When the Ghost finally landed at the base, Hera and Zeb hurried Kanan to the makeshift medical bay to patch up his eyes, leaving Ahsoka to sort through her thoughts on the landing platform. Ezra and Rex stood to the side, watching as she walked back and forth, tracing an invisible path into the ground.
Simply put: the day had been a whirlwind.
She was still exhausted from the battles, her muscles throbbing painfully each time she pushed a foot forward to pace; her shoulders ached with tension, torn fibers crying out in defense as she continued to strain them.
Ahsoka had been giving Rex—and Ezra, for that matter—a summary of the mission, trying to recall every detail that she could. She knew she wasn't them much time to process her words, but she needed to figure out a plan soon.
Her mind whirled, thinking carefully over the words Maul spoke on Mandalore all those years ago. He tried to warn her of the person Anakin would become. How could he have known? Why didn't she at least listen? If she could have only heeded the warning, she could have helped steer him from the path he was on.
But she failed him.
And now, she was determined to make things right.
"Hold on, Commander," Rex tried, causing Ahsoka to momentarily halt. He didn't continue until she turned toward him. "Are you sure it was him?"
"I'm certain. It was his voice, his Force signature..." Her eyes flickered between the two of them at the hesitation in the air. A tinge of disappointment hit her in the stomach. "You don't believe me."
"Belief isn't the issue at hand here." He pursed his lips, thinking over his next words carefully. "It's been a long time since the war. If what you're saying is true, we can't rule out the possibility that he's fallen too far."
She shook her head, stubborn. "I was making progress with him. If I had just a few more minutes, I could've convinced him to come with us."
"He nearly killed us, Ahsoka. How do we know we wouldn't be feeding into his plan by bringing him here?" Ezra crossed his arms over his chest, a small frown on his face.
"I can't be sure of that," she answered after a moment of thought, "but I know what I sensed in the Force. He still has some good in him."
"Even so, there's no guarantee that he's still the person you used to know," the young Jedi commented. "It's too risky to bring someone from the Empire here—especially with Kanan's injury. We wouldn't be strong enough to handle an inside assault right now."
But if he wanted to kill them, he would have done it on Malachor, a voice in the back of her head insisted. It wouldn't make sense for him to loiter.
"Rex?" she tried as Ezra stepped away, and the former captain huffed softly, offering her a sympathetic look.
"You know I want to, but the kid is right. We can't be sure of his plans just yet."
Ahsoka's eyes dropped to the ground, deflatedly. She knew bringing Anakin back to the base would be risky—but she couldn't leave him again. The gears in her brain were spinning, trying to scrape together a plan. There was no way she could take one of the ships without someone noticing, and she doubted anyone in the galaxy would willingly confront Darth Vader beside her. She would be on her own.
As she thought, Rex watched her expression closely, knowing her well enough to guess where her mind was heading. He knew she was going back for him, with or without their help—and although he was hesitant, he accepted that nothing he could say would stop her.
He let out a sigh before speaking again, his voice low and wary, "You're sure it's him?"
"I swear on my life," she said. "It's him, Rex. I know it is."
He looked conflicted. "You know I can't help you."
She opened her mouth to speak, only ceasing when he held a hand up, silently telling her to let me finish.
"But," he started, glancing around the landing platform to be sure his words wouldn't catch the attention of anyone, "if you happen to slip away in my ship, I have no idea where you went."
A smile grew on her face, followed by a short sigh of relief. "Thank you, Rex."
He stepped forward, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Be safe, Commander."
She nodded at him, her determined expression returning. "I'm going to bring him home."
»»««
Darth Vader stood in his private quarters with an outdated holoprojector resting in his gloved hand. After the encounter with Ahsoka, he felt unsettled—an unshakable sense of uncertainty, the crushing weight of ambivalence.
He brushed away the dust collected on the top, feeling along the side for the green power key. When he found it, he turned the switch and listened as the machine whirred, sputtering and spitting dust into the air. Eventually, a blue light illuminated the dim room, followed by a screen that flickered in front of him.
He took a deep breath before swiping through the array of different logs and records. Most of his logs were for Padmé—she insisted that they documented pleasant experiences during the war to remind them of the good, and it quickly became a habit, one that helped him cope with the heaviness that followed him after a battle. He flicked his wrist, scrolling through the hundreds of logs kept on file. Some were of Rex, some of Padmé, some of Obi-Wan. If someone was close to him during the Clone Wars, there was a good chance you could find their name hidden within the listings.
