it from the traffic line beneath it, then got so close he was just two shuttles away and under. They wouldn’t be able to escape him now.
As they slowed down, several blocks further, Cody slowed down too and kept his distance. He abandoned the speeder and ran the remaining distance toward where they had taken Obi-Wan inside.
There wasn’t much he could use as a weapon, but as he passed the street, he saw a pipe hanging out and gave it one last wrench that sent it free. That would have to be enough.
He didn’t linger outside for long. Surprising them was his best strategy. He wasn’t willing to let them have time alone with Obi-Wan even if he didn’t know who they were or what they wanted. To Cody, the details didn’t really matter right now, not when Obi-Wan could be in danger.
Still, his approach was silent and cautious. If something happened to him, there would be no back-up for either of them.
The building was worse off, but it seemed like people lived there or at least squatted there. He cleared every room on his way so that nobody would surprise him later.
Further inside the building, it got warmer, with more light, and he heard voices echoing down the short hall. Despite his training, Cody stiffened for just a second before forcing himself to continue.
“—n’t look too trustworthy,” a rough feminine voice said from the room at the end of that hall.
“They’re paying. It’s an easy job.”
Nothing. They must have made some kind of a gesture.
“It is, c’mon Ramo, we keep him here for a few hours, exchange him for the credits and we’re set for life. Then we can finally get out of this karking place.”
“And go where? I’m not returning to Mandalore and you can’t go home either.”
A Mandalorian? Cody eyed his hand free of his vambraces and the rusted pipe and then cringed. He would really have to use that element of surprise.
“Doesn’t matter where we go, as long as get out of here before the whole place is under military occupation. Republic or Sep, same thing for us.”
“Di’kut, don’t say shit like that out here. What if he can hear us!”
“I doubt it. The Jedi tales are overrated, exaggerated legends, nothing more.”
Well, they were pretty far into the Mid-Rim. It made sense that most people hadn’t heard of the Jedi, much less actually seen one.
“Still a Jedi, though. We don’t know how it’ll work for him. He could wake up any minute.”
“I picked the strongest sleeping pill available out here. We won’t have any issues until they come for h—”
Cody had heard enough. A sleeping pill meant that Obi-Wan would be fine, but it was a rather effective tactic against a Jedi. If they were unconscious, they couldn’t use the Force. If only somebody was skilled enough to spike their drink with it. Somehow, these two had managed that.
With quick steps, Cody entered the room and analyzed it in a split second. The Mandalorian had already been categorized as the bigger danger to him and so he headed for the armored individual right away.
The tall man had stopped talking when Cody had appeared. Cody swung the pipe over the woman’s head, her helmet had been off. She blocked him with a vambrace on her arm. The sound of the pipe hitting it reverberated, but not like beskar. Good. Made for a more equal fight.
The pipe still safely in his strong grip, Cody kept attacking. A swipe to the side, then her ribs and when she got used to defending her middle, he swung at her head again. She ducked, but he still caught the side of her head, painfully enough that she staggered, disoriented.
The man used this for an attack too. He jumped at Cody’s back, more trying to make him lose the weapon than anything. Cody could immediately think of a dozen moves the man could have done instead to actually hurt him.
Cody simply turned the pipe around in his hands and angled his head to the side so that he could hit the man on his back. The hit connected, the man cried out and loosened his grip. Cody backed up until he could push the man against the wall, using his own bulk to drive him in.
He might have regretted it the second the woman actually growled at him and charged, still bent down. Cody tried to get out of her way, but she was too fast. Her pauldron clipped him in the side, sending him flying to the ground. He lost the pipe.
She hit the wall, barely catching herself on it. The man was sitting on the ground, looking dazed and clutching his ribs as he breathed hard. She sent him a worried look but focused on Cody, a true warrior that knew how to assess the damage and prioritize.
The guy was hurt, but he would be fine. Might have some broken ribs, maybe a pierced lung, but he would live. But only if they gave up because Cody wasn’t about to and he wasn’t beyond killing them if that ensured his and Obi-Wan’s survival.
