CHAPTER TWO
Down on the Sanctuary Moon of the planet Endor, the battle to destroy the Death Star shield generator raged on. Stormtroopers were firing on Ewoks with sophisticated weapons while their furry little adversaries skulked up behind the skeletal white armored Imperial troopers, bashing them over their helmeted heads with large clubs.
A mired gray AT-ST Scout walker marched with resounding buzzing as it clomped through the undergrowth blasting Ewoks with twin laser cannons as it went.
An Ewok warrior gave the signal, and a pile of hidden logs, high up on an adjacent hill, was cut loose. The hardwood tumbled under the walker's feet, causing it to slip and slide until it finally toppled over with a great crash.
Elsewhere, a scout bike raced past, but was lassoed with a heavy vine. The other end of the vine was tied to a tree, causing the bike to swing around in ever-tightening circles until it ran out of rope and crashed into the trees with a huge explosion that ripped through the tall woody plant.
Chewbacca, Wookiee hero of the Rebel Alliance, swung on a thick jungle vine, meaning to soar to the small roof of one of the walkers while two Ewoks clung tightly to him like new born children.
Suddenly, the scarlet bolt of an Imperial sharpshooter slashed through the vine and sent the Wookiee and his new companions falling to the lush green vegetation at the forest floor. To their luck, the shrubbery below cushioned their descent and prevented any serious injury.
Before they could rise and retreat, the tan-uniformed sniper emerged from the bushes with a squad of stormtroopers flanking him on both sides. With a gallant roar, the massive furry alien threw dirt and rocks up at them. The troops instinctively cowered at the hail of debris, allowing Chewbacca to scoop up the Ewoks and hurried them the opposite way.
Blaster beams shot through the greenery and dropped one of the little bipeds as a second squad of shock troopers pushed their way out to intercept them.
The stormtrooper sergeant with the sniper fired on the second Ewok then tried to blast Chewbacca, but his weapon was batted down by the sharpshooter. The latter reminded the man of their distinct orders to take the beast alive.
Four men cautiously surrounded the Wookiee and tried to restrain him. Chewie growled and batted the closest one away as if the man weighed nothing at all. The sniper barked orders to the troops to hurry it up and get control of the monster immediately.
Chewie tried to defend himself against the onslaught, but the sharpshooter lost his cool and pumped a stun bolt into their prisoner.
"Get this thing chained and out of my sight, now!" The sniper shouted.
"Yes, sir."
The three wires that controlled the large double sliding doors that led to the Death Star shield generator sparked as the connection was made. With a loud whoosh, a second heavy blast door crashed down in front of the first. General Han Solo frowned and turned back to the wires again.
Leia Organa exchanged blazing shots with stormtroopers in the bushes, then suddenly cried out in pain, her shoulder hit by an energy blast. With a short cry, she fell to the duracrete floor of the entryway.
"Oh Princess Leia, are you alright!" Cried See-Threepio from the other side, leaving his now damaged counterpart Artoo-Detoo for the moment to come to the woman's aide.
Han slumped down next to her and grabbing her arm gently, said, "Let me see it."
"It's not bad," Leia assured.
"Freeze!" Sounded a monotone voice from the forest.
A twinge of dread echoed in Han's gut. He and Leia did as told.
"Oh, dear!" Threepio sounded as he threw his metallic golden arms in the air.
"Don't move!" A similar sound yelped.
Two stormtroopers rushed over and trained their standard issue blaster rifles on them. Leia glanced at Han then her hidden pistol. He grinned when he realized her plan.
"I love you," Han murmured, still a bit surprised.
She smiled, "I know."
"Hands up! Stand up!"
Han stood up slowly with his hands raised high in the air. He turned, exposing the blaster in Leia's hand to the troopers. She pulled the trigger twice in rapid succession, dropping them both before they could react.
As Han turned back to Leia again, his ears caught the whoop. He looked up to see an imposing Scout walker come to rest in front of him. Its deadly weaponry aimed straight at him.
