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In The Shadows
By Sienn
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Rating: PG - 13
Disclaimer: See Chapter 1
Spoilers: See Chapter 1
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Chapter 8
It was a world of scent and sound that welcomed him readily and let him
forget the rest of the galaxy, the rest of the universe even. Unimportant
details and urgent problems alike evaporated into nothingness as petal lips
captured his and the spicy odour of his wife's hair encircled him. Her thick
locks impishly tickled the sensitive skin of his cheeks and neck as her
slender form merged against his body in a familiar rhythm that never failed
to draw him in and hypnotize him, until all his attention was focused solely
on her and on nothing else.
Tender hands wandered over him and seemed to be everywhere at once,
caressing, teasing, tickling, gently pinching and ultimately making him lose
the last threads of control he had still retained.
Luke Skywalker's hands enclosed the face of his spouse and while he rolled
her onto her back, he marvelled at how perfectly this vision of beauty
seemed to fit into their palms. As if it belonged there - and it did, in a
way. He felt her mouth curve into a grin as she caught his possessive
thoughts and - unwilling to interrupt their intimate moment - thrust his
tongue only deeper to meet hers, tasting the only thing sweeter than
chocolate and more addictive than spice.
There was a short moment when he feared she would draw away and drive home
her point, her assessment of who belonged to whom, but she didn't. Instead
her legs - oh so shapely - came around his hips and her arms curved around
his neck in a claiming gesture of her own.
A last check told him his barriers were firmly in place so that not a
flicker of emotion would disturb their small son and Luke allowed himself to
sink back into the sea of bliss that was as much a refuge from reality as a
source of strength, into the love that was Mara.
There was no awareness except the one of her skin against his and the heat
of passion that wrapped around him like a cocoon, hotter even than
Tatooine's twin suns and yet so much more welcome and craved as the night
sped past.
*~~
Two of Coruscant's moons were full this night, casting their pale rays into
the chambers of the population and illuminating the darkness. It was said
that it was a sign of good luck when in a night so clear there were two of
the city planet's accompanies to be seen and Mara Jade Skywalker smiled at
the strange way this legend fitted with her present reality.
She had no idea what time it was and she didn't bother to check for it
either. On the contrary, she was perfectly satisfied to lie in her bed and
watch her husband as he slept peacefully at her side. The peculiar shade of
moonlight gave the scenery a surreal quality, an otherworldly atmosphere, as
it highlighted the smooth face of the man she loved.
At the age of forty-five, there was not much that separated him from the
spindly young man she had first met so many years ago. Fine lines at the
corners of his eyes gave him away, somewhat, but they brought to mind
maturity and experience much more than they suggested ageing and when he was
asleep and unaware, his spirit not plagued by the worries and duties of the
waking hours, they were but a memory and he seemed to be caught in a
timeless place, a magical place, that enabled the inner beauty to shine
through.
Mara gave a soft laugh and shook her head. When had she begun to be so prone
to swooning and romanticism? She couldn't have pinpointed it exactly, but
her relationship to Luke had opened a door to a place within her of which
she had been perpetually unaware for the biggest part of her life. The Jedi
Master's constant tendency to obviously and openly compliment her and gush
over her might have had a hand in her willingness to indulge in similar
patterns of thought, too.
In any case, the former Emperor's Hand didn't feel the least bit embarrassed
about the way her feelings could take hold of her at times such as this. On
the contrary - at the very moment, she basked readily in her love for her
husband and for her son. As her hand fell to her belly, the redheaded woman
focused her Force sense into her very being, intent on verifying what she
had thought to have felt days ago, while Luke and she had still been in
transit to Coruscant on the Jade Sabre and lost in a world of their own.
A quiver of excitement sparked through her and she quickly shielded it from
the sleeping form beside her. She would not talk to him until she was sure.
With the grace of a cat, soundless and quick, Mara breathed a kiss on Luke's
left temple and rose from the bed. The Jedi Master did not wake, only turned
to face the window and as his wife cast a glance back at him, studying the
silhouette of perfection, she wished with all her heart that her suspicions
would become truth.
She slipped into the bathroom and closed the door behind her, her movements
fast and secure. She had been prepared for this, even if she had not
suspected it would be so easy to keep it all from her husband. Then again,
she mused as a smirk invaded her features, he usually had a deep sleep,
especially when they had made love.
