Author's Note: 1,000 VIEWS! As of today, this story made it to the 1,000 view mark. I'm so excited (and considering this is my first time posting online, I'm sure you all understand)! In celebration, I decided I wanted to give you all a big thank you for supporting Promise of the Past thus far; instead of just posting one chapter, I'm posting two tonight. And its the chapter we've all been waiting for too!

I hope you like it! And thank you again!

Also, be sure to check out the bottom Author's Note. I have a few updates there. PLEASE READ AND REVIEW!

Disclaimer: Star Wars is owned by Disney and Lucasfilm Ltd. The following work is not intended to add to, promote or distort this series. This is a work of fanfiction, and the author does not profit in posting. This is simply a writing exercise written for fun.

Seated in his stately office, his chair spun about to watch the Corusanti-sunset, Palpatine marveled at all before him. Especially as he thought about how close he actually was to achieving his dreams. All that he needed was the results of today's votes to arrive and his day would have ended in absolute bliss.

And, as he considered this, the stout blue form of Oni Free Taa ambled into his office. He was a heavy Twil'ek colored in blue, and it was rare to catch him without his entourage. But, rather than the wide grin he'd been expecting upon his comrade in arms, Palpatine noted a solemness in his gait. "Oni Free Taa!" Palpatine greeted with his best welcome tone, "At last you have arrived! I trust you have the votes from today's session?" Oni attempted a smile, but merely shrugged as he passed Palpatine the datapad.

"It was a close call, Chancellor." He admitted with his voice quieter still, "One vote, one unexpected vote was what declined the bill."

Surprised, Palpatine ripped the datapad out of Oni's hands and scanned over it, reading the names quickly. He knew most of these names would vote against him, namely that Bail Organa and his patsy Mon Mothma, but there were several he could have sworn held their unwavering, conscience-free allegiance to him. Especially after his efforts to save their homeworlds during the war. And then, amongst this rabble, Palpatine spotted the one name that shocked him most.

Padme Amidala of the Naboo System.

What the hell is her name doing here? He seethed as he read the name three times to make sure it wasn't Padme Trina of the Refrat System or Dina Amirala of the Raloot System. But no, no matter how many different ways he read that, his mentee had voted against him. Padme had chosen to push for democracy to resume. But is that really such a surprise?

"Why in the name of the gods did Amidala vote?" Palpatine demanded of Oni Free Taa, practically throwing the datapad into the twil'ek's face. "She's supposed to be on medical leave from that out break with the Blue Shadow Virus! Did she vote for anything else, or was it just my plans she came to stomp out?" Stunned and startled at the same time, Oni practically juggled the datapad in his hands as he scrambled to read Amidala's voting records for the day.

"Well..." he stuttered as he read through various posts, "She did vote on the freighter bill, against it... and the Senator's raise... also against it."

"She voted three times?" Palpatine barked, "That's it?" He growled as he snatched the datapad out from Oni's trembling hands. But sure enough, Oni was right. The stubborn senator only voted three times.

Seething in his rage, but trying to maintain what as left of his benevolent appearance for the day, Palpatine turned towards Oni and sighed, sighed and cleared his memories of all his outbursts. He could actually see the fear dissipate from Oni's face as he did his work. "Well, if it is what the people want..." Palpatine stated somberly, "I could really use the vacation anyway."

To that, Oni sighed and turned towards the door. "I doubt it is what the people really want Chancellor. I'm..." he stopped at the door and smiled at his friend, "I am sure the bill will reappear next session and it will end in your favor." Palpatine nodded to his 'friend' as the man left him to his musings.

That didn't last long though, as Palpatine was quick to don his cloak and proceed towards the most secure location in his office, the hidden chamber near the back. If Amidala thinks she can oust me... he grumbled to himself, she's got another thing coming.

