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OK, on to the next chapter...
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General Rieekan and the young Jedi apprentice were maintaining their vigil near Kief, thankful that the innocent man had stabilized and was recovering in the safe anonymity of his office, and at a faster pace than anticipated. But the tension from Han's unknown condition and dubious whereabouts had created some tension between Carlist and Luke...
"We've got to contact the Falcon - Leia and Chewie need to know about Han's situation," Luke insisted with a tight voice while double-checking the med-kit's intravenous drip in Kief's arm. They had wrangled about this topic a short time earlier with opposite points-of-view and each coming to a different conclusion.
The general weighed their limited options on an imaginary checklist before punctuating his thoughts with a frustrated sigh. "It seems unnecessarily cruel to saddle them with a predicament that they can't assist us with. The Falcon has got to be at least a standard hour away, and it's unlikely that they have transportation to get into town; we don't have the extra resources or time to go pick them up, either."
The Jedi apprentice recalled how Yoda had counseled him on the dangers of allowing his emotions to influence his actions, but the concept was much easier to emulate theoretically than in actuality...these were his friends. "Strategic and rational analyses aside, General, I believe they deserve to know what's going on" Luke asserted.
Carlist offered a compromise. "Let's comm Leia and Chewbacca as soon as we find Han. There's more than one skmara rat involved in this, Luke, and I'm hoping a little time and good fortune might shed some light on the guilty parties." The general didn't want to admit it, but he was counting heavily on Skywalker's Force sensitivity to locate the ex-smuggler – there wasn't much of a choice at the moment...
A throaty cough from Kief interrupted their debate, followed by a series of mumbled words from the old man's lips,"...mmah...Til...Thelen..." The store owner's eyes opened with a vacant and glassy stare, but they adjusted quickly at the sight of a familiar face hovering over him, along with a young man he'd never seen before.
General Rieekan greeted him with relief, but the severity of the situation drove him to press the marginally lucid man for answers. "Mr. Brehmer, it's good to have you back; I know you're still recovering, but we're trying to find out who drugged you - and we suspect they did the same to Han. We need to find him..."
Kief's eyes opened wide at the mature mans' mention of his godson. He struggled to regain control of the sporadically twitching muscles in his arms and legs, determined to force his tongue to cooperate with his brain. "...mmah...Til...Tilo...Thelen...Thelena's..."
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Where in Gods name is he?" The Princess hissed softly, plopping herself into the captains' chair in the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon while trying to maintain what little of her composure remained. What could Han possibly be up to? Kief was certainly a chatty gentleman, and Han understandably would want time to visit with his old friend, but not for this long...
Leia never envisioned herself as the type of girl to be sitting around pining for a tardy lover - and that was just what she was doing, she sighed in mild self-derision.
...I'll be so pissed if he's drunk...I'm going to give that Nerfherder a piece of my mind when he comes back; his ears will be burning for a week...
"Even taking into account a significant period of time for socializing with Mr. Brehmer, Captain Solo should have been back hours ago," The protocol droid clucked with apprehension, which only served to annoy the Princess further.
"Thank you for reminding me, 3PO,"Leia snapped back at the droid, a flurry of mottled brown fur catching the corner of her eye before the owner quickly changed directions and darted away down the access tunnel.
The Wookiee knew better than to walk into the tsal-hornets nest swarming in the cockpit, though he certainly didn't fault the Little Princess for her mounting concern; what was taking Cub so long to get back to camp, and why hadn't he responded to any of their comms? I hope he isn't off gambling with Kief somewhere...
As irritated as Leia was at Han, she still couldn't quell the increasing suspicion that something was terribly wrong. I'm getting paranoid now, but considering it's him... and Chewie and I are stuck here, with no way of getting ourselves into town...
The emergency hail roared in the Princess' ears at its first signal, causing Leia's stomach to leap in her throat and her pulse to pound in her ears. Finally, thank the Gods...
