Against the Void

Chapter 3

New Homes

Luke

The Galactic Empire ruled over countless subjects living on endless planets that ranged from the strange to the wondrous. Among the these many worlds Coruscant, now known as Imperial Center was the uncontested crown jewel of the Empire. A trillion souls crowded into complexes of apartments, markets and opera houses that rivaled the greatest mountains across the galaxy in size. With them they brought the best and the worst of every culture. In the greatest melting pot known to history, anything could be found and anyone could be anything.

On this planet, were a million people could be crowded into one monumental hab-spire, the Imperial Palace demonstrated the wealth and power of the Emperor not only with its beautiful gold wrought architecture but with its empty space. Rather than leaving Darth Vader's star destroyer on a shuttle which to Luke seemed the only way to reach the planet, the star destroyer simply descended into the palace space port. They glided over the endless city and settled into one of three landing fields in the palace space port that could accommodate such craft. From the belly of the ship a great Over 100 meters wide extended down to the ground. Luke and his father descended alone the great ramp alone as those on the ship seeking to leave and those on the ground seeking to board waited. Luke could feel a thousand questioning eyes watching him as he took advantage of his new found position at his fathers insistence. Waiting for them at the bottom were eight royal guards in their unmistakable crimson robes. They stood four to each side of a land speeder as a servant of some sort in the most beautiful clothes Luke had ever seen held the door of the speeder open for them.

It was the bows the imperial guards gave him as he entered the speeder after his father that did him in. It was all simply to much, while they had spent a good deal of time in transit he had been asleep for most of it. In his mind it seemed as if only hours ago he had been the most junior of officers in the vast imperial military. Another cog in the wheel destined for an unremarkable and unremembered life. Now he was... he didn't know what he was! On the last step of the stairs on the speeder before the door he froze as his mind went blank. When he was finally vaguely aware again of his situation he turned in horror to see all the thousands of people watching his every move. Thankfully the traditions of the the imperial navy are deeply ingrained into those who manage to graduate and instinct kicked in. He performed a sharp salute to the attending imperial guards. Before fleeing into the speeder, hoping that people would be fooled into thinking he was at least purposefully making the choices they were witnessing. He settled into a luxuriously comfortable seat across from his father..

"What was that?" The Dread Lord of the Sith asked.

Luke shifted with discomfort that had nothing to do with his seat. "Instinct" he said.

That apparently was the right thing to say as Vader visibly eased. "Instinct is more reliable than most other guiding forces but see that it does not rule you."

When Vader said no more Luke was left wondering whether that was an important lesson that he would be tested on. He had known his father for a few scant hours and truly had no idea what to expect from the legendary figure. Such thoughts were quickly swept aside however as the speeder began to race through the place. It seemed as though palace district was a more appropriate name. The grand buildings that housed the galactic government formed vast landscape of chasms and peaks that was punctuated by art and monuments that nearly brought tears to Luke's eyes to behold. In the back of his mind he wondered at how many planets had been stripped of their entire mineral wealth to provide the gold, gems and other rare materials necessary to create such a sight. It took quite a large amount of time to reach the throne room itself. Even after they had been deposited on the appropriate landing pad it had taken almost fifteen minutes of walking to reach their destination. Throughout it all Vader spoke not a word. The impenetrable mask gave Luke little clue as to his father's thoughts and he was left wondering how he was supposed to behave. They were whisked past a long line of supplicants awaiting their moment with the ruler of the galaxy and the doors of the throne room opened before them. The contrast between the throne room and the rest of the palace was jarring. The throne room was simple, spartan even. The Emperor, for no other could be sitting upon the throne, was wrapped in a simple black robe. Everything about him though shrieked power and danger.

Dead eyes fixed upon Luke from within the wrinkled and sunken sockets. "Skywalker..." the voice was dry and raspy as if the throat it had come from had not been quenched with water for years, even so it carried a kind of transfixing power with it that rooted Luke to the spot in which he stood. "That is a name I have not heard in some time..." Each word was measured and the space between them seemed to be an almost endless void. "After all these years to find you in the most distant corner of the galaxy. Your existence is a rare surprise". The features of his face twisted into a snarl. "There is nothing I despise more than a surprise". Much to Luke's relief the snarl left his face. "And yet this is an unparalleled opportunity". He paused before asking carefully "Do you know what you are?"

