The wind bowed as it blew behind his back. The sands crumbled under his footsteps and said their grace as he approached.
The Sith Lord, intent on his prey and concentrated on reaping the spoils of his victory, continued to walk towards his destination.
"Obi-Wan," he said confidently, his lips curving upwards in a smirk. "Remember me?"
Across from him, the old Jedi General widened his stance and held his lightsaber in front of himself. His eyes narrowed as he regarded the tall, red-skinned Zabrak with disdain.
"Maul," he murmured, his voice slightly shaky.
The Sith Lord grinned.
Obi-Wan's voice was no longer the crisp, infuriatingly impeccable Coruscanti accent. He had grown older and weaker, now. It would be a piece of cake to defeat him.
"We meet again," Maul's eyes glinted mischievously. "How fitting, that we were destined to cross paths once again on this godforsaken planet," he hissed. "Now, at the same place where you once felled me, you will finally meet your doom," he snarled.
"I don't think so," Obi-Wan said sharply. "My journey is not yet finished. I have a purpose to fulfill."
Maul paid his nonsensical words no mind. "I heard you have been doing poorly these days," he drawled, getting closer with every step. The Jedi made no efforts to back away. "How sad. The Jedi's once brightest light, now reduced to smuggling fugitives and hunting sandwhales like a common wharfman."
"I was never our brightest, Anakin was," Obi-Wan snapped defensively. "And I am proud to say that I am a man in an honest profession. Can you say the same?" he nodded at Maul's side, where his lightsaber was strapped to his waist.
Maul smirked. "I'm afraid I couldn't," he said in an amused tone. "But I've been told that I have much potential to grow," he said, feigning innocence.
Obi-Wan glared at him. "Yes, to grow worse," he responded in a disgusted tone. Maul's delight only increased as he entered a defensive stance, barely keeping his balance in the perpetually shifting sands.
"Is it difficult for you to stand up on those legs?" Maul asked. Obi-Wan paled slightly. "Do you find it challenging, taking those first steps on those new limbs of yours? Has it ever crossed your mind, the months of pain and rehabilitation I was forced to undergo when you killed me?" he snarled, his eyes darkening.
Obi-Wan looked up, meeting his gaze.
"I did what I had to do."
"So you did," Maul growled, feeling his chest grow hotter with fury. "So you did. And now, I will do the same," he narrowed his eyes and removed his lightsaber from his side. Obi-Wan watched intently as he ignited it, casting a strange red hue across the sands.
"You've come to kill me?" Obi-Wan asked calmly.
"Yes. And when you're gone, I will kill that little boy too," Maul said confidently. "Right in front of his parents. I can't decide if I want to keep them alive long enough to grieve him, or if I should give them a holo of their son begging for mercy to keep them searching for him forever."
"You are horrible."
"Yes, I am, and I am what you made me," Maul leered at him. Obi-Wan shook his head.
"I only had a hand in the making of your lower body. I had nothing to do with this," he gestured vaguely at Maul's person.
Maul seethed. How dare he treat him so indifferently, as if he were nothing to him. As if he was still nothing but an annoying minor threat. How dare he act just the same as he had years before, when they first fought.
"You lie, Obi-Wan," he growled, leaning in closer. "You lie. Your dishonesty betrays you."
"I do not," Obi-Wan retorted. He seemed to believe it with every fiber of his being. Maul wanted to scream at him.
"You ruined my life!" Maul glared at him angrily. "You have done so much irreparable damage to me." The Jedi did not even flinch, did not step back from his blade. "Admit it...Admit that you think of me," he hissed, "You think of me when you sleep, when you wake up in the middle of the night where the terrors of your own actions and the guilt of the past haunt you.
"I hardly think of you, if ever," Obi-Wan replied. "I can barely even remember your name, so weak and forgetful have I become in my old age," he shrugged.
Maul snarled and swung his lightsaber.
To his surprise, it met resistance. But not by the blue blade that he had been expecting. Smoke and sparks flew from where the red light of Maul's saber had crossed paths with the one weapon blocking his path to Obi-Wan, a single blaster rifle.
"Leave him!" a familiar voice shouted.
Maul raised an eyebrow. "A clone," he said, backing slightly. The clone panted and lowered his singed weapon. "How unexpected. I thought your lot all perished in the war," he said. "Either that, or you should be serving the Empire now. Are you one of their lackeys?" he asked curiously.
"I am nobody's servant," the clone grunted.
Obi-Wan's eyes were now wide, and his face had considerably paled. "Cody, no," he whispered, his voice hoarse from shock. The clone did not budge, only moved closer to Maul so that he was blocking even more of his view of Kenobi. How infuriating.
