Chapter Twenty: The Gauntlet
It took Cal a moment to snap out of his daze at Red Leader's death.
"Red Group," Dodonna's voice crackled through the comm speaker. "You have two minutes remaining."
"Copy, Base One," Wedge answered. "Cal, Seek, let's finish this. We're going in full throttle, everything you've got."
"We're with you, boss," Seek acknowledged.
Cal wasn't sure if he should voice his concerns, but he decided to take a chance as they descended toward the trench. "Going at that speed will we be able to pull out in time?"
Seek laughed. "Don't worry about it, Cal. It'll be just like Beggar's Canyon."
Cal hated Beggar's Canyon. "Here goes," he muttered.
The three fighters leveled off in the trench and accelerated to full speed, avoiding laser fire from the towers ahead.
"We'll stay back to cover you," Seek said, dropping back a bit to allow Wedge some room. Cal followed his cousin's lead. He kept an eye out for the fighters, but the cannons were still firing. Where had those three TIEs gone?
A laser blast clipped Cal's wing, and his ship wobbled dangerously close to the wall of the trench.
"Watch yourself, Cal!"
"I'm okay." Cal checked his ship's vitals. "Artoo, the rear stabilizer's coming loose."
The droid's response popped up on the monitor, and Cal smiled. He really was a good little robot.
"Wedge, are you sure the computer can even hit the target?" Seek's question seemed to echo in Cal's cockpit as he waited for Wedge's response.
It took a few seconds, but when it came, Wedge's voice was calm. "We're about to find out."
Before Seek could remark further, the turbo lasers stopped firing. Cal twisted his head instinctively to look behind him; when that failed, he checked his scanner.
"Fighters, coming in at point oh three," Seek said.
The three TIE fighters quickly closed the gap between them, putting their craft in firing range of the two X-wings. Again, the middle TIE pulled out just ahead of his wingmates.
Cal felt a swell of panic. "Artoo, we need more speed. See if you can increase the power."
In his peripheral vision he saw an explosion, and when he glanced over at Seek he saw a stream of fire and sparks flying out of the ship.
"I'm hit!" His cousin sounded equal parts shocked and afraid.
"Clear out, Seek," Wedge ordered. "You can't stay with us."
"No, I can stay, I'm alright!"
"Get out, that's an order!"
There was a pause and then a frustrated sigh. "Right," Seek said, pulling out of the trench. "I'm sorry, Cal."
Cal took a deep breath. Seek was the adventurer, the ace pilot of the family. Now he was out of the picture, and it was up to Cal to hold off three enemy ships or else the Rebellion was doomed.
What would Mom do?
He gritted his teeth, remembering her last moments on the Falcon. That thought was all the motivation he needed.
"Artoo, I need more power, whatever you can give me. Try to direct any unnecessary energy to the engines."
Artoo replied that he already had.
"Great." Cal watched the signals of the enemy fighters draw closer. "Come on," he muttered at Wedge. "Get up there."
"Cal, look out!" Wedge yelled. "Another ship coming in!"
The ship swooped into the trench, nestling right behind Cal. "Don't worry," a familiar voice reassured. "I've got you covered."
Cal couldn't hide his relief. "Leia!"
"I'll hold them off," she replied. "You get to that exhaust, Wedge."
"You got it."
.
.
Vader clenched his fist around the controls. It was Leia in that X-wing. It was his daughter flying with the Rebels.
How dare she?
"Black Three, come with me," he growled. "Black Two, you stay on the leader, no matter what."
"Yes, sir," the two pilots answered in unison.
Vader pulled back on the stick and emerged from the trench. From up here he could see the lead X-wing speeding toward its target. Vader accelerated to full speed, his wingmate close on his tail. They flew over Leia and her Rebel friend, locking sights on the leader. As he expected, Leia immediately abandoned the trench and raced to intercept him. The other Rebel followed Leia, leaving their leader alone with Black Two.
So predictable.
"The way is clear, Black Two," Vader said. "The Empire is counting on you."
"I won't fail you, my lord."
Vader smiled tightly.
I have you now.
.
.
