Title: Captive
Author: Lora
Disclaimer: I don't get any money for this, I just love fooling around in GL's sandbox.
CW/TW: This is not a cute, heart-warming story. There will be mentions of torture, physical and mental abuse, manipulation, intimidation, rape, angst, fear, anxiety, and general violence. Also cliffhangers. If this is too much for you, please read another story. Enjoy your reading.
Story updates weekly. § § marks a greater scene/character change, § just a smaller break.
His body was screaming. Every nerve and fiber was on fire or at least that was how it felt. He must be screaming as well, but he was too preoccupied by the pain in his body to notice.
Suddenly the pain lessened leaving only a dull ache in its wake. A cold laugh made him look up; her eyes were icy and burning with hate and vengeance. A shiver ran down his spine, but whether it was caused by those eyes or the chill of the room, he couldn't tell.
He hung limply from the chains, his body too tired to stand under its own power.
Looking into her eyes he knew she wouldn't stop until she had completely destroyed him. And she knew he understood that she would enjoy – was enjoying – killing him slowly, while breaking him down day for day, hour for hour.
He was screwed.
§ §
Leia woke. She wasn't quite sure what had woken her, but she had this uneasy feeling in her body and felt uncomfortable.
For a while she just lay there trying to go back to sleep, turning around a few times, but finally she gave up. Whatever it was it wasn't going away. Maybe talking to Luke will help. It usually did. Of course, Leia wasn't quite sure where in the galaxy he was right now; he always seemed to be a new place whenever she talked to him, searching for jedi artifacts.
Leia quietly slipped out of bed, put on a robe, and walked out of the bedroom. She sat down in front of the holocom and paused. It seemed a bit silly of her to worry like this and Luke would probably dispel her fears, but she still felt the need to talk to her twin. Now the question was whether he was in a place where he could use holotransmissions or not. Otherwise she would have to settle for sound.
Leia first called the last place she knew he had been. Even if he wasn't there anymore, they could probably tell her when he had left and where he had gone.
"Q'tar outpost," the man in the other end said. "What can I do for you, Madam?"
"Council member Leia Organa. I'm looking for my brother. Is he still there?" Leia didn't feel a need to tell the man, who her brother was. They were both famous and well known within the New Republic.
The man looked at another screen. "It appears he isn't. Our records show that General Skywalker was here, but left a few days ago."
"Can you specify that, please?" Leia decided not to correct the man in that her brother had resigned his commission. It wasn't important right now.
"Yes, ma'am. General Skywalker arrived 9 days ago and left again 4 days ago." Apparently seeing that another question was coming he continued. "He noted that he was going to the Folor base."
Leia smiled. "Thank you, sir."
"My pleasure, ma'am."
Leia signed off with the Q'tar outpost and called Folor. Most likely he wasn't on Folor itself, but he usually told the outposts and bases he visited where he was going next. I wonder if Wedge is still on Folor? It took a little longer before her call was answered this time.
"Folor base. Councilor Organa, what a pleasant surprise."
Leia smiled. "Likewise, General Salm. I didn't know Generals took incoming calls."
General Salm smiled slightly. "I was here and had the time. Most of the base is sleeping right now."
"Ah right." Leia had momentarily forgotten what time they were on. "Well, I'll make it short then. I'm looking for my brother and he should have gone there recently."
General Salm looked to the side on another screen. "Hmm... the records show that Jedi Skywalker has been here, but his last visit is several months ago."
"Really? Q'tar said Folor was his next stop."
"When was that?"
"They said he left four days ago." Leia could feel some of the unease from when she woke up rear its head again. No, he's all right. Nothing's wrong.
General Salm frowned. "Well, if he's here, he hasn't checked in. I could call the registration people and see if they made a mistake?"
Leia nodded. "I would appreciate it, General." Leia didn't let her worry show, but she knew General Salm had probably guessed it anyway. She patiently waited while General Salm made a few calls, staring into the screen at the New Republic Crest. They just made a mistake. Or maybe he got sidetracked. It happens.
"Councilor Organa." Leia was brought back to the present. "I'm sorry, but there doesn't seem to be any mistakes. As far as I and others can tell your brother never arrived here."
Leia nodded slowly. "Looks like he got sidetracked by something else then."
"Looks like it." General Salm didn't look too pleased with the result of his little search.
