With a sigh of relief, Luke dropped the last piece of armor into the pile. It was so nice not to be a stormtrooper anymore. He snapped the belt on and Han handed him his blaster rifle. "If we can just avoid anymore female advice we ought to be able to get outta here."

Luke couldn't help but crack a grin despite trying not to. "Well, let's get moving."

Suddenly, a eerie shrieking filled the corridor and Chewbacca leaped up with a startled roar and ran a short way down the passage. Han looked on after him and demanded, "Hey, where're you going?"

With a snort of disgust, he pointed his blaster into the garbage dump. "No wait! They'll hear!"

Too late; Han fired a blaster bolt into the dump. "Come here, you big coward;" he said to the Wookiee, who shook his head vigorously. "Chewie, come here!"

Leia, it would seem, had had enough of Han's careless attitude. "Listen;" she said coolly. "I don't know who you are or where you came from but from now on, you do as I tell you, okay?"

Han looked incredulously at Luke who had to fight back the urge to role his eyes, electing to look away instead. "Look, your worshipfullness, let's get one thing straight; I take orders from just one person - me."

"It's a wonder you're still alive;" retorted Leia dryly. "Will someone get this big walking carpet out of my way;" she snapped, pushing passed the Wookiee. Luke just followed them awkwardly as Han muttered loudly, "No reward is worth this!"

It wasn't too long before they reached an observation level right above the hanger. "There she is;" said Han, relieved to see his beloved Millennium Falcon again. "See-Threepio, do you copy?" Luke asked into his comlink.

"Yes, sir;" came the prim reply.

"Are you safe?"

"For the moment; we're in the main hanger across from the ship."

Luke sighed with relief before replying, "We're right above you. Stand by."

Leia pointed at the Falcon. "You came in that thing? You're braver than I thought!"

"Nice;" snorted Han. "Come on."

They hurried through the corridors when disaster struck. They rounded a corner and were face to face with a squad of stormtroopers. On sheer reflex, Han blasted one and the stormtrooper's training kicked in, forcing them to fall back to a more strategic position. "Get back to the ship;" yelled Han as he and the Wookiee gave chase. "Where are you going?" called Luke in dismay. "Come back!"

"He certainly has courage;" said Leia.

"What good will it do us if he get's himself killed? Come on."

This is your worst idea ever, Han Solo; Han told himself as he pelted after the stormtroopers, yelling at the top of his lungs. He rounded the corner the troopers had just turned and found himself face to face with a bay full of them. His defiant yell turned to a cry of fright and he blasted another one before turning back the way he had come and running even faster away from them, a hale of blaster fire kicking sparks and shrapnel in the floor, ceiling and walls around him. It was a miracle, but not a single one even singed his shirt or vest.

Luke and Leia were in trouble too. A squad chased them down a corridor, up a ramp and right to the edge of a chasm. "I think we took a wrong turn;" said Luke uselessly, his voice echoing off the walls. As blaster fire blazed towards them from behind, Leia his the door control, shutting it behind them. "There's no lock!"

Luke traded places with her and promptly blasted the door control. "That'll hold for awhile."

"Quick, we have to get across;" said Leia, looking around. "Find the controls that extend the bridge."

Rather sheepishly, Luke murmured, "I think I just blasted it."

"They're coming through!"

Quickly looking around, Luke saw some columns of some kind hanging from above, each with a support beam and a thought struck him. His belt! It had a grappling hook and cable attached to it. Just as he reached for it, a blaster bolt smashed into the wall beside them. There was very little cover and they were forced to duck back, cramming themselves between the jammed door. Luke set a few blasts back towards the stormtroopers at a doorway above and across from them, managing to hit one and force the others to duck back behind cover. "Here, take this;" he said, giving Leia the blaster while he began pulling out the cord. It had a release and switch that, when pressed, allowed the cable to be unwound. When released, the cable was held fast. More blaster fire poured from above and Leia returned it, doing her best to keep them pinned. "Here they come!" said Leia as the door behind them lifted a dozen or so centimeters.

Finally, Luke judged that he had enough of the cable, he stepped out into the oped and threw it. It was quite the throw too, especially considering he had never done anything like it before. The hook wrapped around one of the metal support beams and held fast.

