Force of Destiny
Sorry about the delay. A certain Egyptian gentleman distracted me. In other words: If you haven't seen "The Mummy Returns" yet, go watch it – it's a blast! :-) On with the story...
Chapter 19
Final preparations
***
Luke Skywalker debated how much he should tell Chewie and Leia. Should they know they were about to join forces with their most hated enemy? Or would it be better if they knew nothing of their new ally? It was not an easy decision; both possible courses presented danger to Han's rescue, and to his father.
"Luke? We're ready!" Leia called.
The young Jedi turned around; Leia, standing just outside the doorway, was garbed in a bounty hunter's armor, helmet tucked under her arm. As bulky as the armor was, it could not hide her petite frame. It would, however, effectively hide the fact that Leia was Human and female.
Luke nodded, satisfied with what he saw.
"There is one more thing", he began, his decision made. He would simply let the Force guide him. "We have a new ally. Try not to kill him, okay?"
A frown crossed Leia's features. There it was again, that strange feeling that Luke was going to betray them.
"Who is he?" she demanded to know.
Luke slowly shook his head. "That I cannot tell you. The Force does not show me everything." It was not exactly a lie, not completely at least. There were still many things he could not see through the Force, and he knew that would always be so, no matter how much his powers grew. He still wanted to gag. It was the kind of half-truth that Obi-Wan had told him. The kind that almost made him kill his father. The kind that made him sick to his stomach. "You better go now, Leia. Chewie is waiting for you."
***
Darth Vader woke up to the sound of somebody snoring and looked around. He was still sharing a cell in Jabba's palace with that smuggler, Solo. No sunlight filtered into the shabby underground room, but Vader's time sense told him it must be early afternoon. Solo turned over in his sleep, snoring even louder.
Figures, he thought. Not only is he a smuggler, a pirate and a rebel, no, he just has to snore! Wonder what the princess sees in him.
Vader stretched, a small smile gracing his face. Wonder what her father would think about that scoundrel, he thought. Bail Organa would certainly not have approved of Leia's choice; he could easily see in his mind's eye the sour expression on the Alderaanian's countenance.
Leia's adventurous nature and quick temper had gotten her into trouble with her more conservative and cautious father more than once. Although she did her best to please her father and be the princess and senator he expected her to be, she obviously took after her mother Saché, who had been one of Queen Amidala's handmaidens.
It had been on Sachés insistence that Leia be trained in self-defense, and the young princess quickly became as proficient as her mother. As the other handmaidens. As Amidala. The uncanny resemblance Leia had to her mother more than once unsettled Vader, especially when combined with action that Amidala might have taken. For all her handmaidens bore that resemblance to the Queen, and thus, Leia did as well.
It was like a glimpse into the past. Or into the might-have-been, for it was easy to imagine how any daughter of his and Padmé's would have been just like Leia.
He sighed, pushing away the unwelcome thoughts. He could not change past mistakes. He could only hope to make up for some of them.
He got up from his place on the floor, grumbling about the pain of cramped muscles in his back. Sleeping on a cold stone floor did that to you. Well, it could not be helped. Jabba's dungeon was no luxury hotel with all the trappings of a health resort. It was more likely to have booby traps. Room service left a lot to be desired, too. They would probably be left to rot in this cell without food or water, unless Jabba was planning one of his sick little entertainments. In this case, a guard would bring water and leftover food some time in the evening. Just enough to keep them alive and in reasonably good shape until they could die for Jabba's and his court's amusement.
Vader licked dry lips and cocked his head, stretching his senses to get a feel of the palace's inhabitants. What he encountered encouraged him. Jabba and his court were sleeping away the afternoon hours. Even the guards were dozing in the oppressive heat.
Smiling, he walked over to the cell door. The lock proved to be no challenge for his Force skills, and the single guard in the hallway was already dreaming of a place with a much cooler and moister climate.
***
"You realize, Admiral, that this is hard to believe", Mon Mothma said after Piett had finished his tale.
"Believe it", the Admiral answered. "It was quite a shock to learn to what extremes the Emperor would go. I don't presume to know how Lord Vader must feel about all this. But I do know that he will join you, and my men and I wish to do the same."
"Still...", Mothma began again, but Piett interrupted her: "Madam, I fully understand your reservations. I've shown you what proof I have. Now I must ask for your trust."
"You understand we will have to examine your so-called proof", Madine, who had so far been silent, interjected.
"Of course, General. I expect no less from you."
"In addition, we will send a prize crew aboard your ship, Admiral", Ackbar chimed in.
Piett nodded. "That is also acceptable. In fact, we are a little short on personnel right now, so if it's not too much trouble, I would like to ask that you assign men who can later be fully integrated into my crew."
The request caused a scowl to appear on Madine's face. "You seem to be quite certain that the Alliance will take your offer, Admiral."
"You would be a fool not to, General."
"Gentlemen, please! I am sure Admiral Piett understands that we have to bring his proposal before the Alliance council before a decision is made. After all, the Executor is not just any ship."
"We are in agreement, then." Piett stood up. "One last request, Gentlemen, Madam."
"Yes, Admiral?"
"We believe that Lord Vader is on Tattooine at the moment, trying to rescue Captain Solo. A team has already been dispatched to assist him. However, if they are not back within the next three days, I need to send a search and rescue team after them."
Madine nearly jumped up, but Mon Mothma's restraining hand on his forearm stopped him.
"Then let us hope that Lord Vader does not interfere with our own team. I am not certain how Commander Skywalker or Princess Leia will take his meddling in this", she said. Piett tried not to look too worried.
