Sleight of Hand
by: Kathy

This is an AU in which the path of the Emperor's Hand takes an unexpected twist.

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters. George Lucas does. I am not making any money from these characters. George Lucas is.

Rating: For this chapter, PG

Chapter One

Small feet silently padded across a cold stone floor, a tattered and obviously well-loved blankie trailing in their wake. She knew she wasn't supposed to be out of bed this late, but she had not been able to fall back asleep after waking a little while ago. Something was not right. Her child's mind had no idea what that something was, but it gave her an uneasy feeling. And whenever she felt bad, she knew she needed to be with Momma.

She poked her head around the corner of her momma's bedroom door and was reassured to see the blanket-covered form in the bed. She moved forward quickly and stood by the side of the bed her momma was facing. She smiled, feeling even better as she looked at Momma's sleeping face. She was the most beautiful woman in the galaxy in her small daughter's eyes.

"Momma?" She remembered to whisper so as not to startle her mother, like she had the last time she couldn't sleep.

"Hmmm. Sweetie? What's wrong? Couldn't sleep?"

Her momma smiled softly as a little head solemnly shook back and forth. She gave a small sigh and lifted the covers, inviting her darling to snuggle next to her. An impish grin lit the tiny face before she quickly scrambled up to lay curled tightly against Momma. She wriggled in contentment for a few moments before settling down and closing her eyes.

She had just begun to drift into that peaceful state right before deeper sleep when the door to Momma's room slammed open and harsh light flooded her consciousness.

"My Lady! Troopers, at the front gate!"

Momma jerked up, instantly awake and her daughter could feel the dread and fear that emanated from her.

"What?! But how-"

"There is no time to wonder how, my Lady. We must move quickly."

"Yes, of course, you're right, Devin."

Once the shock had worn off, Momma moved quickly, taking charge of the situation.
"Devin, take her to the tunnels. I'll meet you there once I've sent the message."

"But, my Lady--"

"As you pointed out, we have little time. Don't waste it arguing with me."

Devin moved forward and took the little girl in his arms, making sure that she had blankie with her. He turned to leave and his eyes met those of his mistress. He took comfort in the strength he saw there. They would be all right...they had to be all right. They nodded to each other and then he turned and was flying down the hallway towards the tunnels and escape. He comforted his bundle as she began to cry for her mother.

"Hush, little one, your mother will be along soon." He briefly wondered if he was trying to convince her or himself.

She caught one last glimpse of her daughter's eyes over Devin's shoulder and silently sent the little girl all her love. She turned quickly towards her own task. The Jedi needed to know what had happened. Dimly, she could hear the crashing sound of glass breaking as she ran to the COMM room. She knew that she was running out of time and for the first time the thought entered her mind that she might not make it through this. Her heart broke at the thought of never seeing her precious daughter again, but she gathered courage from the fact that her baby was safely away with Devin.

She had just activated the COMM unit when she heard them behind her. No, she thought desperately, how had they found her so quickly? She whirled to face the demons. There were three of them standing there, pointing an impossibly huge and nasty-looking weapon at her. Such a big thing for such a small woman, she thought derisively to herself. Trust that bastard to overkill the situation.

"It's over. Come quietly and you won't be harmed."

"Neither of us believe that, Lieutenant." Her voice was cold and it didn't waver, a fact that made her proud. At least Devin had made it to safety, she thought, as they moved forward to take her. When the blow came that ended her life, she was thinking of her daughter.

**************************************************************************

Devin ran as swiftly as he could safely manage through the dimly lit stone tunnel that led to the ship they kept readied for just this occasion. They had hoped to never have to use it, but it seemed fate, or the evil that was Palpatine, had caught up with them. He was breathing a little heavily as he rounded the last corner and the ship came into view. He risked one glance behind him and hoped she was coming soon.
He set his burden, still crying softly, down beside him as he began to enter the codes to open the hatch. Almost absent-mindedly, he tried to soothe the whimpering child.

"She's right behind us. She'll be here any moment."

"Pwomise?"

He turned his head to smile at her. "I promise."

"I am afraid you will be unable to keep that promise, traitor."

Fear and anger surged through Devin as he turned to face the sneering voice. "Jonah. I think the term traitor could more appropriately be applied to you, couldn't it? How could you do this? She trusted you--"

"All the more evidence of how stupid she really was."

Devin's heart seemed to stop beating at that moment. "Was?", he whispered hoarsely.
Jonah smiled meanly at Devin's expression. "Oh, yes, she's already been taken care of."

Devin felt a rage like none he had ever known building up inside him. There was no need to wonder anymore how the troopers had found them. Palpatine's spy had been with them all along...or maybe they'd gotten to him later. It didn't matter anymore. Nothing mattered now that she was gone. With a low growl of fury, he threw himself towards the one who had betrayed them all.

The sneer on Jonah's face never changed and he didn't even bother to try and move away from Devin's charge. The fool had been so intent on him that he hadn't noticed the two troopers, fully armed, standing off to the side. Devin never got within arm's reach before laser blasts nearly ripped his body apart. There was a moment of stunned silence from the little girl as she watched her protector taken down, before she let loose with a scream of pure terror. Both of the troopers immediately turned their weapons toward her.

"No!!" They paused as Jonah yelled. "Set to stun. He wants her alive."

*********************************************************************

When she awoke, she had no idea where she was. She whimpered as she looked around the cold room. It was stark black and felt cold in emotion as well as in temperature. She looked around for her blankie and whimpered again when she couldn't find it. "Momma!", she cried out desperately. "Devin!"

A low, cackling laugh came from behind her and she turned, her little face frozen with fear. The man had been standing in the shadows at the other end of the room, but now he moved slowly forward. He was completely covered in a long black cloak, his face hidden beneath the cowl as he moved towards her. She wanted to run, but something seemed to be holding her in place. When he was within a meter of her, he stopped and she knew without being able to see his face, that he was watching her, studying her.

"Stand up." She could tell it was a command. Something of her mother's spirit came to her then and she set her jaw stubbornly, shaking her head in refusal. He raised his head and she could feel his anger as he glared at her. What small bit of courage that resistance had fostered, withered when she saw his eyes. They were a frightening yellowish color and they almost seemed alive with hatred. She scrambled to her feet.

"Ah, little one. You learn quickly." Another chuckle that seemed to echo down her spine and made her shiver in fear.

He reached a hand out and put a finger under her chin, raising her head so that she looked him in the eyes. She flinched at the feel of that cold, gnarled hand on her skin.

"And so pretty. It is unfortunate that you are a girl. My original plan will have to be altered a bit." She didn't think he wanted any reply, so she watched him warily, remaining quiet.

"Quite strong in the Force, as well. That will suit my plans nicely. You will be...." He paused, seeming to consider his options. "An assassin. You will be like my own Hand, delivering my judgments and carrying out my sentences."

He laughed outright this time and she couldn't help the shudder that passed through her small body. She knew what the Force was. Momma had explained it to her, even while telling her that she must never use it. She hadn't understood that at the time. But now she thought she did. This man had taken her, had killed Momma and Devin because of the Force. She didn't understand how she knew this, but she felt it to be the truth.

"What is your name, little one?"

That stubbornness raised its head again and she gave him her own little glare, refusing to answer as she dropped her gaze back to the floor. His hand took hold of her chin roughly and forced her to meet his stare once again.

"Don't want to tell me? No matter. There are other ways. First, a shield. We don't want your father interfering in our fun, now do we?"

She gasped as she felt what seemed to be a wet blanket smothering her senses, even though there was nothing actually touching her. Then she cried out in fear as she felt him inside her head. It was the worst thing she'd ever felt in her young life. It was as though she could feel his fingers clawing through her mind, searching out her every secret. Instinctively, she tried to block him, but he waved her attempts aside as though swatting away an annoying insect.

After a moment that had seemed to last an eternity, he released her chin and she crumpled to the floor, strangely feeling like she needed to take a bath. That cackling laughter washed over her again and she felt tears rolling down her face.

"Ours will be a long and fruitful relationship, my little Leia."

********************************************************

Chapter Two

Obi-Wan Kenobi was lost in his own thoughts as he silently guided his small ship through hyperspace toward what he hoped would be a safe destination for the package he was carrying. He glanced over at that "package" and a small smile touched his lips at the sight of Luke, sound asleep in the co-pilot's seat. The tow-headed boy was only three standard years old and so he was able to fit curled up in the seat of the large chair. Obi-Wan reached a hand over and gently stroked the boy's hair, sighing as he did so.
It had been a difficult decision for Amidala to separate the twins--he knew that. He felt guilty that brother and sister would have to be apart while they grew to adulthood. But he knew, in his heart, that it had been the right thing to do, simply because it was too dangerous for them to be together any longer. The older the twins got, the stronger they became in the Force. And the Jedi could not risk the two of them being found.

He remembered the conversation with Amidala with a twinge of pain.

"It has to be done, Ami, surely you can understand this."

"I understand nothing of what has happened in my life these last few years, Obi-Wan. They are my only comfort in an otherwise painful existence. Do not ask this of me. I cannot!"

Obi-Wan sighed and closed his eyes as he tried to think of a way to make her see. Unfortunately, he understood her pain, for he felt it as well. When he had finally realized that it was too late for Anakin, that there was no saving him, it had been like someone stabbed him in the heart with his own lightsaber. He had helped Amidala to escape, to get away from the monster her husband had become and the demon who controlled him, but now he knew that having escaped wasn't enough. They were searching for her and searching hard if the reports were true. Had they known she was pregnant when she left? Obi-Wan prayed that they had not and still did not know.

He suddenly felt a shimmer in the Force and turned around to look at the children in surprise. Two little heads were close together, giggling over the game they played as they lay in the floor at Obi-Wan and Amidala's feet. He watched in astonishment as Luke levitated a block towards Leia's head. It wobbled a little and Leia's hand rose and seemed to help him until the block nestled on the crown of her hair. They both collapsed into laughter as the block fell to the ground.

Amidala watched them as well, an unreadable expression on her face. She turned back to look at Obi-Wan at the same moment he turned his gaze towards her.

"Do you see? I felt that! Leia is strong in the Force, Luke stronger still. Together, the two of them are like a beacon that cannot be ignored. And it's only going to get worse as they grow older. If Vader--"
"Do not say that name to me! I will not hear that name! I do not know Vader... he is Anakin. He has only forgotten."

She broke off with a cry and covered her face with her hands. She lowered them as she felt two small heads touch her knees. Luke and Leia sat looking up her, each of them hugging one of her legs.
"It'll be okay, Momma." Leia spoke first and Luke chimed in a heartbeat later. "Don't cry, Momma."
Amidala bit back a sob as she caressed each of their faces. She looked at them through her tears. So beautiful were her children, she thought to herself. And so vulnerable. She wished she could take the Force away from them, that they wouldn't have to bear this burden. She took a deep breath and smiled to reassure them.

"Luke, Leia, why don't you go play in your room for a bit, while Momma and Obi-Wan talk? I'll call you for dinner when it's time."

They both chirped "Yes ma'am" and after giving her kisses, raced each other to the room they shared. She listened to their peals of laughter for a moment with a pang of regret. She knew what Obi-Wan was saying was true, but she didn't want to face it. She had noticed in the last six months little things the twins did that were proof that their Force abilities were beginning to emerge and getting stronger quickly. Just two days before Obi-Wan had arrived, she had caught Luke levitating the cookie jar down from the top shelf while Leia looked on. And today, Leia had looked at her and said "Unca Obi's coming" right before the COMM had beeped with a message from him.

"Where would you take him?" Her voice was dull with pain and Obi-Wan winced when he heard it.
"I can't let you know."

She looked up at him and anger flashed in her eyes. For a moment, he saw the young queen that Anakin had fallen in love with what seemed like a lifetime ago.

"What!? You would take my child from me and I cannot even know where he will be, what his life will be like? Who will raise him? How dare you, Obi-Wan?"

"Amidala, I wish that I could spare you this pain, believe me, I wish that I could spare us all this pain, but there is no other way! If they were to find you, you could not keep Luke's location from them and he may be the only hope we have of stopping them someday."

"He is my son, not a contingency plan." Her tone was cold and cutting and Obi-Wan couldn't help flinching. "And what of Leia? How can you guarantee her safety?"

"Once the two of them are separated, their Force presence will be diminished considerably. The two of you should be safe here on Varonat. You're far enough away from the core that they should not be able to find you."

She didn't reply as she turned to look at the door her children had gone through. She could hear them playing, laughing and teasing one another. Her darlings. They were the only thing that had kept her sane after Anakin's betrayal... and now, to have to give one of them away, possibly never to see him again? She didn't think she could bear it. And how would they bear it? The two of them were so close, if they weren't different sexes, one would think they were identical twins instead of fraternal. They never fought and sometimes she swore they were communicating silently, although Obi-Wan had told her they were a bit young for that, even given their strength in the Force.

"Give me one more day." Her voice was barely a whisper and she hated that it sounded as though she were begging, but in a sense, she supposed she was.

Obi-Wan hesitated. They really needed to move as quickly as possible, but he couldn't deny her this. She had already lost so much and was now about to give up something so precious. He nodded and tried not to let his own eyes tear up as she cried.

The parting moment had not been easy on any of them and the children had reacted even worse than Amidala had feared. They had screamed and cried and begged her to let Luke stay. They simply could not understand why this awful thing had to be done. Finally, in desperation, Obi-Wan had told them that they would be able to visit with one another and they had calmed down, though they still sniffled pathetically. Amidala had speared him with a fierce glare for what she knew to be a blatant lie, but thankfully she hadn't called him on it.

He gave a small sigh as he tried to steer his thoughts away from the painful situation they had found themselves in. He knew that he could change nothing; so dwelling on it was only hurtful. He almost couldn't help himself, though. He could still see the shock, the anger on Anakin's face as he'd started to fall backwards towards what Obi-Wan had thought was his death, and he remembered screaming in panic and denial as Anakin had slipped from his grasp. He saw two tiny children crying out their misery at having to be parted because of events beyond their understanding and control. He could almost feel Amidala's agony as she kissed her son good-bye.

A sharp cry of terror suddenly reverberated through the small cabin and Obi-Wan jerked in surprise. Luke had awakened and was sitting up in the co-pilot's chair, his small hands gripping the armrests tightly and he was screaming as though he'd just seen a krayt dragon. Obi-Wan reached over to grab him, but Luke fought against him, still screaming for all he was worth. He finally succeeded in getting the boy to let go of the chair, but it was like trying to hold onto a struggling bantha cub.

"Luke! What is the matter? Did you dream--"

"Leia! Leia! Can't feel Leia!"

"What do you mean? Calm down, Luke and talk to me!"

Luke stopped struggling against Obi-Wan, and he began to speak in broken sobs. "Leia. Where she stays, in my head, she's gone and I can't find her!"

Obi-Wan was astonished. Apparently the bond between the two of them was even stronger than he had imagined. He felt a tremor of apprehension as he realized what Luke's words implied. He raised a hand to Luke's temple and touched it, saying, "Sleep." in a soft voice. Luke's body immediately went limp and his eyes fluttered closed.

Obi-Wan gently probed the boy's mind, trying to see what had caused his sudden distress. He saw the bond with Leia and it was indeed stronger and deeper than he would have thought possible. He gasped in shock when he saw that it had been abruptly severed, obviously from Leia's end. His body sagged in despair as he knew that this could only mean that Leia was dead, no doubt Amidala along with her. He felt the wetness on his cheeks and he cursed Palpatine and Vader in a very un-Jedi-like manner. He cupped one hand along Luke's cheek and stroked his finger across the child's brow.

"Oh, Luke, I am so sorry. Your life was going to be so difficult anyway, and now never to see your mother or your twin again..." His voice was a harsh whisper and it trailed off as a thought occurred to him. It danced dangerously close to the Dark Side, what he was considering, but it was true. Luke's life would be hard and unyielding, fraught with danger and probably a lot of pain. If he could take away this one part, wouldn't that be justified?

Ignoring what he was sure was Yoda's admonishing voice in his head, Obi-Wan touched his hand to Luke's temple once more. This time, he searched out every memory of Luke's bond with his sister, every moment they had shared together and pushed, forcing them to the deepest reaches of Luke's mind, where he would not be able to access them by himself. He didn't want to erase them completely. Maybe someday, after all this was over, he would be able help the boy remember his twin and the bond they had shared.

Obi-Wan sighed again as he looked at Luke's now peacefully sleeping face. "Someday this will be behind you, Luke. You will be a strong Jedi, hopefully the salvation of us all."

******************************************************

Chapter Three

TWENTY YEARS LATER

The ice-cold winds of the barren planet Hoth blew cruelly through the opened shield doors, catching the red-gold hair of the young woman pacing back and forth and splaying it across her face. In frustration, she gathered it up in her hands and pulled a rubber band out of her pocket, securing it haphazardly in a ponytail at the nape of her neck. She continued her pacing, staring anxiously out the doors towards the wasteland that this blasted planet was. Not that she could see anything beyond the whiteness, but she knew that the two of them were out there in it somewhere and she couldn't make herself leave this spot until she knew that they were safe.

And they had to be safe-- they simply had to be. She did not want to stop and think about what she would do if anything happened to either of them. But somehow, her thoughts kept straying to the ice-blue eyes of the younger man. Luke Skywalker. A soft smile formed on her lips at just the thought of him. Those eyes had begun to show up in her dreams lately and she didn't want to think about what that meant.

Or perhaps she did. Mara Jade sighed as she pondered her feelings for Luke. Ever since the day he and Han had rescued her from the Death Star, there had been a bond between the three of them. Well, and Chewbacca too, of course. She looked over at the huge wookiee and realized he was as worried as she was and that made her even more frightened.

Three years now, they had all been together. Although they had been separated often during that course of time, they had always been lucky enough to be joyfully reunited. Missions had sometimes kept them apart for months, but deep inside, each had known that they would see one another again. She had been on a mission when she first met the two of them. Granted, it had gone terribly wrong. She had been intercepted en route to her rendezvous with the operative who was to pick up the Death Star plans and she ended up a prisoner on the very battle station they were trying so hard to destroy. She smiled as she remembered their rescue. To this day, she couldn't decide if they'd been incredibly brave or incredibly stupid.

She caught herself nervously chewing on her thumbnail and, with a muttered curse, pulled her hand away from her mouth. Her mother would never forgive her if she saw Mara biting her nails. It was a bad habit that she had never been able to completely break her daughter of. The thought of her mother caused Mara's already morose mood to dip even further. She tried not to think of her mother too often, but when she did, she wanted to remember earlier, happier times. She did not want to imagine, as she too often did, what her mother's last moments must have been like, knowing that the Death Star was in the atmosphere of Alderaan. They had all heard the rumors for months and her mother must have known what was about to happen.

Mara felt a tear slide down her cheek. Had she panicked? Had she cried out in terror? Knowing her mother, Mara felt that she had more likely faced her death as bravely as she'd faced her life. Riann Jade had been an extraordinary woman and Mara had wished for nothing other than to be just like her when she grew up. Riann had been the daughter of one of Alderaan's wealthiest merchants and had stunned everyone when she had taken over her father's company at his unexpected death from a heart attack. She had only been twenty-two standard years old and her father's cronies had scoffed at the idea of a child running her father's extensive business ventures. But she had shown them all and had actually increased her family's holdings. The fact that she was a single mother of a two-year-old daughter had only made it all the more incredible.

She gave a small sniffle as she tried to hold back her tears. She didn't want the other pilots to see her crying. She smiled somewhat ruefully as she considered that her own situation wasn't unlike her mother's in some ways. She was one of only three female pilots in the Alliance and the only fighter pilot. She had had to prove herself to the men numerous times and she had finally earned their grudging respect. She certainly didn't want to ruin it now by letting them catch her blubbering like a little girl.

"Mara, I just heard. Have they gotten any news?"

She turned and smiled as she saw Wedge Antilles walking towards her. The smile quickly disappeared as she answered his question.

"No, nothing since Han tore out of here on a taun-taun to look for him."

