Act III

Chapter 5

"Are you quite certain we're safe here?" Chewbacca didn't bother to respond to the protocol droid's tenth iteration of that particular question, instead tipping his head back with a quiet groan of irritation. It was approaching the forty minute marker since Han, Shmi and Artoo left to retrieve the Jedi, and still Chewie was waiting for the chance to power up the Falcon.

A sudden eruption of noise outside caught his attention, and the wookiee carefully stuck his head into the cockpit in order to look out the viewports. From his angle, he could see Han with Leia and Ahsoka in a doorway across the hangar, exchanging blaster fire with the group of stormtroopers standing around the base of the ship.

"Oh, what are you doing now-?" Threepio cried out as Chewie barreled past him, bowcaster in hand. The wookiee sped down the Falcon's loading ramp, roaring as he did so and taking the stormtroopers completely by surprise. It was a simple matter to mow most of them down, both with his weapon and his fists, which was made even simpler when Ahsoka and Leia closed distance with their lightsabers.

"Well, now that that bit of unpleasantness is over with - Chewie, get the engines warmed up, we're gonna need to make a quick exit." Even as Han finished speaking, Shmi came darting into the hangar, breathing heavily as she attempted to avoid blaster fire from behind. The girl cried out as one bolt grazed her side, and crashed heavily to the ground. Roaring, Chewbacca dashed towards her, Ahsoka following a second later. As the Jedi covered them with her saber, the wookiee scoped Shmi up and hurried her to the ship. Meanwhile, Leia had started off towards a different door, Han right behind her and yelling something about no more 'how stupid and reckless is the Corellian compared to the Jedi' jokes!

That was when two figures appeared ahead of them: one huge, black, wielding a single shaft of red, and the other small, dressed in pale shades, twirling blades of both green and pure white. Luke was making good use of Ahsoka's preferred reverse grip fighting form to quickly move around Vader, deflecting his blows with either hand. The boy was keeping light on his feet in order to avoid an outright contest of strength, something Chewie couldn't fault him for.

That was as much as the wookiee got to see before ducking back into the Falcon. As Ahsoka remained outside, he hurried straight to the cockpit, once again ignoring Threepio's frantic questioning. Shmi he deposited in the navigator's seat, where the girl grasped at her burnt and bleeding side and offered him a grateful smile. Chewie crooned to her, turning as he did so to the engine controls and getting everything back online.

Through the viewport, he had a clear view of Artoo intervening on Luke and Vader's duel, sticking an electro-prod into the Sith's leg from behind. The man staggered, giving his opponent and the droid enough time to dash through the door, which Han then shot the controls for and closed.

One by one, the rest of his companions made their way aboard the ship, and as soon as they were all clear Han yelled for Chewie to take them up. He arrived in time to claim the pilot's seat right as Chewbacca was backing them out of the hangar.

"Everybody strap yourselves in, here's where the fun begins!"

"Fun?" Shmi groaned from her seat. Luke entered the cockpit, breathing heavily, and went straight to the nav computer in order to prepare for the jump to hyperspace.

"I'm counting five, six Tie fighters in-bound. Ladies, you at the guns yet?"

*Affirmative, Solo.*

*Ready, Han.*

"Alright then, take your best shots, 'cause this is just the first wave!" Chewbacca watched from the corner of his eye as blaster bolts flew out from the guns at the top and bottom of the ship. Shot after shot was fired at the Ties, connecting more often than not - but the fighters just kept coming.

"Got it!" Luke suddenly shouted. Coordinates from the nav computer uploaded into the ship's piloting system, and Han made the jump to hyperspace.

Everyone aboard leaned back to breathe a sign of relief.

Then Shmi spoke up. "Could I please get this looked at now?" She asked weakly. Luke jerked upright from where he'd collapsed in the chair opposite her, and promptly helped the girl out of the cockpit and down to the Falcon's small medical bay. Chewie could hear the sounds of Leia and Ahsoka traversing the ladders back to the main level, and figured that the fifteen year old would be well taken care of.

"I blame you for all this," Han groaned, still slumped in the pilot's seat. "All goes back to six years ago. Never should have let you convince me to give those kids a free ride."

