Luke switched off Artoo's video recorder and took a steadying breath. He was dressed in the tans and browns of the traditional Jedi, standing in Obi-Wan's sitting room, making a recording for Jabba the Hutt. His plan was to have Artoo and Threepio infiltrate Jabba's Palace. His sister and Chewie have gone missing, and Luke hoped that they haven't gone ahead and tried to rescue Han without him and the others.
He had Artoo replay what he'd just recorded. Luke could barely believe that it was him in the recording. That old Luke Skywalker, the one who hung out at Toshi Station, blasted through Beggar's Canyon in a beat-up T-16 and dreamed of going to the Imperial Academy was still there, but he was standing aside, and letting the Luke Skywalker, Jedi Knight, shine through instead. He had told Obi-Wan that he was getting tired of hiding the fact that he was training to become a Jedi. To Luke's way of thinking, he was fulfilling his destiny. So he made the choice to start wearing the more traditional Jedi garb. Maybe he was hoping he'd send his father a message as well. What his father had destroyed, or at the very least played a large role in destroying, Luke was determined to rebuild. Maybe there would be changes made, the Jedi Order of the future surely would not be exactly the same as the old, but his intention was to keep as much as possible in the spirit of the Jedi of the long dead past.
Luke left Artoo in the sitting room, put on his deep brown robe, and ventured out into the night. He had no concern of Tusken Raiders appearing; if any came, he could certainly deal with them. He stared up at the stars. Han was his friend, has saved him many times, and needed his help now. But once Han is out of Jabba's clutches, he agreed to go with Obi-Wan back to Dagobah. He owed Yoda that much, and Obi-Wan needed to get himself sorted out as well. Luke just hoped that by going back to the uncharted planet, that he wasn't inadvertently putting Yoda in danger of an encounter with Vader. Yoda could handle Vader just fine, Obi-Wan assured Luke a while back. But Yoda was so old now...
"Are you done?" Obi-Wan asked Luke, following him outside.
"Yes, Master. I just hope that Jabba can be reasoned with. Unless he's intent on making Han suffer as much as possible, in which case, there's always plan B," Luke sighed.
"There's more to this than we originally planned, and I know I said I wasn't going to interfere, but, in light of what I've just learned, I think it would be wiser if I did," Obi-Wan told Luke.
"Not that I'm not glad, Master, but what changed your mind?" Luke asked.
"When you first told me that your friend had been frozen in carbonite, I thought that was a bit odd. Very well, more than a bit odd. And so, on a whim, I did a search of the Archives. It seems your father did more reading of the Archives than I'd given him credit for. Carbon Freezing was a method of imprisoning Jedi! But there had been much debate over it's safety. I knew I'd read something about it once a long time ago, while I was still a Padawan myself. The Jedi Council abolished the practice many ages ago, but though it might be gone, it's not forgotten. At least, not by your father. Oh, Anakin..." Obi-Wan's voice trailed off, and for a moment, he was lost in thought.
"But Master, what could this possibly mean for Han? If the Jedi Council thought that carbon freezing was too much for a Jedi to take, then what possible hope could Han have? According to Leia's spies, Han was still frozen as Boba Fett dragged him to Jabba's Palace!" Luke asked.
"That is why I've changed my mind, Luke. If Captain Solo is alive at all, he's going to need more help than you can offer him at this point in your training, and besides, you'll have Leia and Chewbacca to aid as well."
"So, you truly think that Leia's already gone to Jabba's Palace? I don't know why, but she's unable to be reached through the Force." Luke frowned. He eyed Obi-Wan, noted his discomfort at the mention of Leia's name.
"She must be blocking you from her mind for some reason. Ever since she came back from her trip, she's been acting oddly. I hope that Vader hasn't influenced her in some way," the Jedi Master murmured. Luke started to think that it was guilt that was making Leia act so strangely. She decided to prove her dedication to Han by going off to rescue him by herself. Which meant, to Luke at least, that her feelings for Obi-Wan were getting more out of control. His thoughts were straying into an area where he had no desire to go, and thankfully, his comlink buzzed. This had to be Lando...
"Talk to me Lando," Luke started.
"I'm not one hundred percent sure, but I heard a few rumors that Jabba had just paid a big bounty to someone who had brought in Chewie..." Lando reported.
"Damn. Where are you?" Luke asked.
