Dynasty
by Valerie Vancollie and Rebecca Thomson
(valeriev84 at hotmail dot com) & (zekkers at juno dot com)
Disclaimer: Rebecca and I do not own Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader or any other of the "Star Wars" characters, items or situations. Rebecca and I only lay claim to the original aspects of the fic.
Note: Well, here's the next chunk. Only 10 more to go!!
Chunk Thirty-Five
Luke sat on the patio of the castle, Buchanan sitting across from him. Lord Vader was still on the Executor, and not expected back until tomorrow afternoon, at the earliest. Luke smiled to himself, overlooking the grounds. He had dismissed the servants just moments ago, and they were sitting in that moment of silence that always occurred when two men waited to be absolutely sure they were alone.
Luke turned to the older man. "I'll miss this place. Eventually, when I leave."
"Oh?" Buchanan asked, willing to hear more.
But Luke didn't want to explain himself. Let the man think that Luke was thinking about moving out. Let the man wonder if Luke meant that Lord Skywalker had every intention on following his mentor to the Palace when Lord Vader assumed the throne (it was almost assured that Darth Vader would be announced as heir, eventually). Or even that Luke planned on taking the throne from his mentor, eventually, years from now.
"Now," Luke said, "I hate to be rude, but you wanted to talk to me about Vladimir? What has he done this time?"
Buchanan cleared his throat. "Yes. I know you have probably heard that he had won that contract for producing stormtrooper armor?"
"Yes, I had heard that one of his closer allies had won the contract." Luke nodded, knowing it had been a careful dance between him and his father to make it appear that he had been willing to put his name behind letting Vladimir's faction win the contract and Darth Vader pulling his protégé out of playing politics.
"Well, he's been providing substandard product. My understanding is that he has had problems with his suppliers- but he's bribed the officials not to cancel his contract even though he can no longer deliver on time." Buchanan said, convincingly acting the part of the injured businessman who had been given a raw deal.
"I know. But he has replaced all the defective equipment."
"But the contract clearly stipulates that in such cases that the contract defaults to the next lowest bidder."
Luke nodded, realizing that Buchanan wanted Lord Skywalker to take his side. One of Buchanan's allies had been the second lowest bidder on the contract, and by rights should be now making the armor for that sector's Imperial Army.
"I'm not asking you to throw your weight around, Lord Skywalker. Just to root out corruption in the bureaucracy and maintain the law." Buchanan said, not quite pleading. But Luke could feel him almost gloating inside. In a way, he had the Sith. Luke would be almost honor-bound to fix the little injustice now. Luke ground his teeth, almost lashing out before he realized that Buchanan was gloating about getting the upper hand over Vladimir, not over Luke.
"You have a point." Luke replied, thinking it over.
"Of course. I wouldn't have brought it to your attention otherwise. I don't want to waste your time." Buchanan replied.
Luke grinned. "Now would be a perfect time for me to needle you about not realizing I was worth anything before." Buchanan's face fell while Luke made a dismissive gesture with one hand. "But I'm not going to bring up the past. I'm not stupid enough to hold one honest mistake against you forever, Buchanan."
The older man gave Lord Skywalker a little nod, while inside the Sith could feel him cheering. They talked a little more, and Luke summoned the servants to lead him out.
The two blue-coated men that came to escort Buchanan appeared to hardly receive the courtier's notice. Even though one of them was extremely efficient and polite to both him and 'Master Luke,' while the other seemed to be barely going through the motions.
'So,' Buchanan thought to himself as the aircar sped homeward, 'Lord Skywalker is willing to forget what I said to him before, and unity is sorely lacking in the house staff. Quite a few of the servants were almost less than civil to us over lunch, and the rest that served us seemed absolutely smitten with following Skywalker. It is almost a matter of time now. A house divided cannot stand.'
'And,' he added, 'Lord Skywalker may or may not be open about allying himself with me over the stormtrooper armor contract, but he will take a step in my direction. He's military enough not to want his troops wearing substandard equipment. So, with any luck, he'll get used to allying himself with me on more and more issues.'