They stood together for a few moments, not speaking, simply taking comfort in each other's presence. Wedge was the other member of their tight-knit little group. The four of them, Luke, Han, Mara and Wedge, had been the only pilots to return from the Death Star battle and that had made them all very close. She knew Wedge would have been out there with Han, looking for Luke, as indeed she herself would have been, if there were any more taun-tauns to go around. Unfortunately, there simply weren't any of the animals that weren't already exhausted from the perimeter patrols they had all been occupied with today.

"Major, all patrols are now in, except for Solo and Skywalker."

Wedge and Mara turned to look at the young lieutenant who had delivered this message to Major Derlin. He averted his eyes from their gaze, somehow ashamed that he was having to be the bearer of such bad news. Major Derlin caught Mara's eye and spoke gently but firmly.

"Commander Jade, you know we must close the shield doors. The temperature is dropping rapidly and it's simply too dangerous to wait any longer."

She nodded silently and dropped her gaze to the ground. Wedge's arm stole around her shoulders and gave her a gentle squeeze. She leaned into him gratefully as the huge shield doors began to rumble and move. Chewbacca gave a mournful howl and rested his furry head against one of the ceiling support beams. Mara didn't even try to stop her quiet tears this time.

******************************************

Lord Darth Vader stood on the bridge of the Super Star Destroyer Executor and watched silently as TIE squadrons ran drills in and around the giant Imperial ship. They looked a little sloppy to him--perhaps he needed to take a few runs with them himself. A cruel half-smile crossed his face at what he knew the reaction to that instance would be from the pilots. The smile fell away as his thoughts turned to young Skywalker, but then almost everything made him think of the boy these days.

If he was honest with himself, which wasn't always an easy thing, he knew that he was borderline obsessed with finding his son. He could still recall the intense emotion that had welled up inside him when he had first learned the name of the pilot who had destroyed the Emperor's pet project. He could recall it, but he had a more difficult time putting a name to it: shock, anger, a strange sense of loss which he had immediately quashed. It had taken them nearly two years to finally track down the boy's identity, so he had known that he had a son for just over a year. And he had spent that entire time trying to find the boy with an urgency that he didn't particularly want to examine too closely.

Vader had not dared to visualize the traitorous thoughts that had run through his mind, at least not completely. He sometimes could not contain the image of himself sitting on his Master's throne, his heir standing close beside him, the two of them awash in so much power and glory that it almost made him dizzy. Vader was very careful not to let his Master know of these ambitions as he well understood what the price for such a betrayal would be. He turned his head slightly as a conversation nearby caught his attention.

"I think we have something, sir."

That was Captain Piett speaking to Admiral Ozzel about one of the probe droids they had sent throughout the galaxy to search for the rebels. Vader listened to the exchange with interest.
"What is it, Captain?"

"The Hoth system, sir. The droid picked up definite signs of life forms there. It's been our best lead so far."

"I don't want leads, Captain, I want proof. There are dozens of systems that must be searched."
"But the Hoth system is supposed to be devoid of any life, sir--"

"You found something?" Vader decided to interrupt the useless conversation. Ozzel was a self-important fool and, although he didn't know it, was almost to the Sith Lord's saturation point with his idiocy.
Captain Piett repeated his findings, somehow managing not to stammer too much in the awe-inspiring presence of the armored giant. Vader didn't reply for a long moment, almost seemed to be lost in thought, and the two officers stood there uncertainly.

"That's it."

Ozzel, and even Piett, who was thinking along the same lines, were taken aback at the surety of the statement. Ozzel found his voice first and naturally protested. Really, Vader was almost ready to choke him this very minute, but he knew the man would make another blunder before too long and there was plenty of time for that later.

"My Lord, there are so many uncharted settlements. It could be smugglers or--"

"That is the system. The rebels are there and Skywalker is with them. Set course for the Hoth system, Admiral." His tone brooked no more discussion and he turned to another officer standing nearby. "General Veers, prepare your men."

"My Lord Vader." Another, lower-ranking officer nervously sought the Dark Lord's attention and Vader turned towards him, the man having no idea how he saved his own life for interrupting the sith with his next words. "The Emperor commands you to make contact with him, My Lord."

Vader gave no reply as he turned and stalked silently back to his private quarters, leaving his men to do his bidding. Soon, he promised himself, soon he would have the boy in his grasp.
He paused for just a brief moment after the door to his private chambers had swished shut. He needed to calm the heightened senses that the decision about the Hoth system had raised in his mind. It would not do for his Master to realize exactly how anxious he was to find the boy.

He moved forward to the slightly elevated circle in the center of the room and dropped to one knee. He silently called to his Master. The swiftness with which the Emperor answered made Vader aware that his Master was slightly anxious as well. He was glad for the mask he wore that hid his satisfied smirk.
"My Apprentice, I sense that you have news in the search for young Skywalker."

"Yes, my Master. I believe he and the other rebels are located in the Hoth system. We are currently moving the fleet in that direction."

There was quite a long pause as the Emperor pondered the information his servant had given him. It was long enough that were Vader still able to actually sweat, he would have at that moment.

"I wonder if your feelings in this matter are entirely clear, Lord Vader. You understand that the boy must not be allowed to become a Jedi. He must be destroyed."

Well, that would not fit in with Vader's plans at all. He thought furiously for a way to keep the Emperor from ordering his son's death. "Master, if he could be turned..."

Vader didn't finish the thought. Instead, he let the despot draw his own conclusions and hoped that he would go the way that Vader needed him to.

"Yes. He could make a powerful ally. Can it be done?"

"He will join us or die, my Master." Fool, Vader nearly gloated to himself, your time is almost at an end.
"I will be expecting to meet young Skywalker soon then, my Apprentice. Do not fail me."

Palpatine watched as the image of Darth Vader flickered and then disappeared. Idiot! Did his servant really believe him to be that oblivious? He had not engineered the most audacious grab for power in the history of the known universe by being stupid and unaware of when someone was plotting behind his back.

He laughed to himself as he considered Lord Vader's pitiful plan...he knew the traitor intended to use his son against his Master. What poor Vader didn't realize was that Palpatine's own plans were years in the making. He thought of Vader's pathetic wife, Amidala. Oh, he had known she was with child before she had gone into hiding and, indeed, she had never really been in hiding. He had known of her whereabouts the entire three years she had spent with the twins.

He had simply waited until the children were old enough to be useful to him before taking them from her. He scowled as he once again cursed that interfering Obi-Wan Kenobi. That meddler had somehow managed to get the boy spirited away just before Palpatine's agents were to have taken the children. He had not counted on having to look for the whelp for nearly twenty years! Still, he was nothing if not adaptable. It may have delayed things a bit, but he still intended to have the son take the father's place. And it would happen. The boy's own sister would see to that.

Another satisfied smile crossed his face at the thought of his Hand. He silently congratulated himself--that had been a stroke of genius. Naturally, he had been disappointed when his men had brought him the girl without the boy, as she was nowhere near as strong in the Force as her sibling was, but he thought he had made the best of the situation. Once he had wiped Leia's pliable little mind of all memories of her brother and mother, he had begun her training almost immediately.

With no memory of a happy family to cling to, her training had progressed very well and very quickly. By the time she was fourteen, he was already sending her out on missions and she had yet to fail him. Vader had even overseen a few of her assignments and this amused Palpatine to no end...the fact that his Apprentice was now searching so diligently for his son and he had no idea his daughter had been right under his nose for years. In fact, the two really didn't care for each other very much, as they were constantly fighting for superiority in Palpatine's favor.

Oh, yes, he knew all of Vader's little plans and he knew exactly how to deal with them. That was why he had sent his Hand to infiltrate the rebels and bring the younger Skywalker straight to him. And she had not failed him yet.

******************************************************

Chapter Four

Mara threw an "Excuse me!" over her shoulder to the poor tech she had just knocked to the floor in her headlong race towards the hangar, but she didn't stop. Darth Vader himself would have been blown aside by her haste as she rushed to assure herself that the message she had just received was, in fact, true.

The snow-speeder had just landed and the hatch was just opening as she turned the last corner. An arm suddenly wrapped about her waist, abruptly halting her and preventing her from getting any closer. She turned to Wedge with a fierce glare and was about to rip his arm off both her body and his own when he spoke.

"Easy, Mara, you need to give them room to work. Luke is injured."

She paled and the glare gave way to panic as she asked, "What happened?"

"They don't know for sure, but he must've run into some kind of animal. It mauled him pretty badly."

"Is he--" She couldn't even finish the sentence as she felt her heart seem to seize.

"He's still alive. They'll know more once they get him to the medbay."

Wedge spoke softly as he could see how devastated Mara obviously was. That was interesting. For as long as he'd known the two of them, Mara and Luke had danced around each other, both obviously attracted, but neither willing to take that first step. More accurately, Mara wasn't willing to take that step. She was hesitant about getting involved with someone in the middle of a war, or at least that was what Wedge always figured. He and Han had a running bet on whether Mara would finally give in or whether Luke would finally force the issue. As Wedge's bet lay on Mara, he hoped it was the former.

His musings were interrupted by Mara's gasp and he looked up to see the medical techs lifting Luke's limp body out of the speeder. He cursed as he saw the blood crusted on his friend's face and noted how pale he was, his lips seeming to be almost blue with cold. The techs carefully laid their burden on an anti-grav stretcher and moved quickly towards the medbay. Mara and Wedge followed, catching up with Han in the corridor.

"Han, what happened to him?"

"He ran into somethin' pretty nasty and I think it tried to make him lunch." Han sighed and they could tell that he was exhausted.

"Maybe we should get the med droid to check you out, too." Mara said this with a smile because she knew what his answer would be.

"The day this Corellian needs to be checked out just 'cause of a little dip in the temp is the day this Corellian kisses Palpy's wrinkled, white ass."

Mara and Wedge couldn't help laughing at the outrageous statement of their friend and it also made them less apprehensive about Luke. If Han could joke, then Luke's condition couldn't be too critical.

***********************************************

Han, Mara, and Wedge walked swiftly behind the stretcher carrying their companion towards the medbay. In their distress, they never noticed the pair of eyes that watched them intently. Arica Alie, as she was known to these people, let a cold smile play at the corners of her mouth. So sentimental, these rebels. If a member of her team was stupid enough to let himself get lost in a huge blizzard, she would have left him to rot, and said good riddance to an obviously incompetent comrade.

Even as this thought ran through her mind, something tingled at the back of her consciousness, a fleeting dread at the idea of Skywalker dying. But it was so quickly gone that she didn't have time to focus on it and it was swiftly forgotten. She made her way towards the medbay, at a much slower pace than the ones she was following. She wanted to be there when Skywalker woke up.

This assignment from her Master had so far proven to be quite more difficult than she had at first anticipated. Of course, this was the first time he'd wanted her to bring him a live prisoner instead of proof of an execution. Still, she wouldn't have imagined that the task would be so frustrating, especially for someone with her skills. The Emperor wanted Skywalker alive and relatively unharmed. Why, she didn't know, but then that was not Arica's business. Her business was to fulfill her Master's command. Normally, she would use her body and her looks to get to Skywalker. For some reason, though, she had felt an immediate distaste for that idea. And she had observed him with the redhead, so it might not have worked anyway.

That was the real problem. The blasted redhead, that infuriating smuggler and the annoying pilot. Skywalker was always with one or more of them! She had been trying for three weeks now to get the bastard alone and had been unsuccessful thus far. She wouldn't be surprised if one of them went to the 'fresher with him! She had done a little discreet questioning of the other rebels and had surmised that the three had been like that ever since Skywalker had fired the shot that destroyed the Death Star.
Apparently, they felt he needed protection from unscrupulous people that may want to take advantage of him. And from what she'd observed so far, the boy needed a keeper. He was reckless, impulsive, and occasionally downright careless with his own personal safety. Hence, Solo having to go and pull his butt out of a blizzard.

She had managed to speak with Skywalker several times and he was nice enough, a bit naïve, but friendly. Actually, she'd caught him looking at her a few times with an unusual expression on his face. Not a sexually interested look, more somehow...confused. It was as if he wanted to ask her something, but didn't know how, or even what the question was.

With a growl of frustration, she cleared her mind of such inane thoughts. Her Master hadn't exactly given her a timetable on this assignment, but she knew he would be getting impatient if she didn't deliver his prize soon. She focused her thoughts and moved a little quicker towards the medbay.

She paused in mid-stride as she felt the tiny niggling in the back of her skull that let her know her Master was about to make contact with her. Abruptly, she turned and headed for the hangar where her ship, the Windrider, was so that she could give him her full concentration. Once she was seated in the hold of her ship, she relaxed her mind and waited for him to speak to her.

*My Hand. Have you located the boy?* He rarely wasted time in getting to the point of his communication.

*Yes, Master.*

*Shall I be expecting you soon, then?* She could detect an edge of impatience in his voice.

*I...have experienced some unexpected delays, but I swear it will not be much longer. Master, I can give you information about the rebel's hidden base--*

*I am not interested in that pitiful rebellion, Hand. They only exist because I have allowed them to thus far, but that won't last much longer. I only want you to concern yourself with the boy.*

*Yes, Master.* she replied, properly chastened.

*I expect results, my dear, and my patience is growing thin.*

*I understand, Master, and I will bring him to you.*

*See that you do.* He cut the contact so suddenly that she gasped. It always left her with a bit of a headache when he did that. With a low sound of frustration, she stood and once more headed towards the medbay and her ultimate goal.

***************************************

"So what happened out there, Han?"

Han pulled his gaze away from Luke floating lifelessly in the bacta tank and looked at Mara before he answered her question. He heaved a deep sigh, feeling the weariness straight to his bones no matter how much he protested to her and Wedge that he was fine.

"I'm thinkin' it was one of those Wampa things. Pretty nasty creatures, obviously. By the time I found him, his face already looked like that and he was near frozen. The kid was delirious, too. Muttering somethin' about dagobar and yodel. And I think I heard that old hermit's name a coupla times."

Mara shuddered and they all turned to watch Luke again. He was moving about in the bacta fluid now. That eased Han's mind somewhat. Luke hadn't been moving very much at all since Han had found him. In fact, when he'd first seen Luke lying there, facedown in the snow, Han had feared that he was dead. The thought sent such a paralyzing pain into his heart that, for a moment, he couldn't even bring himself to go to Luke's side and check, because he'd just known his best friend was gone.

Luke had managed to get himself into some tight spots before, but this was the first time Han actually had the thought that the kid might die and it had scared the smuggler senseless. Han felt a somewhat rueful smile cross his face as he pondered where he'd been only three or four years ago and how his life had changed almost before he realized what was happening.

He knew he owed that change to the kid who was immersed in the bacta tank now. Luke Skywalker was an extraordinary person and he had an extraordinary effect on nearly everyone around him. He supposed that was why he had taken it upon himself to watch over the kid. There certainly was no other explanation for it.

Han, Mara, Wedge, and Luke. The other rebels called them the four musketeers. Han knew, and he was pretty sure Mara and Wedge did, too, that Luke was the one who held the four of them together. Luke himself was undoubtedly completely clueless to this fact. There was definitely a reason Han only called Luke "kid" when he, Mara, and Wedge were all around the same age. Luke had to be the most innocent person any of them had ever met.

Han glanced at Mara's pale, set face as she watched Luke and almost grinned despite the grimness of the situation. Mara would have everyone around her believe that she was tough as nails. While Han had no doubt that she could definitely handle herself, he had a feeling that Luke was getting through that hard exterior she liked to show. He caught Wedge's eye over Mara's head.

Wedge smirked and pointed to Han, then to himself, and then he rubbed his thumb quickly across his first two fingers, as he silently mouthed the words "You are gonna owe me." Han shot him an obscene gesture behind Mara's back. A flash of movement from the doorway snagged his attention and he looked over to see the new recruit--what was her name...Arica, he remembered--hovering there.
"Arica." She jerked her gaze to him as Han said her name. "Did you need something?"
Three pair of suspicious eyes were suddenly aimed in her direction and she seemed to flinch a little, or so Han imagined.

"I, ahh, just wanted to see how Commander Skywalker was doing."

"He'll be fine." Mara said and Hoth itself couldn't have been any colder than the tone she used. Han knew that she didn't trust Arica, but this sounded a little more like jealousy to him. He gave Antilles another subtle rude gesture at the smug smile on the pilot's face.

Han was intrigued by Arica himself, but he was also a little wary of her, as well. There was no denying that she was a beautiful woman and Han had always had a weakness for petite brunettes. But there was an undeniable air of danger around her, too, and Han wondered if he was the only one who felt it. Luke certainly didn't and, in fact, he'd noticed the kid seemed almost fascinated by her sometimes.

"Yeah, he got a little chewed up by one of the Wampa creatures, we think, but Two-OneBee says he'll be fine once he gets out of the bacta." Han ignored the incensed glare that Mara sent him at giving out what she thought was way too much information to a relative stranger.

"Okay. Do you think he might be up to receiving visitors after a while?"

Oh, she's really pushing it with a certain redhead, Han thought to himself while trying to contain a snicker. Before Mara could answer, Han said nonchalantly, "I don't see why not." If there was one thing he loved more than picking on Luke, it was picking on Mara. They both got so mad-- it was funny.

"Excuse me, Captain Solo. I thought I should inform you that Commander Skywalker is ready to come out of the bacta tank. If all of you would please wait outside while the procedure is being performed." Two-OneBee's mechanical voice interrupted them and Arica and any trust issues were immediately forgotten by the three friends.

The droid waited until they had left the room and then shut the door and pulled the blinds on the observation window closed. Mara started to voice a protest, but Han cut her off.
"Jade, you know they've got to clean all the bacta fluid off him after he's out. Just how much of Luke do you really want to see?" he asked with a wicked gleam in his eye. He was rewarded by her blush and a foul word that she only used when she was really angry.

"Well, I'd better go let Chewie know how the kid is doing. He's probably gonna want to come by later." The giant wookiee had hugged Han so tightly on his return to the base that Han could still smell his scent. He had scolded Han and worried over Luke. When Chewbacca was worried, he comforted himself by fiddling with the Falcon. Han needed to make sure his precious ship was still in one piece. Before he left, he decided to stir the pot a bit more. "See ya around, Arica."

Mara, clearly having forgotten the other young woman's presence, immediately turned to glare at what she obviously considered an intruder. The dark-haired girl merely smiled serenely back at her. To add insult to injury, Solo's mocking laughter could be heard floating back towards them as he rounded the corner.

*******************************************

Chapter Five

Luke Skywalker came back to full wakefulness slowly, feeling as though he were fighting through layers of mud to get there. And darn it if he still didn't feel so cold that he wondered for a moment if he was still out in the blizzard. No, he knew he was back at the base. He had a very fuzzy memory of Han being with him, talking to him, trying to keep Luke warm. Gotta make sure I remember to thank that old pirate, he mused in his dreamlike state, if I can ever get my eyes open, that is.

"Hey, Farmboy, are you going to sleep for the rest of the week?"

If there was a voice that could persuade him to wake, Mara Jade's was certainly it. For her, he'd wake up from a coma. He finally managed to pry one eye open and he smiled as he saw her grinning face practically nose-to-nose with him. She moved back to sit on the edge of the bed.

"Well, at last he awakens! You know, I've seen people do some crazy things to avoid a work detail, but I think you top the list."

"Hi, Mara."

"And he speaks, too! Will wonders never cease?"

He smiled wider and then gave a little groan as the movement caused an uncomfortable stretching sensation on the side of his face. Tentatively, he reached his hand up and touched the nearly-healed scars.

Mara's face immediately went serious. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't make you laugh."

"No, it's all right. Doesn't hurt much, it's just a little sore."

They sat in a comfortable silence for a long moment and then Mara spoke in a soft, but urgent, tone. "Luke, don't you ever do that to me again. I was so sure Han was going to find a body--" She broke off as her voice wavered.

Luke reached out and took her hands in his. "I'm sorry, Mara. You know I would never want to cause you pain."