"I've sort of taken one of the guards' places. I could make a search of the holding cells."
"Lando, be careful! Or you'll wind up in one of them too!" Luke warned him.
"Well, even if I do, at least I'll be better off than Han. He's still in carbonite!"
"Good Skies!" Obi-Wan, who had been listening more intently than Luke had thought, suddenly exclaimed. "Do we even know if the poor man is still alive?"
"No way of knowing for certain, since all I've been hearing is rumors."
"Who have you been talking to?" Luke asked.
"I've been talking to some of the B'Omarr Monks. As you might know, Jabba took over this Palace about 50 or so years ago, but it always used to be the Sacred Temple of the B'Omarr Monks. Apparently, Jabba doesn't consider them a threat. Well, there's quite a few of them around down here, and they are no happier about Jabba being here now than they ever were. Oh, and they gave me the heads up on something else. Tomorrow, on Boonta Eve, they plan on singing the Sacred Song. It's supposed to only happen once every 150 or so years, and people from all over the galaxy are making the pilgrimage here. That's why the spaceport was so crowded. That's why there were no hotels or other lodging available. Jabba's Palace is going to be inundated with religious pilgrims by tomorrow afternoon."
"Well, that's just great! More to worry about. Although, having loads of people around might serve as the perfect cover up for our operations. Lando, just make sure that if Leia and Chewie are there, that they are safe. The droids are on their way, and I'll be there by tomorrow afternoon, along with the rest of the pilgrims. May the Force be with you," Luke finished, signing off and glancing at Obi-Wan. "I can't beleive I'd forgotten all about that. People usually know years in advance of when the Monks are going to sing next! I'll bet you're going to want to hear them too, Master."
"I have heard it's supposed to be this wonderful, uplifting experience, but believe it or not, I've never been one to succumb to fits of religious rapture," Obi-Wan answered wryly. "Knowing of the Force and using it to serve goodness and justice is enough for me."
Luke began to smile and say something about religion and the Force, but then, all his thoughts flew from his mind. A feeling that was becoming more familiar every time he felt it had sent a tingle at the base of his skull. His hands also had the tingle. "Oh no, it can't be..."
"What do you sense, my Padawan?" Obi-Wan asked, as though he were asking a review question in preparation for a test.
"What is he doing here?" Luke protested.
No need for Obi-Wan to ask who Luke meant. "Well, I suppose I could call him and find out, though that would be just redundant, in my opinion, since he must have found out that your friend has been brought to Jabba the Hutt. So, we know that your father is here. He knows we are here. Part of the problem, once your powers begin to grow, is that it becomes more difficult to hide yourself from other Force-Sensitives. I don't know whether he plans on coming out here; I sincerely hope he doesn't."
"Master, do you fear that I'm going to end up going with him?" Luke asked.
Obi-Wan was taken aback by Luke's forthright question. "Luke, I know that Vader is trying very hard to get you to turn to the Dark Side. I'm not sure how his recent actions, especially giving you the Jedi Archives, is supposed to accomplish this, unless it's all just to undercut me," he observed, not bothering to hide the annoyance in his voice.
"You mean, you don't think he really wants any sort of relationship with me or Leia, it's just about you and him and your endless animosity?" Luke asked, wishing almost instantly that he didn't say it, but it just came out.
Obi-Wan faced Luke straight on and replied, "Luke, I know you don't want to hear this, but I have to tell you that I believe that he wants desperately to destroy any relationship you and I might have. Once the bond between us is severed, he will bring you to the Emperor, and will make you his slave, just as he has been for over twenty years."
Luke smirked then, which surprised Obi-Wan even more. "Then, I'm glad that my father's here. Let him see me like this. This," Luke said, fingering the sleeve of his brown Jedi robes, "might give him a clue about how much progress he's made."
In spite of his grave doubts, Obi-Wan felt his spirit lift.
Jabba was most displeased. First, Boba Fett arrived with Han Solo. That in and of itself was not what annoyed Jabba, of course. It was the fact that he'd now have to pay Fett that terrific sum of money. Jabba and money did not part ways without pain. A mere few hours later, another bounty hunter arrived, this time with Han Solo's longtime first mate and companion, Chewbacca. This bounty hunter claimed he was Boussh, but Jabba knew there was trickery involved; Boussh had been killed several months prior by Black Sun.
