A/N: I wasn't planning on this chapter taking so long to post but unexpected things happened in my personal life that made it necessary. My mother passed away last month, suddenly and I couldn't really write this chapter. It took some time to deal with between that, school and my new job.

However, I'm back now. This chapter is in Grand Admiral Skywalker's pov and I hope it shows you how brilliant he is as a military leader, I hope it also shows you how strong and in touch with the dark side of the Force he truly is. Like I said last chapter, this Anakin is like a mix of General Skywalker from the Clone Wars series and of Vader from ROTS (the novel) before the suit. I also took some inspiration from the Thrawn trilogy and from the new Thrawn book in molding Anakin into the character he is here.

The Grand Admiral and The Moff: Chapter 2

Anakin Skywalker- Grand Admiral in the Imperial Navy, Commander of Death Squadron

"Grand Admiral, sir."

Standing on the observation deck of the command bridge on my flagship, the SSD Executor, with my hands clasped behind my back, I peer at the reflection of Admiral Ran Cardas on the floor-to-ceiling viewport.

"Admiral," I answer, already knowing what he's going to say. "The Fleet is in position and phase two is standing by for my order to launch, yes?"

I see his reflection nod. "Yes, sir."

Phase one was to blockade the planet as slowly and meticulously as we could, without the Rebels knowing of it which was why we dropped out of hyperspace at the outer edge of the system. Dantooine, a poor Outer Rim world, already lacks that which many Imperial worlds have and the most crucial of which is a reliable mode of long range communication, the second is a sensor net that could track and scan all ships in the system, especially those in orbit of the planet.

Without those two pieces of equipment, blockading the planet was easier than it ever should've been. Even a cadet from the worst Imperial Academy could've done this in his or her sleep.

Phase one also consisted of jamming long range communication to and from the system, as well as activating the gravity well projectors on the Interdictor-class Star Destroyers to prevent any ships from leaving the system while within its range.

With phase one complete, phase two is standing by to go on my order, which I readily give with a cold humorless smile on my face. "Admiral, phase two is a go."

His reflection gives me a salute and he marches off to give the order.

Phase two is to launch our Y-85 Titan dropships which each carry a total of four AT-AT's and four AT-ST's down to the surface below. Accompanying them are gunships and assault transports carrying the best the 501st Legion has to offer.

The dropships, gunships and assault transports will land at their designated coordinates and use the brush of cover in the forest that surrounds the Rebel base to conceal their presence until they're in position and ready for phase three.

Before phase three begins, however, the scout troopers with the assault transports will scout the area ahead and report back what they see on the ground. Intelligence has reported that the Rebels may have a military-grade shield generator protecting this base, if that's true, the scout troopers will find it and report it to ground command which will then report it to us.

If there is in fact a shield generator, we have two options. If the Rebels are still unaware of us at the time, we can lock our turbolasers onto the shield generator, fire and destroy it. However, if the Rebels discover our presence here, then they'll raise the shield and for the safety of my ground troops, I'll let the AT-AT's destroy the shield generator rather than risking one of the shots hitting my men.

Either way, that's phase three: to destroy any shield generators they may have along with ground to space defense systems and any other perimeter weapon emplacements.

With those out of the way, the troops can easily surround and storm the base. When that happens, phase four will be launched and that's the TIE Defenders providing any air support needed for the ground forces, chasing off and destroying any X or Y-wings and just patrolling the planet and our orbit up here in a standard combat air patrol.

Whenever there are Rebels, there are always X-wings, and my TIE Defenders are more than an equal match. The Defenders were made directly to meet X-wings in battle and I've no doubt they'll do so easily, we've done it time and time again already.

All TIE/D's are equipped with hyperdrives and deflector shields, something no other TIE fighter has. All of the Defenders also have three wings mounted around the aft section instead of two parallel wings. The last characteristic that really make these fighters different from its predecessors are that these are considered assault fighter-bomber's and as such, they're equipped with six laser cannons and missiles.

The Defenders are formidable starfighters that should always win in a one-on-one fight with any Rebel X-wing and in my Squadron- Death Squadron, that's all we fly.

