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The Greatest Sith... That
Never Lived
Posted by: Darth Danno
11.22.06 12:01am
Previously:
CHAPTER III: THE PLOT THICKENS
(Part I)
Even though the Force had alerted
Vader to another presence now in the room, he didn't need to
use it to inform him of the intruder's identity. There was only
one who would dare enter unannounced.
"I have received some distressing
news...Lord Vader." The Emperor hissed. I have spared no
expense on getting you a state of the art training facility.
Captain Killorkan was put in charge of that, and to make sure
you had everything you required. In return, I was to see progress
in your abilities. He was most displeased, as am I, with your
time on today's sparring match."
Vader wasn't quite sure what
to say to appease his master, so he just slowly rose out of his
chair, turned to face Palpatine, dropped to one knee, and lowered
his head in supplication. The Emperor made no motion for Vader
to rise, instead let him feel as if keeping Vader in this position
was a form of punishment. The moments dragged on and Vader felt
he would soon topple over if his master didn't allow him to get
up from this uncomfortable position. Not sure what else to do,
the kneeling Dark Lord, with his head still hanging down, uttered,
"I'm sorry...my master."
After a few moments, the Emperor
acquiesced and said, "rise". Then turned away from
Vader and crossed to a nearby bookshelf.
Vader was only too happy to get
up, but the amount of time he had spent kneeling took its toll
on him, metallic joints sounded their dismay as Vader fought
to straighten himself. Fortunately, Palpatine's back was to him,
so he didn't have to witness this embarrassing spectacle. He
had been in this body, if one could call it that, for over a
year and yet, still had times when it felt as if he had just
been imprisoned in it the day before. He would have to speak
to the med-techs about making some adjustments. These mechanical
maladies would never do when he was on the field of battle. Finally,
he managed to get to his feet and return to the vertical position.
The Emperor still did not turn to face him, just continued to
gaze over the vast wall of knowledge that spread out around him.
"My time in the training
room today was not productive." Lord Vader stated, breaking
the silence.
Still facing the shelves, the
Emperor replied, "Not productive...? More like deplorable.
They were just machines, soulless forms of wiring and machinery.
You are a Sith Lord, and emissary of the Dark Side. Or did the
events on Mustafar render you also a soulless form of wiring
and scrap metal?"
The words burned into what was
left of Vader's heart, and the searing pain they caused was far
more damaging than any lava flow could cause. "N...no, my
master." Was his only response.
Finally, Palpatine turned to
face him. The dim light, in addition to the black robe with the
hood pulled low, hid his face from view. When he spoke, his voice
just seemed to come from the dark void contained within the folds
of the hood. "If you're having this sort of difficulty now,
how do you ever expect to be able to extract revenge on Kenobi?
Or are you covertly hoping he'll just come along and finish what
he started?"
Vader was seething now, fortunately
the mask hid it from his master's eyes, but he was sure Palpatine
could feel the anger which was building up inside him. "I
was...distracted, master." Vader retorted, refusing to lower
his head this time. He tried to meet the Emperor's gaze, which
proved impossible considering he couldn't see exactly where his
master was looking at any one time.
"Distracted?" The Emperor
replied with genuine concern. "What should happen if you
become distracted when I send you out to lead? Troops may doubt
your ability to lead, and revolt. Soldiers may die. YOU...may
perish as well. All because of some petty...distraction."
The Emperor cocked his head to a slight angle, and the tone in
his voice changed sharply when he spoke again. "You were
thinking of HER again!"
Immediately Vader knew who he
was referring to when he spoke of "her". Many times
since he had given himself over to the Dark Side, Padme had been
the cause of his distraction, his loss of focus or concentration,
but not this time. "No, my master." Vader responded
with authority.
The Emperor said nothing, just
continued to stare at his apprentice, trying to determine the
veracity of his last statement. Finally Palpatine just shook
his head slowly back and forth. "Lord Vader...what am I
to do with you?" Spoken as if he were reprimanding a small
child. "You show such promise. Your ability to tap into
the Dark Side, to command it, could make you one of the greatest
and most powerful Sith Lords of all time. You just need to forget
your past and embrace your future! Your time as a slave on Tatooine
has long gone by. Padme and your unborn child are no more! The
Jedi are extinct! The Republic is history! Your mother is dead
and buried. Anakin Skywalker is dead and reborn!" He paused
a moment to let the words sink in, then continued. "We are
at the dawn of a new era. A time of peace and prosperity at the
hands of the Galactic Empire...at least until our secret project
is completed." The Emperor proceeded to chuckle slightly,
or was it more of a cackle? Vader wasn't quite sure.
"Where do we stand on that?"
Vader queried.
Darth Sidious shook his head
in disgust. "We are behind, as usual. No matter have may
workers I send, the progress remains slim. There always seems
to be problems and setbacks. I was informed by Governor Sullust
that these were to be expected. I replied to him that he may
expect them...but I do not! Then I stripped him of his rank and
removed him from duty. He may be able to return to work in some
diminished capacity after he is released from the med center.
Force lightning didn't seem to agree with him." Again, came
the chucking or cackling, as it were. "He has been replaced
by Governor Tarkin. Whom I believe has the ability to get things
back on schedule."
Vader had met Tarkin, albeit
briefly, when the three of them first gazed upon the construction
on their armored battle station. Again when he was dealing with
the Jedi on Kashyyk. From what he had gathered of the man, Tarkin
was more than capable of the job, for one who was not a force-sensitive.
He then thought that if he himself had been brought in to oversee
things, he would not only get proceedings back on schedule, but
would push them until they were ahead of schedule!
Palpatine must have read his
thoughts because he replied, "Patience, my apprentice. You
still have much to learn. You will be an integral part of our
reshaping the galaxy. I have grand plans for you. But if today's
session with the battle droids is any indication..."
Vader interrupted him. "I
came across the names of two Sith Lords, no other mention of
them, just their names. It intrigued me as to why they would
be mentioned, but could find no other reference." Vader
dropped his head slightly as he said his next statement. "They
were the cause of my distraction." He then raised it up
again as he said, "I thought perhaps records of them were
lost or destr..."
The Emperor's slight chuckle,
this time it was most definitely a chuckle, stopped him. "Excellent,
Lord Vader. You have passed yet another test."
Darth Danno
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