Introduction
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. All other concepts and ideas from other books or stories belong to their respective authors. No copyright infringement is intended.
Story Premise:
The fate of the galaxy is thrown into question when the Sith Lord Darth Vader finds his son Luke Skywalker on Tatooine before the events of A New Hope. Caught in a game of power between two Sith Lords, will the young force wielder be able to forge his own path? As the galaxy descends into chaos and loyalties are tested, will he be able to unite the galaxy to prevent the coming apocalypse?
Morning
10th Day of the Second Month; 11 BBY
Beggar's Canyon; Near Mos Eisley
Tatooine; Arkanis Sector
A young boy, he couldn't have been older than seven or eight, backed up against the rocks, a blaster pointed straight at his face. The man holding the gun, for he didn't know what else to call him, had a cruel smile plastered on his face as he looked down at him.
Behind him, a small group of other men, maybe four or five, were spread out around the small hovercraft, all holding blasters of different sizes on them. The hovercraft itself was emitting a slow buzzing noise due to the battery usage, but he couldn't care about that at the moment.
Trying to step back without turning, he tripped on a small incline, falling on his back as he groaned in pain. The man in front of him laughed, pushing the blaster in front of his face again and smirking at his misfortune.
Closing his eyes as his body shook uncontrollably in fear, the boy wondered how he had gotten himself into this situation.
Of course, it has all started with the Great Drought. His uncle Owen said it was the greatest drought Tatooine has faced in all of his years living on the planet. As a young kid, he couldn't really comprehend the full consequences of a drought, but he knew it was bad enough.
Apparently, the water springs and the wells concentrated around Mos Espa, the capital, has gone dry, precipitating a crisis that soon spread across the entire planet. Water had always been a scarcity, owing both to the minimal population growth and the presence of tens of thousands of moisture farms, such as the one his aunt and uncle owned.
From what he could understand from Owen, the Hutt families, the big slimy monsters that controlled the planet, had imposed a 'water tax' of sorts. Jabba the Hutt, the most powerful of the Hutt lords on Tatooine, had actually been scared by the drought and sought to secure whatever there was of the planet's water supply to maintain power. A sign posted in Mos Eisley had warned that the Hutt enforcers would be coming around to collect the tax. He hadn't understood really what that meant until they came for his family.
It was a group of half a dozen men, dressed in what Aunt Beru would call "bounty hunter garb", had arrived in Anchorhead earlier that day. Only one of them were human, and there was a mixture of other aliens amongst them. They carried blasters and other weapons, such as grenades and even more outdated tech. Nevertheless, they held more force together than the four hundred that lived in the same country as them.
The armed men, flying in on an older hovercraft, had proceeded to visit each of the households, mostly moisture farms, and demanded that they 'pay up'. The farmers, unable to do anything but comply with their demands, stocked the hovercraft with dozens of buckets and cantines of water.
He had been out of the house that day. He had seen the families cry as they gave up perhaps the precious water that might be the only reserves they would have that year. He had seen one family, the Evans, try to resist. Toris, that was the father's name, had wielded some sort of ancient pistol against the group of tax enforcers. He had taken one of them down in the back before five blaster bolts had slammed into his chest and he was thrown back onto the ground, dead, a sizzling hole decorating his chest. The Evans family was promptly exterminated to the last member.
As a boy, he had always been used to death, crime, and disappearances around Mos Eisley. It was Tatooine, after all. Yet he had never experienced, or perhaps he had just never realized, the utter depravity of these thugs. They moved from house to house, extorting each and every one of their neighbors.
Finally, they had arrived at the Lar's farm. Owen and Beru, having watched the result of the Evans, already had the water cantines ready for them. The entire process had lasted less than two minutes. His uncle had gone out and helped the enforcers load up the water supplies, and then bid them a good day.
The boy figured his uncle had practice enough in these affairs, knowing what Tatooine was like. Owen had learned, he assumed, over time, to cave in and comply instead of facing the risks.
