The cargo hold of the Falcon was quiet as the ship hurtled through hyperspace, heading to the secret Rebel base. Everyone was keeping to themselves and dealing with their own sorrows. It had only been hours since they had escaped from the gigantic battlestation, but no one celebrated.
Han and Chewie had locked themselves in the cockpit after a spat with the princess, Leia, and Cavin had not heard a sound from inside. Apparently, she was convinced that the imperials had placed a tracker on the ship, and that the location of the Rebel base (A moon called Yavin 4) was compromised. She was now sitting against one of the cargo hold's walls, her eyes blazing and her fists clenched.
She looked interesting, dressed in white robes with her hair fashioned into two buns on either side of her head as if she was wearing two cinnamon rolls. Her skin was almost as white as her clothes and all in all, she looked like Snow White's sister.
That is, if her sister were a Rebel senator who helped blast out of a planet-destroying battlestation, Calvin thought, thinking back to what Luke had told him. He, Chewie and Han had made it to the detention block and had freed her majesty, but were forced to dive into a trash compactor to escape. They barely made it because of Leia's quick thinking.
She's kind of hard-core, he contemplated.
Immediately he chided himself for thinking such insubordinate thoughts. I'm the Supreme Dictator for Life and leader of Get Rid Of Slimy GirlS! He reminded himself. I've got a reputation to uphold.
Sighing, he looked over at the table, where Luke and Hobbes were engaged in a halfhearted game of Dejarik, trying to distract themselves from Obi-Wan's death. Hobbes had gotten his blaster wound bandaged and covered with a medical substance called Bacta. He still claimed it hurt terribly, though.
After a few seconds, Luke sighed and turned off the game. Whether he lost or just didn't care anymore, Calvin didn't know.
R2 and 3po had shut themselves off after Leia had made sure that the astromech still had the blueprints of the battlestation. Calvin wished he could do the same. Just shut off and not think about anything anymore.
"Calvin?" Hobbes asked, coming over and slowly sitting down beside him. The boy was shaken out of his thoughts.
"What's up, pal?" he asked.
"Well," Hobbes began to say, "I was just wondering what happened in the control room after we left. Mind filling me in?"
"Sure, Hobbes," Calvin said, and relayed the events of what had transpired to his friend.
"Wait, it was you on that turret?" Hobbes asked, surprised.
Calvin grinned. "Yeah," he affirmed. "I've always got your back," he assured the tiger. "Don't worry."
Hobbes smiled back. "Thanks," he said. "I'll do my best to always have your back, too."
For a few minutes, the hold was once again silent.
A distant whoosh sounded as the cockpit door opened, and after a couple seconds, Han strode into the cargo hold. As he did, everyone looked up.
"We're coming out of Hyperspace," Han informed the group. He turned to Princess Leia and frowned. "I suppose you would want to come with us into the cockpit, your exalted highnessness." He said it sarcastically.
"As a matter of fact, I would," Leia replied, glaring at the smuggler with contempt. She brushed past Han, muttering something about careless pirates and oversized brown carpets. Han followed her back, Luke right behind him.
After a few seconds, Hobbes felt a sinking sensation in his stomach as the ship exited Hyperspace. Still not accustomed to the feeling, he clutched at his belly with his good arm. Looking over, he saw Calvin, not at all bothered by the sudden change. Perhaps he had already gained enough experience with such things from the time machine.
"Hobbes," Calvin asked, "how did… how did Obi-Wan die?"
Hobbes let loose a long sigh as he experienced the memory flow through his mind. "He was killed by a lightsaber."
"…Wait," Calvin said, holding up his hands. "By someone else?"
Hobbes nodded.
"Well-" Calvin stammered. "Who? What did he look like?"
"Kind of like a cyborg," Hobbes answered.
"A cyborg?"
"Yeah," he affirmed. "He had a robotic, all black, human-like suit with a mask and a helmet. No part of his body was uncovered."
"Wow," Calvin mumbled. "And he had a lightsaber, too?"
"A red one," Hobbes said, nodding.
"A red one?" Calvin asked. "I've never seen a red lightsaber before. This guy sounds evil!"
"That's what I thought, too!" Hobbes agreed. "He looked kind of like a robotic, dark knight. I'm pretty sure he was imperial."
Calvin nodded, but his eyes seemed deep in thought.
Wait a minute.
"Hobbes," he started to say, looking up. "I think you saw Darth Vader."
Silence.