Luke kicked back in his chair as the servants who had served lunch came back into the room. He laughed. "Our dear courtier believed exactly what we wanted him to believe. You all did a very good job."
The servants broke out in smiles, and one, who had played the part of someone who was standing with Lord Vader bowed to Luke. "Thank you my Lord."
Luke wagged a finger at them. "Just remember not to start overdoing it. But at this rate, you all can start an acting school."
They laughed and cleared the table as Luke went upstairs to call Anja. He would have to talk to his grandfather, but perhaps he could have his future father-in-law handle this little matter of contracts. He didn't want to appear to be on anyone's side.
"Did you get what you wanted?" Ra'chealla inquired as she looked up at her father who was sitting across from her at the dinner table. "With your visit to Vader's Castle, I mean."
"Yes," Buchanan replied smiling before he took a bite of the salad they were having. "Skywalker agreed with me on the stormtrooper armor issue and Vladimir should lose his right to make them soon."
"Oh," Ra'chealla replied.
"Oh? That's all you can say?" Buchanan demanded. "Don't you see what this means, Ra'chealla? Skywalker is now helping me and once the others know that they'll be green with jealousy. Besides, with the way everyone is splitting something is going to give soon."
"Splitting?"
"Yes, don't tell me you haven't noticed," Buchanan continued. "Practically everyone is dividing into two groups. One supporting Vader, the other supporting Skywalker. Even the staff at Vader's Castle are splitting between the two of them. You should have seen them today, several were nearly rude to us while the others were falling over themselves to please Skywalker and subsequently me."
"But he's not taking sides, father," Ra'chealla pointed out. "He's just like Vader- he isn't taking sides. Vader was neutral by being a recluse, but L- Skywalker plays the game and still doesn't take sides. And he has played with us all before, maybe he's doing it again."
"Nonsense," Buchanan replied, waving off the very idea. "He has too much to win by taking sides. If he remains with Vader he'll be in his shadow the whole time and will probably need to prove himself over and over once Palpatine is gone and Vader has taken his place. After all, that's what's likely going to happen at this point. But if he breaks away from Vader he stands a better chance at having more power."
"He'll have more power, or you'll have more power?" Ra'chealla questioned. "By breaking away from Vader he will only displease him and that's not a good thing to do to Vader. Skywalker of all people should know that best. He's not stupid, Father."
"Which is why he'll see the advantage of gaining more power for himself," Buchanan stated. "You're missing the point here, like all women do."
Ra'chealla opened her mouth to reply, but then quickly closed it once more. If her father believed that Luke was going to side with him, then let him think that. It wasn't like Buchanan had done anything lately for her to point out to him just how his thinking was illogical. Indeed, after the way he had separated her and Luke, letting that Winiterure pest cloud Luke's judgment, she didn't feel much like showing the holes he was missing. In fact, she would actually like to see how all this ended as her father was sure to get hurt by it one way or another.
"What do you think?" Luke inquired as he looked at Anjaleen who was standing next to him.
"I think its perfect," Anja replied as she looked at the selections he had made for his wedding clothes.
The outfit was to be made of a soft velvet in deep emerald green and scarlet, trimmed with gold and completed with a satin lined, black velvet cape. The cuffs and collar were going to be decorated with water-stones which would bring out the color of his eyes. The cape was to be embroidered with the Sith glyph done in gold and silver thread. Although Anjaleen doubted that anyone would know what the glyph meant, it was important to Luke and the Emperor had instead on it. The satin lining of the cape was encrusted with bloodstones along with purple and orange jewels. The rest of the outfit was going to be covered with other jewels and shards of flasi, a special gem which reflected light in a multitude of different colors depending on the light source. With the way the light would already be shattered about in the Crystal Hall, the flasi would be perfect.
"Indeed," Palpatine agreed from the chair he was sitting in at the other side of the room. "And the medallion fits with the colors you have chosen."
"Medallion?" Anja questioned as she turned her attention from the aged man to Luke as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a silver chain with a disc on it.
"Grandfather gave it to me this morning," Luke whispered as he handed it to her, making sure that Vincent Van Kallen and his assistants couldn't hear it.
