Author's Note: My muse found this chapter quite nicely. :D

SkywalkerChild: Yeah. It sucks having WordPad instead of Microsoft Word. >.> I guess I should start to read the chapters more thoroughly before I post them, eh? What she's doing on Kessel is answered in chapter three, and about Leia and Zach, well, even today it's pretty common for girls to date older guys. Besides, like she said, she doesn't care much for men her age - too hormonal. I'm really glad I'm getting your constructive criticism, I'm really becoming more concious about what I write instead of doing it on sponaneity (is that a word?), but is there anything you like about this?
Culf: Of course, in Episode III, Anakin (or Vader, I should call him) was willing to live with Padmé until he felt she betrayed him. He cares for Leia - who isn't of the Dark Side, she doesn't have training in the Force - but I think if she turned against him and the Empire, he would try to kill her. His loyalty is first and foremost with Palpatine. And yeah, she's on Kessel. :D I'm not sure if this chapter is going where you think it's going, but don't worry - there will be a meeting between our nerfherder and Leia. Sometime in this story - not telling when, though. ;D


CHAPTER FOUR: GLORY

Leia wearily threw her briefcase of datapads onto her bed. These people managing Kessel... ugh, they were infuriating. It has been almost a week; it was taking longer than it actually should. They kept trying to suck every single credit out of the operation as they can, and they would change their minds the next day about a little aspect that would need and hour's compromise over. Greedy, snivelling pieces of scum. Most meetings she just wished that she'd know how to use the Force just so she can Force-choke them all out of frustration.

She irritatingly threw herself onto a couch, holding one of the throw pillows to her face and screaming into it. Yes, that made her feel better. After patting the pillow back into position, she stood up, going into the small bathroom to let down her hair. Which was already coming out of place in the first place, from her annoyed strides down the hall of the hotel.

Not once has she been outside of the building since she got here. She was getting cramped - which was strange, considering she spends most of her time on a ship anyway - but it was much too cold. She enjoyed watching through her window, though (considering there was nothing much better to do). The lives of the common was quite fascinating, really. Most appeared illiterate, and seemed rough both in tongue and work, but it was a nice change from the puffed-up Imperial officers of the cruiser she lived on. Throughout the day smugglers blasted in or out of the atmosphere, and competition seemed huge. On more than one occassion, she heard muffled blaster shots ringing in a fight outside. It was on those times that she was glad that she didn't go outdoors.

Leia walked out of the bathroom to a comm call. She pulled her long hair away from her ears, checked her watch, than hit a button to accept it.

Darth Vader appeared on the screen.

"Hello, father," Leia greeted with a brief smile. He gave a tiny nod.

"The Emperor is getting impatient," he stated. Right to the point. Leia immediatley resolved to end this thing tomorrow. But it really wasn't her fault, although she was grateful that her father warned her. Usually, the Emporer's men didn't find out until it was already too late.

"It's almost done. The Kesselians are - I mean, were being less than cooperative."

"I trust that you will be on your way to Nar Shadaa tomorrow?"

"Yes. Maybe later in the day," If that's what you can call the bleak, cloudy, cold, slightly lighter part of the planet's cycle, "It really depends on when these people set the meeting. They have an erratic schedule." It was yet another annoyance to Leia. One day, the meeting would be set at 2000 hours, last four hours, only to have the next one set at 0800 hours.

"I believe it. I have always... distrusted smuggler planets." Meaning that he would destroy them if he could.

"I'm think that this is a bad move, personally," she stated as the door opened and a little robot with complimentary drinks rolled in. She picked one up off the pedestal, taking a sip. "There are enough ignorant, spice-addicted beings in this galaxy without making it legal." she said grimly, sighing, and rechecking her watch. Stupid habit.

"I'm expecting to see you in less than a week, daughter." Vader said, making no indication that he had heard Leia.

Of course, Leia thought, mentally smacking herself in the forehead. What - did she expect him to agree with her and admit that the Emporer was wrong? Sometimes she forgot that her father was the Emperor's right-hand man.

"Uh. Yeah," she said, trying to act like her mistake (which, if said by anyone else, could be considered an act of treason) was nonexistant. "Goodbye." she gave a quick, slightly hesitant smile, he nodded once more, and the screen went blank.

Leia (physically) smacked herself on the forehead. Stupid, stupid.

She stood up, slightly restless, her eyes wandering near the door. Decisively, acting on some unknown force she stood up, and walked through it, beckoning for the little droid the follow her. It did so, the drinks rattling on the little tray.

