Chapter 21 -- Dark Alliances
Leia stared out the window of her quarters, gazing into the blackness of space as if trying to lose herself in it, to cast herself into that sea of bejeweled darkness, never to be found again. Indeed, the idea of floating through the cosmos for eternity almost sounded appealing. Her body would be no more lost than she felt her heart and soul were at this very moment.
She had been Vader's captive for weeks now -- he never called her such, but she refused to see it any other way. He had never harmed her, never threatened her, only visited her and spoken to her, telling stories about her mother or again inviting her to join him and help him overthrow the Emperor. Each time she had listened to what he had to say, absorbing everything about Padme like a dry sponge pulling in water, but had rebuffed his requests every time. He seemed to accept and even welcome her refusals, as if they proved him right somehow.
She stared down at her hands, which lay limply in her lap. She couldn't hold out much longer. It wasn't fear of the Dark Lord that made her realize that -- far from it. The more she came into contact with him, hearing her mother's story -- and his story -- the more she realized he was indeed her father. And the more she learned about him, the more she saw the man her mother had fallen in love with all those years ago.
And that frightened her. It frightened her deeply to be growing close to Vader in any way. Every time she listened to him speak of her parents, she felt as if she were betraying the Rebellion. And she found it deeply disturbing that every time Vader asked her to join him, she found it harder to turn him down. She hated him, yet she wanted to be close to him, if only to learn more of her heritage. She had no desire to abandon her place in the Rebellion, yet she knew that the Rebellion's cause would eventually mean the death of her father in some way or another. She felt trapped, stuck at a crossroads where either path she took would only lead to disaster.
The door whooshed open, and Vader strode into the room. She didn't shrink back, only watched as he seated himself in a chair and faced her, an expectant air hanging about him.
"Have you given any further thought to my proposal, Leia?" he inquired.
"Yes," she replied. "And I think you already know my answer."
He nodded slowly. "I admire your convictions, Leia. You are certainly dedicated to the Rebellion's cause. However, I am not certain that you have chosen the right cause to uphold."
"What could be more right than overthrowing the Emperor?" Leia retorted. "Than doing away with the corruption and tyranny of the Empire and restoring the Republic?"
"Is that really what you think is right?" Vader inquired. "The Empire is admittedly a corrupt government... but it is still a government, an organization that brings order to the galaxy. And the Rebellion would see that order torn asunder if they had their way."
"We would restore the Republic," Leia countered.
"The Republic was just as corrupt as the Empire, if not more so," came the reply. "The old laws no longer worked. The system had grown too cumbersome, too bogged down by the bureaucrats and courts. You would only restart the cycle of decay if you reformed the Republic."
"You're saying there's no hope for any sort of working government?" Leia demanded.
"The government must be reformed from the inside," Vader replied. "Someone competent must take charge and reform the Imperial laws. Someone wise and with the best interests of the galaxy in mind."
"Someone like yourself?"
"Of course not." He inclined his head toward her. "I thought you a more likely candidate."
Her jaw dropped slightly. Was he insinuating that he wanted HER to take charge of the Empire?
"You have already proven yourself in the political arena, your Highness," he told her. "You believe in justice and equality. You could bring the Empire out of this age of darkness and into a new era. You could restore order to the galaxy..."
"I have no desire to lead the Empire," she informed him. "Find another stooge to play your puppet."
A slight rumble echoed from his vocalizer as he tried to hold back a laugh and failed. "You have spirit, your Highness. I admire that. But you cannot play this game forever. You cannot stand by my side as my daughter without joining the Empire. It will only mean your death."
She fell silent. She had no desire to join the Empire... and yet she couldn't leave him. Despite all he had done, he was her father. She had already lost her family when Alderaan had been destroyed. She couldn't lose anyone else.
"What about Skywalker?" she asked.
"We will find your brother together," Vader promised. "We will be a family again. No one -- Empire, Rebellion, Jedi, or any other force in the galaxy -- can tear our family apart again."
