The Slave's Gain, Part 3: My Equal

"Our brothers and sisters are there with us from the dawn of our personal stories to the inevitable dusk."

~Susan Scarf Merrell

"He [my brother] is my most beloved friend and my bitterest rival, my confidant and my betrayer, my sustainer and my dependent, and scariest of all, my equal."

~Gregg Levoy

"The discovery of truth is prevented more effectively, not by the false appearance things present and which mislead into error, and not directly by weakness of the reasoning powers, but by preconceived opinion, by prejudice."

~Arthur Schopenhauer

Chapter 3

I sat in my cell, provided free of charge by the Galactic Empire. It was three paces long and four paces wide, with a bench along the right wall that I supposed was meant to function as a bed.

Try as I might to turn my mind to other things, it kept returning to Lady Vader. I felt my blood boil at the thought of that…woman. She was as harsh as the Tatooinian stormwinds and as cold and pitiless as a winter's evening on Hoth. Ever since I could read the holopapers, I had understood how great the danger the galaxy was in was should she ever ascend the throne. I intended to make sure that never happened. And now, here I was, stuck in a holding cell, and on the Executor no less.

I shuddered, remembering my first sighting of it as I was being transported from the Alecto. It was truly frightening – easily three times the size of a Star Destroyer and with the firepower to match, the first and greatest Super Star Destroyer was a force to be reckoned with. I could only hope that Obi-Wan got the plans I had sent him in R2-D2. If he got them, he would not rest until they were safe in the hands of the Alliance. I could only hope.

Something occurred to me – all this while (four meals plus a nap gave me the estimation of thirty-six hours or so), I had spared not one thought for myself. I was going to be tortured – that much was certain. But my fears were not as much for myself and my wellbeing than they were for the fate of the Alliance should I cave. I shuddered again – cave I very well might. Any of the Empire's famed interrogators would have me on my knees in a matter of hours. But if I was honest with myself, my greatest fear at this point in time was Lady Vader herself. I had heard the rumors – everyone had. That she could see your innermost thoughts in your eyes. That she could break the minds of the strongest beings, leaving them locked in padded rooms for the rest of their lives. That she could kill without touch or even sight – snapping the victim's neck, closing their airways, stopping their heart, or any of a thousand and one other ways. If I was honest, I was more afraid of her than her father, whatever the galaxy might see. Emperor Vader had done some noble things – liberating Callym, abolishing the slave trade, granting a little more freedom to the Senate. But Lady Vader…I had heard (and witnessed) nothing but bad about her.

I closed my eyes in an attempt to center myself. Almost immediately, I straightened, feeling the delicate strains of lights and shapes and colors that I had been feeling, almost hearing, for ten years now – what I interpreted to be the thoughts of Lady Vader. She was coming. One thing that I had always found intriguing but terrifying about Lady Vader was how…closed she was. Everyone else was an book practically begging to be opened and read. She was separate from the currents and eddies of those around us. It was almost like hitting a thick, warped glass window – not being able to see anything but vague shadows and the occasional flash of a color or shape. I couldn't see what was coming next with her, which was what one of the many things about her that put me on edge.

The door creaked open.

I straightened, trying my best to keep my countenance even. But despite my best efforts, when she walked through the door, a humming interrogation droid behind her, I faltered.

Her brown eyes glittered, and her mouth curved up in a small but deadly smile. "And, now Your Highness," she said softly, "we will discuss the location of your hidden Rebel base." She closed the door behind her, and gestured the droid forward.

The whole scope of my vision narrowed to the gleaming hypodermic needle advancing upon me. It pierced my right shoulder, and the world tilted, throwing colors and faces askew…

VVV

Let's be honest here: I am in a foul mood right now, and reviews, any reviews, would give me some relief. So...could you spare a mo?

Publication notes: I have set a date to begin publishing Princess of Darkness, more to challenge myself to actually finish it than anything else. I will begin publishing it no later than December 8, and feel free to come and harp on me if I don't get it up by then. Also, I have put a new story in my 'Coming Soon' section of my profile, titled Arranged. I swear, I will not publish it until I am done writing POD! :D All I want to know is if people are interested in reading it, or something like it.