Chapter 4 Caught

"Stand by, Chewie, here we go. Cut in the sublight engines." Han said, pulling back on a control lever.

Outside the cockpit window stars began streaking past, seem to decrease in speed,
then stop as they came out of hyperspace. Suddenly the starship began to shudder and
violently shake about. Asteroids began to race toward them, battering the sides of the ship.

"What the...? Ah, we've come out of hyperspace into a meteor shower. Some kind of asteroid collision. It's not on any of the charts."

Bob leaned forward and studied the computer. The Wookiee flipped off several controls while Bob heightened the radar.

"What's going on?" Luke asked as he made his way into the bouncing cockpit.

"Our position is correct, except...no, Alderaan!" Han looked frantically at the charts.

"What do you mean? Where is it?"

"That's what I'm trying to tell you, kid. It ain't there. It's been totally blown away."

"What? How?" Luke stared in disbelief.

Obi-Wan moved into the cockpit behind Luke as the ship began to settle down. "Destroyed by the Empire." He said.

Han waved a hand. "The entire starfleet couldn't destroy the whole planet. It'd take a thousand ships with more firepower than I've..."

A signal started flashing on the control panel, and a muffled alarm began humming.

"There's another ship coming in." Bob said.

"Maybe they know what happened." Luke said, his eyes on the cockpit window.

"It's an Imperial fighter." Obi-Wan said.

Chewie barked his concern as a tiny, finned Imperial TIE fighter races past the cockpit
window.

"It followed us!" Luke said in disbelief.

"No. It's a short range fighter." Bob told him.

"There aren't any bases around here. Where did it come from?" Han wondered out loud.

"It sure is leaving in a big hurry. If they identify us, we're in big trouble." Luke pointed out.

"Not if I can help it. Chewie, jam it's transmissions."

"It'd be as well to let it go. It's too far out of range." Obi-Wan advised.

"Not for long." Han said.

"Han, that's not what we came for." Bob said, knowing it was useless.

The pirateship gained on the tiny fighter, and the tension mounted in the crowded cockpit. Under ordinary circumstances, Han would have ordered them out a long time ago.

"A fighter that size couldn't get this deep into space on its own." Obi-Wan broke the silence.

"It must have gotten lost, been part of a convoy or something." Luke suggested.

"Well, he ain't going to be around long enough to tell anyone about us." Han muttered.

In the distance a small, bright star was growing closer. Bob studied it, trying to figure out what it was. Too many weird things were happening.

"Look at him. He's headed for that small moon." He said.

"I think I can get him before he gets there; he's almost in range." Han said.

The small moon began to take on the appearance of a monstrous spherical battle station.

"That's no moon! It's a space station." Obi-Wan said.

"It's too big to be a space station." Han told him.

"No, he's right." Bob said. "It is a space station."

"I have a very bad feeling about this." Luke mumbled.

"Yeah, I think your right." Han agreed. "Full reverse! Chewie, lock in the auxiliary power."

The pirateship shuddered and the TIE fighter accelerated away toward the gargantuan battle station.

"Why are we still moving towards it?" Luke asked.

Bob already knew the answer, and he didn't want to hear it.

"We're caught in a tractor beam! It's pulling us in!" Han said, trying desperately to regain control of his ship.

"But there's gotta be something you can do!"

"There's nothin' I can do about it, kid. I'm in full power. I'm going to have to shut down. But they're not going to get me without a fight!"

Ben Kenobi puts a hand on his shoulder.

Obi-Wan put a hand on his shoulder. "You can't win. But there are alternatives to fighting." As they were towed closer to the awesome metal moon, the immense size of the massive battle station became staggering. Running along the equator of the gigantic sphere was a mile-high band of huge docking ports into which the helpless pirate ship was dragged.

"Han, we can't be caught here." Bob said.

"Well I would happily take suggestions." He shot back.

"Is there somewhere we can hide?" Obi-Wan broke up the almost argument.

Han snorted. "Are you kidding? This is a smuggler's ship." He cocked his head. "It just might work. This way."

> > > >

They waited in the dark for half an hour before the noise of the clone troopers faded away. Han pushed up the floor panel and climbed out followed by Bob. Luke and Obi-Wan appeared out of a second compartment.

"Boy, it's lucky you had these compartments." Luke said, standing up.

"I use them for smuggling. I never thought I'd be smuggling myself in them." He ran a hand through his hair. "This is ridiculous. Even if I could take off, I'd never get past the tractor beam."

"Leave that to me." Obi-Wan said.

"Old fool. I knew that you were going to say that." Han muttered.

"Who's the more foolish, the fool or the fool who follows him?" Obi-Wan asked, leaving Han, for once, speechless.

"They're going to bring a scanner on board." Bob said.

