Balance and Victory: A Star Wars Alternate Universe [COMPLETED!]

Chapter 18

Han Solo was a naïve kid; Anakin gathered that much. Clearly, he was unhappy with his circumstances on this nasty planet, so he looked to the greatest source of power in the galaxy to turn his life around. Anakin had done the exact same thing as a nine-year-old on Tatooine. But while the Jedi Order had added purpose to his life and taught him many valuable things, in the end it hadn't amounted to much. The Order had proven to be relatively weak and full of corruption.

And if the Jedi Order had been corrupt, the Empire was far worse. Anakin had seen firsthand the way it made the common person struggle to get by, more so than the Republic ever did. Taxes had increased dramatically over the past few years, and what for? To provide the Stormtroopers with armor and weapons. Businesses were more tightly regulated than ever before, and many people were losing their homes. Anakin had always hated when a powerful group of people took advantage of those weaker than themselves.

"You don't know what the Empire is really like, do you?" he finally said.

Han's dark brown eyes narrowed in suspicion. "What, like you know so much about it?"

"More than you do, at least."

"Why?"

"First of all, you're just a kid still, so I know more than you do about living in the real world."

"Don't you even go there!" Han said indignantly, jumping up to his feet. "I've been on my own more than you might think. I may not be technically an adult, but I will be soon, and I'm not some pampered brat.... And you're not even that much older than me! What are you, thirty?"

"Twenty-nine. All I'm trying to say is, I've had to provide for more people than just myself. I have a family, and here's the thing. Years ago the empire forced me away from my wife and son. And just yesterday, they kidnapped my daughter. She's seven years old, and a couple of Stormtroopers put her on a ship and took her to Coruscant!"

Han sat back down, the expression on his face still hostile. "Look, I'm sorry to hear about that and everything, but we have to face the facts. The only plausible explanation I see is that you're a source of trouble for the Empire, so they have to deal with you as a self-preservation mechanism. Is that correct?"

Unfortunately, it was. But Anakin wouldn't get into specifics; he did not feel that he owed this teenager anything.

"In the past," he said carefully, "I was the sort of person that the Empire might consider a threat. But I have not caused any trouble for them, on any level, for a long time. I'm just trying to say that my family doesn't deserve this from them. They don't need to kidnap children to protect their government."

"And what does any of this have to do with me?"

Anakin cringed inwardly at the selfishness of Han's remark, but chose to ignore it. "If you join the Empire, you'll have to do things that violate your conscience. That's what I'm trying to tell you."

Han leaned back in the chair and laughed coldly. "Here's the thing. I really don't have a conscience. That's why I was stuck on that blasted planet Jubilar. I cheated in one of their Sabacc tournaments, and they caught me, so they banished me to that town. They took away my money and my transportation, practically made a slave out of me. And now I don't even care, because I got a ride off you. So all I'm trying to say is, your problems are not my problems. Just because you don't like the Empire, it doesn't mean I can't join them."

Anakin shook his head. Maybe the kid would learn someday.

"So, you say you have no conscience. If that's the case, I don't think I can trust you to hold up your end of the deal. Tatooine is coming up pretty soon... I'm pretty tempted to drop you off there and let you fend for your sorry self."

Han scowled and jumped up again. "No, that wouldn't be fair! I helped you fix this stupid ship!"

"But there's another thing you agreed to do. To not tell anyone about me. And considering how I'm going to Coruscant to rescue my daughter, and you have romanticized ideas about the greatness of the Empire..."

"I do not-"

"I'm not going to waste my time with you while she needs me." Anakin reached for the controls to pull the ship out of hyperspace, with every intention of stopping to dump Han off on Tatooine.

Han's lip twitched, and his face was flushed with anger. He looked as though he would have liked to pick a fight with Anakin right then and there, but he seemed to think better of it. The boy was lanky and awkward, with no real muscle on his frame, and he probably understood that. With a sigh, he sank back down.

"I don't need to squeal on the Empire," he muttered. "You'll fail without me helping them. You're just one guy against all of them. You'll be shot down in a split second."

"We'll see," Anakin said grimly.

* * *

Little did the Skywalkers know that all four of them were on Coruscant at once.

Anakin dropped Han off far away from the Senate district, quite on purpose. Partly because he didn't want Han to know where he was going, and partly because he wanted the kid to have to figure out his route and transportation himself.

Then, Anakin landed a few blocks away from the complex with the Senate and Palpatine's office. A shiver passed down his spine as the presence of the Dark Side made itself obvious. This place used to feel so familiar and welcoming, and now it felt eerie and strange. Coruscant was now a dark and evil metropolis.

"This is it, Artoo," Anakin murmured, as they stepped out into the middle of the district. As Han had said, this could easily become a massive failure, but Anakin was willing to do whatever it might take.