Luke Vader Series Part 14

Luke Vader Series
Part 14: Freedom Fighter
By SJ 03-03-00/12-12-00 (skyjade@globetrotter.net)
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Disclaimers: Nothing in the Star Wars Universe belong to me; everything belongs
to George Lucas. I'm only writing stories for fun.
See my homepage for more details.
http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Quasar/3702

Naturally, everything coming straight from the movie, words or situations,
belong even more than the rest to George Lucas. It is still only for fun,
nothing else.

Special thanks to my shy, secret beta-reader and best friend, Adrianne, for her
help with the final editing of my new stories. Thanks for giving me some of your
precious time, my friend :)

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Luke Vader awoke to a gentle touch. He opened his eyes. At first, he thought
that he was seeing his girlfriend's fuzzy form, then the colors became clearer
and he realized that it was the rebel leader. He snapped back into his role.

"Leia? What is it?" he inquired worriedly.

"We're almost there. Tough day?" she smiled kindly.

"You have no idea," he smirked as he stretched himself on the narrow bunk.

"Well I have an idea of at least half of it," she answered gently.

"Right," he admitted grudgingly.

He sat up, then stood up and they both headed for the cockpit.

Luke Vader had never been to Yavin, but he knew that deep under the clouds,
there were manufactures of corusca gems, all under his master's control. He had
to admit that the planet looked gorgeous. Yavin 4 too for that matter. It had
been a while since he had seen a jungle planet. It made for a nice change to
see shades of green instead of grey, brown and black.

Green 'and' blue planets were still his favorites though.

Solo brought the ship down by a huge temple. There a reception committee came
out of the main entrance to meet with them. Luke followed silently, tagging
close to the princess while keeping his distances. They quickly met with a
general and commander who welcomed her, then she introduced the rest of her
group. Luke managed to call up a blush of shyness and humility when she
mentioned his 'heroics'.

While they turned their attention to the little droid who was supposedly
carrying the Death Star's plans, Luke reached out and lightly probed the minds
of the people who were in the command center; he estimated that they were far
enough not to suspect anything if they felt something strange in their minds.

In the end, they didn't even realize that they were being spied on... and as his
father had surmised, this wasn't the only base. He had caught the location of a
few others but he had also discovered that the rebels didn't trust their own
soldiers; normally, they didn't know about them at all.

Even if they did though, it meant that he had to take the Princess away from the
planet, but even as he began to plan how he would manage this, the princess and
the general began to talk about their last stance and how they would stay on
planet to not betray their other bases if they were caught.

Just great, Luke cursed inwardly as he understood what it meant for him: the
rebels had to somehow stop the Death Star to serve him in his continued mission.

Kreth, he winced inwardly, the Emperor wouldn't be happy about this one; erasing
the princess' specific memories of her torture would be nothing compared to what
he now knew 'he' had to do...

When Leia followed the officers toward a control room, Luke excused himself to
take a look at the fighters. She already knew that he 'was' fascinated by
piloting; she encouraged him to ask as many questions about them as he wanted.
While he looked at the assembled birds however, he contacted his father.

*It isn't the only base,* he informed him without delay.

*How long do you need to evacuate the Princess and a few others?* his father
asked him coolly.

*Actually,* Luke began hesitatingly, *this plan won't work, Father.*

*What do you mean?* the older man inquired in sudden wariness.

*They are preparing a last stand,* he told him grimly. *They will destroy the
Death Star... or die here.*

For a moment, his father remained silent, grimly pondering this last bit of
information and seething at the implications for their plans.

*The plans aren't accurate, Luke. The flaw they will find, doesn't exist on the
true the Death Star,* he finally reminded him seriously.

*I know... That's why you'll have to modify it before they launch their
attack,* he told him very seriously.

*What for?* his father asked him, puzzled now. *You have already acquired the
locations of a few bases,* he argued. *You can leave the planet, go to those
other bases and join the pilots there.*

Luke mentally shook his head. *It won't work,* he commented grimly. *The
location of the bases are normally kept secret from one another. It is
different here because it is their main base at the moment and the commanding
officers are gathered here for the final battle. What remains off of
Yavin won't represent any threat to us for a while---*

*One more reason to finish it here,* his father interrupted his burgeoning plan.

