PART 2: "Hostages"
Jackie minced across the threshold in silence. Her sneakers clicked on the gleaming marble floor as she stepped into the foyer. The excitement she would have felt at actually getting to meet her TV heroes had been swallowed up by cold fear.
"Line up against the wall, all of you!" Marbolo gestured toward the hallway next to the foyer that spanned the length of the elegant drawing room. Out of the corner of her eye, Jackie saw Han reach stealthily for his blaster.
"Solo, you touch that blaster and it'll be the princess, not you, who dies." Marbolo pointed his own blaster at Leia as he spoke. Cursing, Han dropped his right hand to his side. Leia glared fiercely at the ex-Empire official. Jackie swallowed hard.
Silently, Luke, Han, Lando, and Leia leaned against the yellowish-beige wall. In that instant, Jackie saw two caballeros and one servant boy crouched on the floor next to them, hands tied behind their backs.
The younger don was the taller one. He had coal-black hair and blue eyes, and he wore a blue vest over a bleached, ruffled, snow-white linen shirt. The older gentleman had grey hair, and he wore a bright red vest over his ruffled linen shirt, and a pair of matching trousers. Both men had mustaches and wore quality leather boots.
The boy, who appeared to be 14 or 15, wore a homespun, unbleached, off-white cotton shirt, a pair of matching trousers, a light-brown wool sash, and a pair of woven-leather sandals. He had scrunched his knees up against his waist. The boy and the two caballeros stared at their visitors' strange clothes.
It's Don Diego and Don Alejandro and Felipe! Jackie thought. She glanced self-consciously at her light-green T-shirt, blue jeans, and brown sneakers. They must think we look wierd.
Two masked bandits stood guard over the de la Vegas and Felipe. Swords hung from their sides in scabbards, and one of them held a pistol on the three prisoners. Ignoring the bandits, the de la Vegas gaped at their visitors in evident puzzlement.
Suddenly, Marbolo grabbed Jackie and pressed his chrome blaster against her forehead. "Tie them up!" he ordered the bandits, nodding toward the Rebels. "If anyone says a word or tries anything, this little girl dies!" He squeezed her arm till she winced. Don Alejandro scowled at him, but said nothing.
When the four visitors from a faraway galaxy had been tied up and shoved down on the floor next to the de la Vegas, Marbolo tied Jackie's hands behind her back. He strode toward the assembled prisoners and yanked Felipe to his feet. "No tricks!" he warned Don Alejandro and Don Diego. "Not unless you want your boy dead."
"Want do you want?" the elder don hissed. For a second, Jackie thought she saw sparks of fire fly from his eyes.
Marbolo grinned. "I want to be your governor, señor." He shoved Felipe against Jackie, who nearly lost her balance. "And you and your caballero friends are going to help me."
"How?" Don Diego shook his head at the fugitive. "By holding us hostage?" He changed position in an evident effort to sit up straight, as befitted a gentleman.
Marbolo shook his head. "No. By holding these muchachos hostage." He glanced at the two terrified teenagers. "I am going to take at least one hostage from every hacienda in the area. When I have as many as I need, I will send you--and the other landowners--my demands. And if you want your boy back alive, señores, you will meet them to my satisfaction."
"Marbolo, I swear--you're going to regret this." Leia glared fiercely at him and straightened her back. "This time, you've gone too far!"
Marbolo merely smirked. Beside Leia, Han sat slouched against the wall. Luke and Lando merely sat motionless.
"Who is this bandido, and how do you know him?" Don Alejandro turned to the assembled fellow prisoners.
Jackie swallowed hard. "They're--they're from another galaxy. A faraway one." She paused. "I'm not; I'm from the United States. My name's Jackie Long."
Luke nodded toward Jackie. "We brought that little girl with us, because we needed her help. I'm Luke Skywalker, and this is Princess Leia Organa, Han Solo, and Lando Calrissian. We came after Marbolo, to capture him. He's an escaped fugitive from our galaxy." He tilted his head as he spoke.
Don Alejandro and Diego stared at them for a long moment. "I--I see." Don Alejandro cleared his throat and shifted position. "I'm Alejandro de la Vega, and this is my son Diego. And that boy is our servant, Felipe. He can neither hear nor speak."
