HEROES AND VILLAINS By Kondoru.
Alternative ending to RotJ
Standard Disclaimers.
Thanks to Budgie for Beating.
Yup, I'm back! This story has a few chapters to go; I'm busy with Uni work at the moment, though.
Chapter Nine; No more Kangaroos in court but with Leia around we hardly need them.
Of course there had to be a re trial.
The great hall was again arranged as a courtroom, and was even tighter packed, if that was possible.
Anakin Skywalker, Last of the Jedi, sat ensconced in a comfy chair. He had been divested of his surcoat and now wore Luke's spare robe. He was starting to look like a person again. His cybernetics were still powerless though.
Anakin smiled happily at all and sundry. He clearly was enjoying the attention thoroughly. But then, he had just spent six weeks in a coffin busy being dead. Now he…Wasn't. It was not surprising he was smug.
Mon Mothma stepped up to the podium. "Sentients all," she opened. "We are gathered here today to try a very problematic case. A case which has just got even more problematic." She shrugged as if she had foreseen this strange turn of events, foreseen it and not been believed.
"Name?"
Anakin nodded. "I'm Anakin Skywalker."
Lady Mothma looked around the courthouse. "Does everyone here agree that this man we are attempting to try is Anakin Skywalker?"
Everyone shouted their assent. He had told them his name and most people were satisfied with that.
"And your title?"
Anakin sucked in his lips. "Technically I'm a Jedi Master."
"And not a Sith Apprentice?" Mon Mothma said with icy pointedness.
He shook his head silently.
"And you're current occupation?"
Anakin gave a big sigh. "I, um, I guess you could say I'm an invalid. My cybernetics are no longer functioning and I am in recovery from a significant bout of being dead."
There were a few titters at that.
"What positions have you held in the past?" Mon Mothma's voice was stern.
"Let me see. I have had several jobs. I started out life as a slave, I had a couple of years racing Pods, I became a Jedi youngling, a Padawan and was knighted...I did a lot of work as a General in the Clone wars...That's not to mention odd jobs such as bodyguarding, trading spice, Do you want to know about my time as a Sith Apprentice?"
Mon Mothma smiled. "I think that part of your career is public record."
Much laughter. Admiral Akbar shouted for order.
"You say you started life as a slave?"
Anakin nodded. "I was born a slave. My Mother and I were first owned by Garulla the Hutt, who lost us in a bet to Watto."
The hall was silent at that bland admission.
"Slavery unfortunately is all too common away from the Core." And he talked about his life on Tatooine, his discovery by Qui-gon Jinn, and his acceptance into the Jedi Order. "But, I was never freed; The Jedi restricted me, and Palpatine turned me into his tool. I was the second most powerful being in the Galaxy...And yet I was still a slave," he said sadly. "I'm so happy to be free of the Emperor..." Anakin paused. "Does that make me your slave now?" He asked hopefully.
Princess Leia stood up. "I too, have known chains." She admitted. She told the courtroom of her experience with Jabba the Hutt. All were silent. They had known of Her, Luke, Chewbacca's and Lando's daring mission to rescue Han from Jabbas palace. Not this particular detail though.
"It was only for a day but I got to feel how a Slave feels…A lesser being." She admitted. "I cannot describe the diminution of spirit I went through. Anything that lessens you, turns you into nothing more than a droid is a terrible evil."
Anakin nodded. "Now you know how I have felt these past two decades." He said sadly.
Leia did not rise to that one.
"I have heard Jabba the Hutt is dead" Mon Mothma commented.
"Dead, very. I got my own back. I strangled the slimy old sleemo with my leash." She told them, with a hint of pride and challenge in her voice.
Anakin beamed. "My daughter is truly my daughter." He said with genuine smugness.
"How did you do it?" Asked General Dodonna. "Hutts necks are thick and powerful, there's no way a human could throttle a Hutt."
Leia gave a knowing laugh and everyone knew she had used the Force. "I'm strong."
"The Force shall free me." Anakin quoted from the Sith code.
"And so ends one of the great Intergalactic sleemos of our time…" Admiral Akbar mused.
"I will see to it that the both of you receive counselling from one of our slavery specialists." Mon Mothma announced. "We of the Alliance are working hard to end this evil."
Luke stood up. "Since my father's deeds were done under duress, Cannot he be pardoned?" He looked around. "It is encoded that in our Constitution, no one who has committed crimes while a slave should be prosecuted for their acts."
Mon Mothma nodded. "You are correct, but that law was not passed with the likes of Darth Vader in mind."
"Should we be making exceptions? Very dangerous, I think. We stand for justice for all…If Master Skywalker here isn't treated as fairly as everyone else then…" Rieekan said sadly.
