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damned_institute2008-09-21 10:47 pm
braidless.livejournal.com) wrote in damned_institute2008-09-21 10:47 pm
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Nightshift 35: South Hall [Basement]
((From here.))
The darkness here was thick and oppressive. Even with the beam from his glowrod, it was difficult to get a clear idea of what, exactly, was ahead. For a moment, he reached out with his senses, but he was met with murky clouds of aggression, cold air, and something else he couldn't identify. There was a draft, but that wasn't why his stomach turned uncomfortably as goosebumps ran up his arms and spine. The low, whistling noise from the wind blowing through seemed to be warning them of the dangers here, and not of the sort they'd faced before.
There was something evil down this hallway. He was certain of it.
And yet there was only one direction for them to go now.
"Stay close," he quietly murmured as they ventured into the darkness. He kept his light carefully trained on their path, and his senses on alert.
The darkness here was thick and oppressive. Even with the beam from his glowrod, it was difficult to get a clear idea of what, exactly, was ahead. For a moment, he reached out with his senses, but he was met with murky clouds of aggression, cold air, and something else he couldn't identify. There was a draft, but that wasn't why his stomach turned uncomfortably as goosebumps ran up his arms and spine. The low, whistling noise from the wind blowing through seemed to be warning them of the dangers here, and not of the sort they'd faced before.
There was something evil down this hallway. He was certain of it.
And yet there was only one direction for them to go now.
"Stay close," he quietly murmured as they ventured into the darkness. He kept his light carefully trained on their path, and his senses on alert.
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Sanzo came up behind him, coming to stop in front of the immense set of double-doors, made of some black stone. He shown the light more fully on it. Demonic creatures seemed to dance across it, and from the middle, like some obscene plant, sprouted a carving of a serpent's head.
The beam of light went further up, lighting on words carved over it.
'“Only those two who offer their blood will be allowed entrance.”' Sanzo repeated.
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"What do you think, Obi-Wan?" he asked, keeping his voice quiet. Obi-Wan was a full-fledged Jedi now. While Qui-Gon's first impulse was to offer his own blood up first, it wouldn't be right to act without first consulting his friend; he'd been known in the past for being impulsive for a Jedi, but somehow it felt right in his core to turn to Obi-Wan first.
There were the others as well to deal with as well.
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In the end, however, these questions were, while relevant, not terribly helpful. They could not turn back now. Only two could move forward. The choice was clear.
"One of us should go," he quietly said as he faced Qui-Gon. The other could stay and help protect the rest in their group. That way, their resources would be evenly stretched out, and if something happened to one, there would still be another to carry on with their investigations. Perhaps it was a cold way to think, but as a Jedi, he was trained to consider practical issues first and foremost.
"I volunteer," he added after a brief moment, glancing from Sanzo and Goku, to Callisto. He knew he was fully capable -- there was no doubt of that in his mind now. And, most importantly, he knew Qui-Gon knew it.
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She stepped closer, also taking in the words Sanzo had already read aloud. In her mind, the solution was simple and Obi-Wan's words caused her to glare. "You?" Of all the... He hadn't even been with them the night before!
"I don't see why there's any need to discuss this." The blonde turned her head to look back over her shoulder briefly, giving the others a sinister sort of smile. "Qui-Gon and I are the only ones who actually deserve to be here. The rest of you can... wait your turn."
With that, she stepped quickly towards the door, ready to offer her blood to the carved serpent.
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Goku's actions and words were something else entirely. Sanzo stared at the kid for a moment, an eyebrow raised. Was he actually stopping to think things over for once? Speaking actual sense?
He was right, except they didn't have time for this bullshit. The monk felt the impatience rising in him. Maybe what Goku said made sense, but they'd be here all night arguing about it.
Sanzo scowled. "Can we just fucking move on already?"
He didn't wait for an answer. He went up to the damn statue and pricked his finger in one motion.
