Chapter 25: Trapped
Pain throbbed throughout Luke's body moments before he stirred within his cell in the Imperial palace. He tried to open his eyes, but the aftereffects of the gas which had brought him down and the stun bolts that had insured he stayed that way were making even such a simple task difficult. Simply breathing felt like lifting the weight of a bantha on Luke's chest. Luke ceased his attempts to move and instead brought his mind out of its haze. Once he felt lucid, Luke did what came naturally and called on the Force to rejuvenate his weary body.
A few moments later, Luke was finally able to open his eyes and breathe normally. He took a quick survey of the small cell he was in and found it more sterile than even he would have suspected. The durasteel walls and ceiling showed no visible seams, as if they had been forged as a single piece. The only surfaces distinguishable from the rest were wall holding the cell door and the ceiling with its small, dim glowpanels. Luke reached out to test the lock and discovered that it did not respond to the Force. Letting out a long breath that sounded like a weak moan, Luke rose to a sitting position on the durasteel floor. He had really outdone himself this time.
Luke sat alone in his cell, creating, evaluating and rejecting possible escape scenarios. Weaponless and imprisoned in what he could only assume were the depths of the Imperial Palace was about as bad as it could get, even for a Jedi. Luke once more rejected the idea of creating a fissure in the wall with the Force as likely to take too much out of him to even consider escape when he heard the faint sound of boots clicking outside the cell. He turned his attention to the door of the cell and watched with narrow eyes as he sensed a squad of Imperials stop just outside of it. Apparently, it was time for his interrogation.
After a long moment staring at the plain door and trying to formulate a new escape plan, Luke was taken off guard by a sudden brightening of the lights in his cell. Luke was forced to bring up a hand to shade his eyes as the door opened to reveal a pair of stormtroopers followed by an Imperial officer as well as a second pair of stormtroopers remaining on guard outside the cell. When Luke's vision finally adjusted to the light, his attention immediately turned to the Imperial officer, ignoring the stormtroopers.
The white streak of hair and mismatched blue and red eyes told Luke everything he needed to know about the women in front of him. He was dealing with the Director of Imperial Intelligence herself. Luke had his work cut out for him if he wanted to deal with the infamous 'Iceheart.' Ysanne Isard would stop at nothing to get what she wanted, but Luke wasn't about to let this woman break him. He had to hold out hope that he would last until help could arrive.
The silence in the small cell was broken when Isard finally brought herself into the middle of the room and surveyed Luke as she turned his lightsaber in her right hand. "I expected it to be more of a challenge to bring down the great Rebel Jedi. You disappoint me, Skywalker."
Luke just remained seated on the floor of the cell. He wasn't about to let this woman bait him so easily. He was a Jedi. Luke simply had to remain calm and trust in the Force. And if his time to become one with the Force came earlier than he would prefer, Luke would just have to accept that. He had gotten himself into this mess and he would deal with the consequences. Luke couldn't help but eye the now closed door of the cell, however. He wouldn't die trapped in some prison cell if he found a chance to escape.
Isard saw Luke look from the lightsaber she was holding and then to the door behind her. She had heard the Skywalker was reckless, but surely he didn't think he could escape unaided. Isard firmed her grip on the man's weapon and stared down the Jedi before her. "The Emperor built these cells just for Jedi prisoners like you. None of your little tricks will get you out of here and they won't work on me either, so don't think you're getting this back. I like my souvenir."
Luke continued to stare at the door of the cell, still refusing to respond to the woman before him. He didn't know what she hoped to accomplish, but his presumed interrogator was getting nowhere with her current path. She obviously didn't know how to deal with a Jedi if she thought a few words would be enough to get his angry.
"Things will go easily for you if you just go along. Just tell me what I want to know and, at the very least, I'll insure you a painless execution."
Luke was tempted to laugh at the woman's statement. She didn't even bother claiming that he would live through the ordeal. And Luke never did things the easy way. It wasn't in his nature. Tilting his head up, Luke finally met Isard's cold stare with one of his own. "And if I decide I don't feel like cooperating?"
"I'll get what I want one way or another. Just remember, you had a choice." At that, Isard hit a button on the comlink clipped to her belt. The door hissed open a few moments later and an interrogation droid floated into the room. Luke watched the black sphere float toward him with a syringe exposed on the side and couldn't help but recall Leia's teary recollection of her time on the first Death Star. Clenching his fists, Luke looked up at his jailer with his jaw set. If his sister had the strength to survive this experience without giving up her secrets, Luke could do the same.
"I wouldn't be so sure of myself if I were you. I know all about pain. Both taking it and inflicting it."
Luke couldn't help but be slightly unnerved by the smile that formed on Isard's face. That was not the sort of reaction he expected. Apparently, she was even colder than her reputation made her out to be. "It looks like we have something in common then. Let's see who truly knows pain better."