*Edited*

2.6k words
༻✦༺

Today was the day.

My first day of work on the Death Star.

It wasn't my ideal job, I never in my life thought I would be working for Imperialists. But after the death of my brother Noah—the only person in the galaxy that I had—I needed to find something and quick. I just needed to earn enough money so I can start a life somewhere else, far away from the war - if that's even possible.

But not only did this job pay well, I was also  given shelter on the Death Star itself. See, I not only lost my brother, I lost my home. It was recently caught in the crossfire of a battle on Naboo between the clone troopers and the rebels.

I was so sick of this war; thanks to it, I've lost everything and everyone. The lines have started to blur and I wasn't sure which side to blame anymore. They both have taken so much from me; so I consider myself neutral, which is funny considering where I am right now.

But as I said previously, it pays well and it's the only job that came with shelter that was even remotely sanitary.

So here I am, walking along the hallways of the Death Star. I was one of the new mechanics here - a mechanic just like my father was. He was the one who taught me everything I know and I've been able to fix things since I was six years old. Which has now earned me the reputation of being one of the best mechanics in the galaxy. And thanks to that, the imperialists didn't hesitate to hire me.

I was currently walking along side a man named Admiral Tarkin. He wasn't the most pleasant person to be around, but it was something I was already used to, "And these will be your quarters." He walked me to a room at the end of a hallway that I thought would stretch on forever, "Take this com," He handed me a small comlink to put around my wrist, "You will be called upon when needed to fix our TIE-fighters or really anything else that requires your expertise. You will come quickly and efficiently." He said in a stern tone.

"Thank you." I responded in a quiet voice as I accepted the comlink from him. I wasn't ecstatic about my new life or where I was. But this was my best option.

"And I should inform you that Lord Vader will be arriving shortly. Do not speak to him, unless spoken to." He spoke in a monotone, he had no emotions in his voice whenever he spoke; it was quite unsettling. "And it's best to stay out of his way, I don't have the greatest of news for him and he has a bit of a temper." He subtly rolled his eyes as if he was speaking about an ill-mannered child.

I'll admit I was nervous to be on the same station as the supreme leader of the imperialist army. I've heard stories of him, horrendous stories that I never wish to repeat. But they all share the same aspect; everywhere he goes there's a string of chaos and destruction that follows.

"That won't be a problem." I assured him.

I planned to stay in my room anyway; only leaving when I needed to work or eat. I had no interest in being anywhere near Darth Vader.

"Good. I'd hate to lose another, good help is hard to find." He sighed as he turned to walk away without a goodbye. Not that that surprises me, he doesn't strike me as a people person or someone who is well mannered.

I walked into my new room and the door electronically closed behind me. I tossed my duffle bag onto the floor by the Queen sized bed and dropped myself onto the semi-comfortable mattress.

I pulled one of the pillows towards me and cried softly into it. It's only been a week since my brothers death, so the wound was still fresh and every-time I thought of it - it was like placing salt on a burn.

At some point during my depressing crying session I allowed myself to drift off into a dreamless sleep.

✦

The sound of an alarm caused my body to jolt awake, nearly giving me a heart attack, "He's here," I heard a voice shout in the hallway, and it didn't take a genius to know who he was talking about.

I breathed a small laugh as I sat up in the bed. This man—if that's even what he is—terrifies them so much that they have a special alarm for when he arrives. It was funny to me, but at the same time scary, he truly must be as evil as they say.

I've never seen him before so I'm unsure of what he looks like. But based off of the stories, I picture a monster; one with four eyes, a long tail, and scaly skin. I chuckled at the thought since I'm sure I'm wrong, but my imagination likes to run wild.

After I yawned; I got up from my bed and went into the bathroom. I felt like I was in need of a shower, I can hardly remember the last time I had one, I just know it's been days.

I brought my comlink in with me and set it on the sink, just in case it decides to go off while I'm showering. I didn't want to piss anyone off on my first day by not answering my first call.

I turned on the warm and divulge in the stress relieving temperature. I closed my eyes and hung my head back, allowing the water to drench my hair and massage my scalp.

I was only a few minutes in and just as I suspected, the beeping blared and echoed in the room. I turned the water off with a sigh and reached out to pick up my com, "Go for (y/n)." I said and immediately cringed at myself, I'm definitely going to have to practice how I answer this thing.

"You have been requested in conference room B by Admiral Tarkin." A soft mans voice came through.

"Thank you, let him know I'll be there shortly." I responded as I rushed to get out and wrap a towel around myself.

I nearly slipped on the floor as I attempted to run to get dressed. I wasn't given any uniform yet so I threw on my normal clothes, but I still opted to look professional. I then brushed through my wet hair as fast as I could, and threw the brush onto my bed as I left the room.

As I was in the hallway with what seemed like a million doors and dozens of turns; I realized that I had no idea where conference room B was.

So I went to the first person I saw and they gave me the most complex directions I had ever heard, but I still did my best to follow them. I already felt like I had taken too long so I rushed in a power walk that was nearly a run, and my hair was dripping water onto the floor behind me.

Once I reached the hallway I think the man described, I frantically checked the signs next to the doors until I found the one I was looking for.

Conference Room B

I sighed with relief and opened the door, only expecting to see Admiral Tarkin, but was met by a group of men around a table. My eyes widened and some of them narrowed their gazes in my direction, which I'm sure was due to my appearance.

