We're Wizards, Not Warriors: What If
Volume 4:
Chapter 3: Runaway
We then see a 9 year old Sam as he was packing up some stuff.
He loved his father, but he knew he couldn't stay any longer.
He could feel the force guiding him on his path.
After he finished packing, Sam decided to record a holo-video to leave a message for his father.
He said, "dad…. If you're seeing this message, it means I'm gone…. I love you, but I can't sit by as your Inquisitors and scouts hurt people. I need to let the force guide me on the right path…. One that'll hopefully lead me back to you, and allow me to help you. Until we meet again, I love you so much…. Your son, Sam."
Sam felt tears falling down his face as he finished recording the holovideo.
But he couldn't turn back now….
"Uncle Revan, I'm ready", Sam said.
Revan appeared nearby.
Revan then held out his hand to Sam.
Sam took his hand and he took one last glance at his room.
"Goodbye dad", Sam whispered.
And with that, Sam entered the next stage of his journey….
….
We then see Vader enter the Imperial Palace.
"At least I was able to deal with those Jedi….", Vader said.
Vader had led a team of scouts to deal with a pair of surviving Jedi.
And the Jedi had been killed by the Sith Lord.
Now Vader was eager to spend some time with Sam. The boy had seemed to grow more skittish over the years.
But Vader didn't know why.
He would need to ask his son what was troubling him.
Vader then made it to his son's room.
He knocked and said, "Sam, may I come in?"
His son didn't respond.
Vader asked, "Sam?"
Still no response.
Vader didn't like the lack of noise and opened the door on his own.
Vader then entered his son's room and he didn't see him anywhere.
Vader said, "Sam? Sam!"
Vader searched through the room for his son.
But he couldn't find a single trace of him!
Vader shouted in fear, "SAM!"
That's when he noticed a holographic device nearby.
Vader ran towards it.
He activated it quickly.
He then saw a Holovideo of his son.
"Dad…. If you're seeing this message, it means I'm gone…. I love you, but I can't sit by as your Inquisitors and scouts hurt people. I need to let the force guide me on the right path…. One that'll hopefully lead me back to you, and allow me to help you. Until we meet again, I love you so much…. Your son, Sam."
Vader stared at the little blue image of his son for what seemed like hours. But before he knew it, he was running through the halls of the palace and to his office.
He spent the next hour frantically putting together a message to be put across the galaxy.
It read;
BOUNTY:
SAMUEL VADER
ALIVE AND UNHARMED
PRICE: ANY ASKING PRICE
He then pressed a button and said, "all Inquisitors to my office: NOW!"
In a matter of seconds, all the Inquisitors arrived at the office.
Vader said, "my son has run away from home. I want you all to search for and return him home. But if any of you harm him, you'll be sent to the spice mines of kessel in body bags!"
The Inquisitors all shook in fear, but then nodded their heads.
Vader growled, "good. Now go and find my son!"
The Inquisitors all ran out the room.
Vader sighed as he sat down, worried about where his son was.
Why? Why did Sam run away?
He couldn't wrack his brain around it.
He could only hope his son was safe, wherever he was….
….
Meanwhile, Sam sat uneasily across from two men.
One had a black protocol droid body and a head or helmet similar to that of a fly.
The other looked similar, but with brown and tan robes and helmet.
These were 4-LOM and Zuckuss.
Zuckuss asked, "so, you're willing to pay just to tag along with us?"
Sam said, "just as far as you're going, yes."
4-LOM said, "our next destination is Tatooine. Best place for us to find work."
Sam said, "that's good enough for me. Please, I'll pay whatever you want."
Zuckuss said, "let's say…. Forty credits?"
Sam put the amount down on the table and said, "deal."
4-LOM said, "alright kid. You've got yourself a ticket to Tatooine. We're men of our word."
Zuckuss said, "follow us to docking bay 4."