Anjaleen took the medallion and inspected it. The silver disc was thicker than most medallions, and on the disc was the Imperial symbol made of some kind of black stone. Unable to identify it, she brushed her fingers over it. Frowning she touched it again, feeling a slight tingling run through her as she did so.
"What--" she began but stopped as Luke brought a finger to his lips. "Later," he whispered as she could see Vader tilt his head to one side, a gesture she had seen him make without his mask on when he was puzzled. "It's nice," she stated aloud, knowing that the tailor wasn't to hear whatever the explanation was to what she had felt.
"We move to your outfit then?" Vincent inquired and then motioned for Bailey to start taking the necessary measurements as Miss Winiterure wasn't one of his normal clients, her family used one of the other tailors.
As he watched Tr'revon take down the measurements Bailey gave him, Vincent sighed. Upon arriving he had been shocked to find the Emperor present. Lord Vader, however, had lost no time in making sure that he, his daughter, and son-in-law, knew that they were not to even mention Palpatine's presence at the Castle to anyone else. And while he had agreed, that didn't mean he wouldn't think about the event. Indeed, why would his Imperial Majesty be so interested in what Lord Skywalker and his fiancée wore for their wedding? It could have something to do with the fact that the wedding was to take place in the Imperial Palace, but he doubted it. There was some special reason for it, but he didn't know what.
"Any specific instructions?" Vincent questioned as he looked towards the Emperor when the measurements had been taken.
"The same as with Lord Skywalker," Palpatine declared. "The best and most lavish you can do."
"As you wish," Vincent replied before he turned his attention to the young lady before him, having seen with Skywalker that the Emperor only said anything else if he objected to something. "Ideas?"
"Only that it must include this," Anjaleen responded as she moved over to the table where she had laid the black Sinla silk cloth which was finely embroidered with white Lipon thread and extremely small gray and pale yellow pearls. "It's been in the family for centuries."
"Let me see," Vincent said as he moved forward and took the delicate material in his hands.
"It was made so that it can be added to a wedding dress and taken off later," Anja stated.
"Yes," Vincent responded as he saw the clever way it was done. "Considering Lord Skywalker's colors and this black, I would suggest going with a light color for the dress itself. Something like white, cream, sable, or a pastel."
"How about ivory?" Luke suggested.
"Yes," Anja exclaimed as she looked at her fiancé. "Ivory."
"Very well," Bailey said as she wrote something on a datapad. "Ivory it is. That leaves us lots of room to work with other colors. And the contrast with the black will work nicely."
"Indeed," Vincent agreed. "We should have accessories, jewels, lace, and everything else be darker colors. Headdress or not?"
"Headdress," Anja declared as her excitement rose. She had never been able to choose as freely as now. She did not have to worry about how much things cost or anything else. She could get what she wanted.
"Do you want one that incorporates the hair into the headdress itself or one in which the hair is left free to cascade down your back?" Tr'revon asked as he pulled out the datachips that had the headdress selections.
"Are there ones that do both?" Luke inquired when he sensed Anja's indecision.
"Yes," Tr'revon confirmed as he put a chip into the holo projector. Instantly a young woman appeared wearing completely white clothing so that it did not interfere with the headdress itself.
"No," Anja instantly stated as she wrinkled her nose in disgust before she sat down and watched the various holos as Tr'revon displayed them. "Wait," she finally said as one of the headdresses caught her attention.
The headpiece was done in dark bronze which arced over the forehead just at the hairline and which went around the head, going up at the ears. As the holo turned Anjaleen saw that there was another arc at the back so that the bottom of her hair was left loose to cascade down the back. At the top of the head, the headpiece went up and split into three thin tube-like structures. Where each of the tube-like structures ended the hair came out and was clasped in bronze hair bands each of which was decorated with green and purple stones. The first two such structures let her hair come down just behind her shoulders while the last one went down her back. At the bottom, where the hair ended, was a last hair band from which hung several strands of small jewels.