She didn't bother pausing to look at the identification code before pressing the acceptance toggle and blurting loudly, "Where the hell are you? You didn't respond to any of our comms," Leia's tone was harsh and slightly shaky, craving the reassurance of Han's baritone drawl she'd grown accustomed to being around almost constantly, over the course of their time on Corellia.
"Princess Leia, it's so wonderful to hear your voice after such an extended period of time – the Alliance has been extremely concerned about your well-being," Mon Mothma announced over-dramatically.
Leia eyes fluttered closed, wincing at the recognizable formal voice currently grating on her already frazzled nerves. This was the last think she needed right now...
The Princess didn't bother reciprocating an expected greeting to the High Council member. "Mon, you needn't have been so concerned - I'm fine for Heaven's sake," she offered hotly before biting down on her lip, preventing herself from inflicting a verbal lambasting on the pompous Rebel leader.
Mon's sigh of relief was audible as she began weaving her web of hopeful influence over the Princess. "I'm so glad to hear that, considering the circumstances. We knew you would be returning to the Alliance soon, but with the current unfortunate but scandalous situation, Jan and I assumed you might want an earlier exit strategy...I'm sure you realize it's best to avoid taint by association," she suggested with a patronizing tone.
Rubbing her pounding forehead and temples, Leia made her best attempt to shake the confusion forming in her distracted brain. "Mon, I'm very tired at the moment; can you please try to say whatever you are trying to say in Basic, please."
General Dodonna entered the verbal fray with his own degree of urgency mixed with disquietude. "My dearest Leia, haven't you read or seen any of the latest news from the holo networks?"
The Princess was annoyed to the point of screaming at their cryptic conversation, shaking her lowered head in exasperation. "No I haven't, and I don't have the faintest idea what you're hinting at."
Jan continued with a serious tone. "Enter in code 3464-21A in the Falcon's media comp; this is the most current update that we're aware of, concerning Captain Solo."
The reference to Han caused Leia's fingers to fly across the communication/media system that linked into the local holonews. Leia prematurely defended him in a flustered tone, "Han went into Pragada to pick up the special order parts for the hyperdrive this morning."
"And apparently some other things," Jan quipped with Mon shooting him a stifling glare for his left-handed comment.
The Princess' shocked mind initially rejected what her eyes were perceiving, blinking in disbelief at the still-holos appearing on the monitor. For what felt like an eternity she absorbed the latest local headlines...
"The notorious smuggler and known confederate of the Hutt syndicate, Captain Han Solo, is rumored to have been apprehended by bounty hunters after drunken debauchery at unnamed Pragada brothel..."
Her gaze tracked back to critically scrutinize the pornographic holos; there was no mistaking that the naked man was definitely Han ...besides the profile of his face, many of the distinctive scars marking his torso were plainly visible in his current state of undress.
A burning heat erupted all over the Princess' flushed skin and she was unable to control the constricting inside her chest, gaping at the images of Han - naked and in bed with two whores...
The first of the pictures showed one of the girls aggressively kissing Han, the next holo displaying his face buried in the second girls' breasts with her laughing and cradling his head with her hands. The final images showing all three tangled together and apparently sleeping off their inebriated orgy with Han smashed in between the two harlots...
It was the Rebel High Council member who first broke the deafening silence. "Princess Leia, are you still there?" Mon held her breath while waiting for Leia's reaction.
A reaction that she would not be privy to...
A watershed of tears blurred Leia's vision as a wave of pain pierced her heart and ripped through her stomach, her hand jerking up to clutch her neck before sliding upward to suppress a wail threatening to escape her mouth. She bolstered her resolve not to crumble in public, turning quickly to exit the cockpit.
A skittish C3PO responded in the Princess' sudden absence to the waiting Alliance leaders. "My apologies, General Dodonna and Ms. Mothma, but I believe Princess Leia has suddenly taken ill. Perhaps you could contact her at a later time."
Mon felt a tiny pang of guilt; but all of this was necessary, she reiterated to herself while trying to justify her and Jan's manipulative plan. Personal quests and private desires were subservient to the success of the Rebellion; eventually, she was certain the Princess would come to her senses and recognize this as well...
