All eyes fell onto Starkiller as he stood over fallen Vader. The Emperor's yellow eyes watched intensely, etching the moment into his mind. His pale, wrinkled face curled up into a cracked smile. With sinister enthusiasm, the Emperor ordered, "Yes! Kill him! He was weak, broken! Kill him and you can take your rightful place at my side."

With a slight of hand, Master Kota used the Force to steal the Emperor's lightsaber. It buzzed as it activated, revealing a fiery red saber. Kota cried out in fear of what his new apprentice might become, "No!" He leapt towards the Emperor, aiming to chop off his head. In a flash, force lightning struck Kota, sending him straight to the ground in agony. The Emperor stood up and used his power to focus more on the Jedi.

Talia jerked forward, ready to help out in any way she could. Cassian quickly held her back inside the turbolift; his hand curled around her arm and pulled her closer, away from the view of the hall. Kota's screaming boomed against the walls of the chamber. Talia glanced at him, then back at the scene, heart sinking in her chest. When against a force user, it makes someone feel so miniscule. Weak.

Helpless.

"Help him!" Senator Organa yelled to Galen, fear clear across his features.

Starkiller's dark eyes shot over to Kota's position, taking in the scene as his good friend curled into a ball and yelped in pain. Starkiller glanced back down at Vader, only to see the shell of a broken man. His previous master's eyes were devoid of emotions. Vader remained completely still, not even moving to motion for mercy. Marek's pissed off expression fell, allowing his eyebrows to knit together, unsure of what he should do.

"We have to help him," Talia whispered as her brown eyes widened in urgency. If the Emperor influences him enough...that's it. It's over. Just like when her husband turned. She peered around at the team, who all didn't budge.

Halron asked, almost stuttering out of fear, "A-and risk having the Senators caught in the middle?"

Anything and everything could go wrong. Talia glanced at Cassian; it seems he read her mind. They were counting on things going horribly wrong. She grabbed the blaster pistol holstered on her leg and brought it close to her chest. Chills ran up her spine, and a cold sweat began to form on her forehead. Calmly, she took in a few breaths to strangle her on-end nerves. "It's better than having him turn on us."

In one quick snap, Talia shot her arm out and aimed at the closest stormtrooper. The blaster bolt propelled itself out of the gun, and hit the trooper square in the chest. He gasped and attempted to grab a hold of something as he fell off of the platform. One ounce of bravery inspired the rest. One after the other, each rebel rained fire down on stormtroopers left and right, knocking them off of their feet. The others shot back, hitting the middle of the open turbolift.

The Imperial Guards joined the fray. Each one pulled out a heavy blaster pistol from underneath their blood red robes and began to form around the Emperor. The scarlet masks only instilled more fear of the unknown into Talia; with near deadly accuracy, one of them nearly shot a bolt through her shoulder.

Cassian held onto Talia's arm to keep her inside the turbolift. His voice, calm and steady, uttered an order, "Distract the Imperial Guards! Their steadiness is going to get us killed." The BlasTech blaster held steady in his sweaty gloved hand, allowing him to make the first shot at the guards. Then, the real battle began.

The Emperor stopped his onslaught on Master Kota. With interest peaked, he raised a wrinkly eyebrow as his vibrant yellow eyes fell onto the reign of oncoming fire originating from the end of the hall. His apprentice lay on the floor useless, just like the wretched Jedi that Starkiller once called Master. Now, Galen would have to watch his rebel friends die as well.

Weightless. Cassian felt weightless for a brief second. It was unlike anything he ever felt before. The brith in the sky he had always watched flew so majestically, and now, he did the same. A calm sensation washed over Cassian...

Until his whole body got pulled outside of the turbolift.

"What the-" The breath in his lungs released as his fingers attempted to grab anything. Panic settled in his chest, twisting his organs around. Cassian's eyes flickered to the Emperor, who held his hands out towards the rebels.

As a kneejerk reaction, Talia flung her hand out, grasping Cassian's wrist tightly. She flung forward from the weight of the pull, but latched onto the turbolift last second as a counterweight. "You're not going anywhere!" The muscles in her arms strained and burned from the amount of energy that was being used. Her traction threatened to give out at any second.

Within seconds it did.

K2-SO wrapped an arm around Talia's waist in an attempt to haul them back inside. "You're going to get yourselves killed!" Talia used both of her hands to latch onto Cassian. His hands wrapped around Talia's wrists as well, fright clear in his dark eyes.

