Chapter 5 – Escape

"I have to get out of here. And I will." He said the words firmly as though just speaking them would make it actually happen. He went through his options. The only way out he could see was the door Vader had just left through and the viewport. The only problems were that he could see no controls to open the door and breaking the viewport was just as stupid as jumping straight into a Rancor nest. He may escape through the viewport but even if he did succeed doing it, he had no chances of survival. The moment the glass broke he would be sucked out into space and die of oxygen starvation before he could even hope for help.

It seemed the only option he had was to somehow break through the office door, find a docking bay and if possible, a ship. He was sure he could fly a TIE Fighter. He was a pilot and a cockpit's controls had to be fairly similar to what he was used to and he was a fast learner.

With his mind made up he began searching the room for a means of getting the door open. Then his eyes fell upon his father's lightsaber resting on the sideboard. He remembered Vader taking it out from his cloak and examining it before placing it down where it now lay. In the midst of all that had happened they had both completely forgotten about it. He rushed over and the moment he picked it up he felt a sense of reunion. This weapon made him feel as though he was close to his father. He had never owned anything which had belonged to his father and somehow it felt like the spirit of Anakin Skywalker had clung to the weapon all these years.

It was now that Luke vowed to his father's spirit that he would not fail him. From this moment onwards he would fight to bring the Empire down.

He was just about to clip the weapon back to his belt when he remembered something Ben had told him back on the Falcon during his training. That a lightsaber blade would cut through anything it touched. He glanced at the sealed door then back to the weapon, a smile forming on his lips.

As he was walking back towards the door he heard something. "Luke? Luke? Are you there?" His heart leapt. That was Princess Leia's voice and it was coming from...The comlink! Heart pounding, he scrabbled at his belt and found it. Vader must have forgotten to tell the troopers to search him before bringing him here. "Your highness?"

"Luke! Oh, Luke, thank goodness! You're alive! We were so afraid you hadn't survived the explosion."

Luke grinned to himself. "I'm surprised too. Guess I'm luckier than I thought," he said and recalled something Ben said earlier: In my experience there is no such thing as luck. It seemed that the aged Jedi had been marginally mistaken on that fact. Had there been no such thing, he would not be breathing right now.

He changed the subject, not wishing to think of Ben at this vital moment. "It's a good thing you didn't contact me a few minutes ago, or Vader would have heard."

The princesses' voice was suddenly full of concern. "Vader?! Did he harm you?" she demanded.

Luke decided not to worry her. "No lasting harm done, I promise you." He reached up to touch his neck which was still slightly sore but he was breathing more easily now. The flesh on his wrists were pink from the binders but that would surely fade in time.

"Luke, are you sure you're alright?" She pressed.

Luke sighed. "I'm alright." He continued speaking quickly, he could worry about his health later, there was a more important matter to come first. "What exactly is this crazy plan you've got? Why are you not heading back to the Rebel Base?" He asked, confused.

"We can't just leave you here, not after what you did for me and the Alliance. So I said we try to board the station and search for you but, the captain here suggested I try the comlink first." As she said this, Luke suddenly had an idea.

"Leia, you and Captain Solo try to keep them busy for as long as you can. And I'll try and get to a hangar bay. Once I do, I'll let you know and then you track my transmission and pick me up."

Leia's voice now had a trace of hope when she responded. "Ok Luke. We'll buy you as much time as we can, but what about you? Are you not in a prison cell?"

Luke smiled to himself again "No. I'm not in a cell, but I have a means to escape. You both stand by and keep the imperials busy." He ended the transmission and pocketed the comlink.

He approached the door and activating his lightsaber he stabbed it through the door and Luke was amazed how easily it cut through the metal like butter. He sliced a round hole in the door big enough for him to get through and kicked the loose piece out. Peeping through he was relieved to find no guards in the corridor. He stepped through the hole and quietly made his way down the corridor. An alarm was blaring which probably explained why he heard far-distant hurried footfalls. He was going to have to be very cautious from now on to avoid being recaptured.

Luke didn't know how long Han and Leia would be able to distract the enemy, but the question still remained. How would he be able to be able to find a hangar bay and remain undetected? His answer came instantly the moment he peeped round the next sharp corner he came to. A little way down the next corridor was a single Stormtrooper standing guard next to a door. The idea of disguising himself again seemed the only option. Hiding just at the edge of the corner he called out trying to make his voice as low and as commanding as he could possibly make it.