Sam nodded and followed the 2 bounty hunters to their ship, and before he knew it, he was on a ship flying to Tatooine….
….
Some time later….
The ship landed on the hot desert planet of Tatooine, with Zuckuss and 4-LOM wishing luck to Sam as he wandered off through the streets of the space port they had landed in: Mos Eisley.
Sam waves his hand back at the bounty hunters as he puts on his cloak.
He needed to lay low and trust that the force would guide his way. That's what Revan had told him to do.
Sam whispered, "where do I go?"
Sam then heard Revan's voice whisper, 'wait for the Togruta and human….'
Sam asked in confusion, "Togruta and a human?"
"HEY!"
Sam turned to see a Dug, Twi'lek and Weequay approach.
Sam felt scared.
The Weequay said, "hey kid, you ain't supposed to be around here. This is our turf!"
"I didn't know", Sam said, a bit scared.
The Twi'lek said, "well now you're gonna learn it the hard way", as he cracked his knuckles.
Sam started to back away.
The Dug was about to punch Sam, when suddenly….
The Dug was kicked and sent flying!
The Twi'lek and Weequay were shocked to see a woman in gray robes and a cloak.
The Weequay was then punched down by a man dressed in a Scout outfit that had blue markings painted all over it!
Sam was shocked by the arrival of these strangers!
"Messing with a kid is not okay", the man growled.
The woman kneed the Twi'lek in the stomach as she said, "you three better run before we slice you up like a couple of Mynocks!"
The thugs then ran off.
The two strangers turned to Sam and knelt down.
The woman put down her hood to show that she was a Togruta with orange skin, blue and white leeku, blue eyes, and white markings on her face. The man pulled off his mask to show he had pointed ears, short blonde hair, and red eyes.
The man asked, "are you okay kid?"
Sam nodded and said, "t-thank you…."
The Togruta asked, "what's your name, kid?"
Sam looked down.
He had once heard his father mention his true name when eavesdropping on him.
But only the last name.
Perhaps it was better to use this name instead?
"My name is Sam…. Skywalker", Sam said.
The woman and man went wide-eyed.
Sam asked, "is something wrong?"
The woman said, "I haven't heard that name in a long time…. That was the name of my former teacher…."
Sam asked, "former teacher?"
The woman nodded and said, "I am Ahsoka Tano. And this is my husband, Hunter. And we have much to discuss…."
Hunter said, "perhaps we should go somewhere more private or isolated?"
Sam nods his head.
"Follow us", Ahsoka said.
Ahsoka and Hunter led Sam to a small alleyway away from others, with some shade over them.
Sam asked, "okay, tell me what you two want to discuss?"
Ahsoka asked, "how familiar are you with the Jedi?"
Sam was in deep thought for a moment.
He then said, "my father only spoke of them a little."
Ahsoka and Hunter nod their heads.
Ahsoka said, "well, years ago, the Jedi were a group that had a strong connection to the living force, and used the light side of it to help people. For a thousand generations, the Jedi were the guardians of peace and justice…. Before the dark times…. Before Emperor Belos instituted his Empire."
"I have heard of Belos, my father used to tell me how evil he was", Sam said.
Hunter said, "indeed he was. He orchestrated an entire war in order to seize power and destroy the Jedi order. I was once one of the scout's that served the Empire. But after I met Ahsoka, I ran from the Empire and never looked back."
Sam gasped in horror.
Ahsoka knelt down and said, "only a few Jedi still live. I am one of them. And since your father was my master…. I guess that kind of makes us family, hmm?"
Sam gave a small smile at the statement before he asked, "so, my father really did teach you? Like you said?"
Ahsoka smiled and nodded.
Sam then said, confused, "but my father never mentioned you or anything about his past."
Ahsoka said, "he must have had his reasons for doing so…."
"My father was always very secretive about his past", Sam said.
Hunter asked, "where is your father? Is he safe?"
