Chapter 6

Luke remembered swearing to Obi-Wan that he'd never return to Tatooine. Now, he stared at the Jundland Wastes with Artoo at his side outside his first mentor's hut, observing the setting suns. He had been told that Tusken Raiders stayed away from Kenobi's home due to their superstitious nature. Three years later, it still held. None were bold enough to approach his temporary home.

Artoo warbled and beeped.

Luke looked to the astromech and said, "I worry about the others too."

Artoo moaned before rolling back into the hut. Luke followed his droid after a few minutes, intent on resuming work. He returned from Anchorhead with components for his lightsaber hours ago and did not waste time sprawling the primary components on the worktable in the den.

Luke sat before the worktable and drifted into the Force, using a few Jedi calming exercises before he retrieved leather bound book. Kenobi left the book for when Luke would face the trial of constructing his own lightsaber. Located in a chest, the book could only be opened by him since it had been coded to accept only Luke's fingerprints. If anyone else tried to access the secrets of lightsaber technology, the book would have burst into flames.

Luke set the book in front of Artoo. "Turn the page when I ask you to," he requested.

The book described a brief history of the lightsaber, describing it as the ultimate test of a Jedi's skill and concentration. For such a mystical weapon, the lightsaber required simple components that Luke could purchase cheaply. The true awe-inspiring nature of the weapon was the combination of components to produce the galactic renowned symbol of the Jedi Order.

Luke continued to shape the thirty-three centimeter long cylinder that would house the components of his lightsaber. The young man originally considered fashioning his first laser sword to resemble his father's, but the cylinder he shaped would come to resemble the lightsaber of Obi-Wan Kenobi. Like Anakin Skywalker, Luke opted to build a weapon based on the design of his first mentor.

As Luke realized when he first peered through Obi-Wan's book, the lightsaber was an intense effort to fashion. Obi-Wan told him that a Jedi Master in the Clone Wars could construct a new lightsaber in at least three days, but the effort generally required weeks or even months. Luke knew his first weapon would take time to build. After taking a moment to use a calming exercise to rid the ache from his fingers, Luke resumed his task.

Mara Jade moved stealthily through the streets of Mos Eisley. It was night and predators would undoubtedly be seeking vulnerable women. Mara was far from vulnerable. Her limited training provided her the skills for stealth necessary for the assassin to operate. The Emperor's Hand attracted no trouble as she walked into the crowded cantina and found her Imperial contact waiting at a booth in a dark corner of the building.

"Our spies are everywhere," the agent wearing smuggler's clothes said as he passed Mara a datapad. "They've reported a sighting of the target at Anchorhead early this morning."

Mara took the datapad and slipped it into a concealed pocket in her black cloak. "Good work," she told him before leaving the cantina. She decided to review the information at her apartment. Mara did not question her Emperor's motives, but even she realized the implications of the search: Darth Sidious sought a new apprentice to replace Darth Vader.

Mara vowed not to fail. If Skywalker was as powerful as the Emperor claimed, she required help. Luckily for her, she knew a few expendable bounty hunters currently in the city. It would only be a matter of time before she found Luke Skywalker.

Luke meditated outside Kenobi's hut at the break of dawn, dipping into the Force completely. He expanded his senses outward, lifting massive boulders around the compound and rotated them in complex patterns before setting them down again. Yoda's lessons were expanded and applied at Obi-Wan's insistence.

After working on his lightsaber through the night, Luke was weary. But he needed to complete his exercises before retiring for the day. His tired mind drifted in meditation, recalling his memories of Han, Leia and Chewbacca. Once he completed his training, he could ascertain their fate. Luke did not take his commitment to the Jedi lightly. The Alliance needed Jedi Knights and Luke was their last hope.

Luke, exhausted, rose from his meditation and returned to the hut. "Artoo," he said to his droid, "keep watch."

The astromech beeped in response, allowing his master the opportunity to sleep.

Leia ached, longing for the hot bath she enjoyed the day before. When she agreed to train under Darth Vader, Leia knew the lessons would be intense. She was wrong. The training was brutal.

Her red lightsaber hummed and the training remote whirred as it moved around the sterile training room. Dressed in her white jumpsuit, Leia prepared for the next onslaught of bolts.

