The Resistance launched their attack on the Imperial star destroyer in the Hoth system. X-wings and starfighters blasted at the ship's shields, and TIE fighters were dispatched to try and regain the advantage. The cry of the Imperial ships sounded as they curved in formation, and the Resistance broke from their groups to avoid the lethal blasts.
'The Captain is about to jump!' a rebel pilot said into his helmet's microphone. 'Let's keep them busy!'
The message was heard in all Resistance ship cockpits, and they continued their distraction while the Captain's ship prepared its hyperdrive.
Padme was in the cockpit with her lieutenant in the pilot seat. She watched her men and women of all species twist and turn with TIE fighters hot on their tails. She longed to help them, but if she were to fall in the battle, their branch of the Resistance would be without a leader. Mothma was counting on Padme to run the division and relocate the Resistance to Yavin 4, where a new base was awaiting their arrival.
'Ahsoka should be here by now,' Revan arrived in the cockpit as the lieutenant finished typing in their coordinates on the controls. 'We can't jump yet.'
'We don't have time. Tano knows where we're going. We'll meet her there,' the lieutenant said without looking over his shoulder at the Jedi. Revan looked at Padme with a desperate expression, but the Captain's hands were tied.
'I'm sorry, Revan. So many are struggling out there already. We can't wait,' Padme said, her tone soft and sympathetic. She knew that pilots were waiting desperately for her ship's departure, as they would be cleared to follow once the Captain had jumped to hyperspace. Every ship that was hit was another life lost, and Padme couldn't bare any unnecessary deaths for her benefit.
Revan sighed and turned to leave the cockpit. In his grey attire, the Jedi walked down the hall and headed for a quiet place where he could meditate. He needed some time to think, and being at peace was something that Revan hadn't been able to accomplish for a while. Without his wife by his side, Revan struggled to find things to be content with, or to feel joyful about. He needed to reconnect with the Force and strengthen his bond with the light side.
On his way, he passed C3-PO and R2. The droids had the privilege of being transported on the safest ship in the Resistance (besides Mon Mothma's personal vessel). With the information they had on secret plans and their extensive access to lists of rebel member contacts, the two droids were listed as precious cargo.
'Oh, Artoo, I'm beginning to forget what being at home feels like,' C3-PO said. The golden droid was strapped into a seat while R2 had locked his wheels and clamped his legs to the floor. He would hate to end up on the other side of the ship when it jumped to hyperspace.
'You only remember two places; Naboo and Hoth. How could you possibly forget what being at home feels like?' R2 whistled sassily.
'I don't know, Artoo. Sometimes I... feel like there is so much more to what I can remember,' C3-PO said with a shake of his head. He sounded upset, and R2's domed head swiveled around to look at the droid he's known for years.
Although C3-PO was incapable of showing human emotions, R2 observed how the droid looked out ahead with his glowing eyes somehow even more distant than they usually were. The black lock on C3-PO's chest plate was the origin of the droid's emotional dilemma, and R2 turned away with a sad boop. He wanted his friend back, but he couldn't restore his memory logs without jeoparadising the Resistance.
The Captain's ship jumped to hyperspace and the Resistance pulled back from their attack. As they all prepared to follow, a familiar T6 1974 ship appeared from its own jump through hyperspace. It joined the rebels with the coordinates for Yavin already in its controls, and the remainder of the Resistance left the Hoth system in a silenced boom.
---
'They're pulling back, sir,' a workman said from one of the lowered stations of the destroyer's cockpit.
Grand Moff Tarkin turned from the windshield where he had watched the Resistance attempt to bring down their ship. X-wings and starfighters fell back and headed past the destroyer, away from Hoth in an abandonment of their base.
'It appears that a ship was able to jump to hyperspace and the rest followed. We believe this would have been the captain, Padme Amidala,' the same workman informed and Tarkin straightened his back.
'She escaped,' he reaffirmed with tight lips. 'The Emperor will not be pleased to hear this. We fell for their deception.'
