Chapter 2

It had begun to rain, and the constant drizzle did little to raise Luke's spirits. The gash on his forehead had turned into a constant throb on his consciousness, he was soaked from head to foot, and by far the worst of his problems, he was being dragged through the jungle by Darth Vader.

A few hours before, Luke would have laughed at the thought of his present scenario, crossing it off as impossible and ludicrous. After all, Vader was a thought more than a real person in the minds of most people. He was merely a scary figure to weave into ghost stories in the barracks when rookie pilots were left to their own devices at night. All the malice and evil of the Empire was condensed into one big black suit and shown off in holovids readily available to anyone connected to the Galactic Databanks. He was not supposed to be a living, breathing entity who could march through the jungle with his firm black glove wound around Luke's arm.

Yet whether or not Luke's mind allowed for his tangible state, Vader was there, and in charge to boot. "What do you want from me?" Luke asked tiredly, still perplexed why his captor had not yet conducted his execution.

Vader came to a dead stop, and his grip on Luke's arm strengthened painfully. As he turned his mask to fix his unchanging gaze from behind his mask on Luke, the only sound that could be heard was the rhythmic hissing of his breath. Luke immediately regretted asking the question.

"I told you to stop asking questions, boy." Vader growled. Intense pain began to shoot through Luke's forehead that quickly spread. Luke collapsed to his knees, gasping. His reprieve came a moment later as Luke's downcast eyes caught the swirl of Vader's cloak as he moved away. The pain dissipated, and Luke slowly managed to sit up.

Vader stood a few feet in front of him, watching him impassively, "A transport will arrive within the hour to return us to my ship."

Luke nodded sullenly, afraid to make any more questions or comments. Vader remained standing in front of Luke, motionless, as the minutes slowly ticked away. Luke gradually shifted uncomfortably as he realized several sharp rocks were underneath him.

His thoughts at that moment were in a tangle. Confusion and fear clouded his mind, while a growing sense of hate slowly grew at the back of his mind. It seemed perfectly natural to hate the man who had killed his father and teacher, and who had put him in this situation. Vader was a monster who possessed no moral reserve. Luke knew that if he had his lightsaber he would try to kill Vader without restraint, by any means.

But a Jedi was called to higher standards, wasn't he? He wasn't supposed to let his hate get in the way. Yet...wouldn't it be a good thing if he killed Vader? Why could everyone else hate the Empire, and not him?

Luke closed his eyes and sighed. "Ben..." he called out through the force, trying to contact his old teacher who had managed to communicate with Luke despite being dead. In his most desperate times, he had heard his voice. Either that or Luke was going crazy.

"Who's Ben?" Vader's thunderous voice broke into Luke's focus, and called him back to reality. The binders at Luke's wrists hurt him as he jerked suddenly, opening his eyes.

"How..." he began, but Vader raised his hand up quickly to cut him off.

"Your thoughts are open to me Jedi. Who is Ben?"

Luke shifted uncomfortably again. He didn't want to answer, but neither did he want Vader to hurt him again. "Kenobi," he mumbled finally, not looking Vader in the eye (or where his eyes should have been under the mask), "Ben Kenobi."

Vader let out an inhuman hiss, and Luke could feel the air around him grow tense. The hatred and anger in Vader's heart surged, transmitting itself through the force.

"He's dead." Vader stated with finality, "And were he alive you would be a fool to count on his help. He lied to his friends and betrayed them."

"What do you know!" Luke demanded angrily, "At least he didn't- ahhhhh!"

Intense pain erupted in Luke's head again, as Vader demonstrated his displeasure at his outburst. Luke fell to the ground again in the intense pain, his anger evaporating in the overbearing pain.

Vader strode closer to the downed rebel pilot, "More than you know."

When Vader finally stopped the pain, Luke had to lie still, as a myriad of colours flashed before his eyes. He was too weak to move again, and there didn't seem to be much point. Instead he let himself drift away, only half aware of his surroundings.

Finally, he felt rough hands grab his arms and pull him to his feet. Groaning, he collapsed to the ground at once, and a swift kick was delivered to his side with a sickening thud. "I instructed you to take him gently!" That...that was Vader's voice. Why did he care?

As Luke opened his eyes, a trooper collapsed to the ground beside him, obviously dead, and he felt a wave of fear from the other stormtroopers. His mind was too foggy to understand what had happened, and he let himself be led to the waiting shuttle.

His treatment from then on was far less painful, and Luke drifted out of consciousness. He didn't know how long he drifted, until Luke gradually began to wake up. Carefully he opened his eyes halfway, staring at the ceiling above him. It didn't look familiar... Where was he?

Captured! Luke sat up with a start as the memory came back to him suddenly. He was on an Imperial vessel, with Vader! The sudden action brought Luke fully back to reality, and his head pounded fiercely. Groaning, he lay back down slowly. 'Ben, please.' Luke begged silently.

"I'm here Luke," came a soft voice. Luke forced his eyes open once again, and was shocked at what he saw. The shimmering figure of Ben Kenobi stood beside him, gazing at him with concern.

"Ben!" Luke called joyfully, rising.

"Keep your strength Luke," Ben told him, motioning for him to stay down, "You're going to need it. I've come to tell you you're in a lot of trouble."