"How many clone troopers are down there?" Obi-Wan said.

Bob glanced down. "Three."

"Perfect."

> > > >

Han and Bob stood ready as the two crewmen carrying the scanner came on board. They sent them crashing to the ground, unconscious, and Han went over to the ramp.

"Hey down there, could you give us a hand with this?"

The stormtroopers below entered the ship. They were quickly taken care of as well, and Bib, Luke, and Han put on their uniforms.

A voice crackled over the comlink. "TX-four-one-two. Why aren't you at your post? TX-four-one-two, do you copy?"

Han went down the ramp of the pirate ship and waved to the gantry officer, pointing to his ear indicating that his comlink wasn't working. Chewie went over to the door and waited for it to open. As it did, the officer behind stumbled backward. With a bone-chilling howl, the giant Wookiee flattened the officer with one blow. The aide immediately reached for his pistol, but was blasted by Han. Ben and the droids entered the room quickly followed by Luke and Bob.

"You know, between his howling and your blasting everything in sight, it's a wonder the whole station doesn't know we're here." Luke muttered.

"Bring them on! I prefer a straight fight to all this sneaking around." Han shot back.

"Brilliant, Han. Just get us killed why don't you." Bob was getting tired of this.

"I thought you were on my side."

"I'm not on anybody's side. I just think…"

"We found the computer outlet, sir." Threepio interrupted.

Obi-Wan fed some information into the computer and a map of the station appeared on the monitor. He began to inspect it carefully while Luke, Han and Bob stood in a hostile silence. Threepio and Artoo looked over the control panel. Suddenly Artoo began to whistle wildly.

"Plug in. He should be able to interpret the entire Imperial computer network." Obi-Wan said.

Artoo punched his claw arm into the computer socket and the vast Imperial brain network came to life, feeding information to the little droid. After a few moments, he beeped something.

"He says he's found the main computer to power the tractor beam that's holding the ship here." Threepio interpreted. "He'll try to make the precise location appear on the monitor."

The computer monitor flashed readouts.

"The tractor beam is coupled to the main reactor in seven locations. A power loss at one of the terminals will allow the ship to leave." Threepio concluded.

"I don't think you boys can help. I must go alone." Ben said, studying the data on the monitor readout.

"Whatever you say. I've done more that I bargained for on this trip already." Han crossed his arms and leaned against the wall.

"I want to go with you." Luke protested.

"Be patient, Luke. Stay and watch over the droids."

"But they can..."

"They must be delivered safely or other star systems will suffer the same fate as Alderaan. Your destiny lies along a different path than mine. The Force will be with you. Always!" Obi-Wan started to leave, then turned to Bob. "And with you, Bob. Your destiny lies along a different path as well." He adjusted the lightsaber on his belt and silently stepped out of the command office, then disappeared down a long grey
hallway.

Chewbacca barked a comment and Han nodded his head in agreement. "Boy you said it, Chewie." He looked at Luke. "Where did you dig up that old fossil?"

"Ben is a great man." Luke said quietly.

"Yeah, great at getting us into trouble."

"I didn't hear you give any ideas..."

"Well, anything would be better than just hanging around waiting for him to pick us up..."

"Who do you think..."

"Knock it off, guys!" Bob entered the argument.

"I'm just saying…" Luke began.

"Saying what? Do you think you could have piloted the ship away from those imperial…"

"I'm a great…"

"KNOCK IT OFFF!"

Suddenly Artoo began to whistle and beep a blue streak.

Luke went over to him. "What is it?"

"I'm afraid I'm not quite sure, sir." Threepio said. "He says, 'I found her', and keeps repeating, 'She's here.'"

"Well, who? Who has he found?"

Artoo whistled a frantic reply.

"Princess Leia."

"The princess? She's here?" Luke asked eagerly.

"Who?" Bob asked.

"Princess? What's going on?" Han was just as lost.

"Level five. Detention block A A-twenty-three. I'm afraid she's scheduled to be terminated." Threepio continued translating.

"Oh, no! We've got to do something." Luke said.

"What are you talking about?" Han demanded.

"The droid belongs to her." Luke explained. "She's the one in the message. We've
got to help her."

"What message?" Bob asked.

"The reason we had to get to Alderaan. We have to help her."

"Now, look, don't get any funny ideas. The old man wants us to wait right here." Han said.

"But he didn't know she was here." Luke protested. "Look, will you just find a way back into the detention block?"

"I'm not going anywhere." Han leaned back in the chair he was sitting in to prove his point.

"They're going to execute her. Look, a few minutes ago you said you didn't want to just wait here to be captured. Now all you want to do is stay." Luke argued.

"Marching into the detention area is not what I had in mind."

"But they're going to kill her!"

"Better her than me."

