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Chapter 23
"Luke, I need to talk to you."
Luke resisted a sigh. He couldn't blame his sister, but he had a feeling his father did something he shouldn't have done again. "What is it, Leia?"
"Maybe, this conversation will be best alone," she recommended with a pointed stare at Han, who was sitting across from her.
"It's my ship, Your Majesty. You don't give commands, and I don't really care." Solo declared.
Leia chewed her lower lip. "As long as you shut up..."
"As you wish, Princess. I defer to your counsel." Solo mocked.
"Let me guess. Vader?" Luke said more than asked before this became an argument.
"Vader," she confirmed. "He thinks you don't want the Republic back. That it is an unsalvageable mess. That you are willing to sacrifice any chance of bringing it back just to accomplish peace."
Luke frowned.
"He's wrong, right?" Luke said nothing. "Right?" she pressed.
"I..." Luke started.
"Oh, Thranta, you do."
"I-"
"Luke, how could you?" Leia asked with a hint of accusation in her voice.
"…I'm spent, Leia. I'm tired of every belief I ever had being proven wrong. The moment the Yuuzhan Vong attacked, I realized... everything I've done as a Grandmaster was for nothing!" Luke admitted. "I can see it clearly, the Jedi Order falling through my grasp and shattering, and the New Republic follows."
He laughed bitterly, noticing Han staring at him with some concern as well. Leia's eyes were lost and sad.
"If you had asked me what I thought a few years ago..." He trailed off. "I would have been disgusted with my current stance. Past experiences have merely opened my eyes. The Jedi always have been drawn to war. While struggle with the Dark Side can ensue, ignoring it just makes one fear going into and apathy leads to death. For years, the Jedi at one point had a Military in the days of Old. Every effort I made to maintain pacifism led to further rifts."
"But a possible Empire won't make things better, Luke. I understand wanting to avoid the same bullkriff that happened last time or before Palpatine became Emperor, but it doesn't mean that you should..."
"Those same people who were part of the New Republic had some connection or were the exact same ones who stood when the Empire did and even further back, before Palpatine did what he did. No amount of morality would save them. I don't want anyone to have too much power, nor do I want to have such a role."
"Luke..."
He asked pointedly, "What else am I supposed to do, Leia?"
"But-"
"My apologies," Luke said sincerely. "An Empire can be as good as a Republic can be evil. The same could be said for the Jedi and Sith, shown multiple times in Galactic History. These are just titles at the end of the day. They don't dictate anything. Far too many times, I have seen harsh reasons as to why the Jedi's philosophy was wrong. Peace, negotiation, and defense are good in theory, but not when the enemy continues to tighten their hold around your throat and threaten all you've fought for..."
Leia didn't say anything. She stood up and left, her face a pale mask.
Solo smirked slightly. "You're actin' under the sun," quipped the smuggler. The intent was not to piss Luke off further but to give him something to laugh about.
"Hmph, politicians, Han, they always have a way to irritate common people," Luke chuckled somewhat, even though the effort was forced.
"I have a feeling your sister is a master at that."
Luke gave him a forced sour look. "Don't badmouth her."
Solo laughed, "It's the truth."
"I didn't know you're afraid of Leia," Luke quipped.
Solo snorted, "You've ever met me, kid?"
"Your alternate wasn't," Luke teased. "I thought you were made of sterner stuff. Are you thinking about leaving?"
"I did thought about it, but I decided I gotta value my ship. And well, I imagine I won't have to worry about bein' boarded with Vader here."
Luke gave a faint smile at Han's remark.
"Is that so? And it has nothing to do with ogling my sister for the past while?" Luke raised his eyebrows as he leaned against the chair.
Solo huffed, "No thanks, I'll pass. Your sister's a handful, kid. You have much to work out with her."
"Oh, and here I thought you had experience with difficult women, Han..." Luke forced a cackle. "Score one for Skywalker."
"How many will you have... in the future?" Han grinned.
"Officially, 11," Luke admitted.
"11?" Solo's jaw dropped.
"I said officially," Luke pointed out with a small grin.
"Unofficially?"
"I lost count," Luke shrugged. Blast, his sexual drive was so high in his younger days that it sometimes drove him into uncomfortable situations with women. That was until Mara came into the picture.