We've already dealt a heavy blow to the Rebels using our Defenders and whenever they're deployed, the X-wings have been trying to avoid them as best they could. They know they can't defeat our starfighters, but until their transport ships are away, they die trying.

I'm not afraid to give credit where credit is due, and I'll give them credit for that. Giving your life for a cause you believe so righteously in is noble. But I'm also not one to uselessly sacrifice those under my command, like the Rebels do on a daily basis in a war they can't possibly win.

Then again, I'm in command of a fleet that consists of one of the first Super Star Destroyers the Empire has created, seven Imperial-I and Imperial-II class Star Destroyers, two Interdictor-class Star Destroyers and over thirty smaller support ships plus all of their starfighter squadrons and their troop complements.

Unlike the Rebels, I have more than enough under my command to not foolishly waste lives. Kriff, I probably have more under my command, than the whole Alliance has total.

And all of those under my command aren't amateurs, they're the best the Empire has to offer. There is a reason, after all, why we've been tasked with ending their petty Rebellion and that's because we have the means to do it.

Though it could also be because I'm a Sith Lord and as such, have the power of the Force to know and do things that those Force-blind fools can't.

Like, feel all of those lives on the brown, green and white planet below. None of them seem concerned or afraid, we're high enough in orbit where they shouldn't be able to see us and if their emotions are anything to go by, they don't sense a thing-

Something in the Force feels wrong. I can't quite put my finger on it, it's not danger related. At least, not in regards to me but something isn't right here.

"Admiral," I snap. He's behind me not even a moment later, and standing at attention. "Something isn't right. Make sure that the Defenders are prepared to launch in a moment's notice."

He nods. "Right away, Grand Admiral." Then, stalks off to carry out my orders.

Smart man. He knows well to listen to me, not just because I'm a Grand Admiral but because I've proven myself to him and my crew. They know that if I have a feeling, it's always better to listen to it.

The thing about the Force is that it doesn't tell me everything. It may give me warnings, premonitions even sometimes, but it makes me work to find out what it's trying to say.

Do the Rebels know we're here and laying in wait to ambush us? No, that's foolish. They'd never win, not in a space battle. Maybe the ground then?

Closing my eyes, I sink into the Force, letting its awesome omnipotent power wrap around me as I stretch my feelings down to the planet below. The Rebel base is about five klicks away from the nearest Imperial group. I've broken them up into eight different groups, that way they can surround the Rebels from all sides.

I can feel the familiar minds of my troops, I leave them be and continue scanning. Nothing pops out at me, nothing even at the Rebel base.

Wait a second...

Nothing at the Rebel base.

It's abandoned!

That doesn't explain the feeling though... a cold smile forms back on my face.

Of course, they knew we were coming and have decided instead to rig the place to explode. That would explain the something off in the Force.

"It's rigged to blow," as I say it, the Force sings it's truth.

This is why I've risen to the top of the Imperial Navy faster than anyone else ever has. The second fastest climber was Grand Admiral Thrawn, the current Commander of the Seventh Fleet. He rose to the top in a decade, something that was unheard of, especially for a nonhuman which usually aren't even allowed in the Navy.

I've risen to the top though in six years. Graduated the Royal Imperial Academy a year early because of my extensive knowledge and expertise, and rose to become a Grand Admiral just a year ago, at the age of twenty-three.

I remember the day clearly when I was summoned to the Imperial Throne Room during an afternoon session of Court. I didn't know the reason why I've been summoned, but it wasn't my first time there. The Emperor himself just usually doesn't promote military officers, that's up to the Admiralty and High Command which is why I wasn't expecting a promotion.

Grand Admiral, however, is only a rank the Emperor himself can bestow and he did during that session. That's also when he assigned me the newly formed Death Squadron and gifted me the SSD Executor as my flagship.

It was quite a day to remember and my Master was never more proud of me than that day. He gave me the tools to succeed and to climb the ladder as I have and I've never let him down.

Not as an Apprentice and not as a Grand Admiral.

