First of all let me apologize for my extremely long absence. College got crazy and I had a few deaths in the family and just completely lost any and all desire to write for the past several years. However, I am back now and I have a better vision of where I want this story to go as it progresses. It is my intention to start updating at least once a month, but I'll try to get chapters up faster if I can. Thanks for waiting for me, readers, and I hope you enjoy the new chapter!
Hope Denied
Chapter Five
The sun was setting over the heavily forested planet as an Imperial shuttle came to an unsteady landing in a small clearing. A few minutes later, the hatch opened with a hiss and Luke came stumbling out, a blaster clutched in one hand and an emergency pack slung over his shoulders. Worn down by grief and exhaustion, he was practically weaving on his feet, but he knew he couldn't stay with the shuttle. No doubt the Empire had ways of tracking it and he was certain that they would already be close behind him. There was a spaceport just a few hours' walk through the forest. If he could just make it there, and find a ship, and get off the planet before Vader's troops caught up with him...then he might have a chance to….well, to escape. He didn't know where yet. If there was anything left of the Rebellion outside the forces that had been on Yavin, if he could somehow get in touch with them…
'That's a lotta ifs, kid,' he could hear Han's sardonic drawl in his head like the man was standing right next to him.
Han would be right too. He had to take this one step at a time, or his grief and fear would consume him.
"Okay," he said aloud, "One step at a time. Just get to the town."
Hitching the pack higher on his back, he set off into the forest.
It was full dark now and Luke could barely focus enough energy to put one foot down after the other. He had pushed himself almost to the very last of his strength, but he couldn't stop now. The space port couldn't be that much further.
As he took another step, a stone shifted beneath his foot, causing Luke to go down hard. His head bounced off a stone, hard enough to cause spark to flash behind his eyes.
Luke.
The boy shook his head, squinting against the pain. For a moment…he thought he had heard Ben's voice.
Luke.
The voice came more clearly this time, and before his eyes, the dancing sparks of pain seemed to coalesce into a shimmering blue form.
"Ben?" he whispered, struggling to focus.
His old mentor's face became clearer, those kind eyes still filled with a strange mixture of affection and concern as they looked down at his prone form.
Luke, you must go to the Dagobah system.
"Dagobah?" he repeated dumbly.
There you will find Yoda, the Jedi Master who instructed me.
"Ben…" Luke murmured, reaching out toward him, but the ghostly silhouette was already fading away. Groaning, the boy forced himself to his feet and kept stumbling on toward the faint light on the horizon that marked where the spaceport lay.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Mara Jade was waiting for Lord Vader's little Rebel when he came stumbling out of the forest. Leaning against one of the buildings with her arms crossed over her chest, she took advantage of his clear exhaustion to give him a thorough once over.
He was young, she noted with surprise, certainly no older than she herself was. Scruffy blonde hair, blue eyes dulled with grief, and wearing a stained black Imperial uniform-stolen, no doubt, during the course of his escape from the incompetent Vader.
Most surprising, however, was the way she could feel the power wafting out of him like an almost physical manifestation. She'd never felt a Force presence like this, not even from the Emperor himself. Scowling at the disloyal thought, she subtly sent a tendril of thought toward him, sliding smoothly beneath his practically nonexistent mental defenses and into the maelstrom of his mind. Powerful he may be, she thought smugly, but clearly lacking anything but the most rudimentary training. It only showed how inept Vader must be to have let him escape.
Withdrawing her probe just as carefully as she had sent it out, she pushed away from the wall to casually step into his path. She gave the boy a sultry smile as she invaded his space.
"Hey there, handsome," she said.
He paused, blue eyes flashing with bewilderment, and she pressed her advantage.
"What brings you here so late?" she asked.
"I...uh. I need a ship?" he said uncertainly, taking a step back.
Mara laid a hand on the Rebel's chest as he backed uncomfortably away from her advances, maneuvering him over toward an alley.
"Oh?" she purred, "And is that all you're looking for?"
"I...yes. I just need a ship," he stammered, still backpedaling.
She gave him a wicked smirk.
"My name's Celina. What's yours?"
She was ready, darting a laser-quick probe into his mind as he instinctively thought his own name in response to the question. Luke Skywalker, huh? Odd name, she thought.
The Rebel let out a startled breath as his back hit a duracrete wall, glancing back behind him in bewilderment as though he hadn't even noticed his retreat. While his attention was diverted, Mara grabbed the front of his shirt and spun him around further into the alley, so that the shadows would camouflage them from any late-night passersby. She followed him in, flicking her wrist so that her tiny blaster slid from its holster and into the palm of her hand.
"Keep your hands on the wall, Rebel. Try to escape and I promise I will drop you before you get more than one step down this alley," she said coolly, dropping the act altogether.
I have him, Master, she thought.
~Excellent. Have you found out why Vader is so interested in him?~
Yes, my Lord. He's a Force-sensitive...very strong. His name is Skywalker, Luke Skywalker.
She blinked hard as a sudden wave of shock and disbelief flooded through her connection to the Emperor.
~What?!~
She proffered the memory for his inspection, wincing slightly as she felt him take hold of it and roughly examine the information she had pulled from the Rebel's unguarded mind. The shock she was feeling was overcome by a wave of fury that just as quickly melded into smug satisfaction and overwhelming greed.
~You will bring this young Skywalker to me immediately, my Hand. I want him alive and unharmed.~
The exchange took just a moment and, as her vision cleared and she focused back on the young man in front of her, she saw that he had ignored her warning and turned to face her.
"You're an Imp?" he asked in shock.
She gestured meaningfully with her blaster.
"I said hands on the wall, Skywalker," she stated flatly, far too used to men underestimating her.
He frowned at her and she felt a clumsy push in the Force coming from his direction. She mentally swatted it away like she would an annoying fly, pleased when his eyes went even wider.
"You can use the Force!" he said.
"Guess you're not as special as you thought you were," she said sardonically, "Now hands on the wall. The Emperor wishes to meet you, and you don't want to keep him waiting."
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