Her feet were on the desk, her head bobbing to the thumping music, the pulsing beat making her hips itch to dance. But she wasn't working that job, but her main job. The boots that entered the room thudded in time to the beat and she swayed along, until the headset was rudely ripped from her head, "My Lady?" The deep baritone of the mechanical voice boomed over her, the artificial breathing as rhythmic as the music, her eyes glanced up to the menacing mask that caused terror in millions across the stars.
To her, it was simply teasing humour, "You're late."
"You have something for me."
Reaching into her haversack, she withdrew the lightsaber, setting in at her feet on the desk as she shifted, standing to look up at the dark face, "I want double, it wasn't easy."
"I recall saying as much a few weeks back when you took on the job."
"You telling me or not doesn't matter." She hissed, glaring at him, "I want double."
"Then double you shall get," he said, nodding, "Did he die-... well?"
She shook her head, "Like a beaten dog that had lost his favourite master. Something about a dying friend, the republic and a girl." She spun on her heels to leave when she felt herself stopped by the unnatural means the Dark Lord had.
"A girl?"
She shrugged, trying to recall the words the Jedi had said, "Some Senator that died in his arms. Didn't sound like it was his girl. Maybe a friend?" She arched a brow and looked at him, "Someone important?"
Vader was still, but she could sense his hesitancy, "I can look into it Sir." It was moments like this that she wished she could gauge his mood by his expression, but the flat mask told her nothing. "I'll look into the girl he was speaking of. And what came of her."
"No one must know of this mission. You speak only to me."
She nodded, "Understood sir. I will return in a week's time with any information I can find."
"I thank you." He said, and she felt herself stand a mite taller under the praise of the second more powerful man in all the galaxy. "Tell me what became of the woman. Start with whatever the old man said, and somewhere near the old power station here on Mustafar."
She nodded, "I'll likely know something within a few days sir." She stretched and cracked her neck, "Sir, the unrest in the Faori system…."
"A minor concern," he waved his hand and glanced at her, "Will not affect-"
"Can you promise?" She said, looking at him, "I have my own duty."
He nodded, "It will not traverse up the shipping lines, I swear it."
"Thank you my lord, and providing my mother hears nothing of this-..."
"Consider it done My Lady." She bowed, and disappeared from the presence of the behemoth man as he walked to where she knew his Bacta Tank resided.
She took off to power station as he requested, and found herself lost with what she found. The mess of the old system looks like a battle had beaten it, her urge to return to the old man's hut on Tattooine being overcome with another urge.
"A winner and a loser. Where would the loser go…" she glanced out to the sky and hum, pulling out the small device from her bag, raising it to the sky, "where is the closest medical facility?" The computer listed off, her mind going back six months to what would be imperial controlled, when she found the asteroid.
"Pol-is… Mas-a…" the robotic voice whirled, and she set a course for the facility, hoping she could find something.
She was greeted four hours later by the director of the facility, her medical badge from Mrsslt with her true name on it getting her not just in the door, but into the directors office with a cup of tea, in a real glass.
"My lady, what can we here do for someone so grand like you?"
"I'm looking for someone. I believe this someone has died and I'm trying to find what came of them. Their final day is… blurry." She emptied her tea and leaned forward, "A senator, who have been gravely injured and accompanied by a Jedi."
He nodded and leaned back in his seat, his fingers steepled before him, "how long ago who this be?"
"Empire day." She said, setting down the empty tea mug, ""six months ago."
She could tell instantly the man knew exactly whom she was speaking of, having failed to conceal his emotions for a half moment. "You're more than welcome to search our records, but I do not believe we had anyone fitting that description."
She knew he would not tell her anything, the set of his features too firmly in place. And torture wasn't really her thing, "See that I have a room and a computer please. I will be spending time here until I find what I'm looking for." She stood and gave him an arched brow, "On behalf of Lord Vader."
The man gasped, "L-lor-... what would Lord Vader want with our little facility."
"He would see it burn to the ground if I said you were being unhelpful. Or, you can help me and I'll decide what information to relay." She crossed her arms and smiled "I realized you're keeping a secret for Obi Wan Kenobi. Why I don't know. But all you're doing is wasting my time."
