7 weeks later
Late afternoon
Theed, Capitol of Naboo
Queen Sosha Soruna swept the assembled County Representatives with a regal gaze, and spoke solemnly, "Representatives, I thank you for the efforts you have made in preparing Naboo in general, and Theed in particular, for His Imperial Majesty Emperor Palpatine's time here on Naboo. As you know, it has been 9 years since the Emperor graced Naboo with his presence during Empire Week."
Pooja Naberrie wrinkled her forehead slightly. Was there a slightly sarcastic inflection in the word "graced"? She wouldn't be surprised. While Queen Soruna of Naboo was a brilliant diplomat, Pooja knew she was also a patriot with a genuine concern for her people. And conditions for the citizens of Naboo grew harder by the year due the Empire's increasingly cruel grip on the economy and the populace.
The queen turned and bowed slightly to the junior representatives, of whom Pooja was a member.
"Regrettably, there will not be space tonight for you to be one of those greeting the Emperor, Representatives. Your work is therefore complete. You are of course welcome to observe the festivities and addresses on the Holonet. I would ask that you encourage peace and tranquility among the people of your home counties during His Imperial Majesty's time here with us. We wish to give the Emperor a pleasant and joyful time as he celebrates Empire Week."
Pooja firmly restrained any twitches of her face this time. If all worked out as intended, Palpatine's time here would be anything but peaceful.
The Queen and her handmaidens glided out, and the Representatives dispersed. Pooja headed back to her small apartment and ate a simple dinner. She then donned darker garb, and took a speeder to a shopping district near the edge of one of Theed's less pleasant districts. She strolled through several stores, bought several small items for Varykino, and finally walked into a plant emporium. While she didn't have much luck with plants (or cooking), she knew her mother Sola adored stalistis, so she walked over to admire a display of them, clothed in vibrant colors across the spectrum of the rainbow.
"Hello Pooja," a voice said gently at her side.
She turned and smiled at her cousin Luke, who was dressed in a nondescript cloak, "Hello! It is nice to see you again!"
Under her cheerful greeting, she was a little shocked. Luke had darkened his hair and his face looked quite a bit older, and quite a bit different, than the last time they'd met. The 2 week growth of beard was partly the reason, actually. He might also have some kind of make-up on to disguise his features? That was wise.
With the air of old friends who had casually intersected, the two chatted about the Empire Week festivities as they wandered amiably out of the shop, down the street, and finally into a rather unpleasant alley.
Luke grabbed his cousin's hand and they sped up.
"We shouldn't talk openly," he said softly, "This is not an especially safe district, and conditions will get worse before we reach the apartment."
Pooja nodded, even as she trembled slightly inside. As they walked, the buildings grew drabber, the street lights dingier. Those few people out were cloaked and refused eye contact. She occasionally caught glimpses of faces in the windows of the rooms on street level, and all looked unfriendly or nervous or both. She caught sight of at least one Gungan. She really had no idea that there were sections of Theed this terrible.
"I believe it has gotten worse in the last few years," her cousin murmured softly, making her wonder if he could read her mind.
After fifteen minutes, they approached a taller building, one that sprawled across a substantial area of the next block. Luke hesitated briefly as they crossed the intersection, and leaned over to whisper in her ear, "We may have a little trouble coming our way. Just stay back and don't talk, OK? I'll deal with it."
Pooja's shiver grew more pronounced. But Luke was a Jedi, or at least close to one. They'd be safe. Right?
An alley on the right yawned dark and odorous. As they passed it, a group of men suddenly emerged, surrounding them. In the dim light from the street lights, Pooja could count six forms. The one in front was holding a blaster in one hand and a light cell in the other. The cell suddenly cast a bright beam on her face, making her squint. She turned her head slightly and observed another thug to her right, carrying a wicked looking vibro-knife.
"Put your hands up," the leader growled.
Luke did, with Pooja following his lead.
"You don't have to do this," Luke said in a soothing tone.
