Chapter 32: Old Friends
When the view through the cockpit returned to the void of space, there was nothing to see but distant stars.
The Millennium Falcon emerged from hyperspace shortly after entering it, lacking the proper calculations for a long distance journey. Thus it emerged in the space between systems, with nothing but the interstellar medium and distant starlight for company. The engines were shut down and the ship drifted through the void, slightly rotating clockwise as it moved forward. Navigational scanners were brought online to determine exactly where they were, using the positions of known stars calculating the distances.
"Well we made it out of there," Aang said. He managed to hide most of his discomfort here, not having any bending in space. "Where are we?"
"In the middle of nowhere," Han answered. He got to work with the navigation computer, using it to calculate their current position. "Still, we'd better leave before the Empire follows us here."
"Good, let's meet up with Leia and everyone else," Katara said.
"That'd be great," Han said. He turned his chair toward Katara and Aang, seeing worried looks from them both. "If we had enough fuel."
"What?" Katara blurted out.
"You heard me," Han said. He tapped a finger on the fuel gauge, the needle near the bottom. "We burnt up too much during the escape. So we are kind of limited on how far we can go."
"Wonderful," Aang complained, throwing up his arms and then slouching his shoulders. "Let me guess, there's nowhere we can get to?"
Han checked the results from the navigation computer, discovered exactly where they were, and one idea sprang to mind. "Lando…"
"Is that someone you know?" Katara asked.
"It's been a while, but yeah I know him," Han said.
Chewbacca growled something at him.
"Yeah Chewy, he probably won't be happy to see us," Han admitted. He tried to think of somewhere else to go, but no alternatives came to mind. "Alright, we're going to Bespin."
Meanwhile, it was a peaceful day on Dagobah.
Granted, there was very little variation to the weather on this swamp planet. Every morning the fog came in, broke apart an hour before noon, and a little bit of sunlight pierced the treetops in the afternoon. The constantly moist air wasn't pleasurable for most people, but Luke had gotten used to it during his training here. But today the air was drier than usual, more sunlight came through wider gaps in the foliage, and the bugs were retreating into their little holes. That was good enough for Luke to call this day better than most, and a pleasant day to continue his training.
Over the long months Luke had only left Dagobah a few times, and returned with a few days of his departure. Once to inform the rebellion of what he was doing, again to pick up supplies for an extended stay, and most recently to bring Aang to a rebel transport for passage to Hoth. Aside from those little jaunts Luke spent the entire time here, learning about the Force from Yoda day in and day out. Luke knew that Leia and other rebel leaders weren't happy about it, but they could understand why he needed to do this training.
Today Luke was sitting on a smooth stone, surrounded by a ring of bright sunshine, eyes closed and focusing on the power within him. From a higher boulder Yoda watched and instructed, just as he did every other day Luke was here. Through the Force Luke felt the world around him, from the trees to the rocks to all the animals of the swamp. One by one they floated off the ground and moved around, going to wherever Luke wanted them to go. Even R2-D2 floated into the air, wildly beeping and screeching all the while.
Yoda heard the droid's panic, saw Luke continue in spite of it, and he nodded in approval. "Yes, good, maintain your focus. Keep to the task at hand. Do not let distractions sway you."
Luke didn't answer, which was the correct answer. He kept his mind on the Force, keeping all the rocks and droid and miscellaneous junk floating in the air. Even the boulder Yoda stood on came free from the ground, and he gladly went along for the ride. One by one the rocks were stacked on top of each other, most of the junk put on top of the rocks, and RD-D2 placed with Yoda at the top of the stack. R2-D2 screeched at Yoda, who scowled back at the droid, neither liking the other very much. Complaining was all the droid could do at the moment, as it usually did since arriving here.
Then the tower of rocks and junk came apart, the pieces floating away from each other, returning to the places they had been taken from. But then Luke's focus wavered, the strain apparent on his face, before some of the rocks fell to the ground. R2-D2 was dropped and fell on its side, and the boulder Yoda stood on crashed down beside the droid. Luke sighed and opened his eyes, relieved that the exercise was over, disappointed that it ended the same as it always did. He stood up and walked over to Yoda, bending his knees to get down to his teacher's eye level.