And I'm not about to start today.

Turning around, I walk across the bridge to the command deck and take a seat in my command chair. The console on the armrest comes to life and I waste no time opening a channel to General Veers.

"Veers," the General answers.

"General Veers," I speak, not letting the urgency of the situation sink into my voice. "Stand down your forces. The Rebels aren't there, the base is rigged to explode." Admiral Cardas is just to my right and I wave him over. "We need the bomb troopers prepped and ready to go down to the surface. I want them to disarm the self destruct device and the bombs down in the Rebel base."

"Right away," he promises me and goes on his way.

"General, move some of your forces in to surround the base but keep them at a distance. I want the rest of your forces to search the surrounding area, there may be Rebels that remained behind to report back to their high command about what takes place here."

"Yes, sir." Anger's prevalent in his voice, something he normally keeps at bay. In this case, I can understand it. The Rebels tried to blow our men up, that makes me angry too, but I'm a Sith and anger is always lying just below the surface of my skin.

It's always there, just waiting to explode.

I'm also a Grand Admiral, and over the years I've learned to better control my emotions, so as not to let them get the best of me.

On most days.

Had I not found what the Force was trying to tell me in time and my stormtroopers died as a result of my negligence then I would've been beyond angry, I would've been downright furious.

But I did find it in time, and my bomb troopers will locate and dismantle the bombs along with the self destruct device before they blow.

Unless they're on a remote detonator... in that case, the Rebels will have to be within a certain radius to set it off. If that's the case, then General Veers' ground forces will have to find and detain or kill this person and secure the remote detonator, possibly a comlink.

If it is a comlink... "Lieutenant Henriks," I say over the intercom built into my console to the communications officer. He looks over at me from his seat in the starboard crew pit. "There's a possibility that the base is rigged to blow by remote detonation. Can you jam all frequencies surrounding the Rebel base?"

The young twenty-one year old officer types away at his keyboard before nodding. "Yes, Grand Admiral." He says, turning his attention back up to me. "Just say the words and I'll make sure no one, excluding Imperials, can open any channels with any remote trigger in the base."

I nod at him, another cold smile forming on my lips. It's the only smile anyone will ever see from me. "Do it," I order, earning a quick nod from him and his confirmation that all frequencies besides our own encrypted frequencies have been jammed in and around the Rebel base, thereby preventing anyone from remote triggering the self destruct device or bombs within the base itself.

Admiral Cardas returns a few moments later and stands at attention, waiting for me to give him permission to speak. I do so by turning my attention to him and lifting a dark blond eyebrow. "The bomb troopers are gearing up, they'll be ready to go inside of the next thirty minutes."

Thirty minutes isn't bad, I nod my approval. It wouldn't be wise to rush them. Mistakes can happen that way and I'm not about to sacrifice their lives because of it.

Being a stormtrooper in the 501st Legion is among the toughest jobs in the Stormtrooper Corps because of the constant peril they face, when going toe-to-toe with Rebels and their supporters. Lives are constantly lost, this is a danger all those in the Imperial Armed Forces constantly face, day in and day out.

This is a danger we all face, and one that we all accept, knowing full well the risks that come with it.

But one thing about being a military commander like myself is knowing that these men and women all look up to me to lead them, to look out for them and to have their best interests at heart and that is something I take seriously.

I like to lead by example and have fought on the front line with my troops, I've also flown with my starfighter squadrons and have even worked with the mechanics and flight technicians.

By doing this, I've earned their respect and their full trust. They know that I'm willing to put my life on the line for them and they're willing to do the same for me. There was no better way than that to prove myself to them and every mission I assign to them, I know they'll do their damnedest to succeed.

I've instilled many great attributes and traits into my men and women, these attributes and traits have given them the confidence, skills and willpower to succeed.

Why?

Because they don't want to let me down.

Just like they know I'd never let them down

"Grand Admiral, sir?" A voice calls out from the port side crew pit. I readily ignore the voice, the Ensign should know better than to yell out to me from the crew pit. Nothing is to be shouted out, ever. If they need to report something, they report it to their senior officer and then the senior officer may inform me or if the senior officer isn't there, then they hail me on the intercom when I'm sitting down in my command chair as I am now to report what they have.