"Yeah, well..." She trailed off as their eyes locked onto one another and, nearly unconsciously, they leaned in closer. "I was just..." He had no idea what she was about to say as his gaze dropped to her mouth and the thought I'm going to kiss Mara! ran through his mind repeatedly. Mara's eyes started to flutter closed and Luke was already anticipating what it would feel like to press his lips against hers when Han, Chewbacca, and Wedge walked into the room talking loudly and shattering the spell.
"Kid, you're awake!" Han shouted.

"And none the worse for wear, obviously."

Wedge and Han couldn't help grinning at each other as the two people on the bed jerked apart guiltily. At Wedge's comment, both of them flushed a bright red. Mara jumped up off the bed, seemingly anxious to put some distance between her and Luke.

Luke frowned at Han, Wedge and the Wookiee. Boy, did those three really have a rotten sense of timing. He noted the teasing glint in Han's expression and glared a bit harder. Luke decided he owed Han a good punch in the nose after he thanked him for saving his life.

"Well, Skywalker, looks like you're already overrun with visitors. Do you mind one more?"

Luke looked at the newcomer in the doorway and smiled in surprise. "Hi, Arica. No, come on in, the more the merrier." He glanced at Mara and wondered why she was frowning all of a sudden.
There was a tense silence in the room and Luke looked around, a little confused. Mara was still frowning, Wedge and Han seemed barely able to contain their laughter for some reason, and Arica just smiled at him with a knowing gleam in her eye. Even Chewbacca looked as though he was about to chuckle. Was he missing something?

"Well, kid, I reckon that's one more you owe me. You keep this up and I'm gonna start sending you a bill." Han's comment broke the uncomfortable tension and everyone laughed.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever..." Luke said and cursed inwardly because he just knew he was blushing. He really hated to do that in front of Mara.

"I've, uh, got to go, Luke. Squad leader meeting and, uh, all that." Luke's expression fell and she hastily added, "I'll talk to command for you until you're back on your feet. Just don't take too long, okay?"

She hurried out the door before Luke had a chance to tell her he didn't care about missing the Squad leader's meeting, he just didn't want her to leave at this moment. He looked up as Wedge came up to the side of the bed.

"Hey, pal, they've asked me to be acting leader of the Rogues for the next couple of days while you're getting better. I don't wanna baby-sit those infants, so hurry up." He leaned down and shook Luke's hand. "And, Luke? Be more careful, all right?" Luke nodded sheepishly, touched at Wedge's concern.
After Wedge left, Chewbacca moved over to Luke and affectionately tousled his hair. [I agree with Wedge, cub. You must be more careful.]

"I will, I will, I promise." Luke said, beginning to get a little annoyed at being treated like a child.
"Well, c'mon, Chewie, those motivators on the Falcon aren't gonna fix themselves. We'll see ya around, kid," Han said as he gave Luke a little wave. Luke smiled at him gratefully. It was comforting how Han always seemed to understand the way Luke was feeling. He knew the smuggler had sensed Luke's irritation at being babied so he had not added any warnings of his own.

Luke looked up to realize he was suddenly alone with Arica Alie. That was an interesting situation. Luke truly did not understand the...he searched for the right word to call his feelings...the connection he felt for this strange young woman.

Luke Skywalker had fallen in love with Mara Jade the very moment he had laid eyes on her in that poor-quality hologram projected from R2 in his uncle's garage. Three long years later, he had yet to even kiss the jittery Commander Jade, much to his chagrin. She was as slippery as a bola beast when it came to the feelings they had for each other--and he knew she had feelings for him. Even as untrained in the Force as he was, he sensed that much when he was around her.

He had known all of this for a long time and that was why his fascination--for lack of a better word--for Arica confused him so much. He wasn't attracted to her sexually, or at least he didn't think he was, but there was something about her that seemed to...pull at him.

"You're awfully quiet," she commented softly.

"What? Oh, I was just, ah, thinking."

"Must have been pretty scary out there for a while, hmm?"

"Maybe a little." His male pride did not like admitting that at all, but he was too truthful not to.
"What were you thinking while you were out there? Before Solo found you?"

He looked at her with a frown. That was kind of a weird question. "Nothing much. Mostly stuff like 'Damn, I'm cold' when I was able to think coherently at all."

She laughed lightly at the statement and he decided he liked the way it sounded. Not a girlish giggle; it was more of a throaty chuckle and it resonated through his senses. Force, what is your obsession with this girl!? You are in love with Mara, you moron!

The two of them shared a long look and Luke had the feeling of something just beyond his reach, something he should know, but had somehow forgotten. When they realized they were staring at each other without saying anything, they both looked away, flushing in embarrassment. And Luke felt that she was just as aware of this thing between the two of them as he was, and she was just as baffled by it.
"Listen, Skywalker, I was wondering--"

Whatever she had been about to say was lost as an official voice suddenly blared from the PA. "Attention. Attention. Imperial forces have been detected in the Hoth system. All personnel are to begin evacuation procedures immediately. All fighter pilots report to your ships to await orders. This is not a drill. Repeat, this is not a drill."

"Sith!" Luke cursed, his dilemma about conflicting feelings for two women completely forgotten in the danger of this new development. He didn't waste a moment in throwing the covers back and swinging his legs around to get out of the bed. He remembered Arica then as he realized he was only wearing a medical-issued gown with nothing underneath it. "Ah, Arica, do you mind...?" Damn, he just knew he was blushing again.

She seemed to clench her jaw in frustration or annoyance--Luke couldn't tell which--before she said, "No, not at all. I guess we'll have to continue this conversation later."

"Um, yeah, later," Luke mumbled and for some reason, he felt uneasy about what that conversation might entail. She gave him a long, hard stare before she turned and silently left the room.

***********************************************

A group of orange-clad fighter pilots stood in a tight cluster, listening intently to General Rieekan explain the tactics to be used in the evacuation process.

"The large transport ships will leave as soon as they're loaded. Only two fighter escorts per ship. The energy shield can only be opened for a split-second, so you'll have to stay very close to the transports."
Hobbie looked at him, the concern evident on his face. "Only two fighters against a Star Destroyer?"
"The ion cannon will fire several blasts, which should destroy any ships in your flight path. When you clear the energy field, proceed to the rendezvous point."

Mara Jade tried to damp down the nervousness she felt in the pit of her belly. Things had been grim in the past for the Alliance, but this was the first time the Imperials had found them so quickly. They'd barely finished establishing this base and now they were going to have to abandon it.

"Did I miss much?" a teasing voice whispered in her ear. She turned in shock to see Luke Skywalker grinning at her and he was dressed in his orange flight suit.

"What are you doing? You should still be in the medbay. You only just got out of the bacta tank two hours ago," she hissed at him in disbelief.

"I'm perfectly fine. I'm not going to miss--"

"Commander Skywalker. It's good to see you back on your feet." General Rieekan's voice interrupted the hushed conversation and Luke straightened as he turned to face his commanding officer.

"It's good to be back, sir. I couldn't let the other Rogues have all the fun without me."

"Only you would think this is going to be fun, Boss."

Luke scowled playfully at Wedge's comment and all the pilots shared a quick laugh. They knew the upcoming events would be difficult and that some of them might not make it to the rendezvous. But it was nice to break the tension for a moment by teasing Commander Skywalker.

General Rieekan smiled at the camaraderie the young men--and woman, he corrected himself, remembering Commander Jade--shared. He hated the thought that the Alliance would undoubtedly lose many of them before the day was out

The General gave them their assignments and the group broke up. Some of the pilots headed for the snowspeeders to help defend the shield generators at Echo Station Five. The rest of them were given the responsibility of escorting the transports in their X- and Y-wing fighters.

There was a lot of good-natured ribbing and boasting among the different squadrons as they moved towards their respective stations. Luke's squad was nicknamed Rogue for the simple reason that he, Wedge, Hobbie, and Wes had decided that 'Red Squadron' was way too boring. Mara's group, not to be outdone by their friendly rivals, had taken the name Ghost Squadron.

Naturally, there was much competition between all of the fighter squads, but it was most intense with the Rogues and the Ghosts. There was constant dispute over which squad had the better pilots, which had faced the more dangerous battles, which had the most kills; the arguments were endless.

Luke listened to the usual debates before he made a detour on the way to his own snowspeeder. He had not had time to do this after the chilling announcement earlier and he wanted to be certain that it did not go undone.

He could hear Han and Chewie arguing as he approached the Millennium Falcon. He couldn't hold back a grin as he listened.

"NO! That one goes there and this one goes there! What are you thinking?! Don't you remember that we've got to clear out of here as quickly as possible?"

Luke laughed out loud as he heard Chewbacca give a ferocious roar that would have had anyone but the cocky smuggler trembling in fear.

"Don't you use that language with me!" He glanced down and glared at Luke when he heard the laughter. Han muttered something in Corellian that Luke was fairly sure was a slur against a certain farmboy's parentage before he greeted the younger man. "Hey, kid."

"Han." Luke paused for a moment, wanting to get his words just right. "Han, I never thanked you for--"
"Don't worry about it, kid. That's what friends do for each other," Han said, cutting Luke off before he embarrassed them both.

The two friends simply stared at one another for a long time, hoping that this would not be the last time they saw one another, before Luke nodded in acknowledgement. He called up to Chewie, only half-jokingly. "Hey, Chewie, you keep this guy out of trouble, all right?"

[You know that is impossible, cub, but I will try.]

"Hey!" Han protested this insult, as Luke laughed again. He looked at Han again before turning to leave.
"Luke!" Han called and Luke gazed back to see a sheepish grin on the pirate's face. "May the Force be with you."

The smile Luke gave back was broad and lit up his whole face. "You, too."

Luke still had a tiny smile on his face as he made his way to his snowspeeder. He was taken by surprise when something slammed into his arm. He looked up to see Mara glaring at him, her fist still raised and pointed in his direction.

"The only reason I didn't hit you in the face is I know you're still sore."

"Why did you hit me at all?" Luke whined, rubbing his now-sore arm.

"Because you should not be up there flying right now, you brainless nerf! You just got out of the bacta tank and--"

"Mara!" Luke threw his hands up, interrupted the tirade before she could really get started. "Mara, I'm okay, I truly am. If I wasn't, Two-OneBee wouldn't have released me and he did."
Mara huffed in response and finally lowered her arm, unclenching the fist as she did so.

 They stared at one another for a long moment and Luke knew he had to tell her what had been on his mind since he'd awakened.

"Mara, I need to tell this to someone and you're the only one I can think of who might understand." She arched a brow at him and he gathered his courage to continue. "I'm not going to be at the rendezvous with the others."

Mara's face paled so quickly, he thought she was going to pass out.

"You what? Luke, what are you saying, what are you thinking? Do you think some sort of sacrifice is necessary here? I know that you feel guilty about all the so-called innocents on the Death Star, but suicide is not--"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Suicide!? That's not what I meant at all!"

Mara's frown only increased, if that was possible. "Then what in the sith are you talking about?"

Luke took a deep breath and continued, "There is something that I have to do. Something that's not only important to me, but important to the Alliance, I think. You know that I told you I've heard Ben...well, talk to me since he died. When I was out there in the blizzard, I didn't just hear him, this time I actually saw him."

"Luke, you may have been imagining things. You were out there for quite a while and--" She broke off as he suddenly took hold of her shoulders and looked at her with the most intense expression on his face that she had ever seen.

"Please don't doubt me on this. I'm not sure I could stand that."

"Okay," she said, her voice small.

"Ben told me that I need to go to a place called Dagobah. There is a Jedi Master there named Yoda who will finish my training. I have to do this, Mara. But I just need to know that someone will know where I am and will be able to tell the Alliance that I will return."

"I thought all the Jedi were gone."

"So did I, but apparently this Yoda was able to escape Darth Vader." Just saying that name sent a chill through Luke's bones. Lord Darth Vader. The man who had betrayed and murdered not only Luke's father, but his mentor, Ben Kenobi, as well. The man who had hunted down and exterminated all the Jedi of the Old Republic. Yes, Luke had to do this. He needed to avenge his father's death, Ben's death, and all those Jedi that he'd never known, but should have.

"I don't know, Luke. I've never heard of Dagobah. Do you even know how to get there or how long it will take you? And how long do you expect to be gone? The Alliance can't afford to lose any pilots right now, especially not their best."

Luke grinned at her cockily. "Ah, so the commander of Ghost Squadron finally admits that the commander of the Rogues is the best. About time you faced the truth."

Mara's concerned look quickly turned into a glare at his words. "Do I need to hit you again?" she said, her voice menacingly low.

"No," he chuckled. "I'll be good, I promise." He realized he was still gripping her by the shoulders, but instead of releasing her, he slid his hands down her arms to take her hands in his. His expression grew serious once again.

"This is very important, Mara. It's what the Force is telling me to do. I know it sounds insane, but I have to do this. Please tell me you understand."

She held his gaze for a long moment before she answered him. "I do understand. I feel like... this is right. I don't know why, but I do," she whispered.

"Maybe the Force is speaking to you, too." Luke smiled softly at her.

"Just...make sure you do some back, okay? Because I'd--" She hesitated, not certain if she could really say what was in her heart or not. "I'd really miss you if anything happened," she said in a rush before she could lose her nerve.

"I'd really miss you, too," he said. He looked at her for just a moment longer and then threw caution to the wind and went with the impulse he'd had for nearly three years. He leaned forward and kissed her.
To anyone observing, it wasn't a spectacular kiss--just a little too long to be a peck between friends, though not quite long enough to get interesting--but to the two participants it was an eye-opening experience. It was what they both instantly knew they'd been heading towards from the moment they had met.

He pulled away from her and they both stepped back with a dazed look on their faces. Then Luke's face broke into a dazzling smile as he began to walk backwards towards his snowspeeder and his duty; he didn't want to take his eyes off her a second before he had to.

"We will see each other again, Mara Jade. I promise you that." He turned away finally and lightly jogged to the hangar and out of her sight.

She stood there for a bit longer and her fingers came up to gently touch her lips where Luke's mouth had been. "We had better, Skywalker," she murmured softly, before she broke out of her trance and hurried to her Y-wing.

*************************************

Chapter Six

Bluish-colored sparks arced across the instrument panel of the battered fighter as the pilot tried desperately to control the rate of the ship's descent. The bird was definitely going down, but maybe there was a chance of living through this.

Mara cursed again as the stick of the Y-wing jerked under her hands. How did I get myself into this mess? Oh, yeah, it was all Luke's fault, dammit! To be fair, she hadn't even spoken to Luke since that astonishing kiss, but this was still all his fault. It was his fault for making her worry about him and this mission that he felt he needed to fulfill. His fault, for making her feel things that she did not want to feel, not right now. His fault that her concentration had been shot and those TIE fighters had caught her completely off guard.

She had waited to leave until she was sure that all of Ghost Squadron had made the jump to hyperspace. They affectionately called her 'mother' because she tended to be a little overprotective of the boys under her command. They knew better than to let anyone else on to that nickname, though. She was certain, now, that all her 'boys' had made it to hyperspace safely, so she was the only one who had been caught unawares.

The final transport was away and the pilots who had been in the snowspeeders were on their way back to Echo Base to board their X-wings and take up the rear of the procession. She wondered if Luke was going to see her die. No! I can't think like that! There's got to be something--

Her attention was caught by a beeping noise from the console letting her know that she had just broken back into Hoth's atmosphere. Finally, some good news! If she could make it a little further, she would be able to eject. Of course, Force only knew what she would do then, as she was heading away from the base towards the North Ridge, but at least she would be alive.

She struggled with the ship for what seemed like an eternity, while keeping one eye on the altitude indicator. Finally, she felt as though she was low enough and she didn't have much longer to think about it anyway. Quickly, she tightened the straps on the seat. Then, taking and holding a deep breath, she pushed the eject button.

The force of the expulsion was near deafening and her whole body was going to be sore from the jolt that it received. If she lived, that was. Positive thoughts, Mara! She must have blacked out for a moment because when she opened her eyes, all she could see was white and it was coming up to meet her too fast.

Fumbling, her gloved hands found the release for the seat and it fell away from her with a dull pop. She yanked on the cord for her chute as hard as she could. Once again, the sudden jerk of resistance caused her teeth to clench against the ache it caused her already undoubtedly bruised body.

But she breathed a sigh of relief as she gently floated to the ground, the snow softening her landing somewhat. Thank the Force for small favors. Her relief quickly vanished as she heard the familiar whine of TIE fighters.

She cursed as she tore out of the chute and realized in dismay that she was a perfect target with her bright orange flight suit against the pristine white snow. This is NOT fair! She searched the surrounding area with her eyes swiftly and noticed an overhang that she could hopefully conceal herself in. She still had no clue what she would do then. She was probably miles from the base. She had no way of getting there except on foot and the Alliance would be long gone by the time she made it.

She gasped in shock when a huge circular shadow crossed over her. She knew that shape! She looked up in amazement as the Millennium Falcon flew right over her.

The commlink in her helmet crackled and buzzed before a very familiar voice taunted her playfully.
"Hey, Jade! Do you need a ride or were you planning to walk to the rendezvous?"

"Han Solo! Why are you still here? You should have been long gone!"

"Now there's some gratitude for you. You're lucky Chewie had the wiring for the anuvial dampeners crisscrossed--" Han ignored the affronted howl that met these words "--or we would have been."
"You need to get out of here, Solo. You don't have time to land and get me or didn't you see those TIEs?"

"Well, Jade, if you're up to it, I wasn't planning on landing exactly," Han drawled. "Think you can make a running jump?"

"Are you insane?!"

"Hey, I just know what Luke would do to me if I left you here to die! I really don't think I could stand those accusing puppy-dog looks he gives so well."

At the mention of Luke, Mara's heart fluttered a bit. Han was right. There was no way she could leave Luke, not like this. He had promised they would see one another again and she didn't want to be the one responsible for breaking that promise. She gritted her teeth in determination.

"What do you need me to do?"

***********************************

Han and Chewbacca were still arguing over whose fault the crossed wires were even as they scrambled to get the Falcon into the air. Han caught a glimpse of stormtroopers running into the hangar just as they finally got the ship going. He also saw a flash of black and he didn't even want to think about who that was.

The argument continued as they flew out of the hangar opening as laser fire started flaring around them. Chewie had just said something along the lines of 'Life debt! What life debt?!' when a trail of black smoke across the blue sky grabbed Han's attention.

He narrowed his eyes as he tried to identify the ship. He could tell immediately that it was one of theirs--a Y-wing if he was not mistaken, and he never was.

"Chewie, quit whining and hand me the macrobinocs!"

It was a measure of the Wookiee's respect for Han that he did so without question even though Chewbacca was seriously peeved with his partner at the moment. Han put the binocs up to his eyes and again tried to ID the ship that was in trouble.

"Sithspawn! That's Mara!"

Their disagreement was quickly forgotten and they immediately angled the ship towards the area where she was going down. Han was not necessarily a religious man, but he found himself uttering a prayer to long-forgotten deities that she would be able to land safely.

He saw the pilot's seat suddenly explode out of the cockpit and breathed a sigh of relief. Now he could just drop down and pick her up. Or at least that was what he thought until the TIE fighters showed up. He moved to intercept them and try to hold them off as Mara's chute gently floated to the ground.
The TIEs had been momentarily chased away by the Falcon's laser fire, but Han knew that wouldn't last long. He commed Mara to let her know he was there to rescue her. He grinned as that thought ran through his head. Seemed he was always having to save these youngsters. What would they do without him?

Mara, of course, ruined his little 'knight in shining armor to the rescue' routine by arguing with him. Really, what was with kids these days? She gave in a lot quicker than he thought she would though, especially after he mentioned Luke's name. Hmmm, interesting.

He let her know what he wanted her to do and ignored her muttered comment that he really was insane. True genius is never appreciated in its own lifetime, he thought smugly.

*************************************

Mara could not believe that she was actually going to attempt this crazy maneuver, but there truly wasn't any other option. The snow drifts here were not as deep as in other places on Hoth, but they still slowed her down considerably as she ran to the spot Han wanted her.

She could hear the distant whine of the TIEs growing louder as they returned to try and eliminate the enemies of the Empire. She could see the Falcon drop low to the ground ahead of her. Her breathing was becoming ragged and difficult as she struggled through the snow.