Luke felt the mental prick that he associated with danger, and he quietly set his bag on the floor and unclipped his lightsaber. He walked along the corridor, listening and probing for anything out of the usual. He was about one hundred levels below the Emperor's quarters, and if his information was correct, that meant Mara's rooms were only a few levels above his present position. He reached out for her presence, wondering if she had sensed the danger, too.
When he realized that Mara was not only awake but also much closer to the Emperor's suite than normal, Luke began to jog toward the nearest turbolift. He stretched out further with the Force, taking inventory of the number of lifeforms near the Emperor. He sensed the six royal guards, four outside the bedchamber, two inside. There were several other beings – guards, Luke assumed – scattered throughout the area. Everything seemed alright, except for the incessant nagging feeling in the back of his mind.
Mara was on the move; she was now only one level below the Emperor. As Luke focused in on her presence to follow her progress, he sensed a group of lifeforms on the same floor. He felt Mara's alarm as she went on the defensive. Without realizing it, Luke began sprinting toward the turbolift. He waited impatiently for the lift to arrive, feeling a wave of fear roil off of Mara as she clashed with the group. The door opened, and Luke scrambled inside, pressing the button for Mara's floor. The lift prompted him for an access code, which he gave quickly. As the lift ascended, he sensed Mara's surprise.
I'm coming, Mara!
The lights flickered, and the lift came to an abrupt halt. "No!" he shouted, slamming his fist against the buttons. He was still two levels down from where he needed to be. The lights went out completely, throwing the prince into darkness. Luke imagined he could hear the sound of blaster fire and the hum of a single lightsaber somewhere above. Fear for Mara and for the security of the palace welling up in him, Luke ignited his own saber, the green light giving the lift an eerie quality. He tried using the Force to open the doors, but the complicated lift design wouldn't allow for the doors to open without power. Growling angrily, Luke plunged his lightsaber into the durasteel ceiling.
Above him, he sensed that Mara was struggling to fend off the attackers. She must have met them in the narrowest part of the corridor, where it was easiest to fend off larger numbers. Unfortunately, if Luke remembered correctly, that corridor would also provide ample cover for the attackers while they took turns at Mara.
I should have taken one of the other hidden passages, Luke thought as he carved a hole out of the ceiling. Why aren't the guards helping her?
As if in answer to his question, Luke felt another person enter the fray. A split second later, one of the intruders fell, their lifeforce fading away. Luke finished his circle and stood aside as the heated metal dropped to the floor. He looked up the shaft and saw that the level he wanted was a few meters above the top of the lift. He could open those doors with the Force, he was sure. Another attacker fell as Luke pried the doors apart with a violent tug of the Force. He propelled himself up the shaft and into the exposed corridor, lightsaber blazing.
The moment his feet touched ground he was already hurtling down the hallway. Smoke filled the air, eclipsing the emergency lights; someone screamed out in the darkness.
"Mara!" Luke called, pushing himself to run faster. He still couldn't see her though the smoke, but in his mind's eye he saw her crumpled on the floor, clutching her leg and reaching for a lightsaber that was no longer there. He saw a blaster aimed at her heart.
"No!" He threw his body forward, slicing his saber in a downward arc. Through the haze, Luke saw half a blaster clatter to the floor, and in the space of a heartbeat a violet-colored whirlwind impaled Mara's attacker. Luke flinched at the sight, staring in disbelief as the stranger with the amethyst blade went back to blocking laser bolts.
A quiet moaning caught Luke's attention, and he spotted Mara lying on the floor, barely conscious. He knelt at her side and saw that she'd suffered a bad wound to her left thigh and a blow to the head. Sensing that the man with the lightsaber was tiring, Luke scooped Mara into his arms – despite her half-murmured protests – and took her around the corner and out of harm's way. He returned to the neck of the corridor, where the stranger had just taken out two more of the intruders.
A blaster bolt streaked by Luke's head, and when one of the remaining three intruders cried out, he realized that the royal guards had arrived at last. The smoke was beginning to clear, and Luke saw a woman fall to the floor.
"Rabé!" a younger woman screamed as the last intruder – a tall, husky man – dragged her toward the door of a hidden passageway that Luke didn't recognize. The girl kicked and struggled to break free, but to no avail.
