In our finale, Han Solo and the Rebel agents must fend off Boba Fett in order to return to the fleet with the coordinates of the black market ships, and Darth Vader arrives on Steruub to capture Luke Skywalker…
Need to catch up? Click here for Part One. Click here for Part Two.
“Star Wars: Pursuit of Force” Part III
Phil Giunta
Chapter Five – Escape
Just outside the spaceport entrance, Han Solo felt the pressure of a blaster rifle intensify between his shoulder blades.
“We’re going straight to my ship,” Boba Fett instructed. “I wouldn’t advise doing anything on the way that would make me have to kill you. Your worth considerably less to me dead.”
“You and me both,” Han remarked before a prod told him to start walking. “Look, I have Jabba’s money, all of it, if you’d just let me get to my ship.” He pointed toward the last docking bay at the far end of the spaceport before turning to face the bounty hunter. “You can have it. Take it to Jab–”
“You think I’m an idiot, Solo?” Fett raised his weapon to Han’s throat. “If you really had the money you wouldn’t leave it unattended aboard your ship and you wouldn’t be so quick to hand it over to someone like me.”
By this time, the pair were standing outside the docking bay containing Fett’s ship, Slave I, when Han spotted movement behind his assailant. “You know what? You’re absolutely right.” He raised his voice as he spoke. “Isn’t he, fellas?”
“I’d say so.”
At once, Boba Fett grabbed Han by the collar and whirled to face the Rebel Intelligence officer. “Get lost or I’ll fry the smuggler right here.”
“I thought I was worth more alive.” Han shot a cross look at Zhoreen. “By the way, fine job you’re doing of helping me stay that way.”
Just then, a blaster bolt struck the ground behind Boba Fett, throwing both men to the ground. Taking that as his queue, Han scrambled away, blaster instantly in hand. With a glance toward the neighboring docking bay, he could see Noltaq emerging.
For seconds, no one spoke as the bounty rose to his feet, looking at all three opponents in turn. Each had their weapon trained on him.
“Tell Jabba I’ll deliver his money personally,” Han said.
“If you make it to him alive.”
Touching his left wrist with his right hand, Fett ignited his rocket pack. As he ascended towards the roof of the docking bay, he fired several wild volleys at the ground below. Zhoreen was struck on the second shot and went down instantly. With Noltaq providing cover fire, Han raced to assist.
“Get to your ship!” the lieutenant yelled as the Corellian approached.
Ignoring the order, Han half dragged the wounded man into the nearest empty docking bay. Eventually, all blaster fire ceased. Shortly after, Noltaq appeared in the entrance.
“I think he’s headed for his ship through the back door,” the commander speculated. “We have to move now.”
Staying close to the building, the trio hurried toward the last docking bay and disappeared inside. Moments later, the Falcon launched out of the spaceport and ascended toward open space. No sooner had they cleared the atmosphere than a second craft emerged directly behind them.
“The bounty hunter is in pursuit,” Noltaq announced from the co-pilot’s chair.
“Not for long.” Han raised the Falcon’s shields. “Activate that locator code of yours, we’re going to hyperspace in–”
The cockpit suddenly shifted around them as a direct shot from Slave I struck them somewhere aft.
“Shields are holding,” the commander confirmed with a glance at the tactical panel.
“We need to shake this guy,” Han slammed the intercom button. “Zhoreen, how ya feelin’ back there, buddy?”
From the rec area, the lieutenant replied in a strong voice. “Better than I was. Thanks.”
“Owe me later, can you handle a gun turret?”
“Can you fly this ship?”
Han grinned at the comment. “Good answer. Jump in and see what you can do about our guest.”
“On it.”
“He’s coming in for another pass,” Noltaq looked up at Han. “He’s targeting the engines.”
“What a surprise. I’m shifting power from the forward shields to aft.” Without warning, Han banked the Falcon into a port roll as laser fire passed the viewport.
“Nice move,” the commander observed evenly. She appeared as if her stomach did not necessarily agree with her words.
“Say it with some feeling next time, honey,” Han cracked. “There’s more where that came from.”
As if on queue, the ship suddenly pitched forward throwing both of them into the console.
Catching her breath, the commander glared at him. “I’m waiting.”
“You know, you’re starting to sound like… oh, forget it.” Once again, Han flipped on the intercom. “Zhoreen, what’s going on!?”
“He’s a very skilled pilot,” the man answered. “Not easy to target and I still have no feeling in my right arm.”
