Chapter IV – Death Star pt. I
Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars in any shape or form
Sorry this one took longer to upload.
0BBY – Avigail
Mental exercises seemed absolutely pointless. Avigail had no clue why he was making her do them, but it was countless puzzle after puzzle after puzzle. He was timing her too; the faster she completed one the harder the next. The main reason it was irritating her though, was because he wasn't giving her time to figure out why she was doing them. She just sat, with the holographic "brain teasers" – that was what she called them at least – while he stood nearby and watched her. Avigail thought about messing up on purpose, but even when the thought occurred, she felt a harsh telepathic push on her mind and figured out that he didn't like that. That was all fine and dandy for him but she was growing bored. Some of them were actual puzzles, which she had to move the hologram around and figure it out. Avigail had just about lost count of all the little "tests" before she saw him out of the corner of her eye stiffen, and the hologram suddenly snapped off on its own. She jumped a little despite herself, yet she was used to this. Confused, she turned to look at the Sith lord. He seemed incredibly distant, his eyes fixed on something far away only he could see. This too, was something she was growing used to. The issue with it now though…
She could sense it too.
Whatever it was.
"Avigail, with me, now," he said sharply, already moving briskly towards the door.
Irritably, she leapt to her feet and scrambled after him, pulling her cloak on as she went. There was a routine. If something happened on the bridge, or anywhere else on the station, he was on it, and he dragged her along unless it was "too dangerous", which it hadn't been yet. Each time, she grabbed her cloak, and as they walked, she pulled the dark hood up, and kept as close to the dark lord or the nearest wall as possible. It was silently the two trekked through the station, of which Avigail was growing increasingly tired of being on. She had learned just recently why it was called the Death Star, or at least why she thought the name was appropriate, and she wasn't pleased. The girl had traveled around the Galaxy, seen a lot of things, but nothing so inhuman as a station that blew up planets and every living thing on them. All to prove a point.
It just wasn't right.
She wanted out. She wanted away.
He was the only thing in her way. Her "father". Avigail refused to believe that, yet everytime she looked in the mirror, she could see it. Grudgingly she wondered why she couldn't have looked more like her mother, picturing the beautiful woman from her dreams as she looked down on her hands. Glancing up, she noticed they were in the hanger for some reason.
Jealously, she eyed the many TIEs, wishing to behind the controls of her own ship back on Tatooine. At least when she was flying, she was free, she couldn't do anything here without Vader lurking somewhere nearby to watch her. It was bitterly the girl let her eyes wander, before freezing as they spotted the cause of the excitement. So that was why Vader was called here. Avigail didn't even hold back the groan of disbelief, shaking her head. "Oh, he's got to be joking right?" This earned a quizzical eyebrow from her "father".
The Millennium Falcon sat in the great hanger, quite out of place, and no doubt held by some sort of tractor beam to prevent escape. Vaguely she heard Vader inquire about the search party, and apparently there were "no life forms on board" and "by law they would've abandoned ship". Well, she knew something the imperials didn't; Solo would never abandon his ship. Ever. He loved that hunk of junk too much. This meant, of course, that he was on board the Death Star somewhere, along with his wookie companion, Chewbacca.
"I sense a presence I have not felt since…" Vader turned around suddenly, cape flapping behind him. "Avigail, you seem familiar with the ship, I want you to assist the search party." She stood speechless for a moment, staring up at the dark lord.
"But where are you–" She called after him, but he was already briskly walking off and away from the hanger, leaving the girl to supposedly 'assist' the search party.
Muttering under her breath, she pulled off her hood, and without any more hesitation, made her way on board the Falcon for the first time in years, her boots clicking on the lowered boarding ramp. She let out a high pitched whistle, standing as tall and straight as possible as some Stormtroopers glanced at her uncertainly. "Have you scanned the entire ship?" She inquired.
"Yes ma'am," one of the troopers stated with a salute.
