Chapter Twenty Four:
She wasn't sure what drew her from her peaceful darkness, but gradually the night faded to gray, lightening until all she had to do was open her eyes. Before she did so, however, she tried to recall what had happened.
Where was she? How had she gotten there? What was wrong with her?
A steady beeping held her attention for a time until she recognized it at last as a heart-rate monitor and then relaxed. Until that notion clicked.
Her eyes did open then, fluttering as if the job was too much for them at first. She blinked a few times and tried to filter the images and light she was now seeing. Leia sucked in a breath when her vision finally cleared enough for her to see that she was indeed in a medical room.
And not just that, but she was the one in the bed.
How...? Leia's thoughts were interrupted by a string of joyous bleeps and other mechanical noises. The princess turned her head and spied the familiar domed shape of Artoo Detoo approaching from where he appeared to have been waiting in a corner.
"Artoo?" Leia murmured, though it came out a little rough on the ears.
Dooeep! Artoo replied, coming close and peering at her with his optical sensor.
"Artoo, what's going on?" Leia asked worriedly. "Where am I?"
The X-wing was hit just before the jump to lightspeed, Artoo answered, making sure the data display was visible to her. You were knocked out, and I had to exit hyperspace early to avoid a critical meltdown. Lucky for you Rogue Squadron doesn't leave a man behind. Wedge came looking for you when I sent a distress beacon to his ship.
Leia blinked. "Oh." She looked at her body. It didn't look too bad... but then, she wasn't a medic. "Artoo, how long have I been unconscious?"
Two days now. Artoo mourned.
"Two days!" Leia cried, wincing at how the action hurt her dry throat. "This can't be happening! I should have been home already... Mother will know something is up, and will want an explanation." Leia shuddered. "Oh... and if she informs Father..."
Leia looked to Artoo, her eyes fearful. "What are we going to do?"
We will think of something, Mistress Leia, Artoo reassured her. Don't you worry. But for now, rest.
Leia slumped back against the mattress. "Do I have a choice?" she muttered.
Artoo bumped her arm gently, and despite herself the princess smiled somewhat. "Thank you Artoo, for looking out for me as always. I owe you big time."
At that moment the door opened, admitting a woman in medical clothing and a dark-haired man Leia recognized as Rogue Leader Wedge Antilles.
"Oh, you're awake!" The medic beamed. "It's good to see you aware again, Princess."
Leia shifted uncertainly. "I don't want to be a bother to anyone, especially since I know the Alliance isn't flush with supplies..."
Wedge held up a hand. "Hold up there, Princess. You earned the right to be taken care of in my book. Thanks to you the Alliance now has an abundance of supplies we were previously lacking and you were on the front lines. I don't know of many leaders who do that."
The medic nodded avidly. "Agreed. You just take it easy."
"I can't stay much linger, Miss..." Leia hesitated, not knowing the woman's name.
"Oh, my name is Heather," the dark-haired woman replied with a welcoming grin. "I've been looking after you." She approached. "I need to check your vitals, and then I will see about getting you something to eat."
Leia nodded and held still for Heather as the medic checked Leia, including the bandages she now saw were around her waist, arms and legs. "How badly was I injured?"
"You mostly had burns from the ship's damage, but there were some shrapnel injuries too from the initial hit to the ship. Oh, and your head took a nasty hit," Heather indicated the head wrap. "Luckily it was just a gash, noting too serious."
Leia thinned her lips, idly wondering if her brother had sensed her predicament. And if so... how had he taken it?
Heather finished her work and bowed out with the promise to return later. Leia thanked her and watched her go.
Wedge remained, moving closer and eyeing her oddly before Artoo blooped and drew the man's gaze. "I must say I have never seen such devotion in a droid before. He's hardly left your side since we recovered you."
Leia's smile was small but genuine. "Good old Artoo, he's been in the family for a while now. He's a good friend."
Wedge gave her a calculating glance. "You see him as a friend? He's just a droid..."
Leia grimaced. "Don't tell that to Artoo and especially not to my brother... Luke and Artoo are even better friends than I am with him."
Wedge tilted his head curiously. "Your brother? You mean Prince Luke?"
Leia nodded, wondering if she'd given away too much information, even if they knew of her twin.
"What's he like, if I may ask?" Wedge inquired, pulling up a chair. "All I know of the royal twins is what the press feeds us or what the Emperor and Empress allow to be known."
Leia blinked in surprise. "Why do you want to know, if I may ask?"
Wedge shrugged. "Idle curiosity." At Leia's dubious look, he snickered. "Alright, so maybe you aren't what I expected you to be... and if you aren't then maybe Prince Luke isn't either."
Leia felt an unexpected sense of camaraderie warm her and she took the risk and opened up. "Luke is such a gentle soul really, when you get past the mask he wears for our parent's benefit. He's an excellent pilot, and he is one of the best swordsmen I've ever seen, second only to our father. Luke can best his teachers in combat easily now."
Leia sighed softly as she went on. "He's also a great mechanic. Loves to tinker and work with his hands... him and Artoo have a habit of fixing rundown ships and such."
Wedge considered. "He seems nice... but he's also a killer, if I may be so bold."
Leia's eyes sharpened and Wedge flinched under that stare. "He is not a killer!"
