Trust in the Force | Obi-Wan Kenobi

A Rising War

"I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you"

Nothing else needed to be said in response to his last apology over the roaring crowd which only seemed to grow in volume, nothing but a sad smile spared in his direction before Lyra steeled herself once more and let the resolve of no one seeing her weak spur her on to straighten her back and watch as another chariot brought another two unexpected bodies to their demise.

They would not see her cower, could not see her weakened by the inevitable she had found her peace with years ago. There is no death, only the Force. And one with the Force she would gladly become if the events of today lead her to such a destination.

Even if she had so much more to say, to experience, to give, Lyra Din-So had made her peace with death the first time she'd looked it in the eye.

"Are those-"

"Padme and Anakin" Obi-Wan all but sighed to finish her sentence before they both flashed each other a glance of 'What in Forces name' between them. Those two should be the furthest away from here right now, on a far away planet where bounty hunters and assassins could not reach Padme Amidala and where Anakin Skywalker should have been keeping her safe and alive.

Yet here they were, looking dejected and guilty as ever Lyra had seen two people look.

At least that meant Anakin had gotten their message, even if the young boy looked strikingly guilty and downtrodden when their chariot rode by Obi-Wan and he flashed his Master a grim smile which he was only replied to with a baffled unamused frown.

They were all now, metaphorically, literally, in the same boat.

"I had started to fear you hadn't got my message" Obi-Wan remarked sarcastically, and the rest of their brief conversation between Master and Apprentice was lost to the ears of Lyra over the cheering excitement roaring through the hot dry air that was starting to make her lips crack painfully in several places.

She watched as Padme was chained to the column to her left, hands raised above her head like the rest of them as the Geonosian's took flight and departed after they had finished their tasks.

"For as much as it is always a delight in seeing you Senator, I would've wished it was under better circumstances" Lyra smiled dryly, humour lost to the winds though Padme spared her a hesitant smile back before she pulled something from her hair and began tinkering with the cuffs on her wrists. Anakin and Obi-Wan seemed a little too distracted amongst them to notice, before Lyra's eyes followed their gaze towards the front of the arena where large gates suddenly parted to reveal an array of deadly creatures.

"Wonderful..." As much as the word had meant to convey displeasure at the unfortunate sight of their executioners, Lyra couldn't help the genuine presence of awe slip into her tone. She'd read about creatures like these before in her studies at the temple, had adored the brief sketches she'd found of them and made sure to impart every aspect of foreign wildlife into her curious young mind.

Reeks, large muscular creatures with three deadly large curved corns and two toed hooves who's home world was that of Ylesia and the Codian Moon. Herbivores for most part, though if pushed hard enough could become meat eaters and thus change their skin tone to become a deep colour. Much like this one.

Next, a Nexu. With two sets of dark red eyes, sharp quills and infrared vision the carnivore who's home world was Cholganna was a deadly predator. Perhaps the best suited to kill out of all four present, though its agility and speed meant that herding it towards the imprisoned targets was a little harder than with the others. Lyra watched it easily throw a Geonosian from its mount and kill it with one bite before another took its place and began prodding it with the end of its sharp spear back on track.