Alliance Command Ship: Home One:
Commander Han Solo walked down the boarding ramp of the Millennium Falcon followed by his companion, Chewbacca. The hardened Alliance Officer walked towards the edge of the hanger bay where Lieutenant Darklighter was awaiting alongside Lieutenant Antilles.
"Where are the kids?" He asked.
"Somewhere in the desert of Tatooine as far as we can tell," Biggs replied.
Han cringed as he headed past the two men who immediately fell into step with him.
Han Solo was many things, former Imperial, smuggler, pirate and even in the eyes of some a deserter. At the end of the day he was General Padme Skywalker's right hand man. Padme had seen potential in him upon recruiting him for a mission just two years earlier. She had gotten him away from Jabba and given him a position in the Alliance Military and a cause to believe in. He had lost all faith in ideals and structure after his stint with the Empire had ended so many years earlier. Padme had shown him a belief and an ideology that he could believe in. He in turn had chosen to discontinue his self centered life of smuggling and take up his blaster for something far more important than himself. He had never once looked back at the old life. He looked at his wookiee companion as they entered the briefing room of Home One.
Padme stood at the table alongside Admiral Ackbar.
He bowed as he spoke, "Milady."
"Luke was forced to land on Tatooine with Leia and the Princess just a few hours ago. He was able to get R2 to repair his fighter. He then had R2 leave for Alderaan with the Princess and the Death Star Plans. They have already made it into hyperspace. Luke and Leia however are stranded on Tatooine with Vader on their trail. I had to pull Home One out because more Star Destroyers were arriving to counter our attack."
Han smiled, "But you need me to take you into the system in the Falcon so we won't be detected. Drop in get the twins and get the hell out."
Padme stepped forward with a smile, "You know me too well don't you Solo?"
Han nodded as he spoke, "The Falcon should be refueled. Lets go!"
Padme turned towards the doorway as Han and Chewie moved to follow her.
"Admiral Ackbar you have my orders. Take this vessel back to the rendezvous point with the rest of the fleet. We will head straight to base so that we may devise the strike once we have the twins."
"Yes General."
Padme sat in the cockpit of the Falcon alongside Han as she heard C-3PO entering the cockpit, "I do hope that that engagement didn't cause R2 to short circuit."
Padme laughed at her longtime droid companion as she turned towards Han, "Thank you so much for doing this for me Commander."
"Hey, I'm about as attached to those kids as you are. It is also the least I can do for you after all that you did for me."
"Sometimes I feel like I have three kids instead of two."
"Because of me?" Han asked.
"Yes, its just nice that you have a little more common sense than Luke."
Han raised an eyebrow in amusement as the Falcon flew out of the hanger bay of Home One. Chewbacca let out a roar of agreement as Han spoke, "You're saying that I'm an idiot Chewie?"
The wookiee laughed as Padme smiled.
She buckled in her crash webbing as she spoke, "Take us into Hyperspace."
Tatooine:
Vader examined the undamaged escape pod as his eyes glowed yellow. He noticed various sets of foot prints leading away from the escape pod. What bothered him most was not the foot prints but the different trails that they created. As he followed one shorter trail he found himself standing in an area where there were various sets of footprints. He Also noticed several distinct marks that indicated the spot where the X-Wing that he had damaged had landed.
He heard the sounds of racing speeders and turned his head to see three Imperial landspeeders packed with stormtroopers entering view. Behind them was a troop transport with around twenty troops. An officer came into view who instantly bowed as he spoke, "Lord Vader, The X-Wing managed to evade our capture and slip out of the system. I only received word of its detection a few minutes ago."
Vader clenched his fist as he stared out into the desert.
"They split up. Now the two in the desert are my only link to finding the Rebel Base."
"I have a seat for you in the speeder."
Vader nodded as the group moved towards the lead landspeeder.
"I will drive," Vader stated.
Luke and Leia were both exhausted. They had both been moving across the dune sea for hours. They had done their best to put as much distance between themselves and the crash site as possible. As they found themselves in a large canyon, Leia spoke, "Luke I am so thirsty we need to stop."
