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Chapter 8
Luke was practicing the first lightsaber "form" with the blue lightsaber. He had been anxiously gratified, the first time he contained it in his hands and began swinging it around. Now? It was... a little boring to keep swinging the lightsaber around.
The Marksman-H remote was keeping him company. He was being taught the basic velocities of "Shii-Cho". It was the best to start with and excel at. His father did look extremely youthful, but no matter how the man seemed to come from the past, Luke felt a sense of longing being closed off at the sight of the man who bore a striking resemblance to him. The man was taller than him, clearly had some experience, and was a Jedi Knight.
It felt... safe to be in his presence.
He'd always envisioned his father as an enthusiastic man, perhaps with a roguish smile and crack jokesters. To know that the man was anything else admittedly disappointed a part of Luke.
But he knew, the moment he stared at him, he'd loved him.
Anakin Skywalker may have come from a time when he was cut down by the Empire, but no matter how old or young he was, he'd still cared about him.
He'd loved Owen and Beru, but they weren't anything compared to his father.
Owen and Beru were sleeping in the spare cabins. Threepio and Artoo were bantering back and forth. Leia was sitting down next to his father. As for his father himself, he was sitting comfortably on the couch in the center room of the Millennium Falcon. He was reading the Holonet on a datapad, attempting to 'catch up' on what he had missed in the last nineteen years.
...and presumably whatever he was reading was causing ranges of emotions. Luke couldn't explain it, but he could feel disbelief, bemusement, and infuriation leaking down... increasing steadily in size. He mentally started a countdown...
On four, he exploded. "What were they THINKING?!"
Luke paused his motions. "What were who thinking?"
"The Naboo," he growled. The name didn't ring a bell. "And Moff Panaka! That's double-crossing traitor!"
"Who's Panaka?" Luke asked. Clearly, someone who was important.
"Was the Captain of Royal Naboo Guard in your mother at the Invasion of Naboo and sometimes afterward," Anakin grumbled.
Leia added, "And also learned of your affair with Amidala during the Clone Wars and reported it to Palpatine according to Mon Mothma."
Wrong thing to say...
The air thickened in tension. Betrayal raged around him now. "I'm going to kill him!"
Many people were on his father's death list, as Luke came to call it. Darth Vader. The Emperor. Now, this new man-Panaka. The fact that he'd known his mother did infuriate the son of Anakin Skywalker ever so slightly because it was ludicrous how much things had fallen apart, and the fact that someone who seemed to have been close to his mother had gone about to betray them.
The tension was cut when the smuggler pilot disembarked. "Well, you can forget your trouble with those Imperial slugs. I told you I'll outrun them." He settled in the nearby black chair, receiving no response. "Don't everybody thank me at once. Anyway, we should be at Alderaan about 0:200 hours."
"Thank you for not crashing us into a black hole," Leia quipped. "You might be worth something after all."
Luke was starting to grow annoyed with all of these distractions.
Anakin stood up and walked over to him. "Remember, Luke, to be so deeply attuned to the Force, you have to allow it to flow through you. It'll obey your command." He advised.
Luke did his best. But his best wasn't good enough. He was stunned. "I can't do it."
"Again."
The smuggler, on the other hand, laughed. "Pokey religions and ancient weapons ain't no match for a good blaster at your side, kid."
Luke pouted and glared at him, but Leia beat him to the punch, giving the smuggler a smart glare.
"Why don't you try?" She asked.
"Oh, don't lose your dress, Your Majesty," Solo said snidely. "I flown from one side of the galaxy to the other. I'd seen a lot of strange stuff, but I never seen anything to make me believe there's one all powerful Force controlling everything. There's no mysteric energy controlling my destiny. It's all simple tricks and nonsense."
"Let's try this again," his father said, drawing his lightsaber from the past and igniting it.
Luke stepped back, his eyes wide. "You can't be serious! That would be way too-"
"You ain't giving up easily, are you, kid?" His father inquired.
"But me fighting y-" he started.
"You have to be pushed to the limits in order for you to reach your potential, Luke. The path of the Jedi isn't easy."
Luke sighed but reluctantly positioned his lightsaber in front of him. His father PRACTICALLY KRIFFING FLEW at his direction, and Luke only fell back. Lightsaber twirling in his direction, the young farmer was reduced to stepping back as the lightsaber came down with devastating assaults. Anakin slammed against him with finesse, bullying his defenses. Luke blocked before he grunted and fell back more.
When the strikes stopped, Luke breathed a sigh of relief and stared up at the towering man, lightsaber still in hand. He took in several breaths before charging forward, trying to do the same.
