Click. Click. Click.

What's going on? Obi-Wan has been thrown against an obstacle at full speed. His back hurts. The only light in the room is the hallway's visual alert. It emits an unpleasant bright blue. The door is blocked. An eerie tremor makes the structure creak. The padawan tries to get up, but realizes that he is hooked to the floor by a safety system, a mechanical belt that catches and immobilizes what is not attached in case of emergency. He unhooks himself and understands that the artificial gravity no longer works.

Click. Click. Click.

Where is that noise coming from? It sounds like a magnetic stapler. The young man pulls himself up on the door to get out, then floats free in the ship. This craft is huge for a simple « yacht ». The alarm light signals a catastrophic failure. Not surprisingly, no vessel loses its artificial gravity. If your feet don't touch the ground, then all the other systems are dead or dying. This is a bad sign. No gravity means no more escape pods. It's a miracle of the Force to have survived!

Click. Click. Click.

This sound comes from the hallway. The teenager propels himself. He discovers Jar Jar Binks, moving with dexterity and stapling objects to the walls to plug leaks. Obi-Wan approaches the gungan and asks:

« What happened? »

« Wesa hit by a large explosion. Wesa drifting off into space. That's all mesa knows. »

« You plug these leaks? »

« Mesa work in submarine, mesa know the procedure! Plugging leaks. Survive. »

« You use submarines? »

The padawan is unable to hide his surprise. He expected that a species who lives underwater could move safely in the ocean.

« Why yousa surprised? Wesa gungans come from the cave-worlds, in the depths. Lots of oxygen down there. »

« Ah, yes. » He answers with a feigned confidence, to make himself look less stupid.

Why didn't he think of that right away? It's obvious that a humanoid creature can't live under water all the time. Jar Jar shows a commendable initiative. Obi-Wan don't want to reveal that space is not an ocean. The pressure difference between the vacuum of space and the atmosphere of a planet like Naboo is considerably smaller than between its surface and the ocean floor. Leaks are not as dangerous. Besides, the vent is working! That's a good thing, it means the atmospheric generator is working too. It will take years for the ship to exhaust its supply of oxidaarak, the material used to produce air.

Obi-Wan doesn't linger. He wants to know what happened to Qui-Gon. An astrodroid rolls down the wall. The machine must be checking for damage. The young man observes its passage, then resumes his journey to the cockpit. Some steam escapes from a pipe. Expensive dishes have been smashed against the ceiling and are floating around. The blue light of the alarm goes out, replaced by a white one. That's better. The vibration is getting worse. Something dangerous is happening in the engine room.

The young man grabs the elevator control. Nothing happens. Never mind, he climbs up using the ladder. The cabin is plunged in darkness. A small droid is busy repairing a console. Obi-Wan reaches Qui-Gon Jinn and shakes him awake. The knight seems stunned. What to do? The teenager turns to the girl, who is a little agitated, and gives her a gentle push. She opens her eyes and screams due to the surprise:

« Ah! »

« Are you alright? » Asks the padawan.

« Yes... that... where are we? »

« I don't know, and frankly, I was hoping you would... »

Padmé places her hands on the control console. No effect. She hesitates, then turns and notices a droid working on the very panel she wanted to use. The poor girl begins to panic:

« I... I don't know what to do! I just have basic piloting skills! » She cries out.

She is on the verge of tears. Everything that's happened so far is coming back to bite her. Obi-Wan grabs her hand without hesitation and looks straight into her eyes:

« It's going to be okay. We'll be fine. No matter how hard things get, the Force will always be with us. Just breathe. Calm yourself. »

The child closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. The young man's voice relaxes her and makes her forget, for a moment, that she is completely broken. The Jedis have this talent. They know how to read people's souls and use their formidable powers to bring a little peace. Obi-Wan concentrates. He feels all the pain in this little girl's mind and tries to replace it with comfort. This is not the first time he's done that. The padawan is pretty good at manipulating emotions. That's probably why Qui-Gon is his evaluator. The Order has selected a fierce opponent to this technique, to make it clear that such a gift should only be used if there is no other choice.

Today, it doesn't matter. This girl has just lost her parents. The teenager can feel that she has never been alone in her life. There has always been someone to accompany her and guide her intellect. Now the child is lost. What should she do? Where should she go?

« Focus on my voice. Let all your emotions flow out of your mind. The Force will protect you, for we are one with the Force. » He continues.

A gentle warmth grows in the girl's heart. A powerful courage. She exhales and looks at Obi-Wan. In the end, feeling sorry for herself won't help:

« I'm fine... Its okay. » She says as she unbuckles her belt.

The little girl pushes the young man away slightly and begins to float. There is nothing outside, not even the glow of a star. What is this place? How long were they drifting in hyperspace? She turns to Obi-Wan and says:

« We have to get down to the engine room, we need to restart the reactor. That's the procedure in case of a disaster. »

« Then let's go. » The padawan replies.

The teenager propels himself with his legs to the ladder and uses it to climb down. Padmé follows closely behind. The little one has trouble moving in zero gravity. This is her first time. Obi-Wan remembers his lightsaber training sessions in zero gravity. Qui-Gon was a poor teacher. He was always either too harsh or too kind, but the young man still understood what was needed. A potential knight receives careful attention. The Order offered him an elite education in almost every field. He has proven to be proficient in physics, chemistry, mathematics and modern history.