"My first time was with a scoundrel. She wasn't much, but she had the moves." Solo grinned.
"Oh, I know," Luke huffed. "Your alternate regretted it deeply."
"I hate that," Solo folded his arms across his chest. "Who was your first?"
"Oh, no, no, no."
"That embarrassing?" Solo pressed. "Come on, you know probably all of my stories." A near whine entered his tone, though the Captain would persist otherwise. "Play it fair, kid."
"Ugh. My first time was with a secret Imperial Agent." Losing his virginity to Shira had caused his reluctance when he was with Akanah and later Mara to form a long-term relationship with a woman; it was never just that he was afraid to repeat his family history and end up battling his son, as he told Akanah. Having only discovered after he broke into the Empire-operated Data Vault on Krake's Planet and discovered records that detailed the nature of Brie's true Imperial allegiance drove Luke to years of borderline celibacy. That relatively long-term paramour of Luke's during his formative years in the Rebellion proved to be meaningless. While Luke wanted Camie Loneozner a lifetime ago at this point in time, nothing ever came out of that relationship.
"You were seducing imps too?" Solo nudged him on the shoulder, "Not bad."
"I didn't seduce her."
"Oh, sure you didn't..."
"Hey, I didn't have sex with all of them, Han, I'm not you," Luke taunted. This time, although Luke was technically experienced, he would save his "first time" in this body for one person and one person only if anything came out of it. Still, he was at odds with those feelings, Luke didn't know what to do. He'd feared Mara dying like Anakin and Chewie. He was unsure if he would be able to bear it.
"Ouch," Solo said with mock insult, "coming at me now?"
Luke grinned. "Had to remind you of that."
"Well..." Solo hesitated. "Is your sister a virgin?"
Luke decided to take advantage of this curiosity with jokes of his own. "That's an appropriate question to ask her if you survive my father's wrath."
"Huh? I thought so. Who knew Vader wouldn't let his little girl get with men?"
Speaking of which... "You know I'm supposed to protect her as well and I have to warn you..."
"Warn me?" Han scoffed. "Warn me about what?"
"I can see your attraction to her, but hurt her and I'll be right beside our father looking for you," Luke "cautioned" in a tone with false aggression. While there had been such joking moments after Endor, Han proved time and again that he wouldn't ditch her for some smuggling expeditions. If he had, Luke would have quite literally killed him, brought him back to life, and killed him again. That wasn't mentioning what Winter or Chewie would have done even.
"Oh come on, kid," Han laughed, "if there's anyone who I would hurt, it would be you."
"Some people would say that's unwise," Luke replied, grinning widely.
"You do realize you're scarier than Vader and your sister, right?" The scoundrel pointed out as if it was obvious.
"What do you mean by that?" Luke asked, surprised. Most had taken him as the far more negotiable one out of Vader and Luke in their short time together. In the future, it was much more arguable when it came to him and Leia.
"Vader's brooding all the time. Your sister has quite the tongue. Them gettin' angry isn't a surprise at all. But look at you." Solo waved his hands at him as if something was on Luke's robe.
Luke gave him a stare. "What?"
Han swung his hands over Luke's shoulders, "Look, I mean I may seem dumb to you, kid, but if you were a man out to get me — if there was a choice of which of the three I'd rather face in a dark alley somewhere — I think I'd rather run into a angry Vader or Princess. You just managed to come across as the far more terrifying of the three. If you get angry, I know someone had to do something that pissed you off."
"I'm capable of anger, Han," Luke stared away. Though he had to wonder. Was he really that scary to people? One time he had to punish both Jaina and Jacen due to the fact that they'd lied to skip training for a day. Not to mention, hot-wiring his datapad which happened to harbor work and drafts he hadn't finished.
Suffice to say, neither twin ever thought about doing it again.
With Ben, Mara was by far the disciplinarian between the two, however, Luke had to sometimes lend a helping hand for his wife as well.
Solo scrunched his face. "You never show it. That's your problem. At least your father and sister wears their emotions on their sleeves. Like come on, someone had to irritate you one of these days."
