A/N: Thank you to my kind reviewers, and to anyone who reads this story.There's some action this chapter! Confrontation is coming in a couple of chapters.
pokey: Thanks!
Kal's Girl: Sure will!
TriGemini: Oh, I couldn't agree more. Who would want to spend time with Jabba? He's a giant blob. An evil blob. Lol. Thanks for reviewing!
padmenaberrie32: Your review made me laugh, lol. :) That would definitely be amusing. Glad you like the way I'm writing this story. Thank you for reviewing!
Hopeless4life: Well, yeah, I guess it was. Sorry! But a lot of my endings are semi-cliffhangers, lol. Thanks!
ChibiAzn3: Wow - did you read all 14 chapters in one sitting? Thanks! You'll have to wait for the ending to see what happens with Luke and Anakin. Thank you for your reviews!
doreenthatshot: Thank you! I shall :)
LaPapillion: Lol, thanks - glad you liked the cliffhanger!
Emerald Green Queen: Ha, yeah, no paddle-pop and no wake-up kiss - glad you see my reasons! Things will move on even more briskly from now on, but I hope it's not too rushed :)
Chapter Fourteen
Leia was fuming silently. Being chained to Jabba the Hutt, scantily clad in a gold metal bikini, was not part of the original plan. Yes, part of the plan had been to try and break Han out, or to infiltrate the court to get him out later, but she had not counted on having most of her dignity stripped away as well as most of her clothes.
She wondered where Luke was and how long it would take for him to arrive. The longer he took, the more Leia was tempted to kill the vile gangster she was chained to, as well as every one of his loathsome cronies, and such behaviour was beneath her. She was a Princess and a Senator, after all. She had been taught that a diplomatic situation was always the first option. But still – anyone who met Jabba the Hutt would surely see that negotiation would be futile. Luke was the only person she knew who might have a chance of succeeding.
And then she felt a faint stirring, a presence in her mind – he was close now. And so she smiled and settled back to wait.
Luke encountered little opposition when he walked into the palace, and the challenges he did meet he dismissed with a wave of his hand, a few well-chosen words and the Force. Using these techniques, he managed to manipulate Bib Fortuna to bring him before Jabba, convincing the Twi'lek that he would be rewarded.
Bib approached the throne and introduced Luke to Jabba in Huttese.
"I told you not to admit him," Jabba growled.
"I must be allowed to speak," Luke interjected, slipping the weight of the Force into his voice.
"He must be allowed to speak," Bib obediently repeated in Huttese.
Furious, Jabba shoved Bib away violently. "You weak-minded fool!" he roared. "He's using an old Jedi mind trick!"
Luke stared hard at the Hutt. He glanced once at Leia, feeling her anger and pain through the Force, and then he turned all his focus and attention back to Jabba. He needed to concentrate, and he felt Leia close her mind to him so as not to distract him.
"You will bring Captain Solo and the Wookiee to me," he said clearly and firmly.
Jabba chuckled mockingly. "Your mind powers will not work on me, boy."
Luke didn't even blink. "Nevertheless, I'm taking Captain Solo and his friends. You can either profit by this or be destroyed – it's your choice. But I warn you not to underestimate my powers."
The old gangster let out a booming, mocking laugh. "There will be no bargain, young Jedi." Before Luke reacted, Jabba turned to his guards. "Bring Solo and the Wookiee to me!" he ordered.
Luke's eyebrows twitched slightly, imperceptibly. He sensed danger in Jabba's order, but he decided not to act – yet.
A few minutes passed in which Jabba gave instructions to be translated by Threepio, and then the crowd parted as Han and Chewbacca were brought forward.
"Han!" Luke greeted his friend.
"Luke!" Han mimicked with a grin.
"Are you all right?"
"Fine. Together again, huh?"
"Wouldn't miss it," Luke grinned.
"How are we doing?"
"Same as always."
"That bad, huh?" Han asked with a wry smile. He looked up at the throne, and his eyes widened when they set on Leia, chained to the gangster. "Leia!" He stared at her, worrying about what Jabba had done to her. Knowing the kind of Hutt that Jabba was, Han was genuinely concerned for the princess, though he faltered when he tried to speak it aloud – something seemed to stop him. His concern was stemming from another emotion…one he hadn't tried to explore yet, one that was foreign to him…but…it felt good.
