The jedi he had been tracking was a minor knight known as Corro Dallyns. Offworld at the time of the purge, Dallyns had supposedly been escorting a cadre of medics to various outposts along the outer rim. When word had seeped out of the demise of the Jedi Order, Dallyns soon vanished. Only a few reports remained of the jedi's mission and even fewer remained who had actually dealt with the man.
And then Dallyns was sighted by an agent on Telsav eight days after their departure from orbit around the storm plagued planet. The description received matched all known accounts, so there was a degree of certainty that they now had their target. The planet was an agrarian world at the furthest end of the Corellian Trade Corridor. It was sparsely populated with no local garrisons whatsoever.
He intended to change that.
Harboring a fugitive was a grave offense after all, and a garrison was the least he could do to provide some sort of enforcement of the law. He only had to select a capable officer - perhaps one who was keen on following protocol. There were several such candidates aboard, but one in particular he was leaning towards in favor of all others. Of course, the selection would have to wait until after their errant jedi was dealt with.
In the hangar, he stood watching as his shuttle and the drop ships that would be accompanying it were loaded. Their agent had pinpointed Dallyns's location to a small settlement in the northern hemisphere. He would be attending to that matter himself, bringing three squads of troopers along to subdue the town itself. The rest were being sent to secure the capital.
"You will not engage in combat unless directly threatened."
The girl simply nodded in acknowledgement of the command, having moved to stand beside him a few moments prior. The jumpsuit she had been wearing previously was replaced now with a standard uniform, the pips of a low ranking officer secured in place on her chest. She had been given a holdout pistol which hung in a holster strapped to her leg. It was short range only and was not meant for general combat.
This was a test.
When the time came to board, she followed him onto the shuttle without a word and took up a perch in one of the jumpseats near the front. He saw her gaze dart over the troopers within, lingering on their blasters for an inordinately long time. The shuttle ramp had sealed and launch prep had finished by the time she glanced away.
Their descent was without incident.
The shuttle followed the dropships in, landing in the center of the settlement to a blaze of blaster fire. It became immediately clear that they faced more opposition than a single jedi and a few disgruntled farmers. Someone had been arming this settlement with military grade weaponry.
He swept out of the shuttle just behind the troopers, deflecting the few bolts that flew his way. A quick survey of the field revealed that many were holed up in the buildings surrounding the square, with makeshift barricades blocking off some of the streets. This was far too coordinated to be mere coincidence - they had evidently been expected.
Dallyns was nearby, he could sense it. But the jedi was attempting to mask his presence, to throw off the scent. It would not deter him in his hunt, but it was irritating.
"Secure the buildings," he told the commander of the squad that had accompanied him on the shuttle. He gestured to one that had a comm tower attached. "Install a sniper on that tower."
The commander nodded and gestured to the troopers, moving out while he side stepped into full view. His presence drew fire from all sides, but it was a simple matter to deflect. For all the weaponry they had been given, the settlers were poor shots. He gestured for another squad to press down the main avenue. They advanced, taking the bulk of the attention with them.
When the remaining squad moved to clear the side streets a moment later, he felt a subtle shift in the Force. Not the girl, whose presence had diminished to the point of almost being nonexistent, but something else entirely. He glanced to his shuttle, which stood empty save for the pilot and a lone guard to hold it. Then he turned and headed towards the comm tower, lightsaber still ignited as he reached the entrance.
The lobby was vacant save for two dead settlers with blaster marks marring their chests. It was far too quiet, the only sounds that of sporadic blaster fire from outside. He stepped over the bodies, lightsaber casting a deep red glow over their still forms.
He found the reason for the silence a moment later - the stairwell had collapsed atop his troopers. The weight of five floors worth of durasteel had crushed them. It was a calculated move - the perpetrator had waited until all of them had started up the steps. He had no doubt that it was his quarry.
Somewhere above he heard the sound of a pistol discharging.
The girl - she had gone with the troopers. Her innate ability to hide herself meant the jedi most likely had not sensed her and so she had escaped the trap that had been set.
He looked to the wreckage. It was tall enough to reach the second floor with only a small bit of a jump. He climbed up, reaching the landing as yet another shot rang out. Now he could sense the jedi and the girl - her presence now seemed amplified, drawing the jedi's focus so acutely that his own presence still appeared to be unnoticed.
He stalked down the hall, not bothering to mask his steps. Two more shots sounded off, the hum of deflection echoing out after. He turned into the room in time to see one last shot flash out and the girl's holdout blaster yanked from her grip. He saw her gaze dart ever so briefly to him then back. She dropped abruptly to the floor, kicking at the jedi's feet.
It only half worked, but it was enough.
Dallyns fell to one knee, only just noticing him as he lunged. The jedi tried to bring his lightsaber up to block, but the blade swung too low. The red of his own saber bit deep into the crook of the man's shoulder, sizzling as it sliced through flesh. His quarry gave one brief pained cry before all breath was driven out, falling to the ground with a final sounding thump.
The jedi's lightsaber remained gripped tight in one hand. The girl watched as he picked it up, before moving to fetch her holdout blaster. He waited in silence while she secured it in its holster before sweeping out the door.
Her steps echoed his own.
The square was secured by the time they had exited the building. His troops had rounded up a number of the settlers near the central town office. He surveyed them a moment before turning to the senior most commander among the squads.
"Secure them for now," he told the commander. "I will have a prisoner transport sent here after we have finished subduing the capital."
"As you command, Lord Vader."
The commander gestured to some of his troops, moving out as he returned to his shuttle. The girl shadowed him, returning to the same seat on the now empty shuttle. She stared at the wall, silently mouthing words as the ramp closed.
