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When Han awoke, he had no idea how much time had passed. He also had no idea where he was. He tried to open his eyes, but had to shut them quickly when blood clouded his vision. He raised a hand to his forehead to find a deep gushing gash, presumably from hitting his head on the control board. Han used the back of his sleeve to wipe his eyes clear. He blinked. Outside, it was nearly pitch black. Wherever they were, they had obviously come into the system and landed on a planet turned away from its sun. Unfortunately, this information didn't help very much, considering that all the navigation equipment in the galaxy couldn't predict where a blackhole would take you. And maybe not just where, but when. This thought didn't brighten Han's mood any.
He reached up and undid his safety harness. With a deep breath, he stood up. There was a sharp pain on his left side which caused him to nearly double over. When he had overcome the brief nausea brought on by this pain, he stood up. Carefully, he slid his shirt up to get a look at his side. Dark purple and red blotches covered his lower left ribs. He instantly knew they were cracked. He had had enough cracked ribs before to know that. And he also knew there wasn't really anything you could do for cracked ribs except let them heal. He grimaced at the thought, but there was no alternative.
A slow movement caught the corner of his vision. Against his better judgment, he swirled around to see what it was. He saw Leia, slumped over in her seat, starting to wake up. 'Idiot!' he admonished himself, forgetting the pain to rush to her side. 'How could you forget about her, moron?!' He slid his right arm around her, and settled her back against the seatback. He also undid her safety belt, which he could see, had left a red mark across her neck. Her forehead had a large bruise on it, and her right arm had several lacerations, but other than that she seemed okay. Han gently shook her by the shoulders. "Leia? Leia, c'mon sweetheart. Wake up!" He was afraid she might have a concussion, and if that were the case falling asleep was the last thing she wanted to do.
Leia's eyes opened groggily. She coughed slightly, then managed a thin smile. "Some run, Solo. This sidetrip is a, uh, pleasant surprise." she said dryly.
A worried, regretful look creased Han's face. "Leia, I'm so sorry. I was such an idiot! Why did I even take you out there in the first place? And why didn't I check my course more carefully! Idiot!" He slammed a fist into the control board in frustration.
Leia was afraid he would break something, and she quickly interrupted, "Hey! Breaking things won't help us get back. And really Han, it's not your fault. I know I don't remember every detail of every place I went when I was 12." She said the last part with a laugh, thinking of how awkward it was that 10 years ago to her meant 12 years old, while 10 years ago to him meant 23 years old. Han gave Leia a sour look, and Leia starting bursting into laughter. She was barely able to say, "I mean, I'm not even as old as you were... 10 years ago! Surely by the time I'm your age, I won't remember a thing!"
Han ground his teeth. He didn't find that as amusing as Leia obviously did. "Thanks a lot for the compliments. Now if you don't mind, I'm going to go find the medi pack."
As Han sauntered out of the cockpit, Leia composed herself enough to get up and follow. "I'm sorry Han. It's just so funny!" She laughed, coming up behind him in the fresher.
"Sure. Hilarious." He said shortly. Han had laid the medi pack out on a counter in the 'fresher, and stood in front of the mirror, his back to Leia.
Leia tried to explain, "Han, come on now. You know I don't care about it. It's just-" her words were cut short by a gasp. Han had carefully removed his jacket and shirt, and Leia could clearly see the swollen ribs on his left side. She grabbed a bandage and began to wrap it around him.
He swatted her hand away. "I'm fine." He said.
Leia shook her head, "No you're not. You've got at least two cracked ribs, you need to get them bandaged."
"I can do it myself, your worship. Just leave me alone." He growled. Leia was shocked by his blunt tone, but conceded and backed off. She retreated to the hold, and sat at the gametable.
Five minutes later, Han entered the hold now fully clothed once more. He said nothing to Leia, but simply went over to the instrument panel across from the gameboard. "Han, I'm really sorry. I shouldn't have made fun of you. And I didn't know you were hurt. No wonder you were in such a bad mood. I feel like such an idiot." Leia said quickly.
Han turned toward her and shook his head, "You an idiot? Nah, it's me that's the idiot. I'm not mad at you Leia, I'm mad at myself. I had to go and be the hero and show off all my piloting 'skills', and now I've got us crash landed into who knows where." He turned back toward the instrument panel and added, "And our repulsors are busted, so we can't take off. At least the navicomputer had the sense to make the emergency landing on fairly even surface. Nothing else vital seems to be broken. But I have no clue where we are. Some uncharted system."
