Chapter 31:

Leia was meditating, trying to keep her mind free of thoughts, of distractions. She allowed herself to lift beyond her body, into the Force, to feel rather than see or think. She had attained the delicate balance between conscious thought and emptiness, when suddenly a shockwave tore through the Force, like a curtain being ripped. Everything came crashing down around her, and her eyes shot open, suddenly back in the here and now. She looked at Yoda, then again, more closely. Underneath his peaceful exterior, she could tell that he was perturbed. "You felt it too, didn't you, master. What happened?"

Yoda's eyes closed, as he stretched out into the Force. "The Emperor…. betrayed by Vader, and Vader's apprentice."

Leia shivered at the implication. "You mean…. Palpatine's dead? And- and Luke and Vader killed him?"

Yoda bowed his head. "Dead, the dark lord may be. Stopped, the dark side is not. Taken the mantle of dark lord himself, Vader has. More difficult, our task will become."

Leia wanted to ask more, but she could tell that Yoda was unwilling to talk about it at the moment. With a sigh, she tried to settle back into her meditation, still rattled by what had occurred.

Darth Vader sat down on his throne and watched as Atrox walked up and knelt before him. "Master."

Vader watched Atrox's kneeling form and smiled. "Rise, my apprentice. You did well today, you have become far more powerful than anyone could expect."

Atrox did as he was ordered and got up from the floor. "Thank you, my master."

Vader continued to watch Atrox more carefully as he asked his next question. "I know you were partially trained by that fool Kenobi. I also know that you were trained by someone else. I want to know who."

Darth Atrox looked up into Vader's eyes as he answered, knowing full well that he was betraying his former Jedi Master. "I was trained by Master Yoda on Dagobah."

"Yoda?!?" Vader spat, his face twisting with rage. "I thought that old bat had died years ago, that my- that Palpatine killed him at the end of the Clone Wars!" He stood, and stormed out of the room, calling over his shoulder, "Get Jade. We're leaving immediately. Admiral Solo, dispose of that…. thing."

"Yes master." Lord Atrox called as he walked over to Mara, picking her up and carrying her off to Lord Vader's personal shuttle and secured her into a compartment in the aft section of the shuttle.

Meanwhile… Admiral Solo looked down at the body in disgust, and went to look for someone he could pull rank on. Being an admiral, he supposed, had its benefits, after all.

He spied a nervous-looking young man in Imperial uniform in the hall and sauntered up to him. "Hey, kid, I have a job for you. Really easy, won't take you a minute."

The kid's expression changed from merely nervous to terrified. "A- a job, sir?"

"Sure," Han drawled, clapping the young man on the shoulder. "You're what, a lieutenant?"

"Ensign," he corrected, "Ensign Joss Dallin, sir."

"Ensign, of course, right," Han amended, hastily. "Look, Joss, I have a job for you, real easy one. In the Emperor's throne room, there's…. this…. thing…. on the floor, it needs to be disposed of."

Joss looked uncertain. "Sir?"

Han grinned, broadly, and slapped him on the back. "Knew I could count on you, Joss. I'll be sure and mention to Lord Vader what a reliable fellow you are." Without another word, he turned and headed in the direction of the spaceport, relieved to have gotten out of 'tidying up' the throne room.

As the shuttle lifted into the air, Han at the controls, Vader paced back and forth, fuming. "He will pay," he muttered, a dark shadow crossing his face. "I will make him suffer, suffer for the lies he spread. He will see the failure of his teachings, and realize that he failed his students, all of them. And in failing, he will die."

Atrox stood next to Mara, feeling into the Force, sensing his sister. "Leia has become the green toad's student, father."

Vader turned, sharply, to look at Atorx, eyes narrowing. "Must my children also be tainted by his archaic teachings?!?" he growled, face twisting with rage. He went back to pacing, plans for revenge formulating in his mind. "Yes…. I will turn Leia before his eyes, and she will cut him down…. after we are through with him."

"What of her friends? Shall I have Jade capture them and hold them here in case she manages to escape us?"