'Should I contact Lord Vader, sir? His arrival on Grand Admiral Thrawn's destroyer two rotations ago'
Tarkin thought about the workman's suggestion. Vader's departure had been sudden but Tarkin had been relieved to know that he wouldn't have to continue challenging the Sith with almost every decision he made. Darth Vader was confident in his plans, but they weren't always destined to succeed in Tarkin's eyes. Just like their attack on the Resistance's base, Vader was sure that the AT-TEs would be sufficient while he infiltrated the base when the rebels were distracted. But just as Tarkin thought, Vader failed in his mission and didn't even return with the Jedi that he had been so determined to find.
If Moff Tarkin oversaw the Resistance's defeat without Vader's interference, perhaps the Empire would finally be rid of the rebel vermin. Then the Emperor would be delighted with the man and favour him over his own apprentice.
That would show Vader. That would show the Emperor that his apprentice wasn't needed to get things done for the good of the Empire.
'No. Lord Vader has his priorities set,' Tarkin said, his cold stare on the workman who had the unfortunate task of communicating with the gaunt man. 'We will find the rebels again ourselves. Continue our course for the Outer-Rim systems.'
'Yes, sir.'
Lord Vader would stay uninformed, and Tarkin would hold the reins for now.
---
Sol's cell felt even smaller when she awoke with a splitting headache. She wished that there was a way to dim the lights, as their intensity increased the uncomfortable feeling behind her eyes. The hard slab underneath her back was painful to lie on and overall, Sol felt awful. There was no relief in turning over and when she resisted opening her eyes, Sol had nothing but the pain in her head to focus on, so she was forced to greet her cell with a throbbing head.
The Jedi groaned as she sat up. She had never woken up with such a pain in her senses, and when she remembered what had happened before she fell unconscious, she realised why she felt the way that she did.
Vader had used the Force to set Sol's mind into an unconscious state and it had a lasting effect. Using the Force in such a way was only possible through the dark side, which is why it left Sol uncomfortable and feeling sick to her stomach.
At the thought, Sol put a hand to her stomach and realised how hungry she was. She also noticed that her wrists were, once again, restrained by Force-resistant cuffs. Vader had made sure that he wasn't foolish in leaving the destroyer exposed to the Force abilities of a Jedi. But besides that fact, Sol thought that maybe her nauseous feeling was also being spurred on by barely having eaten anything in the past few days.
While travelling to Coruscant, Sol had been too anxious to be on her lonesome to think about eating something. From the lower levels of Coruscant, to her capture and boarding of the star destroyer, Sol had not a moment of peace where she was able to feel how empty her stomach was.
It was a while until someone came to Sol's cell. By that point, her stomach was churning and grumbling aloud. She was on the edge of her grey bed when the door slid open. She wanted to appear as if she wasn't absolutely ravished, but when she saw the tray of food in the storm trooper's hands, Sol couldn't resist standing up in haste.
'Hold it, Jedi,' another storm trooper sounded from outside the cell. With a stun gun aimed from the prison block's hallway, the trooper duo was wary of Sol's quick movements.
'This was by the request of Lord Vader,' the storm trooper said with his helmet motioning to the tray in his hand. 'Back against the wall. You'll be shot if you try anything.'
How desperately Sol wanted to rip the tray from the trooper's hands. But at the promise of food that wasn't thrown to the floor in an unnecessary commotion, Sol did as she was told.
She stepped back and bounced on her heels as the soldiers filed into the cell. In the cramped space, Sol watched the tray be lowered onto her bed while the storm trooper with the stun gun kept the barrel aimed at her from the door. Despite the bigger picture, Sol didn't care about an escape. All she wanted at that moment was the bread with the meat stew that was now within arm's reach.
The storm trooper in the cell turned to head towards his coworker and Sol thought she would soon be able to devour her meal. But infuriatingly, the trooper halted in his leave and turned back to the impatient woman.
'Lord Vader ordered that you'd be brought to the east wing when you're finished,' the trooper said. 'So, don't waste time, or you will have him to deal with. And he doesn't take kindly to Jedi scum like yourself.'
But I'm not just some Jedi scum, Sol thought. I'm the one who sliced open Darth Vader's helmet. I'm the one who knows who Darth Vader is underneath the mask.
As the storm troopers left her cell and the door slid shut behind them, Sol threw herself onto the hard slab that was her bed. She grabbed the bread with one hand and her other was forced with it because of the restraints around her wrists. But she didn't care as she chewed off a piece and resisted the urge to moan. There was no flavour, and it was minutes away from being stale, but Sol's stomach welcomed the food with open arms. And when she scooped up the stew with the dry food, Sol had to stop herself from swallowing the warm substance without making the efforts to chew.