Chewbacca snorted, and pointed out that Han had been the one willing let the small family aboard in the first place. His friend merely glared, remaining silent. It was then that Chewie decided to mention the tracking device that had been planted on the Falcon.

Han, predictably, did not take it well.

"They did WHAT?!"

The wookiee wasn't sure whether to laugh or roll his eyes as the man stormed about his ship in a fury. Ahsoka eventually returned to the main room and stood at Chewie's side, watching Han's performance as well.

"Sometimes," she murmured. "I wonder if he and Anakin would have gotten along famously, or been at each other's throat constantly." She smiled at Chewbacca's rumbled answer. "Yeah, probably. Fifty-fifty sounds about right."

Eventually, Han calmed down enough to speak coherently again, right about the time that Luke came out to join them as well. The others finally thought to ask where he'd set the hyperspace jump for - their answer was the Ghansel System, a fairly deserted group of planets close to the Mid and Outer Rim border. It had been used for an Alliance base in the past, back when the rebellion was still small and gathering strength.

"Alright, so we'll set down on the first hospitable rock, ditch the tracking device, and then what?" Han asked. Ahsoka was about to suggest Alderaan, which was Obi-wan's last known location, but was beaten to the punch by Artoo-Deetoo beeping hurriedly.

Luke blinked at him. "...you what?"

Artoo beeped again, more insitstantly.

"No way..." Ahsoka breathed, a grin slowly spreading across her features. "Artooie, more than two decades into our friendship and you still manage to surprise me. Well, Captain Solo, it looks like we've got some Death Star plans to deliver. After Ghansel, set course for Yavin four."

-T&T-

Vader paced around the empty meeting room, fists clenched, Force boiling with the strength of his fury. He'd had them, spoke to them, and yet his children managed to escape once again. Unlike on the first occasion, however, when he'd had no one to blame but himself for letting the twins slip away, Vader was fully ready to blame every person aboard the Death Star - hence why none, not even Tarkin himself, were willing to enter the same room as the enraged Sith.

It was hours before Vader was able to get ahold of himself once more. As soon as he did, the first thing on his agenda was to get an update on the data from the tracking device placed aboard the Corellian ship. The terrified technician from who he asked for this update was so distressed all he could do was point to the computer screen, where Vader read that the ship was still travelling through hyperspace. He gave the order to be informed as soon as a change occurred, and left before the technician could faint.

After this, he was asked to meet with Tarkin, who had a piece of news.

"Our scouts have reported back from Dantooine," the Grand Moff began, with a sour expression on his face.

"And the rebel base was not there." Vader couldn't help the curl of vindictive satisfaction in his belly.

"Indeed. It seems I was too hasty in ordering Senator Naberrie's termination. There will, of course, be further opportunities in future for discovering the rebellion's primary hideaway, but I wish to have some greater piece of news for the Emperor than that." The man clasped his hands behind his back and looked sternly to Vader. "How likely is it that your escaped Jedi will lead us to their rebel allies?"

"It is impossible to say, Grand Moff. But we will be monitoring all stops they make, and eventually they're bound to visit the base."

"Hm." The disappointment that Tarkin was expressing resonated with Vader, as he too was unhappy with the answer. Finding and capturing his children may have been the Sith's current main goal, but wiping out the rebellion was a close second. Along with destroying the last of the Jedi, solidifying the Empire's grasp on the galaxy, and then overthrowing Palpatine in order to hold that power himself.

Admittedly, they were all the same goals he'd had for years, none of which ever seemed to have real progress made towards them.

But, he refused to admit defeat. Someday soon, he'd have his twins by his side, teaching them the ways of the Dark Side; and from there, all the other goals would be achieved as well. It was just a matter of continuing onward, and learning from his mistakes...

A/N: In less than four days, I start driving back to Colorado to begin my second year of college. /ecstatic grin

Once that happens, I will once more have unlimited internet access, and hopefully the inspiration to start working on more stories again (which you lot should be especially hopeful for, as this is the last complete chapter I've written so far for Tano and Twins). So! Wish me luck, cross your fingers, and hope that the Force doesn't decide to send storms to wash out my highway route.

-Tri