"Stay back," He told Leia, raising his hands once again. The sick feeling returned to him again and he knew it would be setting up shop for quite awhile now.
Through a speaker that Han couldn't see, the booming voice of the pilot shouted, "Drop your weapons!"
Leia let go of her blaster pistol and rose to the side of Solo. Though it pained her to, the former princess of Alderaan lifted both her hands. She knew the pilot wouldn't accept the fact that she had been shot to stop her from showing her unarmed hands.
Seemingly from thin air, dozens upon dozens of stormtroopers boiled out from all angles to bear on them. A louder thump, thump, thump, followed them as the head of a mammoth AT-AT Imperial walker poked it cannon baring "head" out into the open.
An officer ran up from the front of the crowd, blaster trained, and quickly pulled Solo's pistol out of its low slung holster and threw it out of anyone's reached. He kicked Leia's gun over to join it.
A platoon of stormtroopers, led by a tan-uniformed man with a high-powered rifle slung over his shoulder, emerged from the obscurity. Marching out in front of them was saddened Chewbacca, deprived of his utility bandoleer and instead shackled head to furry toe in durasteel chains. He gave a low, mournful howl as he saw his friends had also been captured.
More troops came to Han and Leia and attached binders to their wrists.
"I knew this wasn't going to work," Han said with a sorrowful sigh.
Leia was silent as they hustled them off to the carriage of the giant Imperial walker. See-Threepio was deactivated and fitted with a restraining bolt before he was carted off after them.
"Sir," One of the stormtrooper sergeants said. "Do we take the slagged R2 unit as well?"
The highest-ranking officer gave it a quick glance, then said, " Lord Vader said nothing of droids. The gold one can be used after it has its memory wiped, but the astromech is scrap. Leave it."
"Yes, sir."
The officer turned to see a communications sergeant sprinting toward him from the lowered belly of the AT-AT. "Sir, I have just received a message from Lord Vader. He demands an update."
"Excellent, sergeant. Tell him that we've captured the rebel commanders and will be departing for the Death Star as soon as the skies are clear."
"Yes, sir… He also has given an order to lower the deflector shield immediately."
"Lower the shield? For what purpose?" The man asked himself, then came to his senses. "Then we must lower the shield without haste, sergeant. Go to it!"
"Yes, sir," The noncom scurried away.
The officer looked to the other imperials, "What are all of you standing there for? Let's get these rebel scum back to base!"
The stormtrooper snapped to alertness and followed their orders. As they entered the Walker, a single tear rolled down Leia's cheek.
The Rebellion was lost.
"Shuttle Justice, you are clear to land in bay 14. Deactivating the magnetic field now."
The pristine white Lambda-class Imperial shuttle began its approach to docking bay 14, slowly raising the two large wings to meet with the massive fin on top. It came in on repulsorlifts and lowered its twin, leg-like landing gear to touchdown on the polished durasteel floor.
A platoon of stormtroopers rose up on an ascending platform beside the ship and took their places to stand watch over the being s that emerged as the landing ramp smacked silently on the ground. Two stormtroopers walked down, followed by their commanding officer, then Chewbacca, still shackled came with a trooper escort. Han and Leia followed with binders clapped around their wrists, tailed by four more stormtroopers that brought with them a floating gurney with See-Threepio lying lifelessly on top.
A Death Star officer met them on the deck and eyed them with extreme prejudice, his leer mostly on Chewbacca. "Take them to the detention block. Separate cells. Deliver the droid to Operations," The black uniformed man ordered. "Allow no harm to come to the woman. But these two," He eyed Han and Chewie. "Lord Vader merely demands that they not be killed."
"Vader," Han murmured with no surprise.
"Silence, scum!" The stormtrooper nearest to him sound. He struck the reformed smuggler in the stomach with the stock of his rifle.
Chewie snarled as Han went down gagging for air as the wind was knocked out of him.
