Chapter II: The Journey to Alderaan
Old Ben glanced at the young man sitting next to him in the speeder; he was holding up surprisingly well for someone who had just lost his aunt and uncle. But the boys white knuckled death grip on the steering wheel and tense jaw revealed that he felt the strain of their deaths. As the speeder chugged along to their destination, a haphazard array of low, grey, concrete buildings and domes appeared before them, ugly against the backdrop of the golden desert.
"Mos Eisley Spaceport. You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. We must be cautious." Kenobi warned. Luke nodded affirmatively as their destination loomed closer. As they neared the Spaceport, they were stopped on a crowded street by several Storm Troopers who seemed particularly interested in the two droids. Luke nervously glanced to companion, but the older man remained calm and didn't seem the least bit threatened.
"How long have you had these droids?" one of the troopers asked brusquely.
"About three or four seasons." Luke replied calmly, praying that his voice didn't wobble.
The trooper paced about the car suspiciously before looking at Luke again. "Let me see your identification." he ordered. Fumbling with sweaty hands, Luke tried to find which pocket he kept it in.
"You don't need to see his identification." Ben instructed confidently. Luke whipped his head up incredulously, ready to bolt in the speeder if the troopers looked ready to take shots at them, but to his amazement the trooper agreed with Ben. "These are not the droids you're looking for. We can go along our business." Ben murmured softly.
The trooper hesitated for a fraction of a second before he repeated what Ben said. If Luke could see the man's face under his helmet, he'd bet his eyes were glazed over. Ben nodded at him, and Luke cautiously pulled away in the speeder, certain they would be stopped again.
Once free from the group of Storm Troopers, Luke let out a sigh of relief and frowned at Kenobi.
"I don't understand what just happened. How did you do that?"
"The force can have a strong influence on the weak-minded. You will find it a powerful ally."
"I can't wait to do that." Luke joked, parking the speeder in an empty spot. Helping the droids out of the speeder, Luke looked around at the desolate buildings and various ships parked in the bays. "Do you really think we're going to find a pilot to take us to Alderaan?" he asked nervously, shooing away a Jawa that was eyeing up his speeder.
"Well, most the of best freighter pilots can be found here." Ben stuck his arm out, holding Luke in place, "Be careful around here, this place can be a little...rough."
"I'm ready for anything. Artoo, Threepio, perhaps you two should wait by the speeder. Don't wander off, I'll come get you when we've found a pilot, okay?" Luke eyes both the droids sternly, especially Artoo.
"Don't worry Master Luke, we'll be here waiting for your return." Threepio said cheerily. Luke smiled at him and then hurried in after old Ben, making sure to keep close to him.
Sighing for the umpteenth time, Luke sipped at his glass of water as he watched all the outlandish creatures going about their business in the cantina. He avoided making eye contact with a rather nasty looking man who kept eyeing him up, instead refocusing his gaze back on his companion who was talking to a large, eight-foot-tall, hairy creature.
Shrinking in his seat, Luke averts his gaze from them as Kenobi gestures over to him. They slowly make their way over and slide into the booth Luke is sitting at on either side of him. Luke, who is secretly terrified of the large creature next to him tries to not to show it.
"This is Chewbacca, a wookiee who is first-mate on a ship that might suit our needs." Kenobi said by way of introduction. Luke nodded at Chewbacca who let out a loud roar of greeting, startling Luke so badly that he knocked over his drink.
Chewbacca and Ben laughed at him good naturedly, ordering a fresh round of drinks.
"We're waiting for the captain to arrive." Kenobi explained, sipping his lemonade carefully. Although he appeared completely at ease, Luke could see that the old man was being constantly vigilant of their surroundings. After around half an hour, man appeared at the bar, young, roguishly handsome and with a twisted smirk plastered over his face. He crooked a finger at the three waiting at the table and beckoned them to follow him. Chewbacca rumbled and got up, as did Luke and Ben.
"I'm assuming that's the captain." Luke murmured to Ben. Ben hummed in agreement as he assessed their possibly new pilot. Once they had all made themselves comfortable in a booth at the back of the room, Han laid back and grinned lazily at the pair before him.
"Han Solo. Captain of the Millennium Falcon." he extended a hand and shook both of their briskly. "Chewie here tells me you're looking for passage to the Alderaan system."
"Yes indeed, if it's a fast ship." Ben replied easily.
"Fast ship?" Han spluttered, offended. "What, you've never heard of the Millennium Falcon?" he exclaimed in disbelief.
"Should I have?" Ben asked innocently. Luke got the sense that he enjoyed teasing this man.
