Chapter 4: The Speedsters
Luke rubbed his eyes as he slowly became aware of a flickering light in his face. A morning news show filled his holovid, the soothing voices of the hosts describing another beautiful day ahead in Imperial City. The time stamp scrolling across the bottom indicated it was an hour before his alarm would normally go off.
As he sat up, he found he was still fully dressed in his formal dinner clothes from the night before. He'd come back to his room and slumped into a bean bag, finally falling into an exhausted sleep sometime after midnight. He started to put his head down, not wanting to face the day, but then the memories of the night before came rushing back.
The nauseous feeling in his stomach returned, and Luke made a mental note to skip breakfast. He could still see Captain Yahza's face as he gasped for his last breath. It was ironic—the more you tried to forget an image, the more you remembered it.
He was glad his father had left last night without attempting to talk about this. The last thing he wanted to hear were excuses about being too young to understand, or worse, 'it was necessary to save lives'.
Luke rolled onto the floor and buried his head in his arms, trying to forget what he'd seen. His father's flair for choking people was a galactic legend, one he'd never been able to escape. But it had never been so real before. Only a shadowy notion in the back of his mind, one that he tried hard to ignore. It was a frightening thought, that his father killed people so casually. If Lev made him angry one day, would he kill him? Was being his son of any significance, or could he cross the line one day, and find himself lying on the floor, gasping for air?
Luke lifted his head and stared at his hands, dimly lit in the light from the holovid screen. Did he also possess the ability to choke people with the Force? If so, perhaps there was some way to remove these Force powers ... maybe he could ask his doctor. He would willingly undergo an operation if it meant he could be free of this burden.
At the moment, he wouldn't even care if he lost the mental bond with his father as a result.
The morning show changed from a weather update to the 'galactic news', and as usual, there were scenes of Imperial Pride parades and talk of growing economies and record low crime levels. No mention of the attack on the Imperial base last night.
Luke dragged himself off the floor, deciding he was better off getting showered and dressed, and then working on the speeder bike until it was time to leave for school. Just a bit more work, and it would be ready for a test drive.
Working on the bike was a good distraction, although nothing could push the sick feeling in his gut away entirely. Two hours later, Luke was just using a wrench on the second-to-last engine bolt when he heard the sound of Threepio's servos entering the workroom. Artoo was resting on the floor beside him, passing him tools as needed.
"Good morning, Master Luke! The Grand Vizier has requested you meet with him. He is waiting in his office now. I did inform him you were due to leave for school shortly, but he said this wouldn't take long."
Luke groaned. Perhaps he should ride into the Grand Vizier's office on his hoverboard, to see if perhaps they could go back to the days when he considered him an annoyance.
"Tell him I'll be there in ten minutes," Luke said. "Artoo … would you mind getting my school backpack? It's in my room."
Artoo whistled and rolled out of the room, and Luke could soon hear him arguing with Threepio on their way to the elevator. He put the last bolt into place, and then found he needed the larger wrench. Sliding out from under the bike, he felt around for the tray of tools, and found it was just out of his reach.
He was just about to stand up to get it, when he hesitated. Again, he stretched out his hand toward the wrench. Nothing. Luke closed his eyes, concentrating. It rattled slightly, and then jumped into his hand.
The Grand Vizier's office was in a mid-level of the Imperial Palace, before the floors where the elevator entrances to the spires were. This was a busy floor of government business, and Luke buttoned his school blazer as he walked past a woman who was a deputy governor in one of the Outer Rim regions. She smiled at him, and Luke nodded in response. His late night and early start were catching up with him, and he was hoping he'd have time to stop on the way to school to pick up a frozen caf.
The royal guards led him through into the office immediately, and Luke walked through the elaborately dedicated ante-room into the main meeting lounge. As soon as he saw who was waiting on one of the couches, he looked aside, groaning.
"Good morning, Luke," Mas Amedda said, coming over from his desk. "You remember Mr Fenlius."
Tyloid stood up. "I'm sorry if I said some inappropriate things last night. It was very rude of me."
He sounded so apologetic and humble, it was hard to believe this was the same person. Luke swallowed, forcing himself to behave in the way his aunt and uncle would have expected.
"That's okay. I was … I was a little too sensitive."
"Excellent," Mas Amedda said, clapping his hands together. "So I'm sure you'd be happy to show Mr Fenlius some of the sights of Imperial City today."
"I have school," Luke said. "Perhaps this afternoon."
