A.N: Thank you for all the positive feedback! And thank you so much for being patient with me! I'm trying to update more frequently.
Chapter Eight: One More into the Chase
Obi-Wan hastily climbed aboard his ship, while the other Wookiees hastily said their goodbyes, and took off in their own ship, going their own way. Apparently, they'd decided that humans could take care of their little Sunshine better then they could.
"Han, Chewie, get us out of here!" Obi-Wan yelled at the cockpit.
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Han looked at the readout screens, trying to get a feel for the whole concept of being the pilot, and not the copilot. Speaking of the copilot…
"Knock it off, will 'ya, Chewie? I can fly this thing!" Han declared.
Of course, he wasn't very sure that he could. Han hadn't had very much experiance in flying, and he wasn't sure if he could even lift this ship off the ground without killing someone. But he had to learn someday!
Chewie growled when Han nearly crashed into another ship, causing the other ship to explode seconds after Han got out of range. This kid was nuts!
"I got this, okay!?" Han said, getting nervous
Yeah, sure he had it! Chewie thought to himself. This kid was going to kill them all! Chewie decided that he had to do something before Han actually did kill someone!
Without waiting any longer, Chewie threw Han into the copilot's seat, while he, in turn, took the pilot's chair. Taking control of the ship, Chewie safely got them out of the system, and into hyperspace.
"I swear it was an accident," Han said, sulking. "Accidents happen."
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"Okay, my luck officially sucks," Boba muttered from under his helmet as he watched the ship containing the kid leave the planet. Who had been flying that thing? Boba had seen that ship cause another ship to completely explode.
Good thing his ship was nowhere near where that ship had been. The only problem was that he was no where near his ship, and now he had no idea where the kid was going now. Why did life have to be this complicated? Well, all he could do now was start all over again. Blast it, how many times did he have to do this!?
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Meanwhile, Obi-Wan was thinking about the same thing himself. About the luck part, at least. Apparently, Vader had already achieved in forming a bond with his son. A dangerous bond. How could he make his way past all of this? Luke had been calling out for Vader, and obviously, Vader had heard him.
After all his work to keep Luke away from Vader, he'd failed. Vader knew about his son, Luke knew that he still had a father somewhere, and it seemed that Luke would do anything to make sure that his father found him. Obi-Wan had to do something to put an end to this.
But what was he going to do? He couldn't simply tell Luke that his father was Darth Vader. No, that would be a disaster! But he couldn't very well keep Luke from contacting Vader, unless the boy had a reason to fear contacting Vader.
Suddenly, Obi-Wan felt Luke stirring in his arms. Well, it was now or never.
"Hello, Luke," Obi-Wan said pleasantly.
It took Luke a moment to remember what had happened, and to realize where he was. "Huh?" And then it all came back to him. "Let me go!"
"Luke…" Obi-Wan tried.
"I want my father!" Luke declared.
Obi-Wan took a deep breath before coming out with what he was going to say. "Luke, there's something you must know."
"What is it?" Luke asked, cocking his head to one side curiously.
Obi-Wan couldn't help but think that Luke looked irresistibly adorable when he did that. "Luke… you have been contacting Vader."
There, he'd said it. Maybe now, he could help Luke understand what was really going on. Of course, Obi-Wan still wasn't sure if this was the best path to take. Oh well, there was nothing he could do about it now.
Luke shook his head and said in a matter-of-fact tone of voice, "No, I've been contacting my father,"
Obi-Wan sighed. Here came the hard part. If he told Luke the truth; that Vader was his father, then Luke may never be the same again. But on the other hand, if he lied to Luke, and said that Vader had murdered his father, Luke would be devastated. Well, he had to pick something to tell him. It was no or never…
"No Luke, Vader has lied to you. He's pretending to be your father so he can hunt you down and kill you." Okay, so maybe he could have laid that down a little more mildly for a five-year-old.
Luke's little eyes widened with fear. Was it true? Had he really been talking to Vader? "But… but why does he want to kill me?" Luke asked in a small voice.
"Luke, he wants to kill you because you're the son of Anakin Skywalker. A Jedi."
"But, where's my father?" Luke asked, almost dreading the answer.
Obi-Wan had no idea how Luke was going to take something like this… "Vader murdered your father, and now he wants to finish it by killing you as well."
At this point, tears began to form in Luke's eyes. He had been so sure that he'd been talking to his father. So sure that his father would come for him and take him away from anyone who was trying to kill him. But he was wrong. There were only more people trying to kill him.
It hurt Obi-Wan to see Luke in so much distress. But before he could do anything, he put a protective shield around Luke's mind so Vader would have no more contact with Luke.
"It's alright, young Luke. Don't worry, everything will be fine."
Luke brushed the tears off his face. "No it won't. I want a home, but every time I find one, I have to leave because some bad-guy is always coming."