"Sorry," Luke said. He reached over to R2-D2 and lifted up the droid, getting it upright so it could roll away. "I keep missing the landing."
"Something is on your mind," Yoda said. "It is holding you back."
Luke sighed and looked away, his eye drawn to the X-Wing parked in a nearby clearing. "It's just… everyone I know is out there fighting the Empire, and I've been spending most of my time here instead of helping in the fight. I feel like I should be doing more than just training here."
"Anyone can pilot a ship and shoot a gun," Yoda said. He walked over to a sunlit spot, taking a moment to bath in the sunshine. "Few can learn what you have learned here. Fewer still can possibly master it. And it will be necessary to end the war your friends are fighting."
"I'm just having trouble seeing it," Luke admitted. He sighed again and turned toward Yoda. "And I get the feeling I just missed a very important fight. It's like I need to be there right now."
"I will not make you stay," Yoda said. Still, he had to voice his disapproval. "But I advise against it. There is still much for you to learn."
Luke nodded, but turned back toward the X-Wing anyway. "I know. But I need to take of this. I'll come back as soon as I can."
Disappointed, but not surprised, Yoda took a few steps toward Luke. "Do what you must, and then return here to complete your training."
"Thank you," Luke said. He walked toward the X-Wing, passing by the droid on the way. "Come along R2, let's get going."
R2-D2 made a lot of beeps, clearly happy to leave this place, hoping for more than a few days this time.
The Millennium Falcon emerged from hyperspace in the outskirts of a solar system, unlikely to make another jump without refueling first. Three planets orbited a slightly larger than typical star, surrounded by a variety of asteroids crossing their respective orbits. Two of the planets were uninhabitable wastelands, one scorched rock and the other covered in oceans of lava. The third planet was a large gas giant, no rings to speak of and only two major moons, along with many minor moons barely larger than asteroids.
Coasting into the system, Han steered the Falcon toward the gas giant. "There it is, Bespin."
Reminded of the last time she visited a gas giant, and the immense power she had there, Katara was eager to experience it again. "Alright, which moon are we going to land on?"
"None of them," Han answered. He saw the look of shock on Aang and Katara. "You heard me."
Aang needed a moment to think about that. "So how do we land on one of those? I'm told they don't have land."
"You'll see," Han promised. "On your first time, it really takes your breath away."
The Falcon continued on its trip to Bespin, scanning for any signs of the Empire along the way, and finding none to speak of. There weren't even any navigation beacons anywhere in the system, though Han had expected to find none. This was the start of an elaborate smuggling operation, and thus it wouldn't do to be broadcasting the fact that people were here. There were a few ships passing to and from Bespin, smuggler vessels moving contraband in and out of the system. They didn't bother the Falcon, and Han didn't bother them, passing by without incident.
However, when the Falcon entered Bespin's upper atmosphere, it quickly drew attention. A pair of patrol ships emerged from thick clouds and flew beside the Falcon, both resembling a pair of cylinders strapped together, flying uncomfortably close for Han's liking. Still, he remained calm and flew the ship on a steady course, trying to avoid upsetting whoever was piloting the patrols. And yet they fired a warning shot anyway, small torpedoes exploding in front of the Falcon, close enough to shake the ship but not damage it.
Han was on the radio trying to talk some sense into the pilots. "Look, I'm just trying to reach Lando Calrissian. Let me explain."
The pilot wasn't interested in explanations. "You will not deviate from your present course."
"Are you sure you know this guy that well?" Katara asked.
"Of course," Han said. He could see that wasn't enough for her, so he tried to come up with an explanation. "It's just been a while. I'm sure he's being cautious."
A minute when by before the pilot relayed a message from his superiors. "Permission granted. Land on platform three four seven."
"Thank you," Han said. "Nothing to worry about. We go way back Lando and me."
