After the fight, after the glory, after all the triumph, Luke Skywalker, hero of the Rebellion, found himself on Ambria.

It was a rather nice planet once you got used to it. It was kind of like Tatooine, but it wasn’t completely a dessert. It was very dry, still dry enough to do moister farming. Luke Skywalker saw lots of moister farms from where he was standing. Some were even plantations, worked by slaves.

I thought slavery was illegal, Luke thought idly.

discovered his name, and put a bounty on his head.

Luke had no idea that saving his friends would mean he would always be on the run for the rest of his life, that he would become a wanted man, that he would probably get killed by some bounty hunter, ahhhhhhhh! It was too much for one teenager to handle! He was only nineteen! He didn’t want all of this to happen to him! Why did all of this have to happen to him? Couldn’t fate have picked someone else?

Suddenly, Luke realized that he was overreacting. Han had warned him that his teenage hormones would make him overreact. But Leia never overreacted. Why did Luke overreact and Leia didn’t? Maybe it was because she was a princess. Of course she’d be able to keep her hormones in check. Unlike Luke…

Anyway, there was no taking back what he had done. No chance of getting out of this mess. He was already in to deep. He would never regret destroying the Death Star. He would never regret saving his friends. What was done was done. And if he had to, he would do it again.

Luke felt a sudden stab of warning in the Force right before it happened. Suddenly, Luke was tackled to the ground. Out of instinct, Luke tried to fight back, but another came from behind him, and grabbed one of his arms, while the other man grabbed hold of the other. Luke was forced to his knees in front of a man who appeared to be the leader.

Not knowing what was going on, Luke tried to struggle away from him, but the other two held him in position.

The man who seemed to be in charge began to inspect him. Luke was beginning to get board when finally the man spoke.

“We got ourselves a prize this time!”

“What the heck are you…” Luke didn’t have time to finish his question when a stun bolt hit him in the back, and Luke blacked out.

…………………………………………………………………………………………

When Luke woke up, he was in a small, dirty room, with his hands tied in front of him.

“Great,” Luke said to himself. “Of all the things that had to happen! Could this get any worse?” Luke tried to stand up, but he found out that he was chained to the wall as well. “I think it just got worse.”

He was in the room for hours before someone bothered to come check on him. It was the leader who’d inspected him before.

“Well, it’s nice to see you’re awake.”

Luke detested this guy. Oh, Force, this guy was just asking for Luke to break his chains a strangle him. What had Luke ever done to make this guy want to hold him prisoner?

“Would you mind telling me what in the name of Kashyyyk’s night demons is going on?”

“Oh sure. No harm in you knowing. We’re slavers. Me and my friends. We operate mostly around here on this planet selling slaves that we have obtained.”

“Whoa! Rewind and freeze! Are you saying that you’re going to sell me as a slave!”

“Basically. We catch things and people of little importance and make profit off of them.”

Now Luke was really mad! Why would someone take one look at Luke and decide that he was of little importance?

“I am of little importance?” Luke repeated. “My girlfriend is a princess!”

“Sorry, kid. Not buying it. Oh by the way, I would advise against any escape attempts. We placed a slave transmitter inside your body.” The man pulled something with a lot of buttons out of his pocket. “If you do so much as try to escape, I’ll just push this little button here, and then, BOOM! You’ll be nothing but dust.” Luke just stared, unable to say anything. “Not really happy about that, are you?”

Luke finally found his voice. “Basically. But I thought slavery was illegal.”

“It is. But not on this planet. Not yet.”

The man exited the room, leaving Luke alone with his thoughts.

He was a slave! Now he knew for a fact that the galaxy didn’t like him. He would rather take on Vader alone in a saber fight than to be a slave. And then the worst part was that he couldn’t do anything about it.

Luke could tell that the man was telling the truth. If he tried to escape, that would be the last thing he ever did! He was too young to die! But that meant that he’d never have control over what he ever did again! This was exactly what Luke was thinking about earlier. People needed to be free to lead their own lives. But it looked like Luke’s freedom was over.

Han couldn’t even try to rescue him! If Luke tried to go back with his friends, that person would just press a simple button and kill him! This just wasn’t fair! Why did the galaxy have to be so cruel to him? One month ago, he was still a farmboy wishing to get off Tatooine. Now, he was a slave who would do anything to be back on Tatooine!

Suddenly, the door opened, and Luke saw the last thing that he expected.

Chapter Two: Marle’ Jez

It was a girl, about Luke’s age. She had long, strait black hair, and a small, thin body. All in all, she was rather pretty.

But not as pretty as Leia, Luke thought, sadly. Blast it, he already missed Leia terribly.

It was obvious that she was a prisoner too, seeing that she was unconscious, and the guards that carried her dropped her on the floor not to gently. They were about to leave when Luke called out to them.

“Hay! Can’t you untie me?”

The two men looked at each other. “Might as well,” one of them said. “He’s not going anywhere.”

Oh, there’s a happy thought.

Nonetheless, they untied his hands and unlocked the chains that were holding him in place.

“Thanks.”

The two men ignored Luke, and exited the room, locking the door behind them.

Luke crawled over to where the girl was lying. Upon closer inspection, she seemed to be a little younger than him. Seventeen or eighteen maybe.

Suddenly, the girl began to cry out in her sleep.

“Shhh, it’s okay,” Luke said as he cradled her head in his lap. “Don’t worry, everything will be fine.”

Of course everything was NOT going to be fine, but in her unconsciousness, the girl didn’t know that, did she?

It felt good to be comforting this girl. It made him feel better, and reminded him that he wasn’t alone. But he would probably never see his friends again, and Force only knew when he’d be able to fly a ship again.

Luke focused back on the girl. She seemed to be waking up. She opened her eyes, and looked around.

“Hello,” Luke said. He smiled to put the girl at ease.

“Hello,” she said, not bothering to lift her head from Luke’s lap. “Where am I?”

“I don’t know where we are, really. Somewhere on the planet Ambria.”

Oh, right, good one, Luke! Of course she’d know that they were on Ambria. Now the girl probably thought that Luke was stupid.

“What’s going to happen to us?”

Luke hesitated. He wasn’t sure if the girl was ready to accept the fact that she was now a slave. But it was better to hear it from him than from their captors. Hopefully she’d take it better then he’d taken it. Maybe he’d try to put it mildly.

“We’re going to be sold as slaves.”