The man hesitated, "You-... you know Obi Wan?"
She pulled out her screen once more and pulled up the bar screen, scrolling back a day to the moment she had been serving him drinks. "This man here?"
She passed the tablet over and the man nodded, "an imperial nonetheless."
"My link to the Alliance." She said, shrugged, hoping to gain the man's sympathy, "A woman in my position needs to befriend all forms, and able to back the winning team, no matter who that is."
She could see the thickness faltering, and his hesitancy creeping in, "May benefit you to look up the name "Lola Amiga" My Lady."
He bowed and she bowed in return, "I thank you for your time." She was escorted to her room by a protocol droid and set to work.
The week was full, finding the woman on Naboo, but more, finding the children that the medical file stated died.
Her week was at its end as she found herself in the Queen's chamber of the Alderaani palace, her garments unsuited for such a place, but her lack of caring brought her confidence and not doubt.
Queen Breha glided across the room, beaming at her in her heavy makeup and conforming gown, "Little Lady Giorgi! How long it has been."
She kissed the Queens cheek and smiled, "many cycles My friend."
"How is your mother?"
Giorgi shrugged, not wanting to disclose she hadn't spoken to her mother in more cycles of Chandrila than she could count, "As well as she can be. Widowed but surviving."
"As we all do these days, but come. You wanted to speak to Bail?" She nodded and was escorted through to the family area, to find Bail playing with a small babe with big brown eyes and ivory skin, looking nothing like her doting parents.
"That girl has the bearing of her mother." Giorgi said, a smile creeping across her face. The room grew utterly still as Giorgi stood, waiting for the next breath, "Lord Vader sent me to look into a woman's death, and how curious it would bring me to your step, My Prince."
The little girl cooed, not knowing what was going on, but Giorgi could see the child's hand curling around the finger of the Queen, "Bail-.." Breha's face contorted in terror but the man's eyes never left her face.
"What does he know?"
She shook her head, "only that Padme died. So far. I wanted to check on both the children myself before I sent my final report."
Breha's face grew ashen, "You wouldn't-... you wouldn't let him take our baby from us-..."
"Your Baby, Breha?" Her Eyes shot to the Queen who shrunk slightly, "Parentage is not met by the persons who steal Babies. If a Lord and Lady were to steal the child of a peasant, what would you as their queen then dictate?" The woman stepped back as though she had been slapped. "The girl is not yours. They rightfully should be with their father."
"But you're not going to tell him." Bail hedged, hearing the hesitancy in her voice.
She shook her head, "Lord Vader is too tightly held to the emperor. Were he to break free of that control his children should be returned to him. But… such children would be in constant danger. Despite the fact that they may be the only thing that could bring Vader from the darkness."
"There is no returning from the darkness," Bail spat, "I watched him murder children."
She arched a brow, "What would you do if your little Leia was dying? Breha? Your planet? What if someone you trusted told you they could fix it all… but at a cost?"
"A cost that is too high." Bail sneered. "Vader is a sickness that will infect the galaxy."
"Vader is lost and cold. He is a young man that feels ancient and alone. He's lost everything in his life and you and Kenobi continue to take from him like he is capable of continually giving," she spat, "i'll have no more of this."
Turning on her heels, she left the couple, only to hear the dainty heels of the Queen, "Persephone?"
Her back stiffened at the name, "I won't reveal your secret to Lord Vader. Unless he can pull away from the Emperor his children are safer away. I will ensure he knows the moment that happens though." And without turning, she continued to her ship.
Bail rested a hand on his wife's shoulder as the young woman walked away, calling after her one last time, "you've spoken to Kenobi. Is Obi Wan…" the prince frowned, needing to know the whereabouts of his fiend, yet not wanting to give anything away to the imperial. He knew Obi Wan had been pulled away from Tatooine, and he guessed the cryptic messages he had received might be from him… but what about the boy, is the boy safe, is Kenobi safe. Bail took a deep breath, "Is Obi Wan still alive?"
She stopped, "Ben who?" Her head tilted back and her eyes held a spark, her lips quirking to a smile as she waved her fingers, "goodbye!"