Luke was still upset with him.
At first, the silence was glorious. He wasn't responding to his comments in class. He wasn't directly messaging him. There were no reports from Piett saying that he ran into the boy. For the first few days, Vader basked in the silence.
But then...Vader realized he was constantly thinking about him. Even if it was to glory in the fact that the boy wasn't reaching out to him, it was still thoughts that were Luke Lars-centered. And after the first few days, it grew into annoyance.
It got to the point where Vader was glaring at the boy's profile picture, inwardly demanding that he reach out first. But it didn't happen, and Vader told himself that he wouldn't be the one to reach out first…
He caved on the fourth day.
Firmus Piett: What did you think about today's lecture?
Yes. The perfect response. It was neutral, but a conversation starter. Surely, it would spark an enlightened discussion.
Luke did not respond until the end of the class period.
Luke Lars: Oh, I'm sorry. I was under the impression that we needed to focus in class. Especially if I'm going to beat you to the top.
He barely had a chance to roar in rage before Luke went offline, and he picked up his comm link and immediately contacted Piett.
"Yes, My Lord?" He greeted smoothly.
"Captain," he snarled, "I order you to find Luke Lars and kill him!"
There was a sputtering noise, as if he was choking on something. "Why, My Lord? I was under the impression…" he trailed off.
"Under the impression what, Captain?!" He demanded dangerously. If the captain was here…
"...I was under the impression that you wished to compete with him fairly, My Lord. For challenge purposes."
He was certain that wasn't what Piett was originally going to say, but he would...deal with it. For now. "Well, he apparently wishes me to be his enemy. I will show him what that means!"
"With all due respect, My Lord, I don't think Luke is the type of person who wishes to make enemies of most people."
"I am the exception, evidently!"
There was a pause. "I am certain he's just...offended and needs time to cool down."
"There is no reason to be offended! I only said the truth!"
"What did you tell him?"
Vader glared at the comm. "This is a pointless conversation. I will call off the order, for now. But I forbid you from seeing him!"
"Understood, My Lord."
Vader hung up, and got up to get back to work. He was sure Admiral Ozzel had screwed something else up. Yet again.
The next day, Vader thought his luck had started to change. Professor Straton announced at the end of the lecture, "You will be required to take the schematic you created and build a prototype. You will work with the same partners to complete it, and you have two weeks to do it."
Vader grinned in triumph. This was the perfect excuse to get Lars to end this foolish rebellion! The moment it was announced, Vader messaged him.
Firmus Piett: I have availability tomorrow afternoon. We should begin as soon as possible.
This time, Luke didn't wait to respond.
Luke Lars: Can't. I've got work. Guess my job is going to affect your success, just like you predicted.
Vader glared at the screen.
Firmus Piett: We will NOT fail this assignment!
Luke Lars: You can wait until after our Physics test on Primeday. I have a few hours to spare then.
Vader was about to tell him exactly what he thought about his stupid jobs, but Luke went offline. Again.
The data screen shattered in his hands.
Maybe the people he needed to get rid of were Luke's bosses, not Luke Lars himself. But he doubted that would endear him to the boy, so he dropped that idea.
That thought brought him up short.
Why? Why did he care if Luke liked him? The boy was far too bright and sunny, not unlike the infernal planet he came from. He was too innocent, to the point Vader was certain he'd get himself killed if he ever tried to join the military, as he planned. And if he ever personally ran across him, he was certain he'd strangle him the moment something sickeningly positive left his mouth.
And yet...the boy was smart, competent. There were far too few of those types of people in the galaxy. Plus, there was something almost familiar about him. He wasn't sure why, but he felt drawn to him, regardless of how he tried to ignore him.
And then there was the more concerning issue. The speed in which he'd moved after that duck…
He was young, Vader reasoned. Youth in itself was a power someone his age could no longer fathom. Yes. That was it.
But what if this perceived offense interfered with their assignment? Would Luke be professional about it, or would things be insufferably annoying? He didn't feel much like dealing with teenage angst. If the boy was anything like he once was-
No. He refused to think about that.