She was not going to make it. She couldn't...it was just too far and the TIEs were coming too fast. She watched as the Falcon's hatch opened and she could see Chewbacca hanging onto one of the pistons that lowered the ramp. He howled at her, the wind from the ship's movement, albeit slight, blowing his fur wildly.

She again thought of Luke and reached deep down inside for reserves of energy that she had not even known she had. She was closer now, only a few meters away...she could even see the fear and encouragement in the Wookiee's eyes as he continued to roar at her.

A few sporadic bursts of laser fire hit the ground around her and she screamed, partly out of fear and partly out of anger. They could not stop her, not when she was this close! She reached even further into herself, delving to depths that she could never have imagined, as she gathered every last bit of strength and courage that she possessed. She leaped, stretching her arm desperately towards Chewbacca and...
...gasped in amazement as her hand latched onto his forearm and he grabbed securely to her elbow. She swiftly brought her other hand around to tighten her hold and tangled her fist into his fur. Chewbacca threw himself backwards, yanking her through the air and into the hold of the ship, slamming his fist down on the button to close the hatch as he did so.

[I have her! Go, Han! GO!!]

"Get strapped in the best you can, 'cos we don't have time to stop!" Han shouted at them.
Chewie tucked a still-shaken Mara under his arm and ran to the cockpit. He tossed her unceremoniously into the seat behind Han and strapped her in before sliding into the co-pilot's seat.

Han turned around briefly to smirk at Mara's pale face. "Didn't know you had it in you, Red. That was almost as amazing as my flying."

*******************************

Darth Vader swept furiously into the hangar of the rebel's pathetic base just in time to see a ship hurtling towards the sky. His eyes narrowed as he realized what ship it was. The Millennium Falcon. That continuing thorn in his side. A low growl of frustration came from deep in his throat as he watched them escape him yet again.

He frowned as the Falcon suddenly took a sharp turn and then inexplicably shot nearly straight down towards Hoth's surface. Perhaps they were having mechanical problems. That could only work in the Dark Lord's favor. Yet even as he watched, the Falcon came shooting back up, heading for open space and escape.

He gestured to the stormtrooper that carried the communications equipment. The trooper hurried over to him and Vader said, "Open a line to the Executor."

Once this was done, he spoke with his new admiral. "Admiral Piett. There is a freighter coming your way. I want the ship intact and the passengers alive."

After he received Piett's acknowledgement, Vader turned to stride back to his shuttle. There was nothing of interest to him on this planet's surface now. His son had managed to escape him momentarily. He had sensed his presence for a brief moment and then it had winked out as Luke obviously went to lightspeed.
The late Admiral Ozzel had dashed Vader's chance to catch his son quickly and easily by coming out of hyperspace too close to the Hoth system and alerting the rebels to their presence. Now, though it could still be done--must be done--it would be more difficult. The smuggler should be the perfect bait to draw the boy to him.

For some reason completely beyond his father's comprehension, Luke seemed to idolize that worthless cretin. Although, Vader reluctantly admitted to himself, he actually owed Solo a debt of gratitude. If not for the Corellian's last-minute 'heroics' over the Death Star, Vader would have unknowingly blown his child to atoms. He'd had a target-lock on the boy and was within a whisper of firing when the Falcon had come out of nowhere and sent Vader spinning helplessly into space.

And though he was pleased that Luke was still alive, the humiliation as a pilot was very nearly more than he could bear. Of course, that little brat, the Emperor's Hand--Vader sneered at the nickname; he was his Master's right arm--had rubbed his nose in it. Subtly, for she wasn't stupid, but she had let him know that she knew about it and found it amusing. Insufferable chit.

Yes, this was just a delay. An extremely aggravating and infuriating delay, but still just a minor setback, really. He would have his son by his side and it would be soon!

*******************************

Alarms were sounding furiously throughout the Falcon's cockpit as Mara came out of her stupor to Han's cursing and Chewbacca's bellowing. She blinked, coming to her senses and realizing that she was safe on board the ship. She frowned, wondering if she had thought that too soon, as she noted the level of Han's agitation.

"Han."

"I see 'em, Chewie! There's just nothin' I can do about it right now!" Han yelled, ignoring Mara.
"Han!" Mara said, a little louder.

"Try heading number..." he turned and made some calculations on the navacomputer. "...8-3-0 bearing 15 degrees!"

"Han!" Mara finally shouted.

Han glanced back at her with an aggravated look on his face. "Not now, Mara."

"What is going on?" she asked insistently.

"What do you mean, 'what's going on'! We came out of Hoth to find no less than three Star Destroyers trying to eat us alive! And then there's that thing!" he said, pointing towards space.

Mara followed his finger with her eyes and couldn't hold back a gasp. It was the most massive ship she had ever seen, short of the Death Star. It was shaped roughly like the head of an arrow and dwarfed all the other ships around it.

"A Super Star Destroyer," she breathed in disbelief. The Alliance had some intel on these ships, but this was the first time she'd ever actually seen one.

"Yeah, Darth Vader's SSD, no less!"

"How do you know?" She couldn't help the shiver that ran down her spine. She would never forget the 'interrogation' on board the Death Star as long as she lived.

"His boys have already hailed us several times, demanding that we surrender to him."

"And what was your answer to that?" she asked with a little smirk.

Han gave her a nasty smile and said, "What do you think?"

Mara chuckled and then her _expression sobered. "What are we going to do?"

"Don't worry, me an' Chewie got a plan."

"Now that makes me worried."

"Sit back, shut up, and prepare to shower me with gratitude," Han growled. "Almost there, Chewie. On my mark, take us to lightspeed."

The Wookiee whuffed a reply, his furry paws flying over the console. Mara sat stiffly behind them, her eyes glued to the SSD that seemed to be hanging over them like a sword of doom.

"Now! Punch it!" Han shouted.

Chewbacca reached and pulled on a lever in the middle of the control panel. They expected to see the stars begin to stretch and expand as the ship sailed into hyperspace.

Instead, they heard a groaning noise, then a whining as if something was straining. There was a loud pop and suddenly the acrid smell of smoke drifted into the cockpit.

"Uh-oh," was all Han said.

***************************************

"Apology accepted, Captain Needa." Vader spoke the words in a deceptively calm tone as two stormtroopers carried the lifeless body from his chambers.

He had returned to the Executor to both good news and bad. The bad news was that his men had lost track of the Millennium Falcon. According to Needa's stammering explanation, before he had suddenly lost the ability to breathe, the freighter had eluded the TIE fighters chasing it. It had then abruptly turned and charged full speed, with full frontal shields, at the command deck of the SSD.

There had been momentary panic as the Imperials had prepared for the ship to collide with them when the Falcon had pulled up a bit at the last minute and simply...vanished. They could find no trace of it on any of their scopes.

Vader cursed silently at the obvious resourcefulness of the slick smuggler. Perhaps he had underestimated the man somewhat. Still, it did not matter because the other news awaiting him was most definitely welcome. An old 'friend' had finally answered his summons and was waiting for him in a nearby briefing room.

When the door slid open, Vader walked in to greet the man who lounged, seemingly unconcerned, in one of the chairs at the table. He had his feet propped up on the table and didn't remove them or stand when the Dark Lord entered.
"Fett. It's about time. I sent for you two weeks ago." Boba Fett was something o

f a soft spot for Vader, if a Sith Lord could have a soft spot. He had kept watch over the younger man's career ever since the boy had taken up Jango's armor and followed in his father's footsteps. Fett didn't know why Vader took such an interest in him--indeed, Vader himself wondered that sometimes--but he knew Fett appreciated the fact that it never hurt to have a high-ranking Imperial officer on your side.
Vader had sent Fett various assignments through the years until many beings thought that the bounty hunter was actually employed by the Sith, although that wasn't strictly the truth.

"Had other business to take care of first. I'm here now, aren't I?"

Lately, Fett was beginning to get a little too arrogant about the 'relationship' between himself and Vader. Perhaps he needed a little reminder of just what his sometime employer was capable of. He raised his hand and gestured.

Boba Fett's feet suddenly flew straight up in the air and he somersaulted backwards over and out of the chair. The bounty hunter scrambled to his feet and Vader could feel the anger that emanated from him. Fett's hand clenched and drifted towards his blaster.

Vader gestured again and the blaster flew from its holster and clattered against the wall before landing on the floor.

"What did--" Fett began, angrily.

"Remember, respect always, bounty hunter," Vader warned, his tone menacing.

Fett visibly calmed himself, before asking, in a slightly sullen voice, "What's the assignment?"

Vader explained the incident with the Millennium Falcon and Fett listened intently, already falling into 'hunt mode' as he considered the possibilities of where the Falcon might have disappeared to.

"I want all passengers on the ship alive and in relatively good condition," Vader concluded.

"Relatively? Is that open to my interpretation?" Fett said with a smirk in his voice.

"Just no permanent damage. We will be going to light speed soon. I would expect you will want to get to your ship and be on your way before that happens."

He didn't give the bounty hunter a chance to reply as he turned and left the room, his thoughts already leaping ahead to what he would do once he had Luke in his grasp.

*********************************

Boba Fett fumed silently as Darth Vader left him alone in the briefing room. As much as he wanted to fling an insult--or preferably a blaster bolt--at the Dark Lord's back, he knew better.
He walked over and picked up the blaster that Vader had pulled from him and put it back where it belonged. He made his way to the hangar where the Slave I was docked, ignoring the sneering looks from the Imperials that he passed. He knew how they felt about bounty hunters, but they weren't the ones paying him.

Han Solo. Fett knew the name, although he had never met the man personally. They had both worked for Jabba the Hutt on occasion, but never at the same time, so their paths had never crossed. He'd had a grudging respect for the Corellian--the man was a hell of a pilot--but that had vanished when Solo had begun working with the rebels.

Fett could not make sense of that, no matter how he tried. The Solo that he had heard numerous outlandish tales of was far too concerned with his own hide--as any level-headed smuggler should be--to fall in with a bunch of idealists like this rebel alliance.

But, that was not his concern. Vader had given him a job and he would complete that job by delivering Solo and his companions to the Dark Lord. Listening to Vader's explanation of the last few minutes the SSD's crew had been able to track the Falcon, Fett already had a clue where the elusive ship might be.
Solo had pulled this insane stunt once before, if he recalled correctly. He smiled to himself as he thought that he could have just informed Vader immediately of his suspicions concerning the whereabouts of the freighter. Well, I owe him one for that little tumble earlier, don't I? Fett thought smugly to himself. Now, Vader could just wait. Besides, he wanted to ensure that he would get paid. That might not happen if Fett made it too easy for him.

************************************

"This is never going to work. You are definitely insane," Mara whispered the words fiercely to the man sitting in front of her.

"They can't hear you, Jade. I don't think you need to whisper," Han mockingly copied the tone of her voice. He spoke normally as he continued, "Don't worry, me an' Chewie have done this dozens of times--"

Chewbacca interrupted him with a sarcastic growl. Han glared at the big Wookiee. Honestly, couldn't he let Han boost his ego at all?

"Okay, once before, but it worked beautifully, didn't it?"

Han was actually quite proud of himself really. At the last minute, he had remembered the last time they'd pulled this maneuver and had decided to go for it. He felt the tiniest twinge of guilt at the panicked scream that had come from Mara.

Chewie had obviously realized what he was about to do and, though he'd grumbled in protest, he hadn't been terrified the way Mara had been. Han thought that was the biggest reason behind Mara's pique right now--she didn't like to be caught being vulnerable.

The Millennium Falcon was clinging to the side of the bridge tower of the Executor; Han's seemingly suicidal plunge had been a daring bluff. He turned to Mara with a smug grin on his face.
"Go ahead. Thank me. I'll accept all your undying devotion now."

Mara gave him an exasperated frown. "How are we going to get out of this position, oh great one?" she said sarcastically.

"That's the wonderful thing about the Imps, they're predictable. They always dump their garbage before they go to lightspeed. When that happens, we just--"

"Float away with the rest of the garbage?" Mara interrupted him pertly.

"Smart-ass," Han grumbled. "But, yeah, that's basically the plan."

"I have to admit, that's not bad, Solo. Not bad at all. Where do we go then?"

"Well, let me figure out where we are," Han answered as he turned again in his seat to consult the star charts. "Ah, Lando!" he said triumphantly.

"The Lando system?" Mara frowned.

"Lando's not a system, he's a man. He and I go way back. He's running a mining colony in the Bespin system."

"Can you trust him?"

"Not really, but he's got no love for the Empire, I'm sure of that much. With no hyperdrive, it's gonna take us about six weeks to get there, though."

[Han, the fleet is getting ready to break up.]

Han quickly turned back around to face the viewscreen. "Get ready to hit the manual release on the landing claws, Chewie."

They all held their breath as the debris from the Imperial ships began to float around them. For some reason, none of them wanted to speak as they waited for just the right moment. Han nodded and pointed to Chewie when the moment came. With a muffled thunk, the Falcon let go of the tower and drifted along with the garbage.

They watched as the Star Destroyers and the SSD, along with all the smaller ships, leapt into hyperspace, winking out of sight one by one. When the last one had vanished, Han shot Mara and Chewie another cocky grin, pointedly ignoring the rolled eyes he received in return, and fired up the Falcon's engines.

As they blasted off towards Bespin and, hopefully, assistance for the damaged ship, they didn't notice the ship that swiftly followed them. The Slave I and her owner did not intend to let his prey get away.

***************************************

Luke Skywalker felt terribly small as his lone X-wing streaked through the vastness of space towards an uncertain destination. Oh, sure, he knew the name of the planet he was looking for--even if he'd never heard of it before--but he truly had no idea what awaited him there and that prospect was more than a little frightening.

He didn't even have a definite route for getting to Dagobah--he was relying solely on the Force to guide him. He glanced down at the translator screen when R2 beeped at him.

"I know we're off-course, R2. We're not meeting up with the Alliance just yet."

Another querulous beep. "We're going to Dagobah. I'm going to find a Jedi Master named Yoda."
Luke had to smile at what R2 said to him next. "No, I'm fine, R2. I'd like to leave it on manual for a while."

His smile faded a bit as he realized that even his droid thought he was crazy for doing this. He remembered how Mara had reacted. Of course, just thinking of the beautiful redhead sent Luke's thoughts on an entirely different tangent.

He had kissed her! A part of him still couldn't believe he had found the nerve. And she had responded, he recalled with a sense of disbelief. Well, maybe not responded in the way he would have hoped for, but she hadn't slapped him, at least.

He wondered what Han would say when he found out. He knew that Han was aware of the feelings that Luke had for Mara and that the smuggler thought Luke was being far too reticent in letting Jade know about those feelings. He laughed aloud as he wondered what this would do to the bet that Han had with Wedge which Luke wasn't supposed to be aware of.

He gave a sigh as his thoughts turned back to the giant unknown that lay ahead of him. Could he really do this? Did he have it in him to be a Jedi? He so wanted to live up to the ideal that Ben had set in front of him. He very much wanted to know that his father would have been proud of his son.

He remembered the feelings that had rushed through him as the Millennium Falcon had blasted out of that spaceport in Mos Eisley. Stars, that seems a lifetime ago. He had been excited, anxious, scared...all these emotions whirling through him at the same time. The unknown. At the time, it had seemed like such a frightening thing. Now...he wasn't certain what he felt now. But he knew this was something that he must do.

The words slipped from his lips, barely above a whisper, but he felt their truth all the way to the center of his being. It wasn't completely unknown...he did know what was facing him.
"My destiny..."

***************************************

Chapter 7

"Are you going to make a move anytime soon?"

"When I'm ready. Shut up."

"You know you're gonna lose. Why don't you just go ahead and make a move?"

"Solo..." Mara said in a warning tone as she continued to study the dejarik board.
He did have her in a bind, she had to admit, but there had to be a way out of it
somehow.

"Oh, my, will you look at that? While we've been waiting for Mara to make a
move, we've already made it all the way to Bespin!"

"I am not taking that long!"

"You've been sitting there, staring at the board, for nearly a half hour! You're
gonna lose anyway. Make a move!"

Frustrated, Mara reached down and pulled the power supply for the dejarik game
out of the socket. Han watched in disbelief as his winning game sputtered and
disappeared. "There! I made a move! You happy?"

Tempers had been flaring recently aboard the Falcon. They were only three weeks
into their six-week journey and the tension and uncertainty of the situation was
getting to all three of them. Even Mara and Chewbacca had been arguing and that
was unusual. Most of the disagreements had stemmed from whose fault the Falcon's
hyperdrive problems were and the fact that they had been unable to raise anyone
from the Alliance on the comm.

Han and Mara stood glaring at one another for a long moment before she ducked
her head with a sigh.

"I'm sorry, Han. I didn't mean..."

Han immediately felt guilt flood his senses and that was not an emotion he was
familiar, or comfortable, with. But Mara was one of the most important people in
the galaxy to him and he realized that he might have gone a little too far.

"Look, Mara, I know things have been a little tense. I shouldn't have teased
you," Han said, a little gruffly. He was not a man who apologized easily.

"You're right, you shouldn't have." Han resumed his angry glare. "But you were
beating me," she offered as a truce.

His glare melted into his trademark lopsided smile. "I was, wasn't I?"

"All right, all right, there's no need to rub it in. Unless you want to start up
that argument again?" Mara muttered.

Han raised his hands in a conciliatory gesture. "Nah, I think you've learned
your lesson."

Mara gave an exasperated groan. "You just can't quit, can you?"

"It's part of my charm."

Mara decided she'd really better let it drop at that or they would get angry
with one another again. They sat back down at the dejarik table, neither feeling
the need to speak for a moment. But Han had never been able to stand silence for
long.

"Wonder how Luke and Wedge are doing?"

"Ah, well, I don't know about Wedge, but I imagine Luke is pretty busy right
about now," Mara said, a little nervously. She hadn't yet found the words to
tell Han about Luke's trip to Dagobah, but she guessed now was as good a time as
any.

"What are you talking about? Why would he be any busier than Wedge?"

"Um, he didn't exactly go to the rendezvous with the rest of the fleet."

Han remained amazingly calm. "He didn't. And just where did he go?"

"He went to Dagobah to finish his Jedi training."

"He what?!" Han exploded. "What is the kid thinking!? Doesn't he realize there's
a huge price on his head? Doesn't he know what the Imps will do to him if they
catch him alone? And what's with this Jedi garbage anyway? It's all a bunch of
mumbo-jumbo and nonsense. There ain't no such thing as the Force and Luke
Skywalker ain't no Jedi!"

"Han! How can you say that? You know how important this is to him. It's his
legacy. His father and General Kenobi--"

"Kenobi! That old fossil? He was the one responsible for putting those stupid
dreams in the kid's head to begin with!" He paused in his rant as he realized
something. "You knew about this before we left Hoth. And you didn't say anything
to stop him."

"No, I did not. As a matter of fact, I gave him my support and encouragement,"
Mara said vehemently.

"How could you do that? Are you touched in the head, too?" Han demanded.

Mara's eyes blazed with righteous indignation as she stood and wagged her finger
in Han's face.

"You listen to me, Solo, and you listen good! The Jedi and the Force are real
and that is who Luke Skywalker is! If you can't see that, then you don't know
him very well, after all. We have known all along that there's something special
about him. Well, the Force is part of what that something is. And for him to be
able to complete his training is not only important to Luke, it could be vital
for the Alliance, as well. If you're his friend, you will support him in this
just like I am."

She took a deep breath and sat back down in her chair, feeling a little drained
after that outburst. Han looked at her incredulously.

"You really believe that?"

"I do."

"Huh. Well, I guess I could have spoken a tad hastily..." He squirmed under Mara's
knowing glance. "So he told you about this before he left?"

Mara's cheeks suddenly flushed and she nodded. Han's gaze narrowed as he caught
the blush.

"Did...anything else happen that day, Jade?" Han asked, knowingly.

Mara mumbled something and Han said, "Sorry, I didn't catch that?"

"I said, he kissed me!" Mara said, blushing furiously.

"Really? How...interesting!" Han said with an infuriatingly smug smile. "Tell me,
did you kiss him, or did he kiss you, or was it kind of a mutual thing?"

