Not a Broken Heart

At the end of Revenge of the Sith, Darth Sidious does what he must to keep his gravely injured apprentice, Darth Vader alive.

This story is based on that new theory from Retro Zap.

A Naboo skiff reverted to real space and flashed toward an alien medical installation in the asteroid belt of Polis Massa.

And on Mustafar, below the red thunder of a volcano, a Sith Lord had already snatched from sand of black glass the charred torso and head of what once had been a man, and had already leapt for the cliff bank above with effortless strength, and had already roared to his clones to "bring the medical capsule immediately!"

The Sith Lord lowered the limbless man tenderly to the cool ground above, and laid his hand across the cracked and blackened mess that once had been his brow, and he set his will upon him.

Live, Lord Vader. Live, my apprentice.

Live.

The Sith Lord flew up the aisle, "Faster!" Sidious roared through the cockpit.

"Yes, milord," The Clone pilot turned and nodded. "We should be out of hyperspace in less than an hour."

By then it may be too late. Why hadn't the Galaxy or even the Sith made space travel faster? They hadn't a moment to lose.

Sidious stalked back to the main hanger of the Imperial shuttle.

Four clone healers armed with med packs and tubes were huddled around the medical capsule.

"How is he?"

"My lord," The clone healers hesitantly looked up at the Emperor. "It is a miracle he's even made it this far."

Sidious could sense the grim looks under their helmets. He also understood they were saying it would be too late by the time they made it back Coruscant.

But what did they suggest he do?

Give up?

Never!

The useless fools.

Sidious didn't even know why he even allowed them to tend to Lord Vader in the first. It was such a waste of precious time.

"Leave us," He snapped.

The clone troopers did.

Sidious briefly placed his place fingers against Vader's charred forehead. They were correct. More and more Vader's life force was slowly leaving him.

He thought setting his will upon Lord Vader would be enough to keep Vader from the brink

It wasn't.

The Dark Side was not strong in the healing arts.

Sidious needed a new strategy.

Thank the Dark Side he had one.

Darth Sidious needed to breathe life back into Darth Vader. It was an old secret his Master had practiced and tried to teach him, when Sidious wanted to listen.

From his secret laboratory on Sojourn, Darth Plagueis experimented on creatures. Using the Force to bring creatures either to life or back from the brink of death. One such way was to take the life force of one living being and place it inside the body of a dying being.

But such a deed–assuming it would even work–required a sacrifice.

Sidious' lip curled in disgust and disappointment.

It was such a pity Masters Yoda or Kenobi were not around. Especially Kenobi, his life forfeited for Vader's would be the ultimate retribution for what he had done to Lord Vader on Mustafar.

Then again the Jedi would be too strong for such an act.

Sidious supposed he could use one of his Clones or other servants aboard this vessel, but he didn't want to use those weak willed fools.

He needed someone else...

Someone who was connected to Vader and his former life. It would certainly make it easier to transfer the one life into Vader's.

Someone not as strong in the Force.

Someone more vulnerable...

Someone...

Sidious smiled as he looked up.

Her.

She was perfect.

Taking her life would not only death cement Vader to the Dark Side, but to him as well.

Yes...

She would be the one.

Sidious looked down at Vader. He was no longer breathing.

He didn't have much time.

Standing still, Sidious took a deep breathe and closed his eyes.

Using all his strength, Sidious reached out into the Force.

From across the shuttle.

To across the nearby systems.

And finally across the Galaxy...where he found her.

"Yes..."

There she was...

And she was still very much alive.

She still had a strong will to live, probably due to her unborn offspring and any remaining idealistic ideas she still had about Vader. However, she did feel a bit...weaker.

Perhaps she was unconscious or somehow injured from her earlier confrontation with Darth Vader.

Sidious had sensed Vader's rage when he attacked her earlier. On one hand, Sidious had been disappointed that Vader had not gone all the way. Killing his wife and unborn child would forever bind Vader to the Dark Side. On the other, Sidious was thankful Vader had not gone all the way.

