Power Lust
Part 3: Searches
By SJ and Tatiana 09-05-00/13-04-01
Suggested and co-written with Tatiana (aa354105@econophone.ch)

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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

IMPORTANT Note about the story's copyrights: All the rights related to the basic idea of Mon Mothma's scheme and the ensuing alliance between Luke and Vader belong to Tatiana, and so do Vader's personality and the Sathed history. The rest of the story is a fusing of our imaginations since we've passed the story back and forth between ourselves :)

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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Back in his shuttle, Darth Vader allowed himself to relax in the pilot chair.
This had gone better than he had thought it would, not to mention that it had
been much different too.

His son had grown up, he smiled to himself. Luke was much more emotionally
balanced and in control than he had been two years ago. He had also come to
accept his parentage... at last.

Whatever feeling that the boy had concerning his father, he was now able to deal
with them calmly; to not let them influence his behavior.

Yes, he nodded wistfully, Luke had definitely grown up.

The fact that he hadn't spat names at him, hadn't threatened his life, nor tried
to turn him or even contradict him in any way had also immensely pleased him.

It had also confirmed to him that, as he had originally thought, his son had
truly been asking for his help, nothing more, nothing less.

However, even more important for him than all those details was that Luke had
expected that help to be given simply because he was his and Leia's father.
There hadn't been any doubt in the boy's mind and heart that he would help
him... He had 'believed' in him... somewhat.

He had to admit that this greatly pleased him ; it was good to know that his son
was now thinking of him as having feelings for his children.

Of course, he himself was perfectly aware that neither Luke nor Leia, and
especially Leia, would ever accept him as part of their family. He knew that
his children would never care for him... that they would perhaps hate him
forever, but, he shrugged to himself, it did not matter anymore.

They could accept at least something from him because his son knew that 'he'
cared.

He could live with this, he decided. A very long time ago he had understood
that sometimes, it was better to be content with little because willing to get
everything could very well destroy the very thing that one was longing for.

Some lesson that Mothma had never understood, he suddenly reflected with a
sneer.

Mon Mothma, he paused on his thought... He knew her well.

Much better that he had led Luke to think. They had almost been friends
at her
earlier times in the Senate, appearing to everybody as hateful enemies. Most of
the time though, they had been secret allies in hundreds of internal plots.

Mothma, he remembered grimly, had especially shone in plots. She had always
been an ambitious, strong woman, not exceptionally beautiful, but undoubtedly
charismatic. She had also always been very clever.

He himself had sort of liked her, he then conceded. Observing her had always
been very enjoyable because nobody, including himself, had been able to predict
her actions.

With time however, his sympathy for her had changed to ... almost disgust for
she had been clever and strong, but she had fundamentally lacked the purpose.

Her prime objective had always been power for itself; she had never
understood that the power was nothing but an instrument to reach one's goal.
A goal which she had never had; she had never had any ideals nor moral
imperatives.

In a way, it made her even worse than Palpatine since not even the 'Emperor' had
not been as immoral as that woman was. When she had started the rebellion, he
himself had felt both surprise and relief that she had left the Empire. They
had already been enemies at the time, but he had mostly been relieved that she
couldn't ruin the Empire anymore.

And now, his son had confirmed that the Rebellion had been a lie all along.

While not surprised, he was as badly shocked as Luke was by that truth. He
himself was a monster, he admitted. He had no delusions that he was not, but,
he shivered slightly in disgust at the woman's sheer depravation of mind, he
could not imagine himself starting a civil war to merely satisfy his personal
ambitions.

Plot, assassination, anything, he could understand--- but a war? It was even
more evil than what the Death Star had done to Alderaan, he summarized in rare
horror. Mothma simply had, and still, used millions of people to reach her
ends.

She had used Organa's family, the soldiers of the Rebellion--- and now she dared
use his children!??

Leia was the image of the Alliance, he realized, clenching his fist in anger as
he understood why she had been targeted. The princess was the Rebellion's Soul.
With her in danger, the other could fuel the body to save that 'soul'.

