Chapter Two
Chain of Command
After a month of working in Imperial Human Resources, Jac felt he accomplished a great feat: coming to work every day in the absolute sink hole of hopes and dreams without killing all his co-workers then obliterating the building itself. He blended in, did his work, became the worker bee needed to begin making plans for himself as a Sith on Coruscant.
One day after work, during his second week of employment, he didn't go home right away as he'd done the past several evenings. Instead, he ventured over to the Jedi Temple, roped off, a couple Imperial guards walking the grounds. Jac purchased a caf at a nearby shop and walked around the perimeter of the building. Yes, he could feel it, the Dark Side energies seeping through the ground. He learned at the Scholars' station, in the library, that the Jedi built the Temple eons ago on a large concentration of Dark Side energy, and Jac felt that ancient and sublime radiation now, coupled with the new dark residual effects of the Jedi purge.
He came around the corner to see a fallen statue of some famous Force user and spotted her, Callie, his manager. She sat on a bench across from the Temple, staring at the broken building, caf in her hands as well. She still wore her clothes from work, a bright fuchsia dress. He appreciated the fact she refused to give in to the grey of the place, as he still tried to hold on to some color as Imperial Human Resources zapped his spirit day by day.
He walked slowly toward where she sat, beginning to plot. Ever since meeting her, he hadn't gone on the prowl for another lover, Callie dominating his thoughts. And for Jac to go an entire week without sex seemed nearly impossible for him, although he had pleasured himself several times to thoughts of her. He hoped perhaps now, catching her in a new place much sexier than work (which was anywhere, to be honest), might lead back to his bed.
But approaching her, he saw he had his work cut out for him. She looked forlorn as she stared at the ruined statue. Jac moved in anyways, sitting next to her on the bench. Sadness and depression could often lead to poor decision-making, and he hoped to be her poor decision.
"Hello, Callie," he said, pouring charm into his voice.
She looked at him, no surprise on her face. "Hello, Jac," she said, her buttery voice once again making him melt slightly. Her eyes narrowed. "Do you come here often?"
Such a strange question, but then it struck him. Did she think him to be a Jedi? He knew she saw the little Force prank he played on Dew his first day, but she never mentioned it. Perhaps she thought him a surviving Jedi, like Obi-Wan Kenobi.
"My first time," he answered honestly. "You know, I'm kinda new to Coruscant, so I've never been to this site. Those treacherous Jedi bastards."
"You really think the Jedi were treacherous?" she said, turning to look at him.
"That's what everyone says," he said, shrugging and taking a sip of his caf. "Don't you?"
"I suppose," she said, barely above whisper.
They sat in silence for a long time, and Jac zoned a bit from his goal of getting Callie naked and underneath him to feeling the Dark Side tickle his nerves, enliven his spirit, damaged from mediocrity. This place felt so good in its state of decay.
A transport approaching woke him from his thoughts, and both he and Callie looked up to the landing platform on the south side of the Temple. An elegant black ship landed, the back opening to a stream of stormtroopers. Finally, Darth Vader emerged.
Jac gasped a little upon seeing him in person, even from this distance. Of course he'd seen the mechanical man on the holonews, even back with the Scholars, as they'd scoffed at the title Darth and the obvious practice of the Rule of Two Palpatine employed, which always seemed a waste of the knowledge of the Sith. Jac also saw Vader in a vision, fighting the aged Obi-Wan Kenobi on some space station called Death Star. But visions and holoimages did not do the Sith Lord justice. Darth Vader bled power into the air, the Dark Side wafting off him, and Jac automatically took a deep breath, as if trying to gather the energy into his lungs. Beautiful.
Darth Vader walked with purpose into the Temple, leaving some stormtroopers behind, standing guard.
"I wonder who he is," came Callie's voice, barely above a whisper.
Jac looked at her puzzled. "Him? That's Darth Vader. Don't you watch the news?"
Callie looked at him, then rolled her eyes and chuckled. "I know! I mean, underneath that armor, that mask."
Jac shrugged. Even if Darth Vader were someone famous, Jac would have no clue. He'd paid a man to tell him about Obi-Wan Kenobi when the name seemed quite well-known on Coruscant and in military conversation.
"Probably just some Sith Emperor Palpatine dragged up," Jac said nonchalantly, for he knew this was probably the case. Any Sith worth his salt would choose a less powerful apprentice, especially one subscribing to the Rule of Two in his prime.
"What did you say?" Callie said.
Jac refocused on her, her hazel eyes wide, questioning.