Sam then looked sad and scared at the mention of his father.
He knew he couldn't keep it a secret who his dad had become….
"My father…. Is….", Sam struggled to say.
Ahsoka asked worriedly, "is what? Has he been captured? Is he hurt?"
Sam finally managed to say, "... my father is Darth Vader…."
There was silence for a few seconds.
Sam was terrified of how the two would react.
"No…. Anakin wouldn't…. He couldn't….", Ahsoka stuttered in denial over the truth.
Hunter held her shoulders to calm her down.
"Tell me it isn't true", Ahsoka said as she turned to look at Sam.
Sam looked down and began to cry, which shocked the couple.
"I'm sorry…. But it's true…. My father fell to the dark side….", Sam sobbed.
Ahsoka suddenly hugged the crying child and said, "oh, you poor, sweet thing."
Sam kept on crying as he said, "I had to leave…. But I don't know where to go…."
"You can stay with us", Hunter said.
Sam asked, "r-really?"
Ahsoka wiped Sam's tears away with her thumb as she said, "we'll protect you Sam, we'll make sure you're safe, it's at least what I can do for Anakin."
Sam gave a teary eyed smile and hugged Ahsoka close.
Hunter then joined in on the hug.
Sam felt something he hadn't in awhile….
…. Hope.
'Ahsoka and Hunter will help you on your path, Sam', Revan said through the force.
Sam smiled.
He was happy to now have help on his journey….
….
Back on Coruscant….
Vader sat at his desk, looking over various scout reports across the galaxy pertaining to the search for his son.
Vader kept getting more angry when he read each report.
No sign of him.
And he was getting more worried for his son.
He wasn't safe out there!
What if he got hurt? or kidnapped? Or even worse…. Be found by a Jedi!
He HAD to find him!
Hence why he called the best bounty hunters around.
Vader closed his eyes as he tried to sense Sam's location.
Even a simple spark would help!
'Sam, wherever you are, please tell me, so I can find you and bring you home', Vader said through the force.
But he couldn't sense his son's location.
It was as if something or someone was blocking his connection!
Vader felt tears in his eyes.
He missed his son so much.
He was all he had left.
And he'd do anything to get him back!
"I will find you my son…. And when I do…. No one and nothing will ever separate us again", Vader vowed.
This would be a promise that Vader intended to keep….
….
We then see Sam inside a room.
He was in Ahsoka and Hunter's ship.
They had told him that this room was now his.
Sam was unpacking his stuff.
The first thing he got out was a plushie of a pink/purple tadpole creature with a yellow bow on their head.
"Polly", Sam whispered.
Polly was Sam's first plushie ever, it was gifted to him by his father on his 1st birthday.
It was his most prized possession.
And just by looking at the plushie, he already started to miss his father.
It wasn't easy being away from home.
And he was thinking about how worried his father must be.
But he knew he couldn't turn back now.
He was on a mission from the force.
"I am going to train to become a strong and wise Jedi, and save my father and the galaxy", Sam vowed.
Like his father, this was a promise he intended to keep.
And he hoped that one day, he could find his brother and sister.
He already felt like he was close to one of them….
"Sam, I brought you food", Ahsoka said as she walked into the room.
Ahsoka brought the food over as Sam said, "thank you."
Ahsoka noticed all of Sam's stuff.
She asked, "is this all you packed with you?"
"Yes", Sam said as held Polly in his arms.
"That's a cute plushie", Ahsoka said.
Sam said, "thanks. My father gave Polly to me when I turned one."
"Really? That's so sweet", Ahsoka said as she smiled.
Sam smiled back.
Sam asked, "Ahsoka…. I know we just met…. But could you perhaps…. Train me to become a Jedi?"
Ahsoka looked shocked to hear that.
"I still believe there to be good inside my father, and I truly believe that by becoming a Jedi, I can save him", Sam said.
Ahsoka was touched by his words.