Luke took in a deep sigh as he reached into his survival bag. He drew out a thermos of water that he passed to his sister as he spoke, "The nearest settlement is ten miles. We have to stay moving. Vader is onto us and we have almost no time left."
Leia passed the thermos back to her twin as he put a hand on her shoulder.
Vader stared out of his electrobinoculars at the two teenagers in the canyon.
"They can't even be eighteen," he said aloud.
"Are you sure that they are Jedi sir?" asked the officer. Vader turned to the man and nodded, "They are, I can see their lightsabers now."
"Have your men set their weapons for stun. I wish to interrogate them and learn who their masters are."
"Yes, Milord," the officer stated as he turned to fulfill Vader's order.
Vader found himself intrigued as he lowered the device. Force they look so familiar, he thought to himself.
The officer returned as Vader spoke, "That road ends at the far side of the canyon. Take your speeders and the troop transport ahead of the canyon on that smaller road. Cut them off get the men in position. I am going to enter the canyon and push them to you. They are not to be killed no matter what. Just know Captain that their arrest will be difficult and will cost lives. Just make sure they do not leave the canyon, "Yes Milord."
Leia stood up as she spoke, "How close do you think Vader is?"
Luke sighed, "I don't know. I just know he is tracking us."
Leia took in a deep breath as her Brother stood up. Luke brushed off his sandy uniform as he took in his surroundings. Leia looked at him and trembled as as she spoke, "Luke how can we fight Vader in this state? We are starved, exhausted and dehydrated. What do we do when he catches up to us?"
"Simply surrender," stated a sinister voice.
Luke and Leia both turned in horror to see the dark figure watching them.
A blue and green lightsaber blade both instantly came to life as the twins took positions side by side with their blades angled at Vader.
Vader stared at the twins as he took in the steel blue eyes of the small blonde haired boy before looking at the girl. They both acted like they were more than comrades and more than friends. To him they seemed to be similar in height. The girl had dark hair and dark brown eyes that reminded him of his late wife.
"Who might you two padawans be?" Vader asked.
"It isn't of your concern," Leia replied.
"Here and now, Leia. He might as well know why we are going to kill him before we do the deed," Luke cryptically stated.
Vader regarded the arrogant young boy with a look of amusement. Sounds familiar, he thought. "Why do you want me to die?"
"Because you killed our father the day of our birth," Leia disdainfully stated.
Vader regarded Leia with a raised eyebrow as he spoke, "I have killed a lot of fathers girl, why don't you remind me who he was. I probably don't even remember him."
"Oh you remember him, you betrayed and murdered him. Just like how you betrayed our master!" Luke stated hatefully.
Vader smirked as the boy swung his blue blade at him. Vader activated his own lightsaber as he caught the boy's swing. What shocked him was the hilt of the lightsaber that the boy was using. It was no ordinary lightsaber, not that any lightsaber was ordinary. It was a lightsaber that he recognized. It was his own lightsaber.
He used the Force to push the boy back. The boy instantly tripped on a small boulder and the lightsaber went fumbling from his hand.
Vader was filled with disbelief as he caught the hilt of the lightsaber in his left hand.
He looked the two teenagers over as he roared in triumph, "Twins!"
Luke and Leia exchanged glances of horror as Vader stepped over Luke. He held the red blade at his throat as he spoke, "It might be wise to drop your lightsaber unless you wish for the son of Skywalker to die."
"Leia, run! Leave me there is no sense in us both dying!"
Leia turned around to the sight of a wide line of stormtroopers who had their blasters pointed at her as she looked at her brother. She reluctantly deactivated her blade and hurled the lightsaber at Vader's feet. Vader smiled as he bent over and picked up the lightsaber.
"Captain, throw me binders."
The efficient officer fulfilled Vader's orders without hesitation.
The dark lord used the force to call the binders to his hands. He then bent over and bound the hands of the boy before binding the hands of the girl who looked at him with dark eyes of hatred.
