Chapter Text
Luke paced around the small bedroom. His hands were clasped behind his back. His eyes kept darting to the window. He still wasn't used to the neverending city of this planet. He had been to a few large cities, but nothing compared to Imperi- No. Coruscant. It was still Coruscant. Yes, this was the past. The Empire had yet to rise. The Jedi had yet to be eradicated. And Anakin Skywalker had yet to become Darth Vader.
Anakin Skywalker . . . Luke thought back to the conversation he had with his younger father.
"He's a Sith," Anakin had said of Vader. "They only care about power. He's only interested in you joining him in the Dark Side. To make himself more powerful."
Was that all Vader saw Luke as? A tool to overthrow the Emperor? A way to gather more power?
"I am not strong enough," Vader had said of himself killing the Emperor. But surely . . . surely there was more than that. There was something there inside Vader. There was a light in him. Anakin Skywalker was overflowing with light, but that same light was inside Vader. It was faint. It was small, but it was there. Luke was sure of it. Plus Vader had said that when he found out Luke's mother was pregnant, it was one of the happiest moments of his life. Surely that meant, that just maybe, Vader actually cared for Luke.
Luke just wished he knew what to do. Should he tell Anakin the truth? Should he warn those of the past of the future? Would it change the future for the better or perhaps for the worse? And if it did change, what would become of Luke? It was all too much. He walked over to the window and eyed the distant traffic lighting up the dark skies.
He sighed. He wanted to be flying. He wanted to feel his heart pound in his chest as he pulled a few G's doing daring turns and sharp drops. Flying always made him feel better. So did his friends. His friends . . . he missed them. He so badly wanted to talk to Leia or Han or even Wedge. He just wanted someone he could lean on. He felt so alienated here. So alone.
He also felt on edge. The sensation had been growing as the day had worn on. Perhaps he was dreading the next conversation with Anakin or perhaps Vader. A few Jedi had come in and talked to him after lunch. They wanted to know more about Darth Vader, and Luke told them very little. The Jedi were getting a bit frustrated with him. Perhaps that was the anxiety he was feeling.
Luke scoffed and marched away from the window deeper into the room. What should he do? What did he want? He paused as he considered these questions. What did he want? He wanted to meet his mother. He wanted to save his father. He didn't want him to become Darth Vader. But Luke didn't know how to save Anakin. He had no clue why Anakin had become a Sith in the first place.
His anxiety was growing. There was a pain in his chest as his heart beat faster and faster, and it grew more painful. As if there were needles poking into his heart. Was he going to have a panic attack? Luke ran a hand through his hair.
What he really wanted was to be home. Home was no longer a place for him, but more of a feeling when he was with Leia and Han or amongst the Rogue Squadron. He wanted to be back in his own time. Dealing with the enormity of the Empire seemed simpler than time travel. The goal was straight forward. Destroy the Empire. Restore the Republic. There were no deep thoughts or concerns about time and changing history. So how does he get back? With Vader? With the Jedi? He got here in his X-Wing, perhaps he needed to get a ship.
His body was tightly wound. He felt squeezed. His hair on the back of his neck stood on end. He should meditate. He needed to calm down. He needed to move. Move. Right now!
It felt as if everything was in slow motion. He saw the blaster bolt burn a hole into the transparisteel. He saw the lines of cracks race and grow out of the hole in the window. He saw the red bolt hurtling toward him. Everything around him was screaming. MOVE! He tried to go to the right, but his whole body was slow. Too slow. The red bolt was on its path straight for him. He wasn't going to be able to get free.
It had truly been a matter of seconds since the shot burst through the window and hit Luke. At once pain exploded and burned through him. He hit the floor with a thud. He was stunned. He just laid there. Pain raced through almost every part of him. Sharp razors filled his blood and cut through his whole body. He could feel warm blood pooling around him. Deep thumps of footsteps were heard as someone ran up to him and knelt by his side. There were sounds that were possibly someone speaking, but Luke heard none of it. The pain was easing away and he was growing tired.
He closed his eyes and it felt so good to do so. He was so tired. Tired of the past. Tired of dealing with Anakin and Vader. He just wanted to be home. And if he closed his eyes . . . perhaps it would be like he was home. It was quiet and so comfortable . . .
Anakin rushed through the Temple towards the healing halls. But the entire time there was a coldness snapping at him. A sharp constant rapping on a door inside of Anakin's mind. Vader. Somehow the two now had a Force bond, a connection. Anakin made sure that the door Vader kept pounding on was well shut and secured.
Anakin found Obi-Wan in the healing halls. "What happened?" Anakin asked.
Obi-Wan looked tired with dark circles under his eyes. His hair looked unkempt. "Looks like it was an assassination attempt," Obi-Wan said.
"Ass-Assassination?" Anakin yelled. "Who? Why . . . Did you catch them?"
"No," Obi-Wan said. "They were on a speeder. Shot a blaster bolt right through Luke's window."
"Is he ok?" Anakin said surprised to find his voice came out as a whisper.
"He is with the healers now. The bolt went into his neck. My guess is this assassin was aiming for the head and Luke just barely managed to dodge it."
A cold chill washed over Anakin. None of this was making any sense. Who wanted Luke dead and why? The kid had been here in this time only a week.
"We do have some security footage," Obi-Wan was explaining, "of the speeder with two passengers inside . . ."
Anakin wasn't listening. He needed answers and there was only one person who may have them. "Excuse me, Obi-Wan," he said to his old master as he took a few steps away. Slowly he opened the door inside of his mind and welcomed the cold and the dark in.
Skywalker, Vader growled in the Force. My son. What have you Jedi scum done to my son?
We Jedi are saving your son, Anakin barked back. This was an assassination attempt. Someone on a speeder shot at him through a window.
Is he . . .
Going to make it? Currently, but he is still undergoing treatment with the healers.
Anakin could feel the relief that flooded out of Vader. However, it was quickly pushed away as fear and anger came roaring back along the shared Force connection.
An assassin? Vader asked.
Yes, an assassin, Anakin responded. Who would want to kill Luke? If you two are time travelers then no one should know him here unless you've already involved him in some Sith trouble.
I have not involved him in- But Vader suddenly cut himself off. A tense silence fell along the Force bond.
Vader? Anakin asked. What have you done?
Why was Anakin not surprised? With all that he had learned about Darth Vader, it was no surprise that he was already mixed up in something.
The bounty hunter, Vader hissed.
The what?
The bounty hunter. The one we saw in the Force vision on the rooftop speaking to Sidious. I thought Sidious had hired them to come after me. It was Luke! Luke was the mark!
Burning cold anger lashed out in the Force. Anakin withdrew as much as he could from Vader without breaking their bond.
Who is Sidious? Anakin asked.
My Sith master, Vader said.
And why does he want Luke dead?
Because he does not like when things do not fit into his perfectly formed plans. My arrival to this time has upset the order of the Dark Side. I am not welcomed here. I am an enemy.
And if they can't get at you, they went after the thing you were after, Anakin figured.
I warned him, Vader hissed. I warned him not to touch Luke!
Who? Your Sith master? Do you know who he is? Is he a Sith known here in this time? Is he Dooku's master? The one running the war? Anakin pushed.
He had only briefly thought about who a twisted version of Anakin would bow and swear allegiance to in the Dark Side. But was this the other Sith the Republic and the Jedi were looking for? The mastermind behind the Separatists and this war? But then he felt the connection close off from Vader's end. The bond went still and quiet.
"Kriff," Anakin cursed. Again he was left with questions after talking with Vader. But perhaps the most worrying question was, what was Vader going to do now?