Star Wars: Remix version
Chapter Eighteen: The Death Star
"Stand by, Chewie, here we go. Cut in the sublight engines."
Han pulled back on a control lever. Outside the cockpit window stars began streaking past, seeming to decrease in speed, then stop. Suddenly the starship began to shudder and violently shake about. Asteroids began to race toward them, battering the sides of the ship.
"What the...? Aw, we've come out of hyperspace into a meteor shower. Some kind of asteroid collision. It's not on any of the charts." Han muttered
Chewbacca flipped off several controls and was very calm in the emergency. Luke made his way into the bouncing cockpit.
"What's going on?" He asked.
"Our position is correct, except...no, Alderaan!" Han said, pointing out the window.
"What do you mean? Where is it?" Luke asked frantically.
"Thats what I'm trying to tell you, kid. It ain't there. It's been totally blown away." Han replied.
"What? How?" Luke asked. Ben and Leia entered the cockpit as the ship began to settle down.
"Destroyed...by the Empire!" Ben said in anguish.
"The entire starfleet couldn't destroy the whole planet. It'd take a thousand ships with more fire power than I've..." Han was cut off by a signal that started flashing on the control panel and a muffled alarm started humming.
"There's another ship coming in." Han told them.
"Maybe they know what happened." Leia suggested. Ben shook his head.
"It's an Imperial fighter." He told them.
Chewbacca barked his concern. A huge explosion burst outside the cockpit window, shaking the ship violently. A tiny, finned Imperial TIE fighter raced past the cockpit window.
"It followed us!" Luke exclaimed.
"No. It's a short range fighter." Ben replied.
"There aren't any bases around here. Where did it come from?" Han asked.
"It sure is leaving in a big hurry. If they identify us, we're in big trouble." Luke muttered.
"Not if I can help it. Chewie...jam it's transmissions." Han ordered.
"It'd be as well to let it go. It's too far out of range." Ben said.
"Not for long..." Han said, trailing off. Leia looked out the window, worried.
The pirateship zoomed over the camera and away into the vastness of space after the Imperial TIE fighter.
The tension mounted as the pirateship gained on the tiny fighter. In the distance, one of the stars became brighter until it was obvious that the TIE ship was heading for it. Ben stood behind Chewbacca.
"A fighter that size couldn't get this deep into space on its own." Han said, staring straight ahead.
"It must have gotten lost, been part of a convoy or something." Leia suggested.
"Well, he ain't going to be around long enough to tell anyone about us." Han said firmly.
The distant star could be distinguished as a small moon or planet.
"Look at him. He's headed for that small moon." Luke said, pointing out the window.
"I think I can get him before he gets there...he's almost in range." Han said quickly.
The small moon began to take on the appearance of a monstrous spherical battle station.
"That's no moon! It's a space station." Ben said in horror as the realization dawned on him.
"It's too big to be a space station." Han said.
"I have a very bad feeling about this." Leia said quietly.
"Yeah, I think your right. Full reverse! Chewie, lock in the auxiliary power." Han ordered.
The pirateship shuddered and the TIE fighter accelerated away toward the battle station.
"Why are we still moving towards it?" Luke asked suddenly.
"We're caught in a tractor beam! It's pulling us in!" Han realized.
"But there's gotta be something you can do!" Luke said frantically.
"There's nothin' I can do about it, kid. I'm in full power. I'm going to have to shut down. But they're not going to get me without a fight!" Han declared. Obi-wan placed a hand on Han's shoulder.
"You can't win. But there are alternatives to fighting." He said softly.
The helpless Millennium Falcon was pulled past a docking port control room and huge laser turret cannons.
"Clear Bay twenty-three-seven. We are opening the magnetic field" A voice said over an intercom.
The ship was pulled in through port doors of the Death Star, coming to rest in a huge hangar. Thirty stormtroopers stood at attention in a central assembly area.
"To your stations!" An officer barked at them. He turned to another officer "Come with me" The Stormtroopers ran to their posts.
A line of stormtroopers marched toward the ship in readiness to board it, while other troopers stood with weapons ready to fire.
"Close all outboard shields! Close all outboard shields!" The officer barked.
Sky and a commander approached the troops as an Officer and several heavily armed troops exited the spacecraft.
"Unlock one-five-seven and nine. Release charges" A voice spoke over the intercom. The officer turned to Sky.
"There's no one on board, sir. According to the log, the crew abandoned ship right after takeoff. It must be a decoy, sir. Several of the escape pods have been jettisoned" He told the dark clad man.
"Did you find any droids?" Sky asked.
"No, sir. If there were any on board, they must also have jettisoned" The officer replied.
"Send a scanning crew on board. I want every part of this ship checked" Sky barked.
"Yes, sir" The officer replied. Sky turned sharply, feeling a presence he thought to be long gone. His eyes glared through the mask. If his old master was here, he would finish what he started eighteen years ago. He quickly exited the hangar.
"Get me a scanning crew in here on the double. I want every part of this ship checked!" The officer began barking orders.
After throughly checking the ship, the troopers dissapeared. A panel opened up and Luke and Han climbed out. Leia and Obi-wan exited another compartment.
"It's lucky you had these compartments" Luke said.
"Yeah, real lucky" Leia said.
"I use them for smuggling. I never thought I'd be smuggling myself in them. This is ridiculous. Even if I could take off, I'd never get past the tractor beam" Han replied.
"Leave that to me!" Obi-wan said quickly.
