Escape Plans

(0 ABY)

When the door opened several hours later to admit a dark imposing figure into her quarters, Serina turned to her visitor with grim satisfaction. She didn't have to see his face to know the results of the interrogation of the Princess. Had his mood been bad, his anger barely concealed when he had arrived with his "catch", it was now even worse - if that was at all possible. And yet, she also perceived a profound astonishment at the strong will of the young Senator, perhaps even some grudging respect for her?

"You have found a weak spot." It wasn't a question. Vader knew he could depend on her. "Show me!"

Serina nodded and called the appropriate portion of the plan back to the screen as her dark master stepped up to her side. Others would have shrunk back or perhaps even panicked at hearing the machine controlled breathing so close to their ear, the malevolent presence so bearing down on them, but Serina always found a dark comfort in his closeness.

"I have studied the plans over and over again, but there seems to be only one real weak spot if one could even call it that. A hit to this thermal exhaust port" - a bright red spot marked it on the screen - "would set off a chain reaction that would blow up the whole station. But this port is very small. I don't believe any pilot, no matter how good he is, could hit it at the speed he would need to get by those emplacements here," she pointed to some spots marked in bright blue on the plan, "here and there. Besides, it is ray-shielded, so they would have to use proton torpedoes. Even a very skilled pilot would have to be more than lucky to come just close to hitting it, even using a targeting computer. On the other hand, somebody using the Force..."

"...might be able to!" Vader finished the sentence thoughtfully. "Since the Jedi are extinct, there should be no danger to the station. And I'll make sure, nobody gets close enough to fire at that port should they attempt to do so."

For a while, they stood in silence studying the screen. Then Vader placed his gloved hand on Serina's shoulder. She turned to look up into his masked face.

Some of his bad mood seemed to lift as he regarded her. Again, she had proved to be a very useful tool for the task he had set before her. And he had expected no less. He could sense her desire to spend time alone with him, but right now there was no room for pleasures of that kind. Perhaps, at a later time ...

His thoughts turned back to the interrogation of the young Senator. Now there was some pleasure in that, but the results were far from satisfying. If the Princess could not be forced to reveal the information he sought, perhaps she could be tricked into it with Serina's help.

"Master," Serina spoke up as she felt his attention again upon her, "I would like to see our captive. Since she has proved quite resistant to your methods so far, I might have a plan to obtain that information through other means. But I would need to get her to trust me first. If I am allowed to check on her wellbeing, I might find a way to achieve just that. She might even remember me from my mission on Alderaan some years back."

Vader considered her suggestion. As so often, her thoughts had been along the same lines as his own. A plan was starting to develop in his mind. If Serina could get the Princess to take her to the rebel base...

"Go ahead. You have about an hour before I start the next interrogation. The guards will get orders to take you to her. Wait for me in my chambers when you are finished."

Serina bowed her head in acknowledgment. As the Dark Lord turned to leave her quarters, she called up the nearest medical facility and ordered one of the droids to meet her at detention block AA. Then she quickly changed into her uniform and headed for the lifts.

The guards had already received orders and took her and the droid directly to the cell where the Princess was being held. The heavy door slid aside to reveal a young girl laying on the hard bunk at the far end of the cold, bare room. Though she had fallen into a fitful sleep, the sound of the opening door caused her to jerk awake with an expression of horror on her face. At the realization, that it wasn't the black masked form of the Sith Lord, a small sigh of relief escaped her lips. Shaking off the last remnants of her nightmares, she sat up to regard her unexpected visitor.

Serina stepped into the cell. Then she motioned the droid to step inside. "It's just a medical droid," she reassured the Princess when she saw the alarmed expression on her face, "it will only evaluate your condition." Then the heavy door closed, shutting out the stormtroopers that had accompanied her.

After the medical droid had examined the young woman and delivered a preliminary report to Serina, she ordered it to retreat to the far end of the room and deactivate. Then she stepped up to the bunk the Princess was sitting on. "May I sit down?"

Leia nodded, not sure what to make of this kind-faced officer so seemingly out of place in this unpleasant environment. "Who are you and what do you want?" Her apprehension was quite palpable.

