Crimson Eyes ~ Sequel to: The Valkyrie, An Obi-Wan Story (completed)

Chapter 42: Our Worst Fears

"Lyanna, no!"

In one move the queen's head snapped his way, her eyes a haunting red that flared when she spotted him. Her upper lip pulled up into a snarl as the rain of fire diminished, her focus now elsewhere.

Her hair had turned into pure flame and her skin was glowing with the very same colour, alight, like an ember amidst the fire. It almost seemed alive with the way it shone in yellow and orange colours, glowing like a sun amidst the dark of the temple, pulsing with that searing heat. Her black dragon scale armor started to glow, looking like the coals of an eternal fire.

The jedi trembled at the sight. She had become a storm of fire and fury, her face devoid of anything she once was. She looked like a merciless god that was about to unleash her wrath upon the world, not caring about the consequences it would bring. The doctor he'd grown to know on the planet of Valeria was nowhere to be found in her eyes.

Obi Wan's hands shook as they held his lightsaber, his eyes following the tidal wave of heat flowing through the grand hall of the temple. There, amidst the flames, was the very object of his greatest fears.

Maul.

When the wave of fire diminished only slightly he could spot the crimson eyes emerging between the flames, shielded by a force shield he'd put up, and the grin that soon followed. The jedi could feel the hatred within him swell and the satisfaction that accompanied it, like a war drum that echoed through the temple.

That haunting feeling had chased him for months, all leading up to this. It was a trap, and he'd walked straight into it just like last time. Judging by the way the queen was looking now he'd already been too late to reverse it.

No. Obi Wan shook himself out of his trance, deciding that he couldn't stand by and watch and jumped into action. It took but one glance upward to form a plan. In one sweeping move with his hand he guided her flames upwards, cracking the already unstable ceiling and bringing down an avalanche of the obsidian stone. It landed right between the queen and the Dathomirian, blocking the sith's path to the two of them, followed by a furious shout amidst the thunderous cracking of the stone.

The jedi didn't waste any time seeing if it worked. Instead, he quickly sprinted towards the queen, ignoring the iridescent glow of her entire body when he came near. He could feel the heat against his skin in the back of his head, but his foremost worry was the sith that now stood on the other side of the rubble. It was only a matter of time before he found his way through the blockade, and he wasn't planning to find out what devious plan Maul had concocted.

"Lyanna, we need to hurry." Obi Wan breathed out as he grasped for her hand.

Before he could even touch her she'd quickly retracted, feigning backwards and away from him. Her eyes narrowed even further and almost spit fire as her lips pulled up in a snarl. "Are you out of your mind?" She sneered as flames danced around her fingers.

His hand hovered in the air as his brows knotted together. It wasn't because of her words, no, it was because of the scars he spotted flowing up her arm. Her fingertips had withered and black scar-looking veins now ran up her skin. Shadows danced over them and twirled around her arm, encompassing it, as if holding it possessively.

He'd seen that kind of magic before on the skin of a man he not so long ago spotted. His heart dropped in his chest, his fear growing. "We need to get you out of here." Obi Wan willed his voice into a stern command, pushing his hand towards her once again and holding it out, demanding.

"I don't need to do anything!" Lyanna took one furious step his way as her hair flamed behind her, flowing as if caught in a current. "I am not blindly following every order you, -"