The Emperor's Hand
by Kelly
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Disclaimer- The characters of these story belong to their respective owners- George Lucas and Timothy Zahn. I have not intentionally breached any copyright laws. Please do not use this story without my permission!!!
Prologue: A Lost Past
"Where's my little princess?" asked Nathaniel Jade as he entered the small cottage.
With a flash of red hair and blue material, a small form rushed into the room and leapt into his arms. Scooping up the child, Nathaniel laughed and ruffled her tangled tresses.
"Daddy!" she cried. "Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!"
It had been too long. It had been much too long. The tall, dark-haired man looked down at his child. His pride and joy. She looked so much bigger than when he had last seen her -- she felt bigger too.
To his embarrassment, he realised that he had forgotten her age. Three? Four? Had it really been that long? He told himself that he'd have to find out.
"I've missed you," he said as he lowed her to the ground.
"Mara missed you too," she said, clinging to his leg.
"I'm sorry, princess," Nathaniel said. And he meant it. He'd do anything to spend more time with his daughter. If it weren't for the Emperor and his warped obsession with killing Force-strong beings...
"It's not good enough this time," came a new voice sadly. "Sorry really is not good enough."
"Karsha," he said, a lump forming in his throat. He moved away from Mara and pulled his wife into his arms.
To his suprise and sorrow, she pushed him away and looked him in the eyes seriously. "Did you know that she learnt to spell and write her name? She really wanted to show you. But you weren't there."
Nathaniel studied his wife solemnly. She was beautiful. He often wondered why she choose him over all the other young men in the Imperial Court. Physically, she was just like her daughter-- long red-gold hair, brilliant green eyes, delicate rose colored skin and a small, slender body.
Yet when it came to personality Nathaniel hoped that Mara wouldn't resemble her mother. Although he loved his wife, he disliked the fact that she was haughty, selfish and nothing he ever did seemed to come to even close to her high standards. But at the same time, she could be so sweet and kind.
"Karsha, I'm so sorry," he said sincerely. "But you knew when you married me that I'd be away often."
"Yes. I know," she groaned. "And believe me, I've had plenty of time to chide myself over that mistake. Don't you ever think--"
"What!"Nathaniel cut into her tirade. "Mistake? Karsha! We've been married for five years. It's too late for reconsidering things. Way too late. We even have a daughter--"
"No," she interjected. "We do not have a daughter. I have a daughter. You haven't been around nearly enough for her to consider you her father."
A small hand tugged at Nathaniel's sleeve. Silently he cursed himself for fighting with Karsha in front of Mara.
"Yes, Princess," he said, leaning down close to her. Karsha folded her arms impatiently.
"Mara is thirsty," she said softly.
"I'll get you a drink, Princess," he promised, taking Mara by the hand and leading her into the kitchen, leaving Karsha glaring vibroblades into his back. It was then that he realised that this was Mara's way of stopping the argument. He let out a dejected sigh. Her efforts were useless. Karsha would undoubtedly pick up the fight from where they left off as soon as Mara had her drink.
"Now why don't you go to your room, Princess?" Nathaniel asked as Mara slowly sipped the glass juice he poured.
She pouted. "No. Mara wants daddy to play outside with her."
"Daddy and Mummy have some talking to do," Nathaniel said, forcing his voice to become stern.
Mara's bottom lip began to tremble. "But Mummy will start yelling again. She yelled a lot when you were gone. She yelled whenever she needed you and you weren't there. You were never there."
"Oh Mara," sighed Nathaniel, taking her up in his arms. "I'm so sorry. I'd love to always be there for you and your mother, but it's not possible. If I spend too much time here, the Emperor will find out about you."
A haze came over Mara's tiny face. "What's he like?"
"Who? The Emperor?"
"What's he like?" she repeated.
"He's...he's..." Nathaniel's voice trailed off. He looked over his shoulder nervously, as if he expected to see a full squadron of stormtroopers. "When you're older, I'll sit down and have a long talk with you about him."
"But Daddy--"
"No 'buts'. I want you to go and play with your toys," he said, carrying her out to her bedroom.
"But Daddy, I think I know him."
