Author's Note: Thanks to the people who read and reviewed. I probably will have a couple more chapters, but my muse is slow to write anything right now. I didn't like Dark Empire, so I want to get past this part in Luke's profic history as soon as possible. lol!

.

.


~Approaching the Planet Byss~

Karrde looked at Luke and Mara confused. "Palpatine is dead, isn't he?"

"That's what we thought," Luke said softly totally shocked by the turn of events.

"Shield yourself in the Force," Mara said suddenly. "If we can sense him, he might be able to sense us."

Luke nodded and tried to contain his Force signature. "What do we do?"

"I don't know. What do you think we should do?" Mara asked.

Karrde was the next person to speak. "Aves, Chin bring us in to the designated docking coordinates." He turned to Mara and Luke. "You two, in my cabin, I want to talk to you privately."

Luke and Mara nodded as they followed their boss to his quarters. When they entered Karrde took a seat at his desk chair while Luke and Mara sat on the edge of Talon's bunk. Karrde gave them both an exasperated look. "I'll tell you what we're going to do about Palpatine…if he really is here…nothing."

"And leave a Sith to rule the Empire?" Mara asked incredulously.

Talon stood and started pacing the small room. "Luke, Mara we nearly got killed fighting a dark Force-user on Wayland and we knew we were walking into danger. We don't have that luxury today. We are absolutely not prepared to bring a fight to a Sith. We have limited weapons and no back up." He gazed at Luke intently. "Luke, this is the first time you have been on an Imperial world as a smuggler. Let me tell you what is going to happen. We will be escorted out of the ship and detained while the cargo is inspected and removed. Once they ensure everything is out we will be given a few hours to refuel and use the docking commissary to buy provisions. We will not be allowed to leave the docking terminal without authorization. When it comes time to leave we will stand outside the ship with our crew roster and our false identification. The Imps will bring in Neks to sniff out any stowaways and then we will be asked to board and leave posthaste. We will be under constant surveillance the entire time."

He paused seeing if Mara or Luke would protest. When they didn't he continued. "We have done enough damage to the Imperials with the virus we introduced to the droid brains. And I have to point out it is with considerable risk to us. Ghent said he buried the programing deep inside the brains, but if the Imperials have a man as smart as Ghent on their side…the virus could be discovered. If that happens the authorities will look at every person who had contact with the cargo, including us." He stopped pacing and sat back down and gazed at Luke. "When we return if you want to jump ship and bring a attack force back to Byss then go for it, but I am not going to allow you to endanger my crew by playing Jedi hero."

Luke sighed deeply as he ran a hand through his dyed black hair. "You're right, Talon. We'll keep our eyes open and simply observe."

Talon sat back in his chair somewhat shocked. He expected a fight from Luke. Maybe when he became a smuggler he developed a raging case of common sense. "Good," Karrde said as he stood. "Let's prepare to dock."

.

.

.

As they left Talon's quarters Mara gave Luke a surprised glance. "You're really not going to run into danger on a suicidal mission?"

He gave an exasperated grunt. "Talon's right. We don't know the situation and we don't have the resources. What we are going to do is take as much surveillance holos as possible and record everything we see or hear." He turned to his beautiful companion. "I signed up to be a smuggler, not a Jedi."

They went to the cargo bay to make sure everything was secured correctly and the manifest was available by datapad and on a flimsi printout. She gazed at her lover wondering if they made a mistake. He probably should be a Jedi saving the galaxy from these giant threats and not traipsing around the universe with a bunch of smugglers.

Luke looked up and caught her expression. She knew that when they tried to suppress their Force signature they couldn't read each other, but he knew her well enough that he didn't need the Force.