*Until they return, in greater number, and with more resources,* the young dark
Jedi finished seriously. *I can't fail, Father,* he then argued defiantly. *I
will do whatever I have to do to destroy the Rebellion in as little a time as
possible,* he then commented with finality. *and I will accept the consequences
of what I have to do to be successful,* he finished more humbly.

A silence answered him, as if, he reflected dimly, his father didn't know what
his change of plan was.

*The rebs have to destroy the Death Star,* Luke stated grimly after a while and
braced himself for a very bad reaction.

*Are you mad?!* his father exploded. *Do you know how long the Emperor has been
expecting this little project of his to come to reality?*

Luke steeled himself against whatever was coming through their link.

*Think about it, Father,* he tried to reason him, *they're preparing a last-
stand operation.* he told him seriously. *The only way for them to survive is
if they manage to destroy the base. The fools just won't evacuate, and
especially not the princess She's more a rebel leader than we ever estimated.*

*Cursed rebels,* the dark lord grumbled, then calmed down. *There is still a
problem however,* he finally told him, more coolly. *Nobody can do what I
engineered in the plan,* he reminded him seriously.

*I can,* Luke assured him.

Another silence answered him, this time one of horror and disbelief.

*You do realize that it means destroying the master's latest project,* his
father inquired seriously, subtly reminding him what the consequences would be.

*Yes,* Luke sighed in resignation, *and as I said, I'll meet whatever
consequences this will have, but for the moment, we don't have any other option.
They can't plan disabling it, right?* he asked although he already knew the
answer to his question.

*No,* the older Vader sighed in resignation. *You're right.* his father
admitted heavily, then spoke coolly. *I will begin the evacuation of the
officers and higher ranks. We don't have any choice but to kill a few hundred
thousands troops though.*

*I know, but it's war.* Luke conceded sadly, himself perfectly aware of how many
lives he had just condemned.

*I will also warn the Emperor, I suggest you report to him as soon as possible,*
he told him with a touch of anger in his voice.

Anger for being trapped by the rebels?, the youth dimly wondered, Or for his own
frustrating ease to destroy the Emperor's properties?

*Tell him that I will submit to whatever punishment he sees fit, Father, but I
will not fail him,* Luke reminded him adamantly.

*I will try to make him see it this way, Son, but I can already foresee the size
of his anger at you. Succeed to calm him down,* Vader sighed as he cut off
their communication.

*I will, Father.* Luke sent anyway.

He then refocused on his surroundings. The x-wings and y-wings seemed primed
for trouble.

And trouble it would be, he thought grimly, trying hard to not consider what the
Emperor would do to him for the destruction of his latest toy.

******

Early the next day, the rebels held a briefing about their plan for the attack.
While Luke had expected the Rebs to find the false flaw in the plans they had
been provided with, he had slightly doubted that they would still want to try
their shot given the impossibility of their chances.

He realized that he had been absolutely wrong about them; they were as daredevil
as they were irrational. However, their pilots seemed to have a little more
common sense, he noted; with each new element revealed to them, their dismay
grew until they openly doubted their abilities to fulfill this mission; Luke
took mean pleasure by telling them that he could bull-eye womprats when he had
'been' on Tatooine.

Of course, he conceded, it wasn't exactly true since he hadn't had any leisure
time to chase the winged rodents, but he had also chased and shot enough targets
while aboard different fighters to know that it 'was' a possible shot... if the
pilot had the Force, he smirked meanly, then cooled down at the thought that he
'would' be this pilot... He 'would' destroy his master's latest pride...

And in return, he thought in disgust, he would become a rebel hero; how ironic.

As the pilots continued to discuss between themselves, the princess sought him
with her eyes. He returned the look, conveying his naive confidence through his
eyes. She seemed to be reassured by it.

