Solo walked over to the balcony window and peeked out, grimacing when he discovered that the landing pad was out of view. He didn't hear any screaming or blaster fire from that direction that would indicate that someone disturbed an angry Wookiee, so he slipped back and faced his two erstwhile clients.
"What are you doing here?" Breha asked with a slight cough, her voice hoarse as if she were recovering from a bad cold. Solo suddenly realized his quest, if that's what it really was, wasn't going to look so innocent and noble on its face to the princess's parents.
"The Alliance sent me," he said finally, figuring it was technically the truth. "Have you, um…well, part of what I'm here for is to find Lei…I mean the princess. She took off on her own to find you all." Noticing the blank look on Bail's face, he backed up. "I mean, she's alive. We found her…I found her, really…and she's okay, mostly." He stopped, confused by the lack of celebrating—or even acknowledgement- from the two formerly bereaved parents.
"Vader took her." Bail's voice was low, barely audible.
"Right, but she escaped," Solo insisted. "I found her on Endor. She escaped."
"No, he took her just a little while ago," Breha clarified. "They're gone."
Solo closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. A little while ago….if only he'd gotten here earlier. Or been able to stop her on Nar Shadda. "Dammit." She was probably dead already.
"We have to find them," Breha continued, glancing back at the heavy door which Solo realized in retrospect was probably locked from the outside. Suddenly her voice was desperate, begging. "You must have a way out? A ship?"
"I'm not usually this dumb, I swear, but I think I just locked myself in here," Solo said with a slight blush. He really wasn't that dumb- usually. "Chewie's still in the ship out there, but I don't know if there's a good way to reach him…"
"There's a secret tunnel here," Breha said, gesturing towards a small opening half hidden behind a vanity. Solo gave her a long look.
"If there's a secret tunnel, what in the hells are you still doing here?"
"We couldn't leave," Bail told him. "They would have done something terrible to innocent people."
"What about now? What are they going to say when you're gone?"
"No one has come to check on us since Vader left," Breha said, grabbing a cloak and wrapping it tightly around herself. "Maybe they'll think he killed us and dumped us somewhere."
"That doesn't seem like the most well thought out plan," Han responded mildly. "Are you sure you want to do this?"
"We have to go after them." Bail was adamant. "We can't leave Leia with that…that demon."
Han sighed, not sure how to proceed. "Um, your Highness….your Highnesses. I hate to be so blunt, but Vader isn't known for giving known Rebels a fair trial or anything. Odds are that he's already killed her." He heard the words come out of his mouth as though he were a light year away. She couldn't be dead after all this. It wasn't fair.
"She's alive," they insisted, in nearly perfect unison.
"He won't kill her," Breha added. "He has a personal interest in her."
"Because of that crazy stuff she can do?" Solo remembered Luke's admonishment that Leia was becoming like Vader. "Pushing things around and exploding stuff with her brain?"
Bail frowned. "I've never seen her do anything like that specifically."
Solo gave a low whistle. "Just wait til you do. She once threw Chewie a good four or five meters, and you know how big he is."
Breha gazed at her husband, who had spent far more time around Jedi than she ever had. She raised her eyebrows, transmitting her question with the wordless intimacy and clarity of a longtime partner.
"I think we need to get to her as soon as possible," Bail responded, answering his wife's query without giving up any details in front of the captain. "Let's get out of here."
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They crept through the tunnel silently, Breha leading Solo as Bail secured the door behind them, rendering their escape path invisible once more. The queen had taken a moment to pack some extra clothes and then took one of her jeweled necklaces and used the pointed gemstone to carve a long cut down the backside of her lower arm. As the men watched gaping, she crawled across the floor towards the balcony, leaving a long streak of dark blood. Then she stood, wrapping a scarf around her arm as a bandage. "It's not much," she'd said, "But maybe it looks like a body was dragged out?"
"Better than nothing," Bail agreed, wishing Breha had shared her idea so that he could have been the one to supply the decoy trail of blood. He hated seeing his wife in any pain, and the act simply served to remind him of the sorry state their daughter was in when she appeared so suddenly in their room.