"I was just telling the Grand Vizier I'd love to tour your school," Tyloid said. "I'm interested in improving the education system on Quasher, so seeing how a typical school works on Coruscant would be most educational. Pardon the pun."
Luke had to fight not to roll his eyes. "Well … all right. But my school isn't typical."
"It will be a good place to start," Mas Amedda said. "I'm sure Mr Felius will enjoy meeting some of your classmates." He gestured for both of them to leave. "Go on now. I'll look forward to hearing back from you later, as to how it all went."
As soon as they were in the elevator, Tyloid's politician facade dropped and he returned to a more casual tone.
"So what's so atypical about your school, then?" he asked.
"It's private and the classes are small and specialised. The students are mostly the sons and daughters of government and business leaders." Luke's hand hovered over the buttons, thinking quickly. He didn't want to take Tyloid in one of his own speeders. Or even take him to the private hangar where they were kept. The other option was one of the standard Imperial government speeders in the hangar near Lev's office. That would have to do.
"Honestly, I think you're going to get bored very quickly," Luke said, as the elevator rushed down to the lower levels.
"I'm already bored," Tyloid said. "Can't get much worse."
As soon as they entered the hangar, Luke walked to the nearest speeder and tossed his school pack in the back.
"Wait," Tyloid said, smirking. "You're going to pilot? You can't afford a chauffeur?"
Luke rolled his eyes and gestured to the passenger door. "Get in."
"Where are the VIP flags?" Tyloid said, pointing at the empty flag slots on the front corners.
"They're in the glove compartment," Luke said. "I can put them back in ... if you want to get blown out of the sky by some bounty hunter looking for an easy pay day."
Tyloid looked like he wasn't sure whether Luke was joking or not. He did eventually climb into the passenger side, though. Luke revved the engine and then took off before Tyloid even had the door closed.
"So who did you have to bribe to get a license?" Tyloid asked, as Luke weaved around the slower morning traffic.
Luke smirked. "Who says I have a license?"
To his surprise, Tyloid actually chuckled at his joke. He was just starting to think maybe it was hasty to write this guy off entirely, but then his guest pointed out the window.
"Is that where they execute people?"
Luke glanced down at the square in front of the Imperial City detention centre, overseen by a statue of the Emperor. A group of six stormtroopers was marching across it. He felt queasy again and looked away.
"I try not to think about that kind of thing." Saying that out loud made him feel worse. Isn't that exactly what he'd accused Lev of doing yesterday? Burying his head in the sand?
"You remind me of my older brother," Tyloid said. "He's got no stomach for brutality either. Given what I've heard about your father, I thought you'd be more like my sister."
"I'm not like my father," Luke said, shortly. After a moment of silence, he glanced at Tyloid. "Does your sister kill people?"
"Not directly, but some days I wouldn't be surprised if she did. A few weeks ago, a mine blew up and hundreds of Quashi were trapped inside, and she just ordered it sealed up and paved over."
"Quashi?"
"The Quasher natives. They're primitive, but they're built for mining. They naturally live in underground villages, but they do need to come up to the surface. Where are we going? Is that your school?"
Luke was diving down towards an apartment building. "We're picking up my friend, Ben. You want to shift into the back?"
"No."
Luke sighed as he switched off the engine. He climbed out of the speeder and waved to Ben, who was waiting at the entrance to the building. He came hurrying over.
"Didn't recognize you," Ben said. "Since when did you fly these ugly clunkers?"
"Since I have an important passenger," Luke said. "Sorry, you'll have to get in the back. I'll explain on the way."
Ben raised an eyebrow, but climbed in regardless. Luke returned to the pilot's seat, and pulled the door closed.
"Tyloid, meet Ben. Ben, meet Tyloid—his father is the archduke of Quasher, and he's staying at the palace. He's going to be a senator."
"Hi," Ben said. "So you're coming to school with us?"
Tyloid didn't reply. He stared at Luke with a vague expression of disgust as they rose into the air.
"You're actually friends with a commoner?"
Luke sighed. He really needed to learn to trust his first impressions.
As they came in to land at the school, Luke was just about ready to test the speeder's emergency ejection seats on Tyloid. He'd continued to ignore Ben, and Ben was clearly too nervous of their relative power imbalance to attempt to speak to him again. When Luke turned off the engine, Tyloid pointed through the front windshield.
"Who's that girl?"
Luke glanced up, seeing it was Ophelia and various followers.
"Ophelia Halifax," Ben said, in a slightly awed voice.
"She's not a commoner," Tyloid remarked. "You can tell by her posture. Is she single?"
Luke stared at her, having a sudden idea.
