"Your…your wife, Lord Vader?" stammers Kastellan, not even trying to hide his astonishment.

"Yes, my wife," I reply, stopping so that Padmé can catch up to me. I turn to her. "You will see to her personal living space, to be adjacent to mine," I tell him. "See to it that she is provided with anything she needs."

Padmé gives me a withering look. "Not quite anything," she remarks. "Luxuries such as freedom aren't permitted, isn't that right?"

I grin under the mask at her feistiness. Kastellan looks wide eyed at her, waiting for my response.

"You are free to visit any part of this ship," I tell her. "If that is not sufficient freedom, then I do apologize, my lady," I add just the right amount of chilliness to my tone to convince Kastellan of the level of antipathy between us.

Padmé sighs deeply and turns away from me. I look back at Kastellan.

"Are the special accommodations in my quarters ready?" I ask him.

"Yes, my lord," he replies, not able to keep himself from looking back to Padmé. "The technicians finished this morning."

"Good. See to it that Lady Vader's accommodations are ready within the hour."

"Of course," he replies, not moving from the spot yet. The annoyance I feel at his open admiration for my wife is genuine. But there is more to his fascination for her, I sense; perhaps by believing that Padmé despises me, he will see in her the potential for an ally. So much the better…I reflect.

"Well?" I bark. "What are you looking at? See to my orders!"

Kastellan leaves us, and I sense in him surprise and confusion at the bizarre scene he has just witnessed.

Padmé and I walk along in silence, careful of the troops around us.

"You will accompany me to the bridge while you are waiting for your quarters to be arranged," I tell her. "But keep out of the way," I add, careful to keep up the ruse.

"Perhaps it would be better if I just stayed in the detention block, with the other prisoners," she counters tersely. "I'd be well out of the way there."

"Indeed you would," I return. But I wouldn't be able to visit your bed if you were there.. I tell her silently. The sideways glance she gives me tells me that she has received my message, and I grin. This may turn out to be rather interesting…

We reach the bridge and it is only a matter of moments before I sense a ripple of astonished curiosity travel through the men. I owe them no explanation, however; they are subordinates who have no place knowing my business. I am certain, however, that they will learn who she before their shift is over. News travels fast, especially news of this magnitude.

"What is the status of the fleet?" I ask Captain Newmann.

Newmann turns to me and, seeing Padmé, does a double take. He is, however, smart enough not to ask the obvious, and returns his attention to me.

"So far 39 star destroyers have been reached, my lord," he reports. "We have been working on coordinating a rendezvous, but there are still some commanders who won't believe you are alive, Lord Vader."

I nod in understanding. We had heard reports of the fragmentation of the remainders of the fleet; no doubt each of the commanders who had designs on taking over the reigns of control will not be happy to learn that I have returned. And even less so when I declare myself emperor...

"Summon the admirals of the remaining fleet," I order him. "I want them all aboard this vessel in 48 hours for a meeting. Threaten them with court martial if they do not comply."

"I will send word immediately, my lord," he replies. "Is there anything else I can do for you?" he adds, casting a quick glance at Padmé who is doing an excellent job of looking bored.

"My wife is tired," I tell him, "check on the progress of her quarters."

To his credit, he does not show the utter shock that I know he is feeling. He reminds me a lot of Firmus Piett; the same quiet efficiency, the same knack for knowing when to keep his mouth shut.

"At once, Lord Vader," he replies and moves to the comm. station to check on Kastellan's progress.

I walk over to Padmé. "Do you wish to retire, my lady?" I ask her.

She looks up at me, and I can see that she is tired, but reluctant to leave me.

"If I have somewhere to go," she replies. "I would appreciate privacy, if that is permissible."

"Of course," I reply. "No one will set foot in your quarters without your permission, I promise you that. You will tell me immediately if someone dares to violate your privacy."

"Does that include you?" she asks pointedly.

"Forgive the interruption, my lord," I hear Newmann say. I turn to him.

"What is it? "I ask.

"Lady Vader's quarters are ready, my lord," he replies.

"Very good," I respond. "I will show her there at once. Meanwhile, keep trying to contact the remaining admirals. I will return."

"Of course, my lord," he replies.

I leave the bridge with Padmé at my side. We walk in silence along the corridor toward the lift, ignoring the looks of bewilderment of the men we pass by along the way.

Once we are in the lift alone, we can finally let our guard down.

"Oh Ani, this is much harder than I thought it would be," she sighs, pressing up against me.

I stroke her hair, wrapping my arm around her. "I know, angel," I tell her. "I feel the same way. But you're doing great so far, Padmé. You've left no doubt how you feel about me."

She looks up at me and smiles. "If they only knew the truth," she says. "If only they knew how much I adore you, how I can't wait to be alone with you and get you out of that horrid suit."

"Lady Vader, what are you saying?" I ask in mock surprise. "You don't like my charming attire?"

She laughs softly. "Well I don't," she replies. "But that isn't what I was getting at, and I think you know it."

I put my hands on her shoulders and look down at her, wishing she could see the expression of adoration in my eyes. "Yes, I know what you're getting at," I tell her. She smiles up at me and stands on her tip toes to place a kiss on the tip of my metallic nose. The lift stops, and we move away from one another, resuming the pretense of cold detachment. We step off of the lift and make our way down the corridor. Kastellan is standing at the door to my quarters, conferring with a junior officer. He looks up as we approach, his eyes resting briefly on Padmé before forcing himself to look at me.

"I hope everything is to your liking, my lady," he tells Padmé as we stop in front of him.

"I'm certain that it will suffice," she replies stiffly.

"You are dismissed," I tell him. "Return to the bridge and check on Newmann's progress."

"May I ask what his orders are, my lord?" he asks carefully.

"I want the admirals here for a meeting," I tell him. "I've ordered him to summon them here."

