Bridge, SSD Executor, Death Squadron, Unidentified Spatial Disruption.
Quiet tension pervaded the bridge of the Executor as it hurtled along a tunnel of blue and gold energy.
Ensign Biel kept her eyes on the screen in front of her, uncomfortably aware that the captain was standing directly overhead, while her mind kept running in increasingly panicked circles. This wasn't possible. Most officers on the bridge of an Imperial warship were glorified technicians or soldiers who had only a minimal understanding of the scientific theory underpinning the technology that they were using, but she had studied subspace theory at one of the best institutions in the Core, and it gave her both a better understanding of the physics underlying this impossible situation, and, she felt, a deeper appreciation for how utterly unprecedented it was. The energy readings for... whatever they were caught in were off the scales, and she was getting contradictory velocities on the standard and subspace scanners...
Captain Firmus Piet stood in the centre of the bridge, watching the menacing tunnel of light, uncomfortably aware of the black-armoured presence of Lord Vader standing just a few meters behind him, his breath the only sound echoing audibly through the bridge. Would Vader hold him responsible for the order that had come seconds too late to prevent... whatever the Hells had happened? He could almost imagine phantom fingers tightening around his throat, a red blade piercing his flesh, and swallowed uncomfortably.
"Report!", he snapped again, striding over to the part of the crew pit where the long-range scanners were located.
"We appear to be suspended within a vortex of unidentified energy", the Lt. in command of the section replied. "Power output appears to be at least an order of magnitude greater than the output of our main reactors, Sir." Firmus blinked. That much energy could rip them apart in an instant. "We appear to be still moving, but I'm getting conflicting readings. Our internal sensors indicate that we have come to a full stop, as do our short-range external scanners, but our long-range subspace scanners indicate that we are moving at approximately... 119.123 billion c. And accelerating."
Firmus starred, a cold feeling creeping through his gut. He wasn't an engineer, but he knew enough to know that they were moving far faster than should have been possible with any hyperdrive. Then he shook his head slightly.
"Ridiculous", he snapped. "Check the scanners again. I'm certain there must be some malfunction."
"No, Captain", breathed the deep, mechanical voice of Lord Vader behind him. He stiffened, his heart rate increasing. "We are indeed in motion. The vortex is transporting us with it, carrying us somewhere far away." He sounded almost... wistful, if such a thing were possible. "I will be in my private chambers. Inform me immediately of any developments."
"Yes, My Lord", he quickly replied, his gaze still on that swirling vortex. It was almost... beautiful, in a strange, alien way. He shook his head slightly. Whatever it was, it was dangerous."
"Of course, My Lord", echoed Admiral Ozzel, shooting an irritated look at Firmus as Lord Vader swept off the silent bridge.
Lord Vader's Private Quarters, SSD Executor, Death Squadron, Unidentified Subspace Vortex.
He floated in the stillness of the hyperbaric chamber, the only place where he could breath for long without the clumsy suit that sustained and confined him. He floated in the currents of the Force, his mind reaching out through the enveloping cloud of the Dark Side, his rage at being denied his chance to end the Rebellion and find his son combining with his frustration at the fleet's current, bizarre predicament to call upon its power.
He could feel the vortex around them, blazing like the Suns, a tunnel boring through space and time. He could feel the presences of the Executor and its escorts, suspended in that maelstrom, perfectly balanced so that only the slightest deviation in course would steer them to destruction. He could sense them being bourn along the currents of the Force toward an unknown destination, feel the controlled anxiety of the crews as they went about their duties. Their fear whispered to him in the darkness, familiar and reassuring.
But no matter how far he stretched out his senses, he could not feel the presence of his Master, that blackest of black holes in the Force. That didn't necessarily mean anything- sensing a single presence, even one as powerful as his Master's, over interstellar distances was an uncertain effort. But trapped in this strange tunnel of light, and combined with the reports of the scanner crews, it left him feeling strangely... unsettled.
Instead, he tried reaching out to sense the presence of his son, the Rebel star fighter pilot named Luke Skywalker. Again, unsurprisingly, he sensed nothing. The boy was still weak, untrained in his potential. If Obi-wan had not kept him from me-
He snarled in sudden fury, and the walls of the chamber shuddered against an invisible blow. He took a deep breath, focusing his anger, using it. The Sith did not suppress their fear, their hate, denying their baser impulses, but they did not let those feelings control them. Rage was his weapon, not his master.
The black mask that was his prison descended over his head once more, and the chamber split open as Lord Vader rose and stalked out of his personal quarters. It was time to return to the bridge. He could sense that they were nearing the end of their journey.
Bridge, SSD Executor, Death Squadron, Unidentified Subspace Vortex.
Firmus turned as the doors to the bridge slid open, and the towering figure of Lord Vader strode back onto the bridge. Instantly he was at full alert, and not simply because of Vader's presence, though that was certainly reason enough. As impossible as it seemed, in his time aboard the Executor, he had observed a sort of... prescience to Lord Vader's actions. He had scoffed at the rumors of the Dark Lord's supernatural power, but lately he had begun to reevaluate those conclusion, however unsettling the thought might be. The tunnel of light outside the bridge windows had not changed, but if the Dark Lord felt that his presence on the bridge was warranted, then something was about to happen.