As he entered his HoloChamber, the secure one for Separatist conferences, he glanced down at the datapad he still clutched. After the note indicating which way she'd voted for his term extension bill, he found a small message. Usually Amidala filled her votes with her justifications, so that her people could read the grounds behind her decisions and respond to her, but this time, after her many notes she added a small dedication. In it she had only one small sentence.

For Rush. Palpatine read to himself before smiling, why Mrs. Skywalker... you haven't been unfaithful to your dear husband now, have you?

And a great thought dawned on him, a thought that would have Skywalker seething in his skin.

Somethings took more precedence to the Sith master, and, in his newly found calm, Palpatine could see that this temporary lapse in his plans was hardly a concern. He could easily remove Amidala from the next session, but he could not ignore this opportunity to further groom his next apprentice.

Luke sighed as he threw himself on his couch. The meeting hadn't gone well; Mina and Luci had been assigned to remain in the temple with Jedi who would be out in the field more. And it bothered him. It bothered him because he did not understand why Mina was not made his Padawan. The only thought that had occurred to him was that they feared he would be more like his father with her at his side. A ludicrous idea if there ever was one. I knew I shouldn't have told them what happened to my father! He chastised himself, sighing and throwing his head back in frustration.

His musings left him unaware of the lean figure entering his apartment through the small window in his bedroom. With red hair glowing fierce in the Corisanti-sunset, Mara Jade approached him stealthily. It actually surprised her how off guard he was. Carefully, and silently, she leaned down and planted a kiss on his cheek, near startling him before he turned to reciprocate on her lips.

"Everything all right?" she inquired while leaning on the back of his couch with her arms. He smirked at her a moment, drinking in the sight of her unnatural green eyes and lovely smile.

"Hardly." He admitted before opening his arms to welcome her on the couch. She lept over the back and landed lightly at his side, snuggling up to him as she listened to his heartbeat.

Their relationship was something small and new. It had taken them years of fighting one another to finally realize that there was more to their theatrics than they'd assumed. Mara could bring Luke back from the depths of the lonely life of a devout Jedi, while Luke's kind heart melted the ice Emperor Palpatine had placed there since her childhood. It wasn't until being cornered by mutual enemies that they realized there was a sense of belonging between them. And, shortly after, they began pursuing this idea that they should be together. Mara's job as a bounty hunter didn't interfere with this as much as Luke's Jedi connections.

"That so?" Mara inquired, growing frustrated with his dodging. Of all the people in the galaxy, only two of them seemed to know better than play his game. They were direct with him, and in many ways, exactly what he needed in that moment. They were his sister and his lover, though few knew he was in love with Mara Jade. Only his sister and brother-in-law seemed to figure that much out about them.

Turning to face her, Luke took a chance, "The damned council is out to get me and I'm feeling the pressure."

In hearing that, Mara rolled her eyes and started playing with his unruly blond hair. "Well..." she deliberated carefully, eying Luke as she did this, "They are idiots then. No one has more light in this galaxy than you do... you've even brought me a bit into the light side of the Force." Luke sighed and turned his blue eyes away, "But there's more of course." Mara prodded, "There always is with you, Skywalker." Luke chuckled and shrugged.

"Well, I keep seeing ghosts again," Luke gestured to his small dining area, where he'd last seen the apparition as she sat, rummaging through his home with her eyes. "And I am a little shocked by who is visiting me..."

"As in?" Mara pressed, leaning forward with interest.

"As in I keep seeing my dead grandmother." He replied.

Mara whistled at that one as she sat back, "Wow, Skywalker..." she commented as she considered what he was saying, "That's a bit outside of my level of understanding, if what you say is true." Luke frowned a moment.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence." He quipped. Mara raised her hands in the defensive position, knowing better than to argue with Luke when he decided to be stubborn.

"I'm not saying that." she told him earnestly, "I'm just saying that it is a little unbelievable." He nodded, understanding what she meant.

He didn't realize that Mara was trying her best to do the same with the limited understanding she had of the Force.

