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Chapter 24

Vader was reminded why he had little patience for these incompetents. Ships entering and exiting hyperspace create an energy signature that sensors detect. By not dropping into realspace far enough back for this to be mitigated, the Fleet was robbed of the element of surprise and paved the way for the evacuation of most of the Alderaanian forces. Such a foolish tactic would have been punishable by death if Vader had been the one leading this operation.

If the Empire had kept up the element of surprise, they could close off any potential Alderaanian ships that would leave as soon as they'd gotten the word, no matter how many would be vaporized midway. Of course, it was due to the Imperial Hierarchy that operations continued to be foiled.

Vader's eyes followed the shuttles landing at the root of the main palace and the forms of the Imperial Inquisitors walking up. They were the Emperor's dogs. They didn't have the same uniformity as the Inquisitorius Vader trained. Ultimately, the same concept: fallen Jedi or miscellaneous Dark Siders employed by the Emperor and Vader to hunt the surviving Jedi. But while Vader allowed a signature weapon, the reduced Brother/Sister system, a Grand Inquisitor, and a set limit for how many there were, the Imperial Inquisitors were without these additional details, for the Emperor was more involved with the project.

The dark-robed, gray-haired, and blue-eyed Zabrak who led a well-formed persona of Inquisitors, Stormtroopers, Purge Troopers, and all types surrounded them, stopped before Bail Organa. Right beforehand, Vader carefully shielded himself, pulling off the persona of being a security guard of Organa's ironically.

He looked at Luke, who was standing in the same uniform, weapon concealed, obviously with a helmet raised over him as well.

"Greetings, Viceroy Organa, I am Grand Inquisitor Ja'ce Yiaso," Yiaso greeted with false pleasantness.

"You don't have to commence with pleasantries, Grand Inquisitor," Organa said curtly in a tone that Vader could respect.

The Inquisitor took the tone in jest. "You're not the only political source here, Organa, but unfortunately, I must cut any cordial discussion short. The Jedi were outlawed following Order 66, yet multiple times, you've disobeyed the will of the Empire."

"The Galactic Empire rose from the failed state of the Republic," Bail Organa concurred, taking another few steps closer to directly face the man. "Grand Inquisitor, I know my words will fall on deaf ears, but the Empire has completely twisted and transformed the galaxy into something unrecognizable."

"He only did what needed to be done," the Inquisitor pointed out simply.

Right before Vader's eyes, Organa's composure broke. "This is intolerable! What Palpatine did to the galaxy! He allowed fearmongering and intimidation tactics to feed off the will of the people!"

The Inquisitor clapped slowly, "Quite an enthralling speech. I imagine he would wish to hear it."

"What are you going to do to Alderaan?" Breha Organa asked with the same vigor as her husband.

"If necessary, follow Lord Vader's example after he demanded the annihilation of Queen Apailana on Naboo and appoint a new ruler, but that is only if Alderaan submits and doesn't revolt against us. The entire planet will be searched from the ground-up. And any signs of these fugitives who threaten the Empire will be destroyed."

"You can't do this!" Leia shouted, gaining attention. Her fury had never been so delightful. "While we may be guilty of treason by the Empire's standards, Grand Inquisitor, Alderaan didn't do anything wrong. The Sena-" she gasped when she realized what she was about to say.

Yiaso shook his head. "In case you've forgotten, Princess Leia, the Senate is gone. The Emperor dissolved them when it became too obvious that traitors lurked from within. You and your family are another collective bunch to blame for this. If you do not submit, we'll have to resort to more violent means that may spell worse for Alderaan."

Vader couldn't deny the glee that shot through him when both leaders stiffened at once, surprised by how the threat had been so casually thrown before them. When would these fools get the reality that the Senate was ineffective and foolish? He would never shed tears for the Senate's dissolution. The body was as useless as the pathetic band of Rebels.

The Queen swallowed and regathered herself, breathing out. "That is a threat that Alderaan will not take lightly, Grand Inquisitor. The Empire has gone too far this time..."

