Battle on Death Star I

"I have trained you well, but you still have much to learn.''" "''You have nothing left to teach me."

- Darth Vader and Galen Marek confront one another

Redeemed Jedi Knight Galen Marek confronted Darth Vader and Emperor Palpatine following the interruption of the Corellian Treaty by Vader's forces, who arrested everyone present at the meeting. Vader revealed to Marek that he had been manipulating him ever since he was a boy, and that he never intended to train Marek to kill Emperor Palpatine as he always promised. Following this revelation, Marek traced Vader and the abducted senators to the Death Star, where he vowed to redeem his past and fulfill his true potential as a Jedi Knight.

After ripping through the station's inner defenses, Marek encountered Vader in the hallway leading to the Emperor's watchtower. The two fought, and Marek nearly killed Vader. Rather then giving into his desire for revenge against his old master, Marek confronted Palpatine directly, and sacrificed himself to allow the rebel senators to escape. Marek's sacrifice would allow for the Alliance to Restore the Republic to come into fruition.

Prelude
After the Rebel leaders were captured by Darth Vader for personal execution by Emperor Palpatine, Galen Marek and Juno Eclipse set out to rescue them. Juno Eclipse set down their ship, the Rogue Shadow, inside Death Star I, which was still under construction during the time. Opening the ship's ramp, Marek was ready to enter the large station. Before doing so, Eclipse asked if she would see him again to which he said that it was possible he would die in the attempt at freeing his friends. Seeing that it might be the last time she would see him again, Eclipse embraced Marek in a passionate kiss, stating that if he did die then she would not have to live it down. Being parted from her, Marek jumped from the Rogue Shadow and landed on the Death Star's surface.

The battle
"Those hairy beasts down there are always running amok."

- Stormtrooper describing Wookiee slaves on the Death Star

Once on the Death Star's surface, Marek ambushed a patrol of stormtroopers escorting a group of Wookiees on the equatorial trench. Seeking further direction on the location of the prisoners, Marek freed the Wookiees, who subsequently went on a rampage against their captors. The Wookiee revolt eventually escalated into a full-scale battle. Using this distraction and following the guidance of a small band of Wookiee companions, Marek was able to infiltrate the Death Star via a thermal exhaust port.

Inside the hangar, Marek found himself besieged by stormtroopers of varying types as well as AT-CTs that were assembled at the bay to aid in the movement of construction equipment. In addition to this, there were a number of AT-ST walkers that were called in to protect the station from the Force user. His main aim was to locate the massive station's laser tube, so that he could gain entry into the observation platform, where the Emperor as well as his prisoners were present.

Along the way, Marek was challenged by numerous Purge troopers, cybernetically enhanced to combat the threat of Force users, which he defeated after which he used the Force to open the ground panels to gain a deeper entry into the station. Once there, he was present within the massive laser tube which he was forced to make his way down in order to enter the heart of the Death Star. The nature of the tube meant that he was forced to seek shelter every now and then in order to escape the laser test fire sequence that fired on occasion. Furthermore, he was forced to fight a number of stormtroopers and personnel that were guarding their posts.

At a number of points on his journey, Marek was obstructed by large circular focusing dishes, which he had to shatter in order to make his way down the laser tube. Several guards were killed during the test firing sequence while pursuing Marek, when they were caught in the midst of the laser that shot through the tube. The Empire discovered that they had an intruder in the facility and began fortifying the station in order to stop Marek. This brought about the activation of the Death Star's internal defensive cannons, which were also destroyed in their attempt at stopping Marek.

Later, Marek was informed that the Rogue Shadow was caught by a tractor beam. In order to free the Rogue Shadow, Marek used the force to hurl objects and passing TIE Fighters at the tractor beam generators while fending off several Jumptroopers.

Soon, Marek came across three hangars, each containing a main area filled with stormtroopers and a lower areas containing AT-ATs. After dealing with the troops in the first two hangars, Marek then had to face yet another AT-ST as well as several Jumptroopers. He then killed the pilots by impaling and electrocuting them, then he crushed the walker.

Going deeper inside the station, Marek found himself at the laser convergence center, which he learned was one of eight such structures within the massive station. Eclipse communicated to him that there were sixty four laser tubes that were directed into a single powerful beam. Above this post was where the Emperor's observation platform resided.

After eliminating a number of stormtroopers and AT-ST walkers, Marek made his way to the lower part of the chamber. Using a number of graviton beam based lifts, Marek was able to rise to the top of the structure in order to reach the relevant doorway. With the various acts of sabotage complete and Marek now ready to enter the watchtower, he found the large door opening before him, which spilled out a member of the Emperor's Shadow Guard along with a number of his Royal Guard. A great lightsaber conflict erupted between the two sides. Marek managed to kill off the Royal Guard before engaging the Shadow Guard in unarmed combat, breaking its neck.

With his foes defeated, Marek was ready to enter the Emperor's observation dome. This required him to use the Force to manipulate the door mechanism to open allowing him entry.