"Huh?" he asked, trying to avoid answering, and doing a poor job. Damn, he was bad at staying undercover, at least here in the capital. Pretending to be a Max Rebo fanboy was one thing, but here in the shadow of the Empire, he needed to play smarter. But who was Callie anyway but some middle-manager in human resources?
"You know the Emperor is a Sith?" she asked, her voice demanding a response. She leaned forward toward him, her face just inches from his. "Who are you?"
Jac laughed nervously. Very few people made him uncomfortable in his life, but Callie both aroused and frightened him at the moment.
"Um…just Jac. I…well…the title Darth…and…look, here he comes," he breathed a sigh of relief when Vader reappeared, carrying a bag. The Sith disappeared into the transport along with his entourage, and soon the ship left, the area around the Temple returning to the gentle hum of late afternoon activity.
"How do you know about the title Darth?" she continued.
Stang, couldn't she just give it up?
"I…studied history before I came here," he said truthfully, recalling hours spent in the Scholars' library, pouring over the learnings of past Sith, Darth Revan, Darth Sion, others less known.
"Where?" she demanded, and Jac felt himself irresistibly compelled to answer.
"On a laboratory space station in the Unknown Regions," he answered as if the words were being pulled aggressively from him. "I apprenticed there since I was five and…and…"
"What happened?" she hissed, her face very close to his.
"The place blew up because…" he shook his head, regaining some composure. "Of an accident. But I survived. Came here. Using my data entry skills to help the Empire." He ended on a light note, flashing his charming smile once again, but he felt a tremor of fear pass through him. What had just happened?
Callie sat back, her face falling, and she leaned her forehead into her hand briefly before rising, squaring her shoulders, and beginning to walk away, tossing her caf cup into a nearby garbage bin.
"Wait!" he said, rising. "Let me take you to dinner." The goal of Callie, naked and moving against him, also naked, returned and sharpened his mind again.
She studied him for a long time, then shrugged. "Okay."
They ate at a nice restaurant nearby, Jac insisting on paying. He had to do something with his vast wealth after all. To his disappointment, they spoke mostly about work.
"So, you know where I'm from," Jac said, changing the subject from the dismal topic of the new insurance claim forms. "How about you?"
She shrugged. "Coruscant. Grew up here, but studied abroad for a while. Came back at the end of the Clone Wars."
"How did you get to be a manager so quickly?"
"Hmmm…just a bit of mind manipulation," she said wistfully, then giggled. "Do you have any more pranks planned for Dew? He's such an ass."
"You saw that…I knew it!" he said, wondering if she would turn him into the Empire. Maybe she should. Did runaway Jedi get killed on the spot or brought to one of the Sith Lords?
"Saw what?" she said coyly.
Jac grinned, liking her even more. He looked down to see the bill settled, their drinks empty. He looked back up at her, pouring seduction into his voice. "Come back to my place for dessert, beautiful Callie."
He saw a blush reach her golden cheeks, and her warm eyes looked down as she bit her lip. He momentarily thought about employing the Force mind trick to get her to follow him, but for some reason, he wanted her to want him on her own. This desire struck him as odd, since his typical goal was usually just sex, and while he liked pleasuring women, his own enjoyment came first and foremost. Why did Callie change his usual strategy?
She rose. "It's midweek, and I run insurance seminars tomorrow for the new Imperial Guard. Maybe…maybe another time. Thank you for dinner."
Then she left before Jac could get in another word.
As she was gone the next day to meet with new employees, the office seemed more drab than usual, and he found himself plotting ways to prank Dew to entertain Callie. He sent her a private message outlining several plans he had, and she immediately messaged him back with three ideas of her own. They went back and forth throughout the day, Jac heading home that evening whistling a Max Rebo love song.
And so it went, day in and day out, entering new employees into the system, some from all the way in the Outer Rim. When the floor lead wasn't watching, he'd slink over to Callie's desk, lean against it, and flirt shamelessly with her, reveling in making her smile and sometimes burst out laughing. She seemed to loosen up around him, and often visited him at his work station, sending shivers down his spine when she placed a hand on his arm, leaning down to whisper in his ear some gossip she heard about Angie, the well-known office slut, and the stormtrooper who did security for the building. Or perhaps warning him when he was being evaluated for his review.
To his surprise and absolute delight, she rearranged schedules so they could eat lunch together, and they sometimes went out and sometimes ate in the employee lunch room. But never again did he see her after work. She always seemed to disappear immediately at quitting time.
Jac made further progress on his own plans as well. He'd accessed employee records for some of those closest to the Emperor, remembering what Callie mentioned about the Imperial Guard. With vast wealth at his disposal, he wondered if bribery could be accomplished with some of these individuals. He saved personal information from the human resources computers to his own, and even began shadowing some of the upper level palace employees in their off time, finding out where they lived, where they shopped, who they associated with. As a Sith, he was also not above extortion, and he began to make detailed notes on people who could potentially get him in the palace and to Palpatine.
