Palpatine

Darth Vader strolled down the hallway of the Executor, his black cape flowing behind him. It felt good to be dressed in black again; although he feared his other set of armor was ruined. But perhaps it could be cleaned. Not long ago the doctor had called him with two messages. First, Luke was ready to be released from Sickbay and the other was that Palpatine was awake. The Sith Lord worried how he was going to explain the presence of so many Jedi to his Master, Jedi that were supposed to be dead years ago and now were somehow alive! Even he didn't understand that.

And where had his dear Padme disappeared to? She had run out of Sickbay sneezing and so far he'd been unable to find her. You would think a fancily dressed woman with a Jedi's robe over her head would be easy to spot. She should stick out among all the stormtroopers just like a green plant would be noticeable against the white corridors. Yet, oddly enough, no one had reported seeing her. Obviously, the troopers were either as stupid as Solo claimed or his dear wife had clobbered any that had seen her. But was that possible? True, his love had been a formidable fighter when armed with a blaster, but surely not weaponless against fully trained stormtroopers? Of course, on a ship the size of the Executor there must be many places to hide if one chooses to do that.

Reaching Sickbay at last, Vader entered and headed for Luke's bed. He gazed down at his son, pleased that he was well once again. "You are being released."

"Yes, Father, I know. The doctor told me." Luke replied. He still hadn't forgotten about his dear Mara and wished he could think up a way to see her again. But with everyone set against him he just didn't see how it was possible. He had never dreamed the Jedi Council had been so strict or had so many stupid rules, especially rules concerning dating! But then, maybe that guy hadn't been a Jedi Master at all…

Vader scowled at his son under his black mask. "You are thinking of Jade again! Luke, I told you to forget her. She will bring you nothing but misery and grief. All she knows is how to kill. Palpatine raised her since she was a young child and the Dark Side is all she knows. She would kill you."

"You don't know that for certain!" Luke sat up in bed and threw the light sheet off his legs. Getting to his feet, he gazed up at his father's black mask. "Can't I at least call her? Pleeeaaassseeeeeee?"

Vader fumed, knowing the boy would never get this nonsense out of his system until he actually talked to the real Jade and saw how she truly was. Perhaps a com call was required to cure him of his infatuation. Otherwise, Vader was sure his lovesick son would go around mooning with lovesickness for weeks on end. It would be vile, to say the least. He had never acted that way when he had been in love with Padme! "Very well, I will allow you to call her. But I must speak to my Master first."

A thrill of victory shot through Luke's body. His father had relented and agreed he could actually speak to Mara! Then he could ask her to go on a date with him!

"But know I have an assignment for you, Son." Vader informed him as he headed towards the private room McCoy had put the Emperor in. "Your annoying friend Solo has ruined my armor by turning it a foul pink. You will take it to the cleaners on Coruscant that I regularly send my laundry to. Obi-Wan will go with you to keep you out of trouble."

Luke gaped open-mouthed at his father. "That's my assignment? Taking your armor to the cleaners? Why, that's just stupid! I'm a Jedi!"

Vader shook his finger at Luke yet again. "No, you are not a Jedi. Only the Council has the right to say when a pupil is ready to become a full Jedi Knight and as you may have noticed, a few of the Council Members are back. Until then, you are nothing but a mere Padawan learner."

"That guy really WAS a Jedi?" Luke asked, horrified.

"Yes, he was." Vader couldn't help but smile under his mask. Secretly, he had enjoyed watching Luke grill Windu with all the stupid 'why' questions. The look on Windu's face had been priceless! Perhaps his son's personality habits would grate on Master Windu more in the future. He just wished Luke would obey HIM more often.

"Oh, fodder!" Luke's joy disappeared as he realized he was probably going to be in trouble now with the dark-skinned Jedi Master. The man probably wasn't very happy about being called a spy!

Vader entered Palpatine's room, Luke following him. Palpatine was sitting up in bed eating some breakfast the doctor had given him. It was extremely healthy stuff, an oat-based porridge with fruits and nuts added and cooked with low-fat milk. If McCoy was one thing, he was a health nut where his patients were concerned. When the doctor had examined Palpatine and found the same mix of alcohol and caffeine as he had in Luke, his anger shot through the roof. It was crystal clear to him that none of these people knew how to eat properly but he was going to teach them! Finishing his meal, Palpatine put the bowl down.

Bowing low to his Master, Vader rose. "You called for me, Master?"

"Darth Vader, what are all those Jedi doing alive? I ordered them all killed years ago!"

"Yes, Master. And I had killed them. But they are back alive again. I can not explain it."

"I will have to look into it then." Palpatine readjusted his position in bed slightly. "What are they doing now, Lord Vader?"

"Mace and Qui-Gon had slipped on some engine grease someone had accidentally spilled in a corridor and are trying to clean themselves. Yoda is sitting on the floor, meditating. Obi-Wan is waiting in the other room so he and Luke can take my armor to the cleaners."

Palpatine laughed. "A Jedi running errands for a Sith! You have a devious mind, my apprentice. With a little coaxing, we will make a proper Sith of Kenobi yet!"

"Yes, My Master."

Then Palpatine frowned at him, his eyes growing redder. "Lord Vader, I have been informed of some disturbing news recently. It appears you have wanted criminals of the Rebel Alliance living in your home. How do you explain this?"