And yet the thought wouldn't leave him, to the point that the next day, Vader summoned an intergalactic relations officer for the first time in his life.
What have I done to deserve Lord Vader's ire? Was the thought Vader immediately picked up from the man the moment he walked into the conference room. The man's fear was so palpable, he could practically taste it.
But his voice was mostly steady as he asked, "How may I serve you, Lord Vader?"
Vader barely even remembered the man's name, but he looked slightly older than the age Luke was. Not that Luke looked his age. The fact that he noticed made him scowl.
"I will cut right to the chase. I have...evidently caused someone a great deal of anger." It felt weird to be saying these words. He was a Sith. This was what he was meant to do, and yet… "If I do not fix the problem, it may impede my work."
"I see…" The man frowned. Yes, the officer actually looked his age. He was probably fresh out of an academy. Vader doubted he'd actually mediated many particularly troubling situations, yet. "Is this person...important, My Lord?"
His immediate reaction was to deny it, and yet Luke's cooperation to his grade did, technically, make him a very important person. "Very."
Oh stars, who has he strangled this time? He picked up as another spike of fear flooded into the Force. Vader might have been amused, if he wasn't so irritated that strangulation was the man's first thought. There were plenty of ways to creatively kill or maim someone, and he was, quite frequently, creative. "Is this someone in the military, a politician, someone on Coruscant…?" The man tried to press.
Luke was none of those things. He would not admit he was asking for thoughts on dealing with a young boy. "He is...important to a mission I am about to conduct. I need a way to apologize without admitting fault."
The man should have been trained in the art of doing so. The Empire made official statements like that all the time; meaningless, but they sounded apologetic enough. He hated that he had to stoop this low…
But he would not fail this assignment.
"I can make some potential statements and send them to you for approval, My Lord."
Yes. Yes, that would be best. He lifted a finger and hissed, "Do not fail me. And if I find you have told anyone if this conversation, the person I strangle will be you."
The man went white. "Y-yes, of course, right away, Lord-My Lord-" He made a hasty salute, and Vader watched in satisfaction as he scurried out of the room.
"The boy is taking his time on this test." Vader grumbled irritably in Piett's ear. He (or they? He wasn't sure) waited on a bench outside of the Engineering building where in theory, Vader had arranged to meet Luke for their project. They had been waiting for admittedly a while, but Vader had also given Piett the answers to that test so quickly, he'd barely had time to write out the answers, so it was entirely possible that Luke just wasn't done yet. Like a normal person.
But he couldn't exactly tell Vader that. So he listened in suffering silence as the Dark Lord complained.
"You don't think he's having...issues, do you?"
Piett glanced around to make sure no one was listening or paying him any attention before replying. "What issues do you refer to, My Lord? He is...possibly a little too happy. Perhaps he's hiding something."
"That wasn't what I was referring to." But then Vader paused. "Do you think he's hiding something?"
"Maybe crippling depression, My Lord."
"That is ridiculous. Depressed people don't act that insufferably happy all the time."
Piett doubted Vader wanted to be educated on the issues surrounding mental health, so he simply asked, "Then to what issues were you referring to?"
"Maybe the test was difficult for him. But that cannot be, he's much too smart for that." Another pause. "He better not be avoiding us. He promised! We have a grade to maintain!"
Again, Piett wondered what Vader had told Luke to make him so upset. Knowing his superior officer, it could be any number of things. If Luke were ever to be made aware of the true nature of their situation, Piett would have told him to be grateful he wasn't getting strangled.
Then again, Vader had initially ordered him to kill the boy…
"Captain, repeat the apology!" Vader snapped at him, breaking him from his pondering.
He refrained from sighing. This was the fifth time. "Luke Lars." He began. Apparently, just saying Luke was not acceptable. Lord Vader had raged about the importance of formality in the first practice run. "I am unhappy about the inconvenience you've been caused. Accept the apology so that we may move forward to a better working relationship, and go back to being colleagues."
It was a ridiculous apology. It wasn't specific enough at all, and it didn't even really admit fault to anything. Piett suspected Vader used Intergalactic Relations to assist in writing the silly thing.
"You sound as though you are reading off a script."