Duel with Vader
"Lord Vader... deal with the boy. Properly, this time."

- Emperor Palpatine

Inside the dome, the former Sith apprentice found General Rahm Kota, along with Mon Mothma, Bail Organa, and Garm Bel Iblis before the Emperor's throne, who accused the captives of being traitors to Empire. He threatened them with interrogation and torture in order to reveal all their contacts and allies, after which they would be killed. A defiant Bail said that their deaths would only rally others, but Palpatine retorted by saying that their executions would serve as a warning to others to prevent further dissent.

It was then that a warning signal activated, which revealed to both the Emperor and Darth Vader, that Marek had infiltrated the base and was within the observation dome&mdash;this was something that gave Rahm Kota hope that a rebellion might still survive. Palpatine called upon his Sith apprentice Vader to eliminate Marek. The Dark Lord calmly made his way to the corridor outside, lightsaber ignited, where he confronted his former apprentice.



As they prepared to engage one another, Darth Vader admitted that he had trained Marek well, but stated that he still had much to learn. An angry Marek retorted, claiming that his former master had nothing left to teach. With that, they began their duel. After a furious lightsaber engagement in the corridor the Sith Lord pushed Marek aside with the Force and retreated deeper into the observation platform, with Marek in close pursuit.

The duel progressed into a throne room antechamber, where Marek surprised Vader with his incredible power(now fueled by the light side) assaulting Vader with several pieces of the ceiling. Vader then proceeded to hurl large pieces of the wall and ceiling back at Marek. Much to Vader's surprise Marek was able to deflect a metal beam back at him. Temporarily distracted by the incoming debris, Vader was knocked off balance by a strong force push, Marek then quickly brought pieces of the ceiling down upon Vader, badly damaging his life-support suit, effectively hindering him from continuing the duel. Managing to get past Vader, Marek then proceeded into the throne room.

Duel with Sidious


"You will scream like your father."

- Palpatine taunts Galen Marek

After witnessing the defeat of Vader, Sidious tried to tempt Marek into destroying his former master, and taking his position as apprentice to the Dark Lord of the Sith. Kota attempted to put an immediate stop to this by stealing Palpatine's lightsaber, and attacked him. Palpatine struck Kota down with a furious barrage of Force lightning. Marek came to his friend's rescue, engaging Darth Sidious in a vicious battle. The Sith Lord assaultled Marek with various Force attacks, having lost his saber.

After briefly trading attacks with the Force, Marek managed to catch the Emperor off guard, and hurled him to the ground.

Watchtower explosion
Rising to his knees, Sidious turned to Marek and declared that it was his destiny to destroy him, tempting him to give into his anger and complete his descent into the dark side. But as Marek raised his saber to strike Palpatine down, Kota told him to let his anger go, saying that he would be right back where he started if he killed Sidious now. With this advice, Marek deactivated his saber, sparing Palpatine's life. Palpatine, in frustration, roared to his feet and once again attacked Kota with a barrage of Force lightning, but Marek quickly threw himself in front of the blast to save his friend. With the Force clearly on his side, Marek managed to endure the lightning. Pushing against the barrage, Marek managed to work his way closer and closer to the now immensely powerful Darth Sidious.

In the process of blocking Sidious' attack, Marek sensed through the Force, that a recovered Vader and a platoon of stormtroopers were attempting to halt the escape of the Rebel leaders still on board the Death Star. Marek, in a desperate attempt to aid their escape, physically grabbed Palpatine, causing his lightning to backfire on the Sith Lord, and then opened his body to the Force. The resulting release of energy caused an immense explosion that nearly destroyed the Emperor's tower.

Aftermath
"He is dead." "Then he is now more powerful than ever. He was meant to root out the rebels, not give them hope. His sacrifice will only inspire them." "But now, we know who they are; I will hunt them down and destroy them, as you always intended, master." "You must be relentless, Lord Vader; if even a single rebel survives, this alliance we have unwittingly created&hellip; will be our undoing."

- Darth Vader and Emperor Palpatine



The explosion was strong enough to kill all the stormtroopers that were attempting to kill the Rebel leaders, thus allowing the Rogue Shadow to escape. However, it was not powerful enough to kill the wounded Darth Vader or Palpatine, who were able to shield themselves with the Force. After recovering from the initial shock of the blast, Vader limped towards the center of the explosion, beaten and broken, and found the body of his former apprentice, solemnly noting that Galen Marek was dead.

Palpatine also looked down at the fallen apprentice, angrily crediting Galen Marek as being "more powerful than ever." Marek's sacrifice made him a martyr, it was a selfless act that would galvanize all rebels and dissidents under a common cause to fight the Galactic Empire.