Leia bit back a response and looked away
The officer gave a wave of his black gloved hand, "Take them away."
The former princess of the planet Alderaan, Leia Organa, paced back and forth in the cramped detention cell for which she was now imprisoned in, still clothed in her fatigues sans any weapons or tools. It had been hours, she knew not just how many, since she had arrived at the horrid battle station of death; and still nothing had happened. The waiting and dread of an inevitable confrontation maddened her deeply.
What were they waiting for, she continued to wonder? Surely Emperor Palpatine could hardly contain himself with the prospect of tormenting her with the Alliance's defeat. This was his day of ultimate triumph; the rebellion against his government was done for.
Organa had no knowledge of the actual fate of the Alliance. But a gut feeling, a thing she refused to call the Force, made her believe that some parts of the fleet had escaped. It was all she could hope for in this desperate hour.
Leia didn't care what happened to her. Let the Emperor and…Vader—she wasn't about to call him anything else—do there worst to her. They couldn't make her feel any worse than she did right now. Her only fear about dying was that she knew she was a powerful leader and the Rebellion needed her. Her lost would only deepen the blow they were dealt today and they didn't need that now. That was fine, because Leia wasn't about to lie down and die. Her death would have to be brought about by a defensive attack from a blaster file or the intercepting blade of…Vader.
She gulped her anxiety down. That name gave her double the pain now than it had a few days ago. That man—that terrible, terrible monstrosity of a man—was her long lost fa—No! Bail Organa was her father. He raised her into the strong woman she was this day. Bail was a brave man who was one of the firsts to openly defy the Emperor. Not the man who succumbed to him, the man who became both a monster and such a danger to his own children that they were hidden from him the second after they were born. Curse him! Curse Darth Vader a thousand times over!
Organa fumed. She never once believed she would be in this situation right now. The plan, as daring as it was, had seemed like it was going to work. What went wrong? Was the Empire so invincible?
She had no way of knowing anything and it enraged her to the point of near insanity. What had happened to her friends? What was the fate of Mon Mothma, Admiral Ackbar, Wedge—of Han, Chewie, Lando, the droids, and Luke…There was a good question! —What had happened to Luke? He had gone to face his father and the Emperor. Was he alive? Dead?
No, not dead, Leia somehow knew. But it was quite clear that Luke had not defeated Vader or the Emperor because if he had, they wouldn't be in this situation. But where was he?
She finally settled on the large block that was supposed to be a prisoner's cot and laid her head low. There she sat, weary, but unable to sleep at a time like this. She waited for twenty minutes until the door to the cell slid open with only a slight sound. A young man in black walked in as she raised her head.
For a split second, Leia thought she saw Darth Vader, but the image flickered back into her mind.
"Luke!" She cried as she saw who it really was.
Joy and excitement washed over her in an instant Leia jumped up and rushed over to envelop her brother in a warm hug. She got half way, and then Luke raised a hand in front of her. Leia stopped, her wide smile leaving as confusion returned. "What's going on, Luke?"
Now she noticed the stern face he wore. There was certain sadness in his eyes as he looked at her and replied, "The future, Leia. The future."
Leia shook her head, "I—I don't understand. Where's Vader, the Emperor?"
His expression turned harsh. "The Emperor's dead, Leia. I killed him."
Leia couldn't keep her face from betraying her feelings. She was utterly stunned and even more bewildered. In contrast, Luke was stone cold, as if he no longer was interested in that bit of news.
"And…Vader?"
"Our father is as healthy as he has been for the last decade. It is imperative that you come with to speak with him," Luke told her. "It was with his help that I killed the Emperor."
That instant, Leia understood exactly what she was looking at. She gasped, her skin paled as she covered her gaping mouth and she backed away. Luke stood silent in his black attire.
"You've…" She couldn't speak. "You've—"
"I have taken my rightful place at our father's side and fulfilled my destiny."
His sister was baffled. "No…No!"