As he stood up to file out of the small room, Luke Vader briefly wondered if she
would still be reassured to know that he could destroy the contraption because
of who he truly was.

Probably not, he decided grimly.

******

Luke was now all suited-up and ready for 'action'. He entered the hangar bay---
and slowed his pace upon spotting Solo's figure as he packed his crates of
metal.

His payment, he surmised even as he debated with himself how he should react to
this turn of events. That character was the typical pirate, the young Jedi
reflected. Such lack of compassion for the rebel cause didn't surprise him, but
what about 'Skywalker', he wondered coolly. Good-hearted, naive farmboy
Skywalker...

He stepped closer to him and tried to convince him to stay while making sure to
not be too convincing either; he went for the righteous approach, and failed to
reach the smuggler's compassion, if he had any, he conceded coldly.

He turned his mock-vehement gaze away from Solo and the alien, satisfied that he
had managed to look both righteous and pleading. Of course, he thought coolly,
he had never had a 'chance' of changing the man since he was grit and egoism
incarnated----

"Hey, Luke?.." the other called, surprising him out of his cold analysis.

The Jedi turned toward him, truly miffed and puzzled.

"May the Force be with you," the pirate commented lamely, with a failed attempt
of a friendly smile.

Unsure as to how to answer to this strange, totally confusing behavior, Luke
simply shrugged and turned away.

Now what had that been about?, he wondered in incertitude. Would a tough guy
like Solo fall for a naive, stupid kid like he was pretending to be? If he did,
he decided, then he would prove himself to be even crazier than he had first
surmised when he had met him. 'No one' of Solo's experience could possibly hold
any kind of respect or interest for the fool he 'was' at the moment, could he?

As he approached his x-wing, Luke saw the white-clad form of the princess.
However, he amended his thoughts, even a woman with the Princess's stature
could. In her case though, it was okay, he smiled grimly inwardly.

"What's wrong?" she asked him.

Uh?, he startled slightly, wondering what she meant---- then remembered his
thoughtful attitude.

"Oh, it's Han," he explained in his best naive interpretation. "I don't know,
I really thought he'd change his mind." he commented mechanically.

While he dimly reflected that it was now very easy for him to conjure up
something Skywalker-like, the Princess tried to comfort him by telling him that
Solo had to go his own way.

Oh that he had, all right, Luke Vader agreed with her. And the furthest from
him, the happier he would be... The man was too full of surprises to be kept
around during a mission as tricky as his current operation was. And, he
reminded himself, considering the actual developments and what he had to do, he
didn't need 'any' other trouble to upset his master further. As he gazed once
again in her eyes, he saw that she could feel that something was still worrying
him.

'Yeah, that stupid attack of yours which is going to make my master angrier than
ever!' he wanted to shout in frustration.

Instead though, he avoided her eyes and breathed: "I only wish Ben were here."

So that he could vent some more on him, he admitted inwardly.

With a rush of what felt like unusual compassion, Leia leaned closer and
delicately kissed him on the cheek. It was the second time in less than two
days, he noted while he tried to not gape too hard at her. Was he conquering
her heart as well as her cause?.., he suddenly wondered. Jade wouldn't like
that..., he mentally shook his head at himself in warning.

"I have to go," he told her as gently as he could.

"Of course. May the Force be With You."

He watched her leave, pondering his next course of action after the battle, then
ran up his ladder and settled in his seat; the little Artoo droid was already
behind him in its socket.

'A real sucker, that little one,' Luke thought as he put on his helmet, but one
element he now knew how to play to his advantage. It was extremely gullible for
a machine, hence, he certainly didn't want the rebs to give him another
astromech for this battle.

The moment he was in his ship, things seemed to increase in speed.
He reluctantly followed the orders of the squadron leaders until he was above
the Death Star, then prepared to meet with the first real opposition.

The huge turbolasers had been too easy to elude, he pouted in disappointment;
the Tie Fighters would be more challenging, he smiled grimly. Of course, they
would be no match for him, but still more interesting to face than base-pinned
turbolasers.

*But don't kill anymore of our troops than you have to, Son,* his father
slightly admonished him as he contacted him.