The Emperor stared at the train of friendship, intrigued that the rebels would so willingly die with each other. He'd fought so many that simply let their comrade die, quick and painless. These rebels would die slow deaths for betraying the Empire. The Emperor would make an example of them.

Cassian's breathing became erratic. Sweat dripped from his damp black hair. The Force pulled not only at his limbs, but his organs tugged inside of him as well. "T-Talia..." he stopped himself to regain composure, though fright shook him to his core. This is not how Talia and Kaytoo will die. "Let go."

"Over my dead body!" Talia yelled, muscles burning in her entire body. The Force held Cassian in the air, yet none of them were pulled further into the chamber. Talia glanced around, and when her eyes fell on Master Kota, a small smile crept onto her lips. "It seems we have help." Kota pushed them with his powers, counteracting the Emperor's moves. Blaster fires swerved around the trio, embedding themselves into the wall.

There may be a rebellion yet. The words floated around Starkiller's mind. His dark eyes settled on Master Kota, who strained against the Emperor's power. Kota stared at his young apprentice, waiting for him to make up his mind. Good, or evil, only Galen could make that choice for himself. With as much chaos going on, blaster fire burning into the furniture, and the buzzing sound of the lightsaber, Marek walked himself through it mentally. Imperial guards were joining the stormtroopers in the afterlife. The rebels were on the verge of failure. The Senators huddled on the side, away from the destruction. Either side could win. The question was, which side did he want to be remembered on?

Starkiller glanced at the train of rebels in resolve. He quickly nodded to himself, gathering all of his courage and energy for this next battle. All of his focus narrowed onto the Emperor. He surged forward in a quick run, catching the Emperor off guard. Lightning shot out, the crackling echoing inside the chamber. Before Cassian could fall to the ground from gravity, Kaytoo shot out of the turbolift and grabbed a hold of him by his coat. The droid took blaster shots to the back as they rushed back behind cover.

Marek blocked the oncoming lightning strike with his lightsaber, holding it steady against the strong force. When the Emperor halted, Starkiller took the moment and jumped onto a pillar. He vaulted right off of that and spun, barely missing the lightning jolted his way. The Emperor snarled. Heavy chunks of metal fell off of the walls and launched right at Marek. Instinctively, he pushed them away, or tore right through them with his weapon. Lightning surged around a few more lifted objects, raining hellfire down on Starkiller. He ducked for cover, barely missing one.

All around them, blasters fired. Some hit one of the Imperial guards, whereas others missed and melted through the wall. Cassian worryingly glanced over Kay's wounds, only to see that the metal plating had been shot through. The wiring stayed in tact.

Kota went in for hand-to-hand combat with the Royal Guards. The remaining three dropped their blasters and wielded the force pikes. The Jedi's moves were quick, almost graceful. The lightsaber spun around, chopping a limb off of one of the guards. The other two turned up the stun settings and used the force pikes against Kota, who cried out against the immense pain. The rebels joined in and shot at the distracted guards, who stopped and avoided the blasts. Screams echoed all around the chamber.

Drenched from sweat and adrenaline coursing through his veins, Starkiller managed to grab one of the electrical chunks mid-air. With a sleight of hand, he threw it back at the Emperor, knocking him to the side. Marek raised his hand, launching his opponent into the air. He conjured up all of his energy to pull his enemy down to the ground as if he were an asteroid shot right out of the atmosphere. Starkiller stood over him, ready to deal the final blow.

The Emperor lay on the ground, hands steadily holding himself up. His yellow eyes met Starkiller's as he boldly declared, "You were destined to destroy me." A flicker of a twisted smile flashed on his lips. "Do it! Give in to your hatred!"

Starkiller ignited his blue lightsaber. With the Royal Guards dead, Kota rushed to his side and set his hands on one of Galen's shoulders. This was another one of the Emperor's temptations, and Kota knew it all too well. Driving Galen to the dark side once more could mean the end of everything. Kota calmly stated, "He's beaten. Let it go...."

"It's a trick! He's more powerful than you know. And he deserves to
die for what he's done to me," Galen sneered at the crumpled heap of robe that lay below him. The Emperor stared down at the ground, face covered by his hood, awaiting his death. Anger drove itself through Starkiller's veins, reminding him of how much he has truly gone through because of that wretched man. His lip twitched as fire set in his dark eyes.

"Maybe so. But, if you kill him now, out of hatred, then you will be right
back where you began."

Starkiller closed his eyes. Kota was right. Killing the Emperor achieved nothing more than fueling the hate. It's what the Emperor wanted. The grimace and snarl faded away, and in calm resolve, he opened his eyes once more. He nodded.

