Luke began his descent into Bespin, his mind racing. After leaving Yoda, his thoughts had been full of conflict. Was he doing the right thing? No, he knew he was. His friends were in danger; they needed him. They would do the same for him, and in the case of Han, had done it already. In the past three years with the Alliance, Han and Leia had become his family, along with the rest of his squadron. The destruction of the Death Star was a weight still on his shoulders, the deaths of millions still felt in his heart and the Force. Luke shuddered in his seat, aside from saving the Alliance, there had been another advantage from destroying that technological terror.

The Emperor had been abroad.

Luke was responsible for killing Emperor Palpatine, arguably the greatest evil this galaxy had ever known. Vader had unfortunately survived, and immediately took his place on the throne. Things became far more difficult for the Alliance afterwards, not because of Vader, no, he was exactly what they expected. The problem was their new Empress: Lady Vader.

She appeared out of nowhere, but apparently her and Vader had been married for ages. She was in her mid forties, but she retained a youthful beauty to her, with long brown hair and deep brown eyes. She was charismatic and endearing, and according to Leia, the Alliance's worst nightmare.

"She is too charming," Leia said with a frown, "When the Empire was lead by someone as horrific as Palpatine, it was simpler to inspire systems to join our cause. Not easy, but simpler. There was no ambiguity, they were evil and we were trying to save the galaxy from them. Now...nothing appears clear anymore."

Luke understood completely. Since beginning the new reign, Empress Vader had ordered the removal of several of the Empires more horrific laws. Slavery had been outlawed, and the preference for humans was all but removed. The senate had been reinstated almost immediately, although the members still retained almost no real power. Several departments had opened within the government as well, offering assistance for impoverished worlds.

While the steps were all positive, the Emperor and Empress still retained all of their power, still controlled the media and still demanded undivided loyalty from their subjects with the threat of violence if not complied. The galaxy was still within the iron grip of a few individuals, with no care for the thoughts and opinions of the rest of the systems.

In the last three years, the Alliance had seen a dramatic drop in funding and recruitment, all willing to sacrifice their freedom for peace. Oh yes, he understood why Empress Vader was so terrifying.

By comparison, Vader himself had remained generally the same. The Dark Lord still ran the military with no remorse, still inspiring fear at the very sight of him. His wife was the one who ran the political aspect of the government, a realm Vader seemed willing to stay out of.

Luke guided his X-wing down onto the landing pad of the floating city. He nodded to himself; this was definitely the place from his vision. His friends were here, he could feel it.

Disembarking from his ship, with R2D2 tailing behind, Luke crept into Cloud City, his movements silent. He navigated through the corridors, dodging patrols of Stormtroopers left and right. He found himself moving further and further into the city, and realizing he was becoming lost. He pressed forward, hoping the Force would guide him.

His right hand reached instinctively for his saber, holding it aloft. He knew Vader was here; he could sense it. He shuddered, his father's killer was here, and now he had taken his friends. Luke pushed the fear building in his gut down, and whipped the sweat from his brow. Now was not the time to get nervous. He would need a clear head for what he was about to do.

Dodging another patroll of stormtroopers, he found himself moving down a long, white corridor. Spotting a terminal, he stopped in front of it. "R2, try and splice into the cities mainframe, see if you can find where they are holding Han and Leia."

R2 responded with an affirmative beep, opening the terminal and injecting himself into the computer. Luke nodded, his head turning to the left. At the end of the corridor was a large set of double doors. Something...something was calling him down there. He felt a pull towards that room, something important was inside.

"R2, keep working on finding Han and Leia. I'll scout ahead. Comm me if you find anything." R2 gave another positive beep before returning to his work.

Luke moved down towards the doors, holding his saber tight in his hand. Anticipation and dread welled up inside of him, sweat trickling from his bow. He felt the gravity of his movements in the Force; whatever was waiting here would impact him profoundly. He opened the door.

The room was large, circular, and very well-lit, with several other doors inside. Massive windows dominated the exterior wall, with a large white sofa wrapping around the edges of the room. The floors and interior walls were all white as well, in fact the only color came from the occupants of the room. Four red-clad guards stood in attention near the other doors, and sitting in the center, seated at a small black table, was Empress Vader.