Leia hurried through the halls and into the atrium, the droid whistling in curiosity and annoyance behind her. She opened the door to the outside, and was hit with a blast of cold. It was almost night, and in her haste, she forgot any form of a jacket. She had no idea what in gods' name she was thinking, but it was as if it wasn't her that was acting, it was as if she was in a dream and could do little to control her actions. She heard some people call out after her, but she paid them little heed, jogging down the steps of the frigid world as the small, domestic version of an astromech activated his rocket launchers and floated down the steps, turning its domed head around in its state of fluster. She started moving toward her ship, intent and getting inside and finding a jacket. Or something.

Her father always told her to trust her instincts. She was born of him, and had the Force within her. It was her untrained, raw ability that she couldn't harness, but she was always correct in instincts and judgement - Darth Vader once told her it was because of this Force. And now, her instincts told her to get as far away from this building as she can.

Suddenly, she heard the whine of spacecrafts as they sped down, and she looked on in horror as torpedoes flew through the air, and she felt a temporary warmth as the building exploded into rubble and flame. Screams of the miners filled the air, and Leia just stared on through the pandemonium. She took control of her head again, taking a hesitant step backwards.

That was the closest to a near-death experience she had ever been in. The building, the building that she had not long ago been about to sleep in, just became nothing but scraps of rubbish and metal. Everything was obliderated; the personnel, her pilots and escort, the greedy Kesselians even.

She suddenly recieved a hard blow to her shoulder as one burly miner knocked into her, sending her into an ungraceful heap onto the floor. Her cheek scraped roughly against the coarse, cold, ground, and she let out a cry and grimace at the unfamiliar pain. Then, with another cry, Leia jerked a knee up to her chest as her left ankle was tripped over, and she felt it start to throb. Another explosion sounded through the air. She grasped at the rocky, harsh surface, but her hands were turning numb and clumsy. With great difficulty, she heaved herself to her feet, leaning tenderly on her left foot. It hurt, but she didn't think it enough to be twisted or sprained. To her relief, the domestic astromech was still hovering somewhat above the heads of most miners. It knew to obey the sentients, and felt no attachment to the now ruined building.

She wiped hard pebbles off of her shoulder, then turned to where her ship was. Hopefully, she'd be able to take what she knew from her flying classes on Coruscant and be able to pilot the thing away from here; or at least stay in it until the bombardment stopped.

To her terror and frustration, her ship was reduced to bits of hot metal scattered all over the shipyard.

Kreth.

Leia, once again, was shoved violently in the shoulder, but she kept herself from falling this time. She took it as her hint to start limping away lest she collide with something - someone - again. In a matter of minutes - or seconds, or hours, she lost her sense of time - she arrived at what she recognized from within as Smuggler's Yard. People of all different species were going at top speed toward their ships, and Leia looked around desperately. She needed to get out of here.

There! A ramp was open to an old, battered freighter, and with the astromech following, she sprinted up it, and nearly fell into the floor when she reached the interior. There were opened smuggling compartments, filled with bundles of spice. Leia backpedaled quickly, closing the ramp and finding an alternate route to the cockpit.

"Plug yourself in!" she shouted at the astromech as she threw herself into the pilot's chair, and it acquiesced. Leia squinted at the controls. It was all too complicated for her, so she simply reached over for what seemed to be the power and pressed it.

Lights flickered on all around her, and she couldn't help but feel a surge of pleasure that something was going her way - that is, until she felt the ship rumble and shake and the distinct sound of something within the innards dying. Ah, Kreth. Oh well.

Leia grasped the joystick, and it lifted off the floor. She was faintly aware of her knuckles paling and her hands shaking, and beads of sweat forming at her hairline - she'd never flown anything this big before. She's never even really flown that much in her life, just taught how at classes. Which, everyone knew, was totally different than doing it for real. Especially in a situation where bombs were dropping all over the place. She knew that her flying was that of an... extreme amateur, but it'd have to do. She jerked the joystick toward her, and she felt her stomach drop as the ship turned vertically upwards. She struggled to regain control, but she was losing her cool as the ship responded to every quiver her hand made; it was shaking and spinning, and she was sure that other pilots would have laughed at her if the situation was not so dire.

Graceful, Leia, she thought bitterly. Great headline: Imperial Princess dies after hijacking a ship and crashing it into a mountain.

The little astromech she was using as a copilot beeped indignantly to her right, and she peered over at the monitor, and jerkily pulled her hands off of the steering... thing. It had requested to manipulate the ship's systems and pilot the thing itself, and she readily agreed. Stupid ship.

Besides, she'd rather die with more glory and less ridicule.