Watch The Stars Go Out

Chapter I: Return.

Darth Vader stood next to his Master as he watched the ship land on the main hangar of the Death Star. He had waited for this moment for a long time, but he succeeded at hiding his excitement. The Emperor wouldn't approve if he put his personal interests above his duty, so Vader tried to fill his mind with patience as he waited for the passengers to exit the ship. The entire process seemed to last longer than he was willing to wait and he silently clenched his fists while he watched it happen: the automatic gate started to open slowly, revealing several pairs of feet as the exit ramp reached the floor and, seconds later, the eight members of the general's personal guard were walking out of the ship to wait for new orders. Then, another set of seconds passed until she finally exited the ship, bringing the prisoners, who were accompanied by stormtroopers, right behind her. This was the moment that awoke his senses even more, although he still didn't let it show as he saw her walk firmly towards him and his Master.

Ava Nai was still exactly the same woman Vader remembered: her rather slender body was covered in a made-to-measure flexible black uniform; her long and very straight black hair was firmly held on the back of her head and revealed her very common features, such as brown eyes, small nose and pale lips. When she finally stopped in front of them, he could confirm she was of average height, although it was difficult for him to tell given his own height.

It had been two years since Darth Vader had last seen General Nai and the memory of their last encounter was not a good one. Because Ava had caught the Emperor's attention for her ambition and military talent, she had reached the rank of General at the young age of twenty-seven, which had granted her her own army and the unofficial title of Palpatine's favorite. Being frequently given important missions had been her perfect excuse to leave Vader with the bitter taste of abandonment.

She was almost sure she was capable of hiding her emotions as well as he was while she stood face-to-face with him. Ava had tried to postpone this meeting at the Death Star, but she had always known she wouldn't be able to avoid the space station and Darth Vader forever. Putting all her inner strength and will on avoiding his intense stare, she focused on Palpatine.

"Ah, General Nai. Welcome back", Darth Sidious, as he was known, greeted with an artificial smile on his deformed features.

"It's good to be back, my Lord", Ava lied, bowing to the Sith, and watched as her prisoners were taken away at a silent gesture of the Emperor. Then, master and apprentice turned around and started walking away, still in silence, a sign that the general should follow them.

"But you have been away for a long time, General", Sidious replied, his calm and cold voice full of venom. "One would think you didn't want to return to the station". He was testing her and Darth Vader. There was hardly anything the Emperor didn't know, especially regarding the indispensable pieces of his Empire, and Ava had used the implementation of a new military base in Ghorman as the reason for her two year absence. But this time, based on her reports that the mission had been successfully accomplished, Sidious had ordered Ava Nai returned to the Death Star immediately as he considered her presence on the base was no longer essential.

"My only concern is the prosperity of the Empire, my Lord", were her carefully chosen words, which made Vader glance at her. They both knew it was the kind of answer Darth Sidious liked to hear. "My place is where you need me the most"

"Good". There was a brief paused before he continued. "I already have plans for your next missions, General"

While the three of them were gathered in the Emperor's own throne room, Vader found himself still repressing his euphoria and was starting to feel frustrated for not being allowed to exteriorize it. The general, on the other hand, was glad to have Sidious between them; after such a long time, she was not prepared to deal with a possibly enraged Sith just yet. She could feel his intense stare on her at all times, something the Emperor seemed to ignore, and was having trouble in concentrating on Sidious' words; all she knew was that the main base of her operations would be the Death Star.

"Now that it is finally finished, there is no reason for you to be detached somewhere else", he stated, referring to the station's recent completion. "Also, Lord Vader could use your help in his missions, could you not, Lord Vader?". His apprentice was completely aware that he was provoking him and Vader had his self-control tested once again.

"If that is your wish, Master", was his short and firm reply.

"We have assigned you the entire north wing on level three, General Nai", former Supreme Chancellor Palpatine changed the subject as he faced Ava again. "I hope it is according to your taste". She found it incredible how he found a way for his every word to sound like a threat.

