In the Star Wars universe, few stories are as dark, bold, and downright unpredictable as Star Wars: Dark Empire. This saga belongs to the Legends continuity, meaning it's no longer canon, but it offers a wild "what if" scenario of what could have happened after Return of the Jedi. And, yes... it ends with Luke Skywalker falling to the Dark Side.
Curious alredy? Buckle up, we're diving deep into the Dark Empire comics and the bizarre chain of events that led to Luke Skywalker trading in his Jedi robes for something a little more, well, Sith chic.
Ten Years After the Emperor's Fall
The story kicks off a full decade after the destruction of the second Death Star, and surprise, the galaxy is still knee-deep in war. Even with the Emperor gone, the Empire never really died. Warlords and splinter factions fight for control, chaos grips the Galactic Core, and a new shadowy threat lurks behind it all
Enter Han Solo, Leia Organa, Chewbacca, and C-3PO, on a daring mission to rescue Luke Skywalker and Lando Calrissian, both of whom vanished during a heated battle over Coruscant. Maneuvering the Millenium Falcon through the wreckage of Imperial Star Destroyers, Han suspects Luke landed right in the middle of the chaos. And amid the stomping AT-AT walkers shaking the ground, Leia taps into the Force, blowing one to pieces with nothing but her growing connection to it.
The Big Entrance: Dark-Side Luke
Then, an unexpected figure enters the fray. A dark silhouette raises a hand and casually annihilated Imperial droids. That shadowy figure? None other than Luke Skywalker. But this isn't farm-boy Luke, this Luke is colder, more powerful, and, frankly, a little terrifying.
He reunites with his friends only to drop a bombshell: the Imperial Palace hides a power far darker than any civil war. Against Leia and Han's pleas, Luke decides to stay. He claims it's his destiny. And with that, he walks alone into a storm of raw energy.
Meanwhile...Galaxy-Sized Trouble
The New Republic soon detects something far worse brewing in the Core: massive "World Devastators" planet-sized machines that consume entire worlds to fuel the Imperal war machine. One of the first targets? Admiral Ackbar's homeworld, Mon Calamari. The Republic rallies, but it's barely enough to hold back the destruction.
Then Luke reappears but not as the hero everyone hoped for. He's now pledged himself to the Dark Side. Arriving on the Imperial stronghold of Byss, Luke faces the unthinkable: Somehow Palpatine returned!
Anyone else feeling Deja Vu?
Yes, Palpatine Returned....in Clone Form (Sound Familiar?)
Palpatine reveals his spirit survived the Death Star's destruction and has been body-hopping through a series of clones to cheat death. His grand plan? Build a new arsenal of galaxy-crushing weapons...with Luke as his sucessor.
Here's the twist. Luke accepts. But no to serve. His secret plan is to destroy the Empire from within. He takes commando of the World Devastators, pretending to be Palpatine's loyal apprentice, all while plotting his downfall.
Problem is, his friends don't know this. Han feels betrayed. Leia senses her brother slipping further into darkness. Determined to save him, she travels to Byss with Han. Battling bounty hunters, reuniting with old allies, and even receiving an ancient Jedi lightsaber from a former Jedi Knight. Pregnant and guided by the Force, she dives straight into the Empire's heart.
Leia vs The Emperor
When Leia finally finds Luke, he's almost unrecignizable. Cold, calculating, and serving the Emperor. But she can still feel flicker of light in him. Palpatine, sensing both Skywalkers in his presence, reveals his final plan: to possess Leia's unorn child a Force-strong heir who could rule the galaxy
Leia resists, dueling the Emperor, and though she's defeated, she plants a seed of doubt in Luke's mind. That moment cracks Palpatine's hold, and Luke begins to see the truth. He reveals to Leia his hidden plan, R2-D2 carries the master codes to shut down the World Devastators.
The group escapes Byss, R2 transmits the codes to the New Republic, and the superweapons are destroyed. But Luke's work isn't done, he returns to Byss to destroy the rest of Palpatine's clones.
The Final Showdown
Luke succeeds in sabotaging the cloning facility...but too late. Palpatine is alredy in a fresh body. The final duel ignites in the Emperor's throne room, the Force crackling so intensely it feels like the galaxy itself might shatter.
Luke falls in battle, but Palpatine makes one fatal mistake, demanding Luke kneel before him. Instead, Luke rises beside Leia. Together, the Skywalkers twins unleash the Force in a surge so powerful they turn Palpatine's own storm against him and the massive Eclipse-class flagship. Both are obliterated.
The galaxy breathes again...but the emotional scars remain.
A Prophecy and a New Hope - Literally
Back at the Rebel base, Leia studies a holocron from an ancient Jedi Master, foretelling a millennia-old prophecy: a sister carrying the future of the Jedi, a brother who would fall to darkness but return, and her child, the beginning of a new era.
Luke and Leia know the war isn't over, but they also understand something vital: the Jedi legacy will endure not through domination, but through compassion, sacrifice, and unity
Why Dark Empire Still Matters
Star Wars: Dark Empire was one of the most influential works of the old Expanded Universe. In the years after Return of the Jedi (1983), Star Wars hype had cooled off, but Dark Empire and Timothy Zahn's Thrawn Trilogy reignited fan passion and proved there was still a massive appetite for new stories.
It also introduced the idea of Palpatine surviving via cloned bodies, controversial then, divise now, but clearly influential (Right, JJ Abrams?)
During the events, Leia gives birth to Anakin Solo, her third child with Han (alongside Jacen and Jaina), marking the beginning of the next Skywalker generation, one that would go on to define countless future Legends stories.
If you enjoyed diving into this slice of Star Wars Legends, drop a comment below. Because trust me, there's a lot more where this came from. This galaxy is packed with wild stories, even crazier than Luke Skywalker joining the Dark Side, and I'm ready to bring you the next saga right here. So stay tunned...because in the world of Legends, the Force is always full of surprises.