"Since this is only a sample," Vincent began as he saw Anjaleen's eyes trying to take in all the details. "Some of the details aren't shown. It is possible to get a pattern on the headpiece itself should you wish not to have a smooth surface. It is also possible to have a symbol displayed here," as he said this he indicated the front of the three tube-like structures. "None is shown here as everyone chooses differently. Some people place their house symbol there, or the symbol of a planet, or something totally random. I had a client once who had me put a light there. You can put practically anything there."
"The Imperial symbol," Anja finally stated. Palpatine wanted it to be the precedent for future marriages of the Imperial Royal Family, so that was the logical choice. "Your Majesty?" she questioned as she turned to face him.
"Yes, the Imperial symbol," Palpatine agreed as a smile spread across his face as he briefly probed his grandson's future wife. She would make a good Empress.
"Also, in this instance the young lady has her hair loose in the hair bands, you could do the style differently," Vincent said.
"Little braids," Anja said before she looked at Luke. "This headdress."
"Very well," Tr'revon said. "For the dress itself, could I suggest that instead of the regular cuffs that we trim it with fur both at the hands and the bottom? It's more exotic and if you take a color like brown it will work nicely with the rest of the colors."
"Yes," Anjaleen responded. "With blue embroidery just above it."
"We have some gold braid that could be added as well," Bailey stated. "That with sable lace, colored jewels, and pearls should be worked into the fabric of the dress."
"Which brings us to a last issue," Vincent said as he saw Skywalker and Winiterure agree to his daughter's suggestions. "If we work the black, silk cloth onto the back of the dress so that it comes up over the shoulders and down the sleeves, we could still add something down the front and add a gold and silver satchel around the waist."
"Yes to the satchel." Luke began, sensing Anja's reply. "But what do you mean when you say something down the front?"
"This," Vincent said as he got out another datachip and placed it into the player.
As the new holo came to life they saw another young woman dressed in white. Only now, instead of a headdress, she had two strands of colored flower pedals hanging down the front of her dress. They had been worked into the collar of the dress and were slightly to the side so that any jewelry worn around the neck was still clearly visible.
"What colors does it come in?" Anja demanded as she studied the holo carefully.
"We can dye the pedals into practically every color needed," Vincent explained. "I would suggest we get darker colors like the scarlet and green from Skywalker's clothing as well as dark blue, purple, and yellow."
"We'll take it," Luke declared as he saw his fiancée look towards him, looking to see if he liked it as much as she did.
"Will there be anything else?" Bailey inquired as her father scribbled a few notes down on his datapad. "Jewelry or accessories perhaps?"
"No," Vader stated. "I shall have Mark get you the necessary jewels for the outfits. How long will they take?"
"Two months at least, maybe three," Vincent instantly replied, knowing that the wedding wasn't for four months. "That way we can get every last detail perfect."
"It had better be perfect," Palpatine warned from his chair, causing Van Kallen to swallow before he and his staff began to get their things together. Getting to his feet, the Emperor left the room, followed closely by Vader, Luke, and Anjaleen.
"What did you feel when you touched the medallion?" Vader demanded as he turned to face Anjaleen as soon as the door was closed behind them.
"A... tingling," Anja explained as she frowned. "What was that?"
"It's an amulet," Luke explained as he pulled the object in question from his pocket once more. "Its one of the old Sith devices. Grandfather had it turned into the Imperial symbol when he started his New Order."
"How come I could feel something special?" Anja inquired. "I thought I was only slightly more sensitive than most people."
"You are," Luke confirmed. "But even the average person will feel something when touching this. Your reaction was stronger than I had suspected though."
"The more the better," Palpatine declared as he made his way towards the main hall and the secret passage there. "It means your heir will be the stronger for it."
Luke walked down the ramp of the shuttle, into the hurrying masses of the white armored troops preparing to take the base. They were surrounded by forest, huge green limbs arced overhead on this Imperial-held Rimworld. The air was humid, and rich with the smell of blooming trees. Skywalker held his face rigid, but let his mind wander to Anja. He would be married in two weeks, in a flower-covered hall in the Imperial Palace. But first, his grandfather had sent him on this little mission to root out the Rebels on this world. The last few months had been like that, hustling between planning the wedding and leading missions.
