The New Recruit -- an Episode III short

A little something I've been playing around with. There's one more post after this, which will be up tomorrow.
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Tarkin put the glass of sherry down on his desk with gusto, as if he had finally made an important decision, but he said nothing. The man in front of him was far too free with his words to be trusted with Tarkin's opinion about anything, even if it was only about the new gruel they were serving the Stormtroopers or what Tarkin thought of the new repulsors on the X-Wing. It was too early, and Tarkin was too ambitious, to communicate his discontent to the Emperor, especially through this ridiculous, gossipy, little man. Perhaps once he had been promoted to Grand Moff, he would command the Emperor's ear with more authority and ease.

"I do not understand it," Admiral Rayeth declared, standing with his hands behind his back in Tarkin's office. "He is the most stubborn, obnoxious human being I have ever had the pleasure of meeting."

"The Emperor has a very high regard for him," Tarkin said quietly.

"Yes, yes, I know. How else could he go from Major to General in a week?" Rayeth shook his head, his white hair flapping about his ears. "But it's like something out of a bad holo, my friend. He appears in my office one day out of the blue, asking how many men I have under my command to call off from the fight on Malastare. I thought he was some Separatist-friendly student from the University trying to play a cruel trick on me, but then the Emperor tells me that the dear lad is the new security advisor and that I should follow every damn word he says to the letter. And that I should address him from now on as Lord Vader. It is beyond me how that child could be Lord of anything."

Tarkin narrowed his eyes slightly, trying to hide his own frustration with the strange title. He was Vader's superior, thankfully, but, when it came down to it, Lord sounded a bit more distinguished than Admiral did. "Vader is obviously a very accomplished soldier," he said flatly. "And I have seen firsthand what a crafty pilot he can be. He has been very helpful so far in holding down the Separatists."

Rayeth wide face turned slightly purple. "But he's a child, Tarkin. And he has no respect for anyone."

Tarkin picked up his sherry and swirled the red liquid very deliberately. "You have not seen him with the Emperor."

Rayeth's eyes flashed eagerly. "Oh? How does His Lordship behave when the Emperor is near? I bet he licks the old man's boots for him." He paused and made a gurgling noise in his throat, a laugh meant to be cocky and knowing, but instead sounding over-anxious and nervous. "If you want to know, Tarkin, I've heard that Lord Vader does a lot more for the Emperor than lick his boots, if you know what I mean."

Tarkin got a very bad taste in his mouth; he was beginning to become sick of Rayeth's company. "Be careful, my friend," he said slowly. "Such accusations reflect worse on the Emperor than they do on Lord Vader."

The other man looked somewhat cowed, which satisfied Tarkin for the moment.

"As for Lord Vader," Tarkin continued, "he is as respectful to the Emperor as one would expect such a strange young man to be around a man whom he considers his superior."

"The Emperor is the only man Lord Vader considers his superior," growled Rayeth, recovering as his rage flared up again.

"Now, now, my friend, I do not think that is true. Lord Vader has respect for me and perhaps even for you, though that seems less likely. His behavior upsets you because I do not believe Lord Vader really undertands how to communicate with other sentient beings."

Rayeth snorted. "That's true enough. I heard he tried to strangle Jinnoth for disagreeing with him about some Jedi policy."

"He's a socially awkward young man, Rayeth, but he's a brilliant strategist, and surprisingly experienced for someone his age."

Rayeth put his own glass of sherry down and leaned forward. He had fully recovered f

 

Great to see you 'round these parts again, Angel!

Shame this is only going to be a two-shot-- this first post is very interesting and intriguing. Well, I look forward to the second part when it gets here.

 

It's a shame this is a short two parter. Great first part! I'm certainly interested, especially when it discusses Lord Vader's origin

Am

 

Oh, this is good! I'm anxiously awaiting more, and maybe you'll decide to expand it a little.

 

Only two! Something tells me this 'Rayeth' better watch his mouth...

Great job, I'm looking forward to the next post!


*SB*

 

Well, you've got your wish...sort of. This is no longer a two-shot, now it's a three-shot. Yeah, yeah, kill me later.

The main reason I'm keeping it short is because I have a disturbing history on these boards of not being able to finish the things I start. So I'm taking it slow.

But thank you for the encouraging words -- it's great to be back. And the old gang is still here! That makes me very happy.
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Tarkin did not see him at first.