The door behind them opened a little more and Luke wrapped one arm around the princess's waist. He was surprised a little when she kissed his cheek and said, "For luck."

With that, they swung out over the chasm. As soon as their feet were on solid durasteel again, Leia began shooting behind them and Luke cut the cable before they dashed into the corridor ahead of them.

Ahsoka had pulled her lightsabers from her belt and quickly, yet stealthily, headed back towards the ship. She was forced to stop when she saw a young woman standing before her, an ignited maroon bladed lightsaber in her hand. She stood between Ahsoka and the hanger. With a sigh, both of Ahsoka's silver blades leaped to life. Lady Mara Jade, the Emperor's Hand, cocked one immaculately groomed eyebrow. "Jar'kai - one full sized lightsaber and one short bladed shoto lightsaber, very impressive. You must be Fulcrum."

Ahsoka nodded. "You can't beat me, Lady Jade. Your master didn't train you for lightsaber duels. You should get out of my way."

"True, I've never fought a Jedi before, but what my father didn't teach me, sparring with my older brother did;" replied the redheaded young woman as she strode forward to meet her adversary. In a complex series of moves, Ahsoka engaged her opponent, hoping to overwhelm her quickly. To her mild surprise, the young woman held her off effectively, using, primarily, the third form of lightsaber combat, Soresu. "Impressive;" said Ahsoka during a break in her assault. "you've been trained well. Obi-wan Kenobi used that style for years and was rarely ever beaten."

"But he's dead now, isn't he? My father killed him and now, I will kill you."

Switching forms, Jade attacked, her form precise and aggressive and yet elegant - a well developed combination of the second and fourth lightsaber forms. But Ahoska was more experienced by years and easily evaded or deflected the attacks, forcing the Emperor's Hand right back to the defensive. "As I said, Jade, you can't win. I don't need to kill you. Just let me pass and you can live to fight another day."

Mara gave a cold smile. "I still have a few tricks up my sleeve, Jedi."

"That's odd;" said Ahsoka as she spun in for another assault. "You aren't even wearing sleeves."

Mara leaped clear over her head, landed, spun and thrust her hand out, hitting Ahsoka with a blast of telekinetic energy. Ahsoka allowed herself to be flung back without resistance, somersaulted backwards and landing on her feet before taking off at a run. It's not that she feared the Emperor's Hand, but something told her not to kill the young woman. The force directed her to flee and so she fled, heading back towards the ship by a more round about way.

Han and Chewie finally reached the corridor just outside of the hanger. To their dismay but not to their surprise, a squad of stormtroopers was guarding it. "Didn't we just leave this party?" asked Han. Just then, Luke and Leia ran up to join them. "What kept you?" asked Han lightly.

"We ran into some old friends?" retorted Leia.

"Is the ship arlight?" asked Luke.

"She seems okay. I sure hope that Togruta lady got the tractor beam out of commission."

They were still wondering how they were going to get through the troopers when Ahsoka ran up. "We're all se- Princess!"

Leia hugged her briefly. "It's good to see you but we can catch up later. We need to get to the ship."

Ahsoka nodded and said, "Run for the ship. I'll take care of the stormtroopers."

With her silver blades ignited, she rushed the stormtroopers. "Come on, let's go;" said Han and they ran towards the ship. They reached the ramp as the last stormtrooper fell and Ahsoka turned to join them when a familiar figure ran up. Luke froze. It was the girl from the bar in Mos Eisely and with her were four tall beings in black robes. "What the hell?" asked Han. Leia blanched. "Those are Imperial Shadow Guards. Fulcrum, come on!"

Ahoska gave a sad smile. "I can't. You'll need time to fire her up and those dark siders will be able to board and crippled the ship before you get the chance. Go on and get back to the Rebellion."

"Ahsoka, no!" yelled Luke, wanting to run forward. Ahsoka lifted a hand. "Go on, Luke. This is where our paths diverge. Someone is waiting for you - someone who can train you far better than I could."

"But-"

"Go, Luke!" said Ahsoka as she turned to face her five opponents. "Save the Alliance. Save the galaxy from this monstrosity."

With that, she leaped among the Shadow Guards, successfully cutting one down before the others could engage. A squad of stormtroopers ran in to join the fray, blasting away at her. Luke began to fire on them, trying to draw their attention but Leia and Han were yelling for him. "Luke, come on!"

