All right. Here's another story :) I've got 11 chapters done on this, and I'm continuing writing all of my stories. Enjoy! Note: This takes place 6 years after Order 66, but Darth Vader never fell into the lava on Mustafar; Obi-Wan never confronted him.
Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars. Nuff said.
Darth Vader strode onto the bridge of the Avenger, his face hidden beneath the hood of his dark cloak. Admiral Kieran Sarn saluted him, swallowing the lump that was in his throat. "What have you found?" the Sith asked him. Sarn began to think that perhaps he should not have alerted Vader until he was absolutely sure. It was too late, however. "Ah, yes, my lord. We have found evidence that parts of the Rebellion may be on Alderaan. As you know, the Prince Consort, Bail Organa, was part of the Delegation of the Tw– " "Yes, I know who Organa is, Admiral Sarn. Is there evidence?" Lord Vader was getting impatient.
The lump resurfaced. Sarn swallowed once more, trying to convince himself that what he had was evidence. "We have transmissions from an unmarked ship to the palace. They are about the Empire." Vader allowed himself a smile. Finally, he could bring down Organa, one of the main leaders of the Alliance. "Very well, Admiral. Set your course for Alderaan." The admiral saluted him once more, and then turned to the navigation officer. Vader strode down the bridge, his cape billowing out from behind him.
"Fourty-nine, fifty! Ready or not, here I come!" Six-year-old Princess Leia Organa ran out from behind the columns in search of her best friend and adoptive cousin, Mara Jade. "I know you're here somewhere!" A giggle echoed through the hall, and Leia ran after the sound, turning into the large garden outside the palace. She looked around for a moment, and then ran behind a bush. Her cousin was crouched there, and pouted momentarily when Leia shouted, "Found you!" Mara giggled and said, "You have to tag me first!" and ran back into the palace. Leia chased her best friend through the building, before she passed Captain Kolbrun, her father's chief of security. She skidded to a halt, wanting to know what was going on. Kolbrun seemed to know what she was thinking, because he said, "It's none of your concern, Princess. Why don't you go back to your room?" He indicated for one of his men to take the two girls back to their rooms, and then entered the Prince Consort's office.
Senator Organa was not openly against the Republic, as were so many senators these days. He preferred to operate in secrecy, while openly accepting Palpatine's rule. But he knew the risks associated with it; it would be considered treason. So when Captain Kolbrun walked into his office with a grim look on his face, Bail could only guess that the Empire was involved. The first words out of his friend's mouth confirmed it as well: "Vader is coming here. They are suspicious of us, finally." Bail was not surprised. He did, however, fear the fact that Vader himself was arriving on Alderaan. The Prince Consort did not want the Sith finding out that Leia was his daughter. That could spell the end for Leia.
"When will he be arriving?" Bail asked. "Sometime this afternoon, at around 1500. Our spy on the Avenger tells me they have already made the jump to hyperspace." Bail sighed. "I'll have to tell Breha." Kolbrun nodded and turned to leave. "Jaran," he said, calling Kolbrun by his first name. "Could you please watch Leia and Mara? I don't want Vader getting close to them." Captain Kolbrun nodded. "Yes, sir."
The comm. screen in Darth Vader's meditation chamber blinked on. Admiral Sarn was on the bridge. "We've just come out of hyperspace, my lord. Shall I prepare your shuttle?" "Yes, Admiral. Organa will not escape our grip this time," Vader said. He would never admit it aloud, but he hated Organa not because of his association with the Rebellion. Certainly, that was bad. But the fact that Organa had been in contact with Padme at the time of her death was too much for Vader to bear. Had Organa possibly been even at Padme's deathbed?
The rage boiled in Vader's blood. Organa would pay dearly for his involvement in the Rebellion. The Sith exited his meditation chambers, putting his hood up as he walked down the corridor to his private hangar. Stormtroopers and officers alike quickened their pace as they walked past him, as they could tell he was not in a good mood.
Sarn was wating for him by the shuttle, and saluted when Vader walked in the hangar door. "My lord, a platoon of stormtroopers is already aboard. That should be enough, as Alderaan is peaceful." Vader nodded and strode up the ramp into the shuttle. He would have preferred to pilot it himself, but he knew a pilot would already be in the cockpit. He strapped himself into one of the seats in the main cabin, preparing for liftoff.
The flight was short, and it wasn't long before Vader felt the ship set down on the landing pad. He smiled to himself as he paced down the ramp and into the palace, followed by a squad of stormtroopers. Organa would not create an excuse for his precious Rebellion this time, he was sure of it. But when he walked into the conference room, he sensed that the Prince Consort and the Queen were expecting him. He had hoped to take them by surprise, but that was no matter. He could still force a confession out of them. "Queen Breha," he said, bowing nearly invisibly, "And Senator Organa."
The Queen stood up and said, "Lord Vader, I must say, this is a –" "Let us dispense with the pleasantries. You surely must know why I am here." Yes, they did, Vader sensed. But it seemed they had decided to feign innocence. "We are loyal to the Empire," Organa said. "We have given the Emperor no reason to mistrust us." Vader smirked beneath his hood. "You received transmissions from an unmarked ship. They were about the Empire's secret plans," he said, scanning their faces for a reaction. Organa's face remained impassive, however Breha's face had grown shocked for a moment. Did she not know? Or was she surprised the Empire had found out?
"We have received no transmissions, Lord Vader. If you wish, you may check our comm. log." Vader knew the transmission would have been cleared, so he stood up abruptly and said, "We will continue this tomorrow." Perhaps Organa would in some way implicate himself. The Queen and her husband stood as well, and Breha motioned for a servant to show the Sith to his chambers.
Mara and Leia had heard the ship arriving, and they wanted to see who the "mystery visitor" was. To be truthful, only Mara was interested in who it was. Leia was far too worried that it was the Empire. Even at six, she knew that the Emperor was not a good person. However, Leia wanted to make sure Mara didn't get into trouble, so she ended up tagging along. They were hiding behind the bushes next to the conference room when the two girls saw a dark-cloaked man walk in the door. Ten stormtroopers waited outside the door. Mara gasped. "It's the Empire!" she said, and Leia grew even more frightened. "Come on, Mara," she said, tugging at her cousin's sleeve. "Let's go! I don't want them to see us!" Mara shushed the girl, and pointed at the stormtroopers. "They'll see if we leave now," she said. "I don't care. I don't want to be here anymore," Leia whimpered.
She ran out from behind the bush just as the door opened. A servant led the dark-cloaked man down the hall, right towards her! Leia froze, not knowing what to do. The man walked down the hall, but stopped and looked right at Leia. She saw that his eyes were yellow, and she shrank back in fear. But there was something that made her curious. When she saw this man, she felt like she knew him from somewhere. But that was impossible, she thought. Daddy said I haven't been off the planet, and he's never come here before. "Leia!" said the servant, bringing the little girl back to the present. "I thought you were supposed to be in your room?" Leia looked down sheepishly and ran off to her room, Mara following close behind her.
The room Vader was to stay in was spacious, and satisfactory, but his mind wasn't on his chambers. It was on the girl he had encountered in the hallway. He had felt some kind of link with her, and she looked strangely like – NO. He would not think of Padme right now. She had died, and her child had died with her. The Emperor had told him as much.
But the girl's name was Leia, the name Padme would have given her child if it were a girl. Vader clenched his fists in anger. Organa had stolen his daughter's name from him. He vowed to find out what Organa was up to, once and for all.
