So a couple of heads up: there are a couple of minor spoilers for KOTOR in here, so please read at your own discretion. Then this is a very AU story, but I don't want to spoil the fun!
Standard disclaimers - I don't make any money off of Star Wars, and the characters all belong to their rightful owners. Also I don't own KOTOR or it's characters, nor do I make money from it.
"Rogue One to team, repeat Rogue One to team. Check in."
Luke listened as an array of voices came in over their private comm system, the other seven people on his team whooping and hollering as they checked in. It was the only time he ever heard them this way.
The lush looking planet below them was quickly growing closer, Luke following the coordinates he had been given to the surface of Kashyyyk. The rest of the Alliance team would be waiting for them there.
Leaving the lull of space, Luke carefully navigated the large trees that covered the surface of the planet, all of the trees so tall he wasn't sure you would be able to see the tops from the ground. Chewbacca had told him stories about Kashyyyk, but it was his first time visiting.
The Millennium Falcon was already at the coordinates when Luke landed, Han Solo and his first mate, Chewbacca, waiting at the boarding ramp. Han grinned and waved as soon as they saw him, Luke grinning back until he saw the Princess's ship beside them in the shadows. Swallowing his grin, Luke made sure his face was expressionless, his teammates lining up at attention as they each landed and got off their ships.
Princess Leia Organa of Alderaan smiled sickeningly sweet at Luke as she walked up, wearing a black two piece dress that most men would drool over. Gems covered her hair, neck, and arms, the sixteen year old girl a literal walking treasure trove.
"Luke, how was the flight?"
"Your Highness, it was fine." Luke felt immediately uncomfortable in her presence, like he always did. Never referring to him as his title, she was always skipping straight to his name despite him never having offered for her to do so.
"How many times have I told you to call me Leia?" the Princess grinned slyly, but did not wait for a response before walking down the line of men, looking them over critically. "Well. They will do."
Ignoring the fact that this was the same team of men that had not failed the Alliance on countless occasions now, Luke simply stood at attention while the Princess circled back to him.
"What is our mission, your highness?" he asked.
"The usual. I, my guards, and Chewbacca are going to go negotiate with the high council of Kashyyyk. You, as usual, will be providing our back up plan if things don't go to plan. We need this planet on our side." The Princess said everything so nonchalantly, one would think they were doing something simple rather than trying to get an entire planet on their side.
Chewbacca let out a roar, the Princess turning towards them both. "Yes, yes, and we will be trying to free the enslaved Wookie's from the Empire, of course."
Something about it left a bad taste in Luke's mouth, but he still bowed. "Yes, your Highness. It shall be done as you say."
"What about me, your highness?" Han stepped up, stepping close enough to the Princess that he towered over her slightly. For a brief second, Luke could almost see the two of them together, a toned down Leia held tightly in Han's arms, but it faded as soon as the Princess sneered at him.
"Go with Luke and help him. We won't need you for negotiations."
Turning, Leia headed towards the baskets that would raise them to the middle and higher levels. They had landed in the shadowlands to conceal the amount of fighters they had brought to the surface.
"Don't let me down, Luke," she called over her shoulder, giving him a glance that managed to send shudders down his spine.
Bowing again, Luke waited until they were out of sight before standing back up straight, his men all relaxing a fraction.
"You heard the Princess. The materials will be in her ship," Luke immediately felt sick to his stomach.
Han ran up to him, cutting through the men as they broke off to get what they needed. "Luke, what are we doing? She wasn't very clear…"
Nodding towards the ship, Luke cut to the front and pulled out the bag that was labeled for him, coordinates already written on the lapel of the bag. "This." Tossing it to Han, Han gasped as he looked inside.
"Luke, this is a-"
"I know," Luke cut him off, nodding to the other men to dismiss them. The other men were not authorized to open the bags, and as far as Luke could tell, none of them knew what exactly it was they were planting.
Most people would have questioned placing bags all over the lower levels of planets (this was the fourth one), but the men of the Alliance knew the consequences of questioning or failing to follow orders.
"Luke, are you insane?!" Han shouted, Luke having to grab his arm and drag the Captain off a ways so they wouldn't be overheard.