"How incredible it must be, that you have survived the War and lived to exist as a free man when so many of your brothers did not," Maul said, awed. "Having said that, I am afraid your journey will have to end here. I do not take prisoners."
"That's good," Cody narrowed his eyes. His was soft and steady, even as he prepared himself to kill. "I don't either."
"Cody, please." Obi-Wan took a step closer to the clone. Maul's eyebrow twitched. "I don't need you to do this. I am more than capable of-"
"You're old," Cody said. "I am genetically in my thirties. I may look fourty, but I have the strength of more than two regular man. I can protect you."
"No, Cody, no," Obi-Wan shook his head. "Don't do this to me. I'm not actually-"
"Please, General."
Maul had had enough.
"If neither of you will live for the other," he snarled, "Then I will gladly kill you both."
He raised his saber once more, ready to end the quarrel as it stood. But just then, he felt a sharp crack of pain in his backside and cried out, falling forwards slightly. He immediately turned his head, trying to see who would dare to attack him from behind without a warning.
"Leave the boy, Maul," his attacker panted, keeping his handheld blaster pointed. "I advise you to heed my words."
"Who are you?" Maul demanded angrily.
"Just a humble senator," the man replied.
"Bail!" Obi-Wan exclaimed, relief flooding his voice.
Bail Organa carefully gathered the fabric of his poncho, but he did not lower his blaster. "You will leave now," he insisted again, "If you know what is good for you."
"If I know what is good for me?" Maul snarled. From the look of it, this man was neither Jedi, nor soldier. He had no reason to fear him. "You seem to me an ordinary senator," he sneered. "What good are you without a legion of bodyguards? You pose no threat to me," he scoffed.
"Perhaps not, but I will not let you harm the boy," Bail replied.
"What is he to you?"
"He means more than you will ever understand."
Now Maul was furious.
Finally, he stood up, drawing himself to his full height. With the added height of his prosthetic legs, he towered an entire head above all three of the other men.
"I am Lord Maul, the most powerful of the Sith and the last of my kind," he growled. "You will now meet your deaths by my hand, after which I will destroy everything you have ever loved."
"You are not the last of your kind," Obi-Wan corrected him. "Darth Vader remains the Emperor's most recent and beloved apprentice," he said sorrowfully.
Maul sneered. "Darth Vader is nothing compared to me," he shouted. "I defeated him in battle! He cowered before me like a little crying child while I stunned him with the dark secrets of the Dathomirian Nightsisters," he boasted arrogantly. "Just as you will, when I show you how I harnessed the Waters of Life."
Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. "He was always weaker to Force Lightning," he muttered. "I had heard reports of his treatment under the Emperor. Sometimes, he would return to the Fortress with lightning scars all over his body," he sighed. "He would not let me to talk to him about them, but I always knew what they really were."
Maul's eye twitched. This was supposed to be about his victory over Darth Vader, not his relationship with the Emperor. Why had Obi-Wan diverted the topic like this?
"Anakin was always a smart pupil," Obi-Wan remarked. "At first, he didn't understand how to deflect blaster bolts. Then, once I showed him, he bdcame a natural at it. I daresay, if you were to fight him, he would probably figure out how to gain control of the situation with ease," he nodded confidently.
"Well, I guess we'll just have to find out then, won't we?"
"Indeed," Obi-Wan said. Still, he refused to draw his lightsaber. He was unflappable and unbothered as ever. The perfect picture of Jedi composure. "But not today." With that, he turned around and - the audacity of it! - began to walk away.
This, more than anything else, was absolutely unacceptable. Maul howled and began to follow him, but another blast hit him in the head and he screamed out both in pain and indignation. "That was the last warning shot, Maul!" Bail Organa called out. "One more step in that direction, and I'm afraid I will have to take the safety off this blaster."
Maul snarled, standing back up. "I will do as I please, Senator," he spat back vexedly. "Neither you nor your clone lackey can do anything to me."
"We shall have to see," Bail Organa replied.
That was the last straw. Maul swung towards him with his double-ended lightsaber, but the Senator just stepped out of the way and shot at him twice. Maul dodged both shots, doggedly trudging after him, even as the heat of the sand and desert sun made it harder on his prosthetics. He managed to catch Senator Organa right on his shooting hand, causing him to yelp and nearly drop the blaster. Maul grinned and swung again, causing the senator to dive out of the way now. Cody joined in, raising his blaster rifle and firing off another shot. Maul howled as the shot caught him in the back of his leg, where the flesh met the metal and transitioned into prosthetic.
