Hey guys, I'm sorry about the long wait for this chapter! Between Hurricane Wilma, Halloween, and a disastrous vacation week, I just haven't found the right time to post this next chapter.
Legacy of the Sith
...to cut Han Solo's blaster deftly in half, with such precision as to not even singe the man's fingers as he did so. After that, Vader frowned under his mask, andinquired indignantly, "Have you been drinking?"
"I can handle my liquor just fine," Han growled through his shock.
"No doubt, you needed to load yourself up before coming here. Liquid courage. I forgive you this time. But you are not to come before me again in this condition," Vader said dryly.
"What? You forgive me? Why you son of a..." Han spat, then suddenly stopped when he felt a clawing pressure around his throat.
"You know, I always thought that expression was a stupid one. It just gives one's mother all the credit, does it not?" Vader said lightly, then loosened his Force grip on Han's throat. "Captain Solo, what brings you here this evening?"
"Well that's real cute! You make it sound like I'm here for a social call! Well, the truth is, I'm here to kill you!" Han declared.
Vader crossed his arms and shook his helmet. "Now why would you go and waste your first night of freedom in over a year trying to kill me?"
"Because you've ruined my life!"
Vader sighed in his unique metallic way, and responded, "There are so many people who accuse me of that, I'm afraid that you'll have to be a little more specific."
"You tortured me for absolutely no reason except that you could! Then, you had me frozen in carbonite, and it took over a year for me to get out of that! Over a year!" Han roared. "Specific enough for you?"
"Though this may seem a surprise to you, Solo, I regret those things I did to you now," Vader interrupted.
Clearly, Han wasn't quite expecting that kind of answer. "Oh, that's real great! Now you regret it? Now, after the damage has been done?" Han seethed, struggling with the urge to say more.
"Hmm... now we come to the real issue. Let yourself focus with that anger! Tell me what's really on your mind," Vader urged.
Han's eyes narrowed, and he bit out each word. "You've been real busy while I was being dragged all over the galaxy by Boba Fett, haven't you? You even got around to bringing Obi-Wan Kenobi back from the dead! Great job! You did real damned good!"
"Why, Captain Solo! I can feel your anger... It's very powerful, positively invigorating!" Vader broke off and watched Han Solo's face turn into a mask of darkness. Vader laughed knowingly. "Your hatred towards Kenobi is astounding. I didn't think anyone despised him nearly as much as I! You must tell me what the good Jedi Master has done to bring this out in you!"
The surge of the rage level was unmistakable at the mention of Obi-Wan. "What's it to you?You don't need to know anything else except that I've now completely lost the most precious thing I ever might have had! And it's all because of you!"
Like a great bird of prey, Vader began to slowly circle Han. "You seemed to be quite attached to Princess Leia Organa when I last saw you on Bespin, Captain Solo. Could she be the one to whom you are referring? No doubt, her revelation to you must have been quite a shock," Vader taunted.
"What revelation? That Kenobi has decided to move in on Leia?" Han nearly choked as he said it. "Oh, yeah, the late great Jedi Master and Leia are getting on really well lately! I'm surprised Luke isn't more upset. I thought he and Leia... I was so sure that he would have made a move..."
Vader pulled in his breath. "They never told you! I don't understand this! They're quite like me; they don't like to lie and keep secrets!"
"What the hell are you talking about? Those two are nothing like you!" Han spat.
"I see that you have not been told the whole story, or indeed, even a part of it. I suppose then that it shall fall to me to fill you in on what has happened. I did not think Luke would have dodged telling you, his best friend. I warn you though, my point of view is quite different than Luke's. Have a seat; this is going to take a while." Vader gestured to one of the blackiron chairs that decorated the courtyard. It scraped across the duricrete floor loudly, bumping up against the back of Han's knees, making him sit reflexively.
"Now, I've heard that Luke thought Obi-Wan had more than one apprentice. This was not true. Obi-Wan Kenobi had only one student, or Padawan. Luke's father, Anakin Skywalker. No doubt, Luke told you that I killed Skywalker. But that was because Obi-Wan told him that, not because it is actually the truth."
"Ha! You trying to tell me that you didn't kill the kid's old man? Kenobi is a snake, but the story he told Luke seems to fit with what we all know about you," Han sneered.
Vader nodded absently. "You see, Obi-Wan has a difficult realtionship with the truth. He likes to tell things from a certain point of view. And in his point of view, I killed Anakin. The truth is, Anakin was destroyed by a team of people. He had to go, really. He was weak, soft, in spite of all that wonderful Jedi training he'd gotten. While it is true that I was the one who dealt the final blow to that once good man, Obi-Wan Kenobi was very much responsible for erasing Anakin from his children's lives."
"Children?" Han noted quietly, but otherwise remained silent. Luke had a sibling?
"Yes. You see, Anakin had secretly married, then found out he was to be a father. The Jedi Order forbade any permenant attachments to other people. So Anakin knew he needed to keep his other life a secret, even from Obi-Wan.
"Unfortunately, as the Clone Wars drew to an end, there was a faction in the Jedi Order that wished to overthrow the Chancellor. They had found out that Palpatine was far more than what he seemed. He was, and still is, a Sith lord," Vader revealed.