He thought, had no such inhibitions. He had sat there, at the counter of their table, watching as the men had barged into their house and carried away their storage of water. He had sat there, enraged, anger bubbling under his skin. Something felt like it had been building inside of him, urging him to stand up and defend himself. He had wanted to jump up and fight right then and there, in whatever way he could, but Aunt Beru had kept a strong hand on his shoulder.
That night though, he had waited patiently for his aunt and uncle to fall asleep. When he was sure that they would not wake up, he had gotten out of his bed and made his way through the house. He had tampered with the controls for the door, knowing how they worked after years of trying to avoid them. Quietly, he had left the house, determined to track down the criminals who had dared to steal from his family.
He didn't know how he did it, but he followed behind them. He felt as a thought something was leading him towards them, even if he had no idea where they were. Somehow, he intuitively knew in which direction to go.
He had caught up with them in the early morning in the Beggar's Canyon as they made their way back to Jabba's palace, intent on making them pay for their crimes. What a fool he was.
Instead, the enforcers had trapped him in a corner of the canyon and surrounded him on all sides, preventing an escape.
Here he was, a blaster pressed against his forehead, tears falling down his face as he cried in fear.
For the first time in his life, Luke Skywalker was sure he was going to die. He had been involved in fights before; he had seen violence before; heck, he had even been threatened by criminals before; but never before had he feared for his life. Now he did.
In another universe, an old wizened master who lived in the canyon would have come to his aid, but he was nowhere to be seen. Instead, the boy was all alone, trapped with no way out.
The man in front of him chuckled loudly, bending down and whispering to him: "Just know, boy, that you've sentenced your family to death."
With those words, Luke's eyes burst open, his chin shaking with uncontrollable anger. Unnoticed to him or to the gangster scum in front of him, his eyes flashed yellow, his fists tightening as he felt that power rise up within him again.
"We'll go back there tomorrow, you know," he continued, "And we'll kill all of them. Everyone you ever knew."
Luke looked up at him, his words fueling his body with righteous anger.
The man laughed again. "I think we'll have some fun, won't we boys?"
The others laughed along with him, ignoring how the boy was no longer crying. Instead, he had collected himself against the rocks, his muscles shaking as the same unknown force surged through his veins.
"Maybe we'll have your bitch aunt each her old man's heart . . ."
And with that, the dam burst.
With a cry of anger and rage, the power within him burst and exploded from his hands like a flood.
He saw a literal wave of darkness crash into the scum, throwing them against the other side of the canyon and ripping their bodies apart.
Heads, arms, legs, pieces of flesh and bone flew from their bodies as the unstoppable wave slammed against them.
In a moment, all was silent. The remains of the enforcers' bodies were scattered through the sand, the hovercraft separated into a thousand pieces.
All that was left was the cool wind that blew against his clothes and through the sand.
Luke caught his breath as his body stopped spasming, allowing him to truly look at the scene before him.
Propping himself up against the rocks to stand straight, his lips curved into a smile.
Lord Vader's Meditation Chamber; Imperator-Class Star Destroyer Exactor
Hyperspace; Taanab Sector
The spacious room was silent, not a sound to be heard. The thick durasteel walls and edges around the room gave it a feeling of isolation and loneliness. It was imposing, constricting, and yet peaceful all the same time.
In the center of the large floor space lay a massive chamber, lights flickering on and off on its edge. It was an enclosed space, a box within a box if you will.
The chamber was some three meters in diameter, flattened on the bottom and rounded on the top. It had neither a hatch or an outer control panel. For all intents and purposes, it was sealed from the inside. The only visible opening were the two horizontal lines which showed the chamber was able to split into two parts.
Inside a man sat quietly on the built-in chair, calmly breathing in the pressurized oxygen flowing through the chamber. His head, covered in pale and red skin, had deep scars running on both his cheeks and over his face.
Suddenly, his eyes shot open, bright blue pupils shining with pure and infinite power.