Now, on his one-month anniversary at Imperial Human Resources, he sat in the conference room with the other third-floor employees listening to how the new computer program will help streamline data entry for the new insurance options and blah, blah, blah…The only thing sustaining him was sitting next to Callie, her leg touching his, her delicate fingers running across her data pad as she took notes.
"And the final new procedure is when you are entering a new employee into the stormtrooper ranks, make sure to indicate their battalion number following their last name rather than putting it beside their date of birth," Ludyard, the floor manager, droned.
Jac glanced at his watch. Three minutes to quitting time. Tonight he would be shadowing one of the palace cooks for a couple of hours before focusing his attentions on the holocron, still obnoxiously silent. But if Callie lingered…
"All right everyone, see you tomorrow," Ludyard said, and Jac looked eagerly at Callie, who had not had a chance to slip stealthily away. "Hold up, Jac. Over here please."
Callie winked playfully at Jac as he slunk up to his boss.
"Yes?" he moaned, wishing he could Force choke the moron.
"I just wanted to wish you a happy one-month anniversary at Imperial Human Resources. Here," he handed Jac a small data chip without a smile and turned to leave. Glancing down, he saw a five credit gift to a nearby tapcaf. He'd missed Callie for this?
The next day, late morning, Jac took a break from entering data to focus intently on Dew's water bottle. The man always brought a stainless steel water container, refilling it several times a day, preaching to Jac about the importance of staying hydrated. Working on this prank for the past week, practicing at home, he finally felt capable of pulling this off undetected.
Focusing on the molecules in the water, he used the Force to speed them up, increasing the temperature of the water to the point of near boiling. At the same time, he focused on keeping the cup itself room temperature. Quite a feat.
Take a drink, he thought, massaging Dew's mind.
Still looking at his screen, Dew grabbed his water bottle, throwing back his head for a long drink.
"Kriff!" he shouted, spewing the hot water all over his holoscreen, leaping to his feet.
"You okay?" asked Jac, his voice full of concern. He looked over to see Callie watching, her eyebrows raised, smile beginning to form.
"Hot…hot…need cold water…now," Dew leaped up and ran to the break room, everyone staring after him.
Jac once again turned to Callie, but found Ludyard standing at his desk blocking the view.
"Um…yeah…listen, Jac. About the data you've been entering this morning. Please make sure to enter the battalion number of the stormtroopers after their last name," Ludyard said.
Damn, forgot, thought Jac. "Sorry. I just forgot."
"See, they changed it from after the birthdate to after the name. We met about it yesterday…"
"Yes, I remember. I just forgot and…"
Ludyard began to walk away. "From now on, after the last name."
Jac gritted his teeth. Ludyard should be happy Jac usually left his lightsaber at home.
An hour later, Jac refilled his caf cup in the employee break room when the vice president from two floors up came in, stopping in front of Jac. The Sith straightened immediately.
"Jac, correct?"
"Yes?" Jac asked, feeling a flutter of hopefulness. Promotion?
"Heard you've been filing the new stormtroopers wrong. Please remember that…"
Jac sighed, hating this ineffective, non-communicative chain of command. "Yes, after their last name."
"Yes, they changed it from the birthdate because…"
"I know!" Jac bellowed, all the items in the room shaking. He froze, staring at the man, who looked back startled.
Jac waved his hand. "You will forget my outburst."
The man's face went blank. "I will forget your outburst." Then he blinked. "Very good, Jac. Now, I have to make an announcement." The man stepped from the break room, looking at the maze of desks of the third floor employees. "Attention everyone. We've received a communication from the royal palace. Emperor Palpatine himself will be stopping by to see our work late this afternoon. We intend to show him an efficient office that serves the Empire well."
A twitter of excitement swept through the room, and Jac felt his heart race. Palpatine? Here? Perhaps he could catch the Sith Lord's eye without resorting to the blackmail of the palace employees.
Walking back to his desk amidst the conversations atypical to the usual quiet office, he looked over to Callie, raising an eyebrow. She sat at her desk, her hands gripping the edge, staring intently at the metal tabletop. She seemed to be breathing heavily, and he watched as she placed her hand over her heart.
Walking over and leaning against her desk, he looked up with absolute terror in her eyes.
"The Emperor will be here," she said, her voice a little hoarse.
Jac shrugged, trying to seem casual when the thought of being within feet of his goal made him want to leap up and down like a little boy. But why this reaction from her?
He watched her face change suddenly, a look of determination take over as she looked at him.