The Grand Inquisitor shook his head. "The Empire only does what is necessary, Your Majesty. We have to maintain peace and stability in the galaxy. Alderaan requires new leadership. Now, surrender."

He motioned to the Stormtroopers, who moved automatically up to the Organas, brandishing their cuffs.

Not yet...

"Alderaan will not be quiet any longer!" Bail barked, refusing to hold out his hands.

The other troopers aimed their weapons in that direction, leading the arresting troopers to take a step back. Simultaneously, the Alderaanian guards mimicked the motions, raising their weapons as well.

The Grand Inquisitor looked at him curiously, before his eyes lit up in realization. "Don't do anything foolish, Senator. You are far from expendable. Come with us quietly, and the Emperor will extend to you our mercy."

"We'd heard that before," Bail replied. "The only thing he did was threaten to kill us all without a fair tribunal. I rally Alderaan behind me. He won't silence our voices as he did in the days of old. It's time for us to learn from our mistakes."

Organa and the Grand Inquisitor locked eyes, clearly in a battle of wills. The tension in the air was palpable. It was a battle. In history, this will be remembered as The Battle of Alderaan (Imperial Era).

"Since you will not come quietly," Ja'ce Yiaso said, reaching for the hilt on his belt and drawing his red lightsaber, "force will be required."

The Inquisitor closed the gap and raised his blade in the air. Bail looked on unflinchingly as the blade came down...

Leia and the Queen gasped. Retrac kept a hand over her lips, managing to prevent a squeal.

As the red lightsaber aimed for his throat, it stopped in mid-air.

Leia expected Luke to be the one who would keep her father safe. After all, it had been him who was by far more relaxed to the situation suddenly pushed on them. Whoever Vader had been at one point, it just didn't matter anymore. Anakin Skywalker was dead. One could not do as much as Vader had and return from that dark path.

Vader just couldn't care about her.

He was unable to.

And yet, it had been Vader-not Luke, who held out his hand, preventing her father from being decapitated.

Why would he do that if he didn't?

What sense did it make?

After all, she just knew Vader hated Bail Organa with every fiber of his being. Her pain and horror must have torn at some part of him. After all, he was only human.

And something within her...

It should have been him.

No! Leia wished it was him.

Vader was sure for the rest of his life he would wonder what had motivated him to save Bail Organa.

This had been the chance Vader was waiting for. After all, it had been a chance he was waiting for. Following Organa's death, Leia's righteous anger toward the Empire would increase tenfold, allowing Vader to mold her in the right direction. To show her the realities of the galaxy.

But it wasn't as if Luke was standing right there...

And likewise, Vader found he despised her hatred of him. He despised her being in pain.

Vader walked in front of them, allowing his blue eyes to flash with a robotic smirk.

"You will pay for that, Jedi," one of the Inquisitors said, only to grasp at her throat seconds later.

They weren't prepared for the sudden force blast that swept each of them back and sent them flying back, allowing the guards to surround them and fill their spots. The domineering power of the Dark Side was crushing them now, threatening death on all who dared to come close.

"Fool, do you think that I am a Jedi?" Vader taunted, his voice becoming darker at the end. "You will know the power of the Force."

They looked at him, their eyes dawning...

Slowly, shock fell upon them.

"Darth Vader..."

"Formerly Darth, now just Vader," he said.

Disdain fell around them, masking their surprise. "You have betrayed the Emperor."

"The Emperor is a fool who flounder the potential of the Empire with his foolish games. One day, he shall be destroyed." Vader stated coldly, tightening his mechanical hand and snapping her throat.

"Evacuate the Royal Family!" Luke barked.

Behind Bail, Breha, Leia, Rouge, Celly, and Tia Organa were also led away by the guards.

"Never," Yisao growled, "your treachery ends here!" he turned. "Kill them!"

The troopers obeyed, opening fire. Their blaster shots rang in the air, some directed at the Alderaanian, but most directed at the Force Adepts.

