Hello, everyone! Welcome to Chapter 5! Apologies for the lengthy delay. As always, make sure you favorite, follow, and review! :)

Imperial starships were right on their tails. "Now what do we do?" Leia asked.

"Han?" said Mia. "Does this ship have an extra gunner?"

"Yeah, it has two of them. Why?" Han replied.

"You try to outmaneuver them and we'll hold them off! Leia, come on!" She raced down the hallway of the ship, Leia at her heels, and into the gunner chairs. They strapped themselves in and began to fire at the smaller TIE fighters that were chasing them, even knocking out a few. "You're welcome," she said upon returning.

"Looks like you're useful after all, Your Highness," Han chuckled.

"They're getting closer!" yelled Leia.

"Alright, watch this!" Han pressed a button and pulled a lever, but nothing happened.

"Uhh…was something supposed to happen?" Mia asked.

"Yeah, we were supposed to jump to lightspeed…" Han murmured. "Oh boy, we're in trouble."

"I noticed earlier Sir," said 3-PO. "The hyperdrive motivator has been damaged. Its impossible to make the jump to lightspeed. Han wordlessly got up and put the ship in autopilot. Mia and Leia sat close together, clasping their hands. A blast to the ship shook everything.

"Han!" yelled Leia. "Get back up here!" Han took his seat back in the pilots' chair and changed their direction. Soon, asteroids were floating by them. "Don't tell me we're going into the asteroid field!" Leia shouted.

"They'd be crazy to follow us, wouldn't they?" Han fired back.

"Sir," began 3-PO. "The possibility of successfully navigating an asteroid field is –,"

"Never tell me the odds!" Han yelled. Asteroids of all shapes and sizes flew past the ship. Han spun the Falcon in all sorts of curves and angles. Several of the TIE fighters that were following them were directed right into the rocks, smashing into flames. Suddenly, green lasers blasted asteroid that were in the remaining TIE fighters' way. It was a star destroyer. Chewie grumbled in terror. Han took a turn and weaved the Falcon in between the bigger asteroids. He ended up getting too close to the smaller ones. One of them came down on the top of the ship with a crunch. Han turned to Leia who was frozen in her seat.

"You said you wanted to be around when I made a mistake?" he said. "Well, this could be it!"

"I take it back!" Leia cried. "We're going to be pulverized if we stay out here any longer!"

"I'm not going to argue with that!" Mia cried, her knuckles going white from gripping on her seat.

"Alright, I'm going in closer to one of the big ones," said Han, surprisingly calm.

"Closer?!" exclaimed Mia and Leia simultaneously. Han took a dive towards one of the bigger rocks, with the TIE fighters pursuing. Right when the Falcon was about to collide with the surface, Han pulled up just in time. The Imperial foes were not so lucky and the crashed onto the surface.

"This is suicide!" 3-PO exclaimed hysterically.

"Oh, I'm so scared!" Vee cried. She flew into Mia's lap where she sat shivering (if a droid could shiver). A beeping on the screen caught Han's attention.

"Yeah, that'll do nicely." He said in a voce barely above a whisper.

"Where are we going?" asked Mia. Her question was soon answered. Han had spotted a large crater in one of the asteroids and led the Falcon right into it.

"I hope you know what you're doing." said Leia.

"Yeah, me too," Mia added.

"Don't worry, ladies," Han said with confidence. "Of course, I do." The Falcon glided into the crater and turned into a small cave. It was so dark inside that the exact dimensions of the cave were impossible to see and there was no light. "I'm shutting down all systems except for the emergency power." Han explained as he rose from his seat and began flipping switches everywhere in the cockpit. "3-PO, find out what's wrong with the hyperdrive." he ordered.

"I do not think that this asteroid is stable, Sir," argued the golden droid.

"Chewie, take the professor and plug him in." The Wookie followed his orders, 3-PO protesting the entire way. The ship then suddenly gave a lurch. Mia was white knuckled as she gripped her seat. Leia took a tumble right into Han's arms. They stared into each other's eyes.

"Let go, please," Leia said. It was uttered rather half-heartedly, almost as if she actually didn't want him to.

"Don't get excited, sweetheart," Han grinned wickedly. Leia's anger rose.

"Being held by you isn't nearly enough to get me excited, Captain." she snapped. Han let her go, still grinning.

"Well, we haven't got time for anything else." With that, he began to make his way out of the cockpit and into the middle of the ship. Leia sat down and rubbed her temples with a sigh.

"That man is exhausting!" she said. Mia, who had watched the whole scene unfold, giggled. "What's so funny?" Leia asked.

"You two are so obviously in love with each other, its hilarious." Mia replied.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Leia defended. Mia was beginning to think that that was her favorite phrase.

