WHAT IS REAL

XIV

Vader was in a very good mood. He had just returned from a particularly successful mission. He loved it when the planet conceded to his power before he had to destroy the whole thing. If he had to wreak havoc it always caused more problems because it ended up being years before the planet became useful to them again. Fortunately it had only happened to a few of the planets. They were still trying to rebuild and he had to squelch any further uprisings so he had to travel to those planets often.

Today he was meeting with his master and they were going to survey the work being done on the Death Star. First he had to deliver some prisoners to the cellblock. Usually he let this up to the storm troopers but not this time. This time he had a force strong prisoner. He knew the Girl's skills were not honed well but she could easily trick a storm trooper with her feeble skills. His master was quite interested in this prisoner so nothing could go wrong.

He had delivered her to her cell and he was walking through the halls of the Cellblock area when 2 troopers came carrying a body on a stretcher. Brown curly hair had fallen from the top of the stretcher, hair so much like Padme's. Suddenly a flood of pictures swept through his mind. Pictures of Padme standing in Watto's junk shop looking so innocent, the way she looked after their first kiss, the softness of her eyes when she told him for the first time that she loved him, And then the worse one was the face of horror she had given him when she had realized that he had killed all the Jedi. That face was one he could have erased forever, if he had been skilled at erasing things from his mind.

"My lord, Are you alright?"

The troopers voice brought him back to the present. Vader put on his stern face again and in a commanding voice asked the trooper who was under the sheet.

"I do not know, my lord, I was just told by the dr. to take the body to the crematory."

"Well remove the sheet. I wish to see who has died."

The trooper turned and removed the sheet. Vader Felt a wave of shock start from his head and travel all the way down his body. He staggered slightly but regained his composure quickly. He had been Vader for 2 and a half years and he had seen many horrendous things. (Mostly things he had caused) But this was something no amount of training had prepared him for; because on that stretcher was Padme.