Hello everyone. I've been meaning to do a Star Wars story for some time now, and I'm glad I finally committed something to print. This isn't going to turn into an actual story, although I am considering doing a chapter for each Sith Lord. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: Everything here belongs to George Lucas.

Torment

Palpatine sat on his throne and listened with considerable disinterest to the Head of the Imperial Treasury make a report. Someone had hacked into Imperial accounts and stolen vast amounts of credits, and the Imperial security forces were having no luck tracking them. Pinned in place by the Emperor's penetrating stare, the high-level bureaucrat began to sweat as he informed Palpatine that the hacker had most likely stolen the credits to fund the growing Rebel Alliance.

"Is that all?"

The Head of the Imperial Treasury gulped audibly.

"Yes, my lord."

Twin forks of blue-white lightning flew from Palpatine's fingertips and caught his subordinate square in the chest. The man was propelled off his feet, screaming, and was dead before he impacted the wall.

"It is so difficult to find good help these days," Palpatine mused.

The Sith Master got up from his throne and exited his throne room. As he crossed the threshold, six of the eight Imperial Guards stationed outside of his door took up formation around him. As Palpatine walked through the sprawling Imperial Palace, he sampled the currents of the Force being generated by both his nobles and the galaxy at large.

Palpatine grinned at what he sensed, showing his jagged yellow teeth. He and his guard inspired terror wherever they went, forcing high-ranking politicians to back out of their way. The whole of Imperial Palace was a pitch black void of fear, shot through with reddish undercurrents of hate. The entire galaxy was much the same. The stars themselves were groaning under the weight of their inhabitant's agony. Fear, anger, hatred, ambition; all of the passions that gave a Sith his strength were everywhere. Truly, there had never been a better time to wield the dark side of the Force.

The Emperor took a series of turbolifts deep into the bowels of his palace. He stepped inside of a soundproofed communication chamber set aside in an alcove. His guards waited outside. The interior of the room was perfectly dark, except for the blinking lights of the holocomm unit. Casually, the Emperor used the Force to activate the unit, which automatically sent out a coded signal to the Executor. A few minutes later, the figure of a kneeling Darth Vader appeared in the middle of the room.

Palpatine carefully prevented his lip from curling. There was a time when he had thought Vader was perfect, but that time had long since passed. The Emperor seethed with anger when he considered all of the time and effort he had invested in turning Anakin Skywalker into a Sith, only to have him be cut down days after all of his hard work had come to fruition. Vader had once possessed the potential to become the epitome of everything the Sith Order represented, but that dream was long dead. Vader was a burned-out husk of his former self. Still, even a fragment of perfection was not something to be taken lightly. Vader was...adequate.

For now.

"What is thy bidding, my master?" Vader asked.

"There is a Sith technique I wish to impart to you, Lord Vader," Palpatine said.

Vader looked up sharply. "Truly?"

One of the several leashes Palpatine used to keep Vader in line was his mastery of Sith powers. Only rarely did the Emperor give his apprentice some small lesson in the Sith ways. Only a few months ago, Palpatine had taught Vader how to use the Force to see a short distance into the future in order to predict an opponent's moves in battle. For him to give another lesson so soon was unheard of.

"Yes, my apprentice," Palpatine said, drawing the words out to make them hypnotic, "Clear your mind. Fill yourself with the dark side. Only with great concentration will this new power become yours."

Vader was silent for several moments. Palpatine could feel him gathering the Force into himself. It was times like these he remebered why he kept Vader as an apprentice. He gathered power into himself with such ease. If only his wrecked body were able to contain more.

"I am ready, my master," Vader said. Palpatine could almost taste his excitement.

"Good. Now, use your power to..."

A pause.

"Master?"

"Oh, my. I had forgotten."

"Is something wrong, master?"

"I just remembered that this technique uses the same energies as Sith lightning. And you can't use that, can you? How forgetful of me. That will be all, Lord Vader," Palpatine said. With a twitch of the Force, the link between the Emperor and his servant was cut.

Even half a galaxy away, he could feel the white hot corona of Vader's rage.

Palpatine grinned. He loved doing that.

I hope you liked it. Please review!