Ahsoka placed her hand on Sam's shoulder.
"Then I promise to train you to become a Jedi", Ahsoka said softly.
Sam smiled brightly at her.
Ahsoka then said, "heh, it's funny…. I was trained by a Skywalker. And now I'm going to be training a Skywalker."
Sam let out a small chuckle.
Sam then thought of something and asked, "did you know my mother?"
Ahsoka smiled sadly as she could already guess who Sam's mother was.
She said, "yeah, I knew her. Padme Amidala. A great politician, a fun fashion sense, and a good friend…."
Sam smiled.
Sam asked, "what else is there about my mother?"
Ahsoka said, "oh, your mother was as beautiful as an angel. Heh, that's what your father would always say."
Sam smiled even more.
For the next hour, Ahsoka told Sam stories about his mother, and what his father was like before he fell to the darkside.
Sam was amazed by the stories she told.
Though it did make Sam a little sad, as he still wished he could have met his mother.
She sounded like an amazing person.
Ahsoka gave Sam a hug to cheer him up.
Sam smiled warmly as she hugged him.
Sam couldn't wait to see what the future would be like…. But he could tell that it was gonna be a great one….
….
1 year later….
Sam was running through the streets of Mos Espa!
Ahsoka, Hunter and Sam had come to Mos Espa to buy a spare part for their ship.
And then some scouts arrived.
Sam had been spotted by one scout. He had been lucky he was wearing a blue cloak and hood to disguise himself, but the scout's had thought he was trouble and pursued him!
Sam was running as he tried to think of a plan to lose the scout.
He then spotted a crowd ahead.
Sam quickly ran into the crowd in order to lose his pursuers!
Sam looked back to see if he had lost the scout.
Luckily, it seemed he had, as he got to the center of the crowd.
Sam looked around at the people, who all seemed to be looking at the same thing.
Sam then turned to see that what they were looking at was in front of him.
Sam saw a stand, and he saw a pale skinned woman with gray hair dressed in red and a…. Very strange looking creature. They had blue fur, and what looked like a skull for a head.
This was a rare species called a Titan.
They were both standing on the stand.
And the woman seemed to be holding something.
She was saying, "ladies and gentlemen, I, Eda Clawthorne, am here to bring you an extraordinary invention! I give you; liquid force! A drink that'll give you the strength and speed of the greatest warriors in the galaxy!"
Sam whispered, "liquid force? Really?"
The Titan said, "that's right! Guaranteed increase in speed and strength!"
Sam whispered in shock, "but wait, did she say Clawthorne!?"
Sam wondered if this could be Lilith's sister?
Sam was snapped out of his thoughts, when he heard the people around them complaining that the drink didn't work.
Eda said, "oh, you think the drink doesn't work? Well I've got proof! I've drank a full bottle, and I've already got magical powers like those space wizards from the war!"
Sam couldn't help but let out a small giggle.
Eda said, "what do you think, King? Shall we show them some proof?"
King nods his head.
Eda smirked as she clapped her hands together as they were engulfed in green fire!
The crowd was in awe.
Eda shot some flames into the air!
The crowd was full of cheering.
Even Sam was impressed as Eda did a flip in the air, shooting flames at her sides!
The crowd kept on cheering.
Eda gave a wink to the audience as she spun around like a tornado!
Sam was smiling even more.
This woman indeed had a talent for theatrics.
"Busted!"
The crowd, Sam, Eda and King all turned to see several spouts standing there.
One yelled, "hey, you got a license for this?!"
King quickly grabbed a bottle of liquid force, smashed it on the ground and yelled, "SCATTER!"
Everyone started to run.
Sam ran in the same direction Eda and King took.
Sam yelled to the two, "I knew this liquid force scheme was bogus! That was just nightsister magic!"
Eda shouted, "wait, how do you know about Nightsister magic!?"
Sam said, "long story short, I happen to know a Ms. Lilith Clawthorne!"