Now, this was what he was waiting for. The moment of willing candidates for Vader to use as training practice what it was now that he was freed of that mechanical contraption.

The Imperial Inquisitors surrounded Vader, allowing the Troopers to handle the Alderaanian fighters. They fought well, but most of these were Imperial veterans who had been fighting for years, thus giving the Alderaanian party a disadvantage.

Out of the corner of his eye, Vader spotted Luke's own saber technique. He worked effectively, deflecting bolts back at the Purge Troopers. There was the core issue with them; they were trained to hunt down Jedi of old. Luke was anything but that. The few with electrobatons, staffs, and even the not-so-common electro hammer, drew against Luke. However, even they didn't stop him. The time travel hardly took a step back.

And a small, sharp grin found its way across Vader's face. Vader placed his weapon in the traditional low Djem So guard stance and indicated, daring his adversaries to charge him. He doubted that this would live up to even the Emperor's Hands, such as Shevon.

"Leia!" Luke shouted to his sister who crouched behind cover, "No matter what you do, I want you to make sure no ship leaves until I give the command."

"What are you planning, Luke?" Leia asked flatly with a note of warning in her tone.

Luke grinned sheepishly. "Something unorthodox, sister. Just trust me."

A Miraluka came first, red lightsaber twirling in mid-air as she tried to cleave him into two. Vader raised his lightsaber above his head, catching her attack, and with one motion, butcher her defenses and slammed his lightsaber through her chest.

Luke spun around, darting between two Purge Troopers at once, and aimed for a third. He had them stopped in shock, stabbing his lightsaber around. He gripped the first Purge Trooper and slammed him to the ground.

The strength ebbing from the two were shocking to the surrounding civilians on both sides.

Vader parried a strike from each Imperial Inquisitor, noticing most were devoting their attention to him. A foolish move. He delivered a bone-shattering punch faster than they could react. The one hit, a Twi'lek, stumbled away, shocked. Vader could see blood trailing from his mouth. But the half-Cyborg didn't even turn around, twisting his lightsaber around, ending their miserable lives without much challenge.

Luke mercilessly finished off the Purge Trooper and turned around, dashing towards their direction to relieve Vader of any pressure that was being exerted on him. His green lightsaber moved in tandem, and Luke knocked a few of the Inquisitors back, lightsaber moving in tandem as he absorbed each of their assaults.

While fighting another group of Inquisitors, Vader crushed three Purge Troopers, molding their bodies into their armor before ripping their corpses in the direction of the Inquisitors, who could only fall to their knees if they wished to survive. That didn't slow their rush, however, as he slammed his lightsaber down, eviscerating the one standing in the middle. He swung next and caught the other — a light-skinned human woman — by the collarbone, aiming his hand at her chest and pushing her back. The woman's scream was muted by the shock of what had just happened, and a red lightsaber came between her eyeballs, killing her instantly.

Luke flipped in the air, a red lightsaber spinning in his direction. When he'd landed, Luke was face-to-face with the one who did the deed. He cleanly swung his lightsaber back, catching a double-bladed lightsaber when it twirled at his chest, and spinning between the group, skewering the stomach of one of them, and parrying more assaults from all around in the span of a second. At last, there was a disadvantage to his whole experience. In this body, his reflexes were far more slower and less experienced than he was used to, not enough to hinder his performance overall, but did lead to Luke being far more careful.

Vader gripped the Inquisitor across from him through the Force, looking at the failed example of another fool lost to the Dark Side, before closing his fist and crushing the imbecile's windpipe. He tossed him at those who were fighting Luke, distracting them, allowing his son to close in effectively and deliver a crippling slash to one, killing the individual immediately. Three more Inquisitors lingered for Vader, not even breaking a sweat. He guided between them, carefully maneuvering his lightsaber, with slashes, strikes, and swings growing more powerful.