“You’re not going to have any feeling anywhere if we don’t lose this crackpot!”
“One more hit like that and aft shields will be gone,” Noltaq informed them.
“And for the good news?”
A momentary flare of bright orange lit up space off the starboard bow.
“Looks like Zhoreen just scored a point.”
“See? There’s always good news.”
Just then, a second explosion rumbled through the Falcon.
“Direct hit,” the intelligence officer reported. “We just lost power to hyperdrive.”
Followed immediately by bad news. “Take over.” Pulling off his headset, Han rose from the pilot’s chair.
“Where are you going?”
“To check on the engines. We’ll keep in touch via comlink.”
With that, Noltaq slid into the pilot’s seat as Han exited the cockpit. “And fly carefully!”
“Yeah, right.”
***
Dusk was rapidly approaching as Steruub’s sun descended behind the Esign River. Trudging out of the water’s slow current, Luke cautiously scaled the rocky incline. Reaching the top of the hill, he ran a short distance before ducking behind Evad’s speeder shop and peering out upon the spaceport. The exterior lights were just now turning on. Even without them, however, one could not fail to notice the alarming number of Imperial officers and stormtroopers patrolling the ground level docking bays. Although Luke could not determine if there was any activity on the small craft platforms high above, he imagined that there were probably an equal number of soldiers assigned there as well.
Suddenly feeling once again that he was being watched, Luke shifted his gaze slightly to his left. Pulling his blaster with lightning speed, he spun to see Evad standing a few meters away, a thick metal pipe held tightly in his grasp.
“Mr. Bedor!” the other man began. “I did not realize it was you, sir. Please don’t shoot!”
Holstering his blaster, Luke stepped closer to the salesman. “Evad, I need to get to my ship as quickly and quietly as possible. Can you help me?”
“Certainly,” Evad declared. “There are ways of getting to places that these fiends will never discover. Follow me.”
He led Luke into the dark service bay through a side door. On the nearest wall, a control panel operated three hydraulic lifts employed for repairing the used vehicles.
“The middle lift opens to a tunnel that leads to the spaceport,” Evad explained as he pressed the button to raise the lift. “Within each of the pillars supporting the upper landing platforms is a turbolift that travels all the way to the top. There, a trap door leads out to the platform itself. Each turbolift is marked with the numerical designation of the landing pad. You should have no trouble finding your way.”
After a quick handshake, Luke descended carefully into the shaft.
“May the Force be with you, sir.” Evad lowered the service lift.
“I’m counting on it.” Luke waved before finally disappearing into the tunnel. Once the lift was completely sealed above him, light strips placed in pairs on the walls and ceiling flickered to life, illuminating the way ahead.
As he started down the corridor at a jog, Luke reached into a pocket on the sleeve of his flightsuit and removed a palm-sized comlink. “Artoo, this is Luke. Are you there?”
Instantly, a series of excited hoots and whistles answered from the tiny speaker.
“I need you to begin preflight checks and get the ship ready for takeoff, but do it quietly. I’m on my way.”
Five meters ahead of him, the tunnel opened to a seven-point intersection, each marked with the number of the landing platform. Spotting the appropriate tunnel, Luke ran to the end and hopped on the turbolift, which began rising the moment he was aboard. It was a slow ride but eventually, Luke was brought to the top of the steel pillar.
Reaching up, he carefully slid the round plate aside in its tracks and poked his head out. Directly in front of him, a stack of crates blocked his view of the rest of the platform, which also meant that no one on the other side could see him either.
Luke pushed himself up and out of the turbolift shaft, closing the plate behind him. Pulling his blaster, he stayed low and peeked through a space between the crates. To his chagrin, the fighter was held fast to the platform by lock cables that hooked into metal rings on the landing pad and, in effect, tied the ship down at the nose and wings. Worse, four armed stormtroopers stood guard on all sides of the vessel.
Luke knew that his first challenge would be to somehow distract them if he had any hope of getting near the craft. As he began pondering a course of action, it dawned on him that he might not need to get himself to the X-Wing but rather, get the X-Wing to him. Addressing R2-D2 through his comlink once more, Luke went about setting his idea in motion.
***
Moments later, R2 began to emit a low-pitched hum which gradually grew to an ear-piercing whine, attracting the attention of the surrounding guards. One by one, they glanced at each other, their body language conveying their hesitation until suddenly, the astromech droid began shrieking and rocking violently in its station.