"I need to calm down. All might be lost if I don't," she said, then rose, pulling him by the sleeve. "Come with me."
Puzzled by her words, Jac followed her to the lift and watched as she hit the button for the basement.
"I need to calm down," she repeated, her deep voice still quivering.
As the lift doors opened, she grabbed his hand and led him to the storage room where new holoscreens were placed for future employees. With nobody about, she gestured him inside, turned on the overhead light, and closed the door, turning to face him.
"Um…Callie…what are we…"
"Take off your clothes," she said softly, her eyes burning into him.
"What?"
"You've been trying to get between my legs for weeks now, right?" she asked, Jac watching her unbutton the front of the red dress she wore. "I want you to fuck me. Now."
Jac stood, frozen in the spot, as she pulled the dress from her shoulders, the garment falling to the floor. She stepped from the fabric, removing her shoes in the process, and stood before him, her golden skin bright against the white of the simple bra and panties she wore. Her scar, of a bad burn, he was sure now, ran down her neck to her chest, ending just above her breasts. He wanted to run his fingers along it, put his mouth against the roughness as he caressed her smooth stomach, her strong arms.
Finally swallowing, he found his voice. "Callie, I…"
She walked to him, pulling at his tunic. "I need to calm down, Jac. I find you attractive. Enough games. Fuck me. Now."
Jac pulled off his tunic, and Callie was on him, her body pressed to his, her mouth taking over his aggressively. She hungrily kissed him, her hands running up and down the muscles of his torso, fiddling with the hem of his pants, before she reached down to cup his erection over the fabric.
"Large, hard, just how I like it," she cooed in his ear with her warm, low voice, and he felt himself getting excited quickly, one hand caressing a breast while the other slid beneath the top of her panties to grab her butt roughly. She moaned into him. "Yes, Jac. Take me. Soon."
Was this really happening, Jac wondered for a moment as he tore the bra from her, leaning down to put his face into her warm, soft, full breasts. The dark tips of the nipples beckoned to him, and he sucked on them aggressively. She pressed herself to him, her fingers scratching into his back.
"Yes…yes…suck them…hard…" she encouraged him as one of his hands slid between her legs, feeling her wet already through the panties.
He did as she told him, running his teeth along her nipples, biting her gently. Her gasps and moans grew, and he soon found himself sliding the panties over her hips, plunging his fingers into her throbbing, wet folds. He found her opening, and moved two of his fingers inside. She cried out his name, Jac barely able to keep himself from releasing.
Force, he hadn't screwed anyone in several weeks, a very long time for him indeed, and suddenly, he had the object of his desire in his arms, wanting him aggressively. Perfect.
She pushed him back suddenly, and pulled down his pants and underwear in one movement, kneeling on the floor to lick the tip of his penis. She looked up at him with his juices glistening on her lips, her smile secretive, her eyes flashing with intense desire. He pulled her up, and she jumped up to wrap her legs around his waist. He reached around her rear to finger her again as he walked over to the wall, her back now against it.
"For Force sake, Jac, fuck me now. And hard…rough," she moaned, her hair in her face, sweat on her brow.
Moving into her with a sudden, violent thrust, they both gasped, and her eyes met his as they both froze for a moment. She stared at him for a long time, and he shifted around, pushing himself into her further as she moved her hips to adjust for him.
Kriff, he was deep, and he knew he wouldn't last long. Still, he found himself studying her as she looked back at him, her eyes glazed in pleasure. He began to thrust into her, Callie meeting his movements, her nails digging painfully into his shoulder. They never broke their gaze, but he saw her face begin to transform, a flush on her cheeks, her eyes wide, her mouth open as she moaned against him, his name, over and over, the occasional "harder" intermingled.
Finally, he gave into reckless abandon, and banged into her violently, Callie pressed against the wall, encouraging him with her cries.
"Ah…yes…there it is…fuck…now," she said, grinning from ear to ear. He felt her muscles move around his member as she came, and he released with a loud grunt, his head falling to her breasts. Best day of work ever.
They once again froze, Jac satisfied and a little sore, Callie clinging to him. He glanced up to regard the room, wondering if they could gather their clothing together on the floor to lie for a bit, Jac wanting to study her body more, kiss her hair, as he'd thought of many a time at her desk, the brunette locks shining under the drab fluorescent light. Maybe after work they could head to his place and…
She pushed him back and disengaged from him, Jac gasping with the rush of sensitivity from his private area. He turned to see her getting dressed.
"I feel better. Thank you," she said matter-of-factly, as if they'd just shared a cup of caf in the break room rather than a delightfully satisfying sexual tryst in the human resources basement.
