by Ian Doescher
C-3PO
O counterpart from Heaven sent, my thanks!
But now, R2, say where dost thou lead me?
Why do we swift approach the vessel’s edge?
This is most curious and passing strange,
For I could not jump to the sand, and ’tis
From here a mighty drop indeed—
[R2-D2 pushes C-3PO off the edge of the barge into the sand and falls in after him.
R2-D2
—Nee, hoo!
LUKE
I prithee, Leia, take the gun and point
It yonder, at the deck! The barge shall fall!
[Luke is shot in the hand by a guard.
[ Aside:] Alas, my hand, but ’tis my hand of steel,
It causes me some pain, but not as ’twould
Were it my own real flesh. Strange notion, this.
I have not time to think on it, but shall,
Another time, consider this my hand.
LEIA
The gun is pointed at the deck: ’tis time.
LUKE
Then let it fly, and we’ll escape forsooth!
’Tis well a rope is here to swing us o’er
Another chasm—what serendipity!
[Luke and Princess Leia swing from the barge onto the skiff.
LEIA
[ aside:] Once have I swung with him across a chasm,
Now swing we once more to the waiting skiff.
We have a way of swinging through our fears!
HAN
We all are now on board the skiff—away!
This brave event shall be remember’d, Luke,
And since I have been thaw’d, my warmest and
My most sincere appreciation do
I give thee for my rescue well devis’d.
LUKE
My friend, ’tis none but what thou wouldst for me.
Now, let us flee—the droids, do not forget.
LANDO
We fly indeed, by foes no more beset.
[The barge explodes and all on board die. Exeunt Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Chewbacca, Princess Leia, Lando, R2-D2, and C-3PO on skiff.
SCENE 1.
Inside the second Death Star.
Enter CHORUS.
CHORUS
The army of the Empire gathers near
Within the Death Star’s uncompleted shell.
They all prepare to welcome one they fear:
The Emperor hath come, thereon to dwell.
[Exit chorus.
Enter Emperor Palpatine and attending royal guards.
EMPEROR
My servant Vader have I come to meet,
To hear him tell what progress hath been made
Upon this newest Death Star. Confident
I am that he shall make a good report,
For he is ever trustworthy when ask’d
To solve a problem for his Emperor.
Forsooth, the man is all obedience
When he is call’d to serve. It hath been so
For years now, ever since he turn’d toward
The dark side and became a Sith as I.
But there is more than mere obedience:
He looketh on me as a father, aye,
For truly did I train him so to do.
He doth respect and hang on ev’ry word
I utter, even when ’tis to rebuke
Or punish him for some apparent fault.
The man is like a pet most pitiful,
E’er braying for his master’s notice and
Displaying great affection e’en when kick’d.
In truth, his groveling doth make me sick.
Aye, his devotion to me I do not
Reciprocate, for he to me is but
A tool—most useful and most sharp, ’tis true—
But merely agent of my will, no more.
Yet he a vital purpose serveth in
My reign and plans, while little doth he know
That he could be more powerful than I.
A tool the man may be, but I cannot
Dispense with his keen services as yet.
But since I do consider him a threat,
I keep his leash as short as possible,
And I accept his childlike zeal for me
At least till I an apt replacement find.
Mayhap this young Skywalker—who is e’er
On Vader’s otherwise clear mind—may prove
To be his aging father’s substitute.
Was it a judgment error to inform
Darth Vader of the presence of his son?
Methinks ’twas not, for his devotion to
His Emperor and his submersion in
The dark side shall be more persuasive than
What feelings he may have for son unknown.
And furthermore, to know Skywalker is
His son shall heighten his resolve to turn
The boy unto the dark, and make him mine.
Thus would he see his Emperor and son
Together join’d, which would bring him dark joy.
’Tis surely how the future shall unfold—
All shall be well, for I have plann’d it so.
And now he comes: my humble servant Darth.
Enter DARTH VADER and MOFF JERJERROD with STORMTROOPERS.
VADER
I bid thee welcome and with humbl’d mien
I bow to thee in utmost reverence:
My master, teacher, savior, rescuer.
EMPEROR
Arise, my friend, and put thy soul at ease.
I trust the time spent here shall bear good fruit?
VADER
Indeed, my master. All the workers have
A newfound motivation for the task.
The Death Star shall completed be within
The time and schedule thou hast orderèd.
EMPEROR
Thou hast done well, Lord Vader. I am pleas’d.
And now I sense another thought in thee?
