Anakin hung, suspended in bacta, drifting in and out of consciousness.

Everything itched.

He tried to reach out, to feel Padme through the Force, to touch his unborn children.

There was nothing.

It was almost as if his family had disappeared from the Force entirely. There was only one reason Anakin could conceive for that. His heart sped up with panic, and he tried to reach out again with the Force.

A surge of pain regulating medications flooded into his body, and everything went black.

"Lord Vader."

The sound of his new name caused Anakin's eyes to open suddenly. Pain screamed through every nerve, causing him to convulse. The room spun, and Vader would have fallen, had he not already been laid out on a table.

"Good, you're awake." The voice belonged to Emperor Palpatine. "I assure you, my apprentice, you will survive. You are far from whole, but you will survive."

"P-p-pa..." Vader sputtered, trying to form words. Bile seeped up his throat, opening freshly formed blisters, spilling a vile concoction of fluids back down into his stomach as he swallowed.

"Save your strength, Lord Vader. The medical droids cannot safely administer any more anesthetic. You will need your strength to scream."

Hours passed, and then days. Eventually, Vader came to terms with the thought that his suffering would not end until he died. Even then, he was sure that Palpatine would find a way to make his pain continue or bring him back to life so that his suffering would be without end.

"Lord Vader," Palpatine's voice cut through the pain once again. "Can you hear me?"

Vader opened his eyes to see a world filtered in red. The pain was still there, but it had dulled. Perhaps his nerves had burned out, or his brain had found a way to filter those signals enough for him to function. Either way, it was a small measure of relief.

"Yes, my master," Vader responded. His voice didn't sound right. It was hollow, distant and mechanical. He reached out with the Force again for his wife and children. "Where is Padme? Is she safe?"

Palpatine took a deep breath and frowned before speaking. "I'm afraid that she has died." He paused, letting the gravity of his words sink in to the apprentice's mind. "It seems that, in your anger, you killed her."

Inside of Vader, he felt the last of Anakin's heart shatter. All that he had endured during his battle on Mustafar, the surgeries and lack of anesthetic – none of that could compare to the pain that was bursting forth inside of him now.

"I... I couldn't have... She was alive! I felt her! She was alive!"

A deep, soul-wrenching howl emanated from Vader's helmet, but its source was much deeper. Palpatine hid his smile, knowing that he had broken the last remnant of the Jedi, Anakin Skywalker. All that remained was his new apprentice, Darth Vader.

Medical equipment shattered, droids were thrown against the wall, and the howl continued for what seemed like a very long time. Within just a few seconds, however, it was over. Vader was spent, exhausted from such a powerful output of emotional and Force power.

"You have only yourself to blame, Lord Vader," Palpatine said, his voice rich with disappointment and condescension. "Your passion gave you strength, and power, but you fell short of victory. You failed yourself. You failed me. You failed Padme."

Inside of his armor, Vader felt sick at these words.

Palpatine continued. "I will give you time to meditate on your failure. I will return when the time is right to resume your training."

The Sith Master turned and exited the medical suite.

A stinging, salty moisture formed around Vader's eyes.

Over the days and weeks that followed, Vader became accustomed to his new form. It was not easy, but he was determined to succeed.

Sitting in his workshop, he clumsily rotated a new lightsaber hilt in his mechanical hands.

"Lord Sidious lied to me," he growled to himself. "He said that I could save Padme from death, and lead me down a road that resulted in her dying. I will not rest until I can avenge her."

A red blade flashed to life, stable and strong. This would be Vader's new weapon, his instrument of revenge. He turned and faced a Jedi training droid, swinging his weapon to get its bearing with his left hand.

"Ah, good, a new student," the droid said. "Safety protocols are active. Shall we proceed?"

"Deactive safety protocols," Vader answered. "Authorization code Skywalker Peth Two."

"Authorization code recognized. Safety protocols deactivated. Defend yourself, Jedi."

The droid lunged forward, thrusting its blue lightsaber blade at Vader's midsection. He managed to clumsily parry the attack and reached out with his empty hand, as well as the Force, to shove the droid backward.

It did not hesitate, but leapt forward with an overhead attack aimed at Vader's head. The Sith Lord blocked the attack, and reached out to grasp the droid's neck with his right hand. A strength beyond what he had previously recognized became available, and Vader crushed the droid's neck.

"Impressive," Vader said, examining his right hand. "Where did that come from?"

Vader knelt, head bowed, before the imposing holographic presence of his master.

"I have been observing your progress, Lord Vader. It is time for you to undertake a mission on behalf of our order, as well as the Empire."

"As you wish, my master."

"You will go to Ilum, and command a strike force in securing that world, including its Kyber crystal mining network."

"Master, is this a test?"

"Is that how you perceive it?"

"Am I wrong?"

"We are, always being tested, Lord Vader. Tests help us grow in strength. Strength is power, and power is the point. We must pass all the tests we face. Or die in the effort."

"I will not fail you, Master."

"No, you will not, if you value your miserable excuse for a life."

The hologram vanished. Inside his helmet, Vader gritted his teeth. The day would come when he would make Palpatine choke on his own words.