"Kid, the ship's powering up. Shoot the blast door controls and get in here!"

Luke ignored them, redoubling his firing as another Shadow Guard fell. The other two sent torrents of purple lightning at Ahsoka. She managed to catch them on her blades but the Emperor's Hand rolled through, cutting her across the side. It wasn't a lethal blow but it slowed her down. More stormtroopers arrived but a small swivel blaster extended from the bottom of the Falcon and mowed them down. "Luke;" yelled Ahsoka, pain evident in her voice. "GO! NOW!"

Finally, Luke blasted one of the doors and, with one more pained look, he ran up the ramp, looked back and seeing Ahsoka take a blaster bolt to the shoulder just as the ramp shut. The ship rocked into the air and Luke, running to the gun-well where a quad laser cannon was installed, watched as she cut down the last Shadow Guard before the young redhead slashed her across the chest, driving her to her knees.

Luke's view was obscured but, even so, he sensed Ahsoka Tano, the Rebel Alliance agent Fulcrum pass into the force. He heard a whisper in his mind, It's okay, Sky-guy. Death is a natural part of life. You will still be a Jedi someday and the force will always be with you.

Luke went back to the lounge and plopped into a seat. He hadn't even known Ahsoka for all that long but her death, coupled with the loss of his family on Tatooine, hit him hard. He didn't weep. He just sat. A warm blanket was draped over his shoulders and Leia sat down next to him. "I can't believe she's gone."

"There was nothing more you could have done, Luke;" murmured Leia quietly. Luke noted that the droids were aboard, probably made it while he was trying to shoot the stormtroopers attacking Ahoska. Suddenly, Han barreled in. "Come on, buddy. We're not out of this yet."

They both ran to the gun-well. Han climbed to the dorsal gun and powered it up while Luke went back down to the ventral emplacement. He grabbed the headset and put it on before examining what he was working with. Luckily, it wasn't complicated. He activated the gun, turned on the targeting system and experimentally swiveled. In his headset, he heard Han say, "You in, Kid? Okay, stay sharp."

In both their ears, they heard Leia announce anxiously, "Here they come."

Four TIE Fighters screamed in, lighting up the Falcon with their laser cannons. They were fast but luckily the Falcon's shields were easily enough to take the first salvos. They broke into pairs and at first, seemed to be too fast for the quad gunners. "They're coming in too fast."

Another salvo came in and the ship rocked. "We just lost the lateral controls;" announced Leia. Han replied, "Don't worry. She'll hold together."

The ship rocked again and they could all here him murmur. "You hear me baby? Hold together."

Finally, Han got a feel for the fight and blasted one out of the skies. He whooped excitedly. A moment later, Luke yelled in excitement. "Got him. I got him!"

"Great kid;" said Han. "But don't get cocky."

The fight wasn't long after that though it felt like hours for the passengers aboard the freighter. When the last of the four TIE's finally went up in smoke and flames, they all gave sighs of relief. "That's it! We did it;" crowed Luke exuberantly. "We did it!" agreed Leia and gave the big furry Wookiee a hug.

Mara Jade strode over to where Tarkin stood glowering at where the Millennium Falcon had disappeared. "It would seem that you failed, Emperor's Hand;" he said calmly. Mara gave him a tolerant look. "This is not my battle station, Tarkin. You failed to capture them and you allowed the princess to be rescued. Luckily for you, there are two pieces of good news."

"Do please enlighten me;" said the Grand Moff with a barely contained sneer. "Firstly, the Rebel agent known as Fulcrum is dead. I cut her down myself."

Moff Tarkin did not particularly care about that. "And?"

"There is a homing beacon aboard that ship. They will lead us right to the rebels' hidden base."

With a frown, Tarkin turned to face her. "If you had your chance, why didn't you disable their ship?"

Mara shrugged. "I was going to but then it occurred to me that if I let them go, they would lead us to the base."

"That is a great risk to take."

Mara smiled coolly. "Why? Isn't this battle station of yours invulnerable, Grand Moff Tarkin? What reason do you have to fear?"

Tarkin scowled and did not reply. His station was invulnerable. Despite the fact that he had not thought of the plan, Tarkin had to admit that Lady Jade was most likely correct. This was the most strategically prudent course of action.

12.12.2017