Luke skirted around the smoking rendezvous point, which was swarmed with troopers.

"What are we going to do now?" Leia asked.

Luke didn't answer for some time. He stared out the viewport at the palace looming up on the horizon as they flew toward it silently.

"Luke…"

"Huh? Oh… I don't know what to do, Leia, but I feel like something's calling me to the palace…"

"Luke, we need an army to attack the palace. We have to wait for the fleet to arrive."

Luke nodded absently.

The ship suddenly trembled violently and the console came alive with flashing lights and quiet but irritating droning alarms.

Two gunships swerved into view on the rear screen. The ship shook again, racing more rapidly toward the palace.

Luke raised the altitude as much as he could, attempted to slow the ship.

"We just lost an engine!" Luke exclaimed. He clenched his jaws and closed his eyes, swerved hard to the left, as the force guided, narrowly evading another strike, then crashed directly through the windows of some large foyer, plowed through a few statues until skidding to a stop at the far wall.

"Everyone out!" Luke shouted over the intercom as he yanked his restraints off and leapt up to help Leia out of hers.

As they filed down the ramp one of the gun ships fired off randomly into the building in a couple passes, then set down just inside the broken window while Luke led Leia, Kee, Artoo, and Threepio running out of the room. The gunner blasted their ship to pieces, then strafed the wall with playful potshots behind them.

They charged out into a narrow series of corridors echoing booted marching footsteps.

Over here...

Luke heard the words whisper into his head, and without questioning, he followed the beckon. Kee rolled her blast rifle into her hands and set off in the opposite direction.

Luke turned and called after her, but she ignored him and disappeared around a corner.

"Should we go after her?" Leia asked, but Luke shook his head and charged off.

"There's something down this way..."

Leia and the droids chased after Luke, the sounds of pursuing troopers gaining steadily. Luke slipped into a side door, the others close behind him, into a large room of scattered, burned, ripped books, fallen metal busts, and smashed computer consoles. Eerie orange light washed into the room from the wall of windows to the left of the door, casting strong shadows behind bookshelves and fractured computer desks.

"Lock the door," Luke said, and R2 plugged into a panel by the door while Luke looked around, taking lights steps further into the room.

"What is this?" he asked.

"Looks like an archive," Leia said. "The emperor had hundreds of them destroyed after the Clone Wars."

"Why would Ben lead me here?" Luke muttered.

"What?"

"Nothing."

Luke wandered aimlessly for a moment, then sank to his knees and closed his eyes.

A swarm of boots rushed past the door. One trooper stopped and pounded briefly on the activation switch outside, to no effect. Leia listened to a couple troopers talking for a moment, before they walked past.

"Artoo, make sure the other door is locked," Leia said, and the droid chirped back at her.

"What'd he say?"

Threepio considered a moment, then said, "He says he has already performed that particular task, and has begun another, your Highness."

Luke stood steadily, and calmly approached the wall opposite the massive window. As he stared at it a small section slid open. He pulled an even small chrome sphere from inside and held it in his hand as the panel resealed itself.

Leia opened her mouth to speak, but suddenly an image appeared hovering above the ball, of a middle-aged man in the traditional brown robes of a Jedi Knight. He looked somewhat similar to Ben Kenobi, in his beard and dress, but his build and facial features more closely resembled those of Luke.

"Greetings, force-potentiate," said the hologram. "I am Anakin Skywalker--" Luke thought his head might explode from the mixed feelings swimming inside. "Most likely by the time you have found this message I will have been long dead. I have placed this recording inside the wall of the Jedi archive room, and a few others elsewhere, in the hopes that, should the Jedi order completely fall in this war, it could possibly be one day restored.

"If you are my son Luke, then I owe much gratitude to Master Kenobi for taking care of you, and leading you here, as I have requested of him, should I not return from battle.

"This recording is an interactive training lesson, and just as well offers a bit of history. If you are Luke, you may use the force to learn more about your parents, or otherwise begin the instruction."

The far wall exploded.

Luke shoved the sphere into his pocket, shutting off the message with the force.

As the smoke dissipated a tall, black figure strode into the room--Darth Vader.

Luke turned to Leia and said, "Take the droids and get out of here."

R2 opened the door, and both droids wasted no time obeying his orders. Leia closed the door behind them, remaining inside. "I won't leave you, Luke," she said.

"So you've decided to hide inside the remains of this useless temple," Vader mused, before Luke could argue further with Leia.

"This has to end, Vader. The galaxy has made its choice. We want to be free."

Vader drew his saber and stopped a few feet in front of Luke. Before he switched it on, he pulled another saber and tossed it to Luke, who recognized it instantly.

"You will die holding your father's saber, much as he did," Vader taunted.

Luke switched on the blue blade and stared at it for a moment, then turned his determined glare upon Vader, breathing in hard the acrid plumes of smoke left hanging on the air.

"You will not find this pleasant to watch, Princess," Vader said, then ignited his red blade. The dual hums flanged and dueled to cancel each other out, matched rhythms, then broke them.

"The force is with me, Vader," Luke said sternly, "and so is Master Kenobi..."

"Your master is dead, young Jedi, and your rebellion all but defeated. Soon your princess will bow at the feet of the emperor to beg for her life."

"I've heard enough!" Luke said through clenched teeth, then lunged and swiped his blade at Vader, who easily parried, then pushed, knocking Luke back a couple paces.

Luke attacked frantically, searching for that slightest missed reflex, his blade continously striking Vader's easy blocks.

From her perspective Leia could see that Vader made little effort to block Luke's wild attacks, and even passed up a few chances to strike. He was toying with him.

Apparently tired of the game, Vader slapped Luke's blade aside and struck him with his gloved fist across the face. As Luke staggered back a distant rumble suddenly grew in intensity, and the glass wall soon after exploded in all directions, a few shards grazing past Luke and Leia, causing minor flesh wounds.

Luke lunged again into a flurry of blue and red.