No excuses this time. I'm just horrible at updating.
Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars or any of the characters mentioned in this chapter.
Luke scanned the list of planets that didn't have any direct connection with the Empire. There weren't a whole lot that wasn't in the empire's grasp one way or another, and the ones that weren't were in direct affiliation with the Rebellion. While he knew he would be welcomed in those planets, Luke also knew that they'd contact the alliance and let them know where he was, and he wasn't ready to go back quite yet.
As he scrolled down, one name jumped out at him. Aaris III was a deserted planet. There wasn't much information on why it was abandoned. There wasn't much information on the planet at all, really. It was in the outer rim territories, not too far from where he was. He'd have to take the Corellian run to get there, and it would probably take about day, but he decided that wouldn't matter.
He punched in the coordinates and momentarily wished for the comfort and space of the Falcon. After the X-Wing entered hyperspace, Luke made himself as comfortable as he could. He scooted his seat back and placed his feet up on the dash. "Might as well catch a few winks then," he remarked to himself, shut his eyes and tried to fall asleep.
Han was sitting in a night club on Naboo, casually drinking from a glass of the local brew. Chewbacca was out, gathering as much information as he could. Here, Han was watching the local people, trying to get an assessment of the atmosphere. Emperor Palpatine was originally from Naboo, so he was assuming he'd be greeted by a Empire friendly population. He was pleasantly surprised that while they weren't anti-empire, they weren't pro either.
He downed the rest of the brew, wiped his mouth with his sleeve, and moved the glass away. Chewbacca settled down in front of him.
"Did ya find anything?" Han asked him.
Chewy rumbled a reply.
Han nodded slowly, and looked up at the man that was standing awkwardly just away from the table. "Come on over, kid," he said, jerking his head to indicate him to walk over.
"You can call me Kev," the other man said.
"So I hear that you might have some information on someone I'm looking for?" Han asked.
Kev nodded and sat down. "Um, yes. Yeah, I think so."
Han stared at him, waiting for more. When the man didn't reply, he let out a sigh. "And?"
"Oh! Yeah. There was an X-Wing matching the description of the one you're looking for. It entered Tatooine's atmo a few days ago. It left atmo just a few hours ago," he said, sat back and looked proud at himself.
"How do you know all that, might I ask?" Han asked, slightly suspicious.
"I've got a contact in the Imperial Garrison on Tatooine. Apparently he's some fancy rebel leader or something," Kev said, not seeming to care that he was spilling his guts to a random stranger.
"Uh huh," Han said, thinking. "Any idea where he might be going next?"
At that, the kid smiled, like this was what he had been waiting for all along. "Well, that little bit of information isn't going to be free."
Han groaned to himself. "Well, how much is it going to cost?"
Kev pretended to think about it. "Well…how much you got on you?"
Han sighed to himself. "How about this: You tell me if you know where he's going, and we part as unlikely friends."
"And if I don't?" Kev asked, crossing his arms.
Chewbacca growled at him, low and threatening.
"Geez. Okay. Yeah, We got an estimation of what sector he was headed before he went into hyperspace, but nothing more exact."
Han smiled. "See how helpful you were?"
Kev rolled his eyes and pushed away from the table. "You're a piece of shavit, you know."
Han grinned. "So I've been told," he said, and motioned for Kev to leave.
After they were left alone, Chewbacca turned to Han, and growled a question.
Han absent mindedly nodded. "Yeahh," he said, his head nodding. He shook his head and stood up. "Come on Chewy. We've got a kid to catch."
They were back on the Falcon, and Han was looking at the data that he had gotten from Kev. It showed that Luke was headed for the Kathol system.
"Well Chewy," Han said. "We might as well head out."
Chewy roared a reply and went to the cockpit. He punched in the coordinates for the Kathol system. Han made his way to the cockpit, but taking his time. He wasn't sure how welcome he and Chewy would be for the young rebel. Han figured that Luke felt like he needed to prove something, if not to the rest of the rebellion, at the very least to himself. Han just hoped that he'd be able to convince the kid to come back with him.
Luke broke atmo and flew into the Aaris III sky.
"Wow Artoo," he breathed. "Look at it."
The view outside his window was indeed breathtaking; mountains covered by jungles made some of the terrain of the planet. The rest was covered by oceans.
Luke looked at the navi-map on his console, checking to find which island would be the best to land. On the computer, he saw that there was a small island that looked like it had buildings of some kind on it. The report said that they were most likely abandoned, which sounded perfect to Luke.
