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| Dark Path |
Dark Path
Yoda to Luke, ESB
It is ten years after the battle of Endor; the Alliance has discovered the parentage secret held by Luke Skywalker.
Luke protects Leia by not revealing her as his twin sister. The Alliance brands Luke a traitor and moves to assassinate him along with the few Jedi he has trained. Luke finds no way to protect himself and those he loves, so he scatters the New Order throughout the Galaxy, explaining that the Jedi would find their place in the Galaxy one day. The Jedi Master has fled, with his pregnant wife, to Dantooine. There, the Alliance bombards them in an attempt to draw them out, or kill them. Whichever comes first.
"Luke?" Jannah Skywalker called.
Luke returned and sat on the bed beside his wife.
"It's all right." He brushed a strand of sweated hair from her
forehead. The contractions had started ten hours ago. "They can't get in here," he tried
to comfort her, "The defenses will hold."
"You're sure?"
"Yes."
Another contraction hit her stronger than before and she squeezed
Luke's hand.
"Oh, Luke. We can't deliver the babies here!" Jannah panicked. "Not
in the middle of a battle!"
"I was born in the middle of a battle," Luke stated as he held his
wife's shaking body, "I will not let them hurt our children."
"They will be almost two months early! Luke, what if we can't help
them? What if they are born...?"
"Shhh," Luke placed a finger on her lips, "they'll be fine." But
he was just as scared as she.
Jannah stared into her husband's eyes. They didn't lie. They
revealed Luke's worry about the impending birth of their children.
Jannah screamed as another laser blast struck their sanctuary.
The birth was imminent, and there was nothing either of them could do to stop it.
"Luke!"
"I think it's time." Luke wiped sweat off of her forehead with his
arm. "Help me. I don't know what to do."
"Anakin and Jelyssa are certainly impatient," Jannah breathed.
Luke smiled. They had already chosen a name for their son and daughter.
"That they are." Luke grinned, wiping Jannah's forehead again.
Jannah sat up, arms around her knees, and pushed. She could no
longer resist the urge to push. Almost immediately, a new life appeared, screaming her
little head off. Luke cleaned the baby and placed her on her mother, who had leaned back
against the pillows, exhausted.
"She's beautiful, Jannah." Luke stared in awe at his infant
daughter. Jannah smiled, then screamed as another contraction hit her. The sanctuary
continued to shake as Jannah struggled to birth their son.
"Oh Luke, I can't," Jannah breathed. The ten plus hours of labor
had drained her.
"He'll die if you..."
Jannah read his eyes, and, determined to try once more, sat up
and pushed with all of her might. The little boy finally appeared, to the relief of both
his parents. A tiny boy, all red, wet, slippery, and... silent.
Luke realized immediately that his son wasn't crying. He quickly
cleaned out his mouth. When that didn't work, he gently hit the boy's feet. Luke tried
everything, but it was no use. The little boy was dead. There was nothing Luke or anyone
else could do to bring him back.
"No," Luke whispered, holding the boy close to his chest. "No!" He
repeated louder, capturing Jannah's attention away from her daughter, to her husband and
silent son.
"Luke?" she breathed, looking into his eyes. She had never seen
them so sad and... angry. Jannah knew at once that her son had not lived. Tears escaped
her eyes as she cradled Jelyssa closer. She stared as Luke cut the cord and walked to the
door with the still child.
"Luke?" she called again.
He turned. Hate filled his eyes and voice.
"All I ever wanted was a free galaxy. Where everyone could live
in peace. Where the Jedi could flourish." Luke cradled his dead son. "Now we're outlawed,
branded traitors. All because of whose son I am!" Luke raised his voice. "It's not right
to blame a son for his father's actions." Tears glistened on his cheeks. "And they have
made my son pay for my actions. Well, now they will pay for taking my son's life!" Luke
stormed out of the room, taking his tiny son with him.