Darth Vader promised to his master that since they now knew who the leaders were, he would hunt them down and destroy them, to which he sarcastically added "as you always intended, master." Palpatine's encouragements to Galen Marek during the duel indicated that, as with Darth Tyranus before him, Palpatine intended to betray his apprentice for someone younger. Ultimately, nothing much changed between master and apprentice. Darth Vader wanted to overthrow his master for years, but was too afraid of the Emperor's powers to try. Vader, now with a new found motivation, vowed to become more powerful and ruthless than ever.

The Emperor, realizing the magnitude of such a terrible setback in his plans, told Darth Vader to be absolutely vigilant in his new task, as if even a single Rebel survived, then the Rebellion, which they had inadvertently created, would be their downfall, along with that of the Empire and the Sith as well.

The damage Marek had done coupled with the fact that some Wookiees probably escaped had also delayed the construction of the Death Star with its timetable being set back in order to effect a full repair of the structural damage sustained by the blast.

After the battle, Bail Organa and Juno Eclipse returned to Corellia, where they found and rebuilt Galen's droid companion, PROXY, who had been critically damaged after a brief duel with Vader. PROXY then revealed that Marek ordered him serve Eclipse after his death, which he did, and began telling everything about his former master to Organa.

Elsewhere, Bail, Mon Mothma, and Garm Bel Iblis met in secret with Rahm Kota, Juno Eclipse, PROXY, and Princess Leia Organa on the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk. There, they found the abandoned home of Galen Marek and his father, Kento Marek. Inside, they discovered the Marek family crest. It was decided by the assembled rebels that Galen Marek's heroic sacrifice saved their lives and allowed them to meet for their congregation then to honor him, they would use it as a symbol of hope for the Rebel Alliance and so completed the Corellian Treaty.

Outside, Juno Eclipse asked Rahm Kota if he always knew who Marek was, to which he said "I suspected, yes." She asked Kota why he decided to helped them, which the General said "When he came to me in the bar, I sensed something. One "bright spot" that he held onto, even at the end." Juno asked him what that "bright spot" was, to which he replied that it was her. On that day, a formal Rebellion was created to fight the tyranny of the Galactic Empire.

However, Vader was not finished with Marek yet and decided to take his body to Kamino.

Behind the scenes
Palpatine's taunt to Starkiller, "You will scream just like your Father!", mirrors a similar taunt made by Andross when Fox McCloud goes through one of the tunnels to Andross's inner sanctum in the Easy ending of "Star Fox 64". Coincidentally, Star Fox 64 has made references to Star Wars, as well. In the PS3/X-Box360 versions of the game, Starkiller enters the Death Star by jumping into a hangar, as well as traveling through a firing tube. The PS2/Wii version had Starkiller enter by jumping onto a bridge, then traveling alongside the tube as well as entering hangars and a tractor beam room. The Novel, however, had Starkiller jump onto an equatorial trench and free Wookiee slaves. This article tries to incorporate parts of both.

While Marek is able to attack the Emperor with his lightsaber in the game, this article attributes that to game mechanics and focuses on the events described in the novel, as it is much more realistic.

Alternate ending
"You have betrayed your master and your allies both; I knew you would betray me as well! And now, you have doomed yourself and your friends!"

- Palpatine to Starkiller



In the alternate non-canon ending of this battle in The Force Unleashed, Marek chooses to finish off Vader, avenging the murder of his father, and Vader's two betrayals on himself.

After another long battle, Marek strips Vader of his lightsaber, as he did as a child, and impales him with it. Marek then returns to the main platform, where the Emperor is standing over an injured Kota. He instructs the apprentice to kill Kota, and fulfill his destiny by giving himself to the dark side. Marek ignites his lightsaber, ready to strike down the blind General Kota, but, instead, in a moment of regret, he tries to kill Palpatine. However, Palpatine immediately ignites his own saber, easily deflecting the attack, and declares that he had foreseen the attack and knew that Marek would attempt to kill him. Palpatine breaks their saber lock, lifts Marek into the air, electrocuting him for a few moments before throwing him through a window out onto the landing platform, just as the Rogue Shadow flies in to rescue the rebel leaders. Staggering on the ground, Marek sees that Bail Organa and the other Rebel leaders have already been killed. Palpatine takes the opportunity to take the Shadow in his grasp and hurl it at Marek. It is unknown&mdash;though likely&mdash;that Juno Eclipse was killed.

Marek wakes up on an operating table&mdash;one much like the one his former master Darth Vader rested on, while his suit was constructed&mdash;to find that he now wearing his own suit of armor, presumably the only thing that is keeping him alive. The Emperor stands before him, saying he expected more from Marek, and thought he could have one day become one of the greatest Sith in the galaxy, even his successor, but, now, Marek will simply be his new servant, doing the Emperor's bidding, until he is eventually cast aside, just as Vader was. Marek screams in agony as his suit is completed. The events that follow are chronicled in Star Wars: The Force Unleashed: Ultimate Sith Edition.

Appearances

 * The Force Unleashed novel
 * Star Wars: The Force Unleashed comic
 * Star Wars: The Force Unleashed video game