They had been fighting countless battles out there on the fronts, they weren’t dying here in some random building with people who weren’t even related to the war conflict and where nobody would find them.
Cody rolled and got to his feet before she could charge at him again. He skipped the few steps to the side and retrieved his pipe. It had dents in it now, but he could still use it. He adjusted his grip and nodded at her to get to it.
She didn’t find it funny. He wasn’t really joking.
Ramo, as the man had called her, rushed toward him with an impressive battle cry. When he swung the pipe, she caught it, redirected its momentum and hit Cody in the ribs. It knocked his breath out, but he pushed the pipe in front of him and block another hit that was coming at his face. Then he pushed the pipe against her chest, hitting her breast plate and pushed with all his might. She stumbled back.
Cody got low and knowing intimately well where armor like this tended to have gaps, he kicked in the side of her knee. She went down on one, couldn’t avoid it. He pressed on, his hits steady. With every new one, she grew tardier in her defense. And just like that, Cody knew this fight had been won. Mandalorian or not.
Formidable opponents, sure, but his batch had trained directly under Jango and this woman could not compare. Not to mention Cody had logged countless hours of sparring against armored opponents.
Another barrage of three well placed hits and she couldn’t avoid the fist flying at her face. Ramo was out.
Her partner gazed at him with wide terrified eyes, still breathing shallowly.
“Who’s paying you for this?” Cody asked.
“Nobody.”
“I heard you before. Don’t lie to me.”
“I—” He glanced at Ramo on the ground. Cody had knocked her out but it wouldn’t last long, a few minutes if he was lucky.
“Who’s paying you?” he pressed on.
“There were no names.”
“Who are they then? Description, allegiance, anything.” Cody stepped closer to him, drawing himself to his full height to use the intimidation factor. He kept Ramo in the corner of his eye. Obi-Wan’s leg twitched but he was still asleep, away from the fighting, lying on the cold floor.
“It was one of the governor’s people. His youngest son. I don’t think we were supposed to know, but Ramo saw his face before, in some article on the holonet.”
Cody frowned. “Why? What did they want with him?”
“I don’t know!”
The answer came too fast. The man was backing out now, afraid he had revealed too much.
“Tell me.”
“I said I don’t know.” His eyes were jumping all over the place.
Cody wished he had his blasters around, just for the show. “I’m giving you one more chance.”
He shook his head.
“Whatever you’re afraid of, don’t be. I’m here now. And I can do a lot more damage before they get the chance to come for you.”
He was panting now, had his shirt fisted in his hands. He closed his eyes, trying to regain his breath enough to talk through all that pain and fear. “Ramo… she bugged them… wanted to… know what the real job was.” Cody didn’t push him as he struggled to catch his breath for another silent minute. “Stage a fight between the factions. Kill him and say he… attacked the Separatists… first.”
“And a dead Jedi can hardly dispute. Let me guess, no witnesses around.”
He shrugged. “Even had a fake lightsaber ready.”
“That’s not how lightsabers work.”
“Who… who would know that?”
Cody fucking hated this assignment. He was much better at planning battle strategies, assassination attempts mixed with politics… no.
“When are they picking him up?”
The man had to think about it. “Like, three hours.”
Cody nodded. “Don’t move.”
Not that the man could.
Cody walked up to Obi-Wan, nudged him gently, but the man didn’t even stir. With a sigh, Cody quickly checked that the two kidnappers wouldn’t suddenly come at him, and when he was sure it was safe, he bent down and hefted Obi-Wan across his shoulders, one arm holding his forearm, the other around the back of his thighs.
“The shuttle keys, where are they?” The man pointed at a nearby table. Cody snatched them and moved to the exit. “Don’t follow us.”
“You… you’re not going to…”
“I never said I would. We can go our separate ways here, what you do next… I don’t care as long as you stay out of our way. Disappear.” Cody would have shrugged if it didn’t have the potential to dig his shoulder into Obi-Wan’s poor gut.
The man hesitantly nodded. After that, Cody walked out of there, as fast as he dared with Obi-Wan. The way back through the halls was a little cloudy, but he remembered all the landmarks and made it out on the street in no time.