Suddenly, his hand stopped, fingers curling back into his palm.
Data Entry #326, Tano, Ahsoka.
He stared at the caption, his shoulders filling with tension and his stomach beginning to twist. A wave of apprehension crashed over him as he reached out, hesitantly selecting the message. The blue disappeared for a moment, darkness flooding the room in its absence, before it flickered once more, reappearing with a familiar figure.
"What's this, Master?" The holoprojected version of Ahsoka tilted her head to the side. She was wearing her traditional Padawan uniform, looking into the hologram curiously. Judging by her appearance, he guessed the recording was taken shortly after their first mission.
"This, my young Padawan, is what we call a hologram."
Vader cringed at the sound of his voice. Although his body was hidden from sight, he was sure his past self was smiling.
She rolled her eyes, a small grin growing. "Obviously," she said, "I meant, what are you doing?"
"I like to document," he answered lightly. "You know, remember the good things."
Vader saw her face soften through the hologram, a teasing smile spreading across her features. "Aw, see, Master? I knew you loved me—"
"Yeah, yeah, don't let it go to your head, Snips," he added quickly, feigning annoyance in his tone. "If you're not careful, you'll become like Obi-Wan."
"Whatever you say, Skyguy."
The hologram flickered again with a low hum, sending him back to the list of entries.
A beat of thick silence passed.
He let out a shaky breath, feeling even more conflicted than before. He swore when he joined the Sith that he would never mourn his old life. It shouldn't have mattered that he once knew Ahsoka; he was trained to kill without a second thought. She was insignificant—a mere remnant of his past. He should have slaughtered her like the rest of them.
But he failed.
Not only did he fail, but he also allowed her and known traitors of the Empire to escape, allowing the rogue Jedi to gain the upper hand.
And for what?
The quietness of the room began to feel suffocating, almost as though the stillness was there to taunt him; to mock his incompetence. News had inevitably spread to the Emperor by then. It was only a matter of time before he had to face the consequences of his deeds. His mind spun in circles, back and forth, giving him every reason he should have killed her and reminding himself why he didn't.
He wanted to escape, yet he wasn't sure what bound him. Was it the Empire? The Dark Side? The Jedi?
He knew that he didn't like the feeling of someone else's blood staining his hands—something the Empire encouraged when they faced resistance from the masses. He knew that he had grown so used to the sight of destruction that he felt indifferent when he watched the flesh deteriorate from the bones of a former lifeform.
When did this happen? When did the cold hands of death stop bothering him? When did he become okay with killingout of his own self-interest?
Before he was able to dwell on his thoughts further, the door to the room shot open, and his heart leaped to his throat. He turned the holoprojector off in record time and shoved it behind his back, swiftly turning to the figure standing to his left. When his panic subsided enough for him to identify the man, he let out an aggravated huff.
"Don't you find it improper to barge into ones' quarters without warning?"
"Lord Vader, the Emperor has asked for your presence," Tarkin informed in his signature imperious tone, ignoring his pointed question entirely. "I suggest you hurry."
He exhaled again, fingers gripping onto the holoprojector behind him tightly. "Of course. I will be there momentarily."
The Grand Moff tipped his head to the side, an irritatingly smug expression on his face. "He did not seem very pleased at your returning empty-handed."
As if he wasn't aware.
"I don't believe that is any of your concern," he responded flatly. "Is there anything else?"
As if he couldn't be more vexing, he raised a brow. "Just a humble warning, friend."
Before Vader had the chance to voice his distaste, the man turned on his heels and walked away—chin held high, hands folded and resting on the small of his back.
Force, he hated that guy.
When the door to the room finally sealed shut, Vader let out a breath, pulling the holo forward. He lowered himself down to one of the steps of his meditation chamber and shoved the device deep into the shadows, his hand stilling brushed against another item under the panel. He nearly winced as he pulled it into the light.
Ahsoka's lightsaber.
The Siege of Mandalore. The crash site. A tinge of emotion jabbed him in the chest as he loosely rolled the lightsaber around his palm. Despite knowing it was unlikely for her to stay true to her word, the thought of seeing his former apprentice again unnerved him.
With a sigh, Vader shoved the lightsaber back into the darkness, a sense of dread fixing itself on his shoulders at the thought of going before the Emperor. He needed to focus. His mind whirled, trying to muster up as many rational excuses as he could. He needed to be prepared and able to respond quickly—preferably without thinking.
Vader moved off the stairs, walking to the circular platform in his quarters. When he stepped into the center, a familiar white light flared beneath his feet before a figure flickered to life in front of him.