***
Han Solo lay silently listening. There was no sound coming from his cell mate. Had Vader died in his sleep? Or had the Sith simply decided he wasn't worth rescuing after all and left without him? Cursing, the Correllian opened his eyes and looked around. His vision was still blurry, and the cell only dimly lit by what little light filtered in through the peep-hole in the door, but he was in fact alone. Vader was nowhere to be seen.
"That double-crossing, slimy sonofabitch!" Solo cursed. He could have kicked himself for falling asleep in the first place. Leave it to Vader to pull such a dirty trick on him!
"Anybody I know?" a deep voice asked. Solo spun around, squinting into the semi-darkness.
"Where the Sith-hell are you?" he hissed. He got his answer when the lock on the cell door clicked open, and Vader entered with a large bundle under his arm, pulling the door shut behind him.
"Are you crazy? We could have gotten out of here!"
"I see you are feeling better", Vader observed. "How is your eyesight?"
"Forget my eyesight! How'd you... why..." Solo spluttered.
"Luke said to stay put." Vader smirked. "He didn't say we had to starve."
Solo looked at him as if he had lost his mind. "What?"
"I raided the kitchens. Want some chicken?" Vader settled down on the floor and opened the bundle, which turned out to be a napkin filled with chicken legs, bread, assorted fruit, a large waterskin, and even a thermos that contained coffee. "No plates, I'm afraid, and we have to share the cup. So, do you want some chicken?"
Instead of an answer, Han Solo started to thump his head against the wall.
***
A blaster shot rang out in Jabba's main audience hall, causing the revelers to pause. Several drew their own weapons as a small figure descended the stairs, dragging a tall Wookie behind her on a chain.
The small figure greeted Jabba in a gruff voice, using an obscure Outer Rim dialect: "I have come for the bounty on this Wookie."
"At last we have the mighty Chewbacca", Jabba answered in the same language, and called for 3PO to translate. The droid hurried to his new master's side.
"Yes, your worshipfulness?" he asked. If Jabba even understood the jibe, he did not react to it. Instead, he said something in Hutteese which 3PO dutifully translated: "The mighty Jabba bids you welcome, and will gladly pay you the reward of twenty-five thousand credits."
"Fifty thousand. No less", the bounty hunter answered, still in his own language. When he heard the translation, Jabba let out a roar of rage, his arm hitting C3PO, sending the droid stumbling backwards. Flustered by this reaction, 3PO got back to his feet and approached the gangster again.
"What did I say?" he mumbled. The Hutt did not answer, but growled a question of himself with barely restrained anger.
"The mighty Jabba asks why he must pay fifty thousand", 3PO translated.
At this, the small bounty hunter produced a silvery sphere. 3PO instantly recognized it: "Because he is holding a thermal detonator!" To his surprise and dismay, Jabba just laughed while everybody else was cowering, trying to find cover. Everybody but Boba Fett, who raised his own weapon.
"This bounty hunter is my kind of scum", Jabba declared, still laughing. "Fearless and inventive. Tell him thirty-five thousand, and not to push his luck."
Again, 3PO translated, and the small bounty hunter deactivated his thermal detonator in agreement and put it away. The whole court started to breathe again. The band picked up their tune again, and a howling Chewbacca was taken away by the Gamorrean guards.
***
The guards dragged and pushed Chewbacca down the corridor to the cells, poking him with their weapons every few seconds for good measure. It more than irritated the Wookiee. He would have loved to tear these lowlifes apart, but he had to stick with Luke's plan. Not for the first time, he wondered who their new ally was, and hoped the plan would go off without a hitch. He had noticed that Han was not anymore where he should have been according to Lando's report; it meant another variable in the plan, and he did not like it one bit. Still, he trusted Luke. The cub would do anything for his friends, just like Chewbacca would do anything to rescue his partner.
They finally reached a cell almost at the end of the corridor, and Chewie found himself shoved into it without further ado. Cautiously, he sniffed the air. You never knew what you might find in Jabba's dungeon. It smelled like... fried chicken? He sniffed again. Definitely chicken, and coffee, and Han! Chewbacca could not hold back a howl of joy.
"Chewie? Chewie, is that you?" a voice came from the dark corners of the room. Han's voice! Howling even louder, Chewbacca ran towards his Human friend and, throwing his arms around him, squeezed him with all his might.
"Ow! Chewie, let go, you're breaking my ribs!" Han gasped, squirming in his friends grip. Sometimes, Chewbacca simply forgot his own strength. "Good to see you too, buddy. How is everybody doing?"
The Wookiee growled and jabbered a reply.
"Yeah, I know Luke has a plan. Has everybody gone crazy, or what? The kid can't even take care of himself, let alone rescue anybody else!" Solo complained.
"I care to disagree, Captain", another voice answered.
Chewie pushed Han behind him, again sniffing. Was this their mysterious new ally? He smelled strange, and yet familiar.
"Oh, what do you know?" Han dismissed the other man's words.
"Much has happened in the meantime, Captain. Luke has learned a lot. He is not the kid you knew anymore." He sounded almost sad, but at the same time, proud.
Chewbacca breathed in again, trying to puzzle out the different smells. Sun tan lotion... that wasn't right... leather... metal... the deep voice also was familiar... Vader!
With an outraged scream, Chewbacca pounced on the Sith Lord, his hands closing around Vader's neck, lifting him off the ground. He would crush Vader's windpipe, squeeze the life out of that monster!
"Chewie, wait!" Han shouted. "He's on our side!"
***
To be continued