CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Toah tapped his foot nervously, feeling the deck of the Fortune’s Son vibrate softly as it traversed through hyperspace. General Calrissian had wasted no time in making the jump to Naboo as soon as they had picked up Ambassador Madurrin, but he was worried that they weren’t going to make it in time. By what he had overheard from Lando’s conversations with Captain Solo and later Admiral Nantz, it sounded like things were getting really bad at Naboo.
While the rest of Lando’s Commandos geared up, Toah was left waiting in the Fortune’s Son’s lounge area, along with R2-D2 and the ambassador from Anx Space. Despite Dantooine’s relative proximity to Gravlex Med, Toah had never met an Anx personally before; thus, he didn’t realize just how massive they were. Madurrin seemed as if she barely fit on the ship, with the tip of her large head crest nearly scraping the ceiling when standing up. Her large tail also made seating arrangements difficult, and she sat on her haunches rather than on one of the sofas in the lounge area.
Toah could feel the ambassador’s eyes on him, although he tried to ignore them as best he could. When he started pacing, however, that was when Madurrin chose to finally speak up.
“Is this your first combat scenario?” the Anx asked gently.
Toah tensed up and furtively glanced at her. “I’m not a soldier. I’m just… I work at a spaceport on Dantooine.”
Madurrin nodded her large head in understanding. “How did you come to end up here, then?”
Toah shook his head. “You’re not going to believe me, but Luke Skywalker showed up and—”
Madurrin’s eyes went wide. “The Luke Skywalker?”
“Yeah.” Toah gestured to R2-D2, who warbled in response. “Anyway, I led him to some old ruins that he thought belonged to a Jedi temple, only there were bounty hunters there, and he got captured.”
Madurrin nodded again. “I heard General Calrissian mention something about that. So are you just waiting to get back home, then?”
Toah looked down at his feet and shrugged. “I guess. Not much waiting for me back there. I pretty much got fired from my job when I left with Artoo, and I know my parents are going to give me an icy reception when I get back and they find out. Icier than normal, anyway.”
“Well, unless I am mistaken, you appear to be the age at which humans typically set out for their own paths. Perhaps if you ask General Calrissian, he can find a role for you here.”
“Maybe.” Toah sighed. “I’m not sure what good I’ll do here, though. I’ve never fired a blaster in my life, nor have I ever flown a starfighter.”
“Who says your path must be with the military?” Madurrin gestured to herself. “I used to serve in my homeworld’s militia, but I decided to become an ambassador instead. I had seen enough war, so I decided to give peace a shot.”
“And how has that worked out for you?”
“Well, no one’s tried to kill me yet.” Madurrin winked. “Diplomatic immunity, and all of that.”
Toah offered her a faint smile until he felt the ship come out of hyperspace. Immediately, alarms began to ring down the corridors as Lando’s Commandos rushed to and from their stations. Taking in a deep breath, Toah sat himself down on one of the sofas, resigning himself to waiting and hoping that no one tried to blow up the Fortune’s Son in the meantime. He wasn’t exactly in the position to do anything in that event.
A few minutes later, he saw the commandos Shriv Suurgav and Nien Nunb rush past the entrance to the lounge. The latter noticed him and paused, stopping Shriv in his tracks as well. The Duros gave his Sullustan companion an impatient look as Nien said something to him in Sullustese. Shriv’s expression went from impatience to doubt, and the Duros then stepped into the lounge to approach Toah.
“Hey, kid,” he said. “You know how to fly a starfighter?”
Toah moved with a start as he looked up at him in surprise. “Me? No. Why are you asking?”
“We’re short one pilot, and Skywalker’s fighter is still in the hangar bay. You did fly it here, didn’t you?”
“No, that was all Artoo. I’ve never flown a starfighter in my life, let alone been in a combat situation.”
Shriv glanced from him to R2, who was wobbling on his feet and beeping something that Toah could not decipher.
“Well,” the Duros said tentatively, “it’s never too late to learn. You could have the astromech pilot the ship while you fire the guns. We mostly just need to take out the weather satellites that the Empire’s deployed.”
Toah looked over to R2, who was now beeping even more excitedly and perhaps even encouragingly. He thought about objecting further, citing some excuse about how dangerous it would be and how slim his chances of survival were.
But then he realized that all of them were aware of the danger and the slim odds, yet that did not stop them from going out there to do what was right. It hadn’t stopped the Rebels in their fight against the Empire. It hadn’t stopped Luke Skywalker from blowing up the Death Star or defeating the Emperor. In fact, Luke hadn’t been much older than Toah was now when he flew at Yavin.