"Callie, let's stay for a…"
But she was dressed, running her fingers through her hair as she turned toward the door, Jac still naked.
"Gotta get back to work. Emperor coming today," she said professionally and turned toward the door. She stopped, and looked back, Jac feeling a twinge of hope that she'd stay. "And Jac?"
"Yes?"
"Remember to put the battalion numbers of the new stormtroopers after their last names," she said, then disappeared.
Jac stared after her, wondering what just happened.
The Imperial motorcade pulled up in front of Imperial Human Resources, and the Emperor emerged and walked toward the entrance, flanked on all sides by the red-clad, masked and mysterious Imperial Guard.
Darth Sidious felt slightly excited to finally be making his visit to Imperial Human Resources. His eye continually roamed to the building whenever he ventured to that side of the palace, and as an expert in the Force, he knew when the Dark Side called to him, even when he couldn't say specifically why. And getting away from the palace for the moment, the stuck-up, ass-kissing aristocracy and the eager but frustratingly disfigured Darth Vader, pleased Sidious greatly.
Yes, let's see how the little people work, he thought pleasantly. Enough with his new apprentice for the day. While Darth Vader proved very powerful in the Dark Side, having already accomplished crimes tainting his spirit a while before he committed himself to Sidious and the Sith, the Emperor found training a new apprentice, raised in the ways of the Jedi, while also getting the new Empire underway quite the daunting tasks.
To handle the issues of the state, he'd begun to develop a system of governors for different regions of the galaxy, Moffs. But the scuffle in court over the positions grew tiresome quickly, and he'd already killed a couple of obnoxious courtiers, through less obvious means of course. He didn't get to the position he relished in now by being sloppy. Things seemed more settled this week, and he'd wisely placed the very effective Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin in charge of all those complications, so he had a bit more time to focus on Vader.
At Sidious' requests, Darth Vader began removing important items from the Jedi library, holocrons and the like, while destroying other records and artifacts less useful to the Sith. And the previous week, Sidious showed Vader the labs for the first time, the Emperor's exciting collection of curiosities and things most would consider unnatural. He'd taught Vader the beginnings of managing his anger in constructive ways, to destroy and manipulate others. Vader held a lot of anger in his heart, making him a near perfect apprentice. But the suit provided barriers, and Palpatine knew this would ultimately limit Vader's succeeding Sidious in becoming the master in the Rule of Two. Still, he might not need a successor, as he planned to live forever, regenerating, wrapped in the Dark Side to sustain him and his Empire.
But now he put on his pleasant smile for the meek masses, wrapped in his royal purple robes, hood pulled up to hide some of his damaged scalp. Most people in this sad little office building seemed in awe of him, and why shouldn't they be? The Sith who finally ascended the throne of the galaxy, a millennium in the making.
Entering the third floor, he felt a rush of the Dark Side hit him, and he smiled broadly. Yes…good…this is why the building kept speaking to him. But who could it be?
His eyes ran through the crowd as higher-ups approached him in greeting, bowing, some a little frightened, as they should be. One manager lingered back after her introduction, a young woman in a red dress, a ghastly scar on her chin and neck. When she glanced up at him and they locked eyes, she quickly turned away, paling a bit. He felt something from her, a pulling in the Force, and he moved in her direction in his crowd of admirers. A sudden wave of the Force struck him from the side, and he stopped cold.
Still greeting others, his mind sought out the source of the sensation and rested on a pale young man with dark hair and dark eyes, wearing a royal blue ensemble differing greatly from his surroundings, regarding him with intensity. Force sensitive…yes. Not a Jedi…hmmm.
Sidious decided to find out the name of the young man, where he came from, before approaching, so shrugging off the feeling, he moved on, eventually visiting the upper floors. But the man kept popping up in his mind. Others devoted to the Dark Side working along with him might provide a place to hone skills Vader simply could not accomplish in his disabled state. But would that be working against the Rule of Two? Did that matter anymore, as the Sith once again had the galaxy in their grasps?
While he'd sensed those powerful in the Force many times before, those the Jedi failed to see in their arrogant blindness, he never acted on recruiting, except when he needed to for political purposes, as with Count Dooku. But perhaps the Force, in calling out to him through this young man who seemed to breathe potential into the air, had plans. Trust the Force, Sidious reminded himself. You have all the time in the galaxy.
Chuckling to himself at the last thought, he returned to the motorcade outside the Imperial Human Resources building, looking forward to an evening exploring a few of the holocrons Vader retrieved from the ruined Jedi library.
Author's Note: In the next chapter, Callie and Jac run an insurance seminar together and Darth Sidious senses danger.
Thank you for reading!