Trial of the Times

Chapter 18 - A Missing Master

When Ahsoka awakens, she feels much more peaceful than she has in a long time. She feels a faint sense of someone she hasn't felt in too long. Her master. Anakin was there. In the Temple. Did he come back? She slips out of bed hopefully. Maybe he's finally back, so she can demand to know where he's been for the past couple weeks.

Ahsoka leaves the apartment, heading out in search of someone who can tell her what's happening. That's when she notices the tension humming in the Force. Did something happen during the night? A feeling of unease creeps into her, taking the edge off her good mood.

She notices one of her best friends, – and fellow Padawan – Barriss, and approaches her, noting how stressed she looks. "Ahsoka!" Barriss cries when she sees her, "Did you hear?"

The Togruta regards her friend with some confusion. "Hear?" she queries, "Hear what?"

Barriss looks around before lowering her voice into a dramatic whisper, "The Council hasn't officially confirmed it, but I heard rumors that last night Master Kenobi was kidnapped."

"What?" yelps Ahsoka, her eyes widening in alarm.

"Shh!" hisses her friend, "His apartment was supposedly empty this morning, and security footage shows him being carried unconscious out of the Temple. I've heard whispers of some Vader person who might be responsible."

Ahsoka stares at Barriss in a stunned silence. Vader. The Sith who tried to kill the Chancellor, who she chased with Windu before he escaped. If he could enter the Temple so easily and kidnap a Council member, no one is safe. She's all but forgotten that she sensed her master's presence was in the Temple the previous night.

"Maybe we could go to Master Obi-Wan's apartment," suggests Ahsoka, "I know he won't mind. Besides, I might be able to sense if something happened."

"Are you sure?" objects Barris reluctantly.

"Yes," replies Ahsoka emphatically, "I heard he was going to be appointed my temporary master until the Council determines what happened to my master." She bites her lip, looking away. She hates having to keep the secret, but she promised Anakin. Turning, she scurries in the direction of Obi-Wan's apartment.

"I'm not sure we should do this," warns Barriss, though she follows despite her concerns.

Well I am. Ahsoka doesn't bother responding, keeping her senses open, completely attuned to the slightest changes in the Force. Stopping outside the door, she reaches out, sensing only traces of a strong Force shield which was clearly used relatively recently. Slowly inhaling, she enters the code, pushing open the door.

"I think I'll wait out here," Barriss tells her, and Ahsoka simply nods, stepping inside the apartment and letting the door close behind her.

Closing her eyes, she lets herself flow into the currents of the Force. She senses no traces of a struggle, a realization which brings a frown to her face. Another thought strikes her. There are no traces of the Dark Side being used. Strange. A Sith would certainly have used the Dark Side. She begins to get the feeling that there is something which simply isn't adding up.

Silently she walks to the living room and sits down on the floor in a meditative position. She intends to get to the bottom of the mystery surrounding Obi-Wan's disappearance. As Ahsoka slips into a light Force trance, she senses that a shielded Force presence had entered the apartment and gone straight to the Jedi Master's bedroom – almost as though the intruder knew exactly where to go.

Reaching further into the Force, Ahsoka extends her senses towards Obi-Wan's bedroom. There was no struggle, and nor does she sense any ill-intent which should surely have woken the Jedi Master. Almost as though the person who took Obi-Wan did not intend to harm him. In fact, she realizes that the strongest emotions she feels are pain and longing.