He bowed, his forearm resting on his right knee, and his left hand grazing the ground for balance.
"Master."
"Lord Vader," The Emperor addressed his presence. "Word has gotten to me that you did not succeed in capturing the two Jedi I requested."
"My apologies, Master," he paused, looking up at the holoprojected version of the Emperor. "Unfortunately, it seems that Darth Maul has once more resurfaced. The Jedi had aided him in accessing the Sith Holocron on Malachor."
Darth Sidious hummed. "It is impressive that he persuaded the Jedi to assist him."
"Indeed," he said. "Their alliance resulted in the deaths of my most valued Inquisitors."
"My condolences." Despite his words, the Emperor's voice was void of any sympathy. "Find him immediately. There's no telling what he'll do with the Holocron—especially if he's antagonistic toward our cause."
Vader pushed back the small voice that wondered if now was the time to tell him that Maul wasn't the one that left with it.
"I will see to it that we capture him as swiftly as we can."
»»««
Rex was a good soldier.
He followed orders, he knew how to react under stress, he tried his best to never leave a man behind; he was a suitable captain for the 501st. After the war came to an abrupt stop, however, he wasn't quite sure what to do with himself.
He learned how to adapt to quietness and monotony. It only took a few cycles for him to discover other clones that outlived Order 66. He found Wolffe first, hidden away in the Utapau system, then Gregor on Abafar. He heard whispers of other survivors, but they all led to dead ends. After a while of searching and coming up short, they decided to go dark on Seelos.
When Ahsoka told him about Skywalker, he wasn't sure what to think. He was certainly relieved that his former General was alive—though, given the circumstances, it was fair to say that he was skeptical.
But he trusted Tano. She was one of the finest soldiers he had ever fought beside. If she said there was hope, he would stand with her.
"Rex?" He snapped his gaze to the door, watching Ezra enter the Quonset hut with a confused expression. "Have you seen Ahsoka? I've looked all over for her."
"Oh, Ezra. Good to see you." He cleared his throat nervously. "Uh, no. I have not seen the Commander. Have you checked the northern outpost?"
"I already checked all of the outposts. No luck. It's like she just vanished." Ezra kicked out a chair and sat beside him, a grimace crossing his features. "Do you think she's okay? I feel terrible for shooting down her plans earlier."
He gave a weak waving gesture, averting his eyes to the large map rolled out across the table. "I'm sure she's fine."
The boy sighed. "As difficult as it was, I still think we made the right call. We can't endanger our team over something like this."
Rex nodded, trying his best to keep his expression neutral—but apparently he wasn't as convincing as he tried to be, because Ezra tilted his head to the side.
"Are you okay, Rex? You seem jumpy."
"Yeah, I'm fine," he answered, a little too quick for his own liking. The Jedi raised a brow, and guilt seeped into Rex's conscience. "All right," he sighed. "I do know where she is."
Ezra perked up. "Where?"
He cringed. "I think you know, too."
A moment passed before realization dawned on the teen's face. "Oh, Rex, seriously?" he groaned. "What were you thinking?"
"Listen, I know it sounds crazy, I do," Rex paused, "but if Commander Tano thinks she can get through to him, we have to have hope that things will work out."
Ezra didn't look like he was buying it. "Are you sure it's a good idea?"
The former captain sighed, looking back to the map. "We have to let her try."
»»««
Vader stepped out of his quarters with his newly restored mask.
The meeting with the Emperor went better than expected—though, his expectations were quite low. At the very least, he managed to buy himself some time to think. His boots clicked against the dark, glassy floor, footsteps echoing off the quiet halls.
Then, Vader began to hear muffled noises coming from a blast door to his left. He stopped in his tracks, jolting when it shot open with a hiss, revealing a group of wounded troopers on the other side. They stumbled through the door—some leaning on each other for support, others limped through the doorway on their own. A few had their helmets lifted with their armor littered in black markings.
"What happened here?" he asked.
"A code eight-nine-five, sire, on the main landing platform," a trooper explained, seeming startled at Vader's presence, "but worry not. We got the situation under control."
He paused. "A Jedi?"
Surely it wasn't her. Ahsoka wasn't that stupid.
"A togruta, my lord," another trooper piped in.
Maybe she was that stupid.
"Where is the Jedi now?" he demanded, pushing down the wave of nausea that made its way to his throat.
"Sent to examination with JT-2496 and CR-7340."
Vader blinked. "You sent them with only two troopers?"