Upon entering the room, Luke's heart stopped beating. Vader he was expecting, but the Empress?! Why in the galaxy was she not at Imperial Center? Even more importantly, what was she here of all places? Surly her husband would be the one to deal with a Rebel Jedi? What the stars was going on?!

The Empress looked up and smiled as Luke entered the room. "Welcome young Skywalker, I've been expecting you. You won't be needing your weapon today. I was hoping we could have dinner together."

"Dinner?" Luke said, "You want to have dinner with me?" Luke kept his saber unlit but still in his hand.

"Yes. Not an unreasonable request is it?"

Luke eyed her, biting his lip. Leia's words about her charming nature resonated in his head. In his time in the alliance, he had never heard of the Empire attempting something as extreme as this to detain a prisoner. 'Maybe it's because I'm a Jedi,' he though, 'Or at least, attempting to be one.'

"You can imagine why I would have a hard time trusting you, your Highness." Luke said slowly. He would play along for now, until he figured out what the hell was happening.

The Empress nodded, "Yes, I can understand why you wouldn't trust me. You, a Rebel Commander, and I, the leader of the Empire you work to destroy. But you and I have quite a few things to discuss."

Luke raised an eyebrow, "We do?"

"We do indeed. Perhaps a show of good faith would help." The Empress stood up. "I will have my guards leave the room, if you will lower your weapon." Luke looked towards the guards before looking down at his saber. "Perhaps Luke," she said, "We can discuss the release of your friends during this conversation."

Luke's head shot up at that, "Why in the galaxy would you release them? We're all wanted by the Empire."

The Empress's smile grew, "Lower your weapon and find out."

Luke glanced down his blade. He had absolutely no trust for this woman, but the possibility of releasing his friends was far too enticing. He reached into the Force, seeking guidance. He felt no danger from the Empress, nor any malicious intent. Slowly, he clipped it back to his belt.

The Empress clapped her hands, "Wonderful. As promised, guards, leave us." Without a word, the red clad guards left the room, leaving Luke and the woman alone.

The Empress returned to her seat, gesturing at the chair in front of her, "Please, join me. I'm sure you must be hungry."

Eyes never leaving the her, Luke moved forward to the table in the center of the room, lowering himself into the chair facing the door. The Empress sat down before pulling out a small device. Before Luke could ask, she pressed a button and within seconds a droid rolled into the room and approached the table. "Greetings, I am 3D50. I am programed to meet all culinary needs." The droid procured menus and handed them to both Luke and the Empress.

The woman smiled up at the droid, taking the menu. "Thank you 3D50. Luke, if you may?"

Luke tentatively grabbed a menu. While glancing down at the choices, his mind couldn't help but wander. This was, without a doubt, the strangest thing to happen to him. And considering he had been almost eaten in a trash compactor, abducted by a snow monster, and learned an ancient religion from a one meter tall green elf, that was saying something. He made his selection and handed the menu back to the droid. Looking up, he realized the Empress had been staring at him, a fond grin on her face. Deciding her smiling at him was undoubtedly creepy, he scowled back.

"What exactly is this all about your Highness?" Luke made the conscious choice to remain respectful, for now at least. He was still convinced this was an elaborate trap, although it had to be the most involved one he'd ever heard of.

"There are several reasons I wanted to meet you, young Skywalker, the first of which is to thank you."

Luke's posture shot up. "Thank me?"

The Empress nodded, "Yes, thank you. My husband and I had been trying to find a way to kill the former Emperor for years. Yet you came along and managed it in just one shot."
Luke's mouth fell open. Even if Vader and his wife were planning a political coup, why in the spinning galaxy would they need him to kill the Emperor. By the Force, Vader was a Sith! Why would this be so challenging. Not to mention, even killing the former Emperor would be nothing compared to the loss of resource and life.

"I can tell you're having a hard time with this. The former Emperor was a Sith Lord."

"A SITH LORD?!"

The Empress laughed, "Indeed he was, unknown to most of the galaxy. Destroying him would have been...difficult for a number of reasons. However, you managed to do it with a single blast. Very effective overall." She raised her glass towards Luke.

"B-but what about the weapon? The Imperial lives lost?"