"Uh … wait here," he said. "I'll go talk to her. She might like to meet you."
He had to sprint to catch up to her before she made it to the elevators, but she turned as she saw him approach.
"Hey, Ophelia," Luke said. "Remember that time I extracted you from that boring party you were forced to attend at the palace?"
She couldn't quite stop herself from smiling, and she quickly looked away. When she glanced back, her expression had returned to her usual cool mask.
"Go on," she said.
"Some royal delegation from Quasher is here. The Grand Vizier asked me to give the son a tour of the school and he also wants to visit some of those places you and your friends like. You know, the private nightclubs for wealthy and important people."
Ophelia nodded. "I know what you mean. Does he have a title?"
"Uh … I think they called him 'right honourable' when they introduced him?"
She didn't look impressed.
"Is he tolerable?"
"Um ..." Luke made a shrugging gesture. "Maybe?!"
Ophelia rolled her eyes, and then snapped her fingers at one of her friends. One of the quieter girls stepped forward. Luke smiled at her, and she smiled back in a sweet way.
"Armith, go and take this person to reception and get him a visitor pass," she said. "He can sit with you in the morning classes and we'll give him a tour at lunch."
"Wait, where am I going to sit then?" another girl asked.
"You can sit with Jonos."
This resulted in a more complex discussion about seating arrangements, from which Luke quickly backed away. He returned to the speeder, and found Tyloid was already climbing out.
"You'll appreciate the company of these people a lot more than Ben's and mine," Luke said. "Ophelia is the daughter of a Grand Moff. They'll look after you."
Tyloid nodded, gesturing at Armith, who was approaching across the landing pad. "She's all right, too. You should have said this morning you had decent girls here."
"Just don't make me regret introducing you," Luke said.
"I don't understand it," Ben said, looking across the cafeteria.
"There's a rare situation," Luke said, idly picking at his lunch. His chin was resting on his hand.
"He's a class one nerfherder, yet everyone wants to meet him and be his friend. Look at all those girls flocking around him ... what's wrong with them?"
"I guess they recognize power when they see it," Luke said.
"They don't do that to you."
"Maybe they can recognize the son of a heartless killer when they see him, too," Luke suggested.
Ben looked back, concerned. "What's up?"
"Nothing."
"A fight with your father?"
"Nothing," Luke repeated. He didn't want to make Ben any more afraid of his father than he already was. "Anyway, my father's not here. He's dealing with some Rebel attack."
"Can I come over, then?"
"Sure. We can take my new speeder bike for a test drive."
"Your new speeder bike?" Ben smirked. "When did this happen?"
"Yesterday."
"Not the one you reversed into?! That was a piece of junk!"
"That's the one."
Ben's eyes suddenly grew wide. Luke didn't need to turn around to know that Ophelia was approaching. Even without the Force, Ben's expression had Ophelia written all over it.
"Luke."
Luke turned.
"I just wanted to express my heartfelt sympathies," she said. She sounded sincere, too.
"Oh," Luke said, wondering if she'd heard what happened last night. "Well ... thanks."
"I had to entertain an Evexian princess last month. Apparently she's my cousin, but I deny everything. She reminded me of a poisonous insect ... but even she was nothing compared to this ... toad."
"You mean Tyloid," Luke said, catching on. "What rude thing did he say now? The Grand Vizier made him apologise to me this morning over some things he said last night."
"Nothing rude, per say," Ophelia said. "He just imagines he is somehow worthy of breathing the same air as me. Just because he's the youngest son of a suspect royal family on an insignificant planet. How did they get an invite to the palace, anyway?"
Luke wondered if the information about the mining resources was considered a state secret. Probably better not to risk it.
"I guess they have something the Emperor wants," Luke suggested.
"Then the Empire needs to hurry up and take it," Ophelia said.
"So does this mean you're backing out?" Luke said, worried this meant no more speeder bike test drive.
"No, we'll take him to the City Sunset lounge," Ophelia said. "Five minutes in there, and he'll soon understand exactly where he ranks in the scheme of things. You can join us if you want."
"Thanks, but no thanks," Luke said. "I have … something important to work on."
She nodded. "We'll make sure he gets back to the palace safely."
"Thanks, Ophelia."
As she walked away, Luke had to wave his hand in front of Ben's face, causing his friend to start. "Sounds like we're on, bud."
"Are you sure this is safe?" Ben asked.
They were standing on the paved square, not far from the giant Emperor statue that stood in front of the Imperial palace. Luke had pushed the speeder bike out of the palace via a service exit, with the assistance of Lieutenant Hicks, who had the right security privileges to open the vehicle bay door. He'd insisted Luke take a safety helmet though, and he'd grabbed an extra one for Ben.
