7.stop haunting me

As the next few days passed, Aurren absorbed herself in her work. She quickly forgot about her blackout in the observatory, and spent long hours over the drafting table in her office.

After 5 days, Aurren began to wonder when Lord Vader would contact her. She found herself thinking distantly about him often. The man behind the mask intrigued her. She lingered on her recollection of his voice, deep and smooth. She wondered who he really was.

Was he a former leader from the Republic? Maybe he was one of the great war hero's from the clone wars. She had heard that some of the hero's of the great fleet had been greatly disfigured. Or perhaps he was a nobody. Not a nobody per se, but a nobody more like her, he could have started out much as she had- from nothing. As a child, she used to wonder about the past lives of the great leaders around the galaxy. She couldn't help but feel a trace of sadness at all of the pasts she made up for him. There was no doubt he was a great and powerful man now. But was he a really a great man? What does it take for a person to turn into the man who the world knew as Darth Vader, Sith Lord? Maybe he didn't turn into it… maybe he was it all along.

Aurren wondered about the age of the man in the suit. His strong walk and sturdy build seemed to suggest that he was fairly young and healthy- but then why wear the disguise? She mused about possible deformations or injuries.

A loud beep pulled her from her daydreaming suddenly. Looking around her desk to find the offending comm link, she located it and answered, "Farr here"

"Miss Farr," a deep voice resonated from the tiny device, "I expect to see you in my quarters in one hour. Bring your renderings."

"Yes my lord," Aurren replied, then ended the communication. With that, she then began gathering all of the things she would need to bring with her to meet with Lord Vader.

The 5 days since their last encounter had not gone as quickly for the sith lord as it had the architect. He had spent hours pouring over the vast amounts of highly detailed information contained on the small holo-disk she had given him, as well as being stunned with the amount of research she had done on the security systems. Hours passed as he virtually toured the palace she had created for him, and in that time he had memorized every room. Not being a man who was very fashion savvy, he would have had no idea how to decorate this place, and he was glad she had already considered it. Even though he couldn't design a room himself, he still had very fastidious taste. His only problem with her presentation was that when it came to the decorations and color schemes she had created, he couldn't choose which one he liked better.

The security dossier went to further impress him. Not only had she the brains to understand complex weapons and defense systems, but she had also designed a completely concealed perimeter control system that could raise blaster shields around the entire compound in under 30 seconds.

It wasn't just her work that kept his mind on Aurren Farr. When he closed his eyes at night he felt like he could feel her emptiness- and it made him feel empty… and lonely. For the first time in what seemed like forever, he found himself concerned over the welfare of someone who was not he. Moreover, he wondered why he should waste his time and thoughts on someone that he didn't even know… a woman for that matter!

The young dark lord spent most of his time stewing in his quarters over his uncontrollable thoughts of the architect. He discovered that more and more often during the night, when he would feel her emptiness creep under his skin, that he wished there were a way he could fill up whatever hole left her so barren- if only so that he would no longer feel it in his dreams.

Pacing the length of his bed, Vader tried to decide what to do. His introspection stretched back to the meeting with the emperor 4 days ago. He had informed his master that he had approved the new palace project, much to the surprise of Palpatine. His master then told him to decide where he would like his new estate, and it would be his. Naboo was his first thought, but he quickly dashed it from his head. It had been hard enough for him to be on the planet where his dead wife had been buried the last and only time he had traveled there after the rise of the Empire. He needed somewhere equally beautiful & sublime. He settled on Alderaan. He thought back to the time he had accompanied senator Bail Organa back to his home planet & how much it had reminded him of Naboo.

It was the emperor's next suggestion that was causing his current turmoil. He suggested (which was his way of commanding his young apprentice) that Vader go to Alderaan and acquire a location. Further more, he suggested that he take his architect & designer with him. Palpatine knew that Vader would need someone with technical knowledge to help him select a spot that would be appropriate for the palace, and Aurren Farr was the only option if he wanted to maintain secrecy.

It had been very hard for Vader to hold his tongue, to keep from lashing out with dissent at his master's suggestion. The thought of having Miss Farr as a companion… in fact his only companion… on a mission that could last months terrified him, and he had no idea why.

The trip had been planned and set immediately. For the next 4 days Vader tried to motivate himself to contact the young architect and inform her that she would be accompanying him to Alderaan. For 4 days, Vader failed to strike up the will to even create a holo-message and send it to her. Now, as he paced back and forth at the foot of his bed, he had to tell her. Their transport was leaving in less than 2 hours.

Calming himself momentarily, he hastily grabbed for his comm link and buzzed Aurren.

A soft, lilting voice responded after a short beep, "Farr here"

Steeling himself, Vader spoke quickly. "Miss Farr, I expect to see you in my quarters in one hour. Bring your renderings."

A slightly deeper, firmer voice responded, "Yes my lord." and then disconnected.

Lord Vader replaced the comm link on his utility belt, and then moved into the fresher, quickly pushing a few buttons to open the closet his mask and cloak resided in. He felt a familiar disgust well up in his chest as he jerked the cloak from the mannequin. He wondered how he would maintain his sanity touring the Alderiaan countryside, not just with the girl, but covered in this heavy, black disguise.

thoughts? anyone?