Death Star - Alderaan System
Mara POV...
The bad feeling in my chest continues to grow once Obi-Wan leaves the room, making me feel uneasy. I do my best to hide my worries from the others, Luke especially, when Chewbacca lets out a roar.
"Boy you said it, Chewie," Han say in apparent agreement. "Where did you two dig up that old fossil?"
"Ben is a great man!" Luke says instantly.
"Yeah, great at getting us into trouble," he scoffs.
"As if anyone here expected to be dragged onto a planet-killing space station?" I retort, crossing my arms. "Besides, you weren't offering any ideas."
"Little lady, anything would be better than just hanging around waiting for him to pick us up," he says dismissively.
"Who do you think-" Luke starts to say, getting irritated.
He's interrupted as Artoo begins to whistle and beep, getting my attention. Me and Luke move over to the droids, and I furrow a brow at what Artoo is saying.
"What is it?" Luke asks.
"I'm afraid I'm not quite sure, sir. He says 'I found her,' and keeps repeating, 'they're here,'" Threepio translates.
"Well, who... who has he found?" he asks.
Artoo whistles a frantic reply and I widen my eyes in surprise, interrupted Threepio before he could translate.
"Princess Leia?" I exclaim.
"The princess? She's here?" Luke also asks incredulously.
"Princess? What's going on?" Han demands, sitting up.
"Shush!" I snap, and he goes quiet, probably more from surprise than actually obeying. "Artoo, where is she?"
"Level 5. Detention block AA23," Threepio translates. "She's also imprisoned with a woman named Katooni, who's listed as a Jedi. I'm afraid they're scheduled to be terminated."
"Katooni?" I ask in surprise.
I've heard of her from my dad before. She was a youngling from the Clone Wars that he once taught along with mom, and he also rescued her from the Jedi Temple when it fell. She went on the become a handmaiden for Leia afterwards.
"Oh, no! We've got to do something!" Luke exclaims.
"Hold on a second. Princess- Jedi- what are you talking about?" Han demands with a frown.
"The droid belongs to her. She's the one in the message. We've got to help her!" Luke insists.
"Princess Leia of Alderaan. She's who we're delivering the plans to. Katooni is one of her handmaidens," I explain more clearly. "Artoo, what's the fastest way to get there?"
"Now, look, don't get any funny ideas," Han interrupts. "The old man wants us to wait right here."
"But he didn't know she was here. Look, will you just find a way back into the detention block?" Luke asks in exasperation.
"I'm not going anywhere," Han states, kicking back in his chair.
"Oh my gosh you're such a child!" I sigh irritably, making Han look over in surprise. "They're going to die within the hour! You were all for a fight, now oh just want to stay and lounge your butt off?!"
"Marching into the detention area is not what I had in mind!" Han snaps angrily, his pride hurt.
"But they're going to kill her!" Luke protests.
"Better her than me!" he retorts.
I groan in frustration, running a hand down my face while Luke paces around in aggravation. I glare irritably at Han's back, fed up on having to deal with people like him.
People like him...
A small grin pulls at my lips as I move quietly over to Han, leaning over his shoulder.
"She's rich," I say quietly.
Chewbacca growls curiously at the comment, and I smile upon sensing Han's interest growing.
"Rich?" he asks.
He's trying to hide his interest with suspicion, but I can tell he's hooked on now. Luke nods eagerly, catching on.
"Yes! Rich, powerful! Listen, if you were to rescue her, the reward would be…" he trails off.
"What?" he demands.
"Plenty of money to cover your debt to Jabba," I remark, and he whips his gaze to me.
"How do you know that?!" he demands.
"Oh please, I can recognize a man running from debt when I see 'em," I say casually. "Look, Leila's rich, and my dad can also get his hands on a good amount of credits. You'll have more money than you can imagine.
"I don't know, I can imagine quite a bit!" he comments doubtfully.
"You'll get it!" Luke states.
"I better!" Han says warningly.
"You will," he promises.
"All right, kids. But you'd better be right about this," he reluctantly agrees.
"All right," Luke nods.
"What's your plan little lady?" Han asks me.
I look around the room for a moment with a critical eye, spotting two pairs of binders on the console.
"Luke, get those binders over there," I tell him.
"Both of them?" he asks.
"Yeah, both," I confirm with a nod. "Give one pair to me and put the other pair on Chewie."
Luke does so, and then moves over to Chewbacca. I take my cowl and then wrap it around my waist so that it covers my lightsaber underneath it. As I'm placing the cuffs over my own wrists, I hear a roar, and Luke backs away uneasily.
"Okay. Han, you put these on," he says quickly, handing the binders to Han.
Han glances at me for a moment, and I raise a brow at him.