"Thank you, my Lord", she replied, knowing it was her cue to leave. "I'm sure it is"

Darth Vader had felt the need to meditate after his silent encounter with Ava Nai. Although he knew he would not contain all of his anger the next time he saw her, he needed to calm his mind first or there was a strong chance he would kill her before she could say a word. There was nothing in the entire galaxy Vader wanted more than control: over his armies, over civilians and their actions, over absolutely everything. After freely shaping the Galactic Empire for Palpatine to rule over, he had lost control only twice: over Ava, when she decided to defy him and leave him behind, and over himself when he found she was gone. His then newly built fortress, Bast Castle, as well as planet Vjon, where it was located, was now just a memory and a reminder of how destructive the Force could be once it was unleashed.

He wasn't sure how many hours had passed since he had retreated to his meditation chamber, but Vader knew it was already nighttime and that Ava was probably in her quarters, off duty. As he exited the chamber, the younger Sith felt that familiar mix of anxiety and anger grow in him again and he didn't want to protect her from it. On the contrary, he wanted her to feel on her skin the consequences of deceiving Lord Vader.

Arriving at level three, he walked firmly to the gate that separated her private quarters from the rest of the station. Without any order, one of the two stormtroopers guarding the gate inserted a code on the control panel behind him, which allowed Vader to enter the reception room. As the gate closed behind him, he waited in the large, well illuminated room in which the only pieces of furniture were a simple sofa on each of its sides. Being warned of visitors through the stormtrooper's code, Ava Nai didn't take long to meet him. Walking through another gate in the opposite side of the reception, she looked like she was expecting his visit but was not ready for it.

"Vader", she said, unable to hide her hesitation as he walked towards her. "Come in", she invited, gesturing for him to enter the truly private section of her quarters. He gave her a second to lead the way to whatever part of the apartment she wanted to face him in.

A few seconds later, she entered a living room and he imitated her. Standing in the middle of the room, Ava turned around to face Vader. The Sith Lord knew she was expecting him to talk first; he could feel the anxiety and the fear in her and made her suffer a little more by looking around the room and pretending to be interested in its details. The truth was there wasn't much to be seen in the living room; there was only the essential furniture and nothing more. Finally, he looked at her.

Ava's hair was still damp from the shower she had taken previously and her lounge clothes were pretty much like her uniform, with simple, clean design and black.

"Did you have anything to do with this?", she asked, finally breaking the unbearable silence. His stare was burning her skin too much for her to remain silent.

"No, I didn't, Ava", Vader answered, trying to show he was calm. "It was his idea to bring you back"

"I was doing just fine in Ghorman until he ordered me to come", Ava stated rather stubbornly, looking away from him.

"You weren't doing fine here, then. Is that why you left after that night and avoided me for two years?", he asked, raising his voice as he started to lose control over his emotions.

"I left because the Emperor assigned me to a mission, Vader", was her abrupt answer. She too felt her self-control fading away. "If he hadn't informed you about it, it wasn't my place to do so"

"We could have the entire galaxy in our hands by now!", he yelled, infuriated.

"No, you could have the entire galaxy in your hands!", the general raised her voice as well. "You were just going to break me and I'd be a mere puppet to you, just like…". Fortunately for her, Ava was able to stop before she could regret her next words.

"Just like what?". Vader's voice suddenly changed and she recognized the sound of imminent danger when she heard it. "Just like who, Ava?"

"Nothing", she paused. "No one". Her attempt to remain calm was failing miserably, but she couldn't say the words. Ava had already experienced the invisible strength of the Force around her throat, choking her, to know what Vader was capable of. "You don't need me to rule the galaxy", she stated submissively, unable to look at Darth Vader as he was now standing very close to her.

"That's not for you to decide", he stated calmly, never looking away from her. His silent stare lasted for a long moment before he finally decided to walk away from her.

Ava watched as Vader exited the room and only when she heard him walk out the front gate she was able to let out a loud sigh of relief as her trembling body gave in, making her sit down on a nearby chair. If anyone had watched what had just happened, they would not believe that woman led her own army of thousands of soldiers, that she had crushed several rebel groups and killed mercilessly when needed. At her age, Ava Nai had already seen and experienced many things in her life, but she had never felt pure fear like the one Vader was able to inspire on her. Of course she knew he had the power to overthrow Sidious and being his right hand only granted her virtually unlimited possibilities, but she was also aware that he often acted on impulse; one false move and Vader could destroy everything around him.