Mos Eisley Spaceport
Thanks to Mathew Malysza, Robert the warrior, kanna-yamamoto, EvanderAdvent and DS2010 for favouriting and following this story.
Luke, Malia, Obi-Wan, Artoo and Threepio all stood on top of a bluff overlooking the city of Mos Eisley, a motley array of hovels and docking bays, where ships were taking off and landing. "Mos Eisley spaceport. You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy." Obi-Wan told the two cousins, "We must be cautious."
Luke and Malia's speeders were soon heading into the city. Mos Eisley was certainly a hive of activity, with worker droids moving heavy loads, people walking about and Jawas riding Rontos. Most ominously, Imperial Sandtroopers were on patrol. As the two speeders reached the end of a long street, a squad of Sandtroopers flagged them down and approached them. Malia felt her blood boil in fury at the sight of the thugs who had killed her parents and had to grip the handlebars of her bike to stop herself from reaching for her blaster. The commanding Sandtrooper meanwhile approached Luke's speeder. "How long have you had these droids?" he demanded
"About three or four seasons?" Luke tried
"They're up for sale if you want them." Obi-Wan added calmly
"Let me see your identification." the Sandtrooper commander demanded
"You don't need to see his identification." Obi-Wan said calmly, waving his hand.
"We don't need to see his identification." the Sandtrooper said to his men
"These aren't the droids you're looking for." Obi-Wan said
"These aren't the droids we're looking for." the Sandtrooper said, seemingly under some sort of influence.
"We can go about our business."
"You can go about your business."
"Move along."
"Move along, move along." the Sandtrooper waved the speeders away, and the two cousins wasted no time in driving away.
Luke and Malia continued driving through the city streets until Obi-Wan instructed Luke to stop at Chalman's Cantina. As soon as Luke pulled up, a Jawa ran over and began fondling the landspeeder. "I can't abide those Jawas. Disgusting creatures." Threepio complained as everyone disembarked.
"Go on, go on." Luke said as he shoed the Jawa away, then he turned to Obi-Wan. "I can't understand how we got by those troops. I thought we were dead."
"Yeah, what did ya do to 'em?" Malia asked as she dismounted her bike.
"The Force can have a strong influence on the weak-minded." Obi-Wan replied
Malia removed her helmet and ran a hand through her hair while Luke eyed the rather shabby-looking cantina. "Are we really gonna find a pilot here that'll take us to Alderaan?" he asked incredulously.
"Well, most of the best freighter pilots are to be found here." Obi-Wan replied, "Only watch your steps. This place can be a little rough." he cautioned
"I'm ready for anything." Luke replied
"Me too." Malia added, retrieving her blaster from the bike's saddlebag and attaching it to her belt, using her poncho to hide it.
"Come along, Artoo." Threepio called to his counterpart.
Artoo beeped a response, and the group made their way towards the cantina.
~8~
Luke and Malia found that 'rough' was an understatement as they studied the patrons of the cantina. There were creatures of all sorts to be seen, all drinking, some smoking death sticks and all conversing in all kinds of languages, while a band of Bith musicians played a catchy song. The two cousins could only stand in the doorway in bewilderment, while Obi-Wan went to the bar and began talking to a towering Wookie. Luke and Malia were suddenly pulled out of their shock by the rather surly-looking landlord calling to them; "Hey! We don't serve their kind here!"
"What?" Luke blinked
"Your droids." the landlord answered, pointing to Artoo and Threepio, "They'll have to wait outside, we don't want them here!"
"Charming." Malia muttered
Luke turned to Threepio. "Why don't you wait out by the speeders?" he suggested, "We don't want any trouble."
"I heartedly agree with you, sir." Threepio acknowledged, and he and Artoo left the cantina.
Luke and Malia then cautiously made their way to the bar and Luke tapped the landlord's shoulder. "Uh, I'll have one of these." he said, gesturing to some drinks in a storage tank. "'Lia?" he asked his cousin
"Uh, nothing for me." Malia replied, not really liking the look of some of the drinks on sale.
The landlord begrudgingly gave Luke his drink and the young man began sipping it, all the while casting a look around the cantina and it's shady-looking clientele while Obi-Wan continued to talk to the Wookie. Suddenly, Luke was rather rough turned round by an Aqualish who had clearly had too much to drink and the Aqualish yelled something to him. Deciding to pay the drunk alien no attention, Luke turned back to his drink, only for someone to tap him on the shoulder and he turned round to see an unpleasant-looking man with a scarred face standing next to the Aqualish. "He doesn't like you." the man said to Luke
"Sorry." Luke said calmly, smelling alcohol in the man's breath and deciding not to antagonise him.