"My name doesn't matter, but my orders were to check on how you are doing and to make sure the treatments have not inflicted any permanent damage." Serina bowed close to Leia's ear, her voice now barely above a whisper. "But actually, I am looking for a way to get you out of here. What they are doing to you is just not right! I will not allow them to harm you any further!"

Astonished, Leia met the gaze of the unknown, yet somehow familiar woman at her side. Then suddenly recognition dawned on her.

"I've seen you before on Alderaan! Weren't you at one of our receptions at the Royal Palace? It must have been at least..." she hesitated, trying to recall the appropriate occasion, "five or six years ago."

Serina nodded. She hadn't been certain if the young woman would remember, but, since she did, the rest would perhaps be easier than she had expected.

Time past by swiftly until the door opened and one of the guards stepped in. "Time's up, Captain."

With a quick movement, Serina got up and reactivated the droid. At the door, she turned back to look into Leia's eyes.

"You should really give up your resistance. The worst is yet to come. You cannot stand up to Lord Vader's treatment for much longer. Why don't you spare yourself a lot of pain and just give him the information he seeks?" While her voice was purposefully harsh because of the presence of the stormtrooper, her eyes spoke quite a different story. Then she turned sharply and was gone.

Leia pondered the unlikely offer just made by this unassuming Imperial officer. But could she dare to trust her? So far, it seemed to be her only chance to escape this horrible place and the clutches of Darth Vader. Yes, if the woman would pull off the plan she had mentioned to her, she would go for it. Getting away from this place had to be her first priority. And afterward...

But one thing was certain: whatever happened, she would definitely have to keep a very close eye on that woman!

As Serina was escorted back out of the detention area, she smiled to herself. Leia didn't really trust her, but she knew well that she would grab any chance to get out of the desperate situation she was currently in. Vader upcoming "treatment" would make her even more willing to jump at any escape plan Serina could provide for her. Once they had left the station, it should be quite easy to convince her - with the help of the Force, if necessary - to take her to the rebel base. The rest would then be up to her dark master.

But - and she hoped dearly that the time left would be sufficient enough and that Vader would never discover this aspect of her plan - the Rebel Alliance would have a chance to evacuate their base in time and Leia would be safe. It would be the least she could do for the young woman, especially if her assumption was true. Because, if it was, Leia might be the only hope for this galaxy to ever regain the balance it lost so many years back when the Jedi fell prey to the evil and long-term scheming of the Sith. And she might very well be the only hope for the man her dark master had once been to ever be freed from the chains of the dark side. Her glimpses of possible futures were starting to converge on one single moment in time. And that moment was approaching quickly.

Vader was not in his chambers when the outer doors opened at Serina's approach. She passed quickly through the small entrance area into the large, dimly lit room containing his meditation chamber. The upper lid was raised, and the inner lighting had been turned off. The large viewscreen at the far end of the room showed the strange colors of hyperspace.

Serina became aware of the low vibration permeating the whole station. They were on the move. Since Leia hadn't revealed anything yet, what possible location could they have chosen to try this monstrous death machine on?

A horrible suspicion was dawning on Serina as the door swished open behind her. She did not turn around but waited for the dark evil presence of her master to step up to her side. When his gloved hand came to rest heavily on her shoulder, a surge of dark desires rushed through her body. But this was certainly not an appropriate time, so she let them pass.

For some time, they just stood there silently, then Vader moved off toward his meditation chamber. As he settled down in the comfortable, slightly reclining meditation chair in the center, Serina took her customary place right at the entrance on the hard metal floor, wrapping her arms around her legs and leaning her back against the inside of the hull.

The upper lid slowly closed until the chamber was airtight, then the pressure started to rise. The air quickly pervaded with the medication Vader required to breathe unaided. The robot-arm lowered down over the helmet and lifted it off his head. Other more delicate arms disconnected and removed the complicated mask portion. Finally, Vader drew a deep breath and turned to gaze down at the young woman barely visible in the dim illumination.

He could feel her need to know about the recent developments, but she had learned to wait patiently. First, he had to consider the consequences and possible benefits of Tarkin's plan. Not that he believed the foolish plan would persuade the young Senator to deliver the desired information, but there were other benefits to it. The time had come to make the galaxy aware of the newest, most powerful weapon at the command of the Emperor. And the destruction of Alderaan - and Grand Moff Tarkin would order its destruction no matter what the Princess would tell them - would surely be a signal to all those worlds sympathizing with the Rebel Alliance.