"Line up!" Someone ordered, and Luke waited, watching the troopers hustle into neat lines, blasters at their sides. He walked across the clearing, his black cape fluttering in the light breeze. He always wore black for missions. Even if this outfit sparkled with deep green emeralds in gold settings around his neck and wrists and the silk of the material could never be mistaken for a military outfit.
Lord Skywalker barely glanced at the troops, more interested in checking their mood- the Force sang with their readiness to attack, to conquer the pitiful band of Rebels hiding in the rock caves not a klick away. He cleared his throat, eyes glancing at the holo-press team standing off to the side, their cameras weaving in the air, pointed at him. The Press! Here, at a war. It was stupid, and he hated it, even if he understood his grandfather's reasoning.
War was bloody, a mix of horror and confusion, and sprinkled with death. Luke loved it, but he worried that the common people would not understand. He faced the lined up soldiers, preparing for a bit of theatrics before the attack. He cleared his throat again, this time letting the sound project with the Force.
"I don't normally speak to you before an attack, but this battle is going to be a little different." Luke said, bringing all eyes on him. He continued amplifying his voice with the Force. "We have guests, who will be projecting our every move to the galaxy." Luke left out that the battle would not be shown live, there would be editing before the tapes were shown on the news channels. "And I wanted to tell you two things. First, I expect all of you to follow the drills, keep to your business. No heroics. Stay in your squad, do what you're told. Secondly, our guests are supposed to stay in the back- they are civilians, not soldiers. If they get too far in front, have your squad leader call it in- I'll come get them myself."
He sent the group clustered to the side a little glare, letting them know that he meant it. The last thing they needed was a couple of dead reporters. He turned back to the stormtroopers, continuing his speech, "This operation will be exactly as you were briefed- the Rebels have a hidden base over the next ridge, and we are going to clean it out. They've moved into some natural caves, and it looks like they've enlarged them as well. They are too deep to clear out with a planetary bombardment, so we will have to clean out the caverns, room by room. We've found their escape routes, and blocked them off, so they're trapped. Stick to your squads, don't go running off on your own, you'll get shot by one of our own that way." Luke nodded, turning away. He walked off as the general in charge of these troops started yelling orders for them to board the transports.
A reporter rushed over to Lord Skywalker, his eyes wide with excitement. "My Lord Skywalker, what are your feelings before going into battle?"
Luke sighed, turning on the man. "That I'm going to loose men. And no, it wasn't a stirring speech, I know what you're thinking. But stirring speeches are for when you're going into a hard fight. This isn't a battle were I need my men to hold on to the bitter end. I just need them to do their jobs. They know that, and any flowery words I offered would be nothing but posturing for you and your listeners."
"Oh." The reporter blinked, obviously taken aback at having his mind read. He recovered with, "Do you normally command in an outfit like that?"
Luke sighed again, "No, actually, I usually wear something fancier. Now, I am a little busy right now, could you please get out of my way?"
"An after-battle interview, my Lord?"
"Fine." Luke turned around, headed for the nearest transport. He jumped up, glaring at the nearest trooper till he scooted over enough for Luke to grab the rail. "Stupid press." Luke mumbled, "whose idea were they anyway?" The Sith could feel the silent agreement of the seasoned soldier beside him as the transport lurched into movement.
Luke paced behind the holo-map of the underground caverns, stopping occasionally to stare into the ground in front of him, past the black hole of the cave's entrance. Two technicians kept the map up to date from the reports sent in by the troops below. The general called out orders as the press watched, whispering among themselves.
Lord Skywalker suddenly turned around. "What did they just call in?" He asked.
"Three Rebels were killed at this junction." The technician replied.
"Before that." Luke snapped.
"The Rebel's hospital room is located here, my Lord."
"That's not right." Luke said, shaking his head. "Tell them to confirm."
The com technician spoke into his set, waiting till the squad in question replied.
"I'm sorry, my Lord. But they said they found ten beds, two still warm from their recent evacuation to lower levels."