"Wait. Like, Kenobi's apprentice?" Hobbes asked.
"Yep."
Hobbes frowned. "I mean, he did say that Darth Vader helped the Empire hunt down the Jedi."
"Yes!" Calvin agreed. "Did you see him use any of the force?"
Hobbes thought for a moment, and realized that yes, he had.
"I did!" he said, snapping his fingers. "He picked me up and choked me! Obi-Wan saved me, though. He pushed me away from harm with his own force abilities."
"But Chewie could do that too," Calvin pointed out.
"Without ever touching me?" Hobbes asked, crossing his arms.
"…Well, no.".
"Calvin," Hobbes started to say, "do me a favor and don't ever fight him. You are not gonna win."
"Wasn't planning on it," Calvin said nonchalantly, and shrugged. "Let's go see what everyone else is up to."
"Sure," Hobbes agreed, and began to make his way to the cockpit.
Calvin did the same, but stopped in front of the droids. "Hey Bluey. Goldilocks."
The droids responded to the nicknames Calvin had christened them with. 3po's eyes turned on, and R2's lights blinked and activated.
"What is it, Calvin?" 3po asked.
"We're about to land," he explained. "Figured you would want to know."
"Thank You."
The Falcon entered the atmosphere, and headed for a group of ancient, mossy, gigantic stone temples that resembled Mayan architecture. All kinds of ships flew in and out of the buildings, and several anti-air emplacements were dotted all around them.
In a nearby watchtower, a lone Rebel soldier followed the ship's descent and unclipped his communication device.
"Corellian Light Freighter inbound and ready to land," he reported.
Static. Then, a voice responded on the other side. "Acknowledged."
The soldier reclipped his communicator and sighed. "I gotta get transferred to a place with more action…"
Meanwhile, in the cockpit, Calvin and Hobbes watched as the ship neatly docked just a few hundred yards away from the nearest building on a landing pad in the forest. Rebels were running around everywhere, carrying equipment and repairing fighters.
"So Leia," Hobbes asked, looking out of the viewport. "You're the leader of this Rebellion?"
Leia nodded. "Part of the leaders," she corrected. "Other senators such as Mon Mothma, and commanders like Admiral Ackbar make up the rest."
"Well," Hobbes said, "it's nice to meet you, Princess."
Suddenly, he felt himself being yanked away, and he turned to find Calvin with a disapproving look in his eye.
"Don't call her a princess, First Tiger!" he admonished. "That's five demerits for getting friendly with an enemy of-" Calvin said no more, because Hobbes had clapped his mouth shut with his paw. He turned to Luke, Han, Leia, Chewie, 3po, and R2.
"Erm, sorry about that," Hobbes grinned sheepishly. "Calvin is just upholding his reputation as a Dictator-for-Life."
Everyone shrugged or sighed, and turned back to look out the cockpit. Outside, a small group of soldiers had gathered.
"Alright, people," Leia said. "Let's go."
Everyone followed the princess into the cargo hold, and outside after the ramp fully opened. As they did so, a man in a jumpsuit stepped forward. He looked like a pilot.
"Princess Leia, it's good to have you back with us," he greeted, and snapped a salute.
"Thank you, Gold Leader," Leia said. "Do Mon Mothma and the others know that I'm here?"
"Yes they do, princess," Gold Leader informed her, and gestured to a heavily armed landspeeder. "We are prepared to escort you and your companions to the main headquarters."
"Then let's not waste any time," Leia said, and briskly walked to the speeder. Gold Leader gestured for everyone else to follow suit.
"I call shotgun!" Calvin shouted, and ran past Hobbes, bumping into Han.
He did not get shotgun.
As the speeder raced along the wet and forested terrain, Hobbes found himself in awe at everything going on. Soldiers were marching in all directions, ancient, smaller ruins held cannons and turret emplacements, and tonnes of crates of cargo were stacked high everywhere.
"Cool…" Calvin whispered beside him as the speeder broke out of the tropical forest. It was now skimming along a giant stone landing pad ringing the entire main temple. Strange ships of all kinds were docked neatly on it.
"Hey Luke," Calvin asked, pointing at one of the most numerous ships on the landing pad. "What's that?"
"It's an X-wing," Luke explained, gazing at the fighter ship. It had a long nose and a cockpit, with four wings tipped with blaster cannons around it in an X shape. "I've always wanted to fly one."