"A Sith Lord? Look, Luke tried to explain Sith to me, and I don't get all of that stuff," Han admitted.
"Indeed, even if the Jedi Order knew that the Chancellor was a Sith lord, it made little difference to the people who had elected him. The people who looked to him to restore order to the chaotic galaxy. What did they know of Sith, Jedi or the Force? No matter how you look at it, you cannot deny that the actions of those Jedi would have constituted high treason. Anakin saw it with his own eyes, as the Jedi Master Mace Windu was about to decimate Palpatine. Thanks to Anakin's actions, Palpatine survived that ordeal. But it changed him, and Anakin, forever. The Jedi were now considered traitors, enemies of the Republic, for the few remaining days it was to be a republic. Palpatine could see that Anakin was the only Jedi reamining that was loyal to him and the Senate. And so, Palpatine sent him on a mission; to destroy the treacherous Jedi Order.
"But..." Han protested, but Vader cut him off.
"While all this had been going on, Anakin's wife was close to her delivery. His greatest fear was that she would die in childbirth. Palpatine knew this, and offered Anakin a way to save her. The Dark Side of the Force. Anakin felt the Dark Side flow through him; it brought him power beyond anything his fool Jedi Master had ever taught him existed. With the Dark Side, he vanquished the Jedi in the Temple. Then, he was sent to Mustafar, to eradicate the last remaining Separatists.
"But Obi-Wan caught up with him, and they engaged in an epic duel. Anakin's power was stronger, yes, but Obi-Wan's skill with a lightsaber was what saved him. Anakin lost one of his arms and both of his legs in that duel. And Mustafar is a fiery world; Anakin felt the damage it's flames could bring all too much.
"But the worst part, Captain Solo, was when Obi-Wan simply left Anakin there. Left him to die, or live. It mattered not to him. He'd done his duty... Imagine, if you will, being left with one mechanical arm, charred skin, stumps for legs, desolate and alone. The only thing Anakin had left was the Force. It was all he ever really had, you know. That, and his strange will to live. He began to pull himself up off that cliff's edge where he surely would have found death had he slipped further. With that one mechanical hand left, he clawed his way to safety. And then, Palpatine found him at last, and returned him to Coruscant.
"There, Anakin died. As the mech droids attached new legs to him, and another mechanical arm, and grafted skin, attached various things to him to aid his breathing, Anakin was smothered. The Dark Side of the Force put a new person in his place. One who was stronger, far less vulnerable than Anakin was.
"That person was named Darth Vader..."
Han's eyes could not stretch open wide enough. Through his horror, he managed to find the words, "No, no you're not Luke Skywalker's father. There is just no way...No! He's my friend! He can't be your son!" Han protested. "He's good, a real decent kid. Yeah, he's a bit flaky, especially ever since Kenobi got ahold of him, but he always worshipped the ground Kenobi walked on... No, it isn't true."
"Yes, I am Luke's father. But even more importantly to you, I am his twin sister's father as well. Let us not forget her. After all, she's the real reason you are here, isn't she? She is indeed so like her mother in many ways. I can understand why you've become so enamored of her, I suppose."
Han began to shudder. Luke didn't make the move on the princess, because he couldn't! Not if he was the twin brother of..."Leia! No! Liar!"
Vader allowed some of his own rage to surface. "I am no liar! And neither are my children liars, they knew nothing of the machinations to keep them from me. Especially Luke; I only got a chance to tell him the truth on Bespin."
This statement seemed to be the last straw. "On Bespin! You had me carbon frozen, used Leia and me and Chewie to lure Luke there to tell him this crazy story? There was no truth told there! No truth told tonight either!" Han jumped up and knocked the chair over in outrage.
"Do it! You wish to kill me! Make your move!" Vader dared him. "It is the only way you will be able to salvage this situation! It is the only way you will remove me from my daughter's life!"
"Leia...is...not...your...daughter!"
"I was not born with the name of Vader. I was named Vader, Darth Vader, Dark Lord of the Sith, by my true master, Darth Sidious, when I allowed the Dark Side of the Force to fully claim me! But Anakin Skywalker, that fool who believed so very much in love and its powers, managed to produce two children of great potential and significance. And the woman you love is one of them!" Vader watched Han, whose face was etched with irrational, pure hate. "Princess Leia Organa, who is truly Leia Shmi Skywalker is the daughter of Darth Vader, the one who ruined your life," he sneered.
Suddenly, the walls of the courtyard began to shudder, just as Han was doing. Vader nearly laughed but instead urged Han once more, "Whatever is going through your mind to do, do it now!"
"I can't!" Han admitted. Because, what he sincerely wanted to do was shoot lightning from his fingers. But no human being could do that!
"You can. It's in you to do it," Vader told him.
Han suddenly darted forward, not shooting lightning from his fingers, but settling for grabbing the chair and rushing at Vader with it. With his teeth bared, and his eyes flashing with his anger, Han would have frightened just about anybody.