"Oh, you all did at one point. I'm just better at controlling it and allowing it to pass." Luke answered cheekily.
"Well," Solo huffed, "remind me not to get in your way when that doesn't work."
The time traveler chuckled, "Well, Han, just remember: I might be the quiet one, but even the calmest waters can have the strongest currents. And you wouldn't want to be the one caught in the undertow."
Han coughed a laugh, "Kid, I've seen my fair share of storms and I know better than to underestimate the quiet ones. But let me tell you, it's not the size of the wave that matters, it's the ship that sails it. And you may have came from the future, but I know my share and my ship can survive anything. So bring on your currents, I'll navigate them just fine. Besides, a little turbulence just makes the ride more interesting."
Luke darted a teasing eyebrow at him. "Waters still run deep, buddy. Sometimes, it's not about the noise you make, but the precision of your aim."
"Very well, old man, I'll take your advisement into consideration." Han pretended to straighten and fall into attention.
Luke rolled his eyes and scoffed, "I'm not even that old."
Leia scowled as she stormed into the shared quarters of Luke and Vader in the palace.
"Vader! Vader! Where are you?! Vader!"
"Yes, Leia?" The refresher's door slid half-open. She was hit with a flash of steamy mist.
Fortunately, the shower covered most of him beside his head. He was relaxing in the heated waters without a care in the galaxy. There was a blissfully content expression on his face, as he hadn't had the delirious feeling of full showers like this in years.
'Probably hadn't,' Leia thought spitefully.
"I need to talk to you!" she growled.
"You seem to lack serenity, my Daughter," Vader looked even more relaxed, "why don't you just go refresh your troubles before speaking to me?"
'Does he exist to make me want to claw my hair out?'
"My troubles cannot be soaked away because of you! We need to have a talk!"
"You should take your father's advice and soothe yourself. The temperature's just right. Heating it is blissful." The steam seemed to lift up at those words. Just who the kriff was this and what happened to her father?
"Enough!" Vader was testing her patience. Leia swatted the steam that flew in her direction. "We need to talk now. Get out of the refresher!"
"Very well!" Vader stood straighter, muscles flexing, water still dripping within the tub's and spilling onto the floor.
The woman covered her eyes, though thankfully the steam covered most of what could have been shown, the only revealing aspects being his mechanical limbs which happened to be waterproof. "On second thought, why don't you take another few minutes?"
'My eyes! My poor eyes!' Her father's bare chest wasn't something she ever, ever, needed to see. Kriff, what did she do to deserve this?!
"But be out of that refresher in half a hour or I'll turn off the water in the palace!" Leia threatened as she stormed away, hearing Vader sighing in relaxation.
True to her word, she returned half a hour later. She found Vader out of the fresher, thankfully covered by a long white towel, despite the water still soaking down his body.
Who would have known Darth Vader himself would have a soft spot for showers?
'Hopefully, he'll never get near some sort of hot springs.'
After he placed on his dark robes, Leia swore he still almost looked peaceful.
Of course, it didn't last long.
"Daughter," Vader greeted, almost too brashly for her liking. Leia scowled. Smug bastard... "You have discovered your brother's stance, I assume, and wish to point fingers at me."
"Your influence is the only way to explain it!" Leia growled.
"Your brother's thoughts are his own," Vader assuaged, "except it is easy to say I'm converting him."
"Don't you see what's been happening to him?" Leia scoffed. "He believes diplomacy is not the answer!"
"Yes, and I'm here with the intention to help him," Vader continued.
Leia spluttered, "You can't do that!"
"And why not? I prefer an authoritarian approach with a strong system instead of a pure pacifistic one that ends with the same tragedy as before." Vader countered, arching an eyebrow as if something was wrong with her.
"And you claim you want to change," Leia scoffed.
"I haven't claimed to be here because I seek atonement. I am here because I want us to be a family. The Empire has already taken too much from all of us, and I will not allow it to take you or Luke from me."
Her eyes narrowed. "And what stops you from deciding that we are in your way? What guarantee do we have that this isn't just another manipulation?"
Vader exhaled. "You assume too much," he said, his tone unmerciful. "If I wished to control you, I would not be here at your mercy. I would have struck when you least expected it at your most vulnerable."