Then, a yellow ship caught Hobbes' eye. It was long, and had two wings on each side with thrusters at the ends. A two man ship with a cockpit and a bomber's turret; the kind that rotates on the top of an aircraft, was out in front. It was shaped like a rough Y.
"Luke?" he asked.
"What is it, Hobbes," Luke asked, still transfixed by the X-wings everywhere.
"What kind of ship is that?" he asked, pointing at the yellow dual-winged spaceship.
Luke looked over. "...That looks like a BTL Y-Wing starfighter," he said. "It's also used as a bomber, but some of the parts on the thrusters are stripped off."
"Maybe they couldn't afford the whole package," Hobbes suggested.
"Maybe," Luke shrugged.
When the speeder stopped inside the temple, a group of regal-looking senators and a strange fish-man in a commander's suit were waiting. As Leia got out, a caped man in a beige uniform rushed up.
"Thank goodness, Leia!" he exclaimed, examining her. "We'd feared the worst!"
Then he remembered who he was talking to. He stepped back and bowed formally.
"When we heard about Alderaan, we were afraid that you were... lost along with your father," he said quietly, dipping his head.
"We don't have time for our sorrows, Commander," Leia chided, and glared pointedly at Han. "The battlestation has surely tracked us here. It's the only explanation for the ease of our escape."
She turned to R2, who had placed himself right by her. "You must use the information in this R2 unit to plan the attack. It is our only hope."
As she talked, a guard stepped up and addressed the rest.
"This way," he beckoned. "We have rooms set up for all of you."
As everyone followed the man, Han suddenly stopped and wheeled around.
"Hey, your worshipness!" he called out to Leia. "When exactly do I get my reward?"
Leia sighed. "Don't worry about your money!" she yelled back. "You'll have it within the next couple of hours!"
Calvin, witnessing all of this, turned to Hobbes. "Y'know," he whispered, "Han would make a great third member for GROSS."
Hobbes sighed. "I don't know. What about Luke?"
Calvin shook his head. "Luke has some sort of thing for Leia," he informed the tiger. "I realized it on the way here."
Hobbes snorted. "Luke, a crush on Leia?" he asked skeptically. "I don't think so.
"But think about it!" Calvin prompted. "He was mesmerized by her in the recording we saw, and then he was all gung-ho to rescue her from the battlestation!"
"...I guess you might have a point," Hobbes realized, and shrugged. "I suppose he can't be part of the club."
"Of course not!"
A few hours later, all of the rebel leaders plus Calvin, Han, Luke, Chewie, Hobbes, and the droids were in the command room, along with most of the fighter pilots, senators, navigators, and other figures of importance. Calvin had taken the time in his shared bunk with Hobbes to check his blaster and practice his aurebesh, while Hobbes took a nap and a heavenly (his words) shower that lasted for a full hour.
Just before the meeting was about to begin, a chilling new piece of information had reached both of their ears: The battlestation was here, and had tracked the Falcon to Yavin 4. Leia had been right all along, and it was now orbiting the other side of the moon, making its way around to attack the base.
As Hobbes watched, R2 was connected to the holotable and a holographic schematic of the imperial battlestation appeared. As the chatter in the room fell silent, a white-haired, aged commander called Dodonna began talking.
"The battle station is heavily armored and carries a firepower greater than half the star fleet," he began to say. "Its defenses are designed around a direct large-scale assault, however. So, a small one-man fighter should be able to penetrate the outer defense."
Then, Gold leader from earlier stood up.
"Pardon me for asking, sir," he began, "but what good are snub fighters going to be against that?"
Hobbes had the same question in his mind. There is no way one fighter is gonna destroy a moon-sized battlestation, he figured.
"Well, the Empire doesn't consider a small one-man fighter to be any threat, or they'd have a tighter defense," Dodonna explained. "An analysis of the plans provided by Princess Leia-" he gestured to Leia standing by him- "has demonstrated a weakness in the battle station."
"The approach will not be easy," he warned. Behind him, the hologram zeroed in on a specific spot on the surface of the battlestation. "You are required to maneuver straight down this trench and skim the surface to this point."
He pointed to a spot in the trench that had been highlighted. "The target area is only two meters wide. It's a small thermal exhaust port, right below the main port. The shaft leads directly to the reactor system. The port is ray-shielded, so you will have to use proton torpedoes."
He paused for effect. "A precise hit will start a chain reaction which should destroy the station," he finished, and the hologram turned off.
Hobbes heard the murmur of disbelief ripple through the room. He didn't blame them, as he himself was extremely worried.