An alternative could be them standing up and walking over to me, then waiting until I motion for them to give me their report. Admiral Cardas is another they could report to, when I'm unavailable, not here on the command bridge or otherwise occupied.

To my right, I sense Admiral Cardas ready to dress down the Ensign for yelling anything out loud. I stop him with a raised hand and motion for him to get back to whatever it was he was doing.

We all have work to do here and dressing down an Ensign isn't on the top of my list of things to do. But it's one I have to deal with- "Grand Admiral?" The voice says again, cutting into my thoughts of the very man himself.

Staring down at him with icy cold blue eyes, I speak deathly quiet, pouring the dark side into my every word as I hit the switch for the intercom on my console opening a channel to his station. "Ensign, stand up and report to me immediately."

He does as ordered, removing his headset and standing up. He moves to the stairs and walks up them, all eyes are now on him and the dressing down, he's about to receive.

Throwing him out an airlock is something no one here would even argue against. They'd feel he deserves it for interrupting me during the middle of a battle. That's why he has a senior officer to report too, there's no reason why he had to call for my attention directly.

"Grand Admiral," the Ensign says, standing at attention before me. He's one of the newer officers assigned to Death Squadron, I believe he was top of his class in cryptology, if I'm not mistaken.

His brown eyes stare at the bottom of my command chair, his face burning red from embarrassment and from the punishment he may receive as a result of his stupidity. I'm not one for wasting lives as I've said before, and he wouldn't be in the crew pit if I didn't feel he wasn't up to the task and good at what he did.

However, I can't allow his transgression to go unpunished, if I do it'll open the door for more officers to think they can get away with it too.

"Your name, Ensign?"

"Ensign Juliar Brofeli, sir."

"Tell me Ensign, do you ever hear any other officers manning the crew pits, yell to me? Or to Admiral Cardas?"

The young man shakes his head. "No, Grand Admiral."

"Do you think it's because they're just twiddling their thumbs and doing nothing or because it's not how any crew pit officer is supposed to act?"

"I'm sorry, Grand Admiral."

"Sorry for what, Ensign?"

"For disturbing you, the other officers and for acting out of protocol."

"Apology, accepted." Tension leaves his expression, does he really think he won't receive punishment though? I'm a Sith, not a weak Jedi. "What have you to report?"

"I picked up on an encrypted channel," the Ensign begins. "It's being jammed by our jammers and it's outgoing. I intercepted the message, I believe it's from the Rebels."

"And what does this message say?"

"It states that Death Squadron has arrived, preparing for self-destruct."

Not something that surprises me. "Did you manage to trace it back to its point of origin?"

The Ensign nods. "Yes, Grand Admiral. I have the coordinates on my station."

"Very good," I nod to a pair of stormtroopers who walk before me and stand at attention, awaiting their orders. "Troopers, you will escort the Ensign to the brig. He will remain there for forty-eight hours." I turn my attention back to the Ensign. "Had you not given me something valuable, I would've had you thrown out the airlock. Don't overestimate your importance, everyone here is the best at what they do, Ensign. You are not better than any of them. Should you step out of line again, I will throw you out of the airlock, myself.

"Is that understood?"

He swallows- hard. "Yes, Grand Admiral."

I nod to the troopers and they take him away.

Now on to more pressing matters.

"Admiral," he's already walking my way and hands me a datapad when he reaches my side. The bomb troopers are on their way to the surface and General Veers and his ground forces are beginning to surround the base and are searching the area, as ordered. "Have the coordinates on Ensign Brofeli's station sent down to General Veers and have him comb that area, if it's a residence or a business, have it searched and everyone inside and around the area detained. The Rebels are here Admiral and we will not allow them to get away."

"Of course not, Grand Admiral." The Admiral agrees, I dismiss him and he walks down to the Ensign's station to get the coordinates to send off to the ground forces.