Mara had made sure to buy the most sophisticated testing kit that was
available and had been amazed at how small it had turned out to be in
comparison to the one that she had used only one year and a half ago. The
advances of modern medicine were amazing indeed.
Ere long the small device was sitting in front of her on the sink, humming
ever so softly as it processed her blood, taken by a painless prick on her
ring finger. Even though the times were long gone in which the analysis had
taken a full standard minute to turn up a result with ninety percent
probability for correctness, the few seconds that were needed nowadays
seemed quite as long, if not longer.
Appalled, Mara found her fingers thrumming impatient rhythms on the edge of
the sink and she knew she was probably glaring at the innocent thing as if
it was Palpatine itself, but her anxiousness would not let her calm down.
She had experienced much pain in her life and the one that gripped you when
you were wishing so fervently for something to happen that the very desire
was ripping you apart did belong to the worst of them all.
How long could thirty seconds actually be?
"Mara?"
The sleepy voice sounded from awfully close behind her and it was all she
could do to not give a small shout as she veered around.
Luke was standing in the door, half leant against its frame, and blinked at
her in mild bewilderment. He had donned his sleeping pants - she hadn't even
heard him rise! - and looked decidedly worthy to be devoured there and then.
On most days - in most nights - she would have done just that, but her mind
was blank and she wondered whether she looked as dazed and guilty as she
felt. There would be a reprimand, of course, a pout on those full lips of
her husband's when he realized she had not let him hover beside her, partner
in her anxiousness, while they waited for the result, and Mara wondered what
kind of excuse she could come up with, one that a man would be capable to
understand.
She was almost to the point to crumple and confess when Luke scratched the
back of his head and shuffled through the bathroom, passing her and
squeezing into the cabin at the back of the room that separated their
bathtub and shower from the toilet.
Blinking, Mara realized he must think that was where she had been and why
she had left the bed. She relaxed. With a little bit of luck, he would
shuffle back the way he had come and be asleep before his head touched the
pillow.
It was in this moment that thirty seconds had passed. A subdued beep sounded
through the bathroom, as loud as a speeder engine in the stillness of the
night, and Mara swore under her breath.
She felt Luke's presence come awake with a start and shed the fog of slumber
that had held him captive so far. Before she could have turned around to
somehow hide the incriminating evidence of her secrecy, a tousled blonde
head peeked out of the fresher and puzzled cobalt eyes looked around. "What
was that?"
A thousand retorts sped through Mara's mind, every one crazier and more
stupid than the one before it. In the end, she resorted to glowering at her
husband. "Of all the times you could have picked to go to the fresher, you
must go now, don't you?"
"Hu?" Luke blinked at her as he stepped back into the bathroom.
"It was supposed to be a surprise, farmboy. And you spoiled it."
"What are you.?"
"Your result is ready. Please verify with a gynaecologist of your choice to
receive competent advice and care."
Mara's head shot around as she glared at the offending grille of the kit's
inbuilt loudspeaker. How could she have overlooked that? Blast it - to hell
with modern technology. Who needed a pregnancy test that was actually
talking to you? Didn't they know ninety-nine percent of women always did
them in secrecy?
"I bet a man invented that." She growled darkly.
Luke's eyes had gone as round as saucers and his wife prepared herself for a
lecture of how she shouldn't keep such things from him. For the second time
this night, the Jedi Master surprised her, though.
"Won't you look what it says?" Only the slightest quiver betrayed his
nervousness as he stood still and rooted to the spot, his intense eyes fixed
on her. Their depths swirled with a mix of emotions she could all too well
relate to. There was joy and desire and a longing so fervent it was eclipsed
only by the fear shimmering underneath. They would both be crushed, Mara
realized, if the test were to be negative.
It seemed impossible to insist on looking first at it, on looking alone at
it, in face of the intensity of the feelings of the man before her. And
contrary to what she might have expected to feel, having Luke leave her
alone now was the last thing Mara wanted.
There was a long moment in which their eyes met, a moment that held
potential for a dispute, for a discussion as to whether Mara had been right
- had had the right - to keep this from hiim, even if only for a short time,
but the question was dismissed as quickly as it had flared up and the slight
woman extended a hand to her husband.
Luke's smile was as shiny as the sun and he grasped her hand firmly as he
stepped next to her.