"Blast you both," he snarled, turning around and swinging at Cody. Cody yelped helplessly as the rifle was knocked from his hands, landing on the sand beside him. As he scrambled after it, Maul sneered and used his saber to catch him in the back. Cody howled in pain.
"Do not get ahead of yourself, clone," he taunted. "See what happens to those who attempt to rise above their station."
Just then, another blast caught him on the chest, just inches above his heart. Maul turned around to see that Bail Organa had recovered and was now holding his blaster with both hands to keep it steady.
"I warned you, Maul," Bail said. "This is your third and final chance. Turn around now and go home. Let the boy live in peace."
Maul snarled. "I have no desire of listening to your stupid orders," he hissed. "I will do exactly as I please, and I do not care about the life of the child you so foolishly desire to protect."
"You may be a servant of the Emperor, but you are better than your Master," Obi-Wan said, surprising him. "I know that you are smarter than this, Maul. Show us that you can be a better person."
What was happening? Maul almost chortled out loud. Kenobi was finally paying him attention and showing him praise, but not for the reasons that he should. It was all wrong. This wasn't supposed to happen like this.
"Yield, Maul," Obi-Wan said. "Yield. I am begging you."
This isn't how he should be, Maul thought furiously. He should be begging for mercy from me. He should grovel on his knees, asking to exchange his life for the boy's. Not asking me to yield.
"I'll never give up!" he shouted. "I am nothing like the coward you are, Kenobi!"
Obi-Wan's face hardened. Bail Organa stiffened.
"So be it," he said in a soft voice, his expression heavy with disappointment. "Have it your way."
Obi-Wan raised his arm. Suddenly, Maul's lightsaber lifted itself out of his hands without warning. Forgetting himself, he tried to reach out for it, but a tanned brown hand grabbed it and moved the staff out of his way before he could even lay a finger on it.
"I don't think so," Cody said, holding the double-ended lightsaber with both arms. "You have harmed too many people with this weapon. I'll be taking it, now."
Maul snarled. "You don't even know how to use that," he said.
"Yes, I do," Cody retorted. Maul raised an eyebrow. "I'm a visual learner. I learn by watching."
Maul sneered. "Is this what you have lowered yourself to now, Kenobi? Letting a clone and a senator fight your battles? Some kind of Jedi General you are turning into," he snorted.
"Yes, indeed," Obi-Wan replied. His face looked paler than before, but so did his hair, and his clothes too, strangely. "That is, I would be, if I was really here. I'm sorry that I am not, though. I wish I could be."
Maul's eyes widened.
Obi-Wan nodded at Bail Organa. "The jig is up," he said calmly. "You can dispatch him now."
Maul opened his mouth to scream, but he was immediately silenced by a blaster bolt to his stomach. He yelled, and just then Cody lunged forwards, stabbing him through the side with the saber. He cried out, causing Cody to step back and withdraw the saber, but then he flipped it around to the other end and swung again. This time, he managed to cut through one of Maul's metal legs, causing it to melt and fall off of the rest of his prosthetic contraption. Maul's jaw fell as he let out a loud gasp. Just then, the Obi-Wan Kenobi who was not truly Kenobi met his eyes in an intense gaze.
"You liar," he panted. "You liar, liar, liar..."
"I'm sorry, Maul," Obi-Wan said. "I don't have time for you today."
With that, the Force Projection of Obi-Wan vanished. Maul fell to his knees, clutching his side. He could scarcely believe what had just happened.
As Bail Organa and Cody towered above him, however, he understood. As he gazed emptily at the charred remains of his prosthetic limb, the one that had been attached to him just seconds ago and was now corroded and smoking, he finally understood. The depths of his ignorance and failure, the very same pain that had haunted him when he fell down that cursed garbage chute after being defeated by Kenobi, he finally felt that same pain again for the first time in years.
Kenobi was never, never going to meet him at his own level. He was never going to truly get his revenge.
With that, Maul closed his eyes and passed out, falling down onto the sands. Bail Organa and Cody watched his unconscious body for a few seconds, then turned towards each other.
"That should give Fulcrum enough time to catch up with Obi-Wan," Bail Organa said, lowering his blaster. "I think we should head for the homestead now."
Cody looked at him in disgust. "I always hated that guy, he muttered under his breath.
Bail Organa nodded. "Thank you for stalling for me, by the way," he said. "I ran as fast as I could, but I wasn't sure if I would make it on time."
Cody shook his head. "I understand, you had business to attend to on Alderaan," he said. "It's already quite generous of you to come here, putting yourself at risk. But Rex told me that you would come, and I knew that I could trust you."