Vader looked down at Mara, still unconscious. A hint of a sneer curled his lip. "If you can awaken her…. and if she will do as you command, which…. I have my doubts."

"I think I may have an idea on how to get her to, milord." Atrox said as he walked back over to Mara. He stood there for a few moments, observing her unconscious form, and then knelt down next to her and kissed her.

Vader scowled, and began to criticize his son's method of awakening Mara, when he sensed her return to consciousness, and her eyes snapped open. Before Atrox even knew what had happened, he was knocked backwards by a blow from her fist. He looked up to see Mara standing over him, shaking with rage. "How dare you…."

"I know you liked it, Jade." Atrox said as he jumped up, knocking her back down on to the deck, then pulling out his lightsaber and igniting it. The blade hummed dangerously at her throat. "You swore loyalty to us and you are going to serve us."

Mara glared up at him, furiously. "You…. you…. do you have any idea what you've done to me? You and that- that father of yours. Y- you made me k—" her voice broke, and she continued on, raggedly. "You could never understand, nor do you want to." Bitterness flooded her eyes, and she muttered under her breath, "I'd like to see how you felt if someone made you kill your father."

Darth Atrox glared at Mara. "I did not kill your former master, Jade. Like it or not, you swore loyalty to us." He bent down, so that his eyes were level with hers. "You know, I could me more of a figure to you than he ever was."

Mara glared back at him, angrier than ever. "I KNOW WHO KILLED HIM, YOU- YOU JEDI!" His hand shot forward to strike her, but she caught it, her grip vice-like. He tore his hand away from her, and she continued, slightly more controlled, but still very angry. "I said I would serve you, to the best of my ability. It was beyond my ability to- to do what your beloved father commanded, and a true leader would never have asked it of his servant." Mara shot Vader a glare which was returned by a dark smile on his part.

Atrox continued, "Good, Mara, use your anger, let it fuel your power to the Force, give in to the power of the dark side!"

Atrox reached out through the Force and touched Mara's mind. Palpatine said that you would one day become my apprentice, didn't he. He knew that Lord Vader would do what he did, which would set the events in motion which would lead you to become my apprentice.

Mara sobered instantly. "Stay out of my head, Skywalker," she snapped, but it was more of a reflex than actual anger. How do you know that?

We are going to need to work on that reflex of yours. Atrox said as he knelt in front of her so that his eyes were looking directly into hers. I could sense your conversation with him. Also, I can… feel it, foresee it.

Mara stared into his eyes, feeling, little sense as it made, that he spoke the truth, and also…. that he wanted to teach her what he knew, wanted her for his apprentice. She thought about her last conversation with her former master, and wondered if his other comment had been correct, after all.

Vader glared down at both of them, mildly surprised that Jade had ceased struggling. He could tell they were speaking to each other, but Atrox was shielding their conversation, and he didn't want to bother forcing his way into his son's thoughts. He has a rather empathetic spirit, Vader reflected, just like… his…. mother.

"We have an assignment for you, Jade. We are going to be arriving on Dagobah soon, where my master and myself will destroy the last of the Jedi Masters. His new student is my… sister, and her companions are there as well. Capture them and secure them back here while we deal with the Jedi."

Mara quickly reviewed the scenario in her mind. "That shouldn't be difficult."

Vader crossed his arms over his chest. "Failure is not acceptable, Jade," he warned, his tone indicating that there was little doubt in his mind that she would bungle the job somehow.

Mara's eyes flashed, and she got to her feet. "I'll do it for you, Lord Atrox. Him," she jerked a thumb in Vader's direction, "I won't take orders from him ever again."

Vader's voice turned as cold as ice. "I would watch what you say to the Dark Lord of the Sith. Use your hatred of me to fuel your power in the Force, but if you do not learn your place, you shall regret it."

Mara matched his tone, the coldness of it belying the fire in her eyes. "Perhaps you should have thought of that before you did what you did to me," she said, quietly, then turned and left, choosing to spend the rest of the trip in the sleeping quarters of the shuttle.