"Stop it Mara. If I was a Jedi I don't think I would be able to see the underbelly of the galaxy like I am now. Evil usually doesn't manifest in the light. If you and I were Jedi instructors on some planet teaching students we wouldn't be here discovering the presence of Palpatine. I doubt Talon would have taken this mission at all. After all, you said he did it for the New Republic and me. And if he didn't take that mission two-hundred central droid brains would have went into some Imperial super weapon. I think I've done more for the cause as a smuggler than I could as a Jedi. Besides," he walked over and wrapped her into a warm embrace. "I like being with you." He went to kiss her but then pulled away and laughed. "That cybernetic eye is strange to look at while kissing you."

She smiled as she traced a finger over his many fake facial tattoos. "Then close your eyes my handsome tattooed scoundrel."

He pulled her close, closed his eyes and kissed her passionately. When they separated their breathing was ragged. Luke gave her a sultry smile. "We'll have to continue this later. Everything is secure here. Lets go topside and record what we can see from the viewports."

.

.

.

Luke didn't want to be seen holding a holo-recorder on the flightdeck. He placed the imager on the control panel aiming outward and secured it down with mesh tape.

He was impressed with the grandeur of the Imperial Control Sector of Byss. Currently they were approaching the Imperial Freight complex where the cargo would be unloaded and they would be scheduled to depart as soon as possible. The Freight complex was huge. Luke estimated it was at least a hundred kilometers in height. Hovering around the complex was something that looked like an Imperial probe droid on major growth hormones. The dangerous looking droid was over a kilometer in height with four long arms with pincher claws at the end dangling from the bottom of the craft.

"What the hell is that?" Aves muttered, clearly stunned at the size of the machine. He looked over to the cryptologist. "Have you seen those before Ghent?"

The young man shook his head. "No."

Karrde ran his fingers through his beard. "Some sort of security droid I would think. It looks like it can grab ships out of the sky with those claws."

Mara stepped closer to the viewport and turned the holo-imager slightly to capture the flying monstrosity. "It probably has tractor beams."

"I see laser turrets," Luke added. Something else caught Luke's eye. "What's that?" he asked as he pointed to a red domed building precariously balanced on an impossibly narrow and thin spire.

"The Emperor's Citadel," Mara said matter-of-factly. "If he's actually alive and on planet he will be there." She stared at the structure intently. "From what I remember it's guarded by legions of Stormtroopers, Imperial Red Guard, and a slew of darkside nasty creatures."

"So that's not on our list of 'Places to visit while on Byss'," Chin joked.

Mara shook her head. "Hardly. There are also dozens of those huge security droids circling around it. I don't even like being this close."

Mara fidgeted nervously and Luke reached out and took her hand in his and gave it a comforting squeeze. "Don't worry. We'll be unloaded an on our way soon," he whispered to her.

She glanced over to him. "And then what? Are you coming back with the New Republic military?"

Luke blew out a breath. "I'll figure that out later."

As they arrived to the docking bay Luke reached up and removed the holo-imager and put it away in his cabin's locker. He didn't need the Imps asking them questions about it.

The entire crew exited and waited until Imperial customs arrived with the cargo handlers. He was impressed by the efficiency of the Imperials. A customs inspector checked their paperwork, inspected the seals and called in a half dozen load lifters to move the containers out of the hold.

A security chief rechecked their credentials and fake identification cards. When he was satisfied he went to Karrde, who earlier identified himself as the captain of the ship and handed him a credit chip.

"This is payment. If you wish to purchase fuel go to that building there." The gray uniformed officer pointed to a building on the dock with a sign above announcing it was the fuel depot office. "You are restricted to this level and must be gone within an hour. Call in for departure clearance. Your ship will be searched for unauthorized personnel before permission to vacate is given."

"Understood," Karrde said as he pocketed the credit chip. The officer gave Talon a quick nod and quickly moved to the next ship docked in the bay. Talon walked up to his crew as he took out a credit reader, running the chip underneath the scan to ensure he received full payment. He was obviously satisfied because he re-pocketed the chip and smiled. "That was an easy one-hundred thousand credits." He threw a thumb in the direction of the fueling office. "Chin get us refueled. The rest of you don't go far from the ship. We're restricted to this level."

.

.

.