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He was momentarily distracted when Callisto was stopped by Goku - and before he could do anything, Sanzo had already pushed past the two and pricked his finger just like that. Qui-Gon sighed. He didn't think Sanzo was the best of their possible choices, to be brutally honest: the man had a lot of spirit, but he was also still recovering from grave injuries he'd received only last night, with hardly any time to heal. But he already went and "sacrificed" his blood, and looking back on what he shouldn't have done wouldn't help them.
Qui-Gon turned back to Obi-Wan. He could see him in the dim light of the glowrods, his youthful face dead serious. By the same argument, Qui-Gon knew he wasn't the best choice either, not with his bad knee from his duel with the two droids. But the selfish part of him, the one that'd been slowly growing within, didn't want to lose Obi-Wan to the darkness he could feel, pulsing and vaguely nauseating just to be in its evil presence.
"I would rather you reconsider," Qui-Gon said, lowering his voice to speak privately with his former Padawan. "But I know you do what you must, Obi-Wan."
His words were stiff. Obi-Wan was just as capable as he was, if not more so: he wasn't injured and, what was more, he was the one who actually survived a Sith encounter out of the two of them. Before Naboo, Qui-Gon had sometimes been preoccupied with wondering if he was somehow holding Obi-Wan back because he didn't want to let him go. Now he knew it to be true. Qui-Gon battled his own fear and doubts even as his face settled into a neutral expression. The truth was he didn't want Obi-Wan to step into the darkness without him, step into the unknown when they were already beyond the Republic's reach. The truth was also that it was Obi-Wan's decision to make, not his, and he'd made it.
He would have to let him go.
Qui-Gon reached into one of the small pouches of his belt, reaching behind him and coming up with one of the makeshift commlinks.
He held it out. "Here: I finished them last night. I might not be able to come with you, but I should be able to still remain in contact. I haven't had a chance to test its capabilities, but it's what we have right now." The Jedi Master paused. He couldn't just leave it at that, all duty like the last time they separated. Qui-Gon dipped his head, reaching out, and lay a hand on Obi-Wan's shoulders. For a second, he didn't bother to school his expression, the turmoil of emotions clear in his eyes before his face smoothed out again.
"May the Force be with you."
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He frowned as Sanzo pricked his finger, but it was too late to say anything. It seemed he was going, whether anyone wanted him to or not.
As Qui-Gon quietly spoke to him, the younger Jedi met his gaze. They were equals now, working together as partners on this mission. His friend had done a remarkable job up until this point, and it was likely for the best that Obi-Wan help shoulder some of the burden. He would not ask him to forge on ahead without him.
Of course, if his former Master had insisted he stay, Obi-Wan would have wanted to respect his wishes. But his logic was tried and true, and out of the two of them, he was better suited for this job -- on this particular night, at least. And there were no guarantees that they would be here again anytime soon.
When Qui-Gon presented the makeshift commlink to him, he raised his eyebrows, but he was not shocked. His friend was resourceful and capable, so of course he would have used the supplies they'd gathered to complete something like this. He gently took it, nodding that he understood. "Thank you. I'll check in regularly, and give you a detailed report of everything we find."
It was then that he felt the older man's hands on his shoulders, and he was stunned to catch a glimpse of something in his eyes that Obi-Wan hadn't seen in a long, long time. It was fleeting, however, and before he could properly put a name to it, his friend's face became neutral once more. He gave him a small, quiet smile, placing a hand on one of Qui-Gon's arms.
"And also with you."
With that said, Obi-Wan didn't linger, as much as it might have been tempting for others to do. He turned away and moved towards the statue. After taking in a small breath, he swiftly pricked his finger on its fangs.
And then everything went black.
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The Force and the loss of his sight and all feeling closed in.
But death never came.