Because he sort of was. "How may I improve-" he began, but was cut off.
"Now what are you doing, Piett?"
Piett frowned at the unfamiliar voice, turning to face it. It was a man, perhaps not much younger than he was, standing close enough that it was obvious he'd been listening to him talk to himself. He was perhaps a bit taller than he was, though not nearly as tall as Lord Vader, and he was staring at him with beady dark eyes.
"Are you acquainted with this man?" Vader asked, obviously annoyed.
Piett couldn't exactly answer him, and he hesitated because technically, he wasn't supposed to say anything Lord Vader wouldn't say. But he needed to answer somehow, so cautiously, praying to any deity he'd ever heard of, he asked, "Who asks?"
Vader made a non-committal noise, but otherwise waited for the other man to respond.
The man rolled his eyes. "Craig Eckles. From Introduction to Computer science? Or am I too unimportant for you to know?"
Piett refrained from wincing at the sarcasm in Craig's tone. That would not go well with Lord Vader.
Sure enough, when Lord Vader spoke, there was a dangerous edge in his voice. "Tell him to mind his own business and go on his way if he knows what's good for him."
Piett tried not to notice the muscles beneath Craig's tunic as he repeated the words, forcing the same edge in his own voice. Or trying to, rather. No one did threats quite like Lord Vader.
Naturally, Craig didn't take too kindly to the implied threat. His eyes further narrowed, and he took a step forward. It was likely meant to be a threat in itself, but Piett was used to dealing with an angry Sith Lord. Craig would be an unfortunate opponent, but he wasn't Lord Vader.
Still. Piett didn't appreciate the smell of rotten breath on his face as Craig snarled down at him, "Or what, Piett? What are you gunna do? What the hell is your deal anyway?!"
Kriff. Kriff, kriff, kriff-
Piett could barely manage to keep a straight face as Vader practically seethed his response. "I will not tolerate threats from a nobody like you." Did Vader even know who this person was?! What if he was the son of some Moff? Or another important Imperial official? "Now, begone! I will not warn you again!"
From the look on Craig's face, it was clear Vader had not scared off the man. Likely because the poor man had no idea he was dealing with Lord Vader...except no. He wasn't, really. He was dealing with Vader's threats. It was Piett who would end up carrying out whatever horrid order his superior officer would give him.
He just hoped, for Craig's sake, it wasn't a death sentence.
Except, apparently, Craig wasn't willing for Vader to make the first move. He growled, grabbing the collar of Piett's shirt, yanking him to his feet. "You think you're better than everyone just because you work for the Imperial military, don't you?! Well that don't mean anything out here in the Outer Rim! The Empire can barely hold its own, they're not going to lift a finger to help a loser like you on this hell hole-"
"Captain, kill this man."
The anger was palpable in Vader's voice, even though it was eerily calm. Piett gulped, not sure how he could kill someone in the middle of campus without a lot of questions. He'd probably get Vader kicked out of school for sure.
No. He couldn't follow through on that order. For now. But he could get the man off of him.
With one hand, he swiftly punched Craig in the gut. Immediately the hold on his collar was released as the bigger man doubled over, coughing, and Piett used that time to try to move out of the way.
"I said kill him, not maim him!"
He gritted his teeth, wishing he could remind Vader the situation they were in, but that would probably raise more suspicion.
Craig coughed violently, holding his arms over his stomach, and Piett for a moment thought that might be the end of it. He hadn't exactly pulled the punch, after all, and he'd had plenty of hand-to-hand combat at the Academy. Despite his small size and his age, he was tougher than he looked.
But no. Apparently, Craig wasn't done.
With a yell, he suddenly charged Piett, and he barely had time to move before Craig tried to punch him in the face. He missed, grazing his shoulder as Piett attempted to dodge, and when Piett straightened, Craig had already turned to try again-
"Craig, what the hell, man?!"
Luke.
Suddenly, between Piett and Craig ran the blonde-haired boy. He'd thrown down his stuff, and it skittered across the permacrete, knocking into Piett's boot.
Craig didn't have time to stop the punch meant for Piett. It hit Luke square in the jaw.