The Falcon continued on its way, and the patrol ships remained as an escort. They passed through several large clouds, and on the other side was the destination. At first glance it resembled a metal mushroom hanging in the sky, kept upright by forces Katara did not understand. As they got closer they saw buildings on the top, a city suspended above the clouds. Aang's jaw dropped at the sight of it, for he was at a loss for words. Even in his wildest dreams he never imagined a place like this, yet could easily see himself feeling at home here.
"Cloud City," Han said. "I'm sure you can guess why it's called that."
It took a few more minutes to reach Cloud City, and the patrol ships guided the Falcon to the correct landing platform. It was near the center of the city, the path taking them past several tall buildings, ending in front of a grey square building. The Falcon landed on the circular platform, connected to the building by a narrow bridge. The patrol ships continued on their way, returning to their normal routes. After landing the Falcon's entry ramp opened, everyone walked out of the ship, only to find no one there to greet them.
Han and Chewbacca were out first, being careful given their history with smugglers, a little concerned about being left along like this. "Keep your eyes open."
Katara and Aang were right behind them, though Katara noticed a strange smile on Aang. "What are you so happy about?"
"I'm feeling pretty good here," Aang said. He crossed his arms behind his head, as relaxed as he could possibly be. "Kind of hoping this is a trap, just to see what I can do now."
Large doors opened, and a group of people came walking out of the building. Leading them was a tall man with dark skin and short black hair, having a short mustache and a smile that was almost begging to be punched off. The man had a long blue cape that drew the eye away from his plain blue shirt and dark pants, and the cape was fluttering in the wind as he walked across the bridge. The other people were a mix of bodyguards and administrative staff, all in plain clothes of course, but making it clear that they were armed.
"Why you slimy double-crossing no-good swindler," Lando said to Han. "You've got a lot of guts coming back here, after what you pulled."
There were a few held breaths, wondering if it was a mistake to come here. Lando kept walking until he was right in front of Han, and the two men looked into each other's eyes. The only sound was the wind blowing through, and Aang was tempted to interrupt just to use the wind. But then Lando smiled, and Han smiled too, and they embraced in the kind of hug only best friends could make. Everyone was relieved, everyone relaxed, and everyone saw Lando and Han take a step back from each other, both laughing like this was some elaborate act.
"What are you doing here?" Lando asked.
"Oh repairs, refueling, I thought you could help me out," Han answered.
"You haven't been taking care of my ship," Lando accused.
"Your ship?" Han questioned. "Remember, you lost her to me fair and square."
Lando ignored that and looked past Han, spotting the wookie right behind. "And how are you doing Chewbacca? Still hanging around with this loser?"
Chewbacca growled something at him, which Lando took as a compliment.
By then Katara and Aang had walked up to this little meeting, stopping to stand beside Han and Chewbacca. Katara crossed her arms and looked at Lando. "Not what I expected."
Lando looked at the two teenagers with Han. "I don't think we've had the pleasure."
"Oh, right," Han said. He waved a hand between the three people. "Lando, these are Aang and Katara."
"Welcome," Lando said. "I'm Lando Calrissian, the administrator of this facility."
"Nice to meet you," Aang said. "Nice place you got here."
"Thank you," Lando said. He smiled and looked at the view from here. "Just my little pride and joy."
"I'm sure they would enjoy the tour," Han said.
"Later, of course," Lando said. He turned around and started walking back across the bridge, now with Han walking at his side. "What's wrong with the Falcon?"
"Burning up too much fuel," Han answered. "Needs a fill-up now, but a new intake manifold couldn't hurt, if you have one to spare."
"I'll have my people work on it," Lando promised. "That ship's saved my life quite a few times. Fastest hunk of junk in the galaxy."
Missing that good old hunk of junk, Luke wished his X-Wing was faster.
The trip took a few hours, and there was nothing to do while the autopilot handled navigation. All Luke could do was try to meditate, reflect on the teaching he had learned so far, imagining himself back on Dagobah going through the lessons. But it was difficult for him to do that now, his thoughts always turning back to his friends, worrying about what was going on without him. It was a relief when the autopilot set off an alert, telling him that he had nearly arrived. Luke put his hands back on the controls, and at the right moment took the X-Wing out of hyperspace.