He revived with a great, choking gasp as Sanzo fell, life suddenly flooding back into him in a powerful, disorienting tide. Coughing, feeling an unnatural numbness pulling itself back into his stomach and fading away from his body, his eyes opened. Qui-Gon found himself back in the South Hall, propped up against the wall and with no recollection how he got there. Considering how this happened every night, he supposed he shouldn't be surprised...although usually it was back to the rooms and not to another part of the Institute. Pulling aside his tunic with shaking hands, he saw he was alive - there wasn't even a scar to show where he'd been stabbed, his tunic itself showing no burn marks.
Qui-Gon had been walking that line between unconsciousness and death only a few seconds before. Obviously he was alive, which meant...someone had died.
Looking around, his heart jumping in his throat, the Jedi Master took in the others in the dark hall. Goku was closest near a dark shape on the floor, Callisto next. Obi-Wan, he noted, was also there, face wan in the flickering beams of the flashlights.
Sanzo was gone.
Qui-Gon's hand ghosted to his stomach. He didn't see precisely what happened, but somehow he knew anyway how it went down. His command of the Force was once again weak, but he could still catch some of Obi-Wan's distress at having killed a man tonight.
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She attention strayed to Qui-Gon and Goku. It shouldn't have been surprising that their wounds had been healed, but her brows went up all the same. They should be thanking the poor deceased Sanzo for taking the fall for them.
Now that she was out here, though, there was no reason to stick around. Surprisingly, there seemed to be noise coming from up ahead. Others had obviously made it down here same as them. "Well," she smiled as though they'd just finished watching something particularly enjoyable. "I'm off. It's been a real pleasure."
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The Jedi's eyes scanned the area. There was Callisto, who seemed to be on the verge of leaving, and it appeared the boy and Qui-Gon weren't injured anymore. Inwardly sighing with relief, Obi-Wan was glad to not have that burden on his shoulders anymore. But that didn't lessen the crushing weight of what he'd done, and his gaze was inevitably drawn to the body lying on the ground.
He could sense Goku's distress and disbelief at seeing his companion's corpse. If Obi-Wan himself hadn't been the one responsible, he might have given him his distance in order to let him properly grieve. And yet, he'd been the one to strike Sanzo down -- he'd ended a life, and the aftershocks of that were going to be felt for a long, long time to come.
Bruck Chun's sudden death at his hands was a perfect example of that.
It would have been easy to simply say, I tried to find a way, but there were no other options, and find peace that way, but Obi-Wan knew he couldn't do that. He would have to take full responsibility for his failure to save everyone, regardless of the unfortunate circumstances surrounding it. There was a lot for him to ponder and think about. Death was not something to treat lightly, under any circumstances.
The Jedi glanced over to Qui-Gon, but turned away, feeling it wasn't quite appropriate to engage in conversation with him, even if he was selfishly relieved to have him close by and alive.
Goku did not have that privilege with Sanzo.
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"Good-bye, then," he said, terse. There wasn't much else to say. While Qui-Gon had been patient with the others, he wasn't feeling particularly charitable in light of Callisto's actions in the stands only minutes earlier. Sanzo was dead. And she had called for blood, would probably willingly betray them just to get to meet Martin Landel. He was a Jedi but he wasn't a perfect one and never claimed to be - there were limits to his patience, and it had been stretched now.
Qui-Gon took a centering breath, calming himself. He felt completely healed, his lightsaber wound gone, his bad knee good as new. But that was small compared to what he felt: Goku's stunned grief, Obi-Wan's distress, and he also felt Sanzo's absence, his bright Force signature gone. It was like being in a vacuum, especially after feeling how intense it'd been back in the Coliseum, the suns from before extinguished. Glancing at Obi-Wan, knowing they needed to talk, a part of him wanting to go to him first, Qui-Gon instead knelt down next to Goku, laying a hand on his shoulder and not saying anything at first. He gazed down at Sanzo's body, observing his passing and taking the time to silently mourn his taken life. He hadn't known him very well, but that didn't make his death any less significant.
The monk was still dressed in his robes, his face still in the flashlight's beam, eyes closed. He looked asleep. But the ugly burn in his stomach was very real, so fresh he could still smell the burned flesh and the ozone.
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