Eda's eyes went wide.
King said, "maybe we should talk about this after we lose the scouts?!"
Sam asked, "and how!?"
Eda formed some fire and said, "a good smoke screen never hurts!"
Eda then threw the fire to the ground causing a smokescreen to form.
This gave them the chance to duck into a small alleyway behind some empty crates.
The scouts ran past the crates.
The three of them sighed in relief.
"I'm glad we lost them", Sam said in relief.
Eda and King nodded in agreement.
Eda asked, "now…. How do you know my sister?"
Sam said, "she used to be my personal tutor. She told me a lot of stories about you."
"Personal tutor? And really, I thought she wouldn't mention me to anyone after she went to work for the empire", Eda said.
Sam said, "oh, all she ever did was talk about you."
Eda smiled. She was happy to hear that.
King asked, "so what's your name kid?"
Sam replied, "Sam."
King asked, "Sam who?"
Sam clarified, "Sam Skywalker."
"Nice name", Eda said.
Sam said, "thanks. Do you guys have a place to lay low from the scouts?"
"We sure do", Eda said.
"Thanks, I'll contact my friends to meet us here", Sam said.
King asked, "what kind of friends?"
"A force user and a former scout", Sam said.
Eda and King were intrigued by this.
….
We then see Ahsoka and Hunter arrive at the trio's location.
Ahsoka said, "you okay, Sam?"
"Yes, I'm okay, mom", Sam said, but then he covered his mouth in surprise after he said that.
Ahsoka and Hunter looked shocked, while Eda and King looked confused.
Sam blushed in embarrassment.
He hadn't meant to slip up like that.
"Anyway, I was able to get away with the help of these two", Sam stuttered as he pointed to Eda and King.
Eda and King waved.
Hunter asked, "thank you, what are your names?"
Eda said, "I'm Eda Clawthorne. And this is King."
King waved happily.
Ahsoka and Hunter waved back.
Eda asked Ahsoka, "so you're a force wielder?"
Ahsoka nodded.
"I've never seen a Jedi in person before", Eda said.
Ahsoka gave a small smile and said, "I'd imagine not."
King asked, "why were the scouts after Sam?"
Sam said, "one of them thought I was up to something."
"And I'm glad they didn't capture you, Sam", Ahsoka said.
Hunter asked, "now what do we do?"
Sam said, "we should lay low for a few hours. The scouts are still searching for us."
"Well follow us back to our ship", King said.
The others all nodded.
….
Sam, Ahsoka and Hunter followed Eda and King.
"And here is the ship", Eda said as she pointed to the ship.
It was a large gray Corellian Starfighter.
Sam looked impressed at the ship.
Sam said, "where did you snag this little number?"
"Well, you should ask Han", Eda said.
Hunter asked confused, "Han?"
Eda yelled to the ship, "Han! Chewie! We got guests!"
A few seconds later, a tall wookie and a man walked out of the ship.
Well, more of a teenager than a man.
"Woah", Sam said in awe at the Wookie.
Ahsoka seemed to recognize the Wookie.
She then suddenly said, "Chewbacca?!"
Chewbacca then saw Ahsoka and roared happily!
He ran over to hug her.
"CHoking! Choking", Ahsoka choked out.
Chewie quickly let her go.
Sam asked, but then he covered his mouth again after said, "you know him, Mom?"
Ahsoka tried to defuse the tension and said, "ahem, this is Chewbacca. He's an old friend from the war."
Chewie let out a small growl.
Sam asked, "really? You helped Ahsoka escape?"
King asked, "wait, you can understand what Chewie says?"
Sam said, "I studied Sherwook when I was younger."
Han asked, "so it didn't go well, Eda?"
Eda and King shook their heads no.
"I told you, they wouldn't buy the idea of a drink that gives you the same powers as those Jedi", Han said with a chuckle.
