Another Route

Part Four

Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, yeah…

Author's Note: A lot of you commented on the fact that Vader seemingly ignored the fact that he didn't want the boys to find out he was Luke's father. It wasn't an accident—I wrote it on purpose, so as to HAVE Dase tell the others. This happens in this chapter. As to Vader's reasoning… I believe that's in Part Five.

Warnings: ROTS warnings, as usual. Also, some heavy AU (as if this isn't?) and I manipulated the traditional parameters of the Force a little to suit my plot.

That said, thanks to EVERYONE for all your awesome comments and I want to let you all know how happy I am that you're enjoying this story. Sorry this has taken a little while, but I completely rewrote Four and Five (and Six, come to think of it) because I felt things were moving too quickly. Let me know if there are some things you like/dislike or want to see more/less of. I hope you enjoy it!

Luke attempted to meditate once the others had decided to leave him alone, but his training with Vader had left him emotionally and physically drained. He climbed into the bed that was unused and tried to block out the talk of the other boys and the throbbing on his cheek but to no avail. Finally, he succumbed to sleep, only to realize that he was facing Obi-Wan, his lightsaber—a blue one—extended.

"I have the higher ground," Obi-Wan said.

"You underestimate my powers!" Luke shouted.

Luke felt himself gather the Force, but to a level that he knew he was not capable of. He bent his knees and jumped, soaring over the lava flow, over Obi-Wan's head—but all of the sudden, he felt searing pain on his legs and arm, and he began to fall, a scream erupting from his throat—

And suddenly he was on the ground again, and Luke remembered well what happened next, but this time—

The dream shifted, the edges blurred and the scenery around him changed. He was standing and the pain had vanished. They were on a beautiful, lush planet that Luke had never seen the likes of before.

"Use the Force to stop that dream," said a voice, a familiar one that Luke had heard many times in his mind.

He turned around to see a tall man with blond hair and blue eyes like his own, in perhaps his mid-thirties. He was wearing a simple black tunic with a leather surcoat and leather leggings. A lightsaber hung at his belt.

Luke mustered his voice. "Who are you?"

The man raised his eyebrows. "You do not recognize me in this form, I suppose," he said, raising his hands. The vision shifted slightly, and blurred, and when it cleared again, Luke could see the menacing figure of Darth Vader staring back at him. The land around them had changed as well, to a desert.

"Father?" he blurted out, surprised.

"Your nightmares will continue to affect you until you learn to control them through the Force, Luke," said the deep, terrifying voice. "You must remember that nothing is set in stone when you are dreaming. If you focus on the Force, you will be able to stop the dream."

"I think I like you better the other way," said Luke before he could stop himself.

"So do I," said Vader, though he did not change back. "We will use this medium to continue your training if I do not have time during the day."

"What?"

"How many times must I tell you to stop saying 'what' as your primary response?" Vader asked, clearly irritated. "I hoped to escape your incessant questioning and outright disobedience if I surprised you enough this way."

"But… I don't understand," said Luke, gesturing the landscape around him. "How can you train me here? Isn't this a dream?"

"Perhaps you cannot learn to fence here," Vader conceded. "For that is something your body needs to learn. But I can teach you things about the Force that I simply do not have the time for during the day."

"Will I be tired when I wake up?" Luke asked warily.

"You are not exactly sleeping," said Vader. "This is more of a relaxed form of meditation."

"So the answer is yes?" said Luke, groaning.

"If you meditate often enough, you will not need to sleep," said Vader, waving a dismissive hand.

"Where were we?" Luke asked, remembering the landscape that they had first appeared on. He had never seen so many plants in his life. In fact, the only plants he had seen were on datapads. "What planet?"

Vader ignored him. "I want you to practice using the Force to move physical things," he said. "You did so capably with the lightsaber and with the door. Soon you will not need to focus as much. It will become second nature."

"Do you live on the Executor?" Luke asked suddenly.

"Were you listening to me?" Vader countered.

"Yes. But, do you?"

Vader said nothing for a few moments. "No."

"So you have a house?"

Vader cocked his head in the gesture Luke was associating with amusement. "Why?"

Luke shrugged, feeling suddenly embarrassed. "I don't know. I was just wondering if I would go with you when you go on vacation, or something…"

Vader seemed surprised. "Vacation?"