He smiled as he spoke, "It looks like several lies have been told to several people over the years."
Padme stared at the escape pod as she spoke, "We need to find them Han. Can we track them in the Falcon? Where should we look?"
"I would go to Anchorhead. Considering that it is the nearest settlement, if I know Luke that is where he got Leia to move towards. They are probably both almost there by now," Han said as he emerged from the escape pod.
Luke was pushed to his knees alongside Leia in front of the Imperial speeder as the various stormtroopers moved about in the makeshift base camp that was set up. He looked at his sister with a look of regret as he spoke for the first time since their capture.
"I'm sorry sister."
Leia looked at her brother as a tear left her eye as she spoke, "Its alright, it isn't your fault. I just couldn't run and leave you. Now we are both going to die."
Luke looked down as he thought of his vain attempt to protect his sister, "I did my best."
"I know," Leia said with a shiver. Their poor mother was about to lose her only two children. The Galaxy was about to lose the last hope it had for defeating Darth Vader. All because of the circumstances of the conflict that neither twin had control over. Vader approached them in glossy silence. A light hot breeze caused his cloak to flutter as he approached them.
The twins looked towards their captor and executioner as they prepared to await their doom. Vader sneered as he spoke, "I would never execute my own children."
Luke and Leia exchanged glances of disbelief as Vader spoke, "It sounds like you have been lied to. I think that it is time for you two to have a reality check."
Vader lowered his hood as the twins let out gasps of horror and shock, "I am your father," Vader stated.
"No!" Luke screamed.
"It's impossible!" Leia yelled.
Vader smiled as his eyes turned back to their sickly yellow, "You know the truth search your feelings."
Luke hatefully stared at his father as he spoke, "Father or not, you are our enemy. And we will never see you as anything but our enemy. We are Jedi, you are a Sith Lord."
Vader looked at his son in frustration, "Do you want to hear my side? And is your mother really dead or was her death a hoax just like your death in her womb was?"
"We never knew her," Leia stated.
Vader brought his left hand into Leia's cheek as he spoke, "Do not lie to me! So she lives and has been fighting against me like the rest of the treacherous rebels."
Leia hatefully looked into the eyes of her father as she spoke, "We are no different."
"You will soon learn your place at my side."
"Like hell we will. We hate you!" Luke screamed.
Vader waved several stormtroopers towards his son and daughter as he spoke, "Put them in the second speeder behind me. Make sure to give them some water before we start the drive back to the shuttle."
Luke and Leia were both pulled to their feet by force as their father stared at them. He smirked as he made a gesture towards the speeder, "Once we get back to the ship you both will be placed in a cell. We will have a discussion about respecting your father there. I am just going to warn you that I will not tolerate your disrespect. Once I find your mother I will also be having a talk with her. The game she is playing is one that I am not pleased with."
Padme stared out of the viewport of the Millennium Falcon at the procession of Imperial speeders. She fingered her blaster as she lowered her electrobinoculars. She turned to Han as she spoke, "Han, your mission is to get them onto this ship. My safety is secondary. If I am caught, you will just have to figure out how to get me back at a different time. Get the twins and get them back to base. Obi-Wan will know what to do. But if all goes well, we should be able to attack and get them and be gone as fast as we appeared."
Han nervously looked at Padme as he spoke, "I will follow your orders General, but I do not like this if he gets me."
"Vader will not kill me if he gets me. I know him better than anyone else does. He won't kill me. The twins will be able to confirm that at this point," Padme added with a deep sigh.
Han frowned as he spoke, "So how do you want to do this?"
"You get the main guns charged up. Use the belly turret and knock out some of those speeders. Chewie can keep the ship flying. We will get alongside the speeder with the twins. I will handle the rest."
"You got it," Han replied as he left the cockpit.
Well that is it for now. Thank you for reading and reviewing. If you want to see more just let me know. Kind of have left a cliffhanger, I know.
-Fallen Jedi 79