"Keep your voice down. This is hard enough as it is without my men questioning orders."
"Is that really your biggest concern right now? Luke – that's a bag of thermal detonators! It would easily destroy the infrastructure of this world!"
Sighing, Luke held out his hand, asking for the bag back. Begrudgingly, Han handed it back over. "I'm well aware, Captain. But my men don't – they think it's a communication block out."
"Is this what the Princess has been ordering you to do? Plant bombs all over planets? Why?" Han demanded.
Shrugging, Luke entered the coordinates into his standard issue navigation device, trudging his way through the forest. The thick foliage made it difficult to navigate through, and the terrain was heavily uneven, making it difficult to maneuver or cover ground quickly. "Look, Han, you don't understand-"
"Like hell I don't! Why is the Princess having you do this? Why would you do this in the first place?" Han struggled to keep apace, cursing at the plants that were dragging him back.
Finally they made it to the coordinates, Luke placing the bag carelessly at the base of a tree. Most of his men would try and discretely hide the bags, but Luke secretly hoped it would be found. Turning back around, Luke's next thought was to hope it would be easier to make it back on the same path than it was picking his way through.
Picking the bag back up, Han stopped Luke. "Are you seriously going to go through with this? Why are you following this order? This is insane, Luke."
Sighing, Luke let Han stop him. "The Princess has been having us to do this on all the worlds. If they refuse to join us, she threatens to blow the detonators. But so far, no one has refused to join!" Luke tried to justify it.
Frowning, Han shook his head before taking a step away from Luke. Luke realized in shock that Han was trembling slightly. "You aren't the same kid I took of Tatooine. I can't believe you would knowingly plant this – even if you don't purposefully use them, what if they accidentally go off? Do you want to be responsible for all those innocent lives."
"Look…" Luke couldn't say anything. There was nothing he could say that would justify his actions, and he knew it. But he feared the consequences more.
"That's it. Chewbacca's been trying to tell me that we should just leave the Alliance and work freelance again. When we finish this mission, we are leaving the Alliance for good, got it kid? And if you don't choose to come with us, then Chewbacca and I won't know you anymore." Han spat out, shoving the bag back at Luke. "Make the right choice, kid."
Leaving Luke alone in the clearing, Luke sighed, looking down brokenly at the bag in his hands. He wasn't even supposed to know what was in the bags, but after he had been asked to do this on the second planet, he couldn't help but look. All the other men who looked (how he knew, he couldn't fully explain, but it was obvious based on the horror emanating from the men), just mysteriously disappeared without any explanation. "Deserters" they were labeled with no investigation. Everyone who had any common sense went along with it.
Deep down inside, Luke knew Han was right. At one point, Luke would have care. He would have thrown a fit if he was asked to plant bombs all over a planet like a terrorist. When had he stopped?
Was it when he discovered his home on Tatooine destroyed by Tuscan Raiders, his Aunt and Uncle still smoldering in the rubble of his home? Or perhaps it was when he had walked all the way to town after burying them, and the burning suns and hot winds and blistering sand blasts had stripped the emotions from him.
Or was it after he had joined the Alliance and had been handed a pistol, which he later used to take a life to save his own. The first time it happened, he had stood and watched as the light faded from their eyes, blood dripping from the edge of their mouth as they struggled to breathe.
"It's for the best." That is what the Princess told him when he returned, her cold fingers sending shivers down his spine as she attempted to provide comfort by placing a hand on his shoulder.
Whenever it was, he had simply stopped caring about the lives he was taking, nor about the reasons behind taking them. How many innocents had he killed by standing behind the Alliance's mask?
Feeling sick, Luke set the bag back down, taking a few steps away from it as he tried to clear his head. Only, forgetting how uneven the terrain was, he took one step too far and found himself falling back first down a ravine.
Yelping, Luke was thankful he only fell for a few rumbling rolls before hitting the bottom, no worse for wear except for a tear in his uniform. Groaning as he got to his feet, Luke realized that he had fallen down in front of a large log that had been hollowed out into a house.