"It's the least I could do," Bail said. "Honestly, I should be thanking you. If you hadn't acted convincingly enough, Maul would never have been fooled into thinking that the Force projection of Obi-Wan was real."
Cody blushed. He hadn't known, either. "Oh...of course," he said, embarrassed. "I thought...if I didn't, he wouldn't have thought it was real."
"Indeed," Bail Organa nodded. "And it all worked thanks to you, my friend. Now...let's go find Luke, shall we?"
The real Obi-Wan, it turned out, was dealing with a much more dangerous force.
"Anakin," he said, panting as their swords clashed together, emitting a bright purple light as the red and blue mixed together. "Why must we always end up like this? It doesn't have to be this way."
"Then get out of the way, Kenobi."
"I cannot do that."
"Then you have sealed your fate."
Obi-Wan stepped back, breaking the sword lock, and took a deep breath.
"Why are you doing this? What has the Emperor offered you?"
"Everything that I lost," Vader replied. "A family. My children. My wife," he spat, and Obi-Wan's eyes widened. Vader took advantage of the opening and swung at him, causing sparks to fly off his right prosthetic leg.
"Padme?" Obi-Wan asked incredulously.
"Yes," Vader snarled. "I will be the one to bring her back and give her life again. No thanks to you."
Obi-Wan inhaled sharply.
"You are trying to bring back a woman who you abandoned to give birth alone, who died knowing that she could have stopped breathing at any point because of the pain she suffered through at your hand," Obi-Wan retorted. "Even if she could still forgive you...even if she could still see the good in you... what makes you think she would happily follow and return to you, to play wife and mother again? Can you even give her the family that you long for?"
Vader stiffened. His strikes became more restricted, and he did not step as far forward. Obi-Wan spun around and pressed harder, trying to take advantage of his defensiveness.
"Is this really what Padme would have wanted, or is it just what you want?"
"It is the last thing she ever asked me for," Vader replied. "A husband and children. A place to stay."
"Yes, but that was with Anakin," Obi-Wan reminded him. "What business could she possibly have with Vader?"
At that, Vader growled and slashed his sword violently. Obi-Wan stepped to the side and continued to parry his thrusts, confidently pushing forward.
"She will want whatever it is that I want," Vader said. "And if she does not, I will make her."
"How gentlemanly of you," Obi-Wan scoffed in a way that suggested he did not find this behavior very chivalrous at all. "And how exactly do you plan to bring her back?"
"With the most hidden secret of the Mustafarians," Vader replied. "Surely you must have heard of it. They call it the Bright Crystal."
Obi-Wan paused. "If you are aware of the Bright Crystal, then you should know that it failed horribly."
"Indeed, but this time will be different," Vader crowed. "Lady Corvax was weak and foolish. I am in control of the Dark Side, powers that not even the Jedi could fathom."
Obi-Wan shook his head. "Are you really the one in control, though?" he asked skeptically. "Or does the Dark Side have control over you?" His eyes darkened slightly. "Is this another one of the Emperor's ideas that he planted into your head, Anakin?" he asked, concerned.
"I see no difference from the time when I was the chosen child of the prophecy for the Jedi," Vader sneered. "Better to be controlled by the Dark than the Light. At least I can see my own path now."
Obi-Wan just sighed ruefully.
As they continued to fight, Obi-Wan could feel his energy continuing to wane. The heat of the desert sands was hard on his metal legs. Harder and harder he fought, and still Vader continued to gain on him. He moved slowly, but he was steady. Suddenly, Vader stepped forward in an unusual show of speed and crossed their swords, pushing down hard. He then reached over and grabbed Obi-Wan by the throat. Obi-Wan gasped and bent over, now supporting all of Vader's weight with both arms. As he looked up, all he could see was the dark visor of Vader's mask.
"Yield, Kenobi," Vader snarled again. They were now in the same position that they had once been, all those years ago on Mustafar.
Obi-Wan could barely respond. He let go with one hand to grasp at his throat in vain, already knowing that he would not be able to fight off Vader's mechanical iron grip this time.
Just then, he felt a presence in the Force behind them.
"That's enough," a female voice commanded angrily.
Vader did not turn around. Obi-Wan opened his eyes. He could see bright white light shining behind them.
Ahsoka, Obi-Wan thought hazily. She's here. However, the thought only brought him more concern. What is he going to do to her? Surely he won't show mercy to both of us...
"This ends here," Ahsoka said firmly. "Things can't go on like this forever. I'm afraid we're going to have to stop you here. Let go of him," she nodded at Obi-Wan.