Okay, so this wasn't the best way for Luke to reflect on life. But it was true that Luke needed a stable environment to grow up in. He was far too young to go gallivanting across the galaxy. If Luke had been older, Obi-Wan would have let it stay this way, but considering that he was dealing with a small child, it was obvious that a permanent home had to be found for Luke.
"Luke, I'll tell you what." Luke perked up at Obi-Wan's excited manner of speaking. "I know a planet that you would love to live on! If I took you there, and you liked it, would you be happy?"
Luke considered this for a second. "Sure! As long as I don't have to live there all by myself."
Obi-Wan laughed. And for the first time in days, it was a genuine laugh. "Of course you wouldn't be living there by yourself! Han, Chewie and I be there with you! I can be the daddy, Han can be the big brother, and Chewie can be the loyal bodyguard who keeps you out of trouble."
Luke liked the sound of this. It would be like he had a real family! "I like that."
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Vader was getting more worried by the second. It had been hours, and he'd felt no contact from his son. What was going on? If Luke was hurt, then someone was about to get killed!
Unless, Luke was choosing not to contact his father. But that was crazy. Luke had been so excited to be able to contact him; it would be absolutely ridiculous for Luke to choose not to contact him.
But what else was there? Luke wasn't dead. Vader was sure of that by now. Luke may be hurt, and is unable to contact him, but Vader refused to believe that his young child was hurt.
Suddenly, a new thought came to Vader. What if Palpatine had nothing to do with this? What if it was someone who wanted to get back at Vader for something that he'd done?
Someone, maybe, by the name of Obi-Wan Kenobi.
Yes, that was possible. Perhaps Obi-Wan had gotten involved in this. How else would you explain Luke's hidden absence for five years? It had been Obi-Wan. Obi-Wan's final betrayal. Apparently, he hadn't thought it was enough to have his former apprentice burn in lava. He couldn't resist taking Vader's child. His only child and turning the young one against him. He was going to train Luke in the ways of the Jedi, and have Luke try to kill his father! That's what Obi-Wan was planning to do!
It made Vader sick to think of it. Obi-Wan had been keeping the boy away from his father. But no matter what Obi-Wan did, nothing would change the fact that the child was his! No amount of Obi-Wan's lies and deceit could change the way of things. Vader would have his child. Vader would raise him the way he saw fit. That was the way it was supposed to be.
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Bella Tyran walked through the streets of Alderaan, heading to her ship. Bella was a bounty hunter. A very efficient one at that. She'd made her name well known among the ranks of smugglers, dealers, and other bounty hunters like herself.
She'd come to Alderaan for a break after her latest job, but now it was time to get back to work and find some other job to take.
Suddenly, when she turned the last corner, Bella saw the last remains of her ship. Someone had blown it up!
"What happened!?" Bella exclaimed, not really addressing anyone.
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Boba finally made his way to where that Skywalker kid's ship had been. He didn't know why he was over here. He was supposed to be in his own ship chasing them, but he had to find out where they'd gone anyway. Maybe there was a clue to where they'd gone.
And then he saw her. Long blonde hair, perfect body, tall, confident figure. She was wonderful!
Apparently, the woman didn't feel as wonderful as she looked. "What happened!?" the woman exclaimed.
Oh, so it was her ship that had gotten blown up! Maybe he should say something. "My quarry accidentally caused it to explode when they were leaving the planet."
The woman turned around, and then Boba recognized her. No, he had never actually met her, but he'd heard of her. She was Bella Tyran; a famous bounty hunter like himself. Of course, she wasn't quite as famous as him, but she was close.
"You're Boba Fett, aren't you?" Bella asked.
"I am. Fett at your service. What do you require?"
Bella rolled her eyes. "Transportation off this planet, it looks like!"
Oh right! She had no ship. Well this was just perfect. "Well, I have my ship, and it would be an honor to escort you off planet."
Bella thought for a second. When had Boba Fett become such a charmer? Wasn't he known for being ruthless and deadly? Maybe he was helping her out because she was another bounty hunter. Yeah, that was it.
"Well," she said. "I guess it wouldn't hurt for you to help me off the planet. So where's your ship?"
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One hour later, Bella and Boba sat in the cockpit of the Slave I. They'd just made the jump into hyperspace, and Boba decided to ask her where she was going.
"So… where are you headed to? Are you after some bounty?"
Bella shook her head. "Not really. I'm between jobs right now. I was on Alderaan taking a break."
Boba perked up at this. "You mean, you aren't headed anywhere in particular?"
"Not really," Bella said slowly.
"Then why don't you help me out with mine? It's easy quarry, and it pays well."
Bella considered this before coming to a decision. "What's the job?"
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A.N: No, this is not going to be a romance fic. But, as you remember earlier, Boba wanted some love in his life, so I gave it to him.
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