"What in the stars does that matter?" Mara asked in confusion.

"Ah, no reason, no reason!" Han said quickly. He sat back down and looked at her
intently. "So?"

"So what?" she asked.

"So how was it?"

"Han!" she shouted indignantly. "That's none of your business!"

He just continued to look at her, his brow slowly arching. She blushed again.

"It was...amazing," she whispered.

To her embarrassment, Han burst out laughing. "You sure can't have kissed many
guys, Jade! The kid? Amazing? He's probably as innocent as you are!"

His laughter abruptly ended in a howl of pain as the toe of her boot made sharp
contact with his shin. She was glaring at him as fiercely as he was glaring
back.

"You big, dumb nerf!" she shouted before stomping off to her cabin.

"Women!" Han muttered, rubbing his sore leg. But then he had to chuckle. "Kid,
you have no idea what you're getting into."

************************************

Arica had never killed anyone without orders from her Master before. At the
moment, however, she was almost prepared to commit mass homicide. She had made
it to the rendezvous point safely, not an easy task when Vader's troops didn't
know she was undercover and were trying to kill her just as they were trying to
kill the rebels.

But she had managed to elude them and join this Alliance--she couldn't help
sneering at the lofty title they gave themselves--at the designated place and
time. The only problem was, Skywalker had not.

Not only was he absent, Solo, Jade and the Wookiee had failed to show as well.
And the rebels had no clue where the four of them might be! She wondered how
this miserable band of outlaws had managed to escape Lord Vader for as long as
they had--they were utterly incompetent.

Arica prided herself on her courage, but she was near to feeling real fear at
the thought of her Master's reaction to this bit of news. Unfortunately, she
could not contact him. She had to await his call to her and in the meantime, her
anxiety was only increasing.

She was pacing back and forth in front of her ship when she spied that pilot
that was always hanging around with the four missing rebels. What was his name?
Antilles!

"Antilles!" she called to him.

Wedge had been heading towards his assigned quarters on Home One, having just
landed from a reconnaissance mission. He was exhausted and for a moment, he
couldn't place the woman who'd just hailed him. What was her name? Arica, that
was it.

He paused as he waited for her to reach him, watching her walk towards him with
a small frown on his face. She stopped a few feet away from him and he almost
smiled as he realized she seemed nervous. He didn't know her very well at all,
but that was not something he would have expected from someone with her aura of
self-assurance.

"Hi," she smiled at him. "Arica Alie, I'm not sure if you remember--"

"I remember you. I was one of the pilots in the squadron that rescued you from
those TIEs when you first joined us."

The word 'rescued' made her bristle, but she was far too well-trained to show
it. "Right. Listen, I was just wondering if you'd heard anything from Skywalker
or Solo."

Wedge's face immediately went blank. That damned over- protectiveness rearing
its head again, Arica thought to herself.

"Why would that matter to you?"

"I suppose it doesn't, not really. It's just that Skywalker has been one of the
few members of the Alliance who's truly accepted me and I...well, I kind of
appreciate that, I guess."

Wedge's eyes narrowed as he continued to study her, as though he were trying to
read her. Good luck, flyboy, better men than you have tried, she smirked
inwardly.

He heaved a sigh, and his gaze dropped to the floor. "No, we haven't heard
anything from Luke, Han or Mara."

"Oh. Is this sort of thing...normal for them?"

Wedge hesitated, eyeing her again, and for a long moment, she thought he wasn't
going to answer her.

"Maybe for Han. He occasionally took off for smuggling jobs when he first joined
us, but definitely not for Luke or Mara. They're utterly devoted to our cause."

There was an awkward pause between them. Wedge was still looking at her with
suspicion in his eyes when Arica felt the niggling at the base of her skull that
signified her Master was about to contact her.

"Thanks for the update, Antilles. I'll speak with you later," she said and
turned sharply to head back to the Windrider.

She could feel his stare burning between her shoulder blades but she pushed all
thoughts of Wedge Antilles determinedly out of her mind as she walked up the
ramp to her ship, closing it behind her.

She sat down on the floor of her cabin with her legs crossed and relaxed her
body and mind, waiting for her Master's voice.

*My Hand. I would expect that you are on your way to Coruscant right now with
young Skywalker.* The angry, sarcastic tone of his voice in her head told her he
knew very well that she was not.

*Master, I have run into a slight obstacle. Lord Vader showed up at Hoth and the
rebels fled. They were to regroup at a previously designated rendezvous point.
Most of the rebels arrived here within a standard week. It's now been three
weeks and Skywalker has yet to appear. Is it possible that Lord Vader was able
to apprehend him?*

She was holding her breath as she awaited his reply to her disappointing report.
She had never failed him before and now she felt unworthy to even call herself
his Hand any longer. There was a long silence and for a moment, Arica feared he
had cut her off and that he was going to abandon her here for her miserable
failure.

*That is indeed unwelcome news, my Hand. But no, I am certain that Lord Vader
does not have him. I have enough spies watching him on the Executor that he
would be unable to keep that from me.*

*Is it possible that Skywalker was killed in the escape from Hoth, Master?*

*No, I would have felt his death.* She could hear the irritation in his tone and
feared what his final reaction to this news was going to be.

*I do not have to tell you that I am supremely disappointed with your progress
on this matter, my dear. I would have thought this would be a simple task for
one such as yourself.*

*I...apologize, Master. What would you have me do?*

*I believe young Skywalker will show up at the rebel rendezvous sooner or later.
I have foreseen you bringing him to me. You will ensure that this will happen,
Hand.*

*I swear it will be done, Master.* She felt a tiny surge of relief flow through
her body. He still trusted in her.

*But to make certain that you realize that such sloppy work will not be
acceptable in the future...*

Arica had only a second to tense, as she well understood what those words meant.
Punishment. A wave of agonizing pain flowed over their connection and through
every nerve ending in her body. She cried out and toppled over to the floor of
her cabin, her entire body feeling as if it were on fire.

It probably only lasted seconds, but it felt much longer and afterwards she lay
there shaking, gasping for breath. She pressed her face to the cool metal of the
floor, seeking relief from the searing heat flooding her senses.

*This is your last chance, Leia. Do not fail me again.*

*I...won't...Master. I swear.* He cut the connection and it was a long time before
she found the strength to stand. His use of her true name was another indicator
that he was deadly serious. If she didn't bring Skywalker to him soon, she would
pay for her failure with her life.

***********************************************

Luke lay on the bedroll that Master Yoda had provided for him in the front room
of his small hut. It was certainly a good thing that Luke was not Han's height
or he might not have been able to fit into the tiny space. He stared at the
ceiling, feeling the disappointment and the frustration welling up inside him.

He couldn't sleep because his mind kept going over and over the events in the
Dark Side cave earlier that day. He felt like a miserable failure and right now
he was certain that Master Yoda was seriously regretting taking him on as an
apprentice.

He rolled over to his side with a deep sigh. What had his vision meant? It had
disturbed him greatly, seeing his own face in Darth Vader's mask. Was it an
omen? Was he doomed to follow the Sith Lord's path of evil and destruction? And
why would Master Yoda not discuss it with him?

The Jedi training was arduous and exhausting, but sometimes he felt better
equipped to deal with the physical aspects of it more than the mental ones. Luke
had always led an active, physical life, from his time on the moisture farm to
his adventures with the Alliance. That part of the training came almost
ridiculously easy.

The mental part on the other hand... He realized his own character flaws. He knew
that he was impatient and too quick to anger. What he didn't know was how to not
be those things. And sometimes it seemed that Master Yoda was keeping more
things from him than he was showing to him.

His thoughts roamed to Mara. Force, how he missed her. He replayed that kiss
every night in his dreams. He ached to see her again and hoped that it wouldn't
be much longer before he could. He wondered despondently just how long Jedi
training was supposed to take. Somehow, he had the feeling that he'd barely
scratched the surface of the knowledge that Ben and Yoda seemed to take for
granted. What if this took years? How could he possibly justify being away from
the Alliance--and Mara, a sneaky voice in the back of his mind whispered--for
that long?

He closed his eyes and tried to will himself to sleep, making a silent vow that,
come the morning, he would have a renewed focus. He would give the Jedi training
everything he had and then some. And hopefully, he would be able to see Mara
again soon. Perhaps share more than a simple kiss with her. There was a tiny
smile playing across his lips as he finally drifted off to sleep.

The first nightmare came that night.

*****************************************

Chapter Eight

Mara, Han, and Chewbacca sat in the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon and
marveled at the sight ahead of them. Cloud City at Bespin was undeniably a
beautiful place. The pinkish and purple clouds swirled around the spire rising
from the planet's surface like wisps of the cotton candy Mara remembered from
Alderaan.

"Wow, that's just...incredible," Mara breathed in awe.

"Yeah, I'd say Lando's done pretty well for himself," Han agreed.

"How did he ever come to own something this magnificent?"

"Supposedly, he won it in a game of Sabaac." Han looked over at Chewbacca and
grinned wickedly. "Guess he must've improved since the last time I played with
him."

Chewie barked at him reprovingly. [You probably shouldn't bring that up when you
see him.]

"What, you don't think he's over it by now? That was almost ten years ago!"

"What are you talking about? Why would he be upset, Han? I thought this guy was
a friend of yours and now you say he may be holding a grudge? Of all the
irresponsible, arrogant--"

"Will you calm down?" Han said in irritation, interrupting her mid-rant.

Mara gave a small sound of displeasure and settled for fixing him with her
deadliest stare. "Well, tell me what happened then."

"We played Sabaac, I won and he lost. That's it."

"That can't be it. Tell me the rest."

"Well, we were playing for some pretty high stakes..."

"So you took him for a lot of credits and he might still be upset over it?"

Chewbacca huffed a huge laugh. [They weren't playing for credits.]

Han looked uncomfortable and Mara was about to get frustrated.

"Han! Just tell me what happened! What were you playing for?"

"You're sitting in it."

Mara looked at him uncomprehending for a moment and then she sputtered, "The
Falcon? You took his ship?!"

"Hey, he knew the stakes going in! If he didn't want to risk losing it, he
shouldn't have put it up!"

Mara stared at him for a moment longer and then, to Han's consternation, she
began to laugh. He frowned as she almost lost her breath from whatever she found
so funny.

"Care to share the joke?" he asked with an edge of sarcasm.

"It's just that..." she was struggling to talk and breathe and laugh at the same
time. "...I thought you said you were playing for high stakes!"

"Hey!" Han shouted indignantly.

Chewbacca howled with laughter at Mara's comment, but Han didn't see anything
amusing at all.

"That's not funny. Shut up, you big fuzzball." Chewie and Mara only laughed
harder. "As for you..." he pointed to Mara, and now she could see that his mouth
was starting to twitch upwards. Han had always been able to laugh at himself. It
was one of the many things she admired about him.

"Okay, it might be a little funny," Han muttered. He turned back around to face
the viewscreen and continued to talk to himself. "Someone remind me again why I
left behind a very lucrative smuggling career to put up with this aggravation?"

Mara leaned forward, still chuckling, and gave Han a kiss on the cheek. "Because
you're one of the good guys, Han Solo."

"Yeah, well, don't let that get around. You'll ruin my reputation."

To Han's relief, the comm crackled to life and interrupted their warm, fuzzy
moment. How was he supposed to maintain that tough smuggler image when Luke,
Mara and Wedge were able to get to him so easily? It was annoying at times.

"Unknown ship, you are in restricted airspace. Please identify yourselves
immediately."

"Han Solo, in the Millennium Falcon. I need to speak with Lando Calrissian--"

"Millennium Falcon, please be advised that this is restricted airspace--"

"Yeah, yeah, you said that already--"

The official voice continued as though Han hadn't spoken. "--and you are asked
to immediately vacate the area. If you do not comply, you will be fired upon."

"Whoa! Hold on there, buddy! Let me speak to Lando--"

"Baron Calrissian will not see anyone who does not have a landing permit. Please
vacate the area immediately or you will be fired upon."

"Well, how do I get a landing permit?!" Han demanded.

"Please vacate the area immediately or you will be fired upon," the anonymous
voice repeated.

"Lando! I know you're sittin' in some plush office listening to this and
laughin' your ass off! You know it's me and Chewie, now will you please let us
land!?"

There was a momentary pause as the communication between the two ships was cut
off. Han was getting close to panic--where else could they go if Lando sent them
on their way--when the voice came back.

"Millennium Falcon, you are cleared for landing platform 327. We will guide you
in. Do not deviate from your present course or you will be fired upon."

"...or you will be fired upon." Mara had to bite her lip to keep from laughing as
Han mockingly recited the Cloud City pilot's favorite threat along with him.

"See, I told you everything would be fine. We'll land, get my pal Lando to fix
the hyperdrive and then we head to the rendezvous with the Alliance. No
problem," Han said with a blustery confidence that Mara was fairly certain he
didn't really feel. He leaned over to Chewie and muttered, "Just keep an eye
out, okay?"

Once Han had landed the Falcon on platform 327 with all the gentleness of a
feather touching the planet's surface, the three of them started warily down the
open hatch. Across the way, they could see their 'welcoming party'. Mara took
note of a handsome, dark-skinned man a little shorter than Han, dressed in a
sophisticated outfit of dark pants and a sky-blue shirt. Stars, was he wearing a
cape? Yes, he was, Mara realized with a grin.

The grin faltered as she saw the four guards flanking him, two on either side,
all holding big weapons. None of them were smiling or looking much like a
welcoming party at all. Han stiffened a little beside her, tilted his head
slightly backwards, and whispered through the side of his mouth.

"Be ready to take a flying leap back towards the ship if things get hairy."

Chewbacca grumbled at that comment.

"Oh, shut up, Chewie, it's just an expression," Han said irritably.

They each kept a hand near the weapons they carried as they watched Baron
Calrissian begin to stalk towards them. Mara glanced up at Han's face and she
swallowed a little nervously when she understood that he was extremely nervous.
How do we get ourselves into these situations? she wondered.

Then there was no more time for wondering because the Baron was standing right
in front of them and he was cursing Han for all he was worth.

"Why, you slimy, double-crossing, no-good, cheating swindler."

"Cheating? Lando, I'm insulted. I would never cheat a friend, you know that,"
Han said in an affronted tone. "We, uh, are still friends, right?"

Lando's glare didn't decrease in the slightest as his eyes flicked back over the
Falcon. "Are you at least taking good care of her?"

"Of course I am! I'd never let anything happen to her, you know that."

[That's why we are here to get the hyperdrive repaired.] Han turned a glare of
his own on his partner.

"Did I not say to let me do the talking?" he muttered.

[No, actually, you did not.]

"Well, you should know that by now," Han said through clenched teeth.

To his surprise, Lando burst out laughing. Han, Mara and Chewie all turned to
look at him with stunned expressions.

"You two haven't changed a bit! It's good to see you, Han, ol' buddy!" Lando
said as he jerked Han into a quick embrace, thumping him on the back a few
times. "Don't worry, Chewbacca, I know who the real brains of this operation
are." Chewbacca laughed at the offended look on Han's face.

"And who is this lovely vision?" Lando said, as he took Mara's hand in his and
lightly pressed a kiss to the back of hers.

"Mara," she introduced herself, a little coolly.

Han removed Mara's hand from Lando's and said with a grin, "Watch it 'old
buddy', her boyfriend's a Jedi and he's the jealous type." He enjoyed seeing
both Mara's blush and Lando's confused look.

*************************************

The children were crying. Piteous, wailing sobs that tore at his heart. Did no
one else hear them? Why was no one going to see to them? Where was their mother?
He whirled around, disoriented and uncertain of his location.

The walls and floor were made of stone, and he had the odd sense that he'd been
here before. He began to move quickly through the hallways, searching for the
children. Their crying became louder and he struggled with feelings of urgency
and dread as he continued to search for them. He ran down a long hallway,
opening doors, finding nothing.

A low, cackling laugh rumbled down the hallway, sending a shiver up his spine.
There was only one door left. They have to be there...they have to be! he thought
desperately. The door opened and he saw two small figures. A dark head and a
blonde head...they turned to look at him and he could see the tears running down
their faces. A dark form suddenly appeared from nowhere and snatched the small
dark-haired one. The blonde screamed in anguish and he wanted to move forward,
to comfort the small one, but he was frozen in place.

He turned his head and saw a young woman with sad, brown eyes and long dark
hair. She stood, staring back at him, and she was crying silent tears. She was
saying something...he could see her mouth moving, but he couldn't hear her words.
He frowned as he tried to make it out.

From behind him, he heard a scream. A familiar voice, he knew that voice! He
jerked around as he screamed her name. "Mara!" He only caught a glimpse of her
red-gold hair as someone pulled her down the hallway. He was able to move once
more and he gave chase to the sinister figure. "Mara!" he cried again, but she
was only getting further away. He stumbled over something in the floor and
looked down, recoiling in horror. It was Han. And he was dead.

"NO!" Luke came awake with a hoarse shout. He was sweating and gasping for
breath as he looked around Yoda's small hut. He closed his eyes and ran his
hands through his hair, struggling to control his emotions. "Just a dream. It
was just a dream," he muttered.

"Never 'just a dream' with Jedi, young one."

He started as Yoda spoke to him softly and turned to gaze at his Master. Yoda
seemed to be looking right through him and it made Luke very uncomfortable.

"I didn't mean to disturb your sleep, Master."

"Hmm. Hard to sleep when a Jedi has dreams such as yours. Control, you must
learn. Tell me of your dreams, you will."

"I...it was very confusing, Master. I saw...heard...children crying. I saw a young
woman with long, dark hair and she was crying also. Then, I saw--" he broke off
as his emotions threatened to overwhelm him again. "I saw Mara. Someone was
taking her away. And then Han...Han was dead," Luke finished in a whisper. "What
does it mean, Master?"

The small Jedi Master closed his eyes briefly and heaved a sigh. "Had this dream
many times, have you?"

"Almost every night for the last two weeks. But this is the first time I saw
Mara and Han. Before it was just the children and the other woman. What does it
mean?" he asked again, hoping that Yoda would give him a straight answer for
once.

"Hmm. The past and the future, you see. Cloud your mind, they do, when on the
present and your training, it should be."

"The future? Does that mean Han is going to die and Mara is going to be...taken
away?!" Luke asked in dismay.

"Difficult to see. Always in motion is the future." Yoda turned and moved back
towards his bedroom. "Sleep now, you must. Much to do tomorrow."

Luke stifled his impatience and his questions, knowing from past experience that
his Master would tell him nothing further tonight. He rolled over to his side
with a dispirited sigh. Utterly disconsolate, he stretched out with the Force,
trying to sense Mara's presence, but wherever she was, she was too far away. He
closed his eyes, hoping that the dreams would not come again this night.

*******************************************

Darth Vader paused as he strode towards his chambers aboard the Executor. For
just a moment, he had felt something...a questing presence in the Force that bore
the familiar signature of his son, but it swiftly vanished. Frustrated, he
reached out himself, but could find no trace of the boy now.

He barely managed to contain his growl of rage as he stalked the rest of the way
to his quarters. No matter. He will soon be mine. Fett will help me see to that.
At least, he'd better, he thought to himself grimly. He had expected to hear
from the bounty hunter before now. It had been almost six weeks and no word. No
sign of Luke himself either until that brief, tantalizing contact. It was as
though the boy had disappeared from the galaxy.

Always before, since he had discovered Luke's existence, he'd felt a glimmer of
his son's presence in the Force. Never quite enough to track the boy down, but
Vader had known he was there. For the last six weeks, however, nothing. It was
very disturbing. He felt certain that Luke wasn't dead. No, he would know if
that had happened. He would know.

It felt strange, not being able to sense the boy. Over the last two years, he
had grown somewhat accustomed to that ghost of a presence that was always with
him. To be suddenly without it, left the Dark Lord feeling somehow...bereft,
almost abandoned. Stubbornly, he pushed those feelings away. He wanted Luke by
his side to rule the galaxy and bring order out of chaos. There was nothing
sentimental involved, not at all.

