Star Wars: Remix version
Chapter Sixteen: Han Solo
Leia took a seat at the table as the man was telling Luke and Ben,
"I've outrun Imperial starships, not the local bulk-cruisers, mind you. I'm talking about the big Corellian ships now. She's fast enough for you, old man. What's the cargo?"
"Only passengers. Myself, the boy and his sister, two droids, and no questions asked." Ben said firmly.
"What is it? Some kind of local trouble?" Han asked.
"Let's just say we'd like to avoid any Imperial entanglements." Ben replied.
"Well, that's the trick, isn't it? And it's going to cost you something extra. Ten thousand in advance." Han said curtly. Leia gasped, knowing that they had no such money on them.
"Ten thousand? We could almost buy our own ship for that!" Luke burst out. Leia nudged him. It wasn't like Luke to be rude.
"But who's going to fly it, kid! You?" Han asked.
"You bet I could. I'm not such a bad pilot myself! We don't have to sit here and listen..." Obi-wan cut him off.
"We haven't that much with us. But we could pay you two thousand now, plus fifteen when we reach Alderaan." He replied. Leia wondered if the money would be coming from their mother.
"Seventeen, huh!" Han whistled. Leia sighed and stood up. It was then that she noticed storm troopers loooking at a couple of dead bodies on the floor.
Han pondered this for a few moments.
"Okay. You guys got yourself a ship. We'll leave as soon as you're ready. Docking bay Ninety-four." Leia saw the bartender point at them.
"What is going on?" Leia whispered. The three guys turned around. By the time the stormtroopers got to the table, Luke and Ben were gone. The stormtroopers passed by Leia and Han without a second glance. Leia let out a huge breath.
"Seventeen thousand! You guys must really be desperate." Han said under his breath. Leia smiled slightly, brushing hair out of her face.
"Yeah, well, it's a matter of life and death" She said. "I'll see you at the ship" Han watched her as she walked out of the cantina. He whistled unde his breath.
"You'll have to sell your speeder." Ben was saying to Luke.
"That's okay" Luke said. "We don't need it right now, anyway"
Meanwhile, On the death star..
"Her resistance to the mind probe is considerable. It will be some time before we can extract any information from her." Darth Sky said firmly during the galactic meeting. An Imperial Officer interrupted the meeting.
"The final check-out is complete. All systems are operational. What course shall we set?" He asked. General Moff Tarkin replied to Sky's admission.
"Perhaps she would respond to an alternative form of persuasion" He suggested. Sky thought about this.
"What do you mean?" He asked.
"I think it is time we demonstrate the full power of this station" Tarkin said. He turned to the officer. "Set your course for Princess Anna's home planet
of Alderaan"
"With pleasure" The officer saluted and left the room.
Obi-wan, Luke and Leia made thier way to the docking bay after selling off the speeder, unaware that a darkly clad figure was following them.
"If the ship's as fast as he's boasting, we ought to do well" Obi-wan told them. When they finally got to ninety-four, they stopped in thier tracks. Resting in the middle of the huge hole was a large, round, beat-up, pieced-together hunk of junk that could only loosely be called a starship.
"What a piece of junk." Luke said.
"Luke, don't be rude?" Leia admonished.
"She'll make point five beyond the speed of light. She may not look like much, but she's got it where it counts, kid. I've added some special modifications myself" Han said from behind them. Luke just shook his head and followed the others up the ramp. Suddenly, several Stormtroopers entered the docking bay.
"Stop that ship!" One of the troopers shouted.
Han Solo looked up and saw the Imperial stormtroopers. Several of the troopers fired at Han as he ducked into the spaceship.
"Blast 'em!" The trooper ordered.
Han drew his laser pistol and popped off a couple of shots which forced the stormtroopers to dive for safety. The pirateship engines whined as Han hit the release button that slammed the overhead entry shut.
"Chewie, get us out of here!" Han shouted to the wookie. The group strapped in for take off.
"Oh, my. I'd forgotten how much I hate space travel" Threepio muttered. Artoo beeped and whistled at him. The Millenium Falcon took off out of the docking bay, leaving the troopers far behind. Han climbed into the pilot's chair next to Chewbacca, who chattered away as he pointed to something on the radar scope. Han frantically typed information into the ship's computer. Little Artoo appeared momentarily at the cockpit doorway, made a few beeping remarks, then scurried away.
"It looks like an Imperial cruiser. Our passengers must be hotter than I thought. Try and hold them off. Angle the deflector shield while I make the calculations for the jump to light speed." Han muttered. The Millennium Falcon pirateship raced away from the yellow planet, Tatooine. It was followed by two huge Imperial stardestroyers. Luke, Leia and Ben made their way into the cramped cockpit where Han continued his calculation.
"Stay sharp! There are two more coming in; they're going to try to cut us off." Han warned.
"Why don't you outrun them? I thought you said this thing was fast" Luke snapped.
"Watch your mouth, kid, or you're going to find yourself floating home. We'll be safe enough once we make the jump to hyperspace. Besides, I know a few maneuvers. We'll lose them!" Han said. Leia poked her brother in the arm. Imperial cruisers fired at the pirateship. The ship shuddered as an explosion flashed outside the window.
"Here's where the fun begins!" Han whooped. Leia hid her smile as Luke looked ready to kill.
"How long before you can make the jump to light speed?" Obi-wan asked.
"It'll take a few moments to get the coordinates from the navi-computer." Han replied. The ship began to rock violently as lasers hit it.
"Are you kidding? At the rate they're gaining..." Luke protested. Leia rolled her eyes, but she was worried as well.
"Traveling through hyperspace isn't like dusting crops, boy! Without precise calculations we could fly right through a star or bounce too close to a supernova and that'd end your trip real quick, wouldn't it?" Han asked sarcastically. The ship was now constantly battered with laserfire as a red warning light began to flash.
"What's that flashing?" Leia asked worriedly.
"We're losing our deflector shield. Go strap yourself in, I'm going to make the jump to light speed" Han warned them. The group hurried to the passenger area and strapped themselves in as Han made the jump into lightspeed and aluded the starfighters.