"Shut your mouth, Central Dweller," the leader replied with a snarl, "Very slowly remove your cloaks and give us all your credit chips and valuables. And if you reach for a blaster, I promise you we'll blow your heads off before you can fire."
Luke tilted his head thoughtfully, and reached his hand up to undo the clasp of his cloak. Suddenly, the leader made a strange grunting sound even as the light cell and blaster flew into the air. Simultaneously, Pooja felt herself being physically picked up and carried several meters away from the fray, where she was set down gently. She watched the unfolding scene incredulously. Her cousin was a blur of movement, spinning and kicking. The thugs went down like rumble-pins, weapons scattering out of reach. When Luke stopped moving, he had the leader of the gang held upright with his left hand, and his right hand held a blaster which was pointed straight at the man's cerebellum.
On the ground were five panting men, with glazed eyes and shocked faces, most moaning in pain. Their leader was trembling so hard he would have fallen if not held upright by Luke. The light cell was on the ground, pointed at the 5 men lying there.
"I don't like being robbed, or threatened," her cousin said, in a cold tone that Pooja had never heard before from Luke.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, please don't kill me, please," gibbered the man who was being threatened with a blaster bolt to the brain, "Please…"
Luke's voice took on an even more menacing air, "And why shouldn't I kill the whole lot of you for daring to attack me and my friend? Scum like you don't deserve to live."
"Please, sir, please, we didn't realize…"
"That some of your targets might have some special training? That you might come across someone who wouldn't cower in terror before you?"
Luke suddenly turned the blaster away from his target and shot it at one of the hoodlums who was trying to quietly creep away. There was a squeal of shock.
"I'm not done talking to you, idiot. Next time you try to move, I'll actually hit you. Got that?"
There was a squeak of nervous agreement, and then Luke's prisoners grew silent and completely still, no doubt waiting for his pronouncement.
Pooja felt cold inside. Would her cousin really kill them all, in cold blood?
"I'm going to let you go," Luke said in a menacing tone, "But if I ever see you hanging around here, robbing strangers, I will not be so gracious. Is that totally and completely clear? Now get out of here."
There was a dazed pause by the men, and then the recumbent ones rose slowly and cautiously to their feet. They exchanged nervous glances, then one bolted for the alley. The other four followed him, two of them limping, one holding an obviously broken arm against his body. The leader stood still, as Luke still had his blaster pointed at his head.
The blaster was lowered, "I suggest you find a more healthy, and legitimate, way to support yourself. Go, before I change my mind."
The gangster gave one last horrified look at Luke, then also raced for the alley.
Luke tucked the blaster in his cloak, held out his hand to Pooja, and they traversed the last 50 meters before coming to a door in the sprawling building that dominated the block.
A cloaked figure was standing at the door. The figure spoke softly, but Pooja recognized the familiar accent of Han Solo.
"Just terrorizing the local denizens out of their wits, kid?" he asked.
Luke sighed, "One of these days I won't deal with muggers while strolling around here in the dark."
"You look like an easy target, kid. Now if you were a Wookie…or your dad…"
"Yeah, I know. Let's go."
Pooja, who was still shaking slightly, followed Luke and Han up a few narrow flights of stairways and into a shabby corridor. The 3rd door down, Han produced a coded key and they stepped into a surprisingly large room. It too was shabby, and the flooring looked like it had seen far better days. The window outside was covered with dingy curtains which blocked outsiders from seeing into the room.
"Would you have really killed them?" Pooja asked abruptly.
Luke looked at her in surprise, "No, Pooja, I wouldn't. I did want to terrify them, though. I hope they won't attack anyone else in the near future, as the next target might be injured or even killed."
Pooja considered this. It hadn't occurred to her before that by sparing the men, other innocents might die.
"Maybe you should have killed at least the leader, though it might have resulted in unwanted attention from law enforcement."
Luke shook his head, "Not in this area, Pooja. The Theed police don't make it down here often. But it was right to spare them, even the leader. When I take justice into my own hands and kill based on a hasty analysis of a situation, I walk into dangerous ethical waters. I have so much power at my finger tips that I have to be careful to use it wisely."