It was time at this juncture of their plan for General Dodonna to exert his authority over the protocol droid. "C3PO, Mon and I departed for Corellia shortly after we discovered the unfortunate news about Captain Solo. You must transmit the Falcon's geographic coordinates to us so we can find your base camp. As officers of the Alliance and close friends of the Princess, we want to offer her our assistance in person at this troubling time."
C3PO acquiesced, offering wholeheartedly, "I'm sure Princess Leia will be grateful for your friendship and concern."
Mon breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you, C3PO. Based on the coordinates you transferred, we should arrive at your camp in a little over a standard hour."
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After emptying her stomach in the 'fresher and a prolonged torrent of tears, the Princess refused to open the door to Chewbacca, no matter how much he begged. Leia knew that he would undoubtedly plead his best friend's case, and in her current mess of emotions there was no way she was willing to listen to the Wookiee's attempt to explain-away Han's despicable behavior...
He was getting nowhere with her, but Han's co-pilot still insisted emphatically from the opposite side of the locked portal that there had to be a mistake. *Cub loves you, Little Princess - he told me so. Please believe me - I know he'd never go to a place like that; we've got to figure out a way to find him!*
After everything they had went through together; after finally giving into her feelings and offering herself completely to Han, he betrayed her like this... The Princess felt like a fool, her indignation swiftly igniting into scornful fury. "Go away Chewie," Leia said while wiping away tears that continued to sting her swollen eyes. "Let one of his sluts bail him out," she spat before sitting down on their bed.
Their bed? Not anymore...
The Princess choked on the thought, pressing her fist to her mouth to suppress another round of sobs that were threatening to escape. The collection of pillows and blankets on the bed, and the erotic memories they evoked now mocked her.
...I hate him...and I love him too...
So the dreaded nightmare of him being apprehended by a bounty hunter had come to fruition. Was Han on his way in shackles to Jabba's palace? What would happen to him there? She had a pretty good idea - the thought of his fate driving her to more inconsolable tears.
The Princess' initial shock and anger subsiding momentarily, the rational part of Leia's brain now challenged her on the visual proof that had been presented in these holos. Some intangible sense, a tiny voice inside her, was telling Leia all was not as it seemed. Enmity versus devotion for the man she had fallen in love were locked in a momentous battle...
Retrieving the local news holos on her datapad, the Princess alternated between staring at Han's antiquated family photo and the obscene images of his apparent sex tryst. She gazed in growing disbelief of the evidence before her eyes. It just couldn't be true - after everything Han had said and everything they had shared...secrets and tears, laughter and joy, love and passion, and an intertwined hope for the future; their future...
Feeling light-headed, Leia fell back flat against the mattress as the vision overcame her, inhaling shallow breaths of oxygen into her lungs as she experienced a hard-to-describe heightened sense of awareness, palpably feeling Han's physical and emotional pain flowing through her...
He was laying on the floor in a lucid fog, with his wrists and ankles bound, a group of unrecognizable sentients lingering about, eating a quick bite and smoking during a game of Sabacc...
Grinding his teeth, anger filled Han - furious for being captured, disgusted at the fake sex holos his abductors had taken of him when he had been unconscious...
Then Han was thinking of her, his love burning like a supernova...and was heartsick that she would think he had been unfaithful...
Sprawled across the bed and breathing unevenly as the room slowly stopped its spinning, the sound of Mon Mothma's voice outside the cabins' door brought the Princess back to her surroundings.
"Leia, Dear - please join us in the lounge... or at least let me in so we can talk. I'm so worried about you. Jan and I have come to offer our help in anything you might need."
Sitting up unsteadily from the mattress, the Princess wiped her face with her palms and tried her best to collect her bearings. Leia was certain that Han was still planet-side...and that somehow she would find him...
The Princess approached the portal, depressing the manual locking mechanism and readying herself to ask those who planned on marrying her off to the highest bidder to help her locate and rescue Han. The door barely had time to open before Leia insisted, "Mon, we need to leave for Pragada..."