"She... wasn't resisting, sire." The Stormtrooper faltered at his unnerving tone. "After she blew a few fighters, she let us do our job."
Vader took a long few moments to calm himself down, seemingly in a manner that frightened the troopers that stood in front of him. They exchanged looks of panic, none of them willing to move a muscle.
"You." He pointed to one of the Stormtroopers near his left. The man straightened his posture, giving his full attention. "Take me to the Jedi."
He gulped, glancing over to his fellow troopers with uncertainty. "Yes, sire."
"As for the rest of you," Vader looked between the men, noting that none of them had any injuries that wouldn't heal quickly. He assumed the only reason they were wounded was because of the explosions in the hangar. "Visit the medical bay. You are not permitted to work until a medic passes you."
With that, the group dispersed, Vader and the handpicked trooper beginning to walk toward the left-wing of the base. As they strolled down the polished halls, he felt his mind begin to spiral again. What was her plan? Why would she come here?
"Trooper," he started, quickly getting the attention of the man walking beside him. Ordinarily, Vader refused all forms of unnecessary conversation—but at that moment, he needed something to occupy his thoughts. "What is your number?"
"CM-2933, my lord," he spoke clearly, albeit tensely. Vader guessed the man wasn't much older than he was when he became a Jedi.
"And, CM-2933, what is your purpose?"
"To do my job, sire," the trooper stated, firmly. "To restore peace in the galaxy through the Empire."
Peace—such a relative term, really. When he was a slave, working rotation after rotation for Watto, peace came when he was with his mother. As a Jedi, peace was a state of mind, only accessible to him when the death toll of a battle lowered; when the same clones that came with him left with him. As a husband, he felt at peace when he was with Padmé in the comfort of their home, hidden away from the intrusive eye.
"Do you believe it's possible?" His voice was calm, calculated. CM-2933 looked over at him, and although his helmet covered his face, Vader could tell the question caught him off-guard. "To maintain peace."
The trooper hesitated. "I hope so."
There was no more conversation after that. The trooper led him to the interrogation center they sent Ahsoka to, promptly leaving at his request. Vader noticed four keepers standing outside the blast door that confined her.
"Clear the room. I need to speak to the prisoner alone."
The troopers nodded. "As you wish, Lord Vader."
Once the area was empty, he cut the audio feeds and logged a code in on the keypad. After he entered the final digit, the door sprung open with a hiss, revealing Ahsoka sitting rather casually at the interrogation table. Her head was resting in her palms, drawing his attention to the glowy blue cuffs clasped over her wrists.
"I was beginning to think you weren't going to show."
"What do you think you're doing here?" he gritted out, and she resisted the urge to recoil at his tone, offering a timid smile.
"I said I'd come back for you, didn't I?"
He narrowed his eyes behind the mask in incredulity. She was unbelievable. He took in an electronic breath. "You shouldn't have."
"Yeah, well, it's a little late for that, Skyguy," she said, the sobriquet causing him to wince.
"Do not call me that." He took a seat across from her. "Ahsoka, the moment the Emperor finds out you're here, you will be killed indefinitely."
"Then we'll leave before he does." Her voice sounded confident enough—he might have bought it if he didn't feel the doubt hovering in the Force around her. It was potent with optimism, but uncertain nonetheless. She wasn't as sure of herself as she appeared to be.
"You know I can't." Vader tried to keep his tone impassive, but it was proving to be quite difficult. "I can't just—leave. I have obligations here."
Judging by the way she was studying him, she didn't believe a word he said. He knew he was practically broadcasting his real emotions into the Force, having trouble deciding whether or not he cared enough to hide them from her view.
"There's something else, isn't there?" Ahsoka tipped her head to the side, narrowing her eyes slightly. It was a rhetorical question—they both knew it. She shifted in her seat before hesitantly speaking up again. "Don't worry. You can trust me."
Trust. He let out a scoff that sounded far more bitter than he intended.
Her eyes softened at that, a feeling of remorse creeping up on her. "I'm offering you a way out, Anakin," she said. "Do you want to take it?"
The room was weighed down with heavy silence, the dim lights reflecting an eerie glow off his mask. He did—he really, really wanted to—but he knew he couldn't. Not while the Emperor was still alive. Not while he was waist-deep in the blood of innocents.
"There's no leaving for me." Vader leaned back in the chair, head hammering with tension. "I've been marked by the Empire. They'll find me no matter where I go."
She blinked. "Marked?"