Thou wouldst anon resume thy search for the
Young rebel Skywalker. Have I judg’d right?
VADER
My master: yes.
EMPEROR
—Be patient, my good friend.
Thou shalt not seeker be; I’ll warrant that,
In time, the lad himself shall seek thee out—
I see with my mind’s eye it shall be so.
And when he doth come to thee, thou shalt then
Deliver him, in deference, to me.
The boy hath grown quite strong. Together we
Will bring him to the dark side of the Force.
VADER
Thy wish is mine.
EMPEROR
—Thus have we set the scene:
All doth proceed just as I have foreseen!
[Exeunt.
SCENE 2.
The Dagobah system.
Enter LUKE SKYWALKER and R2-D2, speaking with HAN SOLO and PRINCESS LEIA in comlink.
LUKE
Good friends, with you I shall meet once again,
Where our strong fleet doth plan to rendezvous.
LEIA
[ through comlink:] Aye, do. Th’Alliance should be gather’d now.
HAN
[ through comlink:] And Luke, my deepest thanks are due to thee,
For I did doubt that thou a Jedi wert.
But thine example brave hath shown to me
A power I ne’er would have believ’d was real,
Except I was its benefici’ry.
Thou didst not overlook thy friend in need,
But came back for his rescue unafraid.
Now truly, friend, ’tis I who owe thee one.
[Exeunt Han Solo and Princess Leia.
R2-D2
Beep, squeak, meep, beep, squeak, whistle, whistle, meep?
LUKE
’Tis right, R2, we go to Dagobah—
A promise must I keep to my old friend.
[ Aside:] This glove I place upon my injur’
d hand,
The hand that in the fight with Jabba was
The sore recipient of blaster’s touch.
O hand, replete with wires and gears that move,
With glove of black I cover the machine
That lies within the skinlike covering,
Which once a medic droid hath grafted on.
How strange this hand, which feeleth like my flesh
Yet is such stuff as droids are made of. Cold
And dead, yet living, this is a device
That serves me well but represents a dark
And dismal fate. Aye, with this hand I have
Become yet one step closer to the man
Whose path I fear, yet wish to understand:
Darth Vader, who my father claims to be.
Indeed, I do believe his claim is true,
But shall ask Yoda to confirm his words.
If he my father is, what shall it mean
For the Rebellion and for my own soul?
Shall my relations govern all my days,
Or may I yet escape mine origins?
Shall all the father’s sins be visited
Upon the child, or shall I triumph yet?
Be with me, all ye Jedi past and gone—
I fly unto that place where first I learn’d
From Yoda, who is small, yet greater e’en
Than all my pow’rs or Master Obi-Wan.
With joy, I fly from here to see his face,
With hope, I fly to him to learn the truth,
With fear, I fly to him to know my path,
With expectation great, I fly to him.
Enter YODA.
Look now, he comes—alas, how ag’d he seems!
YODA
That face thou dost make:
Look I so old to young eyes,
My body so frail?
LUKE
Nay, nay, good master! Perish such a thought.
YODA
I do, aye, I do.
Sick and weak have I become,
Elderly and tir’d.
And yet, I ask thee:
When nine hundred years thou hast,
Shalt thou look better?
Soon shall I have rest,
Forever sleep, as all do.
Earnèd it I have.
LUKE
But what is this? Thou art an aging soul,
Yet wherefore speakest thou of death’s embrace?
Good Master Yoda, cease: thou mayst not die.
YODA
Verily, ’tis true,
With the Force pow’rful am I,
Yet not that pow’rful.
Twilight is on me
And thence comes night. ’Tis the way
For all in the Force.
LUKE
Yet I have need of thy good help, for here
I stand, return’d, prepar’d my training to
Complete. What should I do without thine aid?
YODA
No further training
Dost thou require, for thou hast
All thou e’er shalt need.
LUKE
Forsooth, ’tis true: I am a Jedi now.
YODA
Be thou not so sure,
For still Vader remaineth.
Thou must confront him.
Then, and only then,
A true Jedi shalt thou be.
And face him thou shalt.
LUKE
Dear Master Yoda, one thing in me burns—
The question that is flame inside my bones,
Whose answer may yet kindle hate or love,
I know not which. Yet still it must be ask’d:
Darth Vader—tell me true—is he my father?
YODA
’Tis time for my rest.
Time for my sleep eternal,
’Tis no time for truth.
LUKE
Thou wouldst protect me from this knowledge,
which
May difficult and painful be. In this
Thou showest care for me, and hast my thanks—
But Yoda, full of heart, I must needs know.