"What the…"
Glancing back at the top of the ravine, Luke realized his comm had been broken in the fall so he had no way of checking back in with how his team was doing. Yet, for some reason, he couldn't pull himself away from the house.
Entering through the rickety door, it was clear it had been abandoned for a long while. The window was cracked with a vine growing through, and everything was covered in a thin layer of dust. There was really nothing worthy of note in the house, Luke feeling disappointment for reasons he couldn't explain.
Sighing, he turned to leave when he noticed a bit of brown on a shelf. Going over, he brushed off the dust with his hand to find a small book. Flipping it open, the first page was simply a scrawled name, a rather faded one at that. Jolee Bindo.
"I've never heard of him…" Luke muttered to himself, flipping the page again.
"It's been nineteen years since I've come to Kashyyyk. I say that like I didn't strand myself here when I crashed my ship. I can't help but feel that something is going to change soon. There has been more activity as of recent down here in the Shadowlands, but that strange relic out in the forest still refuses to respond to me.
All I know at this point is those fools are up there thinking they are so guided by the light, but they simply watch on and do nothing as these Wookies are enslaved by Czerca corporation. If I've learned anything, I don't think either side has any real answers."
The book went on for a few pages, mostly just little observations and notes on how the day had gone until one day they simply just stopped. There was no evidence of anyone having died there, however, so either they had been dragged away by wildlife, or perhaps they had left suddenly without a chance to take anything.
"Either side? What were they talking about?" Luke muttered to himself. Shrugging, Luke slipped the book into his jacket pocket before leaving.
Crawling back up the ravine, he found the next source of his problems: the bag of detonators. Soon, his men would come looking for him if he didn't get back to the ships.
Huffing, Luke opened the bag and carefully searched until he found the activation unit. Disarming it, Luke made it so if the Alliance set off the detonators, his bag wouldn't go off. Of course, that didn't do much good when there were seven other planted bags.
Heading back towards the ships, Luke wasn't surprised when he found the Falcon already gone. Han would be expecting an answer when he returned, and Luke still wasn't sure what to do. On one hand, he didn't want to abandon the Alliance like all the other pilots, but on the other, he still felt like something they were doing was wrong. Han was right – no planet deserved to be bombed like this, no matter the reason.
"Commander!" All seven of his men were already back, their bags placed. "What happened?"
"Nothing of importance – if the mission is complete, we have orders to return to base," Luke ordered, his men nodding quickly before heading to prepare their ships for the flight back.
The Princess's ship was still off in the shadows, Luke pausing in his own preparations. Chewbacca and her guards would be with her, so she couldn't have been in too much danger, but something in the back of Luke's mind put him ill at ease. Looking towards where the Princess had left earlier, Luke couldn't explain how he knew, but the basket suddenly began to lower.
As it landed on the ground, the Princess stepped off alone, not appearing ruffled in the slightest.
"Your Highness, where is Chewbacca and your guards?"
"Chewbacca left when negotiations finished to return to base with Solo. My guards returned with him," the Princess said, heading straight towards her own ship. "I thought I gave you orders to return immediately after planting the devices – why are you still here?"
"We had just finished, your Highness. I saw your ship, and thought I should wait-"
Turning sharply towards him, the Princess glared at him, Luke flinching and taking a step back. "Do not think for yourself ever, Commander. You do as I say, nothing more and nothing less. Now return to base."
Bowing, Luke headed towards his ship as quickly as possible. Ordering his men to head back to base, Luke was glad Artoo had finished warming up the ship for take off. The stars always settled his nerves, and Luke was planning on taking the scenic route back to base, mostly to give the Princess time to cool off.
"Rogue One, we have a problem-" Rogue two was cut off by a strangle cry and fuzz, Luke's anxiety skyrocketing.
"What's going on, Rogues?" he opened the comm channel, all his men rapidly calling back about Imperial fighters coming in hot.
Opening up his ship's throttle, Luke shot out of the atmosphere straight into a war zone, his men surrounded in two to one odds.
"Commander, what should we do?" Rogue four asked, sounding panicked.