*Of course,* he replied even as he banked to the left to avoid a new volley of
turbolaser fire. *What is the plan?* he asked him, aware that his father had
spoken with their master and carried his direct orders.

*The exhaust port has been opened,* he began grimly. *The Emperor is far from
pleased, but agrees that there isn't any other way. However, he wants you to
wait for the last remaining group before doing it. He wants to annihilate the
rebel pilots with this attack,* he finished seriously.

*I understand. And... once it is done?* Luke inquired uneasily.

*He will await your report. Now that Kenobi is out of the way, you can report
directly to him through the Force,* he reminded him.

Even though his father didn't talk about what the Emperor had told him, Luke
felt his fear for his well-being upon his return, but not for his life, he then
understood. He tried to continue to appear strong throughout his contact with
his father; a slight quiver of fear still escaped his control---- but before
either of them could comment on it, Luke had to break away.

The Ties were already upon them; he dodged, evaded, flipped and blasted his
assailant out of the sky. However, after this first, swift kill, and helping a
reb who was about to be shot nearby, he covered his astounding skills by
pretending to have problems.

A rebel named Wedge saved him, or so he thought anyway.

Meanwhile, his father methodically decimated the squadrons who attempted to
destroy the Death Star; while he did so however, he kept himself on a tight
schedule for he was aware that the Death Star was slowly clearing Yavin to aim
at the rebel base. Tarkin had purposefully been left unaware of the true plan,
with the Emperor's consent due to the already spreading, negative rebounds of
the destruction of Alderaan.

A few minutes before the Death Star was clear to fire, Luke's squadron, then his
wingmen were the last one left. The young dark Jedi led his unit straight to
the right trench and floored it. They had no time to be cautious, whether he
was an imperial or a rebel.

His father's group came right on their tail, picking out the last of them. The
pilot named Wedge Antilles somehow survived when his ship cleared the trench due
to a malfunction; even Luke couldn't keep it from pulling out without ruining
the cover he was working so hard to maintain with his upcoming near-betrayal.
However, he promised himself, his turn would come.

He refocused on the fast-approaching target; his father finished the other x-
wing who was covering his read, then pretended to aim at him, taking potshots at
his droid and invulnerable spots.

Aware that now was the best moment to reveal his talents as a Jedi, Luke turned
off his targeting computer, reached out and focused all his senses on the shot
that was coming closer and closer---- then the unbelievable happened.

Someone shot his father from behind; Luke whirled around at that.

*Father!!!!* he shouted through the Force.

His father's ship tumbled out of control, sent his remaining wingman straight
into the wall before he himself was expulsed from it thanks to the impact---

*I will be fine, Son,* he reassured him. *Do your job now. We will see each
other soon.*

"You're all clear now, Kid!" Solo encouraged joyfully. "Let's blow this thing
and go home."

Right, Luke muttered unhappily. Let's upset the master... He focused on his
feelings, forced everything else out of his mind, even his growing fear of his
master's punishment... and... now!

There was no turning back; his torpedoes entered the shaft without exploding on
the surface, then he felt them slide down all the way to the main reactor. By
then, he had hastily pulled out before ramming into the dead end, then pulled
away from the doomed base, his master's latest pride...

Unlike the last prototype he had destroyed, he thought shamefully, this time,
he had planned for it to happen, had had many tools at his disposal to avoid it
if he had adapted better to the situation... Yeah, he admitted to himself, good
servant or not, he was going to pay for this...

Cursed rebels, he then swore mentally with all his hatred; if not for their
folly, he himself wouldn't be on the brink of----

The whole space around him suddenly lit up as if a thousand suns were shining at
the same time even as thousands of minds cried out in sudden agony before they
died... in betrayal... the worst crime any servant of the Empire could commit.

And he had just done it in all conscience of his actions.

"Great shot, Kid!" Solo exclaimed.

Luke didn't pay attention to his last words. His thoughts went to the men he
had just killed. The Rebellion would pay for all those unnecessary losses, he
promised grimly. They had just turned him into a murderer even worse than Black
Sun. Killing for his master was one thing, but coldly ending the lives of so
many people at the same time...