"It's the ship that made the Kessel run in less than twelve parsecs!" Ben remained stone faced, a single eyebrow raised as if to say "what?". Luke however, was impressed. It must have shown on his face, because Han was suddenly paying a lot more attention to him than before. "At least the kid knows what I'm talking about huh." he winked a Luke who smiled shyly back.
Sighing, Han leaned back again and wet his lips. "I've outrun Imperial starships, and not the local bulk-cruisers mind you. I'm talking about the big Corellian ships now. So she's definitely fast enough for you, old man. What's the cargo?" he cockily asked, taking a swig from his beer.
"Only passengers. Myself, the boy, two droids and no questions asked." Kenobi added pointedly.
Han shrugged, not looking too interested. "What is it? Some kind of local trouble?" he drawled.
"Let's just say we'd like to avoid any Imperial entanglements." Ben murmured, casting a furtive glance at the rest of the cantina.
"Well, that's the trick isn't it? It's going to cost you extra. Ten thousand in advance."
"Ten thousand?" Luke exploded indignantly. "We might as well buy our own ship for that!"
"Oh yeah?" Han butted back, "Who's going to fly it kid? You?" he laughed quietly and rolled his eyes at Chewbacca.
"You bet I could. I'm not such a bad pilot myself! Ben," he said, turning to the man beside him, "we don't have to sit here and listen to -"
"We haven't that much with us." Ben interrupted calmly. "We can pay you two thousand now, plus fifteen when we reach Alderaan."
Han considered his offer for a few moments, eyes trained on the ceiling.
"You've got yourself a deal. We're in docking bay ninety four. We'll leave as soon as you're ready." Han drained the last of his beer and jumped up from the booth, Chewbacca following close behind. They disappeared into the crowded bar, leaving Luke and Ben alone.
"We'll need to sell your speeder." Ben turned to Luke apologetically, his hand resting on his shoulder.
"It's alright, I'm never coming back here again. I know a place I think, c'mon."
It didn't take them long to find a sleazy used speeder dealership, which was more than willing to take their speeder. It was in a much better condition than what they usually received at Mos Eisley, so both parties were happy with the trade deal.
They made their way back to the Spaceport, picking up the two droids that they had left standing against the wall whilst they sold the speeder. The walk to docking bay ninety four was a quick one, only taking them a few minutes to round the corner and see a large, barely held together ship looming over Han Solo and Chewbacca.
The closer they got, the more appalled Luke became.
"What a piece of junk." he tutted at the ship, casting a critical eye over it.
"Hey! She'll make point five beyond the speed of light. She may not look like much, but she's got it where it counts kid. Plus I've added some special modifications myself." Han paused and cocked an eyebrow at Luke. "You seem like you know your stuff, maybe I'll tell you about some of the work I've done on it later."
"Yeah sure, that sounds good." Luke tried not to appear to eager. Despite how dilapidated the ship looked, Luke's passion for flying overrode any disdain he might have held for the Falcon, and he was sure it would help the time pass on their journey.
Luke settled into his seat next to Ben, making sure both the droids were secure before he put his own seatbelt on. He looked out over the desert, the place he'd called his home for the whole nineteen years of his life. He swallowed, a strange empty feeling in his chest. He realised with mounting shame that he hadn't even buried his aunt and uncle, he'd just turned his back on them and left in the speeder, the sight too painful. What sort of nephew was he? It was the least he could do. Feeling his throat close up and the tell tale sting of tears threatening to spill over onto his face, he took a deep steadying breath and blinked them away.
He was Skywalker, and he would become a Jedi Knight just as his father had before him. He would learn the ways of the force and how to wield his lightsaber, and then he would join the Rebellion. Nothing would stop him. He'll avenge his aunt and uncles deaths, and make them proud. He would honour their memory. He gripped the handle of his fathers lightsaber tightly, promising him that he would find Darth Vader and he will kill him.
XXX
After a fitful nights rest filled with dreams of lightsabers and fire, Luke woke feeling groggy and somewhat irritable. After a small breakfast and a quick wash, Ben lead him into a small space and produced from his pocket a small seeker robot.
"Just a little exercise to see how good your reflexes are." Kenobi smiled at the young man, and turned the seeker on to its easiest setting. "Go ahead." he nodded encouragingly and stood back, allowing Luke to have more room. Luke eyed the robot carefully before igniting his saber, a thrill running down his spine at crisp snap hiss sound it made.
