Chapter Text
Summary: A prison outbreak goes wrong and suddenly, there are even more people who need to be broken out.
Vader fumed.
There was only one person he had hoped to capture who had been part of the rebel group which had infiltrated the Imperial prison.
There was only one person which had escaped the trap carefully laid out in the prison.
Naturally, the person he was talking about was Luke Skywalker, his dear son who had yet once again avoided his near-capture. Vader grumbled under his breath. He had been so close. Less than a few rooms and corridors had separated them when the boy had pulled off another one of these crazy stunts he seemed to be so good at. Vader was rather sure that if he didn´t capture him first Lukes´ stunts would at some point cause him a heart attack.
His plan had been so well thought out. As soon as his contact at the rebels had provided him with the information that a group of rebels including Luke and the troublesome crew of the Millenium Falcon would be on a mission for a prison breakout, he had begun laying out the trap. All stormtroopers had been instructed to set their weapons for stun. The quarters had been prepared accordingly. And despite it all, it had gone miserably wrong.
From his son and his horribly failed capture, his thoughts wandered to the rest of the rebel group he now had to deal with. That included the incredibly nerve-racking princess Leia, the loud-mouthed smuggler, a Wookie and a pathetic group of around five other rebels. His men had also retrieved the Millenium Falcon from its hiding place.
All nice and well, apart from the fact of them still being alive and his son hiding somewhere in the city. Without a proper two-way connection he couldn´t tell more than that he hadn´t left the immediate surrounding areas. Vader had made sure that it would stay that way by establishing strict controls and by stationing a small part of his fleet above the planet to intercept any ships which might lift off avoiding the controls.
Not that the boy would try to leave in any way. Vader had figured that he was definitely planning on breaking his friends out in a just as reckless move as he had shown before. Whether he was waiting for the right circumstances and preparing or waiting for the rebels to send reinforcements he didn´t know.
Not that it mattered.
Darth Vader smiled grimly behind his mask as a plan took hold in his mind.
Luke Skywalker was currently not in the best of moods. First of all, their mission had failed, had failed badly, and all of his friends had been captured. Second of all, he was hungry. Both of those were serious problems but at least the second one could be solved rather easily.
Of course, he was aware that the whole city had been alerted to his presence and was probably looking for him. Holograms and prints of his face could be literally found everywhere. There had even been a big announcement over loudspeakers to be aware of the dangerous rebel still hiding somewhere in the city. Patrols had started to systematically comb the city. All ships were checked expertly before leaving the planet, not only in this city but apparently on a large scale.
Luke scowled. He couldn´t believe the Empire went to such lengths to capture a single rebel. Then again, maybe capturing the rebel who destroyed the death star and recently ran around acting as a wanna-be jedi causing trouble seemed worth the effort after all. If they knew that he had been the pilot to make the decisive shot.
His scowl deepened. He had contacted the rebels right after the mission had gone wrong but apart from their assurance that they would send help as soon as possible he hadn´t heard anything else from them. No shelter to hide in, no orders except the order to hide, no nothing. His first action- after escaping that death trap of a prison- therefore was to find a way to get back in. And preferably out, too. With a whole bunch of recently freed prisoners. He had started planning, had studied the workings of the guards and the outlay of the building as well as their safety installations as good as he had been able to and had thereby gained one final conclusion: There was no freaking way to break into that prison.
Not as it was now. The intense security installments only served to show him more clearly that the whole thing had been a setup, a carefully laid-out trap. And they had walked right in.
He sighed silently and leaned his head back, letting the cool evening air flow over his face. Trying to get himself to focus on the situation again, he counted what implements he had to work with. His lightsaber. A blaster he had picked up in the middle of the fight. A large dark cloak- stolen- which he had wrapped himself into in order to hide his face and his clothes which the cameras had surely picked up. A handful of small tools in one of his pockets. A handful of coins, not enough to spend them on anything useful, especially not to bribe someone. No ship. No bombs or something similar to create a diversion elsewhere. All in all, he had nothing. Except for a still growling stomach.
With another quiet sigh he pushed himself from the wall he had been leaning against and started walking around the corner and towards the shabby inn he had been eyeing for a while now. It stood in a rather run-down part of the town and attracted all kinds of fishy low lifes. It was the kind of inn where someone like him could possibly still hope to hide and to not attract too much unwanted attention.