When he reached his quarters, he was immensely pleased to discover a message
awaiting him from a certain bounty hunter. Typical of Boba Fett, the message was
terse and brief, as well as being a little vague. Behind his mask, Vader was
tempted to roll his eyes at Fett's sense of drama.

The message simply said, "Vader, ever been to a Tibanna gas mine?"

***************************************

Mara awoke from a troubled sleep in the rooms that Lando Calrissian had provided
for them. She didn't understand where this indistinct feeling of unease was
coming from. She couldn't complain about the accommodations the Baron had
provided. It had been quite some time since she had stayed in lodgings this
luxurious. Certainly not since she had become actively involved in the
rebellion. Probably not since the last time she had been home on Alderaan. She
cut those thoughts off quickly, not wanting to distract herself with feelings of
grief at the moment.

There was something not right about this whole situation, but she could not put
a finger on what it was. Worry over Luke suddenly loomed heavily in her mind and
she wondered where that had come from. Yes, she had been concerned about him
ever since they'd parted on Hoth, but suddenly it was so intense as to make her
breath catch in her throat.

She needed to talk to Han. True, he may laugh off her worries, but often, Han
trusted his gut instincts and she hoped that this time, he would trust hers.
They needed to be out of this place, if not immediately, then as soon as
possible.

She got up and headed to the 'fresher. Lando's people had provided both her and
Han with fresh clothing and, after a soothing real water shower, she dressed in
the outfit that had been laid out for her. The dress was an emerald green with a
filmy white cloak that floated around it. She arranged her hair in a single
braid that fell halfway down her back. Taking one last look in the mirror, she
smiled ruefully. It had also been quite a while since she had been able to take
such care with her appearance. War didn't exactly leave time for dressing up.

She walked out into the common lounge that connected the rooms she, Han and
Chewbacca had been staying in. Han and the Wookiee were already there waiting
for her and when they heard her door open, they turned from where they had been
admiring the view of Bespin. Han gave a low whistle as he caught sight of her.

"Nice outfit, Jade. Bet Luke would love it," he teased.

Mara scowled and blushed, inwardly cursing her fair complexion and Han's smart
mouth. "Han, we need to get out of this place. How soon will the Falcon be
ready?"

"Why so anxious? We could look at this like a little vacation."

"In the first place, I don't feel comfortable taking a 'vacation' while the rest
of the Alliance is struggling to escape Vader and in the second place, I don't
trust Calrissian. I've got a very bad feeling about this."

"Now you're starting to sound like the kid. Don't you know that just jinxes us?
I admit that Lando may be a little, ah, shady, but I think we can trust him to
fix the Falcon. It did used to be his ship once and he couldn't bear to mess it
up," Han said with a roguish grin.

"I'm not worried about the Falcon. It's this place. Something is just not right
here," Mara said with a shudder.

Han sighed and walked over to place his hands on Mara's shoulders. "Look, Red, I
didn't rescue you from Hoth just to get you in trouble here. Everything's gonna
be fine. But if this place bugs you that much, let's go see Lando now and tell
him to put a rush on it, all right?"

Mara nodded as she looked up at him. "That would make me feel--"

"Good morning! I hope you all slept well," Lando proclaimed with a big smile as
he swept into the lounge. Mara and Han turned to look at him, neither of them
moving for a moment.

"Did I interrupt something?" Lando asked with a raised brow as he eyed Han's
hands on Mara's shoulders. Mara flushed again as she shrugged away from Han's
hold.

"No. Is the Falcon ready?" she asked abruptly.

"You're not so anxious to leave that I can't give you a small tour, are you? I'm
quite proud of this facility and I would love to show it off a bit," he said,
his smile ingratiating.

"We don't really have the time--"

"I insist," Lando interrupted her and again that small sense of unease skated up
Mara's spine. She saw no graceful way out of it, however, and with a small
glance at Han, she nodded.

Two hours later, Mara had to grudgingly admit that Lando had quite an impressive
operation. He had explained the process of the gas mining, and Mara found it
interesting, although she noticed that Han had pointedly stifled a yawn once or
twice. Mara had a hard time believing that Emperor Palpatine didn't want a piece
of such a rich and lucrative pie, however. When she voiced that question, Lando
gave a suave smile.

"We're an independent station and therefore we don't fall under the jurisdiction
of the Empire."

"Well, yeah, but that's only because the walking corpse doesn't know about it,
does he? What are you gonna do if he ever finds out?" Han asked skeptically.

Lando's smile seemed to lose some of its polish and tiny lines of tension
appeared around his eyes. Mara's bad feeling flared up like a supernova.

"I've just made a deal that will keep the Empire out of Bespin forever," he
said. "If you'll follow me, I've had a lunch prepared."

The sense of dread that permeated Mara's being seemed to grow with every step
they took. Years of ducking and running, and listening to her gut instincts,
with the Alliance had her on edge. She had to restrain herself from grabbing
hold of Han and Chewie and taking off in the opposite direction of wherever
Lando was leading them. She tried to tell herself she was just being paranoid.

Moments later, as she stared in shock at the sight that greeted them in the
ornate dining room Lando had shown them into, she wished she had listened to
that impulse. She was frozen with fear, the interrogation on the Death Star
looming up in her memory, as she stared at Lord Darth Vader on the opposite side
of the room. Chewbacca howled angrily as he understood they had been betrayed by
one they had considered a friend.

Han was just as shocked, but he recovered much quicker, drawing his blaster and
firing at the Dark Lord. The look of dismay on his face was almost comical as
the bolts reflected harmlessly off Vader's outstretched hand and then Han gasped
as his blaster was yanked away from him and flew through the air towards his
target. He noted Boba Fett standing beside Vader and had a sudden insight as to
how the Imps had found them.

He jerked his head around to glare fiercely at Lando. The Baron's face showed
resignation and a little guilt, but Han ignored that.

"I'm sorry. They landed in the middle of the night. They already knew you were
here," he said with a touch of regret in his voice.

Vader's hissing respirator sent a shudder through Mara and Han turned to look at
her in concern. She flinched as the Dark Lord spoke calmly.

"We would be honored if you joined us."

***************************************

Chapter Nine

"Yes, calm, you must be and flow through you, the Force will."

Yoda's voice was soothing, though barely audible to his young apprentice. Luke
was upside down, balancing on his hands, and the diminutive Jedi Master was
perched on Luke's upturned feet. A nearby rock began to float slowly into the
air as Luke immersed himself in the Force. The rock was soon joined by two more.

"Yes! Yes. Much progress, you have made. Maybe next time, lift your own ship,
you should, hmm?" Yoda said with a little cackling laugh, referring to the
events of the previous day.

A ghost of a smile crossed Luke's lips--even as his eyes remained closed in
concentration--at the subtle reminder that, as far as he had come, he still had
far to go. Personally, Luke considered the fact that he didn't get angry at
Yoda's little jab great progress. Carefully, Luke lifted one hand off the swampy
ground so that he was balancing his and Yoda's weight solely with the remaining
hand.

"Yes. Yes. Good," Yoda encouraged him.

It was one of the rare, but increasing, occasions where Luke truly felt that he
was feeling the Force. His very spirit seemed to be completely in tune with his
surroundings and he breathed in deeply as a sense of utter serenity flowed
through him. He marveled at the connection he could sense to all the living
beings around him...the trees, the birds, the creatures in the swamp, his
Master...even the insect that crawled slowly across his balancing hand. Rather
than be startled, he felt a kinship with the little bug.

The sharp stab of excruciating pain was what startled him. He gasped and, for a
moment, thought he had somehow injured himself as his balance began to waver. On
his feet, Yoda gave a little yelp. The wave of agony rippled through him again
and he cried out. Then he understood. The pain was coming to him through the
Force and he could sense Han. And Mara!

"Mara! Han!" he shouted and there was no hope of maintaining his balance now.
Yoda gave a frightful shriek as the two of them went tumbling to the ground.
Luke landed hard, his breath leaving his body in a whoosh. When he sat up, he
noticed Yoda had somehow managed to land on his feet and he was giving his
Apprentice a knowing gaze.

"I'm sorry, Master, I--"

"Sensed your friends, did you?"

"Yes. I saw...a city in the clouds," Luke said and he shivered as he hung his
head. "Mara and Han were there and they were in pain."

Yoda sighed as he sat down in front of Luke. "Let this interfere in your
training, you must not."

Luke glanced up at his Master sharply. "I have to go to them. I have to help
them."

"No! Leave before the training is complete, you cannot! Vulnerable, you are,
right now."

"I feel the Force, Master!" Luke protested.

"But you cannot control it, Luke," a voice said from behind him.

Luke looked around at the spectral figure of Ben Kenobi sitting on a log behind
him. Ben's shimmering form stood and moved to stand beside Yoda.

"This is a dangerous time for you, Luke. Now is when you will be most
susceptible to the temptations of the Dark Side."

"I won't turn to the Dark Side, Ben. I swear. I can't let anything happen to Han
and Mara. They're...they're everything to me!"

"That is what Vader and the Emperor are counting on, Luke. They are
intentionally trying to draw you out. It is you and your abilities that the
Emperor wants."

"So I'm supposed to sit back and do nothing? Sacrifice Han and Mara?" Luke asked
incredulously.

"If you honor what they fight for...yes!" Yoda stated imperiously.

"You're not 'doing nothing', Luke. You are taking the necessary steps to prepare
yourself for what is going to be a monumental task. You must understand how
important this is. You may be the only hope for the galaxy," Ben said urgently.

Luke closed his eyes and dropped his head at Ben's words, as though denying them
to himself. He could not do this! He was just a farmboy from a desert planet in
the outer rim. They expected too much from him. And then there was the issue of
his friends...

Luke was confused by the struggle between what his Masters said and what he felt
was in his own heart. He knew he wasn't ready yet to face Darth Vader. He
realized this was a trap to lure him, so the Emperor and his dark minion could
tempt him with the Dark Side. While he knew that he may very well lose the
battle and forfeit his life, he felt confident that he would never turn to the
Dark. And he could not sacrifice Han and Mara's lives. He simply couldn't.

He looked up to see his Masters watching him. He couldn't read anything of the
expressions they wore, but he sensed they weren't surprised by the words he
spoke.

"I'm going to save them. I'm sorry, Master Yoda. I will return, but I can't just
let them die."

Yoda said nothing for a long moment and Luke felt his disappointment and
disapproval sharply through the Force, but he remained resolute in his decision.

"So be it. Do what you think is right, you must," Yoda intoned.

************************************

Mara paced back and forth in the cell she had been placed in after an extremely
stressful 'lunch'. Her hair was no longer arranged in the lovely braid that it
had been that morning; instead, it was disheveled and dirty, rather the same way
she herself felt. They had taken away her dress and given her an ugly gray
flight suit to wear. The Imperials had separated her from Han and Chewie and she
was terrified that Vader had killed them.

She barely noticed the tears that were silently tracing her cheeks as she
wrapped her arms around herself, continuing her solitary walking. Vader hadn't
talked to her personally, but a couple of his men had interrogated her. It had
been nowhere near the ordeal the Death Star had been, but it had still been
difficult. They had questioned her about the Alliance fleet's location, and when
she refused to answer those questions, they had gotten physical with her. She
absently rubbed a hand across the darkening bruise on her cheek. She desperately
wished for word on what was happening to Han and Chewie.

Almost as if in answer to her silent plea, the door to her cell slid open and
two troopers stepped inside, carrying a limp Han Solo between them. A moment
later, a door on the other side of the room opened and Chewbacca walked in under
his own power, still defiant enough to give a warning growl to a trooper who'd
dared to push him. The trooper lifted his blaster rifle menacingly, confident in
his arrogance that the Wookiee would not dare to truly try anything. Chewbacca
realized it would do them more harm than good, but he had to hold back the urge
to rip the soldier's arms from their sockets.

Mara rushed over to where the troopers had unceremoniously dumped Han on the
floor. Chewie helped her to get him up and stretched out on the narrow cot that
was the only piece of furniture in the cell. Han looked up at them with hazy,
pain-filled eyes.

"I don't feel so good," he mumbled.

"Why are they doing this? They didn't ask me anything of any real importance,"
Mara wondered as she stroked Han's head.

"They didn't ask me anything at all. Just plopped me down on the scan grid," Han
replied as he closed his eyes wearily. He opened them again and focused his gaze
on her, anger flaring in his eyes when he saw the bruise on her cheek. "Are you
all right?"

"I'm fine. This is nothing. You know I'm tougher than that," she smiled gently
at him.

[Something is not right about this whole situation.] Han looked over at Chewie
and nodded his head in agreement at the Wookiee's assessment.

"Vader's up to something, but I can't figure out what," he said.

Mara gave a short derisive laugh. "It'd be easier to try and solve the riddle of
the Kandarian Triangle than to get inside that monster's head."

The door to the cell slid open again and they turned to see Lando step through
the door, followed by two of his own guards. Mara glared at him fiercely, her
green eyes shooting sparks.

"What do you want?" she spat.

"I think you'd better leave, old buddy, before Mara here tears your ears off
your head. Or maybe I should let you and Chewie have a 'talk'," Han sneered. He
struggled into a sitting position, pretending not to notice as Chewbacca gave
him an assisting paw at his back.

Lando frowned as he cleared his throat. "Look, Han, I'm sorry. I didn't intend
for this to happen. I never would have given you away, but they already knew you
were here! They must have tracked you somehow."

"Yeah, poor you. What do you get out of this deal?"

"Lord Vader won't blast this facility into oblivion, that's what," Lando bit
out. "I'm responsible for a lot of lives here, Han, not just my own."

Han didn't say anything to that. He understood that Lando had been in a
difficult position, but it didn't lessen his anger and frustration at the
predicament they were in. He glanced over at Mara and saw that she was
struggling with the same emotions.

"It's never easy when other's lives are at risk because of you," she said, her
voice hoarse and quiet. Han knew she was thinking of Alderaan and the choice
Tarkin had forced her to make. A choice that, in the end, could never have been
right or wrong because the Grand Moff had already decided to blow up her planet
no matter what she did or said.

"Do you know what Vader has planned for us?" Han asked, wanting to get Mara's
mind away from the grief that was always hovering in the background of her
thoughts.

Lando grimaced. "He's going to take all of you back to Coruscant. But first,
he's going to...put you into carbon freeze," he said as he nodded his head towards
Han.

"What?!" Mara shouted. "Why would he do that?" Han only frowned, not wanting to
admit to the spasm of fear that shot through him at what those words meant.
Vader had just given him a death sentence.

"He wants to test it, to see if Han will live. He's not actually after you at
all. He wants someone named Skywalker."

"Luke?!" Han sputtered in disbelief. Chewbacca gave a low, angry growl.

Mara's face paled so much that she appeared on the verge of passing out. Images
of the last time she had seen Luke flashed through her mind and she felt her
lips tingle as she remembered the brief, but intense, kiss they had shared. She
had a frightening image of Vader standing over Luke's huddled form, his
black-gloved hand stretching out towards the youth menacingly. She could see
Luke's face, his hair drenched with sweat, his eyes wide with fear as the dark
one advanced towards him, stalking him.

"Mara! Mara, snap out of it!" Han's worried voice penetrated her senses and she
realized that he was shaking her by the shoulders, hard. She finally focused her
gaze on his face, whitened with apprehension.

"What...what happened?" she asked weakly.

"You zoned out on us for a minute there, that's what happened!" Han shouted. She
flinched and he lowered his voice as he asked, "You okay?" He was trying to
contain the panic he'd felt when she had started to slump downwards. Chewbacca
had dived forward barely in time to keep her from hitting the floor.

"Is she all right?" Lando asked.

"She's fine, not that it's any of your business. We understand that you may have
felt like you had no choice, but forgive us if we don't feel like sitting down
to afternoon tea with you anytime soon," Han said sarcastically.

Lando seemed to realize that he had overstayed his welcome and he straightened,
becoming the Baron of Cloud City. "I'm truly sorry, Han. If I could change
things, I would," he said quietly before he turned and left the cell.

"Vader's after Luke," Mara whispered in a horrified tone.

"He's not gonna get him, Mara. Luke has no way of knowing where we are. Vader's
wasting his time." Han wished that he was as confident as his words sounded. He
wished that he didn't have a bad feeling about this.

***************************************

Yoda and the ghostly form of Obi-Wan stood watching in silence as Luke loaded up
his X-Wing. He had just settled Artoo in his niche and he was gathering up the
remnants of his time on Dagobah. He hoped that he would be able to return and
finish the training. He regretted having to disappoint Ben and Master Yoda, but
he had to go and help Mara, Han and Chewbacca, who were in danger because of
him.

"Artoo, fire up the power converters," he instructed the little droid before
turning to say farewell to his Masters.

"If you face Vader now, Luke, you do so alone. Yoda and I cannot help you,"
Obi-Wan said, still trying to change Luke's mind.

"I understand," Luke said quietly but he was resolute in his decision. "I will
come back to complete the training, Master Yoda, I promise."

He turned and climbed up into the cockpit. He glanced down at the two worried
Jedi one last time.

"Luke! Mind what you have learned. Help you, it can. Give in to anger and fear,
you must not! The Dark Side, are they," Yoda said urgently, trying to instill
these lessons in the boy's head one more time.

Luke just nodded and pulled his flight helmet on. The cockpit canopy slowly
lowered and the Jedi Masters watched as the ship lifted off the ground and into
the air. It was swallowed up by the mist in a matter of moments. Yoda heaved a
huge sigh.

"Told you, I did. Reckless, is he. Like his father," Yoda said sadly.

"And what if Vader tells him who he is?"

"Hope that Luke is strong enough, we must."

Obi-Wan's gaze dropped from where he had been following the ship's path to the
tiny Jedi beside him.

"Should we have told him of his sister?"

Yoda sighed again and looked up at Obi-Wan with a shrewd gleam in his eye.
"Still not certain, am I, that the right thing you did in erasing his memories
of her, Obi-Wan." The taller Jedi barely resisted the urge to squirm under that
gaze. "But, no. Distract him, it would, the grief her death would cause. On
Vader, all his focus must be."

Obi-Wan once again raised his gaze to the spot where Luke's ship had
disappeared. "That boy is our last hope," he said.

"Yes, he is," Yoda agreed quietly.

***********************************************

The procession moved slowly towards the carbon-freezing chamber. Han was scared
out of his wits, but he would be damned before he'd let these blasted Imps see
it--he was a Corellian, after all. He and Mara were side-by-side with Chewie
walking a few paces behind them. Ahead of them, he was forced to stare at the
back of his traitorous friend's head and the black helmet of Darth Vader.
Surrounding them on all sides were Vader's stormtroopers. No chance of escape.
Looks like this is it, Solo, Han thought as he tried to swallow with a suddenly
very dry throat.

He glanced down at Mara as she raised her eyes to meet his. Her face was still
deathly pale and he found himself worrying more about her for a moment than he
was about himself. Tears welled up in Mara's eyes and he tried to give her his
usual cocky grin to reassure her, but he had the feeling it didn't work very
well.

The room they finally ended up in was full of steam and it was humid and
oppressive. Han could feel his shirt already sticking to his skin from the sweat
that began to pour from him.

"Place him in the chamber," Vader's imperious voice echoed around the room and
in Han's head.

"Lord Vader, I must protest. This chamber is not designed for this purpose. If
you put him in there, it may kill him," Lando spoke up, bravely albeit
nervously.

Lando must have found a bit of his conscience, Han thought derisively. Not gonna
do me much good now, 'old buddy'.

"This matter is no longer your concern, Calrissian. In fact, I would prefer it
if you took the Wookiee and the girl to my ship now."

"No." Vader and Calrissian turned in surprise at the strength of that voice. At
least Han could see that Lando was surprised. Who could tell what the Dark Lord
was thinking at any given moment? Han admitted to some surprise of his own at
the firmness in Mara's voice, but he should have known better. Mara was one of
the strongest women he knew and he found himself proud of her in that moment.

"No," she repeated. "Han Solo is my friend and ally. If you are determined to
murder him, Lord Vader, then a friend's face is going to be the last thing he
sees, not yours and certainly not his," she almost spat the word as she
indicated Lando with a nod of her head.