At that point, two Imperial officers had begun crossing the bridge with yet another squad of stormtroopers. One of the officers began shouting at the guards to stand clear of the vessel should it be preparing to self-destruct.
It was then that Luke noticed the portable fueling tank on the near side of the bridge. Taking aim, he fired several shots, all of which found their mark in the center of the tank, causing a thunderous explosion that resulted in the collapse of half the bridge, effectively making it impossible for the squad to reach the platform.
Forcing himself to block out the ensuing pandemonium, Luke then concentrated on the three lock cables restraining his ship. As he reached out through the Force, each clamp slowly disengaged from its metal ring secured into the surface of the landing pad until all three cables were dangling freely from the fighter’s hull.
“Artoo, lift off now!”
Dashing out from behind the crates, Luke watched as the X-Wing rose from the platform on its repulsorlifts and gracefully glided toward him. Immediately, the four stormtroopers who had busied themselves with the task of extinguishing the flaming fuel tank, turned and charged at the fleeing ship.
Bleeping frantically, R2-D2 opened the cockpit canopy and rotated the vessel so that the port side was facing Luke. With a running start, Luke leaped onto the nose of the fighter and crawled into the cockpit just as the stormtroopers opened fire. Luke squeezed off several shots of his own before the hatch closed.
“Raise shields,” Luke ordered the droid. “I’ll take over flight control now.”
With blaster fire ricocheting off its deflectors, the fighter aimed toward the heavens and blasted off at full speed. “Hang on tight, Artoo. I’m expecting company once we reach orbit.”
Within minutes, Luke’s estimate was confirmed as he maneuvered the X-Wing right under the belly of the Imperial Star Destroyer, Ruthless. Immediately, five TIE fighters dropped into pursuit from the docking bay.
In order to increase his distance from the Star Destroyer, Luke immediately pulled his ship into a steep climb. “Artoo, activate the locator code, and prepare for the jump to lightspeed. I’m going to try and outrun these–”
A glancing shot from one of the attacking fighters jolted the X-Wing. Or not.
Throwing the vessel into a loop, he targeted one of the enemy ships and dispatched it with a salvo. The remaining vessels gathered in formation and continued the chase. As they neared, Luke suddenly dropped his speed and allowed the TIE fighters to pass him. Once ahead of him, they broke off in different directions but not before Luke sent one of them spinning wildly out of control until it eventually exploded.
On the tactical screen, Luke observed the Ruthless moving into an attack position. The three remaining TIE fighters were joined by another ten that had emerged from the Star Destroyer. Veering in the opposite direction, he found himself throwing his vessel into a sharp dive as the largest and most intimidating Imperial vessel he had ever seen suddenly dropped out of hyperspace dead ahead.
***
“Another Moff will be assigned to this region of space.”
Staring through the viewport at the skirmish beyond, Darth Vader spoke to the holographic image of the Ruthless’ captain. “I want that pilot alive. Target his engines only and ensure that he does not make the jump to lightspeed.”
“Of course, my Lo–”
Before he could finish, Captain Brojerden began gagging uncontrollably just as Vader watched the X-Wing escape into hyperspace. As the dark lord turned and walked off the bridge, the image of the officer’s limp form abruptly faded.
A new captain was appointed to the Ruthless.
***
“Zhoreen, where’s Fett’s ship?”
“Coming over us for another pass.” From the intercom in the Falcon’s engine room, the lieutenant responded excitedly. “He’s moving slowly, though. I guess my shot did more damage than I thought.”
“Great,” Han acknowledged. “Just don’t get cocky.”
Tearing off the cover plate on the bulkhead in front of him, Han coughed heavily as steam billowed from the panel behind it. Frantically, he groped for the portable fire extinguisher and emptied its contents into the exposed circuitry.
“Chewie’s going to have a fit.” Peering at the damaged power couplings, he shook his head grimly.
“Captain Solo.” Noltaq’s voice, back to its normal lackluster tone, beckoned from the intercom.
“Yeah?”
“I’ve restored power to aft shields.”
“Glad to hear it.”
“What’s the status of the hyperdrive?”
“We’ll all find out in about ten seconds!”
The engine room suddenly tilted wildly. Before Han could find balance, his head struck the upper edge of the exposed bulkhead. “Noltaq!”
“Sorry.”