"What do you think?" His voice was but a whisper and just like herself, he
didn't yet glance at the testing kit that sat patiently waiting and
thankfully silent.
Mara knew that the answer to this question would be more important to him
than any result medical technology could possibly turn out. There were
things that the Force could tell you and no other source could refute. It
was what he believed and it was what she herself had come to believe, too.
Her voice was rough as she replied. "I think I felt. something."
Luke breathed in deeply and simultaneously, without another word, they
ripped apart their gazes and looked down at the small display. The letters
were bright yellow and too small for an announcement of this significance,
or so it felt to both of them, and yet they seemed to jump out of their
confines and spring into their faces.
Mara hadn't left but a second to register what her eyes were seeing before
Luke swept her up in his arms and twirled her around, silently but with no
less of enthusiasm and bubbling emotions as if he had shouted his happiness
out loud. It rolled over her in waves of sheer joy and she willingly
succumbed to it and clung to him as he carried her back to bed.
There was an abundance of emotions, an abundance of love and affection,
gratefulness and passion that found only one way of expression at a time
where a little infant slept two rooms farther down the corridor.
*~~
The sun was radiant this morning and the air was filled with freshness as
Luke Skywalker and Han Solo made their way through the upper corridors of
the Imperial Palace. They had met early on to undertake a trip to the
single, artificial lake that adorned the centre of galactic politics. It was
there that the retired Admiral Ackbar had a small home that he occupied
whenever he was on planet.
He mostly lived on his own homeworld, the water world of Mon Calamari, now
that he did not have any official duties left in the New Republic Fleet, but
every now and then he would spend several weeks among the hustle and bustle
of Coruscant City to meet with old friends and to devote time to several of
programs he had invented to aid young pilots from underprivileged worlds and
species.
It would take two hours at the least to reach him and there had been a
short, but fiery discussion as to who was supposed to go in the first place.
Leia could not make herself free, so it had been clear from the beginning
that Han would go. Unbeknownst to the former smuggler and the princess, the
private discussion held at the breakfast table of the Skywalker household
had been much less obvious.
In the end - to his own surprise - Luke had actually managed to convince
Mara to stay back, to go and see Cilghal and make sure that everything was
in order.
As an end result, he felt energetic and perfectly happy, despite the serious
nature of their visit to the former Admiral. His good mood must have been
obvious, as Han was grinning at him broadly by the time they settled into
the Solo's speeder and checked on their course a last time. Both the Jedi
and the ex-smuggler knew their way around Coruscant, having lived for over a
decade on the world of skyscrapers and sky domes, but even they could not
tell where there would be a traffic jam.
"Had a good night, kid?"
Luke wished he could have simply wiped the grin from his face, but he didn't
manage. The revelation of the last night buzzed within him like a swarm of
bees and he had the suspicion he wouldn't get rid of the grin for quite a
while to come.
"I had."
Han smirked and watched his brother-in-law out of the corner of his eyes as
he filed into the nearest lane of speeders and adjusted his speed. It was
unusual for him to adhere to traffic rules, but he was curious on finding
out just what exactly Luke was so happy about and it was easier to grill him
if he didn't have to concentrate on his flying all too much.
"Just spill it, won't you?"
The Jedi Master's grin widened - even though Han would have thought that
particular stunt impossible - and although he would have loved to let Han
guess, the truth had bubbled out before he had consciously registered it.
"You like being an uncle?"
The Corellian frowned, "'Course I do. Your crawler is the cutest little guy.
He reminds me a lot of Anakin."
The former farmboy from Tatooine beamed at the words and his eyes twinkled
as he fixed them on Han, "Do you think you'll be able to handle twice that
amount of Skywalker genes?"
There was a moment of silence in which Han's brain processed what he had
heard before he punched Luke's shoulder good-naturedly. "Another one?
Another boy?"
Luke felt the universe brighten even more at the joy he heard in his
brother-in-law's voice and didn't care whether he looked as dreamy as a
teenager. "A girl."
Han's eyebrows shot up, but a knowing smile substituted this gesture a mere
second later. "I see," He said softly. The Corellian remembered all too
vividly the way it had felt when he had first held Jaina in his arms, so
tiny, so beautiful. He loved both his sons dearly, but his daughter held a
special place. She always would, with him as well as with Luke.