Luke's fingers clenched around the controls as he raced to find an answer. There were more fighters flooding from somewhere, and there was no chance his men could fight them off. There only hope was to escape.
"Don't go back to the base right away! Find some jump points and lose these fighters – our only chance is to retreat!" Luke ordered, the men left acknowledging their orders before shutting off communication in a black out.
Right as he was about to jump to his first coordinate, a fighter blocked him, forcing him back. After a few minutes of playing cat and mouse with the fighter, Luke realized all of the fighters were suddenly focusing on him and him alone, his men able to leave with no problems now.
"Artoo, can we shake these losers?" Luke was struggling to stay in control of the ship now, being forced along some uncertain path by the Imperial fighters until he found himself rounding the other side of the planet.
"Artoo!" Luke cried out as soon as he saw what they were herding him too – a large Imperial Star Explorer was waiting on the other side, one Luke recognized as the flagship of the fleet. The Receptor floated before him, and Luke couldn't believe how unobservant he had been.
Had the missions really just gotten to him? Did he truly just not notice such a large ship on his radar? Then again, neither did his men, or they just didn't say anything because Luke didn't.
There was nothing he could do as he was pulled into a tractor beam, the fighters that had been herding him flooding back towards the ship and in through a different hangar bay.
"Any chance we can break loose?" Luke asked Artoo, who only beeped negatively.
Sighing, Luke turned off the ship. There was no fighting. Even if he did escape, the Alliance never allowed captured men to return for fear of being corrupted by the Empire. Luke was as good as dead no matter how he looked at the situation.
The bay he was pulled into was flooded with a mix of Stormtroopers and armed officers, all standing at the ready. A single man whose rank Luke couldn't see yet stood front and center, waiting for Luke to disembark.
"Come out slowly. Don't try anything – you won't make it far," the man warned him as soon as Luke slid open the hatch.
Artoo beeped at him sadly, Luke smiling wistfully. "It's alright, Artoo. We'll...figure it out." Luke could only hope that Han and Chewbacca had figured out what had happened – they wouldn't leave him to the Empire. Then Luke remembered how Han had wanted to leave, and he wondered if Han would think rescuing him was too much hassle.
Swallowing, Luke held up both hands to show he was unarmed before climbing down the ladder they provided him, two higher ranking troopers grabbing and cuffing him as soon as his feet were on the floor.
The man who was clearly in charge marched up to Luke smoothly, his heels clicking together as he stood straight before him. Now that Luke could see him up close, he realized with shock that the man before him was the Admiral.
"Greetings. Luke Skywalker, I presume?"
"Commander Luke Skywalker," Luke corrected, not harshly but enough to prove his point.
One of the Admiral's eyebrows twitched, as if the man had experienced a moment of interest. "Of course, Commander. My apologies. My name is Admiral Firmus Piett. You are on the Receptor."
"Yes, sir," Luke said sullenly, wondering what it was they wanted.
There were rumors in the Alliance about what happened in the Empire, but no first hand accounts. Mostly because no one who had ever been in Empire hands had been allowed into the Alliance, no matter the circumstance. The Princess was afraid of picking up spies, and guarded the Alliance membership closely.
The rumors mostly spoke of being tortured for information, usually until the brink of death so that they still had a sliver of you to bring back and do it all over again. Sometimes the rumors said people of the Empire just liked to torture Alliance members for fun, and they wouldn't ask anything at all. Other rumors said that rebels just mysteriously disappeared and were never heard from again. Gulping, Luke wondered what his fate would be.
"Come. Someone is waiting to meet you." Turning crisply, the Admiral marched towards an elevator, the guards at Luke's sides gently prompting him forward. Following slowly, Luke looked back towards his ship and Artoo.
"Wait...what will happen to my droid?" Luke asked.
The Admiral paused, as if not realizing it was there. Nodding towards one of the officers nearby, the Admiral pointed up at Artoo. "Bring that droid to the Grand Admiral immediately. I will take the boy first."
Boy? Luke thought bitterly. Looking around, Luke realized that all of the officers were much older than any of the pilots in the Alliance, the youngest appearing to be in their early twenties. Luke was by far one of the older recruits in the Alliance at sixteen years old. Many of the others were closer to thirteen or fourteen years old.