"I don't like you either!" the drunk man growled, "You better watch yourself, we're wanted men. I have the death sentence on 12 systems."
"I'll be careful." Luke said tightly, but it seemed that nothing could defuse the tense situation.
"You'll be dead!" the drunk man spat
"Hey, back off, ya stupid drunk!" Malia said, coming to her cousin's defence.
Having overhead the row, Obi-Wan decided to intervene. "These little ones aren't worth the effort." he said calmly to the two drunks, "Come, let me get you something." But it seemed that the two drunks were too intoxicated to listen to reason and the man promptly threw Luke across the room like a ragdoll then he and the Aqualish whipped out blasters and aimed them at Malia and Obi-Wan. Malia began to reach for her own blaster but Obi-Wan stopped her, then he removed a cylinder from his belt and activated it to reveal that it was a lightsabre. The two drunks unwisely opened fire on Obi-Wan, who expertly used his lightsabre to deflect the shots then with one clean sweep, he sliced the man in two and literally disarmed the Aqualish.
Malia rushed over to help her cousin off the floor while Obi-Wan stood with his lightsabre out, almost daring anyone else to try any nonsense. Satisfied that no one else was going to cause them any trouble, Obi-Wan deactivated his lightsabre then he and the Wookie approached the two cousins. "I'm alright." Luke reassured as Malia helped him to stand.
"Chewbacca here is first mate on a ship that might suit us." Obi-Wan told the two cousins as they followed the Wookie to a private corner of the cantina.
~8~
Outside the cantina, Artoo and Threepio watched as a patron who had fled the cantina after seeing the brawl between Obi-Wan and the two drunks was telling some Sandtroopers all about it. "I don't like the look of this." Threepio told his counterpart worriedly.
Artoo beeped a response, sharing Threepio's concerns.
~8~
The mood inside the cantina had gone back to casual, with the patrons going back to their drinks and chatter, while the Bith band had moved onto their next song. Luke, Malia and Obi-Wan sat at a table opposite Chewbacca as a Human man in his early thirties with brown hair, brown eyes and wearing the clothes of a professional smuggler sat down next to Chewbacca. "Han Solo. I'm captain of the Millennium Falcon." the man introduced, "Chewie here tells me you're looking for passage to the Alderaan system."
"Yes, indeed." Obi-Wan replied, "If it's a fast ship."
"Fast ship?" Han snorted, "You've never heard of the Millennium Falcon?"
"Should I have?" Obi-Wan retorted coolly
"It's the ship that made the Kessel run in less than 12 parsecs." Han replied proudly, causing Luke and Malia to look at each other in bewilderment. They knew that a parsec was a unit of distance, not time. Obi-Wan meanwhile just rolled his eyes, knowing that Han was just trying to impress him. "I've outrun Imperial starships." Han continued proudly, "Not the local bulk cruisers, mind you, I'm talkin' about Star Destroyers now. She's fast enough for you, Old Man. What's the cargo?"
"Only passengers." Obi-Wan replied, "Myself, the boy, the girl, two droids... and no questions asked."
"What, is it some kinda local trouble?" Han asked cheekily
"Let's just say we'd like to avoid any Imperial entanglements." Obi-Wan replied, a smile on his face but his tone was deadly serious.
"Well, that's the real trick, isn't it?" Han said, "And it's gonna cost ya something extra. 10,000, all in advance."
"10,000?!" Luke stared, "We could almost buy our own ship for that!"
"But who's gonna fly it, kid?" Han retorted, giving Luke a condescending look, "You and the Angel here?"
"You bet we could!" Luke shot back, "We're not such bad pilots ourselves! We don't have to sit here and..." He started to get up but Obi-Wan held him down.
"We can pay you 2000 now, plus 15 when we reach Alderaan." the Jedi told Han calmly
"17, huh?" Han asked, considering this and Obi-Wan nodded in confirmation. "Ok, you guys got yourselves a ship." Han conceded, "We'll leave as soon as ya ready. Docking bay 94."
"94." Obi-wan nodded in confirmation
Han looked over the trio's shoulders at something at bar. "Looks like someone's beginning to take an interest in your handiwork." he commented, and Luke, Malia and Obi-Wan looked round to see four Sandtroopers talking to the landlord who was pointing in their direction.