Luke could see Vader visibly tense beside him and he felt what he could only describe as an overwhelming presence wash over him. He could feel every fiber of his being coming under scrutiny. A catalog of events from his life both important and seemingly mundane flashed before his eyes as if they were being displayed and reviewed. Not trusting his words he shook his head.

A flash of what might have been disappointment seemed to appear upon the Emperor's face. "No of course not, how could you" the Emperor smiled revealing perfectly white teeth, "You are the son of the greatest Jedi who ever lived"

Despite all that had happened Luke had not lost his capacity to be shocked to the core. Without thought he turned to his father. "You..."

"Yes" the Emperor said. "Once upon a time. Yet you cannot follow in his footsteps, you are incapable. But as one door closes, another opens. A different path will be yours to walk, one that no other has. You shall be my heir."

"WHAT!" Cried Vader breaking his long silence

"What?" Luke said in almost a whisper.

"Silence!" The Emperor held up a hand. "Yes" the Emperor said. "Tell me boy when I am named what emotion comes most readily to you and the people you know?"

Luke considered the question carefully. After some time he ventured "respect".

The Emperor leaned back and steepled his fingers together. "A safe answer though not untrue, especially among the officer corps. The correct answer though is fear. Creating and ruling a galactic empire has required hard choices, ones that I have not shied away from making. Instead of running from the fear I have embraced it, molded it into a tool I may use. You will serve the Empire in this time of sedition and chaos by giving the people what they crave the most, someone to believe in".

"But why me?" Luke asked

"I have spent more than thirty years shaping your father into the man he is today. In all the ways that matter I am your grandfather. The Skywalker name is bound inexorably to the Imperial Throne." He held up his hand once more to stave off questions. "Go now, servants are waiting to take you to your quarters where your needs will be attended to. Take the rest of the evening to collect yourself, we shall begin your instruction in the morning".

It was all Luke could do in his overwhelmed state to keep up with the servants sweeping him away from the throne room. Deep in soul the idea that the Emperor could in anyway be considered his family felt almost like he had swallowed the most vile of poisons.

Vader

Luke was not the only one being swept away by events. Vader was deeply confused and more than anything else this terrified him. As soon as his soon had left the room he stepped forward. "Master, never once have you made mention of an heir..."

"Remember your place Vader" Palpatine hissed as anger brought life to his normally dead eyes. "Make no mistake if he had shown even a tenth of the power you possessed before your..." disgust now washed over Palpatine "...crippling, he would have been your replacement. Now I must make use of him a different way".

White hot rage coursed through Vader's soul, he could feel the adrenaline being carried through his blood to every inch of his body. How dare this vile creature threaten his son?!

"Control yourself Vader" Palpatine said with a dangerous neutrality. "Rest assured that your son is not in danger, yet. Though as the new Crown Prince of the Empire he must of course be protected at all times by a detachment of Imperial Guardsmen. As he is too weak to defend himself from even a novice force user it must be an impenetrable and absolutely loyal force".

The meaning was clear, he had delivered the ultimate hostage to Palpatine. Yet there had been no other choice than to appear when summoned and the rational part of his brain told him that this really was the best outcome he could have realistically expected. He tried a different tact. "The Death Star is fully operational and ready to be deployed. What need have you of a public face to inspire loyalty when you have been planing to rule through fear alone?"

Palpatine smiled a cruel, viscous smile "Worry not, I have a plan. To start with we will need an event to introduce the Empire to its new Prince. No..." he corrected himself, "...its new hero. We will need an event the likes of which the galaxy has never seen and one which they shall never forget".