Leia got up, all animosity between them replaced by curiosity, and came up beside Han to look at the readouts. "What did it find out about the system? Especially about this planet. Is it safe to go outside?" Leia asked.
Han scanned through the information scrolling on the screen. "Computer reports it has 9 planets, and one sun. The planet we're on is the third closest to that sun, and has one moon." He read on, "Surface is about 70% water. Atmosphere is 70% Nitrogen, but 20% Oxygen. No toxic levels of harmful gas. Should be okay to breathe. And the gravity is about the same as Courscant."
Leia nodded, "Well that's good news. So what are we waiting for? Let's get out there and find the nearest city." They wasted no time in this. Leia quickly changed into casual tan pants and shirt fit for the rugged outdoors. Han gathered up some water jugs, a tent, and some food rations into a pack. Soon, the two were assembled at the hatch.
"Ready?" Han asked. Leia nodded an affirmative. Han pressed the open button, and the door slid upward swiftly and silently. They stepped outside, and Han set the lock on the hatch. Then they turned to survey their surroundings. It was still night, but the sun was barely breaking on the horizon, just enough so that Han and Leia could see out across the landscape. For miles and miles, the land was covered with dunes upon dunes of sand. It reminded Han a lot of Tatooine.
"Well, this is an interesting place isn't it?" Leia said.
Han replied, "Yeah, real scenic. 'Lot like where Luke grew up. And if that's any indication of what this place is like, we better get as much traveling done as we can before the sun comes up. It will be hot enough to fry a minock egg on a speeder real soon." Leia agreed silently, and they set off. They had taken the time to study the electronic reading the Falcon was picking up, and had found there was a city about 5 miles to the south. If they were lucky, it wouldn't take them long to get there.
Han and Leia made fairly good time across the soft dunes. But when the sun came up, things became increasingly difficult. By the planet's midday, the sun was straight over their heads and glaring down on them with intense heat. Han, having lived on Tatooine for a while, was used to it. And since this planet only had one sun to Tatooine's two, it was not quite as hot. Leia, however, had only been to Tatooine once and had spent her brief time there mostly inside Jabba's palace. They were both sweating from the heat, but Leia was suffering more. Han held her arm and helped her up a particularly steep dune. When they got to the top, they were overjoyed to have a clear view to a glittering spot in the desert. The city was about one and a half miles from their dune, and was almost entirely downhill. "Look! We're almost there!" Leia exclaimed, suddenly filled with energy. Han gazed at the city. Although he could barely make out the features of the buildings, something bothered him. He didn't see any ships lifting off, or coming in. He decided that they probably didn't lift off around this time due to the danger of sun glare off of ships blinding pilots. It was a fairly reasonable assumption, but he still had a bad feeling about it.
Leia stepped forward down the dune, and began to speed up. "Come on Han, it's not that far! We can make it in an hour if we hurry!" Han, exhausted from the hike, his ribs aching, decided it wasn't such a good idea to hurry right now.
"Leia, wait! Come back!" He called to her. She stopped, and turned back.
"What? What's the matter? Are you all right?" She seemed concerned.
He replied, "I'm fine. It's just that I think we should rest for a while. I know it's not that far to the city, but it's really hot out and we only have one water container left. We should stop and get some food and water into our systems before we go on." Leia looked from him to the city, and back. Then she sighed and climbed back up to where he was standing.
"We're so close..." she grumbled, "but you're right. We should rest. Maybe get some sleep, too."
Han unshouldered the pack and took out the small tent within. Finding a nice flat area, he threw down the compact plastic item which suddenly expanded to a 6 foot by 4 foot tent. "Not much, but it'll provide shade." Han said, grabbing the pack and crawling in. Leia followed. Han took a sip from the canteen, and passed it to Leia who did the same. They were careful to preserve the water for any unforeseen difficulties. Neither of them were very hungry, but they split a tasteless ration bar for nutrition purposes. After their brief meal, they restored their food and drinks and zipped up the tent to prevent any sand from blowing in. Han laid back and shifted until he was in a semi-comfortable position. Leia scooted next to him, and laid down with her head on his chest. "Ow!" Han cried out, causing Leia to jump up.
"I'm sorry! I forgot about your ribs." she apologized.
Han managed a smile, "It's okay. Just get on my good side." Han scooted to the far side of the tent as Leia stepped over him and settled herself up against his right side. Once she was settled in, using Han as a pillow, she drifted easily off into sleep.