"Of course it's safe," Luke said, tossing Ben the second helmet.
"Then why do I need a safety helmet?" Ben asked.
"Because it looks good," Luke said. He pulled on his own, which was black with a blue line.
He straddled the bike, and ran through the warm up sequence. It seemed his hours spent fixing the engine this morning had paid off, as a healthy humming sound filled the air.
"Jump on," Luke said, shifting forward to make room for Ben.
His friend joined him, and Luke pushed the accelerator halfway in. They shot off so fast, they were pushed backwards with the momentum.
"Woooooo!" Luke yelled, as he watched the speedometer become a blur of changing numbers. He gripped the steering controls and headed for a ground traffic pit.
They sped down the street, easily overtaking the slower landspeeders. Luke felt the wind against his helmet, and pressed the accelerator down further. He could fly away from the palace, from the memory of the dying captain, from all the bad things he tried to ignore. He could speed away from Luke Skywalker, son of a Sith Lord and boy with a future, and become a random speed-freak with too much energy to burn.
As they began to head out of central Imperial City, Ben tapped him on the shoulder. Luke looked in the mirror, and saw Ben pointing behind them. Luke slowed and took a quick glance over his shoulder. Some kind of droid-powered traffic control vehicle was following ... if it got close enough to identify him, it could mean a very large fine.
Luke accelerated.
"Luke! Are you crazy?!" Ben yelled.
"I can lose it, just hold tight!"
They twisted and turned, and Luke took every shortcut he could find. It remained behind them the whole way. Luke swung the bike around another sharp corner, and entered a narrow alleyway.
"I can't see it," Ben said.
Luke slowed slightly, hoping it had finally abandoned the chase. He glanced behind. Suddenly a green streak of light went flying past his shoulder.
"Ahh!" Luke wrenched the bike sideways, nearly throwing Ben off. "It's in front of us!"
Luke expected it to take a scan of their faces, but instead, more stun bolts came spewing out of it. They leaned sideways, barely dodging it.
"Luke! Get us out of here!" Ben yelled.
Luke twisted right, feeling another stun bolt fly past his left leg.
"Hang on!" Luke said, plunging the bike into a nearby doorway.
"Where the heck are you going?!"
Luke wondered that himself. They were in some kind of tunnel—the roar of the speeder's engine echoed off the durasteel walls. It spiraled downwards, taking them further and further below the border of Imperial City.
"Hopefully, this will lead out into another street and we'll lose it!" Luke said.
"It better, or we're dead!" Ben yelled.
Luke turned a corner, and found himself flying straight into a dead end. He jammed the brakes and swung the speeder around. The stabilizers whined in protest, and they were jolted forward.
"Did it follow?" Luke whispered, rubbing his head. Lucky for those helmets. He gazed around, realizing that if it had, they would be cornered down here.
"Uh, Luke?" Ben said.
Luke turned back to look at his friend. "What?"
Ben didn't answer. Instead, he pointed down.
Luke glanced at the floor. It was blackened and cracked like someone had set off a thermal detonator after a spice deal gone wrong. And the cracks appeared to be growing ...
"Let's get out of here!" Ben said. "It's about to cave—"
Ben's sentence was cut off as the floor under them disintegrated. Luke tried to accelerate, but with nothing but air below them, it was useless. His stomach felt like it was going into his throat as they entered free fall. At the last moment, the speeder's repulsor lifts kicked in, and their descent slowed. They hit the ground with a bump.
Luke gazed around in amazement. They were in the service tunnels.
The service tunnels ran all under Imperial City, and were used by engineers to access everything from sewer pipes to the city's water supply. Luke brought the bike to a stop, and gazed around the vast expanse. Odd bits of rubbish blew past, and the wind whistled eerily around.
"For star's sake, Luke!" Ben said, trying to catch his breath. He was staring up at the jagged hole in the ceiling through which they'd come.
"Well, there's one good thing," Luke said. "That traffic droid won't be finding us down here!"
"Yeah," Ben agreed, stepping off the bike and wobbling shakily on his feet. He sat down on the concrete. "Solid ground! I missed you!"
Luke climbed off the bike, looking up and down the tunnel. "I wonder which is the best way to go? I'd hate to get lost down here. They probably stretch for half the planet."
"They say always follow a wall," Ben said. He tilted his head, listening. "Can you hear something?"
Luke fell silent, listening. "The wind?"