She had always been a tool to Sidious. First as the one he set him on the path to the Chancellorship. Calling the vote of No Confidence against Chancellor Valorum, striking the first death note against the Republic. Then again, ten years later when Anakin Skywalker came back into her world and she began to pull him further and further away from the Jedi. And finally most recently as the focus of Vader's obsession that drove him to turn to the Dark Side.

And now she would serve her final and most useful purpose.

Refocusing through the Force he found her life force and...plucked her life force from her.

Sidious placed his hand back on Vader's forehead.

Moments later, Sidious opened his eyes.

Vader was breathing again.

It was done.

In a matter of hours she and the child would be dead.

And Vader would live.

Medical droids from the Imperial Rehabilitation Center on Coruscant, the best in the Galaxy were ready and waiting, thanks to the Emperor's urgent message.

While Sidious' machinations seemed to have worked. He was taking no chances and made sure the everything was ready by the time they arrived.

They examined the patient at once.

While he was stable there was much work was necessary they reported. The amputations alone would have been a simple matter of replacement and therapy. It was the burns that made matters difficult. Special connections would be required to overcome the scarring. Worse, Darth Vader's lungs had been seared by the fire. He would need a permanent ventilator system in order to breathe. And...

"Do it," The Emperor snapped.

The droids bobbed their consent and went to work. Darth Sidious paced. Even as an Emperor, even the Dark Lord of the Sith, with all the resources and technology of the new Galactic Empire behind him, can do little to hurry the healing process.

Much later, a medical droid appeared. "My lord, the construction is finished," The droid informed him. "He lives."

It worked.

"Good," Darth Sidious said with something that sounded like relief. "Good."

The droid brought him to the operating chamber. A magnificent black figure laid on the operating table. It was rather reminiscent of ancient Sith Lords such as Darth Malgus and Darth Revan. Black gloves and boots cover the new mechanical limbs. A mirror shiny mask hid the scarred face. The table began tot tilt, moving the figure to an upright position. There was the sound of breathing.

Yes, Darth Sidious thought. He will terrify them. And even if he is not as powerful as I had once hoped, he will still be far more powerful than anyone else.

Perhaps it was even a blessing in disguise. For in his weakened state, it would be more difficult for Vader to challenge Sidious for the mantle of Dark Lord of the Sith.

"Lord Vader," Darth Sidious said. "Can you hear me?" He wanted to make sure Vader's new suit and even senses were functioning properly. His faith in droids only went so far.

A deep voice, distorted by the speakers inside the mask responded, "Yes, Master."

"Rise."

And the table rose.

The helmet turned, as if the burned and weakened eyes within were scanning the room. Adjusting to the screens in the helmet that magnified and intensified everything so that they could pretend to see.

"Where is Padmé? Is she safe?" Vader hesitated. "Is she alright?"

And now for the final touch, Darth Sidious thought. The words that will forever bind him to the Dark Side. And they won't even be a lie, not really.

The very reason Vader lived is because she died. Her life force brought Darth Vader to life. More than that, it was their love for one another made Darth Vader. Ironically, if Sidious' calculations were correct, both of their heartbeats stopped roughly at the same time. So both she and Anakin actually died to bring Darth Vader to life.

It was rather poetic.

"I'm afraid she died," Sidious said with a hint of gentle sorrow and reproach in to his voice. "It seems in your anger, you killed her."

Vader groaned in protest. "I...I couldn't have. She was alive–I FELT IT!"

And then he screamed.

Leaning forward, he broke the straps that had held him against the table and he screamed again. Things imploded. And flew around the room. Spare parts, droids, anything that wasn't tied down as Darth Vader gave expression to his pain and despair.

And while Vader screamed, Darth Sidious smiled. His apprentice was his now.

Forever.

End.

This is inspired by the theory on Padmé's death came out on Retro Zap.

If you don't know or haven't read, check it out. It's a kind of long, but fascinating read. If you don't want to here's the short version. Palpatine killed Padmé by stealing her life force to keep Vader alive. It makes sense. Also I sometimes wonder Sidious killed Padmé, after all how does he know she died? But the Retro Zap really brought it altogether for me.

Also I took inspiration from the Revenge of the Sith novel and junior novelization.

What do you think? Leave a review. I may post another one shot on Padmé's death, which is my own theory and idea.