"Enough chatter!" Marbolo turned to the two bandidos. "Take the de la Vegas and these four visitors to the supply closet, and lock them up with their other servants. By the time they manage to free themselves, we'll be long gone and they won't be able to track us down."
The taller bandit nodded. "Si, señor."
Marbolo gave Felipe a vicious shove; the boy nearly lost his balance. "You two are coming with me!"
Jackie stumbled as she shuffled out the front door. The bandit gripped her arm so tightly she winced in pain. Jackie had never been so frightened in her life. What did these bandits intend to do to her and Felipe? Would they kill her? Would she ever see her mother again? She didn't know.
ZZZZZ
Jackie leaned against the cave wall and gazed at Felipe, who sat across the cave from her. Like hers, his hands were tied behind his back and his ankles were bound together. The entrance was so narrow that only two men could walk through it at a time. The late-afternoon sunlight flooded the entrance, forming a rectangle on the smooth cave floor. A little further down the tunnel, a wide entrance opened into a small room littered with piles of rocks and debris.
The bumps in the frigid wall pressed against Jackie's back, making her squirm with discomfort. She could barely feel her limbs, they were so numb. Her stomach growled, reminding her that her last meal had been hours earlier. Her throat felt unbearably dry. She yearned for some water.
The two bandits sat cross-legged just inside the entrance, guarding their prisoners. Marbolo had ridden away. Neither said a word to each other or to the children. They just fidgeted, evidently bored.
Several hours had passed since the three criminals had brought Jackie and Felipe to this cave at Chielo Ridge. After the two bandits had locked the de la Vegas and the Star Wars visitors, still tied up, in a storage room with the servants, they had stolen three of the de la Vegas' horses and, with Marbolo, taken the children away.
How long are they going to keep us here? Jackie wondered silently. Will they let us go? Or are they going to kill us?
Felipe winced and shifted position. Apparently, the ropes were cutting into his wrists as well as cutting off his circulation. A wave of pity swept through Jackie. This was awful for him--for them both!
I wish he could talk, she thought ruefully. But even if he could, they probably wouldn't let us! What would they do if they knew he could hear? That he only pretends to be deaf? Jackie shivered. Felipe bent his head sideways, first to one side, then to the other, in an evident effort to ease a crick in his neck.
Suddenly, one of the bandits sneezed. "Let's go outside." He rose to his feet. "I'm gettin' tired of stayin' in this cave. Those niños aren't goin' nowhere."
The bandidos ambled outside. Jackie and Felipe listened carefully to their chat. "That boy is very likeable," one of them said. "Pity we'll have to kill him when it's over."
"Si. The little girl, too."
Jackie and Felipe gaped at each other in horror as their captors' voices faded. "We've got to get out of here, Felipe!" Jackie whispered loudly. The boy nodded vigorously.
Without another word, Jackie struggled with the ropes that bound her wrists. Silently, she prayed she would succeed in freeing her hands. Across the cave, Felipe did the same thing.
Minutes passed as Jackie twisted and turned her hands in a violent effort to dislodge the ropes. To Jackie's relief, they gradually loosened. Finally, she slipped them off and rubbed her hands together to restore the circulation. Now to untie Felipe!
Suddenly, she heard tramping footsteps. The bandits were returning!
Jackie leaped to her feet and raced down the cave tunnel. "Hey!" she heard one of the men shout. "After that little girl!"
Terror lent speed to Jackie's feet. She darted up one tunnel and down another. She could hear the tramping of boots from far behind, as the bandits chased her.
Suddenly, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a crevice in the left wall. Maybe if she hid inside of it--!
As she slipped into the crevice, she saw a sliver of sunlight on the cave floor near a bend. She tiptoed toward the source. Could it be--?
To her relief, she found small round hole, just big enough for Jackie to crawl through, in the wall at the other end. She heard the increasingly louder tramping suddenly pause--apparently, the bandits had discovered the crevice, too. She would have to hurry if she was going to escape!
"Where is she?" an enraged voice shouted. Marbolo's!
A frantic Jackie dropped down on her hands and knees and crawled through the hole. It was a tight squeeze, as she quickly discovered. She had to literally push her way through.
In the next moment, she rose to her feet. She had made it!
