The Emperor's Gambit

The Emperor’s Gambit

A short story loosely based on the Star Wars universe

By: Stanley Komarniski

It had been 20 years since Luke defeated the Emperor and saved his father from the Dark Side. The Jedi school he had started was far away from Coruscant, in the outer rim. It was the general idea that if he kept the Jedi away from the Politics in Coruscant that he could avoid the mistakes that the Jedi made in the past. At the same time, it kept the trainees from being manipulated from some of the corruption in the government.

Even though his sister, Leia, had done a wonderful job at cleaning up the corruption in the New Republic. Still there remained a sinister presence in the government. There was still a fight politically and literally against those who still supported the Empire. They had wanted to bring back the old empire, and it really hit home to the phrase that stated, ‘Those who had power did everything to keep it’.

Ben Solo, Han and Leia’s son, was his current apprentice. At Eighteen Ben showed great promise as he mastered the force easily. Luke saw himself in Ben, as he had the same struggles with the force as Luke had. Luke’s experience of battling his father allowed him to give insight into Ben on approaching and facing the dark side.

Luke sat quietly in meditation feeling the force around him. The Force led Luke to giving Ben the trials that would give him the status of Jedi knight. The future for the Jedi was bright as there was balance in the Force. The Sith would be gone for another thousand years. If they ever returned, the Jedi would be ready.

* * * * * *

(25 years earlier)

The Emperor sat in his meditation room focusing out into space. He was looking for the future. As he meditated lightning came from every part of his levitated body touching the walls and lighting up the room. He could see his ‘Death Star’ ready to be deployed. His counterpart, Darth Vader, is close to capturing the rebels. Even though the plans for his ultimate weapon had been stolen, it was like a beacon in the force that allowed Vader to close in on the secret leaders of the rebellion. Soon the senate would be abolished, and he would have true and total control of the galaxy. This realization caused the lightning to become more intense as he reached out.

Then Palpatine saw it. The Dark Side of the Force showed him the destruction of his Death Star. A flaw and a force wielding pilot were the cause. No matter how he concentrated, he could not see the flaw or the pilot who was responsible for its destruction. The loss of the ultimate weapon would be a banner for those to rise up against the empire. He could not allow that future to happen. Then the force led him to a vision of his death. He could see himself with a broken back falling down a long shaft into large plasma injectors. The feeling of death broke his concentration as he fell to the floor in the darkness. The contact with the dark hard floor was a reminder of the vision of his death as he got up.

Palpatine acted immediately and drew up plans to construct a second Death Star. He would let the rebellion have their minor victory. Moving to setup the Empire to strike back at the rebellion and bring fear to the galaxy. He would oversee the second Death Star and have a throne room setup for him there. He would order them to have the weapon systems on the second Death Star ready before it was completed construction. One of the Geonosians had stated he could increase the firepower and charging state on the Death Star main weapon. It would improve its destructive capability and shorten dramatically the time it took for the weapon to charge. He would definitely use this knowledge in the construction of the second Death Star.

At the same time, he set in motion to release the plans for the second Death Star to the Bothans. He would use this to draw the rebels out. An elaborate trap would be waiting for them. Their faith in their friends would be their undoing.

One of his main engineers suggested an escape hatch just clear of his throne room in case things went badly. The hatch would be triggered if he was in intimate danger automatically drawing him into the pod and firing him off to safety.

Palpatine’s gambit would be to allow the destruction of the first Death Star. This would give the Rebel leaders overconfidence and allow him to destroy them completely. He allowed himself to laugh as he moved through the hallway.

His laughter, cold and dark, echoed through the hallways. His plans were proceeding as he had foreseen.

* * * * * *

Luke sat in meditation. Taking in the joy around him. The life and death cycle perfect in the surroundings. Thoughts and visions of Leia and Han together, happy, planning on another child. Anakin would be the name if it was a boy, Padmé if it was a girl. Ben is happy and looking forward to his trials that would define him as a Jedi. The goodness of the Force lit up Ben’s presence. The school was ready with those Luke had trained to bring in other force potential students. Luke could see the Jedi’s future, and it was grand filled with hope and honor. Ahsoka Tano’s future would lead her to here to become a great Jedi master teaching her skills to the padawan learners. All was bright and well.

Then suddenly force lightning came out of every part of Luke’s body, lighting up his meditation chamber, lifting him off the floor. The force lightning scored the walls and floors with its intensity. As it encompassed Luke he screamed into the force, “what is happening?”

The Force responded loudly as speaking with a thousand voices, “Change!”

The Force lightning hurt as it came out of Luke. Wherever it touched, it left glowing scars on the walls, floor and ceiling.

Luke no longer saw a bright future. He saw darkness, pain and strife! Palpatine was still alive. Han and Leia were separated. Han would be killed by Ben who now calls himself Kylo Ren. Kylo would do more damage than Vader ever did in the galaxy. Everyone would suffer as the Empire re-established itself with unheard of weapons. Luke could see Emperor Palpatine’s connection with Ben. Feeding him darkness. Ben was no longer happy, but angry and filled with hate and loss. Ahsoka Tano was completely lost to the Jedi! His Jedi academy had fallen apart, and he was relying on Ben to keep it together. However, Ben was encompassed in the dark side and drew on its power, it became his friend and now guided him deeper into the darkness. The lightning washed over Luke and he was in great despair.

* * * * * *

Then suddenly Luke was laying in the throne room of the second Death Star as the lightning was still encompassing his body as it washed over him. The lightning was now being fed from the Emperor’s outstretched hands. Emperor Palpatine said, “Now young Skywalker, you will die!”

Luke looked at Vader in desperation. Then he heard Vader scream. “No….. No….” as Vader picked up Palpatine in the air and squeezed him breaking his back. Palpatine’s lightning lit up Vader doing the damage to him that was meant for Luke. Vader then threw Palpatine down the long shaft where Palpatine would meet his destiny. However, as Luke heard the familiar screams from Palpatine who was facing death, the change came that the Force spoke about. Palpatine was drawn off to a chamber on the wall and disappeared.

Luke screamed, “This wasn’t the way it happened!” Luke remembered that Palpatine fell to his death and his body was consumed by the plasma below. Luke clutched his father, Vader, on the floor as his father collapsed into his arms.

Just before Emperor Palpatine’s POD launched into the void of space, it fed the coordinates of its destination, Exegol, into the Sith wayfinder hidden in the anteroom just off of the throne room. The launch was silent and imperceptible as it moved away from the death star. Only a moment later to enter hyperspace on route toward its destination. Its existence hidden in the battle that continued all around the death star.

* * * * * *

Luke returned to the present and found himself standing over Ben. Everything had gone dark, there was no positive energy. Ben was shadowed with the dark side, he was bathed in it and it covered his very existence. Palpatine had changed everything and survived when he shouldn’t have. Luke could see Palpatine’s connection to Ben. The future was now hidden by the Dark Side of the Force. Ben was sleeping, and Luke knew he had to stop this dark future before it happened. It was the only way!

Luke positioned himself above ben and lit up his light saber and raised it. As he drew it down onto Ben’s sleeping body the blade was stopped by Ben’s light saber. All that was heard was the clash of the two light sabers as everything blew apart around them. The change had come!