"May I ask who wants to see me?" Luke asked as he watched the numbers of the elevator go slowly up. Fiddling with his thumbs behind his back, Luke wondered if it just felt like it was taking longer because he was trying not to be anxious or because it was actually moving slowly.
The Admiral nodded. "Yes. The Grand Admiral wishes to meet you. It's an honor indeed – he meets with very few rebels."
Probably because most of them are dead. Luke thought bitterly. Then he remembered who the Grand Admiral was – Darth Vader. No one in the Alliance had ever met the man, but it was said he could choke someone from halfway across the room.
Finally, the elevator dinged and the doors opened, a whole contingent of guards waiting for them on the floor. It felt like he was a bantha surrounded by Tuscan raiders, Luke thought bitterly, trying hard not to laugh to himself.
So this was how his pitiful life ended – his Aunt and Uncle die, and to the Alliance, he was simply another number. Now he was captured by the enemy, and somehow the Grand Admiral wanted to personally execute him for...something. What had he accomplished in all his life that was worthy of this level of attention?
Luke did not even try to pay attention as they wandered the long hallways of the ship, knowing that whatever awaited him at the end was his finish. There was no way he could escape this ship alone, nor did he have a real reason to. To the Alliance he was nothing but a liability, and in time what he accomplished there would be irrelevant.
Finally they entered a room, a man with his back to them standing on the other side of the room, watching the stars as they slowly passed by.
"Leave us," the Grand Admiral - Darth Vader, Luke assumed - ordered, all of the men around Luke bowing deeply at the waist before disappearing back out the door.
Unsure what to do, Luke simply stood in the center of the room with his hands cuffed, watching the man who had yet to turn around.
"Do you know why we haven't entered hyperspace yet, child?" the Grand Admiral suddenly asked.
Shaking his head, Luke realized he would have to verbally answer. "No, sir."
Chuckling, the Grand Admiral turned, and Luke could have sworn it was an older version of himself. It was clear something was wrong with the man, because upon seeing Luke, tears entered the man's eyes.
"You know, I thought I would have to run a test to be certain, but you are my spitting image. How could you be anyone else?" He spoke loud enough that Luke heard every word, but it still seemed like the man was speaking more to himself.
"Is this...some sort of interrogation?" Luke was entirely confused as to why this man was looking at him like he held all the answers to the world's problems.
Shaking his head, the man wiped the tears from his eyes. "No. I'm sorry, you must be confused. Why don't we sit down and have some tea, you must be hungry." The cuffs around Luke's wrists suddenly fell to the floor, Luke flinching in surprise. The Grand Admiral paused to look at him, tilting his head.
"What? Are you surprised I released you?"
"N-no...how did you do it without touching them?" Luke felt his heart beat a little faster. All the rumors about Darth Vader must be true, which means all the other rumors could be true as well.
"You've never heard of the Force?"
"The...what?" Luke wished he was back on his ship, heading back to the Alliance base. At least there he could know what to expect.
Sighing, the man simply shook his head before gesturing for a seat at the table. "Please, sit down, I'll explain."
Slowly, Luke moved to sit at the far end of the table, the man taking the other. "There. Now that we are seated comfortably – may I ask if you at least know who I am?"
Nodding, Luke realized the man wanted another verbal answer. "You're Darth Vader."
The man looked rather annoyed. "I see that old nickname still hasn't left me."
"Is that not who you are?" Luke asked.
Shaking his head, the man chuckled again. "I'm afraid not. I am Grand Admiral Anakin Skywalker, second in command of the Imperial Empire."
"Anakin...Skywalker?" Luke blanched, not hearing anything else.
The man nodded. "Yes. And you, Luke Skywalker, are my son."
Nodding, Luke was unsure what else to say. The Empire's second in command was now claiming to be his father. Either the Empire's second in command had lost it, or Luke was now hallucinating.
"I know that was a bit of a bomb to drop, but speaking of bombs, I need to know where those bombs were planted, Luke." Anakin took a sip of tea like he had asked him about the weather or whether he preferred black shirts over gray.