She inhaled deeply, shutting her eyes. This was no idle choice -- this would affect not only her life, but Skywalker's. He still saw Vader as the Black One, a dark creature who threatened his tribe and had killed his father. If he ever realized his sister had joined forces with him, it could very well turn him against her. And he was a Jedi, or at least training to be one. Son or not, Vader was sworn as a Sith to kill him. The only way to keep him safe...
She released her breath in a sigh and opened her eyes. "One condition, and I'll join you."
"Name it," he ordered.
"Don't pursue Skywalker. Do with me what you will, just leave my brother alone. I won't see him hurt."
Vader considered that a long moment, then gave a slow nod. "Agreed." He stood. "The repairs have been finished. We will leave for Corusant shortly." He reached out and rested a hand on her shoulder. "Welcome back, my child."
She shrugged away from him. "Just go."
He lowered his hand. "Very well." He turned and left the room.
She stared back out the window, feeling something in her heart shatter. She had just severed ties with the Rebellion, the cause she had dedicated her life to. They would never have her back among their ranks now. She could only pray that Vader would honor the deal... and that her sacrifice on Skywalker's behalf would not be in vain.
Break...
"Okay, so if you were a Tusken who'd just been introduced to human ways and Vader kidnapped your sister, where would you go first?" asked Hobbie via comm.
"This isn't funny," Biggs chided.
"I wasn't trying to be funny, I was asking a hypothetical question," Hobbie snapped.
"Here's a hypothetical question," Biggs retorted. "What could I be doing right now instead of asking stupid questions?"
"Hey!"
"Okay you two, knock it off," Wedge ordered. "He obviously didn't come back to Yavin. Let's consider our options from this point."
Three X-wing fighters hung in space between the verdant fourth moon of Yavin and the scattered debris of the Death Star. They had scanned the planet for any homing signals or distress calls, but nothing had turned up. They had also done a thorough but careful search of the debris field, again finding nothing. Hobbie had suggested landing on the planet and searching on foot, a suggestion Wedge quickly dismissed as impractical. The search had come to a dead end for the moment, and the Rogues were unable to decide on their next course of action.
"Do you think Ackbar might actually be right?" wondered Wedge. "Maybe he did go back home..."
"Tuskens don't abandon a battle," Biggs told them. "Skywalker told me that they don't believe in giving up in a quest. They might retreat briefly, but only to gather forces or replenish supplies for another try."
"What else did he tell you about Tuskens?" asked Wedge.
"This is a really weird place for a lesson on Tusken culture," Hobbie pointed out.
"Be serious, Hobbie," Wedge told him. "We need to know how his people think. That way, we might figure out where he's headed."
"They consider pride a great weakness," Biggs explained. "A Tusken who puts his own image before the needs of the tribe is looked down upon. They believe the suns and moons to be gods and goddesses, and that they determine the life path of each Tusken. They place a high value on children and life in general. They're closely in tune with nature and spiritual matters." He paused as if wondering what to cover next. "Helping any?"
"Not really," Wedge confessed.
"What did he say his life path was?" asked Hobbie. "Or had he picked one yet?"
"The priests and priestesses picked it," Biggs corrected. "They made him a Son of the Suns -- a priest in their culture."
"Makes sense," Hobbie noted. "He was training to be a Jedi, wasn't he?"
"A Jedi..." Wedge mulled over that a moment. "You don't think he went to find a Jedi, do you? To complete his training?"
"A Jedi?" Hobbie finished for him. "C'mon, the Jedi are extinct. Kenobi was the last, and as far as we know he's dead."
"If Kenobi survived the Purges, maybe others did," Biggs theorized. "And don't quote me on this, since I don't know for sure, but maybe Kenobi was able to tell Skywalker where some of those Jedi were before he was captured."
"That doesn't help us, though," Wedge said. "We don't know where to start looking for Jedi."
"Kenobi was on an Outer Rim world," Biggs pointed out. "That narrows it down a little."