"Come on, Leia," Mia probed. "I see the way he looks at you. And the way that you look at him." Leia said nothing. She just blushed and averted Mia's gaze. "Even Luke can tell."

"Fine, fine," Leia caved. "I'm in love with Han, alright? There's just something about him. He keeps me on my toes and drives me absolutely insane. I can't bare to see or talk to him, but when I'm apart from him all I want is for him to hold me."

"The princess confesses!" Mia said. "Han feels the same, you know."

"I'm not so sure about that," Leia frowned. "He has a way with women. Many women."

"I don't think he'd be trying so hard to impress you if he wasn't," Mia replied. "Why else would he go into the asteroid field if not to gain your approval? He might be roguish but he's not without common sense." Leia finally met her eyes and smirked at Mia.

"Well, what about you and Luke?" she said. Mia instantly felt her cheeks go scarlet. "I heard what you said in the medical ward."

"No, no," she said. "Luke and I are just friends, nothing more."

"Right," Leia said. "And Han is secretly married to 3-PO. There's a real reason he asked you to come to Dagobah."

"What about the other night, Your Majesty?" Vee interjected, ascending off her lap and floating between her and Leia.

"What are you talking about?" Mia asked confused.

"You don't recall, Your Majesty?"

"Recall what?" Vee didn't reply and instead her screen flashed to an audio bar. A few seconds of silence passed and then there came the sound of soft breathing.

"What am I supposed to-?" Mia was interrupted by a sound on the audio file. There was a single whisper. A name. "Luke". Mia turned redder than a Gungan's tongue. She had whispered Luke's name in her sleep. She was dreaming about him, as she now recalled. Vee's screen turned back to normal and Leia immediately burst into laughter.

"I knew it!" she said. When her fits subsided, she wiped tears from her eyes. "Looks like we're both in the same boat."

"Alright, I admit it. I'm attracted to Luke. It's a bit of a stretch to say that I'm in love with him but I still can't stop thinking about him. Now he's on Dagobah doing who knows what with whom."

"Men are amazing, aren't they?" Leia mused. "They make us have feelings for them but then have no idea whether they want us or not. If they didn't want us to love them then they wouldn't be so charming."

"You can say that again." Mia agreed. Leia was about to reply when Han gave a yell from the interior of the ship.

"Your Highnesses, I might need your help!" he said.

"Come on," said Leia, extending a hand to help Mia up from her seat. "Let's go see what the man who always claims he knows what he's doing can't do without a woman's help." They made their way to where Han was working. He was trying to fix a valve that was obviously giving him trouble. "Alright Han, what is it?" she asked, annoyed.

"Apparently, the negative power coupling needs to be replaced but it's really a three-person job…" he said rather sheepishly.

"So, what do you need us to do?" Mia asked. Han perked up at her enthusiasm.

"Just try to get these valves welded good and tight to re engage the system."

"Right," replied Leia as he said nothing more to put on a welding mask. She tossed one to Mia, who put it on dutifully and squeezed herself as far back as she could go into the opening. There was scarcely room for her to move around. She opened a cabinet and found a welding gun. She had no idea what she was doing. She peeked around the corner and followed Leia's example. Mia found herself wishing she could carry just as much confidence as Leia. It was inspirational how she always knew what to do. Nevertheless, she picked up the welding gun and tried her best to weld the cracks in the pipes together, with Vee's assistance. She burned herself a couple of times. After a particularly bad one she put down the gun and was about to go back up to the front of the ship to tend to her wound when something stopped her in her tracks. Han was leaning over Leia, grasping her hand. She made no move to get away, although she was technically pinned against the wall. They were speaking to each other, but they were so quiet that Mia couldn't make out what they were saying. When Leia was in the middle of saying something, Han closed the distance and kissed her slow and gentle, Leia visibly melting under him. Mia thought it best to look away and give them privacy. Unfortunately, there's always an invasion of such things. And in this case, it was a droid named C-3PO.

"Sir!" came his voice. "I've isolated the reverse power flex coupling!"

"Thank you," growled Han in an icy, irritated tone. "Thank you very much."

"Oh, you're perfectly welcome, Sir!" said 3PO, proudly. Han's angry footsteps stomped out of the hallway.

"I know you saw that, Mia," Leia said.

"I don't know what you're talking about. I was busy working." Mia lied. She shimmied herself back down to Leia. When Mia looked in her eyes, she could see the hidden joy. Both girls' faces broke out into wide smiles. They squealed and grasped each other's hands like schoolgirls, jumping up and down as much as they could. Leia pulled her into a hug.

"You were right, Mia," she whispered. "Somehow."

"I just had a feeling," Mia shrugged.

"Maybe you do have the Force," Leia mused. "Able to know things that most can't."