Slinking past the dining room, they could hear the raucous laughter and shouting of the celebrating stormtroopers. Seeing the royal couple's questioning looks, Solo leaned over and whispered, "They're getting a party as a reward for something. Probably surviving Vader's visit."
Another door and a few steps down and they were in a long, straight hallway.
"We're under the garden now," Bail explained, keeping his voice low. "The tunnel opens outside the main wall. We'll have to figure out a way to contact your partner on the inside."
"We were supposed to meet a contact," Solo told them. "I think we should stick to that plan- they should have a way to get us in touch with Chewbacca."
Breha started to argue, her urgency to find her daughter rising as heat in her body, but Bail stopped her. "I agree. Where do we meet them?"
"Southwest corner of Republic Square. It's not very sheltered, I guess. They weren't expecting anyone high profile to be along."
"We'll figure it out," Bail said, continuing down the hall. "If nothing else, we can find a spot to hide and you can pick us up after you find your contact." He turned to Breha. "Do you happen to have something I can wear?"
"Glad one of us was thinking of that," she muttered, handing over a brown wrap that he used to conceal his hair and face. "You look like one of the penitents of R'tayo."
"Better than looking like a viceroy," he retorted. "I have a sense the Imperials will more interested in one of those than the other."
As they reached the door, Solo snuck out first, watching carefully for any signs of observation. He leaned casually against the wall as he mentally counted to one hundred. After nothing happened, he cracked the door back open and waved out the Organas. They scurried away from the wall onto a side street, slowing as they reached a corner.
"I'll follow," Solo said, turning as if to check a message on his comlink as the royal couple strolled ahead of him. Giving them enough space to look as if the group's common trajectory was a mere coincidence, Solo ambled along, the quietness of the street making him nervous. Hardly anyone was out, and those who were kept their heads down as they practically ran towards their destination.
They made their way around another block and onto the main street. It too was very nearly empty, with some wooden barriers surrounding a mess of stormtrooper armor and broken bits of metal in the middle of the street. Even from the distance, Han could hear Breha's gasp as they spotted a pool of blood dripping near the edge of a building. Looking up, Solo recoiled as he saw a body, obviously civilian, draped over a light post that jutted out over the street. The young man had been shot through the head and collapsed, leaving the telltale pile of rocks he'd been using as a weapon against the Imperial oppressors stacked on the windowsill behind him. Staying tight up against the shuttered storefronts, they pressed on.
Bail and Breha finally stopped near the entrance to an open air market, with a few hardy merchants still hawking odds and ends out of old fashioned wooden stalls. Solo used the opportunity to stroll up to them.
"Where next?" he asked quietly, looking at a pile of old pipe fittings and electrical system components that were at least twenty years out of date.
"This is Republic Square," Bail told him. "We'll hang back over by that doorway over there. Just grab us when you find your contact." Solo nodded and trotted off.
Breha leaned against the wall of the building, suddenly fatigued. Had it really been less than a day since their daughter reappeared? Bail squatted next to her, pulling the wrap more tightly over his face as he coughed. His throat still felt raw and sore from Vader's attack.
From across the square, they could see someone walk up to Solo and start chatting, then stroll off in another direction. A moment later, they both jumped as a voice spoke up directly behind them.
"You here with Solo?" a woman asked gruffly. Breha turned to see the woman peering out of a tiny crack in the disused looking door. The woman's eyes lit with recognition, and she sucked in her breath. "Guess so. Door is a block down that way, green. You can't miss it. Be there in one minute." She disappeared, the door closing with a tiny puff of sawdust.
Shrugging, Bail rose and took Breha's hand, leading her in the direction the woman had indicated. The green door was indeed easy to spot, leading into a closed restaurant, and it creaked open as they approached. Solo was already waiting inside, standing in the shadows of the empty coat room.
The woman popped up from behind a counter surrounding the open kitchen, and dipped her head in the Organa's direction. "Your highnesses, welcome."
"Thank you." Breha nodded regally, aware that her appearance after so many weeks of confinement hardly befit a queen. "Please, where are we?"
"There's a safe house through here," the woman explained, gesturing for them to follow her behind the counter. She popped open a trapdoor hidden perfectly in the square tiles. "We have a driver who can get you out of the city, and Captain Solo will meet you there with the ship. And, your highnesses?"