"Oh yeah, only to about two or three million worlds," Hobbie sniped.
"Shut up, Hobbie," Wedge ordered.
"Hey, I'm just making a point," Hobbie defended. "Our chances of finding a Jedi are a billion to one!"
"We have to take that chance," Wedge replied. "We need to make sure that Skywalker's safe, wherever he is. Let's land where the base was and see if we can resupply from what we left behind in the base. Then we'll find a map and try to plot out where he might have gone."
Break...
Stone-Shadow scowled at the black-robed being before him, though he doubted the human could sense his expression through his facial coverings. "You do realize that if we discover you have lied to us, death is the consequence?"
"You may certainly try to kill me if you wish," his guest said with a grin. "But I do not fear your threats, chief, because I have no cause to lie to you."
Stone-Shadow and the outsider who called himself Palpatine sat across from each other in the chief's tent, the leader of the Tusken tribe flanked by his guards, Palpatine accompanied by his own scarlet-clad sentries. Stone-Shadow had never addressed an outsider before and had never had cause to, and he had hoped to keep it that way for some time. Dealing with humans was a dangerous affair -- hadn't enough raiders and Daughters of the Moons met untimely deaths at their hands? And they were backstabbers by nature, plotting treachery at every turn, offering sweet words that hid poison at their hearts.
But Palpatine had been most insistent that he required aid that only the Tuskens could give. And he spoke their language, something few outsiders could do. For those reasons, Stone-Shadow reluctantly gave the human audience.
"Your claim that the one we know as Sky-Walker is a human will be disputed by many," Stone-Shadow informed him. "Red-Dragon and Moon-Blossom claim him as a son, and Wind-Dancer as a brother. The Eldest Sister of the Daughters of the Moons was present at his birth as well. If you were to make your claim before the tribe, they would have your blood for slandering a member of the tribe."
"Your people have been decieved, though through no fault of their own," Palpatine replied. "A human child was abandoned on this planet -- fortunately for the child, in the vicinity of your tribe. Those you call Red-Dragon and Moon-Blossom adopted him as their own. I have come to reclaim the child and restore him to his rightful home."
"No Tusken would take in a human child..." began Stone-Shadow.
"They very well might," replied Palpatine. "Perhaps if their own child had died, and they were pining for a replacement."
That did make sense. "But why would a Daughter of the Moons practice deception? Why would she lie to the tribe regarding the child?"
Palpatine smiled. "Because the child is strong. Surely you know this. He has powers far beyond anything your people have ever seen. She must have sensed this... and allowed him into the tribe for that reason. Perhaps the Daughters of the Moons had something special in mind for him."
"The Daughters of the Moons have always worked in the best interests of the tribe."
"Don't be so sure of that." Palpatine leaned in closer. "I have heard it whispered about your camp that a Black One threatens you. What does this mean?"
"A being who has killed members of our tribe," Stone-Shadow replied. "Some call him a night-demon, while others claim he is simply an outsider. Either way, he is dead. The Daughters of the Moons destroyed him some time ago."
Palpatine grinned wickedly. "I know otherwise, Stone-Shadow. This Black One of yours lives. I have seen him myself."
Stone-Shadow clenched his fists. "He lives?"
"Perhaps your Daughters of the Moons are not as loyal to you as you wish to believe?" Palpatine mused. "No matter. Let me work out a deal with you -- if I help you defeat this Black One of yours, you turn Sky-Walker over to me, that I may reunite him with his family."
"I cannot promise that," Stone-Shadow replied. "Sky-Walker left Tatooine to seek knowledge on how to defeat the Black One."
"Oh, he will return," Palpatine assured him. "He will. I can assure you that."
Stone-Shadow considered a moment, then nodded. "A deal, then." He extended his hand. "The return of your missing human for the death of the Black One."
"Excellent." Palpatine clasped the hand. "Now lead me to your Sons of the Suns. There are things I would like to discuss with them."