"Now you sound like Luke," she giggled, pulling apart from Leia. Suddenly, Mia's head snapped up. She felt herself being drawn to the cockpit. As she slowly approached the control panel a soft, suction-like cup attached itself to the window. She placed her hand on the window to look closer. Then, a pair of large yellow eyes opened and stared back at her. Mia gasped and jumped back. "Leia!" she called.

"What is it? What's wrong?" Leia came running. Mia turned back to look at the window but the eyes were gone. "Mia, are you okay?" Leia asked gently, putting a hand on Mia's shoulder. Mia didn't answer. She raced out of the cockpit, Leia trailing behind her, confused. Mia went into the cabin and found Han working on some wires with Chewie and 3-PO.

"There's something out there!" Mia exclaimed out of breath.

"What?!" Leia gasped.

"Where?" Han asked, dropping the floor panel into place.

"Outside," Mia said. "In the cave." As soon as the words were out of her mouth there was a loud banging on the hull of the Falcon. "There it is! Listen!" They all strained their ears in silence for a moment to listen. As soon as the noise came it was gone.

"I'm going out there," Han said stone-faced.

"What?!" Leia protested. "Han, no!"

"Hey I just got this bucket of bolts back together. I'm not gonna let something tear it apart!" He and Chewie grabbed their breath masks off the wall and hurried out of the cabin. Leia and Mia followed right on their heels.

"We're coming with you!" Leia said, grabbing a spare mask. Mia did not feel comfortable with this but wasn't going to stay on the ship by herself while Leia and Han faced whatever danger was out there. Mia grabbed one too and put it on.

"I think I'm just going to stay on the ship," 3-PO said, sounding just as uncomfortable as Mia felt.

"Yup, me too, Your Majesty!" Vee said, hiding behind the other droid.

"Suit yourselves," Mia said, trying to make herself sound braver than she actually was. Han and Leia both drew their blasters and opened the Falcon's door. They cautiously stepped out and onto the floor of the cave. Mia noticed the floor felt soft under her feet; not like rock at all. It was very dark, though. Too dark to really determine what anything was.

"This ground sure feels strange," Leia said.

"That's what I was thinking," Mia agreed. "Whatever it is, I don't think it's rock." Han knelt down to feel the surface.

"There's an awful lot of moisture," he observed.

"I have a bad feeling about this…" Leia whispered to Mia. She nodded in agreement. Just then, a loud noise from Chewie caused the three of them to turn around. A long, slender shape was moving along the Falcon. Han immediately fired a bolt from his blaster and struck the creature dead. It tumbled off the ship and onto the ground in front of them. Han took a cautious step forward and examined the strange winged creature.

"That's what I thought," Han said. "Mynock. They're chewing on the power cables. I'm going to make sure there aren't any more. You two go inside. I'll clean them off." But just as Mia and Leia moved to go back on the ship a huge swarm of the creatures surrounded them. They shrieked and covered their heads, running as fast as they could. Mia felt what felt like a blast of energy leave her chest. Of course it didn't help that Han was shooting this way and that. The creatures all flew strangely, as if they were trying to escape something. "Wait a minute…" Han mumbled. He then fired a single blast at the far wall of the cave. Immediately the ground began to shake. Han, Leia, Mia, and Chewie finally made it back onto the ship. The shaking got worse. They all raced to the cockpit. "I think we've overstayed our welcome!" Han exclaimed. "Chewie, let's get out of here!"

"The Empire is still out there!" Leia protested. "I don't think it's wise to-"

"Leia, we really don't have a choice right now!" Mia interrupted. She pulled Leia into the chair next to her and they strapped themselves in.

"Yeah," agreed Han. "No time to discuss this in committee."

"I'm not a committee!" Leia shouted angrily. The engines of the Falcon began to whine, the ship still shaking intensely. Han revved up the engines and pulled back the throttle. "You can't make the jump to lightspeed in this asteroid field!" Leia cried.

"Too bad," Han yelled back. "We're taking off!" Chewie then began to bark, pointing out the window.

"Look!" said 3-PO.

"I see it," Han replied. A row of jagged white stalagmites and stalactites were blocking the entrance to the cave. The closer they got, the smaller the entrance shrunk. Han pulled even harder on the throttle, sending the ship forward.

"The cave's collapsing!" said Leia.

"This is no cave," replied Han.

"What?!" exclaimed Mia and Leia in unison. However, as the Falcon got closer to the entrance. Mia saw that Han was right. The rocks weren't rocks, but teeth! And they were quickly closing around them. Han turned the ship on its side and barely managed to squeeze through two of the teeth. Mia glanced back and to her horror, saw the huge snake monster that nearly turned them into its lunch. Han zoomed further away from it but Mia dared not breathe a side of relief. She was right to be feeling cautious. As Han took them further into deep space, the Falcon was unknowingly followed by an Imperial Star Destroyer. A large asteroid about the same size as the Falcon tumbled rapidly toward the starship. Leia then caught sight of the Imperial ship.

