A/N-For anyone reading this for the first time, you will have noticed that while this is a crossover with Smallville, this is set entirely within the world of SW. And within that world, people die. Perhaps off screen, but delve into the story beyond the movies, and you'll see massive casualty rates. Originally there was some strong reaction to some of the more violent aspects of this story. However, it is completely within character for a Darth Vader who mercilessly slaughtered children in Revenge of the Sith to do what he does here. Consider this your only warning. The rating change from T to M was intentional and overdo.
Chapter Seven: Blood
Celly giggled incessantly as she ran her hands down the handsome young man's back. The two of them lay in a bed, in a nameless hostel on the outskirts of Aldera.
The princess was not a young woman any more, but she was still as vivacious and sensual as ever. More so, in many ways. Although her thighs were a bit heavier, and her waist a bit thicker than when she was a girl, she still thought herself good looking. However, she had noticed over the past few years that the handsome young men of Alderaan just didn't look at her like they used to.
So when this beautiful young man paid her such single-minded attention, she responded with abandon and let him sweep her away to this room. From his contented expression, she assumed he had learned the value of experience and confidence.
Now she laid back in the bed, running her hands across his bare back, luxuriating in the endorphin-driven relaxation that only came after love, and dreamed of the many such encounters she had enjoyed before.
She was dreaming of a particularly handsome young Antilles boy when the door to the room opened and a nightmare in black stepped through. "Princess Organa," Darth Vader said. "I trust Ensign Peston was sufficiently entertaining for you?"
Celly turned in anger as "Peston" had stood to attention, clad only in boxers. "Your services are appreciated, Ensign," Vader said. He held up a hand, and the handsome young man began gasping and clutched desperately at his throat. "However, my questions for the princess are private in nature."
Celly watched in horror as the young man fell dead to the floor. She clutched at the sheets on the bed and held them desperately to her chin, as if somehow those sheets would protect her. Vader stepped to the foot of the bed, while behind him the door closed of its own accord. "What do you want?" she gasped.
Vader held up a hand, and the sheet covering her jerked suddenly away, leaving her exposed. "You are an attractive woman, princess. It would be a shame if anything were to happen to mar such beauty."
She grabbed at her dress, and he made no effort this time to stop her. "My brother will hear of this!"
"Perhaps. There is a small matter I wish to discuss with you, Princess."
"I have nothing to discuss with murderers!" Her words stumbled as she felt a pressure against her throat.
"I wish to discuss Princess Leia."
Celly's eyes widened. "She's…leave her alone, you monster. She's not done anything!"
"You misunderstand. I wish to discuss her parentage." She felt a tug around her neck and looked down at the locket she wore around her neck. "I understand you and your sisters carry a lock of her hair. You won't object if I borrow it?"
The locket broke away from her neck and into the black glove of his waiting hand. Instinctively, she rushed from the bed after it, only to be met with his other hand around her neck. "I hope you enjoyed the ensign," he told her. "One last pleasure before the end."
Celly tried to scream, but managed only a whimper before he broke her neck.
He allowed the body to fall and stepped around the bed to lift the suffocated ensign. He put the boy's body on top of the sister of Bail Organa, arranging the tableau until it appeared he was choking her. When that was complete, he dug through her belongings until he found an elegantly carved ivory-handled dagger, used mainly for the cutting of meat. He placed it in her hand and then, using the Force to guide her dead hand, thrust the knife into the belly of the dead ensign.
"It is enough," he said to himself before turning and leaving the room. He hated the subterfuge, but knew the time had not come to openly challenge Organa. He already had a DNA sample from the other fostered child of the Organa family, the girl named Winter, but he knew he had to check both samples just to be sure.
As he walked through the otherwise empty hall to his waiting shuttle, he envisioned both young women. Leia he had seen in the senate—a young firebrand courting the Emperor's wrath. Winter was quieter, a watcher with brilliant white hair and a beautiful grace that made her seem more like a princess than the senator.
He could see elements of his beloved in both women, although Winter carried herself more like a queen than the princess. But Leia stood up for her beliefs with the same determination as Queen Amidala often did. Either would have been a worthy child of Anakin Skywalker.