"Luke, no!" Jannah sat up, attempting to follow. She was just too
exhausted tho, and slumped back into the pillows. "Don't give in to the Dark Side!" she
cried after him. "Once you start down the dark path, it will dominate your destiny forever!"
She looked down at her newborn daughter. "I don't want our daughter to have a Dark legacy
from her Light father," she whispered.
"Luke!" she screamed, "come back!"
Luke heard his wife's warning about giving in to dark anger, but he ignored her. So consumed was he in his hatred for the Alliance, what they had done to him, and the fact that they had caused the needless death of his infant son, that he did not heed her warnings. He ran headlong into his anger and hatred. The Dark consuming him, exalting in the fact that it had finally caught the defiant Skywalker Master.
Jannah sat crying in her bed, tightly holding her sleeping
daughter.
"I've lost them both," she whispered to Jelyssa. She knew what
Luke was capable of doing. He could destroy the Alliance with a mere thought if he wanted
to, and no one would be able to stop him. His Jedi were scattered across the galaxy;
protected from discovery, unable now to protect their Master. Jannah knew if Luke died, the
Jedi would die with him. She couldn't let that happen. She wouldn't let that happen.
"Hear me," Jannah called to anyone capable of listening. "Hear me."
Although Jannah was not very gifted with the Force, her link with
Luke gave her a little of an edge. That association permitted her to make contact with
someone she had only met once...
"You cannot destroy him," Leia Solo argued with the Senators,
"The galaxy needs the Jedi. We need them to keep the peace."
"We don't need another Dark Lord heading the most powerful sect in
the Galaxy!" Senator Nim Kel'ayya argued. "We do not trust the Jedi Master, and will not"
He stood, directing all of his attention to the enraged Princess, "Will not give such a man
position in this Republic!"
"He only wants the freedom to teach Jedi," Leia narrowed her dark
eyes at the Senator. "He does not want absolute power."
"How can you know this for sure?" Senator Shin T'keyah asked the
Princess in a much calmer tone. "How do you know that Luke Skywalker, once back in the
Republic, will not go for the Presidency? Or worse... The Imperial Throne?!"
"I know him," Leia stated.
"True," the Senator began, "you were once friends,but that doesn't
allow you to see into his soul."
Leia glared at Senator T'keyah. How dare he suggest that she
didn't know her own brother?! But, of course, no one knew of the relationship she had with
the Jedi Master. Luke had seen to it that no one would ever know about Leia's blood bond
with the 'Traitorous Jedi Skywalker'.
"I know..." Leia started to repeat, when a powerful feeling came
over her, knocking the Princess off her feet. She stumbled, falling into her seat. Narrowly
catching the edge of the table to prevent herself from hitting the floor.
"Princess?" Senator Kel'ayya's anger dissipated in his concern for
the young woman. "Senator?"
"Leia?" Mon Mothma stood and walked over quickly to her friend.
"Mon," Leia looked up at Mothma, her eyes pleading. "Help." The
last word whispered into the President's ear.
Mothma helped Leia to her feet, and in a strong voice declared:
"This meeting is adjourned for today."
Mothma helped Leia into her office, where the young Princess
slumped into the cushions of a soft couch.
"What is it?" Mothma asked, clearly concerned for her friend. She
knew of Leia's relationship with the Jedi Master. Mon Mothma was the only person in the
Republic that knew Luke and Leia were twins. Luke'd had no choice when it came to telling
her. He wanted to protect his sister, and to do that, the Republic President'd had to be
told.
"Is it...?"
"Luke!" Leia whispered, "What happened?" Leia looked at her friend,
a look of horror on her face. "I can't reach him! He's gone!"
"What do you mean?" Mothma didn't understand the Force, and had to
rely on Leia for information about it.
"Jannah called to me." Leia's eyes shone with disbelief. "She... at
least I think it was Jannah."
"Luke's wife?" Mothma asked.
"Yes." Leia tried to regain the contact. "I felt a Darkness descend
on me that I have never felt before." Leia looked up suddenly. "I have to find my brother.