Mon Mothma changed tack. "I would like to know a bit about the circumstances of your accident...Why you are in a life support suit?"
Anakin pursed his lips. He looked very grim.
"You don't have to say anything if you don't want to. I'm not talking about one of your crimes here." Mon Mothma reassured.
"Very well" Anakin sighed, looking at Luke. "Palpatine sent me to the base on Mustapha to eliminate the Separatist leaders since they had outlived their use to him. He did not like loose ends." It was obvious what he meant by that. "So I carried out his orders." It was as bland an admission of mass murder as had ever been made. "Shortly after, my wife Padme arrived. She was very curious as to what I was doing." Anakin started to whimper.
"You had just been on a killing spree." Mon Mothma said sadly. "I expect that didn't go down very well with Padme."
Anakin shook his grimly head. "No, it did not, and she asked me just what had happened at the Jedi temple." He shuddered. "I told her the Jedi had been put down; They were trying to take over the Senate." He screwed up his face in agony. "Our conversation went downhill after that, she started yelling at me…and." He whined. "I…I killed her." The next few minutes Anakin wept, tears running down his scarred cheeks. The hall was respectfully silent. "I Force choked her." He gave a big shudder of self-loathing. "Obi-wan was with her. He was very angry with me. We fought, and he managed to cut off three of my limbs."
Several people winced. Leia looked disgusted at them.
"What of the fourth? " Asked Lady Mothma.
Anakin gave a slight laugh. "I lost my right arm to Count Dooku before my nineteenth birthday." He told them.
"So, Obi-wan left you for dead?"
"He didn't think I stood a chance of survival." Anakin confessed. "I'm sure Kenobi would have finished me off if he knew that Palpatine would save me." He whimpered. "Anyway, I was left to burn. This is the results." He shrugged down at his black armour. "I was rebuilt as a mechanical monstrosity."
"It was Palpatine who put you in the suit?" she prompted.
"Yes." Anakins voice was neutral. "But there was no mercy to it."
That was the Lady's cue. "Master Skywalker, the holo we are about to show is the one taken to record your operation. It's extremely unpleasant and I don't wish to cause you any trauma."
Anakin went pale under his scars. "No! Not that!" He started shaking.
"If you wish to leave, now or at any point in the future, please tell us?"
Anakin took a deep breath. "No. I want to see it. Anyhow. That isn't going to be me...It's Darth Vader." He looked to Mon Mothma for confirmation. "Isn't it?"
"Keep that thought in your head." Luke placed his hand upon Anakins shoulder.
The next two hours was devoted to the gory highlights of the unfortunate Jedi's operation. Several viewers fainted, others were violently ill and still more ran out in horror.
At the end, everyone was grey and grim looking, they had not imagined an ordeal so terrible could be inflicted on a sentient and they survive. It was obvious Anakin had gained a whole new set of sympathisers.
"The operation was performed without anaesthetic, he was aware the entire time. How long did it take?" asked Admiral Akbar sadly.
"I had no sense of time, -only an agony filled present," Anakin replied.
"By our estimates we are looking at a time frame of at least sixty hours." Mon Mothma consulted her datapad.
There was much discussion on the unpleasant circumstances of the operation. Several medical staff testified to the terrible treatment Anakin had received.
"Doctor Camus, you have studied our Jedi's medical records...What is your opinion?" Mon Mothma gestured up the first doctor.
Dr Camus was a fat Rodian. "I would say it was a textbook example of how not to fit cybernetics." She said, her green face grey with horror. "Normally the amputee would be allowed to heal, -probably in bacta, and given that the subject suffered severe burning, definitely in bacta under heavy sedation. Then given counselling and consultation as to the best type of limbs to be fitted, then a period of re learning motor skills, and more counselling. The whole process would be slow." She spat, "this butchery, the likes of which I have not seen in the entirety of my career will go down in history as an example of callous and uncaring treatment of an extremely vulnerable patient. Whoever ordered that should be subjected to a prolonged and painful death for even considering treating a living being that way."
The other doctors nodded in agreement "our esteemed Dr Camus has summed it up well."
"And do you think the accused's health can be improved? Enough so he can live outside of the suit?" Mon Mothma prompted.
Dr Querken nodded. "He will have to have several operations" It had been him who had done the initial scans of the captive Vader. At first he had been unwilling to go near the man who had caused such suffering in the galaxy, but later he had come to understand that his new `patient` had undergone unspeakable suffering himself. Then, of course there was Luke Skywalker, the Hero of the Rebellion. Luke claimed that Darth Vader was his father, that he had killed the Emperor in order to save him. Certainly Vader had docilely submitted to his part damaged cybernetics being put permanently out of action…For the confidence of all. Dr Querken had been horrified to discover the extent of the prisoner's injuries, the fact that many of them had never healed up, and the complete lack of pain management in the suit. "His lungs can be healed up…Though that will require tissue regeneration surgery. I think a period in Bacta will improve his skin. We are looking at weeks rather than days. As for his limbs, that's Dr Camus speciality." He beamed at all. "I have full confidence that we can have our patient with a vastly improved quality of life."
