Saga Alternate Ending to Return of the Jedi: Rewrite (Part One Posted)

After reading my original version, I realized a lot of gramatical mistakes, as well as other things I need to work on. I'm starting a rewrite, and I'm open to any suggestions/questions/comments/etc. I will be posting this in either 5 or 6 parts. Enjoy!

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[b]Alternate Ending to [i][u]Return of the Jedi[/i][/u] focusing on Luke [/b]
[b]Summary[/b]: An alternate ending to Return of the Jedi focusing on Luke, showing what could have been.
[b]Characters[/b]: Luke, Anakin/Vader, Palpatine, and a cameo by one your favorite EU characters. ;)
[b]Disclaimer[/b]: The characters and world in which this story takes place were created by George Lucas, and I am only expanding on those ideas. I've taken a few elements and quotes from the movie, and combined them into certain situations.

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[b]Part One[/b]

?You want this, don?t you? Take your Jedi weapon. Strike me down with it, and your journey to the dark side will be complete!? Those words, spoken by Emperor Palpatine, hit Luke hard and tore him in two. He could give in to his hate and kill the Emperor, ridding the galaxy of his evil, but what would become of him? He feared himself becoming what the Emperor was, becoming just as evil and twisted. [i]No. Fear is the path to the dark side,[/i] he reminded himself.

As he looks out the window, he sees the Imperial fleet obliterate the Rebellion?s ships. He felt he must destroy the Emperor, he must redeem his father. The thought was so compelling he turned to pull his lightsaber to him with the Force, but stopped. [i]This is not the way[/i], he told himself. [i]There has to be another way to do this.[/i] Luke knew, in his mind, there must be a way to redeem his father without turning to the dark side himself. [i]Think. [/i]

He turned back to the window, watching the Imperials continue to destroy the Rebel fleet. His anger overcomes him. He spins around, reaches out to the Force, and calls his lightsaber to his hand, igniting it on the way. He strikes out at the Emperor, binding a lifetime of hatred into one moment, and his blade stops, apparently blocked by a strong surge in the Force. He looks up, and sees his father?s blade against his, holding him back from killing the most evil being in the galaxy. [i]No, I can?t do it this way[/i], Luke thought. As his gaze falls upon his father?s ?face,? he feels the good in his father, in Anakin, looking back at him. At the same time, he feels fear. He felt fear not only from himself, but from his father as well.

As Luke pulls his lightsaber back, beating down his emotions, not wanting to give in to the battle, he realizes Vader has other ideas. Vader strikes a blow towards Luke?s legs, and Luke is barely able to block it, not being prepared. Luke strikes Vader?s shoulder, not wanting to do too much damage. [i]It doesn?t matter, he can block it anyway,[/i] he thought, as Vader blocked it, forcing Luke?s lightsaber down, slashing the floor. Vader swings his lightsaber back up, aiming for Luke?s neck, Luke losing his balance as he lands on an uneven surface.

Luke regains his balance, launching himself at Vader, swinging a low strike at his feet. [i]I can?t injure him badly if there?s any hope, and I think he knows it.[/i] Vader jumps up, evading the attack, flipping backwards at the same time.

Luke follows, just as Vader launches an attack at Luke?s midsection. Luke deflects the strike, somersaulting back at the same time. He lands on a catwalk, turning off his lightsaber as his feet hit the metal. It is at this moment that he realizes violence and battle is not the way to help his father; it is only making his job more difficult. He tosses his lightsaber across the chamber.

?I cannot fight you father. I feel the conflict within you. Let go of your hate, and turn back to the light side. It is your destiny, you only refuse to see it.?

?There is no conflict. It is too late for me, son,? Vader replies. Luke knows this is not true, he could sense the good in his father, but also knew his father would not admit it, not here, not now

 

Promising start! I can't wait to see what's coming next.

Kristeh

 

Interesting to see where you're going with this.

One grammatical note: Switching between present tense and past tense prose doesn't read very well. I would suggest choosing one (the fic seems mostly to be present tense, which I understand is harder to write).

 

Nice beginning!

I really would like to read more of it.

 

I'm glad you all like it. I should have an update in the next few days, I just haven't gotten around to it yet.

One grammatical note: Switching between present tense and past tense prose doesn't read very well. I would suggest choosing one (the fic seems mostly to be present tense, which I understand is harder to write).

Yeah, I was trying to fix all of that. I may have to do it in past tense. The original version of this had that problem really bad.