A Living Nightmare
Chapter 1: A Disturbance in the Force
"It is only through interaction, through decision and choice, through confrontation, physical or mental, that the Force can grow within you."
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Date: 9 BBY
Location: Imperial Center-Imperial Palace
Emperor Palpatine rested on his throne, reveling in the dark, the only light coming from the glowing buttons that adorned the arms of his sleek seat. His scarred face was obscured in the deep blackness of his hood, though it failed to hide his satisfied smile. Eyes closed he basked in the presence of the darkness, its form curling around him like a snake. And like a dangerous, untamed snake the darkness slowly began to tighten its hold on the old man.
But he knew better than to let the darkness take its hold of him without his knowledge. Spreading out his senses, the Sith Lord known as Darth Sidious gripped the slippery snake of the Dark Side and held on with an iron grip, bending, breaking it to his will. Having tamed the Dark Side many decades ago, it obeyed his whims, drenching the entire throne room in the suffocating darkness that was the very essence of Palpatine's existence.
Taking measured breaths, the Emperor allowed his mind to focus on that which strengthened his connection with the dark side of the force. It was the stronger, darker emotions that fueled his power. Spreading his mind to the planet far below his towering palace, he brushed the minds of those who made up his powerful Galactic Empire. He could feel the anger, the hate, the malice, and the fear. Oh..the fear! It was rampant, like a virus that spread with but a whisper. In the streets, his storm-troopers kept order through fear. Nobody dared speak out against his iron rule, not after the destruction of those who attempted to overthrow him. Surely, there had been small pockets of rebellion that would crop up on occasion. He allowed them to exist for a small measure of time, then he would stomp them out with overwhelming force.
His smile widened a fraction of a centimeter when his mind recalled the time he and his apprentice decimated the Twi'lek rebellion on Ryloth a few years ago. The sheer raw physical power of Darth Vader coupled with his mastery of the Dark Side led to the utter obliteration of the repulsive aliens. His disgust with the Twi'lek race added more fuel to the fire of his anger, allowing more control of the darkness to be given to him. Grabbing hold of the darkness, he peered into the minds of his advisers and slithered into their minds like a worm trying to find its way to the core of a fruit. He scoured their minds on a daily basis, browsing through the minds of his 'trusted' advisers to find those who held any thoughts of disloyalty.
While filtering through the minds of his own people, he thought back to one of his early teachings under his own master, a teaching he once revealed to a young Jedi Knight by the name of Anakin Skywalker: All those who gain power fear to lose it. He did fear to lose his power, he did not shy away from that fact. That is why he took care with every move he made, every plan he enacted was calculated to the minute detail. That fear is what gave him his power both in the Force and the Empire.
His power was wholly rooted in fear, and it was through fear that he gained his apprentice. By preying upon Skywalker's fears, and using his weakness against him, Palpatine gained the most powerful Force Sensitive in history as his apprentice. Yet . . . the Force seemed to love to throw a hydrospanner in his plans. What was once a mobile and agile whirlwind of raw power and blazing light had burned and crumbled into a stalwart wall of pure darkness, using pure strength to destroy all that opposed him, all who opposed the rage-filled durasteel wall known as Darth Vader.
The Dark Lord of the Sith and Emperor of the known galaxy opened his eyes, a look of surprise in the sickly yellow irises. And he was hardly surprised. A ripple in the Force occurred, its presence sending out waves of power. Only once had he felt such a disturbance before, two decades ago. Immediately, he searched with the Force to find the source of the disturbance, the echoes in its wake easy to follow.
Traces of both light and darkness could be felt at the source of the disturbance, both sides of the Force swirling in constant war with one another. Sadly, he could not pinpoint precisely where the disturbance occurred but thankfully, he recognized the presence of Darth Vader, lingering close to the disturbance.
The thought crossed his mind that Vader was the cause of the disturbance but he quickly pushed away such a notion, for the light held a grip on the disturbance and Lord Vader had not a trace of light inside him. He was nothing but pure hate and anger, bringing about fear with a glance. Letting out a sigh in dismay, he continued his meditation. Whatever caused the disturbance, he thought, Lord Vader shall deal with it promptly. Little did he know, another powerful Force user felt the disturbance as well. A short and old green Jedi whose mastery of the Force was on par with the Emperor.
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Location: The Swamps of Dagobah
Ex-Grandmaster Yoda sat on a large stone in the middle of an expansive lake that stretched on for miles. Mist from the bog swirled around him as he meditated, clearing his mind of all emotion. He was the epitome of peace as his wrinkled green face slackened as his breathing slowed. He too reached out with the Force and began to perceive the sentients around him. Wild animals such as lizards and snakes along with larger animals lived on the swamps of Dagobah. But it was not these lesser life forms that caused him to come to Dagobah, rather it was the planet's natural connection to the Force.