"Han it's the Empire!" she yelled. Han saw the ship as well then swerved the tiny Falcon bank to avoid the giant asteroid as smaller rocks pelted its surface. Then the small craft roared under the asteroid which exploded harmlessly on the hull of the vast Star Destroyer.

"At least we're coming out of the asteroid field," said 3-PO, being positive for once. But a sudden bolt from the Star Destroyer hit the Falcon in a fiery explosion, causing it to lurch to one side. Then another blast came. This time they were tilted the opposite way. With a grimace, Han straightened the ship.

"Let's get out of here," he muttered. "Chewie, ready for lightspeed? One, two, three!" Han pulled back on the throttle with an anticipating grin. But nothing happened. Mia and Leia exchanged a look that said 'I knew this would happen'. More blasts rocked the ship. "It's not fair!" Han exclaimed in frustration. Chewie barked at Han angrily. "The transfer circuits are working so it's not my fault!" Chewie put his head in his hands, whining.

"Let me guess," Leia said, a ghost of a smile on her face. "No lightspeed?"

"It's not my fault!" Han repeated.

"Sir!" interjected 3-PO. "We just lost the main rear deflector shield. One more hit to the back quarter and we're done for!" For a moment, Han did or said nothing.

"Well, I'm going to shut down for a while…" Vee broke through the silence. She powered down and fell into Mia's lap.

"Turn it around," Han finally said stoically.

"What?!" Mia and Leia said in unison again.

"Are you trying to get us killed?!" Mia exclaimed. Han ignored them.

"I said turn it around, Chewie!" he ordered. "I'm gonna put all power in the front shield."

"You're going to attack them?!" Leia said angrily.

"We're dead," Mia said sarcastically.

"Sir, the odds of surviving a direct assault on an Imperial Star Destroyer…"

"Shut up, Goldie Balls!" Han barked. He lurched the ship into a tight, twisting turn, racing towards the Imperial ship. They were tiny compared to it. Han bobbed and weaved to avoid the blasts, guiding the Falcon towards the Destroyers bridge. Then in a slick swoop, Han guided the ship to rest right under the Destroyer, matching its pace and speed.

"I must say, Captain Solo," interjected 3-PO. "This time you've gone too far." Chewie growled at him. "No I will not be quiet, Chewbacca. Why doesn't anyone listen to me?"

"Chewie, they're breaking up," Han said, ignoring the droid."Go stand by the claw release." Chewie obeyed.

" I really don't see how that is going to help," said 3-PO again. "Surrender is a perfectly acceptable alternative in extreme circumstances. The Empire may be gracious enough…" Mia reached over and shut him off.

"You read my mind, Your Highness," Han smiled.

"Ugh, he was getting on my nerves," Mia rolled her eyes. Leia giggled in spite of herself. "What's our next move, Han?"

"Well, if they follow standard Imperial procedure they'll dump their garbage before they go to light-speed. Then we just float away."

"With the rest of the garbage," said Leia. "Then what?"

"Then we find a safe port somewhere around here. You're the historian, Your Highness. Any ideas?"

"Where are we, exactly?" Mia asked. Han looked at the coordinates.

"The, uh…Anoat System," he replied.

"There's only Anoat and Pujool around here. Anoat is way too polluted and Pujool is under Imperial control. We'd be thrown into the Crypt as soon as we landed."

"Where's the closest safe space?" Leia asked. Mia thought for a moment.

"Hmm…Bespin I think is our best bet."

"Wait!" said Han suddenly. "Lando!"

"Lando?" Leia repeated.

"Yeah, Lando Calrissian. He's a card player, gambler, and a scoundrel. You'd like him." He flashed a teasing wink at Leia. "Bespin's pretty far but I think we can make it," he said. Leia looked at the screen as Han set the coordinates.

"A mining colony?" she asked with uncertainty.

"Yeah, a Tibanna gas mine," Han said. "Lando conned somebody out of it. We go a long way back, him and me."

"Can we trust him?" Mia asked.

"Nope," Han replied incredulously. "But he has no love for the Empire, I'll tell you that. Besides, you two are royalty. He wouldn't dare try anything." A bark from Chewie cut through the intercom. Han looked out the cockpit window. "Here we go," Han muttered. The garbage airlock began to open "Alright Chewie, now!" As the garbage made their way past them, Han released the controls and off they floated with the trash, undetected. Han leaned back in his chair and smiled at Leia. "You're welcome," he smirked. Leia smirked back and gave him an unexpected kiss.

"You do have your moments," she smiled, detaching her lips from his. "Not many, but you've got them." Then they all watched as the Star Destroyer went to lightspeed, flashing out of sight. Once they were gone, Han fired up the engines of the Falcon and raced off towards their destination, unaware of the other ship following them.