"Alright, we'll check it out." a Sandtrooper said to the landlord and the four troopers made their way over to Han's table to find only Han and Chewbacca. Seeing nothing abnormal, the troopers walked away.
"17,000." Han laughed once the Sandtroopers had gone, "Those guys must really be desperate. This could really save my neck. Get back to the ship and get her ready." he told Chewbacca, who growled in acknowledgement and left the cantina.
~8~
"You'll have to sell your speeders." Obi-Wan told the two cousins as they left the cantina.
"That's ok. I'm never coming back to this planet again." Luke replied, then he saw Malia looking at her bike with an almost sad expression. "You ok, 'Lia?" he asked
"Yeah, it's just... this was dad's bike." Malia sighed, running her hand over the bike's handlebars, "It's the only thing I've got left of him now."
"I'm sorry, 'Lia." Luke replied comfortingly, "Look, ya don't have to come with me. I'm sure Fixer'll look after ya. That way you can keep the bike."
"No, no, I'm coming with ya." Malia told him, "I'll sell the bike. We're gonna need as much money as we can to make Fly Boy in there happy." She turned to Artoo and Threepio. "We've got a ride." she told them, "Go to docking bay 94. We'll meet ya both there when we've got the money."
"Yes, mistress." Threepio acknowledged, and he and Artoo set off to find the docking bay, while Luke, Malia and Obi-Wan headed off to sell the speeders.
~8~
As Han got up to leave the cantina, he suddenly found himself being held at gunpoint by a Rodian bounty hunter. "Going somewhere, Solo?" the Rodian asked coolly in Huttese.
"Yes, Greedo." Han rolled his eyes, "As a matter of fact, I was just gonna see your boss and tell Jabba I've got his money."
"It's too late. You should've paid him when you had the chance." Greedo told him, forcing Han to sit back down again, "Jabba's put a price on your head so large... every bounty hunter in the galaxy will be looking for you. I'm lucky I found you first." he cackled
"Yeah, but this time I've got the money." Han persisted
"If you give it to me, I might forget I found you."
"I don't have it with me." Han rolled his eyes, subtly reaching for the blaster pistol holstered on his thigh, "Tell Jabba..."
"Jabba's through with you." Greedo interrupted, "He has no time for smugglers who drop their shipments at the first sign of an Imperial crusier."
"Look, even I get boarded sometimes." Han said reasonably, upholstering his blaster, "D'ya think I had a choice?!"
"You can tell that to Jabba." Greedo remarked, "He may only take your ship."
"Over my dead body." Han retorted defiantly
"That's the idea." Greedo said smugly, "I've been looking forward to this for a long time."
"Yes, I bet you have!" Han retorted, and he promptly shot the annoying Rodian point-blank range. A few patrons looked up when they heard the shot, but when they saw that Greedo was the victim, they all went back to their drinks. No one was going to miss Greedo! Han meanwhile got to his feet and strode over to the bar. "Sorry 'bout the mess." he said casually to the landlord, tossing him a coin, then he left the cantina.
~8~
Four armed Sandtroopers marched down a Mos Eisley street. "Lock the door, Artoo." Threepio urged his counterpart as they hid in a doorway. Artoo did just that, the door sliding shut before the troopers reached it.
"This one's locked." a Sandtrooper reported as he failed to get the locked door open.
"Alright, move onto the next one." his commander ordered, and the troopers moved on.
Once they were gone, the door slid open to reveal the two droids. "I would much rather have gone with Master Luke and Mistress Malia than stay here with you." Threepio complained, "I don't know what this trouble is about, but I'm sure it must be your fault."
Artoo beeped an angry response.
"You watch your language!" Threepio scolded.
~8~
Elsewhere in Mos Eisley, Luke, Malia and Obi-Wan were at a used speeder lot. Malia had gotten 1000 gold peggats for her swoop bike and Luke was currently haggling over the price he was willing to sell his landspeeder for. "Alright, give it to me, I'll take it." he conceded to the buyer, who gave him 1000 peggats too.
"Hey, and look after that bike." Malia said to the buyer, "It means a lot to me, so take care of it."
Luke retrieved his poncho from the speeder and he, Malia and Obi-Wan left the lot. "Look at this." Luke sighed, looking at the money he'd gotten, "Ever since the XP-38 came out, they just ain't in demand."