Oh, right! Wayta go about being mild! Luke thought sarcastically. That was the worst way you could have possibly put it!

“What?!” Yes, it was true that Luke had put it a little too bluntly. She lifted her head up from Luke’s lap, and franticly looked around. At last, girl broke down and began to cry.

Luke put his arm around her. “Don’t worry; I’ll make sure nothing happens to you.”

She stopped crying, and looked up in his eyes. “You’re nice. What’s your name?”

Luke grinned. This was more like it. Maybe she’d be able to get over this sooner than he thought. Despite the fact that Luke had been responsible for her crying a few seconds ago.

“I’m Luke Skywalker. What’s your name?”

“Marle’ Jez.”

Marle’. That almost sounded poetic. “Pretty name,” Luke commented.

“Thanks. Well anyway, I guess we could try to escape.”

“Oh… uh, about that, I don’t suggest that you try to escape. Unless, of course, you’re in the mood commit suicide.

Marle’ gasped. “Why do you say that?”

“They implanted us with slave transmitters. Any attempt to escape, and they’ll blow you up.”

“WHAT!? Why?” Marle’ asked, trembling with fright.

“They’re slavers, we’re slaves, they want to make profit off of us,” Luke said calmly. “Basic rule of the slavery life.”

“They’re going to sell us? That is so mean.”

Luke wanted to laugh. ‘Mean’ would be a major understatement. “So… is there anyone you’re going to miss?”

“No,” Marle’ said, shaking her head sadly. “The Empire killed my family a few months ago.”

Luke nodded, understanding. “They killed my family about a month ago too.”

Marle’ and Luke looked at each other. Somehow, they’d reached a measure of understanding. Both of them knew what it was like to lose their family, and the were still suffering from it.

“Are you a native of this planet?” Marle’ asked.

“No, I’m from Tatooine. How ‘bout you?”

“I’m from Naboo.”

“Oh, the Emperors’ home planet, lucky you,” Luke said sarcastically.

Luke felt sorry for anyone who lived within the Empire. The Empire was just so unfair; he was surprised that anyone would fight for it. Unless Vader did some sith mind trick on everyone. There was an idea that he’d never entertained before.

“You’re lucky to have been from the outer rim,” Marle’ said, voicing Luke’s own thoughts.

“A month ago, I would have laughed at that. But right now, I totally agree with you.”

Luke yawned and lay down next to the wall. “I’m getting kinda sleepy.”

“Me too.” Marle’ pulled her legs up against her chest and shivered. “Not to mention that it’s freezing in here.”

“Come here,” Luke said.

Marle’ crawled toward Luke, and lay down next to him, snuggling against his chest. She felt as though Luke were her big brother trying to warm her up.

Luke, on the other hand, felt like Marle’ was the little sister he never had. He put his arms around her, and rubbed her arms. It was cold in here!

It was in that position that they fell asleep, offering each other warmth and comfort.

……………………………………………………………………………………

Chapter Three: Oh Lonely Night

Darth Vader stood alone at his favorite spot on the Executor, thinking, and contemplating. It had been only three days ago that he’d discovered that the pilot who had destroyed the Death Star was his son. How long had his son been in with the Rebels? How much did he really care about it and its principles? No one could answer these questions.

How did his son look? How strong was he in the Force? How long had Obi-Wan trained him? How long would it be before a bounty hunter reported back, telling him where his son was? So many questions and no one could tell him the answers. It maddened him to think about what Obi-Wan had done. Yes, he’d injured him so that he had to where this suite, but as if that wasn’t enough, he’d stolen his only child, his only link left to Padme, from him. Had turned his child against him, and now his son was a rebel.

Vader only knew a few things about his son. But those few things, he had memorized;

Name: Luke Skywalker

Age: Nineteen

Home planet: Tatooine

Why did his child have to be raised on Tatooine? The answer to that was easy; it was the only planet that he’d sworn never to return to. Apparently, Owen Lars and his wife had raised Luke. How had they treated him? How had his son’s childhood been? Did Luke get enough attention? Respect? He didn’t know.

Luke was only nineteen. A mere child. He was too young to be involved in this war! But those blasted rebels had dragged him into it! They would pay when Vader found them! Oh yes, they would pay dearly for this! Vader was positive that his son wasn’t given nearly as much respect as he should have. But all that would change very soon. All he had to do was find the rebels, or wait for a report from one of the bounty hunters he’d hired. It would only be a matter of time.

He wondered what his son was dong right now. Probably sleeping on his soft bed…………

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Luke lay on the hard ground of the cell trying to sleep. He and Marle’ had been here for six days now, and no one had even bothered to bring them food. Yes, they had been given water, but no food. Luke was feeling sick with hunger.

I’m so hungry!

It startled Luke, the way he’d just broadcasted that. It seemed like he had screamed that thought………

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Vader sighed. His son was somewhere in that galaxy. He was on one of those planets. And, as he’d thought earlier, if his son was the least bit disciplined, he was probably asleep.

I’m so hungry!

Who said that? Vader looked around at his crew. No, they had not said it. It had come through the Force. It had come from……………. his son! Luke! So apparently he was not asleep. And he was hungry! What was going on! Where the rebels starving him? All Vader knew was he had to find out. And he had to find out fast!

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Princess Leia was jolted out of her sleep by something whose whereabouts, she could not quite place.

I’m so hungry!

Luke!

She didn’t know how she knew, but all she was sure of was that she DID know. Luke was in trouble! Of course she had figured that out two days ago, when Luke and the new recruits didn’t return to the base.

What had happened? Was Luke in imperial custody? Where they torturing him? NO! Not Luke! Luke could take torture! She had to find him! She had to save him! But how?

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Luke wondered if he had just screamed that through the Force. Wouldn’t that be cool? If he had just used the Force without even trying to?

But his hunger brought him back to reality. He was a slave, locked in a cell, and he was very, very hungry!

Luke wondered what Han and Leia were doing. Where they worried about him? Was Han trying to rescue him?

He was so lonely! Even though Marle’ was snuggled next to him, he couldn’t help but feel lonely. So lonely………..

Chapter Four: Sold

It was never pleasant waking up, and realizing that you were still locked in a cell, still a slave. But this morning was even more unpleasant. Why? Maybe because someone was nudging Luke none to gently with a blaster.

“Wake up, you slave scum!”

That comment got Luke up.

“Wait a minute! No one calls me that! I am not a slave!”

“You wanna bet, kid?”