She wasn't too sure how to answer to that. Had Vader told the men on the station she was to be obeyed or something? It seemed that way. She pondered that for a minute, debating whether she liked that or not. It was by instinct, she avoided as much imperial attention as possible, even onboard this imperial station, yet if they obeyed her… That was kind of cool, and she could use it to her advantage. Thinking on the trooper's response, Avigail wandered through the ship's corridors, letting her feet chose the way until she somehow wound up in the cockpit. Without much thought, she slumped into the pilot's seat, inspecting the controls through misty eyes. It wasn't the same sitting here. This wasn't her ship, it never had been, and she'd only ever been a guest. Not always a willing one either. With a quiet sigh, Avigail let her mind wander off, recalling those ridiculous "adventures".
She felt a familiar buzzing in her head, a warning, and leapt to her feet before a hand could cover her mouth, her fist already prepared to punch the assailant in the face if need be. Meeting her fiery glare, was an extremely scruffy-looking nerfherder. His face lit up in a classic Solo grin while one of his brows lifted quizzically. "Attacking from behind, Solo? That's not very honorable, even for a nerfherder like you," she barked, folding her arms across her chest.
The older smuggler was silent for a minute, and she watched as his brown eyes flickered as he contemplated her. "Still a feisty munchkin, I see," he answered before – much to her distain – ruffling her hair. "Do I even want to know what you're doing here?"
"I could ask you the same, Solo."
He just continued to grin, and at the familiar roar of a nearby wookie, shrugged and sauntered off towards the sound. Apparently, quite a few passengers were waiting in a corridor, eyeing the direction of the landing ramp. Avigail heard another roar and before she could make any attempt to dodge was hoisted up in a powerful, furry, bear hug which left her struggling for air. A nervous laugh escaped her lips, and she mouthed a desperate plea for help in the captain's direction, who just continued grinning. As the mighty wookie let the poor girl down, she took a second to breath, brushing off her tunic and arched an eyebrow up at the larger, furrier smuggler. "That's one way to say hello. It's good to see you too, Chewy."
She took a chance to examine the rest of the group, surprised to see a familiar blonde haired farm boy and an old man aboard. With them, a blue astromech chirped and beeped, and a golden protocol droid glanced about, seeming unsure what to make of the situation. The farm boy kept glancing between her and Old Ben, looking as if he wanted to say something but no words came. Old Ben, for his part, didn't look confused or surprised, but when she met his gaze, Avigail could see in a pair of old, blue eyes, that he was thinking very hard about her sudden appearance. The examination made her bounce on the balls of her feet, and anxiously she offered the old Jedi – she was certain he had to be one… It just didn't make sense otherwise… - a small, timid smile but he only furrowed his brow. While he did that, Avigail wondered if he was what she and her "father" sensed earlier. It made sense, being around the old man, she could feel the Force, yet… It wasn't cold, or dark like it was around Vader.
"Alright, so we need to get up there," Solo was saying and Avigail snapped her head back over towards the scruffy smuggler. He was gesturing at the communications tower.
With her own version of Solo's lopsided grin, she snorted before walking down the ramp, much to the group's confusion and distain. Yet, and she could feel it was to their surprise, the imperials seemed to take little notice or if they did, avoided the lone teenager. She let out another whistle, seeing as it was a good way of getting attention, and called an officer over. "The ship appears to be empty," she stated, hands on her hips. "I think we're looking in the wrong place. I believe the passengers must've slipped out."
The imperial stared incredulously at her for a long moment. Everytime he looked ready with a response, he seemed to backtrack and rethink it. "What would our next course of action be, milady?"
Milady? Wow, what did Vader say about me? "Do we have any important prisoners aboard, officer?"
"Um, yes ma'am, we do."
"Then send your men to the detention block, immediately."
