TWENTY-TWO

Anakin had never been fond of needles, scalpels, or any other kind of medical equipment. During his life as Darth Vader such things had become routine. That didn't keep him from hating every minute of such treatment. Vader had preferred to be treated by droids, as medics had been choked to death for pain they inflicted. Droids were easier to replace.

When Anakin came out of the anesthetic hours after his surgery, he was dizzy and disoriented. His left arm throbbed. Pain turned to relief as he saw clean white bandages in place of thick leather. His arm once again ended at the elbow, wrapped and immobilized in a splint. It was startling to see how much smaller it was compared to the armored, padded arm on his right. After Mustafar, his biceps were shadows of their former selves.

Anakin didn't care. He had grown to loathe every one of the ill-fitted prosthetics and it was a relief to have at least one of them gone. There was some disappointment in knowing the rest of this mechanical prison was still in place, but perhaps that kind of relief was too much to hope for. If only this blasted mask was gone. That, he knew, was what people associated with the persona of Darth Vader.

Lt. Sal entered the room, flanked with guards, and checked the monitors. He nodded in satisfaction and tapped notes into a datapad. "All right. The infection's just about gone and the biomechanics from the left arm have been removed. We'll keep him on antibiotics for the next couple days. Humerus is healing, vitals are good..." he shrugged. "Well, he's going to live."

He doesn't sound very happy about that. Anakin stirred, though the movement deepened his ache. "Thank you."

Sal flinched and looked down at his patient. "Oh. You're awake?" He shifted his weight uncomfortably. "Um...how's your pain level?"

"A bit high," grunted Anakin. His arm felt nearly as bad as when the stone had crushed it.

"That's odd. You're not on the roster for pain meds..." Sal's brows knit. Withholding painkillers from one who had just had surgery could be called torture. While he couldn't bring himself to feel much sympathy for Vader, the oath he'd taken as a medic bothered him. He'd always tried to treat all his patients with equal consideration no matter who they were. He told himself it was what set them apart from the Empire. But it's Darth Vader... At last Sal shrugged. "Must have been a mistake." He made a note on the datapad and looked up. "Well, rest up. As soon as the anesthetic wears off, we have orders to take you back to your cell." And the medic turned to leave.

"Wait...lieutenant," called Anakin, lifting his head. "Could you send a message to the leaders of Rebellion for me?"

Sal froze in the doorway, gray eyes darting left and right. "That depends..I'm only assigned to keep you alive and healthy."

Anakin breathed deeply. "I'd like to tell them that I am ready and willing to answer whatever questions they may have. As a matter of fact, I intend to defect."

He did not just say that… Sal's eyes bugged out of his head and he nearly choked on the information. "You...defect?"

Anakin nodded. "Yes. I no longer want any association with the Empire."

That's like an amphibian going to live on Tatooine, thought Sal with plate-sized eyes. It didn't even seem possible. Slowly he backed out of the recovery room. "That...won't be...necessary," he stuttered. "The, ah...security...cameras...you can, uh...tell them yourself." And then, nearly tripping over himself in his hurry to get out, the medic retreated from the room.

Security cameras? Anakin craned his neck to look in the corners of the room. Sure enough, there were several cameras and microphones scattered about. Of course. You're the most infamous prisoner they've ever had. Well, in that case, he could go directly to the source. "If the leaders of the Rebellion are monitoring this, let me say again; I wish to defect." He was greeted with silence.That's going to take a while for them to digest. Tired and sore, Anakin shifted his weight to go back to sleep. At the last minute he lifted his head again. "Oh...and...could anyone tell me how Commander Skywalker is faring?"

Deep within the security center for the Redemption, Leia stared with disbelief at the footage and ripped off the headphones. Darth Vader says he wants to defect? Again she wondered if her ears were working properly.

Standing beside her, also wearing headphones, Madine lifted his brows. "Hmm. This is interesting."

Leia turned to him, incredulous. "You can't think he's telling the truth. This has to be a trap so we'll let our guard down. We can't do that. Not with Vader."

Madine slid off his headphones. "Agreed. However, I do think it's time I had a word or two with our prisoner...and Skywalker. Rather odd, that request, isn't it?"

Leia pressed her lips together and gave a firm shake of her head. "I don't care how odd it is. No one is to tell him anything regarding Commander Skywalker. I don't want to give him any more power over Luke than he already has." Luke...he's not ready for this. "And General, I'd like it if you gave Luke more time before you start questioning him. He's still recovering from a very serious concussion and Too-One-be said he needed at least another three days before holding any long or stressful conversations."

Madine nodded. "Maybe you're right. As a matter of fact, it might be wise to give both of them some time. Vader's still in the Infirmary, and he might not stay conscious long enough to talk. By the way, what was that about painkillers?" He knit his brows at Leia. "Did someone give an order not to let him have any after surgery?"

Leia avoided his eyes. "Too-OneBe isn't sure about his metabolism yet...he's still analyzing the suit...too high a dose might be dangerous." It was a feeble excuse. She hated herself for stretching things.

Madine could see the truth in her body language. She wanted Vader to suffer. While he couldn't really blame her, torture wasn't something the Alliance condoned. "Hmm. Well, then. We had better make sure the orders go through that, as soon as it's safe, the medic has permission to administer them. Shouldn't we?"

Leia nodded without a word and ducked out of the security center.