Anybody that is, except Vader. Han managed to knock the Sith lord down, but Vader shoved him off, using half-Force and half-muscle to do it. "I hope that when you go after Obi-Wan Kenobi, that you've learned how to do better than this. Or he will shred you into even thinner ribbons than he did me!" Vader taunted.
"I'll do it somehow, but only after I've dealt with you!" Han seethed. It was then that Vader discovered his lightsaber was in Han's clutches. As the red blade ignited, Vader leaped to his feet. Han smiled coldly, and for one chilling, dangerous moment, Vader watched him advance, thinking all the while How could I have not seen it before?
All those years as a pickpocket when I was a kid are finally paying off, Han thought smugly as he advanced. Vader thinks he's so high and mighty! Here's your Force right back at you! He swung the lightsaber, but Vader leaped back, elegantly landing out of reach, even as Han rushed towards him. Vader raised one hand, and pulled the lightsaber loose from Han's hand with the Force. Instantly, he created a full body bind, which pinned Han's arms to his sides and froze his legs together.
"I'm quite impressed Captain Solo. You have gotten closer than virtually anyone, save Luke, to actually harming me. You use anger to give you strength, and you have a survival instinct that serves you very well. Despite these qualities, I still have the upper hand."
"What the hell is this?" Han stammered through a clenched jaw.
"Do you know who taught me how to do this? Obi-Wan did. You are not prepared to take either me or Obi-Wan down. Now, since you have nothing better to do with yourself for the moment, I suggest you listen again to what I have to say. We might just come up with the answer to all of your present difficulties.
"You blame me for your misfortunes. I suppose, in an indirect way, you would be right. After all, I did have you carbon frozen, did I not? But if Jabba the Hutt hadn't had that bounty on your head, then Boba Fett would not have been taking you anywhere else, and I would have been able to unfreeze you as soon as the test was completed. You could have been reunited with Princess Leia before a year and a half had passed. And then, even if I had gone ahead and brought Obi-Wan back from the dead, he would have had very little to do with you, or Leia. Therefore, we can only come to the conclusion that it is your debt to Jabba the Hutt that is ruining your life, not me.
"I've done some research on you, Captain Solo, especially since I saw how close you and my daughter had become. Perhaps the better title for you would be Lieutenant Solo, right? I should have known that you had once been a pilot in the Imperial Navy; you fly that horrible Millenium Falcon like it was a TIE fighter. And then I find out that your career came to an end when you aided Chewbacca the Wookiee in escaping from a future of slavery. That little bit of information got me even more interested.
"You incurred your debt to Jabba by dumping a cargo when, as you told him, Imperials were set to board your ship. By the way, I really don't mind that you used the Empire as an excuse. Especially when you and I and Jabba know the true nature of your cargo, don't we?"
"Hey look, before you get any kind of ideas, I just want you to know I was set up! If I'd told Jabba once, I told him a million times that I don't run..." Han declared through his frozen jaw.
Vader's voice grew softer and deadlier. "Oh, I'm well aware of that, Solo. If I thought for one second that you did, I would have killed you long ago. I can tolerate many things, even bounty hunters, but one thing I cannot abide is a slave runner. Incidentally, one of my agents has been able to track down your 'cargo,' and they are all back with their families again."
"Well, that's good. I'm glad for them..." Han grunted.
"Of course, that good deed did not go unpunished, did it? I know all about good deeds and where they get you, trust me on that! Before I launched the attack on Hoth, you were going to leave, weren't you? You were never part of the Rebellion officially, were you? What kept you from committing fully? I know the answer of course; you were going to do what Anakin Skywalker would have done. You were on your way to pay Jabba back his money! You had the money set aside all the while. You just hadn't gotten around to delivering it to him," Vader guessed with a note of disbelief in his metallic growl. "Do you think for one minute that Jabba the Hutt wanted your money? Do you have any idea of the kind of bounty Jabba was offering for you? Skies, if it hadn't made you so much trouble, I'd have told you that you should be flattered!"
"So what?" Han asked.
"So what? He doesn't need your money! He needs to make an example of you. You made him look like a weak fool in front of his posse of space trash! Sure, he would have been thrilled had you come to him with your debt paid in full. Then he could do what he wanted to you, and never pay anyone else a decicred! What a bargain! Well, at least he had to pay the full price on you to a bounty hunter before he got to hang you on his wall..." Vader waited, and then felt Han's anger returning. "Excellent...you are beginning to see just how much good you get from doing the 'right thing.' Soon, you will come to understand the freedom of the Dark Side of the Force."
To illustrate his point, Han fell free from his body bind. He narrowed his eyes, though, and said, "The Force has nothing to do with me, Vader. And so neither is the Dark Side; it's of no use to me."
"Of course it is!" Vader pointed in Han's face. "You will never be able to defeat the enemies you now face, you will never live in peace, and you most certainly will never have my daughter if you do not have a change of mind, Han Solo!"
"That's ridiculous! Even if I was inclined to do what you're suggesting, I couldn't do it. I can't become a Jedi!" Han half-laughed in disbelief.
"Oh, no. You're quite right," Vader agreed, stopping his pacing and giving Han Solo an even, straight-on gaze through his helmet visor. "You could never become a Jedi; you don't have it in you to become one...
"But, you can become a Sith!"