He would accept whatever punishment his master saw fit, he resolved as bravely
as he could.

******

By the time he and the surviving rebels brought their ships down inside the
temple, he had recovered his composure and was ready to play his part of a
naive, overexcited farmboy. He exchanged 'ecstatic' hugs with the Princess,
Solo, and even his Wookiee.

However, while the others congratulated him, he seethed inside. 'Celebrate all
you want, Rebs... soon, you won't laugh anymore,' he growled in disgust.

Later that day, the fools were still so convinced that they had just struck a
major blow to the invincible Empire that they even organized a pointless medal
ceremony to honor their 'heroes'. Luke went along with the stupidity,
contenting himself by smiling foolishly and listening to Han's accounting of why
he had turned around to save him.

That, he reflected as he finally managed to escape the disgusting revelry of the
'celebration' party, had to be the worst surprise of the day. Solo, whom he had
finally classified as a mercenary and selfish man... had turned about on his way
to settle his debts to save both the irritating youth he had pulled from
Tatooine and the beautiful princess he had wanted to kill aboard the Death
Star...

Either he was loosing his ability to read people the right way, he scolded
himself, or else Solo hid his true self so deep that even the pilot hadn't known
about it till today.

Either way though, he pouted in annoyance, it meant potential trouble for him.

He finally reached the room that had been assigned to him and closed the door
before snatching the offending 'medal' from around his neck; he carelessly
tossed it in the shelves of the sole desk of the room. The 'medals', he
sneered, weren't official anywhere, were certainly not approved by his master,
and, he added with a disgusted pout, they were not made of gold; in short, they
were worthless.

Tired by his second day as a rebel, he leaned back on his bed, openly grumbled
that it was even worse than the cot he had as an imperial slave, then laced his
fingers behind his head and considered the events of the day.

One, he had become a rebel hero.

Two, he had angered his master, he added more uneasily. At this thought, he
checked his chrono and established that it was too early to contact him right
away; he decided to contact him in a few hours, around midday on Coruscant.

Three, he continued his inner report, he had definitely created a bond with
Organa. After the makeshift celebration, he had noticed that she had remained
quite close to him during the party, and he had even surprised her throwing him
'my hero' looks. While he didn't particularly care about the implications of
such actions toward him, he sighed in satisfaction; this part of his mission was
complete.

Four, he continued... and frowned: Solo was a wild card he would have to
consider carefully from now on. Who would have ever thought that the selfish
smuggler would come back to save the rebs?.., he snickered in disbelief.
Certainly not the said man, he thought meanly, then stopped as an unconscious
memory of the party came back to him. While the Princess had been looking at
'him', Solo had been gazing at---- Just great, he growled, upset. The pilot
now displayed signs that he was attracted to the princess, meaning that he would
probably remain with the rebels for a while... and very possibly around himself
since he himself would undoubtedly orbit the young woman.

He would have to monitor him very closely indeed, he snorted in frustration,
then closed his eyes and tried to rest while not falling asleep. He didn't want
to miss the time when it would be appropriate to contact his master; he didn't
want to upset him anymore than he already was.

While he let the minutes slip by him however, he admitted that even though the
destruction of the planet killer had angered the Emperor, he himself was glad
that the contraption didn't exist anymore, and that Tarkin had died with it in
the same fashion than his latest victims had. Considering his fate, he
suspected that such project wouldn't come to reality ever again, and that, he
thought as coolly as he could, was something he was proud of. However, he
hurried to rid himself of that feeling because of its origin... in his weakness
and what greatly upset his master...

An hour later, Luke was still waiting for the hours to run by before contacting
the Emperor when his door opened slightly.

"Luke?" Organa's voice whispered hesitantly.

"Leia?" he gaped in surprise even as he sat up to cover his reflexive frown.
"Why aren't you in bed, Princess?" he inquired mock-sollicitously.

"I couldn't sleep," she shook her head slightly while she stepped in the still-
lit room. "And you?"