An hour later they requested permission to depart. They went through the departure protocols and boarded the ship. As they lifted off the crew stood on the flight deck to observe the Imperial planet.

"Sixty seconds until the planetary shield is open for our departure," Chin announced. They slowly flew over the rooftops of Imperial Center and got a good look at the Emperor's Citadel rising up to the clouds as enormous security droids hovered around the structure like beetle-moths around a lightstick.

Karrde was staring down at the Citadel when a thought struck him. "Luke."

The younger man looked over to him. "Yes."

Karrde rubbed a hand over his bearded face. "Han once told me a story about you on a mission to Mindor." He turned to look at Luke. "He said you were able to grab the Millennium Falcon right out of the air and hold it in place. Is that true?"

Luke nodded. "Yes, but takes a lot of concentration to do it."

"If you can grab things with the Force to hold them still…can you grab objects with the Force and move them?"

Luke nodded. "Yes."

Karrde chewed on his bottom lip wondering about the consequences for what he was about to suggest. "Can you use the Force against something bigger than the Falcon?"

Luke nodded.

Karrde pointed down to the citadel that was slowly receding from the Wild Karrde. "Would you be able to grab one of those kilometer tall security droids and maybe smash it against the narrow spire of the Citadel?"

Luke looked down at the Emperor's headquarters and smiled. "How long until we are out of the planetary shields?"

"Ten seconds," Chin called out.

"Do it!" Karrde encouraged the man knowing he was taking an enormous risk, but smuggling and risk went hand-in-hand. He also knew this was an opportunity Luke or the New Republic might never have again.

Luke closed his eyes and reached out with the Force. His face became a mask of concentration as he put a hand out in the direction of the Citadel.

The entire crew watched expectantly. When the droid didn't move Luke turned to Mara. "Help me."

Mara nodded and closed her eyes. At first nothing happened, but after a second or two one of the security droids wobbled and then careened into the base of the fortress. The spire broke and crumbled to the ground. The domed building above didn't fall right away. Karrde assumed there were repulsor stabilizers used to steady the structure, but they were obviously not strong enough hold up the building like Bespin's Cloud City. The red domed building slowly tilted to the side and then crashed to the ground. There was an enormous explosion that lit up the sky as the Wild Karrde flew through the planetary shield opening.

Karrde startled when Mara let out a loud gasp. She turned to Luke and grinned wildly. "I felt his death. It was exactly what I felt when the second Death Star exploded."

Luke chuckled as he grabbed her into his embrace and kissed her passionately.

"Chin, get us into hyperspace as soon as possible," Karrde ordered with a sense of urgency. "It'll only take a few minutes before this entire zone is in lock down."

Chin grinned. "You got it boss."

.

.

.

Once the ship was in hyperspace and out of the Imperials' grasp Luke and Mara finally relaxed and went back to their cabin to rest. Luke had washed out the temporary hair dye, removed the fake tattoos and then joined Mara in bed. He wrapped her in his arms; her sexy satin slip teased his bare chest as he kissed her softly. "So, you think he's dead?"

"Arrggghh," she made a frustrated sound. "What did I say about talking about Palpatine while in bed?"

He gave her an apologetic look. "Sorry."

"The damage is done." She sighed and leaned forward so her forehead touched his. "To answer your question, that's what it felt like. I don't understand how he could be alive, though. I felt his death years ago. How can he be on Byss?"

"He did have a fondness for clones." Luke whispered. "Shadowspawn knew of a way to take over a person's body, I would think Palpatine would have the same knowledge."

"That's true." Mara looked at him sadly. "Are you going to go back to Byss with the New Republic military?"

He reached out and pulled her against his body, closing his eyes in thought. "I think we should take a watch and wait approach. Meanwhile Ghent is sending any information we discovered to the New Republic anonymously."

She snuggled up closer and kissed his jaw. "Who's he sending the information to?"

Luke opened his eyes and chuckled. "To himself. He's going to encrypt it and then later claim he decrypted some information he found by chance."

"That's smart. I really don't want anybody knowing we were on Byss."