The Jedi had once called such a planet, a Force Nexus. A place where the Force could be felt stronger than in other areas of the galaxy. The now destroyed Jedi Temple was one such place. His ears drooped just a tad at remembering the sight of the old home of the Jedi. The last time he saw it, it was in flames with smoke rolling off it like a smokestack in the industrial sector on Coruscant. Shaking his head to clear away such antiquated memories, the small being began to draw on the Force, or rather what the Jedi called the Light Side. Instantly, he felt peace wash over him, the chorus of guttural noise the many animals of the swamp bellowed into the air vanished as his mind became one with the Force.
Through meditation, Yoda learned of ways to commune with those long dead, or rather a certain Jedi who retained his sense of self after becoming one with the Force: Qui-Gon Jinn. His body still on Dagobah, Yoda's spirit came into a realm of endless space. It was here that the realm of the dead and the realm of the living converged, creating a space for the two to converse and meet without Qui-Gon having to visit Yoda in person. Yoda stood patiently, his gimmer stick placed in front of him. Thankfully, he did not have to wait long as he soon saw Qui-Gon shimmer into existence, the faint blue glow that usually surrounded him in the living world around him was absent in this realm.
Yoda bowed his head in respect to the powerful being before him. "A while it has been, Master Jinn," he said in his odd backward speech.
The bearded Jedi smiled warmly. "That it has, my old friend. I was thinking of visiting you earlier but I was preoccupied with my former apprentice."
A look of understanding washed over Yoda's aged face as he said the name of Qui-Gons' old apprentice."Obi-Wan . . . Well he is?" asked Yoda.
Qui-gon nodded in confirmation. "Yes, and from what he told me, young Skywalker is as reckless as his father was at his age. Nearly wrecked one of his uncles' speeders the other day in a race," he said with a knowing smile. Being a part of the Force, Qui-Gon had seen the event for himself and he thought it was quite humorous seeing Owen Lars chew out Luke for such a reckless act. It reminded him of Obi-Wan and Anakin a little bit.
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Yoda gave a small chuckle, for he had a similar thought. "Skywalkers, always reckless they are," he said, a pained look in his eye. 'Too reckless, perhaps', he thought.
Qui-gon cleared his throat, bringing Yoda's thoughtful gaze back to him. "I visited Obi-Wan not too long ago," he stated as he put his hands behind his back. "And he is very close to achieving our goal. I fear though, that his grief will be the roadblock that will stop him from gaining immortality through death."
"Guilt you say? A troubled mind Obi-Wan must not have, if to keep watch over Luke he is," said Yoda, his lips pursed together in a frown.
Qui-Gon opened his mouth to say something else but a warm yet cool gust of wind blew through the endless space. All color drained from Qui-Gon's face as it passed through his body with the whispers of the light and dark riding on the currents. Yoda too felt the odd sensation as it passed through him, a look of surprise rather than dread adorned his face.
Yoda looked to Qui-Gon for answers as to what just happened, his stare said everything.
"There has been a disturbance in the Force," Jinn informed him, a serious look on his face. "Not of death, but of rebirth. One that I knew would come but . . . now of all the times? I still fail to understand the Force's reasons. Even in death, I still learn its mysteries only to find more questions than answers."
"Hmmm...trust in the Force, we must." was Yoda's grave reply.
Qui-gon nodded and looked off in the distance. "This . . . disturbance is not unlike the one at the start of the Clone War . . . Surely you recall what happened?"
The shorter of the two rubbed the top of his gimmer stick with one of his three fingers, its smooth wood grain helped him focus. Just like how some beings rubbed their chin or folded their arms to think, Yoda had his walking stick.
Slowly, his memories were illuminated with realization. It seemed like ages ago the Clone War began yet there was one event that stuck out in particular. One he kept secret from everyone he knew.
"It has begun. The cycle has started." said Qui-Gon, walking away into the space between realms. "I will go to Obi-Wan immediately. I am certain he felt the disturbance as well."
Once Qui-gon dissipated into the white expanse, Yoda began to fade as well. His spirit was being recalled back into his physical body. Before he dissipated entirely, Yoda thought for a moment.
Every time the name Obi-Wan was mentioned, another name came up hiding in its shadow: Darth Vader. Fear made of the coldest snow from Hoth entered his veins, sending a shiver through his aging body. To think, if Vader was anywhere near the disturbance . . . It would be disastrous. Unbeknownst to him, Darth Vader had felt the disturbance more strongly than anyone else. It originated on his own vessel after all.
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Location: Outer Rim- The Maverick, Imperator class Star Destroyer
Yet another body fell onto the dull metal gray floor of the bridge, the heavy thud catching the attention of all the techs who sat at their monitors in the comm pits. Lord Vader stood not but thirty feet away from the cooling body of what was once the Admiral of the Maverick. He turned his attention to the officer standing a few inches away from the corpse, fear covered his features as the skull-like mask of his superior stared at him for a brief moment.
"Commander Veritts, you are now in command of this vessel," he said, his voice booming in the silence. "Find the source of the temporary systems failure and send a detachment to the area it emanated from. I have reason to believe a rebel saboteur attempted to cripple this vessel. Find them and detain them.."