To her Luke was always an enigma. He'd saved her from emptiness and helped her to gain new powers, something she didn't even believe was possible, and went so far as to bond with her. Their bond with one another was strong, strong enough to keep her from falling into uncertainty again, but that wasn't entirely what made her life complete at the moment. It was knowing she'd found someone who valued her for her, and not what she could do, that made her feel whole. And she tried to give that feeling back to Luke.

But as they lay there in comfortable silence, Luke's eyes spotted his ghastly visitor once more. "She's here again." He told Mara, who turned to follow his gaze in the direction of the bedroom.

"Grandma Skywalker?" She called out, making Luke laugh a little bit as the youthful form of Shmi Skywalker walked around the couch.

Quite spiritedly, isn't she? Shmi told him as she sat down once more, I hadn't expected you to trust anyone with my presence, except maybe your sister. You must have something special. Luke swallowed as he considered that, knowing Leia usually learned things from him first. He found himself wondering exactly how serious things had gotten with Mara that he'd told her about this before Leia.

But rather than answer his grandmother, he shrugged. Mara watched him, her eyes glancing about the apartment as she tried to understand what he was going through. "What is she saying?"

Luke swallowed, "She's commenting on our relationship." He added a smile to assure her it was good things, but he was made so awkward by his grandmother's observation that he didn't know what else to say. Mara frowned a bit because of his hesitation. Rather than pursue the issue further, Luke turned to his grandmother, "Why are you here?"

Shmi smiled a bit and sat back in her chair, To protect your heart from an enemy most deadly.

Luke raised a brow, "An enemy?..." He waited for her to elaborate, but all she did was nod, "How so? I haven't noticed..."

Yes you have. Shmi informed him, He's been bothering you in your dreams for months now. His name is Demantis, and he is determined to exterminate you. His minions are planning that much as we speak. Luke sat up, shocked and not sure how to react to this news.

"M-minions?"

Shmi nodded once more, Those dark warriors you fought from before. Did you not notice how unusually strong they were for Dark Jedi and Sith. Luke shrugged, recalling that his mind was sort of knocked out at the time. Sighing, Shmi shook her head and sat back, Demantis has numerous grudges against our family, but your untapped Force potential is perhaps the greatest.

"Untapped?" Luke pressed in surprise, Mara growing frustrated beside him.

"Can I at least get your half of the conversation, oh-great-and-powerful Skywalker?" She near demanded. Luke sighed and waved her off, far more concerned with what his grandmother was explaining.

Luke, Shmi sighed as she stood up, Your father was the most powerful Jedi of his era, but even he did not reach his full potential, not as a Sith either. What you are capable of is something the galaxy hasn't seen in generations, something spoken of in myth by our Advorosian ancestors. Something Demantis fears more than anything else.

"You mean, I'm Advorosian?" Luke inquired, "That means that you are from the planet..."

Advorosia, Shmi told him with a smile, It is a beautiful planet filled with many wonders. But I was forced to flee it because of Demantis... you cannot take this new challenge lightly, Luke, it could destroy you.

Luke sighed and nodded, "Will you be here to help me?" Shmi sighed and shook her head.

I have always been there with you Luke, but this time you and your sister are on your own. She admitted, Both you and Leia saw what happens to a ghost that stands against Demantis.

With wide blue eyes and a jaw dropped, "You mean the woman that attacked me... that gave me that seizure... was you?" Shmi nodded.

When Demantis began entering your dreams, I tried to stop him. She then sighed and stood once more, His darkness was too much for me. And where you are about to go is an era filled with darkness, Luke. Where there is darkness, light often struggles to shine. You must listen to your instincts and your heart... and find Gerali of Advorosia... he can help you better than I.

Luke nodded, understanding, "Thank you, grandmother." Shmi nodded and smiled, her apparition fading away. I love you Luke. She called as she disappeared. And tell your sister that I love her as well.