He put Obi-Wan into a seat, secured his sleeping form with a seatbelt. He went around and then rode away. Not back to the hotel yet. He had no idea what was waiting for them there. It might be nothing, or something life-threatening.
With Obi-Wan currently a very deep sleeper, Cody couldn’t risk that. He himself was already sporting a number of bruises. Had no weapons. No, they couldn’t return until they knew more.
He drove around aimlessly until he found a spot where he could park the shuttle for the night. It looked like an administrative district, with holos advertising all kinds of services. They were all closed during the night and so there were plenty of shuttle spaces left.
They would have to leave come the morning rush, but Cody didn’t plan on sleeping so he could easily make that happen.
The shuttle was their little safe haven for now. He tried rousing Obi-Wan but with no luck. Whatever dose of the sleeping medicine they had given him, it had taken him out. Cody had never seen him sleep this deeply. He appeared rather relaxed too.
It seemed like it would take several more hours for him to wake up. In the meantime, Cody checked the shuttle, all the compartments. He found a small blaster that would be easily hidden and some kind of local snack. Having no idea if it was still edible or not, he left that there and settled on his seat. He had to get comfortable for the next few hours.
And hours it was. The time dragged on, although the morning sun as it rose above the buildings was a nice thing to see. Cody always had time to appreciate such a thing, no matter their current circumstances.
The early light hit their shuttle, bathing everything in a reddish glow—an interesting phenomenon on this moon. Cody didn’t really know the details, but it made it look like Obi-Wan’s hair was on fire. Cody couldn’t look away.
The exposure to direct sunlight finally did it. After two hours of light shining into his eyes, Obi-Wan blinked.
Cody immediately turned to him. “Obi-Wan, can you hear me? Do you understand what I’m saying?”
Obi-Wan groaned, sluggishly moving his arms up to cover his eyes. He failed, his arms dropping back at his sides. Cody brought the shuttle to life and activated the window protectors that cast them into darkness before the automatic lights inside switched on.
“It’s alright,” Cody said, putting a hand on Obi-Wan’s shoulder. “You’re alright. They gave you some kind of a strong sleeping pill.” Cody took his hand. “Squeeze my hand if you understand me.”
Obi-Wan squeezed. He turned his head and blinked his eyes open, looking at Cody. His eyes were still a bit glassy.
“Sleep more if you must.”
But Obi-Wan shook his head. Cody frowned. There was nothing he could do for Obi-Wan right now. A sleeping pill wasn’t anything really dangerous. As far as he knew, Obi-Wan had no allergies or health concerns that might have been influenced by it.
“Sleep, Obi-Wan. I know what’s going on. I’ll explain everything. Later. Sleep for now. We’re safe here.”
Obi-Wan stared into his eyes, searching for something there, then he gave a small nod, still too tired for more and closed his eyes again. His breathing evened out in under a minute and he barely stirred for the next three hours.
At some point, Cody had to get the shuttle out of there and somewhere where they wouldn’t be in the way of the workers going about their usual days.
He managed to obtain them some water and some food under some very questionable circumstances, but they needed the energy and Obi-Wan probably much more than him. That water especially.
When he finally awoke from his deep sleep, he looked more tired than rested, but he was more alert now. Cody had to repeat everything from before because Obi-Wan, while aware that they had talked briefly, couldn’t recall about what.
Then they had to plan what to do next. Cody wanted to get the hell out of there, call the Negotiator for a quick pick-up. Obi-Wan saw the bigger picture here and made Cody understand that they couldn’t leave just yet.
He supposed Obi-Wan was right. Their sudden disappearance would look bad for the Republic and the local government would get what they wanted even without a Jedi going rogue.
They would stay here, claim they had gone out to explore the city if anybody asked. Obi-Wan would continue the talks even if they now knew that the governor was already on the side of the Separatists. Obi-Wan could still change his mind or stall for long enough for this information to reach the Senate and then other people would be able to deal with it properly.
Whichever it was, they wouldn’t be safe here for long.
They knew what to expect though and Cody had a blaster now. They would make it. They had survived worse odds before.