Bait
(3 ABY)
Two and a half Bespin days later, Serina and Lando were just discussing the terms Cloud City usually offered its customers, when the door to their small lounge opened to admit Lobot, Calrissian's administrative aide. "Sir, something has happened that needs your immediate attention."
With an apologetic expression on his face, Lando rose. "Business calls. If you would excuse me, I will hurry back as soon as the problem is solved. Will you be waiting for me?"
"I will be right here, just don't let me wait too long," Serina replied with a promising smile.
"I won't keep you waiting," Lando assured her as his aide ushered him out the door.
As soon as they had disappeared, Serina got up and pulled a thin black robe out of her small pocket bag. She slung it over her shoulders and dropped the bag into the garbage disposal by the door. The hallway outside was deserted. Lando and his aide were nowhere to be seen. Serina closed her eyes and concentrated on the impressions she was receiving through the Force. Her close acquaintance with the administrator allowed her to locate him quickly. He was moving away from her current location toward the area of the landing pads at the south of the administrative building. Pulling the hood of her robe deep into her face, she followed them unobtrusively, becoming one with the shadows of the early evening hours.
Two Imperial shuttles had set down on the largest of the landing pads. Stormtroopers had already disembarked and were now flanking the landing platform in honor of their much-feared leader. Although Lobot had informed him of the unexpected visitors, Lando had not been prepared for the terrifying sight of the Dark Lord now walking through the midst of his troops toward him.
Nobody noticed the black-robed figure in a small side corridor peering around the corner toward the open landing area. It was time to contact Boba Fett about Lord Vader's arrival, but Serina couldn't take her eyes of the Dark Lord who had stopped to talk to Calrissian. She hoped that he would follow her advice regarding the administrator. If not, she would find out quickly from Lando's reaction. When Calrissian turned to lead the Dark Lord to his offices, Serina faded back into the shadows.
Lando felt between a rock and a hard place. The deal Vader had offered him sounded quite advantageous, but he didn't trust the Sith Lord. He was willing to betray his longtime friend Solo - Vader had told him that he was only using Han to get somebody called Skywalker - but it was a high price to pay for Cloud City's independence. He tried to soothe his conscience by assuring himself that no harm would come to Solo or those friends of his. And, once the Dark Lord had caught this Skywalker guy, the Empire would depart, and everything would be as before. He shook his head in disgust: who was he kidding here, nothing would be as before, that he was certain of.
When he returned to the small lounge, he found his new acquaintance and prospective business partner gone. No wonder, he thought, two hours had been just too long to keep her waiting. He would visit her in her suite in the Yerith Bespin and apologize for his tardiness. Perhaps he could at least salvage this relationship, even if everything else went to pieces.
But Serina wasn't in her suite either. She probably went to get some dinner, Lando reasoned, I'll try it again in the morning. Then he turned and headed back for the administrative tower. He had provided the Dark Lord with some rooms in the Kerros Tower, not far from his offices. At least the stormtroopers stayed out of sight as promised; no need to get anybody upset about the Imperial presence ahead of time.
Suddenly, he stopped dead in his tracks. At the far end of the side corridor he had just passed, a movement had caught his attention. A black-robed figure was hurrying toward the rooms he had assigned Lord Vader. Somehow, the movements appeared quite familiar, but before he could take a closer look, the figure rounded the next corner. Lando quickly strode down the deserted corridor. As he stepped around the corner, he drew up short. The adjoining dead-end hallway was deserted except for a lone stormtrooper positioned in front of the room that had been assigned to the Sith Lord. Baffled, he shook his head. After a few moments, he turned around and resumed his walk toward his offices.
Although Serina realized that it might blow her cover, she had not been able to resist. The Millennium Falcon was not expected for at least another half Bespin day yet, she had informed Boba Fett of Lord Vader's arrival, and now there was nothing else for her to do. She hadn't been with her Dark Lord for more than two months now and seeing him at the landing pad had awakened every desire in her body. Just to be close to him for a few moments, she didn't even want more than that at this time. Certainly, he wouldn't mind.
The computer had given her the location of the rooms, Lando had provided for her master. It was the middle of the Bespin night and most of the corridors were deserted. The lighting had been turned down to the nighttime mode and she didn't notice any of the stormtroopers, even though they had to be stationed at the most important locations throughout the building. Quickly she hurried along the white-walled corridors.
When she approached the room, the computer had indicated to her, a white armored figure blocked her way.
"What do you want here? These rooms are off-limit for visitors."