Sure enough, the bounty hunter was a fake. A human female. Could she be Han Solo's woman? The thought entertained Jabba greatly as he had her don some more "suitable" attire for her new station in life, as Jabba's human female slave! Stupid female even tried to release Solo from his carbonite casing! Obviously, she didn't know fine art when she saw it!
He'd given her to Boba Fett for the night. What displeased Jabba was that she threatened to kill him, and he backed off! Was his entire palace getting overrun by fools? He munched irritably at his morning meal, wondering what might be next.
By 0850 hours, he found out what was next. Two droids, one an interperter protocol droid and the other a stout astromech droid had marched right up to his palace. His majordomo, Bib Fortuna, that T'wileki fool, had told him they were a gift from a Jedi Knight. Jabba wasn't interested in Jedi Knights. He just wanted to know why there were so many damned people starting to accumulate around his Palace!
The final outrage, for Jabba anyway, was finding out just why those people were out there. From the finest dressed nobility to the most impoverished beggars of all races, they lined up hoping to hear those eight-legged robotic freaks, with whom he graciously shared his Palace, sing! How does a brain in a bowl manage to sing? Fortuna, unhelpful idiot he was, pointed out that apparently, that seemed to be what everyone else outside wanted to know, too. Jabba roared, spooking the female in his sluggish lap and knocking the useless T'wilek over.
That human female recovered, though she didn't let it on. Her ability to sense the Force was getting more keen. She could sense Luke. She could even sense Vader. Now she just had to attune herself a bit more to Obi-Wan Kenobi... How can I start thinking about Obi-Wan while Han was still stuck in the carbonite? she chastised herself. After all this time, he was still frozen in that dreadful second, right after she'd told him she loved him! Hopefully, Jabba would get too distracted with all the religious pilgrims outside his door, and she'd make her move. She'd make sure she made it up to Han after all this was over...
The local media had broadcast a story about Darth Vader. He has made the pilgrimage to Tatooine to hear the Monks sing the Sacred Song. He was staying at the governor's palace (which was outside Mos Espa, but in the opposite direction from Jabba's Palace) for the Boonta Eve weekend. Luke just hoped that his father didn't have any ideas about interfering. Could be too much to hope for, but if Leia and Chewie were in danger, he couldn't afford to wait until his father left to rescue them. He would not leave all of them in Jabba's clutches because of his father's bad timing.
Late that afternoon, the Palace doors opened, andseveral eight-legged droid looking creatures emerged,accompanied by a few humanoids that wore the garb of the Unenlightened. The pilgrims were rapt with attention, clamoring for the Song to get started. The Unelightened, the ones who still were able to speak in the low tongue of living beings, told them that their eight-legged counterparts have heard the calling, and were preparing to Sing to the Heavens. So preoccupied with them were the Monks, that Luke slipped inside without being noticed.
Obi-Wan wove his way through the pilgrims converging ever closer to the palace doors. He wanted to get as close as possible to the Monks, since most likely, if Vader came here, he'd be automatically escorted to the front. He was able to use a slight variation of the Jedi mind trick to make people move aside without causing any fuss or bother. The way of the Jedi was often so subtle, people were lulled into thinking that the Force was not present. But the Force is ever present, a constant presence, and no amount of singing sacred songs or prayer made it more present for him than it was before.
He'd passed this belief on the Anakin, and he'd always seemed to agree with that belief. So why then was he making his arrival (with stormtroopers in tow) to listen to a group of fanatics sing to another bunch of fanatics? Vader appeared to ignore everyone else there, though there was quite a stir among the faithful behind him. He settled in a kneeling position with his deep black robes spread around him on the sand.
Obi-Wan settled right next to him, close enough so his Jedi robes covered Vader's. "Please don't tell me you're here to pray for your soul," he murmured next to his helmet. The stormtroopers moved forward, but Vader waved them back with a flick of his gloved hand.
Then, he stared straight ahead at the monks, gave a metallic sigh, and said, "Well, I'm certainly not praying for yours Obi-Wan."
"Whatever you're up to, I'm going to stop you. This play you've been making for your children's favor doesn't convince me in the least. Luke will not be turned. I'll turn to the Dark Side before he does, I swear it!" Obi-Wan vowed.
"You fool. You already have turned to the Dark Side. You've felt the sheer power of your rage and anger before," Vader began.
"No, I haven't!"