Nathaniel stopped in his tracks; inexplicable coldness running through his body. He wondered if it was his undeveloped Force abilities that were trying to tell him something. Something was definitely wrong.
"What do you mean?" he asked cautiously.
"I know him," the little girl said conspiringly. "The Emperor. He spoke to me."
"Don't be stupid," Nathaniel said briskly, continuing on the her bedroom. But somehow, he knew she was telling the truth. Yet it just didn't seem possible that a child would be able to talk to the Emperor. "How could you have spoken to him?"
"In my mind."
Sudden panic filled his mind. With those three words, he instantly knew that his life would soon end. His life, his wife's and probably Mara's too.
The secret that he had guarded with his life was out. The secret about his beloved daughter.
He set her down in her room and hurried out, closing the door behind him.
"Nathaniel," snapped Karsha crossly as he entered the lounge room. "What's your problem? I thought I was marrying a loyal Imperial Agent. It was an honor, but you--"
"Shut up!" he snarled, suprising even himself. "For once in your life, Karsha, just shut up!" Karsha's pale skin turned a shade paler. She took an involuntary step backwards. During her stunned silence, Nathaniel took a deep breath and regained his composure. "The Emperor knows about Mara. He spoke to her through the Force."
"What!" cried Karsha. Her whole body began to tremble with rage and fear. "Sith! Kreffing Sith! We're all going to die! He'll kill me! You son of a hutt...you kreffing son of a hutt! I knew that we should have told the Emperor about Mara," she sobbed.
The sight of his wife crying suprisingly didn't make Nathaniel feel sorry. Instead, he had an insight that he should have known years ago: Karsha was not the right woman for him.
The thought had occurred to him before, but he had always pushed it to the back of his mind. Now it shone like a ray of light. But it was too late. She would have been better off marrying a loyal Imperial...not someone like him. That's what she deserved, he thought sadly.
"But if we had told the Emperor that we had a Force sensitive child, he would have killed her with all the rest of the Jedi," he reminded her, trying to keep his tone soft.
"You're Force sensitive and he hasn't killed you," Karsha pointed out.
"I'm not even sure if he knows about my Force sensitivity. And anyway, I'm not strong enough to be a threat. Mara on the other hand is incredibly strong in the Force."
"This is all your fault. If we had told your master about her, he'd probably have spared all of us," she pointed a finger at her husband accusingly.
Nathaniel stared at her incredulously, not quite believing what he had just heard. How could she turn things around to take the blame off herself? How could she? "You little Calamarian Cow," he whispered, turning his back in disgust. "We can take my shuttle and leave the planet now," he said in a louder voice. "Maybe he won't be able to find us."
"No!" Karsha screamed. "No! I'm not gong anywhere with you. I never should have married you. How could you keep Mara behind the Emperor's back, and still pretend to loyally serve him? I bet you've joined some rebel group or something."
Nathaniel was even more shocked. "A rebel group? I have not!" he exclaimed indignantly. "We agreed to keep Mara secret. Back when she was born, you were just as enthusiastic about it as me. What happened to you?"
She never got the chance to reply.
Mara ran through the room, cutting in-between them. She darted over to the door and opened it, racing outside into the open air.
"Mara," cried Nathaniel, following her out. Karsha hurried behind him.
As soon as they were out the door, they came to a halt. Karsha screamed in pure terror and started sobbing uncontrollably. Nathaniel stood tall, a strange calmness coming over him.
A line of twelve stormtroopers outside the front of the small house pointed their blaster rifles at the two adults. At least twenty officers crowded behind them. Mara stood in-between two stormtroopers, a confused expression on her face.
"Mummy, Daddy," she said. "He's come for me."
Nathaniel whispered a silent prayer for his daughter.
Karsha clutched at Nathaniel's arm, looking like she was about to faint.
The rows of Stormtroopers and troopers parted in the middle, revealing a cloaked figure flanked by two scarlet uniformed Royal Imperial Guardsmen. He hobbled forward, leaning on his cane. Even though his cowl hid his features, Nathaniel shuddered, knowing what they concealed.
Emperor Palpatine.
Mara stood in the middle of the space the troopers had cleared, looking around in wonder. Slowly the Emperor approached her.