However, not all of the called are successful. Those who fail most often serve as subordinates in the thousands of temples throughout the galaxy or, more rarely, as priests of the Force. The Order will help you find your place, even if you do not succeed, for that is the way of the Jedi. Obi-Wan has attained the prestigious rank of padawan, which places him above his classmates. Everyone knows that one in a thousand children become padawans, and after a severe field instruction, only one tenth of those chosen will have the honor of taking the Knight's Oath. The rest will end up as shrine guards, members of the praetorian cohort, lictors or chaplains in the republican fleet.

A heavy tremor is felt, as doors open and close without reason. The lighting goes crazy. The alarm starts to howl. A monotone voice announces:

« Warning. Warning. Catastrophic disequilibrium in the reactor. Containment failure in the hyperspace core. Detonation in T minus 8 kebreks. »

The two of them look at each other, then rush to the engine room. Suddenly, something explodes. A bulkhead has just burst, releasing a column of white flames that start to devour the furniture's wood. The doors freeze. The ventilation noisily spits out pink smoke. The ship is falling apart!

When they arrive at the engine room, it is to witness a nightmarish scene: everything is on fire! A green and red blaze, which means that coolant is used as fuel. Without artificial gravity, each fire looks like a fireball that grows as it is fed with oxygen. Padmé can't go any further. It's too hot. She is afraid. The reactor is being consumed by this pyre. In the back of the room, an astrodroid is desperately dismantling one of his colleagues to connect his electronics onto the fire suppression system.

Obi-Wan does not hesitate. He jumps in front of this inferno and opens the hatch that contains the emergency equipment. The teenager takes out a Saata stick and turns it on. Pressing the control causes a powerful sonic pulse that can smother any flame. He aims and pushes the button. A part of the room is extinguished all at once. Unfortunately, the fire starts again immediately. The reactor feeds it. The computer has gone mad! The young man turns and finds that any chance of escape is gone. Another fire is already blocking the entrance!

« How do we restart the reactor? » The padawan shouts to the little girl.

The girl struggles to breathe, but gathers her courage and answers:

« The lever in the middle of the control console! You pull it twice in your direction! »

Obi-Wan moves deeper into the room, using his staff to both propel himself and push the chemical fire away. It keeps coming back, more and more violent. A wall breaks, spewing an uncontrollable white blaze. There is nothing to do, this stick will not be enough. No choice. The teenager approaches the console, inch by inch, disregarding his own safety. Suddenly, everything is extinguished on his left. A glance at his back reveals the figure of Jar Jar Binks, with another Saata stick in his hand. He helps as best as he can from the outside. Finally, the console! The young man grabs the lever in the center. It's hot, but that doesn't matter. He pulls it once. The console lights up.

The astrodroid finishes its work just now. The fire suppression system is reactivated. The flames are drowned out. Unfortunately, the poor robot is too damaged to continue and stops for good. Obi-Wan folds the lever back towards him a second time. All lights and alarms go silent.

« Reactor rebooting! » Exclaims a robotic voice.

The lights gradually come back on. The smoke is swallowed by the ventilation system. The shaking finally ceases. Everything becomes quiet again. Jar Jar enters the room and verifies that it is over:

« Yousa not hurt? » Asks the gungan.

« No, I'm fine. » Obi-Wan answers with a big smile.

« Mesa reassured. »

« Rebalancing of the reactor in progress. Regeneration of hyperspace core containment. Artificial gravity reactivated. Warning! Multiple failures detected! » Continues the synthetic voice.

Everyone falls gently to the ground. Gravity has returned! Two astrodroids enter the room and begin to assess the damage. They get to work, repairing what can be fixed with whatever means they can. The padawan comes out and notices that Padmé is still prostrated on the floor. He kneels down, puts his hand on her face and says:

« We are saved. There is nothing more to fear. »

The girl looks at him with wet eyes, trembling. There are people who spend their whole lives without seeing a third of the horrors that this little girl was forced to endure in one day. She stands up:

« Let's get back to the cockpit. We have to find out where we are! » She says while vainly trying to camouflage that she is on the verge of fainting.

The ship is in a catastrophic state. Almost all the walls have burst. The marble floor has cracked. Luckily, the elevator still works and allows them to reach the cockpit without having to climb the ladder. Qui-Gon sits on the side of a seat, both hands pressed to his face. Obi-Wan rushes toward his master:

« Master! Are you all right? » He asks.

« Yes... I feel like I've been kicked in the head by a whole army. What happened? Where are we? »

« Our ship has been hit by something. Almost nothing works anymore. I don't know where we are... »

« The Federation was going to wipe us out. I had no choice. I pushed the hyperspace control... but the astronavigation wasn't working. » Padmé points out.

Qui-Gon massages his temples, then replies:

« It was the right thing to do. You had no choice. But... »

« We're lost in the galaxy. » Obi-Wan interrupts.

« Unfortunately, time is running out. People are dying every minute. We must find a solution. » Qui-Gon concludes.