"I'm fine," was all she said in reply, and her familiar voice and the strength he saw in her face reassured him. She looked a little angry and disgusted from being so close to Jabba, but sheseemed all right.
Threepio stepped forward hesitantly to translate for the three friends.
"Oh dear…His High Exaltedness, the great Jabba the Hutt, has decreed that you are to be terminated immediately."
"Good, I hate long waits," Han interrupted loudly.
"You will therefore be taken to the Dune Sea and cast into the pit of Carkoon, the nesting place of the all-powerful Sarlacc."
Han turned to Luke. "Doesn't sound so bad."
"In his belly, you will find a new definition of pain and suffering, as you are slowly digested over a thousand years."
"On second thought, let's pass on that one, huh?" Han was liking this less and less. Chewie barked in agreement.
"You should have bargained, Jabba," Luke said. "That's the last mistake you'll ever make."
Jabba laughed evilly, and the guards began to drag the prisoners away. They moved close by the throne, and Leia reached out to touch Han's cheek. She could tell that Luke knew what he was doing, but there was a chance things would go wrong – and this could be the last time she saw any of them. It was now or never.
"I love you," she whispered to the captain. Those words, finally spoken aloud, felt so right that she wondered why she hadn't said them earlier. And she thanked the heavens that she had been given the chance to say them to him before what could be his doom.
His face froze for a fraction of a second, and then melted into a small, sincere smile. "I know," was all he said, but in his eyes Leia saw the unspoken words he had meant. She saw that he was surprised, but pleased. She saw that her inner battle had not been in vain, that he felt the same way about her. And in the face of the impending execution, she felt a strange peace and happiness wash over her.
As Luke passed by, he gave her a short nod.
Don't worry, Leia. We'll be fine, she heard him say in her mind. She did not question this odd sensation, this bond – they were twins, after all, and now she knew that Force sensitivity ran in the family. It was unexpected, but not surprising.
Be careful, Luke, she thought, knowing that, somehow, he had heard her.
As she watched them being dragged from the throne room, she could have sworn she saw Han wink at her.
Jabba's enormous Sail Barge glided over the surface of the desert of Tatooine. Accompanying it were two small skiffs, one of which was holding the prisoners.
As they approached the Pit of Carkoon, the monsters inside the Sail Barge continued to eat, drink and have a good time. Threepio wandered among them, trying not to disturb any of the revellers. As he sidestepped a rowdy argument, he bumped into a small droid serving drinks, which spilled everywhere. The little droid beeped and whistled angrily.
"Oh, I'm terribly sor –" Threepio began, until he peered closer at the droid. "Artoo! What are you doing here?" He listened to the short reply. "Well, I can see you're serving drinks, but this place is dangerous," he replied. "They're going to execute Master Luke and, if we're not careful, us too!"
Artoo whistled, his response sounding almost singsong.
Threepio straightened up. "I wish I had your confidence."
The barge and the skiffs moved over a huge sand pit. The prisoners' skiff moved out directly over the centre. A plank extended from the edge and Luke was released from his bonds and shoved out onto the plank. Directly below him was the Sarlacc – a mucous-lined hole surrounded by thousands of sharp teeth, tentacles waving.
Back in the barge, Jabba and Leia stood by the rail, watching. The Hutt villain mumbled something to Threepio, and then raised his stubby arms for silence. Threepio's voice was amplified over loudspeakers.
"Victims of the almighty Sarlacc: His Excellency hopes that you will die honourably. But should any of you wish to beg for mercy, the great Jabba the Hutt will now listen to your pleas."
Han stepped forward arrogantly. "Threepio, you tell that slimy piece of worm-ridden filth he'll get no such pleasure from us. Right?"
Chewbacca growled in agreement.
"Jabba! This is your last chance," Luke called. "Free us or die."
Unnoticed, Artoo slipped up to the upper deck as Jabba's court laughed.