Serina quickly considered her options. Of course, the stormtrooper didn't know her. Throughout the years, she had always kept a low profile and, outside of some of the highest officers mainly at the castle on Imperial Center and her master's flagship, only very few had come to know her and her position as Vader's aide. But she didn't have much time. She was aware that Lando had noticed her moments earlier and he would soon reach the corner behind her. To wait for the guard to contact Vader for approval would take far too long. That left her with only one option. "I am no visitor," she addressed the soldier while reaching out through the Force for his mind, "I may pass now."
For a second the guard hesitated, then he stepped aside. "You are no visitor, you may pass now," he repeated the thought she had planted in his mind. The door behind him swished open and Serina quickly stepped through. She had made it just in time. Let Lando wonder where she had disappeared to, all that concerned her now was the dark unmoving figure seated in a large comfortable chair in the middle of the room.
The only illumination came from the lights of the surrounding buildings but Serina did not need any illumination to find the way to her master's side. His evil presence drew her like an irresistible magnet. She didn't wait for him to acknowledge her presence but sat down on the floor beside his chair. He wasn't sleeping, he seldom did, but he was in deep meditation and she didn't want to disturb his concentration. Serina assumed the meditative position Tantra had taught her such a long time ago and closed her eyes. Reaching out to the living Force around her and immersing herself in the darkness emanating from the man beside her, she allowed her thoughts to ponder the events at hand...
Lightsabers were flashing, nothing could be heard but the grunting of the combatants and the wheezing of the breath mask. Slowly, the fight moved out onto a gantry jutting outward into an immense reactor shaft. The young man tried to take refuge beneath a huge instrument panel, but his black-cloaked opponent chopped down, cutting the instrument complex loose. An instant of distraction was all the Dark Lord needed to send the young man's hand and weapon flying down into the vastness below. The youth had now reached the extreme end of the gantry and had nowhere else to go.
A strong wind carried away most of the words exchanged between the two figures, but suddenly the wind subsided.
"Obi-Wan never told you what happened to your father!" the black, towering figure taunted the young man.
"He told me enough! He told me you killed him."
"No," the dark warrior replied calmly. "I am your father."
The agony the young man felt was clearly visible from the expression on his face. But the physical pain was nothing in comparison to the horror growing in his soul.
Long moments passed, then the Dark Lord extended a steady and inviting hand to his son. "Come with me. It is the only way."
An inner calmness overcame the young man's expression as he made his decision. "Never!" he shouted and plunged into the empty abyss beneath him...
The touch of a gloved hand on her shoulder drove the remnants of the vision from Serina's mind. She looked up at the dark figure in the chair beside her. A glance at the chronometer on her wrist told her that it was getting late: only a little over three hours until the anticipated arrival of the Millennium Falcon. Her vision left her quite uneasy regarding the upcoming events. Had she seen the future that would happen or only a possibility that might come to pass? As always, there was no certainty.
Darkness was still upon the floating city when Vader got up and stood in front of the large window. Serina stepped up to his side and he put his arm around her waist drawing her close to him. His touch sent a warm wave through her body, but it would have to wait until they returned to the Executor, with or without Luke.
"I have gone along with your suggestion. So far, Calrissian seems to react as you have anticipated."
"If you don't push him too fast too far, everything will proceed as you have planned, Master. Your son will come. I have foreseen it." That she had also foreseen Luke resisting Vader's attempts to draw him to the dark side, Serina was not about to mention. "What do you want me to do now, Master?"
"Keep up your farce toward Calrissian as long as possible. Should he consider deceit, let me know about it immediately."
"As you wish, Master. I should return to my own rooms now. Solo will arrive soon."
"Not that soon." A shudder went through Serina's body as his powerful presence in the Force engulfed her drawing her deeper into the dark side. She could feel the immense power it had to offer right at her fingertips. All she had to do was open up to it and let it take control of her. Then the opportunity was gone as Vader abruptly released her out of his mental embrace.
The first signs of dawn could be seen on the faraway horizon when Serina stepped out of the room and hurried along the white-walled corridors toward the passage leading to her hotel. Lando would be quite busy during the coming day. It would be difficult to complete the task Lord Vader had given her, but, as always, she would find a way.
Several hours and an extensive breakfast later, Serina was again on her way toward Lando's office. Lobot, Calrissian's aide, informed her politely that the administrator was currently unavailable due to the arrival of some unexpected old friends, but that he would get back to her as soon as he had a spare minute.
