A/N: Please don't hate on my OC. She really won't be playing much of a part in this story. There's just one paragraph or two. Less than 200 words.

He entered another frequency, to his men in the palace hanger bay. "Prepare my shuttle," he said simply, and then commed Ashané Blin. "I am heading to Tatooine. Keep things in order when I am gone."

Ashané was one of the more... competent politicians. She had been more loyal to Vader than Sidious in the first place, which might have helped in her being chosen to "be in charge of things" while the new Emperor wasn't around—because he frequently wasn't, since he wasn't the type to sit around on a throne and attend meetings all the time. So she was the one that usually did that instead, minus the sitting on a throne part. She took care of the political side of things, giving His Majesty a condensed summary when he asked for it. She didn't ramble during those; she was practical, and she took instructions and knew him well. Darth Vader trusted her with the Empire, and she knew that if she messed up, more than just her life would be at stake.

Tatooine

Obi-Wan Kenobi, the hermit not-Jedi, could sense when Vader arrived on Tatooine-and when he did, he knew that his exile here was at an end. He wondered, for a moment, if he would be able to lead him off planet, and at least keep Luke safe... But he knew it was too late. He could sense the dark presence of the Sith drawing ever closer to his hut, and he knew his former pupil could sense him as well.

What surprised him, however, was the overwhelming hatred that he could feel. What had he done, to be the target of such hate? He thought back, but he could not think of anything other than that he had failed his brother and friend.

He wouldn't need to worry for much longer. Vader was approaching, on speeder. He would be here anytime now.

Obi-Wan remembered sensing the other dark presence, earlier in Anchorhead on a supply run, and then recognizing the new Empire's second-in-command, Lord Starkiller. He was almost certain that he was Vader's apprentice. He had sensed that Starkiller was quite powerful in the Force, probably more so than himself in his current state. He'd also heard the rumours about his youth, but he wasn't sure what to make of them; he wore his Sith armour and mask/helmet almost everywhere.

Obi-Wan knew that he would have to keep Luke safe, and a secret, from the Empire. The Emperor—his father—can not know about him, the galaxy's last hope... of course, there was the twin sister, Leia, but she was half a galaxy away.

He could only hope that he would be able to communicate with the twins through the Force after he died, the way Qui-Gon had taught him over these years.

Vader was nearly here now. The apprentice was not with him.

He knew it was useless to try and refresh his lightsabre skills now, after being out of practise for ten years, but he would not go down without a fight. He clipped the long-unused lightsabre to his belt, the weight that was once comforting, now only a reminder of what was to come.

He settled for meditating just outside of his hovel while he waited for Vader to arrive.

Before long, Vader's presence was only a few metres away. It seems he had walked here, and left his speeder a ways off.

"I've waited 10 long years for this moment, Kenobi." Vader's surprisingly calm voice brought him out of his meditation, and he stood, brushing sand off his clothes.

"As have I. Though, I wouldn't have minded waiting a few years longer."

A/N: The new cover image depicts Starkiller in his "Sith Stalker" armour. You can Google him to see what he looks like without the helmet/mask.

I know the chapters are really short, but they're probably going to stay that way, I think. My updating goal is to post a new chapter when my story has been "pushed" to the 3rd or 4th page in the Star Wars category listings, or when the total number of visitors (for all my stories) is less than 50 by ~8pm EST. And also because I write the chapters a few lines at a time, and I want to post what I have whenever I find a good place to leave off.

Yes, I decided that this would be a good place to leave off, even though there's still been zero action.

Oh, and since nobody has complained about cliffhangers yet, I'm going to do my best to keep leaving them as much as possible. ;)

This is getting long, isn't it?... I still need to thank my reviewers... Well, anyways, thank you to all my reviewers! The best reviewers so far have been guest reviews, so special thanks to all those. I'll respond to member reviews if they have a question, or is of reasonable length, but any length is fine if you a) don't have time, or b) are too lazy :p.

Posted 5/8/15