Rubbing his forehead, he imagined the woman grinning evilly at his expense. Grabbing a wrench from the newly formed pile of tools scattered about the floor, Han began working on the couplings. After carefully removing the first one, he turned away as sparks leaped from the socket. He exhaled in disgust as he rotated the wrench and examined the burned out unit. Dropping it into the corner, he did the same for the second one.
“Of course, I don’t have a spare,” he grumbled. Then, he shot a glimpse at the panel to his right. Pulling off the cover plate, he stared for a moment at the two, smaller couplings that routed power to the gun turrets. The question was, which coupling powered which turret? Han could never remember.
Taking a chance, he adjusted the wrench and pulled the closest one. Immediately he froze and craned his neck to listen for the intercom. After seconds of silence, he shrugged and inserted the round, metal cylinder into one of the hyperdrive sockets. Han knew it would not be completely adequate, but he hoped it would at least get them back to the Rebel fleet in one piece.
Jamming the wrench into the socket to hold the coupling in place, Han reached over and pressed the intercom. “Noltaq, punch it!”
After a second, the hyperdrive panel hummed to life—and just as quickly went dead. His patience drained, Han punched the panel and was instantly propelled backward as the Falcon made the jump to lightspeed.
Without the help of the intercom, a loud whoop echoed through the entire ship.
***
Watching his quarry vanish into hyperspace, Boba Fett broke off his attack and brought his vessel to a full stop. “Next time, Solo,” he hissed. “If I have to bring you to Jabba packed in a crate.”
Epilogue
Exiting the docking bay of the Rebel transport frigate, Victorious, Han was immediately greeted by a tall, growling mass of brown fur.
“It’s a long story, Chewie,” he began. “Just do us both a favor and stay away from the hyperdrive engines until I can explain.”
“Han!”
From the other end of the docking bay, a familiar face rushed up to them. Han winced as the younger man approached. “What did you do, kid, fly your ship into an ocean?”
Glancing down at his damp flight suit, Luke grinned ruefully. “Not quite. It’s a–”
“Long story,” the two finished in unison.
“There seems to be a lot of them going around,” Han commented.
“How did it go on Ord Mantell?” Luke asked as the group made their way into the main corridor.
“Well…”
“I certainly hope it went well.” Ahead of them, Princess Leia stood with her arms folded. “I see each of you made it back relatively unscathed.”
“You know, your worship,” Han smirked. “I had to admit, I was genuinely surprised when I found out that you personally assigned those two agents to watch my back.”
Leia held out a hand. “It was a measure I considered necessary in order for the Alliance to get what it needed.”
“It that all you were concerned about?”
Behind the Corellian, Luke rolled his eyes and groaned as he leaned tiredly against the bulkhead.
“I’m not sure what you’re talking about,” Leia answered.
Han shook his head. “Of course not. Why did I even bother to ask?” Reaching into his inner vest pocket, he removed the datachip purchased from Zel Kanaan and handed it over to Leia while filling her in on the highlights of the deal.
“Here’s a piece of personal advice,” Han said in conclusion. “One of these days, you might want to concentrate on what you need.”
“And what exactly do I need in your opinion, Captain?”
Han flashed a lopsided grin. “If I have to explain it, then it ain’t worth it.”
Han motioned for Chewbacca to follow him back into the docking bay. “About the hyperdrive,” he began as the longtime partners disappeared around the bend. Shortly thereafter, an angry howl echoed through the corridor.
Shaking their heads in amusement, Luke and Leia started down the corridor.
“Did you find what you were looking for out there?” she asked
Luke looked away for a moment, considering his answer. “I think I found more than that. Without a doubt I know I want to become a Jedi now. I’m beginning to see the sacrifices that others made so I could follow that path and I don’t want to let them down.”
“I hope you find what you are looking for there, too.” Leia pointed to his heart. “Just try and remember not to let yourself down.”
Just then, Han returned to the corridor, this time alone. “Sorry to interrupt but can someone tell me where this fleet is heading?”
“Our search for a new main base of operations is currently taking us to the Hoth system.”
Han’s face immediately fell.
“Is that bad?” Luke inquired, looking from Leia to Han.
“Not if you like frozen food, kid.”
“Apparently, the only planet in the entire system even remotely capable of supporting life is nothing more than a floating chunk of ice,” Leia informed them.
“Sounds cold,” Luke mused.
“Colder than space itself, kid,” Han noted as he headed back toward his ship. “Makes you appreciate carbon freezing.”