Heart of Vader

Sidious frowned and turned his back on his apprentice, walking to the window that overlooked Coruscant. "It seems my plan must be executed more carefully than I expected," Sidious said after a lengthy moment of contemplation. "This requires adjustments in certain matters."

Vader had no idea what the old man was talking about, and he lacked the energy to pretend otherwise. "What matters, master?" Vader asked, feeling his knees tremble beneath him as he struggled to remain upright.

"Delicate matters," Sidious replied, seemingly keeping every response ambiguous. "Matters that are significant to my plan."

Vader wanted to kill him, but he opted for rolling his eyes instead. It didn't completely satisfy the desire, but it would suffice for now.

"About Senator Amidala?" Vader pressed as Sidious laughed.

"Of course, Lord Vader! Of course!" Vader nodded, but this small confirmation of such an arbitrary detail offered little clarity about his master's plan.

Sidious chuckled, feeling utterly pleased. He rubbed his hands together in excitement, as he always did whenever his plans came together. This lifted his spirits, which typically signaled that those around him, particularly Vader, would soon experience discomfort.

"Yes, yes," he muttered, more to himself than to Vader. "This will be perfect."

Vader remained silent, patiently waiting for his master to address him. He was fully aware that interrupting his thoughts would only amplify his misery.

He chuckled again until his delight was all that remained- that, and Vader's confusion and suspicion.

"Vader," he addressed him after sharing a few more laughs. "You were right." He usually was, but he feigned ignorance. "About what, my master?"

Sidious turned back to him, a slight frown on his face, tinged with feigned concern. "Senator Amidala is in grave danger." He shook his head. "She needs protection, especially now that all the other senators have gone missing and she has been attacked in the streets. I can't allow that to happen to one of the senators in my Imperial Senate. Not in the Imperial Center, no less."

Vader didn't feign concern; he merely waited to grasp the reason for his master's change of mind and how it would involve him, aware that it would likely result in more annoying commands regarding the female senator, whom he regretted not killing when he had the chance.

"You must keep her safe."

Vader frowned at the remark, raising his eyebrow. "Master?"

"The information," Sidious explained, his irritation becoming suddenly apparent. "We cannot afford to lose the information."

"Then by all means, let me interrogate her," Vader insisted, rising to his full height despite his knees buckling. He fought through the pain and stood resolutely. "I will obtain the information through proper means. She simply needs to be taken into custody."

"No." Sidious waved his hand and shook his head. "You lack vision, Lord Vader."

Vader almost scoffed. And he lacked sense; Vader didn't voice that.

"If you need her alive," Vader began slowly, "there are ways I can attempt to extract the information without killing her."

"But in what state would she be left in?" Vader remained silent. She would be alivenothing more than that. Breathing under her own power, if she was fortunate.

"No," Sidious said again, more firmly this time. "She cannot be in a vegetative state for what I have planned. I need her alive and cooperative," he paused, reconsidering his words. "Functioning," he decided instead. "I don't care if she is compliant."

Yet again, Vader had no clue what his master was referring to.

"There isn't much time," the man continued, lost in thought. "We must move quickly. I will pull her from the Senate floor, away from the public eye. She can stay with you, and you can keep an eye on her."

Vader frowned as another wave of anger surged through him. More ridiculous plans that disrupted his own. Had he heard correctly? Stay with him? What had possessed the old fool to conceive such an idea?

"We can leverage this attack to our advantage," Sidious concluded. "Claim that this decision is made for her protection."

Vader nearly growled. He was neither a protector nor did he wish for anyone to perceive him as one. He preferred their fear... and disdain.

"Surely, that is a task for a trooper," he shot back, but his words fell on deaf ears.

"Of course it isn't," he said. "I still need you to invade her mind, Lord Vader. I need you to devote every second to it. We must uncover what she is hiding."

Vader couldn't comprehend the madness. Why was he wasting time? He could reveal what she was concealing right now if his master would permit him. He had half a mind to return to the senator's quarters right now and prove that he could do just that. It would be easy. He could walk into her room, hear her scream at the sight of him, and see her eyes fill with fear as he reached into her mind, tearing her brain apart in the process to find what he desired. He would get it, eventually, and then they could eliminate her and be free–

"NO!" his master's voice bellowed, and Vader felt the man reach through the Force to hurl him backward.

He hit the ground on the opposite side of the room. He was not so much hurt as irritated that the older man was not as weak as he had hoped.

"Do not oppose me, Vader," Sidious hissed, his anger evident and palpable. "You are still young and arrogant in your ways. I can perceive what you cannot." He turned away, retreating into his schemes. "I will pull her from the Senate. You will keep her prisoner. You will discover what she is hiding. We will use her to our advantage."

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