"Man your ships! And may the force be with you!" Dodonna motivated the pilots.
As Hobbes made his way out of the room, he spied Calvin in the stream of exiting people, just as he saw Hobbes. They both brightened and ran toward each other.
"Calvin! We have to get out of here!" he frantically urged. Normally, he would have tried to help the rebels, but with Calvin's life at stake as well, and the low chances of success, he didn't want to risk them dying.
"But Hobbes, you heard what Madonna-"
"Dodonna," Hobbes corrected.
"Whatever. What Dodonna said," Calvin reminded him.
"Well, I know," Hobbes admitted. "But do you really think that a few fighters are gonna be able to get close to the battlestation without being shot down, fly through an armored trench, and fire a bulky torpedo into a two-meter wide exhaust port?"
"Well…" Calvin trailed off, silent. Then, he looked up again.
"Hobbes, do you remember why we came to this reality in the first place?" he asked.
Hobbes rolled his eyes. "Like I could forget," he muttered. "So you could rebel against your mom."
"Not just that," Calvin said. "But to also have more freedom… because you and I know that, y'know, freedom and individuality and… imagination is sorta what defines us."
"I can't argue with that," Hobbes admitted, thinking back to every single weird and incredible thing he and Calvin had done and made.
"And look at us now," Calvin continued, gesturing around. "We're faced with the possibility of dying to an unstoppable, evil, oppressive force that can destroy planets. An empire created to destroy any- any semblance of freedom in an entire galaxy."
"Right," Hobbes said.
"Now look at what I originally wanted to do. Look at the lengths we went to learn how to rebel against Mom."
"Sort of accidentally."
Calvin sighed. "Well, I think I figured something out. Compared to all of this-" he spread his arms out. "-our reasons for originally being here are miniscule. Pitiful. And… kind of selfish."
Hobbes was silent for a while as he thought about what Calvin had pointed out. "Your point?" he asked at last.
"My point is: When we started this whole thing-"
"When you started this whole thing."
"Whatever. When I started this whole thing and got you to tag along, I didn't realize how good I had it," he explained. "I had my freedom. My individuality. We didn't have to fight to just be ourselves. These guys do. And now, we have the chance to help millions… no, Billions of beings all across the galaxy get back their own freedom."
He paused, and his eyes bored deep into Hobbes'. "I think we should at least try and help give 'em the same stuff that we've had for years. Y'know, the chance to live and do what they want without an evil empire breathing down their neck."
For a few minutes, Hobbes didn't say a word.
Calvin… is right, he realized.
He slowly nodded, first at no one, then at Calvin.
"You really want to face death in the eye to save these people?"
Calvin nodded, his expression serious.
"Then I'm with you to the end, pal. After all," he said, smiling, "attempting and succeeding in strange and dangerous stuff is also what defines us!"
Calvin broke out into a grin. "Well 'ol buddy, it looks like they forgot a couple of pilots. What say we get up there and help them?"
"I got your back," Hobbes promised. "Let's destroy those Imperial jerks!"
"Alright," Calvin agreed. "First, we need to borrow a ship!"
Hobbes sighed. "Usually I'm not one for stealing-"
"Borrowing," Calvin corrected.
"-but if it's our best shot… then I have an idea."
"Shoot," he prompted. "What are you thinking?"
Hiding behind several crates, Hobbes prepared to knock out the guard stationed to watch the Y-wing left behind.
"Y'know," Calvin whispered, "Sometimes your ideas aren't half bad!"
Hobbes sighed and prepared to pounce.
Wow, the guard thought. I ask to get transferred from the watchtower for some more action and they send me to guard our own fighters.
He scoffed lightly. It's not as if someone on our side is gonna steal our own fighter-bomber.
"WHAM!"
The next second, the guard was knocked out cold by a pounce from Hobbes.
"Awesome work, Hobbes!" Calvin congratulated.
"Well, don't congratulate me too much," the tiger responded. "We're not out of here yet."
"Right," Calvin agreed, and climbed into the gunner's seat. Hobbes opened the canopy and clambered into the pilot's seat after Calvin had caved in. He still insisted that he could fly it as well as he could the toboggan.
Hobbes had laughed and had been reduced to tears, clutching at his stomach and rolling around on the floor in hysterics.
"Jeez!" Calvin complained through his stolen helmet's mic. "This gunner seat is cramped and I'm not even that big yet!"