The Admiral had just come down the steps from the Senate Rotunda into the Outer Courtyard, and had found the weather to be surprisingly brisk. Tarkin pulled the chain of his cloak tighter, and squinted into the deep blue darkness, waiting for his eyes to adjust. Above him, the sky brimmed with stars.

"Admiral Tarkin."

In spite of himself, Tarkin jumped. Vader was standing next to him, looking up at the stars.

"Lord Vader." Tarkin nodded curtly at him, saving face as best he could, though it all seemed in vain. Vader wasn't even bothering to look at him.

Tarkin shifted, waiting for the young man to speak. He listened to the dull whir of speeder traffic overhead for a moment, and when Vader continued to refuse to speak, Tarkin conceded. "You have received my message, Lord Vader, and you are no doubt curious as to why I wished to speak with you," he said.

"It is a strange time to request a meeting, Admiral," said Vader slowly. "And a strange place to hold it."

"You have proven to have little regard for protocol, My Lord. I did not think you would object to such a meeting place."

Vader smiled slightly, an expression that seemed oddly forced on him. Though, Tarkin thought, most expressions did. Vader's face appeared to be something that the young man was always working against, not with -- he never seemed to know what to do with it.

"I do not object," Vader said. "I have not been here in a very long time."

Tarkin looked at him hard. "You've been here before?"

Vader said nothing. He continued to look fixedly at the darkened sky.

Tarkin tried again. "You've been here before, My Lord."

Vader turned, finally, and stared down at Tarkin. His eyes had a stange dullness to them, as if Vader was deliberately keeping the life out of them. Tarkin shivered and promptly attributed it to the cold.

"What do you want, Admiral?" Vader asked.

Tarkin spoke carefully, forcing himself to look into Vader's lifeless eyes. "I wanted to talk to you about your behavior, My Lord."

"Oh?"

"I do not think you realize how much you have alienated many of the officers here."

Vader slowly smiled.

"And by officers, My Lord, I mean your commanding officers," said Tarkin.

"I assumed so, Admiral. There are no other officers for me to alienate."

"If there were, My Lord, I am sure you would find them."

Vader did not smile. "What does this have to do with you, Admiral? Have I offended you in some way?"

"I am not easily offended, Lord Vader, but there are several Admirals who are. They are beginning to find it difficult to work with you. And you have not been with us very long."

"That is true." Vader appeared to be losing interest. The sky once again commanded his attention.

Tarkin raised his voice in response. "Our organization is very young, Lord Vader."

"Yes."

"I do not know how well it can handle internal strife."

"I see."

"It seems to me in the Empire's best interests then for you to try to show a little more respect when dealing with your superiors. Do you understand me, My Lord?"

Vader said nothing. Tarkin was unprepared to repeat himself, but just as he was gearing up to do so, Vader looked at him again. "Admiral," he said, and paused again, his eyes wandering.

Tarkin did his best to smile encouragingly, but he was reasonably certain it had come out a grimace. "My Lord?"

"You will tell no one of this conversation?"

"You mistake me for Admiral Rayeth, My Lord."

Either Vader did not understand this gibe, or he did not care for it. Tarkin su

 

*gasp* Well done! I mean it, you kept me captivated. I'm on the edge of my seat awaiting what shall come next. You should consider submitting this to the archive once done

Am

 

There should be a post -- the final post! -- up in the next hour or two. A note about it though, which I forgot to mention sooner. There is an extended reference to Rogue Planet in it. If you haven't read Rogue Planet, you'll probably be okay, but I definitely recommend reading it. It's the best Ep. I/Ep. II interim novel we've got so far, if you ask me, and the interaction between Anakin and Obi-Wan is great. Okay, enough product placement by me -- on with the show.

 

Tarkin kept his eyes on the young man's back, disappointed that he could not see Vader's reaction to his words. "I have been hearing strange stories about you from the moment you arrived, but I never thought that your real story would prove to be even less believable than the rumors."

Vader stood still as stone, a shadow in the darkness. Tarkin sincerely regretted not being able to see his face.

"A Jedi who wants to annihilate his own kind," Tarkin shook his head and laughed, marvelling at how ridiculous the words sounded when put together. "And the apprentice of General Kenobi, no less. Quite the hero in the Wars; not a terrible role model for a bright youg person to have, if you ask me. And you want to kill him?"

Vader turned slowly, but he didn't look at Tarkin. Instead, his dead eyes took in the stars above. There was tension in his face, however, that had not been there before. Tarkin's smile widened, and he advanced on his companion.