"Well, I mean, you can't do this all of the time, can you?" Luke said. "Nobody works all the time." Vader was silent and motionless for a few moments, until Luke broke the quiet. "Can you please just turn back into—your other self?" He asked, frustrated. "At least I can kind of read you then! I have a tough enough time when I'm awake that I don't want to try and guess at your mood when I'm asleep, too!"

Vader let out a strange sound Luke realized was akin to laughter. "Very well," he said, and the scene blurred for a third time, and he became the man that Luke had first seen. He held his arms behind his back. "I am the only man that the Emperor trusts completely to carry out his bidding," Vader—though, he did not look much like Vader to Luke—began. "Therefore, I spend most of my time doing so."

"Do you like General Dase?" Luke asked.

"I was under the impression that this time was to be spent learning the ways of the Force," said Vader, crossing his arms.

"Do you?"

The Sith sighed, giving up. "I do not have personal relationships with the men under my command."

"But is he a good guy?" Luke asked, pressing for an answer.

"He is from a world where he and his family were the rulers. They also heavily practiced slavery, which I have since abolished. For that reason, I believe him to be a miserable excuse for a sentient being. But, if you are thinking about the incident with his son," Vader began. "I can arrange to have him removed. Though, I would think that you could handle a fourteen-year-old cadet on a misguided power trip."

"He's been lording over me," said Luke, his visage darkening.

Vader looked suddenly pleased. "Use that anger, Luke," he urged the boy, who looked at him, somewhat surprised. "It will help you to grow more powerful."

"Uncle Owen always taught me to be forgiving," said Luke slowly.

"That is why he is dead," said the Sith, and Luke saw a shadow of the deep voice and terrifying suit pass over the man. "He forgave the Jedi for trying to take over the Galaxy."

"But…" Luke began. "Didn't the Emperor take over the Galaxy?"

Luke suddenly knew that he had made a terrible mistake. His father's eyes darkened and the blue seemed to vanish. "Emperor Palpatine has brought peace to the Galaxy, with my help," he said in a low, dangerous voice. "The Galactic Senate elected him to be the Emperor."

"Oh," Luke mumbled, turning away.

The air seemed to clear. "We're done for now. Perhaps next time you will not be as inquisitive and you will get some work done," said Vader, slowly beginning to fade. Luke's surroundings melted away and he realized that he was being shaken.

"Come on, Skywalker, we haven't got all day," came the voice of Darmic, pulling him from his sleep.

Luke opened his eyes groggily. "It's about time!" Jisk explained. "Let's go. I'm hungry, Skywalker, and we can't leave without you."

Luke sat up. "What time is it?"

"It's 0600," said Vaskall. "Breakfast is in fifteen minutes. Let's go."

Luke groaned. He had thought that meditation was supposed to take the place of sleep! "I'm getting up," he muttered, sliding off his bed. A glass of water was pressed into his hand. Luke looked down to see Jons, who still seemed inordinately grateful to him. "Here, Skywalker."

"Don't crush this one, this time," said Jisk jokingly.

Luke rolled his eyes and downed it. "Thanks," he told Jons, who shrugged. "Where's the 'fresher?"

Darmic pointed to a room off to the side. "In there."

When Luke returned, he was feeling slightly better, though not by much. He had dressed in a clean uniform and brushed back his hair, though he had not had time to take a shower. that he was saving for later. He still couldn't believe the excess of water on the Executor.

"Come on, Skywalker," said Jisk impatiently, grabbing Luke's arm and dragging him out of the door.

After breakfast, the group began heading towards the TIE simulators. Jisk took the opportunity to walk with Luke. "So, why is Lord Vader so interested in you?" he asked in a low voice.

Luke felt his heartbeat increase. He had never been good at lying. "I don't know," he said forcefully.

"You don't know."

Luke glanced at Jisk, whose eyes had somehow glazed over. Soon they cleared up and Jisk smiled at Luke. "So, you going to deliver another performance or what?"

Luke was bewildered. What had happened? Why had Jisk done that? Suddenly he realized what had happened—he had used the Force to get Jisk to stop asking questions! He grinned suddenly. He hadn't even meant to!

"What's up with you?" Jisk asked suddenly, raising his eyebrows at Luke's inane grin.

"Nothing," said Luke cheerfully as they walked into the training sim room.

"All right. Group B, you're going to be without B10," said Commander Dirk as soon as they entered. "So this is an exercise on how to fight when you're outnumbered and outclassed. If you last for over thirty minutes, you'll get another two hours of free time tonight. Commander Dirk looked at the group of determined young faces. He smiled to himself.Come .

