Vader opens the door, making no attempt to keep his arrival discreet. Imperial staff members are stunned to see him come in. Stormtroopers nervously wonder if they should open fire. Vader hasn't ignited his lightsaber, much to their confusion. Darth Vader slowly makes his way through the room, holding everyone's attention and scanning them with casually wandering eyes.
"Halt," a particularly brave stormtrooper says uncertainly, pointing his blaster at him.
Vader still does not ignite his lightsaber. He turns his sights on the stormtrooper and slowly approaches with a cold glare.
The stormtrooper trembles, unable to hold his blaster steady. "By order of the Emperor himself, you are . . . under arrest?" says the stormtrooper. Though it comes out sounding more like a request.
Without diverting his glare, Vader puts a hand on the blaster and pulls until the stormtrooper thinks he has no choice but to let go. Vader holds the blaster tight with both hands, sinking his fingers into the bending metal. He easily snaps the blaster in two with his bare hands and offers the broken pieces back to the stormtrooper. He realizes that Vader is calling the shots in this situation, so he takes the pieces of his blaster, hopelessly trying to figure out what he's supposed to do with them.
Now that that's taken care of, Vader heads for one of the terminals where an officer sits and sweats harder and harder as Vader gets closer. Vader looms over the officer and says, "I require your seat."
The officer acted as if his chair was infested with deadly creatures, leaving it for Vader who sat down in it and pressed a few buttons. Everyone else in the room wondered if they are really just going to stand there and watch him have his way with their terminal. Though no one wanted to be the next person to disturb him.
As Darth Vader gets the terminal ready, he says to everyone in the room, "Valum would be furious if he were to hear that you let me do this." Everyone is shaken, but they don't know what to do with that. Vader continues, "It is fortunate then that you were all elsewhere when I broadcasted my message."
Recognizing what he's telling them, everyone exits the room as quickly as possible, relieved that he is letting them go.
Vader presses the last needed button and talks into the microphone for the entire facility to hear. "This is Darth Vader speaking. For years you have served a cruel and heinous Emperor who has kept a great many secrets from you. The Emperor lied when he told you the Jedi were planning to take over. Emperor Palpatine is a Sith lord who orchestrated and manipulated both sides of the Clone Wars to serve his quest for power. There is no reason for any of you to lay down your lives for such an Emperor. I will not stop until I have control of this facility. I would rather not have to kill all of you to do that. I advise every member of this facility's staff to evacuate to the nearby star destroyer. Valum will order you to stop me; he wishes to send you to your deaths. But I wish to let you leave. You've all heard the stories of how dangerous I am. That is this person who will fight until every last one of you is either on that star destroyer or dead."
Darth Vader stands from the chair, approaches the exit, grabbing his lightsaber off of his belt and igniting it. He expects to see company soon. He walks into a hall and finds dozens of stormtroopers.
"OPEN FIRE!" shouts one of the many troopers that shoot at him. They had their warning.
As he blocks the first few bolts, Vader uses the Force to shatter the nearby light sources, eventually leaving them to fight in the dark. Vader's superior helmet is equipped with night-vision that gives him the advantage. The stormtroopers can still see Vader due to his lightsaber, but they can barely see each other. As Vader makes his way toward them, they try to back up, often bumping into or tripping over each other. Vader deflects every blast that would have hit him and rushes forward, striking many of them down.
Vader force-pushes them, making them fall over onto each other and struggle desperately to get back up before it's too late. Vader doesn't relent as they trample each other in their attempts to back away or even stand. He cuts through two or three of them at a time. Vader finds a stormtrooper on the floor who reaches for his blaster. Vader stomps on the trooper's helmet, shattering the inferior armor and crushing the skull inside.
The few stormtroopers that remain run through blast-doors and hit the button. Vader steps over the last bodies of this batch and hurries toward his destination. As he goes, Vader can hear another group on their way to him. "Let them come," Vader thinks as he force-pulls the blaster of a fallen trooper into his hand. Vader enters another, much larger room and walks at a casual pace. He raises the blaster and fires two shots just to make sure his pursuers are going the right way. Vader reaches the exit on the other side of the room and pushes the button at just the right moment. The door starts to close slowly, but Vader still has a good view of the room he just left as hordes of stormtroopers flood in. Fortunately, this particular room was previously rigged with explosives. Vader points the blaster through the remaining opening of the closing door and shoots one of the bombs, blowing up every stormtrooper in the pursuing group. Vader uses the Force to hold back a portion of the explosion that would have sprayed through the door until it closes completely.
Vader moves on. He's almost there and, based off what he's sensing, the inquisitors are almost there as well. Vader makes his way to a room with only one entrance. (Apart from the vents that is.) All around are separatist tanks and a few speeders here and there. He stands in the center of the large room and stares at the door, waiting.
Suddenly, the entrance opens to reveal five inquisitors. Behind them is a legion of stormtroopers who wait for their backup to be needed.
The inquisitors ignite their lightsabers and slowly get into varying positions, surrounding Darth Vader. Apparently, Kara had brought a spare lightsaber.
