Sorry for the long wait, RL has been intense these past few weeks. I've only been able to write for the last few days. Here is the post. Thanks for all the reviews! :)
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
*Do they believe me to be that fool hearted, thickheaded boy again? Do they expect me to trust and love them again? How foolish, how incredibly stupid. Do I even have a heart any longer? No, I don't think so. I have been through too much, seen too much. The Emperor was right, maybe I should have taken his offer when I had the chance.*
Dark thoughts swam within the mind of Luke Skywalker, and he let them flow. They made him feel human still, they made him feel alive and he craved that. They had been his only comfort in the last five and a half years. Five and a half years of torment, nothing but torture, blood, and pain. The loss, the loneliness, the horrifying fear, all of it had been there and they would not leave him soon, even though he was back among the people he once knew. He felt no comfort from the people he once knew; he felt no sorrow or remorse for them either. He didn't fully hate them, but he had pure rage against them, and it was only growing. Especially with this new piece of information. Leia was his sister! Of his cursed bloodline? It seemed as if the entire galaxy was against him. To have Vader for a father and the ice princess for a sister, really nice. What was his mother, gungan from some backwater world? Probably, since his life was screwed up anyways. It didn't seem to be getting better. Sure, he was back among friends again, or what he had once thought were his friends, but it was still pain and mental torture for him. He was closed off from the Force, the same as he had been for five years. The wound within him from that was still there and it wouldn't go away. Just like many of his wounds would never heal.
He was pulled from his dark thoughts by someone coming in.
The door opened to reveal a striking young woman with fiery red hair. He knew her well, though he had never met her. Rage flooded him and a cruel smirk came to his lips as she walked toward the bed.
"Hello, Jade, come to see the one who paid for your mistakes?" he asked coldly.
"What?" she asked, a bit taken a back, but he could see the calm cool slip back in.
"You heard me. When you were or is it still is, the Emperor's hand, every time you even failed a tiny bit, it was me who got punished. I once believed for a while that it was my fault, until I realized that you must have done those mistakes just to torment me," he hissed.
"I knew nothing about that or you. Papaltine never said a word," Mara protested, but he could see he struck a cord in her eyes.
"Really? He did. Such as 'You will not be the only one who pays, Hand," is one example. I know what you thought, that it was just those under your command, well, I saw them die as well, right in front of me. I envied them for a long while. A quick death by electrocution, while I lingered on and on. Thanks, Jade, you really are the angel you appear to be," he sneered.
"Listen, Skywalker, I didn't know. If I knew....," she trailed off.
"You would have killed me? You would have done me a favor," he snapped, and then seemed to soften slightly, "Mara, I'm sorry. I know you didn't know. Come here, I want to tell you something."
She approached him wearily.
"I am losing my voice a bit. Too much yelling. Lean down and I'll whisper it," he said weakly.
She leaned down cautiously and immediately one of his scared hands came up and clinched her hair, pushing her head toward him. He captured her lips in a harsh kiss. She struggled away from him, and backed off, a look of anger and shock upon her face. He licked his lips and gave her a wicked smile.
"Always wondered what a Sith spawn like you tasted like," he said.
She stormed from the room in anger and her soul in turmoil, leaving him satisfied at what he had done.
"I bet you really enjoyed doing that," a voice said from the shadows.
"So I did, what is it to you? Who are you?" Luke snapped.
"Wouldn't you just love to know," the voice laughed.
"Listen. I am not in the mood for mind games," Luke snapped.
"Yes, you are. You have been playing mind games with the last three people that came in here. All three of which care about you," the voice pointed out.
"Sure they do. They left me to suffer, and I am just having a bit of revenge," he snarled.
"Really? Rather sadistic revenge. Did the Emperor really mess you up that badly? Because I can't see the boy I knew in there," the voice commented.
"We all change," he grumbled.
"So we do, so we do. Well, I'll be leaving. I should really hit you for your attitude, but maybe next time," the voice said lightly.
"Wait!" Luke said, but he knew the other was gone, though he did not know how he knew.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~~*
Wedge looked around the dark alley, and waited. His contact would be there soon, with information.
"Hello, Wedge," the silky voice floated out of the shadows.
"You said you had information on Luke. What is it? How do you know he was alive, no one knows except the healers, myself, Han, Leia, and Mara," Wedge said, trying to make out the figure, but he had no luck.
"I have my ways. Now, to say this. He is playing games, to protect himself. He strikes out against others to show them the hurt he feels inside. His morals are messed up, the Emperor's mind games made sure of that. Mara will say that he blames her. He does, because the Emperor did not hurt him just to punish Mara, no, it would make no difference to her then. It was to make him hate any and everything, even a person he had never met. Another mind game to turn him. I haven't got any more information, but will that help?" the voice asked.
"Yes, some," Wedge said, "How did you know this?"