Now I've got to find Zorro, she thought. I've got to warn him. If I don't, they'll kill Felipe!
Gravel crunched under her sneakers as she carefully picked her way down the steep hill. When she reached the bottom, she kicked several of them out of the way. Suddenly, a hand grabbed her shoulder. She whirled around, prepared to scream.
"Shh!" A tall man wearing a black mask, hat, cape, and costume clapped a black-gloved hand over her mouth. "There's no need to be frightened, señorita. I am Zorro; the de la Vegas told me about your capture. I came to Chielo Ridge, looking for you and Felipe."
Jackie sighed. Relief flooded through her. So, the de la Vegas had managed to free themselves.
"We've got to hurry, Zorro! They've got Felipe. They're at a cave near here. We've got to save him!"
"And we will." Zorro spoke in a low voice. "Lead me to the cave, and I'll take it from there."
Suddenly, Jackie froze. Three men on horseback rode in their direction--one of them was Marbolo! Zorro shoved her down behind a huge boulder and grasped the hilt of his Toledo-steel saber.
"The three bandits who kidnapped you and Felipe, and took the de la Vegas hostage," he whispered. "Undoubtedly, they're looking for you. I don't see Felipe with them, so they must have left him in the cave."
The two knelt silently until the bandits had disappeared over the hill. "Come, we must hurry!" Zorro rose to his feet as he spoke.
Minutes later, Jackie and Zorro reached the cave entrance. Zorro strode inside, untied Felipe, and helped him to his feet. As the servant boy leaned against the wall, rubbing the circulation back into his arms, Zorro approached the entrance and gazed outside, hand once again on the hilt of his saber. Like the caballero he was, he stood erect wih his shoulders held back.
"We must set up a trap for the bandidos," he said in a low voice. "Come! There's little time. They will return shortly. There's a net in my saddlebag." He whistled, and Toronado galloped up the hill toward him.
"Zorro, Marbolo's from outer space." Jackie swallowed. "He doesn't have a pistol; he has a blaster. It shoots beams of laser, and they kill. A laser's like a light, except it's deadly."
Zorro pressed his lips into a thin line of determination. "Then we'll see whether he's a match for a Toledo-steel sword." He smiled grimly.
The two young people helped Zorro rig the net at the top of the narrow cave entrance and a taut rope directly below, across the floor. They poured a thick layer of dirt over the rope so the bandits wouldn't see it.
"Now, stay in the cave and wait." Zorro patted Felipe's back and squeezed Jackie's shoulder. "If this blaster of Marbolo's as dangerous as you say, Jackie, I want you two out of harm's way." Felipe nodded his acquiescence.
For the next several minutes, Zorro, Felipe, and Jackie hid inside the cave, waiting for Marbolo and his hired henchmen to return. Zorro stood next to the entrance while the teenagers leaned side by side against the frigid wall, hardly daring to breathe.
How did Don Diego get out of the closet? Jackie wondered. Wish I could ask him, but he'd be real upset that I knew his secret. She grimaced. I don't dare tell Felipe I know his, either! She stretched her arms above her head till she felt the muscles grow taut, then reached into her jeans pocket for her comb.
Zorro glanced toward the kids. "I remember this cave," he said softly. "I had to rescue Don Alejandro from it a few weeks ago, when the Falcon kidnapped him and brought him here."
Jackie remembered. "The Falcon" was a second-season episode of the New Zorro series that had aired during the late fall of 1990. A thief had posed as a revolutionary, intending to depose the alcalde so he could loot and plunder Los Angeles. When Don Alejandro had opposed him, the Falcon had kidnapped him to use as bait for Zorro.
The Falcon had tied up Don Alejandro in that little room now littered with rocks and debris, and rigged a trap for Zorro. Jackie shivered as she reminisced about that episode. He was going to kill Zorro! she thought. Thank goodness he failed.
When Jackie had finished combing her blond hair, she shoved the comb back into her pocket. She glanced at the debris-littered room just down the tunnel. Hey, that's where those rocks and stuff came from! she thought. That's the stuff the Falcon used for his trap!
Suddenly, Zorro froze, then turned around. "I hear someone coming," he whispered. "Brace yourselves, amigos. It may be your kidnappers."