With any luck, not that I believe in anything as foolish as that, General Veers and his forces will find some Rebels. If that's the case, this trip wouldn't have been for nothing.

I'm not here to destroy one little Rebel base, I'm here for intelligence to help me cut the head off the snake. If we manage to capture or kill the leaders of the Rebellion, we'll send a clear and strong message to those who support it.

What's that message you ask?

It's simple: Join or support the Rebels and we will find you, capture you and kill you in the most painful way possible.

It doesn't get any plainer than that. And that's the message I want to send, once their supporters get the message and begin to fear the consequences, they'll stop supporting the Rebellion for fear of losing their petty lives, along with the lives of their family.

I'm not one for getting even, I'm one for totally annihilating and all of my enemies, or former enemies know this well.

There were certain individuals within the Navy, the bureaucracy and the Court that were trying to hold me back. They couldn't let someone not in their pocket have the sort of control and power I have today, especially when they didn't know my background as it were. If they did know it, however, they wouldn't have messed with me in the first place and I assured they wouldn't get the chance to do it again.

Since then, the Courtiers have left me alone. The bureaucracy (ministers, directors, planetary governors, moffs and even grand moffs) have stayed in their place, knowing that none of them have any authority over myself or my Squadron and lastly, those within the Navy itself have found themselves demoted and reassigned to the most boring posts possible for violating military regulations and accepting bribes and favors from the bureaucracy and from the Court to obtain themselves more power and status.

I don't care about such things, I'm incorruptible to them and that is why they hate me. Too bad they don't know hate only makes me stronger, if they did, I'm sure they wouldn't hate me at all.

Or perhaps, they'd hate me for not being able to hate me?

Always something to ponder while I'm waiting for further reports and status updates. That's something I hate about my rank and position. My place is here, something my Master has taught me well.

His place is in the Imperial Palace, he's a master manipulator- in other words, a true politician.

I'm a master at the art of military warfare and tactics. Something he discovered early on in my youth which is why he had me take this route. Most of instructors and advisers have put a strong emphasis on teaching me all about military warfare and how to conduct a battle.

I've seen the battle from the front-lines and now I'm seeing it from here- in space, not even able to see my troops on the ground.

But it's where I belong.

I am the big picture guy, the one with all of the information, not just pieces. This is just one little battle in the Galactic Civil War, a war in which I am leading on the side of the Galactic Empire.

I'm the only one authorized by the Emperor himself allowed to give any orders when it comes to the Alliance. All information, intelligence and anything even remotely connected to Rebels or their supporters are routed through Death Squadron and then to my desk every morning for my daily briefing.

We take that information and either build on it, corroborate it, or if there's enough, we act on it.

And that's what we've done here.

Dantooine isn't important, it's just a nuisance. Rebel X-wings from this base have been attacking Imperial supply depots in the sector of the Empire and just last week, they attacked an Imperial Star Destroyer.

The SD wasn't destroyed but it took quite the beating, that's the most serious damage any of our destroyers have ever taken and it was by a sole X-wing fighter squadron.

What happened can't be allowed to go about unpunished which is why we're here today and they've obviously expected that.

But, even if they're not here. The people of Dantooine still are and if I can't punish those who rightfully deserve it, then I'll punish those who neglected to report the Rebel presence to the Empire.

Let the people of Dantooine be an example to all those worlds who would dare defy us. And, let the Rebellion know that their actions have serious and dire consequences.

Who would want to help the Rebellion when they discover what's happened to Dantooine because of them? I'll be sure to blast the story all over the HoloNet, the whole kriffing galaxy will see it by weeks end and if people had even an ounce of intelligence in them, they'd report any potential Rebels and Rebel bases to Imperial authorities for fear of what'll happen here, would happen to their world next.

The title of the HoloNet news story will definitely be: The Price of Doing Business with the Rebellion. The picture under the title will totally be turbolasers blasting down from space and the awesome destruction brought forth.

If that doesn't have an affect on people, I don't know what will.