"Don't worry, Chewie. I think I know what they have in mind," he says.
Chewbacca growls quietly, a sense of worry and nervousness overcoming him, but he remains still enough for Han to place the binders on.
"You two are going to 'imprison' me and Chewie in the detention level," I state.
"This is nuts," Han sighs, collecting his blaster.
"Are you sure this is gonna work?" Luke asks.
"Of course it will!" I reply with a smile. "My Dad tried the same trick a few years ago."
"Good for him," Han mutters sarcastically.
"Oh don't be such a gundark," I retort, rolling my eyes.
"Master Luke, sir! Pardon me for asking... but, ah... what should Artoo and I do if we're discovered here?" Threepio asks anxiously.
"Lock the door!" he replies casually.
"And hope they don't have blasters," Han adds with a grin.
"That isn't very reassuring," Threepio complains.
I shake my head, but move forwards to the door with Chewie. Luke and Han put on their helmets and march up to the door, and we all walk out into the hallway. Han holds Chewie's arm while Luke holds mine, both doing their best to appear firm in their stances.
Luke's fumbling every so often almost makes me sigh in exasperation.
They entire trip to the detention level is in silence, which is perfectly fine. Imperial's aren't allowed to be anything but cold and professional while on duty, so silence is typical. Along the way though, the silence was broken when Chewbacca roared at an approaching mouse droid, sending it racing away with a frighten squeal.
Upon reaching the elevators which will take us to the detention area, Han and Luke try to look inconspicuous in their armor as we wait for an elevator to open. Troopers, bureaucrats, and droids bustle about, ignoring us completely. A few glance at Chewbacca with varying levels of disgust, not many bothering to hide it, and I glare right back at them.
Thankfully, the door opens quickly enough, allowing us all to stop on without any trouble. While doing so, Luke fumbles irritably with his helmet.
"I can't see a thing in this helmet!" he whines.
One Imperial officer attempts to board as well, but Han waves him off, gesturing to Chewbacca and me. Once the door closes, I throw Luke an amused look.
"Yeah, you're not the first one to complain about that either," I remark.
3rd person POV...
Several Imperial officers walk through the wide main passageway. They pass several stormtroopers and a droids along the way, oblivious to the extra presence with them. At the far end of the hallway, Obi-Wan quietly sneaks through the corridor, disappearing like he was never there.
Mara POV…
On our way down we continue to remain in silence, and I watch the floor number quickly changing.
"This is not going to work," Han says quietly.
"Why didn't you say so before?" Luke asks in bewilderment.
"I did say so before!" he snaps.
"No you didn't," I scoff.
Before Han could retort, the elevator doors open to reveal the detention level. We step out of the elevator, gaining the attention of the officers standing at the control console. The one in charge slowly approaches, eyes narrowed as he analyzes me and Chewie.
"Where are you taking the girl and this... thing?" he demands.
Chewie growls a bit at the remark but Han nudges him to shut up.
"Prisoner transfer from cell block 1138," Luke states.
"I wasn't notified. I'll have to clear it," the officer replies.
The officer goes back to his console and begins to punch in the information. He waves forwards a few officers, who come over to us with blasters out, ready to imprison us. At least, that's what they think. I quickly scan the room, noting all of the officers, cameras, security alarms and turrets, taking it in with a small smile. I send Luke a quick, shark-like grin, making him feel nervous for a moment. Using the Force, I then rip apart mine and Chewie's binders, leaping into action. Chewie also roars, punching one of the surprised officers away.
"Look out! They're loose!" Han exclaims.
"He's going to pull us all apart!" Luke adds, gesturing to Chewbacca.
Not like either of them are helping to stop us anyways.
"Go get them!" Han shouts, handing Chewie his laser rifle.
I jump forwards at one of the guards and pop up on my feet, delivering quick jabs against his abdomen, knocking the breath out of him. I then kick him to the side, and whip around to slam my foot into the face of another. Laser fire quickly erupts in the room as the others begin firing. The officer at the station picks up a blaster, but I jump at him and perform a quick scissor move to knock him out of commission, ending it by slamming his head against the console.
Han and Chewie are blasting away with their rifles, taking out the security guards that rush in at the commotion, while Luke does his best to shoot the cameras and security features. One officer attempts to shoot me, but I quickly whip out my lightsaber to deflect the laser shot back at him, hitting him in the chest with it. He goes down with a cry, and I slice my lightsaber through the blaster of one of the last officers, kicking him against the wall. Han shoots him in the chest moments later, leaving the room cleared.
With that taken care of, I deactivate my lightsaber and rush forwards, the others doing the same. Luke grabs the officer I knocked unconscious and yanks him off the console, while Han moves up to the position right after.