Vader was still for a long while as he and Mara stared each other down. Han had
a feeling both of them were remembering the Death Star, but in very different
ways. He could see Mara's lips trembling slightly. He was just about to speak up
and tell her that he didn't want her to stay when Vader finally answered her.

"Very well. If that is your wish."

Was that a hint of respect in Vader's voice, Han wondered in disbelief before he
decided that he must be mistaken. Probably just realizes how much it will
torture Mara and Chewie to have to watch this, he thought angrily.

Vader gestured to his troopers and they stepped forward to yank Han away, moving
him to stand in the middle of a circular platform. Han glanced nervously at the
tiny Ugnaughts who were scurrying around, adjusting knobs and levers. He looked
back up as Chewbacca suddenly gave an enraged howl and with a wide sweep of his
massive arm, knocked two troopers off their feet. There was pandemonium for a
moment and then Han realized that the other troopers were about to fire their
weapons.

"Chewie! Stop it, Chewbacca!" He stepped forward, getting the Wookiee's
attention after a few perilous tries.

Chewbacca looked at Han and just gave a mournful cry. Han was fighting back
tears as he grasped his partner and oldest friend by the arms.

"This won't do any good, pal. You can't let yourself get killed. You have to
take care of Mara."

Chewbacca looked as though he wanted to argue, but then he nodded his shaggy
head in agreement.

[You will be avenged, my life-long friend.]

Han gave him a shaky smile. "I'm counting on that." Their eyes held for a long
time and no other words needed to be expressed between the two beings who, no
matter how different they were in appearance, were truly bond-brothers.

He turned to look at Mara and realized that this was probably the only
opportunity he would get to say good-bye. A single tear slid down her cheek as
she gazed up at him. Han wiped it away with his thumb and when he spoke, his
voice was uncomfortably hoarse.

"You take care of yourself, Red. I know you'll figure out a way to get out of
bucket-head's clutches."

"Han, I--" Mara broke off. She had so many words and yet no idea what to say.
Han smiled in understanding.

"It's been an honor to know you, Mara Jade," he whispered. He leaned forward and
softly kissed her on the forehead. A quiet sob broke from her throat that she
quickly tried to stifle. She didn't want him to see her crying.

The stormtroopers had lost patience with the tender scene and stepped forward to
haul Han back to his original position on the carbon-freezing platform. Han kept
his eyes locked on Mara and Chewie, refusing to give either Vader or Lando the
satisfaction of seeing him cringe as the platform began to lower slowly.

His breathing quickened and he felt as though the blood were pounding in his
ears as he tried to prepare himself for what was to come. Still, he flinched in
shock as the carbon gasses suddenly poured into the small chamber.
Instinctively, his hands raised as though trying to ward them off, but it was
futile, of course. He struggled to breathe as the gasses began to fill his lungs
and he gagged, feeling as though he was about to vomit. If he could just get one
good breath! He could fight this, if he could just breathe! That was his last
thought before blackness overwhelmed him and he knew nothing more.

******************************************

Chapter 10

Mara could not shake the horror from her senses as she watched Han's face
disappear behind the clouds of carbon gas that plumed upwards from the chamber.
Jumbled images of him ran through her mind as she remembered everything that he
was to her: rescuer, protector, big brother....friend. Her love for the swaggering
smuggler was no less intense just because it wasn't a romantic love. How would
they bear it, being without him? How would they ever be able to tell Wedge and
Luke what had happened?

She wanted to rail and scream at the Dark Lord that stood there, calmly
observing as she lost one of her best friends. She wanted to stride across the
chamber and rip his lightsaber from his belt, slice his head from his body with
it. Her anger was like a living thing inside her, growing until she could barely
contain it. She actually took a step in his direction...and then he turned to look
directly at her. She faltered, her anger withering away under that gaze. Even
with the helmet obscuring his face, she knew that he was watching her. Her
residual fear of him and the memories of that time on the Death Star got the
better of her anger and she shrank back against Chewbacca's side. Vader tilted
his head slightly to one side, as though he was observing some anomaly he didn't
quite comprehend.

As much as Mara wanted to tear her gaze away from him, she found that she
couldn't. Just when she thought she couldn't bear his scrutiny any longer, her
attention was diverted by the metallic banging of Han's frozen form falling in
front of her. Chewbacca let out a low whine as the Ugnaughts moved around the
carbonite slab, checking readings and fiddling with dials. Mara's gaze was
riveted to Han's face, frozen in terror and she had to physically choke back her
anger and her tears. That wouldn't do Han or herself and Chewie any good at this
point.

"Well, Calrissian?" Vader's voice interrupted her despair.

When Lando stepped forward to read the gauges and dials, Mara noted a hint of
desperation and guilt on his face. She curled her lip in disdain at the Baron's
concern for Han. Too little, too late, as far as she was concerned.

"He's alive. And in perfect hibernation," Lando said, the relief in his tone
evident.

"Excellent. Reset the chamber for Skywalker and deliver his friends to my ship
at once," Vader commanded.

Lando stood and nodded at the Dark Lord. He turned to face Mara and Chewie and
Mara found herself frowning at the look in his eyes. There was something going
on in that head, she was sure of that, but what?

"Skywalker's ship has just landed, my Lord," an aide informed Darth Vader.

Mara couldn't help the gasp that left her mouth. Luke! Somehow, he'd found them,
and now he'd fallen into Vader's trap. She knew a moment of pure fear unlike
anything she'd ever felt. She shuddered to think what Vader would do to Luke,
knowing that the youth was a Force-sensitive. She had heard the stories of the
Sith Lord hunting down and slaughtering all the Jedi in the time of the Old
Republic.

"No, you leave Luke alone, you monster--" she started to scream and she surged
forward towards the thing from her nightmares. Lando was suddenly there, holding
her back and she noticed that the stormtroopers were holding Chewie back or she
didn't think Lando would have been so bold. Vader himself didn't spare her
another glance as he turned and stalked from the carbon-freezing chamber.

"You!" Mara spat in disgust. "Get your hands off me, you traitor!"

"Now is not the time, Ms. Jade," Lando said meaningfully and something in his
tone gave her pause.

******************************************

Luke moved cautiously through the hallways of the city in the clouds. He had
landed with no problem and thus far had not been stopped and questioned by
anyone. This made him very uneasy and he imagined he could feel the jaws of a
trap closing around him. At the same time, there was no thought of turning back.
Han, Mara and Chewbacca needed him. They were in danger because of him and he
would not abandon them--even if it cost him his own life. Of course, he would
try to avoid that outcome, if at all possible.

The flight to Bespin had been uneventful as well. There were both good and bad
consequences of that. On the one hand, it was always nice to get a break from
TIE's constantly trying to vaporize you; but on the other hand, a quiet trip
left him with entirely too much time to think. His mind had constantly dwelled
on the nightmares that had plagued him on Dagobah. He worried incessantly over
Han, Mara and Chewbacca. Then there were the confusing images of the other part
of his dreams.

He'd had the feeling that the unknown children and woman should mean something
more, but their significance was completely lost on him. He had strained to try
and see an underlying message in the unfamiliar faces, but couldn't find one.
Knowing that he needed to focus on the present, he pushed the images out of his
head for now.

Artoo was wheeling along slightly behind him, nervous-sounding beeps emitting
from him almost constantly. Luke figured the little droid was really wondering
about his master's sanity at this point. Tentatively, he reached out with the
Force, trying to sense Mara's presence. He didn't think to question why he was
somehow able to find her, he just felt an overwhelming surge of joy when he did.

Mara! he thought to himself as he sensed her and she wasn't that far away. Even
as the realization hit him, he shivered as he suddenly felt a darker presence
touch his mind. "Vader," he murmured aloud as he tried to shake off the
lingering shadows the other one's touch had brought. He jerked his head up as a
movement ahead in the corridor caught his eye.

He saw several stormtroopers as well as some guards who must have been employed
by this station, judging by their different uniforms. Following just behind the
troopers was a man that Luke didn't recognize, wearing a blue shirt and a cape.
Behind him were two forms that Luke definitely did recognize.

He aimed his blaster at the troopers and fired off two shots before they began
firing back at him. He took cover quickly behind a doorway.

"Luke!" a voice shouted and it was music to his ears.

"Mara!" he cried back, and wished he could take her in his arms this very
moment. Unfortunately, he was a bit preoccupied by the blaster fire.

"Luke, go back! It's a trap!" Mara shouted and Luke grimaced. Didn't she think
he knew that? Of course it was a trap, but that didn't mean he was going to
leave her and Han and Chewbacca here. And where was Han, anyway?

He risked another glance around the doorway he'd leapt behind and was dismayed
to find the little party gone. No! he silently groaned in frustration as he ran
to where they had disappeared, but there was no trace of them anywhere. When he
turned to look for Artoo, a huge metal door slammed down in the aperture he'd
just come through, cutting him off from the little droid that had been his
companion for so long. Now he was utterly alone. He clenched his jaw in
determination as he turned to the only path left for him. A path that he knew
would lead to Darth Vader, the murderer of his father.

*********************************************

Mara struggled against the Imperial officer who had cowardly used her as a
shield when Luke had fired at them, but he was too strong and she couldn't break
his hold on her. So instead, she cursed him with every foul word Han, Luke and
Wedge had ever taught her. Lando Calrissian's eyebrows raised at some of the
phrasing she used. It was very inventive.

Chewbacca growled warningly at the man's rough handling of her, even though his
wrists were bound by stuncuffs, limiting his ability to really do anything, but
it certainly didn't diminish his presence at all. The officer paled and
immediately eased up in his treatment of Mara, foolishly allowing her to get her
hands free. She took the opportunity to punch him in the jaw. Enraged, the
Imperial pulled his blaster out.

Before he could make good on that threat, Lando stepped forward and grabbed the
man's wrist.

"Do you really think Lord Vader would appreciate you killing one of his
prisoners?"

The Imperial glared at the Baron, but holstered his weapon. Lando turned his
gaze to Mara. "I would suggest that you calm down, Ms. Jade. There's nothing you
can do right now."

Mara frowned at the dark-skinned administrator, again wondering what was going
through his head. He had placed a subtle emphasis on the last two words he'd
spoken, slight enough that the Imperial did not seem to have noticed. He's
definitely planning something, Mara thought, but can we trust him? She realized
that whatever plan Lando was hatching they might not have much choice. Their
options were very limited at this point.

The only other person who even knew they were here was Luke and Mara suddenly
had a very bad feeling about what her farmboy from Tatooine was about to face.
Darth Vader.

************************************

Luke felt the Dark Lord's inexorable pull on him as he made his way through
deserted corridors and dark rooms. He could no more have turned around than he
could have resisted his impulse to kiss Mara Jade what seemed like an eternity
ago now. He tried to hold on to the thought of the fiery redhead, just her image
in his mind seeming to give him courage and strength. He had come here
ostensibly to rescue her, Han and Chewie, but this confrontation was his true
purpose here. Vader's capturing his friends had been a trap to lure him out and
Luke supposed grimly that it had worked to perfection.

This was what Ben and Yoda had been preparing him for, even if they had thought
that he wasn't yet ready for the altercation to come. He found his way into a
room filled with steam and pipes. The Dark Lord's presence was nearly
overpowering now. Luke glanced down at the blaster he still held in his hand. It
felt wrong and, almost without thinking, he holstered it, his hand going
automatically to the lightsaber at his hip. He didn't ignite the blade, but the
cool metal felt right and comfortable in his grip. My father's weapon, he
thought to himself, to face my father's murderer.

A strange mechanical sound reached his ears, and though he'd never heard it
before, he somehow instantly knew exactly what, or rather who, it was. He looked
up to the top of a mezzanine running along the outside wall of the room. For a
moment, fear assaulted his senses as he took in the awesome sight of the
black-armored giant. Anger quickly followed as he faced his father's killer. He
struggled to remember Yoda's words and calmed his emotions.

Boldly, he walked forward up the steps until he was standing only meters away
from the demon. Vader stood quietly, watching him in disinterest, or so it
seemed to Luke. Luke ignited his lightsaber and took an offensive stance,
challenging the Sith Lord.

"Darth Vader. You will pay for your crimes against the Jedi," Luke vowed.

"The Force is strong with you, young Skywalker," the Dark Lord intoned, "but you
are not a Jedi, yet."

As he spoke, Vader ignited his own lightsaber and Luke felt a chill run up his
spine at the sight of the blood-red blade. He forced his fear away as he faced
his enemy.

Vader stood silently, waiting for Luke to make the first move. Luke lunged
forward, wanting to erase this monstrosity from the galaxy, and the battle was
joined.

***********************************

The small group of Imperials and prisoners had begun to move forward again, but
now Mara kept a sharper eye on Lando Calrissian. She knew that if he was in fact
planning something, it would have to happen soon. Definitely before we reach
Vader's shuttle, she mused. Since she was watching him so closely, she didn't
miss it when his right hand moved to the communicator on his opposite wrist. He
tapped a few buttons unobtrusively, his gaze never dropping from the direction
they were traveling.

Mara tensed, sending a quick look up at Chewbacca. The glint in his eyes told
her that he was aware of Calrissian's maneuvering as well and they both mentally
braced themselves.

As it turned out, the move was so smooth that it took the Imperials completely
by surprise and the rebels didn't have to do a thing. Several of Lando's guards
were simply there all of a sudden, blasters aimed at the Imp's heads before they
could even think of drawing their weapons in return.

Mara watched with a wary eye as the Baron quickly rounded up the Imperial's
weapons and handed some of them to one of his men who bore an officer's insignia
on his uniform. He kept three of the blaster rifles in his hands as he spoke in
a low voice to the man.

"Lock them in the security tower. We want to keep this quiet for as long as
possible."

As his men herded the surprised Imperials away, Lando turned to face Mara and
Chewbacca. The Wookiee growled menacingly at their betrayer.

Lando spoke quickly, as though he were afraid that Han's friends were going to
attack him any moment. Mara mused grimly that he probably wasn't far from the
truth, if that was the case.

"Look, I'm sorry for what happened to Han and I want to help all of you get out
of here. I'm going to take those stuncuffs off, Chewie, and I'd like to keep my
head attached to my shoulders when I do. Do we have an understanding?"

"No, we certainly do not," Mara said, somewhat peevishly. "How do we know that
we can trust you? You betrayed us to Vader not that long ago."

[You betrayed Han to Vader,] Chewbacca grumbled.

"I didn't have any choice in that. You have to understand that much at least.
And I'm trying to make up for it now!" Lando said, and there was a hint of
desperation in his tone.

"Why? Aren't you worried about what Vader will do when he finds out you've
broken his deal?"

"He's already broken his part of the deal in more ways than I can count. He's
planning to leave troops here and I will no longer be in command of the
station," Lando said bitterly. "Why should I keep my end if he's not going to do
the same? And I don't want Han in that carbonite any more than you do. Do we
have an understanding?"

Mara glanced up at Chewie. They both knew that, as much as they distrusted
Lando, he was their only chance at getting out of this situation alive. He was
also the only one who would be able to help them rescue Han and Luke. Chewie
nodded and she turned back to Lando.

"All right. What's the plan?"

Lando breathed a sigh of relief and handed Mara the weapons before reaching into
his pocket for a key to unlock the stuncuffs on Chewbacca. The Wookiee had to
smile when Lando quickly stepped back out of arm's reach, Mara's word
notwithstanding. Unfortunately for Lando's peace of mind, Chewie's grin looked
more like a feral snarl.

"We've got to get to Han first--"

"Wait a minute. What about Luke? He's about to face a Sith Lord. Vader will kill
him!" She was worried about both Luke and Han, but her recently discovered
feelings for the young rebel pilot-turned-Jedi were coloring her thinking.

"I don't think Vader wants to kill Skywalker. I got the impression that he wants
him alive," Lando said. That was definitely not what Mara wanted to hear.

"Alive! So he can take him to the Emperor, no doubt!"

"We have to go to Han first, Ms. Jade! Vader has no use for him, so he's having
the carbonite recycled...without freeing Han from it first," Lando insisted.

Mara blanched and Chewie let out an angry howl. That settled the debate in the
Wookiee's mind. He loved Luke, but he had a life-debt to Han and he would not
allow anything to happen to the one who had freed him from slavery.

[Calrissian is right, Mara. First Han, then Luke. We will get them both, I
promise.]

Mara nodded her head slowly, trusting that Chewbacca would keep his word, even
if she still wasn't certain about Baron Calrissian. She turned to Lando with a
grim expression.

"Which way do we go?"

Lando breathed a silent sigh of relief as he handed the two spare blaster rifles
over to his new compatriots.

"Follow me."

Apparently, Lando's deception had gone unnoticed as of yet, since they were able
to move through the halls of Cloud City unmolested. The stormtroopers weren't in
the city in force yet and they were able to avoid the few patrols they
encountered.

It helped that Lando must have had the layout of the entire station memorized,
because he took them through so many twists and turns that Mara was soon
completely disoriented. She hoped that Calrissian was truly on their side and
not leading them into a trap, although she didn't see the point in all the
subterfuge if that was true. Vader already had them, why would he go to all this
trouble?

Maybe Lando is planning on using us as bait to get the Empire out of Bespin
again, she thought. If that were true, he would not live to regret it. She and
Chewie would see to that.

They paused at a hallway junction and Lando turned to whisper to them. "There
shouldn't be too many of Vader's men down here, but we need to move quickly so
we can take them by surprise."

"We have done this a few times before, Calrissian," Mara said with an irritated
tone.

"Well, fine, then. Why don't I just let you handle it?" Lando shot back.

Mara looked up at Chewie with a smirk and he grinned back down at her.
Approximately five minutes later, they were standing in a small room with four
unconscious stormtroopers and several anxious Ugnaughts who had been about to
push a carbonite slab into a fiery furnace.

"Okay, I'm impressed," Lando admitted before he turned to try and calm the
Ugnaughts down. Chewie let out a pitiful moan as he again looked at the frozen
face of his friend and partner. Mara had to fight off a wave of despair as she
ran her fingers across Han's tortured face.

"Let's get him out of this thing."

"We don't have time for that now. The unfreezing process takes some time and he
won't be in any condition to travel after he's out."

"And he's in a condition to travel now?" Mara demanded.

"Better for us to be seen with that slab, than Chewie having to carry a man who
won't be able to walk," Lando said in frustration. "And we need to get moving.
Vader's men are going to find out about this at any time."

"Fine. Let's get moving."

"All right, I know where the Falcon is berthed--"

"What about Luke?!" Mara practically shouted.

"We need to get to the ship first. The carbon-freezing chamber is on the other
side of the station from the Falcon. Once we're in the ship, we can fly to where
Skywalker is and we can get the hell out of here faster," Lando shouted back. He
was beginning to wonder how Han had put up with this for that long six weeks
they had told him about.

Mara glared fiercely at Lando. "If Vader gets away from this planet with Luke,
you will regret it, Baron. I can promise you that," she said, her voice seeming
to be made of durasteel.

Lando felt a qualm in his stomach at the conviction in her words, but he'd be
damned before he let her know about it.

"He won't, but you have to trust me."

Mara still wasn't so certain that she completely trusted him, but again she
realized that he was their only option. She settled for letting her glare linger
for a long moment before she said, "Fine. Let's go."

They had been moving as swiftly as they dared, still trying to avoid the
stormtrooper patrols, when their luck ran out. They rounded a corner to see a
full squad of the white-armored soldiers facing them. The firefight was intense,
though luckily brief, as Lando led them through another door that would take
them around the enemy. But now his duplicity had been uncovered. This would make
everything from this point on that much harder.

**************************************

No, I am your father.

The words hung there in the air between the two figures facing each other in the
open air of the reactor shaft. Darth Vader's hand was stretched towards his son,
demanding instead of beseeching, as it might have appeared. He looked at the
agonized, devastated expression on his child's face and knew a moment of pain at
this rejection. Just like Obi-Wan, he thought bitterly. Just like Am- He cut
that thought off before he could complete it. He couldn't bear to think of
her--it was still too painful, even more than twenty years later.

"No," Luke moaned. "That's not true, that's impossible!"