The newly promoted Admiral Verrits swallowed hard, his sandy blonde bangs underneath his gray hat stuck to his forehead due to the sweat that seeped from his pores.
"Y-yes my Lord! It will be done," he said, saluting the Dark Lord. But the seven foot monstrosity of flesh and cybernetics was already stomping past him over the body of his predecessor.
Darth Vader could faintly hear the new Admiral bark out orders to the techs that sat in their areas, ordering them to do the bidding of their superior.
Truth be told, Vader knew the source of the systems failure that sent the ship adrift in space. It was offline for a few minutes until the ship roared back to life. He could sense the waves that were sent out from the disturbance in the Force taken physical form as electrical pulses. He remembered feeling the Force wash over him before the pulses hit him. Thankfully, the electrical charge was minor, only shortening his life giving respirator for but a minute until his suit booted it back up.
In the winding halls of the Maverick, the Sith Lord moved past lines of stormtroopers, their white armor polished to reflect the overhead white lights. The ship was a hive of activity, all the men were on edge after the sudden power outage. Whispers already started to fill the groups of maintenance crews and troopers with gossip of a rebel attempt to kill Darth Vader himself. There was also talk of a failed attempt of a coup, leading to the death of the former admiral.
'Let them think what they will, it matters not. A little lie to keep them from knowing what really happened will hurt nobody'.
The reason why he killed the old admiral was due to the miscalculated jump to hyperspace, landing them in the system of Tatoo. Far too close to Tatooine for his taste. The miscalculation could have been attributed to the disturbance itself Vader realized. It may not have been the Admiral's fault for the error, but someone had to pay for the failure either way. Going down one corridor, Vader noticed some of the lights overhead were flickering, one even throwing sparks onto the gray floor. Despite the ship recovering quickly, minor systems still had yet to come back online, along with some physical systems being short circuited.
Stalking the hallways, Vader made his way to his quarters, taking the many twists and turns to come up to the large blast door of the entrance to his quarters. Two stormtroopers stood guard on either side of the blast door standing straighter and more alert when they saw the Sith round the corner.
"Lord Vader." they said in unison as the door opened for him. Entering his quarters, Vader passed by the workbench at his left and made way to the hyperbaric medical chamber in the center of the large room. The chamber reminded himself of the jaws of a metal beast, the top and bottom clamps that latched together were like square metal teeth. Sitting in the chair, the chamber automatically registered his presence and proceeded to close slowly. The clamps were close to being completely shut when the comlink on his belt chimed.
Pressing a button on his chair, the hyperbolic chamber reversed its actions as Vader's gloved hand brought the commlink up to his face. Pressing the side of the disk shaped holoprojector, the commlink synced with the projector and brought up a blue miniature of Admiral Veritts.
"Admiral, pray for your sake that you are not wasting my time," Vader growled. If the Admiral was frightened, he did a good job at hiding it.
"My Lord, we found the source of the system failure. We traced the point of origin for the pulse to engineering, in the cooling room for the ion engines. The scanners also picked up a heat signature, one that does not belong. The rebel is still inside. . . I am about to send a squad from the bridge down there to investigate."
Vader gave a small nod in acceptance. The plan was good but the amount of time it would take for a squad to arrive at the engine cooling room would allow the rebel time to escape, if he hadn't already.
"Well done Verrits. However, send the two guards who are posted closest to the room. The ones by the turbolift connecting all the levels of engineering."
"Very well. I will see to it immediately," said the Admiral, breaking eye contact with Darth Vader for a second to look out of the projection's field of view. "Ensign, call up engineering and find out who those guards are."
Looking back at the helmeted face of Vader, the blonde man nodded and bowed slightly before canceling the call.
Lord Vader sat in silence for a moment. His helmet allowing no emotion to show through.
Inside, he was a calm yet simmering volcano of anger. He touched the fire that was his anger and embraced it into his hand, directing it to obey him. With the fire that was the Dark Side, Vader let himself go. He had always hated to meditate as a Jedi, but now his thoughts did not have to be cleared, rather they had to be focused onto singular things and using his emotions to fuel the Force. Reaching out to the disturbance's point of origin, all he could sense was swirling waves of both the light and the darkness of the Force. All aspects of the Force, surrounding a person. Someone who held the Force inside of them, a conduit of power not unlike the now dead Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker.
Yet it was untrained, and unfocused hence the waves rolling off the life form. The Force particularly favored this person, the Dark Lord realized as he moved his mind to intrude upon the thoughts of the 'disturbance'. This realization came to light when he attempted to worm his way into the lifeforms mind, the Force itself bloomed outwards and ripped free from the Sith's grasp. For the first time in eleven years, the Dark Side failed to obey its self-proclaimed master. Anger began to surround Vader, anger at the Force for having a will of its own and at this person. This person that had caused such a large disturbance both on his ship and the Force, who was an unknown variable in the grand scheme of things.
One that, Vader hoped, would help bring further order to the Empire.