"We have to go," Cassian called out and waved the Senators over from the turbolift. Soft smiles and breathless laughs expressed their relief. The Rebellion had come through for them. The hope had remained briskly burning.

Marek didn't move an inch. He exhaled as he thought to himself. Both of the galaxy's highest dictators were rendered helpless on the ground. The time was now. He could cause the catastrophic fall of the Empire in mere seconds...yet mercy found its way into his heart. What would Juno think of him if he slaughtered the two in cold blood? Starkiller slightly turned his head to look at his Jedi Master and put his lightsaber away. "Get Bail and the others out of here. I'll be right behind you." With a short nod, Kota dropped his hands to his sides and walked towards the Senators.

The Emperor sneered and quickly whipped around. He unleashed a sudden burst of force lightning at Kota. Starkiller immediately jumped in front of him, resisting the last effort the enemy could make. The rebels fired at the Emperor; the bolts stopped mid-air, and launched right back at them. They all ducked for cover, hitting the ground and listening to Halron cry out. He cradled his wounded shoulder and winced, but waved them off when they tried to help.

Starkiller screamed out, fighting against the lightning as much as his body could allow him to take. "Go! Hurry! Protect the Senators!"

Agonized screaming erupted from the chamber as the doors to the turbolift closed. The team took a few breaths, holding onto each other's shoulders for support. Once in the hall, the Senators followed behind Cassian, Kaytoo, and Master Kota, leaving Talia and Halron in the back. Feet pounding against the ground echoed throughout the long hall.

Boom.

The whole building shook as an explosion occurred in the Emperor's chamber. Glass shattered all around them; everyone ducked, arms covering their faces to shield themselves. The ground rumbled for a few moments before everything ceased. Kota stopped and peered back at the turbolift, distraught twisting his lips into a worried frown.

Talia put a steady hand gently on Kota's arm. She looked into his eyes and the image of her ex-husband flickered over him, causing her to pause. A pain in her stomach twitched after her heart stopped. She shook her head to get out of the daze and whispered, "He saved us. We have to go."

Harsh footsteps echoed against the walls of the grand hall, drowning out any sound until the alarm system began to go off. Cassian said something as he turned around to do a quick head count, but the shrill alarm drowned him out. He ran ahead with Kaytoo, guiding the group out of the palace. Talia and Kota hung back, keeping the Senators and Halron in the middle for safety.

After arriving at a double hallway, Cassian's eye caught a squad of stormtroopers heading their way. Kay motioned towards the other hall and around a corner. Cassian followed closely in front of the Senators, and questioned loudly, "You know where you're going, right Kay?"

"Yes. Unless, you do not trust me?"

"I do trust you."

Doubting a droid who took it upon themselves to study their route in the first place seemed silly, at least to Kaytoo. He responded as he turned the next corner of the horrid maze of a palace, "We are close."

Cassian ushered the Senators to keep following Kaytuesso. Kota changed places with him, allowing Cassian to fall to the back of the group. Laying down cover fire was the only way to ensure safety. He quickly rounded the corner, shot at the twenty or so troopers headed in their direction, and shot a few. Two went down, leaving the rest scrambling for cover. Without having anywhere to go but back, the squad set up a firing line.

"I got this." Talia pulled a flare gun from her boot. Knowing Cassian wasn't the pilot this time, it felt right to have a backup plan. A very bright red backup plan.

Cassian looked down at her hands, and a smile formed on his lips. "I love the way you think."

Flare ready. Aim. Fire. Literally. When Talia shot it, it sparked against the stormtroopers' armors, setting the hallway on fire. The carpet and furniture burned, causing dark smoke to emanate from them. The stormtroopers screeched and either ran away, or died soon after from burning alive.

Without missing a beat, both of them caught back up to the group who had just gotten to the main hall. The other rebels that came along as backup fell into line, forming a circle around the main battle-beaten group. Stormtroopers ran down each hall they could see and fired on them all. Kota reflected what he could, but some of their own soldiers died in the process.

In the wide field meant for star destroyers, the ship piloted by Kalla hovered above the ground. A surge of air blew everyone's hair back; they had to squint to maintain their eyesight. All of the remaining rebels scrambled into the escape vehicle before Kalla pulled up.

Every turret and stormtrooper in the immediate vicinity of the palace shot at them as they got into the air. The passengers held onto something and yelped when the ship shook harshly.

Bang!

Kalla called out from the cockpit, "We got a burnout! Hang onto something!"