Star Wars: Torn

Chapter 7

Chapter 7
The next morning Jade got up early and took about an hour to find her swimsuit and another hour to adjust her eye and hand so that they would be waterproof.
The lake was beautiful, it seemed to shine in a golden light as the beams of the rising sun hit it’s surface. The air was fresh and a light breeze moved the leaves of the old trees growing around the big lake. Jade took a deep breath, it was time to catch some gangsters. Without hesitation she jumped into the water. The pilot didn’t flinch as the cold water covered her pale skin and soaked her long black hair. Cautiously she scanned her surroundings, many people were swimming in the golden water enjoying the beautiful morning. They all looked quite innocent. Not like someone who was planning to murder the royal family and take their power to themselves. Suddenly she spotted three people at the side of the lake in the shadow of an enormous tree. One of them was the Rhodian from the club, Tommy. “He could be one of the bad guys”, she whispered to herself. With him there was a female Phindaner and a male human with blue hair. “I would kill him just for his stupid hair color if I hadn’t made this stupid promise!”, Jade hissed quietly. Slowly she swam closer, listening to every word. “His son..…. Wedding…power!” was all she could hear before they spotted her. They didn’t ask any questions. They attacked instantly. Another advantage of meeting in a lake was that no one would find any witnesses if they drowned them. But Jade was confident she could handle them. Tommy tried to punch her with a wide swing but the water blocked it so that she nearly didn’t feel it. The Phindaner and the human with the stupid blue hair aimed for her face. She dodged them easily catching bluehairs fist in midair and twisting it painfully. He screamed in pain and swam away. “Coward”, she called after him. But as she was busy insulting him Tommy grabbed her arm. With one move he ripped of the waterproof protection. Instantly it malfunctioned and turned itself of. Jade struggled to swim. It was hard enough with just one arm, but with the weight of her prostatic dragging her down it was nearly impossible! “That’s what I get for being arrogant”, she thought gritting her teeth. Tommy attacked again. Easily he and the Phindaner dragged her underwater. Desperately she tried to hold her breath. After a few minutes Tommy and the Phindaner swam away. But Jade didn’t have the strength to swim to the surface with her arm dragging her down. It seemed so close yet so far away. “I can’t believe this! I survived a Jedi attack and two years later I die because I had to insult a guy with stupid hair! This is so unfair!”
***
Qui-gon took a deep breath as he sat down at the side of the little river which was flowing through the forest. Beams of light danced of it’s surface slightly illuminating the overgrown forest. Qui-gon felt the clean air flow through his body and out again. He watched a leave being carried by the stream dancing past him and then vanishing in the distance. The Jedi slightly touched the water surface. The clear water was cold and fresh. He settled into a meditative pose. Gently Qui-gon placed his lightsaber In front of him and closed his eyes. He could feel the wind blow through his hair and could hear it rustle the branches of the tall trees. Birds sang in the distance. Connecting to the living force Qui-gon could feel everything around him. The life in every branch, the birds and the other forest creatures. The force was like a constant flow of energy, like the water of the little river, surrounding him, guiding him.
Suddenly he felt a disturbance in the force. Something wasn’t right. Jade was in serious trouble. Qui-gon jumped to his feet. With the force he pulled his lightsaber towards him and clipped it back to his belt. Quickly he ran towards the lake. It was easy to find it he only had to follow the stream and trust in the force. The Jedi jumped over fallen trees and roots with ease never tripping, never slowing down. In under three minutes he had reached the lake. “Jade will kill me if l I got this wrong and she isn’t in trouble.” The force led him to the side of the river. A big tree cast a shadow on the surface of the water. In the distance he could see three figures running away. Quickly he took of his cloak and turned of the power on his lightsaber so it wouldn’t short-circuit. Then he jumped into the cold water. It took him a moment to spot Jade. She was sinking quite fast cause of her droid arm. Why did she have to be so stubborn and go alone? Quickly Qui-gon grabbed her by the waist and pulled her up. She gasped for air as they reached the shore. “Didn’t I say I would come alone”, she coughed as she could speak again. “I don’t follow orders.”, Qui-gon replied calmly:” just ask the council!”
“Whatever! It was just the fault of that stupid guy with his stupid hair!”, she sulked. Qui-gon was kinda curious but decided it was safer to ask later when she wasn’t in such a terrible mood anymore. Thinking of it, she had been in a terrible mood since the start of the mission, so it wouldn’t really make any difference. “What do you mean”, the Jedi asked after considering the consequences. “I found the people who I was looking for, Tommy was with them, the only conversation part I heard was: “his son…. Wedding and power”, then they noticed me and attacked. I would have destroyed them if I didn’t have to mock the guy with blue hair after I broke his arm. Cause, well he had blue hair and I don’t like blue hair!”, Jade snorted. “Force help me!” Qui-gon thought:” if I laugh now she will find a way to make this mission even harder for me!” Slowly she got up and stared walking towards the exit. Qui-gon picked up his cloak and followed her. Suddenly she laughed: “Well I don’t really have to fell so stupid, at least I had a swimsuit whilst you went swimming with all your clothes except for your cloak. Who’s dumb now!” Qui-gon decided not to answer that, there was no point in arguing.