"I…" Vader began, unsure what he should tell Palpatine.

"Yes?" Palpatine encouraged. "Do not think of trying to lie to me, Lord Vader. I will know if you are."

"I would not lie to you, My Master. They are my … family. Princess Leia is my daughter." Vader admitted.

"What?!" Palpatine cried in shock. "Exactly how many children did you produce with that woman?"

"I do not know, My Master. So far I have discovered only two."

At that exact moment, Princess Leia herself barged into the room. Her brown eyes immediately settled on Palpatine and hardened. She had heard Luke was going to be released from Sickbay and so she had come to see him. Han had also told her that her Mother and Grandmother had been there, too, along with a bunch of Jedi! She turned to face Vader. "Father, what have you been doing to Han? He told me you were threatening him to neuter him with your lightsaber!"

"I was angry at him." Vader told her. "He had turned my clothes PINK!"

"Pink?" Leia frowned, realizing Han had been involved in another one of his hair-brained schemes and had forgot to tell her all the details.

"So, you admit Lord Vader is your father?" Palpatine asked from where he lay resting in his bed.

"Yes." Leia turned to face the Emperor, the most evil man in the galaxy. If she could, she would kill him right now and end his death hold over the galaxy. Oh, what a time to be without a blaster!

"Come closer, my dear. Let me look at you." Palpatine said as he motioned with one bony, gnarled hand. "I am old and my eyes are not what they used to be."

"Why should I do anything you say?" Leia asked him. "You're a vile dictator!"

"Humor an old man." Palpatine held up both of his empty hands. "Look at me. I'm just an old man lying in a hospital bed. What possible threat could I be to you?"

Cautiously Leia moved a few steps closer to Palpatine and glared down at him angrily. "Is this close enough for you, old man? Now what do you want?"

"So much anger you have in you, my dear. Anger just like your father has. You would make a wonderful Sith." Palpatine grinned up at her with his red, bloodshot eyes. "Yes, a wonderful Sith."

"A Sith?" Leia stared at the Emperor in shock, her mouth dropping open. "Me? Your crazy! I can't be a Sith!"

"Of course you can, my dear. All you need is a bit of training." Palpatine told her as he reached for her hand and gripped it. "You have the power within you. You know this to be true."

Leia tried to pull her hand away from Palpatine but the old man was a lot stronger than he appeared and he refused to let go. His grip was like a vise around her wrist. "I don't have any powers!"

"You do!" Palpatine insisted as he tried to pull Leia closer. "You have the Skywalker power you inherited from your father! It is inside you! I feel it within you! It is there!"

"Luke has the powers, not me!" Leia insisted as she tried to yank her hand away from Palpatine.

"You DO have powers!" The Emperor yelled.

"I do NOT have powers!" Leia cried.

"DO!!!"

"NOT!!!"

Vader and Luke both stared at the argument between Leia and Palpatine, neither of them brave enough to budge it quite yet.

"Let go of me!" Leia dug her heels into the floor and pulled with all her worth, determined to free herself of the evil leech that had attached itself to her wrist.

Palpatine answered this by clinging to her with both hands and pulling her back towards him. "You will not get away so easily, my dear! I will train you and your brother to be Siths! You will all by my apprentices and curse that rule of only two! The Jedi are many, we will be many as well!"

"You're insane! I hate you!" Leia spotted a chair sitting against the wall and reached for it with her other hand. If only she could reach it! "I keep telling you I don't have any powers! Why won't you believe me?"

'Yes! Yes! Hate me!" Palpatine encouraged. So much hate swelling in her! It was glorious!

Leia's fingertips touched the chair and she pulled it closer until she could get a solid grip on it. It was a cheep plastic one in cheerful canary yellow, no doubt meant to brighten up the sickroom. She would use it well. "If you don't let go of me right now you'll be sorry!"

Palpatine grinned as he could feel Leia's anger surging around the room like a dark thundercloud. The daughter of Vader was extremely powerful! If only he could convince her she had the Force! "Ah, what an apprentice you would make!"

"That's it!" Leia gripped the chair's black and swung it at Palpatine. The metal legs hit him with a solid thump.

"Aahhh!" Palpatine cried. "What are you doing?!"

"That's for blowing up Alderaan!" Leia swung the chair again and clobbered him a second time. "And that's for turning my Father to the Dark Side!"

"Stop! Stop!" Palpatine wailed as the chair's legs struck him on his stomach. He released her wrist and raised both arms to protect his face. "I only want you to be my apprentice!"

"And this is for declaring yourself Emperor and ruining the whole galaxy!" Leia swung the chair and hit him on one of his legs.

"Ow! My leg! You broke it!" Palpatine shrieked in pain as he bent forward to cradle the injured limb.

"You deserve a lot more than that, you evil fiend!" Leia dropped the chair onto the floor and stormed out of the room.

Vader and Luke stood there in shock.

"Ooooooh." Palpatine moaned. Then the look of pain vanished of his face and the old man grinned. "She has the famous Skywalker anger! I like it!"

Vader and Luke continued to gape at Palpatine, unmoving.

"Well? Why are you just standing there? Go get the doctor to fix my broken leg!"

Without another word, the two bolted from the room.

To be continued…

Author's Note: Mara will be in the next chapter!