"All excellent points." She took a sip of her drink, "In regards to the weapon, it was a monstrosity. Neither Vader nor I ever approved of it, not that the Emperor would care for either of our opinion. Had we taken the throne before its destruction, out first act would be its dismantlement. Such a technological terror has no place in this galaxy."

Luke gave her a look of disbelief.

"In regards to the loss of life," she continued, ignoring his look, "I cannot excuse the massive loss of life associated with its destruction. However, I do believe the Emperor would have easily used the weapon on other unsuspecting world's, leading to a fate such as Alderaan. The Death Star was a military base; something we cannot forget. Alderaan was full of innocent civilians, people who did not consent to being a part of a war. Even if their government was associated with the Rebels, a fact well known now with Princess Leia's involvement, they did not deserve death for something they had nothing to do with. For that reason, I must take a Utilitarian approach, the loss of life associated with the Death Star's destruction is significantly less than if the monstrosity was allowed to continue to exist. And so, I thank you, Luke Skywalker."

Luke stared at her, just stared. Leia's words of her excessive charm rang through his ears.

Seeing his dumbfounded expression, the Empress through her head back and laughed. "Forgive me Luke, I seemed to have slipped into a speech. Horrible habit after so many years in politics."

Luke found the corners of his mouth pulling up, but he suppressed it. The way the woman spoke remind him far too much of the Princess. They shared the same elegance, same pasion, although for vastly different causes.

"So… All of this was to issue a pardon?" Luke frowned.

"Hardly. We could have done that on the Holovid. No, you and I have something far more personal to discuss."

"And what exactly would that be?"

"What do you know about your family."

Rage ignited in Luke, suddenly reminded of who he sat across from. The wife of a killer, his father's killer. This woman, while somewhat endearing, was a monster just like Vader. "I know my father was named Anakin Skywalker." Luke stood up, pointing a finger at the woman, "and I know your husband killed him!"
The Empress didn't flinch at Luke's outburst. "Who told you that?"

"What?"

"Who exactly told you that? And, more importantly, why did you believe them?"

"W-why does that matter?"
The woman chuckled, "It always matters Luke. Always question your sources."

Luke's eyes narrowed, "I know the credibility of my source, your Highness. The Jedi Master Kenobi. That's who told me."

This time, the Empress let out a full bodied laugh, "Obi-Wan? Believe me, he, like all of the Jedi, have their own unique perspective on the world. One must take their words with a grain of salt."

Luke made a face of disgust. How dare this woman insult Ben? As if her husband didn't slaughter him, along with the majority of the Jedi, without an ounce of remorse. "And what? You're the unbiased source I should follow?"

The woman smiled, "No. I am biased just like everyone else. However, perhaps you should listen to what I have to say, and form your own opinion."

"And what?" Luke countered, "How is there a different side of the story to killing my father?"

The Empress stood, turning away from Luke for a moment. "Did you know what happens when someone joins the Sith? It's actually rather fascinating."

Luke stared at the back of her, his arm crossed over his chest. What did it matter? He couldn't give one credit about the religious practices of them.

"The Sith swears themself to the Dark Side and their master, devoting themselves to their teachings. It's extremely important to the whole half of of the religion. After swearing themselves to the Darkness, the take on a new name. Fun fact, Darth is actually a title, and the part after is more associated with a first name."

Luke's frown deepened, "And I should care about this because…?"

"I'm getting there. I married my husband when he still went by the name he was born to, before swearing himself to the ways of the Sith. We even had a child together, although most do not know that."

Luke's eyebrows shot up. A child? He certainly had never heard of that. Poor kid. But more importantly, what did this have to do with him? Why would he be the one provided this information?

"I suppose you are wondering why I would tell you this. You see, my husband, before become a Sith, went by the name Anakin Skywalker."

Luke's eyes went wide, "No."

"Luke, Vader is your father-"

"NO!"

The woman turned around, "-and that makes me-"

"IT'S NOT TRUE!" Luke tried to back away, stumbling to the ground.

"I am your mother Luke. Vader and I are your parents."
"THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!"

"Perhaps you should search your feelings, young one. You know this to be true." Luke's head whipped around, searching for the new voice.

Vader had entered the room.