"Bombs?" Luke asked.
"The bombs your team planted on Kashyyyk – I need to know where they are."
Suspicious, Luke leaned back in his chair, not touching any of the food despite the hunger gnawing at his belly. "Why do you think there are bombs?"
"Because I've removed them from four other planets. I normally find them myself, but I figure you might save me some time and tell me."
Luke blinked. "But...you're saying you removed the bombs without the Alliance knowing?"
Sighing, Anakin rubbed a hand over his face. "Yes, and it has taken me hours each planet because you are quite adept at hiding them."
"But how did you know we were hiding them in the first place?" Totally flabbergasted, Luke gave himself away and fully admitted to it.
"The Force told me something was wrong, and I followed it. Now, are you going to tell me where you put the bombs or do we have to do this the hard way?"
Trying hard not to flinch, Luke thought over his interrogation training from the Alliance. At one point, he had been locked in a cell for over seventy-two hours without food or water, sitting alone in the darkness. They told the Empire would do much worse if they were captured, and that they were better off trying to die rather than survive any interrogation.
What was this Force the Grand Admiral kept blabbering about anyway? Some sort of navigation device that could detect bombs? But then how could it be used to unlock the cuffs?
"You really have no Force training, do you? I didn't mean interrogation, either, child. I meant that I'd go find the bombs myself – again – and we will be stuck here for who knows how much longer."
Shocked, Luke stared silently at the Grand Admiral.
Groaning again, Anakin let out a sigh before placing both of his hands flat on the table. "I know this is a lot, and I will explain the Force fully to you in a bit, but yes, I can read your thoughts – and not because I'm trying to but because you are projecting, and quite loudly at that."
Staring at his hands, Luke wasn't sure what to say. This was all too much at once, but he didn't want those bombs on the planet either.
It wasn't right.
"I'll give you the coordinates. I don't know where exactly my men hid them, they used their own discretion, but I can tell you where we landed."
Eyes lighting happily, Anakin nodded. "That's more than enough. It's better than searching the whole planet sector by sector."
After punching the coordinates into a pad he was handed, the two men sat in rather awkward silence, Luke twiddling with his thumbs.
"What now?" Luke finally broke the silence.
"After we retrieve the bombs and offer our assistance, we will be returning to Coruscant."
"And what will happen to me?" Luke asked quietly.
Before the Grand Admiral could answer, a kitchen droid entered the room, carrying a tray. A plate of food was placed before him, Anakin indicating that he should eat. "You will be staying at the Palace under watch for a bit. We will have to discuss with the Emperor what to do with you."
Picking up a fork, Luke pushed the food around for a few minutes before taking a minuscule bite. Shocked, Luke couldn't stop himself from taking another bite immediately.
The food was good. Unlike the gruel that was served in the Alliance, this actually reminded him a bit of the meals his Aunt Beru used to make for them back on Tatooine.
"You were from Tatooine, were you not? Although how you ended up on that forsaken place is still a mystery to me," Anakin said, seeming pleased that Luke liked the meal. "It's Bantha – rather a delicacy there. You might not have had it before."
Shaking his head, Luke couldn't believe he didn't recognize it before. "Ah, not very often, no. But Aunt Beru and Uncle Owen did their best-" Luke stopped himself, realizing he was getting far to comfortable. Setting the fork down, he sat back again, leaving the meal only halfway finished. When it was clear that Luke wasn't going to eat anymore, Anakin indicated for the droid to clear the table.
"You must be very confused right now. I must admit, so am I. You could not believe how shocked I was the first time I heard your name."
"Wait...how long have you known about me?" Luke asked.
"I discovered you after the first planet you planted bombs on. Obi-wan was surprised as well, so it must have been Padme's doing…" the way he said "Padme" came out a little choked, like it was still hard to speak about her. "I understand now why she would hide you from me."
When Luke was about to ask who exactly Obi-wan and Padme were, a knock came at the door. Anakin called for them to enter, Admiral Piett returning in his usual crisp style.
