Disclaimers: All things Star Wars belong to Lucasfilm.
All non-original dialogue in this story is credited to The Empire Strikes Back script (Script adaptation by Lawrence Kasden and Leigh Brackett, from a story by George Lucas).
Please do not reproduce this story without permission from the authors.
BY THE GRACE OF LADY VADER
by Alderaan21, ami-padme, and FernWithy
Chapter Nine
Leia hadn't had time to strap in before take-off, so she just held on to the back of the pilot's seat, and hoped that the artificial gravity wouldn't decide to go flaky with everything else.
Han banked the Falcon sharply, and a burst of laser fire exploded in the space where they would have been. Another followed it, coming closer to their current position. Leia tried not to look at the proximity readouts on the control panel, but couldn't quite convince herself that the Star Destroyer follower them wasn't getting closer. She didn't need the readouts to follow the TIE fighters that it had spit out after them; she could see them through the viewport, close enough sometimes to catch a glimpse of the masked and helmeted stormtroopers who piloted them.
Flak from the explosions around them buffeted the Falcon, and Han was engaged in some sort of serious and energetic dance with the controls trying to keep them on course. He flipped switches, checked readouts, checked the viewport, flipped more switches, adjusted the course manually, then started the cycle again. Chewie howled at the top of his lungs, vibrating the whole cockpit, then went into a series of loud barks.
"I saw them!" Han barked back. "I saw them."
Leia cast her eyes down to the readouts. "Saw what?"
Han pointed vaguely at the viewport before moving to shield controls. "Star Destroyers, two of them. Coming right at us."
Leia saw them then, points of light in the dark. One was huge and hulking. A Super Star Destroyer. The other was dwarfed in its shadow. That's where my parents are. In that monster. Or it's where they live. It's...
No. There is no time for that.
Another blip appeared in the corner of the viewport, and steadily grew into a pod-shape that Leia recognized with horror. The last Rebel transport. It was accompanied by two Imperial shuttles and a squad of TIE fighters, and headed straight for the Super Star Destroyer. "Han, they've got one of ours!"
The frenetic dance didn't stop, and he didn't even look at the transport. "They're gonna have us if I don't get us out of here, Sweetheart."
She couldn't think of an argument, but the sight of that last transport being towed into the Empire's hands - the transport that had waited for those who held their ground longest, the most devoted ground staff - was hard to bear. They would be tortured, imprisoned... it would be better for them, more honorable, to die in battle, and
(if the Empire gets their information, we're sunk.)
they would want it that way...
She bit it back. The Rebellion didn't operate that way. The Empire might kill its captured soldiers and defectors. The Rebellion didn't.
(lately, it would be a full time job, anyway)
There was an uneven clanking of metal on metal, which Leia heard but didn't really register until the panicked tug on her sleeve. "Your Highness!"
"Threepio... "
Han reached across the control panel. Threepio threw his golden hands in the air and broke his usual protocol by interrupting him in an urgent tone. "Sir, sir! Might I suggest -"
But Han was having none of it. He'd never had any patience with Threepio. He turned to Leia. "Shut him up or shut him down."
Leia was stunned into silence. He was often pushy and cocky, but he'd never presumed to give her an order before, and it was a cruel one. Threepio was irritating and fearful, but he was hers, dammit, and he was loyal and
(kindhearted)
and he was a help
(friend)
to her.
Threepio stopped talking on his own, but shot her a worried glance.
Han didn't notice. Leia understood why he was doing this, and knew she was silly to let it sting. After all, Threepio was a protocol droid. His expertise wasn't likely to be useful here. He probably wanted to advise them on proper forms for surrender.
Han was already talking to Chewie again. "Check the deflector shield!"
Chewie barked something that didn't sound particularly hopeful.
"Great," Han muttered. "Well, we can outmaneuver them."
Without warning, he accelerated into the path of the behemoth Star Destroyer, banking the Falcon to its port. It didn't try to turn, but the smaller Star Destroyer did. Leia briefly saw a red light flashing. A whole section must have gone on alert.
Then Han dove and spun beyond them, and Leia saw, as he curved up again, that the two Destroyers were trying desperately to avoid a collision.
"Good flying," she whispered, hoping that the Rebel transport hadn't gotten caught in the accident, or at least hoping that she was really hoping it.
"Thanks. Count on the Empire to build something that can't turn around."
"We can't count on that forever."
As if to reinforce her point, six TIE fighters came around the floundering giants and began another volley of laser blasts. Han banked and spun again. Leia was beginning to feel queasy. The ship rocked from another hit.
"Prepare to make the jump to light-speed," Han told Chewie, not even looking back at Leia.
"But, sir!" Threepio moaned beside Leia, and she had a sudden, awful, sinking feeling. Threepio had been talking to the Falcon. Threepio did have something to say.
And it was too late for him to say it.
The ship rocked violently as another blast hit. "They're getting closer!"
Han gave her a wicked grin, and she could have cheerfully throttled him. Flirting? At a time like this?