"We've got to find out which cell this princess and handmaiden of yours is in," Han says, looking over the computer. "Here it is... cell 2187 and 2188. You go get her. I'll hold them here."
"I'll stay here to," I add in.
I can tell Han wants to argue, but he forgoes it with an irritated sigh as the comlink starts beeping. Luke races down the hallway in search of the cells while Han pulls off his helmet, and answers the call.
"Uh, everything is under control. Situation normal," he reports.
"What happened?" an officer questions.
"Uh... had a slight weapons malfunction. But, uh, everything's perfectly all right now," Han replies with a nervous stammer. "We're fine. We're all fine here, now, thank you. How are you?"
I whip around to stare at Han with wide eyes, and he grimaces at the comment, knowing full well how ridiculous it was, and catches my eye. I mouth an incredulous threat/question to him, and he gestures back helplessly.
"We're sending a squad up," he states.
"Uh, uh, negative. We had a reactor leak here now," Han replies nervously, and I smack my forehead with a groan. "Give us a few minutes to lock it down. Large leak... very dangerous."
"Who is this? What's your operating number?" the officer demands suspiciously.
"Uhh..." he says uneasily, before sighing, grabbing his blaster and shooting the comlink.
"Terrific," I remark dryly.
"Boring conversation anyway," he mutters. "Luke! We're going to have company!"
"Reactor leak?" I hiss at him incredulously. "How are you?!"
"I was improvising, what else did you want me to say?" he demands.
"There are no reactors near the detention area!" I exclaim.
"Well I'd like to see you do better little lady!" he retorts.
"Oh I most certainly could!" I shoot back, hands on my hips as I glare at him.
*:*:*
3rd person POV...
Luke stops in front of one of the cells and presses the button to open the door. Stepping inside, he's greeted with the sight of Princess Leia lying down on a hard bench in order to try and get some sleep. At the sound of the door opening, Leia drowsily looks up at Luke as he enters. Luke is frozen at the door, stunned by Leia's beauty as he gazes at her for several long moments, unsure of what to say. Leia on the other hand raises an eyebrow and props up on one arm.
"Aren't you a little short to be a stormtrooper?" she asks, ridiculing him.
"What?" Luke asks in confusion. "Oh the uniform!"
Luke pulls off his helmet and drops it on the ground, taking a step forwards. "I'm Luke Skywalker. I'm here to rescue you."
"You're who?" she asks in confusion.
"I'm here to rescue you. I've got your R2 unit. I'm here with Ben Kenobi and Mara Jade!" he explains quickly.
"Ben Kenobi and Mara Jade?" she asks, now wide awake. "Where are they?!"
"Come on!" he urges her.
They both rush out of the prison cell, and then Leia pulls him along to the cell beside hers.
"Wait! We have to rescue my friend!" she exclaims.
"Oh, right!" he realizes.
Luke moves up to the correct cell block and opens the door. Upon looking inside he frowns for a moment when he sees nobody there, and takes a step forwards. Within a moment, Katooni suddenly appears out of nowhere and kicks him into the wall, standing over him threateningly. He groans in surprise and pain, and she raises her foot to kick him in the head.
"Katooni, wait!" Leia exclaims.
Katooni freezes and looks over, surprised to see Leia standing right there.
"Leia?" she asks in bewilderment. "You're okay!"
She quickly gives Leia a relieved hug, which she returns just as happily.
"I'm perfectly fine," she says with a smile, before nodding at Luke. "You kind of just attacked our rescuer though."
"What?" Katooni asks, confused.
"Ow..." Luke groans, slowly getting to his feet. "Where the heck did that come from?"
"Oh," Katooni realizes sheepishly. "Sorry about that."
"No problem," Luke manages with a smile, although it was easy to tell that it's forced.
Darth Vader paces the room as Governor Tarkin and Colonel Yularen sit at the far end of the conference table.
"He is here," Vader states firmly.
"General Obi-Wan Kenobi?" Yularen questions. "How do you know this?"
"A tremor in the Force. The last time I felt it, was in the presence of my old master," he explains bitterly. "I also felt another familiar presence."
"Surely he must be dead by now," Tarkin states with a frown.
"Don't underestimate the power of the Force," Vader warns him.
"The Jedi are extinct, their fire has gone out of the universe," he replies, getting up and patting Vader on the shoulder. "You, my friend, are all that's left of their religion, along with Jarik Shan."
Tarkin spits out the name with contempt and annoyance, his usually cold features morphing into an irritated frown. Any further conversation is halted when the intercom buzzes, which Tarkin answers.
"Yes."
"Governor Tarkin, we have an emergency alert in detention block AA23," an officer reports.
"The princess!" he realizes. "Put all sections on alert!"