Luke started and the whole group looked at him. "Why so jumpy, Skywalker?" asked Vaskall. Lang observed him shrewdly. "I—uh"—Luke began awkwardly. Right now?

Do not ask me pointless questions, came the annoyed voice of his father. Luke started to sweat. "I've got to go," he said hurriedly.

"What?" Darmic exclaimed. "What are you talking about?"

"Trainee Skywalker, you will remain…" Dirk trailed off as Luke ran out of the room.

The room erupted. "Where does he think he's going?" Jisk raged. "We can't fly two guys short!" He turned to Commander Dirk. "Commander, are you just letting him go?" he asked angrily.

Commander Dirk seemed uncomfortable with the situation. "Run the sim as usual," he said finally.

"What?" Darmic burst out. "But we can't"—

"Trainee Darmic, are you accustomed to speaking out of turn with your commanding officer?" Dirk questioned firmly.

Darmic fell silent and climbed in the sim without another word. The rest of Group B followed him.

Luke walked as quickly down the halls as he could without arousing an extreme amount of curiosity. Why now, of all times, did his father want to speak with him? The whole group had to be furious at him!

He groaned inwardly as a set of stormtroopers came marching towards him. He would look suspicious, a pilot trainee in this part of the ship. "Halt!" The leading stormtrooper said, raising his hand. "Pilot Trainee! What is your business on this part of the ship?"

"I"—Luke began. "I—uh—Lord Vader wants to see me," he said, knowing that the truth would seem ridiculous.

There was a murmur of laughter from the ten stormtroopers. "Pilot Trainee, you are to report back to your quarters and remain there for the rest of the day. Effective immediately," said the stormtrooper.

"No!" Luke protested. "I've got to go see him!"

"Why? Is he consulting you for piloting advice?" The stormtrooper asked. His command laughed again, infuriating Luke.

Luke focused on his anger and annoyance and raised his hands, hoping that he would be able to use the Force to do what he was attempting. As if he was pushing the energy to the stormtroopers, he pushed his hands towards them. For a brief second, Luke felt power surge through him, and he opened his eyes to see all the troopers on the ground. They started to get up, and Luke ecstatic at his performance, ran past them, hoping that they would be surprised enough that they wouldn't go after him immediately.

As he ran Luke couldn't help but mull over his action. He had felt so much power—he could have done anything he wanted. Once he was completely trained, they would be completely at his mercy. No one would dare to cross him then.

But, he was not there yet, Luke realized as he heard the sound of the troopers following him and shouting. He increased his speed—if only he could make it to the training room—

Suddenly, he crashed into an immense, cloaked figure and fell to the ground. Dreading what he would see, Luke up to see Vader staring at him. "I do not believe I told you that you needed to run here," he said, crossing his arms.

The run through countless halls had tired Luke more than he realized. "I—the stormtroopers," he managed, standing up, grateful that Vader didn't seem to be angry.

"You're running from stormtroopers?" Vader asked. Luke pictured the blond man from his dream raising his eyebrows.

"Well, I—they didn't believe me," said Luke lamely. He brightened. "I used the Force to send them to the ground, though!"

Vader was looking past him, at the stormtroopers running towards them. They ground to a halt, though, once they saw Vader, and one of them came up. "My lord, we found this boy—this pilot trainee—attempting to contact you," said the strormtrooper. "He—ah"—

Luke knew he was struggling to explain the use of the Force, and grinned to himself. "Stormtrooper BT92-01, are you accustomed to endeavor to halt the progress of my son when I wish to speak to him?"

There was silence as the squad of stormtroopers comprehended Vader's words. The Sith himself stood, unmoving, with his arms crossed. "My lord…your son?"

"Yes," said Vader, motioning towards Luke, who now stood at his father's side. "My son."

If stormtroopers could register any emotions through their helmets, Luke knew that they would all be very, very pale. "I—we—had no idea, Lord Vader," said BT92-01 weakly. "It will not happen again."

"Of course it won't. Or you'll be dead," said Vader nonchalantly. "Luke, come." He turned and strode down the hall and Luke struggled to keep up with his father's long strides.

"You were messing with them!" said Luke, grinning.

"I was impressing them of the facts," said Vader. "You used the Force," he stated. "I felt it. Well done."

