Coruscant, 500 Republica Buildings, 32 BBY

Vader parked his pod racer to the garage of the 500 Republica building for what could be the last time in his life. He dismounted from the cockpit and made his way to the elevator. Every step of the way, he looked behind his back, searching for enemies hiding in the shadows. He looked at his wristwatch anxiously, wondering how much time did he truly have before his Master's body was discovered. How much time did he have before the Jedi or the golden soldiers that had served Palpatine came after him? Did they know about his mother, back on Tatooine? His Master knew of her and would have been petty enough to send them after her.

The elevator's doors gave way for him to pass inside. He pressed the button that corresponded to his apartment and watched as the doors closed again, excruciatingly slowly for his tastes. "Come on, you stupid machine, come on", he whispered, as his fists balled. Another worry, a more esoteric one crept up when the tube began moving upwards. Vader remembered what he felt in the Force when Darth Plagueis had been killed. The Force itself took notice of the event, recoiling, shrieking in approval of his Master's strength, absorbing and redistributing the power of the dead Sith Lord among the two that remained.

No such reaction followed his Master's fall. The Force's complete silence worried him. Could Sidious have survived? His survival would complicate things even more. He could fall in the hands of the Jedi, derailing the Sith Grand Plan and endangering Vader's survival. If he escaped, things would be even worse for him. An Apprentice that failed to destroy his Master had lost the right to exist and he could easily be replaced. He felt the need to pace around the tube and he indulged himself, fighting anxiety any way he could.

Finally, the doors were open and he walked out of the tube. Vader walked quickly, controlling his impulse to run in an area where he might be observed. He reached the apartment's door and punched in his code. The doors retracted and he entered quickly. The apartment was dark, the only light coming from the City outside. He walked slowly towards the living room, reaching out with the Force in order to find out if he was alone or not. Even if he hadn't used it, he would have received his answer.

"Ani. What are you doing here?", he heard the Danil's sweet voice coming from the direction of his Master's bedroom. Vader froze in place, just as he did when his mother caught him doing something inappropriate back on Tatooine. He turned his face slowly towards her. The pink skinned Zeltron was barely dressed, as she usually was whenever he saw her, her purple hair flowing down and covering her shoulders. Her blue eyes looked at him with surprise but also concern. Vader knew that she felt protective of him, ever since she had been alongside his Master on Tatooine. He had felt it over the years and her actions followed those feelings. She always had a nice word for him or brought him the occasional gift when she visited.

And just now, she became a loose end. Vader sighed and moved his head in silent lament. "Why couldn't it have been Sly?"

"Wh…", began Danil before she felt the invisible hand of the Force tighten around her neck. Her own hands flew towards him, pleading with him to release her. "P...pl...phtt…" She couldn't form words anymore, only gurgling sounds and groans. And then, with a flick of his balled fist, her neck was broken and her limp body fell to the ground with the signature thubb of a body.

Crossing over her body without another thought, he rushed to his Master's office. Vader had the semblance of a plan, something that he quickly cooked up on his way back to this building. He needed clothes, some credits, a way out of this planet and anything that could guide him in his future training.

As he entered Sidious' study, Vader saw 11-4D, the droid that his Master had brought over from Darth Plagueis' suite. His former Master knew of its use, having served Plagueis and himself well in the past and that was why he had retained it. After the transfer of ownership was accepted, Vader instructed it to prepare a few garments for him and pack some of the more easily transferable relics. I'll need credits and those trinkets would serve no purpose here, he thought. They would fetch a good price.

As the droid left him alone in the study, Anakin began looking through the various bookcases and displays for something, anything to guide him in his studies of the Dark Side. Without a Master, he would have to be his own tutor, like Darth Bane had been one thousand years ago. He had managed to recover only the Echani knife that hung around his waist now, next to Sidious' spare lightsaber when he heard a whisper coming from his Master's desk. He followed it, touching the carved surface of the furniture, his hands flying over obscure Sith signs, the very definition of hiding in plain sight. Vader reached out, trying to isolate the whisper until he could see it. There, upper left corner, he thought as he grabbed a hidden mechanism that could only have been accessed by someone with command of the Force.

The hidden compartment came into view. "Yes!", he exclaimed happily. Vader looked inside, finding a peculiar collection of items. A scrap of velvet burial shroud, a battle map from what seemed to be Coruscant, a diagram in Sidious' handwriting, a red crystal that Vader had seen in drawings of lightsaber designs and the source of the whispers, a small, well-crafted talisman. And beneath lay a manuscript bound together in dark leather with three words scribbled on its cover.

Book of Sith

Vader took it in his hands. He could feel the hairs on his arms tense, a cold running down his spine. There was power in this manuscript. Pure, untapped power. He would consume it, learn from it and put its teachings into use. For himself, for the Grand Plan, for the Sith. He was the Master now, the leader of the Order of the Sith and if the spirit of the dead Plagueis was to be believed, the Chosen One, the Sith'ari, the Supreme Being that would bring their vengeance on the Jedi and their will upon the Galaxy.

Author's Notes:

-And off he goes to blaze his own path in the Galaxy, the only Sith left, their Revenge being contingent on his success or failure.

-This episode is set before Palpatine's spirit is lost within Chaos, that's why he hasn't felt his passing just yet. I wanted to show exactly how precarious his position is at this point.

-At this point, I'd like to thank everyone who read, commented, favorited and followed this little story. Your feedback and interest in this story has been greatly appreciated. I am waiting for all of you in the next chapter of this journey. I hope to see you there.

-And last but not least, till we meet again