"Obi-Wan is here. The Force is with him," Vader insists.
"If you're right, he must not be allowed to escape," Tarkin says firmly.
"Escape is not his plan. I must face him alone!"
With a flurry of his cape, Vader storms out of the conference center and makes his way to face Obi-Wan. Yularen watches him go, a worried look on his face. He serves the Empire with all of his conviction and believes it to be a better path for peace and galactic order, but he also remembers working with his former Jedi General. He knows General Kenobi to be one of the better Jedi, who truly wanted to do good, and was also a decent leader in war.
Still, orders were orders, and the Jedi made their choice when they decided to try and assassinate the Chancellor.
Mara POV...
An ominous buzzing sound coming from the other side of the elevator door gets our attention, and it doesn't take a genius to release that the stormtroopers are cutting their way through.
"Chewie!" Han exclaims. "Get behind me! Get behind me!"
"You two get behind me!" I add, pulling out my lightsaber.
A series of explosions knock a hole in the elevator door, allowing several Imperial troops to emerge. Han and Chewie fire their blasters at them through the smoke and flame. The first stormtrooper tries to fire back, but is shot dead by Han before he could get through. Even so, more and more stormtroopers begin to clamber past, ignoring the dead trooper as they push their way into the detention area.
I use my lightsaber to deflect incoming laser fire as the three of us back up into the hallway. I swing my lightsaber, hitting one red blaster bolt back at a stormtrooper and nailing him directly in the face. After that, the three of us run down the hallway towards the others, briefly recollecting ourselves as the stormtroopers do the same. I recognize Princess Leia, as well as her handmaiden Katooni, who I've never met before.
"Can't get out that way," Han states.
"Looks like you managed to cut off our only escape route," Lea remarks disapprovingly.
"Maybe you'd like it back in your cell, Your Highness," Han retorts condescendingly.
I roll my eyes, but quickly duck away from a laser bolt that slams overhead, showing me in sparks for a moment. The stormtroopers begin firing down from the end of the hall, while Han and Luke fire back with their blasters. Being the only one with a lightsaber I stand in the middle, of the corridor making it easier on the others as I block blaster fire. Luke pulls out his comlink as we continue to exchange fire with the stormtroopers, who are making their way down the corridor.
"C-3PO! C-3PO!" he calls.
"Yes sir?" Threepio replies.
"Are there any other ways out of the cell bay? We've been cut off! ... What was that? I didn't copy!"
"I said, all systems have been alerted to your presence, sir. The main entrance seems to be the only way in or out; all other information on your level is restricted."
I swing my lightsaber down to bat away another bolt, furiously keeping the barrage of laser fire at bay. Han and Chewie keep firing back to take out a few stormtroopers, but more and more keep coming to replace them. Smoke begins filling the corridor from all of the chaos.
"There isn't any other way out!" Luke informs us.
"Well that's great! I can't hold them off forever guys!" I exclaim.
"Now what?" Han asks, blasting another trooper.
"This is some rescue," Leia scoffs. "When you came in here, didn't you have a plan for getting out?"
"They're the brains, sweetheart!" Han snaps, gesturing to me and Luke.
"Well, I've been through worse," Katooni remarks. "Certainly not with a scoundrel though."
Normally I would make a comment or some sort of exaggerated gesture, but I'm far too preoccupied with keeping the stormtroopers at bay, constantly redirecting blaster fire. Leia suddenly grabs Luke's gun and fires at a small grate in the wall next to Han, almost frying him.
"What the kriff are you doing?" he shouts angrily.
"Somebody has to save our skins!" she retorts. She then storms across the corridor, firing her blaster, and I have to jump away in surprise as one shot barely grazes me. "Into the garbage chute, fly boy!"
She tosses Luke back the blaster and then jumps through the narrow opening as Han and Chewbacca look on in bafflement.
"See you soon boys and girl!" Katooni says, diving down next. Chewbacca moves forwards and sniffs the garbage chute, growling nervously.
"Get in there you big furry oaf! I don't care what you smell!" Han exclaims. "Get in there and don't worry about it!"
Han gives him a kick and Chewie disappears into the tiny opening. Luke and Han continue firing away, and I deflect blaster fire as we hold them off for a moment longer.
"Wonderful girl! Either I'm going to kill her or I'm beginning to like her!" Han tells us furiously. "Get in there!"
Luke ducks past blaster fire and jumps into the chute. I make my way over next, deflecting few final laser bolts and then deactivate my lightsaber. With more grace than the others, I jump down into the chute and begin sliding down, Han's whooping yell telling me he came down moments afterwards. Reaching the end of the chute, I prepare myself for a landing...
And drop into a trash compactor.