Anakin smirked somewhat, gripping his arm and tossing him onto the ground thankfully softly. Otherwise, Luke could have broken his back.
"This isn't fair," Luke complained.
"Your enemies won't be fair on the battlefield, Luke," his father simply said.
Those words infuriated a part of the younger Skywalker, but he knew that the man was right.
"We've arrived to Alderaan," the smuggler said.
Bail Organa encountered many surprises in his life. From the day when Bail Antilles wanted to retire and was advocating for him to continue him, to when Breha confessed she wanted to marry him, to the very first time he'd held Leia in her arms, to many "gifts" Leia and Winter (the two together were banes of his existence) left for him delightfully throughout the years...
But imagine his surprise when Anakin Skywalker walked in. Yes, Anakin Skywalker, not Darth Vader. He'd looked nothing like the black monstrosity, healed completely to the bone, youthful yet again. What the kriff happened?
Something dark was in his eyes, but it didn't seem to be tainted by years of horror. Simply put, even if Vader healed, there was no way he could recover from whatever happened between him and General Kenobi.
Like this.
There was also the fact of potential cloning, but that didn't make much sense either. It posed a great risk for the body to fall apart.
The man, either a clone or shared a great resemblance to the once fierce General, crossed his arms across his chest as Leia stepped in behind him.
"Papa," she greeted with the twisting of her lips up into a smile.
He could swear Anakin's face briefly contorted at that, but couldn't be too certain.
"This is Jedi Anakin Skywalker." She motioned.
"I'm aware," Bail said dryly.
"Our allies discovered and recovered his body. While initially skeptical myself, he'd saved me, Artoo, and Threepio."
"Senator," Anakin said, his voice impassive, as he moved over and laid the plans down. The Death Star plans.
Bail did his best to hide his apprehension and fear and spoke cordially. "Master Skywalker, it's been quite a long time."
"Not too long for me," Anakin scoffed. "Last time I had seen you, it was after the rescue of Chancellor Palpatine." The way he voiced that name was with no small amount of venom and fury.
Oh? Bail arched both eyebrows. "Elaborate."
"I time traveled to the future," Anakin answered, making Bail's eyes feel like they were going to pop out of their skull. "I informed Master Windu that Chancellor Palpatine was a Sith Lord and he'd gone to confront him. Before I could go myself, I collapsed and woke up on the Tantive IV."
Bail nodded, showing that he was listening.
"Me and Your Majesty met with Obi-Wan." A grimace fell across his face. "Unfortunately, he died to..." Anakin looked sad now, lost.
"Vader." Leia finished.
Hot white rage shot through Anakin. That anger would have been difficult to fake. "I should have never listened to Obi-Wan when he'd told me to run."
"You may have died too," she pointed out. "Kenobi allowed us to escape and bring this plans to the Rebellion."
This almost felt like a major prank that Leia was playing on him. If so, she would get the severe punishment of a lifetime. But the anger across Skywalker's face couldn't be feigned, nor could the sudden pacing through the room. It was one thing clear that flashed through his eyes: Darth Vader would die at his hand, by his sword.
"Vader took everything from me. My wife. My family. My life. My Master. He must pay!"
"On that, we're in agreement." Bail joined in, feeling the anger receding slowly. This anger was not the way of the Jedi. He could be led down the path of the Dark Side. Force knows how much Bail Organa did research in the history of the Jedi. But calling Skywalker out for it was not in the cards.
Knowing what happened to Vader, if Anakin Skywalker was indeed here... No, his anger had to be managed. It had to be... guided in the right direction.
The Rebellion needed this unexpected surprise by the name of the Force.
"So you know?" He asked, feeling his nervousness crawling back with double the size.
"About Palpatine?"
No, about Vader. Not that Bail would correct him about that. If he'd told Skywalker the truth, now, at least, it may be too much for Skywalker to take. He had always been the "most human" in the Jedi Order, and one stressful event after another and another again just couldn't be too good for Skywalker's mentality.
"Yes. And I want him dead." Anakin answered coldly, his hands clenching up into fists, a vein in his jaw throbbing. "I'm aware that this is a little hard to believe, but I want to join this Rebellion."
Bail Organa figured that he could do many things.
Once, the Senator of Alderaan didn't believe in militaristic actions. Garm Bel Iblis and he had many conversations about that. The man was always a militaristic individual, while Bail advocated for peace and diplomacy to win out. Now, under the Empire, the Rebellion needed a standing military. And when the New Republic was formed when the Empire fell, the same needed to be likewise.
