Then Palpatine received reports that Lord Vader had committed the entire strike fleet to the capture of one Rebel ship, the freighter that had ended his defense of the first Death Star. His obsession had finally gotten the better of him. There was a scattered, demoralized, and defeated remnant of the Alliance out there among the stars, and the time to finish them was now. There was no time for foolish hunting games. Vader must be brought to heel.
The Emperor stalked angrily through the corridors of the Palace, and his court stayed well clear of him. This made it easy to hide his aging beneath his voluminous hooded robes. His second clone body had aged at an accelerated rate as expected, and it seemed to him that the decay might even have become faster this time. But he liked to maintain appearances. It pleased him to let his people see him and know exactly who their Master was.
Palpatine strode into the Palace’s main communications room, a hive of activity. Imperial Navy officers eyed him expectantly. He knew they were angered over Lord Vader’s summary executions, and that they felt that the Dark Lord was completely out of control. To mollify them, Palpatine had decided to reprimand Vader in public, thus avoiding a mutiny in the strike fleet. At the same time, he would remind Vader of his responsibilities towards finding the Rebel fleet.
As the Emperor entered, the officers all knelt to him, bowing their heads. A nervous technician worked the communications station, and began the job of contacting the Executor. His fingers stumbled on the switches and he glanced up, sweating, expecting to be disciplined. But no one was watching him. All eyes were on the Emperor, who had suddenly and silently collapsed onto the gleaming deck, to the open-mouthed shock of the entire gathering.
Sate Pestage tended to his Master in the Imperial Medical Center. An entire wing had been cleared to treat the mysterious affliction that had overtaken the Emperor. The resident doctors were baffled when they were told that they would not be needed, but they were easily dealt with. The Rumor Control office would soon have the matter in hand.
Pestage knew that his Master was in a vision trance. It had happened before in his presence, and he knew that all the Emperor needed was rest and privacy. Palpatine lay on a bed, occasionally whispering, eyes shut, his mind clearly elsewhere. This time, though, Pestage found himself disturbed. He knew his Master well, and impossible as it may have seemed, Palpatine was evidently afraid of what he was “seeing”…
A young man stood before the Emperor, clad in black. It was the son of Skywalker. The Force was with him, and he had become a Jedi. He regarded Palpatine with defiance.
The Emperor was falling. He was filled with fear and surprise, and screamed all the way down. His body was ripped asunder by a collision with gigantic energy discharges. His life force was swallowed into the dark side, but this time, it was different. There was no immediate rebirth, only a terrifying chaos with no end…
Palpatine was afraid. Somehow, these two visions were linked, both part of the same possible future. A future in which he would die.
The Emperor’s eyes flew open, startling Sate Pestage. The Grand Vizier had begun to sputter an inquiry as to his Master’s state when Palpatine sat up and cut him off. “Contact the Executor immediately. I require a conference with Lord Vader. Send the signal to me whenever it comes in.”
“A moment, Master,” said Pestage uncomfortably, “If you are well, I must tell you that Prince Xizor has been trying to contact you while you were indisposed. He has requested an audience with you. I did not know what to say…he is a criminal of the basest sort…”
“Yes, he is,” said the Emperor tersely. “But we will use him for his transport fleet as we construct the new Death Star. Tell him that I will see him now. But if Lord Vader’s communication comes in, I want to speak with him immediately, no matter what.”
“Yes, of course, Master,” said Pestage.
And that was that. Without another word, Palpatine hurried from the room, leaving Sate Pestage gaping.
“What is thy bidding, my Master?” asked Vader, on bended knee. Before him was an enormous hologram of his Master’s hooded face.
“There is a great disturbance in the Force,” said Palpatine.
Vader cautiously responded, “I have felt it.”
Palpatine sternly stated, “We have a new enemy. Luke Skywalker.”
So, his dark Master had finally come to understand how it was. Perhaps the great tremor in the Force had finally convinced him. Something important had happened while Vader’s forces had been sifting through the asteroid field for the Millennium Falcon. What it was, he didn’t know, but all at once, his son had become significant to the Emperor. Respectfully, he intoned, “Yes, my Master.”