He's in trouble."
Luke continued down the twisting hallways toward the sanctuary
entrance. His bright blue eyes now darkened by his hatred for the Alliance that had forced
him away from his family, and had ultimately caused the death of an innocent baby. He
walked with ease, over the fallen rock and marble of the crumbled sections of his home.
Within sight of the entrance the hallway shook again, more rock
falling from the ceiling, hitting Luke. He made no effort to avoid the debris, determined
as he was to confront the forces attacking his family. He covered his dead son's head, as
if to protect him from more harm.
"You will pay," Luke growled.
Another barrage against his home caused more rocks to fall from
the ceiling. Several hit his shoulder, and because his concentration was still on his
enemies, one struck him in the head, bringing him to his knees. He was hit several more
times, the rocks finally knocking him unconscious. Luke lay completely still, his arms
still wrapped protectively around the boy.
"Can't we go any faster?" Leia paced the Falcon's cockpit
nervously.
"Listen, Leia," Han turned to face his worried wife. "I'm pushing
her as fast as I can. We can't go any faster." Han stood, taking Leia into his arms,
embracing her tightly. "I love him too. He's like a brother to me."
"Oh Han," Leia laid her head against her chest, sobbing lightly.
"I'm so scared for him. I can feel the Dark around him. His dark anger."
"Listen," Han held Leia at arm's length. "The kid can take care of
himself." But to himself Han thought: 'If the kid's gone Darkside no one will be able to
stop him.'
"That's what I'm afraid of," Leia read her mate's mind, "Luke is
married now, Han. Jannah is pregnant! Now he is having to protect his wife and child too!
Maybe..." Leia thought out loud, "that is why he's feeling the Dark Side now, maybe he's
going crazy trying to protect his family."
"I hadn't thought of that," Han said quietly.
"He's doing... feeling something now that could hurt his family
even more. Han, if he gives in to the Dark Side..."
"We'll be there in a few minutes," Han stated as he checked his
board. "Why don't you sit down, and strap in for landing."
Leia nodded, and resumed her seat.
Han returned to the pilot's chair, and was joined by Chewbacca
a few moments later.
*What do you think we will do once we get there?* the Wookiee asked.
Han looked at his friend. "I don't know, Chewie." He took a sideways glance at Leia who wasn't paying any attention to them. "I just don't know."
*They will be fine.*
"Yeah." Han didn't feel so sure, but was trying to be optimistic. He knew the Alliance had been bombarding Luke for days now. Just because Luke was a Jedi Master didn't mean he could hold the Alliance off indefinitely. And if he cracked...
*It will be good to have more cubs in the family,* Chewbacca remarked.
Han smiled slightly, remembering his and Luke's discussions about the birth of Han's first daughter. Somehow, Han didn't have a hard time picturing the Kid as a good, protective father.
Just then the com light started to blink, distracting everyone
from their memories. Leia stood as a deep male voice came over the speaker.
"Millennium Falcon, this is General Kran Massa of the Battle
Cruiser 'Freedom'. This is a restricted area. This is a battle zone."
Leia hit the voice transmit button on the com. "This is Senator
Leia Solo. I demand immediate surface landing clearance."
"Your Highness..." the General began.
Leia turned into the cold, regal Princess immediately.
"I will make it an order if I must, General."
"Yes, your Highness. Landing clearance granted." The man was
disturbed. 'Am I going to get it if something happens to the Princess,' the General
thought to himself. 'What is she doing here anyway?'
Leia was off the Falcon as soon as the ramp lowered. She raced
off to the Command Station, intent on ordering the attack on her brother, stopped.
"Your Highness," Admiral Jahn Kansah greeted Leia with a little
less enthusiasm than was customary as she entered the command room. "What are...?"
"I don't want to hear it, Admiral." Leia stood directly in front of
Jahn, using every inch of her five foot three inch frame to intimidate the man. "I want
this attack on Luke stopped immediately."
"Princess," The Admiral began, "I take orders from the President
and the council. I am only following instructions."
