Leia tried to keep her face pleasant and her annoyance curbed. She had come to Ralltiir to bring medical and military supplies to the Alliance-supporting Ralltiiri High Council, which was finding itself in desperate need of them, for there was an Imperial blockade in place.

The problem for Leia was that she had been accosted by Lord Tion. He was handsome with his brown hair and eyes, certainly, but Leia knew he had been killing suspected Alliance supporters right and left, and she was sickened by the way he was fawning over her. At least he had let her land on the planet.

The Imperial officer continued talking. "My dear, the Tarkin Doctrine is a blessing for the galaxy. Rule through fear of force—"

Leia tuned the noble out, watching a wary pair of Ithorians walking by. Humans were the native species of Ralltiir, but Ithorians and Wookiees had immigrated there. Relations between humans and aliens had been shaky ever since the Emperor had begun tightening his hold on the galaxy. Anti-alien prejudices were spreading among humans like wildfire, and there was nothing Leia could do to stop it. That wouldn't, however, prevent her from trying. Smiling, she gave a small half-wave to the Ithorians, who looked surprised and walked away faster. A suspicious group of Stormtroopers watched them move away.

She detected a slight frown tug at Tion's lips, but he didn't miss a beat. No, he just continued rambling on.

Tion was hurting commerce for those on the Perlemian Trade Route, and he wasn't even letting relief organizations through his blockade on the Ralltiir system. Leia hoped her supplies would help, but it would be tricky getting them to the Ralltiir High Council, as the members of the council were presently in prison camps. How long it would be before they were killed, Leia didn't know. But she hoped she could get aid to them before it was too late.

Taking a deep breath, Leia smiled sweetly at the Emperor's task force leader. "Lord Tion, I wish to mingle among the Ralltiiri and see if I can discover anything about the Rebels for you...If we could meet again by my ship in two hours..."

"Of course, my dear. They would be more likely to talk to you than me, that is for certain...Just try not to stray into the marshes—there are some nasty beasts out there that would love to have a beautiful woman for a meal."

"You have nothing to fear, Lord Tion," Leia replied with a smile. Shoot me now, she thought.

As Tion left with his escort of Stormtroopers, Leia glanced nervously at her ship. This would be tricky—though she had wanted more time, she hadn't asked for it for fear of arousing his suspicion. She would have to be quick.

****

It had been weeks since Mara had come to see him, and Sun felt lonely.

Vader had been around, of course, but he had been distant...He seemed almost reluctant about something, but he hadn't been sharing information about what that something was.

Sun had been watching a lot of holovision when Vader wasn't around, as he had managed to bypass some of the channel restrictions Vader had placed on the machine. Now, he could watch some channels which didn't just glorify the Empire. As he did so, however, he reflected on how strange human mating practices were. They weren't assigned mates...and...well...when it came to clothing—

The door whisked open, revealing Vader.

Sun flicked the holovision off with the Force, sitting up straight and looking at the dark man. He hesitated for a moment before tilting his head. That was called looking curious, wasn't it?

"Have I told you about the Jedi?"

Sun felt Curiosity smack him in the face. The Jedi were a taboo subject all around the galaxy, which he had discovered on failing to find anything of significance about them on the Holonet. He shook his head in response to Vader's question, feeling a glimmer of pride at how easily the movement had come to him. He really was learning!

"The Jedi were misguided souls, murderers...They killed my wife," the dark man said in a low voice.

Sensing a glimmer of falsehood, Sun stared at the dark man. He sent a Force tendril toward Vader, only to be thrown violently out of the dark man's mind.

Still, despite the anger which simmered beneath the surface of Vader's mind, his voice remained calm. "It was Palpatine that saved me from them. I will save you from them. And perhaps one day, Sun, you will also save someone from the Jedi."

Sun felt confusion come over him. He could feel pain emanating from Vader, and he felt a tinge of pity.

"The Sith do not need pity," Vader growled, having picked up on his feelings. "The Sith need only the Dark Side. Remember that."

Sun was puzzled as he watched Vader walk out. What was that all about?

****

Vader mentally cursed himself. He was losing his mind, losing control of his emotions. A Sith Lord was always supposed to be in control.

Blast Qui-Gon!