Luke looked pleadingly at Bob, but he shook his head. When Han made up his mind about something nothing could change it.

"She's rich." Luke said softly.

Chewie growled, and Bob rolled his eyes. Almost nothing.

Han perked up. "Rich?"

"Yes. Rich, powerful! Listen, if you were to rescue her, the reward would be..." He mentally fumbled.

"What?" Han asked eagerly.

"Well more wealth that you can imagine." Luke said.

"I don't know, I can imagine quite a bit!"

"You'll get it!"

"I better!"

"You will!" Luke promised.

Bob snorted. "It would take half a planet to satisfy him; maybe more."

Han shot him a look then turned back to Luke. "All right, kid. But you'd better be right about this."

Bob sighed. He'd much rather have stayed there than go on some half cocked rescue mission, but he didn't want some princess dying on his watch either. "What's your plan?" he asked.

"Uh...Threepio, hand me those binders there will you?" Luke asked.

Luke moved toward Chewbacca with electronic cuffs. "Okay. Now, I'm going to put these on you."

Chewie let out a hideous growl, and Luke jumped away.

"Okay. Han, you put these on." Luke handed the binders to the pirate.

"Don't worry, Chewie. I think I know what he has in mind." Han said, easily putting them on.

"Master Luke, sir!" Threepio said. "Pardon me for asking...but, ah...what should Artoo and I do if we're discovered here?"

"Lock the door." Luke suggested.

"And hope they don't have blasters." Han added.

"That isn't very reassuring." Threepio said.

"It wasn't meant to be." Bob assured him.

Luke, Bob, and Han put on their armored stormtrooper helmets and started off into the heart of the giant Imperial Death Star, trying to look inconspicuous in their armored suits. As they waited for a vacuum elevator to arrive, troops, bureaucrats, and robots bustled about, ignoring the quartet completely. Only a few gave the giant Wookiee a curious glance. Finally the small elevator arrives and they entered.

"I can't see a thing in this helmet." Luke muttered.

"How do these guys see anyway?" Bob agreed.

"Knock it off, you two; you're gonna get us killed." Han said.

"Look who's talking. You just had to chase the little ship didn't you? Couldn't let it go." Luke said.

"I…"

"Shh." Bob hissed as the elevator stopped and they got off. "No more arguing." Bob commanded. He couldn't tell if they were glaring through the helmets, but he bet they were.

The giant Wookiee and his guards entered the old grey security station. Guards and laser gates were everywhere. Bob gulped.

"This is not going to work." Han whispered to Luke under his breath.

"Why didn't you say so before?" Luke demanded.

"I did say so before!"

"Shut up." Bob hissed.

A tall, grim looking Officer approached the trio.

"Where are you taking this...thing?" he asked.

"Prisoner transfer from Block one-one-three-eight." Luke answered.

"I wasn't notified. I'll have to clear it." The officer said.

The officer went back to his console and began to punch in the information. There were only three other troopers in the area. They surveyed the situation, checking all of the
alarms, laser gates, and camera eyes. Han unfastened one of Chewie's electronic cuffs and shrugged to Luke and Bob.

Suddenly Chewie threw up his hands and let out with one of his ear-piercing howls. He grabbed Han's laser rifle as they jumped to restrain him.

"Look out! He's loose!" Han yelled.

"He's going to pull us all apart."

"Go get him!" Bob and Luke yelled at the same time.

The startled guards were momentarily dumbfounded, and the three Luke to pulled out their laser pistols and began blasting away at the Wookiee. Their barrage of laserfire misses Chewie, but hit the camera eyes, laser gate controls, and the Imperial guards. The officer was the last of the guards to fall under the laserfire just as he was about to push the alarm system. Han rushed to the comlink system as it began screeching questions about what was going on.

"We've got to find out which cell this princess of yours is in." Bob said. "Here it is: cell twenty-one-eight-seven. You go get her. We'll hold them here."

Luke raced down one of the cell corridors as Han spoke into the buzzing comlink.

"Everything is under control. Situation normal." He said, trying to sound official.

"What happened?" the voice asked over the intercom.

"Uh...had a slight weapons malfunction. But, uh, everything's perfectly all right now. We're fine. We're all fine here, now, thank you. How are you?"

Bob would have laughed at the nervous pirate if the situation hadn't been so dire. He was starting to sweat now too.

"We're sending a squad up." The voice said.

"Uh, uh, negative." Han thought quickly. "We had a reactor leak here now. Give us a few minutes to lock it down. Large leak...very dangerous."

"Who is this? What's your operating number?" the voice demanded.

Han blasted the comlink and it exploded.

"Boring conversation anyway." He muttered.

"And I was just admiring your ingenuity." Bob said.

"Luke!" Han yelled. "We're going to have company!"