Sam said, "oh, she was close to selling some, but some scouts showed up."
"Damn those scouts, always ruining the fun", Han grumbled.
Chewie growled his agreement.
"Anyway, these three need a place to lay low for a while", Eda explained.
Han crossed his arms and said, "Empire on your backs?"
'You can tell them the truth Sam', Revan said through the force.
Sam sighed and said, "yes. The Empire is after us. And for big reasons."
King asked, "such as?"
Ahsoka, Hunter and Sam each gave their answer.
"Jedi."
"Former scout."
"Son of the Emperor."
The last one had Han, King, Eda and Chewie with shocked faces.
Han asked, "your dad is Vader?"
Sam nods his head.
Ahsoka said, "that's why he wears the cloak."
"No wonder, your dad has placed a bounty on you", Eda said.
Sam said, "I figured he'd send people to find me."
King asked, "yeah, but why did you run away?"
Sam said, "well…. After learning about what the Empire does, I couldn't sit idly by any longer. I left to find the rest of my family and help save the galaxy."
"And that's why I'm training him to become a Jedi", Ahsoka said.
Sam nodded.
"That's pretty impressive", Eda said.
King said, "yeah."
Hunter asked, "so would it be okay if we could stay here to lay low for a while?"
"Sure", Eda said.
King said, "no problem."
"What they said", Han said.
Chewie growls in agreement.
"Thank you", Sam said.
Ahsoka and Hunter nodded in agreement.
Little did they know that Han, Eda, King and Chewie would end up becoming part of their family as time went on.
In more ways than one….
….
We then see Sam giggling as he was being cuddled by Eda in her Owl Beast form.
He was amazed by this ability that not many Nightsisters had.
King had explained that Eda had a special gift in which she could turn into a harpy, but he said that if Eda see's someone she loves or close to her get hurt, she would turn into the Owl Beast.
Sam seemed to understand this.
"Aunt Eda! Please let me go! I need to go to the bathroom", Sam said.
Eda said, "okay sweety- did…. Did you just call me Aunt Eda?"
Sam nods his head.
He asked, "is that bad?"
Eda smiled and said, "no, it's actually very sweet and adorable of you."
Sam smiled in joy.
It seemed he still had the gift of being adorable.
A universal concept, it seemed.
….
We then see Sam with Ahsoka and Eda in his room.
"I have something to confess to you two", Sam said with a small blush on his face.
Ahsoka asked, "what is it, Sam?"
Sam gulped and said, "I like to wear women's clothing."
Eda and Ahsoka were surprised at this.
Sam looked down in worry.
Ahsoka then placed her hand on Sam's shoulder.
Sam looked up at her as she smiled at him.
"Sweetie, don't be afraid of what you like to wear, if wearing women's clothing makes you happy, then it makes me happy too", Ahsoka said softly.
Sam smiled and hugged Ahsoka close.
"Thank you mom", Sam said.
This time, he didn't stutter over what he said.
Ahsoka smiled even more.
Eda then joined in on the hug.
This made Sam smile even more.
….
Meanwhile, on Coruscant….
Vader was still at his desk, which he rarely ever left these days.
He was looking through more reports.
Still, no word on where Sam was.
Vader then looked to his left and saw a photo of him and Sam.
A single tear slid down his face.
"Sam….", Vader whispered.
He missed his son terribly.
He kept praying each day to the force, that he would be reunited with his son.
But it seemed like his prayers would never be answered at this rate.
"Oh my little one, please be safe out there", Vader whispered.
Vader continued to look at the photo as he said this.
He could still hear his son's laughter in his mind.
He could still see his sweet smile.
"Daddy!"
Vader felt more tears fall down his face.
He sat back, crying silently.
"I will find you Sam…. One day…. I will find you and bring you home….", Vader whispered.
He swore he would fulfill this promise to himself!
….
Reviews:
SuperSentai199: so happy that you enjoyed this chapter.
….