"I agree." He ran a caressing thumb over her jaw. "If I did leave to accompany the New Republic back to Byss…would you wait for me?"

The question was meant to be a joke, but he was shocked when she shook her head and answered. "No."

He averted his eyes as his breath froze in his chest. "Oh," came his stunned whisper.

She chuckled as she ran a teasing hand down his body. "I wouldn't need to wait because I wouldn't let you go alone."

His eyes widened and smile broadened. "You would go back to Byss and fight for the New Republic?"

She shook her head slowly. "No, not for the New Republic, only for you." She leaned in and kissed him. "I don't think I could let you go. For the first time in my life I've found love. It's a love so deep it frightens me. I'm scared of its power, but I would never want to lose it."

Luke was taken aback by her admission. He knew she loved him, she had said the words before, but she never admitted of being afraid of anything. "You don't need to be afraid. You'll never lose me."

"You know that's a promise that neither of us can keep forever. Eventually death will find one of us, sooner or later."

He pulled her into a warm hug. "We just have to hope it is later, very much later. Until then we should make the most of every moment we have together."

"Oh really," she said with a coy look. "What do you suggest?"

He nibbled on her earlobe then moved down to press a kiss against the pulse in her neck. "I say we make love until we get back to Coruscant to drop off Ghent."

"And then what?" She gave him a smirk.

"Making love to you is my entire agenda for my off hours."

"No eating?"

"I can get some whipped cream and we can do both," he suggested with a predatory grin.

She gave him a knowing nod. "I guess I am dealing with my sexy smuggler and not the Farmboy for the duration of this trip."

"You got that right," he whispered before his mouth settled on her lips ending all conversation.

.

.

.

~Three Months Later~

The Wild Karrde crew was celebrating another successful run having smuggled several hundred cases of Corellian Brandy to some low level aristocrat on the planet Serenno...for an extremely good price.

Currently they were sitting around a large table in the middle of a tavern in Serenno's Carannia Spaceport. Aves and Chin were slugging back large mugs of ale as Karrde sipped a tumbler of Brandy. Mara and Luke were sharing a bottle of wine as they stared up at the floating holovid projectors interspersed within the bar. Currently they were watching a smashball game when a Breaking News banner flashed across the holo-image.

There was a groan from the patrons, which was quickly replaced by silence as the image of huge war machines appeared above the projectors. A young female journalist was hunkered down behind a vehicle as she gave her report.

"These large Imperial war machines have appeared on a number of planets in the Borderland Region, to include Listenhol, Elom and Almania…where I am currently located. These massive vehicles broke atmosphere less than an hour ago. It appears that they possess enormous tractor beams that can literally rip apart the planet beneath. The military attempted to repulse the superweapons, but were unable to penetrate the shields. The colossal machines have been coined 'Planet Killers' or 'World Devastators'…"

The journalist paused when her holocam operator shouted, "Look!" The reporter turned just in time to see one of the World Devastators start to wobble and then shot up into the atmosphere in a corkscrew fashion. The other enormous machines soon exhibited the same unusual behavior. Three started spinning and turning very much like a balloon that was blown up and released. Two of the huge machines smashed together in a horrendous explosion. Others simply fell to the ground with loud thuds and a screech of durasteel. When one went tumbling through the sky like an inebriated person doing cartwheels there was loud thunderous applause and laughter from the patrons.

"Stupid Imps!" One man called out. "Don't kriff with the Borderlands!" The rest of the bar patrons howled in approval. The planet Serenno was located just outside the area referred to as the Borderlands and there was a good chance that a majority of the tavern customers were from that area.

Karrde looked at his crew smugly. "Ghent sure knows how to put on a show."

"You think those are the machines that received the droid brains?" Mara asked.

"I know it. This is pure Ghent," Karrde laughed as he raised his tumbler in a toast. "To Ghent!"

Everybody raised his or her glass. "To Ghent!"

Luke downed his drink and looked over to Mara. "It's good to be a smuggler."