Chapter Text
INTRODUCTION
Success. Darth Vader
has been captured by the
Rebel Alliance. This marks
an important victory in the
fight against the Galactic
Empire. But all is not well.
Imperial agents aim to restore
this shift in power. And other
forces still, wish to capitalize
on the power vacuum Vader’s
capture has caused.
As the Rogue Shadow travels
through hyperspace, on its way
to Dantooine, the rebels take
a moment’s rest after their
victory. But that peace is about
to come to an abrupt end…
CHAPTER 1 - CARGO
1 BBY
Seated at a table onboard the Rogue Shadow, the droid PROXY repaired its damaged body, attaching a replacement arm using a plasma torch. As the ship flew through hyperspace, Starkiller returned to the front of the ship and took a seat beside PROXY. He looked over at Rahm Kota who, while blind, looked precisely in his direction.
“How’s our prisoner doing?” Kota asked.
“As talkative as ever.” Starkiller said sarcastically.
PROXY looked over at Starkiller quizzically, before responding. “In my experience, Darth Vader isn’t known for his conversational skill.”
“If I didn’t know you any better, I’d say you were being facetious.” Starkiller retorted.
PROXY looked at him for a moment more, before resuming his repairs. The events leading up to this moment washed through Starkiller’s mind; visions, images. And he wasn’t even sure which were his own, if any. Starkiller was shaken from his thoughts by a chill that ran up his spine.
Without even raising his head, Kota spoke. “You felt that too, didn’t you?”
“Yes…”
“Boba Fett’s following us.” Kota added.
“Boba Fett? We can’t go to Dantooine with Boba Fett on our tail.” Juno Eclipse uttered, having overheard the exchange from the pilot seat.
“No… not just Boba… something else is out there…” Galen Marek said, his eyes growing wide with concern.
Rahm Kota stood up at the same moment as Starkiller.
“Who is it?” Kota asked urgently.
“I don’t know. But I’m about to find out.” He declared, as he marched toward the back of the ship, Kota following his lead.
The door to the ship’s holding bay quickly slid open and Starkiller approached Darth Vader, held upright to a table by durasteel bars.
“Who have you sent after us?” Vader remained completely silent, save for the heavy, mechanical breathing filling the room.
“Who did you send after us?” Starkiller demanded; but Vader remained silent.
“I suggest you answer him, Dark Lord.” Kota said, arms folded behind his back. At Kota’s words, Starkiller ignited one of his sapphire blue blades, holding it to Darth Vader’s throat.
“You require me alive to use as an example to legitimize your rebellion.” Vader uttered with a cold indifference.
“I’m not one to think before I act. I’m defective, remember?” Starkiller scowled at Vader, but received only silence.
“You had better talk. I sense something out there. And if Sidious finds out you tried to overthrow him, he won’t exactly be happy with you, now will he?” Starkiller attempted to reason with his former master and, after a long moment, Vader responded.
“Darth Sidious is unaware of Kamino’s reconstruction and continued operation. It’s not too late to return to my side.” Vader said. After a moment more, Starkiller deactivated his lightsaber.
“Yeah, no thanks. I see how you treat your allies.” Starkiller responded, before he and Kota walked from the room, the door closing behind them.
“We’ll never get him to talk.”
“No kidding.” Kota and Starkiller exchanged.
“We have a problem.” A voice called out from the cockpit.
“What is it?” Starkiller asked.
“The ship that’s been tailing us; it’s getting closer. I don’t think we can outrun it.” Juno warned them.
“Drop out of hyperspace. Then cloak the ship. It is our best chance of avoiding detection.
“Got it.” Juno agreed and, within a matter of seconds, the ship dropped back to normal space, before their ship disappeared to those observing from the outside.
The ship was quiet, as they waited for their pursuer to appear. They needn't have waited long, another ship dropping out of hyperspace behind them. It was a TIE Fighter, albeit one that looked to have been outfitted with a considerable degree more armaments. The ship remained where it was, unmoving. Starkiller closed his eyes and reached out with the force.
He calmed his mind, trying to see what his eyes couldn’t. He suddenly felt something staring back at him and his eyes shot open.
“Go now! He knows we’re here!” Starkiller shouted and Juno immediately began moving, trying to enter evasive maneuvers.
But the TIE Fighter was immediately on them, firing at the Rogue Shadow. Starkiller took a seat beside Juno and targeted their weapons on the enemy ship, firing back. Their blaster bolts hit a powerful shield, failing to do much damage, as they kept taking fire.
“Since when does a TIE Fighter have shields! Or a hyperdrive.”
“It appears to have been customized with a number of non standard equipment and armaments.” PROXY responded to Starkillers words.
“You think?!” Starkiller shouted back in frustration.
