"Are we there yet?"
"No!" It was at times like these that Vader wished the mask permitted him to pinch the bridge of his nose. "The outer rim, Leia. The outer rim. It'll take a while." Leia was sitting next to him in his personal ship, Grand Inquisitor Reva behind them. Reva and Leia got along well, something that warmed whatever was left of Vader's heart. He'd mostly promoted Reva because of her viciousness, but her relationship with Leia was an added bonus. She got along well with children when they weren't Jedi scum. She was also one of the only people in the galaxy who knew Leia was his daughter—he'd threatened her with disembowelment if she ever told anyone.
"The other inquisitors are already on the planet." Reva said. "We'll let them sniff out Kenobi's exact location. I swoop in to capture him and take him up to the star destroyer."
Vader nodded. "Then justice will be served. I will wait here." He had no desire to ever set foot on Tatooine again.
"Wait, can I see Tatooine?" Leia asked. "Please please Daddy, I've never been to an outer rim planet before."
Vader sighed. "No. Tatooine is a place for the galaxy's dregs of society."
"Please?" Her brown eyes were impossibly wide and innocent. They were Padme's eyes, and Vader had never been able to say no to those eyes.
"Fine. But you're to stick close to Reva at all times, understand?"
"I understand."
The shuttle pulled out of hyperspace above Tatooine. Vader felt a jolt of horror as it came into view, but let the respirator pull deep, grounding breaths into his lungs. He needed to have his wits about him on a day like today.
"So that's Tatooine?" Leia gazed down at the planet's surface. "There's no green anywhere. It's a desert."
"Yes it is." Said Vader.
"Why does it have two suns?"
"Some planets are just like that. Believe me, it is not an endearing feature of Tatooine."
"And this Kenobi guy is hiding somewhere down there?"
"Yes, he is. I feel presence get stronger as we pull closer. As soon as Grand Inquisitor Reva comes back with Kenobi, I will get my revenge. The man who tried to hide you from me will get what he deserves." Vader turned to Reva. "Where are we touching down?"
"Outside Mos Eisley. The inquisitors have found people there who know the name Kenobi. We think he may live out in the Jundland Wastes."
Vader glowered beneath his helmet. The Jundland Wastes were where . . . no. he couldn't think about that. Instead he fetched Leia's dark cloak and flung it over her head. "Keep this on. It will hide your face and block the sun. It's important to not let Kenobi know who you are, if you do see him. He'll probably try to capture you if he knows who you are."
Leia nodded and tightened the cloak around her head. The material was sturdy, but lightweight—the perfect choice for a desert planet. She reached for the ruby red lightsaber clipped to her belt. She would need it on a day like today.
Vader's ship glided down to land on the outskirts of Mos Eisley. As Leia departed with Reva, she could sense the fear from the people around them. They knew who this ship belonged to. She took a few running steps to catch up with Reva, being careful not to make eye contact with any of Mos Eisley's shifty inhabitants.
Reva led the way to a transport speeder full of storm troopers and helped Leia climb inside. "We're going to the moisture farms around here." She said in an undertone. "Our inquisitors have found leads out there." She pressed her body against the back of the speeder and lifted one hand to shield her eyes.
"What's a moisture farm?" Leia asked.
"It's a place where farmers pull moisture from the air and sell it. Water is a commodity on this planet."
Leia nodded. Her fists clenched under the cloak as she squinted in the bright light. The speeder was taking them outside the city to the farm country dotted with moisture vaporators and funny round houses.
"We'll scout out this area." The lead trooper stopped the transport speeder at the nearest moisture farm and the troopers began to unload.
"Stay here." Reva said. "Keep your saber off. But if anything happens, don't hesitate to use it."
Leia nodded, pressing her body against the side the of the transport speeder. One hand slid for the hilt of her saber as she watched the troopers depart. Reva's lightsaber roared to life as she stepped toward the people inside. Leia bent her head and listened to the lightsaber's swish. She knew that Reva had killed people, that her father had killed people. She knew the Jedi were evil. But she fervently hoped that she would never have to kill anyone. Surely there was a better way.
"No one there knew anything." Reva's hand fell on Leia's shoulder. "We're moving to the next farm." The stormtroopers clambered back on board the speeder.
"I don't want to watch." Leia whispered. The novelty of exploring the desert planet was wearing off quickly. It was hot. Sweat dripped down her face and blood had already been spilled. She wanted to go back up to the star destroyer, where it was air-conditioned and she had her own private chamber.
"Next farm." Reva stopped the speeder outside a farm that looked identical to the last. Leia shrank down in the speeder and watched the troopers run inside, blasters drawn. They returned from inside the house with three people, an old woman and a younger couple.
Reva approached them and drew her blaster. "What do you know about Obi-Wan Kenobi? Answer, or meet the business end of this blaster."
"Never heard of him." The man grunted.
"You lie!" Reva shouted. "I know you are lying. I sense that Obi-Wan is quite familiar to you." She aimed the blaster in his face. "I'll ask you one more time: where is Kenobi?" She paused, her face tensing.
Leia raised her head; she felt it too. There was a disturbance in the force, out in the desert. Someone was using the force out there.
Reva turned to the stormtroopers behind her. "Take these three to the star destroyer and question them. They know Kenobi. I'm going to investigate in the desert."
Leia watched everyone from the speeder: Reva commandeering a smaller speeder from the farm so she could go into the desert, the stormtroopers dragging the three prisoners to the speeder, the prisoners struggling and kicking up dust. A flicker of movement caught the corner of her eye and she saw a young boy sprinting away in the opposite direction as fast as his legs could carry him. Leia looked to the left, looked to the right, then hopped out of the speeder and ran after him.