"She's gone, Seda!" the man shouted, and they both disappeared through the door. The royal guards raced to cut the attackers off.
The man with the violet lightsaber collapsed to the ground, exhausted. Luke noticed that he was pressing his hand against a wound in his side.
"Luke?" came a hoarse whisper through the clamor of the retreating guards. He thought it was Mara at first, but the voice was accented and very weak. It took him a moment to realize it was the woman who had been shot, the one called Rabé. She moaned as she extended her hand, staring at Luke as if she thought she knew him. Her eyes lit up when he responded to her call. "It is Luke, after all."
Luke walked over and dropped to her side, transfixed by the way she seemed to recognize him. No one outside of the palace should even know his true name. "Who are you?" he whispered, wondering if this might be another of his bizarre visions. She spoke his name so tenderly, not like someone who would have tried to kill him.
The older woman smiled. "I wasn't sure if she still liked the name," she murmured, her rich accent touching a chord in Luke's heart. Her dark eyes were glazing over. "It had been so long since I'd talked to her, you see. But she always loved the name Luke. It means 'light,' and that's what you would have been to her."
"Who?" he urged. But the woman was already gone, her unfocused eyes looking past Luke, past the palace. The smile still clung to her lips.
He sat in stunned silence for a moment. He sensed movement behind him, and when he finally turned around, he saw the red-haired stranger crawling over to Mara.
"Hey!" Luke snapped, standing up. The man stopped and glanced up at him. As he did so, Mara stirred, her eyes fluttering open.
"Damnit, Shade," she grumbled, turning to look at Luke. "What took you so long?"
He gave her a faint grin. "You wanted my help?"
"Don't flatter yourself." Mara noticed the stranger near her. "Wasn't expecting to see you here."
Luke frowned. "You know him?"
Mara exchanged a look with the stranger. "This is Aidan Rennal, the Emperor's newest servant."
Rennal nodded. "You must be the prince." He winced and examined his side.
Luke sighed. "I need to get the two of you to the medbay. Come on."
As Mara allowed Luke to lift her off the floor, he felt something pummel his senses, nearly knocking him from his feet.
It was Leia.
"Luke?" Mara's voice was far away as he fell against the wall. Leia was in danger, but it was more than that. He sensed something else, something darker…
"No," he whispered.
"Luke, what is it?"
Father.
She was with their father, but something was wrong. The threads that tied them together… he could feel them unraveling, breaking apart in places, weakened by burning rage, cold determination, and betrayal. Though it felt like Leia and his father were only a short distance from each other, they had never been further apart. Whatever was happening, they were against one another now, possibly locked in a life or death struggle.
And he was helpless to stop it.
"Leia," he whispered. "Hear me."
She didn't answer.
.
.
Leia felt Cal coming up alongside her. She thought about telling him to break off, but she was honestly glad he'd come after her. She was about to fire on her own father, and even with everything that had happened, that was still a frightening thought.
"Cal, you take the one on the right." Leia closed her eyes for a moment and tried to release her anxiety. "I'm on the leader."
"Right."
Leia opened her eyes and locked onto Vader's signal. She fired several shots that came close to his wing. He dodged them easily, although she wasn't sure if it was his skill or her own reluctance that had spared him a more critical blow. She had to distract him long enough to keep him away from Wedge. The TIE in the trench would probably catch up to him, but she could tell from the way he handled his ship that he was the more experienced pilot. With Vader out of the picture, the Rebels would succeed. She wouldn't have to kill her father.
That didn't mean he wouldn't kill her, though.
She could feel him prowling around the edges of her mind. His dark, hazy presence, unreadable as always, closed off but still potent. The power hammered at her senses, demanding that she submit.
Never.
This time her laser fire exploded above his cockpit, burning off at least one layer of metal that glowed red for a second before being smothered by the vacuum. Vader didn't swerve or correct his course. He simply kept flying, accelerating forward. He wasn't afraid of her.
Of course he wasn't afraid.
Cal stayed close to Leia's wing, firing on his target. The TIEs were already widening the gap between them, moving too fast for them to catch. A few more seconds and they would be beyond reach of their cannons.