"Thank you for your time, General. I'll let you get some sleep now." Leia managed a little smile to set him at ease. An ease she didn't feel.
"I hope you find him, Councilor," he said honestly.
Leia nodded. "Thank you. Organa out." Leia signed off and leaned back in her chair. It was too early to get worried. She would just have to see about reaching him through his comlink.
Taking a deep breath, Leia called his comlink knowing it would take some time for the call to go through. She waited a full minute before she started to let a little panic take over. Where was he? Why didn't he answer her call? Why hadn't he reported in on Folor like planned? Leia's head was full of questions she couldn't answer. Then she forced herself to be logical. Maybe he had just decided to go somewhere else after checking out of the Q'tar outpost and was in a place where he couldn't be reached by comlink. The Force knew there were still places where there just weren't coverage. It was a possibility. Leia sighed. She just wished she could somehow reach her brother right at this moment, so he could reassure her that everything was all right.
Deciding that she wasn't going to get anywhere at the moment, Leia rose and headed back to bed. Luke would probably call her tomorrow or the day after and all her little fears would seem silly and overprotective.
§ §
Pain. Seemingly endless pain. Lighting raining over his body, over and over again. The Emperor standing there in the dark throne room onboard the Death Star, letting sith lighting rain down on him while his cold laughter resounded in his ears. He wanted it to stop, but he couldn't give in to the dark side. He wouldn't. He wanted to cry for help to his father, but his lungs had no air for anything but screaming, and even those seemed to get strangled in his throat as pain constricted his muscles and made him writhe in his chains.
Chains? He didn't have chains on the Death Star. Luke was suddenly right back in the cold cave where he had spend the last few days getting continuously tortured. Well, at least he supposed it was days. There were longer periods without torture, where he assumed she was sleeping. It's not sith lighting, it's electricity. It's not Palpatine, it's... Luke realized he didn't know her name. She had never told it. But she had a hate for him as strong as what Palpatine had had, if not stronger.
His arm muscles spasmed and as suddenly as it had started the electrical tendrils stopped. A little moan escaped him before he could stop it.
She laughed. "Having fun, Skywalker?"
Luke stared at her. "Not exactly," he crocked. His voice was raw from screaming. "This is not my idea of fun."
"Oh? Well, that's too bad. It's fun for me." And with that she pressed the button on her little control device and the electrical lighting started again.
§ §
Leia went about her daily life as usual, but the unease from last night was still there. It just wasn't going away. She had tried calling Luke again in the morning, but with the same result as in the night. Nothing. She was starting to worry for real now. It had been days since she had last heard from him and he usually called back to her with a few days in between calls. It wasn't like him not to call her for more than a week. I really hope nothing have happened to him. Maybe I should get someone to look into it. Leia shook the thought away. She was being paranoid and overprotective. She couldn't waste New Republic resources on a search just because she was worried. She needed some sort of proof that something was wrong other than a little unease in her stomach.
Making a decision Leia sat up straight, squared her shoulders and went to work on her computer. She had no proof that anything had happened to him, but if something had happened maybe she could find some proof of it. Well, Leia, time to test your investigating skills.
§
Leia pressed her palms against the sides of her head. Nothing. She had spend an hour trying to find some information about her brother's current whereabouts and nothing. Maybe she was doing this wrong. She hadn't wanted to involve too many people yet, but it looked like she would have to involve someone if she was to get anywhere.
Leia lifted her head from her hands. General Salm had said Luke hadn't been by Folor, but that didn't mean that Wedge couldn't have heard from him. It was as good a place as any to start.
She was in luck; Wedge was just in from a training exercise and sitting in his office.
He smiled at the sight of her. "Hi, Leia. Been a while."
Leia nodded in agreement. "Yes, it has, Wedge. How are you?"
Wedge shrugged. "Oh, it's going okay, I guess. We won't be here for long; you know how Admiral Ackbar won't let me just play around with fighters and training new squadrons." He laughed a little and Leia couldn't help but smile. It wasn't news to her that Ackbar was trying to get Wedge to sign up as a permanent part of his advisor team, just like it was no secret that Wedge was trying to avoid just that.
"Well, Commander, he just doesn't want you to waste your talents."
Wedge moaned. "Please, Leia. No titles when you're talking with me or I'll have to start calling you Councilor Organa."
