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Chapter 10
Sidious sat on his high-backed throne, his hood pulled low, casting his face in shadows. The Dark Lord was just sitting there, thinking to himself about the latest events. Finally, his index finger made the slightest of motions.
Suddenly, a small rustle of movement cut through the silence. Out of the shadows, a figure approached and knelt. Her fiery red hair was tied back in a practical yet sleek style, contrasting against the black bodysuit she wore, a functional yet form-fitting attire. Her eyes — green as emeralds — were sharp, calculating, yet incomprehensible, her expression neutral, betraying nothing.
She did not speak, waiting instead for her master's command, knowing better than to interrupt the Emperor's thoughts. Sidious did not acknowledge her at first, his gaze still concentrated on the distant void of his thoughts.
For a moment, the silence continued.
At last, Sidious's withered lips curled, but not into a smile. "Look into Lord Vader's recent missions," he started, his voice a serpent's hiss.
He looked at her for a fraction longer.
"Discover the truth. Leave no stone unturned. Retrace his steps. Find if this betrayal was premature, and if you discover anything, bring it to me. Do not fail me..."
He paused, relishing the moment before he uttered the final command, cold.
"Mara Jade."
Personally, Luke had the impression that the Polis Massans would have done the job themselves even without payment. They always loved to help any person in critical condition due to their generosity alone.
Four days of voluminous bacta treatment expedited his father's hair growth and rehabilitated some of his original skin color. Just like both of his children, his father had a deceptively youthful face, all in all, similar to the Force Ghost of Anakin Skywalker. It made Luke ponder what his mother would have looked like if she were still alive. It was possible that she would have maintained her youthful features as well. The thought gave him sadness that Luke forced himself to move away from that line of thinking. His hair was as long as it was at the beginning of the Clone Wars—around the time when he participated in the Battle of Christophsis; probably a bit shorter.
"Didn't get the impression you were the type who stared too long, son..." Vader said, this time, his voice having regained much energy that have been absence when this procedure started.
"The Emperor didn't wipe out the old remnants of the Jedi Order," Luke stated, smiling slightly.
"Oh, that much I am aware of," Vader said flatly, his blue eyes briefly flashing in annoyance. "Is this to your liking?" He inquired, distinct concern in his tone.
"Yes, thank you," Luke answered honestly, "I didn't believe it would be this simple. I thought it would require more persuasion."
"The Emperor would have been able to control me that way," the older retorted.
"No, it's not that," Luke smiled bitterly. "I just didn't think..."
"Knowing about you and your sister required me to proceed with a re-evaluation of my condition," Vader answered sincerely.
"It has given you the drive to live..."
"Of course," Vader replied. "I committed heinous deeds to try to save your mother, and it didn't work as you've mentioned, but I will not allow the Emperor to take another from me. You and your sister are mine. And together, we'll rule the galaxy."
Luke sighed. He had a feeling Leia wouldn't be happy with that just yet. It hopefully wouldn't take a lot. "You know, I might not know too much about politics, but I do know one thing."
Vader's left eyebrow shot up in bemusement. Luke smiled, looking into his cerulean eyes.
"You will not been accepted as Emperor."
"You underestimate the power of intimidation and fear," Vader responded.
"Leia explained it to me. It is a public secret, when the Empire was established and more than half of the Clone Wars veterans were either promoted to the top of the chain of command, many "promising" officers rose in the ranks with their primary qualification being nepotism. Everyone knows one thing you are useful for is to eliminate rivals, and from the Emperor's plan most likely if you destroy him, remove any political power you can have by murdering icons of prominent families in the Core. When you destroy the Emperor, then when you attempt to unite the Empire, you would encounter plenty of resistance in the Core due to your actions in the past, along with factions of the military as well, from people who don't want to get strangled to death for simple errors and miscalculations."
"Dispatching Admirals and Officers is not just something I do without thought, Luke. It's only when incompetence requires consequences." Vader answered, affronted.
"Their families wouldn't think that way," Luke countered.
"Under my command, I have some forms of the military," Vader deflected icily. "On the Death Star, I shown myself as reliable. They would fall under me."
"Father, you really think everyone would come over to your side if they didn't have to? Your men respect you, but those who don't know of you or witnessed your cruelty first-hand doesn't." Luke pointed out. "The Emperor? He has the respect of most people. You are just someone who they would have logically started a mutiny against long ago if not for their loyalty to the Empire as an entire organization."
"Not all of them," Vader denied vehemently.
"You don't need to be angry about this," Luke relented, not wanting to infuriate Vader further. "I doubt you would have the patience to deal with politics. I certainly don't." he quipped, slightly laughing. Seeing the joke fell through, Luke looked at the older man. "Your position would be more suitable as a military advisor, General, or Supreme Commander. You wouldn't have the option of being in the military as often when your responsibilities with the Empire."
