Chapter Text
Above the burning world of Kashyyyk, a Star Destroyer looms.
Standing on it's bridge, Darth Vader stared through the transparasteel windows, and looked down upon the Wookiee homeworld. Flanked by several gray colored Venator-Class Destroyers, the brand new Imperial-Class Destroyer formed a line across the black canvas of space, an imposing durasteel curtain that hung over the forest world.
It was all Vader's to command, yet he cared for none of it. With the lone exception of the Emperor, Vader was the most powerful being in the Galaxy. Entire world's and its people, like Kashyyyk, lived or died wholly upon his whims. Yet despite all his power, he could never have what he truly wanted.
Padme, his beloved wife, their dead unborn child....
Vader's furnace heart flared and burned brighter. Palpatine, the Emperor, he would make him pay. He would have his vengeance. One day, he would overthrow his Master, make him feel helpless before the power of Darth Vader!
But he knew it would never be so. Ever since Mustafar, Vader had never recovered the potential he held as the Chosen One, and he knew he never would. Even a year removed after the incident, he knew that the power he had felt during the fall of the Republic would never come to him again. Where his Master was, where Palpatine stood in the power of the Darkside, Vader could never fully be. He could only hope to get close to his Master's power, it was foolishness to ever think he could become his equal, much less surpass him.
His injuries, a parting gift from his former Master, Obi-Wan Kenobi, hampered his abilities. Yet, even that, wasn't the worse of it.
Everyday was agony for Vader, and it always would be. He was not even a man anymore, he was little more than a machine. His cybernetics chafed and scraped against his burn skin; His artificial ears rang as they picked up every conceivable noise and translated them into his brain as a monotonous melody; His eyes burned as they stared out of his helmet's lenses, with only a red-tinted ugly world to greet him; And the breathing. Always the breathing. Every inhale was a fight for his life, like he was still burning upon the glass sands of Mustafar, about to die. Every breath feeling like his last, only to survive and exhale, then start the process over again.
I'm already dying, it's just a manner of who I take with me.
"My lord?" The Ship's captain spoke, snapping Vader back to the present.
"What is it." Vader said, vocal cords burning through his helmet's modulator.
"Our forces have engaged Tarful and his resistance. It's believed that, they have Jedi present." The Captain stammered out.
Vader remained silent, his breathing echoing throughout the bridge of the Star Destroyer.
Jedi.
Palpatine may have manipulated him, but the Jedi had betrayed him. They needed to pay, they all did.
"Prepare my ship." Vader said curtly.
The Captain nodded and began shouting orders. Vader turned, and made his way to the Destroyer's hanger. And, even though it was painful to do so, Vader managed a small smile. He was going to enjoy this.
It was twilight.
The fighting in the air was rough, but his shuttle managed to touch down on the sandy beach front the Empire had managed to establish. The sky blazed with laser fire, and the air streaked with both Wookiee and Imperial star-ships.
V-Wings, Experimental LAAG's, IRAS's, and Rho-Class Shuttles swarmed the air, desperately trying to land or shoot Wookiee ships down. Further down the beach, massive cannons, that had once been owned by Republic and CIS forces, fired energy rounds towards the ships; as well at the scattered Imperial ground vehicles. AT-PT's, AT-RT's, and Juggernaut-Turbo tanks plowed forward; taking heavy damage or exploding outright.
Vader walked through the carnage, and entered a trench that served as a command center. Upon entering, the various Clones, TK-Troopers, and Commandos that made up the 501st stood at attention. Vader ignored them, and strode through the trench. After a few minutes, Vader found who he was looking for.
"Captain Gan, with me."
Gan, a Clone trooper who had been resting, sat up right, and gave Vader a nod before turning to the troopers that surrounded them.
"You heard him men, clear out!"
A squad of about twelve men, Clones and TK-Troopers, gathered around the Captain. Gan pulled on his helmet, and they marched out of the trench.
The darkness of night gave them cover, but inevitably they were stopped by the wookiees. They fired their bow casters, green laser bolts lighting up the night, and Vader flicked them aside with his hand. Like they were nothing more than annoying insects.
The wookiees howled and fired more bolts towards Vader, not realizing that they were making it easier for Captain Gan and his team to spot them. The trooper's fired their rifles, and the red bolts of energy lit up the night. Many of them landing and killing their targets.