“What’s going on, Luke?” Marle’ asked.

“Come on, Marle’ I think we’re leaving.”

“You got that right, kid. Market day. Get up!”

Slowly, Luke and Marle’ got to their feet, while two more men entered the room.

Luke resisted the handcuffs that they eventually got on him, and then, they led Luke and Marle’ out of the room.

“I’m really hungry,” Luke muttered.

“Too bad, kid.”

It was obvious that they weren’t planning on feeding them, before they were sold.

Sold.

In all his life, Luke never thought of himself ever being sold. Of becoming the property of another person. To not have any control over his life. The galaxy just didn’t work that way! Luke had heard that even Darth Vader was opposed to slavery.

And that thought led Luke to wonder why Vader was opposed to slavery. Since when did the Dark Lord care if people were abused? Of course Luke would never know the answer to that. But that did make Luke hope that maybe Vader would find out about all this, and put an end to it. Maybe Vader cared because he had once been a Jedi, before he had murdered Luke’s father.

I had a dream I was a Jedi. I came back here and freed all the slaves.

Where had that come from? That was certainly not a memory of his! Was he seeing a memory of someone else? That would be cool! Maybe he was using the Force without trying to, again!

By this time, they had reached the market, and had joined a line of some other slaves. It was a long line, with a stage at the end, where the slave would be displayed, and eventually sold. Marle’, who was in front of him, began to cry.

“Don’t worry, Marle’. Maybe we can find some way to stay together. Don’t worry, I’m right behind you.”

Luke loosely put his arms around her, feeling a since of brotherly protection come over him. He would NOT let them be separated! But what could he do?

It seemed like hours before Marle’ was finally pushed up, onto the stage. Luke worried for her. She looked pale and thin, and she hadn’t eaten for days. And standing in front of a crowd of possible future owners didn’t exactly help the situation. She just looked all the more terrified.

“And we have this fine girl, still young and pretty, only seventeen years old, what will it be?”

A male spectator in the audience spoke up.

“Thirty credits!”

“Only thirty credits! You’ve gotta be kidding me! Can I hear forty credits?”

“Forty credits!” another male called out.

“Forty-five credits!” called another.

“Fifty credits!”

“Sixty credits!”

“Seventy credits!”

“Seventy, going once, going twice, gone! To Mr. Taska Kamein!”

A very frightened Marle’ was lead off the stage to her new owner, while Luke was pushed none to gently up onto the stage.

“And we have this young man here”……………..

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

“Hay, your worship! Surprised to see your high exaltedness in our humble ship.”

“Shut up, Han. I worried.”

“About the kid? Yeah, me too. He should have been back days ago.”

“I can’t even sleep anymore. Last night, I woke up hearing Luke calling out.”

“Whoa, your worship, let’s not go crazy!”

“I know it sounds weird, but somehow, I know it was him. He was hungry.”

“The kid’s always hungry. That’s nothing new.”

“No, Han! I mean really hungry.”

“O-kay. Like to watch a little holovid?”

“Sure,” Leia agreed reluctantly.

Han rested on the sofa next to her, and turned the Falcon’s holovid on.

“Whatcha’ wanna watch?”

“Anything.”

“Great! That leaves it up to me. You’re only to kind.”

As Han flipped through the channels, Leia watched, uninterested, until she saw something on one of the channels that grabbed her attention.

“Go back! Han, go back!”

“Alright, your worship, don’t get so bossy!”

“Han, just go back, I think I saw something.”

Han went back to the channel that Leia seemed so interested in all of a sudden.

“There! Look!”

Han looked, and saw the last thing he ever thought he’d see.

It was a slave market of some sort. On the bottom of the screen, it said the broadcast was coming from Ambria.

Han looked back to the stage and saw……………….. Luke! They were selling Luke! No way! No one sold his friends like that! Han jumped up from where he was sitting.

“Okay, I know the kid has a tendency to get into trouble, but this is way unacceptable!”

“Han, we have to go save him!”

“One problem with that, your worship, all slaves have this little transmitter inside their body that can blow up if they try to leave.”

“But there has to be some way to rescue him!”

“Well sure. If you know how to dismantle the transmitter without blowing up Luke in the process.”

Leia was reluctant to admit that she had no idea how to even start to dismantle a slave transmitter.

“You see? We’re gonna have to do some research and learn about what we’re dealing with before we attempt a rescue.”

“Well then, what are we waiting for? We’ve got some research to do!”

Don’t worry, Luke. It won’t be long.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

“Seventy-five credits!”

“Eighty credits!”

The bid went on. With every bid, Luke got angrier and angrier.

Don’t worry, Luke. It won’t be long.

Who said that? Was he hearing someone else’s thoughts? No, maybe…………. Leia! Leia had unconsciously contacted him through the Force! Luke had no idea that she was Force sensitive! He hoped she knew what she was doing………………

“Sold! Once again to Mr. Taska Kamein!”

Taska Kamein? That was the man who had bought Marle’! Well at least one thing was going his way! Maybe they could find a way out of this! He would never be someone’s property! Never!

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

At that moment, Vader felt a since of resolve, a since of determination that could only be coming from one person, Luke.

He wondered what the boy was doing. Apparently, something was wrong because even through the Force, Vader could tell that his son was hungry. Of course, because Vader had once been a teenager, he knew that it was hard to keep a teenager full, but Vader could tell that this was more than teenager hunger. This was the hunger of someone who hadn’t eaten in a while. The thought of his son being starved made him angry. Someone was going to pay for this! Just as soon as his son could be located………….

Chapter Five: Time to Take Action

As soon as Luke was bought, Taska Kamein had obviously decided that he’d bought enough slaves, and departed for his home. Luke was shocked to see that he and Marle’ had been purchased by the man who owned the moister farm plantation.

Well, at least I’m an expert at what I’m going to be doing, Luke thought dryly.

After all of his extreme effort to get away from moister farming, he was right back to doing it, only this time as a slave.

If I knew I was going to end up moister farming, I would have stayed on Tatooine!

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

For days, Luke didn’t see Marle’. He would have if he’d had a choice in the matter, but he didn’t.