"I demand...!" Leia started as a young lieutenant came running in
from the battle site.
"Admiral!"
"Yes?" Jahn turned to the young man.
"He's coming out," the lieutenant stated. "What should we do?"
"He..."
"What!" Leia rushed to the glass window overlooking the entrance
to her brother's sanctuary. She placed both hands on the glass and whispered "Luke". She
flinched as laser bolts exploded around Luke. "NO!" Leia spun around to face the Admiral.
"Order them to stop! You'll kill him!"
Admiral Kansah glanced out the window, seeing that indeed
Skywalker appeared to be surrendering. He turned, immediately barking orders to his
personnel. "Cease firing! Give him a chance to surrender!"
Leia turned back to look at her brother, quickly advancing on the
stunned Alliance troops. Suddenly a feeling of despair and anger washed over her, and she
screamed. "Luke!" She turned and ran out of the room, intent on reaching Luke before the
troops did.
'They're just standing there,' Luke thought as he strode closer to the men. 'Those fools. They don't realize what I am going to do to them.' Hate filled his mind once again as he looked at the still form of his infant son. Blood trickled down the side of his face where the rocks from the sanctuary ceiling had crumbled and struck him. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a slim figure running towards him. He turned his head to get a better look.
Leia was screaming at him. He could hear her voice in his mind,
pleading with him not to carry out his destructive plan. Luke noticed two guards racing
after their Princess, finally reaching her and holding her back.
'I wouldn't hurt my own sister, you fools,' he thought.
'Luke, stop,' the Jedi Master heard in his head. Leia stared at him
with pleading eyes that slowly filled with tears as she, for the first time, noticed the
still form of the baby in her brother's arms.
"Oh no," Leia sobbed, this time out loud.
Luke walked closer to his sister as blasters were leveled at him
from all directions. He walked on, oblivious to the soldiers so obviously waiting for him
to make a mistake.
"Yes," Luke's voice shook as he finally got close enough to speak
with Leia. "This attack on me has finally cost the life of someone I love." He held the
dead baby over his head, and screamed "My son!"
Tears started to creep down Leia's cheeks. She stared at her
brother's face, seeing the pain, anger and need for revenge in his eyes.
"Luke!" Leia tried to move closer to her brother but was restrained
by the guards sworn to protect her. She turned toward them fuming. "Release me! Luke would
never harm me!"
The guards stood in stunned silence, having never seen any
woman, let alone the Princess Leia, so feisty before.
Leia bolted for Luke, her arms outstretched. She embraced him, arms
wrapping tightly around his thin frame. Luke didn't move, simply stood still until Leia
released him. He followed his sister's eyes as they immediately went to the babe he held.
Luke's arms tightened protectively around the child as Leia lightly placed her hand on the
fair-haired head. "Oh, Luke," Leia sobbed.
"This is what the Republic I fought so far for has done for me!"
Luke screamed at her.
"Luke, Luke," Leia whispered, her hand lifting to touch the blood
on the side of his face. "I can feel your anger," she said gently. "Revenge isn't the way,
Luke. Didn't you teach me this?"
"I didn't have time to teach you much of anything," Luke growled.
Luke's head snapped up from her face, his eyes narrowing as he
watched the soldiers move closer, blasters still aimed at him.
Leia reached both hands up, and turned Luke's head to look back
down at her. "Look at me, Luke."
He looked back down at his sister, his eyes showing no emotion.
"Let go," Leia implored him. She knew that if he didn't stop now,
the Alliance would kill him. Leia reached for the baby. "Let me hold him." She pulled the
babe, with difficulty, from his father's arms. "He is the source of so much of this anger."
"My son is dead, Leia!"
"I know," she whispered, "but revenge is not the way."
"It is the only way now," Luke whispered.
Leia stared in disbelief at her brother. Out of the corner of
her eye, she absently noticed a slim figure racing towards them.
"Jannah," Luke and Leia whispered in unison.