"Come with me, Leia," Luke said as he reached out his gloved hand. "Your destiny awaits."
She didn't move, just stared wide in disbelief.
Luke crossed his arms. "I don't want to have to force you to come, but if you don't, I will make you."
Seeing that she refused to move, Luke motioned to two Death Star troopers outside. The black helmeted men walked in, trained their pistols on Leia and forced her out with them.
"You should be happy, Leia," Luke told her as they made their way through the Death Star detention block. "It is a new galaxy, now. From this point on, things will be different. Nothing can stop the Empire…When the Death Star is completed, no planet would dare join the Alliance and for the first time in many years, there will be order."
Leia had regained some composure and now she was boiling with anger over the situation again. She looked to her brother and once dear friend as she did Vader on the first Death Star. She would find out soon just how similar times were.
"You speak as if the Empire is helping people instead of persecuting the defenseless and promoting xenophobia," She snapped.
Luke, still ahead of her and leading the way, did not turn to look when he spoke. "Your anger and fear are growing. The change is already beginning inside you. Much to our father's and my delight," He commented as they stepped into a turbolift and ascended. "But the Empire you speak of has died with Palpatine. Father has told me of his plans for the future, which was what originally led me to join him. He does not have any particular distaste when it comes to non-humans, unlike Palpatine. From now on they will receive the same treatment as humans."
That threw Leia back a bit. If Luke was telling the truth, then maybe the Empire had changed. Could it resemble the Old Republic? Her instincts told her otherwise. Her brother and Vader drew strength from the dark side, the corrupt side, of the Force. There had to be more to it.
"And how will the people be treated?"
Luke said nothing as they departed the lift tube, then finally he replied tersely, "There will be order."
Leia knew exactly what that meant. The population of the galaxy would not regain their freedoms and would continue to fear their government that would be forced upon them. It was Grand Moff Tarkin's doctrine as well as the official slogan of the Empire: Rule through fear. And if what Luke had told her a while back was true, father and son united in the dark side was certainly something to fear.
You could have that power too, an unfamiliar voice whispered in her mind. Accept your emotions. Do not suppress them. Use them to your advantage and ultimate power will be yours…
Luke could feel the dark side beckoning to his sister and even if he couldn't, he could see she was distracted—listening to some unseen sound.
"Do as it says, Leia. If you refuse the call, great pain will follow. Embrace it now before it's too late."
Leia didn't respond. Was he right? Did some form of pain come from resisting the dark side? Luke had never spoken of anything like that.
'That's not what I meant, Leia," Luke told her as if he could read her mind. "Like I said, accept you destiny as I did and you will never have to find out what I was referring to…Please."
A question entered her mind just then, "Why? Why do you two need me?"
"You don't want to know the answer to that, I assure you. Please, trust me. Everything will be better if you do."
The bridge of the Death Star loomed closer now, visible at the end of the dark hallways.
"Tell me," She demanded.
Luke shook his head in disbelief. "We don't need you, Leia. But if you do not serve our cause, you are a threat to it and will be destroyed. Our father gives you a choice because you are his daughter."
They stopped at the doors to the bridge, and Luke turned to face her. "This is your last chance," Luke told her.
"Never," Leia said curtly, then turned her head away.
Luke frowned and gave a disappointed sigh, "Then remember that I warned you."
As the doors slid open, it revealed a room washed in darkness. The sparsely placed lights and technical stations did very little to expel the shadows and hid the personnel that controlled the stations vital functions. A massive viewport stretched from one end of the bulkhead ten meters away offered the only illumination in the chamber. Slightly eclipsed by an unwavering dark mass of a man, the window displayed that the Death Star had drifted far from its orbit around the Sanctuary Moon of the planet Endor.
Was this place darker than the bridge in the original Death Star, Leia wondered? She realized her assumption was correct. Obviously the darkness was meant to set the tone of the affair. And why had they moved away from Endor?