"All right, let's just drop it then. Heard from Luke or Han lately?"
Wedge shook his head. "Last I heard from Luke he said he was planning on coming by while I was here and he was in the region, but I haven't heard from him since."
"When was that?"
Wedge looked thoughtful. "Hmm, about two weeks ago. He said he was planning to go to Commenor and would come by Folor at the same time, but I haven't seen him here yet." Wedge scratched his chin. "I'm only scheduled to stay here for a few more days before we are to return to Coruscant. I had kinda expected him to be here by now."
Leia frowned. From what she had been told Luke had left the Q'tar outpost five days ago and should have long since arrived at the Folor base. "Weird. I know he left the last place he was some days ago, so he should have been at Folor now."
Wedge was starting to look at little apprehensive. "Luke's not one to break off a meeting with someone without saying so first. You think something have happened to him?"
"I don't know," Leia sighed. "That's what I'm trying to find out."
"Have you talked to General Cracken?"
Leia shook her head. "No. I don't really have any proof anything is wrong other than the fact I haven't heard from him in a week, so I don't want to bring NRI into it."
"I can understand that," Wedge said looking a little tired. "Unless you've got something more concrete it's not like they can really do much anyway."
"Exactly. So I'm trying to see if I can figure out where he went after Q'tar. It's not like it's the first time he's been delayed or had to hole up somewhere for a few days."
"Yeah, Imperials can have that effect."
"Well, maybe Han knows something. Han seem to be good at knowing things you don't expect him to know."
Wedge smiled. "True. It was nice talking to you again, Leia."
"You, too, Wedge. Take care."
Wedge nodded. "May the Force be with you."
"And with you."
Wedge broke the connection and Leia was left in the quiet of her office. So Wedge hadn't heard from him. At least that was some proof; Luke had never arrived at his destination, but he had left Q'tar. Leia started the dialing sequence to reach Han.
"Hi honey."
"Hi Han." Leia smiled at the sight of him. It was good seeing and hearing his voice again.
"Miss me already?" Han said jokingly.
Leia smiled a bit deeper. It was only a day since she had last talked to him, but she really needed to talk to him right now.
"Of course. I always miss you when you are away," she said smiling sweetly.
"Okay, out with it; what is it?"
"What makes you think there's anything besides me missing you?"
"Princess, I love you, but I also know you better than that. This isn't purely because you miss me."
Leia sighed, dropping pretenses. "You're right," she conceded. "But I did need to hear your voice."
"What's wrong, hon?"
"Han, have you heard from Luke?"
"Not since he was on Q'tar. Why?" Han was starting to look a bit worried.
Leia sighed. "I just woke up in the night feeling uneasy and tried to call Luke, but was unsuccessful. I tried again this morning with the same result."
"He could just be holed up somewhere."
"I know. That's what Wedge said."
"You don't believe it." It wasn't a question.
"I don't know, Han. All I've been able to find out is that he left Q'tar about five days ago and that he hasn't shown up on Folor as planned and that nobody has apparently heard from him in that time."
"Hon, let me ask you a question."
"Yes?"
"Do you still have that feeling you had when you woke up?"
Leia was quiet for a moment. "Yes."
"Then maybe it's time you talked to Cracken or Ackbar," Han said seriously.
"Han, I can't just use a lot of New Republic resources just because I'm worried!"
"I'm not saying you should. I'm saying you should talk to the people who might know about Luke or can find out better than anyone else. Leia, I'm not Force sensitive, but I've been around you and Luke long enough to know you just have a way of knowing when each other are in trouble."
"I..."
"Talk to them. Just talk."
Leia nodded. "Okay. Thank you, Han."
Han smiled to her. "Anytime, Princess."
"Love you."
"Love you, too. May the Force be with you, hon."
Leia smiled. "And you."
They broke the connection and Leia again sat alone in her office. Han thought she should talk to Cracken. Then maybe that was what she would do. She had been afraid to appear paranoid, but Han agreed with her and so did Wedge. It was weird nobody had heard from Luke and that he hadn't shown up. Leia looked at her work pile. She hadn't got much done this morning and she really ought to do something about it. Looking at the pile for a long moment, Leia made her decision. She rose and walked out of her office. She would think better once she had had the change to clear her head a little.