'Being Tatooine,' Leia finished to herself. Her lips pressed into a thin line. She wouldn't be swayed so easily. "That's supposed to make me feel better? That you could have killed us already?"
"No," Vader replied thinly. "But it should make you realize that this is not a ploy. I know you don't trust me, and I don't expect you to. I've earned your hatred, your fear. But the Emperor..." His voice lowered, and she trembled. "...He will never stop. He will destroy everything, everyone, until there is no Rebellion left to fight. And when he is done with the galaxy, he will turn to someone worthy of his attention."
"Luke?" Leia asked softly.
"Not just him, but you."
A tremor of fear shot up Leia's spine. She couldn't imagine what the Emperor would do to her, but she knew that he was a cruel man who would likely use her the same way he used Vader.
"You think you and Luke can stop him?" Leia asked, and fear flashed across her face.
"Yes, but his Empire is the bigger threat. When he falls, it will not be through thunderous applause through the dark corners of the galaxy. It will be through another splinter where we will have to prove to people that we will not follow the same fate."
Leia blinked.
"What do you think he'll do if he gets his hands on me?"
"Barring from torturing you to the Dark Side, he will have you commit the Sacrifice," Vader answered honestly.
"The Sacrifice?"
"A potential truly demonstrates their worth only when they make their sacrifice," Vader answered. "Slaying someone who had once meant something to them proves that they have the potential to be Lords of the Sith. You'll never achieve happiness, Leia; Sidious would claim it from you and coerce you to sever your ties to your old life. If you don't willingly, you'll be broken and your fate will be the same. There will be no mercy."
She didn't want to believe him. But there was something in his voice, something different. Vader — or whatever was left of Anakin Skywalker — wasn't asking for power. He was offering something far more dangerous: the chance to see the Empire collapse, no matter the cost. To keep her and her brother safe. But could she take that chance? Could she trust the man who had killed her men? People like family? Captain Antilles was not just a good military soldier. He was much more. Like an uncle.
"We'll see, Vader. But if you so much as take one step against us..." She trailed off, her expression hardening.
Vader inclined his head slightly. "Then you can strike me down. I expect nothing less from you, Leia. I know you have been waiting for the excuse to do so..."
"I don't want to strike you down," she responded, and it was the harsh truth. Her animosity toward him was mainly a farce. She was more curious about him and her birth family than she liked to admit.
Would this always happen when one of them interact with each other because of past wounds? Were they destined to be overwhelmed with emotion?
"I'm not surprised," Vader replied apathetically as he could, his eyes saddening a fraction. "You're like your mother in that regard then."
Despite the oddities surrounding Luke's case, Leia knew she was lost in this field.
"You mean my biological mother," she said, her voice meek.
"I'm assuming your brother told you some things."
"You are right. He told me how much you loved her that you would have sacrificed everything for her." She paused, thinking.
Vader raised an eyebrow, the pained look growing across his face as he thought of Padmé Amidala no doubt. So he still loved her, loved them, proving he was not entirely heartless?
"But that's not all..." he stated knowingly.
Leia's pause was stretching this time. "I have memories of her. She was very beautiful; kind, but... sad." She shook her head. "I felt all of this and wanted to make her stop hurting, but I couldn't. I couldn't. And I only felt her agony."
The air appeared to be knocked out of Vader's lungs. No doubt, Luke had filled her in with no deceptions, meaning she knew of Skywalker's lapse in control and his reaching out through the Force to choke his pregnant wife. Vader figured he would have deserved it: Leia's hatred.
"I would have protected her with my entire being, Leia. When I did what I did... I lost control. I believed Sidious would have protected all of you, and I... I did what I thought was right."
"It doesn't make what you did on Mustafar, in the Jedi Temple, and all of those years right..." her eyes glistened.
His next response was one that admittedly broke her heart:
"I know..."
A few more days passed more or less peacefully...
Leia was surprised to see Vader had been behaving. Her mother called for heightened security at every part of the palace, making sure they were armed to the teeth and had all cameras on to catch any wrongdoing, including a few of the best shadow guards being next to Luke and Vader's shared room. Leia couldn't blame her, even though she knew Vader wouldn't hurt her.
