DARK DESCENT by EssEm
Hitting Bottom Part 11
He hardly felt the weight of his burden as he carried his son down the quiet corridors. Away from the Emperor's presence the enormous control he had used to shield his thoughts and emotions could be relaxed, a little.
Standing there watching his free-spirited beautiful child being tortured by Palpatine had torn away much of the darkness that clouded Anakin Skywalker's soul. Luke had reached out to him, calling to him from the depths of his tortured heart and something, some power almost primeval, had been in that call. Only through a superhuman effort had he been able to resist rushing forward to tear Palpatine's head from his shoulders.
Reason hadn't left him, nor commonsense. He could not, in that moment, hope to best his Master. Palpatine had called all the dark energies to him to punish Luke and they would have been turned on him in an instant. They both would have died for no purpose.
But it had been hard, terrible, to stand in frozen control mode and do nothing. And he knew the masquerade would need to continue.
Elyse and Janoss were waiting anxiously when he entered. Elyse stood shuddering at the sight of her husband hanging limply in Vader's grasp, his face scraped, bruised and bloodied, the eyes closed.
"Is he...."
Vader pushed past her and lowered Luke to the bed. "He lives. He has been broken and will need medical attention for his injuries, as well as your personal care until he has recovered. He is unlikely to want food or water and you will have to force it on him."
She sat beside Luke on the bed, stroking his face, looking between him and Vader. "What do you mean, broken?"
"The Jedi's power comes from their will and spirit. While he retained whole control of those he was still partly Jedi. The Emperor knew that his will had to be broken so that he could be moulded to his own design. It was ... necessary."
Elyse heard the odd change of tone in Vader's voice at the last. Her her own voice was low and unusually savage. "Necessary? It was evil! Was this done to you as well?"
Vader sat down in the chair, watching his unconscious son. "Yes. But I was harder than Luke." He looked up at Elyse, hands grasped before him. "By all rights he should not live - but he is my son and I shall lend him some of my strength. If he is strong enough he will. But he will not be quite the man you knew." He stood, took a final look at the unconscious figure, and left.
In his dark quarters he sat on the bed and began to plan.
It was a very long time since he'd given any thought to disobeying his Master, not to mention destroying him. For decades they'd both wanted the same things, gone the same road and he'd been satisfied. But then he'd been alone with no-one but himself to consider. Now he had a son, and soon a grandson, and the Future was shifting around him. Much of who he had been might have returned but he was no less wise in the ways of power and the Darkness was still very much with him. It would not be an easy thing to destroy Palpatine and it would mean letting his son sink further into the Dark Side. only great power would destroy the Emperor, and the Dark Force was the only one that Palpatine would permit to exist.
He sat there for a long time.
Elyse held Luke through the night, talking to him, stroking his hair, his face, holding his hand. At some point the dull exhaustion changed into sleep and she was able to rest a little herself. In the early morning he began to moan and twitch, caught in the hold of nightmare. She held him until it passed but he still didn't wake and she worried that he wouldn't, would simply let himself go in the dark.
He slept for almost twenty hours, through one day and into another night. Elyse stayed by him as he thrashed his way through the nightmares and when he finally awoke early the next morning he seemed dazed and slow as if he'd been drugged. He would take no food or drink but she finally managed to get him into a couch next to the garden doors so that he could look out as he lay.
But she suspected that the unfocused gaze meant he was lost inside himself; his face had lost all his colour, his eyes were dull and shadowed. The bright flame she'd grown to love had dimmed, almost expired. But she was stubborn and she talked to him for hours, telling him of her love, sharing her small Force energies with him.
And his father came to share his energies as well. Vader sat opposite him for most of that quiet afternoon and Elyse could sense the power flowing from father to son like a warm wave. She suspected she would have lost her husband that day as he sank into a deep melancholy - had it not been for Vader. He hung onto his son's spirit with tireless determination ....towards sunset Luke blinked and looked across at Vader, seeming to see him for the first time. He opened his lips once or twice as if to speak, then finally did so in a dry croak.
"When I was about fourteen I took Uncle Owens old speeder and tried to fly it out of the hanger. I had a bunch of my friends in it and the thing was too big for me to fly and I crashed it. Into the hanger door." Luke licked his lips, eyes unfocused, and he sighed before continuing. "My Uncle came out, put me over the busted speeder and whipped me to a standstill. In front of all my friends. It was the most terrible moment of my life." He laughed abruptly a dry, painful croak. "I've been such a child." Luke swayed and some of the colour came back to his cheeks. "When will it stop hurting?"
Vader didn't answer for a time and when he did his voice was soft. "Never."
He managed a small, tired smile. "I see. And the answer is --?"
"Not to care."
Luke nodded and closed his eyes, letting his head sink back against the couch. "Yes. That's the way to go...." He went back to sleep and had no dreams.