When Luke sat back and sighed, pondering this new information, Mara stared at him with her arms crossed. "Well..." she half-demanded, "What was that about?" Luke turned to her with slight amusement in his icy eyes.

"It was a warning." He told her, "About a guy named Demantis, and where I am from... Advorosia." Mara scrunched her lips up and nodded.

"I got that much." She admitted, uncrossing her arms, "Is that it?" Luke shrugged.

"I guess I haven't quite unlocked my full potential, and she wants me to find Gerali on Advorosia to help me learn it." Mara sighed and shook her head.

After a time, she laughed and informed him, "It's always a party with you Skywalker." Luke chuckled to himself before turning to her and stealing her up into his arms. He made it very apparent that he didn't want to think anymore about the topic, choosing to meditate on it later. It was rare that he had time with Mara, and even a foreboding visit from his grandmother would not hold him at bay.

"You don't say?" he asked as he kissed her cheek, bringing her to flush, "And here I thought you kept life interesting." Mara chuckled and turned to kiss him once more. It was a relief to see that Luke no longer felt threatened by his grandmother's apparition, but this new threat still kept him a bit tense. She hoped to encourage him to relax a bit, and to enjoy their rare time together.

"I do keep life interesting." She assured him, "You're just bizarre."

Luke snorted when he heard that, falling back to his back to relax while Mara rested her head on his chest again, "I'm bizarre? Really?" He teased.

"You have more identity issues than I do." She informed him, "Darth Vader Junior."

Luke laughed loudly at the quip, having heard that before from Han, but never Mara, "According to my sister, I am Darth Taskmaster." Mara chuckled a bit and shook her head.

"No, Darth Junior suits you." They could not help but laugh at that comment. After a moment, the laughter died down, and Luke found himself wondering about Mara's activities.

"How's life in the fast lane anyways?"

Mara snorted, suddenly wanting to talk about anything else. "Irritating... I sucker punched the captain of Saleucami's palace guard last week because he short changed us on a bounty." Luke smirked, picturing the look on any man's face after one of Mara's punches, "Other than that, good I guess..." she paused a moment before lifting herself up to look him in the eye, "Outside of the Council and your dead grandma's ghost, how are you?" Luke frowned.

"Do I have to talk about it?"

Mara chuckled and shook her head, "Good point? Why are we talking anyway?" She leaned down and brought her lips to his with a wide grin, intending on being more passionatethan before. And Luke welcomed the idea, having missed her greatly.

It wasn't long, however, until Artoo moseyed into the room, beeping at his master, who'd flipped their arrangement over to find better angles to kiss Mara with. With his already unruly hair sticking out in new directions, Luke turned to the astromech with a sigh.

"Are they now?" He asked aloud, his voice incredulous, "And you have access to the feed?" Mara sighed and sat up, trying to fix the rat's nest that had formed on her own head. "Well, play it then, buddy."

While Artoo's projector provided Luke with a small, blue holographic visual of the High Council Chamber, Mara meandered to his small kitchen to find something to eat in the ice-box. It didn't take her long to find Leia's delivery from the night before.

"Well, masters," Came the voice of one Nautolan Jedi Master by the name of Geri Nallit. She'd been inducted several months ago onto the council by Luke and Corran's nomination, "I think it is high time that we do something about our mutual reservations over Master Skywalker."

Saba Sebatyne frowned, "I see no reasons to have any reservations about him."

Another human master by the name of Moris Reubak shook his head, "You still say that knowing that Master Skywalker wanted to exclude the Barbels from training?" Saba frowned in her Barabel way and shook her head.

"I understand his hesitancy." She admitted, "Master Skywalker is one to consider many possibilities, and we need him to keep our council balanced."

Reubak frowned, his black and silver beard sticking out as he did, "Well, I knew his father quite well during the days of the Republic... and the boy is transforming into him more and more each day... Do we really need another Darth Vader in our midst?"