Piett stood frozen, watching in horror as Luke stumbled back, reaching up to wipe something off his face. Vader had gone dead silent, and Piett didn't think that was a good thing. In fact, he had a feeling Luke's arrival made everything worse.
"Stay outta this, Luke!" Craig glared.
"He's a maintenance worker, leave him alone!"
Finally, Vader said, "I should have chosen a different position," as Craig's glare broke with a nasty snigger.
"Maintenance? That's what you work as, Piett?! You're not so high and mighty after all!"
Oh, this wasn't good, Piett thought as Craig tried to get around Luke.
Luke didn't let him. He firmly stepped in his way and shoved him back. "I said, leave him alone, Craig."
Piett blinked. He...didn't think he'd ever heard Luke sound so...so…
Threatening.
Even Craig paused, re-evaluating Luke. "Or what?" He demanded, "You're going to fight his battles?"
"I do not need a boy to fight my battles! Tell him, Piett!"
...It was like no one had ever bothered to teach Vader how to de-escalate anything. Piett did as ordered, and sure enough, that immediately made Craig lurch forward again to attack…
Luke blocked him.
"Move, Lars!"
"Leave it be, Craig."
Craig might have had the brains to get into college, but he did not have the wisdom to listen, because he turned and yet again punched Luke in the face.
"Kill him!" Vader snapped.
"Not on campus!" Piett risked muttering, even as he stepped forward to help…
But he didn't need to, because when Luke turned and slammed a punch into Craig…
Except...except when the punch hit, Craig didn't just go down.
He was thrown back.
A good fifteen feet.
Craig hit the ground, rolling and skidding, and Piett stared in horror at Luke's back, recalling the uncanny speed Luke had shown in the park, and now this-
By the time Craig had stopped rolling, Luke was looking down at his hands. Craig slowly got to his feet, pointing at Luke as he gasped. "You're a freak!"
"I...I don't…" Luke muttered, still staring at his hands. "I guess...I don't know….my own strength…"
The confusion in his voice was real, but it didn't matter.
"How the hell did you do that?!" Craig demanded, coming forward again, probably to stupidly continue his fight. By then, a bell rung, and it wouldn't be long before the area was flooded with students trying to get to their next class…
Piett hastily backed up, enough so that Luke wouldn't hear him as he hissed, "Lord Vader, it all makes sense!" Actually, it only sort of made sense, but- "He's like you!"
There was silence, save for the mechanical breathing of his superior.
Piett risked a glance back, to find that Craig and Luke were trading fists all over again, though Luke was now definitely losing, as though he were distracted by what he'd done. Blood streamed down his face.
"I...I don't think he knows, My Lord."
He knew it didn't matter. Not in the eyes of the Empire. He had a vague idea of what happened to most people who had the powers Vader had.
And yet…
"Maybe that explains why he wanted to be your friend, My Lord!" He tried. He didn't want to have to later kill both Craig and Luke. "Maybe he like...felt drawn to you. Like a friendship bond!"
That finally got Vader to make a choking sound before demanding, "Do not ever speak of the Force that way again. There is no such thing as friendship bonds!"
Well. How was he supposed to know? Hardly anyone knew anything about the Force anymore.
"This is unfortunate." Vader continued, and there was a hard edge to his voice. The kind of edge that told Piett that he was somehow taking this revelation personally, as though Luke had intentionally hid this from him, and he was probably going to show up himself to kill him for it. "Stop their foolish fighting. We will deal with Craig later. For now...we must find out everything Lars knows about the Jedi."
Piett hesitated, glancing over at the fight. Sure enough, a large crowd of students were now gathering, and he couldn't even see the two anymore. "You don't think he's a Jedi, do you?"
"We shall see." There was definitely a threat in Vader's voice now. "Invite him back to your place. We will interrogate him. Together."
Piett didn't like the sounds of that. But what choice did he have? Orders were orders...and as nice as Luke was, even if he didn't know until today that he had these powers, there was no stopping Imperial justice.
There was no stopping Lord Vader.
Piett turned to go break up the fight and do as his Lord ordered.