Leia

The hospital room was plenty warm but the steaming cup of hot coco Princess Leia Organa held in her hands was what was really needed to finally warm up that place deep inside her that had been so deeply cold since she nearly killed herself with exhaustion using the force for the first time. She sat upright on the side of her hospital bed wearing a disposable medical gown and with a fussy medical droid tending to her. Across from her on the side of the opposite bed was a the wizened old man so many had died to find. General Kenobi, last of the jedi did not at first seem all that impressive, just an old man in what looked to be even older brown robes. A lifetime of training in the royal court of Alderaan had taught her to asses people accurately in most ways and it did not take her long to detect the man he had once been lurking underneath the facade he put up.

Between the two was Mon Mothma, the woman who led the greatest part of the rebellion. She stood, her hands clasped between her back as she caught Leia up to speed. "...and General Kenobi insisted that the debriefing had to wait until you were seen to, something we obviously don't have time for.". She gave the old man a reproachful look. "So blame him for not being in a bacta tank right now.".

Leia shook her head, "Its fine, this is important. I want to thank you properly for my rescue".

"We are all thankful for the safe return of one of our own," Mon Mothma said with the deep sincerity that had inspired the rebellion showing in her eyes. "But it brings up another important matter. You have seen the Death Star, you know what is out there waiting for us. The hour is late, it is time for you to leave the shadows and stand with us. The galaxy needs the Jedi once again. Where is your ward, is he close to becoming a Jedi Knight yet?"

Obi-Wan's face became grave "The hour is later than you think, my ward fell into the clutches of the Empire, I have searched for some time but there I have yet to find a trace of him."

Mon Mothma's shoulders sagged. "Then it was all for nothing, the Jedi are no more. The galaxy is a darker place for it."

Obi-Wan stood, "No, there is another" he said as he looked directly at Leia.

"Leia is too old, the Jedi would never have accepted her for training!"

"Leia bolted upright as well "What!"

The other two exchanged a meaningful look and Obi-Wan said "The Jedi clung to their ways no matter what the reality was and look what that has brought." He faced Leia directly. "You were adopted, Bail Organa was a good friend of mine and we were both present at your birth, the day your biological mother died, Bail took you into his care and I took your brother."

"I can't be adopted" Leia stated hotly "I am the Princess of Alderaan, I do not have a brother"

Mon Mothma objected vehemently "This has been secret for twenty years,we agreed not to discuss this without consulting one another, Bail should be here for this!"

Obi-Wan shook his head firmly "No, our secrets have done little but cause us harm over the years, Leia is our last hope, we cannot fail again. She must be armed with the truth, the whole truth. Leia, your father was my pupil, his name was Anakin Skywalker..."

"OUT!" Mon Mothma ordered at the top of her voice, driving the attendants who had been minding their own business on the far side of the medical bay. She motioned for silence from the other two until the room was cleared of all potential witnesses. "If we must discuss this, we cannot take any chances of this information spreading."

Obi-Wan took that as his cue to keep going "Your father was the greatest of the Jedi, a true hero of the republic and my best friend. But he was at times a lonely man, one who had the burden of defending the galaxy laid on his shoulders. In his efforts to lessen the toll this took upon him, he found a confidant in the form of a charming and idealistic young politician whose rising career took him straight to the top levels of power, Senator Palpatine."

"No!" Leia said in a voice with a note of uncertainty in it.

The old man pressed on, "By the time we realized what Palpatine was, it was too late for Anakin, too late for all of us." He paused then, as his eyes watered up and his word failed him.

Mon Mothma filled in the gap in the conversation "That was when we formed what would eventually become the Rebel Alliance. Bail Organa is a great man, he raised you. Your family loves you and is still your family no matter who gave birth to you."

Leia cast her eyes downward, "I know"

At that moment an Alderaani soldier poked his head through the door, "Mon Mothma, I know you did not want to be disturbed but you should turn on the view screen in there. The parade is starting."

"What Parade" Obi-Wan asked.

Mon Mothma grimaced, "The Empire is holding the grandest parade in its history to reveal the new prince they have pulled out of thin air to his adoring public. Computer, On." She said "View Galactic News Network Channel 1"

A holographic screen appeared before the trio displaying the news feed and both Mon Mothma and Obi-Wan gasped with horror. The feed showed a close up on the face a young man with sandy blond hair and deep blue eyes. The text along the bottom written in bold stated "HAIL PRINCE LUKE SKYWALKER!" It only took a moment for Leia to piece it together "brother..." she whispered softly as her own wave of horror crashed upon her.

