“The Bucket” - From a Certain Point of View

"The Bucket", by Christine Golden, picks up right where the previous story, "Raymus", leaves off. TK-4601 is a newly deployed Stormtrooper who has scored a lucky first assignment about Darth Vader's personal Star Destoyer, the Devastator. He is proud to be a member of Vader's Fist, and witnesses Lord Vader's murder of the consular ship's captain. He then joins his squad as his commander is given the order to tear the ship apart and locate the stolen plans. The squad is the one that captures Princess Leia.

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WARNING: This is a plot summary of the short story, spoilers ahead:

Tarvyn Lareka is TK-4601, and author Christine Golden puts you inside the helmet of the young soldier on his first assignment out of the Academy. Golden gives you a rare glimpse into the personality of the otherwise faceless and nameless stormtrooper. Lareka is eager to confront actual rebels on board the ship. As a young man himself, he can understand the allure of those that have joined the fight against the Empire. He has never encountered an actual rebel fighter, and isn't sure about the rumors that Leia Organa might be more than a casual sympathisizer, but when his squad locates the elusive princess, he is struck by her beauty and by her eyes which reveal a maturity well beyond her years. He realizes that he is barely older than Leia, and manages to respect her for becoming a senator who acts on her idealism. He is the one who stuns Leia, and his face-to-face confrontation makes him immediately realize that he doesn't have what it takes to kill others at such close range once they are humanized. He immediately requests a transfer down to the surface garrison, hoping to participate in engagements that are less personal.

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