YODA
[ aside:] Alack, he knows all.
Now may I only speak truth:
Only truth lives on.
[ To Luke:] Thy father he is.
Told you, did he? Unforeseen
This is. Distressing.
LUKE
Distressing that at length I learn the truth?
YODA
Nay, nay! Distressing
That thou hast rush’d to face him.
Not ready wert thou.
Thy training not done,
The field of thy heart unplow’d,
The burden, too much.
LUKE
Forgive me, for I knew not what I did.
YODA
Remember, my Luke,
A Jedi’s strength from the Force
Doth come. But beware.
Anger, fear, hatred—
From the dark side they all come;
Its minions they are.
Once thou hast enter’d
In the dark path infernal,
Abandon all hope.
The powers of the
Emperor, thou shouldst never
Underestimate.
Else thy father’s fate,
Shall, in turn, become thine own:
Let not this transpire.
When I have gone, slept,
The last of the Jedi shalt
Thou be, thou alone.
Attend, Luke! The Force
Is strong with thy family:
Pass on what thou learn’dst.
These final words now
With my last breath I utter:
O hear well, brave Luke.
This is our hope: there
Is another Skywalker.
The rest silence is.
[Yoda dies.
LUKE
Good night, sweet Jedi, noble, wise, and true.
So gentle was he, and too quickly gone.
O Fate, what hast thou brought into my life—
How shall I live when all I love have died?
Yet all things die, and all things pass away,
And all is like the sweeping of the stars
As one doth pass through lightspeed’s rapid blaze.
We know ’tis true: no mortal does not know
That all are born to feed insatiate death.
But O, what grief we meet along the way:
The knowledge something beautiful is lost,
The deep regret for all unspoken words—
Profound remorse for healing never giv’n.
To wish to hold the dead one’s hand again,
To picture a love’s smile, and know it gone:
These are the pains that human life doth bring,
The heartache and the thousand nat’ral shocks
That flesh is heir to. Death shall not be tam’d,
It shall not lose its victory or sting,
Yet it shall never have the best of us
If in our living we have truly liv’d.
To love with bliss, to fight for righteousness,
To heed adventure’s call, to cry with joy,
To laugh amidst life’s greatest heights and depths:
This is the living that doth conquer death,
So e’en though it shall come, we shall not fear’t.
These lessons let my master’s death teach me,
That my life shall esteem his memory.
R2-D2
[ aside:] O gift of Fate, that he my master is!
[ To Luke:] Beep, meep, beep, whistle, meep, beep, whistle, squeak!
LUKE
I cannot face the future by myself,
What shall I do, R2? I am alone—
The only Jedi left to bear the name.
It may be this responsibility
Is far too great for such a one as I.
How can I bear the burden by myself?
Enter GHOST OF OBI-WAN KENOBI.
OBI-WAN
Nay, not alone, for Yoda always shall
Remain with thee.
LUKE
—My soul, ’tis Obi-Wan!
[ Aside:] Now e’en though he of ghostly matter’s made,
He shall anon give answer for his words.
[ To Obi-Wan:] Good Ben, it warms my heart to see thee here,
Yet I must ask thee to explain thyself—
Pray, wherefore hast thou not reveal’d the thing
That thou didst know? Thou said’st my father had
By Vader been betray’d and murderèd.
Ne’er hast thou said that he my father is!
OBI-WAN
[ aside:] I never did imagine that, in death,
I would be call’d upon to justify
The words I spoke in life. ’Twas well I spoke
Not of the midi-chlorians to Luke,
For then he would have endless questions still.
[ To Luke:] Thine inquiry shall have an answer, Luke,
For verily thou dost deserve to know.
Thy father was seducèd by the dark
Side of the Force. ’Twas then that he no more
Was Anakin Skywalker, only Darth.
When that had happen’d, thy good father was
Destroy’d. And thus, forsooth, the words I spoke
Were truthful, from a certain point of view.
LUKE
“A certain point of view”? What doth that mean?
It may be said that I, within my ship,
Do see my X-wing as an instrument
Of truth and justice, aye, a noble thing,
While from a certain point of view I know
Mine enemies do see it as a threat.
It may be said that when I was attack’d
By rancor vicious and intemperate,
Prepar’d to make of me his morning meal,
There is a certain point of view that doth
Suggest he was a simple hungry beast.
It may e’en be that our Rebellion is,
For us, an undertaking pure and good,