"Erhm," Mara called from the kitchen, "Darth Junior... get it right you geezer!" Luke snorted as Mara rummaged through his drawers, "Oooh!" She cried out suddenly as Reubak continued to rip into his character before the council, "You bought ladles!... Why?" Again he sniggered while watching the feed.

Corran Horn was now the one speaking, "Personally, the only worry I have with Master Skywalker is that he's... so perceptive. It's like he listens to a different frequency of the Force than the rest of us." Several members of the council nodded when they heard that, "We all saw this earlier in the meeting over the Tano girls... he wasn't even there!"

A younger member of the council, a Twil'ek man with green skin nodded, "But that doesn't justify cutting him off from us... He's been our best resource this whole time, finding us and bringing us together under a single roof."

Reubak cut him off, "Yes,his father's roof built on the pain of a thousand systems... sounds ideal to me, Master Ywa." Luke sighed and sat back while Mara planted herself next to him with a bowl of slop.

"Your sister's a great cook." She pointed out, "And they are all idiots... I'd ignore them." Luke shrugged, still listening intently.

"I wish I could."

It was just past sunset when Luke and Mara decided fresh air was preferred over that stifling appartment. Despite all that was said about him, Mara was impressed with how Luke hadn't allowed himself to be personally affected by it. Even as they walked, she could feel his efforts to release his pain into the Force, and was proud.

Proud because, unlike her, this man could do that much.

"Well," Luke suddenly told her, "With any luck, Darth Junior will catch on and they'll keep me around as a talking piece." Mara snorted, burying her face into his arm as they meandered about the streets together. Dressed in casual clothes, no one paid them a second glance, and they enjoyed the anonymity.

"I'll put it into a vote the next time they let me into that place." She informed him. He only smiled, wrapping his arm around her as they walked. "Still, it is a good thing you didn't get Mina Tano as your Padawan... it's bad enough with your sister always hanging around when I want to visit you." Luke sighed and rolled his eyes, turning them towards a small shop that sold apparel. He wanted to find a new pair of leather gloves for his artificial hand. Though the skin on it was tough, it didn't repair itself like normal skin and needed additional protection.

"Yeah, that conversation from the one time she almost barged into the apartment was a pretty interesting one the next day, that's for sure." Mara chuckled at his comment.

She then added innocently, "It was just a HoloVid."

"Right, cause we were actually watching the HoloVid." Luke teased his brows raised, to which Mara rolled her eyes. By now they'd recognized that the small boutique lacked leather gloves and continued onward towards any desert shop they could find. Apparently Leia's cooking encouraged Mara's sweet tooth.

"I was."

Luke smirked to himself and shook his head as they neared a small group of teens that appeared to be on the romp to do something troublesome. He sighed as he recalled his more rebellious days with Biggs Darklighter before the Rebellion. Irony is a good word.

"You know," Mara suddenly inserted, her voice serious as they neared one of the many parks in the area, "That stuff I said about identity issues... you know I was kidding right?" Luke nodded, scanning the trees for any sort of life form.

"I know." He assured her.

Taking his flesh hand once more, Mara added, "At least you know your family's name... I'm even jealous that you have a list of worlds to belong to, even if Advorosia is... well, no place I've ever heard of." Luke shrugged, having the same issue. "I'll bet it is in Wild Space or something." Mara suggested, "Anyway, you know that I can't even remember my family's names really... I just knew they were different from my own."

"You think they adopted you?" Luke wondered aloud. Mara nodded.

"I suspect my history is about as complicated as yours, truthfully." She informed him, suddenly noticing how he stiffened, "What is it?"

Turning with a feral gaze she'd only seen on him a few times before, Luke growled, "Something's wrong." His eyes were on the old Jedi Temple ruins to the east. And, without a second word, he dashed off into the crowds of upper district shoppers, nearly disappearing in the movement of the district. Rolling her eyes a second, Mara prepared herself to chase after him.