"No, not that. It sounds like someone shouting ..."
Luke listened again. "You're right," he said. "Come on!"
Luke jumped back on the speeder bike, restarting the engine.
"Luke, it could be dangerous ... who knows what kind of people live down here."
"Come on, Ben!" Luke said, impatiently.
His friend reluctantly climbed on and they followed the faint sound. Their tunnel joined a much larger one, which rose up and down in giant concrete waves. As they came over a rise, Luke saw a person dressed entirely in silver, complete with a green-streaked racing helmet. He—at least, Luke assumed it was a he—was crouched beside his bike, which appeared to have broken down.
Luke drove slowly, sidling up beside the hapless biker. He pushed the visor up on his own helmet. "Need some help?"
The biker's helmet muffled his reply. Luke could only make out the word 'hell'.
"Sorry?" Luke said.
The biker stood up, and took off his helmet. He was human, looked about twenty-five, and had streak-dyed black hair.
"Stupid hellspit piece of poodoo! Won't start ... can't figure out what's the matter with the thing."
"I can take a look," Luke said.
"Yeah, he's good at fixing things," Ben added.
The biker looked skeptical. "If you want alcohol, spice, or credits in exchange ... I haven't got any."
"All I'd want are some directions to get out of here," Luke said.
"Sure, I can do that."
Luke turned off his own bike's engine, and took a careful look at the broken down vehicle. It was little more than an engine with a seat, and appeared to have been modified to make as much noise as possible. Luke lay down on his back and shuffled under the engine.
"Hey, Ben, can you pass me the tools? They're in the storage compartment."
Ben complied, and the biker stood nearby, watching Luke carefully.
"Just don't make it worse, buddy—"
"He won't," Ben said. "If Luke can't fix it, it can't be fixed."
"Luke, huh? And you're Ben?"
Ben nodded.
"I'm Pike. Haven't seen the two of you in these parts before. Looking to join the races? Or just sight-seeing?"
"Actually, we're here by accident," Ben explained. "We fell through the roof, a few tunnels back. We were trying to outrun a traffic droid."
Pike laughed. "I eat those things for breakfast. Got a whole collection of them at home."
Luke rubbed some dripping syn-oil off his face, and shifted a cluster of wires aside. He was pretty sure there was a loose connection in the ignition sequence ... everything else had checked out fine. He unhinged another panel, and a couple of wires fell down in front of him.
"Found your problem," Luke said. He stripped some of the insulating coat from the wires, and splayed them back together. "Loose connection. I can fix it temporarily, but you might need to get it replaced."
"Fine, pal, whatever you say."
Luke replaced the panels, and shuffled back out. He stood up, brushing himself off. Pike went over to the bike, and flicked a few switches, lighting up the control panel. He squeezed the left hand grip, and the engine roared and rumbled in a healthy display of power. Pike turned to them, a wide grin filling his face.
"Thanks bud! I owe you."
Luke climbed back on his own bike. "Just show us how to get out of this maze," Luke said.
"Will do," Pike said. "Nice bike you got there, by the way. What is it?"
"It's a classic," Luke explained. "Pre-clone wars."
"You found it in a junk heap?"
"Ah ... I guess you could say that," Luke said, sharing an amused glance with Ben.
Pike however, wasn't listening. He restarted the engine, revving it a couple of times. "Try and keep up with me," he yelled over the noise.
Luke tried to think of a smart reply, but Pike had already taken off. Luke followed quickly in pursuit, causing Ben, who had barely finished securing his helmet, to slam backwards. He really had to push it to keep up with the newly fixed bike, but Luke was determined to impress Pike. The stabilizers whined as he took yet another turn without braking.
His heart was beating with the thrill of it by the time they emerged out into fresh air. Pike stopped his bike, and waited for Luke to dismount.
"You're a speed-freak like the rest of us, huh?"
Luke nodded, taking off his helmet. He grinned at Ben, who was looking slightly green.
"Hey Pike! What took ya so long?"
Luke turned in the direction of the call, and saw an entire group of bikers, dressed similarly to Pike. They were sitting on the top of a rubbish dumpster, sharing food wrapped in newspaper, with their bikes resting in a heap nearby.
"Sithhell bike broke down," Pike explained. "These guys here helped me out."
The bikers took one look at Luke and Ben, and began to snigger. Luke frowned, wondering what they found so funny.
"Don't mind them," Pike said. "Come on over."
Luke followed Pike, dragging Ben behind him.
There were two women, a Twi'lek and a Cerean. The other two men were human; one had most of his hair shaved off, the other one had it dyed stark white.