Vader allowed a surprised gasp for a moment. "That is a legitimate point." He looked at him, his blue eyes switching between many differences of emotion. His nose scrunched.
"I never said I entirely oppose the idea of a new nation." At least for a little while.
He didn't want an Empire, but so many lives were hanging in a balance. The Force didn't care about morality as long as balance was restored. If he was sent back, and everything still fell apart, the entire journey would be effortlessly for almost nothing, even if he saved more of his family.
'If an Empire can save people, maybe...' he swallowed. Every Jedi oath had been stepped on. So many illusions he clung on was cruelly dismantled.
"What are you conspiring?"
"If the New Republic is as dysfunctional," Luke began reluctantly, "I am considering encountering those in both the Rebellion and Empire and possibly coming down to a negotiation and reforming the Empire into something benevolent and democratic."
"...Under your sister," Vader stated more than asked, his eyes now gleaming with dark delight at the thought.
"In my time, there was a peace treaty between the New Republic and Imperial Remnants. It was referred to as the Pellaeon-Gavrisom Treaty which allowed the Imperial Remnant and New Republic to coexist without much adversary on either side. The politicians weren't happy about that."
Although Vader was perplexed about the significance of what a name meant, his father dismissed the name and decided to shrug it off as a question for later.
"Jedi are not meant to be involved with politics," Vader said with dark amusement.
"And that mindset is why they failed when they'd thought they could arrest the Chancellor with no proof of his treason aside from him being a Sith," Luke pointed out. "The Force did this for a reason. We cannot act while the galaxy falls around us."
"Your plan is to accelerate the process," Vader said, with a tone of acute pride. "We have more similarities than I initially thought."
Less than an hour later, Vader underwent medical texting and passed with flying colors.
While moving behind his son, Vader pondered Luke's political grasping of the situation; truth be told, he didn't think too far into the matter. But there was truth in the words. He'd thought of the Gentis Coup. A time after the rise of the Empire; Palpatine was nearly destroyed by Headmaster Gentis' military coup against the new Emperor on Aorth-6 at his throne room, which he only survived due to his connection to the Dark Side. Mostly because of the attempted coup, the finalization of the Imperial Palace was accelerated. Vader had to contact the Noghri and his other allies he'd gained throughout the years shortly.
At the front of the charged TIE Fighter, Vader spotted Luke offering goodbyes and squashed the thought, causing the Dark Side Adept to resist rolling his eyes at the paradox of that. Was it really necessary? He watched with borderline exasperation as Luke exchanged conversation with one of the Kallidahins.
It reminded him all too much of Padmé in one of the long-suffering conversations she had with other Senators.
Luke approached a minute later, much to Vader's relief. "Are you prepared to depart?"
"Are you?" Luke returned.
"We will suffice," Vader dismissed, not needing his son's concern. He was no helpless hermit in the desert, unattached from the galaxy and grown feeble in his age.
Kenobi...
Anger intensified within his heart again at the thought of the man who not only turned Padmé against him but raised his children against him.
Moreover, he'd mentally facepalmed again for falling into an obvious trap: Tatooine was remote and sparsely populated, and the Hutts encouraged people to mind their own business. That made it a good place to remain unnoticed. The Empire did not control it, and it wasn't valuable enough for them to take it. Shmi Skywalker had relatives there who could care for Luke. Lastly, Kenobi knew that Vader hated Tatooine and that he would avoid going there if he could.
Considering Kenobi's shown competency in the Clone Wars, being an extremely successful General in many of his battles, only behind Skywalker, it was an intelligent move that Vader should have seen through since the beginning.
Just how much damage would Obi-Wan have done yet to manipulate his son, and his daughter, against him?
No matter, Vader would get the answers out of him when they reunited before he destroyed him. He would not destroy Owen and Beru. Kenobi would answer for all of his transgressions. Impressively, it seemed like Luke intended to call him out. Vader admittedly wanted to monitor such a demonstration before he did. One last failure Kenobi could live with before his death.
They settled in the TIE Fighter, and Vader took the piloting seat, igniting the ship.
"Are you sure you are ready for space travel, father, let alone piloting?" Luke asked, his voice full of concern.
"We will be fine," Vader answered indignantly, "I have had enough time to meditate and recenter myself in the force."
Luke chuckled, "Ben always said that you were grumpy about going to the medics."
Vader briefly wondered what would the outcome be of blasting the remainder of this station apart and covering him and his son's tracks. But he abstained, knowing that would only alienate his son further from him for now.
Eventually, they were in space, allowing Vader to set coordinates for Tatooine and the TIE Fighter took off into lightspeed. Normal fighters wouldn't be able to jump as long, but Vader had seen that error removed long ago. His Advanced TIE fighter was bigger for a reason. It incorporated a hyperspace drive and shield generators, and it was faster due to more powerful engines and more maneuverability.
"Well, I have changed the script," Luke stated offhandedly.
