Chapter 2
Twin Sun Showdown
The following morning around sunrise a lone figure, clad in simple black robes, trudged through the Dune Sea.
How I could be so dumb, Luke thought. I shouldn't have let Leia go or maybe I should have gone with her.
Lando had informed Luke on what had unfolded last night. Luke had taken the news pretty badly. He had at first felt a flash of anger, then frustration. After all he was a powerful Jedi Knight, a skilled warrior that under stood the will of the Force. But what good was all that power if Luke didn't us it right.
Jabba's Palace was less than a mile away and Luke still did not know what he was going to do. His original plan was to avowed bloodshed as much as possible because that is what a true Jedi would do. Though, things had changed. If Leia was handed over to the Empire there would be grave consequences. But what should he do then? Should Luke carve his way through Jabba's Palace until he freed his friends? If it was the right thing to do, could Luke singlehandedly fight through hundreds of the Galaxy's most dangers criminals? Even for a Jedi that sounded crazy.
In the near distance the sound of a land speeder's engines caused Luke to come to a halt. Climbing over a steep dune, from the direction of Jabba's Palace, an old beat-up looking land speeder approached Luke's location.
When the speeder came to a stop a few yards away, Luke saw that there were at least two maybe three occupants in the vehicle. At the controls was a brutish looking dark skinned human. Sitting in the passenger seat next to him was a bleach blue duros. In the back seat was some sort of humanoid looking droid.
"State your name and business stranger," demanded the duros. He spoke Basic but his accent was thick.
"I am Luke Skywalker a Jedi Knight, seeking to speak with Jabba the Hutt." Luke answered.
"A Jedi⦠You have got to be pulling my leg. I thought Jango's little clones wiped you all out during the purge," said the duros.
"There were a few that survived." Luke replied.
"Hey, wait a second..." said the driver as he eyed Luke. Isn't Skywalker the name of the guy who Jabba told us not to let enter the Palace?" He then pulled out an E-5 blaster from a compartment and pointed it at Luke.
"You're right," said the duros as he drew his own weapon.
"Peace friends, there is no need for violence." Luke said in a genital tone with just a slight touch of suggestion from the Force.
"There is no need for violence," repeated both the driver and the duros.
"Good, now you will take me to Jabba."
"We will take you to Jabba," they once again repeated.
At this moment the droid, which had appeared to be a broken pile of scrap, stated, "Week minded fools!" The droid then exploded, taking the speeder with it.
Swiftly and violently, the explosion's shockwave knocked Luke flat on his back. His head pounding and back feeling like a rancor had just stepped on it, Luke struggled to get up.
Meanwhile a new threat emerged. Arriving on a jetpack, Boba Fett set down in the back drop of the destroyed, smoldering land speeder.
"Skywalk!" Fett called out. "If it were up to me I would burn you down where you stand. But, Jabba has given me instructions to offer you a chance to surrender. He already is going to make a fortune off the princess, so he figures that he can double his money if he adds you to the deal. What's it going to be Jedi?"
Luke's response to Fett's arrival was sending a chunk of debris from the speeder in his direction. Fett evaded the attack with his jetpack. Maneuvering high into the air, he unleashed a mini sonic rocket from his left gauntlet at Luke.
Fine, have it your way Skywalker. I am going to enjoy taking down the last of the Jedi.
The rocket detonated a few feet in front of Luke creating a dust cloud around him. Fett circled around: uncertain if the sonic blast had knocked the Jedi out. He got his answer a few seconds later when Luke used the Force to crush one of the power cells of his jetpack.
After a brief plummet to the ground Fett rose to one knee, blaster rifle at the ready. From the dust cloud, Luke charged. Fett opened fire. Raising his right hand Luke used the Force to deflect the incoming energy bolts as he closed in. With a swift leg swipe Luke disarmed Fett of his blaster. Luke then swung several punches at Fett. Putting his arms in a defensive position Fett blocked the attack and slammed his helmeted head into Luke's skull. Taking a few steps back, Luke wiped a trail of blood from his brow. Luke then raised his hand to unleash another Force attack. Before he could do so, Fett fired a cable that rapped around Luke's arm. With a hard pull Fett sent Luke flying face first into the hot sand. Luke cried out in pain, the move had dislocated his shoulder.
Fett still had one more nasty surprise for Luke. He pressed a button on one of his gauntlets which sent an electrical current through the cable. For a few moments Luke lay there, thrashing in horrible pain. Had Fett allowed it, Luke would have died, but the bounty hunter needed him alive. So, with the same device he had used to fire the mini rocket, Fett shot a knock out dart at Luke. Luke's body then went limp.
With the dust dyeing down and the smoke from the land speeder dissipating, Fett sent a signal to his personal starship: Slave 1. Less than five minutes later, Slave 1's auto pilot system set the craft down a few yards away. Slinging Luke over his shoulders, Fett walked to his ship thinking Jabba can keep his money from the little princes. The bounty on Skywalker is mine.
