Once the initial arrangements were made, I left the final details to GFS and my Militia, and took a long-needed excursion to Tatooine. I declined passage on the express shuttle, less because it was an Imperial vessel than because of the more relaxing nature of the longer flight. A few days in space did much to reinvigorate my exhausted mind, and when I arrived on Tatooine I felt refreshed and ready to explore.
Finding Obi-Wan Kenobi's former residence was no easy task. This was advantageous in one sense, because the Empire had not been able to locate it, thus ensuring its survival (assuming the harsh environment of desert Tatooine had not destroyed it). Of course, it also meant that there was a lot of legwork to be done before I could find it myself.
My first stop was Bestine, where I still knew several locals, including a few of the bartenders in the cantina near the starport. It was good to catch up with old friends, but I found no leads in the Capitol. After a few Jawa Beers and some consideration, I decided to see what I could find out in Anchorhead, a city known to sympathize with the Rebels. I knew that Kenobi had been a Rebel sympathizer as well, so I figured that was as good a place as any to look.
In Anchorhead, several people I talked to seemed to know something, but were unwilling to voice it. It seemed that the Empire's reach was long, even here. Finally, in the underground level of a dusty, old cantina, I ran into a Rebel officer, undercover but recognizable to me from a small insignia he wore on his bandolier. I introduced myself as a soldier of the Alliance and explained to him what I was looking for. He considered, then told me a few names of people I should talk to in the remote town of Wayfar. They might be able to help further.
I boarded a shuttle for Wayfar and looked up the people the Rebel officer had told me about. A few I could not locate. I found the name of another, but it seemed he was dead. Only one was I able to meet in person. He only agreed to speak with me at an undisclosed location, and made me promise never to reveal his name. And, of course, he wanted several thousand credits for the information. After I gave my consent and my money, he told me that he knew the location of Kenobi's former home. He programmed the coordinates into my datapad, then scurried away into the shadows.
Bristling with anticipation, I hurriedly boarded my speederbike and opened up the throttle as far as it would go before I even left the gates of Wayfar. I had never expected to find success so soon - I half expected the information to be false and to find myself waylaid in the desert.
Sure enough, though, as I neared the location stored in my datapad, I saw a small, earthen hut, half covered in the yellow sand of the desert. I had found Kenobi's home.
Long abandoned, looted clean and scoured by time and weather, the hut would have held no interest for any passing observer. To someone who did not know its significance, it was simply another Tatooine home, abandoned long ago and left to the womp rats and scyks.
To me, however, it was a revelation. As I stepped through the doorway, I suddenly felt a surge of energy course through my body. I could see every detail with infinite precision. I was aware of everything around me at once. I sensed every movement, every tiny motion, from the scuttling of the dune beetles outside to the beating of my own heart in my chest.
My quest for enlightenment had opened a massive new door. This I knew instinctively.
The Force was with me.