"They put trackers in my suit," he explained, deciding to focus on only one way that the Empire owned him, "and I can't live without it, so unless you have a solution in mind, we won't get very far."
"I thought that was just a fashion choice or something," Ahsoka quipped. Even with his face covered, she could have sworn she saw him roll his eyes.
He muttered something under his breath, not quite audible enough for Ahsoka to hear through his mask, before speaking up again. "Even if I could get out of it, I'm doubtful we could find a surgeon that wouldn't expose our location to the Empire. If I leave, I will become a fugitive. It would be treason for them not to report it."
She hummed thoughtfully. "What if I told you I have access to a hidden medical facility? We could get you out of that thing before anyone notices you're gone."
"What part of I can't live without the suit do you not understand? It's impossible."
"We have to try," she insisted. "The people I have ties to would be more than willing to help."
He hesitantly pondered.
"I need time to think over your offer," Vader stated after a moment of thought, standing from his chair. He sighed when he noticed the alert on her eyes. "Don't worry. I won't let anything happen until I get back. You will be safe in here until then."
She grimaced, the tension in her shoulders dropping somewhat. "I'd like to say take as long as you need, but I'm afraid time isn't exactly on our side."
He nodded. "I understand."
With that, Vader walked out of the room, every thought in his mind whirling far too quickly for him to process, and he hit a button on the keypad, causing the blast doors to slide shut again. Once it was sealed, he let out a breath.
And he thought she was bluffing.
His feet tapped against the ground as he paced back and forth, tugging on the seams of his gloves tensely. She risked her life to come back for him, not even knowing for sure whether or not he was interested.
He couldn't decide whether she was reckless or ridiculously loyal.
Vader forced his feet to still as he took in a deep breath, wincing at the pain he felt in his lungs.
He could leave.
The option was open to him. If he left with her, he wouldn't have to endure the bitter taste of genocide any longer. He wouldn't have to abide by every command the Emperor gave him.
He could be free.
He nearly shuddered at the notion, feeling a wave of disapproving thoughts follow shortly after it surfaced. No, the Emperor was the only one he could trust. He saved his life.
Then why did he feel trapped?
One foot landed in front of the other, and he was pacing again.
Vader still remembered the horror in the eyes of the young Padawans he slaughtered in Temple. He lived among them—they trusted him—but the Emperor told him it was an act of kindness toward the galaxy. They were dangerous and needed to be contained.
They deserved their fate, he had decided through gritted teeth, watching himself slice through the bodies, muttering each of their names as they fell.
A wave of nausea hit him as a simple thought emerged in his mind.
They were children.
Was it possible for a child to be destined to die? Were his actions simply him fulfilling something that destiny had determined long ago? The Emperor spoke for the Force—he was like a prophet, giving instructions to those that couldn't access it themselves. He had to trust him.
Even if the orders given to him felt wrong?
Vader blinked a few times, shoulders tensing as the cries of the dead echoed through his mind. He paced, his suit suddenly feeling far too heavy for his unsteady knees to carry, a single, nagging thought hovering in his mind.
He could start fresh.
There was a new beginning waiting for him on the other side of that blast door—did he want to take it? Couldhe take it? He certainly didn't deserve it—yet, Ahsoka was extending it to him.
What if she was lying?
She could be a lackey for the Rebellion, sent to lead him right into a trap. If that was the case, he would surely be able to fend for himself.
He stiffened as a quiet, scathing thought came to his mind.
Where would that leave him?
He would be deemed an enemy on both sides of the arena—a traitor by the Empire, a criminal by the Rebellion. Any stability he had would be gone, the power he possessed slipping through his fingertips like grains of sand. Every child he murdered, every blood-curdling scream he caused, every skull he crushed to get to the top—it would all be for nothing.
But he would be free.
Was he willing to exchange his power for independence?
A hesitant glance at the blast door.
Maybe he was.
Vader stopped pacing and took in a breath, his fingers still shaking as he walked toward the interrogation room. He entered the code once more, his body moving on auto-pilot. The doors shot open.
Ahsoka snapped her eyes up to him, her lips parted slightly but not saying anything.
"You're certain your doctors are capable of performing that kind of procedure?" he spoke eventually, breaking the silence.
"Positive," she replied. "I would trust them with my life."
Vader's heart pounded painfully against his chest at the thought of leaving.
"I will come with you," he stated. "My only condition is that we stop at my chamber before we go. I have something inside that I cannot leave behind."
"Very well," Ahsoka decided after a moment of thought. "You won't have much time, though. We'll have to hurry."