"Meet Woni and Yilu," Pike explained, gesturing at the guys. "And the girls are Bel and Fushna."
Luke nodded at them. "I'm Luke, and this is Ben," he said, trying to sound older.
"Nice to meet you," Ben said.
Some of them laughed at Ben's accent. "You from Imperial City, kid?" Woni asked.
Ben looked at Luke, and then nodded.
"Do your parents know you're down here?" Bel asked.
"Do yours?" Luke said, feeling his temper rise.
"Leave them alone, you nerfs," Pike said. He turned back to Luke. "We'll have to race you sometime. See what that bike of yours can really do."
"Sure," Luke said. "When do you race?"
"There's one on tonight," Pike said, gesturing around at the vast array of swoops and speeder bikes resting down the street. "The local dives sponsor them. Five hundred credits for the winner, three hundred for second, a hundred for third. The race starts here, and loops around through the service tunnels. Are you in?"
"Sure!" Luke said.
Ben gave him a look of disapproval. "No way! Luke, your father would kill me if you were hurt!"
"Hey, this isn't podracing," Pike said. "We only have minor injuries. The occasional broken limb or concussion. At least stay and watch—if you do, you'll see us beat the Novas ... they're a bunch of nerfs who think they're a biker gang."
"Hey, maybe you two could be our groupies," Woni said. "You could wave flags and yell 'Go Speedsters!'. That would really annoy the Novas."
"The Speedsters?" Ben asked, struggling not to laugh.
"Yep, that's us," Pike said. He turned back to the others. "Come on, let's move into Brocks." He took a glance back at Luke. "You coming?"
"What is Brocks?" Luke asked.
"A dive ... but it's classier than a lot of the dives around here. The glasses are sometimes clean."
"We're underage," Ben said.
Pike laughed. "The bartenders are underage," he said, helping Fushna off the ground.
The Speedsters moved on, not looking back to see if they were following. Luke shared a look with Ben.
"I'll be fine," Luke said, finally. "Besides, my father isn't home. He doesn't have to know."
"He always knows, Luke. If he doesn't, he'll find out."
Ben looked around, as if scared he was being watched right now.
"I don't care what the Dark Lord of Hypocrisy thinks," Luke said, frowning.
"I know you don't. But I do ... he already hates me."
"It's not personal. He hates everyone." Luke could see Ben's point, however. After the incident he'd witnessed the night before, he wouldn't put it past his father to hurt Ben. His father would overlook cruising around on a speeder bike, and perhaps he'd even overlook entering a bar. But he wouldn't be so understanding if he was injured in a race.
There would be other opportunities. He'd come back without Ben at a later date.
"Okay," Luke said. "No racing. But can we at least see the bar? We'd never get into one in Imperial City."
"Okay, but don't drink anything," Ben said. "Your driving is dangerous enough as it is."
Luke smirked. "It's fast—not dangerous."
"There's a difference?"
The dingy cantina was in the street around the corner. Once inside, they quickly lost the Speedsters, as the bikers went off into their own booth. Luke and Ben stood in a corner, next to a blaring droid jukebox, and gazed around at the multitude of aliens that filled every dark corner. The place stunk of spice and alcohol.
Ben tapped him to get his attention, and pointed over towards the other side of the bar. "I wonder if those people are the Novas."
"The who?" Luke asked.
"The Speedsters rival biker gang."
Luke shifted his gaze to where Ben had pointed, and saw another bizarrely dressed group of bikers. Their helmets were marked with a blood red stripe. Luke watched them curiously. They kept looking in the Speedster's direction, and then laughing loudly.
He took a step closer to get a better view, and then found himself on the receiving end of a violent shove. He fell sideways into a couple of startled bar patrons, causing their drinks to tip all down his shirt.
"Stay out of my way!"
Luke glared angrily—but his assailant had already moved on. It was another Nova.
"Are you okay?" Ben asked.
"Sure," Luke said, trying to squeeze the liquid out of his shirt.
Luke froze as he heard a low growl behind him. Ben stepped back in fear, and Luke whirled around to behold the pair whose drinks he was squeezing out of his shirt.
One was a scruffy human, probably a smuggler, but his companion was a full-grown Wookiee.
"Uh ... sorry," Luke said, staring up in fear. He took a nervous step backwards, but the Wookiee suddenly reached forward, grabbing his arm.
"Ah!" Luke shouted. He turned desperately to the human, who was watching with an amused grin. "Hey, can you get your friend off me?!"