There were other samples to be tested, as well. As he entered his shuttle, he mentally ran through the many children ranging in age from eighteen to twenty-one born of royal or noble blood on Alderaan. Many already had DNA on file, and it was merely a matter of having a droid sift through the data. But some, like Winter or Leia, were left off the DNA list because of their station.
Once on the Devastator, Vader went straight to his hyperbaric chamber. Divested of his helmet inside, he inserted the two samples in the medical droid's scanner. "DNA Sequence comparison to base samples," he ordered.
"Sample one negative for matches. Sample two positive: 93% match paternal, 99% match maternal. Presence of midi-chlorians noted."
Vader stared, shocked senseless. It had been a hunch, as much a process of elimination as anything. And yet… "Confirm finding."
"Finding confirmed. Sample two is the offspring of Anakin Skywalker and Padmé Amidala Naberrie."
Vader reached with a trembling hand and removed the samples from the scanner. Sample one had been a single white hair lifted from a comb in the palace by one of Vader's agents. Sample two was a lock of brown hair.
Leia. Leia Organa.
Memories bubbled up from the boiling cauldron of his mind. He remembered watching the senate recordings when his master announced the creation of the empire, and how Padmé sat with Organa. He remembered how friendly Organa was with the Jedi, especially Kenobi. He remembered the many meetings that pulled his wife away from him. He had assumed it was a senate issue, but he also remembered how close Bail was to his wife. A friend, but maybe more.
Rage began to burn in him, rage and jealously. Was Bail Organa there when his children were born? Did that man hold his son Luke, or his daughter Leia, while their father screamed in pain under the less than tender mercies of the medical droids on Coruscant? Was Bail more than Leia's adopted father? Was he more to Padmé than just a friend?
He hit his comm button. "Captain Bolvan?"
"Yes, Lord Vader?"
"Prepare my shuttle. Inform Chancellor Organa that I require an audience with him and his family. It is a matter of grave urgency."
"Yes, m'lord!"
Less than an hour later, Darth Vader strode alone through the front entrance of the palace. He noticed the presence of Alderaanian security, but did not care. He felt the presence of the Organas in a small drawing room off from the main audience hall. He strode purposefully past the porter assigned to guide him, and with a blast of the Force blew the doors open.
Bail Organa rose to his feet, his face ashen. "What is the meaning of …agghh!"
His angry demand ended in a startled gurgle. The guards around them responded instantly, drawing their weapons. Without releasing Bail from his Force grip, Vader ignited his lightsaber and easily deflected every shot back into the chest of the shooter, until the Dark Lord stood alone with Bail, Queen Breha and the two surviving dowager princesses, Tia and Rouge. The three women gasped and stepped back from Bail.
"I wish to discuss the adoption of Leia Naberrie Skywalker," Vader said. Despite his rage, he kept his voice even and precise.
"Skywalker?" Queen Breha said. "We never knew her last name. Please, Lord Vader, what is it you want?"
Bail collapsed gasping to the floor. "Were you there when she was born?" Vader demanded.
Bail looked up at the dark mask. "How could Amidala ever have loved you?"
It was the wrong thing to say. Priceless couches hundreds of years old exploded in a shower of wood and satin. Paintings caught fire. The walls themselves shook before Vader's terrible rage. Bail blanched while his family knelt down around him.
"I am losing my patience, Organa," Vader said finally. "Where was she born?"
"Polis Massa," Organa finally said. "She and her brother."
Breha pulled back from her husband, staring in shock. "Bail…?"
"Was Kenobi there?"
Bail sat back and took a deep breath. "He was there." The chancellor looked up, and for a moment Vader saw genuine loss in the man's face. "We tried to save her, you must believe us. But she wouldn't let us. She fought the droids and the medications and everything else we could do for her, until at last she died. Her last words were that there was still good in you. But she was wrong, wasn't she?"
"Bail," Breha breathed, understanding now the secret behind her beautiful daughter. She looked up at the fearsome Sith Lord and knew suddenly who stood behind that mask. "Padmé. Padmé and her young Jedi lover."
"Husband," Vader corrected as he stood staring down at them. "She was my wife. And Obi-Wan took her away from me. And you helped. I killed Obi-Wan for his betrayal."
"And now you will kill me," Bail said with resignation. "If there is anything human left in you, Darth Vader, listen to me now. Please let my family live. They knew nothing of this."