The shooting grew more intense, and a few of Vader's troops were killed by an occasional shot that managed to slip through. Then, finally, they reached the entrance to the wookiee camp. Vader gathered the Force to himself, and exploded it outwards. Equipment and wookiees flew back at high speeds, crashing violently into wookiee huts. Then, for the first time since landing on Kashyyyk, Vader ignited his crimson lightsaber.
Powered by a corrupted Kyber crystal, and a set of synthetic crystals, the blade illuminated the wookiee camp, casting a sinister red light upon all who gaze on it.
The wookiees opened fire, and Vader redirected the bolts back at the warriors. Captain Gan moved to his side, providing cover fire for the rest of the squad. Vader moved deeper into the camp, hacking apart any wookiees who came too close.
Then, a pair of warriors lunged at him with enormous swords. The metal managed to withstand the heat of the lightsaber, and they tried to hack Vader apart.
Vader side stepped their swings, and adjusted the length of his blade. The blade elongated, and gave him a greater reach. Vader parried their strikes, and prevented them from closing the gap between them. One warrior over-committed his strike, leaving him exposed. Vader swung, and severed the wookiee's arms, then brought his blade up and cleaved the wookiee's head off. The scent of burned hair and flesh filling the air. The wookiee's companion howled, and lunched at Vader.
Vader held up his hand, and caught the wookiee in a Force choke.
Then, another wookiee.
And another.
And another.
And another
Five wookiees in total clawed at their throats.
A small part of Vader felt embittered, and wished he had been able to use Force lightning. He was able to produce it, but due to his injuries and flawed cybernetics, attempting to do so would do more damage to him than to his enemies. Regardless of this handy cap and his bitterness, Vader did take pride in his skill of Force choke. Not only being able to grip an opponent's wind pipe, but hearts, lungs, brains, and even arteries. Vader squeezed his fist, and the wookiees went still before falling to the ground.
In the distance, a hundred meters away, one of the wookiee's cannons began to rotate. It's legs stepping side to side, and bringing it around to face Vader and his surviving troopers. Reaching out, Vader gripped the cannon with the Force. The cannon buckled, then began to float high into the air. Then, Vader shoved and the cannon went crashing into the next cannon. An explosion lit up the beach, and the wookiees roared into the night.
After throwing the cannon, however, Vader didn't move. Commander Gan and his troopers stood at attention, waited for further orders. The sounds of blaster fire and Vader's breathing filling the night. Then, from behind him, Vader heard the snap hiss of a lightsaber activating.
Vader turned, and saw a middle aged human wearing tattered robes and gripping a blue lightsaber.
"You're not welcome here, Dark Lord." The Jedi said with a Coruscanti accent.
Captain Gan raised his blaster, and Vader waved him away. Gan obeyed, and ordered the rest of his men to move out. Once they left, Vader shifted his stance and raised his lightsaber.
The man dashed forward and they dueled. The Jedi pushed him back and out of the wookiee camp, but failed to land any hits on the Sith. Vader let the Jedi's confidence build, then he struck. Vader swung down hard on the Jedi's lightsaber, trying to batter and beat him into submission. The Jedi grunted, and fell onto his back. Vader raised his saber, then sensed incoming danger.
Vader moved his blade in front of him just in time to block the lightsaber of another Jedi.
The second Jedi was female, middle aged, brunette hair, and gripping a yellow lightsaber tightly. Before Vader could counter attack, the man recovered and almost slashed off Vader's legs. Vader jumped back, and the woman maneuvered behind Vader. Vader dodged her thrust, and narrowly avoided another strike from the man. The Jedi worked harmoniously, and they were well corradiated. They shared a bond, something beyond mere partnership, Vader could sense it. Even in the midst of battle, Vader could see the way the pair looked at each other, could feel the affection they held for each other, could see the wedding bands each one wore on their finger.
Vader's rage surged and became a blistering inferno. His mind turned again to his late wife, to Padme.
Anakin Skywalker was dead. Vader had killed him. So now, anything that reminded Vader of him, had to be purged and destroyed.
The man swung his blade towards Vader's chest. Instead of dodging or blocking the strike, Vader shifted his stance and allowed the lightsaber to strike his shoulder pauldrons. The lightsaber sent sparks flying, but did minimal damage to the armor. Vader's hand grabbed the Jedi's hand, and crushed it in his grip. The man's bones, along with with his lightsaber, shattered in the Sith lord's cybernetic fist. The man screamed out in pain, and the woman rushed at Vader in attempt to save her husband. Vader spun and threw the man towards her, causing her to stumble as she tried to catch him. Before he hit the ground, Vader blitz forward and slashed at the woman's lightsaber.