The meal didn't last long. The tray was left empty moments after it had entered the cell and Sol felt her previous nausea fade. She wondered if she had been served the meal meant for the workmen and troopers onboard the destroyer, or if Darth Vader had sourced her something different. This led to Sol wondering where Vader ate, slept, or remained without the mask over his features.
The cell door opened again, and Sol was ordered to stand against the wall once more. The storm troopers from before entered and the same process ensued; one remained at the door with the stun gun while the other risked entering the small space. Sol's bicep was grabbed, and she was pulled out of the cell in a familiar routine.
Aware of the weapon aimed at her back, Sol walked with the troopers through the dark halls. While at a bearable pace this time, Sol took in the dark colours and tiled floors. She assumed that all Imperial destroyers were as gloomy and plain as the one she was being brought through. Each corner was rounded, and many doors lined the walls.
With quick glimpses into the Force, Sol saw dull flames in their clusters and on their lonesome behind the closed doors. The ones that simmered alone were probably generals working on reports, and the groups had to have been workmen doing their duties for the Empire.
It was then that Sol realised that she had full control of her power within the Force. During her duel with Darth Vader, Sol had let her hold on her Force signature loosen to reveal its energy. Without her conscious effort to reseal it, Sol's flame simmered in the spiritual realm for all to see. Her need to hide her presence had become pointless, as the man she intended to hide from was now well aware of her existence. In fact, Sol saw her presence in the Force as an advantage. Not just in the hopes to distract Vader from his attempts to turn her to the dark side, but to give the Resistance a lead on her location.
If Padme was looking for Sol, then the only way that the Resistance could locate her in the massive galaxy, was through Ahsoka and Revan's ability to look into the Force. There were many Imperial star destroyers, and it would be impossible to search all of them in hopes of finding the one Jedi. With Sol's white flame raging, then there was hope for a rescue.
Sol recognised the hallway before the troopers stopped in front of the door with the keypad. She now knew that the east wing was where Vader's personal training room was, and that the storm troopers were restricted from entering. They keyed in the sequence on the pad and the door opened, but the white-armoured men remained standing as Sol's arm was released. She glanced over her shoulder to see that the stun gun was still aimed at her, and Sol felt the presence that was overwhelming in its power within the Force in the darkness of the room ahead.
With slow steps, Sol entered the cold space. The door slid shut behind her with a low hiss and the lights from the hallway were cut off. Her exposed arms grew bumps at the chill and Sol walked further into the room in hopes of finding a warm patch.
Just as the previous day, the restraints around Sol's wrists loosened and fell to the tiles with a clatter. She glanced down at where they lay before looking up to where she knew Vader was stood in the dark.
'I hope that you are reenergised for another duel.'
Sol was surprised to hear Vader's voice through the transmission of his mask. She saw the reflective black metal from the dimmed lighting and couldn't help but feel disappointed.
Seeing Anakin's face had ignited something in Sol with the desire to see it continuously. Her dreamless sleep from Vader's use of the dark side had made it feel like it had only been a few hours since Sol destroyed his helmet. But even now, with metres in-between them, Sol wanted to see Anakin's face with the mess of light brown curls.
'Why are you continuing this guise, Vader?' Sol clung to what little confidence she had in Vader's presence. 'I'm one of the few that know what you look like underneath that.'
She expected some form of retort, but when Vader reached up to the neck of his mask, Sol felt her chest expand with excitement.
She couldn't believe that she was actually wishing to see Darth Vader's face. She should be planning her escape, and thinking about how she would regroup with the people that she knew were good and fighting for the Empire's defeat. She should have been thinking of Luke and Leia, and spending time being apalled at how little time she had to think about them and remember their faces. But here Sol was, in a dark room on a star destroyer watching a Sith pull his mask off and revealing the yellow eyes that held very little softness.
Vader looked at Sol with a growing smirk. With his mask in hand, he noticed the way Sol's purple eyes wandered about his features, and he felt her glowing signature flicker within the Force.