He fingered his lightsaber in frustration. Before he had gone in to see Sun, the ghost of Qui-Gon had appeared before him. He had felt pain, hope, wonder, frustration, anger, fear—so many things...A Sith was not supposed to feel so many things!

Qui-G—Jinn, he corrected himself mentally, distancing himself—had tried to warn him away from his dark path, had tried to convince him to leave the boy alone...Jinn had reminded him of what had happened with his wife, and the pity in his eyes had nearly driven Vader mad.

How dare that Jedi come back from his grave to reprimand him! Where was he when Vader had actually needed his guidance? Certainly not with him!

Vader felt his face flush. He had run away from Qui-Gon Jinn like a coward, and Darth Vader was not a coward.

He tried to calm himself. He was going to train Sun in the ways of the Sith, and a long-dead Jedi was not going to change that.

****

Leia didn't know whether to speak praise or curses. Some Alliance supporters had been able to break through a line of Imperial troops, and the place was in turmoil. With the help of some of the Rebels who had been waiting on her ship, she had been able to get all the supplies where they should be. A few of the Rebels had blaster burns from the fighting that was going on, but they were all alive, which was what mattered. But now Leia was having trouble getting back to the Tantive IV.

She stepped over the body of a dead Rebel soldier, freezing as she felt his hand clasp her ankle. Not so dead, then.

"Miss," the man gasped. "Please, help me."

Leia's trained eyes gazed over his body. He had been hit pretty badly in the side by a blaster bolt and had a big gash on his forehead, but with the proper medical attention he would probably live.

She squinted through the blaster smoke, trying to find someone she knew. She couldn't see anyone; she would have to help the man alone.

Kneeling down beside the wounded human, she spoke to him. "I can't carry you to my ship...Can you walk if you lean on me?"

The man squeezed his eyes closed. "I'm a Rebel, ma'am...I don't want to endanger you."

"So am I. Now, do you think you can do it?"

The Rebel's eyes opened in surprise, and a smile actually spread across his face. "I have to."

Leia helped him to his feet, and they finally managed to get to her ship. Tion was waiting there, talking on a comlink, and Leia froze. Shavit. He'd seen her.

Lord Tion's eyes narrowed in suspicion, and after he finished talking on the comlink, he spoke. "Miss Organa, who is that?"

Thinking quickly, Leia replied, "One of my bodyguards. He got caught in some of the crossfire, I'm afraid."

Tion gazed at the man's face. Blood trickled down the Rebel's forehead, and Leia knew that Tion was going to recognize him.

But his disheveled appearance must have thrown Tion off, as he nodded in acceptance. "It looks like he needs medical attention. Unfortunately, you will have to go off-planet for that. I am sorry to see you go, but it would be best if you return home. You might as well do your banking on Alderaan for a while, my dear. Ralltiir is unstable right now due to these pesky little Dekk flies."

Leia held in a sigh of relief. Ralltiir was famous for its banking industry, and it appeared Tion had believed her excuse for coming to the planet.

"Thank you, Lord Tion."

"You're welcome, my dear. You will receive clearance to go past the blockade." He kissed the top of her hand. Leia resisted the urge to gag.

****

Vader came in a few days later with an ominous air about him.

As the Sith Lord entered, Sun set down the datapad he was looking at. His tutoring droid stood by quietly.

"Have you been practicing levitation?" the dark man queried.

Sun hesitated for a moment before nodding. He had practiced a little bit, though he had probably not done so as much as Vader would have liked.

"Lift the datapad," the Sith Lord instructed.

That was easy enough. Sun reached out to the Force and brought the datapad into the air.

"What are you feeling?"

The youth stared at the dark man for a minute before giving a slow shrug. He was feeling calm, at peace—how was he supposed to express that to Vader?

He felt Vader's anger begin to rise, and the dark man used the Force to snatch the datapad out of the air. "Your peace may do you well in levitating a datapad, but when you are against a real opponent in the heat of battle, such a method is useless. Follow me."

Catching with the Force the datapad that Vader was dropping, Sun slowly got to his feet. Opakwa watched him go.

****

Vader was merciless with the boy. He slashed, feinted, stabbed—the boy had to learn or be killed.

He felt hurt and shock emanating from Sun. The boy just didn't understand. Anger brought power. The Dark Side brought power.