"Oh, yeah?" he said, putting his hand on the hyperdrive lever. "Watch this." He pushed the lever up.
Leia obediently turned to the viewport and stared at the rushing TIE fighters and the star strewn blackness. But she knew perfectly well what was about to happen. Or rather, to not happen. "Watch what?" she asked.
Han's smirk disappeared, and he turned to Chewie in a moment of panic that even Leia could see. He pushed the hyperdrive lever again.
Nothing.
"I think we're in trouble," he muttered.
Threepio let out an exasperated electronic sigh. "As I have been attempting to tell you, the hyperdrive motivator is damaged. It's impossible to go to light speed!"
(that'll teach you to give me orders)
Leia rolled her eyes at herself. They were being chased by half the Imperial Fleet, and she was triumphant that her droid was right about why they couldn't escape.
"We're in trouble," Han said.
Piett's arm stung painfully as he slammed into a console, and then everything spun as he whirled past several of his officers - his officers - before clutching a rail and hanging on desperately. Through a small window, he could see a Star Destroyer pass by... for a moment, he thought he could see the faces of the people in that Destroyer, they were so close.
Please don't hit, please don't hit, please don't hit...
Piett closed his eyes and braced himself for an explosion. Instead, the ship suddenly righted itself, throwing everyone back to the side of the bridge they had started on.
A confused silence reigned for several moments, and Piett used the time to quickly straighten out his jacket and cap, reassuming some sort of command posture, and moving to the head of the bridge. "Status report," he asked of no one in particular.
"We just missed them, sir. The other Star Destroyers also avoided any damage."
His eyes narrowed in annoyance. "Where's the Millennium Falcon?" he snapped. The ensign jumped, then checked the sensors again.
Piett had to admit he had startled himself. His first thought should have been for the safety of his fellow soldiers. And he was glad that no one had been hurt... he shook it off. The moment had passed, and his priorities were now quite clear.
"The Falcon is just out of weapons range," the ensign reported. "The TIE Fighters have continued their pursuit, Admiral."
Admiral.
Admiral Piett. He had thought it would be several years - at least - before he would hear that. A thrill ran through him every time one of his subordinates said it.
But he couldn't show that. He had to start behaving like a commander and earn their respect.
And justify the faith that the Vaders had put in him.
"As soon as we have cleared the path of the other Destroyers, set a course to follow them."
"Yes, sir."
Piett stepped over to the main viewport, staring silently at the ensuing chase. What exactly was he supposed to be doing at moments like this? He no longer had to follow sensor reports or prepare recommendations; now he was the commanding officer. Should he order them to do something? Wait for them to speak up?
He took a deep breath, and tried to clear his mind of doubts. After all, Lord Vader himself had promoted him, and made it seem like the natural course of action after the unfortunate incident with Ozzel. There was no pretense or ceremony to it, just a string of new commands, followed by a warning - "Do not fail me as Ozzel did, Admiral."
He would be a fool to say that Vader's words didn't terrify him... but at least he had been given this chance to prove himself. At least he knew that the Vaders had thought highly of him up to this point (he liked to think that Lady Vader had mentioned his efforts in finding the Rebels on Hoth). For him, dealing with them wasn't simply or solely about fear. He felt, as did many others he spoke to, that they had a purpose to what they were doing.
And purpose was something that was painfully absent from the Empire he loved. As time went on, the Emperor became more distant, and the Empire continued to slip into mediocrity, rote leadership, and inactivity. It was becoming a shell of what it once was - all of the structures and rules were still there, but it felt hollow beneath that surface.
Until the Vaders. Until Piett had seen for himself the way Lady Vader could connect with all types of people. Until he saw the way that Lord Vader had stood beside her (a remarkable action for someone of his rank) and saw the unusual powers he wielded. There was something there worthwhile, even if no one knew the particulars of it. Something that Piett was certain he wanted to be involved with.
"Admiral?"
"Yes, Captain."
"The ship seems to be headed for an asteroid field. We'll have no chance of following, sir. We will have almost no maneuverability, and will undoubtedly take on a great deal of damage."
Piett frowned deeply, trying to give the appearance of pondering his first real command decision. His mind was already made up however, as he had no intention of telling Lord Vader that he couldn't carry out his orders to pursue and capture the Falcon. "Captain, slow the ship down to one-quarter speed, and have all weapons officers destroy as many asteroids in our path as possible. We will continue on our course."
He noted with pleasure that no one looked surprised or doubtful of his decision. He placed his hands behind his back and turned back to his view of the asteroid field - of the galaxy. It seemed larger, grander now. And so did his place in it.
Han stared at the viewport in disbelief, almost frozen at this new development. Then a blast came from a TIE fighter, and his brain kicked back into gear. They were in trouble, it was his own damned fault, and he had to fix it before he got all of them killed.
Yeah, sure. But what the hell am I supposed to do?