Luke picked up a stylus, pointing to a location on the map, just below were the fighting was. "Then why am I getting high levels of human agony about here? Could they have two hospital areas?"
The general looked at the map, scrunching his forehead in thought. "The base isn't big enough. And they wouldn't have kept their wounded so close to the fighting. They are probably furthest down, by now."
Luke whirled, staring at the ground. He turned back to the map, barely noticing that the reporters had crept closer to overhear. "You're right, there are a few pain signatures down deep. But what could that be?" Luke scratched his chin, turning to stare at the ground again.
The general coughed, and Luke turned back to the graying man. "My Lord. We have lost quite a few men to this group- but never more than two at a time. We thought that it was... well, the natives told stories about vicious animals in this forest. And they always disappeared on patrol. Could..." The general glanced at the reporters, unwilling to voice what he feared.
Luke turned back to the ground, squinting his eyes. His head snapped up suddenly, "Damn!" He cursed, "they weren't coherent... By my ancestors!" Luke swore. "Get me a speeder!"
The general snapped orders and Luke pulled out a com unit, slapping it on. A scout pulled up in a speeder, and Luke almost shoved him off as he climbed on. "General." Luke said, "Tell the men not to shoot anything flying overhead." With that, he bent down, kicking the speeder into full thrust, flying down into the cave's entryway.
The general passed on the order as he watched the black entry to the cave. "General?" He turned, seeing that annoying reporter had crept into the command tent.
"What?"
"Is the Sith Lord actually flying through the caverns right now?"
"Sir, Lord Skywalker is at the front line in section A-5." One of the technicians spoke up. "And he's ordering new troop patterns."
"Looks like he's making that sector a priority." The general replied. He looked up at the reporter. "Please go back to your designated area."
"Of course, Sir." The reporter nodded, turning away. The general watched him, eyes narrowing as he realized that some of the cameras were missing, as well as one of the reporters. He glared at the black entrance to the cave, wondering if he needed to give Lord Skywalker a heads up about the civilian loose in the caves.
"Lieutenant," the general whispered to the com officer. "When there is a lull in the com traffic, tell Lord Skywalker that one of our reporters got away, and I think he's headed his way.
"Yes, Sir."
Capper kept his head down, hugging the rough rock wall as he shuffled deeper into the caverns. Lord Skywalker might be furious with him when he found out that he had sneaked into the cave, but he was a reporter- what else was he to do when he smelled a story? His co-worker Steven was getting the interview later, Capper needed something...
There was an ominous click, and Capper froze. Someone swore. "You're that damn reporter! Do you know how close I came to blowing your head off?"
"Sorry..." Capper whispered, suddenly realizing how stupid this little adventure could be. He looked over to find a group of four stormtroopers, one of them pointing a blaster at him.
"T5-168, we don't have time to take him to the top. Just stun him. Lord Skywalker wants us all in the next cavern now." The white armored trooper next to him said.
"Wait! Let me go with you!" Capper said, pleading. "It's going to be a great story, I just know it. Please!"
"Fine. We'll deliver you straight to Lord Skywalker." One of the troopers said. Capper stood, the cameras mutely following him through the cold wet air.
It was smoke, and confusion, and Capper severely doubted that this was a good idea. There was no way that the holo-cameras would get anything through this haze. He glanced to his right, Lord Skywalker was standing in front of him, he could just see a green glitter occasionally. The red glow of the Sith's blade cut upward, deflecting a wild blaster bolt with effortless ease. The young Dark Lord had promised Capper he'd pay for disobeying- but after the battle.
Capper doubted that Skywalker would kill him, so he just kept praying that he would get a story that was worth it.
"Forward." The Sith commanded, and the troops surged forward, into the dark. Each trooper had a glowrod strapped to their blaster, lighting their field of fire. Large portable glowrods had been set up in the corners, providing dim light.
They moved into the next room. It was one of the natural caverns, water from a small underground stream fell from a large hole in the ceiling into the center of the room. The water gurgled across the floor, disappearing into the wall. Lord Skywalker raised a hand, squeezing his fingers into a fist. A Rebel body dropped from the hole onto the floor, a blaster falling from each hand. Capper looked around, natural formations of flowing rock clashed with the conduits running across the walls.