He nodded, and she gave him a small smile.
"Okay, here's the plan..."
»»««
"This is, by far, the worst plan I've ever participated in," Vader remarked, sotto voce. The togruta beside him rolled her eyes as they walked down the halls of the flagship. Her wrists were still confined, though this time, it was intentional.
"Relax, would you? You're stressing me out."
"I'm stressing you out?" he echoed. "Oh, Force forbid I broach common sense."
"I've got it under control," Ahsoka snapped back. "Just follow the plan."
Once they rounded the corner, Ahsoka stood to the side, keeping watch as Vader walked over to the keypad in front of his chambers. He unsealed the room, disappearing from Ahsoka's view for a moment as he stepped inside. After a few seconds passed, he came back with a familiar item in his hands.
"Your holoprojector?" she asked, tilting her head to the side with a surprised expression on her face. He only nodded in response, tucking the device away into his cloak. "All right, we need to get moving if we're going to get the ship out of the hangar."
"Remind me why your ship is so important," Vader said as they began walking again. He put a hand on her back, resuming the position an officer would take when handling a prisoner. "We would cut down so much extra time and risk if we just left in my TIE fighter."
She hesitated. "It's... actually not my ship."
"You brought someone else's ship on a suicide mission?" he deadpanned. "Who in their right mind would let you take their ship here?"
"I'll tell you later," Ahsoka mumbled when a company of Stormtroopers marched past them. She held her breath, almost as though she expected the men to question them.
"You relax," Vader muttered, slightly irritable. "Look at their armor design. None of these men have the clearance to examine us."
"Oh. Right."
"Your ship is likely in hangar 6-C," he stated. "That's where we store enemy crafts—and a Jedi's starship certainly fits that description—so if my men did their job correctly, we should be able to find it with relative ease."
Ahsoka nodded. They walked into an empty turbolift on the right side of the hall, and Vader pressed a few buttons as the glass doors sealed. The ground shook beneath their feet when it began descending. "We'll need to approve the departure before we leave, otherwise they will try to report it," he said. "If they don't, we will have at least two rotations before the Emperor notices my absence."
"And if they do?"
He involuntarily winced at the thought. "We won't make it off the flagship."
"Then we'll have to make sure that doesn't happen," she stated optimistically. "Can you gain clearance from the cockpit?"
"I can get us clearance as long as we get there."
The lift came to a halt when they arrived on the selected level, and the doors opened smoothly. As they stepped into the large area, Vader was pleased to see only a few troopers walking around the hangar.
"There it is," Ahsoka mumbled, pointing subtly to a ship bound down on their left. He nodded, and they began walking toward it.
Of course, their luck ran out sooner than he expected. They hardly made it halfway before an officer with a grey uniform cut them off, skeptically.
"Lord Vader, what are you doing with the prisoner?"
"The Emperor has requested this Jedi's presence," he responded stiffly. "I'm here to escort her."
The man raised a brow. "Wouldn't you prefer to go with the troops in the main hangar? What are you doing down here?"
They don't have time for this.
"This is not suspicious," Vader stated, and Ahsoka peered over at him with a weird look. "You will report none of this to anyone. I am still in my chamber."
"This is not suspicious," The officer repeated, hazy eyed. "I will report none of this to anyone. You are still in your chambers."
Vader nodded before glancing at Ahsoka, extending his hand once more. "And you will grant authorization for the departure of the prisoner's ship in hangar 6-C by request of the Grand Moff Tarkin."
The officer elevated his wrist, keying in a few digits before speaking into it. "Grant authorization for the departure of the prisoner's ship in hangar 6-C by request of the Grand Moff Tarkin."
There was a sound of uncertainty on the other line before a hesitant, "As you wish."
As they walked away, Vader turned to the man one last time. "You will now go check the ventilation system to be sure it is fully operational."
The man nodded to himself. "I will now go check the ventilation system to be sure it is fully operational."
Without uttering another word, he walked away, leaving Ahsoka in bewilderment.
"That was easy," she mumbled under her breath, glancing to the side when Vader shot her a look.
"We need to leave before anyone else sees us."
Ahsoka opened the hatch, watching from a safe distance as the panel descended slowly. The sides of the ship were coated with stripes of blue, sharply contrasting the white paint sprawled beside it. He took one more look around the hangar, feeling a lively mixture of trepidation and exhilaration pulsing through his veins.
She turned to him with a small, reassuring smile. "Let's go."
With that, they stepped aboard the starship.