Luke

Prince Luke Skywalker of the Imperial Empire stood atop a hover platform that was making its way down the Great Imperial Causeway for all to see. Resplendent in a new white dress uniform remarkably similar to that of a Grand Admiral and standing with a formal bearing that he had acquired from his military training with a dozen Royal Guards in formation behind him, he truly looked like a royal figure to all who saw him. The Causeway was two hundred meters across and ran for endless kilometers through the most important districts of the capitol city. The imperial military was also on display this day. Walkers and tanks by the brigade were lined up in parade formation along Luke's route and among the vehicles entire legions of storm troopers raised their fists in salute to him. Not to be out done, the imperial navy had sent most of the home fleet to attend. Dozens of Star Destroyers hung in the sky above the causeway and thousands of TIE Fighters flew in formation in circles above and below the Causeway. Witnessing this display of might were millions of citizens from the surrounding city, they waved from the windows of the endless skyscrapers and were packed in tightly behind barriers along the Causeway in viewing areas. They screamed their adulation for the empire and their excitement for their new prince. Little did Luke know that only those deemed sufficiently loyal had been allowed through the security check points. In addition to them, dozens of news drones circled about Luke's platform capturing the moment for the galaxy to see.

Luke could have done without the cameras. Without them he would not have had to worry about concealing his thoughts nearly as much. The last week had been a whirlwind of intensive medical care and hasty lessons from adjuncts in how he should act. He only seen his father twice since they had arrived and the Emperor once, all of them for a very brief time. In truth he had yet get his feet properly underneath himself. He'd had barely a moment to think about what was happening to him. It wasn't that he was opposed to his new role, far from it. In fact he was a little surprised by how eager he felt for it all. He actually was loving the cheers from the crowd they fulfilled a desire for attention he had not realized he possessed. The adulation, the power, it all made him feel wonderful. The problem was the caution they had beaten into him at the Imperial Naval Academy was nagging at him more and more every day, demanding that he search for a catch or some other sort of downside.

Suddenly a distorted noise penetrated through the roar of the crowd. The icy grip of fear came over him as he realized that he recognized what it was. He looked to the sky and searched among the ships above them desperately, he had heard the cascading sound of a hyperdrive core experiencing a critical failure before. He saw that one of the Star Destroyers ahead of him began to list to port. Just as he tried to warn everyone the ship ripped itself apart as the middle third tore into hyperspace with a deafening noise. The cries of adulation turned to screams of fear as all eye turned upward. Most of the remaining parts began to crash down into the city but the worst was yet to come. The biggest piece of debris, roughly a quarter of the original ship crashed into its sister ship knocking it out of orbit as well. An entire Star Destroyer and most of a second fell into the endless city. Skyscrapers thousands of stories tall fell into a cloud of dust and debris that exploded away from the epicenter, never to be seen again. The platform Luke stood on shuddered and fell to the floor of the Causeway as rubble flew past them. They landed softly enough that no one was hurt. Hundreds of Storm Troopers bowled over fleeing civilians and formed an impenetrable perimeter around Luke almost the moment he touched the ground. An AT-AT standing almost above them was split in half by a large chunk of rubble. A hand on his shoulder spun him around and he found himself face to face with a Ground Forces General. The noise was such that even when the general leaned forward and screamed into Luke's ear he could barely make out "...have...safety...Lord...Lord...orders...".

Looking into the General's eyes Luke realized that they were all looking to him for leadership. A crimson gauntlet grabbed his harm and a royal guard began to drag him towards safety. With a forceful shove he threw the royal guard off of him. Luke then pushed his way through the line of storm troopers. He ran a few steps before turning back and waving at the troops to follow him. The storm troopers and royal guards began to run after him. Satisfied he had been understood, charged into the oncoming dust cloud. All the while, broadcast sensors that should have cut the feed at the first sign of trouble obeyed their new orders and focused all cameras on the Prince as he dashed into the mayhem.

Stay tuned for chapter 4

The Day the Sky Fell