"Grand Admiral," Admiral Cardas says, suddenly appearing to my right. "The bomb troopers just reported in, they reported that the exterior was safe, they're beginning their search of the interior now. General Veers also reported that the base is fully surrounded, his forces have surrounded it from a distance and the scout troopers are combing the woods for any signs of Rebels. He also said that a platoon of stormtroopers are moving in to search the business, the coordinates lead too."

All in all, everything is moving as planned. I just wish I was down there rather than having to stay up here. I'm a Grand Admiral for Forces' sake! Why can't I be down there if I want to be? I'd bring my Death Trooper escort with me, even if I don't need them to protect me.

But until everything is secure on the ground, my place is up here to oversee everything and make sure things run smoothly.

That's my job. And one that I will see to, to the best of my ability.

"Understood, Admiral." I nod, biting down a sigh of boredom. "Keep me updated regularly."

Three hours later, I'm finally down on the ground and walking through the prefabricated Rebel base. There's nothing of interest left behind, not a single datapad, flimsiplast sheet or journal... nothing.

The Rebels have learned quite well, when they have time to prepare their evacuation they obviously do a thorough job compared to the rush jobs they have to do when we take them by surprise.

They had a week though to evacuate, they had no way of knowing, of course, that I was going to find their base and when I was going to attack it, but the leader of this base obviously didn't want to take any chances.

Smart man- or woman.

Regardless, it's one less base of operations. My troops have scoured the area and report that the area is clear of Rebels. Some believed-to-be local folks were caught snooping around, they were detained and brought back to the Executor for questioning as possible Rebels.

The platoon of stormtroopers that also hit that business the coordinates Ensign Brofeli obtained from that encrypted message, have captured twelve individuals and they're also on the Executor and are currently being interrogated. There were three more at the site that decided to go down shooting, they were killed and on their way to hell, they shot one of my men.

He's expected to make a full and speedy recovery.

From that raid, we recovered some data that confirmed the message was sent from there and we also confirmed that one of the men captured is in fact a Rebel.

His voice also matched the voice in the message. The interrogator is going after him the hardest, no holds barred. All Rebels know how unpleasant Imperial interrogation is, we have our own methods in the Squadron though and not one person has been able to withstand the brutality.

Though a few have died before giving anything up. There bodies and minds were too weak, they literally cracked and died of various causes.

I made sure the interrogator knew not to use those same methods. If he is the only Rebel here, we're going to enjoy our time together.

"Grand Admiral, sir." The modulated voice of a stormtrooper commander says from behind me. I turn to give him my attention and nod for him to continue. "We've scoured the area again, along with the base as ordered. The area is clear. Orders, sir?"

Closing my eyes, I let the feeling of helplessness I felt as a kid wash over me. All the times that I felt too weak to withstand my brutal training. All the times my Master put me down, when I failed him in my initial Sith training and the anger rushes to the surface.

The hatred for the vile old man who forces me to call him Master when I'm the strongest Sith there is nearly topples me over in its intensity.

The pain I felt as a boy after training washes over me and the overwhelming power of the Force floods my veins.

Reaching out with my senses, I scan the area again in the Force. In the immediate area, there are only my troops and native wildlife.

Going further, I could feel the people of the nearest city. But I don't feel anything off, nor do I sense anyone hiding or trying to avoid the Imperial stormtroopers.

I don't sense anything out of place at all.

"We're done here," I tell the commander. "Gather your men and return to the Executor."

"Yes, sir!" The commander salutes me, I return it and he turns about-face and goes to carry out his orders.

I do the same, I walk out of the Rebel base with my two black-clad Death Troopers following behind me, their blaster rifles at the ready. We make our way outside and back onboard my Lambda-class shuttle we flew down on.

"Return us to the Executor." I tell the pilot and then buckle back in to the crashwebbing to fly back up to my flagship.

The Admiral is waiting for me when I disembark. "Orders, sir?"

I motion for him to follow me and we exit the hangar bay and begin our walk back to the bridge. "How goes the Rebel interrogation?"

"Slow moving," the Admiral says with a sigh. "It'll take time to break him. He's had experience with interrogation before."