"You think you got it bad?" Hobbes asked. "I can't understand half of these controls!"
"Can you do the essential stuff?" Calvin inquired.
"Well, yeah," Hobbes said. "I think I can fly and turn and get us out of the atmosphere, but I cannot find the liftoff button in here!"
From his slightly elevated position, Calvin peered into the pilot's seat. "It's the red button on the right," he said.
"How do you know?" Hobbes asked.
"Over There!" a rebel mechanic shouted, pointing a finger at the Y-Wing.
Aurebesh lessons! Just do it!" Calvin exclaimed.
"Alright, fine!" Hobbes snapped, and pressed the button. Immediately, the ship's thrusters engaged, burning bright and blue, and the ship began to lift off.
"Woohoo!" Calvin cheered. "That's what I'm talking about!"
Before the landing pad crew could stop them, Calvin and Hobbes were up and away, flying into the stratosphere.
Outside his gunner seat, Calvin watched as the sky grew dimmer and dimmer, until finally, it grew jet black with the only illumination being the system's sun and the faraway stars.
"Y'know," Hobbes said in a matter-of-factly manner, "we're probably gonna get in big trouble for this."
"Don't worry about stuff like that," Calvin assured. "We're trying to help them. And anyway, that only happens if we don't die."
"Yaaay," Hobbes deadpanned.
After a few seconds, both of them giggled, slightly alleviating the tension in the fighter/bomber.
In another few minutes, a dark, spherical shape came into full view, illuminated on one side by the space system's star. A miniscule trail of X-wings appeared, reminding both Calvin and Hobbes of just how futile the situation truly was.
Hobbes looked out of the cockpit, gazing at the serene scene of outer space. The stars were unblocked, giving a full view of how vast the galaxy truly was. He allowed himself to marvel at the spectacle for a little while longer.
Calvin did the same, noting the view, and Yavin 4's beautiful surface.
"Hobbes?" he said, his voice breaking slightly.
"Yeah?" Hobbes asked.
"If we don't get out of this alive, then…"
He paused to gather himself together. "You are the best friend I ever had, and I would… I would jump into a volcano for you."
Up ahead, a pitched battle began as TIE fighters swarmed out of the Death Star's hangar bay doors to combat the X-wings. Hobbes wiped a tear away.
"Well, Calvin," he started to say, "no matter what, you are my best friend too. And I… I would follow you anywhere if you asked. You are my most treasured person in all of space and time.
Calvin was silent.
"You once told me that the best presents don't come in boxes," he finally said. "And now I think I really see how true that actually is."
As the commandeered Y-wing got closer to the battle, Hobbes almost swerved away, chickening out. But he felt anger rising up in him for Obi-Wan.
If that evil cyborg, Darth Vader, was still on the station, he was going down. He steeled his nerves, and reached up to activate the Y-Wing's shields.
"Here we go!" he exclaimed, and punched the accelerator. The Y-Wing flew at incredible speeds towards the Death Star, and Calvin got ready to fire.
"I see a whole bunch of elevated turret towers!" he observed. "It looks like they're stopping our fighters from getting into that trench!"
"Well, let's take em' out!" Hobbes exclaimed, and banked sharply to the right, coming in from an unexpected direction. "Loading torpedoes!"
He pressed the correct buttons, and heard a clank as the two projectiles armed themselves. He pulled down his targeting computer, and waited for just the right moment.
"Hobbes, we have a fighter chasing us!" Calvin frantically exclaimed.
"Just a few more seconds…" Hobbes muttered, watching the computer align with the tower.
"Firing!" he yelled as green laser bolts zinged past him, some impacting the back of the ship. He pressed the release controls twice, and as a result, two large, red missiles streaked towards the tower. At the same time, Hobbes yanked the controls to the right, throwing the fighter off so that it wouldn't have time to turn much.
He didn't see the explosion, but Calvin called out, "Direct hit!"
Hobbes grinned, speeding away and preparing to come around again.
"I see a couple of turrets in a line!" he said. "I'm going in for a bombing run!"
But as he did so, he realized that two TIE fighters were falling into position behind him.
"Nevermind," he muttered. "Behind us, Calvin!"
Calvin spun the bomber turret around, and heard a satisfying click as the onboard computer helped him lock it in and aim at the spaceships. The targeting brackets on the screen aligned with the fighter, and Calvin smirked.