The officer saluted and eagerly scampered off to do so, talking into a comm as he walked. Doing her best to fit her apparent role of authority, Avigail stood by, hands remaining on her hips, watching the activity in the hanger. Out of the corner of her eyes, she watched a few lone Stormtroopers walk up the Falcon's ramp. She frowned a little, remembering that some men were moving crates off the ship for inspection. What if they found –
Two Stormtroopers walked out of the ship, and she scrutinized one of them, ready to call them over as they both glanced up at the communications tower. One hit his helmet a little, to indicate something. She blinked, then her eyes lit up. Brightly, she discreetly made her way towards the communications tower, but let them enter first. A minute later, Old Ben, Chewbacca and the droids joined her behind the door. Excitement buzzed through her, but she felt off. A gentle voice reached her ears, murmuring her name comfortingly but she pushed it away, shaking her head. Glancing down the corridors and around her, there was nothing dangerous and no one she didn't already know were in the area, but she couldn't shake it off. Yet the plan continued, the door slid open, and Chewbacca came roaring into the tower, helping take out the rest of the imperials. The blonde farm boy started complaining about Han's not so discreet way of doing things while he removed his helmet, and the smuggler did the same, snapping back at him. Just like old times.
Avigail just frowned, taking a seat, her eyes glued to the door. She clenched her cape tightly, until her knuckles turned white, and tapped her toes on the ground as the group started discussing what their next course of action would be. She felt as if a shadow had fallen over her, but nobody else seemed to notice. They just kept talking, while she shivered, chewing her lip. A hand on her shoulder snapped her back to the present. It was Ben. Maybe he noticed, yet when she let her eyes wander, she saw the farm boy looked a little tense too but didn't seem to know why.
"Avigail, I need you to stay while I go, okay?"
She continued to bite her lip, narrowing her eyes. The old man was up to something. He wasn't just going to fix the tractor beam problem. Uncertainly, she glanced at her boots, before looking back up at the Jedi. "I have questions," she mumbled.
He smiled at her, nodding. "I'm sure you do," he sighed, walking towards the door. "Until then, stay here and try not to get into any trouble while I'm gone," he eyed her and the farm boy carefully. "The Force will be with you."
"Some of us could live without it," she muttered, but waved him a goodbye as he left.
Solo seemed more than content to hang around here, but R2 started beeping frantically. Avigail payed him no mind, but the farm boy – she really needed to remember his name – seemed to care. What she needed to do was get rid of the feeling someone was watching her, but she knew better. If she did that, it'd just cause more trouble, but the feeling was like an itch one wasn't allowed to scratch. It was demanding her attention, and if she wasn't going to give it what she wanted, it just kept bothering her.
"But she needs our help!" The 'kid' as Han called him, exclaimed.
Avigail angled her head in their direction, furrowing her brow. Who was she? She, herself that is, was practically the only girl on the station. Actually, she wouldn't be surprised if she was. The empire seemed to be just as sexist as it was racist. A girl could be an officer, she crossed her arms, trying to remember the names of the few officers who were actually girls. She knew there were a few, as little in number as they were. As she mused this over, she heard the two argue in the background, and sooner than later, the 'kid' started to bribe the smuggler… She chuckled, wandering away from her thoughts.
Bribing was a great way to get the older smuggler's attention. Avigail had to admit, it didn't take much to bribe herself either, but in this situation, it seemed like a death wish. If they were gonna to go looking for someone, on a station full of imperials that could blow planets up, Darth Vader wandering around somewhere, it was going to get them killed. Still, the blonde teen insisted, and she liked his spunk. Besides, anything beat sitting around here doing nothing, no matter what the "old man" said.
The two went over the plan, and Avigail leapt to her feet but when both noticed, frowned at her. She was already opening her mouth to protest when the "kid' and Han both shook their heads. "Look, imperials for some reason listening to you or not, you should probably just stay here." She snorted, glaring at Solo.
Chewbacca roared, and she nodded. "See, Chewy thinks it's better if I come."
"I'd rather not be left alone here with R2, what if the Stormtroopers come?" The protocol droid suddenly asked, and she glowered at him. He was not helping her here.
"Lock the door."
"And hope they don't have blasters."
Avigail scowled at the two. "Why should I stay huh? I know this station better than all of you."