The moister farm plantation was so big; it even had a slaves’ quarters near the edge of the property. The slaves’ quarters were made up of a big room with lots of bunks where the slaves who worked on the vaporators slept, a refresher, and a tiny kitchen, where they had to make their own meals. But Luke was just happy to eat. Even though they were only allowed a certain amount of food each day, Luke didn’t care, and ate a whole lot to make up for a week of not eating. Of course this did earn ten lashes from the electra-shock whip, and after that, Luke made sure that he stayed within the limit, and after a week, Luke discovered that he was slowing starving to death. He was fine now, but it would take a really stupid person not to see that none of the field slaves were given enough to eat, and Luke went to bed, cold, hungry, and his untreated wounds on his back from the electra-shock whip, stinging every night. And his back felt especially painful, as Luke entered the slaves’ quarters that night. They hurt because earlier that day, Luke had received a punishment for not being able to finish all his work on time. It hadn’t been his fault. He was so hungry, and tired from loss of sleep, (because, who could sleep on cold, metal bunks?) that it was hard to work fast, and so he had been given ten more lashes from the electra-shock whip.

Luke lay down on his bunk.

“Ouch!”

His back began stinging like crazy as soon as he’d tried to rest it on his bed.

Luke tried again, and only succeeded in increasing his pain once again,

Luke gasped in pain.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Vader flinched as another wave of intense pain bounced its way through the Force, and right into his senses.

I can’t take this anymore!

It was his son! He was sending his thoughts through the Force!

Why did I have to become a slave! Now I know for a fact the universe hates me!

A slave? His son was a SLAVE?

Okay, now some people were REALLY going to die!

Vader tried to pinpoint where these thoughts were coming from.

Ambria. His son was a slave on Ambria.

It made since. Ambria was one of the few planets that still allowed slavery. But not for long.

“Captain, set a course to the Ambrian system.”

“At once, My Lord!”

Don’t worry, son. Your pain will soon be over.

Vader made sure that he didn’t send these thoughts through the Force. That could be dangerous.

I’m coming for you, and I will kill anyone who has so much as laid a finger on you!

No one made a slave out of his son! NO ONE!

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

There it was again, the intense pain that was coming from only one individual. Luke.

“Han, we need to go to Ambria. Now!”

“What’s the hurry, your worship? We haven’t done nearly enough research to be able to go rescue Luke.”

It was then that Leia also felt a since of urgency that made her all the more determined in her decision.

“Han, I’m going now, with or without you!”

“Okay, okay! We’ll go, but I’m telling you, we’re making a mistake! Chewie, start up the Falcon. We’re going on a little trip!”

Chapter Six: The Final Punishment

“Luke!”

“Marle’! I haven’t seen you for days, are you all right? Whoa!”

Apparently, Marle’ was all right. She was wearing a silk dancing outfit. The skirt was blue with silver trimming and the top was white, with little silver jewels hanging from the top of it. All in all, Luke actually thought that his ‘little sister’ looked cute. And above all, she looked healthy.

“Well it looks like you’ve been given enough to eat,” Luke observed.

“What do you mean? Don’t you have enough to eat?”

Luke deiced not to tell her that he was starving. It would only worry her for nothing.

“Oh, I have what I need to eat, if that’s what you’re asking.”

“Okay.” But Marle’ didn’t look as convinced as she sounded.

“So what have you been doing, Marle’?”

“I dance for Taska Kamein. I’ve always been a good dancer.”

“Oh, so we’re both experts at what we do,” Luke noted sourly. But he was happy that Marle’ seemed to be rather content.

“Really? What do you do?”

Luke pointed in the direction of the fields.

“I work out there, fixing vaporaters.”

“Isn’t that hard work?” Marle’ asked, innocently.

“Maybe.”

It was then that Marle saw the blood on the back of Luke’s shirt. She lifted it to see the deep cuts and gashes by made by the electra-shock whip. And the wounds looked even worse since no one had bothered to treat them.

“Oh, Luke! You have scratches on your back!”

Despite the situation, Luke had to smile. Scratches didn’t even begin to describe how his back looked.

But Luke wiped the smile off his face when Marle’ began to cry.

“Don’t worry, I’ll be alright,” Luke said, hugging her.

Suddenly, someone grabbed Luke, and spun him around.

“You! I thought you learned your lesson to mind your own business, slave!”

Two other men came, and dragged Luke away from Marle’. Marle’ tried to follow them, but another person came, and took her back inside the main house.

“I AM NOT a slave!” Luke said defiantly.

“Well let’s see how you feel about that after ten more lashes from the electra-shock whip, faced forwards!”

No! They were going to extend the pain to his chest and his face! How was he supposed to sleep now?

“Noooooooo!”

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Vader felt it, the deep, intense despair coming from Luke, followed by a series of sharp pain.

His son was being hurt by those slavers again!

Protective anger swelled up inside of him. He would be there in a few hours, and then those slavers would get what they deserved! No one would lay one hand on his son to harm him, and live! Not while Vader was still Luke’s father, they wouldn’t! They would learn what it meant to make a slave out of his son, and then harm his son!

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Luke was dragged to the slave’s quarters, and then dropped on the floor. The men left him there, and Luke was too weak to move. He was in way too much pain.

I’m so hungry! Luke thought. Wait, is that all I’m worried about? I have just been whipped; with me facing where the whip was coming from, and all I care about is not having enough to eat last night?

Luke shook his head in disapproval of himself. But it was true. He was only nineteen, his life wasn’t supposed to be like this! He should be back with the rebels, maybe helping Han fix up the Falcon. Luke grinned, remembering those times. And right there, in the middle of the floor, Luke fell asleep.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

“When will we be there, Han?”

An annoyed Han turned around to face Leia.

“You asked me that five minutes ago.”

“When!”

“About half an hour, and don’t ask me again!”

Half an hour.

Even though Han didn’t want to admit this out loud, he was very worried for Luke. He knew how slaves were treated, and he hated knowing that the kid was being treated like that.

Han felt as though Luke were his little brother, always needing looking after. And if you weren’t watching him every second, Luke would find some way to get into trouble.

Yes, even Han felt as though something was happening. Something that deserved his attention before it was too late……………..

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

“My Lord, we have just reached the Ambrian system.”

“Very good. Prepare my shuttle; I will be going down to the planet myself.”

“As you wish, My Lord.”

At last, he was here! He could end the slavers’ torment on his son! He could rescue Luke, and take him some place safe! He could keep Luke under his watchful eye, and make sure no one could harm him. He could bring justice to those slavers!

At this, Vader smiled.

“Lord Vader your shuttle is ready.”

Chapter Seven: The Hard Way

As Vader flew his shuttle down to the planet, all he could think about was Luke.