"No."
"Let him go," Ahsoka commanded imperiously.
Vader let go of Obi-Wan's throat and made a crushing motion with his free hand. Ahsoka flinched and gasped for air slightly as her knees gave out, but she did her best not to cry from the pain. Once Vader let go, she just straightened her back stood back up, looking him directly in the eye.
"You should turn back around and go home, Ahsoka."
Ahsoka winced. She wished he had not used her name. It only made it harder to do what she knew she had to.
"Please, leave him alone," she begged.
"I have just let Kenobi live," Vader said coldly. "What more do you want from me?"
"Don't call him that. He's not a stranger, he's your family."
"I have no family."
You had us! She almost screamed. You used to say I was like a sister to you!
But the words would not come out.
Instead, all she could do was open her mouth and say, "And what of my brother?"
"What of him, indeed?" Vader asked, irritated.
"When is he coming back? Because I miss him."
"You lie."
"I miss him, more and more every day," Ahsoka fired back. "Do you know, I used to keep a shrine with your name in it? I used to dedicate all my evening meditations to you, I used to hold space for you, hoping that you would find your peace within the Force. Where I hoped to find you." She ducked her head. "Everyday, I prayed and called out to my Master. I didn't know why you never answered, but I still hoped to hear from you again someday."
"I'm afraid your pleas have been in vain."
"Why can't you just come back with us?" Ahsoka demanded, frustrated. "Why won't you come back to the Light?"
"Because," Vader snarled, "The Light betrayed me. Following the Light brought me nothing but pain and trouble. The Light has never given me what I wanted, only the Dark can do that."
"But you're a part of us. That will never change. The Light calls out for you all the same, like a lost son-"
"Stop trying to change the way things are, Ahsoka," Vader sneered, and suddenly she could finally hear her brother through the cracks in his mask. "I was always meant to be a part of the Darkness. The Force embraces its Dark side just as much as it does the Light...and I think so should you," he drawled. "You never wanted to join me on my side either, even though I offered you a place."
"You know I won't do that."
"Perhaps if you cared about me more, then you would have."
Ahsoka's expression shifted to something faintly tormented. Then suddenly her eyebrows furrowed and she took a step forward.
"I think you are right, in a sense," she narrowed her eyes. "We are never going to agree about what is right for either of us. And at a certain point, our paths were meant to diverge, as painful as it might be for me to admit."
With that, she turned off her lightsabers. Vader watched avidly as the bright white light disappeared. Ahsoka resignedly re-sheathed her sabers, falling down to her knees and burying her hands in the sand before them.
"I yield," she proclaimed loudly.
Obi-Wan blinked, confused. Then, all of a sudden, he heard a voice speaking to him within his mind using the Second Sight.
"Everyone who can hear me right now," the voice urged solemnly, "Run and turn away. You are not safe here."
Obi-Wan stumbled back, confused, and Ahsoka glanced up at him. Nodding at him, he finally got the signal. Obi-Wan backed away, allowing himself to fall down next to Ahsoka's side. Vader stared at them both with confusion, incredulous at their unexpectedly easy surrender.
"Master Kenobi," Ahsoka broadcast to him using the Second Sight. "I'm going to do something extremely which requires an immense amount of power...and I need you to be my Wayfinder. Help guide me."
Obi-Wan nodded silently. He didn't quite understand what he was being asked to do, but he steadied himself and did his best to keep his metal limbs off the sand.
Vader stepped forward, about to reach out towards them. "Is this your way of declaring your surrender?" he asked, his aura menacing.
Ahsoka took a deep breath.
As Obi-Wan watched, her body immediately tensed up. Her arms went taught as her hands burrowed into the sand, the veins practically protruding from her fingers. She kicked furiously at the sand behind her, digging her foot into it as if she was trying to find something. Her spine was completely straight and when closed her eyes, her eyebrows twisted themselves into an intense look.
Remember what Master Plo taught you, she reminded herself. Concentrate on the technique. You need to feel it in your bones.
"I asked you a question," Vader said, irritated. "Answer me quickly, and I may consider sparing your lives."
Ahsoka squeezed her eyes tighter.
"I said," Vader growled louder, "Is this your official declaration of surrender?"
Obi-Wan watched Ahsoka carefully. He could not tell at all what her plan was.
"Now is your last-"
"Now!" Ahsoka shouted frantically, her lekku trailing behind her wildly.
With that, she brought her hands back down upon the sand, striking it hard so that it dispersed in fine particles around her.
