The mysterious figure known as Darth Vader stormed down the corridor of the star ship, taking out his irritation on anyone who crossed his path. Gray uniformed crew scurried out of sight as they heard his heavy footfall down the hallway. He had been kept waiting by his new staff. His quarters were not yet ready, & though they tried to placate him with apologies, the reminded them grimly that they had been given strict orders to be prepared for his arrival. Upon entering his rooms, he startled a young technician who was plugging in the power supply to his computer system. The shocked boy accidentally slipped & dropped the unit to the floor, sending Vader into a rage. Extending his arm in front of him, he grasped at an invisible object. As his fingers closed, the technician grasped at his neck, trying to claw away the invisible hand clenching his airway shut. A sickening crunch resounded through the room, & as Vader unclenched his hand, the boys body slumped lifelessly to the floor.

Turning swiftly, he pointed at the rest of the staff who were cowering in the corner. "You will get this… mess," he spat disgustedly, "cleaned up immediately." "When I return, everything had better be perfect- or each of you will end up like that idiot," he growled, pointing at the lifeless body behind him.

He had been made late for his appointment. Even though Lord Vader was feared by all, & no one would ever mention any tardiness, he considered himself a man of his word. What he says, goes- without fail. He prided himself upon it, & the incident with his new staff had caused him to break his word. He did not expect, nor accept excuses from his crew, & he never offered any excuses in return. He reminded himself that not a soul would dare mention his delay, but that didn't mean it didn't piss him off anyway.

Rounding the corner to General Bavlin's office, he pushed back his anger-only a bit- & walked past the scared secretary without a word & into the room.

"Lord Vader," Bavlin began as he entered the room, rising quickly from behind his desk. "It is such an honor to-"

"Enough," Vader said, cutting him off. "I apologize for my lateness- & there is no need to exchange niceties with me General, we are both far too busy for those idiotic pursuits."

"Yes my lord," Bavlin replied. "Miss Farr is preparing as we speak."

"Miss Farr had better be already prepared, I have been held up once today due to failure to follow orders, I am sure she would hate to end up the way that bantha's ass did."

A worried look crossed the General's face, one that Vader did not miss. As he followed Bavlin out of his office, a smirk crept across his lips. 'Hmmm… so Bavlin seems worried,' he thought. 'Perhaps he assumes as I do that this girl is greatly unprepared…' Under his mask, his once blue eyes flashed an angry yellow. If this one failed him, he would take pleasure in squeezing the life out of her.

In her office, Aurren sat behind her desk, an air of calm surrounding her. On the inside, she was pushing back a bundle of nervous energy. She had heard of how hard it was to please Lord Vader, he was notoriously picky & frequently flew into a rage when he was unhappy. With all that in mind, she had a strange confidence in the palace she had created.

When she was commissioned by the emperor to design Vader's' palace, she tried to gather as much information as she could about the finicky lord as to his preferences. The chef's & cooks that had survived his wrath gave her information that she used to create the kitchens, dining rooms & vegetable gardens to suit his culinary preferences. She spoke to servants & housekeepers about what colors he seemed to prefer, what his quarters at other locations looked like & how they were furnished. She even contacted his personal tailor & the laundry workers about his wardrobe so that she could tailor his closets to his needs.

All of her findings led her in one direction for the style of estate she would build for him. It would be a palace fit for Nubian royalty, one that would seem as if it had been plucked from the countryside. Aurren was certain that he couldn't be completely displeased; she had found that he surrounded himself with paintings of the beautiful rural landscape of Naboo, & even his rooms were appointed in the same style.

She had been completely absorbed by this project. Part of her drive came from the tedious nature of the job, but as soon as she decided to model the palace after her beloved Country Naboo style, her confidence began to soar as the ideas poured from her head.

Aurren modeled the palace after the great estate she had started planning during her time at the academy, & worked on in her free time before being given this commission. She added to the already vast size, while tailoring it to fit the preferences of the Dark Lord. She effortlessly accommodated all of the necessary control rooms, command centers, secret corridors rooms & vaults, as well as making this lofty, open air palace what she considered would be the most fortified & cutting edge structure across the galaxy.

'Deep breaths,' she thought as she waited, 'deep breaths.' Her fate, whatever it may be, was sealed. The past year had been the most fulfilling in her life. She enjoyed planning this palace, it combined her love of beauty & her ardent desire for security. She would never regret this, even if he hated it.

As she finally calmed herself, she heard the doors to her outer offices open, & stood suddenly, stilling her nerves, & waited for them to enter.