What had Luke been told about him? Did he even know that Vader was his father? And if not, how was he supposed to explain all this to his son?

Vader didn’t want to admit that the thought of telling Luke he was his father made him a little uneasy.

I need to get a grip on myself! Vader thought.

He could feel Luke’s presence better than ever before. It was a memorizing, peaceful presence, a presence that you just want to get lost in.

Vader was throne out of his thoughts when he realized that he had just landed in a field of moister vaperators. He had been so hooked onto Luke’s presence that he had unconsciously landed right next to a little house that apparently his son was in.

After telling his troopers to arrest the owners of the plantation, Vader made his way to his son.

You could not explain the anger that Vader felt when he saw his son lying on the floor, bloodied and bruised.

For a moment, Vader was frozen in place, shocked that the slavers had gone this far to hurt Luke. But then, when Luke began groaning in his sleep, Vader was on his knees in seconds, comforting his son to the best of his ability, and holding him in his arms.

“Don’t worry, young one; I won’t let anyone ever harm you again.”

But the sound of his voice woke Luke.

Luke’s nightmare was getting worse, oh why couldn’t he wake up! But suddenly, the nightmare was gone, and it was replaced by someone cradling his upper body, trying to calm him down.

Luke opened his eyes to see who was holding him.

He was greeted by a black mask, only inches from his face.

Vader!

“Ah!”

Luke tore himself from the Dark Lord’s grasp, and started backing away until his back bumped into a bunk, causing his wounds to be even more agitated.

“Ouch!”

Vader was at his side in a moment, helping him sit back down on the floor.

“Don’t touch me!” Luke said, shrugging off Vader’s hold.

The sith paused. He almost looked………………… hurt. No, that was stupid!

“Where do you hurt, young one?”

Now it was Luke’s turn to pause, momentarily stunned by Vader’s attitude.

“Everywhere. My back, mostly.”

“Let me see.”

Vader lifted up the back on Luke’s shirt to see the untreated wounds that had made Marle’ cry earlier.

“Who’s done this to you?” Vader asked, his mood darkening.

“The field henchman, with the electra-shock whip,” Luke said, wondering why Vader even cared.

“Why?”

“Well, the first time, it was because I ate more than they wanted me to eat, the second time, I nearly fainted from hunger and I wasn’t able to finish my work on time, and the last time was because I was talking to Marle’.” Then, Luke remembered who he was telling all this to. “And why the heck do you care?”

“That is for me to know, and for you to find out. Why didn’t they treat your wounds?”

“I don’t know. I guess they just don’t care how we die, as long as they know that we will die, somewhere along the line.”

“And what do you mean by that, young one?”

“I mean that they were starving us to death anyway, and not treating our wounds is just a faster way to kill us.”

Now Vader really got mad at that.

“You mean they didn’t give you enough to eat?”

“Well that’s the understatement of the year! But yeah, the guys who first caught me didn’t give us anything to eat period. And then after about a week, we were sold to Taska Kamein, and he let us have one meal each day. If we had more than that, we got punished. And I really don’t know why I’m telling you this, since you killed my father and I hate you more than anything else in this galaxy.” Luke said this in the same manner he that he would tell someone the time.

“Is that what Obi-Wan told you?”

Luke shrugged.

“Basically.”

This is what Vader had wished wouldn’t happen. But Luke needed to know the truth.

“Well then, there is something that you must know. I am your father.”

“What the heck are you………. oh, shut up!”

“Luke, I know this may be a little hard for you to except…….”

“Once again, an understatement,” Luke interrupted. “You can’t be my father! My father was a Jedi! And his name wasn’t Darth Vader!”

“I changed my name when I became a sith.”

“You should have stayed on the light side, ‘cause there is no way that I’m going to believe you’re my father!”

Vader was about to retort when his comlink began to beep.

“Yes?”

“The owner of the plantation and the slavers are in custody.”

“Very good. Take them to the detention cells on the Executor. We will be leaving immediately.”

“Yes sir.”

Vader switched off his comlink and turned back to Luke.

“What are you going to do with me?” Luke asked.

“Son, you’re acting like you’re my prisoner.”

“Well, if I wanted to go back to my friends, would you let me? I don’t think so!”

“Luke, I want to train you in the ways of the Force.”

“You want me to become a sith like you!” Luke said, accusingly.

“The Dark Side is more powerful than the light. I want to show you true power.”

“But I don’t want to learn about power! And you know, the Dark Side sounds just as evil as it truly is. Come on, if you asked someone if they’d like to learn from the Dark Side, or the light side, naturally they’d chose the light side, because it just sounds so much nicer.”

“You have much to learn, my naive son.”

“Don’t call me that.”

“I can call you what I like son.”

Luke put his hands over his ears.

“I’m not listening, I’m not listening!”

“You can’t hide from the truth forever son.”

Luke put his hands down, and looked at Vader with a maturity beyond his years.

“You came here worried about me being hurt, but you are causing me more pain than all the slavers could, put together.”

Vader sat back, stunned. He hadn’t expected Luke to act like this. He thought that once he told Luke the truth, he would be begging to be trained by Vader. Apparently he was wrong.

“So you won’t come willingly?”

“That’s the general idea.”

“I see we are going to have to do things the hard way.”

Chapter Eight: Not All That It Seemed

That was not what Luke had wanted to hear.

Vader stood up, grabbing Luke by his elbow, and dragged him out of the house and into his shuttle, Luke struggling the whole time. Vader threw Luke down on one of the chairs, and used the Force to keep him from getting up.

“My Lord, what about the rest of the slaves?”

“They’ll find out sooner or later that the transmitters have been dismantled, and find their way back home,” Vader said.

He turned back to his son, who appeared to not even be listening to what was going on. Vader gently probed his mind to see what he was thinking about.

“One of the other slaves means something to you,” Vader noticed.

“Don’t read my thoughts!” Luke paused, to let his anger subside. “But yeah. Marle’ won’t know what to do. Her family’s dead and she doesn’t have any friends. I was taking care of her. She was like my little sister,” Luke said, dreamily. “I wonder what she’s doing right now?”

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Marle saw everything that happened between Luke and Vader. But she wished that she could have heard what was going on inside the little house that Luke and Vader had been in. And even more, she wanted to know why Vader bothered with Luke. Luke was just a regular person. Wasn’t he?

Marle’ watched the shuttle carry Luke up to the Executor.

“Good-by, big brother,” she whispered.