As Ahsoka struck the sand, Obi-Wan immediately felt an enormous surge of power course through his veins. The air buzzed with electricity and he watched as if tranfixed as Ahsoka opened her mouth and bared her fangs in a voiceless snarl, her lekku flailing wildly in the air. Vader began to move, but suddenly the electric storm in the air picked up speed and began to thrum dangerously. The hairs on Obi-Wan's neck were starting to stand up. Before anyone could move, a loud crack of thunder sounded, echoing across the sandy plains.
Vader looked up, alarmed. Obi-Wan did not, however. He looked to his side.
Beside him, Ahsoka was looking straight ahead. Her eyes glowed white.
It was as if he was moving through water. Obi-Wan watched with wide eyes as Ahsoka roared and threw her head back, the veins in her neck bulging. As he watched, everything was drowned out by the rumble of thunder and a blinding flash of white light so bright that Obi-Wan had to temporarily close his eyes.
Behind his mask, Vader opened his mouth and cried out but no sound came from it. Instead, he froze in shock as electricity filled his veins and the metal components of his prosthetics. The lightning bolt that rang true and coursed through his blood made him tremble powerlessly for several minutes. Ahsoka was shouting and saying something with her hands raised, but he could not hear her over the sound of blood pounding in his ears and echoing in his helmet. Even the sounds of his frantic gasps and cries of pain were muffled by the modulator, coming out as the strange, distorted, electronic screams of a cyborg. The lightning probably only lasted a few seconds, but to him it felt like an eternity. The entirety of his body was now shaking and spasming painfully. If he could see straight ahead of him, he would probably see the look of remorse and guilt that instantly flashed across Ahsoka's face. But all he could focus on was the sensation of pain and disorientation.
Soon, his knees gave out and he fell forwards. But beneath his feet, there was no longer particles of coarse, yellow Tatooinean sand. It had melted and pooled into magma.
No, Vader thought to himself fearfully, his vision growing blurry as the inside of the mask started to fog up. He desperately tried to move away from the lava but his left foot was already sinking into it. Immediately, he stumbled away and tripped over his own feet, falling backwards.
He barely had time to notice the sound of a lightsaber being ignited.
As Vader looked up, the first thing to register was another flash of white. He screamed, anticipating the aftershocks of another lightning strike. Instead, a shower of sparks erupted from the right side of his helmet and left a large, searing hole that smelled of burnt durasteel.
Vader began to scream, but a second blue flash came at him from his left side. Vader howled as he felt the metal inside overheat. Now that the heat of the lightsaber had melted them, many of his mask components were starting to malfunction. He could feel that the voicebox to his modulator was badly damaged and would not last much longer. The mechanical ventilator inside his helmet desperately attempted to compensate for the sudden drop in pressure. The risk of it spontaneously exploding was dangerously high.
I must remove the mask now, he realized with a faint shock of horror. Otherwise I will die.
Ahsoka and Obi-Wan both gasped in horror as they watched Vader reaching up with trembling hands. Carefully, his hands fumbled with the lock mechanism until he was able to unlatch it. He was just barely able to lift it over his head before he collapsed again, landing face forwards in the sand with nothing but the bottom part of his ventilator covering his face. Obi-Wan stared at the strange contraption attached to his throat. Vader sneered. They were probably thinking that they should reach for it and just put him out of his misery. He wished they would.
"Anakin," Obi-Wan said sadly. Now that the mask was gone, they could what he had become, the ugly monster they had created. For the first time in more than ten years, the teacher, the student, and his own student all saw each other completely. All of his flaws, imperfections, and injuries were completely out on display for them to observe and gawk at.
Their disgust was annoying. It made him want to slash them into pieces with his sword and burn them alive. But their pity was worse.
Vader coughed violently and the voicebox of his modulator gave out with a last fizzle.
"You're just like him," he snarled accusingly, glaring at Ahsoka one last time.
He ignored her, refusing to make eye contact or acknowledge her, to allow her remorse to corrupt him and render him soft. After his modulator, his ventilator was the next thing to give out. Vader turned his face away from them and closed his eyes.
As his consciousness began to fade away, he could hear the sound of hushed voices talking.
"Hurry," Obi-Wan whispered. "We don't have much time, Maul could return at any moment...and the Emperor..."
The sound grew more and more scrambled and unintelligible until the bionic audio implants in his ears finally gave out.
So this is how they leave me, he thought to himself angrily.
As he felt them walk away, however, suddenly a new Force signature caught his attention.
He thought at first that it was Leia, returning to him from whatever hideout the Rebels had stashed her within. It immediately made him lift his head and open his eyes weakly. But as it approached, he realized that it was someone else entirely.