"I'm firing!" He shouted, and proceeded to do just that. A spray of red lasers zipped at the fighters, catching one on the hexagonal wing and shredding half of it off. A series of small sparks and explosions rippled along the inside of the wing, and the rest exploded in a short flash of orange and yellow. The other one evaded, taking advantage of the fact that Calvin could not fire at two targets at the same time.
"Got one!" Calvin cheered, and realigned his turret as the TIE fighter let loose a barrage of emerald bolts. Most of them scored, and the ship rocked with every hit, making it difficult to aim.
"Rrrrgh!" Calvin yelled, and gritted his teeth as he realigned once more and slammed his fingers into the firing controls. A savage stream of crimson flew through the air, with some of it smashing into the TIE fighter's transparent viewport. The window cracked, and the cockpit quickly depressurized, oxygen clearly visible as it streamed out of the front, over the sides, and off into outer space. The ship quickly lost control and hurtled away, eventually crashing and exploding on the surface of the Death Star.
"You're clear, Hobbes!" Calvin reported. "Do your bombing run!"
Hobbes flipped a few switches, arming several small but extremely lethal bombs, and prepared to yank down the lever that controled the bomb bay doors.
"Releasing!" He shouted, and pulled down on the handle above him. As he did so, a garbled message sounded from the commpad. Probably an X-wing demanding what he was doing there, but he didn't heed it. He was currently preoccupied.
The bombs shot down, impacting almost all of the turrets keeping the X-wings from entering the trench. Only half were truly out of action, but the rest were shell shocked enough for the Rebel fighter ships to make a break for it. Hobbes rocketed away again, and prepared to come around once more.
"Okay!" he said. "They're in the trench, so we don't have to worry about those turrets. Just shoot down as many fighters as possible!"
"You got it!" Calvin promised, and the Y-wing flew back toward the fighters who were so distracted by the X-wings in the trench that they only noticed Calvin and Hobbes when it was too late. Hobbes turned so that the bottom of the ship was facing away from the surface of the death star, and so that Calvin had a clear line of sight on the fighters.
"Firing!" He yelled and squeezed the triggers on the gun. Several fighters exploded in a fiery spectacle, and were immediately extinguished by the empty void of space.
Calvin whooped. "That's for Obi-Wan, ya brainless idiots!
Suddenly, green blasts slammed into the back of the Y-wing, weakening the shields further. Hobbes yanked the controls so that the turret was once again facing away from the trench.
"Hobbes, evasive maneuvers!" Calvin shouted, wincing as the green bolts peppered the back of the ship. Immediately, the ship swerved, and he saw the cause of the attack.
Three TIE fighters were chasing them, the one in the middle different from the rest. It had four triangular, gray solar panel wings instead of two, like an X-wing. The cockpit was the same, but further in the back. Blaster cannons tipped the four wings.
"Hobbes, the fighter in the middle is priority one!" he exclaimed.
"First, I gotta shake 'em!" Hobbes yelled back. "Our shields are almost gone!"
Two bolts suddenly impacted in the back of the Y-wing, one punching through the rest of the shielding and the other slamming smack-dab into the middle of the left thruster, causing a small explosion and a hole in one of the two engines. Looking at the monitor, Hobbes realized that he needed to do something, and now.
Suddenly, inspiration hit him and he automatically wrenched the controls to the right, immediately pulling back on the accelerator straight after. The imperial fighters, surprised, rocketed past the Y-Wing.. Now, Calvin and Hobbes were behind the fighters in a position to fire.
"Nice work, Hobbes!" Calvin said between bursts of turret fire. In a few seconds, the two regular TIE fighters were obliterated, their metal carcasses spinning wildly away. "That was some A-grade maneuvering."
"Only one more," Hobbes said menacingly, and Calvin pressed the triggers. Turret fire smacked into the strange, four winged TIE fighter… and the fighter's shields absorbed it.
"This thing has shields?!" Calvin asked, more than slightly miffed. "Hobbes, this thing has-"
"I know!" Hobbes cut in, activating a set of torpedoes. "I'm working on it."
"He's slowing down," Calvin realized.
What? Hobbes thought, his mind racing as he released the first torpedo, which brought the fighter's shields down to zero in a white blast. He started to reach up and press the firing controls a second time.
Why would he slow- Suddenly, he figured it out just as the fighter swerved to the right and rapidly decelerated. Hobbes frantically wrenched on the controls, doing a complete 180 around as the Y-wing passed the TIE fighter.
"Whoa!" Calvin cried out.