After a few minutes of getting the hang of such a light weapon (Luke finally understood what Ben meant by less clumsy than a blaster – he couldn't ever imagine going back to his laser rifle now), it turned out that Luke had a natural affinity for the blade. Soon enough, he was able to block each laser from the robot, and urged Ben to switch it to the next setting.
"It's much too slow and predictable!" Luke complained good naturedly, feeling elated at his success. But it seemed that Ben hadn't even heard him. He was gripping the wall, using it to hold himself up. His face was pale and he seemed like he was going to faint at any moment.
"Are you okay?" Luke asked with concern, reaching out a hand to steady him.
"I felt a great disturbance in the force..." Ben muttered, allowing himself to be guided back into the main room and into his seat. "it was as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced." he paused for moment, everyone's attention was focused on him. He suddenly gripped Luke's sleeve at stared up at him in dread. "I fear something terrible has happened." he whispered. Luke swallowed and shared an uneasy look with Han.
"Well," said Han slowly, breaking the silence, "we should be at Alderaan about oh-two-hundred hours." his eyes fell to the deactivated lightsaber in Luke's hand. "I saw what you were doing back there kid. Hokey religions and ancient weapons are not match for a good blaster at your side, kid." Han chuckled and kicked his legs up to rest on the dashboard.
"You don't believe in the force, do you?" Luke asked frowning.
"Kid, I've flown from one side of this galaxy to the other. I've seen a lot of strange stuff, but nothing to make me believe in the force. It's all a lot of simple tricks and nonsense.
After a few more hours of Luke practising with the robot seeker coupled with Han's disparaging remarks about the force, they ship finally alerted them to the fact that they were approaching Alderaan.
"Alright, strap in guys." the moment they came out of hyperspace they were immediately bombarded by asteroids, and large ones.
"How the hell have we ended up in a meteor shower? Its not in any of the charts!" Han complained, flipping several ships. Chewbacca rumbled in agreement with Han and flipped several more switches, roaring at Han in concern.
"What's going on?" Luke called from the back over the numerous beeping.
Han swivelled round and a fixed everyone with an unreadable stare, his face drained of colour.
"Our position is correct, except...there's no Alderaan. How is this possible? It's been totally blown away!" Ben unbuckled himself and looked out through the front screen, his eyebrows drawn together in concentration.
"It's been destroyed...by the Empire!"
"Their entire star fleet couldn't destroy a whole planet. It'd take thousands of ships with more fire power than I've..." Han trailed off as Chewbacca nudged him, indicating the flashing light on the control panel. "There's another ship coming in, an Imperial fighter."
"Stars. Where's it heading?" Luke asked in a hushed whisper. They all watched as the Tie fighter headed towards what appeared to be a small moon. "Is that...a moon?" Luke asked in disbelief.
"It's a battle station." Kenobi remarked grimly.
"That's far too big to be a battle station." Han retorted, and yet he didn't seem too sure. "Let's get out of here." he decided out loud, and Chewbacca roared in agreement. Luke and Ben waiting with baited breath, but they were still heading slowly but surely towards the battle station.
"We're stuck in their tractor beam!" Han turned to face Chewbacca in dismay, racking his brain to find an answer to their problem. "Aw hell, there's not getting out of this. We'll have to hide. Quick!" With Han leading the way, Chewbacca, Ben, Luke and the two droids followed closely behind, squeezing themselves into some cleverly disguised compartments in a back room in the floor.
With their breath held, the group listened as Imperials boarded the ship and began inspecting it. Luke could passed out he was that nervous. He was certain that at any moment someone would lift the hatch and they'd all be staring into the barrel of a gun, or worse... but nothing like that happened. Instead, after an agonising amount of time (which in reality only lasted fifteen minutes), they heard the Imperials retreat from the ship. They waited another five minutes to make sure the coast was clear, before Chewbacca carefully lifted the latch and poked his head out.
"It's lucky you had these compartments." Luke whispered gratefully, climbing out and stretching his limbs.
"I use them for smuggling. I never thought I'd be smuggling myself in them." he let out a humourless laugh and huffed. "This is ridiculous," he rounded on Ben, a finger pointing in his direction, "even if I could take off, I'd never get past their tractor beam."
"Leave that to me." he sent Luke a wink at Han's annoyed sigh.
"Damn fool, I knew you were going to say that." they stared at each other for a few moments before a sly grin appeared on Ben's face.
"Who's the more foolish, the fool or the fool who follows him?" Luke snickered silently as Han turned away, at a loss for words.
"What're we going to do now, Master Luke?" Threepio piped up from the corner.
"I have an idea." Han sent them all a lopsided grin as he explain his plan