I was out of breathe and heaving like a marathon runner, I was in plain normal clothes, and I had wet hair that was dripping puddles onto their floor.

I have to say. I am off to a great start.

"Certainly took you long enough." I recognized the voice of Tarkin who was seated near the end of the table. All the men in the room were dressed exactly the same, except for one who wore a black cloak with the hood up. I couldn't see his face since he had his head down and was not paying attention to anyone else in the room, just a stack of documents in front of him.

"I'm sorry sir, I was in the shower. I came as quick as I could." I responded, still out of breathe.

He eyed me up and down, "I can see that." He pressed a button on a remote that he had in his grasp and the hologram of a TIE-fighter appeared in the middle of the table. "I'm going to give you your first project." He gestured towards the hologram.

I stepped forward and slowly scanned my gaze over the designs "You want me to build it from scratch or?" I asked as I walked around the table to see every part of it; not caring about the looks I was getting. It was a TIE-fighter like the ones I've seen before, but it looked much more advanced than the other ones.

"No." Tarkin shook his head. "Its just our usual TIE-fighters with some weaponry upgrades and a stronger exterior. We need you to start with just one and if it's to Lord Vader's liking, then we will need a whole fleet completed."

That seemed like an easy job, I kind of hoped for something with more of a challenge.

As that thought left my mind, the man in the black hood slowly looked up. I saw his movement in my peripheral vision and it caught my attention, so I glanced in his direction. And as I did my breathe got caught in my throat as our eyes locked.

His eyes were a piercing yellow with a fire red rim, it was like nothing I had ever seen before. I was expecting him to say something, but he remained silent as his gaze broke away from mine and he looked me over with furrowed brows.

I too that opportunity to look away from him since when his eyes were on mine, I felt like I was in a trance and was unable to look away, "It will be done Admiral." I bowed respectfully with a nervous swallow.

"Good, you will begin tomorrow, I'll send someone to your room in the morning to show you where to go." He looked away and dismissed me with the wave of his hand.

I couldn't help but take one last look at the man in the black hood, and to my surprise, he was still looking at me. But he broke the eye contact almost instantly when Admiral Tarkin began speaking to him.

I quickly left the room and went back out into the hallway, making sure not to step in the wet spots my dripping hair had left behind so I wouldn't fall. I did my best to make it back to my room, even though I got lost for a moment, but eventually I found it.

This place was so big it was gonna take a long time for me to get used to it.

I walked into my room and my mind was still stuck on that man, there was just something about him that was so...eerie, yet captivating.

And the thing I found most unsettling was how beautiful he was. He had this dark aura that made you want to run away, but an angelic face that made you want to get close to him; just to see if he was real.

I shook my head to get the thoughts away from me. If I allowed my mind to keep running then I'd never get any sleep tonight. And that's something I needed since I already know I was going to have a long day tomorrow.

I never got the chance to ask if it was something I was gonna be doing on my own, or if there were any other mechanics that were supposed to help me. I kind of hoped to do it alone. I know it would take longer but I preferred to be alone, other people only held me back.

I laid my head on my tear stained pillow and took a deep breathe. He said Lord Vader was going to be checking on my work. I was nervous about meeting him, and I can only hope he looked it over when I wasn't around but somehow I truly doubted that.

Just as I was letting myself drift into unconsciousness, I felt my stomach rumble, "Damn it." I mumbled to myself as I sat up. I hadn't eaten in almost two days. I was too depressed to, but if I kept going like this then I would pass out tomorrow before finishing anything and risk witnessing the infamous wrath of Darth Vader.

So I hopped out of bed and put my shoes back on before exiting the room to find the cafeteria. After a few moments of wandering around like a lost puppy, I found it.

It was almost empty, probably because of how late it was, but that was better for me since there were plenty of empty tables for me to choose from. I grabbed a tray and sat at a table alone and ate the plain food in front of me, if you could even call it that. It was mushy and tasted like I was eating cardboard. It wasn't satisfying in the slightest, but still, it was better than having nothing.

I stood up when I was finished and threw the tray in the trash can before making my way back to my room. Now that my stomach was no longer in pain, I should be able to sleep better.

I quietly walked down the empty hallways, doing my best not to disturb anyone who might be sleeping in the rooms around me. Then I turned a sharp corner and instantly bumped into a hard chest with a groan. The force of the impact caused me to fall backward against the cold floor, landing on my back.

I sat up a little and looked up to meet the face of who I bumped into, and it was the same man from the conference room.

He was glaring down at me with those strange yellow eyes; my eyes widened, they were more terrifying up close, "I'm so sorry." My voice came out shaky.

Being this close to him though, I could see his features better. He was more beautiful than I thought, with a scar near his right eye. He still had his hood up, but I could see blonde curls popping out by the sides of his face. But still, his attractive appearance didn't stop him from looking intimidating.

"Watch where you're going mechanic." He snapped through clenched teeth, ignoring my apology.

He then looked away and stomped around me as he went the way I just came; leaving me on the floor, and I was able let out a breathe that I hadn't realized I was holding when he was no longer in my presence.

༻✦༺
So I know this chapter might be a little boring but I wanted to focus on introducing (y/n) and her backstory a bit. More will revealed later on 🥰 Also, so no one is confused, (y/n) does not know yet that that the black hooded man, as she calls him, is Vader, yet.
༻✦༺