CHAPTER 28

Anakin and his family along with Firmus Piett made their way to the landing platform where they commandeered one of the shuttles located there.

"You know how to fly one of these?" Anakin asked his son.

"I'm sure I can figure it out," Luke replied. He and Piett left for the cockpit, leaving Anakin alone with his still unconscious wife and his daughter.

Leia watched as her father spoke softly to her mother, his eyes conveying the deep love he felt for her.

"You really love her, don't you?" Leia asked at last.

Anakin looked up at his daughter. "That surprises you, doesn't it?"

Leia shrugged, feeling uneasy at her father's ability to read her emotions.

"I guess it does," she admitted.

Anakin looked back at his wife, weary with sparring with his daughter.

"So what happened?" she asked next.

"What do you mean?" he asked, not looking up at her.

"If you loved her so much, why did you become Darth Vader? A creature incapable of loving anyone?"

Anakin looked up at his daughter. "It's a very long story, Leia," he replied. "My reasons for turning to the Dark Side are not simple ones."

"I didn't think so," she replied. "Was it the power? The position Palpatine offered you?"

Anakin frowned and shook his head. "The only power that I wanted in the beginning was the power to save your mother," he told her. "I didn't care about anything else."

"I don't understand," Leia replied. "Save her? From what?"

Anakin began to reply but stopped. No…it can't be…

Leia frowned, sensing her father's anxiety level shoot up exponentially. "What is it?" she asked. "What's wrong now?"

Anakin looked at his daughter. "It's Palpatine…he's still alive."

Leia's eyes widened in alarm. "What?" she cried. "How do you know?"

"I can sense it," Anakin replied. "His dark presence in the Force is unmistakable. He is alive, Leia. He may have been knocked unconscious, but he isn't dead. I can feel it."

Leia felt as though all warmth had just drained from her body.

"What are we going to do?" she asked quietly.

Anakin looked down at Padmé's face. "I won't let him hurt any of you again, Leia," he replied assertively. "I must face him myself. Alone."

"What are you talking about, Father?"

Anakin and Leia looked up to see Luke standing there. "We're on board the Executor," he explained. "Who are you going to face, Father?"

"The emperor," Anakin replied. "He's still alive, Luke."

"That can't be!" Luke exclaimed. "He was dead, I saw him!"

Anakin shook his head. "No, he is not dead," he replied. "I can sense his presence, the darkness that he embodies. I must destroy him once and for all."

"I'm coming with you," Luke declared.

Anakin carried his wife through the corridors of the Executor, ignoring the curious stares of the crewmen they passed. Luke and Leia followed behind, while Piett headed for the bridge.

"Can I help you?" a medical droid asked as the Skywalkers entered the sick bay.

"Attend to this patient," Anakin ordered as he lay Padmé down on one of the diagnostic beds. "She has been unconscious for almost an hour."

The medical droid approached the bed as Anakin stood back, his arms folded over his chest.

"Father, I'm not letting you go after Palpatine alone," Luke said as he stood next to his father.

Anakin didn't take his eyes from his wife. "No Luke," he replied. "You are not ready for this. Besides, you have no lightsaber."

"I can make one," Luke replies. "You must have enough materials on this ship to build a dozen lightsabers!"

"True, but that still doesn't mean you're coming with me," Anakin replied.

"You're being unreasonable!" Luke protested. "You can use my help! Why can't you admit that you need my help?"

Anakin looked at his son. "I won't risk losing you again, Luke," he said simply. "I've come close too many times. This fight is between the emperor and me. I have a personal score to settle."

"Don't you think that we have one too?" Leia spoke up, much to Anakin's surprise. "After what he did to Mother? To all of us? This is our fight too, as much as yours."

Anakin looked from his son to his daughter, sensing that he was losing the battle. "I hope you're not planning on coming too," he said to Leia.

"No, I will only be in the way," she admitted. "I have no skill with the lightsaber. But Luke does. Take him with you. Please."

Anakin was surprised by Leia's vehemence. He looked down at Padmé, reflecting just how much the two women in his life were alike. Negotiators both…

"Very well," Anakin said at last. "Luke will come with me. I don't suppose you know how to build a lightsaber, do you boy?" he asked, a small smile on his face.

"No," Luke admitted. "But if you show me I will remember."

Anakin nodded. He bent down and kissed Padmé softly on the mouth. "I'll be back, my angel," he told her softly. "I promise."

"Come then," he said. "Let's get to it."

Leia stayed with Padmé while Anakin took his son to the machining station in the very bowels of the great star destroyer. Just as Luke had predicted, it was well stocked both with materials and tools.

"Is this where you built your lightsaber?" Luke asked his father.

"No," he replied. "This ship isn't that old. But I had the materials brought on board in case I ever needed to repair it, or build another one. I was rather careless when I was a young man, Luke," he remembered with a smile. "I can't count how many lightsabers I destroyed or lost over the years."

Luke smiled, enjoying the first father and son moment he'd ever experienced. "So how is it done?"

Anakin looked through the drawers of materials, until he found what he was looking for.

"I built my first lightsaber when I was 9," he told his son as he assembled the materials needed. "Seems like another lifetime now."

"You were nine when you began your apprenticeship?" Luke asked.

Anakin nodded. "Yes," he replied. "A little old, actually; but Qui-Gon Jinn, my first master, felt certain that I was the Chosen One of Jedi legend. He went against the Jedi Council to train me," he related as he showed Luke how to assemble the weapon's energy chamber.

"I thought Obi-Wan trained you," Luke commented as he assisted his father.

"Careful with that," Anakin cautioned. "That's the heart of the saber. I'm afraid it will be red, Luke," he said, looking up at his son. "Siths don't use any other color."

Luke frowned. "Well, I suppose I have no choice," he replied. "I just hope I can get back the one I lost on Kamino. It was yours, you know."

"It was?" Anakin asked. He thought back to the last time he had used his Jedi saber…and closed his mind on the memory. Mustafar…

"Obi-Wan said you'd want me to have it," Luke explained.

Anakin nodded. "He was right about that, son," he replied, not wishing to get into a discussion about the circumstances under which Obi-Wan had come to be in possession of Anakin's saber.

"Here's where it gets tricky," Anakin explained. "The crystals must be lined up precisely or else you'll blow your head off the first time you activate the matrix."

"Okay…" Luke replied uneasily. "And how exactly do you do that?"

Anakin smiled. "Use the Force," he said simply. "Can you do it?"

Luke nodded. "I think so," he replied.

"No son, do it, don't just think you can," Anakin advised.

"You sound like Master Yoda," Luke commented.

Anakin smiled. "First time for everything I suppose," he said.

Anakin watched as his son finished assembling the lightsaber with his guidance.

"Well done, my young padawan," Anakin said with a smile as Luke activated the new saber.

Luke smiled. "Padawan?" he asked.

Anakin nodded. "A Jedi term for apprentice," he said.

"I see," Luke replied. He deactivated the saber. "Are you ready?"

"Yes," he replied. "I'm ready. Let's check in on your mother first, and then we'll head for Coruscant."