She was about to go find some kind of transportation, when she saw something else that kept her eyes watching the heavens.

It was a ship. Or rather a big hunk of junk! And it was about to land right where Vader’s shuttled had landed earlier. Obeying an impulse, Marle’ ran towards the ship.

The first person she saw come down from the ramp was a girl, not much older than her. And right behind the girl was a man and a big Wookie. Luke had told her about these people. They were Luke’s friends!

“Hi!” Marle’ said, running towards the ship, and stopping at the bottom of the ramp where the others were.

“Hello!” Han said, looking at the dancing outfit that Marle’ was wearing. Marle’ blushed, but Leia was ready to get down to business.

“Is our friend here? His name’s Luke Skywalker, he’s got blonde hair……..”

“Yes, I know who you’re talking about,” Marle’ interrupted. “And no, you just missed him.”

“What do you mean? Where is he?” Leia asked. Marle’ pointed up to the sky.

“Up there. He left with Vader five minutes ago.”

“No! Han, we’re too late! I told you we should have left earlier!”

“But even if we had left earlier, we wouldn’t have had done enough research……..”

“Ah! Don’t give me that research speech again! If it wasn’t for you and you’re stupid research, we would have gotten here with time to spare!”

“Are you guys married?” Marle’ asked. Han smiled, but Leia looked horrified.

“Of course not!”

“Sorry. It’s just you guys argue like it,” Marle’ giggled. “But if you want to help Luke, we’re gonna have to act fast, before they jump into lightspeed.”

“What do you mean?” Leia asked.

“We can storm the Star Destroyer and rescue Luke.”

“Are you crazy?” Han yelled.

“Probably. Come on, we don’t have much time!”

Marle’ ran up the ramp, followed by Chewie. Han and Leia stood still for a few minutes before following the others.

Up in the cockpit, Han started up the Falcon, while Leia and Marle’ settled behind him.

“This is crazy, just so that you girls know,” Han said.

“Okay, we know!”

Han lifted the Falcon up into the sky, and toward the Star Destroyer.

Chapter Nine: Time Twist

Suddenly, a big black hole appeared in front of the Falcon.

“What the heck!” Han yelled.

“What is that thing?” Marle’ asked.

“I don’t know! But it’s pulling us in!”

Before Han, Leia, Chewie or Marle’ could react, they were sucked into the black hole, and disappeared from space.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

When Leia woke up, she found herself sprawled on top of Han and Marle’.

“Guys!” Leia said, shaking them. “Wake up!”

Han and Marle groaned as they began to wake up.

At that moment, Chewie appeared in the doorway and began to speak. Leia and Marle’ looked at Han for a translation.

“What do you mean, ‘we went back in time?”

“We WHAT?” Marle’ and Leia said at the same time.

Chewie pointed at the window, and when everyone saw what was out there, they gasped.

They were on Corescaunt!

Tall buildings were all around them, and a transport was just landing on the landing pad in front of them. There were lots of people waiting for the transport, and they wore the most glamorous outfits that Han had ever seen.

“Let’s get out there and see what’s going on,” Han said, walking out of the cockpit and down the ramp.

“Best idea you’ve had all day,” Leia muttered.

Han glared at her, but said nothing.

As the group reached the crowd on the landing pad, Marle’ realized that she was still wearing her dancing outfit, and she blushed furiously.

When the transport landed, Leia got the feeling that she needed to go over there and meet the people coming out. She began pushing her way through the crowd, not minding that people began to stare at her strangely.

When Leia reached the transport, she tapped the first man who came out. He wore a black leather vest, and his face looked familiar.

“Excuse me?” Leia said.

The young man turned to her with sparkling eyes and flashed her a charming smile.

“Can I help you, honey?” he asked.

The reddish/golden haired man standing at the door of the transport looked abashed when the younger man said ‘honey.’

“Anakin!”

“Sorry, master.”

Leia’s heart jumped. Anakin? This young man’s name was Anakin? If they were in the past, then was this Luke’s father? It couldn’t be! Unless…

“Are you Anakin Skywalker?” Leia asked.

“Yep! Anakin Skywalker, at your service!” Anakin said, giving a graceful bow.

“I… I need to tell you something,” Leia whispered urgently.

“What is it?” Anakin asked, looking confused.

“Come with me.”

Leia grabbed Anakin’s arm, and began pulling him to what Leia was sure was the senate building.

Meanwhile, Han, Marle’ and Chewie had watched all of this in amazement.

Han whistled. “How could Her Worship get a boyfriend like that in five minutes?”

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Inside the building was a hall with big columns. It was perfect for hiding behind.

“Here,” Leia said, pushing Anakin behind one of them.

“Hay! What’s going on, here?”

“I couldn’t risk any of this being overheard.”

“Why?”

“Listen, I’m from the future…” Anakin gasped. “Let me finish! In the future, there’s an Empire, and all the Jedi including you have been killed off by a sith called Darth Vader.”

“WHAT?”

Leia put her hands on Anakin’s shoulders to steady him.

“There’s more. In the future, I’m one of your son’s best friends and…”

“My WHAT?”

“I’m sorry if you didn’t know that you will be having a son in the near future…”

“A son? No, I did NOT know!”

“Calm down! The Emperor is also a sith. His name is Palpatine.”

“Palpatine?” Anakin asked. “That’s impossible! Obi-Wan and I just rescued him! He can’t be the sith we are looking for!”

“He is!” Leia insisted. “Think about it! I know! I’ve seen him.”

“But… I … that’s impossible.”

Leia smiled. “You sound exactly like Luke.”

“Luke?”

“Your son.”

Anakin smiled this time. “Does he look like me?”

Leia laughed. “Yes, he does! Though he’s a lot shorter than you!”

“Thanks. And thanks for warning me.”

“Anything for a friend.”

Anakin smiled, but it wasn’t genuine.

Leia leaned forward, and kissed him on the cheek. “Don’t worry, it’ll be alright. You might not want to tell your wife about this just yet.”

“No, I’m sure you wouldn’t want to tell me if you were seeing another woman, Ani," a woman said from behind them.

Suddenly, Leia and Anakin realized that this looked very suspicious.

“Padme! This isn’t what it looks like!”

“Oh really?”

Anakin gulped. How was he going to explain all this to Padme? Leia spoke first.

“Oh, see… I can explain!”

“Can you?” Padme asked.

“Yes.”

“Alright. First explain to me why you just kissed my husband!”