The Jedi had always gushed over his niece, as much as the girl had always
gushed over her uncle, and Luke had every bit as weak a spot for her as her
father had.
"It's going to be a girl, you know." Luke repeated, a flicker of doubt in
his azure eyes as he mustered Han suspiciously.
His friend smiled, "I wish it for you, kid."
Luke seemed momentarily flustered and hurried to add, "Not that I wouldn't
love another son, it's just. I've always wanted."
"Believe me, I understand, Luke. I understand completely. It was like that
for me, too, with Jaina."
The younger man settled back in his seat and his gaze wandered off into
eternity as he pondered the Corellian's walls, "It was?"
Han nodded, "Absolutely. I would have adored another son, but Jaina. a
daughter is something special. I can't explain it. Maybe because she has so
much of her mother, you know?"
"She really is a lot like Leia," Luke mused aloud.
The former smuggler chuckled, "Your sister will have a fit! She worships
Ben. A niece on top of that will send her to seventh haven."
Luke smiled wistfully. He looked forward to tell his sister and let her
reaction nourish his fatherly pride. It was not something Luke Skywalker
normally indulged in, but if it came to his child - his children - he
allowed himself the pride, the doting, the worshipping, determined to pour
all his love over the small beings.
"Ackbar will love the news, too. He is crazy about human kids. Remember how
he wouldn't let Anakin out of his sight at all at his name-giving?"
"Yeah," Luke chuckled, "He was just as fascinated by Ben. Mon Calamari
children must be so very different."
Han shrugged, "I have no idea. You can ask him, of course. A much nicer
topic than asking him to exploit his acquaintances and do us a favour."
And with that, the seriousness of the situation came back. It weighed not
all too much on their spirits, but it did dampen the exuberance a bit. At
the same time, it strengthened their determination. Luke would do everything
to ensure the safety of his family, of his unborn daughter. And he knew Han
would do the same for his niece-to-be.
They continued in silence, both content in their personal joy.
*~~
Ackbar's living room was elegantly furnished, with flowing forms and soft
colours, as it was custom among his species. The Mon Cal were peaceful,
sophisticated and art-loving creatures, a trait they expressed even when
they were building the impressive warships that had carried the Alliance to
many victories and ensured the peace in the New Republic more often than
anyone could count.
The moisture was not really comfortable, but Luke and Han had both spent
more than enough time with the amphibian Admiral to have become used to it a
long while ago.
The former Admiral inclined his bulbous head with dignity and his deep voice
rumbled with an undertone of pleasure as he gestured for his guests to sit.
"It is good to see you again, Luke. And Han! We should do this more often."
"It is good to see you, too, Admiral. And I agree, we should really make a
point of getting together whenever you're on Coruscant." Luke smiled as he
sank onto the sofa.
Han clasped his hand into the cool, moist fin of the alien and joined his
brother-in-law on the piece of furniture, "I'm sorry that we don't come with
only a friendly visit in mind."
Ackbar waved the apology away, "I have been following the news and the
accusations against Senator Omas are ridiculous. I do believe in his
innocence. And Leia called me yesterday. She told me about the threat she
received and of course I heard about the attempt on the lives of you and
your wife, Luke." He spread his massive arms wide. "If I can help, I will.
Tell me what I can do."
*~~
Leaves were falling, emptying the woods of his native world bit by bit,
until the winter would bury them under masses of snow for the time being. It
was a steady procedure, as bit by bit the old was vanquished and the place
was readied for the new.
He smiled and imagined the trees as his adversaries and the leaves as the
losses they would have to bear - losses akin to the ones that had befallen
him, on their instigation, repeatedly in his bungled life.
It was a bittersweet note that even his revenge would not restore him to
what he had once been, but it would bring him satisfaction.
His eyes narrowed and skimmed over yet another report one of his trusted
informants had furnished him. The development was unexpected, but his plans
were flexile and although it was a move he had not expected of them, they
had ultimately only played in his hands.
There were other letters demanding his attentions, letters of pawns and
servants that were unaware of their unimportance and either about to panic
or to become too curious for their own good. They believed he was supporting
them, they believed he was considering them allies and friends, but they
were means to be used and would eventually be discarded.
If the time had come - which it hadn't. There were more steps to be
completed. One was only hours away. And he would relish it, would follow the
news and let the delight ripple through his body when the tragedy was
announced to the population of the galaxy.
