His son turned, that dispassionate expression a sting in itself, though it was nothing compared to his words; "But you did have the chance- you were there. You lost."
That brought Vader's head up, the acerbic harshness of it surprising even him. "You could not possibly understand - you were not there."
"No, which is a pity." His son turned away again to stare at the lights of the city, "Because I would have killed you."
He did not turn back, the conversation clearly over as far as he was concerned. Vader remained for a time, staring at his son, wondering whether the boy would eventually feel obligated to acknowledge his father. But he didn't, and finally Vader turned to leave, seething, wondering why he had pressed; why he continued to ask these questions, searching for some connection, some spark, when the boy pushed him away time and again.
He had no answer- except that he knew he could not do otherwise.
.
.
.
Luke was lost in sleep when the sharp susurration whispered through the Force in his dreams, making him frown... then everything tilted, reality itself realigning, Luke gasping out, jerking upright, hands out to steady himself against the ethereal motion, his surprise lighting the dark room with a flash of Force-driven brightness, every surface, every wall, every structure within highlighted...
Then darkness as his awareness settled, no specific threat apparent.
Seconds later, he sensed Reece walking purposely through the withdrawing room adjacent to his bedroom and twisted about. "Yes." He allowed in permission, though the Aide had not yet knocked on the door. "Something's happened." Luke prompted as the thick doors swung open, Reece bowing before entering.
"Forgive the intrusion Sir, but I thought you'd want to see this." Reece set quickly forward, tone somewhere between excitement and portent, the backlit screen of the automemo he was holding illuminating a small circle about him in the thick gloom of the cavernous, sparsely-furnished room.
Luke took the automemo, read it, re-read it then glanced up, "This is verified?"
"Yes, Sir - it's already been announced across the HoloNet."
"Hm." Luke said simply, the tone of his short exclamation revealing that it explained a great deal- though probably only Reece could have read so much into so little, knowing him as well as he did. Luke handed the automemo back to the Aide. "This changes nothing, nothing at all- you know that?"
"I think perhaps in the eyes of others... it may make certain alliances easier."
"Too easy. Allegiance and ambition are not the same thing." Luke shook his head, too tired to consider the implications right now. "We'll talk in the morning."
Reece bowed then, realising new protocol, he backstepped and bowed again before turning to walk from the room.
"And don't ever do that again when we're in private quarters." came Luke's voice from the darkness.
Reece smiled, amused, pleased that The Commander hadn't ordered him never to do it at all, which considering the news would have been a breach of protocol, but had chosen to dismiss the pointless etiquette in private- which was very much his modus operandi. And one of the many reasons why Reece had defected.
"Of course, Sir." He acknowledged, leaving. Busy night ahead, once this got out....
.
.
.
Leia was woken in the early hours of the morning by the comm, Han turning over and pulling the pillow over his head with a groan. Flicking the low light on, squinting from its glow, she fumbled across the nightstand.
"Leia." she acknowledged, not in the mood for talking.
"Leia, you need to see this." It was Mon's voice, tense with concern and trepidation, dragging Leia's eyes open with the same.
"Where are you?"
"In Ops." Mon said tightly, her voice obscured by a buzz of others close by.
Feeling her stomach tighten, Leia sat up. "C'mon flyboy." She prompted Han.
"What is it?" he drawled, still clinging hopefully to the pillow.
Leia shook her head, already dressing, "I don't know- but it's big."
.
Fifteen minutes later, she was in Ops, staring at the message on the HoloNet channels with the same mixture of disbelief and unease as everyone else.
"Well that's it then." Leia said firmly, looking to Mon, a sense of empty finality flooding the small pocket of hope she'd secretly nursed for so long. "No arguing with that. When did it come in?"
"When I commed you." Mon replied, looking as dishevelled and sleep-weary as Leia felt, "We got a message a few hours ago from the Bothans, but nothing was verified."
"Well, it seems pretty authentic now." Leia said.
Mon nodded, looking back to the screen, "Heir Apparent."
The message was lengthy and authoritative, sent over all official channels on the HoloNet, the language decorous and legally relevant, painstakingly refined- but it ultimately boiled down to one thing.
Palpatine had named a successor - Luke Skywalker was now Heir to the Empire.
"I'm not surprised- it was always heading that way." Madine said uneasily.
"It seems so unlike him though," Mon reflected out loud, reading the proclamation for the fifth time, "Palpatine's never shown any willingness to share power."
"This isn't sharing; he's really offering nothing more than everyone already knew." Ackbar said, gravelly voice low, lost in consideration, "This has simply made it official."
"And bought him a few year's grace." Leia added. Mon turned to her, and she shrugged, "All the analysts say The Commander's formed a strong following within the military. They all say he'll take power within a decade- maybe Palpatine is officially confirming his position to head that off - why risk a coup when you can get everything you want just by waiting. It's all guaranteed now."
"We need to take this to the War Room." Mon said firmly. "We need a course of action- a response."
.
"In your opinion?" Mon was trying to lock Tag Massa, the Intelligence Chief, down. They sat around a large circular table in the War Room, the plain walls and low light giving weight to the discussion, everyone staring to their automemo's to check again this amazing and totally unanticipated turn of events.
"This is a very unexpected move, Ambassador." Massa evaded, never one to be tied to a statement prematurely, "However I doubt that it's a stabilising move on the Emperor's part - it's simply not necessary."
"What about all the reports of The Commander forming a retinue in Court?" Leia prompted.
"It's true that The Wolf has formed a very strong power base in the last year, particularly in the military, but he's never exhibited any serious intention or desire to overthrow the Emperor." Tag said, her casual mention of The Commander's alias, often quoted in Imperial circles, setting Leia ill at ease and prompting her to wonder once again what his real name was. He'd never been referred to by the names of either Luke or Skywalker by anyone in the Empire- only when he'd been here, spying for his Master. Even the Bothans could find no definite links to that name, save for unsubstantiated verbal accounts relating to an Old Republic Jedi by the name of Skywalker. But as much as she tried not to, Leia still couldn't ever think of him by any other name.
Massa continued over Leia's thoughts, "Certainly nothing above the normal level of powerplay that one would expect in such circles. And on the few occasions that we have noted any real conflict forming, we've also noted that The Commander will disappear for days or even weeks. Whether he's banished from Court or chooses not to attend in order to diffuse the situation is unclear. What information we have is in his case-file... screens ninety through one-five-eight." She added, flicking quickly through them on her battered, well-used automemo.
"And he goes where?" Ackbar prompted with a flick of his elongated, webbed fingers.
"That, we have no idea, sir." she admitted, rubbing her eyebrows- she too had been up all night over this one, and didn't expect to get to sleep anytime soon. "But when he returns to Court, he appears more elusive and insular than ever- often for an extended period. That's in his psychological profile- screens..."