"My Lord, blast doors. They've fused the controls."
Skywalker stepped forward. "On this side, anyway." He stopped, looked through the door. "They've left the other side- I'm getting no one who isn't in pain. But I want a full squad to do a sweep on the other side, and watch what you're shooting. They have prisoners."
Twelve men stepped forward, and Capper quickly programmed one camera to follow them. "Ready, my Lord." The lead trooper said. Lord Skywalker cocked his head, blade held ready in his hands. The door swished open, and the twelve men surged forward, camera quickly following. Skywalker stayed where he was, head still cocked, listening.
Capper could hear the clatter of boots on the stone floor as a strange unpleasant odor hit his nostrils making him gag. The feet in the next room stopped, and someone swore. "By the Emperor! My Lord-" The troopers sounded shaken, and Capper quickly followed Lord Skywalker into the next room.
The stone room was punctuated by four steel tables. Capper gasped, the first table held a rotting decimated corpse, the tatters of a black bodyglove still clinging to the putrid flesh. Two other tables were empty, but the last held another corpse, this one was fresh. Dried blood ran down the table, dripping down the legs and onto the floor. The smell was sickening, even in the cold air.
"My Lord!" The shout came from an adjoining room. "This one is still alive!" Capper turned and ran after Skywalker, his camera following. He skidded to a stop, seeing a man chained to a wall with barbed wire. His face was beaten, eyes swollen shut. He was wearing the remains of a black bodyglove.
"Get him down." The Sith Lord said, and Capper had to shiver, the voice was ice cold. "And get a medic. And I want this place secured."
"Yes, my Lord." A trooper hurried off, while two others began to cut the man down. His body slumped forward, and the man screamed in agony. Lord Skywalker stepped forward, expressionless as he put two hands on the bloody chest, his Sith powers holding up the prisoner as the soldiers cut him free. Once loose, Skywalker gently lowered him down.
Lord Skywalker turned to the others, the man still groaning in his arms. "Five more that are still alive. I can feel them. Find them now." The remaining troopers split up into groups, fanning out through the rooms. Luke nodded to the two remaining troopers, who took the injured man. "Here," the Dark Lord said, slipping off his cape, "I don't want him going into shock from the cold. Wrap him up till the medic gets here." He turned away, eyes scanning the room as the soldiers did as they were told.
"My Lord?" Skywalker turned to the troopers kneeling next to the bleeding man on the floor. "This is S12-135, he went missing from his patrol about a month ago."
Lord Skywalker stood, staring at the figure on the floor. The troopers from the other rooms began to file in, carrying or leading other freed prisoners into the room. The Sith touched his com. "General, this is Lord Skywalker. We are going to have to run a confirmed identity check on all troopers leaving the caverns. They may try and sneak out."
"Yes, my Lord."
Buchanan watched the news report with wide eyes. The reporters went on to show shots not only of the pile of dead stormtroopers, but of the cache of holotapes recording what the Rebels had done to the captured men. A grainy video clip of one trooper mumbling 'Long live the Emperor' while they ripped the flesh from his body was frightening.
But Buchanan hadn't risen to power without being able to realize the political ramifications of such a report. The report had been done to show the masses how brave the Imperial soldiers were, but it also managed to make a practical folk hero out of Lord Skywalker. The picture of the Sith helping to lower that horribly mauled man from the wall was touching, wrapping him in his own cape to keep him off the cold floor was a master political stroke. And the rescued men crying for joy- you couldn't buy publicity like that.
The courtier-ally beside Buchanan sighed. "Even the interview makes him look like a hero. They managed to capture some of the Rebels trying to sneak out in the stolen armor- when asked what he was going to do with them, he just said 'I am Sith. They will be dealt with.' Everyone's convinced that the Empire will have its revenge."
Buchanan nodded, "He's building up a large following from this report. He's not as intimidating as Lord Vader, and the people think of him as a hero. We're lucky that Vladimir took it personally that Lord Skywalker insisted on following the letter of that stormtrooper armor contract. When the Sith quietly brought it to the Emperor's attention, Vladimir about had a fit."