"Yes?"
"If you please- there is a group of refugees from the mountains that would like to go with you."
"Of course," Breha said with a warm smile. "As many as we can squeeze in."
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Kita's eyes lit up when Farn came running over to her with an enormous grin on his face. He and the two other boys had returned safely from their most recent mission to Aldera, laden with medical supplies and gossip that was digested hungrily by the isolated refugees. He had also handed her a hastily scribbled note from the princess, thanking Kita for her kindness and asking her to track down an offworld woman named Tiatkin. The ship the princess had used to reach Alderaan belonged to her, the note said. A quick inquiry around the local caves quickly turned up the woman, who had been trapped in Aldera when the blockade was erected. Her departure was delayed slightly as she was swarmed by refugees begging her to take messages to their loved ones offworld, but she quickly was on her way. Kita prayed that she had made it.
"They got a ship in!" Farn shouted. Kita raised a finger to her lips, looking meaningfully over at a group of napping children, and Farn hushed his voice. "The Alliance sent a ship, and they can take people back with them. We're supposed to send fifteen."
"Just us?" Kita asked, unsure why her little community would be singled out.
"Yeah," Farn said. "Mich passed on the message. He didn't say as much, but I think it's because we found the princess."
"She found us, really," Kita corrected. Fifteen people…how would she possibly decide? They could send the children, but separating families hardly seemed like a reasonable solution. Or the young people, so they could aid the Rebellion.
"We have to meet them tomorrow, at 0800," Farn said, "So they'll need to get off quickly. The ship will meet us at the lakeside."
"All right." Kita raised her voice. "Emergency meeting, in five minutes. Everyone spread the word."
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Leia sat alone again, huddling on the small cot with the fleece blanket pulled around her to ward off the chill. Vader had left after she refused to speak, warning her ominously that he would return and instructing her to search her feelings, whatever that meant. The only feeling she had now was rage, though she wouldn't admit to herself that it was overwhelmed by a terror so all-encompassing that it became nearly invisible to her. Terror that her strength was gone, that she'd give in to whatever he wanted to avoid being tortured again. Terror that he was telling the truth, that Luke was right: she was just like him.
His return interrupted her muddled train of thought. He carried a small standard issue tray with a sealed packet of water and some ration bars stacked in a pile.
"Here," he said, thrusting it at her. "You need to eat."
"I thought you were in the business of starving me," she grumbled, taking the water and poking the attached straw through the foil. She hadn't realized how thirsty she was.
"There's no need to act so aggrieved, Leia," Vader said, a hint of exasperation in his voice. "It's not like you were an innocent victim."
"I beg your pardon? Are you saying I deserved what you did to me?" Leia sucked down the rest of the water and pitched the packet away, angry enough at his assertion to ignore her body's desperate pleas for more liquid.
"You willfully stole designs to the Emperor's premiere weapon to hand over to the Rebellion," Vader said to her. "You can hardly be surprised that the Emperor ordered that the information be gained by any means necessary."
She gave a small sneer. "At least that gives me one comfort. No one would ever do such a thing to their own child. I knew you were lying."
"I am not lying." His voice raised, he reached an arm up as Leia flinched, expecting a blow. But instead he touched a ceiling panel, plunging the room into total darkness.
"What are you doing?" Leia couldn't keep the trembling out of her voice.
"Your first lesson." Vader stepped back. "I have concealed Kenobi's lightsaber in here. Find it."
"It's my lightsaber," Leia snapped at him, "And how am I supposed to find it if I can't see my hand in front of my face?"
"The Force, you foolish child. Use the Force."
Leia grimaced. She knew he could probably see as well in the dark as the light, but she couldn't help herself. Holding up her hands, she channeled all her rage and fear into a single burst and shoved him against the wall. "Like that?"
Vader was surprisingly calm. "No. You need to learn control. Shoving things around is how children play."
"Then turn the lights back on. I can't reach the switch. You may not have noticed, but I'm awfully short for someone who is supposedly your daughter."
"No."
"Fine." Leia sat back on the cot and scowled into the pitch black. "I can wait."
"So can I."