Pooja's ruminations were interrupted by the iconic breathing of Darth Vader, who stepped out of a nearby hallway.
Luke looked at Pooja.
"Let's have Leia in here and then you can update us on Palpatine's arrival and plans for Empire Week."
A few minutes later, Pooja's two cousins and her cousin's husband were seated on rather unpleasant chairs and couches in the apartment's main living area. Pooja's uncle (bizarre to even think of Darth Vader in those terms!) chose to stand, which was not surprising given that none of the seating was remotely appropriate for his large frame.
Pooja spoke briskly, "The Emperor is scheduled to arrive in the next thirty minutes. There will be an ostentatious welcoming committee for the Emperor when he lands. It's a huge deal, lots of security, lots of cheering crowds. Rather a circus. There will be a dinner in his honor, hosted by Queen Soruna. Then, and this is interesting, the Emperor will make a speech that will be broadcast on the Holonet. I don't think he usually does that?"
She cocked an eyebrow at Vader, who said, "No, certainly not. He would occasionally appear from a balcony at the Imperial Palace and wave at the crowds for a few minutes, but he doesn't give speeches on the Holonet. He despises the vast majority of his subjects, and prefers to hide away in luxury and rule from afar."
Pooja nodded, and continued, "Tomorrow at noon, the Emperor will meet again with Queen Soruna, in the Throne Room of the Palace. Much of Emperor Palpatine's schedule for the week is not being released, but that meeting tomorrow is, as far as we know, a firm plan."
There was a long pause as the other occupants of the room considered this.
"Almost certainly, he will be waiting for me. But nevertheless, tomorrow we strike," Vader rumbled.
Luke and Leia exchanged glances.
"Yes," they said together.
2 hours later
Pooja sat down nervously next to Leia. In spite of the dingy furniture and other unpleasant trappings of this low rent apartment, the cousins and Solo had managed to smuggle in decent Holonet equipment. A quick tour of the rest of the apartment showed that other vital items had been brought in as well, including an apparatus which Luke had told her (in a quiet tone) his father could use when he took off his helmet. It was not a full hyperbaric chamber, but apparently Vader's breathing had improved to the point that this smaller article would allow him freedom from his helmet.
It had never occurred to Pooja that the helmet was onerous; she had imagined it was part of Vader's mystique. But what would it be like, to never feel fresh air on the face? To never smell anything that wasn't filtered through a mask? It sounded miserable.
The bright faced female and male anchors of the official Imperial network had been babbling on at great length about the honor for Naboo in having Emperor Palpatine attend Imperial Week festivities on his home planet. There had been brief recordings of the Emperor's arrival, showing the honor guard, the cheering crowds, and the humble welcome by Queen Soruna. Pooja had gritted her teeth in outrage when her queen and several of her advisors kneeled at Palpatine's feet. When she commented on it, however, Vader told her that he himself had bowed to Palpatine.
Finally, after yet more obsequious flattery by the Holonet news anchors, the scene shifted to a podium, where the aged and unattractive face of Emperor Palpatine formed a harsh contrast to the lovely lines of the room framing him.
Pooja spoke up, "He's speaking from the art gallery in the palace. That's strange."
"Citizens of Naboo," the Emperor said in a creaking tone that made Pooja's ears protest, "I thank you for your gracious welcome today to the planet of my birth. It is my pleasure to honor you with my presence during this most glorious of weeks, the celebration of the birth of my illustrious and powerful Empire."
There were collective groans and retching noises at this announcement, until Leia said, "Shh, everyone."
Palpatine's face suddenly sagged in mock grief, "Regrettably, this transmission to my subjects will bring no pleasure to me. As you know, I grew up on this wonderful planet, and served it as Senator for many years. It is one of the highlights of my long life that I was able to serve this planet before moving on to serve the galaxy as Emperor."
The Emperor began walking slowly down the hall of the art gallery, with the recording device following him. He stopped, then gestured upward at a large painting suspended in a place of honor on the wall. The face was that of a young and beautiful woman, hair piled elaborately high, a gentle smile on her face.