The soldiers turned, catching sight of the young woman, their
blasters leveling at her.
"No!" Luke screamed, but the soldiers quickly put themselves
between the couple, and Luke was not permitted to go to her.
"No, Jannah," Leia warned, as she ran to her, the baby still in
her arms.
"Luke," Jannah whispered, her eyes wide. She looked down at Leia,
her eyes slowly filling with tears as she noticed her son in her sister-in-law's arms. "My
son," she choked. "Oh, my son."
Leia noticed the squirming baby in Jannah's arms.
"Jannah?" Leia asked as she stared at the baby.
The young mother smiled slightly. "My daughter, Jelyssa. I had
twins."
Leia smiled and, throwing a threatening glance at the guards,
placed her arm around Jannah, and walked her over to where Luke stood.
Luke looked away from his young wife, not wanting her to see
him this way. He had been nothing but a gentle husband with Jannah. Now she was seeing a
side of himself that he had never wanted her or anyone to see.
"Luke, please," Jannah pleaded with him. "Don't do this."
"What are you doing out of bed?" Concern for her took over. "You
shouldn't be up."
"I had to find you. I can't let you destroy us, our family."
"I can't forget... or forgive. I can't let these people get away
with murdering our son." He turned to the Admiral of the fleet, who had been summoned upon
hearing of Skywalker's apparent surrender, standing nearby; Luke's hand reached for the
lightsaber on his belt.
"But our daughter!" Jannah panicked.
"Darkness has consumed me, Jannah. I can't stop it." He raised the
saber, stepped away from her and Leia, and ignited the weapon. The Admiral stepped back
as guards took aim at the attacker.
"You don't want to stop it!" Jannah screamed at her husband.
"NO!" Leia screamed as several soldiers fired. Many others
followed suit. Luke managed to block all the shots taken at him, but was getting more tired
with every move he made. A blaster from far away took careful aim, attempting only to wound
the young Jedi, not kill him. Suddenly, Luke turned his back to the man with the blaster
aimed at his shoulder, and sidestepped a laser bolt. Unfortunately, that was when the man
chose to fire, the laser sliced through the air, striking Luke in the back.
"No!" Jannah and Leia screamed, both running to the fallen Jedi's
side.
Luke fell to his knees as the soldiers stopped firing. The man
who'd fired the bolt that had struck Luke stood in silence, unable to comprehend what he
had just done. He stared at the blaster in his hand, dropped it, and raced across the field
toward the Jedi.
Leia saw him coming, a look of horror on his face. Then she knew
she was looking into the face of the man that had downed her brother. "Oh my God!" Leia
gasped, as Han knelt beside his friend having already fallen to the ground. Jannah knelt
beside her husband, placing her daughter on the ground beside her father, and took Luke's
head into her lap. Luke relaxed slightly, his body shaking, his eyes now clear. The anger
and hatred were gone.
"Free now," Luke whispered hoarsely to Jannah, "Dark no longer in
control."
Tears streamed down Jannah's face as she cradled Luke's head in her
arms.
"Jedi will be free now. Vader's son no longer leads Jedi." Luke
closed his eyes, and took a deep shuddering breath.
Leia turned to the nearest guard. "Get a medical team down here!"
Luke reached his hand out to Han. "You've done... me a... service...
today." Speaking was becoming difficult. "The Jedi will be free now."
"Kid," Han shook his head, "I... didn't..."
"You fulfilled your Destiny," Luke grasped his friend's hand, "As I
fulfilled mine." He took another labored breath.
"They're coming, Luke." Leia knelt beside Han. "Just hang on a few
minutes longer."
"My children," Luke spoke to Jannah, "let... me... hold... them."
Jannah made no attempt to wipe away the tears as she placed her
squirming daughter into her father's arms, and then the silent son. Luke looked at them for
a moment, taking one final breath, then shut his eyes.
Han stared at his brother, a single tear creeping down one cheek,
and whispered "What have I done?"
He received no answer.
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