He entered, wrinkling his nose at the smells, keeping his head down while still trying to get a best possible impression of the location and the guests and walking towards an empty place by the bar. He made sure to have the entrance and the people directly around him in his field of vision as well as to have localized at least two alternative ways of exit.
Only then did he allow to let half of his attention wander to the bar keeper in order to order some food. He murmured a short, locally common greeting and was about to inquire what the most edible food in this godforsaken place was when a dark rumbling baritone suddenly caught his attention and nearly stopped his heart dead in his chest.
He twirled around fast on his barstool, breathing out only when he spotted the blue, flickering hologram of Darth Vader standing on a table in the corner of the room right beside him. Then he focused on the words Vader was forming and everything inside him grew cold.
“This message goes out to Luke Skywalker hiding out there. I repeat: This message goes out to Luke Skywalker.” Luke swallowed and pulled his cape deeper into his face, leaning forward unconsciously.
“As you are certainly aware, we have the rest of your rebel friends, including the former princess Leia, currently in our custody after their attack on the prison to free dangerous inmates. As these rebels hold no value to the Empire and endanger the security of all citizens, they will at short times notice be terminated. Luke Skywalker, I am giving you a choice. Hand yourself over to the authorities and I shall spare these criminals from death. If you refuse to do so, believing that help from the rebels will come in time, I will terminate the rebels one at a time each hour starting tomorrow at 12 o´clock. I repeat: This message goes out to Luke Skywalker. As you are certainly aware…”
“Are you still going to order?” the bar keeper inquired from behind him sounding exasperated. “Excuse me, m´ suddenly not hungry anymore,” Luke murmured and abruptly stood up. He rushed out of the inn, probably too quickly, probably too conspicuously, whatever.
The moment he stepped around the corner he started running. He didn´t know where to go, he didn´t even think about it, all that was in his mind was a vicious circle of Vaders´ words.
… for the security of all citizens, they will at short times notice… be terminated…
I am giving you a choice…
…Hand yourself over…
If you refuse to do so I will terminate the rebels one at a time each hour…
…starting tomorrow at 12 o´clock.
When his lungs started burning and his legs gave out under him he fell to his knees, raising his face to the sky as little drops of rain started to fall down on him- as the sky grew darker and darker- as night started to fall.
“I´m so screwed”, he panted, over and over again. “I´m so screwed.”
The next day, unsurprisingly, came rather early.
Luke had spent the last precious hours of the previous day contacting the Rebel Alliance, explaining the situation. The answers he had gotten hadn´t been very encouraging. There was a small Star fleet hovering over the planet, making it basically impossible to send in any Alliance ships. Even if they had send them in, Luke´s description of the prison layout and its security installations made it very clear that any attempt to storm the prison would be a suicide mission.
“I can´t and I won´t force you to surrender yourself”, Mon Mothma had said. “This is your decision and your decision only. We also have no proof that Vader would even keep his promise to let them live.”
Vader. And that was the other problem, wasn´t it? Why would Darth freaking Vader go as far as to offer an exchange of a whole group of rebels against him? So they had indeed finally found out that he had been the pilot who had caused the destruction of the Death Star, had connected his name to the deed?
Vader…
Luke´s stomach clenched when he remembered the duel- if you could call it that- on Cymoon One. Vader had been rather contemptuous back then, clearly not taking him seriously at all. And now he was here, probably only for him…
And not only that… the bounty on his head stated rather loudly that the Dark Lord wanted him alive. Luke had felt sick as he had finally fallen asleep, rolled together in a bad hideout in barely dry clothes, uneasy and alone and quite insecure of what the next day would hold.
The next day, to his surprise, had gifted him with a clear head, a new determination, and, furthermore, with a course of action. If Vader wanted him, he´d get him. But Luke was going to make him pay for it.
He made his way through the city, not really trying to behave inconspicuous anymore, his steps strong and determined. There were patrols all around the prison facilities and the cameras would pick him up the moment he left the security of the shadowed entrances in the last rows of houses. Most likely even before. He didn´t care anymore.
There was a square in front of where the walls of the prison skyrocketed. In the middle of the meters thick walls, there was a quadratic entrance and beyond lay, as he knew, the first inner courtyard which was rather huge. Beyond that in return lay the actual entrance to the prison. Everywhere, there were weaponry and cameras installed. And of course, stormtroopers everywhere.
He left the cloak somewhere on the ground of the last street, letting it flutter to the ground, revealing his face and clothing for the first time in two days.