Luke, for his part, was its hero. The Last Jedi.

Now that Leia had been coldly removed, he had the most unpleasant premonition
that Luke was also in danger. Jedi or not, he could feel that Luke would need
help if the woman were to throw a contingent of pirates or outlaws at him.

It must have been how she had gotten Leia, he mused angrily. From what he knew,
his daughter was also far from helpless; she had been trained to survive just
about anything.

Except perhaps... betrayal.

Vader suddenly felt a wave of cold rage fill him at the thought of how deceitful
the vile woman was; the feeling was so strong that it was barely controllable.
'You dare touch my children!' he growled dangerously, almost reaching out to
strangle the evil woman from a distance.

However, he calmed himself with an effort. Emotions would not be of any help
now, he reminded himself.

Once he had recovered his composure, he refocused on his previous thoughts.

What he couldn't understand, he admitted seriously, was why Leia was still
alive. Why had she been kidnapped and not just killed? Mothma wanted to use
her, that much was clear. But for 'what'?

The response came by itself: to restart the war even more powerfully than if the
Princess were merely dead. The actual stalemate probably did not satisfy Mothma,
nor would she ever be content with the present Empire. Hence, to make sure that
the war would last even though the Empire wouldn't want to fight, she needed a
strong catalyst... Like saving Leia in extremis from an imperial base...

Even though this thought was only an hypothesis... it strangely felt right to
him, filling him with renewed anger. If Leia were found in a base's detention
block and that there were evidences of torture- any peace talks would became
impossible for a long, long while.

And even more so if Leia were to die soon after she had been found... If that
ever happened... the Rebels would make her a martyr and would wage a new
war in her name.

That hypothesis felt eve more awfully right than the previous one, he thought
with a definite shudder. Not even the Emperor had ever been this machiavellian.

But If it were true, he reminded himself, then there was almost no time left...

The next base under attack 'might' be the one. He supposed that the timing
depended of Leia's condition.

Refocusing on his new duty to save his daughter, he decided to contact some of
his agents in the Alliance to know the time and destination of the next attack
as well as make them investigate Mothma's contacts.

He also decided to dispatch a few of those agents to find the rebel princess
before any true Rebel did.

With his plan taking shape in his mind, he leaned forward and tapped a request
for his intelligence service, then sent it.

In a few hours at most, the search for Leia would officially begin.

******

It took Luke three days to rejoin the Rebel Fleet, three days during which
he prepared himself for the best cover-up job that he had ever done.

He and his droid in fact.

Artoo now knew about the evil woman... and Luke couldn't risk his ruining
everything. Thus, he had erased that part of the droid's memory, but not before
apologizing to him before doing it. The little droid had understood and
encouraged him to proceed.

Now though, it was his turn to hide the truth, he reminded himself as he brought
his shuttle down in the Rebel hangar bay.

Techs hurried over and secured it in place as he stepped down the hatch.
A sergeant snapped to attention. "Welcome back, Commander Skywalker. The
High Command has asked for you to report as soon as you arrive."

Luke saluted him. "Thanks, Nike. How's the gang?"

"They're fine, if a little bit tired to be out of action. You would think
that the Imperials have gone fishing or something, huh?"

"Yeah, you would," Luke agreed quietly.

"Have you seen any action yourself?"

"Nah, not much. Just a couple of goons in a bar."

"Still beats cleaning up the vents," his friend smiled.

"Sure does, well, I'm better head forth if I don't want to make them wait
too long. So long, Nike. Say hi to the guys for me."

"Good luck, Luke," the other smiled as Luke walked away from him. "Are you
sure you won't take back your piloting station?"

"Yes, I am," Luke answered , his eyes suddenly darkening as he was reminded that
he had once been part of those who were fighting for a cause which they thought
was just.

He walked faster toward the nearest lift, trying hard to not lose his composure.
He couldn't lose it yet, he sternly reminded himself.

