Chapter 25

Silent Screams

His arms ached and his circulation, as well as his hunger pangs, had stopped hours ago. He tried to grab the overhead pipe and pull himself up to a different position, but both his hands were numb. What he wanted most, though, was a drop of water… anything to soothe his parched throat. He was at the point where he wanted something to happen, whether good or bad. He couldn't stand the waiting anymore. He was about to get his wish.

The deadline was reached and Delvardus strode into the room with a large whip in his hands. He was a collector of ancient as well as modern weapons and had a variety of devices at his disposal. He nodded to his camera crew and the show was on. Delvardus unfurled the whip and practiced flinging it several times. Rather than the one strand black lash of the neuronic whip, this one had five strands. When activated, they glowed a beautiful shade of red. The light show of the flinging whip mesmerized Don and he almost forgot its purpose. Without warning Delvardus flung the whip across Don's chest and he screamed in agony. He was determined not to scream again.

"Please take note all criminals of the galaxy. Should you choose to engage in illegal activities, you will be punished to the fullest extent of imperial law. This young man, whether misguided or evil, will pay for his crime. His comrades have failed to show themselves, and he will bear their punishment as well. And so we begin."

The Lady Luck was docking on Fondor and Luke did his best to pull Judy away from the holonet, but she refused to move until the transmission was complete. Her first thought was that there was no blood, but she realized that the lasers would cauterize the wounds before they bled. Her next thought was that the arcs of red light were hypnotizing and she wondered if she were going insane. Her eyes then locked onto Don's face with his eyes squeezed shut and his lips holding back the screams that still managed to echo in her head over, and over, and over.

General Riekaan boarded the ship and stood behind her. He came to tell them that the Falcon would be docking, as Lando had predicted, earlier than expected. He hoped that this would bring some comfort to Judy, but he couldn't bring himself to intrude on her attention to the screen. He placed his hands on her shoulders hoping he could help her carry some of the pain.

Although their younger children had survived many hardships on their journeys, they wouldn't allow them to view Don's brutal punishment. Maureen believed that exposing them to the torture of someone so close to them would serve no purpose. She and John, however, were glued to the screen and realized that, as traumatic as it was for them to view, it must be horrendous for their daughter.

"Maureen, will she be all right?" John asked his wife.

"She's strong, John, but this is… this…" She couldn't come up with the words.

"Inhuman." John finished.

He grit his teeth to keep his screams inside. He knew she was watching and it was the only thing he could do to lessen her distress. He had lost count. Were they up to eight or ten? He could smell his own burning flesh and thought that there couldn't have been a spot on his body that hadn't been touched. He couldn't take much more and prayed that he'd pass out.

"Enough. We do not punish beyond tolerance. He will recover in a short period of time and we will continue. Until then…"

Don did his best to open his eyes and look into the camera to reassure his friends and 'family." He hoped that she saw and was heartened. It was all he could do.

While the Lady Luck was being unloaded at Fondor, Judy, Luke and General Riekaan awaited the arrival of the Falcon and Jupiter. They two ships arrived simultaneously and powered down. John and Maureen rushed down the ramp to hug their daughter. Her siblings were uncharacteristically quiet as they did the same.

Han and Leia descended from the Falcon hand in hand and were greeted by Luke and Riekaan.

"How's she doin'?" Han asked.

"As well as could be expected," Carlist replied.

"She watched the punishment, didn't she," Leia stated.

"Wouldn't you have?" Luke asked.

She didn't have to reply. Of course she knew he was right.

Planning the rescue was not the problem. Assigning the personnel was. Han and Chewie insisted that they would be most effective working alone. They finally conceded that having Luke's assistance would be helpful. Lando would not be dissuaded from being a part of the team since he still held some guilt that, though he had been correct in leaving, he was responsible for Don's situation. Professor Robinson argued that Don was family and he had a right to be on the team. Of course Leia and Judy were also adamant that they were needed.

The basis of the plan was that the Jupiter would be parked on Kiffex, an out of the way planet closest to Thyferra. It was finally resolved that John, Maureen and Leia would prepare the bacta tank and medical supplies. Judy, Lando, Luke, Han and Chewie would travel on the Falcon, and Han hoped that they would be able to convince Judy to stay on board while they left to rescue their friend.

As they prepared to board their respective vehicles, Leia froze. A brief yet strong vision of Han, bleeding and in pain flashed through her mind. She felt a scream well up inside of her and hugged herself to stop it from escaping. She grabbed Han's hand in a vise-like grip.

"I'm coming with you," she robotically stated.

"Leia, you can't," Han replied.

She stared at him. She had the look that told him arguing would be futile. General Riekaan was then drafted to travel with the Robinsons and Leia boarded the Falcon.

Han and Chewie prepared to lift-off. He looked at Chewie. "Now I'll have two women to convince that they need to wait on the ship."

["Han, if anyone can convince the women of their place, it is not you. Lando will be more convincing. Failing that, I am sure that I can be quite persuasive with them."

"Yeah, when all else fails, count on the Wookie…"