Without a specific goal in mind, Serina started to roam the corridors of the large administrative tower, when she suddenly heard Lando's voice approaching from one of the side corridors. Quickly she stepped into a small communications booth and waited until the group consisting of Lando, Solo, the princess from Alderaan, and the Wookie had passed. Slowly she followed them, always keeping enough distance from the group to stay out of their sight. After some turns, Lobot joined them and together they were heading for Lando's main dining hall.
Serina hid behind one of the pillars across from the dining hall to watch what was going to happen next. She could perceive Vader's presence behind the closed doors. Then the events started to press one another. The door opened to reveal the Dark Lord, Han tried to shoot at him, but to no avail, and from the side corridors a whole contingent of stormtroopers emerged their weapons aimed at the rebels now trapped in the middle.
The troopers disappeared quickly back into their hiding places as soon as the dining hall doors had slid shut behind the small group. No evidence remained of what had just happened.
During the following hours, Serina had to depend solely on her perception of the Dark Lord's presence to trail the group's movement down to the lower sections of the city. Vader had ordered the installation of a torture rack in a small cell and now he was going to use it on Han Solo. Serina realized quite well that it wasn't Vader's purpose to extract any information from the Corellian, but Luke would be able to sense his friend's pain. It would ensure that he would come as quickly as possible.
But she was also aware of other, more base emotions in the Dark Lord regarding Solo. The smuggler had caused Vader's TIE to be disabled during the fight at the Death Star; during the years that followed, he had been responsible for several defeats Vader had to experience in his fight against the rebellion; and he had eluded capture more often than any other living being outside of Luke Skywalker. For her master, it was a deeply satisfying pleasure to punish the smart-mouthed smuggler for all the trouble he had caused him throughout the years.
When he had seen enough, the Dark Lord turned his back on the writhing figure and left the cell. Now it was time to inform the administrator of a small change in the conditions of their arrangement.
Lando was sorely pleased with the newest development. "That was never a condition of our agreement, nor was giving Han to this bounty hunter," he complained.
"Perhaps you think you're being treated unfairly," Vader commented dryly.
"No," Lando quickly assured him with a glance at his aide.
"Good, it would be most unfortunate if I had to leave a permanent garrison here," Vader continued with a veiled threat before entering the waiting turbolift.
Taking his aide with him, Lando strode swiftly down a white-walled corridor to return to his office. He would have to work on a contingency plan for the case that the Dark Lord planned on changing the agreement any further. Still considering the actions he should take, he rounded another corner and ran smack into Serina.
"Madam Wanders, I was just going to call on you," he tried to cover up his surprise. "I am so sorry to have kept you waiting last night, but some very unpleasant business required my full attention."
"Any problems that could affect our future business relation?" Serina asked with the tone of a worried customer in her voice as she took his proffered arm.
"At this point, I am sure our operation will not be affected by the current minor problem. But should the problem develop into anything larger, you will be the first to find out," he tried to assure her, but the expression on her face proved that it hadn't been very effective. "Would you care for some refreshments? We can continue our conversation from yesterday evening if you are still interested in establishing business relations with us." With his best gentleman manners, he escorted her back to his office.
She took a seat on the couch in the middle of the spacious room while Lando called up some information on his computer terminal. Then he sent his aide to order some refreshments and sat down beside her. When they were finally alone, Serina leaned close to the administrator. After a quick glance around, she spoke to him in a low conspiratorial voice. "I have seen something while I was looking for you. I don't know if it has anything to do with your current minor problem, but there seem to be ..." and she leaned even closer, her voice barely above a whisper, "Imperials in your city." The look she gave him contained concern mingled with fear.
Replying in the same low voice, Lando confirmed her suspicion. "You are right, but I am still working on a deal to solve that problem, hopefully forever. However," his face took on a worried expression, "should this deal go sour on me, we will have to get out of here quickly. I tell you what, do you have a comlink on you?"
"No, at least not at this moment. I can get one from my ship."
"That won't be necessary," Lando got up and walked over to his desk. He took a small unit out of one of the drawers and handed it to her. "This is just a precaution. I have just set up an emergency plan for myself and should I have to resort to it, I will give you a signal. How about we make it two short and three long beeps as a sign that you should get out of here immediately, and one long and one short one if the problem is solved?"
The door opened and Lando's aide returned followed by a small droid carrying a tray with refreshments. Lobot motioned Calrissian aside, whispered something into his ear, and left again after having received some instructions from the administrator. Lando turned back to his guest.
"Madam Wanders, if you would please excuse me now? I have to look after my old friends who arrived a short time ago. If everything turns out as I still hope it will, I'll be seeing you shortly, otherwise ..."
"I'm sure our ways will cross again no matter how your little deal turns out," Serina told him as he bid her farewell and left the office.
