Inheritance

Lying in Wait

"You never should have brought me on board," he screams as he reaches for Windu's neck. Mace easily side-steps the attack. Anakin grabs one of Obi-Wan's arms and pins it to the medical bed. Mace does the same with Obi-Wan's remaining arm while Kix prepares a sedative.

"Let me go!" he screams, his voice cracking with rage as if his own hateful words were trying to rip their way out of his throat. "I hate you all! You will suffer for what you've done to me! I will see all of you burn, cast off and forgotten! I hate you! I HATE YOU!"

Obi-Wan continues to struggle, cursing in a variety of colorful tongues he has picked up in his travels across the galaxy. Finally, Kix injects the Jedi with a powerful sedative. Within seconds, Obi-Wan's resistance melts away and he falls into a deep drug induced sleep. Anakin and Mace let go of his arms.

"I want him to remain sedated and restrained for the duration of this voyage," Windu orders Kix. He turns to another pair of troopers who are standing nearby. "I want him under guard at all times," he commands. Both troopers nod.

"Sir, yes, sir," they answer in unison. Master Windu then turns back to the medic.

"Was the Captain able to retrieve the box?"

"Um... yes, sir. Captain Rex brought it in while I was running tests on the General. It's in the hazardous materials lab."

"Show me," Mace says flatly and Kix nods. He motions for the Jedi to follow as he leads them through the back of the med bay keeping a slow pace, his medical training ever mindful of Skywalker's leg injury. Neither Jedi speak a word as they follow the medic through various medical bays and passed operating rooms, but Mace can feel Anakin's anxiety pushing outward like radiation from a super nova.

"Skywalker, be mindful of your feelings," he whispers.

"Yes, Master," Anakin says as he tries to squeeze down his emotions. "I am just worried for Obi-Wan."

"I know," Mace replies with a trace of sympathy in his voice, "but worry will not help Obi-Wan only clear minded, calm action will."

"Of course," Anakin nods. This is one of those times when Mace infuriates him most—when Anakin knows he's right. Several compartments later, the trio enter a control room. Here there are long and varied consoles on one side of a large glass wall. On the other side is a fairly large and mostly empty room. In that room there is a table and on it sits an opened black box.

"We kept the box under a strict quarantine since it was retrieved," Kix says as he moves to one of the consoles. He pulls up one of the holo-projectors. "My techs have run it through every scan we have. All the results are the same. It's a cube object of unknown material with nothing inside it. It's just an empty box, sir. No pathogens, no viruses, no molds, no matter, nothing."

Mace steps closer to the window separating the two rooms. He turns his head to Kix.

"Thank you, Trooper. You may return to your duties," his says as a dismissal. Kix nods and makes for the door when the General's voice stops him. "Please keep Master Skywalker and me updated on Kenobi's condition."

"Yes, sir," Kix answers, then, following another curt nod, he leaves the two Jedi alone in the lab. Anakin moves to Mace's side. He says nothing as the Council member stares at the small box through the duraglass. After several uncomfortable minutes, Anakin finally can wait no longer.

"Well?"

"Tell me everything you know about this box. Start at the beginning. Leave nothing out," Mace states. Anakin closes his eyes and takes a deep breath as he calls forth the memory in crystal clear detail in his mind. He tells Mace about their arrival on Telos, the nervousness of the Telosian party, the suspicious mechanic, the opening of the box, the feeling of darkness, Obi-Wan's blackout, the explosion, and the "landing." After this, Anakin's report gets a little less specific as he was unconscious for some of it, but he resumes his previous level of Jedi precision as he relates the days leading up to their rescue. Mace listens quietly never interrupting, keeping his questions to himself until after the tale has been told.