Yet, still, nothing happened.
Leia walked into her adoptive father's office and sighed as she sat down, "Things are too quiet around here. It's almost unnerving."
"Do you wish to talk about it, Leia?"
Leia started, "I don't kn-"
The door slammed open.
"Sir!" A raspy cry came behind her, and Leia turned to see a hand gripping his stomach where blood was leaking out. Two Royal Guards lingered behind, trying to grab his arms.
Sateen Vestswe was her father's loyal bodyguard, part of the Vestswe family who had served the royal family for over forty generations.
And he was deathly loyal, looking at Leia like a niece since she was a child.
He'd never minded babysitting her.
Instantly, the Organas surrounded him too. Leia grasped his shoulder, aiding the guards in lowering him to the ground.
He gasped, his eyes watery as he stared at both of her parents, "Sir, ma'am, you have to get off planet!"
"What happened?" Breha demanded.
"The palace is compromised."
"Compromised by who?" Bail asked.
"I-I'm sorry, I-I faile-failed you. I should have noticed."
"What happened?!" Leia pressed, shaking him slightly. "Please, Uncle Vestswe, don't die..." She begged. Not so soon after Antilles' own death.
"Th-The E-Emp-Empire. They'd snuck peop-people pretending to be aide-aides. They did it discreetly. B-bribed some of th-the g-guards to turn the other way."
Leia's breath was stolen. "Uncl-"
"You were always strong, Your Majesty. So brave and so strong. I'm so glad I witnessed your growth." His voice lost for a moment before he looked up at the rulers of Alderaan with agonized effort, "And I'm glad to have served you..." He slurred off and went limp.
Dead.
At that moment, the comm beeped.
Leia stared up at the comm, even as her father moved over and answered it. An Imperial Officer appeared in front of her slowly on the other side. The man carried an air of snottiness.
"Viceroy, Queen Organa, I am Admiral Ozzel of the Reprisal. The Empire has recently found cause for concern centered around Alderaan."
"And what is the meaning of this accusation, Admiral?" Breha asked bluntly.
"Your daughter, Princess Leia, was held legally within Imperial law." Bull... "When boarded by Lord Vader, her troopers, who were also Alderaanian, resisted arrest and killed many good men. This is not the only time your planet have been the center of the Empire's attention, Viceroy. Unfortunately, the Emperor has seen fit to detain each of you to see how far this conspiracy goes. Shuttles are en route to planet. We're hoping that you don't resist and allow us to carry on."
"Admiral, this rule of force is unnecessary. You'll find nothing here. We are willing to negotiate." As her father spoke, Leia felt her rage rise. How dare the Empire come down on her people pretending to uphold the rule of law?!
"We can proceed after the investigation," the man's lips curled up into a smirk. "We do hope you'll be cooperative with your visit. I assure you this will not be favorable otherwise."
The form of the officer fizzled out, leaving three Organas.
"Do you think they know of Luke and Vader's presence?" Breha asked.
Her father nodded, "Probably."
"Luke and Vader..." Leia choked. "We need them." She started running to the door but stopped and turned around when she heard her father's voice.
"Leia," Bail started...
"I'm not going to let you meet with these representatives yourself, Father," Leia declared sharply.
Bail nodded. "I trust you, Leia, but I'm unsure if I trust your father... or your brother. Do you think any of them, especially Vader, will seek to protect Alderaan?"
She looked at him. "They'll do it for me."
She hoped so at least...
She made it through the palace, noticing that guards were breaking from their positions and rallying down the halls. They would have to do security checks if they wanted to avoid further complications. Hopefully, her brother could help with that.
Finally making it to the door, she slammed her fist against it three times.
"Come on, come on, open the kriffing door," she said under her breath.
No answer...
She was about to try again when the door opened...
"The Empire has arrived," Vader said before Leia could even open her mouth.
"What do we do?" Leia asked. "The Rebellion will not have the willpower to hold this fleet off, and I have a feeling because of you two there are a lot of them! And security has been compromised."
Luke brightened up instantly. "I have an idea!"
In less than ten minutes, all Empire agents within the palace were discovered due to the mutual handiwork of father and son, but the threat of a legitimate battle remained.