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Chapter Ten: A Lot to Explain, You Have

Nineteen years into the future…

Why do I have such bad luck? Luke thought to himself, no one has worse luck than me!

Meanwhile, on the other side of the shuttle, Vader was also doing some thinking. This isn’t how I planned for things to turn out! Why do I have such bad luck? No one has worse luck than me!

At that point, the shuttle landed in the Executor’s docking bay. Vader stood up and motioned for Luke to follow him. Not seeing much of a reason to disobey, Luke stood up and followed his not-so-wonderful father out of the shuttle.

Suddenly, they both felt a disturbance in the Force. The disturbance was so strong, that it knocked Vader of his feet, and Luke fell on top of him.

“That didn’t feel so good,” Luke commented.

“What? The disturbance or the fall?”

Luke rolled his eyes. “The fall didn’t feel good either, but I was talking about the disturbance.”

“Yeah.” Vader stood up and helped Luke to his feet. “I wonder what it was all about?”

Luke tried focusing on the Force. “Well I can tell you one thing,” he said after a moment. “My friends seem to have learned how to disappear out of existence.”

Vader also seemed to focus for a moment before coming to a conclusion. “Come with me. I think I know what happened.”

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Leia looked from Padme, and back to Anakin. How was she going to explain all this? This woman, Luke’s mother, was getting really impatient. The truth seemed to be the best route for now.

“My name is Leia. I’m from the future. I was simply explaining something to Anakin, and he freaked out. I was just giving him an encouraging kiss on the cheek. I do that a lot with everyone I know,” Leia commented.

Padme paused, digesting the news. If this woman was from the future, then what was she warning Anakin about? Was it something that she needed to know about? If it was, then Anakin would tell her. Or not…

“If all this is true, then what were you warning Anakin about?”

Leia paused before answering. She didn’t want to scare this woman, but she didn’t want to lie to her either. “I was warning him about the downfall of the Republic.”

Padme gasped. “The Republic’s downfall? The Separatists aren’t that strong!”

“I wasn’t warning him about the Separatists… or whatever you call them! I was warning him about Palpatine and Darth Vader.”

“Palpatine? Why would he have to be warned about him? And who’s Darth Vader?”

Leia began to feel like she was being interrogated. So many questions! Questions that she’d have to repeat.

“Listen, I’d love nothing more than to tell you right here and now, but I know that I’m going to have to say this all over again, so how about you guys direct me to the Jedi Council, and I’ll explain it to everyone.” Leia paused before remembering something. “Oh! And I’d like to find my friends first.”

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Half an hour later, Han, Chewie, and Leia stood in the middle of the Jedi Council. Marle’ had wanted to come, but she wanted to find something other than the slave girl, dancing dress to wear.

“A lot to explain, you have,” Yoda commented. “If true, what Skywalker says, from the future you are.”

“Yes,” Leia said. “We need to warn you.”

“What must you warn us about?” Mace Windu asked.

“The Sith. Palpatine is the Sith Lord that all of you are looking for.”

Everyone except for Anakin expressed their shock by murmuring among themselves, considering what they’d just been told.

“How can this be?” Obi-Wan asked. “How could the hide right under our very noses?”

Han rolled his eyes. The old man –well, not so old any more- was still just as dumb as before.

“There’s more!” Leia said, trying to be heard above all the talking. Everyone quieted down, and she continued. “There is supposed to be another sith, Darth Vader. He’s the one who killed you all off in the future. We need him dead as soon as possible. He’s holding our friend captive.”

Anakin’s eyes grew wide. “Which of your friends?”

Everyone in the room turned to look at him, and Anakin knew he was done for. The entire Jedi Council was going to find out about his relationship with Padme!

Leia paused for a moment, considering if she should tell Anakin. Would he freak out if he learned that his killer was the one holding Luke as his prisoner? Before Leia could decide, Han spoke up.

“Our friend, Luke. Vader’s been after him ever since Luke destroyed the Death Star. The bounty Vader put on the kid’s head is infamous…” Han didn’t get beyond that. Anakin leaped out of his chair, taking the news exactly the way Leia had expected him to.

“LUKE? Leia, why didn’t you tell me about this earlier?”

The Jedi Council watched this, stunned. Did Anakin know this Luke? Why was he so worried all of a sudden?

“I didn’t want to worry you,” Leia said. “We were going to try to rescue Luke, but right after we took off, our ship got pulled into the time glitch, and we couldn’t do anything about it. That’s why we need you to kill Vader. The sooner Vader is killed, the sooner we can ensure Luke’s safety.

“Not know who Vader is, we do,” Yoda said.

“And who is Luke?” Windu asked.

Leia glanced at Luke’s father. “I think Anakin is the one who needs to explain that to you.”

“Anakin?” Obi-Wan asked. “What do you know of this?”

Anakin looked around the room. All eyes were glued on him, unfortunately, and he grew very nervous.

“Uh… well… before I tell you who Luke is, there’s something else that you need to know.”

“Oh? And what is that?” Obi-Wan asked, patiently.

“I… I’m married.”

For a moment, there was silence, and then suddenly, everyone began asking a million questions at once, giving Anakin a headache.

“WHAT?”

“To who are you married to?”

“When did you get married?”

“Against the Jedi Code, this is!”

“Anakin, why did you lie to us?”

“You do realize that you may not be able to remain a Jedi, don’t you?”

“How did this happen?”

“SHUT UP!” Anakin yelled. After everyone had quieted down, Anakin tried to answer their questions. “Remember that time when I was assigned to protect Senator Amidala?” the Jedi nodded. “Well, the basic story is that we fell in love and married. Luke, who is these people’s friend in the future… is also my son.”

This time, no one spoke. They all stared gravely at Anakin, and he, in turn, was hanging his head, specifically avoiding Obi-Wan’s eyes.

Finally, Mace Windu spoke. “Skywalker, your marriage is in violation of the Jedi Code, and you will have to be stripped of your title as a Jedi.”

Anakin nodded in humble resignation and despair, and, for a moment, he looked too much like Luke for Leia to handle. “NO! Marriage isn’t wrong! It’s the root of love! I thought that the Jedi were supposed to love. If you want the Jedi to love, then how come they can’t love the woman who loves and supports them?”

“Understand, you do not,” Yoda declared. “Attachment, forbidden it is!” “I don’t think you see the whole meaning of love and attachment. Attachment is family, and I know from experience that without family, you can’t love. If you can’t love, then you are no better than a sith.”