The blue void was replaced by the black void, and Luke immediately swerved to the left. "Whoa!"
Barely avoiding a collision with a hull fragment, the X-Wing flew into a debris field. It took careful navigating to avoid more collisions, weaving back and forth through large chunks of twisted metal. After passing through the debris field the X-Wing flew through mostly empty space, and Luke saw more debris up ahead. Then he recognized some of the fragments, belonging to the hulls of rebel transports, broken apart in a recent battle. And the space around Hoth was littered with them, the pieces gradually settling into a ring system around the planet.
"What happened here?" Luke wondered aloud.
A lot of beeping came from R2-D2, alerting him to someone on sensors.
"I see it," Luke said. He quickly changed course. "Star Destroyers right ahead."
Several of them were in orbit around Hoth, directly above the rebel base. Some were already leaving orbit, preparing to make the jump to hyperspace and leave this remote system behind. A few were making emergency repairs, damaged during a battle here, and would be fully operational soon. One was dropping torpedoes onto the planet, bombing what little was left of the rebel base. The rest were actively scanning the system for any remnants of rebel forces, and they quickly discovered the lone X-Wing flying in the wrong direction.
"Time to go," Luke said.
He turned the X-Wing around and flew away from Hoth, only to see more debris between him and a good vector for a hyperspace jump. There wasn't enough time for proper navigation, what with a swarm of TIE Fighters heading his way. Luke opened fire on the debris to clear a path, shooting his way through to reach the other side. A few small fragments struck the winds of his ship, leaving minor gashes in the metal. R2-D2 complained about a near miss, Luke apologized, and swerved to the right after passing through the debris.
But then a sudden yank to the left shook Luke around the cockpit, and he scrambled to find out why. He quickly spotted another Star Destroyer, coming closer far faster than it should have been. It had him caught in a tractor beam, steadily reeling him in toward the Star Destroyer's hangar. Luke didn't dare try to brute force his way out, for that would tear the X-Wing apart. He could rotate the ship safely, and doing so revealed pieces of debris caught in the tractor beam with him. Luke got a crazy idea, really the only thing he could try.
Luke opened fire on the debris, blasting it apart into smaller pieces that scattered apart. A cloud of fragmented metal flew down the tractor beam, weakening the grip it had on the X-Wing. The tractor beam narrowed and intensified, the operator trying to compensate, unaware of the true danger. Luke fired on more debris outside the tractor beam, scattering some of the pieces into it, compounding the problem he was creating. The pieces of metal were pulled faster than the X-Wing, accelerating in the pull of the tractor beam, and crashed into the tractor beam's emitters.
The collision damaged the emitters, forcing the tractor beam to shut down and release the X-Wing. Luke turned the ship back around and engaged the throttle to maximum, flying away from the Star Destroyer as fast as he could. But more of them were on their way, and the TIE Fighters were closing in on him. All the desirable escape vectors were blocked in some form or another, and the few vectors of clear space that remained were clenching shut fast. Luke turned the X-Wing toward the largest escape vector, and didn't bother to make the calculations before jumping to hyperspace.
"That was close," Luke admitted. He sighed, and realized that he had no idea where this course would take him. But he didn't drop out of hyperspace now, but relaxed and calmly kept his hands on the controls. "Just trust my instincts, and hope the Force knows the way."
While the maintenance workers tended to the Millennium Falcon and its many issues, Han and the others had time to spare.
Han and Chewbacca spent it catching up with Lando, swapping stories from the last few years, both embellishing the details to one up the other. Han told of how he got roped into the rebel alliance, admitting that he might be getting a little sentimental as time went by. Lando told of his efforts to keep Cloud City hidden from the Empire and still make a decent profit, and admitted that he had needed to become respectable to do it. Chewbacca made snide remarks during the conversation, and both men joked back at the wookie.
Aang and Katara were given a tour of Cloud City, escorted by a security guard and a protocol droid. They travelled in a small hovering vehicle, the top open and exposed to the elements, letting the wind sooth Aang's scalp and blow through Katara's hair. They got to see all the buildings atop the city, visited the wide and deep shaft in the center, and got to see the edges of the structure that city stood atop. And they saw civilians and workers going about their business, all centered around the operation to extract a precious resource from the gas giant.
