Finally Me

Where the hell had his lightsaber gone? 

He was never without it. Even in his meditation pod, it stayed firmly attached to his belt. The only time he didn’t have it on his person was while in the bacta tank, but he hadn’t had a treatment in a week. Naturally, he hadn’t realized it was gone until he was already on planet, facing a platoon of Rebels. 

He’d had to get…creative. 

Now he was landing back on the Executor, mind whirling as he attempted to recall where he might have possibly left it. 

A painful memory resurfaced. 

Next time, try not to lose it. This weapon is your life. 

He clenched his fists, waiting for the ramp to lower, and banished the memory. 

A young captain waited for him at the bottom of the ramp. He barely paid attention beyond recognizing that it wasn’t Piett, who often waited for him upon his return. He thought about asking, but the lightsaber issue was too much of a pressing concern to bother. So he resolved to ignore the man and made to move past him. 

The captain had other ideas. 

“Welcome back, Lord Vader.” He greeted, and there was a tremble to his voice. 

Vader didn’t bother even looking at him. He was too busy trying to remember the last time he’d paid attention to the weapon. 

The captain followed. “There’s a bit of a problem, milord.” 

“Talk to the Admiral about it.” The man was beginning to become an annoyance, and he was not in a forgiving mood. The last time he remembered noticing it was on the bridge… 

“Well, um, Lord Vader, he’s trying to take care of the issue, but…um. Well. The goose is armed, sir.” 

Now that was not a phrase he’d ever expected to hear. 

He stopped in his tracks so quickly, the man almost bumped into him, and he slowly inclined his head to look at him. “…The goose?” 

The captain visibly swallowed and nodded. “Yes, milord. We don’t know how it got on board.” 

He stared at the captain. Was the Goose some kind of code name for a Rebel operative he wasn’t aware of? They couldn’t actually mean a literal honking bird. 

The captain continued. “It’s stolen numerous comm links, key cards to vital areas of the ship, bitten anyone who’s tried to capture it, and now…ah, for some reason…” he winced. 

“Spit it out.” 

“…Well, milord, it has your lightsaber.” 

“…What?” 

“…And it’s figured out how to turn it on.” 

What? 

“And already severed two limbs with it.” 

Never, in all of his years, had he ever heard of something like this happening. Never had he dreamed something could be possible. Yet now it was, and the infernal creature had his weapon. 

That would be rectified immediately. 

He turned away. “Find out how the bird got on board. I want those responsible brought to me.” 

“Yes, milord.” 

He left the captain alone, already searching the Force for any signs of the Sith-aspiring bird.