The Legion Renewed
Chapter Four
Han pulled off the panel to get to the wiring underneath. "So if we by-pass the servo-systems and link up directly with the thermo-coupler, we should be able to-" He stopped as he looked behind the panel and saw something that didn't belong there.
Chewbacca woofed.
Han reached for the cube and pulled it out. It was silverish, only about three inches square on each side, with tiny symbols engraved on an inch-wide ivory-like band that wrapped around the box on four sides. "I forgot I stashed that there," he said.
"Mmmphrrr?" Chewbacca asked.
"No, no. You remember that time when the Imperials boarded us in the Vernati system? I thought they might be disappointed over not getting any cargo and start looking for other things to loot."
"Bruwwwl rrrmph."
Han smiled and shook his head. "I still don't know. I kept meaning to take it to an art dealer to see if I could find out anything. I figure it's gotta be worth something, though. Otherwise, why would my old lady have saved it for me?" He ran his fingers along the figures on the band. "At the very least, maybe they could melt the metal down and-" He stopped again, and frowned. There was something familiar about one of the figures. He studied it for a moment, then thrust the cube at Chewbacca. "Wait a minute," he said, and rushed aft, back towards his cabin.
He went to the full-length mirror, pulled it open on the non-hinged side, then pulled out a drawer from the dresser located behind it. He rummaged through the shirts for a second, and came out with a wide, flat case. The case had once held several military medals, but Han preferred not to think too much about that. He sat down on the bed with the case, touched the releases that flipped the lid open, then searched through the various memorabilia until he found a ring. It was something his mother had worn when she was alive, and which he had inherited from her-like the cube. He left the case on the bed and rushed forward again.
"I don't know why I never saw this before," he said, taking the cube back from Chewbacca. He turned the box around until he found the place in the band that he had noticed earlier. It was an indentation between two of the carved symbols, and Han studied it again. The negative concave image on the band of the cube matched the positive convex design on the ring's carved stone exactly. Han looked at Chewbacca, shrugged, then fit the ring to the space in the cube.
There was a click as the bottom of the cube swung open and something fell to the floor. Han grinned and picked it up. "Well, I'll be damned," he said.
Chewbacca made a growling noise. Han looked at him in surprise, then considered the suggestion.
"You know," he said, "that's not a bad idea. It would certainly save me the trouble of looking for something to buy..."
.
.
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Leia Organa sat at her desk, staring absently at the computer tape displayed in front of her. The intercom beeped softly, and she reached over to touch the button. C-3P0's mechanically inflected voice filled the otherwise silent office. "Mistress Leia, Captain Solo would like to-no, wait! Captain Solo, I haven't intro-"
Leia smiled to herself. Han always ignored the standard protocol, despite Threepio's best efforts. Someday, she would teach him the proper etiquette, she decided.
The door slid open and Han sailed through it, with Threepio clanking along behind. "Captain Solo, it's really quite improper to-"
"It's all right, Threepio," Leia said, waving him off.
The protocol 'droid made a noise as he left the room to return to his other duties. Han wasn't sure whether he was expressing disapproval, or if he needed an oil bath.
"How ya doin', Sweetheart?" Han asked breezily. Usually it irked her to be called 'sweetheart,' but today she didn't seem to notice. Han noticed that she didn't notice, though. He walked behind her chair and put his hands on her shoulders. "Hey, Leia, don't worry. Things will turn out."
"Luke's no traiter, Han," the Princess said quietly.
"You think I don't know that? Huh?" Solo perched himself casually on a corner of her desk. "He's my friend, too, you know."
"I know. I just wish...he were here now, and this whole thing with Wedge never happened."
"Yeah." He paused. "Listen, Leia, if it means all that much to you, why don't we just postpone the ceremony until he gets back?"
She sighed. "I can't. Mon Mothma's coming, and I-"
Han slid off the desk and stared at her. "Mon Mothma's coming to our wedding?"
Leia looked at him blankly. "Well, yes. I just got her reply and-"
Han tried very hard not to lose his patience. "Leia," he said slowly, "just how many people are coming to this thing?"
"Only about fifty or so. Why?"
The Corellian exploded. "Only fifty? I thought you said this was going to be a small ceremony!"
"It is a small ceremony. There are so many more people I should have invited and didn't."
Han rubbed his eyes tiredly. His idea of a small ceremony had been himself, Leia, Chewbacca, Luke, and maybe Lando. But five or fifty, what difference did it make? He supposed he could suffer through it for one day.