The group continued through the room and came to rest a dozen meters away from the viewport and the lone figure. Only now, in the silent close proximity, could the sound be heard. The labored, machine assisted breath of the Lord Darth Vader. It was all that was heard for at least a minute.
"It is a pleasure that you grace us with your presence…daughter," Vader cut through the utter stillness. "Obi-Wan was a fool for hiding you from me."
There was long silence again. Did he expect her to respond? Whether he did or didn't, Leia resolved not to speak—yet.
"Your brother has realized his true potential, as you all ready know. There is much I have to teach him and even more I must teach you. But only after you expose yourself to the Force can you truly begin to comprehend your importance," He continued. "In time you will know that the Force goes far beyond that of good and evil—far beyond a light side or a dark side. To believe you can label the Force so simply is foolhardy…"
"Is this your sales pitch?" Leia asked. "I've already heard his and would not be seduced. It'll be the same with you."
Finally, the Dark Lord of the Sith turned around to stare down at her. Leia had forgotten just how intimidating the man really was in person. His gaze, while hidden behind the polarized lenses of his helmet, was penetrating to say the least. The dark side wrapped around him like a vise grip and further extended his frightful aura.
"You will join us," He assured. "I shall make you. Together as father, daughter, and son, we will conquer the galaxy and bring order the chaos that threatens the people."
Leia stood firm. "I will not join you."
Darth Vader bent down slightly and eyed her. "There are methods to unleashing your anger, my daughter."
"You can't turn me," She said with as much certainty as she could muster. "I haven't made a connection with the Force."
"You are wrong. All ready you use your awakened powers to defy me. Granted they have not completely manifested themselves inside you yet, but all that is need is a correlation. And as you will see, your actions weigh heavily on the galaxy," Vader turned his head to the side, to some unseen person. "Is the Death Star ready, Moff Jerjerrod?"
A man in the olive-gray uniform and cap of the Imperial navy stepped from the obscurity. "It is, milord."
The Darth turned back to her and awaited a reply. Leia looked out the window, then at her…father. "I won't fall for your bluff."
"Good. It will be nice to know that when I do feint, you will not be so easily tricked."
She shook her head, not entirely believing the words she spoke. "You won't destroy Endor. You'd loose the deflector shield. Only a fool would sacrifice such an advantage."
"I find it almost touching that you would fear for this station's safety, but the shield has served its purpose and is now obsolete."
"How can you make use of a planet destroying weapon if it must cower in the orbit of a backwater moon," Luke chimed in. "And who would attack the Death Star? The rebel fleet? I doubt that two capital ships and a handful of fighters will cause a problem. No, it will be many years before the rebellion can get back on its feet again."
When he saw that there would be no further argument, Vader pivoted back to the viewport. "Very well, Moff Jerjerrod. You may fire when ready."
He nodded briskly, then looked to the black-encased gunners hidden off to the sides. "Fire."
"What!"
The unforgiving green beam of the Death Star superlaser reached out with its death grip and smashed the unprotected moon into oblivion. The giant debris stopped just short of striking the battle station. Huge chunks veered dangerously close to the viewport.
Leia hadn't noticed though. She had turned away in disgust and woe. First Alderaan was destroyed, now Endor! First her real father, family and friends, now the Ewoks, whatever life also inhabited the moon, and Artoo—he'd been left at the bunker! There would be no rebuilding him now. That droid was a real friend. Organa felt a strange emptiness that she'd never felt before—A silencing that she couldn't quite describe. As if many voices had suddenly cried out in fear and then were suddenly stilled.
Vader's voice cut through her thoughts as she looked back. "How many more star systems will be destroyed in your name, Daughter?" he asked. "With each planet that is silenced, more blood spills on your hands. They all died because of your foolish ideals of freedom, you must know that."
Leia gritted her teeth and held back any scorns that were shooting through her mind. That was just what he wanted and she wouldn't give him the satisfaction.