"Move him into position," Jabba ordered. He made a thumbs-down gesture. "Put him in!"
The guards prodded Luke to the edge of the plank. The young man glanced up and flipped a jaunty salute to Artoo. A flap opened on the droid's domed head.
Luke jumped off the plank, and a bloodthirsty cheer went up – but Luke spun around in mid-air and caught the edge of the plank with his fingertips. The plank bent with his weight, then catapulted him up. He flipped and dropped down onto the spot he had just left, facing the guards. Casually, he raised his arm, and his lightsaber dropped into his waiting palm, shot by Artoo.
In one fluid movement, Luke ignited his blade and sent the first guard overboard into the mouth of the Sarlacc. Other guards swarmed to him, but he cut through them until he reached Han and Chewie. With a quick stab, he disarmed their guards, and then he cut their bonds. Han grabbed a discarded rifle lying on the deck and began firing at the remaining guards.
When Jabba saw what was going on, he exploded, yelling furiously at those around him. The room collapsed into uproar, creatures rushing everywhere. And Leia saw her chance in this confusion.
She leaped onto Jabba's throne, grabbed her own chain and wrapped it around his throat. Jumping off the other side, she pulled violently with all her strength.
The Hutt bucked and tried to break free of the chain, but still Leia pulled, drawing not only on her own strength, but on the energy she felt in the room, an energy she felt all around her. An energy that gave her strength beyond her own.
It was in this moment that Princess Leia felt the Force.
With one last effort, Jabba lunged forward – his eyes bulged and his tongue flopped from his mouth.He twitched once and died. Artoo appeared from nowhere and sliced through Leia's chain, freeing her at last.
Boba Fett ignited his rocket pack and flew from the barge to the skiff. But before he could fire, Luke sliced his gun in half. Just then, the skiff was rocked by blasts from the barge's cannon, and tilted. Chewie and Han were thrown against the rail, but recovered quickly. Han began to fire at Boba.
The second skiff, full of guards, sped up, firing at them. Luke leapt into the centre of the soldiers and waded through them with graceful sweeps of his lightsaber.
Boba turned and aimed at the young Jedi – but Han fired off a shot directly at the bounty hunter's rocket pack. It exploded, throwing Boba into the air, over the edge of the skiff – and into the Sarlacc's mouth, as Han gave a whoop of success.
Meanwhile, Leia, Artoo and Threepio had raced off to the deck guns. Luke appeared suddenly, slicing through the deck gunners and guards. Leia ran to the second deck gun, shooting first the barge's rigging, and then the first deck gun.
"Point it down," Luke shouted to his sister. She obeyed quickly as Artoo beeped and nudged Threepio at the rail.
"I can't, Artoo!" Threepio wailed. "It's too far to jump…"
Artoo gave the golden droid a firm shove over the edge, and then followed, tumbling towards the sand.
Luke grabbed Leia with one arm and grabbed a rope from the rigging with the other.
"Come on, kid, you gonna join this party or what?" Han yelled to him over the noise of explosions and screams.
"Coming!" Luke yelled back, and kicked the trigger of the deck gun. He jumped into the air with his sister as the cannon exploded into the deck.
They swung down to the empty skiff that Luke had sprung from, and Luke steered it over to collect Han and Chewbacca, as the Sail Barge continued to explode.
They glided to where two golden legs were sticking out of the sand, accompanied by a small periscope. Luke grinned and lowered a large electromagnet from a compartment in the skiff's help. The two droids shot out of the desert and locked onto the magnet with a loud clang.
As the Sail Barge burned, the skiff sailed across the desert, its occupants laughing and hugging each other in relief and joy.
"I see you've warmed up a little, Princess," Han said to Leia as they stood close together in a corner.
"And I see you're still the same – a scoundrel who can't rescue himself," she shot back with a smirk.
He took her hand in both of his, kneading it lightly with his fingers. "You don't have enough scoundrels in your life," he said, leaning closer.
"I prefer nice men," she whispered, keeping up the banter, yet leaning in too.
"I can be a nice man," Han murmured.
And then their lips met in a long, sweet kiss.