This time, Vader couldn't resist rolling his eyes, yet he allowed his happiness to grow. Despite being a Sith, it was satisfying to know that Luke didn't become another stagnant fool or hermit, lost and off-course; but a Grandmaster, one who performed better than Yoda ever dreamed of. That would have fueled Vader's determination to eliminate the Jedi.
"Given how popular you were," Luke started, "you could have been the Grandmaster of the Jedi Order eventually."
"That is implausible," Vader grumbled, "Kenobi and the Council always held Skywalker back."
"Still, you could have done so through time," his son argued.
"Any reforms would have resulted in a Jedi Civil War if they'd made it that far. I doubt the Jedi would have been able to recover after murdering the Supreme Chancellor," Vader informed him, knowing very well that given the amount of support the Emperor had, killing the then-Chancellor Palpatine would have made for many unforeseeable obstacles.
In another life, it could have been Skywalker himself who was wrenching out the storm if he was not in a cell awaiting trial because of his complicity with the treason the Jedi planned.
Luke's response had him short for breath, "Father, I'm sure that at least a third of the Jedi could have been convinced. No matter of their treatment, it doesn't justify killing children."
"I didn't want to kill them," Vader snarled, a long-suffering pang forming in his chest. "Do you really believe that the Emperor would have allowed them to leave? You're smarter than that. They would have suffered. At best, they could have ended up in the Outer Rim, possibly being found by a bunch of slavers. At worst, they would have been tracked down by the Emperor and turned to the Dark Side to serve him as Inquisitors or another Dark Side organization. There are fates far worse than death."
"That sounds like a rationalization." How could his son sound so calm yet reprimanding at the same time?
"I have already preordained my family's safety instead of the Jedi's," Vader gritted his teeth. "The Jedi never saw me as part of their Order. They viewed me as a pawn, someone to fulfill their farcical prophecy."
"Of course, I understand that you were put through so much pain as a Jedi," Luke related, and Vader sensed it was true, "but those children were innocent. They didn't have a say in your treatment."
"So now what?" Vader asked sharply, not having a response to this. "Do you judge me with repugnance? Denigration? Like the rest of the Jedi? Does being Grandmaster in the future equate to you luring me out of the suit and imprisoning me in a cell indefinitely?" He was astonished by the way his chest clenched tightly at that, yet he couldn't help but contemplate if it was too late to reach his son.
"Did anyone ever tell you how trivial you are?" Luke asked, and Vader could just see him rolling his eyes.
Vader gritted his teeth. "I will not savor us being enemies."
"I believe that you should atone for your actions but not in a cell. You will have plenty of time to do so." Luke answered. "The Yuuzhan Vong War, among countless others to come, may come in one way or another, giving you that option."
"That is going by the assumption that the Rebellion would accept me."
"Mothma always believed in giving any Imperial prisoners a fair hearing. It may not escalate to a trial if you present yourself as useful. But we'll worry about that later."
Almost a day passed, and Luke slept, while Vader still handled the controls.
His TIE Fighter landed outside of the Homestead on Tatooine.
Luke pushed up from the passenger seat with barely restrained enthusiasm. Vader sensed them. They'd grown elderly. Different in plenty of ways. But it was still them. And indeed, the bond between them was strong, proving that they were reliable people for his son to turn to.
"Luke!" Beru Whitesun exclaimed, running up to the time traveler and wrapping her arms around him.
Owen was following behind her, also obviously relieved.
The two collected him in their arms.
Vader disembarked from the TIE fighter behind his son and landed on the sand. He folded his arms across his chest. While he couldn't find anger in his heart for them, Vader felt hot, white envy at the parental atmosphere. It should be him holding his son, not them.
When the scene ended, they looked past Luke, their eyes wide in surprise...
"Anakin?" Owen started slowly, looking up at Vader.
"Lars," Vader greeted coldly, torn as to how he should approach the situation as he looked at both. "Whitesun."
"It's Lars now, Anakin," Beru said, still managing a slight smile to him, despite his tone. "It's good to see you again despite everything.
"Where's Leia?" Luke asked.
"With the two robots," Owen replied.
"We have much to discuss," Vader said, moving closer and lingering behind his son.
The Force issued a warning. His hand shot to his weapon, and he turned around, golden eyes piercing.
For now, they were not alone.
"You..." was the one word Vader managed, disregarding previous thoughts as his anger consumed him yet again. Speaking of him from afar and seeing him in the present were two different things.
An elderly man stood across from him, his beard gray, his deep blue eyes piercing, a lightsaber also drawn, but deactivated.
Luke stopped and froze, his mouth pursed slightly, and the name exited his mouth, "Ben?"
Obi-Wan Kenobi walked up, his expression hard. His eyes narrowed at Vader for a moment before they landed squarely on Luke.
"Luke," he stated, "you've gotten some explaining to do."