A short boy with yellowy blond hair that blew in the breeze as he gazed out across the sandy dune.
Vader opened his mouth and tried to move his lips. Luke, he wanted to scream, Luke! He tried to call out to him, but his face would not obey him. His body felt heavy and numb at the same time, unable to control himself. He was barely able to force his arm forwards, his hand spasming as he grasped wildly at the sand. It crumbled between his fingers, only further serving to remind him of the futility of his struggle.
There was a man standing next to him, holding his hand. And yet, Luke did not pull away from him. He just stood there, staring across the sand with a blank look on his face as if he did not fully comprehend what he was seeing. Vader wanted to scream, to wrench his hand away, to yell at him to let go and run away from the man holding him there. It infuriated him, seeing someone else with his son.
How dare he, Vader thought to himself angrily, how dare he take Luke away from me. I should be there. I should be the one holding his hand.
Just then, the man turned around and a look of hatred clouded his face. Obi-Wan turned and a look of shock passed across his face as well. He immediately tried to say something to the man, but he ignored him and let go of Luke's hand. As Vader watched, the man began to approach him with furious steps.
Yes, the beast in his mind crowed victoriously. Come over. Come closer. Let me take a look at you.
As the man approached him, he could see that his mouth was moving and his eyebrows were furrowed, indicating that he was yelling. However, his audiometrics were too damaged to understand what was going on until the man was barely ten feet away from him. He could blurrily see Ahsoka and Obi-Wan trailing behind him, trying to stop the man from coming over and getting himself sliced in half.
There were other people, too, a woman in nondescript gray clothing and two other men. But he didn't care about any of them. All he could focus on was the sharp-eyed man whose mouth moved rapidly as he screamed bloody murder at him, gradually getting louder and louder.
"-And if you ever dare try to lay your hands on my son again, I'll kill you myself!" the man ranted furiously, pulling out a blaster rifle. "My own brother was killed by the Sith, do you hear? I would rather die first before ever letting another member of my family be killed!"
Now that the man was within range of him, he could see him clearly. He was nothing but a humble moisture farmer. His clothes were plain, and so were his facial features, entirely unremarkable and unimpressive. Absolutely unworthy of something so precious as his son.
"Look at me in the eye, you son of a bitch," the moisture farmer growled. Vader looked up with indifference into the barrel of the blaster rifle. "Look at me when I'm speaking to you."
In the distance, Vader could see the blond boy starting to approach them, his eyes wide with curiosity. A smirk formed on his face.
"Your brother, you say?" he drawled lazily. The farmer flinched slightly, but his grip on the trigger tightened and he narrowed his eyes. "What a pity. I'm sure he wished that it was you instead."
The farmer's eyes widened. But instead of clouding over with the fury he was expecting, the man's face took on a look of grief.
"It should've been," he said darkly. Then finally, he raised his blaster again. "But that doesn't matter anymore. This ends here," he glared angrily.
Vader smirked. "I think not," he said.
He could see Obi-Wan and Ahsoka shouting something, but he ignored them. Raising his hand confidently, he flexed his fingers. The blaster rifle fell to the ground, useless and unnecessary to any part of his scheme. Shock colored the farmer's face as he suddenly felt his throat being squeezed midair. His hands immediately flew to his neck, but it was too late. There was nothing he could do.
Vader grinned cruelly and raised his arm. As the farmer in front of him writhed in pain, he could feel his life force flowing into him and reenergizing him. Vader slowly rose up, feeling the strength return to his legs. He finally let go and the farmer fell back down, panting for air. The boy ran to him and grabbed his shoulder, looking concerned.
"Luke," the farmer gasped. "Run-turn back-you can't be here," he exclaimed. "Go back home!"
Vader grinned. "Too late. He's mine now."
With that, he reached out his hand and began to tug.
The boy stumbled, his jaw dropping in surprise as he found himself getting forward. The farmer shouted and tried to grab at his hand to pull him back, but he was too weak. Cody and Bail Organa got there first, throwing themselves forwards and grabbing Luke with both hands to keep ahold of him. Vader narrowed his eyes and began to pull harder.
"ANAKIN, STOP!"
Vader turned, seeing Obi-Wan running towards them. He sneered and used the Force to push him away. Obi-Wan cried out as he fell down, Ahsoka barely catching him before he hit the ground. "Anakin, don't do it!" he pleaded uselessly.
The moisture farmer's face was now pale. "What did you say?" he asked, his color completely drained. He turned towards Vader with wide, horrified eyes. Vader wished he had his mask back.