They stopped at a viewing platform near the edge of the city, and Aang looking through mounted binoculars. "Now that looks like a lot of fun."
Looking out at a band of thick clouds in the distance, Katara wasn't sure what he was referring to. "Is something going on out there?"
Aang stepped aside to let Katara use the binoculars. "Take a look."
Katara did, and she saw what Aang had seen. There were large ships in the clouds, flying in methodical yet graceful patterns, sucking up the clouds and storing the vapors in large tanks. "What are they doing?"
"Must be that mining thing Han and Lando talked about," Aang assumed. He got another turn at the binoculars, looking out at the ships mining clouds. "Never would have thought you could do this."
"Must be special clouds," Katara said. She leaned forward on a railing. "Pretty too."
For a little bit they simply enjoyed the view, yet another alien world they could not have imagined. It actually seemed kind of peaceful here, isolated from the galaxy at large, far beneath the notice of the Empire. They got to see a few cargo ships leave Cloud City and vanish in the sky, filled with the refined gas mined from this planet. Aang was tempted to go get his glider and fly out there for a closer look at the mining operation, wondering if he could outperform the machines with airbending. Katara was ready to leave, but patiently waited for Aang.
A loud siren went off, echoing throughout the city, drawing Aang back to the here and now. "What's that?"
The security guard escorting them hurried over. "We need to go now."
There was no point arguing, or even a slight delay to ask why, and everyone was back in the vehicle and moving again. As the buildings went by Katara still heard the siren. "What's going on?"
The protocol droid with them answered. "That is the imperial alert. Scout ships have been detected in the system. We will need to power down all non-essential systems to avoid detection."
"Does that include you?" Aang asked.
The guard driving the vehicle reached over and shut off the droid. "Yes."
By the time they arrived most of the lights in the city had been turned off, and nearly every vehicle had landed and powered down. Aang and Katara were escorted inside, passed through the halls, and brought to a command center of sorts. It was where Lando had brought Han and Chewbacca, and they were busy looking at the sensor data coming in. Aang still couldn't make any sense of it, and Katara only had the most basic understanding. It was clear that the Empire was investigating the system, and they had a few small ships heading straight for Bespin.
"Did they follow you here?" Lando asked.
"No one saw our second jump," Han said. Still, he realized he should have expected this. "The rebel base wasn't very far from here. They might just be checking the surrounding systems."
Lando picked up a communicator and set it for a city-wide broadcast. "Attention, this is Lando Calrission. This may be the time the Empire finds us. We will be going dark for the time being. Remain calm and do not panic. If we do this right, we just might come through unscathed. Lando out."
"I trust you have something in mind?" Han asked.
"Of course I do," Lando said. He turned to one of his senior staff, the bald guy with some kind of device attached to his head. "Make us dark, take us down."
The staff quickly got to work, and made Lando's plan happen. The city's main reactors were powered down, and minimal emergency power was brought online. Every light in the city went dark, and every signal transmitted from here was silenced. And then the entire city sank into the clouds, gently descending into the gas giant. In minutes the clouds covered the city completely, shrouding the streets in near total darkness. From above the city simply vanished, as if it had never been there in the first place.
"And now we wait," Lando said. He sighed and looked at Han and the others. "Know any good waiting games? We might be dark for a while."
When he felt that the time was right, Luke dropped out of hyperspace.
He hadn't been expecting to emerge here. "Well… home sweet home."
Tatooine was directly ahead, the one place that Luke had never wanted to return to. Just seeing the planet brought back the memories of the day he left, the day his life had completely changed. Every reason he had to stay here had been taken away from him, and so he had left without any hesitation. Yet now he was back here again, and tempted to just turn around and go somewhere else. That would not be practical at the moment, given the lack of fuel and minor repairs needed, and thus he would have to make a stop here before moving on again.