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When Han awoke, he had no idea how much time had passed. He also had no idea where he was. He tried to open his eyes, but had to shut them quickly when blood clouded his vision. He raised a hand to his forehead to find a deep gushing gash, presumably from hitting his head on the control board. Han used the back of his sleeve to wipe his eyes clear. He blinked. Outside, it was nearly pitch black. Wherever they were, they had obviously come into the system and landed on a planet turned away from its sun. Unfortunately, this information didn't help very much, considering that all the navigation equipment in the galaxy couldn't predict where a blackhole would take you. And maybe not just where, but when. This thought didn't brighten Han's mood any.
He reached up and undid his safety harness. With a deep breath, he stood up. There was a sharp pain on his left side which caused him to nearly double over. When he had overcome the brief nausea brought on by this pain, he stood up. Carefully, he slid his shirt up to get a look at his side. Dark purple and red blotches covered his lower left ribs. He instantly knew they were cracked. He had had enough cracked ribs before to know that. And he also knew there wasn't really anything you could do for cracked ribs except let them heal. He grimaced at the thought, but there was no alternative.
A slow movement caught the corner of his vision. Against his better judgment, he swirled around to see what it was. He saw Leia, slumped over in her seat, starting to wake up. 'Idiot!' he admonished himself, forgetting the pain to rush to her side. 'How could you forget about her, moron?!' He slid his right arm around her, and settled her back against the seatback. He also undid her safety belt, which he could see, had left a red mark across her neck. Her forehead had a large bruise on it, and her right arm had several lacerations, but other than that she seemed okay. Han gently shook her by the shoulders. "Leia? Leia, c'mon sweetheart. Wake up!" He was afraid she might have a concussion, and if that were the case falling asleep was the last thing she wanted to do.
Leia's eyes opened groggily. She coughed slightly, then managed a thin smile. "Some run, Solo. This sidetrip is a, uh, pleasant surprise." she said dryly.
A worried, regretful look creased Han's face. "Leia, I'm so sorry. I was such an idiot! Why did I even take you out there in the first place? And why didn't I check my course more carefully! Idiot!" He slammed a fist into the control board in frustration.
Leia was afraid he would break something, and she quickly interrupted, "Hey! Breaking things won't help us get back. And really Han, it's not your fault. I know I don't remember every detail of every place I went when I was 12." She said the last part with a laugh, thinking of how awkward it was that 10 years ago to her meant 12 years old, while 10 years ago to him meant 23 years old. Han gave Leia a sour look, and Leia starting bursting into laughter. She was barely able to say, "I mean, I'm not even as old as you were... 10 years ago! Surely by the time I'm your age, I won't remember a thing!"
Han ground his teeth. He didn't find that as amusing as Leia obviously did. "Thanks a lot for the compliments. Now if you don't mind, I'm going to go find the medi pack."
As Han sauntered out of the cockpit, Leia composed herself enough to get up and follow. "I'm sorry Han. It's just so funny!" She laughed, coming up behind him in the fresher.
"Sure. Hilarious." He said shortly. Han had laid the medi pack out on a counter in the 'fresher, and stood in front of the mirror, his back to Leia.
Leia tried to explain, "Han, come on now. You know I don't care about it. It's just-" her words were cut short by a gasp. Han had carefully removed his jacket and shirt, and Leia could clearly see the swollen ribs on his left side. She grabbed a bandage and began to wrap it around him.
He swatted her hand away. "I'm fine." He said.
Leia shook her head, "No you're not. You've got at least two cracked ribs, you need to get them bandaged."
"I can do it myself, your worship. Just leave me alone." He growled. Leia was shocked by his blunt tone, but conceded and backed off. She retreated to the hold, and sat at the gametable.
Five minutes later, Han entered the hold now fully clothed once more. He said nothing to Leia, but simply went over to the instrument panel across from the gameboard. "Han, I'm really sorry. I shouldn't have made fun of you. And I didn't know you were hurt. No wonder you were in such a bad mood. I feel like such an idiot." Leia said quickly.
Han turned toward her and shook his head, "You an idiot? Nah, it's me that's the idiot. I'm not mad at you Leia, I'm mad at myself. I had to go and be the hero and show off all my piloting 'skills', and now I've got us crash landed into who knows where." He turned back toward the instrument panel and added, "And our repulsors are busted, so we can't take off. At least the navicomputer had the sense to make the emergency landing on fairly even surface. Nothing else vital seems to be broken. But I have no clue where we are. Some uncharted system."