He might not have been a Jedi, but Han knew one thing for sure: his gut didn't like the feel of any of this. Not two hours after finishing supper had Leia insisted something was wrong at the Old Jedi Temple and stormed out of their apartment towards the ruins with a look of fierce determination on her face. And he, being the idiot that married her, followed suit.

So as she did her Jedi thing around the place, scanning the rooms with all "three" of her eyes, Han took a moment to breathe. "I'm sure it's nothing." He pointed out to her, "Just super paranoia or gas or something."

Stopping, Leia turned to him with a raised brow that screamed, Gas? Really?

Han grinned a moment and followed her carefully into the darkness that was the ruin.

Leia shrugged as she stepped over the rubble, her hand on the silver hilt of her lightsaber. "If it's just paranoia, then why are Luke and Mara on the other side of the temple doing the same thing?" All right, Han admitted internally, She's got me there.

They progressed a little further, Leia walking calmly down the darkened lanes while Han stood nearby with his blaster raised. Together, they could be ready for just about anything, and it certainly felt that way now. As they passed through the old mess halls and into the main arboretum, the duo carefully scanned the ruins with uncertain eyes. That is, until Leia spotted the way to the archives.

Han knew she'd rummaged her way through this place enough times with her brother to have a general understanding of the demolished building, and so he trusted her to lead the way without landing them on an unstable floor. He followed behind her tentatively, knowing he had enough weight more on him to make the difference if it really came down to it. Leia, light a as a feather, didn't seem to care.

"Skywalkers..." Han muttered under his breath as he proceeded behind his wife, "What's with you guys anyways? Always 'sensing' this and 'foreseeing' that... I sure hope it skips our kids."

Leia chuckled as she pushed the door to the archives open, spotting another lantern across the room. "Fat chance of that Han." She told him with a grin, "You'd better get used to it now, or our kids will shock you to your grave." Han rolled his eyes as he followed his wife through the door, his eyes also catching the light from across the room.

Carefully, Leia stepped over the rubble of the nearly empty archive, her eyes straining against the light as she approached it. Eventually that light found her.

"Organa?" Mara's voice echoed from across the room, "What the hell are you doing here?"

Standing up straighter, Leia rolled her eyes while her husband approached conversation distance. "Well I could ask you the same thing Jade. Besides, its Solo now... not that you'd know since you skipped out on our invite." Han bellowed out. Despite the light, Han could see Mara's eyes roll as she pushed her red locks behind her ears.

"Luke sensed something." She told them, ignoring Han's outrage. It was hardly a surprise. What one twin sensed, the other felt as well. Their bond made anomalies in the Force nearly impossible to hide from each other. Sometimes it was tricky to figure out who sensed what.

"Any idea what it is?" Leia asked, her eyes turning towards the murky darkness where she knew her brother was approaching from.

"Not really." Luke's voice responded long before he re-entered view, shocking Han and even startling Mara a bit in the ghostly way he approached. "But, whatever it is, I don't like it." Leia nodded in agreement, taking out her own lantern to survey the space. Around her she found all sorts of rubble, but nothing that seemed out of the ordinary. That is, until she spotted the orange face of something very angry.

Long before she'd sensed him, Darth Devaro launched himself towards Leia, knocking her off balance. She watched as Luke made to rescue her, Han right behind him, but it all went dark on her.

From his post across the room, Han dashed towards his beloved wife, but watched in horror as Luke took off after her into a small stairwell they'd missed. And as he disappeared, the floor closed up. But rather than stop, Han fell to his knees, trying to break the floor with his fists.

"Out of the way!" Mara cried out as she reached for her lightsaber and shoved it into the tile. All the purple blade did, however, was reflect back up, nearly hitting Han's knee.

"'the hell?" He demanded of fate as he rose up in bewilderment.

Mara panted as she tried again, this time nearly taking her own arm off, "It must be treated so that the sabers reflect."

Han looked at her incredulously, "Well no kidding, Red. What the hell do we do now?"