"Because you're fourteen, and we're adults," Solo answered without remorse, walking away, leaving her bitterly and angrily staring after him. A little more solemnly, he stopped, meeting her gaze. "I don't want to be worried you're gonna get hurt, kid. Ryker wouldn't thank me for that, you know."
Chewbacca made a mournful roar, and she sighed, sitting back down, and letting them walk away. Eyes burning, Avigail slammed her fist against the nearest wall, ignoring the flash of pain that it sent through her arm. Why the hell did they think leaving her alone with two droids was a good idea? She heard R2 beep quietly, and she glanced at the droid, her eyes flickered before glancing down. He was right, she really shouldn't be so mad, her "friends" – she definitely wouldn't call them that – just wanted to keep her out of trouble. Yet… They were walking right into it.
"Sithspit! I told the officer to send extra men towards the detention block!"
Neither droids liked the sound of that. Without another word, she grabbed the comm the protocol droid had been given, and called the others, tapping her boot on the floor. "Han? Han, the detention block might be overrun with Stormtroopers!"
"Well, obviously they wouldn't leave it unguarded," was the smartass response she got.
"No, I mean they might have reinforcements waiting for you guys," she hissed.
The captain fell silent. Some sort of communication went on between him and the other "kid". She could hear Chewbacca make a growl in input. "We'll handle it kid, don't get excited," he finally said.
He was seriously saying not to worry. Before she could argue, she heard a commotion outside. "Kriff, I got to go."
Soon enough the door was burned open. Avigail, stood up abruptly, scrambling for a cover story. Unfortunately, a familiar voice interrupted her. "What happened to searching the ship, Avigail?"
Shifting her feet, she glanced down at the shiny, well-polished floor, scratching her head. "There was some technical difficulties…?" she offered shyly.
He stood there, arms crossed, a pair of golden eyes narrowed on her. As always, she felt as if she had shrunken in height beneath his gaze, refusing to look up, clenching her cloak tightly in her fist. She knew being left alone was a terrible idea, droids or not. She heard him sigh before her wrist was suddenly grabbed and she was pulled through the Stormtroopers and down the many hallways of the station. Avigail spared a quick glance to figure out where they were, noting the hanger was close, and the secluded corridor. The droids, seemingly at a loss, made haste to rush after them, R2 making a commotion of beeps, tweets and whistles, all seeming defensibly. He seemed angry at Vader. It was enough for the girl to stare at him in confusion, and it was surprisingly her "father" seemed shocked too, letting her wrist go, and crouching down to be level with the astromech.
For a long moment the group were silent, Avigail contemplated running. If she could reach a lift fast enough, she might be able to catch up with Han and Luke…
"R2?"
The droid whistled in response. He knows the droid? What in the nine Corellian hells? No wait, that's perfect. With the distraction keeping Vader busy… Avigail spun sharply on her heels and ran. Unfortunately the déjà vu was ridiculous, and she barely made it eight feet down the hallway. How the heck did he move so fast?
Without so much as one trace of emotion on his face, the dark lord had a grip on one of her arms, pulling it behind her in a painful angle. As she made an attempt to fight, he simply pulled harder, and she quickly realized that he could snap her arm – or even arms if he decided – if he wanted. Those eyes, those fire filled eyes, blazing in anger… They were directed at her and she had never wanted to run more, all she could feel was the cold and darkness that radiated off the Sith lord. Nearby she could hear whistling protests from R2, who only earned a sharp glare in response. She whimpered sharply as he pulled them back once more, before hissing in her ear.
"I thought you already learned not to run."
Her eyes burned with tears she refused to cry, biting her tongue until her mouth filled with blood. She swallowed back the metallic taste, not bothering to turn her head sideways to meet the Sith's angry glare, looking down instead at the floor, once again wondering why she had been left behind by Solo. Again. Before any more words could be exchanged a voice solemnly called down the hall, grabbing the Sith's attention in less than a heartbeat.
"Let her go Anakin."