"Hey! Could anyone give me a hand with this?!" The clomping of the trooper's steps came closer and closer and the moment he came round the corner Luke activated his saber and ran it through the trooper just below the armpit where a large piece of the black under suit was visible but not so it poked through the other end of the armor.

The trooper clattered to the floor, dead. Luke ignored the shock of how easy it was to kill with the saber and quickly pulled the body off to the side and managed to remove the suit and armor and disguise himself. But just like the one from earlier, this trooper also was not as slim as Luke so the disguise was very ill fitting. They must do hell of a lot of training until they're all bulked up as they are, he thought as he strapped his lightsaber under the armor and picked up the blaster and the helmet. Once the helmet was on his head he hid the body in an alcove and continued on his way.

Before reaching the end of the corridor, Luke spotted a lift and as there was no one else in sight, he went in and decided to go down a few levels. If he had been in Lord Vader's office, it must have been a couple of levels above the hangar bays. He stood still as he descended until finally the doors opened onto a similar hall as before which also appeared deserted.

Stepping out, he began to wonder which way to try when he heard the sound of not one, but many approaching footfalls which seemed to be running. Quickly, he ducked out of sight in another alcove. Listening hard, Luke suddenly had another idea and waited until the group of troopers passed then quickly stepped out to run behind them. Luckily, none of them turned to acknowledge him so he must have blended in alright. So he ran with them down several corridors. Obviously, they'd had heat of the Falcon's attack. Luke was starting to worry about how much longer Captain Solo and Leia could stall them.

But his worries vanished when he saw the troops approaching a large doorway which looked familiar. The huge octagonal doorway looked like the hangar bay door he remembered from earlier.

Cautiously, Luke slowed his run and once he reached the doorway he stopped and saw that it was indeed the same hanger bay from earlier. It was all a blasted mess from the massive explosion and no one had seemed to bother to repair the damage yet. Walking through the large doorway he was relieved to see that there were no other troopers or Imperials in sight.

Stepping casually off to the side, Luke brought out his comlink and quietly informed Leia where he was.

"Thank goodness Luke. We've had to fight off almost a dozen TIE fighters already. This ship flies well considering how it looks." After a short pause she said "We have your signal Luke, and will be there soon."

Luke put the comlink away. Not long now. He told himself. Then suddenly he heard another alarm blaring. And a gnawing fear told him that Vader had possibly discovered his escape. "Come on!" he inwardly urged. "Come on!" Every second that passed with him still standing there put him in more danger if the princess and Captain Solo didn't hurry up. Every second which past felt more like a minute, no, it felt like an hour. He clutched the blaster tightly and prayed with everything he had.

Then at last the Millennium Falcon came into view at the bay opening at the other end. Pulling off the helmet Luke bolted across the hangar just as the entry ramp of the ship opened and he felt relief washing all over him at his approaching escape.

"LUKE!"

The shout filled the whole hangar bay like the alarm which still blared. Luke turned round to see Vader standing in the doorway. He did not advance, he just stood where he was, looking straight at Luke. And Luke felt his relief drain away, but looking back he saw that he was only halfway between the hanger bay doorway and the Falcon. And the Dark Lord surely wasn't very fast in that suit in the case of running.

He was about to bolt off towards the ship but Vader's voice suddenly spoke again and he froze, because this time his voice was inside his mind just like Obi-Wan's had been earlier. "Luke, you do not yet realize your importance. You have only begun to discover your power. Join me and I will complete your training. With our combined strength, we can end this destructive conflict and bring order to the galaxy."

Luke whirled round facing Vader with defiant fire burning in his eyes. "I'll never join you!" He shouted.

"If you only knew the power of the dark side," Vader's voice responded before walking a little further into the hangar bay. Luke shuddered at the thought of using dark power, poisoning his soul and becoming just as evil as Vader. It would never happen, he would rather die than become anything like Vader.

Turning away he was just about to move his legs when that dark voice spoke in his head once again. "Obi-Wan never told you the truth of what happened to your father."

Luke felt his insides burn when Vader mentioned his father. He wanted so much to run but something was keeping his feet planted where they were in the middle of the hangar bay.

"He told me enough!" he barked back. Turning round properly he stared Vader right in those black eye sockets. "He told me you killed him."

"No, I am your father."


Author's Notes
Hello there everyone. Hope you liked this new chapter. It's not one of my best I'll admit, but I hope you like it anyway. And I think this is the longest chapter of this fanfic.
Thank you to Carrie2sky for beta reading this for me. And thank you to all of you for your reviews and for liking & following. Keep it going because then I'll know if you want to read more.

Kind Regards
LouisaJane007