Minutes later, he straightened his stance before he entered the conference room.
He couldn't let them suspect anything, he reminded himself grimly as he made
sure that he had his commander insignia in his tunic. As he touched the piece
of metal, he took one last breath to gather his courage, then walked forward;
the double doors opened. He walked until he stood at the end of the meeting
table.

"Welcome back, Commander. How was your search?" Mon Mothma asked.

"It has gone well, Madam, but has unfortunately turned up dry. The leads that I
was following were all false."

"Then what will you do next?"

"I will continue to search, Madam. I know that I am not the only Jedi
descendant in the galaxy. It is impossible," he stated as calmly as he could.

"When can we hope to see you back on the front, commander?" a general asked
him.

Luke, who had been waiting for such an opening, pulled out his insignia and set
it on the table in front of himself. "If I do, Sir, it won't be out of
obligation anymore. I hereby resign my commission as commander in the
Alliance."

The leaders were shocked, to say the least.

"May I ask why?" Admiral Ackbar asked.

'Because the woman we follow is worse than the Emperor,' he thought vehemently
before calming down. He took a moment to clear his voice and senses from any
aggression. "I have decided to devote all my time to the Jedi Order, Sir. I
don't want to deprive you of an officer because of this decision."

"But you will still be affiliated to us, won't you?" Mothma inquired, betraying
her slight, very slight tension.

Ooh, she was more than good, he admitted reluctantly; she was an excellent
actress.

"If you want me in your group, yes, but I will also be independent from
you," he stated with finality.

"Thus not having to report to us?" Madine queried.

"Yes. Jedi matters can only be understood by Jedis, with all due respect,"
he explained with a short bow of his head. "Of course, if something serious
were to happen, I intend to be here and at your side," he reassured them mock-
earnestly.

The leaders discussed between themselves. Luke noticed how Mothma kept throwing
suspicious looks at him; he didn't allow her to find anything incriminating.
She finally acquiesced to the others' demands.

He on the other could now feel the deceit in her mind. It was a wonder that he
had missed it before.

"Very well, Jedi Skywalker," she nodded as if she were being magnanimous whereas
she was barely trusting him to not discover the truth, but she couldn't say so
to anyone; she had no choice but to let him leave. "You are now free to
search for the Jedi descendants or to join us, whenever you wish. We shall
continue to provide you with any transport you may need, or any other resources
it the need arises," she informed him.

Thus keeping him dependant on the Alliance, he realized, and hoping to make him
feel as if he owed them. "Thank you," he nodded as smoothly as he could, then
bowed his head. He left them.

Whew, he breathed in relief once he was in the corridor. It was over and he
was still alive. Now, he had to find Han and go after the pirates. He
suspected that his father would search for Mothma's connections, so he estimated
that searching for the pirates themselves should put enough distance between the
two men so as to not give away his secret alliance with Vader.

******

Vader leaned back in his plush chair as he read the first reports regarding his
search. A new attack was planned in a month.

It could be worse. Judging for this report, he surmised that Leia's state was
not sufficiently bad for Mothma's plan... and that wasn't a happy thought for
his daughter, he scowled unhappily.

As for Mothma's connections, there was much information, but at the same time,
almost nothing.

The list of personal contacts was enormous and made of political contacts.
However, he knew enough about politics to not suspect that those contacts were
just front-windows.

Starting a new search of his own, he focused on the organizations that were
behind those people. He thus discovered that Mothma had contacts or was the
leader of many rebellious cells but almost all those organizations had already
been either destroyed or integrated in the Alliance. In short, there wasn't
much under that category either. Everything even seemed legitimate.

Annoyed by that lack of results, he drummed his fingers on his armrests while he
fought his slight frustration. There 'had' to be something to find, he thought
in growing irritation.

Then he conceded that what he had already found was at least a beginning. He
also knew for sure that the traitors weren't in the Rebellion because if Mothma
had used rebels, they would surely have come out false through his son's senses.