For a moment, Luke debated how to react to this, then settled for naivete: he
smiled ruefully. "I couldn't sleep either; too much on my mind," he explained.

"Me too," she nodded, although more sadly than he himself did. "Do you mind if
I sit for a short while with you?" she asked uncertainly.

"Mmmno," he hesitantly answered her, quickly pondering if keeping her nearby was
a good idea tonight. He did need his break from acting... However, the moment
he gazed in her eyes, he understood that here was his best chance to forge a
strong bond with her. "Is something troubling you?" he queried as worriedly as
he could managed.

The petite woman didn't answer him; she silently sat on the other bed which had
was belonged to a now dead pilot, then bowed her head even as she hunched her
shoulders in her shawl. Luke, who had been following her with his eyes,
couldn't help but gape at her near-metamorphose. Whereas less than two hours
ago, she had looked like an invincible woman, at the moment, she looked like
nothing more than a frightened child. He had always thought that he had
known her, but, he realized, he had only glimpsed at the tip of the iceblock.
She was much more complex than he had thought... and it fascinated him even more
than before, he admitted, although he still couldn't say why she interested him
in the first place, he then conceded.

He had often angered his girlfriend with his inability to explain it, but she
now knew that he didn't love the senator, perhaps not even liked her. He
was just... pulled through the Force to her, he slowly understood, like at this
very moment, he thought seriously as he joined the princess on the other bed.

There, in a most Skywalker-like fashion, he wrapped his arms around her small
frame and offered her comfort; she gratefully leaned into his embrace, never
even doubting the genuine quality of his friendly actions.

"Do you think about them?" she asked him, cutting into his thoughts.

"Who?" he asked, raising his eyebrows in confusion.

"Your guardians," she whispered. "Do you miss them?"

Belatedly, he remembered that he had changed his story from hired farm boy to
surviving orphan once the old man had been out of the picture; he realized that
the princess had bought it--- then he suddenly understood that this was what had
drawn the princess to him.

Not only had he saved her life, but he had also lost his 'family', like her; for
her, they were going through very similar feelings at the moment.

"I haven't had much time to think about it..." he finally managed, straining
with his throat to simulate a catch in his voice.

"Me either... but now..." she began, her breaking voice betraying her attempt to
restrain herself from sobbing.

"What?.." he prompted her, both like the spy he was, but also because he truly
wanted to make her talk, to make her face her feelings.

After all, he reassured himself about his weak care, he needed her to live
another day ; he couldn't let her feelings pull her down in the dumps.

"I can't stop seeing them, Luke..." she whispered. "It s as if I can hear their
last scream," she sobbed, then buried her face against his shoulder.

Not exactly sure as to how to react to this admission, especially since he
himself 'knew' exactly what their last scream had been like, Luke remained
silent. However, drew her tighter against himself and gently rubbed her back.

"Who wouldn't... Leia..." he finally inquired gently, feeling ill-at-ease with
this aspect of his role, yet aware that he could act so without thinking if he
stopped worrying about his master's lessons concerning his care. "You love
them, and always will..." he said, finally allowing his weak heart to guide him
into the touchy-feely moment.

Thanks to his experience with slavery, he admitted that he could slightly
understand how she felt. He too had dealt with nightmares and haunting thoughts
after his personal trauma, but it probably didn't compare to what she was going
through at the moment, he conceded grimly. He himself had merely lost his
freedom and 'guardians', whereas the princess had lost her whole 'world'.

With growing confidence, he trusted himself; he reassured and comforted her the
way he himself had been yearning for when he had felt all alone in the
vast universe. He reassuringly cooed at her, telling her that she couldn't have
changed anything if she had been there. She answered him by crying against his
chest, abandoning her tight self-control for the moment.

"I know..." she sobbed in anguish, "but I brought the Death Star to them, I---"

Luke gently shushed her with his index, frantically reflecting that he had to
find a way out of this emotional moment; this was too much even for him. He
just didn't know how to behave with this.

