How he had vowed that someday he would…


I won't think of it. Focus.


Darra stood frozen. She gazed down at a tiny crib. A scorched piece of linen trailed on the floor.


"Darra." Soara's usually brusque voice was soft. "Come along."


They moved through to the next house. It had suffered a direct hit.


There was only rubble. Anakin could hear Darra's slow, even breaths beside him. He knew she was concentrating on her breath, slowing it down, trying to focus. Anakin also felt disturbed. It was as though his nightmare went on.


They walked back onto the street and stopped in front of the next building. Obi-Wan and Soara exchanged a glance. Anakin reached out to the Force. It always took him just a beat slower than Obi-Wan to feel it. The Living Force was here.


Obi-Wan headed left, Soara to the right. With a glance, they ordered their Padawans to follow.


Soara went first, headed through the doorway like shimmersilk. She was known for her grace and flowing movements. Obi-Wan followed, keeping to Soara's left. Anakin and Darra stepped through.


The building had once been a cafc. A long counter was charred and blackened. Some tables and chairs remained, but most had been splintered and blown apart. A very large round oven sat in the middle of the room, the size of a small landspeeder. It had been vented through the roof by a stone chimney. The chimney lay in ruins around them.


A rusty metal door swung on one hinge on the oven. Soara and Obi-Wan fanned out on either side, motioning to their Padawans to do the same.


Soara bent over and gently moved the oven door. There was a muffled gasp. A small rustle of movement.



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