"I never knew my Padmé had survived long enough to have my children," Vader said. "I never knew Luke had survived until after I found his grave on Tatooine. There are no innocents. All will pay for this crime!"
Breha screamed as Vader cut her down. He spun and killed Tia and Rouge next, saving Bail for last.
His Serene Highness, Prince Bail Organa, First Chairman and Viceroy of Alderaan, sat in the middle of his drawing room, holding the hand of his freshly beheaded wife, while staring at Darth Vader with the purest form of hate possible. "She is not your daughter," he spat. "She was raised to the light, and will reject everything you are. Like her mother, she would rather be dead than at your side!"
Vader roared and attacked. He did not stop chopping at the body until there was no body left. Finally alone, the Dark Lord of the Sith stood like a statue, staring into the emptiness while the blood soaked the entire room.
~~Legacy~~
~~Legacy~~
"Captain Solo," Raymus Antilles said, "my I introduce Her Highness, Princess Leia Organa."
Solo stood and with military crispness bowed from the waist. "Your Highness," he said. He still wore his Imperial uniform with Corellian bloodstripes on his trousers, though she noted he had removed his rank insignia and several medals. His biography had indicated multiple medals for valor and skill in combat leadership.
"Captain," she said as she sat. Raymus sat beside her, and finally Solo, following proper military etiquette for royalty. "First, let me say on behalf of the Alliance that we appreciate how difficult your decision was, and welcome you wholeheartedly into our ranks."
"Wholeheartedly, with certain caveats," Solo said with a wry grin.
Leia stumbled before the grin. She had expected anger and suspicion, but Solo and those pilots who had come with him were entirely too…practical. "Well, yes. As eager as we are to get you in X-wing fighters, you must understand for security's sake there has to be a debriefing."
"Yeah, I know. I'd do the same." He leaned forward and grinned. "Doesn't mean I have to like it." He leaned back, studying the princess. "While I got you here, though, can I ask a personal question?"
Raymus raised a brow but Leia merely nodded. "All right."
"I knew one of the rebels that led the attack in Toprawa. Bria Tharen. Did you know her?"
"Not well, but we've met," Leia said.
"Who gave her orders?"
"Her immediate superior was Pianat Torbul. The captain of her squadron's command ship was Tedris Bjalin."
"Bjalin?" Solo said in obvious surprise. "Hmm, he did it then. After Tyshapahl we wondered if he would make it. Lost his whole family to…well, us, I guess. Did he make it?"
"All members of Red Hand Squadron were killed on Toprawa," Leia said sadly. "Bria had her orders, but she was the commander of the squadron and ultimately was responsible for getting us information."
"About the Death Star, I know." Han pulled off his class ring and from the interior curve removed a small crystal. "Data chip. Has all the command codes and protocols up to my last duty rotation. Also has a layout of shields and turbolaser towers. A few terabytes of data. It's all I could fit on a crystal that small."
Leia and Raymus both stared. "That is a remarkable gift, Captain Solo," Leia said.
Han shrugged. "It is an insult to a host not to bring a gift," he said. "And, well, you know what they say. Beware of Corellians with gifts."
The rest of the debriefing went smoothly after that, so long as questions remained about the captain's professional endeavors. He admitted to some shady dealings prior to his acceptance at the Imperial Academy on Carida, but would not answer questions about his family or background.
"We all got family secrets," he merely said.
His professional career, however, was extraordinary. And judging by his men, he was definitely officer material. "Well, I believe we will definitely have use for you, Captain," Leia said, wrapping up the interview. "We are on our way to a Rebel base, at which time you will interview with General Dodonna. The General will then decide your assignment. Assuming it is agreeable to you, of course. Do you have any questions for us?"
Han nodded. "Yeah, you guys figure out how to destroy that monster?"
"Not yet," Raymus admitted.
Solo leaned forward. "I joined the Navy to defend against things like that. I don't care if I have to fly a bucket as an ensign. Just make sure when the time comes to take that thing out, that I'm a part of the attack group."
Leia had to struggle not to stare at the sheer intensity of his expression. It was a face of determination and abhorrence, and for a brief moment took her breath away. "I'll keep that in mind, Captain," she promised.