“And how would you know this?” one of the Jedi asked.

“That’s the way it is with Luke. All he ever had was his aunt and uncle. He never had anyone else, but he always loved them and he always loved his parents although he never knew them, and Luke is the most wonderful person I’ve EVER known! He’s so full of love, and he readily expresses it to anyone. Without love and attachment, then there would be no hope for the Jedi in the future, because Luke’s the only one left.”

Leia finished her speech, and Anakin breathlessly awaited the Jedi Councils’ reaction.

“Hmm…” Yoda said thoughtfully. “Perhaps wrong, the Jedi Council was. Rethink the Jedi Code, we will.”

“Does that mean that Anakin can remain a Jedi?” Obi-Wan asked hopefully.

“Think about that too, we will.”

“Good!” Leia said happily. “Now, back to the subject of Vader. Do you think that you can kill him?”

“That’s a problem,” Windu said. “Because we have no idea who or where Vader is.”

Leia and Han exchanged bewildered expressions.

“How could you not have heard of Vader? Let me describe him; very tall, shiny black armor, scary mask, creepy breathing noise… sound familiar?”

Everyone shook their heads, and Han, Leia and Chewie just became even more bewildered. Why hadn’t they heard of Vader? Was Vader hiding, waiting for the right moment to show himself? If that was the case, finding Vader would prove to be extraordinarily difficult.

Suddenly, a big, black hole appeared in the center of the room, and everyone dove for cover. Funnily enough, the black hole was pushing everything away from it, instead of towards it. This was soon explained, when two figures were violently thrown into the room. Just as suddenly as it had appeared, it decreased, and disappeared entirely.

Once it was gone, they all stood up to see the two people who had caused the disturbance.

It was Luke and Darth Vader!

……………………………………………………………………………………………...

Chapter Eleven: Endings for Beginnings

A.N: Yes, I’m updating! You guys should be so proud of me! Since I took so long, I have a surprise for you guys at the end of this chapter!

…

Luke glanced around the room, looking to see if it had actually worked. It had! Han and Leia were standing in the middle on the room! Luke looked up at his father who seemed to be very distracted at the moment.

“Well,” Luke said. “It looks like it worked, so I’m gonna go back to my friends now, see ya!”

“Oh no you don’t!” Vader said, grabbing his son’s arm, and pulling him back when Luke tried to get away.

“That’s him!” Leia declared. “That’s Vader!”

All the Jedi in the room looked at Vader. They could sense the Dark Side in the tall black figure, but he also seemed familiar. It was this that confused them.

“Who are you?” Anakin asked. He just couldn’t help but think that this guy was very much like him.

Vader looked at the young version of himself. The only thing he could think at this moment was that he wanted to get back in his own time as soon as possible. He was tempted to just leave the Princess, the smuggler, and the Wookie behind, but the whole reason they had come back into the past was to bring back his son’s friends, so he decided to just get it done as soon as possible.

Vader ignored Anakin, and turned to Leia. “Princess, would you and your friends mind coming over here?”

Leia snorted. “What if we don’t want to?”

Vader pulled Luke up against his chest, got out his lightsaber, and held it against Luke’s neck. The threat was obvious.

When the Jedi saw Vader’s blood red lightsaber, they all ignited their own lightsabers and held them up in attack position, but Vader wasn’t worried.

Luke was shocked that his father was treating him this way. He seemed to want to avoid any tension between them, but right now, he was just succeeding in making Luke very mad.

‘What are you doing!?’ Luke mentally asked his father.

‘I’m trying to get your friends over here so we can all go back to the future,’ Vader sent back.

‘Well can’t you think of a nicer way to do it!? You’re hurting me!’

Vader softened his hold on his son. ‘Sorry, I wasn’t trying to.’

Vader and Luke were thrown back into reality when they heard Master Windu speaking. “Release the boy, or suffer the consequences.”

“That isn’t going to happen,” Vader declared. Turning to Leia, he spoke to her as honestly as possible. “Princess, none of us belong here. This is the past. All I want to do is get us all back to the future. If you and your friends cooperate, I promise I will let you return to your little Rebellion.”

Leia turned to the other Jedi. “What should I do?” she asked.

“Well,” Obi-Wan said. “He seems to be telling the truth.”

“What about Luke?” Leia asked, turning her attention back to Vader.

There was the slightest of pauses before Vader answered. “That is Luke’s decision.” Vader couldn’t believe that he was actually going to let Luke decide for himself. Before all this had happened, Vader was going to make Luke come with him weather he liked it or not. But something about seeing himself as a young man had changed something inside of him. Luke should be allowed to make his own decisions. “But all that lies in the future, so would you mind coming over here now?”

“Wait!” Han said. “We need to get Marle.”

…

After meeting up with Marle, and explaining everything to her, Vader took everyone back to the future. The Falcon included. They all ended up in the docking bay on Vader’s ship. Han, Leia, Chewie and Marle’ headed up the ramp, but then they noticed that Luke wasn’t following them.

“Hey kid, are you coming?” Han asked. He expected Luke to run after them, but instead, Luke stood between his friends and his father, undecided.

‘He said that the decision is mine,’ Luke thought. ‘He must really care about me to allow me to make my own decision. What should I do?

Han started to worry when he saw his young friend hesitating. “Luke, come on! Let’s go!”

Luke took one last look at his friends, and then walked back to his father. “I’m sorry, guys. I wish I could make you understand.”

“WHAT!?” Leia said, walking down the ramp. “Luke, what are you thinking!?”

“I’m sorry, Leia, but this is my choice.”

Leia shook her head disbelievingly. Why would Luke want to pick the dark lord instead of his friends? After a moment, she began to tear up. “Luke…”

“Leia, please don’t make this more difficult for me.” Moving forward, he embraced Leia. “I’ll miss you.”

Han moved forward, followed by Marle’ and Chewie. Everyone gave Luke one big group hug. “I don’t get any of this, kid.” Han said. “I’m really gonna miss you.”

“I don’t get any of this either,” Marle’ said. “You’ve really changed, Luke. But somehow, you’ve changed in a good way.”

Luke grinned. “Thanks.”

Vader couldn’t believe it. His son truly wanted to be with him! He was going to give up everything he’d ever known so he could be with his father. The love Vader was getting from his son was making him feel so… happy.

Luke stood by his father as he watched his friends take off, and in a way, he felt that everything was just right.

…

The End