Jackie held her breath. Her palms grew moist. Next to her, Felipe swallowed hard and stood rigidly.
"We've got to find those kids," a familiar voice said. Han Solo's!
"Oh, no!" Jackie whispered. "It's Luke and Hans Solo and them! We've got to warn them!"
Before Zorro could act, the four men, including Don Alejandro, rushed inside, two at a time. Behind them, Princess Leia tripped over the rope, toppling Luke, Han, Leia, Lando, and Don Alejandro. In that instant, the net fell on them all.
"Great going, Leia!" Han Solo grumbled, as he pushed himself up on his knees and grabbed chunks of the net in an effort to pull it off his head.
"It's my fault, señor." Zorro yanked the edge of the net off Felipe, then Jackie. "She had no way of knowing there was a trap here. The blame is mine."
"Si, and you're going to pay for it. It's really too bad, Zorro."
The familiar hard voice chilled Jackie's blood. "You shouldn't have come at all." Marbolo!
Marbolo strode inside, smirking as he gazed at the thrashing, net-enmeshed group. "These kids are going with my henchmen and me." He grabbed Jackie and gazed at Felipe. "You go with us, muchacho, or your friend here dies. Take your choice." He pressed his blaster against Jackie's cheek.
Jackie felt sick inside. Now they were all trapped! They had to do something, fast!
With evident reluctance, Felipe followed the two outside. Out of the corner of her eye, Jackie saw Toronado stand at attention nearby. The two bandits joined Marbolo and the young people. Jackie clenched and unclenched her fists.
Suddenly, the black stallion reared and whinnied, startling Marbolo, the bandits, and the young people. In that instant, Zorro raced outside, gleaming saber in hand. Jackie stomped on Marbolo's foot, forcing him to let her go, and rushed toward the black-clad masked avenger.
In that instant, Jackie heard the whirr of the lightsaber from inside the cave. Seconds later, Luke, his co-horts, and Don Alejandro darted outside--Luke must have used his lightsaber to cut the net. Grasping it in his right hand, the Jedi knight glared fiercely at Marbolo. Zorro saluted the bandits with his Toledo-steel saber after they yanked their rapiers out of their scabbards.
Jackie could never be sure, afterwards, exactly what happened. All she really remembered was that, while Princess Leia stood guard over her and Felipe, right arm pressed against Jackie's waist and left arm encircling Felipe's shoulders, Zorro dueled with the bandits. Luke, meanwhile, pointed the tip of his lightsaber's yellowish-white beam at Marbolo's throat.
To her horror, Jackie saw one of the bandits creep toward Luke's back. "Felipe!" she whispered. "Look!"
Scowling, Felipe grabbed a fist-sized rock that lay on a nearby boulder and rushed toward the bandit. Before Marbolo had a chance to shout a warning, the servant boy conked the bandit on the back of his head. "Ow!" the man said, as he slumped to the ground.
Smiling, Felipe raced back toward Jackie and Leia. Don Alejandro patted the boy's shoulder and smiled at him proudly. Zorro, meanwhile, disarmed the remaining bandit, then punched him so hard the man slumped to the ground next to the other bandido.
"All right!" Luke warned Marbolo. "Hand us your blaster right now, or I'll cut your throat with my lightsaber!"
"And I'll cut you down with my own blaster!" Han pointed his blaster at the escaped fugitive. "You don't stand a chance, Marbolo! Luke and I have you covered."
Gritting his teeth, Marbolo did as he was told. "You--you--" he hissed. Before he could utter the cutting words, Han Solo thrust his blaster into its holster and handcuffed Marbolo's hands in front of his waist. Luke stood off to the side, keeping his lightsaber pointed at the ruthless fugitive.
"All right, Marbolo!" the captain of the Millennium Falcon said sternly. "You're going back with us to our time and our galaxy, and you're going to stand trial!"
"As will these two bandidos." Zorro slashed Zs in the backs of their trousers, then cut a larger one in the back of Marbolo's silver-colored spacesuit. The renegade alien pursed his lips in rage.
Zorro gaped at Luke's lightsaber as the young Jedi knight switched it off. "Señor, forgive me for staring, but I have never seen such a weapon before."
Jackie grinned. "It's a lightsaber. It's like a sword, except its blade's not made of metal. But it can cut you through just like a sword."
