Chapter 5
Darth Apostas rode in silence with her shuttle pilot to the Death Star. She should have known the Jedi would come to Endor. The redemption of her former master placed too many dangerous secrets within the hands of the Rebellion and now the security of the Empire could be compromised. She briefly considered the irony of the situation, switching places with her father. A twinge of regret filled her, but the pain of her father's betrayal stung hard.
Apostas drove away her regret with a fit of rage, allowing the dark side to purge her feelings of compassion. She needed to be composed before she faced her master.
The Lambda-class shuttle landed in a hangar bay and Apostas strolled down the access ramp, ignoring Moff Jerjerrod's astonishment at her unannounced visit.
"Lady Apostas, why have you come here?" the administrator asked.
Not even bothering to look at him, Apostas replied, "I must see the Emperor. We are not to be disturbed."
Jerjerrod wisely chose not to follow the Sith Lord as she entered the turbolift. Apostas rode to the top of her master's spire in silence. The turbolift halted and the doors opened in front of her, revealing the Emperor's throne room. Darth Sidious was seated in his throne, facing the stars as he meditated.
Apostas strolled past the Imperial Guards and walked up the flight of stairs to her master's throne. She could sense his irritation in the Force. Her master had no reason to hide it.
"I thought I told you to remain on the command ship," he said coldly. It was an impersonal address as his gaze never left the stars.
"A small Rebel force has penetrated the shield and landed on Endor," Apostas told her master.
The throne slowly turned so Darth Sidious could face his apprentice. "Yes, I know," he said. His apparent omniscience sometimes unnerved her.
"My brother is with them," Apostas said.
The Emperor stared at his apprentice. "Are you sure?" he asked.
"I have felt him, Master," Apostas replied. "If my brother is there, my former master should be with him."
"Strange that I have not felt them," Sidious commented. He studied Apostas, probing with the Force. Apostas kept her mental walls to high for him to penetrate them. "Are your feelings on this matter clear?"
"They are clear, Lord Sidious," Apostas replied.
"Then you must go down to the Sanctuary Moon and wait for them," the Emperor ordered.
"They will come to me?" Apostas asked, confused by her master's orders.
Sidious grinned knowingly. "I have foreseen it," he said. "Their compassion will be their undoing. They will come to you willingly. Destroy Lord Vader and bring your brother before me."
Apostas bowed her head to her master. "As you wish," she said.
The Rebel party continued to follow the trail towards the shield generator station, dodging Imperial patrols and trying not to spook the locals. The sun was beginning to set and the air was growing crisper as evening approached.
Anakin stopped walking and took a drink of water from his canteen. He knew they were being followed. The Jedi sensed the general anxiety in the Force as natives kept their distance, but were not willing to yet another group of foreigners take root on their lands.
But there was something else he could sense in the Force. Anakin could tell a major confrontation was ahead. He could remember Mace speaking about shatterpoints to him once. Anakin never understood them, but he occasionally received premonitions in the Force that led to disastrous events. It was no foresight Anakin, but a mere echo.
Winter placed her hand on Anakin's shoulder. He smiled to her, his worries slowly dissolving due to the act.
"What's the matter?" Winter asked him.
"We're being followed," Anakin said. It was not a lie, but he did not want to talk about his premonitions at the moment.
"You sense it too?" Luke asked.
"Ewoks," Anakin said. "They're the native sentients on Endor. Primitive culture."
"Are they dangerous?" asked Kyp.
Anakin looked down to his Padawan. "In large numbers, yes," he replied. "But we're well armed. They won't attack unless they have us at a disadvantage."
Chewbacca took a few steps off the path to investigate something. Han grumbled before following him. "Chewie, what are you doing?" he asked.
I'm hungry, the Wookiee replied as he approached a dead animal. It appeared to be dangling from a tree, as if it had been caught on something and died.
"It's just a dead animal," Han said as Winter and the droids moved in closer to investigate.
Chewbacca moved to grab his treat and Luke yelled, "No Chewie! Wait! Don't!"
When the Wookiee took the animal, it triggered a trap that ensnared the party. A hidden net rushed up from beneath the leaves and surrounded them, lifting the group off the ground.
"Just great," Han grumbled. "Always thinking with your stomach."
"Artoo, get us out of here," Anakin said.
R2-D2 beeped. A panel on its body opened and a buzz saw emerged to cut the net.
"Artoo, do be careful with that," C-3PO warned. "It's a long..."
The net snapped and the party fell. Threepio finished his statement by yelling, "Drop!"
"Next time, check that droid for..." Han groaned.
"No loose wire jokes," Anakin said as he sat. He patted the astromech droid. "Good job, Artoo."
Suddenly, a group of Ewoks brandishing spears approached the Rebels. They were hunters and quite pleased with their large catch. They chattered in some language that Anakin did not recognize.
"I've got a bad feeling about this," Anakin muttered.
"Nice going, Chewie," Han told the Wookiee.
"It's going to be fine," Luke told the others.
"Do you have any mind tricks handy?" Han asked Anakin.
"Sure," Anakin said before tapping into the Force. He could sense the Ewoks were still trying to assess the threat his party posed. He was about to throw some suggestion into his next works when Threepio sat up.
"Oh, my head!" the golden protocol droid exclaimed.
The Ewoks nearly shared a collective gasp as they witnessed the droid for the first time. Their next move surprised the Rebels. The Ewoks began to worship Threepio.
"Oh my goodness!" Threepio exclaimed.
"Threepio, what's going on?" Winter asked.
"I'm not sure," the droid replied.
"Ask them," Anakin commanded.
Threepio said something in the primitive language and began exchanging words of conversation with the Ewoks. Anakin grinned. Threepio could never remember that Anakin was responsible for building him and programming him to speak over six million forms of communication. His hard work as a slave boy was going to pay off.
"What are you telling them?" Han asked, ever impatient.
Turning to the smuggler, the protocol droid replied, "Hello, I think. They're using a primitive dialect, so I can't be sure."
"What are they saying?" Han inquired.
"I'm rather embarrassed, General Solo, but I think they believe me to be some sort of god," the protocol droid answered.
Chewbacca made a noise that closely resembled shock.
"It's okay," Luke told the Wookiee. "We'll just give them our weapons. Chewie, give them your bowcaster."
"Well, why don't you use your divine influence and get us out of this?" Han requested.
"I beg your pardon, General Solo, but that just wouldn't be proper," Threepio replied.
"Proper?" Han asked, annoyed with the protocol droid.
"It's against my programming to impersonate a deity," the droid told him.
"When did this happen?" Anakin thought aloud. Then he remembered it was part of Threepio's original programming that all protocol droids possessed. Anakin later modified that setting, but it must have been set to normal when Threepio's memory was wiped at some point in the past.
Threepio turned to Anakin and asked, "Master Anakin, what are you talking about?"
"Why you!" Han growled before he moved to lunge at Threepio.
And the Ewoks came forward, spears pointed at the former smuggler. Han's eyes grew as wide as saucers and he threw his hands up in surrender. "My mistake," he said. "He's an old friend of mine."
Anakin sighed. "I can always try that mind trick," he volunteered.
"Don't," Luke said. "There's always another way."