As she stood in her Jedi robes, Sol fell into her trance of staring at the face that she had been so taken with while in the Order. Vader took the opportunity to close the space that stood between them. Sol's gaze slowly rose as he stopped in front of her, and with her lips parted, she damned her lack of subtilty when glancing down at his lips.
'It's been a long time, Solaris,' Vader stared down at Sol from his monstrous height. 'Don't you remember how it felt? How it felt to indulge?'
Vader felt his own senses flaring, only he had more control over their limits. He wanted to give into his urges that pried at his insides. They scratched with their claws at his stomach and Vader allowed his hand to cup the side of Sol's face. He heard the small gasp from her lips and answered the beasts with a plea to wait.
Sol and Vader's flames were so different, but they welcomed each other as old lovers. Although Vader's was no longer light, Sol's purity went to take it in its arms as if to caress it back to the light.
Vader's face was close; so close that Sol felt his breath on the hairs of her face. She felt a shudder at the thumb that stroked her cheek and the leather from Vader's glove made her want to pull away. But she couldn't resist the sight of the lips that Sol once kissed in secret. They were lowering to hers, and Vader's head tilted to the side to let his nose skim against hers with a gentle touch.
'This isn't duelling,' Sol whispered with a strained breath.
'Isn't it?' he said back in a low hum. The sound of Anakin's voice made Sol believe that it was him again, and with his yellow eyes low, she imagined that they were blue and swirling with love.
'I guess I never learnt from your teachings, my darling.'
Sol's eyes fell shut when his lips fell on hers. Vader was gentle, which Sol remembered from the times of the Republic, and forgot that it was Darth Vader that she was kissing. His lips were so smooth, and she slid her own between his with an urge for more. With one hand still cupping her cheek, Vader's hand fell on Sol's side to grab her hip. Sol's heart quivered at this, and she put both of her hands on his tall shoulders.
It was Anakin again. The way he moved his lips against hers was just how Anakin's used to. Sol could anticipate when Vader was going to turn his head for a different angle, and when he would pull at her bottom lip. She was melting into him, and Sol felt the hand that was on her face move to the back of her head.
'Sol. Stop this. This is not the man you knew.'
Satele was in Sol's head. The woman's voice was distant, as she could only communicate to her through the Force while feeding off Sol's signature. But her presence was miniscule compared to the feeling Sol was experiencing when kissing Vader. He was addictive in the way he brought back the best moments of Sol's life, and she clung to the man who had made her crumble with his touch.
'Sol! You must resist! This is the dark side deceiving you!'
Sol would have continued ignoring Satele's warnings. She would have kissed Vader for an eternity if it continued in its familiarity. But when his robotic fingers duck into the bone of her hips, and when his tongue shoved its way into her mouth, Sol was pulled harshly from her moment of nostalgia.
She tried retracting by pulling her head back. It separated their lips, but Vader's thumb and forefinger pressed into the nape of her neck. His arm hooked around Sol's waist to press her flush against him and Sol stood on the tips of her toes at the strength he had in his arms around her.
Vader became desperate and intrusive, and Sol saw where Anakin finished and where Vader began.
'Hey-' she tried to say but was silenced by another crash of his lips. '-stop!'
She was angry at Vader's continuous kisses and from his physical strength, Sol was frustrated and scared at her dwindling ability to push him away. She felt a coolness rush through her veins and Sol shoved her hands into his chest where they had once sat peaceful. The Force collided with the Sith and Vader was sent across the room. His boots squeaked against the tiles and any other would have lost their balance at the strength that Sol held in her Force push. But Vader needed a few steps to catch himself when he came to a stop and with the back of his glove, he wiped at his mouth where the kiss still tingled.
Sol's eyes were wide, and her hands shook at the dying cold rush that had extended from her fingers. A new fear had crept up through her throat at the feeling of being overpowered in a way that wasn't with a lightsaber. She had been seduced by Vader by ability to remind Sol of his Jedi self, and when she realised that it was still the Sith who had slaughtered younglings in the Jedi Temple, Sol couldn't pull away when she attempted to. The inability to get away from Vader and his lips terrified Sol, and as he wore a devilish smirk with a narrowed stare, Sol realised that he had succeeded in deceiving her with the power of the dark side.
'I think we can forget about duels from now on, don't you agree, Solaris?'