Falling on one knee, Karsha bowed her head. "Your Highness," she choked out. "I--"
"To your feet, traitor," snapped the Emperor in rasping tones.
"But it wasn't my fault!" she cried. The elderly tyrant glared at her, his piercing yellow eyes drilling holes in her.
"It was mine," spoke up Nathaniel quietly. "I told her to hide our daughter from you. She would never do anything to disobey your orders."
"Silence," Palpatine commanded. "Do you take me for a fool? I have already pulled everything from your minds. I know the truth. I know that you both hid your Force sensitive little girl from me. But you shall both pay." He turned to Mara, who stood by his side, mesmerized by the sight of the two majestic guards.
"So this is the little urchin who you dared defy me for." He bent down to get a closer look at her.
"Hello," Mara said brightly.
The Emperor chuckled and took a few steps back. He turned to the guard closest to Mara. "Kill her," he ordered coldly.
The red-cloaked figure raised his force pike up above Mara's head. She looked up at the razor-sharp blade. It was the first time she'd ever seen such a weapon and studied it curiously, not realizing what was about to happen.
In complete horror Nathaniel watched. The one joy left in his otherwise meaningless life was about to die. For some strange reason, he knew he'd survive if Mara died. He knew that Karsha would die next, and then the Emperor would imprison him. Then he'd be forever left with the knowledge that he caused his loved ones' death.
That was the sort of cruelty the Emperor reveled in.
"Wait!" Nathaniel screamed desperately, completely losing his cold mask of indifference.
The guard ignored him and brought down his force pike upon the small child. But before it could slice through flesh and bone, it was deftly plucked from his hands. The weapon floated just out of reach of the Guardsman, controlled thought the Force by the Emperor.
"You wish to say something before your child's death?" Palpatine asked with amusement.
"Your Highness...I beg of you, please spare Mara's life. I beg of you to kill me instead. She could be very helpful to you. She has great potential. Surely you can see that?"
Once again, the Emperor chuckled. It was throaty, evil sound.
"You are very bold, Jade. Very bold. I like that in my agents. Did you know that you were one of my favourite agents? I could always count on you to get the job done. This is the only area in which you failed me. Considering all that, I think you deserve your wish. I will not kill your daughter...and you and your wife will die in her place."
Nathaniel let out a breath that he hadn't realised that he'd been holding. Suddenly, his own death didn't seem so important.
"But," the Emperor continued, "you will be very sorry you made that choice. Your daughter's life will become a tribute to me. She will loyally do my bidding no matter what the cost, even removing traitors like yourself."
"Oh Mara!" cried Karsha. Nathaniel turned his head in suprise. He'd almost forgotten about her. There was pain in her green eyes as she gazed at Mara. A pain that Nathaniel didn't know could exist in the light-hearted, flirty woman he grew to love in the Royal Imperial Court.
"Mummy?" Mara said, cocking her head to the side. "Why are you crying?"
"Come on Mara," the Emperor said in the most gentle voice he could manage. It had a hypnotic quality to it. "Would you like to see my ship?"
"A real ship?" Mara asked doubtfully. "Not a toy one?"
"Not a toy one," he confirmed, smiling to himself.
"Wow," Mara smiled, he green eyes glittering. She reached up one hand and slipped it into the Emperor's shriveled one. For a moment he was stunned, having never held anyone's hand for such a long time. But he recovered and started walking back through the troopers towards where he had left his private shuttle.
The Royal Imperial Guardsmen followed, silently and watchfully. Mara couldn't keep her eyes off them, wondering what was behind the impenetrable masks. Somehow she knew that her destiny lay in them -- the scarlet helmets...the shining white armour...the kindly old man.
"Never give up, Mara!" Nathaniel called out after her, knowing that it would be the last thing he'd ever say to her...to anyone. "I'll always be with you! I know you'll make me proud of you!"
Mara heard the words. She didn't realise their significance, but she figured it would come to her later. For now, she was going to get to ride on a ship...a new experience for her.
The Stormtrooper commander waited until the Emperor and Mara were out of earshot before giving the order to fire.
So Mara didn't hear the volley of blaster bolts.
Nor did she hear her mother's last, piercing scream.
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