He sighed and reached into his pocket. "By the way, I brought you your wedding present."
"Han!" she exclaimed, surprised. Then a delighted smile broke her face. "I didn't think you would!"
"Just a little something that's been in the family for a while," he said. "My grandmother passed it on to me after my mother died."
"Your grandmother?"
"Don't act so shocked. Even Corellians are cursed with grandmothers."
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to sound flippant. It's just that...you never mentioned you had any relatives."
"Yeah, well, we had a bit of a falling out the last time I saw her." Actually, as Han remembered, they'd had a bit of a falling out every time he saw her.
"Is she still alive?"
"Far as I know. It's been a few years."
Leia stood up excitedly. "Why don't we invite her to our wedding? If I had known, I would have done it already."
"I don't think so, Leia. You've already got your guest list made up, and with so many people already-"
"Don't be silly! There's always room for one more."
The Corellian looked directly into his future wife's eyes. "The truth is, Leia, I don't want that crotchety old hag at my wedding."
"But, Han, we really should-"
He interrupted. "Aren't you going to open that thing?" He wanted to get the topic away from grandmothers and weddings and such.
The Princess opened the box. Han had transferred the pendant to another box, and kept the silver ivory-edged box for himself. Once he knew the secret, the box was sort of...neat. A lot more interesting than the pendant He didn't think Leia would mind if he kept that. "Oh, Han-" she breathed. "It's lovely." She held the necklace up to the light. "Do you know what this is?"
"From the way it shines, I'd say the metal looks like pure boran. Worth a pretty penny, if it is. I could have it analyzed, if you want."
The Princess shook her head. "No, I mean, do you know what it is?"
"It's a necklace." Any idiot could see that.
Leia shook her head. "Not just a necklace. It's a family crest. I used to have one like it, but it was lost on Alderaan. Look, here's the shield. The family name should be written on the back." She took the pendant out of the box to examine the reverse side. "Yes, see? 'Cressola.' And the homeworld is Peru-"
She stopped suddenly and looked at Han with widening eyes. "Han, this crest belonged to the Baron Raynor Cressola, of Peruvis."
"Well, if you want to give it back, be my guest. But personally, I think you'd be a fool."
"I couldn't give it back, even if I wanted to. Raynor Cressola is dead. He and his family were slaughtered when the Empire took over their world. It was one of the first planets to be annexed. Palpatine had all the Peruvian nobles killed in an effort to wipe out the opposition.
"Great," Han said. "So now you can keep it without having to worry about your conscience."
"No, Han, you don't understand. Where did your mother get this?"
The Corellian looked at her. "How should I know?"
"You know...you never told me about your parents. Who were they?"
Han Solo's eyes narrowed. What kind of silly romantic notion was Leia getting into her head?
"What about your parents?" she pressed.
With infinite patience, which Han made sure was laid on with a trowel, he sat down to explain. "Leia, my father was probably a pirate, just like me. I never knew him. He took off before I was born. Corellians are not known for their sense of responsibility. My mother's reputation was dubious at best. She died in an aerocar crash when I was two. My grandmother raised me after that, until I ran away from home at the age of fifteen. That's it. That's the whole story."
"There was a rumor," Leia said slowly, "that Cressola's youngest son escaped the slaughter with the help of a servant. His name was P- something. He would only have been a year or two old at the time..."
"Leia!" Han exclaimed in exhasperation. "You're as bad as my senile grandmother. Look, why don't you come with me to the Falcon. I've got a copy of my birth papers there, somewhere."
"Documents can be forged," Leia said thoughtfully.
Han stared at her for a moment. Then he said, "Forget it, Leia. What you've got there is probably what some stormtrooper palmed and sold later. Things like that do happen, you know. I wouldn't put too much stock in those other rumors, if I were you. I may have only been two when my mother died, but I remember her very well. She was an ordinary working-class woman, not a noblewoman. I'm afraid you're marrying a bastard, not a baron."
"But the stories say-"
"Hang the stories! Look, even if this...Cressola person did survive, he ain't me. My mother probably found that in a pawn shop somewhere."
Leia looked at him doubtfully. It was just a rumor, after all, but was it merely coincidence that Han was about the right age, the right coloring, and orphaned at about the right time? And what would he be doing with the family crest from the last baron of Hanaar, unless...?
"Look, I gotta go," Han said. "Chewie's waiting for me so we can test out the new sensor dish on the Falcon. I'll drop by later, maybe."
As she watched him leave, Leia wondered what had suddenly gotten into him.