"So, Master Skywalker, what do you intend doing with your life if you are pardoned?" Asked Mon Mothma. "We can put you back together."
Anakin was taken aback. "But you're not going to pardon me, are you?"
Mon Mothma looked around the courthouse. "Consider it a definite possibility." There were a lot of unhappy murmuring at that.
"I, really, I haven't made any long term plans recently." He said. "I knew I would be sentenced to death."
The senator had to laugh. "Did dying make you a better person?"
"Being dead, certainly changes your outlook upon life. Resurrection made me a better person. I have family now, Luke and Snips...And Leia."
That personage looked away in obvious disgust.
"I ask again, what do you intend doing with your second chance?"
"I'm turning over a new leaf." Anakin said boldly.
Mon Mothma shook her head in sadness. "Oh, no, I am not pardoning you. You are still guilty of Crimes against Civilisation." Mon Mothma shuffled her papers. "You have been responsible for the deaths of many billions of sentients, -directly and indirectly. You say as Darth Vader your freewill was compromised."
"It was obey or get destroyed painfully." Anakin admitted. "But the alternative seemed to be to live in misery."
"You're here by will of the Force." Mon Mothma paused. "For many years `May the Force Be with you` has been an empty blessing in the Empire. The Jedi are dead." She paused. "Many were killed by your own hands." Mon Mothma straightened. "Yet, I can in all sincerity say that the Force is indeed with you, Anakin Skywalker. You have been judged by the Force...And the Force acquits you..." she paused for effect. "However we are Sentients and we deal with the real world, not that of the Force." Mon Mothma continued. "Darth Vader was tried, he pleaded guilty and was sentenced to death. Justice has been done."
"I agree" Anakin said.
"But you, Jedi Master Skywalker are alive. And currently unpunished." She pointed at him. "Justice has `not` been done. You may distance yourself from the persona of Darth Vader, -I hardly blame you for that, as he was a monster devoid of any decency. However we all know you are the same person, and so does the Law. (I am not sure the Force does, though). He died so that you could be reborn. I propose an alternative penalty. One of sufficient gravity and severity to teach you a lesson."
Anakin bowed his head submissively.
During all this Leia had stood silent. Luke was wondering what his sister had in mind. He was watching her carefully, that and attempting to observe her through the Force. As usual Leia was all but undetectable. He assumed that was how she had remained hidden all those years to the Emperor.
"I'm sick of this farce!" growled the Princess as she whipped out her blaster and shot at Anakin.
"Leia!" gasped Mon Mothma.
And the blaster bolt stopped dead. It hung in the air, buzzing.
Anakin had stopped it.
No one moved.
The old Jedi was sweating with the effort to hold the blaster bolt. "Luke…" he gasped.
His son thumbed on his lightsabre and swatted it away. Anakin gave a big sigh of relief. "That was difficult."
All eyes turned to Leia who still rather incriminatingly held her blaster in her hand. Her eyes were wide with surprise at her father's extraordinary feat.
"Leia, drop that." Mon Mothma ordered sharply.
Leia threw her blaster at Luke's feet. The red robed Imperial guard rushed forwards with pikes and blasters. "You're under arrest, young lady." The leader said in a tone that suggested he would rather be arresting a berserk Wookie. He put binders on her. Princess Leia, Daughter of the Elected Queen of Naboo was dragged unceremoniously out of the courthouse by security.
The hall was silent, they had not expected this.
Anakin was first to speak. "I don't want my daughter charged with anything, -we two have a lot of baggage." The old Jedi pleaded. "I don't want to start my new life seeking revenge."
Mon Mothma stared about. It was obvious she was cursing `Skywalkers!` under her breath. "Princess Leia will remain in custody until her trial." She gave a huge sigh. "Which no doubt will be yet another Media circus run by Yours Truly. She will have to be examined by psychologists and other experts…I am sure there is good reason for her behaviour, -aside the obvious ones."
"That seems reasonable to me. My daughter has a history of…Waywardness." Anakin replied.
The entire courtroom laughed at that. Mon Mothma yelled ferociously for order.
"But let her stew for a while, -think on how low she has sunk," he grimaced, "-how strong the dark side is within her heart."
Luke looked up suddenly. "You don't think Leia is falling to the Dark side?" He asked with genuine alarm.
"Never fear, My Son…We have an expert on the Dark Side here." Anakin smirked, his scarred face twisting. "Me."