He aimed a mighty blow at Sun's shoulder. The youth blocked it, his arms shaking with fatigue; he was unaccustomed to such viciousness.

"The Dark Side will give you strength if you only let it, Sun. Reach out to your anger—allow it to fill you."

But he felt no anger from Sun. He felt concentration, exhaustion—no emotions for the Dark Side to claim.

"I slaughtered a tribe of Tusken Raiders much like yours," Vader said as he made a feint for Sun's side.

He felt a flicker of something from the boy, but it was soon extinguished. Encouraged, he continued. "They captured my mother and tied her up. They killed her. And I killed them. The men, the women, the children...I took my lightsaber and slashed their throats. One of the women begged at my feet to spare the life of her and her child. I killed them both."

The youth's anger flared, and soon Vader actually found himself being backed up by Sun's onslaught. This boy was powerful, just as he had known he would be.

"Your anger is making you strong. Hold on to it, Sun. Touch the Dark Side."

For a moment, Vader felt he had cemented his hold on the boy. But then the boy lightened his attack, switching over to a numb defense.

Frustrated and wanting to teach a lesson, Vader increased the strength of his attacks. A blow to the right, then a blow to the left, and then one last slice—

Sun's saber and right hand fell to the floor.

Mouth agape, Sun fell to his knees and clutched his hand, clenching his eyes closed. Finally, he looked up at Vader, his lip trembling. Vader saw a tear trickle down the boy's face before he ran from the room.

With a strange sense of self-doubt, Vader stared down at his mechanical right hand. What had he done?

****

Sun wasn't supposed to go to Mara's quarters. He wasn't even supposed to know where they were. But he did. And so that was where he went.

He reached out, found her presence, and then used the Force to let himself into her room.

She was sitting on her couch, staring at a datapad. Upon hearing him come in, she looked up.

Sun felt shock hit him. Her face was a mess of healing gashes and bruises, and she appeared more tired than he had ever seen her.

Sun made a demanding hand movement that he wasn't even sure he understood.

Mara stood up in surprise. "What are you doing here, Sun?? You're not supposed to be here. You need to leave." She never wasted much time with words.

Sun shook his head, accompanying the movement with a Tusken gesture. Through the Force, he sent an image of her appearance to her.

"It doesn't matter. You have to leave."

But he stood his ground. He was not going to leave until she spoke to him.

Sensing his determination, Mara Jade sighed. "I failed a mission, all right? Now go."

Sun made a human gesture that meant "continue." Opakwa would be proud.

"I'm not supposed to talk about it. Please, just leave."

He wanted her to tell him more...He needed her to tell him more. He pushed his feelings toward her with the Force.

Mara looked down at the floor for a few moments, seemingly in thought. Finally, she spoke. "I guess you can't tell anyone, can you? I'll tell you, but then you have to leave...I was trying to secure some supplies for the Emperor's new superweapon..." Sun sent a curious Force tendril toward her, and she continued. "It's called the Death Star...It's a moon-sized space station with enough firepower to destroy an entire planet..." She hesitated. "I don't—I don't think the Emperor should be destroying planets, but he is my master, and I must obey him, Sun."

Sun stared at her. There was more, he knew. He also knew that she didn't want to tell him, but she seemed to need someone to talk to, and she knew he was determined.

"My master punished me..." She gazed up at him. "I deserved his punishment. I should not have failed the Emperor. He has given me a life...You owe him, too."

Sun made a strong gesture of disagreement. He owed Palpatine nothing...He owed Vader nothing...They were both just trying to use him—for what, exactly, he wasn't certain of, but he knew that they were bad men. If they were building planet-destroyers, then it was likely that all they wanted him for was to kill people. He didn't want to kill people like they did...He didn't want to be like them.

"What happened to your hand?" Mara asked suddenly. She looked concerned.

Sun gazed down at his arm. He had been subconsciously clenching it above where his wrist had once been.

He sent an image toward her of Vader, a flash of red, and then sudden pain.

She hissed air out through her teeth. "I'm sorry," she said quietly.

Tentatively, Sun tried to give her a smile. Ignoring the pain and the light-headed feeling he was having, he reached out with his left hand to touch her shoulder as a short good-bye. Then he was gone.