"Thanks," said Luke, panting as he tried to follow the Sith. "But you were playingwith them!" he repeated delightedly.

"I do not 'play' with those under my command," said Vader. "From now on you will accompany me every day at this time."

"But… my group is supposed to be in a TIE sim right now, and they're going to be really mad at me…"

Vader slowed for a second to allow Luke to catch up. "Do you really believe your pilot training to be more important than learning the Force?"

"Well, no—of course not," said Luke quickly, sensing the anger just below the surface. "It's just… I can't exactly tell the true reason for my being gone all the time. What am I supposed to do? And plus, if Dase tells them what happened the other day"—

"You have no need of TIE training," said Vader. "I will teach you myself."

"But—I like them!" Luke protested as they walked into the large, empty room of the previous night.

"You are above them," said Vader, unclipping the spare lightsaber and tossing it to Luke, who caught it deftly.

"But…"

Vader stared at him for a second. "Tell them if you wish. Your anonymity will be lost. Fourteen-year-old boys do not keep secrets such as this." With that, he activated his lightsaber. "On guard."

Luke was on autopilot as he stumbled back to the barracks. Vader had dueled with him for over two hours, never seeming to tire himself, of course. Then, he had made Luke practice mind control on an unsuspecting mechanic who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. He punched in the access code and walked inside, his shoulders slumped. He wanted nothing better than to get a few Bacta patches and climb in his bed.

"Have a nice walk?"

Luke glanced up at Darmic, who was staring at him furiously, his arms crossed. "I don't know where you come from, Skywalker, but where I'm from you don't walk out on your squad."

"I'm sorry," said Luke wearily. "I had to leave… I didn't have a choice."

"I suppose Lord Vader wanted to have a nice little chat again, didn't he?" Darmic said scathingly.

Anger boiled up in Luke. It was not his fault! "Look, I'm sorry, okay?" he shouted.

"That's not good enough," said Jisk, walking over from his bunk to stand next to Darmic. "Skywalker, you can't just run off whenever you want to. That's against military protocol."

"I told you, I didn't have a choice!"

Vaskall walked over. "What happened to you?" he asked, peering at the various burns Luke had on his exposed arms and hands.

Luke winced. Could he tell them? "Listen…"

"Did you fall ?" Darmic asked bitterly.

"We want to know what's going on, Skywalker," said Lang, coming up to back the others. He stared at Luke calculatingly.

Luke stared at their unforgiving faces. "You—you're not going to believe me," he said, sitting down on the bunk.

"Try us," said Jisk.

"I can't," said Luke. "You don't understand."

" I can tell you!" came a new voice from the door.

The group turned to see Dase leaning against the door. He avoided Luke's angry gaze. "What are you doing here, Dase?" Vaskall asked suspiciously.

Dase shrugged. "They decided they didn't want to mess with me," he said arrogantly. He glanced at Luke once and his eyes clouded over for the briefest second.

"Get out of here," said Luke tightly, clenching his fists. Would he tell them?

"What are you going to do, Skywalker?" Dase spat. "Are you going to have your daddy strangle me? The big, bad, bionic man? I bet he's not even human any more. All that's left is a bunch of mechanics!"

Luke struggled to control his fury as he stared at Dase. How dare that bastard talk about his father like that? He had absolutely no idea what the truth was! "You weren't as talkative yesterday, Dase," he spat.

"Skywalker, what's he talking about?" Vaskall asked slowly.

Luke could barely hear him through his anger. "Dase, get out of here," he said, his voice a careful mask of his emotions.

"Are you going to run to daddy, Skywalker?" Dase asked, smirking. "He can't do anything to me. My father wouldn't allow it."

"Is your father the Emperor, Dase? Because that's the only man in the galaxy that Darth Vader answers to."

All the boys swiveled to see Lang standing calmly behind them. In suddenly realization, Darmic, Jisk, and Vaskall turned back to Luke, whose anger had dissipated slightly. "What?" Jisk asked in disbelief.

Luke said nothing. Why did his father have to tell Dase about their relationship?

"That's where the burn came from, isn't it?" Lang continued. "He's training you. That's from his lightsaber."

Luke nodded slowly, wondering idly how Lang knew what a lightsaber was.

"Sith, Skywalker…" Darmic said, and then went pale. "I mean, not Sith"—

Luke shrugged. "You can see why I didn't want to tell you," he mumbled.