~~Legacy~~
~~Legacy~~
General Jan Dodonna, veteran of the Clone Wars and supreme Alliance general over starfighter units, stood with his arms crossed and a pensive frown on his face when the ship landed.
As Winter stepped off the ramp into the thick, humid air of Yavin IV, she saw something ominous in the general's expression. "General?" she asked.
"Winter," Jan said. He stepped forward and placed a hand on either of her shoulders. "I have news you should hear from me, before you go into the base."
"What happened?"
"Darth Vader personally murdered Bail," Dodonna said. His voice seemed deep and exhausted as he told her. "And Breha. And Tia, Rouge and likely Celly too."
Winter gasped. "General, it…"
"Vader publicly declared the entire Organa family traitors for conspiring with Jedi rebels, and had the entire city of Aldera destroyed. A warrant has been issued for you and Leia. I'm so very sorry."
Winter struggled to absorb this new data into her world, but it just didn't fit. Bail couldn't be dead. She just spoke to him a few days ago. He just couldn't…. "Winter?" a tremulous voice said behind her.
She turned and saw Kale Naberrie standing a foot away, a look of compassion and horror on his face. "I heard. I… I know how you feel. I'm sorry."
Winter struggled to stop the tears and nodded. "I know you do, Kale." She stepped over and gave the young man a hug. "I know you do. General, this is Kale Naberrie. He was sent by General Kenobi. He witnessed Kenobi's murder. He also states the Empire killed his family, including his sister Senator Pooja Naberrie."
"By the gods," Dodonna said. He stepped forward and took Kale's hand in a firm shake. "You have my deepest sympathies, my boy. I never knew Pooja, but I knew your Aunt Padme very well, and I was a good friend of General Kenobi. Can I ask how you knew him?"
Kale looked from Winter to the bearded general. "He…he found me on Tatooine and placed me with the Naberries. He was trying to train me to be a Jedi when Vader found us."
Dodanna stared at the young man for the longest time. "I'll fill you in on the rest of the story when I have chance," Winter said.
"Of course," the general said. "Forgive my insensitivity. You both must be exhausted. We'll have rooms prepared for you as soon as possible. Space is the only thing this base is not lacking."
As Winter started to leave, she turned and said, "General, does Leia know?"
"I'm not sure. She's been on a mission involving defectors but should be arriving today."
"Let me be the one to tell her," Winter said.
"Of course. I think that would be best."
Winter held out her hand. "Come on, Kale. Let's go find some quarters."
~~Legacy~~
~~Legacy~~
The Tantive IV settled gracefully to the ground under the firm guidance of Captain Antilles as a flock of birds raced by. From the viewport near the main hatch, Han found himself staring at a range of ancient stepped pyramids rising from the thick green of an even more ancient forest.
"What planet is this?" Ensign Prin asked as she lifted herself up on her tip-toes to look over Han's shoulder.
"Judging by that," Han said, pointing at a red gas giant that took up much of the sky, "I'd say this isn't a planet. It's a moon."
"It's Yavin IV," Princess Leia announced as she swept into the room, clad as always in white senatorial robes. "Captain Solo, General Dodonna has scheduled a meeting with you in twenty minutes. He is very eager to speak with you."
"Oh boy," Han said, unable to completely hide the grin. Leia stopped and looked up at the man.
"Are you sure you were with the Imperial Navy, Captain Solo?"
"That's where my payroll came from."
Leia shook her head and stared down the ramp. Behind Han, Ensign Prin snickered. "I think she likes you, Captain."
Han turned and stared at the young pilot. She stood almost a head taller than Leia, with stylish, short-cropped red hair and mischievous green eyes. "And I would care about your opinion why?"
"Just a woman's intuition," she said, still grinning.
He shook his head. "Kids," he muttered. He led his pilots down the ramp to the stony landing pad just in time to see another woman meeting with the princess. This woman had a shock of white hair and stood very close to Leia as they spoke.
He hid his surprise when the princess bent over as if struck. The white-headed one kept an arm around her shoulders and simply stood there. He was still staring when a young rebel lieutenant arrived to escort them to their meeting.
Dodonna, when they finally met, proved to be just what Han suspected when he heard the name. Old. "General," he said as he took the offered hand.
"Solo. Please have a seat." Han sat down and waited as Dodonna made a show of looking through a datapad, presumably at his record.