He shifted his X-Wing's course, and piloted it towards one of the largest islands. Landing was a bit bumpy, and Artoo made several complaints, but they landed in one piece.
Luke exited the X-Wing and took in a breath. The air was far more humid than what he experienced on Tatooine, but he was sure that his lungs would get used to the moist air.
Artoo propelled himself off of the ship and wheeled himself closer to Luke. He beeped a question, and Luke nodded.
"Good idea," he said to the droid, and grabbed some of the supplies from the ship's cargo hold. He shut the door, slung the pack over his shoulder, and started walking towards one of the buildings.
Birds sung long, drawn out songs above him, and on the ground he could hear several land animals joining in with their own melodies. He'd have to get used to the sounds as well. He had little hope that it would be quieter at night.
Once he reached the closest building, he surveyed it, deciding how much effort he wanted to put into getting it acceptable to sleep in. He figured on being here a day, two at the most, so Luke assumed that not much needed to be done.
After clearing some of the extra vegetation, Luke squeezed into the building through a small gap between the door and the wall. Artoo beeped angrily; he was too large to fit.
"Hold up buddy," Luke said, trying to shove the door further open from the inside. It didn't budge.
"Sorry Artoo. Looks like you'll have to stay outside," Luke told him. Artoo scornfully whistled at him, and Luke assumed he rolled away angrily.
Chuckling to himself, Luke prepared his living space for that night. Inside the building it was actually fairly empty of vegetation. Luke laid a mat on the ground, and then sat on it, cross legged. He retrieved the holodisk he took from Ben's, and was about to play it when he heard another ship begin its landing.
Luke jumped to his feet, squeezed through the door again, and groaned to himself as he saw the Millennium Falcon touch the ground.
"Han," he said, his voice edging on complaining. "What are you doing here?"
Han looked down at him from the top of the Falcon's holding bay. "Nice to see you too kid," he replied, crossing his arms and leaning suavely against the side of his ship.
"Did the Alliance send you to "fetch" me?" Luke huffed, getting angry. "Because I'll be back, but in my own time. I had some things I needed to figure out."
Han smiled. "You really think I'm the rebellion's errand boy then?"
Luke took in a breath, and then chuckled. "No-o," he drew out. "But really; why are you here?"
Han dropped his arms and trotted down the cargo bay door. When he was a few feet from Luke, he answered, "well, I did come here to talk to you-"
"I knew it," Luke said angrily, turning his back on the smuggler.
"Hey, wait a sec," Han said, reaching out and gripping the kid's shoulder.
Luke faced Han, an exasperated look on his face. "Look Han," he said. "I've been having these…nightmares. I don't know what they mean, only that they keep me up at night. I have to figure out what it means, otherwise I'm a liability."
Han sighed. "I'm not here to bring you back kid," he told Luke. "I'm just…Leia was worried about you. I came to find you to make sure you were okay is all."
The exasperation left Luke's face, and in its place was a look closer resembling tranquility. He smiled slightly. "Did she send you to find me?"
Han suddenly got very uncomfortable. His hand lifted and he rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, um…not exactly," he said. What was it about that blasted woman that made him so uncomfortable?
Luke chuckled to himself. "Okay, Han," he said.
"So what're you doing here anyway," Han asked, quickly changing the subject.
"There's no imperial reach here," he explained. "And I don't think the Alliance as any interest in it either."
Han stared blankly at him. "And?" he finally asked.
Luke chuckled to himself. "And that means that I can have some piece and quite to figure all this out," he explained. "That is, until you showed up."
Han threw up his hands in a "don't blame me" gesture. Luke laughed.
"So what, you want complete piece and quite then?" Han inquired.
Luke shrugged. "I don't know really. I went back home, to Tatooine, to Ben's old place. I found this disk, and I was gonna watch it." He shrugged again and repeated, "I don't know."
"Well, let's go look at it then," Han said, and he turned to the ship. "Hey Chewy!"
A few moments later, the disgruntled Wookiee appeared at the ship. He growled a question.
"Can you watch the ship a moment please?" Han asked. "I'm gonna go watch a holo with Lukie."
Luke rolled his eyes, and Chewbacca placed a hairy paw over his face. A muffled reply seeped through his fingers, and the Wookiee turned and left.
Han grinned. "Oh that never gets old."