*~~
Once they had filled in Admiral Ackbar about everything that had transpired
and specified the kind of help they required of him, they had spent more
hours talking about perfectly normal every-day things, nurturing a
friendship that had developed over many years from a deep-sitting respect
for each other.
Luke remembered well the times at which he had quivered with nervousness and
embarrassment whenever he had had to face the amphibian Admiral. His
tactical abilities, his fairness and his unshakable ideals had instilled
respect in every member of the fleet and the Jedi Master was sure that the
Civil War would have had another ending altogether if Ackbar had not been on
the Rebel Alliance's side, if he had not been freed of his slavery to Grand
Moff Tarkin.
The respect the alien had paid him in return and the trust he had had in him
had seemed amazing and unexpected to the youth Luke had been in these times.
He had appreciated it and in the years they had fought for the destruction
of the Empire and the creation of the New Republic they had developed a
sound friendship. Not overtly close, but loyal.
By the time he and Han were climbing back into the speeder, it was late
afternoon and the sun was burning fiercely, unusually hot for this time of
the year. Han mumbled something about too hot a summer to be expected but
knew his brother-in-law well enough to not wait for Luke to agree. Having
grown up on Tatooine, the Jedi seemed to draw energy from the sun and when
everyone around him was groaning because of the temperatures, Luke would
only intone that Tatooine used to be a lot hotter and that all over the
year.
The sun glinted on the canopies of the vehicles as they filed in behind
another speeder and the traffic was slow-going as the rush hour filled the
sky with too many craft.
"We should have stayed for dinner," Luke murmured. He had leant back into
his seat and closed his eyes, figuring the return trip would be as good an
opportunity as any to catch up with the sleep he had not had the previous
night.
Thus he didn't actually see the scathing look the Corellian sent him,
although he knew it to be there all the same.
"You're so funny, kid. Don't think I can't throw you out the side door just
because you're going to become Daddy again."
Luke laughed, remembering all too well the culinary disaster they had been
faced with the last time the Admiral had invited them to an evening with
delicacies from his planet. It was seldom that the tastes of humans and an
amphibian species complemented each other.
"It would have humoured Ackbar. He'll have a lot to do checking out all we
asked him to."
Han snorted audibly, "It wouldn't have humoured him; it would have amused
him. He was having the time of his life when I had to eat all those sea
slugs at his fifty year jubilee."
"We ALL had to eat them, Han." Luke reminded him.
"But he was sitting opposite ME. I couldn't bribe the closest Mon Cal to
surreptitiously eat my slugs, too, like a certain Jedi Master of my
acquaintance did."
Luke just kept chuckling in his seat for a while longer. After a while,
though, as the traffic thickened some more and the sun kept heating up the
canopy, he eventually felt himself doze off slightly.
He had no idea how long he had been in this light slumber when a sense of
unease wormed itself into his awareness. He sat straight up and took a look
around to orient himself. The spires of the Imperial Palace were already in
sight, but it would still take them at least another hour to reach them,
provided Han would keep following the rules and regular space lanes. He
couldn't have slept more than fifteen minutes or something.
Han turned his head from his perusal of the aft of the speeder before them
and cocked an eyebrow, "Bad feeling?"
Luke frowned, "What's up?"
The Corellian turned his head back to look at the speeder before them, but
his attention clearly was focused in the opposite direction, "We're being
followed - for a couple of minutes already."
"Are you sure?"
"Luke, please."
The Jedi grimaced, "Sorry." He settled back into his seat, intent on giving
their pursuers the impression that neither of them had noticed anything was
amiss. "What do we do? Call them out or not?"
"We could call security. Of course they would get away then. They'll be
monitoring our com transmissions.."
"And that would not help us any. If we get them, on the other hand, we might
learn who sent them and be a step closer to finding out who's behind all
this."
"You're speaking my mind, kid." Han was grinning at him and Luke found he
could not keep a smile from lingering on his face.
"Then let's call them out."
Han didn't need another incentive and immediately broke out of the traffic
lane. He descended - illegally - three lanes, broke starboard and headed out
over the industrial district where the air would be open and permit them to
go to top speed. And the state of the art airspeeder that Han had bought for
the Solos a year ago could manage quite an impressive velocity indeed.