"Yeah, pity the Skyhopper got wrecked." Malia agreed, "We could've gotten some good dough from that."
"Never mind, we've got enough." Obi-Wan told them.
~8~
Obi-Wan and the cousins reunited with the droids at docking bay 94. "If the ship's as fast as he's boasting, we ought to do well." Obi-Wan remarked.
Chewbacca was waiting for them outside the docking bay and he led them inside to reveal that the Millennium Falcon was a dilapidated old Corellian YT-1300 series freighter that had clearly seen better days. Neither cousin were impressed. "Is this it?" Malia scoffed
"What a piece of junk!" Luke burst out
Han, who had been running some last minute checks on the ship, took offence to that. "She'll make point five past lightspeed." he said indignantly, "She may not look like much, but she's got it where it counts, kids. I've made a lot of special modifications myself. But, we're a little rushed, so if you'll just get on board, we'll get outta here." And so Obi-Wan and the two cousins followed Chewbacca inside the ship.
"Hello, sir." Threepio greeted Han as he and Artoo passed him
Han just rolled his eyes and went back to his checks. He had just finished up when he heard a voice yell; "Stop that ship! Blast them!" And he looked round to see a sqaud of Sandtroopers storm into the docking bay and open fire with their rifles.
Han quickly whipped out his blaster and returned fire, dislodging some masonry from the entrance's ceiling which knocked a few troopers down and gave Han a chance to scramble up the Falcon's boarding ramp. "Chewie, get us out of here!" he yelled as he ran towards the cockpit.
~8~
In the passenger compartment, Luke, Malia and Obi-Wan all quickly fastened their seatbelts as the ship's engines rumbled into life. "Oh my, I've forgotten how much I hate space travel." Threepio moaned.
~8~
The Sandtroopers continued to fire in vain at the Falcon as the ship quickly lifted off from the docking bay and sped skywards. The ship was soon clear of Tatoonie's atmosphere, but they weren't out of the woods yet. Han checked his sensor readings to see that another ship was gaining on them. "Looks like a Star Destroyer." he observed, "Our passengers must be hotter than I thought. Try and hold 'em off. Angle the deflector shields while I make the calculations for the jump to lightspeed." he ordered Chewbacca.
As the Millennium Falcon raced towards open space, two Imperial Star Destroyers went in pursuit of the freighter.
"Stay sharp, there's another one comin' in." Han told Chewbacca, "They're gonna try and cut us off."
Luke, Malia and Obi-Wan entered the cockpit at that moment. "Why don't ya outrun 'em. I thought you said this thing was fast." Luke sassed
"Watch ya mouth, kid, or you're gonna find yourself floating home." Han retorted, "We'll be safe enough once we make the jump to hyperspace. Besides, I know a few manoeuvres. We'll loose 'em." The Star Destroyers at this point had entered firing range of the Falcon and they lost no time to do so. The little freighter shuddered from the impacts, causing both Luke and Malia to grab hold of the passenger seats to avoid falling over. "This is where the fun begins." Han smirked
"Are you enjoying this?!" Malia glared
"How long before you can make the jump to lightspeed?" Obi-Wan asked
"It'll take a few moments to get the co-ordinates from the navicomputer." Han replied
"Are you kidding? At the rate they're gaining..." Luke began as more laser blasts rocked the ship.
"Travelling through hyperspace ain't like dustin' crops, boy." Han retorted, "Without precise calculations, we'd fly right through a star or bounce too close to a supernova, and that would end your trip real quick, wouldn't it?"
A red warning light suddenly began flashing on the control panel. "What's that flashing?" Luke asked, pointing to the light.
"We're loosing a deflector shield." Han said, smacking Luke's hand away, "Go strap yourselves in, I'm gonna make the jump to lightspeed." And so Obi-Wan and the two cousins went back to the passenger compartment while Han flipped a switch to activate the Falcon's hyperdrive. The ship promptly streaked off into hyperspace, leaving Tatooine and the pursuing Star Destroyers far behind.
Author's notes: And so we meet Han Solo and Chewbacca. Note that I had Han shoot first. Thought that'd make most people happy. Also note the little Phantom Menace reference during the cantina scene. I also made reference to the Phantom Menace game with the mention of peggats being Tatooine's main currency. With my Doctor Who stories completed, I can give this story full attention when I'm off from work, so I can get chapters written more frequently now. So, hope you enjoy this chapter and see ya next time!