Hobbes scowled. That darn spaceship had employed the exact same trick that he had just used. Now, the TIE was speeding towards the Y-Wing, which was rocketing (though slower, due to the engine damage) at the former in a 1000 kilometer-per-hour game of chicken.
Hobbes deactivated the torpedo. At this speed, he wasn't sure whether the torpedo was of much use. Instead he spoke into his helmet's mic.
"Calvin, hit him before he hits us!" he said, trying to steel himself so as to keep going. Calvin didn't respond, and instead focused on shooting. Hundreds of green and red laser bolts flew through the void, and Hobbes sweated bullets as several blasts skimmed the surface of the Y-wing.
The two ships came closer and closer to each other, neither daring to back out.
Then, several red bolts tore through the upper left wing of the quad-winged TIE fighter, causing it to careen out of control. A few seconds later, the Y-wing sped through the exact spot where the TIE had just been.
Hobbes immediately brought the other torpedo back online, and as soon as he had a lock, he pressed the release controls. The missile streaked towards the now-helpless fighter, and exploded upon impact.
Both of them allowed themselves a few seconds to breathe.
"That was tense…" Hobbes mumbled, and sighed in relief.
"Well, we're not done yet," Calvin pointed out. "Lets-"
"Wait," Hobbes said. "The X-wings are flying away."
Calvin turned to stare at the receding trail of X-wings, now reduced to just half of their original strength. "But… but that means we won!" he exclaimed. "Get us out of here!"
Hobbes hit the accelerator, and the Y-wing started to fly back to Yavin 4 as fast as it could.
"We gotta get out of range from the-"
Calvin said no more as everything lit up in a giant burst of white, blinding him and Hobbes and creating a shockwave that gave both of them a major headache. It threw the ship far off course, ripping away armor plating all across it.
The entire battlestation exploded, causing a blast of white, orange, and blue across space, and Hobbes felt like his head was being pounded with a hammer
After a few minutes, his ears lost their high pitch and he opened his eyes.
"Whoa…"
In front of him was a debris field of metal, some pieces still alight from the sheer enormity of the explosion. The whole entire station had been obliterated. The planet killer… was gone.
As a TIE fighter wing floated past the cockpit, both Calvin and Hobbes suddenly understood: They'd won. Hobbes was the first to grin, followed by Calvin's chuckle. Soon, both of them were laughing in pure joy and elation.
"We did it, Hobbes! We did it!" Calvin got out between giggles.
"I can't believe it! We-" Hobbes began to say, but doubled over in laughter.
After a few more minutes, both of them had gotten their emotions under control again, and Hobbes checked on the ship's status.
The left thruster was torn to shreds, but its engine was still somehow able to work… just barely. The right thruster had been slightly damaged, but it and its engine were still very much able to function. The entire ship had sustained medium damage to its plating as small pieces of debris had slammed into it, and the Y-wing was also recovering from a temporary knockout of all systems (an EMP).
"Okay, Calvin," Hobbes concluded. "We can make it back to Yavin 4, but do you think we'd be greeted with open arms?"
"Why wouldn't we?" Calvin asked.
"I mean, we knocked out a guard, stole their fighter-bomber, and sort of wrecked it, too. That seems like grounds for punishment or something."
"Look, Hobbes," Calvin started to say, "If someone steals something or goes against the rules and doesn't have a good reason for it, then, yeah. You'd be right. But if someone uses the stolen object for a wonderful and helpful thing like, i.e, helping to blow up a planet killer, then we won't get in trouble!"
"So the good evens out the bad?" Hobbes asked, slightly frowning.
"Exactly!" Calvin said, and grinned. "So, let's get back down to Yavin 4!"
Hobbes obliged, pushing the accelerator as far as it would go. Still, it took almost half an hour for the ship to enter the atmosphere of the moon. The cockpit and the gunner seat became unbearably hot as friction pressed against the ship, and Hobbes felt his skin dry up under his fur.
The Y-wing exited the cloud layer, and Hobbes did his best to slow the Y-Wing's descent. It was difficult when one had half of the ship's power barely working. But he did his best, and was rewarded by the sound of the landing gear striking the ground, the ship wobbling as it did so.
"Woohoo!" Calvin cheered as he slid open the gunner's hatch and felt the gentle breeze cool him off. "We did it," he sighed happily.
"Uh, Calvin?" a nervous Hobbes asked. "Mad princess, twelve 'o clock!"