Their followers seemed to be aware of that, too. They hit the throttle
immediately and gave up any pretence not to be on the heels of the Jedi and
the former smuggler.
"Security Headquarters?" Luke's question was casual as he unclipped his
lightsaber from his belt. The canopy of their vessel was supposed to be safe
enough, but he wasn't going to take any chances.
Han nodded, "I doubt they realize where we lead them. And Security always
has at least five units up in the air."
As they had expected, their assailants started firing as soon as they had
left the crowded civilian airways behind. Their aim was quite accurate, but
between Han's expert flying and the advanced plating of their speeder there
was no reason to worry quite yet.
They were nearing the spires of a particularly large factory as their
adversaries changed tactics. They abandoned the engines that they had tried
to hit and concentrated fire on the canopy.
Han swore under his breath as Luke unbuckled and turned until he knelt on
his seat, facing the hostile speeder that was astonishingly close behind
them. The Corellian was glaring defiantly as he piloted their craft in wild
manoeuvres. "We're still going to make it."
Luke was sure they would and all the more puzzled that he still didn't feel
reassured. "They can't be that bad." He murmured.
"It's just like on Ord Mantell." Han supplied through gritted teeth as the
vessel bucked violently beneath them. "Hold on tight, kid, I'm going to bank
starboard."
It was a risky turn, but it would cut short their way considerably. They
were not yet in big trouble, but if they had to put up with the constant
barrage of laser fire for much longer, the canopy would burst. THAT would
mark the beginning of trouble.
The spire of the factory was massive and blackened by decades of use and
loomed before them like an ancient beast, threatening them with all the
protrusions that stuck out from his side and could put an end to the mad
chase that was presently taking place, fulfilling the job the pursuers had
come to do.
Han pressed his lips together and concentrated hard, aware of how
meticulously he had to time this to surprise the enemy. They shot around the
monumental building, angling down, so close to its walls that he could see
the pipes for energy and water. The scanner showed their pursuers shooting
over them, helplessly firing a few ill-aimed shots.
The Corellian whooped in delight, but felt his voice leave him as he looked
up from the scanners. Panic and fear mingled with astonishment as he
realized that they HAD known where Luke and Han were leading them, that they
HAD guessed their every move.
He yanked the stick to port, but it was too late. He would have had to react
even before the new obstacle in their path had become visible to avoid the
catastrophe.
There was nothing he could do. They would hit the bulk transport square into
its stern.
*~~
Luke had felt Han's sudden terror and reacted instinctively. The Force was
abundant all around him and he clasped it tightly, weaving a narrow net
around their vehicle.
A push and they dived under the bulk transport. Metal screeched as the
speeder skimmed along the underside of the much larger obstacle and Luke had
to divert a bit of the Force to keep himself steady.
He had to see where they were going if he wanted to ensure their survival.
Luckily the industrial district of Coruscant City was rich of derelict,
abandoned hangars. It would have been especially bad luck if there had none
of them been close.
It needed another nudge and an immense amount of Force energy to give them
the right trajectory and by the time they were sliding uncontrolled along
the floor of an abandoned storage hall, Luke's knees were wobbly from the
exertion. He tried not to think of the fact that he had stood upright on a
speeder nose-diving into the depths of Coruscant City and used the last
shreds of control to slow them as much as possible.
The power of the jerks along the way was nonetheless immense and Luke
finally tripped, falling backwards. As if in slow motion he saw Han be
catapulted in the opposite direction and realized the speeder was still
going too fast. The Corellian would be sent flying over the canopy and be
killed smashing against the wall. Without a conscious thought, Luke erected
a Force wall before the permabeton they were speeding towards and had the
satisfaction to see the vessel come to a bumpy, but relatively harmless
halt. Han lost momentum and crashed down against the dashboard with a
sickening thud. The spike of worry that erupted within Luke was cut short as
he hit the floor and rolled like a puppet, unable to control his body.
He eventually slammed into something, bumping his head soundly, and lay
dazed.
*~~
Han's ears were ringing madly and he felt blood trickle down his back. The
world was spinning around him, but he didn't feel as if anything was broken.
Pure willpower let him crawl out of the speeder and forward. He came to a
shaky stand and looked in awe at the wreck that had been his craft only a
couple of minutes ago. The nose was smashed backwards - it seemed an absurd
picture as there were at least two dozen meters left between the vehicle and
the actual wall.
