CHAPTER ONE

"Hang on-Padme, hang on!"

The words spoke to Leia at night, when she attempted to sleep. They were like memories, seemingly from a lifetime before. She wondered who Padme was, was it, possibly, her mother? Her biological mother at least. The only parents she knew were her Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru. She had few details on her parents, enough seemingly to satisfy as to why they were not around, but not enough.

According to Beru, her mother was from Naboo, a mystictical planet filled with lush greenery. Every few years the entire planet elected a Queen or King, and they lived in peace.

Not like here, Leia thought, adjusting the valves on the moisture evaporator. The only rulers she knew was the all powerful Emperor, but not even he could touch the Hutt Clan, a all powerful crime family that had ruled Tattoine for years. Even in the years of the drought, when the little water that existed on Tattoine was even scarcer, The Hutts sent men out to 'tax' the poor farmers. The rumor was Jabba, the head of the Clan, required multiple baths a day, least his skin dry up and wrinkle up like he was some common person. The drought years were the only time she had ever heard Owen and Beru discuss leaving Tatooine. Owen figured he was still young enough to enlist, but Beru wouldn't hear any of it. She even heard Owen suggest, 'Perhaps we reach out to her mothers family."

"I'll hear none of it!" Beru snapped at Owen. "We are her family, and we're the only family she'll ever know."

The wind picked up as Leia kept working on the valves. Tattoine was a desert planet, ruled by three moons and two suns. Sandstorms were common, but this didn't feel like a sandstorm. Leia felt sand brush against her long sleeves. Leia preferred her simple white shirts, kept her from being too warm in the suns.

A flash from above-

Leia reached for her pair of electrobinculars, handily strapped to her utility belt. A space battle! An actual space battle!

From what Leia could tell, a large Imperial starship was firing against a smaller spacecraft, likely belonging to The Rebellion. Leia watched with great interest, as both spacecraft's exchanged fire with laser bolts. This was a lot better than checking the moisture evaporators.

Then after a few moments, it was seemingly over. The main solar fin of the Rebel ship was there one moment, then, dust.

The Imperial craft locked the Rebels in their hyper drive, quickly overtaken it. The rebels had lost.

Like most people on Tatootine, you cared little for either the Rebels or the Empire. The Empire had not sent aid during the drought years, or stopped the Hutts from running their crime rings. Yet at the same time, The Empire offered an academy, a ticket off of Tattoine. The only problem was the cost, one that had been plaguing Uncle Owen for years. Beru would rather her marry a nearby farmer, or even someone with their own business, but even she knew that wasn't the life for Leia.

"Come one!" she yelled to her robot buddy as she raced to her landspeeder. She needed to share this with her friends!

The robot was in worse shape than the evaporator, old and dusty. She hear it circle, excited in a attempt to follow her, but then nothing, followed by the smell of smoke.

"Why do I even bother" Leia muttered, leaving the dead robot behind as she raced off.