Pooja gasped, "Aunt Padme!"
"Citizens of Naboo, of the galaxy," Palpatine continued, "Some of you may remember a queen from more than 20 years ago, Padme Amidala. We worked together in the corroding government that preceded my glorious reign. At the time, I believed her to be a noble leader with a deep desire to serve her people."
He turned now to face the recording device directly, giving a clearer look at his yellow eyes.
"It grieves me to announce to the people of Naboo that Queen Amidala, later Senator Amidala, was not who she seemed to be. A special investigative task force of the highest caliber has been investigating Amidala for more than a year. The discoveries are difficult for me to impart to you, but I feel obliged as a former leader of Naboo to set the record straight for the benefit of the local government and its people. In my role as Emperor, I aim to bring justice even if it is decades late. No one can escape due judgement for sins against the peoples of the Empire.
"Padme Amidala was, during her time as both Queen and Senator, relentlessly embezzling money from the government, money which she successfully hid in accounts to benefit her family and associates. She was also in secretly allied with the Trade Federation which attacked Naboo and brought about the deaths of so many on my beloved home planet.
"As if all this isn't devastating enough to learn, the task force recently discovered that Senator Padme Amidala, while supposedly loyally representing Naboo on Coruscant, had a torrid and illicit love affair with the Jedi traitor Anakin Skywalker. Yes, my dear subjects, Padme Naberrie Amidala is the mother of the Rebel terrorist Luke Skywalker, who, in one vicious shot, brought about the deaths of over one million loyal Imperial subjects when he destroyed a research and medical space station 4 years ago. Clearly, Amidala was not a noble representative of Naboo, but a vicious, self serving, harlot who…"
At this point, Pooja, who had been listening in absorbed, horrified silence, saw Luke suddenly leap up from his chair and step quickly over Darth Vader.
"Father," he said urgently, "He's deliberately antagonizing you. Please calm down."
Belatedly, Pooja noticed that the furniture was shaking. A quick look at Vader showed that his hands were clenched and he was standing rigidly.
Pooja stood up as well, and approached Vader with a courage that she didn't know she possessed.
She put her hand on Vader's arm.
"Lord Vader," she began…then, "Uncle Ani?"
Vader turned in shock at her use of that name, and the trembling stopped.
"We all know that he is lying about Aunt Padme. She was the most amazing woman in the galaxy, totally loyal, totally faithful. Please, don't cause damage to this place. It's not the most well maintained structure in the world."
Luke chimed in, "And if you get angry enough, Father, you may override our shielding. Leia and I are doing our best, but if you go volcanic, Palpatine may be able to pinpoint your presence. That would be a disaster for the plan. This is exactly what we expected, Father, though admittedly the Emperor is being even more vicious than we expected about Mother."
Vader nodded, and even with the expressionless mask, he seemed contrite, "I apologize. I think I had best move into the other room. You will keep me updated on anything further I need to know?"
Pooja hesitated, then said softly, "Would you like my company?" She had no interest in listening to Palpatine's attacks on her Aunt Padme, and by extension, their family.
Vader looked at her for a long moment, "I would be honored."
He turned and Pooja followed him into a large bedroom where Vader's breathing paraphernalia was housed. Vader sank into a large wooden chair, and stared, apparently blankly, at the wall.
His response to Palpatine's insults about Padme Amidala had surprised Pooja. She had assumed that the former Anakin Skywalker had abandoned Padme in a quest for power. So why would he care if his (former) master slandered her?
Unnervingly, Vader seemed to pick up on her thoughts.
"I loved her more than the galaxy itself, Representative Naberrie. I joined Palpatine and turned to the Dark Side in a vain attempt to save her."
Pooja sat down on a nearby chair and said wearily, "I think you can call me Pooja, Uncle Ani."
There was an uncomfortable pause, and then she burst out with, "What happened to you? I don't remember you well, but you were so kind to us. How did you turn into a…" She trailed away.
"Monster? Tyrant? A man who would murder children, torture his daughter, maim his son?" Vader asked. His voice sounded bitter through the vocoder.