"It's of no consequence," I say with a wave of my hand, "he wouldn't know anything of value." The only thing he'd really know are either the coordinates to a redezvous point where he'd meet another Rebel who'd then bring him back to one of their bases for debriefing or the frequency that his long range communicator was set up too so he could relay them a message.

Unfortunately that long range communicator was destroyed when the fire fight between my troops and the Rebels began. The Rebel wouldn't let any of their data be captured, I'd be able to trace that frequency back to a source or at least find out what direction of space it was being sent too and that could lead me to a relay or to a physical base, if they're that stupid.

And if there's one thing I learned in my hunt, it's to not underestimate them, they're not as stupid or unorganized as many Imperials would like to think. If they were, then the Rebel Alliance would be a thing of the past.

Underestimating me is also something that they should never do. If they realized that I was a Sith, and actually knew what Sith were capable of, I'm sure their tactics against me would be different.

They'd try and eliminate me, before realizing it's not that easy. Assassinations are something that goes against their very being though, and that is something that'll cost them accomplishing their goals. Because, as long as I live, they'll never establish a firm foothold in any part of this galaxy.

And one of these days, I'll find their leadership and do to them what I'll one day to the Emperor and that's brandishing my lightsaber and plunging it into their hearts or swinging it and taking off their heads. Either way works for me, considering the end result would be the same.

"Did Intelligence or cryptoanalysis manage to learn anything else from the Rebel transmission?" From the message the Ensign picked up earlier, we may not even need the long range communicator itself. That message would have to be beamed somewhere into space to another communicator to be received and if that's the case, we should have a lead to go on.

I see no reason why he'd send out a dummy transmission, he'd have no way of knowing that we had all communications, at that time, jammed. But, if somehow he did, Intelligence would eventually be able to discover that.

"Yes, sir." Admiral Cardas says, nodding. "They traced the message back to the direction of the Mid-Rim, the Chommel Sector to be more specific. At this time, however, they can't pin it down any further than that, the Interrogator is already aware of this information and is going to pry the information from the Rebel."

The Chommel Sector? Interesting, that's where Moff Padmé Amidala just made an example to the people of her Sector by ordering the death of one hundred and thirty three rioters outside her Moff's Mansion.

I was quite impressed, you don't see that very often. She could become a very useful ally to me in the future, or a potential rival.

If there's one thing we all want, it's more power. We all want that Throne, and the power that naturally comes along with it. I'm not stupid though, not like the Emperor.

Leading by fear isn't the way to rule an Empire, it's okay to have an iron fist but there's a line and that's a line the Emperor likes crossing on a daily basis. If he didn't cross that line, the Rebellion wouldn't be as widespread as it is with more and more people flocking to the Rebellion every day.

That's not my problem at the moment, however. The Rebellion gives me precisely what I need, it gives me a distraction, a cover. The Emperor may think I'm too busy hunting them to work on my plan to overthrow him, but I already have highly placed people loyal to me and my bid for the Throne.

It's one thing to take it by force, it's a totally other thing to keep it and that's precisely my plan.

Kill the Emperor (and Darth Maul), become the lone Sith and Sith Master and become the Second Emperor of the Galactic Empire.

The Emperor's just keeping the Throne warm for me, when I'm well and ready, I'll go and take what's rightfully mine and then the galaxy will get to know Emperor Skywalker and this galaxy won't ever be the same again.

Emperor Skywalker, I say to myself. It has a really nice ring to it, one in which I can certainly get use to hearing.

We reach the bridge and I receive the status updates from the bridge crew. All ground personnel are returning to the ship, now is the time to make good on my earlier promise to show the worlds of this galaxy the price of doing business with the Rebellion. Dantooine may not be a planet in which an example is normally made of, but for my purposes, it'll do.

"Admiral Cardas," I speak, the various voices going silent upon my words. Clasping my hands behind my back, I smile, coldly, of course. "Have the fleet lock their turbolasers on all settlements, including the abandoned Rebel base and tell them to prepare to fire on my mark."