He had to think of something. No way was he showing Leia that he was out of control here. She was already looking at him like she was sure he was the last thing she'd see, and she wasn't happy about it. Worse than that, somewhere, under the annoyance and irritation, Han thought he saw a glimpse of raw, unadulterated fear. From Leia, that bothered him more than anything.
"I'll fix it," he said.
"How?"
"Don't worry, I'll fix it." He got up, and gestured for Chewie to follow him, then touched Leia's shoulder. "Just keep us straight."
She looked at him blankly, then took the controls. She didn't like to fly (and Han thought the aversion had gotten worse in the last year or so), but she knew what she was doing.
No more time to worry about it, at any rate. Another fighter flew at them. Han ran back to the maintenance pit, Chewie at his heels.
He jumped over the edge and down to the engine room. Everything looked in order, but everything always looked in order. There was some steam coming from a broken stabilizer, but nothing that would account for losing hyperdrive. He decided to tighten it anyway, to feel like he was doing something until he thought of something to do. "Chewie... toss me the hydrospanners."
Chewie handed him the tool he asked for, then lowered himself down to examine other parts of the engines. He growled that it was running too hot to work on, but they didn't exactly have time to let it rest just now, so it was an observation without any practical value.
"I don't know how we're going to get out of this," Han muttered.
Chewie didn't answer.
Han was leaning over to yet another level when the ship rocked violently. It wasn't the trembling shock of a laser blast spreading violently across an energy shield. It was an impact.
Chewie howled.
"Yeah, I noticed," Han said. "Something hit us."
He was already halfway back up when Leia called for him to come to the cockpit, and she was just sliding into the co-pilot's seat when he got there.
"Asteroids," she said, but she didn't need to. The asteroid field spread before them like a porous wall.
Damn. On top of everything else, this sector. Must have been a collision or -
He stopped thinking and slipped into the pilot's seat. Between the Empire and a bunch of rocks, he figured he'd take his chances with the rocks. He didn't need to turn around to know that Chewie had settled into the navigator's seat. "Set two-seven-one."
Out of the corner of his eye, he could see that the technobabble hadn't fooled Leia at all. Her face was white and taut, but the fear was gone, replaced with even more irritation than usual... and, Han thought, a little exhilaration. "You're going in?" she asked incredulously.
Han shrugged. "Think they'll follow?"
There was no joking answer. An asteroid flew at them, and Han had to put his concentration into flying around it, but when he glanced at Leia again, she was simply staring thoughtfully at the flying rocks. "Yes," she whispered. "They will."
Han's eyes flickered to her again. He believed her. He had no reason to believe her, but he did. Not that it made a difference. He didn't have a choice. "I gotta go in anyway, Sweetheart," he said.
"But sir," Threepio said, "the odds of successfully navigating an asteroid field are three thousand seven hundred twenty to one."
"Never tell me the odds," Han muttered, but didn't try to tell Leia to shut the droid down. If he'd listened to the nattering droid in the first place, he might have gone in a more sensible direction.
Not that he'd ever admit that outside his own head.
The asteroids suddenly became more densely packed, and there was no time at all for talking or thinking, only flying. One asteroid the size of a house bounced off another, and Han had to dive away from it, then bank sharply to avoid another one that was coming up from beneath.
As he turned, he saw that Leia was right: The Empire was following.
A pinprick flash of light caught his eye, and he saw three TIE bombers bursting through the explosion. Behind them, the giant Star Destroyer blasted an asteroid out of its way.
"This could be bad," he said.
"Could be?" Leia's voice had taken back more of its acerbic tone, and Han was glad to hear it.
Another asteroid flew at them, and Han swerved around it. He spared a look back at Leia. "This might not be the best idea I ever had."
Two asteroids collided in front of them, sending out an explosion of smaller rocks, which buffeted the Falcon. Leia shook her head. "We're going to get pulverized if we stay out here."
There was no arguing with it, but Han couldn't think of a way out. It wasn't like he could just land somewhere...
That's it. I have to land.
"I'm getting closer to one of the big ones," he said, and barely heard her protest (though Threepio's was annoyingly loud).
The first big one he saw was jagged and likely to break. He crested it and dropped down behind it.
Think. Don't let the Empire see where you're going, or they'll just pulverize you along with the asteroid they're clearing out.
"Right," he said to himself.
"What are you doing?" Leia asked.
"Fixing this. Hold on." Finally, he saw the one he needed. "There. That'll do."
"Do for what?"
"Yeah." It was almost still, and he could see a gently carved crater, with a deep cave in it. Perfect. Decent hand at last.
"Excuse me ma'am," Threepio said somewhere behind him. "But where are we going?"
"I have no idea."
Han didn't have time to explain, if she hadn't figured it out yet. The landing would be tricky, but he could do it. He checked the scope again to make sure no Imperial ships were in eyeshot, then looped around, and eased the Falcon down across the surface. The mouth of the cave yawned before him. It would be a good fit.
The Millennium Falcon slipped into the shadows, and was swallowed.