Wedge held his ground, especially now that he had her off-kilter. She was more likely to slip up now if she was lying to him. "Yet he was clearly shown to be just that not so long ago. The entire galaxy saw it."
Leia ground her teeth. "You don't know the half of it, Antilles. You don't know what we've been through... but..." Leia hesitated again, and then sighed. "Luke isn't a monster at all, and he didn't want to kill that poor fellow either, let alone on live holovision. He actually hates killing, but... well, he does what is necessary."
Leia looked down. "We both do. It's how we've survived this long."
"Survived?" Wedge clarified, befuddled.
Leia offered a bittersweet lift of the lips. "Luke and I are royalty, but we're treated as prizes to be won and things to be shown off rather than children of the ruling couple."
"Oh," Wedge whispered, not sure how to respond to that.
"Don't try to offer sympathy," Leia pled softly as if reading his thoughts. "We don't want pity; just to be given the chance to prove ourselves away from our parents. We do things under their direction that we aren't proud of, but we also have little choice."
Leia's practical side was seriously wondering if she had hit her head harder than anyone realized. Why was she giving away so much personal information to a man she had only just met?
Wedge straightened and cleared his throat. "Hey, I won't go spilling the nitty gritty to everyone I see, Princess. I'm not like that. I may tell one or two of the Rogues, but they're good men that I trust with my life. And we owe you big time now, so... your secret is safe with me. With us. You're a Rogue now, even if you don't fly with us again."
Wedge carefully laid a hand on her arm. "And you can fly with us any time, Princess, especially after this last mission. You have gained the Rogues' trust, if nothing else. We believe you, and believe in you now. We'll do what we can to support you in your quest to help the Alliance."
A weight Leia hadn't realized was there lifted from her shoulders at that and she smiled warmly at the man. "Thank you very much, Commander."
"Wedge." He corrected. "Please call me Wedge, unless we're in public."
Leia nodded. "Likewise, you can call me Leia."
"Thank you; though forgive me if I choose to stick with Princess." Wedge winked in good fun. "Now, I believe you have some rest to get, and I am now keeping you from it. Good evening, Leia."
"Good night Wedge. And thank you."
00000
Luke stared at his reflection in the refresher, taking in the brown eyes and dark hair that had been his safe haven for weeks now. Luke had hidden his true identity for so long now that he almost didn't want to go back to his natural hair and eye color.
But it was time now. Time to stop hiding... and he couldn't shrink now. Not even when things got horrible, which he knew they would. With a heavy heart, Luke picked up the hair-dye removal and began the process of removing his disguise.
00000
Padmé rested her head back against the headrest at the back of the oversized bathtub, letting the hot water and plethora of scented bubbles soothe her. She breathed in the scent of smoke from the candles on the shelf beside her tub, and closed her eyes to let the quiet of her solitude settle upon her like a blanket.
She didn't want to think yet, to ponder on what could have possibly driven her daughter to lie to her mother and run off. What was Leia up to? Padmé had thought of little else since talking wither husband, and she only wanted some peace before she went crazy.
Using a technique her husband had taught her, Padmé cleared her mind and let it remain blank. She breathed in a sigh of relief and stayed that way for a very long time.
00000
Vader strode on to the bridge of the Super Star Destroyer Executor, noting the salutes and bows he got respectively as he passed the crew pits. Vader, willing to give his people a boost because this crew was excellent at performing any task he gave them, nodded to them in return.
When he reached the viewport, he stood before it, clasping his hands behind his back and taking a slow breath. The time was nearly at hand, he could feel it with every fiber of his being.
Soon he would reclaim his wayward son. Luke would be brought home... and then he would be punished. The boy's... vacation was over, and Luke would be put in his proper place. And if Vader could not persuade Luke to give in to the Dark Side on his own, then Vader was prepared to resort to... forcing the issue.
Even Luke wasn't strong enough to resist hssiss poison. No one was.
"Your Majesty," Grand Admiral Piett greeted as he joined his emperor.
"Admiral," Vader replied. "What do you have to report?"
"We are one hour from reversion, and the fleet is prepared to move into position immediately. We will have the trap set within two hours, Majesty."
Vader nodded, pleased. "Excellent work, Admiral. Once the Millennium Falcon arrives, I want it snared in a tractor beam. However, no one is to board that ship without me present, understood?"
"Yes Your Highness." Piett bowed his head.
"I will not have my son damaged, either, Admiral," Vader warned, pitting the Admiral with a pointed gaze. "Anyone who hurts him, or if the Falcon is destroyed instead of captured, the party responsible will find their lives torn apart piece by piece until they are the only ones left."
"I understand, Majesty," Piett answered calmly. It was one thing Vader respected about Piett: his ability to remain calm despite threats and such. It made him all the more valuable to Vader's forces.
"Also, I want you to keep an eye on Fett's ship." Vader continued. "If he tries anything then destroy him. I won't have him foiling my plans, deal or not."
Piett smiled somewhat, proof of his opinion of Fett. "As you wish, Your Majesty."
Vader dismissed the Admiral, who left to relay orders as needed, and Vader stood where he was the remainder of the hour in hyperspace. He was thus the first one to lay eyes on the planet below once the starlines became pinpricks in a black sky.
Reecee wasn't a planet with much galactic importance, which made it an ideal place for people to hide. But Vader wasn't interested in anyone save Luke.
He would reclaim his child today, or Force take him.