Vader's anger flared at Luke's refusal to see the truth. By the Force, the boy
would listen and he would understand! He took another step towards his son and
almost growled when Luke instinctively flinched backwards, although he literally
had his back against the wall. There was nowhere for him to go.

"Search your feelings. You know it to be true."

"No. NO!" Luke cried and now there were tears streaming down his face. He
clutched his wounded arm close to his chest as he clumsily stepped around so
that he was barely hanging onto the gantry that jutted out into the open space
of the shaft.

"Luke," Vader said, his voice a seductive rumble. "You are powerful enough to
destroy the Emperor. He fears you, with good reason. Join me and together, we
can rule the galaxy as father and son."

"I'll never join you!"

Vader wanted to grab the boy by the neck and yank him off the edge of that
gantry, but he knew that it would be better if the youth came to him of his own
free will. Tainted as he was by the weak teachings of Obi-Wan, turning him would
be difficult enough. If he could get his son to take that first step, things
would be easier for both of them. Vader could almost taste the victory so close
to his grasp.

"Come with me. It is the only way. Together, we can bring order to the chaos
plaguing the galaxy," Vader promised, taking another step closer to the cringing
young man.

A wild look of utter defiance entered Luke's eyes and his tears ceased as he
looked at his father. Vader paused at something in that expression. Luke seemed
to straighten as he faced his foe and despite himself, Vader knew a moment of
pride.

"It's not the only way," Luke said quietly.

He let go of the gantry as he stepped out into nothingness, falling away from
his tormentor so quickly that Vader failed to react in time to pull him back.
Vader lowered his still outstretched hand in disbelief as he watched Luke's body
tumble down into the abyss. The rapidly shrinking form was sucked into an
exhaust tube even as he tried to reach out with the Force to bring the boy back
up the shaft.

He quickly searched out Luke's presence in the Force and was nearly overcome
with a relief that he didn't want to examine too closely when he realized his
son hadn't been killed instantly. There was still time, then. He turned to
stride quickly off the gantry, grim determination marking his every step.

****************************************

Chapter 11

The entire situation was rapidly deteriorating, Mara realized in dismay. There
were Imperial troops all over the station now and they'd had to fight their way
through several blockades. It was only due to Lando's knowledge of Cloud City
and the skillful use of blasters by Mara and Chewbacca that they had made it as
far as they had.

Lando had paused long enough to make an announcement over the public address
system to the citizens of the city that the Empire was taking over. So now they
had to deal with panicked mobs, as well as stormtroopers. The mass confusion
worked somewhat in their favor and they might have been able to blend in with
the fleeing crowds...if they hadn't been towing a huge slab of carbonite with
them.

The tension between Mara and Lando was getting intense and Chewbacca might have
been amused by it if their circumstances weren't so dire. They had just been cut
off again and were now huddled in an alcove with a door that would not open,
when Lando punched the code into the keypad.

"Now what is it?" Mara asked irritably.

"They've changed the codes," Lando said, his jaw clenched.

"Well, that's just great! Now what do we do?" Mara demanded.

"I don't know! It's a wonder we've made it this far!"

[Someone needs to do something quickly. I can't hold these troopers off
forever,] Chewbacca growled.

A frantic beeping from across the hallway caught Mara's attention and she stared
in disbelief. "Artoo?" she half-shouted above the noise of the blaster fire. But
she knew it was. She'd know Luke's astromech anywhere. The little droid was
almost bouncing as he warbled and twittered in his excitement. Maybe the Force
is with us, Mara thought as she gestured to Artoo.

"Get over here and help us get this door open!" she shouted and then winced,
hoping she didn't sound too harsh. Artoo could be very sensitive sometimes.

However, he seemed to realize the severity of the current conditions. He spun
his domed head from side-to-side in an amusing parody of a child checking both
ways before crossing the street, and then rapidly sped over to where they were.
He blithely ignored the laser bolts that were streaming back and forth just over
his head.

Lando looked on in confusion as Mara directed Artoo to plug into the computer
outlet. Artoo was almost humming with happiness at seeing his master's friends
again and being able to help them out.

"Where in the nine hells of Corellia did we pick up an astromech droid?" Lando
asked.

Mara smiled and, for a moment, Lando could see why Han had put up with her for
that long six weeks. She was utterly beautiful, and he wondered again about
Han's comments on the Jedi boyfriend.

"He's Luke's," Mara said. At the thought of the young rebel and the danger she
knew he must be facing at the moment, her smile disappeared, replaced by a
worried frown. "Hurry, Artoo, we're running out of time."

Artoo hooted at her and Mara could swear that he was telling her 'hold your
dewbacks' as he conversed with the central computer of Cloud City. After a few
tense moments, the door opened and they hurried through.

"Lock it down, Artoo! In fact, lock down all the doors behind us in this
sector," Mara ordered. Artoo beeped a reply and after another minute, he
unplugged from the outlet and rolled through behind them as the door closed,
barely missing him. Mara smiled as she realized the small droid seemed to take
it all in stride. But then, he and Luke had been in many tight situations in the
past.

Mara knew she had to stop thinking about Luke for the moment. The worry over him
was only distracting her and they could not afford that if they were going to be
able to get themselves out of this mess. She turned to Lando, grateful for the
brief respite from the blaster battles.

"Which way now?"

"We're almost there. They moved the Falcon to maintenance bay 714 to work on the
hyperdrive. Another few minutes and we'll be there."

"Then we go for Luke," Mara reminded him. Lando nodded, an annoyed expression on
his face at her insistence, but she ignored that. She only hoped that wherever
Luke was, it wasn't too late to help him.

***********************************

As Vader stepped off the turbolift from the carbon-freezing chamber, he felt a
sense of anxiety that was unsettling in and of itself. Dark Lords of the Sith
did not feel anxious. But he worried....no, worried was too strong a word....he was
interested in Luke's condition. He'd kept monitoring the boy's Force sense as he
made his way up from the scene of their confrontation.

Luke was hurting, both physically and emotionally, and he was scared. Still, he
seemed relatively calm considering the fact that he was in the bowels of Cloud
City, where no human was meant to be. Vader realized he needed to get to his son
quickly before Luke was expelled out into the atmosphere of Bespin. The
poisonous gasses would probably kill him before the fall could.

*Ben! Ben, please....*

Vader scowled as he felt Luke reaching out for his former Master. A rush of
anger boiled through him and he reached for Luke on the tenuous bond that had
formed between them on that gantry.

*Obi-Wan cannot help you now, young one. Join me. It is your destiny.*

Luke's presence in the Force flinched away from the contact much as he had
recoiled from his father physically during their altercation earlier. Luke
pulled away from Vader's presence in the Force, instinctively trying to erect
mental shields between them.

They weren't particularly strong and the Dark Lord could probably batter through
them, but he didn't want to take the time to do that. And Luke's position was
precarious at the moment. He didn't need the boy to be fighting him so hard that
he lost concentration and fell from wherever it was that he was clinging. No, he
would retreat for the moment, and it would only be a moment, because soon Luke
would be with him. He would not allow him to escape, not when he was so close....

His men were waiting for him as he rounded the corner and he smiled grimly
behind his mask. At least something is going right. Captain Tevers stood a
little straighter and swallowed nervously. Or perhaps not, he thought with a
rare, sardonic humor.

"My Lord. The, ah, prisoners. They've escaped."

Vader paused and turned to stare at the man. He could feel the fear rolling off
the officer and relished it.

"Is the Millennium Falcon still docked in the maintenance bay?" Vader demanded.

"Yes, my Lord, but the prisoners know we would expect them to go for it. Isn't
it likely that they'd steal another ship?"

"Solo would never leave his ship behind and Jade and the Wookiee would never
leave Solo behind."

"They've already retrieved the smuggler, my Lord," Captain Tevers replied and a
bead of sweat slipped from his brow to roll down his cheek.

"And Calrissian? Where is he?"

"He, ah, appears to have joined forces with them, my Lord."

His anger surged again at the Baron's betrayal. He supposed he shouldn't have
been surprised. Calrissian did have some loyalties, misguided though they may
be. Patience, Anakin, he reminded himself.

"If they haven't left the city yet, then they haven't escaped yet. See that they
don't. Failure will have severe consequences, Captain."

"Yes, my Lord," the Captain gulped.

"Send a shuttle to the bottom of the city immediately. There's something there
of mine that needs to be picked up."

"Yes, my Lord."

"I will be returning to the Executor. Do not fail me," he warned again. Captain
Tevers didn't even have time for another 'Yes, my Lord' before Vader turned and
left him standing there.

He was halfway back to the shuttle that would take him back to his Super Star
Destroyer before he realized that he'd called himself Anakin.

**************************************

Luke was having difficulty getting a full breath in the thin atmosphere. Or
maybe it was the fact that his emotions were so shattered that caused him to
gasp for air. Either way, he was having a hard time keeping the panic at bay.

Well, this is what you wanted, isn't it? he asked himself, somewhat derisively.
You chose to die rather than join him. Now you're just getting what you asked
for.

He wasn't ready to die. He clung tenaciously with his one good hand to the
weathervane sticking out from under Cloud City. He had only looked down once.
The resulting nausea and dizziness had caused him to squeeze his eyes shut so
tightly that they ached.

Of course, there wasn't much of him that didn't ache at this point. His body was
bruised from the battering it had taken, his right arm was in agony, and his
heart was wounded so horribly that he felt physical pain there as well. His mind
was reeling from what Vader had told him. He refused to believe it. Ben would
never lie to him like that. Vader was the manipulator. He called out to his
mentor, needing reassurance that this was all somehow a big mistake.

*Ben! Ben, please...*

Instantly, there was the Dark One, seeming to invade his very soul.

*Obi-Wan cannot help you now, young one. Join me. It is your destiny.*

With a despairing cry, Luke jerked away from that frightening presence, trying
to shield his wounded self from the monster.

Monster. His father! No, it was a lie! It had to be a lie. For if that was the
truth, then everything else in his life was the lie. And he couldn't bear to
think of that.

Vader was the one who lied, because if he was speaking the truth, then Ben and
Yoda had lied. Luke pressed his forehead against the cold metal of the
weathervane, a strangled sob escaping his throat. His vision clouded over as
tears began to fill his eyes again. Vader is the liar! Why, then, did his words
feel like the truth? Tentatively, Luke stretched out for the Force, clumsily
trying to gauge reality from deception.

He caught flashes, fleeting glimpses that danced on the edge of his awareness...

A young couple sat close together, smiling at one another in a beautiful meadow.
He was handsome as he gazed at her mischievously. There was a twinkle of
amusement in her eyes as she scolded, "Anakin Skywalker! What will I do with
you?"

The same young couple, standing before a holy man of some sort, gazing
meaningfully into one another's eyes before he leaned down to kiss her tenderly.

The young man (Anakin!) turning to glare at his young wife angrily. "I know what
is best for us!" He turns away, ignoring the stricken look on her face.

Two Jedi dueling with lightsabers, their blades clashing, sparks flying from a
nearby pit of lava. Somehow, suddenly Anakin (Father?!) was falling, falling.
His eyes frightened and furious all at once, as he fell away from Luke's vision,
disappearing into a living hell. The other Jedi screaming, "Anakin!" and Luke
realized it was a younger Obi-Wan Kenobi.

"NO!" Luke screamed as he came back to reality with a start, nearly losing his
grip on the weathervane. He sobbed brokenly as he tightened his hold just in
time to keep himself from falling. It was true. Oh damn, it was true! His father
was an abomination...what did that make him? How could he ever face any of his
friends in the Alliance again? He looked down once more at the cloud-covered
surface of Bespin.

Perhaps he should just let go now. It was going to happen sooner or later.
Eventually, his strength would give out and his hold would slip. He would
fall...just like Anakin, spiraling downward, vanishing from view and memory. Maybe
he wouldn't even live to hit the ground. It would be easier, for him, for
everyone, for Mara...

His tears abruptly halted and he gasped as he remembered. Mara was here, in
Cloud City!

"We will see each other again, Mara Jade. I promise you that."

"Oh, Force," he whispered. He had made a promise. He had never broken a promise
to Mara, not since the day he had burst into her cell on the Death Star and
sworn to rescue her. Although, breaking this one may become more a necessity
than a choice, he reflected bitterly.

He craned his head backwards to look at the now-securely closed hatch he'd
fallen through. No going back that way. He refused to glance down again and that
was no longer an option anyway.

Desperate now, he closed his eyes and stretched out towards Mara's bright
presence in the Force. She'd heard him before...maybe she could again.

*Mara! Hear me, Mara!*

**********************************

Lando Calrissian was dearly wishing that he could shove Mara Jade out of an
airlock. Once again, he wondered what he had been thinking to get so involved in
this fiasco.

"What do you mean, you changed the codes on the Falcon?" she fairly shrieked.

"To keep anyone else from taking her!"

"I'm sure! You had it all planned, didn't you? Sell us out to Vader and get your
precious ship back!"

"That's not--"

"Well, this is Han Solo's ship, buddy, and if you think you're going to waltz in
here and--"

[Mara, the hatch is open,] Chewie said calmly.

Lando and Mara turned to look at him in surprise. When they'd finally reached
maintenance bay 714, there had been yet another fierce fire fight. Thankfully,
Artoo was coming in handy at closing shield doors. However, when they'd tried to
gain entrance to the Falcon, they had found themselves locked out. Lando had
admitted to having the codes changed, and in the stress of the moment, he
couldn't remember what he'd changed them to. And how was he supposed to think
with a screeching harpy in his face? Now, somehow, Chewbacca had been able to
open her up without the new codes.

Lando frowned in confusion. "How did you--"

[This is my ship also, Calrissian. Do you really think you could ever keep me
out of her?] the Wookiee snarled.

"Look, Chewie, you know I'd never try to take the Falcon from Han. I miss her,
but I know he won her fair and square."

[We should not be discussing this now. We have other urgent business to attend
to.]

Lando suddenly realized Mara had ceased to yell at him and he turned his head to
find her staring at nothing as if in a daze, her face bearing a distant
expression. He glanced at Chewbacca with a questioning look, but the Wookiee
just shrugged his massive shoulders, apparently as bewildered as Lando was.

"Uh, Mara?" Lando said a bit hesitantly.

She didn't seem to hear him as her forehead wrinkled into a frown. "Luke?" she
whispered in a soft voice. She gasped and abruptly snapped her gaze back to the
two confused beings staring at her.

"No more time for arguing. I know where Luke is and he's in grave danger. We
have to move now."

Even disregarding Mara's strange behavior, they were out of time to discuss the
mess with the changed codes. The hangar's shield doors began to smoke,
indicating the stormtroopers were beginning to force their way through. Artoo
squealed in protest at the blaster bolts flying around them as they ran aboard
the Falcon.

Lando and Mara paused to return fire while Chewie ran to the cockpit to get them
into the air. The stormtroopers were still firing when the Falcon lifted
gracefully off the platform and shot away from cloud City.

[Where is he, Mara?] Chewie asked, showing complete faith that she knew what she
was talking about.

"Underneath the city," Mara replied.

"What? That's impossible. There's nothing there!" Lando protested.

"That's where he is," Mara said, directing a glare at Lando. "Get us there fast,
Chewie. Vader will have his TIE's after us any second."

"This is going to waste time! The carbon-freezing chamber is in Quadrant I.
We'll never get out of here alive if we go gallivanting around under the city."

"Just do it, Chewie!"

She didn't have to ask twice. Chewbacca had known Mara Jade long enough to know
that if she was that certain, then she was probably right. He also understood,
probably better than they did, the bond between Luke and Mara. In some ways, it
wasn't so dissimilar to the bond that he and Han shared through Chewie's
life-debt. Lando cursed in frustration, but quickly stifled his mutterings when
Chewbacca growled at him warningly.

The Falcon angled sharply as it cut under the huge spire that was Cloud City.
Mara leaned forward in the co-pilot's seat, her eyes scanning back and forth
with a hint of desperation.

"There!" she shouted and pointed at a dark blur that was clinging to a
weathervane extending out from the bottom of the city. Lando's jaw dropped in
astonishment as he realized it was indeed a human being hanging there. Then he
noticed something that Mara did not...an Imperial shuttle, rapidly closing in on
the figure from the opposite direction.

"Looks like someone else is interested in rescuing your friend," he said grimly.

Mara gave a cry that was half-anger, half-fear. "Chewie, cut that shuttle off!
Lando, you take one gun, I'll take the other!"

"What?"

"I'm not letting them get to him. I'll blast them out of the sky if a warning
won't do it!" she bit out and dashed towards the Falcon's upper turret gun.

When Lando didn't move for a minute, Chewbacca yelled at him. [Now, Calrissian!]

"All right, all right," Lando muttered.

The shuttle tried to fight the Falcon for the prize that was Luke Skywalker, but
they couldn't hope to match the Corellian freighter for firepower or
maneuverability. It wasn't long before the shuttle was falling towards the
planet of Bespin, critically damaged by Lando and Mara's skillful firing.

There was no time to celebrate as Chewie's warning came through their coms. [TIE
fighters incoming!] Mara clenched her jaw in determination as she blazed away at
the enemy fighters. She tried to send a reassuring thought to Luke, whose
consciousness in her mind was slipping in and out.

*Hang on, Luke. We're coming.*

*Hurry, Mara...can't hold...much longer.*

The weakness of his presence in her head worried her. She had no idea why they
were suddenly able to communicate like this, nor did she understand why it
didn't frighten her. In fact, it seemed the most normal thing in the galaxy to
be able to talk to Luke in this manner.

"Lando! Watch your fire! You're getting too close to Luke!" she shouted.

"The aggravation is definitely not equal to the guilt." She heard his griping
reply over the comm, although he probably hadn't intended for her to.

"Just understand that if he falls, so do you," she snapped.

She blocked him and his grumbling out of her mind and concentrated on the TIE
Fighters that were swarming around them. If Vader wants Luke alive, he's
certainly not being too careful, she thought with a grimace. The TIE's had come
close to him in their sweeping passes around the Falcon and had nearly fried him
with their lasers at least a dozen times.

Almost as if someone had heard her thoughts, the TIE's suddenly broke off their
attack and peeled away, disappearing rapidly back up towards the city. Mara
didn't waste a moment in scrambling back to the cockpit.

"Lando, get to the top hatch and get ready. Chewie, get under him, now! He's not
going to hold on much longer." As much as she wanted to get him herself, Mara
understood that Lando's greater physical strength would be necessary to make
sure Luke didn't fall. At any rate, the access lift to the top hatch would
barely accommodate two people at once, and it certainly couldn't handle three.

*******************************

Luke was physically and emotionally exhausted. He had been encouraged by the
sight of the Millennium Falcon, but now, after narrowly missing being blasted by
lasers or flattened by a TIE that came too close, he was almost ready to give
up. His vision was starting to get fuzzy and his one remaining hand had gone
beyond painful cramps to numbness.

*Luke, why do you resist this? Your destiny lies with me.*

Although the contact was astonishingly gentle, Luke still shuddered and again
tried to pull away from the dark touch.

*Son, you don't understand the power of the Dark Side. Come with me. Let me show
you what you were meant to be.*

It was a seductive whisper in Luke's confused mind and for one horrifying
moment, he wanted to say yes. Yes, daddy, come and save me, please! He crushed
that thought before it could become known. He flinched as another blaster bolt
from a TIE barely missed him.

*For someone who wants me to join him, you're letting your pilots do their best
to kill me!* Luke sent almost defiantly.

A surge of surprised anger battered Luke through the shaky bond that had been
formed between himself and the Dark Lord. Luke whimpered, trying to cut it off,
close it, but Vader's presence in his consciousness was too strong for him to
deny.

Suddenly, Vader was the one who pulled away and Luke breathed a trembling sigh
of relief. He nearly sobbed when he felt Mara's tender touch, telling him to
hold on.

He fervently wished she would hurry. What little strength he still possessed was
dwindling fast. He must have zoned out for a brief time because he blinked his
eyes and the TIE's were gone. The Falcon loomed in front of him and not a moment
too soon. The would-be Jedi Knight could not hold on one second longer. His
world faded to black as he let go.

********************************