"You know you have," Vader continued serenely. "When your beloved Jedi Master lay dying in that power station, with a Sith apprentice looming over him in victory, you felt it."
"Stop this!" Obi-Wan gasped.
"When you sliced him in half..."
"No!"
"When you saw that holo of me, and what I'd done in the Jedi Temple. When you sliced into me on Mustafar..."
Obi-Wan stood up and despite the fact that there were thousands of people around him, he bellowed, "You're wrong! That was righteous anger, not the Dark Side!"
"There is no difference, Obi-Wan. Anger is anger. A Jedi feels no anger, not even righteous anger." Vader never raised his voice, gave no indication that he was in any way disturbed. But Obi-Wan was shaking.
"He will not be turned, Vader. And I thank you for reminding me of the Jedi Code so deftly." Obi-Wan stalked off. He took a few deep breaths after taking leave of his former Padawan's presence. How dare he compare my rage after Qui-Gon's death to his own! That just goes to show how little concept of right and wrong Darth Vader has! I've failed him so badly! Obi-Wan found a place, between stony ledges, where he could simply crouch, hide, and contemplate. He only needed a few moments to compose himself...
That was when the Monks began their song. The sound carried through the dry Tatooine air like waves that Obi-Wan could actually feel through him. He couldn't move, couldn't recall what he'd been thinking about two mintues earlier. All that mattered now was the song. Each eerie, yet oddly comforting note brought Obi-Wan further out of the corner he'd been in. He seemed to move upwards, higher and higher.
Odd, he felt almost like he was dead again!
The notes finally ebbed away, and Obi-Wan's feet touched rock again. His hands felt the stone at his sides. The Force thrummed through them, and him. Had he been flying? Surely it was just a trick of the mind! But nevertheless, he recalled that he had work to do, helping his Padawan rescue his friend at long last.
Luke saw no one inside the main throne room of Jabba's lair. He looked to his left, and finally saw Han. He swallowed. His carbon frozen form was hanging on Jabba's wall, with a spotlight shining down on it. Like wall art. Luke's stomach turned sour. He sensed Obi-Wan's approach.
"Master, I'm here," he murmured aloud, sending the thought to his Jedi master at the same time. The Song of the B'Omarr Monks would take a few moments for the others to recover from. If ony Han had heard it too. Obi-Wan appeared at his side. "I hate this, Master."
"Let's get him out of here at last, Luke," Obi-Wan said. He pressed a button on the side of the block. The whole block slid off the wall with a thud. With a deep breath, Luke pressed another button, to start the thawing process. As the carbonite started to dissolve around Han, all Luke could do was hold his breath. Did he sense life in his friend?
Once enough carbonite melted, Han's form careened forward, and Luke caught him. Obi-Wan drew much closer as they lowered Han to the sandy floor. "He's alive!" Luke gasped with relief, even though Han was in no good condition, shivering as he was. "It's alright now Han, we've got you out of there!"
Han struggled to speak, "L..Luke?"
"It's me Han."
"Where's Leia? Is sh..she alright?" Han asked.
"We're getting you, and Leia, and Chewbacca, and Lando and the droids out of here very soon," Obi-Wan assured him. He only dimly recalled Han Solo from their brief interaction a few years ago. But he felt very badly for him right now.
"I..can't see, why can't I see?" Han asked shakily.
"That is from the carbon freezing. It will return to normal soon, Captain Solo," Obi-Wan answered. Luke looked dismayed. There was more to this carbon freezing than he'd originally thought.
"Who? Who are you?" Han demanded.
"This is my Jedi Master," Luke answered. There would be time enough later to explain this all to Han.
"Your Jedi master? But..how? Oh, are you...Yoda?" Han asked suddenly.
Obi-Wan blinked in surprise. "No, I'm not Yoda, but how did you know his name?" Obi-Wan asked.
Instead of answering, Han struggled to stand up. Luke helped him, and as soon as he had Han leaning on a wall, Han asked, "Where are we?" As if in answer, Han heard a growl behind them. A most familiar growl. "Jabba..."
Vader was so very glad he came to Tatooine. During the Sacred Song, he had experienced an epiphany! The sudden knowledge, the certainty, that very soon, his long wait would be over. His new Sith apprentice would be coming to him before this weekend was over. Thanks to the media coverage, they all knew where to find him. Would his son come? Or would it be his daughter? Vader's dark heart beat a bit faster at the prospects.