"Very good, my lord," he relies dutifully. "Will you retire as well?"

"I will return to the bridge once I have seen that my wife has what she needs," I reply. "Wait for me there."

"Of course," he returns, bowing slightly.

I turn away from him and proceed into the room with Padmé, the door sliding closed behind us.

"At last!" she sighs when we are alone. "I didn't think we'd ever be alone."

I hold up my finger, signaling that she be silent. She looks at me quizzically as I proceed to check the room using both my eyes and the Force for any possible evidence of listening devices. When I am satisfied that the room is clean, I remove my helmet and mask.

"Sorry," I tell her. "I had to ensure that the room wasn't bugged. I don't trust Kastellan. He has questioned me more than once, and I wouldn't put something like that past him."

Padmé nods her understanding. "I don't like the way he looks at me," she says. "He gives me the creeps."

"No, I don't either," I tell her with a frown. "I will have to keep a close eye on him."

"Do you really think he'd dare to make trouble?" she asks. "Surely he knows Darth Vader well enough not to try anything so foolhardy."

"We can only hope," I reply. I walk over to her. "I worry that somehow word of my arrest on Naboo has reached factions of the Empire," I tell her, voicing a concern that has been eating at me for days. "Newmann tells me that some of the admirals are ignoring my order to rendezvous here, and I have to wonder if that's the reason why. If it is, then all this will be for nothing. I can only hope that no one knows."

"Luke said it wasn't in the media," she replies. "Surely it isn't common knowledge. Are you worried that somehow he knows? Kastellan?"

I frown. "I suppose that is possible, but I think he would have acted on that knowledge by now if he knew." I sigh, and run my hands through my hair. "I don't want to talk about him right now," I say. "I'd rather spend the time we have alone together in a more pleasant manner."

Padmé lifts her eyebrows. "Oh?" she replies with as smile. "And what would you consider to be a pleasant way to spend our time together?"

I take her by the shoulders and pull her to me. "I can think of a few things," I tell her. "A little of this," I say, kissing her neck softly. "A little of that," I continue, nibbling on her earlobe, "and a little…" I add, whispering a rather suggestive comment into her ear. Her face grows red, and she takes my face in her hands.

"Just a little?" she says, a playful gleam in her eyes.

I laugh. "Okay, a lot of that," I reply, as I pull her close again and kiss her deeply.

I return to the bridge, the profound dichotomy of my present surroundings causing me to smile under my mask. I wonder how these men would react if they knew that a short time ago their fearsome and seemingly inhuman commander was making passionate love to his wife. The thought of it amuses me, causing my smile to grow.

"I hope Lady Vader was satisfied with her accommodations," Kastellan says to me as I join him.

"Yes, I'm certain she was very satisfied," I reply, choking back a chuckle at the double meaning behind my words.

"Any response yet to our message?" I ask.

"We have heard back from all but one of the admirals, sir," Newmann reports. "Admiral Malz, who is in the Corellian System."

I fold my arms over my chest, puzzled by this dilemma.

"Does he acknowledge the message? Do we even know that he has received it?" Kastellan asks.

"Why wouldn't he?" I reply. "Corellia isn't far enough for subspace distortion. He is clearly ignoring the order."

"What should we do, Lord Vader?" asks Newmann.

I look at Kastellan. "We shall go to him," I declare. "That way he cannot claim to be unaware of my order."

"Excellent plan, my lord," Newmann responds. "I would be happy to go myself, if that is your wish, sir."

I nod. "Yes, captain," I responds. "I do. Bring a dozen troopers with you, well armed. Drag him back here by force if need be, I will not brook any further insubordination from this man."

"Understood, Lord Vader," Newmann replies. "I shall see to it at once."

I watch him depart, confident that he will see to my orders efficiently and promptly. I am very tempted to send Kastellan on this mission, if for no other reason than to get him away from Padmé; but I do not trust him. Keep your allies close, and your enemies closer... an old wise man once said. I would not put anything past Kastellan, even collaborating with this Malz against me. No, better to keep him here, under my thumb.

"Do you have any further orders, my lord?" asks Kastellan.

"No," I reply. "I am going to do an inspection before retiring. Notify me immediately if there are any further developments."

"Of course," he replies. "Sleep well, Lord Vader."

I leave the bridge, making a mental note to have a listening device installed in Kastellan's quarters. I cannot shake the feeling that this man, despite his seeing compliance. I still do not trust him and suspect that his outward appearance of obedience is merely an act designed to dupe me into trusting him. Little does he know me, the fool...

Inspections have always been something I have hated, even when I lived as Darth Vader. It is obvious that the men act in a completely different manner when I am present than they do when they are unsupervised. Still, even though this is but my first inspection, I can see that this ship has been run in a lax manner. I reprimand a number of men, making a point to all of them in doing so. The old Darth Vader would have killed a number of them in order to get his point across; but I will not resort to this, no matter how effective it would be. Nevertheless, I expect that the next time I inspect their stations I will see a marked improvement.

I enter my quarters, and stop dead in my tracks. The hyperbaric chamber sits open, like the mouth of a giant beast waiting to devour me. I can feel a chill run down my spine as I stand there mesmerized by the chamber, the sight of it bringing back memories of the many years I spent dependent upon it for my very existence. Ironic, where I should feel grateful to the technology that allowed me to live despite my grievous wounds, all I feel is antipathy and loathing for the thing. I turn away from it, and enter the 'fresher. I remove the elaborate costume that I am locked in, and have a quick shower. Then I quietly enter the darkened room where Padmé is asleep. I slip into the bed, snuggling up behind her, my arms around her.

"Goodnight angel," I whisper and kiss her shoulder. Within moments I fall into a deep sleep, my angel safe and secure in my arms.