He had wanted to make a difference in the galaxy. This was his chance to make a difference. What was he doing turning it down?
Getting up to his feet, almost a bit too fast as he nearly stumbled, he faced Shriv and Nien and snapped a quick salute. “I’ll do it then. Just tell me what to do.”
“Great,” Shriv muttered. “Go with Nien and he’ll help you get suited up. Meet us in the hangar bay so we can head out. And hurry, we don’t have much time.”
The Duros then marched down the corridor while Nien motioned for Toah and R2 to follow him. As he left the lounge, Toah looked over his shoulder at Madurrin, who offered him an encouraging smile. He returned it, and this time it was genuine.
* * *
“Watch out for those trees!” The bearded Naboo man had a hand on Luke’s shoulder as the latter navigated the Starlight freighter through the storm and towards the city of Theed. “Stabilize those thrusters so that the winds don’t—”
“I know how to fly a ship,” Luke said as calmly as he could.
“Jinn, leave him alone,” Pooja said sternly from behind them, sitting in one of the two seats behind Luke. “Go back into the hold to prepare the rest of the troops.”
Jinn shook his head but complied with order anyway, muttering under his breath. “My father was a pilot. He taught me everything I needed to know about flying.”
Free of the distraction, Luke managed to focus on his piloting, bringing the ship closer and closer to Theed. So far, they hadn’t managed to trick off Imperial sensors… not that it made much of a difference. TIE fighters were swarming in and strafing the city, not targeting anything in particular and just blasting whatever happened to be in sight. It was likely just by chance that they hadn’t happened to fire on their ship yet and not because they were transmitting Tarr-Nar-Mal’s clearance codes.
Sure enough, as they got closer within range of the city, the ship shuddered as a TIE fighter spotted them and started firing. Luke grimaced and fired the blaster cannon mounted on the other edge of the ship’s wing. The TIE fighter was fast however and managed to evade the attack before firing back. The ship trembled again and the fighter managed to get behind the freighter, out of range of the ship’s limited weapons.
“I would have expected a bounty hunter’s ship to have better armaments,” Leia remarked.
Before Luke could respond, he heard an explosion and glanced at the scanner to see that the TIE fighter was no longer there, and in its place was a much larger ship. Said larger ship proceeded to streak across them and it did not take long for either him or Leia to pin a name to it.
“Han!” Excitedly, Leia accessed the comm panel and hailed the Millennium Falcon. “Han, it’s me! We’re in the other freighter!”
“Leia?” Luke could hear the relief in Han’s voice. “Thank gods. Let’s get you out of here. The fleet just arrived and—”
“No,” Leia said firmly. “We need to get to the Queen. We can’t just leave her here. I also have the leader of the Naboo resistance with me.”
“I’m also here,” Luke supplied.
“Luke? What are you—? Never mind.” Han sighed before saying, “All right. I see the hangar to the Theed Palace up ahead. I’ll provide cover for you.”
“We can also use our starfighters once we’re there,” Pooja said to Leia.
Leia nodded in return and Luke proceeded to direct the ship towards the hangar, following the Millennium Falcon as it blasted TIE fighters that tried to intercept them. Luke noticed that the Corellian freighter’s top and bottom turrets were not firing, indicating that no one was in them… and that Han was alone.
“Is Chewie not with you?” Luke asked Han over the comm.
“Family business,” Han curtly replied. “Once you’re in the hangar, I’m going to break off and loop around, take out some more of those TIEs so they don’t harass you. Then I’ll swoop in and….” He trailed off for a moment before uttering a quiet, “Uh oh.”
Leia frowned. “’Uh oh’ what?”
“Picking up more ships. Non-Imperial by the looks of it, although one looks kinda familiar….” Han then cursed. “Blast. It’s the Punishing One.”
“Dengar’s ship?” Leia asked.
“He was one of the bounty hunters that captured me,” Luke said grimly. “Guess they’re back for round two.”
“Yeah, and there’s a lot more than just him,” Han grunted. “I’ll try to hold them off as best I can, maybe divert their attention. So long as you get in the hangar safely….”
“My fighters will join you once they get to their ships,” Pooja spoke up.
“If you say so, lady, whoever you are.” With that, the Millennium Falcon blasted off, taking out two more TIEs before heading straight for the bounty hunter ships that Luke could now see.