"Lord Vader."
"Where is Admiral Ozzel?" Firmus thought, uneasily, that he detected a hint of irritation in Vader's tone.
"In his quarters, Lord Vader. I was told to inform him of any developments."
"Summon him immediately. I sense that our journey will soon be over."
"Of course, My Lord", he replied, his suspicions confirmed, and passed the order on to the Ensign manning the ship's intercom. Two or three minutes' uncomfortable silence passed, and then the bridge doors slid open and Admiral Ozzel walked onto the bridge, appearing just slightly disheveled, as though he had been just awoken from sleep, or from enjoying the... services of one of his subordinates, Firmus thought wryly.
"Lord Vader." The Admiral stood at attention.
"We will be exiting the vortex shortly."
Ozzel glanced at Firmus, who returned the gaze levelly. He had no more idea than Ozzel how Vader knew the things he knew, but he was beginning to understand that the Dark Lord's premonitions were usually correct.
His gaze snapped forward as the light in front of them suddenly vanished, and the edges of the tunnel parted, swirling to either side and revealing a star-strewn field of open space. Firmus felt himself relax a little in relief as the Executor returned to normal space, no longer surrounded by a vortex of energy that could rip the vessel apart.
"Scanners, report!" Admiral Ozzel snapped.
"We appear to be in a single-star system, approximately 200 million kilometers from the Sun off the Port bow. The rest of the fleet has arrived with us. All vessels accounted for." A pause. "Sir, there is a large space station approximately fifteen million kilometers ahead, and slightly to Starboard. It is comparable in size to an Imperial Star Destroyer, but I'm detecting extremely high energy readings"-Firmus instantly tensed-"approximately 73% of those of an Executor class Super Star Destroyer's maximum output."
"Weapons", Admiral Ozzel asked.
Another moment's tense silence. Then...
"Unknown, sir. Energy readings are unfamiliar, as is the station's design."
Firmus and the Admiral traded glances. Then the Admiral turned to Lord Vader. Firmus followed suit.
"What are your orders, My Lord?"
Vader was silent for a long moment. Then his head suddenly turned, as if he had heard a sound coming from the back of the bridge, a moment before the Lt. at long-range scanners spoke up, a trace of alarm colouring her words.
"Sir, the Vortex has just closed behind us!"
Firmus frowned.
"Is it still there?" He remembered the moments before it had opened. "Can you detect any anomalous energy readings?"
A pause.
"Negative, sir, besides those being put out by the station. Energy readings and particle density are within normal parameters for interplanetary space." Another pause. "I am detecting some unusual fluctuations on subspace sensors, sir. And we're not picking up the Imperial Holonet."
A moment of silence.
"The Vortex must have damaged the external communications systems-" Admiral Ozzel began.
"Possible", the Lt. acknowledged, "but internal sensors report no indications of structural damage."
"Then check your readings again-" Ozzel snapped, but fell silent as Lord Vader cut him off.
"What is our current location, Lt.?"
The Lt. paled at being addressed by Lord Vader directly but replied promptly, her tone professional. Firmus didn't think much of female officers in general, but Lt. Shira was reasonably competent. She wouldn't have been posted to Lord Vader's command ship if she wasn't.
"Given our velocity, we should be either still in the Pardis System, or far outside the galaxy, Lord Vader. However, given the contradictory readings and the possible influence of the Vortex, it is impossible to say for certain without further analysis."
Firmus waited for the Dark Lord's wrath to fall on the Lt., but Vader simply gazed out into space, as if considering his next action. When he spoke, it was in a calm, measured voice.
"Run a full diagnostic on the external scanners and communications systems, and then compare the local star to all galactic star maps in the databases. And continue attempting to contact the Holonet." He turned to Ozzel. "Inform me when the analyses are complete."
"Yes, Lord Vader", Ozzel replied at once.
"And maintain a continual surveillance of the station. Maintain Level Two Alert, and inform me if-"
"Sir", the Lt. interrupted again, then finched, mouth snapping shut as Lord Vader's emotionless gaze fell on her once more. Firmus stiffened, anticipating Vader's retribution.
"Yes, Lt.", the Dark Lord asked, a touch of menace beneath the words.
She swallowed.
"We've detected a power surge from the station, directed towards us. It appears to be constant, but its not strong enough to penetrate the shields. It could be some sort of scan, My Lord."
"Activate jamming frequencies", Firmus snapped, and the officer immediately complied. A moment later, she turned back to the senior officers.
"Sir, the frequency's changed. I think its-"
A beam of multi-coloured light swept swiftly over the bridge, flickering over the stations, the crew pits, the central walkway, the faces of himself and the Admiral, and the black-armoured suit of Lord Vader.
"How are they penetrating our shields", he almost shouted.
"Uncertain, sir."
"Angle forward deflectors, and increase power to shields and jamming", Ozzel said quickly.
"Yes s-"
Before anyone could say anything more, a strange tingling sensation swept over Firmus. In an instant, he saw columns of light enveloping the bridge officers around him, the bridge fading from view. Before he could being to comprehend what he was seeing, he was no longer standing on the bridge of the Executor, but in a high-ceilinged hall with polished white walls and large windows looking out over a sprawling city-scape.
