Cover artwork is mine. The full version can be found in my Deviantart gallery. There's a link in my profile.


Beginning to feel like a waste of space, Luke wonders why he continues to stick around with his Anchorhead friends who barely notice him. Then he meets Biggs Darklighter who changes all that.


They were his friends, Luke told himself. In fact, Windy was once his best friend. They'd practically grown up together after all, and at one time they'd shared many interests. Nowadays it seemed that Deak had taken Luke's place and all Windy was interested in was staying right here on Tatooine and becoming a moisture farmer. He said it was safe and reliable and Luke was crazy for wanting to leave and get involved in things so far from home. Maybe Windy was right but then Luke always liked crazy ideas. Either way, they'd drifted apart.

Still, the group was together more or less: Deak and Windy, of course, then Fixer and his girlfriend Camie came along. Similar interests or not they were some of the few teens in the sparse outskirts of the Anchorhead region and really, what else was there to do? Luke enjoyed their company though, even when Fixer began bragging about his new skyhopper and how he was going to become the best pilot around. That's when the races started. Someone gets to bragging and the egos shoot through the roof. It was only a matter of time before someone tried to prove Fixer wrong.

At first Luke could only watch. He was younger than the others and didn't have a skyhopper of his own, told by his uncle that they were too dangerous and he'd have to earn one by being responsible, whatever that meant. It was just like Uncle Owen to give him a vague ultimatum and then not stand by it later when it really mattered. Luke would prove himself, do everything he was asked to do, avoid being grounded for a whole year, and Owen would still refuse. That's how these things always went.

It was quickly decided that they needed more racers to make it a better competition. Luke insisted that he could do it if someone just lent him a skyhopper but Fixer said that he would only bust it up and then they'd be in really big trouble. Either "your legs are too short, you can't even sit in one properly" or "you've never even flown one before, you'll crash". Of course no one ever let him try so whether or not he could was never tested.

They were his friends, the only friends he had, but sometimes Luke felt as if he was only around to take up space. He watched the races longingly, sometimes sitting with Camie and wondering what she saw in Fixer. He could never seem to stop bragging, especially when she was around, but she somehow stuck by his side. Sometimes it seemed like they were glued together. It was especially obnoxious when she started echoing Fixer and insisted that Luke was too short to do anything. He almost lost his temper on her the day she began calling him "Wormie" but he was taught that it wasn't right to hit a girl. Maybe girls who gave him annoying nicknames didn't count but he wasn't about to test that theory, especially with Fixer around who was almost twice Luke's weight.

One afternoon Fixer informed the others that he was bringing some new kids along to race. They each had their own skyhoppers and were even older than Fixer, though only by a year or two. One was a burly kid named Tank that Luke didn't know but he reminded him a lot of Fixer; a bad attitude and not too bright. No wonder they were friends. The other was Biggs, Huff Darklighter's son. Luke knew who he was but had never spoken to him before. The Darklighters had a heavy foot in the agricultural market in Anchorhead and were quite wealthy. Uncle Owen sometimes spoke of Huff though it usually included bad words that Luke wasn't allowed to repeat.

It was only natural that Fixer would want Biggs along to race. He'd allegedly had his own skyhopper since he was twelve and was an immensely skilled pilot. Word was he'd even been given lessons by some real star pilots who stopped into the local cantinas and were hired by Biggs' dad. That was just a rumor but it was a very popular one. It seemed everyone loved talking about Biggs, but then why wouldn't they? He was confident, handsome, witty, and always seemed to be the life of every group. People were drawn to him because he always seemed to know exactly what to say, what to do, how to keep them laughing, what stories to tell…

Biggs was the oldest in the group and even that first day of planning out their race at Tosche Station he was already calling the shots. Of course, he definitely seemed to know what he was doing which helped. Fixer's ideas were usually dumb and often ended up getting him hurt or in very deep trouble. They all listened to Biggs, especially Luke.

Maybe he didn't know how to fly yet but he was still fascinated by the logistics and mechanics of it. He listened closely when they talked about which engines had the most power per fuel cell or which wing angle gave the most lift. Then it was race time.

Luke had been hanging towards the back of the group. He was short and scrawny and wasn't all that noticeable anyway, but for the first time since he showed up, Biggs noticed him. He paused by the door of the power station and looked straight at him.

"Who's this?"

"That's Wormie," Camie chimed in helpfully, "He doesn't fly."