"Ah, let him go, Chewie. He's just a kid."
Despite the situation, Luke frowned. Kid?
The Wookiee, Chewie, launched into a long round of growls and roars, and the smuggler appeared to be listening. Finally, he turned to Luke.
"Chewie here says you saved a cousin of his once."
Luke was confused. "I don't remember saving any ..." He paused as one particular memory resurfaced. "... you mean that Wookiee the Lerrod's were holding prisoner was your cousin?!"
Chewie nodded, growling.
"But ... but how did you know it was me?" Luke asked, confused. "That was five years ago! I've never seen you before."
"Wookiees never forget a smell," the smuggler explained.
"I don't stink!"
"To him you do. His cousin probably told him to watch out for some kid who smelt like Corellian brandy."
"Well, if I saved your cousin," Luke said. "Can I have my arm back?"
Chewie obliged, and Luke stepped back, brushing it off.
"So what's a kid like you doing in a place like this anyhow?" the smuggler asked. "Where's your babysitter?"
"I am not a kid!" Luke said, angry. "Who are you, anyway?"
"Han Solo. And you've met Chewie."
Chewie roared in response.
"Chewie says he wants to repay his cousin's debt to you."
"It's okay," Luke said, raising his hands. "I don't need anything."
Chewie growled, then said something to Han.
"He says you're an orphan," Han said.
"I'm not," Luke said. "I was then ... but not anymore. I live with my father."
"See Chewie? He's happy. No more strays—the Falcon is not an orphanage."
The Wookiee roared in response.
"Chewie! I mean it this time!"
Luke felt someone tap him on the shoulder.
"Luke, we better get out of here," Ben said.
"Just back away slowly," Luke agreed.
Han and Chewie were too busy arguing to notice their departure. Outside the door, they nearly bumped into a person dressed in a striped lime green and orange bathrobe.
"The end is coming," he told them, earnestly. "We must all be prepared. The end is coming! We're having a gathering tonight, you're most welcome to attend. The only place to learn the truth. Comet Temple, 549 Biosil building, coordinates 355 dash 2612."
"Uh ... thanks," Ben said.
Luke grinned, pulling Ben on.
"This neighborhood is crazy," Ben said, shaking his head.
"I know," Luke said. "It's starting to grow on me."
They travelled a few blocks out of the neighborhood in order to find someplace to eat. Even then, the napkins appeared to have been recycled, and the windows were covered in wanted posters. The food tasted about the same as it did in Imperial City, however, and that was the important part.
When it began to get dark, they headed back to watch the race. The streets around Brocks were far more crowded now, and Luke made sure to park the Bloodfin in a concealed place.
"Do you ever wonder," Ben said, thoughtfully, as they walked among the spectator crowds. "Where the ground of Coruscant really is? You can barely see the sky from here."
Luke looked up, seeing what Ben meant. There were only the smallest snippets of atmosphere above, easily covered by a thumb.
"I don't think it has one," Luke said. "There's probably people living at the core."
"You don't think there's any real dirt left?"
"Maybe just a little bit."
"I want to live on a planet with grass and mountains," Ben said.
"As long as there is racing, I'd live anywhere," Luke said, looking around for a good spot.
"Even Tatooine?"
"Except Tatooine."
They found a place above the entrance to the service tunnels, giving them a view looking straight at the race participants down below. There were about twenty speeder bikes, all with varying degrees of modifications. The Novas were grouped on the right, whereas the Speedsters were on the left. Non-gang affiliated racers were gathered between them.
The stench of fuel was in the air, along with the sounds of engines revving and sputtering. Luke grinned, dreaming he was down there with them.
Suddenly, a big furry paw clamped down on his shoulder, rousing him from his daydream. It was followed by a loud Wookiee roar.
"Thanks for saving us a space, kid," a familiar voice said.
Luke looked up, seeing the odd pair they'd met in the bar. Han pushed Chewie aside, and stepped up to the railing. He dug in his pocket, and then pulled out a handful of betting chips.
"Say ... you two look like smart people," he said. "Just an hour ago, I paid a hundred credits for these bets. Now they're worth three hundred ... but because you saved Chewie's cousin, I'll make you a deal. For only two hundred credits, you can—"
Chewie growled in protest, attempting to remove the betting chips from Han.
"Who are the chips betting for?" Ben asked.
"The Troshodian at the back there."
"His speeder bike looks like it's about to fall apart," Luke said. "There's no way he can win."
"Okay, I'll be straight with you, kid. He paid me to take these bets, because you can't be in the race without someone betting on you, but the odds are stacked against him, so if he wins, you cash in big. What do ya say?"