"Lord Vader is your father?"

"That's why I had to leave today, Luke mumbled. "I'm sorry."

"It's no problem," Darmic amended quickly, obviously terrified that he was going to get in trouble. "Don't worry about it—uh"—

"My name is the same, Darmic," said Luke.

"Right. Sorry, Skywalker," said Darmic nervously.

"If you're done groveling…?"

They all turned back to Dase, who looked miffed that he was not the center of attention.

"Dase, you're going to get it," said Vaskall. "I can't believe you talked about Lord Vader that way."

"What's he going to do? Choke me from his office?" Dase snapped. "It's not like Skywalker can do anything. Darth Vader might be able to do whatever he wants, but his son can't."

"You're being disrespectful, Dase," said Lang, his eyes narrowed.

Luke stood there, trying to calm himself. His anger practically begged him to use the Force, to give Dase what was coming to him—He stopped himself and took a deep breath. "It's time for you to go," he said, using the Force to impress Dase.

The other boy's eyes glazed over. "It's time for me to go," he repeated dumbly, turning and walking out of the room.

The other boys stared at Luke. "How…?"

"I don't want to talk about it," said Luke crossly, stalking towards the 'fresher.

"Viceroy, we have a problem," said Obi-Wan to the holo of Bail Organa.

The other man looked concerned. "What is it, Obi-Wan?"

"Luke," said Obi-Wan simply.

"What? What happened?" Bail asked quickly.

"Vader found him, Bail," said Obi-Wan. "He killed the Lars.'"

"No…" Bail gasped. "What about Luke? He didn't kill Luke, did he? He could not have!"

"That's the problem, Bail," said Obi-Wan gravely. "He didn't kill him."

"What do you mean?" Leia's adopted father asked. Suddenly he understood and his holo-image paled, if such a thing were possible. "He's training him?"

"Yes," said Obi-Wan heavily. "I failed once more," he said bitterly, before overcoming his emotions. The emotions of the Dark Side.

"Then… Leia…" Bail began.

"Is all we have left," finished Obi-Wan. "I'm sorry, Bail."

Bail looked as though he had been struck. "How did Anakin turn into this?" he asked sorrowfully. "How did he become this terrible creature?"

Obi-Wan repressed his guilt. "We need to protect Leia more than ever," he said. "If Anakin"—he stopped himself and took a deep breath. "If Vaderfinds her, all hope is lost."

"Oh, sorry, Skywalker," said Darmic as he jostled the boy as he tried to get to the 'fresher two weeks after they had found out about Luke's parentage. He backed out of the way. "You go ahead."

"Darmic," said Luke exasperatedly. "Go on. I'm not going to report you for cutting me in line, you know."

Darmic flushed. "Are you sure? Because, I mean, if you're not"—

"He said to go, Darmic," said Lang, walking up with his arms crossed.

"Right, of course," said Darmic hastily, jumping into the room and shutting the door. Luke let out a sigh. He had done his best to show his group that he was no different than they were, but to no avail.

"Are you going to make Flight Theory today?" Lang asked while they waited.

"Probably not," said Luke heavily. "I'm really sorry, Captain."

"It's not your fault, Luke," said Lang easily.

Luke stared at his captain. Had Lang just called him by his first name?

"Don't blame them," said Lang, switching topics quickly. "They haven't been raised to know how to deal with this type of thing," he continued, and Luke realized that he was talking about the peculiar behavior of the squad.

"Why not? It's not like I'm my father," said Luke. "They've got no reason to be afraid."

Lang glanced pointedly at the fresh lightsaber burn on Luke's left hand. "They have reason to be afraid of him, though. They are all thinking, 'if his own father will hurt him like that, what will he do to me?'"

"That's ridiculous," said Luke. "My father couldn't care less about them. And it's not like he's hurting me intentionally."

Lang shrugged. "Like I said, the problem is that they don't know how to deal with it. The aristocratic kids who are accepted into Flight School don't get put on the Executor. Only the truly talented ones do. That's why they don't know how to act. Most of us are from average families." Lang didn't need to say the name of the obvious exception.

They stopped talking as Dase stalked into the room. He glanced at them nastily. "Begging for a proper home, Captain Lang?"

Lang didn't show the slightest indication that he had heard Dase, but Luke got angry. "Shut your mouth, Dase."

Dase smirked. "We both know you're not going to do anything to me."