Calvin jerked his head towards an irritated looking Leia, and gulped. "Uh… hi, your exaltedness!"
Leia wasn't flattered.
"You two knocked out a guard, stole a Y-wing, and wrecked it in the span of less than two hours!" she admonished.
"Told 'ya," Hobbes whispered.
"Shut up," Calvin hissed back.
"Well, uh…" Hobbes fumbled for a second, and sighed. "Any sort of retribution, I'll accept," he said, and added, "I don't know about Calvin, though."
Leia's frown deepened.
"Well," she sighed after a moment's scrutiny, "luckily for you, we were observing the entire battle from down here. And by observing the entire battle, I mean each and every ship as it fought."
"And?" Calvin asked.
"And… you two took out several turrets stopping our X-wings from entering the trench, and obliterated nine TIE fighters, one of them an interceptor!" She revealed.
"The four-winged TIE fighter with shields," Hobbes guessed.
"Exactly," Leia said. "Only veteran pilots fly those, and you eliminate one on your first go!"
"Soooo, does that mean we're off the hook?" Calvin asked.
Leia sighed. "When we originally captured the Death Star schematics, we succeeded because of a team of Rebels that had gone against their superiors. Because of their insubordination, we were able to get the plans here… eventually."
"The officers and senators witnessed your piloting skills," she pointed at Hobbes, "and your marksmanship," she pointed at Calvin, "and decided to extend to you an offer to join the Rebellion."
Calvin and Hobbes looked at each other in surprise.
"Furthermore," Leia went on, "since the original pilot is dead as of now, we've decided to give you this Y-wing. It's yours, now, if you would accept it."
For ten seconds, Calvin and Hobbes gaped. Then they took one look at each other, grinned, and turned back to Leia.
"We accept!" they both shouted.
Leia smiled. "Then you're officially part of the Rebellion," she declared. "Congratulations."
Calvin and Hobbes cheered as Leia left to attend to other matters… or maybe to party.
"Hey Hobbes?" Calvin asked.
"What?"
"I'll find us some cardboard soon," he promised. "I'm kinda also missing home."
"Take as long as you need," Hobbes said, and crushed Calvin in a hug. "I'm not in a rush anymore."
The next day, after the celebration had ended, Calvin and Hobbes were sitting on top of the temple, watching the Rebels pack up. The empire was probably on its way.
"Too bad we have to leave this place," Hobbes remarked.
"Yeah. "Calvin sighed, looking out at the sunrise. He turned to address the tiger.
"Hobbes, I'm sorry about the machine," he said. "Y'know, about there being no cardboard in this galaxy."
They had figured it out just yesterday. Nobody had known what cardboard was, or told of anything similar to it.
"It's okay," Hobbes assured, but he sighed. "I guess it'll take a little longer to get back home."
"I can use metal," Calvin shrugged, "but it's gonna take way longer, and I need more power for it."
"That's fine," Hobbes responded. "I don't mind waiting as long as we get back. I like the rebellion, and I've got you!"
He wrapped Calvin in a hug.
"Ooof!" Calvin exclaimed. "Let go!"
Hobbes grinned, and released him.
"Hey," Hobbes asked, a thought suddenly flashing across his mind. "Do you think that your 'realm of imagination' is connected to this force power that Luke has?"
"Y'know, I've been thinking the same thing." Calvin revealed.
"And I think you're right. If so, we could ask Luke to try and power the machine that I'll build to get us home! Of course, I'd have to find a way to store a concentrated amount of energy, and I'll need a way to-"
"Calvin, let's not worry about that right now," Hobbes said. "Did you know that Han is gonna stay with the Rebellion?"
"Wait, Han's gonna stay?!" Calvin asked in excitement.
"The last I heard he was gonna go back to Tatooine to pay off debts to some fatso crime slug! What was his name… Jabber the-"
"Jabba the Hut," Hobbes corrected.
"Hooray!" Calvin exclaimed, and launched himself at Hobbes, crushing him in his own hug and returning the favor.
"Gotcha back!" He laughed, and then proceeded to jump down the temple with Hobbes in pursuit. As they chased each other, they knew that everything would be okay.
Wow. 6487 words. This is officially my longest chapter yet!
Anyway, that's the end of the first movie. I'm gonna take a break as I'm planning to go camping with some of my friends and relatives. Thank you all so much for reading my Fanfiction! It has been so fun to write this.
Remember to please leave a review! SmarmySmirk out!
:D