"What is it, Admiral? You can speak in front of Luke if it's not delicate information," Anakin remained very relaxed, Luke looking towards him in even more confusion. The Princess would never allow a report to happen in front of an Imperial captive, nor would she do it in such a relaxed setting. It made Luke feel like something bad was about to happen to the Admiral, anxiety creeping up on him.
"Sir. The bombs have been removed – they were exactly where the Commander said they would be. We are leaving a delegation of men here to help the Wookie's regroup. They want to express their gratitude to you, and are wondering if you would join them for a meal to mourn their lost before we leave."
Now Luke was lost. Why would the Wookie's need to regroup? Who was lost? The Princess hadn't said anything about things going south – why would she not mention something as important as a fight of some sort breaking out?
Looking towards Luke, Anakin got a look in his eye that Luke did not appreciate. "Yes, Admiral. I believe that would be quite appropriate...tell me, were the bombs we found this time the same as the ones before?"
"Yes, sir. All but one of the bombs were ready to detonate at a given order. The main bomb had been disarmed and the signaling device had been removed, so even if the order to detonate had been given, they would not have gone off."
Luke stared down at his hands. Anakin chuckled.
"Thank you, Admiral. I suppose further introductions are necessary – Luke, Admiral Piett has been my right hand man for the past fifteen years, and I don't know what I would have done without him. Admiral Piett, this is my son, Luke, Commander of Rogue Squadron." Anakin got Luke up out of his chair and pushed him towards the Admiral with both hands on Luke's shoulders, like he was introducing a child.
Giving the Grand Admiral a look until he took a step away, Luke then offered a hand to the Admiral. "Ah...hello again, sir."
The Admiral seemed perfectly at ease, like this sort of thing happened every day. "Tell me, Luke, how old are you now?"
"Sixteen," Luke said.
"And how long were you with the Alliance?" Piett continued.
"Since I was thirteen. Before that I lived with my Aunt and Uncle on Tatooine until they died when I was eleven, and then I traveled with some smugglers for a bit before joining the Alliance."
Both the men seemed to be having a silent conversation, Luke picking up swirling emotions of anger, pity, and sorrow from the both of them. Finally, it seemed to end, Piett patting him on the shoulder gently. "Commander, why don't you join us for dinner with the Wookies?"
Paling, Luke looked between the two men like they were insane. "Um...I'd rather have you guys execute me."
Waiting for someone to say something along the lines of "Too bad, you're going to get what you had coming", Luke was surprised when all he received was silence. Looking up, Anakin was staring at him in concern.
"Luke...on Coruscant, you aren't even a legal adult. Why would I execute a child, or give a child to be executed? You are also my son – I would never execute you."
At the words, Luke could not stop the tears that filled his vision. While these men seemed different than those on the Alliance council, Luke was still not sure they meant what they said. Yet, somehow he found he trusted their word more despite hardly knowing them.
"Goodness gracious...what sort of army is that Alliance running?" Piett muttered, realizing he had spoken too loudly when Anakin give him a silencing glance.
"Come. I think it will be good for you to meet the Wookies. We've been talking with them for several months now about them joining the Empire. That is why we were waiting for you here today – they gave us a heads up that the Alliance was coming."
That was surprising information – usually the Alliance was very careful to steer clear of the Empire at all costs. The Princess especially did not send Luke on any missions near or around the center or middle rim of planets if she wasn't with him, which Luke had always found odd. Not once had she given him a proper explanation for it either, but he had never had the courage to truly press for one.
Standing, Anakin waved his hand for Luke to follow. "Come. I will show you to your quarters so you can get changed for dinner. I will have some clothes brought up. Admiral, I assume you will be joining us?"
It was spoken like the Admiral actually had a choice, Luke thought with amusement. Everyone knew you didn't deny the leader of their desires.
"Of course, sir." Piett bowed before dismissing himself to his own quarters to get ready, Luke finding himself cut off from view as the guards surrounded them again.
"Wait...what about Artoo?" Luke suddenly realized the droid was still not back with him.
Anakin paused. "I will return your droid to you in due time...don't worry, he is fine and will remain so." Luke swore he heard a muttered, "As long as he keeps himself out of anymore trouble…" but he couldn't have been certain.