Vader drew back as if he had had a sudden thought, then moved his mask close again. "Perhaps my methods to realize your destiny are misguided," He told her, then walked around the group. "Perhaps the key lies not in the quick death of billions unbeknownst to you and the death of worlds," The troops prodded Leia with their rifles to force her to follow.
Luke took up the rear as they left the bridge and retracted the steps back to the turbolift. The Sith Lord continued, "No, I will take away those that are the source of your strength and hope. A meager two beings."
Leia was puzzled as they exited the lift tube, but only because she would not admit what she all ready knew would happen.
The detention block they arrived to was somewhat different from those Leia had seen on other Imperial vessels, the first Death Star, or her own cell on this one. There was a darkened black tubular corridor like all the others, but this one's cells were much sparser and well defended by robotic guns mounted at each interval. Down at the end of the tunnel was a sliding panel of a door that was quite obviously their destination.
No more was said as the precession moved through the portal at the end and halted just inside. Leia cringed at the smell of burned flesh and ozone. The walls were gray, sheer bulkheads streaked with blaster scorches and multiple colors of blood all around. No one else seemed to take notice as they pushed her to the center of the room.
Vader placed his hands on his hips and spoke, "This is your last chance to join us, my daughter."
Leia turned around prepared to be executed.
Darth Vader nodded to a savage looking man in a black uniform that was stationed next to a panel of buttons and levers. The scarred-faced officer gave a salute in reply and went to work. He pulled to levers on the panel, causing a twin set of thick black poles of durasteel to rise up from the ground, a few meters from Leia's face. The sight caused her to almost drop to the floor in horror as she gasped and exploded with tears. "Han! Chewie!"
There, attached to the two posts respectively, were a battered and beaten Han Solo and Chewbacca. Han's clothes were torn and bloody in to many places to count. His face was covered in dirt and blood ran down from his mouth. Chewbacca, considerably worse, had fur that was matted with plasma where it wasn't singed and blistering. Several foreign objects were sticking from his arms, legs, and torso. It looked as it both of them had more than a few broken bones.
The Wookiee gave a weak howl in recognition as he coughed out blood.
Han, barely living much less conscious, found the strength to raise his head. The convulsions in his body showed just how painful the act was. "…Le…" he struggled to find the breath to speak, "Leia? Lu…Luke?"
Leia looked back at her father and brother with daggers then attempted to run to Han's side. The guards got a firm hold on her, sending a jolt of pain up her right arm, and stopped her.
"No," Vader ordered. "Let her go."
The former princess of the planet Alderaan shrugged them off and ran to the man she loved. She wrapped her arms around him, with sent a grunt from him."
Chewbacca barked again, and Han echoed his speech in basic, "What…what's going…going on?" his voice was a whisper.
Leia just held him close as she cried.
Luke came over and looked at Leia and Han sincerely. "They're in a lot of pain, Leia. From the moment they came here they have been tortured and beaten. But it doesn't have to go on. Just say the word and Han and Chewie will be taken to bacta tanks to recover. From there, we can discuss what will be done with them. But you must agree to join us—nothing else right now—just agree to come with us. If only you were willing to hear the things I heard, you wouldn't be fighting us right now."
Han coughed. "Le-Leia," he called in a barely audible tone. Leia bent over so he could speak in her ear. "Don't…don't…don't do it. Think…about," Han grunted in pain, "…the galaxy…The All-Alliance."
With the superior hearing of a Wookiee, Chewbacca could hear what his partner was saying and growled an agreement to sacrifice them for the good of the galaxy.
"Prom…proms…promise me Lei-Le-Leia," he coughed again, "…that you…won't give…up. Promise me!"
She nodded up and down frantically as her tears rolled down her cheek.
The short conversation went unheard to Darth Vader and Luke. "What is your answer?" her father asked. "Your life or theirs?"
"Stay away from them!" Leia snapped.
"Your anger and fear rises, Daughter," He commented. "It will not be long now. You only require one final push before you are released to the dark side."
The tall Dark Lord of the Sith looked to the officer near the controls. "Release General Solo and the Wookiee."