“We need to land, take us toward the nearest planet.” Rahm Kota said calmly. Juno only nodded, as she put all remaining power into the sunlight engines and flew toward a nearby planet, pursued closely by the TIE Fighter.
“We’re not gonna make it…” Starkiller uttered. Juno looked over at him, before setting her vision straight ahead once more.
“The Hell we’re not!” They took more laser fire, as their ship began to shake.
“The engines are overheating.” PROXY announced, but was ignored, as the Rogue Shadow entered the planet’s atmosphere.
They continued to accelerate and Juno tried to pull the ship up, as they crashed to the ground below. When Starkiller recovered enough to look around, he saw that, apart from a few minor cuts and bruises, everyone seemed to be alive.
“Everyone okay?” He asked, just to hear it aloud and alleviate his worry.
“I think so.” Juno said.
“I’ll survive yet.”
“My systems are within acceptable parameters.” Kota and PROXY chimed in.
“The door won’t open.” Juno said, after attempting to lower the door to the ship.
Starkiller held out his hand and, a moment later, the drawbridge fell. Kota was the first out, followed by PROXY and then Starkiller and Juno.
“Where are we?” Juno asked.
“We are on planet Dathomir.” PROXY answered.
“Finally, some useful information.” Kota snapped.
“Easy, he’s just doing what he’s programmed-” Starkiller’s words were cut off when he saw what the others had; Darth Vader had been freed in the crash and now stood before them.
“Oh dear.” PROXY uttered, as Starkiller ignited his blue blade.
In response, Vader pulled his own lightsaber from Juno’s belt and ignited it, just as Starkiller sprinted at the Sith Lord. Their blades connected and each of them stepped back. Starkiller again struck at Vader and, for every strike Vader blocked, he would counter with equally brutal strikes of his own.
Rahm Kota stood at the ready, alongside PROXY, while Juno put her hands on her blaster. Sith Lord and former apprentice were locked in a heated duel to the death, neither conceding to the other. Their battle was cut short, however, by the sounds of a ship’s engine. And, before the group could process what was happening, a shuttle fired down at them from the sky. Laserbolts struck the ground, narrowly missing the group, as they scrambled for cover behind a group of large rocks.
Starkiller and Vader continued their duel, until a laserbolt struck close to their feet, sending the pair flying several meters. Starkiller lay in the dust, his head ringing, his vision blurred. Words and images flashed through his mind; of a cold surgical table, of a medical facility, and of Vader himself.
[“Take a sample of his blood. And have his memories wiped. I might yet have use of him.”]
Vader’s voice sounded in his mind. Before he could reflect on their meaning, he felt himself pulled to the feet by his arm and looked over to see a worried Juno beside him.
Juno and Starkiller ran for cover, just as their ship was struck, causing a large explosion. The group remained concealed until the blaster fire had died down.
“Who was that?” Juno asked in a hushed tone, as she held onto the arm of Starkiller, who still gripped his head in pain.
“Whoever it is, it’s not our only problem.” He nodded his head toward the sky, seeing what was coming, even without his eyes.
Juno looked up into the sky and she saw it too; it was Boba Fett’s ship, the Slave I, entering the atmosphere. They turned to flee when they saw another ship, the Imperial shuttle that had been firing at them, positioned right in front of them. Just as they thought they were done for, the ship rocked back and forth in the sky, the metal twisting and bending. The ship shot straight upward, before crashing to the ground in a large explosion. They turned to see Darth Vader standing before them.
“Why’d you save us?!” Juno demanded.
“They weren’t here to rescue me. And if you wish to survive any longer, I suggest we get out of sight.” Vader responded.
“What do you-?” Juno’s question was cut short by another vessel entering the atmosphere in the distance. And then another, and another; a fleet of Imperial shuttles.
“Apparently, I have underestimated my master.” Juno scowled at the Sith Lord, before they began quickly moving in the opposite direction of the arriving fleet.
When the group arrived at a cavern, they made their way inside, to give themselves some modicum of concealment from the hostile forces.
“So the Emperor has turned against you. Serves you right.” Rahm Kota spat with hostility, earning only a cold stare from Darth Vader.
“Why shouldn’t we just kill you now?” Juno asked, pulling her blaster.
“You may kill me, Juno Eclipse. But, without my assistance, you will never make it off this planet alive.” At Vader’s words, Juno holstered her weapon.
Suddenly Starkiller stood straight, looking around, before focusing on Vader. “I remember…” He said in a low voice.
“I remember who I am. YOU had my memory wiped.” Starkiller said, pointing at Vader, before he turned his gaze back to Juno.
“I remember. I’m not a clone. My name is Galen Marek.” In response, Juno simply hugged him tightly, and he hugged her back.
“More Sith treachery.” Rahm Kota uttered, not taking his eyes off of Vader.
“Glad to have you back, master.” PROXY declared in what Galen knew from experience was a happy tone.