The lightsaber, and the top half of her hand, were severed by his blade.
The woman screamed, and fell to her knees where her husband had landed. Using the Force, Vader lifted them into the air, then threw them into a nearby wookiee hut. Their bodies broke through the hut's wooden exterior, and they landed roughly on the floor. Vader entered the destroyed home, and held the husband and wife in a painful Force choke. One simple squeeze, and it would all be over. Before that however, Vader needed information.
When he had first landed on Kashyyyk, he had felt the presence of a powerful Force user. He had assumed it was one of the Jedi, but Vader could tell it was neither of them. Still, Vader knew the Force user was close by.
"I sense someone far more powerful than you. Where are they hiding?" Vader demanded coldly.
The Jedi, despite the immense pain they were in, managed to laugh.
"The Dark side has clouded your mind Sith. There is no one else!" The woman gasped.
Vader raised his saber, only for it to suddenly fly out of his hand. Vader spun, and saw who he had been looking for. It was a boy, no older than three. He had managed to use the Force to pull Vader's lightsaber to his hands while the Sith had been distracted. The boy pointed the saber's blade at Vader. He was terrified and on the verge of tears.
"Ah, a son." Vader said.
"RUN!" The boy's parents screamed.
Vader, now remembering the Jedi, closed his fist. The Jedi's trachea were crushed in Vader's grip. He allowed the bodies to fall to the ground, then pulled his lightsaber back into his hand with the Force.
The toddler began to sob tears of sorrow and fear. He brokenly called out to his mother and father, only to be met with no reply. The only sound being his cries, the hum of a lightsaber, and Vader's breathing.
For a long time, Vader stared at the boy, illuminated in a crimson glow, and considered. The boy was strong in the Force, and with proper training, he could be a useful asset. Perhaps, even a powerful apprentice. Yet, the Emperor controlled and saw all. His spies were everywhere, and the billions of military personnel swore their allegiance to him, and him alone. Lord Vader was merely the Emperor's fist. Any authority he held, allegiances he had, came from the Emperor. How could Vader hide this boy from his Master, let alone find time to train him in the ways of the Dark side?
Unless, he were to hide in plain sight.
His decision made, Vader deactivated his lightsaber and grabbed the boy's arm.
"Come with me." Vader said coldly.
The boy tried to break free and run to his dead parents with a strength that surprised the Dark lord. But Vader was stronger. His grip remained and the boy was dragged away.
Galen clung tightly to the monster's leg.
Only yesterday, Galen lived what was, in his mind, a perfect life. He had his parents, he had big furry giants as friends, and his parents had taught him how he could become a Jedi like them one day. Galen didn't understand much, he didn't know what a Jedi was, and he barley remembered his own name, but he was happy and that was enough.
Then, the monster came. His parents had been scared, and they told him to hide. Then, his parents had been thrown through their home, and then they were killed by the monster. The monster was terrifying, and scared him more than anything back home had. It was tall and imposing. Breathing in and out unnaturally, and Galen felt cold being around him.
Still, despite all of this, he clung to him.
Because where he had taken him was far scarier. A black castle that sat upon a dark ocean, filled with wicked knights, shadowy soldiers, and something far more sinister lurking within the castle's walls. A phantom presence that seemed to encapsulate the whole of the planet. The monster dragged him down dimly lit corridors, until they came face to face with what looked like a demon. The demon was tall, pale skinned, had an elongated forehead, and had strange lines that covered his face. The demon smiled wickedly at Galen, sharp teeth gleaming in the hallway light.
"Another recruit? We don't usually take ones so... young." The demon spoke to the monster.
The monster said nothing, and just continued to stare at the demon. Breathing in and out rhythmically. The demon coughed into his hand.
"As my lord commands."
The demon grabbed Galen, and dragged him away from the monster. Galen tried to cling to the monster, but his grip loosened and he was dragged away. Galen cried again, and it looked like the demon was about to say something, but the monster spoke first.
"No one here is your ally. No one here will help you. No one here will save you. Your only hope, is the Darkside. Cling to it. The dark is generous, it is patient, and it always wins."
Galen did not understand all the words, but one thing the monster spoke stuck out to him.
The dark... is generous...
That phrase etched itself upon Galen's heart. In his darkest times in this place, in his most grueling challenges, and during his greatest doubts, he would always remember.
The dark generous, it is patient, and it always wins...