Amazement changed to horror as his jumbled thoughts brought memories back to
him, sketchy memories of a lean figure stumbling backwards and connecting
with the floor and he whirled around, ignoring the stars that danced before
his eyes.
Relief flooded him as he saw Luke pick himself up in front of a pillar quite
a distance away. The Jedi waved over to him with what seemed a poorly
coordinated gesture and Han could very vividly imagine the fog that was
clouding the other's thoughts as his own seemed very misty, too.
He had to stop his advance and sought in vain for something to lean on as
his knees buckled and he sank to the floor. The Corellian thought to hear
his brother-in-law call his name, but he couldn't have been sure. His ears
didn't seem to function as they were supposed to and he had every reason to
doubt his eyes, too, as the world around him faded to grey and eventually to
black.
He never saw the thin figure that came up behind his brother-in-law as
oblivion gripped him.
*~~
"Damn you, Jedi! You should be dead. You should both be dead!"
Rage cursed through him, pure fury, as he had to accept yet another failure.
Just like on Ord Radama, it had once again been Skywalker to spoil his
plans, to discredit him in the eyes of his master.
It had been such an artfully concealed trap, should have meant certain,
fiery death for both of them, Solo and the Jedi alike, and yet they had
still managed to thwart fate and survive!
How he wished to be allowed to kill them now, one after the other - now that
they were helpless and wounded. It would have been so easy! But his orders
were more than clear. He had a contingency plan to follow - he would
naturally be punished for the fact that this contingency plan had to be
followed in the first place, but that didn't mean he could ignore it.
There were reasons, too. He had made sure that there were no traces to be
followed that could possibly link his master or himself to the accident with
the speeder. Would he cut their throats, would he kill them now, the
investigation would necessarily lead to him and from him to his master. No
matter whether they had heeded every security advice they had been able to
come up with. There were always traces to be followed and no risk was to be
needlessly taken.
"Curse you!" He spat again as he gripped the Jedi from behind and brought
the damp cloth in his left to the smaller human's mouth and nose. Under
normal circumstances it would have been insane for him to challenge a Jedi,
but Skywalker was weakened. His movements had been slow and insecure - he
had most certainly suffered a concussion.
The cloth had been dumped into a strong narcotic, strong enough to take
advantage of the disorientation induced by such a crash and overcome the
victim before the Jedi could get a hold of this famous Force of his and
dispel the drug's effects.
There was a struggle, determined and stubborn, though eventually useless.
Within a second, he could see pupils dilate and eyes go sightless as
Skywalker succumbed to the fumes and slackened in his hold.
He lowered the lean figure onto the floor and stood straight, breathing
deeply to relieve himself of his lust for murder.
Sirens blared in the distance. It would take some more minutes for them to
find this abandoned location. Enough time to receive new orders and fulfil
them.
He contacted his master and relayed the situation, also per his orders,
suggesting with all due humility that the opportunity was too good to be
ignored. His advice fell on deaf ears and he was told to rely on the
contingency plan after all, with some slight refinements to adapt it to the
present.
Very well. He would follow orders.
The sirens were approaching rapidly and he hurried onward. Solo was to be
ignored, deemed the less dangerous adversary and easier killed by
conventional means. The Jedi, on the other hand.
It took a quick injection which went by the oblivious man and by the time
the first investigators and emergency medics arrived at the scene, he had
long left it behind him.
*~~
The disapproval of his underling had been plainly audible as he had reported
in. The fool was unable to grasp the concept of the plan, to foresee the
consequences and act accordingly to salvage what was left.
Of course the Coruscant Police would be searching all over the planet for
the speeder that had attacked the Jedi Master and the husband of the Chief
of State. Maybe they would even find the perpetrators. They had no
information that could compromise him or his aide.
If he had had him kill Skywalker and Solo, though, cut their throat, break
their neck or whatever else his servant might have conceived the other would
have had no chance to leave the planet. He would have been caught and would
have endangered him.
That was unacceptable.
If he was honest, he was almost relieved that his revenge had not been all
that easy. Organa Solo would still be shell shocked, the groundwork for the
final stage of his scheme was laid and, best of all, he would be able to
take his revenge personally.
He keyed in a number and contacted another of his henchmen to have him
prepare what was necessary. Then he rose from his seat. He had a suitcase to
pack.
To be Continued...