Without question, Cardas obeys.

Good man, that's what I like in an underling. One who asks questions is one that is of no use to me, especially when in front of others. It'd be one thing if we were alone and he had a serious question regarding my order, but we're not and he's been my Admiral for the past four months, he was probably already expecting this.

"All turbolasers locked and ready to fire." He says after a couple of moments.

I nod into the grim silence of the bridge. "Fire!" I order and a moment later, green lasers of awesome destruction fire down to the surface and orange fireballs become visible upon impact.

The turbolaser crews don't stop firing until the sensor officers confirm that there is nothing left standing on the surface below.

"Cease fire," I order, upon feeling the last human life become extinguished from the surface of the planet below. The feeling was mesmerizing to feel flow through my bloodstream, my power in th Force amplified as their horror and pain washed over me before their useless lives were extinguished.

"The price of doing business, indeed." I murmur to myself, feeling satisfied at a job well done. We may have only captured one confirmed Rebel, but we shut down their base of operations in the sector and gained some possibly valuable intel about another base in the Chommel Sector.

It may not be what I'd call a successful mission, but from my hunt of the scourge we call Rebels, I know that not every battle turns out the way we plan, you win some and you lose some.

And I wouldn't call this mission a failure.

"Admiral, once all of our crews have returned to the fleet, bring us back to Coruscant. I have some work to do on our Imperial capital."

The Admiral acknowledges my order as I stroll on by him and make my way down to my suite. There's no more reason for me to be on the bridge, I have to go and prepare for the next strike and for my more... personal plans for the future.

It won't be too long now before the galaxy comes to know the real me and the awesome power I have under my control. Allies are still needed and until I have the power base I need, the game of politics must be played.

That means that I need to make my rounds at Court, shake hands with those who'd rather stab me in the back than even breathe the same air as me and show them that I'm the right man for the job. That, unfortunately, requires me to do something for them, maybe push through a contract or request they have with the Imperial Armed Forces and in return, they owe me a favor.

That is how the game sometimes works, other times it comes to me knowing something they wish I didn't. Like debt they owe to one of the criminal elements of the galaxy, or an affair that would ruin their reputation in Court.

Then there are other tactics like something as minute as the well-being of their family.

How some people would give their enemies an obvious weakness is beyond me. Least they could do if they're married or have children is have them well protected... otherwise they're just asking for them to have a... rather unfortunate accident.

All of us in the position of power want to have a heir to take over for us upon our eventual deaths, and that heir is always either a spouse or child, if they're that important why not protect them adequately?

This question sometimes boggles my mind, they should know better.

Anyway, these people just make it easier for me in my bid for power. They learn to either follow me or suffer the consequences, sometimes I make it known that it was I who have struck at them and other times, I make them sweat by not making my strike so easily traced back to me, though they could find out if they're intelligent enough.

Unfortunately most Courtiers, Directors, Governors, Moffs, Grand Moffs, Ministers and others, aren't.

It makes the game a little too easy for me and I always enjoy a good challenge. Perhaps this rising star in our realm, Moff Amidala will provide such a challenge but like all others... she'll either bend to my whims or suffer the consequences.

I chuckle into the silence of my suite and get to work on my next move of making that throne: mine.

Author's Note: How'd I do?

I hope I showed you how tactical of mind, Anakin truly is. He's a master of the dark side of the Force and a brilliant Grand Admiral. I mean, how many Grand Admirals become so at the age of 23? It's unheard of! And just because he's a Sith doesn't explain it, it's become he was raised all throughout childhood to not only be a Sith, but to be the military leader he is today.

He's a product of his environment and everyone that taught him as a boy were some of the brightest and cunning minds in the Imperial Armed Forces.

The next chapter will be back in Moff Amidala's POV where we'll meet her family, which are quite the same, yet different (personality wise) and then she'll go back to Coruscant where all of the elite go to hang and control the Empire. She'll also meet a certain Grand Admiral... though that will be the very end of the chapter, chapter four will be back in Anakin's POV and will pick up where chapter three will end.

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