As she watched the glow of the ion engines grow steadily smaller and begin to dip back toward the trench, Leia realized her mistake.
"They're out of range!" Cal said in a panic. "I can't keep up!"
A burst of wicked satisfaction filled the Force around her. She watched helpless as Vader and his wingman dove straight at Wedge's X-wing.
The Alliance was lost.
.
.
"I can't keep up!"
Cal's static-edged voice echoed in the otherwise silent control room. There was nothing anyone could say or do now to affect the battle. Leia's presence had offered a brief ray of hope, but now it all came down to who had better aim – the TIE fighters or Wedge Antilles.
Javan gripped the edge of the display, staring along with the others at the wedge of red light that had enveloped the tiny circle representing Yavin 4. The display began to flash and beep.
"The Death Star has cleared the planet."
Javan glanced up at Dodonna and held his breath. He thought he heard someone chanting a prayer.
"The Death Star has cleared the planet."
.
.
"Rebel base in range."
Grand Moff Tarkin allowed himself a cold smile of satisfaction as he turned to General Bast. "You may fire when ready."
Bast nodded and signaled to the man at the comm.
"Commencing primary ignition," the gunnery officer replied over the comm. Somewhere deep within the battle station, the energy for the turbo laser was building.
Tarkin smiled again. Yes, this would indeed be a day long remembered.
.
.
The X-wing looked so tiny and fragile from up here. Leia reached out with the Force, tried to pull the TIE fighters back, tried to push Wedge's ship forward, but those actions were so far beyond her ability. The Force had failed her, had completely abandoned her.
Leia…
Her name, spoken across a bond created in the womb and strengthened by the Force, filled her with hope, with joy and longing. She imagined wrapping her fingers in Luke's, joined once more, stronger together than apart.
Luke!
She didn't need to explain anything to him. He knew everything, felt everything.
"Cal, Leia, get out of there!" Javan's voice broke her concentration for a moment, yanking her back to reality. Cal hadn't moved away from the battle station; he seemed to be in a daze, unable to fathom what was happening. Leia watched the TIE fighters closing in on Wedge and held her breath as she realized they only had a few seconds before the world ended.
It happened before she could even blink. There was an explosion in the trench that obscured her vision. She thought perhaps Wedge had fired early and missed, but then why did her mind ache from the force of her father's anger…?
"Yeeahooo!" Han Solo yelled over the comm, and she could picture him and Chewbacca and Aari punching the air with their fists as the Millennium Falcon soared over her, guns blazing. Vader's wingmate swerved to avoid the laser blasts, coming too close to his master.
Leia held her breath as the two TIE fighters bounced off each other, Vader's spinning away from the Death Star, the other tumbling straight into the Falcon's path. It burst into a million pieces, and the Falcon emerged on the other side, looping around for one last look at the Empire's secret weapon.
"You're all clear, kid, now let's blow this thing and go home!"
Leia felt an urgent tug through her twin bond and saw a brief mental image of the Death Star blowing Yavin 4 apart.
Leia, her brother whispered across light-years. Trust me.
I do.
She closed her eyes as Wedge fired the proton torpedoes. They raced toward the exhaust port, curving down, curving as she lifted her fingers and traced a path in the air. Luke filled her senses, adding his power to hers… she could feel he was tired, was exerting himself as much as he could…the torpedoes flew down the shaft, down to the core.
"Let's go!" Wedge called out, and Leia released her hold on the torpedoes. Together, the remaining X-wings blasted away from the Death Star, joining the Millennium Falcon as they flew toward Yavin 4.
The empty space around them seemed to warp and bend as the battle station exploded, creating ripples of energy that rocked their ships and ripples in the Force that screamed out in terror. The burning remains of the Death Star spun through space before finally going cold.
"Great shot, kid, that was one in a million!" Han's voice was elated, happier than she had heard it since she met him. She couldn't share those feelings, though. Not yet.
I had to, Luke, she whispered, ashamed that she had no tears for the millions of beings on the Death Star, men who, until recently, had been her allies. I had to choose. I'm not coming back.
Emotions tumbled across their twin bond, but the one she felt clearest was regret.
I know.
.