"Don't make me," Luke said, his dislike of the boy obvious.

Darmic stopped the brewing fight once he stepped out of the 'fresher. "All yours, Skywalker," he said, in much the same jaunty tone that he had used when he had first met Luke. His eyes clouded over for a second. "I mean…"

Luke just rolled his eyes and walked inside.

"You are not trying hard enough," said Vader as Luke failed to lift the ten deactivated druids in the center of the room into the air.

Luke wiped the perspiration on his forehead. "Iam trying!"

"I did not say that you are not trying," Vader said. "Just not hard enough."

Luke rolled his eyes. "I can't do it."

"That's ridiculous," said Vader. "It is no different than calling the lightsaber to you, which you attempt to do every day."

A small grin crossed Luke's face. Since the first time, it had become a sort of game for him to try and get the lightsaber without Vader noticing. So far, he hadn't come close.

"Why is it that you refuse to do as I tell you?" Vader asked.

"I'm not refusing," said Luke. "I just can't.

"It is not difficult."

"Maybe not for you, Mr. 'I can change the course of a planet if I want!'" Luke burst out.

Vader tilted his helmet and said nothing.

"What?" Luke asked finally.

"It's nothing. Just, I have never been called that before," said Vader with a touch of amusement. "Why are you so unable to concentrate?"

Luke sighed. "It's just too much," he said. "Not the druids. Just, everything. Training as a pilot, being with you… Being on the Executor . Leaving Tatooine. Losing Aunt Beru."

Vader felt a twinge of guilt before he carefully pounded it down. "You were not happy to leave Tatooine? I was."

Luke expressed vague surprise that his father was from the same planet. "Well, your father wasn't Darth Vader, and he didn't murder everyone in sight and then take you away, did he?"

"I did not have a father."

Luke lost his momentum. "What?"

"Did you not hear me?"

Luke heard the nearly imperceptible change in his father's voice that indicated annoyance. "I heard you, it's just… I don't understand. Did he leave you, or something?"

"No. I did not have one."

"Did he die?"

Vader let out the heavy breath that was his own and that of the respirator, that Luke had come to recognize as a sign of frustration. "No. My mother just became pregnant, one day. There was no man. It just happened."

Luke stared at him. "How?"

"I don't know. Obi-Wan Kenobi used to think that I was created by the Force," said Vader. "They thought that I was the Chosen One; the child who would fulfill an ancient, and ridiculous, prophesy."

In his shock Luke vaguely remembered Obi-Wan shouting at Anakin as he lay on the banks of the lava flow, calling out, "You were the Chosen One!

"Wow," he said slowly.

"It's all nonsense," said Vader quickly, fiercely. "All of it."

Luke appeared entranced. "But… no wonder you're so powerful," he said, looking up at the 2-meter tall man. "You're half Force!"

"That is not the way that I would describe it," said Vader. "Are you ready to begin?"

"Can you tell me about your mother?"

Vader's hands clenched almost imperceptibly. "You are supposed to be training."

"Can you?"

Vader sighed mentally. Luke was relentless, and he simply refused to obey. Vader was almost at a loss—after thirteen years of having his orders carried out instantly and precisely, there was now a boy who defied him, and Vader could do nothing. "She belongs to Anakin Skywalker," he said finally, hoping that that would close the subject.

"But you're him!" Luke protested. "Even if you call yourself Darth Vader, that's still your name! You can't just stop being someone one day and be someone new the next."

"I assure you that it is quite possible."

Luke rolled his eyes. "Fine, can you tell me about Anakin Skywalker's mother?"

The boy was unyielding, Vader realized. He closed his eyes behind his mask. "Her name was Shmi."

Luke waited for him to continue. "She was a slave on Tatooine," Vader continued. Luke's eyes widened, but he didn't say anything. "I was born, and because of my affinity for mechanics"—Vader stopped to marvel at the irony that the boy who could fix anything was reduced to being mostly machine himself—"I was very useful."

"If she was a slave, does that mean you were, too?" Luke asked curiously.

"Yes."

Luke thought about this a moment. No wonder Vader campaigned so hard against the worlds that still had slavery. Still, this revelation was surprising. His own father, Darth Vader, had been a slave? It seemed impossible.

"I was taken away from Tatooine," Vader said. "And as an adolescent was plagued by dreams of her death. After some difficult convincing the dream's legitimacy to my superiors, I was finally allowed to travel back to Tatooine. When I arrived, I learned that Tusken Raiders had captured her. I went after them and found her, dead. I slaughtered the camp."