"You were at the Battle of Geonosis. And you singlehandedly stopped the Trade Federation when you were nine-years-old. Impressive credentials, Anakin. It's a wonder you haven't mentioned these things earlier; perhaps you wouldn't have had to threaten so many officers to be taken seriously."

He was now standing at Vader's side again, near the staircase.

"I met you once before, Anakin. Do you remember Zonama Sekot?"

Vader said nothing.

"You were an odd little thing even then. I touched you and you burnt my hand. I thought to myself, now here is a boy who's going to go very far. And I was right, though I never expected to meet you here."

Vader met Tarkin's stare and held it. His voice was soft and steely. "This is ancient history."

"Now, now, Anakin, we cannot understand the present if we do not understand the past. And this history is hardly ancient."

Vader's eyes dropped.

Tarkin continued slowly, savoring every word. "The thing that really bewilders me, though, my friend, beyond all this, is that you're married to Senator Padme Amidala, the leader of the Rebellion against the Empire. Perhaps the most beautiful woman I've ever seen. Which leads me to the question I've been meaning to ask you since I realized who you really are -- what in the world are you doing here?"

"Listening to you tell me stories about a dead man."

"For a dead man, you look remarkably well," Tarkin said, but then he saw the dull eyes and stopped, unsure.

Vader smiled blandly. "What do you want from me, Admiral?"

"I want my questions answered, Anakin. And I want to warn you to be a bit more careful with your secrets."

"I have been very careful," Vader said, "with Anakin Skywalker's secrets. Which is why I find your knowledge about his wife to be rather surprising."

Tarkin smiled. "I didn't come across that piece of information in a public file, if that is what you're asking. Your secret marriage will not be plastered over the holonet anytime soon, my friend. Unless, of course, you do manage to finally offend me."

"You don't know what you're doing, Tarkin. You aren't going to be able to blackmail me."

"Why not?"

Vader leaned forward, and his face became still, as if it were a mask covering something unspeakable. Tarkin felt a strange tingling in his throat. "I am not the man I used to be, Tarkin. Perhaps he would have submitted to you, but I will not."

Tarkin did not respond; he was finding it strangely difficult to breathe.

"I do remember you from Zonama Sekot, Tarkin. You were in over your head then, as well."

Tarkin looked down, and saw that Vader's hand was curled tightly, clenched around the air. His throat tightened and he gagged.

"I am murdering Jedi, Admiral, because the Jedi need to be murdered, as you've said. Anakin Skywalker was the first Jedi I killed, and believe me, Tarkin, he needed to die."

Suddenly, the pressure on Tarkin's windpipe relaxed. He took a large, shuddery breath and stared Vader down. He was not frightened by this runaway mind magician -- he was not afraid of anyth

 

Now that's surprising -- the Emperor was behind everything. Should have been expected. Anyway, a nice three-part Angel! I hope to see you expand yourself into a much larger fic next time. Golly, I look forward to that

Am

 

You scared me a little bit when you mentioned Geonosis ('ack! spoiler!' ), but other than that, awesome.

"Anakin Skywalker was the first Jedi I killed, and believe me, Tarkin, he needed to die."

I got chills when I read that line-- such a cut-and-dry expression of his disgust/hatred of his former life. And Tarkin's "New things can never fully replace the old, or so you say" to Vader-- very nice bit of foreshadowing. This is an excellent story-- I agree with Am, you should definitely consider submitting it to the archive. It's a nice tie-in with both ANH and Rogue Planet (yes, it *is* the best interim novel yet), and I love seeing the elaboration on possible backstory between Vader and Tarkin.

Hope you're sticking around, and that we get to see more stories from you!

 

Thanks, guys. I'll look into archiving it -- I'll need a few betas (hint, hint).

Heehee, leave it to A21 to call me out on my spoiling ways. What do we have, six weeks to go 'til AOTC? I guess I just can't resist dropping a few (minor, minor) spoilers in there -- don't want this story out of date by May.

I'm sticking around as best I can. It feels really good to be writing again. I got to be too much of a worker bee with school...feels good to kick back a bit on the JC.

 

I'm free anytime to beta. Just PM me, if you're interested.

Am

 

It's fine, Angel. I've just had some very bad experiences with AOTC spoilers recently and that one gave me a little bit of a pulse-check.

And I'm with Am, again. PM me anytime you need a beta.