Luke finished the others he was fighting after ripping apart their defenses. However, he can't help the Alderaanian soldiers yet. He calmly absorbed each of the strikes from an Inquisitor wielding two separate lightsabers, having been knocked out from the earlier explosion of the Dark Side and thus avoiding his father's wrath. Their lightsabers didn't relent, grinding against one another. He twisted his lightsaber around, decapitating the borrowed hilt, causing the Inquisitor to depend on his damaged primary lightsaber. He broke through his defenses, finally slashing through his helmet, and slicing him through his chest.

Vader lashed out with his lightsaber and caught him in the stomach before he slammed him against Yiaso. More Imperial reinforcements were approaching quickly. Luke held them off, his green lightsaber waving in the air as each reflected bolt connected with someone on the enemy side, ending their lives or leaving them with nasty wounds.

Vader and Yiaso engaged in a fierce battle. Vader blocked the insignificant worm's efforts, fending off the wild strikes as he drew more from the Dark Side. However, the Dark Side always favored the superior Adept and that power given to him temporarily was stolen as Vader molded it and used it against him, their slashes speeding up. Yiaso used his remaining momentum to feint a strike at Vader's neck before swinging at his legs. Seeing the attack coming, Vader avoided it and delivered a devastating stroke, using his hilt to pelt into his chest, cutting his lightsaber in two, his assault not ending there.

Now without issue, Luke reached out with his hand and flexed his fingers, submerging himself into the Force and expanding his connection. He provided his troopers with encouragement, amplified their reflexes, and secured enemies within their field of vision. All of a sudden, while their numbers were still dwindling, Alderaanians were fighting with the courage of trained soldiers, gunning down anyone who got close to them.

The Inquisitor was still standing as Vader's lightsaber cleaved through his side, eliciting a pained groan. Vader then aimed his lightsaber at the Inquisitor's wrist, amputating his hand. The Inquisitor gasped in pain as Vader gripped him through the Force and stared.

"You have emerged triumphant in this battle, Lord Vader," Yiaso said, his hands wrapping around his throat, though he was still able to speak coherently.

Vader said nothing.

"Will you kill me now?"

Tempting as it was, Vader decided that he could still serve a use. After all, reporting to the Emperor about such a failure would be far more satisfying in Vader's opinion. Oh, he had no plans to capture or kill them-just another way to present themselves as reasonable. And the Alderaanian fell for the trap. No matter, since they'd served his interests, the former Sith vowed to make sure that they would succeed in their feeble war, only to be rebuilt into something bigger and better than Palpatine's Empire and the foolish New Republic and Galactic Federation.

"No..." Vader released him. "You shall return to your Master."

The Inquisitor looked surprised for a moment. "I earned your mercy then..."

"No," Vader replied. "The Emperor does not take failure lightly."

The Inquisitor's eyes widened, making the blood in Vader's heart warm with thrill. He attempted to spring forward, preferring death to Vader directly then having to face the reminder of his failure.

However, he levitated his form and slammed him to the ground, causing him to lose consciousness. Not bothering to give him a second glance, he parried blaster bolts from the advancing reinforcements of soldiers.

The Imperial presence marred the once-peaceful streets of Alderaan. Suffice to say, the Imperials' landing on their planet angered the populace, who were generally loyal to the Empire, enough to give a vast majority of them the motivation to fight back.

However, the determination of the populace wasn't enough for the three Terrain Armored Transports to accelerate towards them, toward the palace behind them, blowing whatever was in their way to hell.

The shots tore at the palace. There were no theater shields. Just a poor building being torn to shreds by advancing shots.

"Father, we can't allow the palace to fall apart."

The more shuttles that landed Stormtroopers, and the more Alderaanians were picked off — be it either mortally or injured — Luke and Vader both served them well. Without their presence, the entirety of Alderaan would have already been under the Empire's control.

Luke's eyes darted between the AT-AT walkers, and with ease, he reached out through the Force. He held out his right hand, allowing the Force to flow through his entire body. It traveled through the minds of the drivers. They were incapable of putting up resistance. One by one, they turned on their fellow Stormtroopers strolling toward the palace. When they were decimated, their next target was the shuttles, blowing them into pieces as well.