"Just give yourself time to deal with their deaths, Leia..." he commented
softly, gazing into her teary, nutty brown eyes. "Grieving is very normal in
those circumstances," he added, referring to his numerous readings of psychology
books. Those experts had better be right, he reflected grimly.

The princess silently gazed at him; Luke delicately brushed her tears out of her
eyes, like his father had done with him when he had been younger, he remembered.

"Thank you, Luke..."

He smiled shyly at her. "You're welcome," he lied.

"Can I stay with you for a while?" she asked him.

While Luke knew that it would be dangerous to have her while he would contact
his master, he could also feel that he could only agree to her request.
Something was guiding him in this direction.

"Sure," he finally nodded gently.

The young woman leaned back in the embrace of his strong arms and let the slow
music of his heart lull her into a restive state.

Luke for his part absently yet gently stroked her hair while he thought about
how he would react the next times that such an occurrence would take place. He
really hadn't thought about how he would react to the loss of his 'guardians',
nor to such circumstances for that matter, he conceded. He could still remember
the grief he had felt when he had been taken away from Owen and Beru Lars, but
he wasn't that little boy anymore. He wasn't sad anymore... disappointed, angry
and filled with a desire for revenge, yes, but sad... only when he cared, and
he knew that he wasn't allowed to care about anybody but his lover and his
father.

On the other hand, he pondered, would the Emperor see it the same way if it were
only for the duration of his mission? As part of his cover? He would have to
ask his master about this, he decided while he settled in to wait out the rest
of the time before he could contact him without waking him up.

Meanwhile, the princess fell asleep in his arms.

An hour later, the time came for him to contact his master. He focused his
thoughts and searched for his master's presence. He easily found it and waited
for acknowledgement.

*Young Vader,* the older man finally grated coldly in his mind.

Luke instantly felt how angry he was at the reports about the demise of the
Death Star which had been assailing him since the beginning of the day.

*Master,* the youth began even as he swallowed the lump of fear that was in his
throat. *I am well into the heart of the Rebellion now,* he answered humbly,
frightfully.

*I do hope so, child, now that you destroyed my Death Star,* the other retorted,
upset.

*Please forgive me, Master,* Luke pleaded even as he sent his master an image of
himself on his knee in front of him. *I tried to find another way to fulfill my
mission, but it was the only way to keep my cover and be able to find the other
bases,* he informed him truthfully even as he opened his mind to his master's
scrutiny.

The other didn't comment on this; he coldly invaded his memories and searched
for a proof that his action could have been avoided. Fortunately for him, his
master didn't find anything incriminating. He withdrew, leaving him with the
beginning of a strong headache.

*We didn't have any other choice,* Luke still surmised for his master.

*It does seem so, young one, but I will still exact retributions from you
for its destruction. Had you not used the princess, it would have been
avoided,* he commented darkly.

Luke mentally bowed his head in shame. *I know, Master. Forgive me.*

*Perhaps,* the Emperor commented coldly. *If you manage to destroy the
Rebellion within the next two weeks.*

Luke knew that completing his mission within the next two weeks was impossible;
he wouldn't manage to make it up to his master.

He would pay for the defunct planet killer. It was the last straw in his
history of wrecking his master's projects and belongings. But given the
circumstances, he reminded himself, he truly hadn't had any other choice. That,
he then reflected seriously, was probably the only thing that was saving his
life at the moment, or what would save him from a life as his master's personal
slave instead of Jedi servant.

He refocused on his master who was still monitoring his thoughts; neither
commented on his latest ones.

*How close are you to Senator Organa at the moment?* his master inquired, some
of his anger draining away from their connection as he refocused on the reason
why he had committed such an abomination.

Luke looked down at the woman who was asleep in his arms and smirked in dark
satisfaction this time.

*Much closer than I expected, Master. I am already her 'friend',* he informed
him.

Even as he felt his master bristle anew at the mention of the almost forbidden
word, he also cooled down as he too understood that he was making the best out
of the Death Star's destruction.