The boy was now giving him some trouble. He would not come, no matter how much he wanted him to. Vader turned back and started yanking harder. Luke slid forwards against his will, all the while digging his feet into the sand like a confused bantha being dragged out of a watering hole by its mother.
"Anakin, no!" Obi-Wan yelled, still concentrating completely on him while Ahsoka did her best to lift the both of them with her drained body. "Leave the boy alone! He's not yours anymore!"
"He's mine," Vader snarled. "You will not stop me from taking him anymore, Kenobi. He's my son."
Owen Lars' jaw dropped.
No, it's impossible, he thought to himself.
His stomach curled in on itself and he felt like he was going to throw up.
"Anakin," he whispered in a horrified voice, causing the furious cyborg to turn his head and glare at him. "Anakin," he mumbled again. "It can't be..."
"What?" Vader snarled. "Something wrong? You look like you've just seen a monster," he sneered. "Or worse, a ghost."
Owen's lip trembled as he finally took in the scene before him. Finally, as he looked up, he understood.
This man who he had taken for his enemy was at once friend and foe, his brother's murderer and the family he always regretted not being closer to.
"What happened to you?" Owen gasped. "I don't...I don't understand," he stammered.
"I don't expect you to," Vader said coldly.
With that, he raised his arm and reached out one last time. Cody, Bail Organa, and Owen all desperately grabbed onto Luke. But it was too late. The force pulling him towards Vader was too great; their power was still unmatched.
Then suddenly, Luke cried out as he felt an intense searing pain in his right arm as if it was being torn in half. Cody grabbed onto him, only for his eyes to widen in shock when he realized he was holding onto Luke's right hand while Luke himself flew out of his grasp. A piercing scream erupted across the desert, echoing loudly. Beru covered her mouth, tears flowing from her eyes as she stared at the now disembodied hand of her son. Ahsoka ran to her and grabbed her by the shoulders, trying to ground her.
Luke immediately passed out from the pain, going completely limp as his body floated through the air and into Vader's arms. Vader caught the small unconscious boy and gathered him up possessively.
"My son," Vader said mournfully, looking at the place where Luke's hand was no longer attached. Then, casting a disdainful glance at the Lars, he reached for his lightsaber and reignited it again. "I cannot stay any longer...but this will not be the last that you see of me," he snarled.
He could hear his Master calling to him from across the Galaxy. He could already sense his spacecraft nearby. He turned and began to walk towards it.
"Stop!" Ahsoka yelled from behind him, and he heard her as she sprinted towards him. Vader sneered.
As the Togruta approached him, Vader was prepared this time. The instant she raised her hand to call forth the Lightning, he kept his feet deep in the sand and used it to ground him. Then, as the lightning strike approached, he raised his saber and slashed it through the air. Ahsoka fell back, screaming in pain as the Lightning was reflected back towards her. She immediately collapsed onto the ground, crying out in pain.
"That was a nice show you put on back there," he told her condescendingly. "But I know all your tricks now. That won't work on me anymore."
With that, Vader shut off his lightsaber and raised his hand. His spacecraft lifted itself out of the sand and flew towards him. Before Obi-Wan or Bail Organa or Cody or either of the Lars could stop him, he climbed into the entrance and locked the door, barring them completely. A quick laser shield activated, then he commanded the vessel to deploy whatever bombs were left inside it. The spacecraft lifted into the air, and as it did, he could hear the sound of frantic screaming and shouting as they all ran to evacuate before the explosives he had dropped could activate. Vader watched smugly as all of his enemies dispersed in a wide circle, barely avoiding losing their own limbs as the thermal detonators went off. Finally, he turned to the navicomputer and started the controls.
It would be a long, long flight back to Alderaan.
"Check the boy's vitals," he ordered the on-board med droid. "And do not fail me. If he dies, I will blast you to pieces," he waved his lightsaber threateningly. It did not react, only focused on carrying out its programming. It immediately zoomed over Luke and began conducting scans.
With nothing else to do, Vader returned to the pilot's seat and stared out the transparisteel vitrine thoughtfully.
When he had come to Tatooine, he was miserable and angry and alone.
But now as he activated the hyperdrive and watched them all disappear into nothingness, he could feel a faint sense of satisfaction.
I finally have him again, he thought to himself as he stared at Luke's sleeping face, lying motionless on a cot next to him. The med droid fussed over him, immediately bandaging the wound to stop the bleeding and administering pain medication. I won. He's mine now.
Finally, he had gotten what he wanted.
All he had left to do now was gather the rest of the missing pieces.