Chapter 23- Returning and Victory Celebration
Lena and Luke left their X-wings as technicians and other members of the Rebel Alliance came running into the hangar with loud cheers. "Hey!" Luke and Lena both shouted as they saw Leia and the three of them hugged each other. Lena then saw her father and Cora and she brought the two of them into the hug. Talon hugged first Lena and then Luke.
"Hey! Hey!" Han's voice carried across the hangar as he ran to them and hugged first Luke and then Leia and Lena.
"I knew you'd come back. I just knew it," Luke said jubilantly.
"Well, I wasn't going to let you and the princess get all the credit and take all of the reward," Han said, giving Luke a playful slap to his face.
"Hey, Me and Leia knew there was more to you than money," Lena said as she broke out of Talon's hug and hugged Han. The smile faded from her face as she looked up. R2-D2 was an absolute mess. Vader had come really close to frying the little droid.
"Oh no!" Luke said as the techs lowered the droid.
"Oh, my. R2, can you hear me? Say something. You can repair him, can't you, Master Cail?" Threepio asked Talon.
"We'll get to work on him right away," Talon said as the techs put him on a droid gurney. As much as her father despised mechanics, he was very adept at fixing them.
"You must repair him. Sir, Your Highness, if any of my circuits or gears will help, I'll gladly donate them," Threepio said to Luke and Lena in what sounded like near tears for a droid.
"He'll be all right," Luke said, touching Threepio's metal shoulder gently and he, Han, Leia, Lena, and Cora left the hangar.
Talon and Cora stood on the dais next to Leia and Dodonna as the doors at the end of the walkway opened and Solo, Luke, Chewbacca, and Lena walked into the throne room. Talon felt a surge of pride as he looked at Lena. Lena looked every inch the Jedi he had raised. Her robes had been cleaned from her trip in the garbage chute on the Death Star and her lightsaber was hanging from a weapons holster on her waist. Talon felt a smile as Lena, the two men, and the Wookie walked up to the dais, the fighters in the room, snapping to attention.
Leia smiled at Luke and Han as she hung medals around their necks and Lena broke from her place next to Luke and stood next to Talon and Cora. Lena had refused the medal as Jedi were meant to be selfless and not take awards like that for doing a good deed. Luke and Han inclined their heads to Leia and Luke, Leia, and Lena all looked over to where C-3PO stood, next to, a fully repaired R2-D2 who was moving and gyrating to beat the Corellian band along with toots and whistles. Lena grinned along with Luke and Leia as Threepio put a restraining golden hand on Artoo's domed head.
They all turned back to face the fighters, who applauded. Talon looked over at his daughter. Knowing Vader and from what the Force was telling him, it wouldn't take long for Vader to figure out who Luke and Lena were. Palpatine would insist that Vader find the two pilots that destroyed the Death Star and Vader had to have known they were Force-sensitive. This would mean that the base would have to move locations again. Since Talon and Dodonna were the heads of the Rebellion it wouldn't take long to figure out a new location.