§
"Hello, General."
"Councilor Organa. What can I do for you today?" Cracken put aside the datapad he had been looking at and focused his attention on her.
"Well, " Leia said sitting down in the chair in front of him. "You could tell me if you have gotten my brother to do some work for you," Leia said easily. "He has been out reach for a little while and I thought it might be your doing."
Cracken smiled slightly. "I'm afraid I can't take responsibility this time, Councilor. There hasn't been any missions lately where his special skills where required, and we have an agreement of not involving him too much if it isn't necessary."
"I see my brother hasn't lost his senses then," Leia said with a smile.
"Ha, no. He stays in the periphery regarding all NRI or military business now, doesn't he?"
Leia nodded. "He does. But that still doesn't explain why he has been out of touch for a while."
"How long?"
This was where Leia knew she might run into trouble. Five days really wasn't a long time for someone who often traveled to places with little to no coverage. "As far as I've been able to determine, five days."
She was right. General Cracken's eyebrows rose. "Five days?" He looked at her hard for some time. "You're worried."
"Well, yes," Leia admitted. "He was supposed to be on Folor, but he never arrived there after he left Q'tar."
"And what makes you think he's in trouble?"
Leia took a deep breath. "Well, really, it started when I woke up with this uneasy feeling in my body and tried to call him."
Cracken held up a hand to interrupt her. "Uneasy feeling? You think it's the Force?"
"I don't know. Could be. We have always been able to feel each other and tell if something is wrong."
Cracken tapped a finger on the tabletop. "Hmm... five days, you say. But it wasn't until this night you felt something was wrong?"
"Yes. Well..."Leia thought about it. She frowned as she thought back. Had she felt anything wrong before she had woken up? She remembered not feeling too well before bed either, actually she hadn't felt great the whole day. And what about the day before that? It started to dawn on her that what she had contributed to just being bad food or sitting too much in front of her computer and working or too many long meetings might have been something else. It might have been a warning that Luke was in trouble. She looked into Cracken's eyes and realized he already knew her answer. "No. No, I was not feeling well before that. I remember not feeling well yesterday or the day before that either."
He nodded slowly, clearly starting to put the pieces together. "Have you been feeling uneasy the last five days?"
The wrinkle in her forehead became deeper. "No... Maybe three or four days, I think. Probably four."
"Okay, so if something is wrong and what you are feeling is from the Force then we can probably count on it happening four days ago."
A knot tied in her stomach. Four days. Four days where Luke might have needed her help and she hadn't known. She really needed to train more like Luke always told her she should.
Cracken reached out a hand and laid it on her arm. "We'll see if we can't determine what happened after he left his last known location."
"Q'tar," Leia said automatically.
"He checked in with the outpost there?"
"Yes. I talked with them this night. They said he checked out four days ago, about five now."
"And he was going to Folor, right?"
"Yes." Leia felt how she was getting focused at the task at hand instead of panicking. Probably something Cracken had learned how to do long ago.
"Was he to meet with someone?"
"Wedge Antilles. He hasn't heard from him in about two weeks."
He nodded. "Okay, that's a start. I'll start an inquiry and see what I can find."
Leia looked a bit uncertain. "General, it's not that I don't appreciate it, but I don't want to use too many resources on personal things."
"Councilor, I don't consider this is personal thing. Jedi Skywalker is a valuable person to the New Republic and if the Empire has been on New Republic territory then we need to know." He looked her directly in the eyes. "That is my viewpoint and that is what I will say if anyone asks."
Leia nodded her understanding. "Thank you, General. I really appreciate it." She stood up getting ready to leave.
"One more thing, before you leave," Cracken said holding up a hand.
"Yes?"
"Have you talked to Admiral Ackbar yet?"
Leia shook her head. "No, but he was one of the persons I thought of asking before I went here."
"Okay. That will be all then. I'll keep you informed of what I find."
Leia nodded and left the office.
Cracken leaned back in his chair, stroking his beard. The councilor was worried about the only remaining jedi knight. That wasn't a good sign. He would have to take this seriously and get a couple of reliable people on the case. And he had no doubt that Ackbar would see it from his perspective; Ackbar was a personal friend of Skywalker and he wouldn't like the implication that the Empire might be intruding on New Republic space. He wouldn't like it at all.