Leia's experience with swordplay mostly included fencing lessons she had to endure at Bail Organa's insistence, but she did not realize that her training included the basics of the Form I lightsaber technique, with which she was reacquainted in Vader's drills.

The day before, Leia's father guided her through learning how to touch and listen to the Force by levitating small objects. Her doubts of power were dispelled when she grasped the technique very quickly. What Leia failed to realize was that Vader was trying to prepare her for her first lightsaber drills.

The remote swiftly spat a red bolt. Leia focused on the Force, allowing it to guide the motion of her body to deflect the shot. Then came another shot that she deflected. And another. Every ten successful deflections increased the difficulty level. Leia deflected the tenth bolt and every part of her body already screamed to quit.

Leia could feel Vader watching her outside the training room. Her father, much to Leia's surprise, was actually a good teacher. He kept his distance, offering advice when the situation required it. His teachings of basic Force techniques kept her going for now.

Bolt eleven emerged, followed by numbers twelve and thirteen. The shots came so rapidly that Leia only managed to deflect one. The other two bolts crashed into her right leg, causing her to yelp since the remote was set to actually cause pain. Leia tried to rely on her politician's training to remain cool, but pain eclipsed her logic. She fed on it as the next series of bolts blazed towards her.

And Leia deflected every single bolt. The fuel was short lived. The next round of bolts pierced her defenses, earning more cries.

Suddenly, the remote ceased its program and Vader entered the training room. "You ascended to the second level," he told his daughter.

Leia clenched her teeth, trying to ignore the pain from where the bolts hit her. "I didn't make it past the second level," she said.

"You will improve with training, Leia," said Vader. "You did not shun the Dark Side of the Force when it beckoned your use. Physical pain is a decent driving force, but the pain of loss is a massive catalyst."

"But can't pain also interfere with your judgment?" Leia asked.

"Part of learning to harness the Dark Side is control," Vader answered. "Unfettered rage leads to the destruction of Jedi and Dark Jedi alike. Abandoning focus is nothing short of foolishness."

Leia nodded. She still yearned to hear Han Solo's voice again, but she always remembered Boba Fett when her thoughts turned to her love. If what her father told her was true, she could focus on her quest to free Han and destroy Fett to drive her to greater levels of power in the Force.

"Yes, father," Leia acknowledged.

Vader reactivated the remote's programming with the Force. "Again," he commanded. "You shall not rest until you have ascended to level three."

Leia once again raised her lightsaber and expanded her Force perception. "Very well," she said.

+

Luke awoke in a cold sweat, his eyes rapidly opening. It was a broad vision from the Force that haunted his dream. The premonition was not as intense as the one he received on Dagobah, but Luke knew something dark was shaping in the galaxy.

But Luke knew he had to focus on the moment. He climbed out of bed and donned his black flight suit. As he entered the den, Luke realized that it was evening. He took a ration bar from his supply pack and, after pausing for a second, his father's lightsaber. He clipped the weapon to his belt and stepped outside the hut.

Artoo rolled out the hut behind Luke, warbling something.

Luke consumed his ration bar, searching with the Force. Something did not feel right. Then, Artoo screamed.

Luke reacted swiftly, diving to the side as a blaster bolt flew through the spot where he was standing only a second ago. His lightsaber flew up from Luke's belt and connected with his right hand. The Jedi apprentice activated the brilliant blue energy blade just before he landed on hand and knees.

A Bothan bounty hunter approached the hut and sneered, "End of the line, Skywalker!"

Luke stood and brandished his blue energy energy blade. "That was a free shot and you missed," he told the bounty hunter. "You'll have to make the next one count."

The Bothan fired his blaster pistol again, only to have it forced away by the lightsaber in Luke's hands. He continued trying to hit him, but Luke only advanced, deflecting the shots with ease. Just as he was about to fire another blast, blue plasma sheered through his left arm. The Bothan screamed as his forearm and blaster pistol fell harmlessly to the ground.

Luke angled his lightsaber to point at the Bothan's throat. "Who sent you?" he asked.

He did not have time to hear a response. Luke sensed a thermal detonator flying through the air to kill them both.