"You did back the Sith into a corner."
Buchanan smiled. "Well, yes. But I never would have dared trying that if we hadn't been on the right side of the law."
"Lord Skywalker," Nathaniel called out as he saw the other man further down the hallway.
"Admiral," Luke replied as he turned to his friend.
"Can I talk with you?" Nathaniel questioned before he looked at the other people making their way through the hallways of the Imperial Palace. "Without any prying ears?"
"Yes," Luke replied before he moved to one of the less used side corridors. Reaching a quiet area he quickly scanned the area with the Force to make sure that they were alone. "Okay, we can talk here, Nathaniel."
"Great," Nathaniel stated. "After you came to my wedding early and all, people know that I know you outside of the Navy. This has put me in a rather strange position."
"What do you mean?" Luke inquired as he frowned.
"People have been coming up to me to tell me that they're behind you all the way, no matter what happens," Nathaniel explained. "Others have approached me to tell me that I'm a fool for not siding with Lord Vader and that I'll end up paying the price for it. At first this only happened once or twice a month, but it's been getting worse and I've even had it that one of each side has approached me at the same time and they end up arguing."
"In the Navy?" Luke asked, slightly stunned. He'd known that things were stirring up everywhere, but not this badly.
"Yes," Nathaniel confirmed, his face grim. "Everyone is splitting into one of the two groups, hardly anyone is neutral anymore. Especially since the documentary a few days ago. What you did at that Rebel cell caused nearly all the undecided people to side for you."
"It's a good thing this will all be over soon," Luke stated as a smile spread across his face. "The Emperor is correct, it wouldn't take long before we had a huge confrontation somewhere."
"Over soon?" Nathaniel questioned cautiously. "Luke? What do you want me to do? I've known you for a while now and I never saw any signs of friction between you and Lord Vader until this whole mess started."
"I can't tell you what's going on," Luke answered. "But I will tell you this; don't take a side. Stay out of this, everything will be revealed at my wedding. Well, not everything, but enough."
"Very well," Nathaniel responded, relieved. "I just wanted to get that cleared away."
"You did right by telling me," Luke stated. "Try to prevent any such arguments you mentioned, they will only lead to trouble."
"Understood," Nathaniel replied.
"Good," Luke said. "Now I've got to go, the Emperor awaits."
"Can't keep him waiting," Nathaniel agreed before he moved off, heading back to the main hallway.
Luke shook his head as he watched him go. Although he enjoyed deceiving and playing off the courtiers for one another, he could see that to continue the game much longer would be harmful for the Empire. Turning around he quickly made his way to his grandfather's personal chambers, sensing that he was there.
"Luke," Palpatine greeted his grandson from the chair he was sitting in as Luke entered the room. "Come, sit."
Luke took the empty chair across from the Emperor and accepted the goblet one of the servants handed him. "Seems the Armed Forces are splitting between Father and me as well," he said before he took of sip of the drink. "Admiral MacNelly just informed him that people of both sides have been talking to him as its known that he knows me better than most."
"It is good your wedding isn't far off," Palpatine declared. "Although it might be good to drop a hint before than."
"What do you have in mind?" Luke questioned, instantly interested.
"Resol is known to spread false rumors and information in the court," Palpatine explained. "If he were to start saying that the two of you were related, the other courtiers wouldn't be sure whether to believe him or not."
"Which would make them extremely nervous," Luke concluded with a sly smile. "I like it. But perhaps we should wait just a little longer. It won't be long before either Buchanan or Vladimir suggests outright betrayal of my loyalties to Vader. That would truly make them sweat."
"Yes," Palpatine agreed. "And you handled the situation with the Rebels extremely well. Not only have you strengthened public opinion in our favor, but you've made yourself hero. A fact which can be quite useful."
Please let Rebecca and I know what you think of this chunk! Leave a review or send us an e-mail. Thanks.
I'd especially like to know what people think of the reporter/folk hero angle of this chunk.