Glancing at him with distressed green eyes, Mara shrugged. "I... I don't know."

Luke moaned a bit as his mind righted itself, his eyes adjusting to the low light of the lantern in the room. He wasn't entirely awake yet, but he was well aware of who was staring at him. Zion Tano and his Mirialan friend. Their faces were faint in the dark light, but present enough that he could identify them. But how had he gotten here in the first place?

Deliberating slowly, so as not to shock his senses with too much, Luke recalled his mad dash down the stairs after Leia and how the Mirialan had been hiding there, her presence well masked by a powerful coldness in the room. The third? Luke wondered, recalling that other presence from before. Whoever it was, Luke hadn't sensed the Mirialan coming, and so his body was completely off guard when the large wooden table leg came colliding with the back of his neck, knocking him unconscious.

There was a sudden shifting in the room, bringing Luke back from his thoughts. The Mirialan had moved forward and was now staring him down intently. Gods, please don't...Before he could finish his plea, the Miralian did exactly what he hoped she wouldn't do. Lay a big slobbery kiss across his lips. It was all he could do to ignore her as he looked for an out from their situation.

As the Mirialan backed away, smiling to herself, Luke's eyes darted over to Tano: apparently he hadn't enjoyed that move either, judging by his scowl.

"I've always wanted to do that!" She exclaimed as she backed away, "Especially now since you wont be alive much longer." Luke rolled his eyes, how many times have I heard that one by now?

But rather than dwell on the thought or the Sith Lady, Luke stretched his senses out to find the others. Leia was quick and easy to find, slowly stirring to consciousness to his left. Han and Mara, on the other hand, were at least a floor up. And judging by both of their presences, neither were happy. In the distance, he could sense other Jedi entering the temple, likely on the hunt for their missing comrade. Luke sighed; if Mara and Han couldn't get to them, the other masters didn't have much luck. He trusted the masters with his life, but he knew who was really effective in a pinch too.

"Right you are, young Skywalker." Came a hiss of a voice from across the room, "Your friends wont ever make it here: this room was built to withstand assault and protect the treasures of this temple. And, despite war and your father's Jedi Purges, it has held." She motioned her claw-like hand towards a small metallic and wooden orb on the table before her. Luke just stared at it incredulously. He could tell it was significant; it radiated strange energy after all, but he couldn't quite place the energy. It wasn't light energy, nor was it something of the dark side. A neutral perhaps?

But something else caught his attention as well, "What do you know about my father?"

The hag smirked to herself, "Only a little bit more than you do, Son of Darth Vader." Luke glared at her. "And you are perhaps his only decent creation, though I admit, I had higher hopes for your legacy, young Skywalker." Luke gulped and resisted the urge to look at his sister. To even think of his sister.

During their final battle, his father had divined Leia's existence right from Luke's very thoughts. She'd been injured on the moon below, and their bond was so strong that Luke could not help but feel for her, he could not resist trying to console her, and in doing so, he'd alerted his father to her presence*. Something their father had used against him to turn him to the dark side. He would not make that mistake again. Not until Leia was ready to claim her full identity and the repercussions that came with it.

"And yes, I know all about your precious sister." The witch added with a black-toothed grin. She could not help but notice the animalistic glare his eyes held at the mention of that fact.

"What is that?" came Leia's stern voice by his side, her eyes locked on the small wooden and metal orb. She wouldn't admit to Vader being their father to anyone but Luke and Han. And usually it was only to Luke. It was clear she wanted to avoid that elephant in the room if she could.

The witch-like Sith stepped forward, her black teeth showing through a curled smirk, "The Gamragist, my dear... the device of your execution."

Luke glared at her, "Don't you dare hurt her!" he growled, knowing that the threat against Leia pushed him alarmingly close to the dark side. It seemed no one was aware of this vital fact.