"When you are like me, you pick up on a lot of things," the voice said softly, then Wedge heard the rustle of cloth and he knew the person was gone.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
*Do they believe me to be that fool hearted, thickheaded boy again? Do they expect me to trust and love them again? How foolish, how incredibly stupid. Do I even have a heart any longer? No, I don't think so. I have been through too much, seen too much. The Emperor was right, maybe I should have taken his offer when I had the chance.*
Dark thoughts swam within the mind of Luke Skywalker, and he let them flow. They made him feel human still, they made him feel alive and he craved that. They had been his only comfort in the last five and a half years. Five and a half years of torment, nothing but torture, blood, and pain. The loss, the loneliness, the horrifying fear, all of it had been there and they would not leave him soon, even though he was back among the people he once knew. He felt no comfort from the people he once knew; he felt no sorrow or remorse for them either. He didn't fully hate them, but he had pure rage against them, and it was only growing. Especially with this new piece of information. Leia was his sister! Of his cursed bloodline? It seemed as if the entire galaxy was against him. To have Vader for a father and the ice princess for a sister, really nice. What was his mother, gungan from some backwater world? Probably, since his life was screwed up anyways. It didn't seem to be getting better. Sure, he was back among friends again, or what he had once thought were his friends, but it was still pain and mental torture for him. He was closed off from the Force, the same as he had been for five years. The wound within him from that was still there and it wouldn't go away. Just like many of his wounds would never heal.
He was pulled from his dark thoughts by someone coming in.
The door opened to reveal a striking young woman with fiery red hair. He knew her well, though he had never met her. Rage flooded him and a cruel smirk came to his lips as she walked toward the bed.
"Hello, Jade, come to see the one who paid for your mistakes?" he asked coldly.
"What?" she asked, a bit taken a back, but he could see the calm cool slip back in.
"You heard me. When you were or is it still is, the Emperor's hand, every time you even failed a tiny bit, it was me who got punished. I once believed for a while that it was my fault, until I realized that you must have done those mistakes just to torment me," he hissed.
"I knew nothing about that or you. Papaltine never said a word," Mara protested, but he could see he struck a cord in her eyes.
"Really? He did. Such as 'You will not be the only one who pays, Hand," is one example. I know what you thought, that it was just those under your command, well, I saw them die as well, right in front of me. I envied them for a long while. A quick death by electrocution, while I lingered on and on. Thanks, Jade, you really are the angel you appear to be," he sneered.
"Listen, Skywalker, I didn't know. If I knew....," she trailed off.
"You would have killed me? You would have done me a favor," he snapped, and then seemed to soften slightly, "Mara, I'm sorry. I know you didn't know. Come here, I want to tell you something."
She approached him wearily.
"I am losing my voice a bit. Too much yelling. Lean down and I'll whisper it," he said weakly.
She leaned down cautiously and immediately one of his scared hands came up and clinched her hair, pushing her head toward him. He captured her lips in a harsh kiss. She struggled away from him, and backed off, a look of anger and shock upon her face. He licked his lips and gave her a wicked smile.
"Always wondered what a Sith spawn like you tasted like," he said.
She stormed from the room in anger and her soul in turmoil, leaving him satisfied at what he had done.
"I bet you really enjoyed doing that," a voice said from the shadows.
"So I did, what is it to you? Who are you?" Luke snapped.
"Wouldn't you just love to know," the voice laughed.
"Listen. I am not in the mood for mind games," Luke snapped.
"Yes, you are. You have been playing mind games with the last three people that came in here. All three of which care about you," the voice pointed out.
"Sure they do. They left me to suffer, and I am just having a bit of revenge," he snarled.
"Really? Rather sadistic revenge. Did the Emperor really mess you up that badly? Because I can't see the boy I knew in there," the voice commented.
"We all change," he grumbled.
"So we do, so we do. Well, I'll be leaving. I should really hit you for your attitude, but maybe next time," the voice said lightly.
"Wait!" Luke said, but he knew the other was gone, though he did not know how he knew.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~~*
Wedge looked around the dark alley, and waited. His contact would be there soon, with information.
"Hello, Wedge," the silky voice floated out of the shadows.
"You said you had information on Luke. What is it? How do you know he was alive, no one knows except the healers, myself, Han, Leia, and Mara," Wedge said, trying to make out the figure, but he had no luck.
"I have my ways. Now, to say this. He is playing games, to protect himself. He strikes out against others to show them the hurt he feels inside. His morals are messed up, the Emperor's mind games made sure of that. Mara will say that he blames her. He does, because the Emperor did not hurt him just to punish Mara, no, it would make no difference to her then. It was to make him hate any and everything, even a person he had never met. Another mind game to turn him. I haven't got any more information, but will that help?" the voice asked.
"Yes, some," Wedge said, "How did you know this?"
"When you are like me, you pick up on a lot of things," the voice said softly, then Wedge heard the rustle of cloth and he knew the person was gone.