However, as Serina would surely point out, it could also work to the contrary and drive more worlds into supporting the rebels. No matter what the long-term results of this action would be, the only way to stop this foolish rebellion was to destroy their main base and their leadership. Since Tarkin's proposed action would most likely not bring them any closer to this goal, he would have to develop a plan of his own.

Serina's idea of helping the Princess escape and convincing her to take her "rescuer" to the base - equipped of course with some homing beacon - was an alternative to be considered. But the Princess would be wary to trust a nearly utter stranger with her life, and persuading her to take that stranger to their base would certainly be far from easy, but that was exactly the kind of task Serina had been trained for during the past twelve years.

On the other hand, if his troops could finally locate those droids, the Princess might give up her resistance to his mind probe and his problem would be solved.

The next hours would show which direction his actions should take. For now, he had about two more hours until they would reach Alderaan. After he ordered some of his special nourishment to be prepared by the robot-unit of the chamber, he turned his attention to the woman at his feet.

He thought back at his reluctance at first to allow her to see him without mask and body suit. Although he had felt her being scared that first time her desire to be with him had prevailed and he had never regretted following the Emperor's orders regarding her. She had truly proved to be an asset to his plans and extremely capable to evoke and fulfill desires he had once considered no longer possible.

Serina felt his attention upon her and gazed up at him. She could feel the tension in his body, the constant pain the suit and his artificial limbs caused and his awareness of his maimed body as long as the mask and helmet were lifted and therefore not attached to his skull and spine to unite the whole suit into one interconnected unit. And she could feel the rage, the hate and the fury that had become the core of his whole existence, the emotions that he had honed and turned into a weapon, that granted him limitless access to the dark side.

And yet, she had learned quickly, that, even in his darkest hours, he still preferred to avoid the pain when it was possible and to be relieved of the awareness that he was no longer the man he used to be before Mustafar. That was why she was here, why he allowed her at his side. She rose to her feet and took a step toward him. Then she lifted her hand toward the side of his face that had healed without leaving painful scars. But Vader reached up and grabbed her hand in midmotion.

"The battle station is on its way to Alderaan. The governor thinks that threatening the Princess with the destruction of her home planet will elicit the information we seek." His voice was filled with contempt for Tarkin.

"He will destroy the planet no matter what the Princess tells him, won't he?" Serina's eyes filled with horror at the thought. She knew the Grand Moff well enough and a vision that she had done her best to forget quickly drifted back into her mind. Weeks ago, she had dreamed of the destruction of a planet, but she hadn't known which one it would be. Now she did!

Vader agreed. "Most certainly, he will."

"But Alderaan is a peaceful world. They don't even have a planetary defense system. How..."

Vader interrupted her mildly. "Alderaan is also the chief supporter of the Alliance, as even your own reports confirm. To destroy it will deliver the rebellion a painful blow."

"But there are also many people there that are loyal to the Empire. Many good soldiers have their families there. Will you sacrifice them along with all the traitors as well?"

Her question was quite futile. The long years of knowing the Dark Lord made her realize that those people didn't interest him at all. His thinking was on a galactic scale, where the small individuals didn't even start to matter.

But for her own sake, she just had to voice her protest. "And the Princess won't give him any useful information, I'm sure of that. She is like most of the other rebels we have caught before. She'd rather kill herself than to betray their cause."

Vader nodded his agreement. "You did initiate your own plan regarding the Princess?"

"I've talked to her. Of course, she doesn't trust me, but if Tarkin destroys Alderaan she'll be more than willing to be rescued by me." She wouldn't even have to fake her horror at this abominable act, she truly felt that way. It would make things easier, but at what cost!

"Enough of that now, we still have several hours before we reach Alderaan." Following the pull of his strong hand, Serina stepped even closer to her dark master. "I want you to concentrate on me now!" Alderaan, Leia, the Death Star, everything was pushed from her mind as he pulled her down into his strong embrace, both physically and mentally. Reaching again for the unblemished portion of his face, Serina allowed her special abilities to change the pain that was his constant companion into sensual stimuli. As his body responded to the Force-induced sensations, their minds once again joined into one, re-experiencing moments of sexual climax and of total immersion into the powers of the dark side.