The Mon Calamari among them seems drained of motivation and emotion, but she also lacks the visible desire to leave the Empire. It seems she has just elected to go through her lot in life mechanically even in this most urgent situation.
"Tell me," Vader says, "Did your changeling receive the medical attention he required?"
"What do you care!?" Kara growls.
Though the Chiss calmly tells Vader, "He's alright." Vader can see that the Chiss holds no ill will toward him. The Chiss seems to believe that Vader cares more about the Changeling than some of the other inquisitors.
Vader says, "Kara, I am truly sorry for what I've done to you."
"SHUT UP!"
"I do not blame you for being angry. Though I wish for your forgiveness, I do not expect it. But I do implore you to recognize this opportunity before you. You can leave this life of misery and fight against the Empire."
The Wookiee lets out a few noises in objection.
"Peace!?" Vader questions in response to the Wookie. "What is peace under the Empire? You should know that the Empire's idea of peace involves the enslavement of your people."
The Wookiee growled solemnly.
"Yes, there are bigger things than the fate of a single race. But it is many races that suffer. And none that are safe from the Emperor's oppression."
"We are safe from the Emperor's tyranny," the Togruta counters, a wicked grin across his face.
"So that is your rationale. I was wondering how you justify such loyalty to an Empire that mistreats your kind. But your reasoning is, not only selfish, but also oblivious. You may have told yourself otherwise, but you are as much a slave as those who labor in spice mines. The Empire gives you no freedom and the Emperor sees you as disposable."
"Why are we listening to this!?" Kara demands. "Let's just kill him!"
The Wookie growls his agreement.
"Well then," Vader says. "I seem to need someone to come rescue me."
Taking her cue, Ahsoka leaps out from behind a tank and lands next to Vader. She ignites her two white lightsabers. "There's only five of them? This is going to be easy."
Vader adds, "There are five inquisitors . . . and the many stormtroopers."
Ahsoka shrugs. "Yeah, but they don't count."
The many stormtroopers felt that one.
Vader force-pushes the Mon Calamari to a distance and approaches the Wookiee while Ahsoka lunges at the Togruta. The Wookiee expected to be able to overpower Vader with his great strength; yet Vader is able to withstand his hardest strikes. The bigger problem is defending against both the Wookiee and Kara at the same time and even that is manageable for him.
Ahsoka has an even easier time. She concentrates mostly on the Togruta while also keeping the Chiss's attention. The Chiss doesn't give Ahsoka too much trouble; he is barely fighting her and wishes he didn't have to at all.
The Mon Calamari rejoins the others and attacks Vader, giving him three inquisitors to fight at once. Ahsoka force-pushes the Chiss; not very hard; just enough to give him an excuse to stay down for a while. Ahsoka positions herself between Vader and the Mon Calamari. The Togruta joins the cluster; that leaves Vader and Ahsoka outnumbered two to one for as long as the Chiss stays out of it. Vader and Ahsoka have an easier time defending themselves than the numbers would imply. Not only are they each of higher skill than any inquisitor, their synergy is also vastly superior. Vader and Ahsoka haven't fought together in a long time and yet they can somehow feel each other's movements and sense the other's plans. They move as if they had rehearsed together; each knowing when to move out of the other's way or block an attack the other is too busy for. Ahsoka jumps over Vader to get away from one of Kara's attacks. Ahsoka lands in front of Vader and uses her two lightsabers to lock blades with two inquisitors while Vader turns to fight Kara. Without warning, they both focus on the Wookiee, giving him too much trouble to deal with. In very little time, the Wookiee is given shallow cuts in a leg, arm, and shoulder. The Wookiee falls to the floor, growling in pain, giving Vader and Ahsoka one less inquisitor to fend off at once. Or at least the same number since the Chiss reenters the others out of obligation.
Vader thinks he can handle the Mon Calamari, the Chiss and Kara at the same time. Ahsoka can sense that. She lunges at the Togruta who keeps backing up so far, he separates from the others, venturing between two tanks as they fight.
As they fight, Ahsoka shakes her head at him, having heard everything earlier. "You are a disgrace," says one togruta to another.
The Togruta can barely keep himself alive against Ahsoka. Her defenses are impenetrable, giving him no chance. Every so often, Ahsoka kicks the Togruta in the stomach or even jumps to kick him in the head.
Vader has only one lightsaber to match against the three opponents, but he can still handle them. He slashes at Kara while force-choking the Mon Calamari and when the Chiss comes near, he force-throws the Mon Calamari at the Chiss.
Vader uses the Force to pick up an entire tank and hover it over the fallen Mon Calamari. Then he releases it. The Mon Calamari uses the Force to keep the tank from falling on her, but, unlike Darth Vader, she can't handle its weight for very long. The Chiss force-pulls her out from underneath the tank just in time to save her.
The Mon Calamari doesn't thank him. She just decides it's better to do something other than try to fight Vader right now. The Chiss doesn't take offence to her lack of gratitude. He knows she hasn't been very emotionally expressive for a long time.