Vader's voice was emotionless, but Luke shivered nonetheless. "Can you tell me about my mother?"

Vader's hand jerked once. "No," he said flatly. "You're dismissed."

"But"—

"YOU ARE DISMISSED!" Vader roared suddenly.

Luke stared at him, frightened. "I"—He stopped himself and turned, running out of the room, knowing that to argue—or, indeed, say anything else—to Vader when he was this wrathful was pointless. He returned to his room, pondering over what he had learned.

Once Luke left, Vader sighed mentally. Why had he told the boy about his mother? He should have known that it would only lead to questions about Padmé, the answers of which he had no desire to remember. He turned and saw the droids out of the corner of his mask. Gritting his teeth, he drew his lightsaber and turned them all on using the Force. He propelled himself into their midst and began slicing them to pieces, attempting to vent some of his anger. She was dead. Dead.

The next day it was as if they had not spoken at all, but Luke's performance was the same. "What is the problem?" Vader asked finally. "Not more pointless questions, I hope?"

"Well, no, but now that you mention it"—

"What is it, then?"

Luke furrowed his eyebrows. "My hand hurts."

"Why should that affect your command of the Force?"

"Because it hurts!" To Vader's surprise, his son held up his right hand. The mechanical one. "I don't know why. Nothing happened to it."

For what seemed the thousandth time lately, Vader felt guilty. Why had he cut off the boy's hand? Why could he not have realized the truth sooner? If only he had not killed Beru so suddenly—he had cut off her words before she could finish the sentence "He's your son!" And Luke had to pay the price for his lack of control of his anger. Had it been such a big deal that she had called him by his former name? The Jedi that he had killed during the Purge had certainly called him worse things! "A nerve ending is probably connected poorly to a wire," he said finally, knowing all too well the experience. "Go to the medical bay and have it fixed. It is not a serious problem."

"Right now?"

"If it is that urgent."

Luke left the training room as quickly as possible and Vader clasped his hands behind his back. The boy should not have to deal with that particular problem. He was only thirteen, Vader thought. And it was his fault. Through his actions, he had condemned his son to a lifetime of regret and anger and bitterness.

Vader suddenly realized his foolishness. Those emotions were necessary . It was a good thing that he had lost his hand! They would provide the fuel that the ever-hungry fire of the Dark Side needed. But nonetheless, he sighed again.

When Luke returned to his barracks, the others were there as well and were studying some sort of flight manual. They all looked up when he arrived except for Dase, who stubbornly stared at his datapad.

The others quickly averted their eyes and Luke let a loud sigh. "What is it?"

"Nothing!" said Jisk quickly.

"Don't worry about it," Darmic added.

"No big deal," Jons added nervously.

They had been acting strange, Luke noted, but not this strange. He narrowed his eyes. He didn't even need to use the Force to know that they were lying. "Tell me," he said finally. "What is the problem?"

"Why does he wear that suit?" Darmic burst out suddenly, and clapped his hands over his mouth, his eyes widening.

Luke stared at Darmic surprised. He said nothing.

But Darmic's question unleashed a floodgate of successors. "Is it because he breathes different air? Why don't you have to wear a breath mask then?"

"Why does he have that laser sword thing instead of a blaster?"

"How come he kills so many people for no reason?"

"Why is he going to be the next emperor?"

"Why is he in charge of the fleet even though he's not in the military?"

"How come he wears the suit?" someone repeated. Luke shook his head slightly, trying to clear his thoughts.

"It's none of your business," he said finally.

The other boys groaned.

"And I don't even know the answer to half those questions, anyway," he told them truthfully. "He's not exactly forthcoming."

"But if he's your father, shouldn't you be able to ask him whatever you want?" Jisk reasoned.

Luke sighed, wishing more than ever that Vader had not threatened Dase and told him the truth, thereby letting out the secret. He had been right—there was a total loss of anonymity.

"If Lord Vader was your father, would you ask him those questions?"

The boys turned to see Lang, and Luke breathed a sigh of relief. That was the second time that the captain had come to his rescue when he had been faced with difficult questions. "Back to work, Group 1," Lang barked, turning his attention away from the situation and returning to his harsh persona. "Skywalker, get to work. You've got a lot to make up."

Look for more soon!