"How is he doing that?" An Alderaanian guard gasped in astonishment behind Vader.

"I don't know, but it's helping!" Another snapped.

Others followed that proclamation, though Luke wasn't paying attention. When the shuttles receded in ferocity, Vader demonstrated his own connection with the Force. He aided his son by following his example, turning the shuttles on one another, and firing, causing even more explosions. Luke crushed the final walker in flames, and the Imperials died a quick death.

On the flip side, Luke's work wasn't done. He expanded his connection with the Force, pushing right through the minds of the various pilots and officers inside the Star Destroyers. Space was mostly closed off, meaning many of the Alderaanian pilots would get fried as soon as they hit orbit. Not for long, however.

He strengthened himself through the Force and extended beyond the physical world:

'You are doing a service for the Empire. Blow each other out of the sky. This is the command of the Emperor.'

Many would remember when above Alderaan, the Imperial fleets started turning on one another. It was a slow thing for those on board; sudden compulsions and urges to follow the Emperor's orders. Other times, it would have been considered ridiculous, yet no matter how they tried to resist, the hold tightened, their bodies moving automatically, the hands of the gunners and commands of their superiors who were also overtaken abolishing any rational thought. Due to the element of surprise, the Destroyers directly behind the first batch inflicted heavy damage, blasting them out of the sky.

"Gather up your wounded and relocate them inside of the palace," Vader commanded.

The Alderaanian guards who were still alive dragged the ones who had been shot into the fire inside.

This was only the first wave of defense.

The second battle was likely to be a lot more bloody. The locals involved were also holding their own, though it was a painful reminder of why pacifism doesn't work in a war-torn galaxy. Fonder or Kuat wouldn't have even needed the Force on their side.

"Leia, you can tell them to go now!" Luke barked into the comms.

"How did you...?" she began to respond on the other side.

"Just do it!" Luke commanded.

Quickly, the Alderaanian ships soared out of the hangars, right into the devastated skies brought by the Empire on one another.

"Luke!" More blaster shots came from behind.

Leia and Winter were still here.

"Leia, Winter," Luke said tightly, "why are you both still here?"

"The Organas are gone, old man," Leia quipped.

"That's not why I asked," Luke responded sharply.

"Technically, you never told us to leave. And anywhere Leia goes, I'm behind!" Winter responded.

"My father was understanding," Leia replied lightly.

"Oh, I'm going to..."

Luke tuned out, something tugging at his senses. His eyes widened and he looked beyond, sensing his...

"Luke, what's wrong?"

"No, no, that can't be. How did I not feel it before?" Yes, his senses had been clouded since he'd arrived in this timeline. He didn't know how or why, but there had been a lack of control which led to an absence of sensing for both Wielders of the Light and Dark Sides...

Had he been this closed off?

That he didn't even feel...

Her?

"Luke..." Vader's voice broke through his thoughts, and his hands traveled over his shoulders and both even bowed next to Leia and Winter who placed hands on Luke's back, concern in all of their eyes, "what's wrong?"

"My... how didn't I feel her before?..." Luke murmured to himself.

"Your wife is here..." Vader cut him off, realizing.

"Luke..." Leia began.

"I..." he started. "We have to focus on the here and now where it belongs."

"Luke!" Vader raised his voice slightly, but his son broke free.

Luke held his stare with pain in his eyes before turning around and transforming that pain into fuel for determination. "Hold your defenses!" he barked.

The thoughts of his scarred wife at the end of the Vong War and the young woman she was now tore at him.

He'd feared what could happen to her.

Mara only had illusions of a happy childhood, and before they could live their lives together, they were dragged into war after war. He didn't even consider things going as bad as they were with the Vong because part of him truthfully didn't wish to drag the Jedi into another Galactic conflict since he'd believed it paramount to stick to their beliefs. And as a result, so many of the dead would always be on his conscience.

Now, Luke didn't know what he should do.