Luke threw one last look down at his comlink checking the time- point 10 o´clock- then he stepped out onto the free space in front of the prison. He held his lightsaber loosely in his one hand, clearly visible to anyone, and kept his other hand close to his blaster.
The stormtrooper squad he encountered recognized him instantly, obviously planning on taking him in custody immediately. Luke raised his lightsaber in a warning gesture, one string of self-control away from lighting it, and said in a steady and calm voice: “You will escort me to Lord Vader.” He tried to pull on the Force while saying it, remembering the mindtrick Ben had used back then to get them out of trouble.
He didn´t know whether or not it had worked but the stormtroopers escorted him in their midst without trying to restrain him, actually keeping their distance from him. He stepped through the archway into the inner courtyard of the prison and that was when a cold that was not related to the weather started to creep down his spine.
He looked up and cold dread twisted in his stomach as he faced Darth Vader, standing ten meters away from him, unmoving, staring at him. The fear he had kept at bay for so long suddenly came rushing forward and he stumbled shortly before he regained control.
Because of course there had been never a choice, not in his eyes, not ever. If he had the chance to save his friends´ lifes, of course he´d do it, even if the cost was his own. All that and more ran through his head as he faced the murderer of his father.
He ignored the fear churning at his insides, fought the trembling in his limbs and stepped further forward, noticing only now that they were surrounded by stormtroopers, two squads lined up behind Vader and a circle spread around Luke himself but none of the troopers close enough for him to attack them with the lightsaber.
The doors of the archway closed with a loud thump and then there was silence.
Luke´s heart thumped so loudly he was sure somebody could hear. He clutched his lightsaber harder, unwilling to betray his churning emotions.
“Skywalker,” Vader said, finally breaking the silence. “So you´ve come.”
“It´s not like you gave me much of a choice,” Luke replied, anger in his voice.
He could have sworn he felt a sliver of faint amusement and dark satisfaction coming from the Dark Lord, thrumming underneath the strong, barely contained sense of triumph.
“Lay down your weapon”, the Sith Lord intoned.
Luke shook his head. „First, you release my friends. I won´t do anything before you have given them back the Falcon and let them escape through the barricade of Imperial ships up above. I want them contacting me on my comlink that they have successfully escaped, then I will put down my weapon. Oh, and don´t you think of putting a homing beacon on the Falcon.”
A strange static noise escaped the Dark Lord´s vocoder. Luke wasn´t exactly sure what it meant and whether or not there were sounds the vocoder could not reproduce.
“And why do you think I would do as you demand? As you can see you are in quite the precarious position right now”, Vader said, pointing vaguely to the stormtroopers surrounding Luke, now open amusement and mockery in his tone.
Luke pulled back his shoulders and straightened.
“Because you want me alive. Am I right?”.
And with that, he pulled his unlit lightsaber up and held it right to his temple, his thumb resting on the activation button.
Vader grew stiff and very, very quiet.
“You think I would care much about whether or not you died?” he said in a tone which probably was supposed to sound lightly. “You do that and you and your friends are both dead. You want that?”
“You wanna risk it?” Luke said, twitching his finger slightly.
Vader tensed and Luke felt, he actually FELT the Dark Side gathering around Vader. He clenched his teeth and set his jaw defiantly. “Whatever you´d try to do, you wouldn´t be quick enough. You don´t think I´d do it?”
You would and that´s the problem, a voice said inside his head.
He continued to stare at Vader, his hand unwavering, ready to react to the smallest sign of menace. Silence stretched.
“FINE”, Vader growled out in the end, a barely contained anger- such anger!- in his voice.
Luke suppressed the sliver of fear, real fear twisting his stomach and nodded once, jerkily.
“It´s a deal.”
“Now put down your weapon”, Vader said, and, was that some small relief in his voice?
“No.” Luke shook his head. “First my conditions, then yours.”
A growl, an actual growl escaped the Dark Lord but then he turned abruptly to the officer standing behind him. “Get the Falcon here. Get the prisoners here. Dismantle the Falcon´s weaponry. And bring down a goddamn escort of TIE fighters, we don´t want them to do something stupid.”
While the officer hurriedly scurried away, Vader turned back to Luke. Luke couldn´t help comparing him to a predator turning in on his prey.
“You happy now, Skywalker?!”