He hardly felt the weight of his burden as he carried his son down the quiet corridors. Away from the Emperor's presence the enormous control he had used to shield his thoughts and emotions could be relaxed, a little.
Standing there watching his free-spirited beautiful child being tortured by Palpatine had torn away much of the darkness that clouded Anakin Skywalker's soul. Luke had reached out to him, calling to him from the depths of his tortured heart and something, some power almost primeval, had been in that call. Only through a superhuman effort had he been able to resist rushing forward to tear Palpatine's head from his shoulders.
Reason hadn't left him, nor commonsense. He could not, in that moment, hope to best his Master. Palpatine had called all the dark energies to him to punish Luke and they would have been turned on him in an instant. They both would have died for no purpose.
But it had been hard, terrible, to stand in frozen control mode and do nothing. And he knew the masquerade would need to continue.
Elyse and Janoss were waiting anxiously when he entered. Elyse stood shuddering at the sight of her husband hanging limply in Vader's grasp, his face scraped, bruised and bloodied, the eyes closed.
"Is he...."
Vader pushed past her and lowered Luke to the bed. "He lives. He has been broken and will need medical attention for his injuries, as well as your personal care until he has recovered. He is unlikely to want food or water and you will have to force it on him."
She sat beside Luke on the bed, stroking his face, looking between him and Vader. "What do you mean, broken?"
"The Jedi's power comes from their will and spirit. While he retained whole control of those he was still partly Jedi. The Emperor knew that his will had to be broken so that he could be moulded to his own design. It was ... necessary."
Elyse heard the odd change of tone in Vader's voice at the last. Her her own voice was low and unusually savage. "Necessary? It was evil! Was this done to you as well?"
Vader sat down in the chair, watching his unconscious son. "Yes. But I was harder than Luke." He looked up at Elyse, hands grasped before him. "By all rights he should not live - but he is my son and I shall lend him some of my strength. If he is strong enough he will. But he will not be quite the man you knew." He stood, took a final look at the unconscious figure, and left.
In his dark quarters he sat on the bed and began to plan.
It was a very long time since he'd given any thought to disobeying his Master, not to mention destroying him. For decades they'd both wanted the same things, gone the same road and he'd been satisfied. But then he'd been alone with no-one but himself to consider. Now he had a son, and soon a grandson, and the Future was shifting around him. Much of who he had been might have returned but he was no less wise in the ways of power and the Darkness was still very much with him. It would not be an easy thing to destroy Palpatine and it would mean letting his son sink further into the Dark Side. only great power would destroy the Emperor, and the Dark Force was the only one that Palpatine would permit to exist.
He sat there for a long time.
Elyse held Luke through the night, talking to him, stroking his hair, his face, holding his hand. At some point the dull exhaustion changed into sleep and she was able to rest a little herself. In the early morning he began to moan and twitch, caught in the hold of nightmare. She held him until it passed but he still didn't wake and she worried that he wouldn't, would simply let himself go in the dark.
He slept for almost twenty hours, through one day and into another night. Elyse stayed by him as he thrashed his way through the nightmares and when he finally awoke early the next morning he seemed dazed and slow as if he'd been drugged. He would take no food or drink but she finally managed to get him into a couch next to the garden doors so that he could look out as he lay.
But she suspected that the unfocused gaze meant he was lost inside himself; his face had lost all his colour, his eyes were dull and shadowed. The bright flame she'd grown to love had dimmed, almost expired. But she was stubborn and she talked to him for hours, telling him of her love, sharing her small Force energies with him.
And his father came to share his energies as well. Vader sat opposite him for most of that quiet afternoon and Elyse could sense the power flowing from father to son like a warm wave. She suspected she would have lost her husband that day as he sank into a deep melancholy - had it not been for Vader. He hung onto his son's spirit with tireless determination ....towards sunset Luke blinked and looked across at Vader, seeming to see him for the first time. He opened his lips once or twice as if to speak, then finally did so in a dry croak.
"When I was about fourteen I took Uncle Owens old speeder and tried to fly it out of the hanger. I had a bunch of my friends in it and the thing was too big for me to fly and I crashed it. Into the hanger door." Luke licked his lips, eyes unfocused, and he sighed before continuing. "My Uncle came out, put me over the busted speeder and whipped me to a standstill. In front of all my friends. It was the most terrible moment of my life." He laughed abruptly a dry, painful croak. "I've been such a child." Luke swayed and some of the colour came back to his cheeks. "When will it stop hurting?"
Vader didn't answer for a time and when he did his voice was soft. "Never."
He managed a small, tired smile. "I see. And the answer is --?"
"Not to care."
Luke nodded and closed his eyes, letting his head sink back against the couch. "Yes. That's the way to go...." He went back to sleep and had no dreams.