Ahsoka jumps off of a tank and attacks from above, disorienting the Togruta. When she lands, she attacks, almost taking his head off if not for him backing up in time. Though, backing up has lost him his balance. Ahsoka sweeps his leg out from under him. He falls, but is quick to roll and get back up for more. As he continues the battle, the Mon Calamari appears behind Ahsoka out of her sight and closes in on her. Ahsoka barely notices the hum and glow of another lightsaber from behind her and blocks an attack just in time. Ahsoka is better than two inquisitors combined under normal circumstances, but they have her tightly surrounded between lanes of tanks as they both attack at once. Vader can sense this.
Darth Vader can't see Ahsoka right now. Nor can he see the Mon Calamari and Togruta. (Not with his own eyes at least.)
"Look through my eyes," Ahsoka whispers as if he were right next to her, surprising even herself with the strange urge to say that.
Vader reaches out and grabs one of the tanks beside them. He jolts the tank at Ahsoka and the Mon Calamari. The difference is that Ahsoka ducks knowingly while the Mon Calamari is struck by the tank. When the tank collides with another, the Mon Calamari's legs are caught between the rim of one tank and the center of the other. The Mon Calamari's legs are crushed and the tank is sent flying off as to not land on Ahsoka. The tank lands with a violent crash, but does so far away from anyone.
The Mon Calamari slides off of the other tank, her legs broken. Somehow she shows little reaction to what's happened to her.
"Whoa," Ahsoka whispers, uncertain of how they did that.
The Togruta hacks at her furiously. As Ahsoka defends herself, she can see the pure anger in his eyes. The Togruta has shown no sign of being moved by Vader's words and is openly apathetic to the suffering of others. He even seems to like being where he is in service to the Emperor. Ahsoka doesn't want to believe that he's beyond redemption, but she knows it's beyond her ability to redeem him.
"Do it," Vader whispers as if they're right next to each other.
Ahsoka swings at the Togruta with incredible speed and grace. She keeps making him back up all the way back into the view of the others. Ahsoka runs at the Togruta. She deflects his lightsaber to the side, moves around him and stabs him in the back with her second lightsaber.
Kara is stunned to see the Togruta fall. This leaves the Chiss and Kara as the last standing inquisitors. "SHOOT THEM, YOU FOOLS!" Kara screams at the stormtroopers who pour in through the entrance and open fire.
As the blaster bolts fly, the Chiss doesn't blame Ahsoka for her decision. The Togruta always was the hardest one to be around. And he can sense that the Mon Calamari is still alive. The stormtroopers have intervened, but the Chiss knows that won't be enough. He sees that this is the opportunity he has always wanted to do what he wasn't brave enough to do sooner.
Kara ignites the other side of her lightsaber and makes it spin. She throws it at Vader . . . but the Chiss deflects it away from him, showing whose side he has chosen.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?" Kara screams.
"Come to your senses, Kara! This is our chance to be free! Isn't this what you've always wanted?"
"Not if it means joining him! You know what he's done to me!"
"And you know you would have done the same thing!" the Chiss counters. The Chiss leaves her, turning his attention to fighting the stormtroopers.
Kara is affected by what the Chiss said. But she still wants revenge and stares at Vader hatefully.
Darth Vader tells Ahsoka, "Leave the Twi'lek to me."
Ahsoka doesn't like the sound of that, but she trusts him. She nods and continues to fight the stormtroopers with the Chiss beside her.
Vader runs and Kara gives chase. To give them some privacy, Vader picks up a tank with the Force and throws it through the wall, creating a massive hole he can escape through. Vader jumps through the hole, lands a distance below, and waits for her arrival.
Kara jumps through and faces him in the room where they can be alone together while still hearing the blasters and lightsabers through the hole in the wall.
"Don't try to ask me again!" Kara demands. "I have come to kill you!"
"You were never going to kill me," Vader says. "You have no hope of besting me in combat; I have illustrated that quite clearly when last we met."
"So you'll just kill me the way she killed the other?"
"That is for you to decide."
"I choose death; which one of us receives it changes nothing."
"This is what you have chosen to honor your father?" Vader questions dubiously.
"Yes."
"Your father would not want you to die. Nor would he want you to exist as a slave to the Empire. If you wish to fight me out of anger, do not pretend it is for your father's sake."
"My father wanted me to be a Jedi. But you took that from me."
"Then take that back! Who you will be is your choice; not mine, not the Empire's."
Kara replies, "I choose to be the one to avenge my father's death."
Author's Note: I want to set the record straight in case there's any misconceptions. You might have read this chapter and thought that I was making Vader and Ahsoka a force dyad like Rey and Kylo Ren. This is not the case. I think Rey and Kylo are hollow because their only reason to love each other seems to be that they are mystically bounded by force stuff beyond their control.
Rey and Kylo only love each other because they have a mystical connection. That's bad.
Ahsoka and Vader only have a mystical connection because they love each other. That's good.
In case in interests you, my other story, Disney Princesses: Extermination is finished.
Thank you for reading. Please follow and review.
(This next part was added in later.)
I have a YouTube Channel now. I review fictional couples, talking about how well they're written, how good their chemistry is and the story of how they get together. You'll be able to find me by typing into the search bar –
Couple Reviews by MVPKnight