Chewie growled again, and Han finally turned away. "Okay, okay. Maybe we should try that Ithorian over there ..."
"Boy, you must really be desperate," Ben said. "Do you owe someone money?"
"What do I look like? A third-rate smuggler for a Hutt?"
"Yes," Luke said. "Except replace third with fifth."
Chewie began laughing—at least, Luke assumed that odd chuffing sound was laughter.
"For your information, smart-mouth," Han said, "I'm an independent shipping contractor who owns the fastest ship in the galaxy. People come from all corners of the galaxy just to get a look at the Millennium Falcon in action. She can make the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs."
"Then why are you hanging around in a scummy neighborhood like this?" Ben asked.
"Because a lousy con-artist stole the Falcon's hyperdrive motivator, and she ain't going nowhere until I can get the money to replace it."
Chewie growled out something, and Han corrected himself. "Okay, so he won it in a game of sabacc, but he was cheating anyway."
Luke shared an amused glance with Ben.
"Have you tried scrounging around a junk heap?" Luke asked.
"Would you want a motivator from a junk heap in your ship when you're trying to outrun three Imperial star cruisers, and there are TIE fighters swarming all over you?"
"No one can outrun the Imperial navy," Luke said, in disbelief.
"I've run rings around Imperials from here to Tatooine, kid. Right Chewie?"
Chewie urfed in agreement.
"You've been to Tatooine?" Luke said, curious.
"I've been everywhere."
"No one could have been everywhere," Ben said. "You'd be a million years old by the time you went everywhere."
"Have you been to Muulinist?" Luke asked.
"Have a phony bank account there," Han said.
"Naboo?"
"Ate fish at a lakeside restaurant."
"Kamino?"
"Delivered umbrellas there."
"Oh yeah," Ben said. "Have you been to Pepelo?"
"Got into a bar fight there."
"I just made that place up," Ben said.
"Well check your map, kid, because Pepelo is a settlement in the Beano asteroid belt."
"Quiet, the race is starting!" Luke said, leaning over the railing in excitement. Below them, a large light changed from red to orange, signalling the racers to prepare to go.
"Luke, is that your comlink?" Ben asked, pointing at his pocket.
"Huh?" Luke listened above the noise of the crowd and commentators, and heard a familiar repeating beep. "Oh no."
"Answer it!" Ben said, urgently.
"You answer it!"
"I'll answer it," Han said. "Give it here."
Luke quickly picked up the flat, circular disk and held it steady in front of him. It lit up with an image of Lev. To say he didn't look happy was an understatement.
"Luke! Where in space are you?!"
"Uh ..." Luke looked around at the cheering crowds. "Somewhere."
"Do you have any idea what time it is?"
"Hold on," Luke said. He put the comlink on mute and put it back in his pocket.
Down below, the bikes raced past in a blur of speed. The crowd screamed and cheered until they disappeared into the tunnel. Luke grinned and then retrieved the comlink.
"You were saying?"
"Take a guess," Lev said, folding his arms.
Luke rolled his eyes at the small blue hologram and moved away from Han and Chewie.
"I'm just out with Ben. I'll probably be another hour or so ..."
"Your curfew was an hour ago."
"Then tell my father if you want," Luke said, frowning. "I don't care. I don't care about any of his rules. He has no right to tell me what's right and wrong."
"Luke, don't make me send out troopers to bring you in."
"I'm seventeen years old!" Luke protested. "I have every right to be out after dark if I want."
"My finger is reaching for the button to call the city guard."
"You wouldn't," Luke said. "That's a waste of government resources. Besides, who says I'm still in the city?"
"You're not in the city?" Lev said, sounding even more worried, if that were possible. "Where are you?! Do you know how dangerous it can be out there?"
Luke sighed. "Okay, okay. I'll come home. Don't worry!" He cut the call, deciding if he talked longer, he might sink deeper into that hole he'd already dug.
Ben was right behind him. "We're leaving?"
Luke nodded. "I should have had a better excuse lined up. Blast it!"
"Maybe it's better that we get out of here before Han realizes he's not going to win anything on this race."
"You're right," Luke agreed, glancing back at the smuggler. He was staring at the race viewscreens like a terrible tragedy was playing out before him.
Luke turned his back on the scene, knowing he couldn't risk delaying his departure. The longer he took to come home, the higher the risk of Lev taking him up on his threat, and passing this on to his father. But whatever the outcome, he knew one thing for sure. This wasn't the last this neighborhood had seen of him.