The X-Wing flew into the atmosphere, heading for one of the cracked mesas near the largest desert. Luke deliberately avoided landing in the likes of Mos Eisley and other spaceports, given the chaos and instability here in recent years. There was a plateau near familiar land, and Luke brought the X-Wing in for a landing there. It was a gentle landing this time, right in the middle of the plateau and with a good view of the surrounding landscape. Luke opened the cockpit, stretched his arms, and leapt out of the ship.
Setting foot on hard rock, Luke looked out at the barren wastes to the south, recognizing a remote station in the distance. "I never did get those power converters…"
Still in the X-Wing, R2-D2 made a long series of beeps.
"Stay with the ship," Luke said. He started walking away from the X-Wing. "If someone comes to steal it, fly away."
A single beep was R2-D2's confirmation.
Luke found a path down from the plateau, and quickly made his way to the bottom and moved on. From there he found a road and walked down it, taking a brisk pace as he headed toward civilization. He was grateful for the physical part of Yoda's training, for it made the walk far less tiring than it would have been when he lived here. It took an hour for him to make the journey, and it was over sooner than he realized. Luke stopped at the threshold of this ramshackle bunch of buildings, remembering the last time he had been to Tosche Station.
The place had barely changed, still being the same old cluster of buildings built around a power regulating station. They were all very utilitarian, built for a single purpose and nothing more, no cosmetic additions to speak of over the stone structures. People were still going about their business here, though the faces had changed over the last two years. Luke walked through the sparse crowds, feeling nostalgic about his old stomping grounds, absentmindedly making his way into the only place that passed for a club around here.
Luke walked over to the bar, making eye contact with the bartender. "Hey, get me something that won't leave me blind in the morning."
The bartender knew just the thing. "Coming right up."
Someone from behind recognized Luke's voice, and seemed to be in disbelief. "Skywalker?"
Luke turned around, saw a familiar face, and it was like he never left. "Fixer. Still hanging around this sand pile. How've you been?"
Short black hair slightly scruffier than normal, the young man held Luke by the shoulders. "How have I been? What about you? It was like you fell off the face of Tatooine! Everyone thought you got yourself killed!"
"Nope. I'm still kicking," Luke said. "I did leave Tatooine, that part wasn't wrong."
Fixer let go of Luke and took a moment to straighten his jacket, calming down after the initial surprise. "You are not going to believe the things you've missed. It's been nuts around here lately."
"So I'm told," Luke said. He noticed a new ring on Fixer's hand. You and Camie finally tied the knot."
With a big bold smile Fixer nodded. "She gave me that kick in the ass I needed to pop the question. I did, she said yes, and we couldn't be happier."
"Good to hear," Luke said. "I assume she is doing well."
"As well as anyone could be," Fixer answered. He wrapped one arm around Luke's shoulders, gently nudging him away from the bar. "There have been big opportunities since the Empire pulled out. That up and coming crime boss in Mos Eisley has been very good to us. Deacon's made sure she sends plenty of business our way."
"I'm surprised Deacon got involved that sort of thing," Luke said. "It sounds kind of bold for him."
"He changed when he heard you died," Fixer said. "He's been taking a lot more risks, and so far it's paid off. Windy's been looking after him, so hopefully it won't get too bad for them."
"Hope so," Luke said. He saw a shady looking fellow in one corner of the bar. "Do you know him?"
Fixer stopped, faced Luke proper, and smiled. "Got me again Skywalker."
"What's going on?" Luke asked.
"We just need a little help," Fixer said. "One of the smaller Hutts has been trying to muscle in here. The whole clan is trying to reclaim Jabba's empire. It might be too late for us to avoid a fight."
"One more person wouldn't help much," Luke said. Sure, he could do far more than just one person, but he didn't want to tell him that. "You'll need a lot more than that."
"I've tried to send word to Deacon and Windy, but it hasn't been getting through," Fixer said. "We wouldn't have a problem if we could get a hold of them."
"I'll take care of it," Luke offered. "Mos Eisley right? That's where they went?"
"Yeah," Fixer said. "Thanks man, this means everything to me."
"No problem," Luke said. "I'll be there and back before you know it."