She leaned back against the bulkhead, wondering if she could find the ration bars in the dark. They looked slightly out of date, but she was hungry. She reached out a hand to paw at the floor in front of her.
"I said use the Force."
"I don't know how," she snapped grumpily, continuing to feel around as she kept one hand on the edge of the cot.
"Picture your goal in your mind, and will it to come to you," Vader said, "The Force will only obey you if you believe in your ability to dominate it."
Against her better judgment, Leia decided that trying this method was likely the only way to get Vader off her back for the moment. She brought a picture to her mind, concentrating. "Come," she whispered fiercely. "Come."
Vader snapped the lights back on as he saw a small cylinder fly towards Leia's hand, and heard the girl gasp in surprise at her success. He was less pleased, however, when he saw her peel a wrapper off the dark object and take a bite, chewing thoughtfully.
"I'll return when you are ready for your next lesson," he growled, stomping out and slamming the door behind him. Leia smiled inwardly at her small victory as she looked up at the door, noticing that the lightsaber sat on top of the high door frame, just out of reach.
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Luke noticed that with each passing day, Master Yoda was growing quieter and slower as he set the young Jedi to his tasks. He'd asked him once or twice whether he was all right, but Yoda brushed him off and told him to concentrate. Still, he was glad that the time for Han to return and pick him up was coming soon. Perhaps he could convince the old Jedi to go to a medical facility…
They were sitting at the entrance to a murky cave, where Yoda had sent him alone multiple times to test his understanding of the Dark Side. Each time, he found himself faced with a specter of his father and forced to fight. And each time, as he slashed his way to victory, the mask exploded to reveal a familiar face: either his own, or Leia's.
"Why is it called the Dark Side?" he asked as they rested, hoping to gain a clue as to how to emerge victorious from the trial. So far, each time, Yoda only sighed when he came out, saying, "Do better, next time you will."
"Good question this is," Yoda croaked, adjusting himself against the stump where he'd leaned his walking stick. "Blind, it makes you. Blind to what you do to others. Blind to what you do to yourself. Makes you see what is not there. Not see what is there." He punctuated his speech with little jabs from his finger against Luke's chest. "That is why the Dark Side it is called."
Luke pondered for a minute, wondering if there was additional wisdom hidden in the old Jedi's words. "I feel like I was blind," he said finally. "No one ever told me the truth about my father when I was growing up. They let me idolize him, think that he was a hero. Think that…." He choked on his words.
"Think what, did you?" Yoda pressed him gently.
"Think that he loved me," Luke finally said quietly, embarrassed by the tears in his eyes.
"Mmm." Yoda let his voice trail off into silence. "No longer think that, do you?"
"How could he love anyone? He's the worst person in the galaxy."
"Know not what is in Darth Vader's heart, do I," Yoda confessed. "But blinded by the Dark Side, he is. Understand his own actions, he does not. But powerful is love. How to destroy it, know I not. And how to destroy it, Palpatine knows not." He settled his head back, resting his eyes as Luke stood.
"All right." Grabbing his lightsaber, he ducked back into the cave.
As usual, rodents scurried underneath him, occasionally crossing directly over his boots. After this long in the swamp, he was able to keep from cringing at the tiny feet skittering over him, but still ducked out of the way of the dangling spider webs whose architects concealed themselves in shadows, waiting for an unfortunate insect to stumble into their trap. He reached the wide expanse of the cave where the vision usually awaited him, but this time it was empty.
"Hello?" he called into the dank air, feeling slightly foolish. He heard what sounded like footsteps, and pressed on.
Deeper in the cave, the light dimmed and he struggled to see the space in front of him. Suddenly, with a flash, the cavern was illuminated by two lights: one red, one blue. Luke sprang ahead, stopping at the vision in front of him.
Vader was there, as always, but instead of lying in wait for Luke he was already locked in a pitched battle. His opponent was Leia. She grunted as he advanced on her, easily parrying her clumsy strokes and pushing her closer and closer into a corner. Forgetting his earlier insight, Luke rushed into the fray, drawing Vader away and raising his sword for a killing blow. The head rolled off, and the vision of Leia faded away, leaving Luke alone, once again looking at his own dead face behind Vader's mask.
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