"It says here you've faced two court-martials, both for insubordination," Dodonna said.
"Where'd you get that?"
The old general smiled. "I have my sources. Care to talk about them?"
"A commander ordered me to skin a Wookiee slave."
"What happened?"
"I said no."
"Is that all?"
"I said it after I punched his lights out and let the Wookiee go free. Didn't matter, though. I found out later stormtroopers hunted him down and killed him in the middle of the street. I saw an article on the holonet. People didn't even stop to look, like Chewbacca was an animal or something."
"And what of the second?"
"Bard D'Lar."
"It was during this battle you were awarded the Imperial Medal of Honor and promoted to captain."
"Yep."
"What happened?"
"Our commander was an idiot. He ordered us to attack a pirate strong hold with insufficient forces knowing we'd be cut to ribbons. He ordered the attack fully intending to kill us all. I lost ten pilots."
"But you won that battle."
"I don't lose. When I got back, I let the commander know that. And then I punched his lights out."
"I'm beginning to sense a pattern," Dodonna said with a wry chuckle. "Solo, I'm an old man. If I make a mistake, please don't punch my lights out."
Solo couldn't help but return the smile. "I'll try not to, sir."
"I'd like to offer you a commission as colonel in the Alliance," Dodonna said. "Totally aside from the invaluable data you provided on the Death Star, your record as a pilot is extraordinary, and the Princess assures me your pilots are fanatically loyal to you. That is as high a praise as I can think of for a CO. Do you accept?"
"Gladly, General," Solo said. He accepted the insignia, surprised to see they were patterned after the Old Republic military insignia.
"Your first order of business will be to assume immediate command of the X-wing fighter squadrons and to assist in planning an assault on the Death Star."
Dodonna said the last as if expecting an argument, but Han thought about it and nodded. "You know, that makes sense. The defenses I saw were for a capital ship offensive. I bet snub fighters could get through pretty easily."
"That was our analysis as well. We're glad to have you, Colonel."
Solo stood, but paused before leaving. "General, after we landed, I saw some lady speaking to the princess. Looked like bad news. Anything I can know about?"
"The princess's family was murdered two days ago by Darth Vader," Dodonna said sadly. "The Royal House of Alderaan has been completely destroyed except for her, and the Empire has issued warrants and a significant reward for her capture."
Solo nodded to himself sadly. "Yeah, that'd be enough even to break her shell a bit. Thank you for letting me know, General."
"Of course, Colonel."
He left the room and was walking toward the cafeteria when he ran into someone around a corner of the dimly lit temple halls.
Solo was not a small man—he was tall and athletic and massed a good amount. When he ran into someone, intentionally or not, he generally expected the other to bounce back. When he ran into this person, it was like running into a durasteel wall. The newly commissioned colonel bounced back in surprise.
"Oh, I'm sorry," a gangly teenager said, blushing furiously. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, kid, I'm fine."
"Oh, good." The boy lingered a moment. "Uh, you wouldn't know the way to the cafeteria, would you?"
"I'm on my way now."
The boy's relief was almost comical. "Good. I'm starving!"
Without invitation, he fell in behind Solo and followed along like a puppy. As they walked, Solo revised his previous assessment. The impression of being gangly was more to do with the boy's posture and attitude rather than fact. He stood well over two meters and had a broad expanse of muscle. He looked like the type of inbred farmboy one expected on an agricultural planet.
"So what's your name, kid?"
"Kale Naberrie. What's yours?"
"Han Solo."
"That's a neat name. Are you a pilot?"
"Yep. What about you? How old are you, sixteen?"
"Fifteen. At least that's my official age. We don't know my exact life day."
"Little young to be a pilot."
"I'm not much of one anyway," Kale admitted glumly. "I'm not sure what I'm going to be good at here. I just didn't have anywhere to go. I'm an orphan now."
"Lot of that going around."
They finally reached the cafeteria, which was sparsely populated. Solo led Kale through the line and watched in astonishment as the young man piled his tray with an obscene amount of food. "So, how long has it been since you got fed?" Solo asked.
Kale blushed as always, and then laughed. "My mom says I'm a growing boy."
"Growing into what, a Hutt?" Han laughed. "Come on, kid, let's go eat."