One less option to consider then, he heartened himself. He focused on his other
option.

So what if Mothma had called upon the services of her old acquaintances?
While the cells of her old groups had all been destroyed or dissolved one way or
another, it was well known that those groups always led to another group
someday.

Yes, he decided, he would continue there.

Perhaps one of them either guarded Leia or knew where she was imprisoned.

******

Somewhere in the Ategan system, Luke met up with the Falcon. He hooked his
x-wing in the belly clamp of the pronged-shape ship, then space-walked to
the outer hatch and joined his friends inside.

After a warm reunion, the two friends exchanged their findings.

Han hadn't found much, except that there were plenty of contracts on high
members of the Alliance, Luke and himself included as well as on a few other
people who hadn't been part of their ranks for a while now.

Luke for his part didn't talk about his truce with Vader, but told him about
finding the pirates. He gave Leia's coin to his friend.

"Are you sure that she wasn't aboard their ship?" his friend asked him glumly.

"Yes. I checked it thoroughly," he nodded seriously, then felt his voice
catch in sadness before he could continue: "I have a lot of trouble finding her,
Han, as if she weren't in the known galaxy."

Even though he had grown used to the fact that he couldn't contact his sister,
it still made him flinch in sadness every time that the subject came up.

"I thought that distance didn't affect you," Han observed critically.

"It doesn't," Luke agreed, "but it is well known that the unknown regions have
always deterred the Jedi Knights because the 'laws' of physics are somewhat
different in them."

"Yeah, and it's also a pirates' nest," Solo grumbled--- then turned his gaping
features toward him. "Are you telling me that this is where we're going?" he
asked him in disbelief.

"No," he shook his head. "I think that we should first find the rest of the
Massacres' group."

"And do you know where to start?" Han asked somewhat eagerly now.

"Nope, but you're the old pirate here," he teased him, his mood suddenly
lightening as he ribbed his friend. "I thought that you might have an hunch
about that."

"Huh-huh, right... let me think for a sec here..." Solo answered, exchanging a
gaze with his co-pilot.

Chewie growled something about being eager to be on their way.

"Yeah," Han nodded, "I'm eager too to get to the fighting part; I want so much
to beat the crap out of those guys," he finished angrily.

It made Luke wince in sympathy even as he admitted that he understood why his
father had asked him to keep Han out of his way.

"Uh, Han? How about doing it quietly?" he suggested as he stood to his feet.
"Let's not raise their attention unless we have to. There might be bigger
fishes involved and we don't want to scare them away," he reminded him.

"Right... Okay, Kid, now buckle in," he smiled lopsidedly as he stood to his
feet.

"Where are we going?" the young Jedi inquired.

"In the rings of Farlax," the experienced smuggler answered grimly. "If we're
indeed dealing with pirates, that's where they'll be."

Luke followed him all the way to the cockpit, then decided that he had to
contact a certain dark lord before he couldn't do so anymore thanks to their
transition into hyperspace.

"Can I borrow your holonet receiver?" he queried as innocently as he could.

"Sure," Han shrugged while he checked gauges. "Make yourself at home."

Luke waited to be completely alone before checking his box. Just like he knew
his father's box, he had no doubt that his father would know how to find his.
Luke could even feel that he had already made some discoveries.

He waited for his box to load. There was indeed a message from his father,
asking him to set a rendezvous point. He told him that he would be in
Farlax in four or five days, then sent his message, wondering what his father
had found.

******

Aboard the Shadow Spear, his personal corvette, Vader smiled but his
satisfaction was short-lived when he realized that his son would be with his
Solo friend 'and' exactly in the same place where he himself had sent agents to
investigate before he furthered the search.

While he tried to suppress his anger, he conceded that Luke had been right to
think that they would manage to stay out of the way there, but the youth had
obviously not considered the speed with which his agents might uncover the
actual identity of Mon's former group.

He now knew that she was even still their leader. Their last known base had
been in Farlax, hence his current destination.