Luke nodded and glanced down at the lightsaber. "It's a common weapon where we come from, as are blasters. Of course, our knowledge of science and technology far exceeds yours."
"Si. I can see that." Zorro gazed at Luke with respect.
"But your courage and ingenuity are no less than our own," Princess Leia said softly, clasping her hands in front of her waist. "That's the more important quality in any galaxy."
Zorro nodded agreement. "Indeed, it is, señorita."
Han Solo glanced at the prisoners. "Come on, guys. We've got to deliver Marbolo here to justice and return Jackie to her home."
"Si." Don Alejandro yanked the bandits to their feet. "Up, you two! You're going to the alcalde's jail." Jackie and Felipe grinned at each other.
ZZZZZ
Jackie perched at the dining table on board the Millennium Falcon, munching on a tamale Don Diego had given her. She ate slowly, as her mother had taught her, savoring each bite. Her bicycle helmet lay on its side next to the glass plate.
When Jackie had swallowed the last chunk, she wiped her mouth with her napkin and leaned back. "That was good!"
Princess Leia smiled at her. "After all the time you went without food today, I'm sure it was! We were all hungry." She rubbed her hand on the coils of braid, took a sip of her drink, and leaned back in her chair. Leftover crumbs from her own tamale lay scattered on the princess's plate.
Jackie gazed at the princess for a long moment. "What kind of food do they eat at your galaxy?"
"Meats, fruits, vegetables--the same basic kinds you eat here." Leia shrugged. "Of course, the dishes we make out of those foods differ from yours. As do the types of fruits and vegetables we grow on our planets."
Jackie nodded. She could see that. Even on Earth, the kinds of food eaten varied from country to country.
She glanced at the entrance to the round corridor that led toward the cockpit. Glancing down at the table, the young girl pressed a fingertip against the smooth surface. "Princess Leia, what's gonna happen to Marbolo?" She ran her fingers through her long hair as she spoke.
Leia sighed. "He will stand trial for the crimes he's committed, and he'll most surely be found guilty. He will probably be terminated."
"That's right." Han Solo and Luke appeared in the corridor entrance as Han spoke. "Lando's at the controls, and the droids are with him," Han added. "It's time, Jackie. Time for you to go home." Chewbacca appeared behind the former Correlian pirate.
Jackie rose to her feet. For a long moment, she hugged Leia, then Luke, then Han, then Chewbacca. "I'll never forget you," she said, as she gazed into the eyes of the tall Wookie. "Any of you." Chewbacca hooted as he patted her back with a hairy paw. In response, Jackie pressed her cheek against the thick, soft fur on his chest, then straightened up.
The three men smiled fondly at her, and Princess Leia kissed her forehead. Jackie hastily combed her hair, then picked up her blue helmet and fastened it on her head. "Say good-bye to C-3PO and R2-D2 and Mr. Calrissian for me, will you?"
"We will," Luke assured her. "I promise."
Before Jackie could say a word in response, a blinding light enveloped her. The girl squeezed her eyes shut for a long moment. When the light faded, she found herself astride her 10-speed bike on her own street.
Jackie looked at her watch, then held it to her ear. It had resumed ticking, and the second hand had resumed its circling. "Wow! I was in Spanish California for hours and hours, yet it's the same time here it was when I was taken on that ship." She shook her head in wonderment. "Wish I could tell my mom all about it, but she'd never believe me." She sighed.
Jackie bore down on the pedals. She couldn't wait to get home and write down her adventure in her diary! Five minutes later, she pedaled her bike into the parking lot of her apartment complex. After she had padlocked her bicycle to the iron bar set up for that purpose, she removed her helmet and raced toward the apartment door. She paused twice to kick some pebbles out of her path.
Brushing back her disheveled blond hair, Jackie trotted into the living room. "Well, sweetheart, did you have fun?" Her mother, Kay Long, smiled at her as she looked up from her paperback novel. Jackie tossed her helmet on the carpet next to the coffee table; it landed with a thud.
"I sure did!" Jackie grinned. Silently, she added, And I had an adventure I'll never, ever, ever forget!
THE END
©2000 by Kathryn D. Green
To read a critique of this crossover from another Z fan, click on this!