"As you command, my lord."
In seconds, the dingy metal coils that had wrapped so tightly around the two, slithered back into the post with snake-like hissing. Han dropped to the ground with a thump; Leia stayed with him as she realized his left leg was broken and unable to hold him.
Chewbacca howled as he was forced to stand on his badly injured leg, but was able to stay upright. He tried to summon up some bit of lasting strength and channeled it into rage.
"You three are dismissed," Vader said to the troopers behind him. The men came to attention and saluted—though Vader didn't care to witness it—then departed.
With Vader the only target that the Wookiee knew of, Chewbacca gave a gallant roar as he exposed both his razor sharp teeth and claws then limped at his best possible speed to the black armored menace.
The Sith stood firm as the alien rampaged toward him, then, in the blink of an eye, side-stepped and brought his blazing lightsaber to life. The being that was more-machine-than-man swung his scarlet blade diagonally and severed the alien in two. Mortally wounded at the waist, Chewbacca fell twice to the floor. There was little blood as the blade had cauterized the Wookiee's flesh, but that little bit merely blended with what had all ready spilled on the floor.
"Chewie!" Leia cried, losing all but the last bit of control. Vader could sense it, much to his chagrin. Under his helmet, he sneered.
"You murderer! Damn you! Damn you to hell!"
Beside Leia and Han, Luke clenched his fist as he tried to force himself to not turn away from the terrible and gruesome act. To be a Sith Lord, nothing had to affect him. It was for the good of the galaxy, he kept telling himself. The Alliance did not understand that the galaxy had become too chaotic for democracies. The order of the Empire was needed to maintain balance. The Alliance was willing to die—that much he fiercely understood now—for their ideas of freedom, so nothing else could be done to stop them from ruining the galaxy. His teeth were grinding in horror, but otherwise, he gave no notice that the move affected him.
As the Dark Lord put away his lightsaber, he raised his left hand with a closed fist. Han Solo grabbed at his throat in a vain attempt to release the grip of the dark side on his windpipe. It was robbing him of the little breath he had left. Leia looked on in abhorrence, then turned to her father with a pleading face. "Make it stop! Make it stop, damn it!"
"Make your decision," He replied.
Leia swallowed all her feelings and prepared to give up the galaxy for Han's life. But then, with his last bit of energy, Solo grabbed hold of her arm to get her attention. And with his last breath, he gave Leia a look that contained a thousand messages within it. Remember your promise. Remember the innocent people of the galaxy. The Alliance needs you. Be strong. They can't survive without you. Escape from here. Be strong. Don't ever give up. I love you. Be strong. I love you…
With that, the life faded from Han's eyes as he drifted into a forever slumber. Leia merely sat there crying and stroking his head in her lap. The image of Han's face, the sounds of his voice telling her to promise him to never give in, and all the memories of the happier times they shared rolled through Leia's mind for, it seemed, forever. "Your friends are lost, and the Alliance is dead. We are all that is left of your family," Vader told her. "You have no one else. Join us."
Leia looked into the lifeless eyes and gently closed them. She pulled in a deep breath. The death of Han and Chewbacca had an opposite effect from what her father and brother hoped. No, she would never join them as long as she had breath in her body. She made a promise to Han to never give up. Never surrender. Leia was going to live. She was going to escape her prison. She would find what was left of the Rebellion. She was going to return and destroy the Death Star and the Empire. And if that meant killing her brother and father, so be it! Leia was going to bring peace to all the lost souls that the Empire created.
Leia wiped away her tears and sniffed. "Never," she replied calmly then wiped more tears. "Never. You'll have to kill me."
Vader and Luke stared at her and knew through the Force that she had truly made her decision. The Dark Lord stood there a moment than replied, "That can be arranged."
He accessed the comlink built into his armor and spoke into a direct channel with Moff Jerjerrod. "Set course for Mon Calamari, Commander. It shall be our first military target."