Vader was an icon of the Empire. Likewise, ironically, Skywalker could be an icon of the Rebellion. It was for the best of everyone if Skywalker put his talents to good use. To stand against the Rebellion's enemies. In the name of Obi-Wan, of Padmé, of all the others who were slaughtered, Anakin Skywalker couldn't be allowed to go elsewhere and attack on his own.
He would have to just break it down to Mon. Someone who didn't believe entirely in firepower and stood by the basics was what allowed Palpatine to rise in power.
She didn't know who Vader was. It was a closely guarded secret Bail intended to take to the grave with him.
"Very well," the Senator nodded. "We have only one Jedi who somewhat still assist the Rebellion."
"Who?"
"Rahm Kota?"
"Kota?" Skywalker would have bleached if he was a lesser man. "The one Jedi who didn't like working with Clones?"
"That's the one," Organa confirmed with a nod.
"Of course."
Bail actually found amusement in the situation. His lips curled up into a smile for a split moment. "But Kota haven't been effective in the last few years. Not since his injury."
"Injury?" Anakin repeated the word.
"He was blinded by Vader's former secret assassin." Part of him hated to speak of Galen Marek like that. The man had a good heart at the end, however, twisted he was by Vader. The same man Anakin Skywalker would have become.
"What doesn't concern Vader?" He spat in fury. "We need to talk."
Bail nodded in agreement and turned to the girl standing quietly. "Leia, if you will leave us..."
The Princess did so, walking by.
The doors closed.
"You know about her," the Senator stated more than asked.
"Yes."
"I'm sorry about changing her name, but you know, if Vader gets to her..."
"I know, and I understand," Skywalker nodded instantly, surprising the Senator somewhat. "I didn't tell her the truth. When I found Obi-Wan, he told me to go after my son. That was how I found out. They're strong together."
Bail shook his head. "I do want to tell her the truth." Not like he had a choice. "But shall we wait?"
Lengthy paused, then a nod. "Fine."
"But I have one final mission for you..."
Skywalker stood straight.
Bail pushed the plans back closer. "The general population is loyal to the Empire. I need to gather up the leaders and those who are equally loyal."
"Senator, can I be brutally honest?" Organa frowned. "I don't know what this Death Star is like." Skywalker gave him a searching look. Genuine curiosity and bemusement.
"I don't know all of the details myself, Master Skywalker. Not even the Rebellion's High Command." Bail was taking a bold risk. Part of him still believed that this was a trap for the Emperor to lure him to his execution, but if Kenobi was indeed dead, he would have to put his bets that Skywalker did indeed time travel and was going to stick around for a while.
Something within him told him such. Organa doubted that he was Force sensitive. But, certainly, the Force would be on their side.
"The intimidation using the Death Star is supposed to be an effective way to destroy all. It would be a tool to bully everyone in the galaxy into submission because if you dare to speak up, your planet would be obliterated. It's not like a prolonged siege that last years. It's an instant destruction of an entire planet. While we might miss what takes place gradually, having something happen in the blink of an eye is a sure way to get our attention."
"A space station?"
"Yes."
"The Empire shouldn't be too proud of that technological terror they've constructed," Anakin stated sharply. The very mention of the abuse of power that the station provided left him on the fence, very clearly, not that Organa could blame him. "The ability to destroy a planet is insignificant next to the power of the Force."
"I don't doubt that." A smile tugged at Organa's lips. He witnessed what the Jedi could do long ago and would never forget. "However, I'm pretty sure most Moffs would see that as a way to frighten them with your sorcerer's ways. A sad devotion to the ancient religion has not helped the likes of Vader conjure up the stolen data tapes, or given him clairvoyance enough to find the Rebel's hidden fortress."
Anakin scoffed. "The ability to speak do not make one intelligent." He grunted. "You have more to tell?"
Bail stood up and nodded. "I've run into disturbing news of talks of the Emperor on Coruscant, plotting a next move."
Skywalker nodded. "Anything to kill that bastard."
"How did you get here?"
"Smuggler," Skywalker admitted, "he will want payment."
"That can be arranged," Bail vowed, "just make sure the Rebellion get these plans."
Skywalker nodded. "As you wish. Palpatine wanted to root out Rebellion. He would get one." He vowed.
For a second, he swore that Skywalker's eyes burnt a hot crystalline golden.
Would it be so much to say that Organa almost wanted to gulp on Palpatine's behalf?
Another stirring within Organa told him that Skywalker wouldn't give up.
Not until Palpatine lay dead at his feet, his Empire burnt to ashes...
The Rebellion a stable military...