“I told you, you don’t have to call me master. Call me Galen.”
“Oop. Alright… Galen.” The two exchanged, PROXY sounding unsure of his former master’s new preference; but willing to comply to make him happy.
“Now… how do we get off this planet?” Juno finally asked, ending their moment of respite.
“We’ll need one of those shuttles now.” Galen said.
“You need not worry. The Emperor’s elite soldiers will be looking for us.” Vader chimed in.
“How is that a good thing? Those soldiers are trained specifically to hunt down dissonants, Jedi. I’m sure they’ll see no difference in adding one Sith Lord to their killcount.” Kota uttered snidely.
“I hate to say it… but we might actually need his help.” Galen said with a scowl, leaving a silence hanging in the air.
***
The last of the Imperial shuttles landed on the planet’s surface and out marched a platoon of black armored Death Troopers, elite members of the Stormtrooper corps. Joining them were a number of red robed warriors carrying long staff weapons; members of the Emperor’s Royal Guard. One of the Troopers held up his wrist and a hologram of Darth Sidious appeared before him.
“I want you to kill all who have fled to the planet. Leave no survivors. Consider Darth Vader to be compromised by the Rebel Alliance.”
“Yes, Lord Palpatine.” The Trooper declared, as the hologram faded away.
“You heard him, men, fan out.” At the order, the soldiers began to sweep across the planet’s surface inch by inch, in search of their targets.
The Death Troopers and Royal Guard scoured the planet’s surface, inch by inch, with a meticulous efficiency. From one of the shuttles stepped an Imperial Officer, walking proudly with his hands behind his back.
“Have you found the rebels yet?” The officer asked one of the Death Troopers.
“Not yet, Moff Bennlan. But my men are scouring the area. We’ll find them eventually. They won’t escape.” The Trooper declared.
“Good. The Emperor will be pleased to hear of our success.” Bennlan responded.
***
Galen returned to the cavern with a discouraged look on his face.
“They’ve begun to comb the area. There’s… a lot of them. If we stay here, it’s only a matter of time before we get caught.” Galen uttered.
“We need to get to one of those ships. I can get us out of here if we can just reach one.” Juno responded with a spark of confidence.
“They would shoot you down before you exited the atmosphere.” Came Vader’s booming voice.
“You’re in this just as much as we are. I trust you remember that.” Kota snapped at Vader.
“We have another problem. The TIE Fighter that shot us down has just begun its descent.” PROXY said, as he walked back from the mouth of the cavern.
“I think it’s about time you told us who’s following us!” Galen barked angrily, as he ignited his lightsaber, aiming it at an unflinching Vader.
“You should put the toy away, boy. Before you lead them right here.” A deep voice suddenly rang out from deeper within the cavern.
A shadow cloaked figure appeared before them, slowly stepping closer, footfalls against the stone floor causing echoes along the cave walls. Rather than heed the voice, Galen pointed his lightsaber from Vader, to the shadow covered figure.
“I said put the lightsaber away. If you value your life.” The figure stepped even closer, until his form was revealed by the blue glow of Galen’s lightsaber. He had red skin with black markings, piercing yellow eyes, and a series of ten horns forming a crown around the top of his head.
“You’re Darth Maul…” Galen uttered in surprise.
“So my reputation precedes me. Formerly Darth. Now just Maul.” Maul uttered in a low, calm voice.
Galen continued to aim his lightsaber at Maul for a few more moments, before deactivating his blade with a frustrated scowl.
“The failed apprentice.” Vader uttered with indifference.
“Anakin Skywalker. Sidious’ new puppet.” Maul scoffed back.
“Easy boys. Remember, we’re being hunted here.” Kota chimed in, causing Maul to stare at the Jedi, before relenting in his hostilities, if only slightly.
“I thought you were dead. Everyone does.” Galen said.
“I preferred it that way. After seeing a vision of my own demise, I went into hiding. I had managed to survive this long. Until you brought the Empire to my home!” Maul said angrily.
“We didn’t exactly land here for a vacation.” Juno responded and Maul just scoffed.
“So what’s the plan here? Are we really going to sit around until they find us?” Kota asked rhetorically.
After a moment of thought, Galen turned to PROXY.
“Hey, would you happen to have a Death Trooper module in your programming?” Galen asked the droid.
“I believe I do.” Came PROXY’s response and, after several seconds, the droid shifted its image into a perfect copy of a Death Trooper.
“Good thinking” Kota commended Galen.
Galen nodded, smiling at his master’s compliment, before turning back to PROXY.
“Now, I need you to take me prisoner. We need to get close to another Trooper. And capture him without damaging the armor. Or alerting the others.” Galen said with confidence.
“The chances of you succeeding are minimal.” Maul uttered.
“And I thought Vader was the optimist.” Galen shot back sarcastically.