"I'm Luke!" He was quick to correct her, somewhat angrily, but then he looked back to Biggs with some embarrassment. Great. All he needed was for Biggs Darklighter to start calling him Wormie, too.

"Luke, you're not flying with us today?" Biggs seemed genuinely regretful and, notably, didn't use his dumb nickname.

"No. I don't have a skyhopper."

"No? Well maybe I can get my dad to loan you his old one. He doesn't fly m—"

"It's okay. I don't know how to fly one anyway." This seemed to quiet Biggs but he still regarded Luke with some remorse. It was true, though. The others said so. Luke couldn't fly a skyhopper so it was his job to sit and watch.

Throughout the afternoon Luke would sometimes curiously catch Biggs glancing at him, especially when Camie came by to tell him even more about how Fixer's skills were unrivaled. Luke's wrinkled nose probably told Biggs exactly what he thought of these stories and sometimes Biggs would smirk.

As the twin suns were setting and the group was getting ready to travel back to Anchorhead, Biggs called out to Luke who was about to hop into Deak's landspeeder. He motioned Luke over and, with a glance at Deak who shrugged at him, Luke complied. Biggs was standing by his T-16 skyhopper with the maintenance panel open. He'd been making some adjustments following the race, which he had easily won to no one's surprise, and said he'd catch up with the others later.

As Luke approached he realized that Biggs was grinning at him. "Come here, hop in."

Luke grinned back and then went to move to the copilot's side but Biggs grabbed his sleeve. "No no, kid, in here." He patted the pilot's seat with one hand and Luke gave him a wide-eyed look. His heart was suddenly pounding in his ears.

"Uhhh… I don't—I don't think I can reach—"

"Come on, I'll help you. My little cousin's shorter than you are and he can reach the controls just fine. Hop in."

Before Luke could protest again Biggs had already closed the maintenance panel and was on the other side, climbing into the copilot's chair. Maybe this was his chance to prove the others wrong. Maybe Biggs was right and he really could learn. Luke eagerly hauled himself up into the craft and settled down into the pilot's seat, marveling at all of the controls and gauges laid out in an apparently random pattern that made almost no sense to him.

Biggs seemed to notice his slack-jawed expression because he chuckled softly and then leaned over Luke's shoulder to point out the controls he'd need. "Alright, you've got this big mess of everything under the suns and your head's probably spinning but you really only gotta know a couple things. This," he rested a couple fingers on the joystick, "I'm sure you already know. Back is up, forward is down, left, right, no brainer." Luke knew that but he nodded anyway. He wasn't about to interrupt this lesson for anything.

"This right here," Biggs pointed to a red lever next to the joystick, "is the ignition. Lift it and you'll ignite the engines. Also pretty straight-forward." He continued to instruct Luke on the repulsorlifts, shifter, altimeter, tiltmeter, fuel gauge, and emergency eject which all made perfect sense once Luke knew what they were for and where they were located. The insane patchwork of buttons and screens and switches in front of him was starting to look familiar and finally made some sense. Now he could tell the others that he really did know what he was doing. Maybe they'd listen to him for once.

After quizzing Luke briefly Biggs lightly slapped his arm and settled back into his own seat, looking pleased. "Alright, strap in and let's get going."

Luke gave him a look of surprise. "You can't be serious. You want me to fly?! All the way to Anchorhead?"

"Sure! Why not? You know what to do now and it's not hard. A few minutes in and you won't even have to think about it." Biggs was already buckling his safety harness and didn't look like he was going to change his mind any time soon. He looked far more confident in Luke's abilities than Luke felt but he strapped himself in anyway and then flipped up the ignition switch with a shaky hand.

The engines roared to life and Luke gripped the joystick with a mild panic, as if afraid that the whole craft would suddenly take off without him. Biggs was grinning next to him but Luke didn't seem to notice. He was too busy trying to ignore the voice in his head that was telling him he'd be grounded for a lifetime if Uncle Owen found out.

He took a deep breath and reached for the shifter, taking the repulsorlifts out of hover and into fly mode. The craft shuddered a bit under his inexperienced hand but it soon settled into an easy hum. Luke gently eased it forward and began guiding it slowly out of the mouth of Beggar's Canyon and out into the broad expanse of the Jundland Wastes.

He could almost sense Biggs grinning but he didn't dare take his eyes away from the viewport yet. "What'd I tell you?" Yep, that definitely sounded like he was grinning. "Go on, open her up. There's nothing out there but sand."