Pooja didn't answer.
The dark mask turned toward her.
"I don't have an excuse, Pooja, but my son is very wise, far wiser than I was at his age. Great power brings great responsibility, but I thought I could use it carelessly for my own purposes, even if the purpose seemed noble. My power in the Force was so strong that I believed I could change destiny, that I could save Padme. I was wrong, and the galaxy, and my children, have suffered from my blindness."
"Save Aunt Padme?" Pooja asked in bewilderment.
The vocoder released a sigh, "Yes, I had prescient visions of Padme dying in childbirth, after she told me of her pregnancy. I had had similar visions about my mother a few years earlier. I dreamed of her in agony, dying on Tatooine, our home planet. I finally went to visit her and found she'd been abducted by a local tribe. I found her dying from the abuse. She died in my arm.
He suddenly stood up and started pacing, as if his words were too fraught with emotion to allow him to sit down.
"When I kept dreaming of Padme's death, I sought help from my Jedi masters though I could not tell them whom I was so concerned for. The grandmaster of the Order told me to let my loved one die, to submit to the will of the Force. I couldn't lose Padme. The then Chancellor Palpatine was a trusted mentor and friend. He told me…he told me that he had knowledge of Dark Side arts which would allow someone to change the future. He told me that if I pledged my allegiance to him, he would teach me how to save Padme from dying. He was manipulating me, but it was my fault. I gave in out of fear. I helped destroy the Jedi younglings in the Temple. I destroyed the Separatist leaders in cold blood. Padme … when Padme found out, she refused to join me in the Dark Side. I argued with her. I…"
He couldn't finish his thought, the memories apparently too terrible to share.
Pooja was startled at this outpouring of words from the Dark Lord. Perhaps Vader felt it easier to share all this with a stranger than with his children, who had suffered so badly at his hands. She felt a strange mix of horror and sympathy – horror that a good man could turn so terrible. Sympathy that the man before her was obviously grieving, 2 decades later, over his lost wife.
"I'm sorry," she said suddenly, "I'm so sorry that you lost Aunt Padme."
The black helmet turned to her in apparent surprise.
"Thank you, Pooja," Vader said. After a moment, he began pacing again.
"I thought the child had died as well. I had nothing to live for except to serve Palpatine. And since I'd already given him my allegiance and my devotion, I convinced myself the Jedi were at fault, that the Empire was better, that if we could just stamp out dissension that there would be peace and the citizens of the galaxy would benefit. Until a few months ago, when Luke's love broke through the barriers I'd erected around my heart, I continued to feel that way. Thus, I was the Emperor's brutal hand for more than two decades."
There was an interruption at the door, as Luke, Leia, and Han filed in, looking solemn.
Pooja stared at them, unnerved by the looks on their faces.
Vader spoke up, "What else did that foul old man say about Padme?"
Luke sighed, "There are two important details, Father – and Pooja."
Leia said gently, "Pooja, Palpatine ordered the seizure of Varykino, supposedly because the funds for its upkeep came from embezzlement. Of course, that is ridiculous."
Pooja felt herself grow pale, "My family?"
"Palpatine merely said they would be evicted. He mentioned that Varykino would be destroyed and the land used for a fertilizer plant. It's obvious he is trying to antagonize Father as he probably knows that he and Mother were married there."
"He does know," Vader said heavily.
Solo spoke up, "The signal from the Holonet station has an unusual frequency, in addition to the standard ones, a low one that travels well through soil. It seems likely that he believes Vader is underground in that mole miner, and he wanted to make the message was received."
"What else?" Vader demanded.
"Mother's tomb is to be destroyed at noon tomorrow, her body removed from the sepulcher, and her bones burned in a fire in the middle of the city in an open bonfire. Her portrait will be burned, her name will be removed from the records, etc. He couldn't be more obvious about trying to anger you, Father," Luke said.
Vader's fists clenched, but the furniture didn't start dancing. That was something.
"He has undoubtedly succeeded, my son, but I have my rage under control. Tomorrow, his reign ends, once and for all."