'You had better keep your trigger-happy friend away from me,' he wrote,
then sent the message to his son.

******

Four days later, Luke walked beside Han and Chewie as they entered the base
of the rings of Farlax. As Luke approached it, he became aware that it wasn't
exactly a base but more like a refuge for the outlaw elements that visited those
parts. However, since they were armed to the teeth and checking everybody, he
conceded that it could also be labeled as a base.

He himself had changed his typical blacks to look more the part of a crew man
aboard Solo's ship. He was also wearing a blaster in a low-slung holster,
something which hadn't happened for a while now. Finally, he had concealed his
lightsaber under his utility vest.

As he followed Han inside a local tavern, he reflected that he almost felt as if
he were back in the Rebellion after Yavin.

"Hey, Solo!!!" someone greeted from their left. "Long time no see, man,
where've you been??"

Solo and his group walked closer. Luke scanned the man with his senses.
Nothing devious there.

"Oh here and there. How'bout you, Tanb? Still smuggling spice?"

"Nah, there ain't no future in this anymore, not since the Empire has
practically destroyed Kessel and the mines of the other funny spices."

"Yeah, I've heard about that."

"Say, I heard you were with the Rebs."

"Nay, that ain't true," Han slurred happily. "I was just there when they needed
my service. They paid me for everything that I helped them with."

"Got a new crew too. My, you've changed," the other scoffed.

Luke introduced himself. "I'm Deak."

"How did you get hitched with this looser, Kid?"

"Oh, got kicked out from my pirate group," Luke answered nonchalantly, "and Solo
was kind enough to provide me transport in exchange of services. I've been with
him ever since."

"Pirates uh?" the other frowned. He turned toward Solo who had plopped down in
the seat across from his friend. Luke and Chewie also pulled two chairs over and
sat on them.

Han smirked when he noticed that the 'Kid' had sat backward on the chair,
throwing his forearm over the back of the chair as if he were a real no-care
youth.

"If I were you, Solo, I'd offer him a decent salary cause you're in the
right place to lose him," the other warned him. "Coupla gangs are recruiting
here."

"Which ones?" Luke asked, as if suddenly interested.

"See? Told ya."

"Come on, Kid. You ain't gonna drop me, are you?" Solo complained.

"That'll depend what you offer me, Solo," Luke answered as greedily as he could
manage. "So, which ones?"

"There's the Black Stars, the Wiloug, and a couple of others. There's also
that new one, the... Massagers, messengers. Something like that anyway,"
the other finished, waving his hand in front of his face in dismissal.

"The Massacres!" Luke turned toward Solo, as if intent on negotiations.
"You ready to discuss my keeping, Solo? If the Massacres are here and
looking for new members, you'll have to offer me more than you do now to
keep me."

"Let's discuss this between ourselves, Kid. Tanb doesn't need to know
about our arrangements, right?"

"For the moment."

They continued their smuggler-oriented conversation before walking out in
the port once again, ten minutes later.

"Great play, Luke," Han praised him. "You really had me fooled."

"That comes from hanging around with you, old pirate," he smiled teasingly.

"Sure."

"So, we try to find where the gang hangs out? Or do we try something else?" he
inquired, feeling ready for some serious spying.

"Do you feel up to reading their minds?" Han suggested. "I don't think that we
can track their ship; they'll have a detector set for any homing beacon."

Chewie agreed with him.

"Unless we try to see their files," Luke offered.

"Sure, but I don't think that they'll file their secret base," his friend
pointed out. " Even 'I' never did that."

"Oh," Luke nodded, understanding that no one was dare-devil enough to risk being
uncovered like Alliance bases had been in the past. "then let's go for the mind
probe. I'd do anything for Leia anyway," he shrugged.

"So would I," Han reminded him with a sideways glance.

TBC in part 4: The Quadra Zone

Copyright 2001/2002, SJ and Tatiana
Webmaster : (skyjade@globetrotter.net)(Any positive stuff is welcome,
but any mean stuff won't even be read.)

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