The hangar to Theed Palace was also now in view and Luke punched the throttle before pulling back, swooping into the hangar and coming in for a safe if a slightly rough landing. Several stormtroopers were present in the hangar and immediately opened fire, only to fall back as Jinn and his fellow soldiers came pouring out with blasters ablaze.
As he exited the cockpit with Leia and Pooja, Luke paused in front of Tarr, still in the main hold. The Cerean opened his eyes to look at him, his expression a blank canvas.
Taking a deep breath, Luke turned to him and said, “We’re going to leave you here. You can either stay here until we get back, or you can do whatever you can to remove your restraints and retake control of your ship. But our paths separate here, understand?”
Tarr nodded. “If that is the way the current runs, then so it shall be, whether I like it or not.”
Luke nodded back before leaving the ship with Leia and Pooja. The stormtroopers had already been dealt with and several of the Naboo soldiers were rushing for the N-1 starfighters that were in the hangar bay. The rest joined up with their leader and the Jedi. Shara, for her part, was glancing back at the fighters, looking uncertain. Leia then stepped forward and put a hand on her shoulder.
“Can you fly a Naboo starfighter?” she asked.
Shara smiled at her. “I can fly anything.”
“Then by all means.” Leia motioned to one of the awaiting yellow fighters. Shara grinned at her before rushing off to join the other Naboo pilots.
As the fighters launched off, the others headed for a pair of large metal doors at the other end of the hangar. As they approached, the giant doors began to open… and revealed a tall horned figure standing in front of them.
Everyone stopped dead in their tracks and Luke cursed under his breath. “You have got to be kidding me.”
Inquisitor Rarnok lifted his head and grinned. “Hello again, Master Skywalker. Princess Organa. Long time no see.”
Grimacing, Pooja motioned for her soldiers to follow her towards an alternative route. Luke remained where he was, facing the Inquisitor… as did Leia.
Luke glanced at his sister. “Aren’t you going to go with Pooja and the others?”
“No,” Leia said quietly to him. “I feel that my place is here.”
Pooja looked back at them with uncertainty, but with a nod from Leia she and the others departed from the hangar. Rarnok let them go, his golden eyes transfixed on the twins.
“Do you feel it?” the Zabrak asked, his gloved hand reaching for his lightsaber. “The cold?”
Luke did, now that he mentioned it. An inexplicable chill that he had at first attributed to the unnatural storm raging outside, but now realized was a different kind of chill. The same kind he had first felt in that dark cave on Dagobah, two years ago.
Leia closed her eyes and took in a breath. “I can feel it, too,” she murmured.
“It is the dark side,” Rarnok explained. “Many years ago, a man much like myself stood here, facing off against two Jedi Knights not unlike yourselves.” He ran a hand over his red and black tattooed face. “Unlike me, he was a son of Dathomir rather than Iridonia. Yet I cannot help but feel a… kindred spirit to him. As if I was meant to stand in his stead.”
“Is there a point to this?” Luke asked. “Or are you just trying to buy time?”
“I was trying to make conversation.” Rarnok sighed dramatically. “But I can see you are not interested.”
He removed his lightsaber hilt from his belt and its scarlet blade snapped out from the emitter.
“Very well, Jedi,” the Zabrak said, beckoning with his hand. “Let us repeat history, as Naboo burns around us.”
* * *
“Danger Squadron is in flight. Flight One is taking care of those satellites while Flight Two is escorting the others down to the surface.”
Lando idly nodded, standing on the bridge of the Fortune’s Son as he watched the battle unfold. Admiral Nantz’s fleet had already arrive and the Restoration was currently engaged in combat with one of the two Star Destroyers orbiting the planet of Naboo. He also counted at least two Gozanti assault carriers, which a flight of Y-wings was taking care of with their payload of bombs and proton torpedoes.
He was still trying to wrap his mind around the whole situation. As far as he knew, Naboo was still under the Empire’s control; Leia had even been working on trying to bring it into the New Republic. If these Imperial ships didn’t belong to some radical warlord, then why were they trying to bring devastation to one of their own worlds?
There was little time to speculate on such questions. Answers would have to wait until after the dust had settled. Preferably with Naboo still in one piece.
After a moment’s thought, he ordered the comm officer to patch a call through to the Millennium Falcon. When Han picked up, he sounded extremely irritable. More so than usual, anyway.
“What is it?”
“Just calling to make sure you’re alive. Have you found Leia?”
“Yeah. She and Luke are at the palace, along with a bunch of local rebels. I’m trying to shake off a bunch of bounty hunters.”
Lando frowned, recalling what the kid Toah had said about Luke being captured by bounty hunters. “How many?”