The witch proceeded to cackle, "My dear boy, you haven't a say in the matter." Using her invisible Force-grip, the hag raised Luke's flesh, left hand and Leia's right into the air. The two struggled, but were still too sore and out of it to really repel her. Anhilis had seen to it with the concoction of sedatives she'd injected them with. In a few minutes, however... they would wane and Master and Padawan would simply become the powering circuit of an extraordinary machine.

From there, she floated the Gamragist into the space between their hands, forcing the small, hooked pendulum free of it's hideaway. The twins watched in awe as the device began to glow, ticking like some evil clock from the depths of a black hole. And, slowly, the hag brought the pendulum to life, swaying it so that the curved side swung first.

And, as it swung, Luke and Leia felt a nagging pull at them, as though their energies were being sapped. It was painful, ripping at them from the inside like knives under their skin. Together they cried out, trying to break free of the temporary shackles that held them to the wall and the hag's invisible grip, but they could not. As their strength gained, it also depleted and by the time the pendulum clicked to one side, the room began to spin.

Faster and faster, the winds began to build around them, enveloping the three Sith and two Jedi into a whirlwind that made the whole room seem a void of darkness and color. As their energies faded, Luke and Leia began to grow nauseous. Click.

"One year." The hag began to count.

Mara stood over the hatch into the secret passageway in a trance. She was trying to find Luke's presence in the Force while the other masters worked on finding the panel that opened the hatch. It was hard at first to find him, as his sister and he were quite good at fizzling their presence away when they slept, which is what she presumed was going on. No way were they fighting and not emitting their awesome powers.

For a moment, she felt them. They seemed groggy, but they were getting out of it.

And another moment later, they were in pain.

Then they were gone.

When Han heard the soft sobs of a very distraught Mara Jade, his heart sank into his chest. Gods, please don't tell me... But he didn't need anyone to tell him, all he needed was the pained green stare of Mara Jade to confirm his suspicions: Luke and Leia were gone.

Author's Note Part II: And we're back in time! I promised last chapter we'd get here and we finally made it. I hope that this chapter wasn't too confusing with the jumping around, but I wanted to squeeze in my last two plot points before this end. I did invent a quite a few things in this chapter again, namely Padme Trina, Dina Amirala, Gerali, Demantis, Pestilis, Anhilis, Devaro/Zion Tano, Moris Reubak, Ywa, Geri Nallit, Advorosia, the Refrat and Raloot System and the Gamragist. I hope these lists aren't too annoying, but I figure they are helpful in distinguishing what is and isn't borrowed, since the Star Wars expanded universe is huge. And I am looking forward to shortening these lists real soon.

I did want to congratulate Haley Renee on being the first one to figure out that Shmi was the one haunting Luke. I thought I was being real clever but you saw right through it. I must admit though, for those of you who thought it was Padme, I hadn't even considered her... and when I read your posts I was all "That's an AWESOME idea!" But I was too far along with what I had to really change anything.

Also, Sometimeswedream, I would have responded to your request earlier, but I think it would have given some of the suspense away. I never intended that Han and Mara go back in time with them. I agree, Luke and Leia's role as brother and sister really hasn't been explored very much in what I've read, and that's part of the reason I started this story. I mean, a set of super-strong Force-sensitive twins? What an awesome concept!

I want to thank you all for your posts. I'd love to respond to all of them here, but I'm sure that you all want my update as well. Here it is:

For those of you who missed the memo in the last chapter (as updating was getting squirrely on me), I'm considering writing and posting the back story of this Shmi Skywalker. I've a summary and a pole open on my profile page. If you're the least bit interested, you should check it out and vote. I have a chapter or so already written, but I'm not sure if I want to continue writing it, so I figure... maybe you all should decide for me.

*Also, that part about how Darth Vader learned about Leia was totally in the The Return of the Jedi novel. It was really cool to read that, inspiring really.

Thanks again and sorry about the micro-essay! The rest of my author's notes should get smaller for the rest of the story. Now... On to chapter 7!