They found a table, and were joined momentarily by newly commissioned Lieutenant Klivian. Vonder joined them as well, brandishing his captain's insignia. "Solo, the old man actually made you a colonel? Man must be going daft."
"Yeah, thought so too," Solo said.
"Who's the kid?" Klivian said.
"Kale Naberrie," Solo said. "He's an orphan, he says."
"Me too," Vonder said, offering a hand. "Careful around Solo, there. I have it on good authority he's a bad influence."
"Influence on who?" Ensign Prin asked as she joined the table.
Kale stared in shock, and Prin's face paled as she saw the young man for the first time. "Kale?" she whispered.
Solo stared. "Good stars above, how could you two possibly know each other?"
Kale stuttered and started to stand. His blush changed and his jaw set, and as the shock passed, fury replaced it. "Run," he said to the blanching Prin, all hint of boyhood gone from his voice. "Run now and you might get away from me."
The pilots couldn't understand what was happening. Ensign Prin, however, seemed to understand all too well. She spun and sprinted away faster than any of the men could follow. Then she began bounding over the tables, and the men realized they were looking at something unnatural.
"What's going on, kid?" Solo demanded, also rising.
"She helped Darth Vader kill my family," Kale said, staring at her as she ran toward the far door. "She's a spy."
"Imperial!" Solo yelled suddenly, pointing. "Stop her, she's a spy!"
Instantly every head in the cafeteria popped up, and almost a dozen pilots surged toward Ensign Prin. Without losing stride, Prin launched herself into an aerobically impossibly kick that put three men on the ground. She rolled quickly out of it, punched another in the gut and then chopped the neck of a fifth man. She somersaulted, spun, punched and kicked through all twelve pilots and continued her run toward the door.
"Bloody stars," Vonder said. "What is she?"
Then Kale jumped after her. Solo watched in shock as the young man vaulted thirty meters into the high, open-ceiling cafeteria over dozens, right over Prin's head, to land with a stunning thunk that cracked the ground under him.
Prin, who dove easily through a dozen trained soldiers, stopped, turned on her heel and ran back toward a side entrance. This time, though, Kale did not wait. Moving faster than Solo's eye could follow, the young man zipped past Prin and stopped directly in front of her. Having recently bumped into him, Solo understood what was about to happen next.
With a squeal of surprise, Prin ran full-speed into Kale Naberrie and bounced off, landing her on the floor. Around them, pilots started forming a semi-circle, but backed off in shock when Kale picked up a four hundred kilo caf dispensing machine with one hand and lifted it like a club.
"Hold it!" Solo yelled as he finally arrived. "Good stars, kid, put that thing down!"
"She helped him kill my family," Kale shouted, shaking with rage. "She works for Darth Vader!"
"Yeah, I heard you," Solo said. "But that's the only caf dispenser I see, and if you beat her to death with it, every pilot here's gonna hate you for breaking the caf dispenser!"
A couple of the pilots laughed in spite of the tension. Kale did not laugh, but flushed furiously under the onslaught. "Would you rather I beat her to death with your ship?" he asked, eyes glinting.
Solo stepped right up to the boy. "You're a strong kid, no doubt," he said. "I bet you could pick me up and throw me like a doll, couldn't you?"
"Yeah."
"But you're not going to, are you? What you're going to do is put that machine down. Gently, please. And we're going to take Ensign Prin here…"
"Her name is Mara Jade."
"Okay, Mara Jade here, and turn her into the base authorities. They'll deal with her. That's the way it works in military bases. You understand me, kid?"
Han's tone was the perfect balance of pleading and ordering. Kale put the caf dispenser down and fought back the tears of rage. "She lied to me," he said to Solo. "She said she loved me. But she was using me to get to my family and to Ben. And she was there when Darth Vader killed him, and my mother."
Solo nodded solemnly and put a hand on Kale's shoulder. "I know, kid. I'm sorry. But when you commit murder, you're putting yourself on her level, and I can see you're better than that. Aren't you?"
Kale wiped his nose with his hand and nodded. Solo turned and looked down at Mara, who sat staring not at Solo or the soldiers around them, but at Kale. She looked at once angry, terrified, and, if he wasn't mistaken, a little…sad? "So, Mara Jade, you're not from Toprawa, are you?"