Leia got up, all animosity between them replaced by curiosity, and came up beside Han to look at the readouts. "What did it find out about the system? Especially about this planet. Is it safe to go outside?" Leia asked.
Han scanned through the information scrolling on the screen. "Computer reports it has 9 planets, and one sun. The planet we're on is the third closest to that sun, and has one moon." He read on, "Surface is about 70% water. Atmosphere is 70% Nitrogen, but 20% Oxygen. No toxic levels of harmful gas. Should be okay to breathe. And the gravity is about the same as Courscant."
Leia nodded, "Well that's good news. So what are we waiting for? Let's get out there and find the nearest city." They wasted no time in this. Leia quickly changed into casual tan pants and shirt fit for the rugged outdoors. Han gathered up some water jugs, a tent, and some food rations into a pack. Soon, the two were assembled at the hatch.
"Ready?" Han asked. Leia nodded an affirmative. Han pressed the open button, and the door slid upward swiftly and silently. They stepped outside, and Han set the lock on the hatch. Then they turned to survey their surroundings. It was still night, but the sun was barely breaking on the horizon, just enough so that Han and Leia could see out across the landscape. For miles and miles, the land was covered with dunes upon dunes of sand. It reminded Han a lot of Tatooine.
"Well, this is an interesting place isn't it?" Leia said.
Han replied, "Yeah, real scenic. 'Lot like where Luke grew up. And if that's any indication of what this place is like, we better get as much traveling done as we can before the sun comes up. It will be hot enough to fry a minock egg on a speeder real soon." Leia agreed silently, and they set off. They had taken the time to study the electronic reading the Falcon was picking up, and had found there was a city about 5 miles to the south. If they were lucky, it wouldn't take them long to get there.
Han and Leia made fairly good time across the soft dunes. But when the sun came up, things became increasingly difficult. By the planet's midday, the sun was straight over their heads and glaring down on them with intense heat. Han, having lived on Tatooine for a while, was used to it. And since this planet only had one sun to Tatooine's two, it was not quite as hot. Leia, however, had only been to Tatooine once and had spent her brief time there mostly inside Jabba's palace. They were both sweating from the heat, but Leia was suffering more. Han held her arm and helped her up a particularly steep dune. When they got to the top, they were overjoyed to have a clear view to a glittering spot in the desert. The city was about one and a half miles from their dune, and was almost entirely downhill. "Look! We're almost there!" Leia exclaimed, suddenly filled with energy. Han gazed at the city. Although he could barely make out the features of the buildings, something bothered him. He didn't see any ships lifting off, or coming in. He decided that they probably didn't lift off around this time due to the danger of sun glare off of ships blinding pilots. It was a fairly reasonable assumption, but he still had a bad feeling about it.
Leia stepped forward down the dune, and began to speed up. "Come on Han, it's not that far! We can make it in an hour if we hurry!" Han, exhausted from the hike, his ribs aching, decided it wasn't such a good idea to hurry right now.
"Leia, wait! Come back!" He called to her. She stopped, and turned back.
"What? What's the matter? Are you all right?" She seemed concerned.
He replied, "I'm fine. It's just that I think we should rest for a while. I know it's not that far to the city, but it's really hot out and we only have one water container left. We should stop and get some food and water into our systems before we go on." Leia looked from him to the city, and back. Then she sighed and climbed back up to where he was standing.
"We're so close..." she grumbled, "but you're right. We should rest. Maybe get some sleep, too."
Han unshouldered the pack and took out the small tent within. Finding a nice flat area, he threw down the compact plastic item which suddenly expanded to a 6 foot by 4 foot tent. "Not much, but it'll provide shade." Han said, grabbing the pack and crawling in. Leia followed. Han took a sip from the canteen, and passed it to Leia who did the same. They were careful to preserve the water for any unforeseen difficulties. Neither of them were very hungry, but they split a tasteless ration bar for nutrition purposes. After their brief meal, they restored their food and drinks and zipped up the tent to prevent any sand from blowing in. Han laid back and shifted until he was in a semi-comfortable position. Leia scooted next to him, and laid down with her head on his chest. "Ow!" Han cried out, causing Leia to jump up.
"I'm sorry! I forgot about your ribs." she apologized.
Han managed a smile, "It's okay. Just get on my good side." Han scooted to the far side of the tent as Leia stepped over him and settled herself up against his right side. Once she was settled in, using Han as a pillow, she drifted easily off into sleep.
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