"Damn fool. I knew that you were going to say that!" Han shook his head. Obi-wan looked carefully at Han Solo. The other man avoided his stare, figuring he was caught. it was silent for a moment as the older man studied him.
Obi-wan was no fool. As he studied Han, he remembered the five year old boy who had bravely fought in the clone wars. That boy had grown up, leaving the force behind, but Obi-wan knew that now was not the time.
"Who's the more foolish...the fool or the fool who follows him?" He asked finally. He saw han breath a sigh of relief and shake his head, muttering under his breath.
"The ship's all yours. If the scanners pick up anything, report it immediately" One of the troopers commanded.
The crewmen entered the ship and a loud crashing sound was followed by a voice calling to the guard below.
"Hey down there, could you give us a hand with this?" Two stormtroopers hurried into the ship and were blasted by Han.
Han, Luke, and Leia exited the ship dressed like storm troopers. They had Chewie and Ben in tow.
There were only a few officers and storm troopers left in the hangar, so Han was quick to shoot them all down.
"We found the computer outlet, sir." Threepio motioned to them to follow him into a small room.
Obi-wan fed some information into the computer and a map of the city appeared on the monitor. He began to inspect it carefully. Threepio and Artoo look over the control panel. Artoo ound something that made him whistle wildly.
"Plug him in. He should be able to interpret the entire Imperial computer network" obi-wan commanded.
Artoo punched his claw arm into the computer socket and the vast Imperial brain network came to life, feeding information to the little robot. After a few moments, he beeped something.
"He says he's found the main computer to power the tractor beam that's holding the ship here. He'll try to make the precise location appear on the monitor." Threepio translated.
The computer monitor flashed readouts.
"The tractor beam is coupled to the main reactor in seven locations. A power loss at one of the terminals will allow the ship to leave" Threepio told them.
Ben studied the data on the monitor readout.
"I don't think you boys can help. I must go alone" Obi-wan told them.
"Whatever you say. I've done more that I bargained for on this trip already" Han said shrugging.
"I want to go with you" Luke protested. Leia shook her head slightly.
"Be patient, Luke. Stay and watch over the droids" Obi-wan said firmly.
"But he can..." Leia elbowed Luke in the side.
"They must be delivered safely or other star systems will suffer the same fate as Alderaan. Your destiny lies along a different path than mine. The Force will be with you...always!" Obi-wan said quietly.
He adjusted the lightsaber on his belt and silently stepped out of the command office, then disappeared down a long grey hallway. Chewbacca barked a comment and Han shook his head in agreement.
"Boy you said it, Chewie" Han replied. He sighed. He wondered what Obi-wan thought of him, now that he was certain that the old man remembered him. He may have been only five at the time, but Han Solo wasn't a very common name.
Suddenly Artoo began to whistle and beeped a blue streak. Luke went over to him.
"What is it?" He asked.
"I'm afraid I'm not quite sure, sir. He says "I found her", and keeps repeating, "She's here."" Threepio replied.
"Well, who...who has he found?" Leia asked.
Artoo whistled a frantic reply.
"Princess Anna" Threepio replied.
"The princess? She's here?" Luke asked.
"Princess? What's going on?" Han asked.
"Level five. Detention block A A-twenty-three. I'm afraid she's scheduled to be terminated" Threepio said.
"Oh, no! We've got to do something" Luke exclaimed.
"What are you talking about?" Han said gruffly.
"The droids came from her. She's the one in the message.. We've got to help her" Luke said urgently.
"Now, look, don't get any funny ideas. The old man wants us to wait right here" Han said firmly. Leia shook her head.
"But he didn't know she was here" Leia protested.
"Look, will you just find a way back into the detention block?" Luke asked.
"I'm not going anywhere" Han crossed his arms.
"They're going to execute her. Look, a few minutes ago you said you didn't want to just wait here to be captured. Now all you want to do is stay" Luke said, crossing his arms.
"Marching into the detention area is not what I had in mind" Han said gruffly.
"But they're going to kill her!" Luke said. Han wanted to deny, but he knew he couldn't leave the princess to die. If he did, Padme would kill him. He admitted to himself, that he was worried that Padme might have been on Alderann, but she was a senetor and she traveled to other worlds alot. He could only hope she was safe. Padme was the only one who knew where Han had gone when he disapeared. She had done so much for him that he had left her a note. and since that day, he had met up with her several times, most often he would run into her on coruscant, when he was doing a smuggling job. She would always tell him that smuggling was wrong, but she had never turned him in.
"Han, are you with us?" Leia asked waving a hand in front of his face. Han blinked and turned to the twins.
"Fine" He said. "But this had better work" Luke and Leia grinned. "What's your plan?"
"Uh...Threepio, hand me those binders there will you?" Luke said. Threepio handed the cuffs to Luke who handed them to Han.
"Put these on Chewbacca" He instructed.
"Don't worry, Chewie. I think I know what he has in mind" Han said when Chewie whimpered.
The Wookiee had a worried and frightened look on his face as Han binded him with the electronic cuffs.
"Master Luke, sir! Pardon me for asking...but, ah...what should Artoo and I do if we're discovered here?" Threepio asked.
"Lock the door!" Leia said.
"And hope they don't have blasters" Luke added.
"That isn't very reassuring" Threepio said worriedly.
Luke, Leia and Han put on their armored stormtrooper helmets and started off into the giant Imperial Death Star.