“Very much so”, Luke replied lightly. He kept still while things were set in motions around him, more stormtroopers arriving in place. His arm grew heavy from keeping the lightsaber´s hilt pressed to his temple but he ignored the sensation. Vader kept his eyes on him, or at least he assumed so from the positioning of the black helmet. The Falcon came into view from the sky- where had they even hidden it? Oh,Han would be terribly upset someone had dared to fly his ship- and descended upon the ground, far away from Luke, too far to ever hope to make an escape when the others came into view, not with all the stormtroopers, not with Vader around.
Leia, Han, Chewie and the other rebels Luke had gotten to know in the previous days looked unharmed when they stumbled through the doors of the prison. Far more stormtroopers than needed escorted them, even more at the sides keeping their arms on them. They were blinking at the bright light of the day, confused at what was happening, not yet grasping their situation. Then Leia spotted Luke standing in the middle of the circle of stormtroopers and Vader standing a few meters in front of him.
“Luke!” she called out. “LUKE!”
Han joined her shouting a second later. “Kid, what are you doing there? What is going on?!”
Luke´s whole body strained and he fought to keep his self-control. “I got you out of here, that´s what´s going on here,” he shouted, trying to project self-confidence and optimism through his tone.
They clearly didn´t buy it.
“You did WHAT??!”, Leia and Han exclaimed simultaneously. Luke managed a shaky smile.
“That was the deal”, he said weakly, before he regained the strength of his voice. “Free travel back for all of you. In exchange for me,” he added.
“Luke, don´t you dare even think about doing this whole sacrificial hero bullsh…” “HAN”, Luke interrupted him before the smuggler could finish his sentence. “It´s too late now, anyway.” He gestured at the stormtroopers surrounding him with his free hand.
“The weaponry of the Falcon is dismantled. The hyperdrive has not been tampered with. You will get into that ship and set for hyperspace the moment you´ve left the blockade of Imperial ships above. Your friend will stay here to keep me some company”, Vader said sharply, impatience ringing in his words.
Luke swallowed, hearing the undertones of anger, feeling them and this time, they were definitely directed at Leia and Han.
“Please, don´t let this go to waste”, he said with a helpless smile. “Go.”
And then, reluctantly, definitely only encouraged by the blasters the stormtroopers pushed at their backs, they stumbled forwards, towards the entrance of the Falcon.
“Luke…” he heard Leia call out a last time.
“Kid, we are gonna get you out of there, hang in there!” Han´s voice carried across the square.
Lukes´ lips twitched, not fully forming a smile. His arm started to tremble but he stubbornly kept it up.
“Call me when you´re up there”, he shouted, suddenly feeling the intense desire to run after them, damning the consequences. Vader stepped into his field of vision, one step closer. “Stay back,” Luke hissed and gripped his lightsaber´s hilt stronger again. Vader hesitated, then stilled, refusing to back off. Was he afraid that Luke would actually dare to run after them? Even he knew that he would neither manage that nor would Vader let him do it. He breathed in deeply and forced himself to stay up straight.
The Falcon shuddered once and then, finally, it rose into the sky, accompanied by a group of TIE fighters. Luke followed it with his eyes, longingly, ever so conscious of Vader closely watching him.
It quickly disappeared from his field of vision. A few minutes more and then, a static crackle from his comlink… He raised his free hand to activate it.
“Luke,” Leia´s voice said, concerned and strained.
“I hear you,” he managed to say with a stable voice.
“We´re gonna enter hyperspace now,” Han´s voice joined the conversation. Relief flooded Luke and made his knees feel weak. “Trust me, kid, we´re gonna get you out of there. We´re coming back for you.”
“Thanks, guys”, Luke whispered, his voice nearly breaking at the end. “But I don´t think you will find much to return to.” There was no way that Vader was going to let him live. He wanted to parade him in front of the Emperor and then publicly execute him as the Destroyer of the Death Star. And that´s where Luke´s role in all of this would end.
His whole situation now crashed at full speed at him. He felt weak and he needed to lock his knees in order to keep standing. His breathing was a bit shallow.
“Entering hyperspace”, was the last thing he heard, then the noise coming from the comlink went static.
He raised his head, looking towards Vader who´s eyes had never left him. The gaze seemed to strip him bare and he suppressed a shudder. It was his turn now to fulfill the conditions of the deal. It was not like he had much choice in that matter.
Slowly, unwillingly, he dropped the lightsaber´s hilt from his temple.
“Stun him before he does something equally stupid,” Vader ordered the moment he did.
The lights of the stun shots were the last thing he saw before he dropped into darkness.