Indeed, the open dunes were a much less daunting place to practice flying and Luke certainly felt far more comfortable out here. He pressed the repulsorlifts for more speed and the skyhopper was easily negotiated into a nice pace across the sand, kicking up dust as it went.

"Give it some lift! Come on, get her off the ground. You fly like my grandmother." Of course Biggs was only teasing but it was just enough to give Luke the determined edge he needed. With gritted teeth and white knuckles he pushed the repulsors and pulled the joystick straight back towards his stomach. The skyhopper shot upward into the sky at an impressive speed and Luke guided it around into a clean arc over a high dune. Then he continued to let it climb.

Biggs was laughing and howling and soon Luke was grinning so hard his cheeks hurt. This was flying. This was really flying and he was doing it. Not only was he doing it, he was good at it! He used only the slightest adjustment on the joystick to send the skyhopper into several angled turns and swerves through the valleys between dunes and even dipped down to make a clean swoop through the broken, half ribcage of a giant Krayt Dragon skeleton.

Luke was quite proud of himself that even Biggs was gripping the edge of his seat through that one.

"Kid, you are a natural! Whoever told you you couldn't fly is a moron." Yes, well, Luke knew Fixer was a moron but coming from Biggs, that was quite a thing to hear. He was positively beaming by the time they made it to Anchorhead, bringing the skyhopper down into a reasonably gentle first landing.

Fixer and Camie emerged from Tosche Station and jogged down the steps to meet them but when they saw Luke climb out of the pilot's side of the craft both of their jaws dropped.

"You let Wormie fly?!" Fixer almost looked outraged. "He coulda crashed and killed you both!"

Biggs laughed at him. "Are you kidding me? The flight was so smooth I almost fell asleep. Luke's a great pilot. Reflexes like you wouldn't believe!" The way Biggs was talking you'd think Luke had been the one to win the race through Beggar's Canyon today but he knew he definitely wasn't ready for that yet. Still, with just a little more practice…

"… and I'm going to keep teaching him. What do you say, Luke?" Biggs turned to him while Fixer hovered over his shoulder, opening and closing his mouth like a frantic fish. "Maybe someday soon we'll even figure out a way to get you a T-16 of your own. It's a good model to learn on."

Luke was barely articulate at this point and his legs were threatening to give out under him but he managed to nod enthusiastically. "Wh—Yeah. Yeah!"

"Great. You guys let me know when we're going out next." Biggs waved on Fixer and Camie as they headed back into the building and then walked over to Luke. "If you've got a free day this week I'll have you over and we'll take a look inside my skyhopper while I replace the power converters. It's important to know the inner workings of what's keeping you in the air. You fix things on your uncle's farm, right?"

Luke raised his eyebrows. He had no idea that Biggs had been paying such close attention to him when he complained to the others about his uncle and the farm. "Yeah, I work on the droids and vaporators."

"Perfect. We'll just do some basic maintenance but you'll learn a lot."

"Biggs, can I ask you something?" As great as these plans were Luke's mind was on something else.

"Sure, kid. What is it?"

Luke sighed and pressed his lips into a straight line. He wasn't sure exactly how Biggs would take this but it's something he'd been wondering since they left Beggar's Canyon and it wouldn't stop eating at him. "Why did you trust me to fly your skyhopper? You barely know me. I've known the other guys for years and they won't even let me touch theirs."

Biggs tilted his head to the side and answered him quite matter-of-factly. "Because you wanted to." It was almost too simple an answer but Biggs seemed quite confident in it. He even appeared troubled that Luke would ask such a question. "I couldn't see any reason why the others never let you so I took it upon myself. Anyone can turn out to be really great at something but no one will ever know if they don't get a chance to try it, and you know something?" Biggs stepped in even closer and lowered his voice, as if he was sharing something only Luke should know.

"I meant every word of what I told Fixer. You've got real talent. Seriously! You took those turns so fast I thought I was going to fly right out of my harness." Biggs grinned as Luke did and they both stood for a moment in silence.

Finally Luke spoke again, gazing down at the glistening sand under his feet, slightly reddened from the hazy glare of the setting twin suns. "It's just—no one's ever seemed so confident in me before. I don't even feel that confident in me."

Biggs chuckled at him and patted his shoulder. "Well that's something else we'll have to work on. You gonna be out here next week?"

Luke smiled and nodded.

"Good. We'll have to get you in the air with the guys watching. That'll shut 'em up."

That definitely sounded promising. If Biggs Darklighter thought the others would be impressed then no way would Luke turn down such an opportunity.