Picking up one of the glasses with a slightly tangy juice, she moved over to Lando's desk. With the code, she had used to hack into the system two days earlier, she called up the information Lando had accessed last from the central computer. Ah, she thought, the status of the Falcon. So, his emergency plan involved Solo's ship. No wonder, after all, it had once belonged to Calrissian. He had to still be quite familiar with it. The other information had to do with the work on one of the carbon-freezing chambers. It seemed as if it was in the process of getting its usage adjusted to freezing humans?! Now, what in the world was her master planning on now? Perhaps freezing Luke? Serina shook her head. She had been confronted with Vader's somewhat eccentric ideas at various occasions, but this idea was about the craziest she had heard of yet.
Quickly, she called up the location of the facility as well as a map of the surrounding area. It was located on one of the lower levels close to the enormous reactor shaft that ran through the core of the city.
On a hunch, she called up the location of the nearest gantry leading into the reactor shaft. There it was, only a few meters below the control room just adjacent to the freezing chamber. The vision from the night before came back to her mind. She was convinced: this was the location where the upcoming fight would take place. Again, she studied the schematics of the surrounding rooms. There were several chambers with large windows giving a good view of the reactor shaft. She selected one of them, then determined the route she would have to take to get there and then back again to her ship.
Finally satisfied with the information she had gathered, she returned the terminal to its original state and left the office. Luke had to be on his way already. Soon, she should be able to feel the disturbance he'd cause in the Force during his approach to the floating city. There were still a few things to manage: she had to get her message to Vader, check out of the hotel, and prepare her ship for take-off. Then she would take up her position in the room she had decided on and wait. She was convinced she wouldn't have to wait too long.
"Lord Vader, we just received a message from the StarLady." The voice from the comlink sounded afraid of having interrupted the Dark Lord in some important business. Vader was still down in the carbon-freezing chamber watching the ongoing preparations. Lando was supposed to join him shortly. Moving to a secluded area so that nobody could overhear the incoming message, he replied. "Go ahead, Executor."
"Lady Serina gave us the following information to pass on to you: Subject still in good hope, but emergency plan exists involving Falcon, one more change will cause action. That what all, Lord Vader."
"Get me Admiral Piett," Vader commanded.
After a short moment, Piett answered the call. "Lord Vader."
"Admiral, send somebody to ensure that the hyperdrive of the Millennium Falcon gets deactivated."
"Yes, Lord Vader, I will send somebody immediately."
He had just cut the connection when the administrator stepped out of the turbolift and started walking toward him. Calrissian would not like the changes he had in mind - that was for certain -, but thanks to Serina, his contingency plan would no longer provide a way of escape for him.
It had already been some minutes since Lando had sent the prearranged signal. Two short and three long beeps had informed her that his emergency plan had gone into action. Serina closed her eyes and reach out through the Force to her Dark Lord. Yes, he had engaged Luke in a fight already. And they were moving toward the reactor shaft at this moment.
She opened her eyes just in time to see the huge window of the control room above the gantry shatter. Everything in the room was quickly getting blown out into the vast cavity including the body of a young Jedi. She had to do something, or he would be sucked into the immense abyss below. Using the Force, she grabbed his tossed-about body and directed it toward a beam jutting out from the gantry. His hand grasped the metal at the last moment. Good, Serina thought, the rest he will have to do himself. With growing anxiety, she watched as her nightly vision turned into brutal reality.
Finally, Luke made his decision. "Never," he shouted at the Sith Lord and let himself drop into the empty abyss below him. When Vader turned and hurried off the platform, Serina knew it was time to get back to her ship. Her task on Bespin was completed. She sensed that Luke had survived the plunge into the reactor shaft. Now all she could hope for was that he would escape capture somehow. In his current weakened state, it would be an easy task for Vader to turn him to the dark side, provided of course, that he got the young Jedi into his hands.
The Executor had moved out of its hiding place behind the gas giant to pick up Lord Vader's shuttle and had taken up the pursuit of the fleeing Falcon. When Serina approached the immense Star Destroyer, she could sense the presence of Luke on the YT-1300 freighter. Somehow, Leia and her companions had managed to rescue the beaten young Jedi from the bottom of the floating city, but soon the Executor would engage her tractor beam to pull the smaller vessel into the huge cavity on its bottom. Then suddenly, the freighter tilted and accelerated, before vanishing into hyperspace.
Perhaps, I better take my time now, Serina thought as she eased the StarLady closer to the mighty bulk of Vader's flagship. Her dark master's mood would be a lot worse than usual for the next couple of days, that she was certain of.