In the end she said nothing.
The holocomm chamber dimmed when he entered. As he knelt in the center of the room the projector crackled to life, displaying the image of the Emperor atop a strategically placed dias.
"The jedi Dallyns has been dealt with, my master," he stated as soon as the connection was secured. "There was...some resistance from the settlers on Telsav. They were subdued and a new governor instated."
"Yes, yes, I am aware of General Vargin's promotion," Palpatine responded with a dismissive gesture. "He made his report the moment you left the capital. That you completed your mission as was expected of you does not interest me."
The projection looked down on him, the Emperor's expression undetectable - the cloak Palpatine wore so frequently caused a shadow across already marred facial features, a trait that did not translate well over the holocomm. But he knew the posture well enough to hazard a guess that he was being frowned at. Of course, he knew exactly what he had done to earn such an expression.
"I am far more interested in this account of your new recruit."
He stayed silent, having expected the Emperor to have been told of the girl. No doubt Vargin's report on the incident had been less than generous. The general had probably deliberately amended some details in order to curry favor - a gesture that was more than likely not fruitful. The Emperor hadn't reversed his promotion, after all.
"Tell me of her."
"The girl is an exceedingly skilled sharpshooter," he stated, careful to keep any sort of inflection out of his tone - a difficult task, all things considered. "She has shown a level of ingenuity and resourcefulness much needed in our ranks. Given training and access to proper equipment, she would be a formidable asset."
"Is that all?"
He did not respond. What more could be added there that wouldn't expose the truth of the matter? What could be said that would allay suspicion? Nothing.
"I am surprised that you would take on the responsibility of overseeing said training," the Emperor said, a disquieting note to his voice. "It would have been far more prudent to send her to one of the academies."
Another silence passed as the Emperor watched him. He kept still, waiting and watching as well. He knew Palpatine suspected him of hiding something - he was and rather obviously, he supposed, but it would not be openly stated. Not here, anyways.
"Bring her here. I wish to see this...prodigy of yours with my own eyes."
"As you command, my master."
The hologram flickered and vanished, leaving the room darkened once again. He stayed there, staring at the dias for a few minutes longer.
An attendant stood just outside the chamber, saluting as he approached.
"Inform the bridge that we are to depart for Coruscant immediately."
"At once, Lord Vader."
The attendant move away, quickly pulling up the ship's internal comms. He did not wait to ensure that his command was followed through on. He knew it would be.
He reached the lifts as the jump to lightspeed was made. As they were currently on the outer rim, it would take a few days to actually reach Coruscant. He therefore had some time to impress upon the girl the importance of keeping her Force acuity hidden. Since it was literally a matter of life and death for her, she wouldn't argue.
As he stepped onto the lift he felt a burst of anger not his own - reactive rage, fading into a defensive wariness. Five decks up were the barracks and it was from there which it had emanated. He keyed the lift, stepping out a few seconds later to sweep down the corridor towards the commotion.
Several officers had arrived to the scene before him, along with a medical team. There was something that looked suspiciously like blood staining the floor and someone lying atop a stretcher. Not the girl - he sensed her elsewhere, though still somewhere nearby. He approached the officers, the senior of which turned to address him.
"Lord Vader, there has been an incident," the officer informed him. "We were just about to pull up the security footage."
"Show me."
The officer held up a datapad for him to view, keying up the security recordings for that particular corridor.
The screen displayed a group of troopers walking into view from the top edge and the girl from the bottom. From their gait, he could tell the troopers were intoxicated - not surprising after a victory, minor though it was. They stopped to gesture at the girl and one made to grab her arm when she didn't respond. Her reaction to that was almost too fast to track, but it left the one who had tried to touch her bleeding on the floor.
The others reacted in a visibly upset manner. They appeared to shout at her, taking on an aggressive posture as she shouted back. Just as they moved to lunge forward, she shoved her hands towards them. They went slamming back against the wall hard enough to stun them. The girl stared at their slumped forms for a moment before backing away and out of sight.
He handed the datapad back to the officer as it showed another trooper running onto the screen from the top edge.
"Attend to your subordinates," he said, turning away from the officers. "I will deal with the girl."
"Yes, Lord Vader."
He found her sequestered in quarters further down the hall. He did not stop to wonder how she had gained access to them. If she could shut down the power grid to an entire compound then a door would provide little challenge.
She watched him warily from the corner as he entered.
"You learn quickly."
She didn't respond to that. He hadn't exactly expected a reaction - she was still on guard, still bristling. Most likely, she was anticipating some form of punishment.
"What did you say to them?"
That question did garner a reaction - her face went from wary to puzzled frown.
"Told 'em...if they...touched me, I'd...take their hands off."
He watched her gaze dart away from him. It was not an ideal situation, but he knew this incident would not be the last. His officers already disliked that he had given her a rank without even a cursory nod to protocol. It was inevitable that there would be a number of troopers who disliked the circumstances as well. She would have to learn to deal with it in less messy terms, but this at least was a starting point.
Provided, of course, she survived their meeting with the Emperor.
"You said...not to engage in combat unless directly threatened."
He stared at her. It was not just the string of unbroken speech, but the repetition of his words - his command - to her from that morning that struck a chord.
"I did."
"They threatened me."
"They did."
That seemed to settle the matter for her. No longer bristling, the apprehension bled from her frame. She had made her explanation, unneeded though it was. But there was a far more troubling aspect than this - she was no longer minimizing her Force presence. He did not wish to think as to why she no longer felt the need to hide it.
"Come," he commanded, turning to the door. "We have much to discuss and little time."