“Too many. Although I think the Naboo are sending in fighters of their own to help me out. Not sure how much help they’ll be, though….”
“I’ll see if Nantz has any fighters to spare to help you out. Just hang in there, okay, old buddy?”
“I don’t have much of a choice, do I?” Han groused back.
Lando had nothing to say to that, falling silent as he stood on the bridge and watched the action from where he stood.
* * *
“Sir, a Republic—I mean, Rebel fleet has just exited hyperspace.”
“Thank you, lieutenant,” Captain Duvat replied. “Focus your attention on the attack. I’m sure the Veruna will keep them occupied.”
The name of the other Star Destroyer jolted Moff Panaka back to the present. It was a name he had not heard in a long time; Ars Veruna had been the King of Naboo when he had first enlisted in the Royal Security Forces, and it had been the King’s death that had prompted his implementation of the Queen’s decoy protocol.
He was staggered by the realization of how fast the past thirty-eight years had flown past him. Back then, he had been dedicated to the Queen’s protection. Now, he was firing on the city of Theed, where the Queen resided.
He wasn’t even sure if she was still alive.
In his many years of service, he had seen many Queens ascend to the throne, and only one of them had died while in office during his service. He had not been involved in the Empire’s assassination of Queen Apailana and he had willfully turned a blind eye to it. After all, she had been found to be committing treason by harboring Jedi fugitives. It was her own fault that she had received the Emperor’s wrath.
But what crime had the current Queen, Kylantha, committed? As far as he knew, she had not made any attempt to defect to the New Republic. Of course, he had done everything in his power to ensure she was cut off from the outside world… but that was because he did not want her killed. He might not have been Captain of Security any more, but that did not mean that the Queen’s protection was his first priority.
So why then was he threatening her safety? Why was it he standing on the bridge of the ship that was firing on Naboo—her home, his home—and not someone else?
Had he become the thing he had vowed to protect Naboo from? Was he no better than the Neimoidians that had threatened his world thirty-seven years ago?
What had the Emperor asked him to become?
He sucked in his breath, conscious of the Sentinel looming over his shoulder. Squaring his shoulders, he turned his head to Captain Duvat, studying the other man’s face. Duvat’s attention was focused on the destruction unfolding on the planet below, watching as the storms generated by the satellite raged across the surface. His expression was blank but Panaka could see a gleam in his eye. A gleam that suggested satisfaction at a job well done. A gleam that suggested pleasure at how successful their forces were performing.
Panaka realized then and there that he was staring at the man destroying his homeworld.
And he was letting him do it.
“Captain.” The words came out of his mouth without him even meaning to. This was it. There was no turning back now. “I think we have made a sufficient demonstration of our might. Recall your forces immediately.”
Duvat moved with a start, looked at him in surprise. Panaka heard the Sentinel shift closer behind him, and he could feel the bottom of its scarlet robe tickle his ankle.
“Sir, the Emperor’s orders were to—” Duvat started to say.
“I am fully aware of the Emperor’s orders,” Panaka cut him off. “But he did not specify the extent of the operation, did he? I’m sure the Naboo fully comprehend our might and know what we are capable should they try to defect.”
“The mission is not complete until Naboo has been wiped out.” The statement came from the Sentinel behind him, using its own mechanical voice rather than that of the Emperor’s.
Panaka turned and regarded the droid evenly. “I say that the mission is complete. I am the one in command here.”
“You answer to the will of the Emperor. You will obey.”
Panaka furrowed his eyebrow, narrowing his eyes as he spoke the words he knew would spell his fate. “The Emperor is dead. He no longer has authority—”
The Sentinel’s arm shot up and it seized him by the neck, hoisting up from the deck with all of its might. Several crew members turned their heads only to be barked back to their duties by Duvat. The captain of the Torment then stepped around to stand beside the Sentinel, regarding Panaka coolly as the Moff gagged from the droid’s iron grip.
“Please do not make me do this, Governor,” Duvat said. “The Emperor holds you in high esteem for a reason.”
Panaka could not respond, feeling his windpipe strain under the Sentinel’s grip.
“The Emperor lives, and his will shall be carried out,” Duvat continued. “Refusal to do so will result in your execution. That applies to all beholden to his authority. Is that understood?”
The captain did not wait for an answer and left Panaka hanging there as he returned his attention to the bridge.
“Carry on with the assault. The only orders you will follow shall be those of the Emperor. And if it is his will that Naboo burns… then so it shall burn.”
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