Luke couldn't resist rolling his eyes, "I've noticed."

"More than you know." Ben answered, his voice laced with seriousness and a sense of urgency. Luke winced, remembering the last person who had said those exact words to him. However, Ben was not done, "Vader isn't going to kill you; he's going to keep you alive so he can train you to be a Sith."

"A Sith..." Luke repeated, turning the word over in his head. He snapped out of his revere suddenly, "But I won't turn to the darkside!"

Obi Wan nodded at Luke's fervour. Even with the time Luke had spent with the rebellion under his belt, he was still very much a naive farm boy. "I know you won't Luke. Vader will play many tricks, but you must control your anger. I will not always be able to help you. Vader would sense if I contacted you when he was near."

Luke closed his eyes miserably, "Ben, I just feel so awful about everyone I killed on the Deathstar, and now I'm really loosing control with Vader. I want to hate him for everything he's done."

"You must have control, Luke!" Ben urged, his voice becoming more intense, "Show that you're better than him but not giving in to hate." He placed his see-through hand on Luke's shoulder, "And don't feel bad for the Deathstar. Every single person would have been participating in some way in the deaths on billions if the Death Star continued to destroy planets. They were on a battle station in war – they were in the war zone."

Luke nodded slowly, and was silent for a moment. Finally he looked up at Ben, "Why does Vader hate you son much?"

Ben noticeably stiffened, "Another time Luke. For now, practice mediating, it'll make you feel better."

Luke opened his mouth and was about to protest, but Ben disappeared. Getting over his temporary annoyance, Luke closed his eyes and focused. He had been practicing meditating back home with his rebel friends, but it was hard without a teacher.

Yet the force seemed to be with him. He drifted deeper and deeper in meditation, feeling his pains soothed. Then, images began to flash before his eyes, at first too quickly to see. He relaxed and let himself go with the flow, and slowly they began to resolve into clear images.

Two men in robes like Ben wore stepped out of an elevator and walked towards a woman so beautiful and so like Leia Luke nearly lost control from the shock. "Ani? My goodness, you've grown!" The woman called with her sweet voice.

The younger of the two men appeared slightly flustered, "So have you, grown more beautiful... for a senator, I mean." He answered, blushing a little.

Her voice changed a little under the strain, but she took it in stride, "Ani, you'll always be that little boy I knew on Tatooine."

The scene blurred, and images spun again. Colours merged, until the resolved into the young man and the woman seated together at a table amid a crowd of aliens. "It must be difficult having sworn your life to the Jedi... not being able to visit the places you like... or do the things you like." The woman said sympathetically.

"Or be with the people I love." The Jedi added, gazing affectionately at her.

Her brow folded in thought, "Are you allowed to love? I thought that was forbidden for a Jedi."

Luke could see the truth in the young man's eyes. He was very in love with his companion. He wanted to stay with the image and see what the young man said in response, but it shifted. Once again they were at table together, but this time in a beautiful house, with relaxed smiles on their faces. The Jedi levitated a piece of fruit to cut for the woman., and told her with a half smile, "If Obi-Wan caught me doing that, he would be very grumpy."

Obi-Wan! Obi-Wan Kenobi? Ben!

The scene changed to show the young man in somewhere that looked that Tantoine, with pain so sharp it pierced Luke's mind. "One day, I will become the greatest Jedi EVER! I will even learn how to stop people from dying!" he told the pretty woman through the pain, as she tried to comfort him.

Then they were in some sort of chariot, side by side. Once again the woman reminded him so much of Leia. The man and woman appeared to be in trouble, with binders around their wrists. Luke felt a wave of sympathy for them. "Don't be afraid." The Jedi said softly.

"I'm not afraid to die. I've been dying a little bit each day since you came back into my life." She told him, her glowing eyes fixed on him.

"What are you talking about?" he asked in confusion.

"I love you." A wave of emotion passed between the two so sweet that it overrode all their fear.

"You love me? I thought we had decided not to fall in love. That we'd be forced to love a lie and that it would destroy our lives." Longing was in his eyes.

"I think our lives are about to be destroyed anyway. I truly... deeply... love you and before we die I want you to know."

It was all so sweet and serene, and Luke was immersed in their happiness. The images changed and shifted, but the love remained. Then Luke felt a twisting in his stomach; he felt fear seize control.

"Anakin!" the woman's voice cried out in torment.

With a start, Luke awakened from the vision. He was breathless from the startling scenes, feeling if he himself had lived through them. And then two names had been mentioned that he knew. Obi-Wan and Anakin.

There was not doubt in Luke's mind that he had dreamed about his father when he had been Ben's student. The most joyful part of the realization was knowing he had seen his mother. She was so beautiful! Yet at the end of the vision, she had been in anguish.

It was too much to take in at once. When he was safe, Luke would analyze everything he had seen, but for now he focused on the present – survival. It was what his father would want. Luke smiled. His father. The handsome Jedi Knight he had seen, no longer a simple name.

Hssssshhh.

The door to Luke's cell snapped open with a whoosh. Before Luke stood the menacing figure of Darth Vader. The deep voice penetrated the room, "Come."