*Make sure that it remains as it is,* the Emperor warned him darkly. *As long
as one rebel will remain alive, you will not fulfill your mission. Make sure
she is the last one to fall, with you.*

*As you wish, Master,* Luke mentally bowed his head. He then felt his master
prepare to cut their link just as a question came up in his mind. *Master?* he
inquired, mentally crossing his fingers that his emperor would maintain their
contact long enough for him to hear him.

He didn't answer him in words, but his annoyance at the interruption came
clearly through their maintained link.

Gathering his courage to not upset him further, Luke bravely inquired: *How is
Father?*.

For a moment, it felt as if his master would go away without answering him, or
would hurt him again for his obvious care and worry about his father.

However, neither reactions came to be. *Lord Vader is aboard the Avenger,* was
the short, cold answer. *He will come after the Rebels in a few days. You will
escape him, along with your charge,* he ordered him strictly, then was gone.

*Yes, Master,* Luke bowed his head nonetheless.

Once again alone in his mind, he pondered his conversation with his dangerous
master. As he had surmised, the older man would want revenge... and other than
promising him much pain, he hadn't told him what it would be. He sighed in
resignation.

Up to now, he had only destroyed a few, replaceable projects, but this time, his
daringness warranted a serious consequence, no matter if he had done it to serve
him or not... He had wasted his master's resources once again, he reminded
himself sternly. The base being able to destroy a planet or not... it had been
his master's property, built with his money, housing his troops and resources...
and he himself had just destroyed it as if it had been a 'toy'.

Yes, he conceded glumly, he was in for a very rough time... and perhaps even
more for his unfaithful thought regarding the now destroyed weapon, he admitted
to himself.

When the time would come to meet the consequences of the past day, he promised
himself, he would stand tall and face whatever he deserved.

He fell asleep on that thought.

******

The next morning, he awoke to brown eyes which were studying him intently.

"Hi," he smiled, instantly assuming his Skywalker role.

Had the princess seen anything wrong with him?, he immediately wondered.

"Good morning," she returned in kind.

"Is something troubling you?" he asked her, subtly fishing for information.

"No, not really, but... Luke..." she began, obviously unsure to continue. "Can
you give me your word that you won't talk about last night with anybody else.
Not Solo, not the general, nobody?" she finished seriously.

He considered her request. So the princess didn't want to appear as a weakling,
he understood. Interesting, he smiled inwardly even as he also sighed inwardly.
She hadn't pierced his cover while he had been asleep.

"I promise," he finally nodded earnestly. "It'll be our secret," he added in a
Skywalker-like way.

She smiled at this and sat up beside him. "Thank you, my friend."

"That's what friends are for, you know?" he offered, feeling more comfortable
now that they were talking about a part of life he was familiar with.

He new perfectly well what friendship was about. He and Mara had been friends
for almost ten years now; despite their rigorous lives, they had shared many
secrets when they had been younger, and once they had been allowed to be
together.

"Yes, I know." Leia nodded sleepily. "I have to go back to my rooms," she then
commented softly as she slowly edged her way off the bunk.

"I understand," Luke reassured her as naively as he could. "I'll see you
later?" he then asked, not moving from his position against the wall.

"Sure," she smiled gently, then gazed warmly at him for a short while before she
stood up; her silky, with ceremonial gown fell off the narrow bunk to cover her
small feet as she made her way toward his door.

He waved at her one last time, then she left. Once alone, he slid down on his
back on his bunk and pinched the bridge of his nose.

Oh boy, this was much more complex than he had first thought it would be, he
conceded seriously. Not only was he close to the princess, but she was also
pulling surprises on him every time he spoke with her. He decided to thread
very warily around the different players of his spying game.

******

As the time pass however, he discovered that he truly was a very good actor.

No matter the circumstances or the people he was speaking with, he managed to
maintain his naive cover throughout the chaotic days that followed the
destruction of the Death Star, then the more tensed-ones that ensued the fall of
other bases.

At first, Luke transmitted locations of bases that were not where he himself
was, but the more bases fell, and the more he and his groups were implicated in
the battles.

TBC in part 15: Pressure